Dydd Gwyl Dewi Hapus!

Happy Saint David's Day everybody! I feel so patriotic towards my home country of Wales on this day. I even have a pack of welsh cakes open beside me. At home there's always a sense of celebration and pride to be Welsh. In Manchester, there's nothing. No daffodils, no Cawl being sold everywhere (not that I like Cawl. Bleurgh), and no leeks.

When I was in primary school, there used to be a little Eisteddfod and the four houses would compete against each other to gain points, and at the end of the competition, there was a ceremony for the Bardd, who would win the Cadair. Usually, whoever's house got the Chair won because it was worth like a gazillion points. I was in the house that always lost. Every year we lost. Every. Single. Year.

When I try to explain to my English friends what an Eisteddfod is...I can't. There isn't an English version. It's a welsh tradition through and through to celebrate the music, poetry and arts of Wales.

This tradition took over the whole school day, which meant NO LESSONS! It was also one of the few days of the year that the whole school would sit down together and eat a hearty meal of Cawl. However, this meant that there was no room for those of us who had sandwiches for lunch so we always used to get shoved into a classroom. Boosucks to the school-dinner-eaters - we had Jenga. Mother always used to make me feel special on St David's Day, as it was one of the few days a year I was allowed to have chocolate spread in my sandwiches. The only other few days were my birthday and the Christmas dinner day (which more often than not, landed on the same day).

Oh I'm forgetting the most important thing. We dressed up in the traditional welsh costume which consists of a white blouse, a red shawl, a red skirt with a black line at the bottom, and my favourite part - the bonnet. A black bonnet with white lace. Oh, how I grew to hate that outfit. As we got older, many of the girls wore Welsh rugby shirts instead, but I was never allowed to do this. I hated that outfit with such passion, but now at the ripe old age of 20, I just remember nothing but fond memories for this day.

Because the whole school sat down in one sitting together, we were allowed a longer play time. Most years St David's Day was a crisp, sunny, spring day, and there was nothing we liked to do more than play the game 'Olden Days' in the playground. As a result of being in the outfit, we travelled back in time and imagined what life used to be like when people wore these clothes for everyday purposes.

I'm currently sat on my bed, with my Welsh flag draped around my shoulders, smiling fondly at the memories of my primary school days (and procrastinating from writing my essay.....)