“To be born in Wales, not with a silver spoon in your mouth, but with music in your blood and with poetry in your soul, is a privilege indeed.” Brian Harris
Welcome to this week's CST 'Saint David's Day' activities page, celebrating all things Welsh.
To begin, ask members what they like or love about Wales and the Welsh.
Who was born and bred here?
Are there any stories about growing up in Wales?
Has anyone a favourite place in Wales they would recommend others to visit?
What is Wales most famous for? It's mountains, countryside, castles, beaches, it's food or language?
Has anyone got a favourite Welsh celebrity? Why do they like them so much?
How would people try and explain what Wales is like to let's say an American?
A favourite saying on St David's Day is 'Gwnewch y pethau bychain' - "Do the little things." These were apparently St David's last words.
DAFFODILS
After Welcome and Introductions, hand each member a daffodil. Use it as a short Mindfulness practice. Ask members to examine the daffodil, it's shape, colour, texture, smell and so on. As they do so, read the following poem by Wordsworth. (Be aware of any risk that a member might taste or ingest their daffodil and observe more closely.)
"I wandered lonely as a cloud
That floats on high o'er vales and hills,
When all at once I saw a crowd,
A host, of golden daffodils;
Beside the lake, beneath the trees,
Fluttering and dancing in the breeze.
Continuous as the stars that shine
And twinkle on the milky way,
They stretched in never-ending line
Along the margin of a bay:
Ten thousand saw I at a glance,
Tossing their heads in sprightly dance.
The waves beside them danced; but they
Out-did the sparkling waves in glee:
A poet could not but be gay,
In such a jocund company:
I gazed—and gazed—but little thought
What wealth the show to me had brought:
For oft, when on my couch I lie
In vacant or in pensive mood,
They flash upon that inward eye
Which is the bliss of solitude;
And then my heart with pleasure fills,
And dances with the daffodils."
– William Wordsworth (1815)
SYMBOLS OF WALES
Discuss these symbols of Wales. Are there any more to add?
IDIOMS AND PROVERBS
Next, ask members to complete the following Welsh themed phrases ...
Land of - MY FATHERS / SONG
Severn - BRIDGE (Now 'King Charles 111 Bridge)
The green green grass - OF HOME
Black sheep of - THE FAMILY
How green was - MY VALLEY
Under Milk - WOOD
Bread of - HEAVEN
Six - NATIONS
Grand - SLAM
Wooden - SPOON
Brecon - BEACONS
Prince of - WALES
Men of - HARLECH
Welsh - DRESSER
Love - SPOON
Welsh Border - COLLIE
Welsh - CORGI
Spitting - FEATHERS
HARP - on about something
Take a - LEEK
Red - DRAGON
Oggy Oggy Oggy - OI OI OI
And for fun ...
Whose coat is that - JACKET?
I'll be there now in a - MINUTE
How's it going - BUTT?
I'm not being funny - RIGHT
Where you - TO?
I'm not gonna lie - TO YOU
That is absolutely - BUZZING, HUMMING, MINGING
She's under the - DOCTOR
Poor - DAB
Tidy - LIKE
Cheers - DRIVE
This is cowing - LUSH
"Oh, what's - OCCURRING?"
SOME WELSH PHRASES AND THEIR MEANINGS
Ask members to guess at the meanings of these common Welsh phrases and words ...
Croeso I Gymru - WELCOME TO WALES
Cymru am byth - WALES FOR EVER
Bore da - GOOD MORNING
Diolch yn fawr - THANK YOU VERY MUCH
Chwarae teg - FAIR PLAY
Iechyd da - GOOD HEALTH
Eglwys - CHURCH
Traeth - BEACH
Ysgol - SCHOOL
Heddlu - POLICE
Ysbyty - HOSPITAL
Dwr - WATER
Bara - BREAD
Drws - DOOR
Ty bach - TOILET
Ych a fi - DISGUSTING
Cwtch - CUDDLE
Hiraeth - HOMESICKNESS
Cariad - LOVE AFFECTION
Song break (lyric video) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wl-kCW9O3xI
How old is Tom Jones?
MUSIC & PICTURE QUIZ
Round 1. Moments In Welsh History
Discuss the importance of these moments in Welsh history & any reminiscences ...
1906 - It was at the Cardiff Coal Exchange that the first ever £1,000,000 deal was agreed in 1904. The money was used to buy 2,500 tonnes of Welsh coal for export to France.
1947 - In September 1947, the Fifth Marquess of Bute handed over the keys of Cardiff Castle to Lord Mayor, Alderman George Ferguson, in what was described as “a gesture of truly royal nature”. The castle, along with its parkland, was presented as a gift to the people of the city. Here is a video clip - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dFZGTLyGTfc&t=31s
1948 - On 5th July 1948, Aneurin Bevan's 'National Health Service Act 1946' came into force. Nye Bevan attended a ceremony at the Park Hospital, Trafford (now Trafford General), at which he symbolically received the keys to the first NHS hospital.
