Wale Okediran
Even though the Wales versus England Rugby game was set for 4,45pm at the Principality Stadium in Cardiff on that sunny Saturday afternoon, England fans had started pouring into the Welsh capital city as early as 10am.
Rather than move directly into the stadium, the gaily dressed exuberant English fans gravitated towards the several pubs that dotted the precincts of the Cardiff Central train station.
From my vantage point a few meters outside the station, I watched as hundreds of England fans kept pouring out of the trains that had brought them from London. Expectedly, it was a rowdy and exuberant crowd and I considered myself lucky to have been just a train ahead of the fans.
When I asked one visibly inebriated fan why all the fans were moving to the other side of the stadium instead of the stadium itself, he giggled and told me that they had to put away some pints of beer in order to be in a good mood for the match.
Even though I am a very passionate sportsman, I know next to nothing about Rugby, a game which I considered too physical and combative to be enjoyed. However, some of my friends who are Rugby buffs have tried to educate me about the game which has been described as; ‘a game of passion that’s full of action, excitement, and beauty, as well as unpredictable moments and dramatic resolutions’.
While Rugby can be intimidating for the first time viewer or player, it is said to be governed by laws, not rules. The laws of the game are said to be designed to produce an entertaining and free-flowing contest for possession in an attempt to score the most points.
As I mingled and chatted freely with the Rugby fans, I was briefly tempted to change my itinerary and get a ticket for the match. Perhaps, I would learn more about the famous sport which is said to be older than soccer.
History has it that Rugby predated the modern soccer game.
While the first written rules for rugby were established at Rugby in the 1840s, and the Rugby Football Union was founded in 1871, soccer’s governing body, the Football Association, wasn’t formed until 1863, and the first official international soccer match didn’t happen until 1872 – a year after rugby’s first international game.
However, I changed my mind and decided to stick to my original schedule of a visit to some family members whom no thanks to the ‘Japa Syndrome’ had relocated abroad thus adding to the challenges of old age when, according to a wordsmith; ‘the house becomes so quiet, you can hear the refrigerator think’.
In addition to the arduous job of ‘local and international parenting’ I also wanted to undertake a long held dream to do some sightseeing of the beautiful and historic Welsh city of Cardiff.
I had departed London earlier that day by train from Paddington station for the 129 miles (208 km) journey which took approximately two hours.
It was a very comfortable train that was well heated to counter the cold, 10 degrees temperature outside In between working on my laptop and enjoying the scenic route through various towns and landscapes, the train snaked through the beautiful bucolic English countryside.
As the rolling hills, sedate country houses, grazing fields and picturesque horizons flashed by, the train stopped at several towns. Reading came first with a blazing early morning sunshine that bathed the horizon with a golden mien.
More rolling hills and valleys followed before the sleepy town of Swindon came into view.
Moments later, we chanced upon Bristol Parkway and Newport before breezing into the busy station of Cardiff Central where commuters were welcomed with a barrage of public announcements in English and Welsh.
As directed, I disembarked at Platform 3 – ‘Llwyfan tri’ (in Welsh), and made my way to the reception hall where I fell into the warm embrace of my hosts.
It was a joyful reunion with some of my grandchildren who out of excitement greeted me in their newly learned Welsh language. Even though I congratulated them on their achievement, I could not but get worried about this generational change of cultural inclination which someone once described as ‘ a tiny complication of exporting children’.
Of course, this is not a new development. As more and more Africans emigrated to foreign lands, the habits, culture and languages of their offsprings also changed.
In his article; ‘Diaspora Babies And The Burden Of Cultural Alienation In Africa And The West’ Okechukwu Nzeribe offered the following exposition; ‘’The term diaspora babies refers to children born to migrant families who relocated to the Western world. Their existence presents a dual identity that embodies a promise of cultural flexibility which could be both a gift and a burden.
In an increasingly globalized world, diaspora babies are the perfect tools for establishing cultural bridges between societies as their understanding of the operations of both can guide diplomatic exchanges while fostering stronger relationship ties.
While benefits like this exist, several diaspora babies often struggle with the feelings of not having roots within any culture thereby creating a feeling of alienation as they struggle for balance while dealing with the issues of identity crises”.
This long standing cultural integration significantly played out during the last World Cup which took place in the US where many western countries were represented by nationalized players of African origin.
I will later learn that even the captain of the England Rugby team that would be playing against Wales later that day, Oghenemaro (Maro) Itoje, is a British player of Nigerian origin.
After a breakfast of chicken sandwich and coffee, at the FIVE GUYS, a busy eatery on Mary’s Street and some quality time with my Welsh speaking Yoruba grandchildren, I commenced my sightseeing of the Cardiff city centre and the central business district of the city.
According to my map, the city centre consists of principal shopping streets: Queen Street, St. Mary’s Street and the Hayes, as well as large shopping centres, and numerous arcades and lanes that house some smaller, specialized shops and boutiques. The area is tightly bound by the River Taff to the west, the Civic Centre to the north and railway lines and two railway stations – Central and Queen Street – to the south and east respectively.
As I continued my walking tour of the city which is said to be the sixth most successful shopping destination in the United Kingdom – behind London, Glasgow, Birmingham, Manchester and Liverpool, I was impressed by the vibrant and historic city with its rich history and culture.
I was able to explore the city’s arcades, beautiful shops, dining spots and some of its iconic landmarks such as the St John’s Church, City Hall, the National Museum as well as the Cardiff Castle, a Victorian Gothic building which dates back to the 11th century.
I was also pleasantly surprised to learn that Cardiff has also been a filming location for several major films and TV shows.
Some of the notable productions that have utilized Cardiff’s scenic beauty and historical sites are; ‘Doctor Who’ – the iconic British science fiction series, ‘Sherlock’ – the detective series which featured Cardiff’s National Museum and Cardiff’s Castle in its episodes as well as ‘Pride and Prejudice’ – the beloved novel adaptation that has also utilized Cardiff’s picturesque landscapes for its filming among several others.
Even though all I had come to do was sightseeing, as a Film producer, stumbling on the very important discovery of Cardiff as a Film production hub was an icing on the cake for me.
In addition to the historic castle, the St Fagans National Museum of History with its restored buildings that were rescued from all over Wales and reopened here to show how Welsh people lived, worked and worshiped throughout the centuries was another tourist delight.
Regarded as the first museum of its type in Britain, the site is Wales’s top heritage attraction as well as a previous site of Wales’s largest ever battle in 1648.
Famished after a long day walking tour, I ducked into a nearby eatery for a meal of mashed potatoes and poached salmon on butter.
That was when I heard some small talk about Wales’ future in the UK from some of the patrons in the cafe.
According to the gist, some political leaders from Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland were contemplating signing a joint agreement calling for self-determination. They argued that central decisions from London no longer matched local voter priorities, reopening major debates over independence referendums across the United Kingdom.
Suddenly from a large TV screen at the corner of the Cafe, I learnt that the England rugby team was leading Wales by a wide margin of 58-12. I will be later informed that the match ended by a record 68-14 scoreline, an achievement considered one of the best performances by England in recent years.
At that moment, my
concern was no longer about the gist on the future of Wales.
What was uppermost on my mind was how to get ahead of the English football fans before they overcrowd the trains. I therefore quickly finished my food and rushed to the train station.
Luckily, despite a 30 minute delay due to ‘engine problems’ I was able to board a London- bound train just as a tidal wave of jubilant England fans, some of whom were shirtless broke into the railway station.
As the tubular and serpentine vehicle nosed its way into now gathering Welsh twilight, I congratulated myself for a ‘great escape’
