Apart from a wonderful time at their beautiful home cum clinic in Caerau/ Cardiff, Arun introduced me to his friends - among them his postmaster James who delightfully turned out to be a former Police Seargent with the South Wales Constabulary. I am carrying back with me a royal police insignia of the force James formerly belonged to, which I intend presenting to the Delhi Police Museum. Just stupendous!
Arun was excited like a child, we ate and drank together, recalled innumerable memories - 50-year old memories - of our times together at St Aloysius'... ripped apart friends and foes alike with malicious glee, shed tears for those no more, and giggled like little school girls - while he regaled me with tales and anecdotes on his life old and new including tales on his local friends, of love and legend. And we talked late into the night....
How we did it it's difficult to recount, while in between we hogged from Chand's delicious kitchen - her mouth watering dishes - the spicy and crunchy fried jumbo prawns, the baked Sea-Bass (I managed to devour a whole of this fish), pork cooked dry, a Punjabi chicken curry, the cheese and cauliflower bake, not to forget the desi okhra-bindi.. and what have you, downed with copious amounts of red wine that Arun's enthusiastic hands refused to stop pouring... Indeed a fare meant for the "brahmins-of-the-insatiable-appetite" of the vedic era!
And the next morning again a whopping breakfast of cornflakes, eggs, crispy bacon and sausages with croissants and toast, as also smoked mackerel with baked beans in red sauce - downed with coffee and copious amounts of pomegranate juice.... Wow.. !!!
And then he bundled me into the car in a hurry saying we have no time to lose... he had to drive me around the city of Cardiff and its landmarks - the Millennium Stadium, Pierhead Building and the National Assembly for Wales. Cardiff is also famous for its Cardiff Castle, St David's Hall, Llandaff Cathedral and the Wales Millennium Centre, even saw the Police HQs which in Welsh they called "Police Heddlu"
....he took me around Cardiff's new Bay area - to the Norweiigian Church from where the mariner Capt Scott set sail with his fleet, to the beautiful little townships of Wales in the neighbourhood; to castles Castell Coch and Caerphilly, to the famous Brecon Beacon & Cantref water reservoirs with the sweet water the locals export to the world.
To Glamorgan Bay to look at the English coast separated from the Welsh coast by the waters, to Penarth and to Brecon and the glorious landscapes of reservoirs and mountains in between - and not to forget the sheep grazing on these mountain sides that gives the sheep-loving Welsh their famous nickname -which my daughter got me to edit and eraze saying the nickname's presence on my Blog may invite someone to sue me for libel and slander!
And to Brecon Cathedral of St John the Evangelist we went - to also learn about the famous choirs and about the friendly Welsh people with the beautiful voices. At Brecon Cathedral restaurant Arun made me taste the special Welsh cakes that looked like cookies; and then before we wound up our whirlwind tour Arun would not let me leave Cardiff before devouring more - their Fish and Chpps at the "Youngers" quite in the neighbourhood of his former clinic...
All too soon my trip had ended, a memorable one indeed....
In evening traffic Arun made it to Cardiff Central Railway Station literally by the skin of my teeth - and we bid goodbye.....
Here are a few from the pictures I clicked of my Cardiff trip - of Chand and Arun, and the lovely times we had together. Thanks in plenty are due indeed...
With love and best regards,
Maxie
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