1960 - Six Bells Colliery was a coal mine situated in Abertillery. On 28th June 1960 it was the site of an underground explosion which killed 45 of the 48 miners working in that part of the mine. It is now the site of the artistically acclaimed 'Guardian' memorial dedicated to those events and all mining communities wherever they may be.
1966 - The Aberfan disaster was the catastrophic collapse of a colliery spoil tip on 21st October 1966. The tip had been created on a mountain slope above the Welsh village of Aberfan, near Merthyr Tydfil, and overlaid a natural spring. Heavy rain led to a build-up of water within the tip which caused it to suddenly slide downhill as a slurry, killing 116 children and 28 adults as it engulfed Pantglas Junior School and a row of houses.
The Aberfan clock, recovered from the school, showed the time the landslip hit.
1969 - The investiture of Charles, Prince of Wales (later King Charles III), took place in Caernarfon Castle, north Wales, on 1st July 1969. The ceremony formally presented the title of Prince of Wales to the 20-year-old Charles, eldest son of Queen Elizabeth II.
The ball on the top of the crown (which replaced a long lost jewel), was a ping pong ball spray painted gold.
Most schoolchildren were given one of these mugs.
1984 - The miners' strike of 1984-85 was a defining moment in the history of British coal mining and the biggest industrial dispute in post-war Britain. It pitted thousands of miners and their trade unions against then prime minister Margaret Thatcher and her Conservative government, which supported plans to shut 20 coal pits. The miners' strike was led by Arthur Scargill and signalled the end of the deep mining industry in Wales.
1999 - The 'Government of Wales Act 1998' provided for the establishment of the National Assembly for Wales following the affirmative devolution referendum in September 1997. The Act also provided for the transfer of all the powers of the Secretary of State for Wales to the new Welsh Assembly.
In tribute to those lost in the above disasters ...
VIDEO BREAK. Read by Michael Sheen - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w-sM-t1KI_Y
(A Dylan Thomas read version is in the playlist.)
Which other country in the world has had a Welsh speaking community since 1865?
How many people in Wales speak Welsh?
Round 2. Tourist Attractions
How many of these tourist attractions can you name & how many have you visited?
Here are some accompanying questions ...
What is the mountain called now?
What lamp is he holding?
Which TV show was filmed here?
Which monastic island is situated just off the coast?
Which go up and which go down, stalagmites or stalactites?
Which seaside town is below?
Which pub has just been rebuilt here?
What is the name of the ship?
What is the name of the opera house and what do locals call it?
Which holiday camp used to be here?
Name the Welsh comedian?
Name the Area Of Outstanding Natural Beauty?
Which convention is held here every September?
Who wrote his best works here?
Which children's author was christened here?
Which ship sits on top of the lighthouse?
Name the canal?
What does the sign above translate into in English (a point for each correct word guessed)?
Can anyone say the name correctly, for a bonus point?
Name the 7 cities of Wales, this being the smallest city in the British Isles?
Here is a lovely video about Saint David and Saint David's Day - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gsVTf29JsvQ
Round 3. Food & Drink
Name this Welsh sausage & what is the main vegetable ingredient?
Name the crumbly Welsh cheese?
Name this Welsh delicacy (some call it "Welsh caviar") & what substance is it made from?
Name this Welsh meat balls & what meats are they made with?
What does 'S.A.' stand for?
Name this Welsh savoury snack & what two English ingredients are required (one is a condiment, the other is a sauce)?
Name this Welsh soup & what meat is used to make it?
Name this cake & what is it spiced with?
Name this bread & what is its English translation?
Name this roast dinner & what sauce would you traditionally have with it?
Name this shellfish & where would you find them?
Name this soup?
Hands up if yo've had a tray of curry and chips from 'Dorothy's' on chippy alley in Cardiff.
Round 4. TV & Movies
Name this 1941 movie starring Maureen O'Hara and a young Roddy McDowall?
Name this 1959 movie starring John & Hayley Mills?
Name this TV thriller & what number was he?
Name this 1956 war movie starring Stanley Baker & Michael Caine?
Name this 1963 movie starring Richard Burton & Elizabeth Taylor?
Name the children's TV show & name the driver?
Name the superhero and his friend?
Name the TV sitcom & the actor?
Name the TV sitcom & the actor?
Name this 2006 movie & what part did Michael Sheen play?
Name this 1991 movie & what part did Anthony Hopkins play?
Name this Dr. Who & his two arch enemies (most of the recent series are filmed in and around Cardiff)?
Name this 1967 rugby based movie?
Name this TV sitcom & the other two characters?
Name the TV sitcom & the character?
Song break.
What was Shirley Bassey's nickname?
Round 5. Sporting Heroes
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