Great craftsmanship - musical and artisan

I spent most of yesterday working on my ever expanding story, partly trying to work out how to bring its principal character back home from his travels, now that it's become more and more elaborate. In the evening, we walked over the the Royal Welsh College for an Opera Gala Night. All the graduate students on the opera course perform selected acts from great works, accompanied by the WNO's orchestra, conducted by Carol Rizzi, a well known and much loved musical figure not only in Cardiff but on the international operatic scene.

We were treated to a portion of Humperdink's 'Hansel and Gretel', two portions of Puccini, one from 'La Boeme' and a scene from the one act opera 'Suor Angelica', with the finale from Mozart's 'Cosi Fan Tutte, involving a dozen different singers and an opera chorus made up of students. Our seats were in the third row. The music wasn't too loud, but what was very powerful was being so close to these young opera singers, being able to see them act convincingly, and experiencing the full impact of them living their parts. So powerful, I was moved to tears. A night to remember!

Today, with the promise of fair weather, we ventured out to Brecon for the fist time in several years.
The higher mountains had snow on them after the recent rains, and the reservoirs alongside the A470 were full. The town band was playing Christmas music in a small square and people were collecting for charities. The section of the main street in the vicinity of St Mary's parish church contained two 50 metre marquees sheltering stalls selling Christmas craft goods, in addition to the Market Hall we were heading for.

We had a superb soup and sandwich lunch in the Hatter's Tea Shop, and the lamb cawl I had was the very best I have eaten anywhere. It's a family business, and the matriarch heads the cooking team. She told us that she'd learned to cook cawl from her Grandmother, who always insisted on using fresh vegetables and good quality meat. Cawl is a traditional poor peasant dish, not expecting to use the best meat, but my goodness, what a difference it makes when you do!

Clare was on a mission to visit the a stall there where she knew she could meet the artistic wood turner Bernard Dite, two of whose beautiful wooden bowls we bought from his stall at  St Fagans craft fair last summer. She wanted to buy one as a wedding present for her godson Florian, and this was the only opportunity we could be sure of, as his next St Fagan's date isn't advertised yet. She ended up buying three bowls for presents, beautiful yet practical objects. The ones we bought last summer are in daily use chez nous.

We got back home as it was getting dark, and in the evening I watched the final double episode of French crimmie 'Spiral', which came more or less to the expected conclusion, but with enough of an unfinished plot line to suggest another series. Well, I already knew Series eight was being made. In fact, it may even be aired on Canal Plus in French only now. I wonder how long we will have to wait?

St Fagans May Pole Fiesta

After my clinic visit yesterday morning, I went straight into town to meet briefly with Laura again, before she returns to Romania tomorrow. I was pleased to learn that she had been able to visit the Chapel of Rest where her friend Sheila's body is awaiting her funeral, and pay her last respects. We didn't have long, as I had to go home and get ready to go to Llandough Hospital for my MRI scan, but it was good to have an opportunity to talk once more. 

Clare drove me there and dropped me off. In just over an hour I was finished and waiting for a bus to take me back to Canton on the main road outside the hospital. I learned that I can expect to hear about the scan results in three weeks. I wonder if the surgeon will hear earlier than this?

This morning we drove out to St Fagan's Museum, our first visit for two years. Last year saw the 70th anniversary of its opening. Already a major re-development of the main building was under way, and now it's open, and being touted for a national award, shortlisted with several other museums for their innovative educational work. There's a new entrance hall, large and spacious like an airport departure check-in area, and exhibits upstairs in new and renovated galleries. Whole groups of historic artefacts have been re-located here from the museum in the town centre. It's very impressive and today, on a bank holiday weekend, car parks were almost full and the place was full of families out for the day.

First, we visited an open air arts and crafts fair where I was very much attracted to the work of an unconventional wood turner, Bernard Dite, a one time East Moors steel worker, who uses a lathe and other hand tools to sculpt irregular chunks of wood into a variety of dishes, bowls, vases and flasks, taking advantage of existing flaws, different grains and colours to reveal beautiful patterns which would otherwise never be seen. His artistic creations are refined and some of them extraordinarily lightweight. On impulse, I bought two pieces, one to be a fruit bowl, another for a salad bowl. We might have spent that amount of money on a weekend meal for two, but now we have a feast for the eyes that'll be with us at table every day instead.

On the lawn outside a team of folk dancers and a small band were performing. Later these moved to Gwalia Green, the open area around which many of the historic village shop buildings stand. At two, a May Pole was ceremonially brought in by the men among the dancers, dressed by the women, then erected and danced around for half an hour, drawing many of the younger spectators into the dance. It was such a delight, and the weather was just perfect for it. My photos are here

All of this was an unexpected pleasure. It more than compensated for the bout of stomach cramp that came upon me as we were walking around. Clare had cooked pancakes for breakfast, using a couple of eggs. I didn't think about this when I ate them, and they weren't indigestible, but slowed normal digestive process right down, as my bile duct no longer works with normal efficiency. After half an hour of unpleasant pain and nausea, and drinking a fair amount of water, the sensation passed, and we were able to resume our tour of the grounds, and glimpse some of the new features.

In the evening we went to Chapter Arts to see the movie 'Red Joan', a thought provoking piece about a young scientist who leaked secret atomic research material to the Russians in her twenties, and was finally unmasked in her eighties, based apparently on a true story. Brilliant acting from Judy Dench as the old lady and Sophie Cookson as her younger self. Well with deferring the final double episode of 'Follow the Money' until tomorrow.