Chapter 5
‘We’ve signed a new one year contract for the P A system at the Empire Pool, Cardiff’ Watkin tells Cliff and the others from the firm. ‘The construction of a new pool wasn’t effected until Cardiff was picked to stage the 1958 British Empire and Commonwealth Games.’ Wat explains.
‘The location of the pool is right next to Cardiff Arms Park, which was the main stadium for the Games,’ Wat added. Wat mentions that ‘it has an international standard swimming pool, which measures fifty five yards by twenty yards (50.29 x 18.28 metres) with a depth of between three feet and 16 feet. (0.91 x 3.65 metres) The lads take the opportunity for a swim in their break times and enjoy the refreshing and not too chlorinated water of the pool. Wat shows off with his diving, and Cliff surpasses himself with the over arm crawl, completing the pool length in thirty-five seconds. The lads even manage an impromptu game of water polo, with Watkin now in goal, and Cliff scoring all the points.
‘Daddy, Daddy, I’m having fun on this trampoline,’ cries Tracey who Watkin has collected for the weekend from her mother, who is installed in a terraced flat in Dunvant with her new lover. The whoops of joy and delight coming from Tracey in the garden fill Watkin with pleasure, and Wat promises her ‘Next week I’ll take you to the bouncy castle and we can watch the cricket in the afternoon, then it’s down to Joe's ice cream parlour in the yard of the Oystermouth train station on the Mumbles railway. Joe is sure to give us some great knickerbocker glories with raspberry and chocolate topping,’ Wat assures Tracey. ‘ Did you know, Trace, that Mr. Cascarini from Italy started his cafe because all the workers didn’t have anywhere to go in the mornings when they needed a refreshing roasted bean coffee?’ Wat asks Tracey. ‘After that I’ll take you back to Mummy, and on the way we’ll pop in and see your Gran in West Cross,’ Wat plans ahead, thinking how much he misses her in the week.
‘Look at all those lovely seagulls, Trace.’ ‘Where, Dad?’ Tracey asks. ‘Over near the Mumbles Pier,’ Watkin cries out aboard PS Waverley. They are on the paddle steamer ‘Waverley’ that was rebuilt on the Clyde after the original one was destroyed at the Dunkirk evacuations. ‘We’re going to be in Ilfracombe, Devon in three hours’ explains Watkin to the kids as they enjoy the bracing sea air and enjoy wandering around the paddle steamer, looking at its enormous wooden paddle on each side of the boat and the onboard, coal fired steam engines, sending out hisses and snorts as it works. Right out at sea in the Bristol Channel, Wat says ‘You can see Flat Holmes and Steep Holmes where Saint Gildas lived when visiting his friend Saint Cadoc, and view the welcoming cliffs of Devon,’ he added.
They have time to finish some homemade sandwiches that Wat has managed to prepare, and Jason carries the bag with the Smith’s crisps, and pickled onions and lemonade from TT Thomas, of course. Arrived in Ilfracombe harbour they can only fish the lower section of the pier for a couple of hours before low tide, and Jason manages to catch a few flounders. ‘Come on kids, it’s time for the return trip’ Watkin explains, and they leave Ilfracombe harbour and set out to sea for Swansea docks and Mumbles pier.
‘We’ll buy some lavabread, a delicacy made from seaweed, in Swansea market’ Wat tells Jason ‘and we’ll have a good fry-up with bacon, eggs, tomatoes, sausage, fried bread, beans and mushrooms.’
‘Did you know, Jas, that the original, dome roof of Swansea market was made from the remains of the Brabazon aircraft that was built in Filton, Bristol at the British Aircraft Corporation factory,’ he explains to his son, who is quite interested in aeroplanes. ‘Actually Jason, a Brabazon airliner prototype, at the time one of the largest aircraft in the world, first flew from Bristol over Swansea and back,’ Wat says on the shopping trip to the market.
‘We’ll go fishing in the River Loughor,’ and next they are out wading in their thigh high rubber boots obtained from Bill Edwards’ in the amazingly beautiful waters of the salmon and sea trout river. ‘We’ll try a number 3 fly, and did you know there’s some fantastic fishing on this river.
It’s very popular for the night fly fishermen,’ Watkin continues, ‘and it gets to produce double-figure sea trout every year without fail,’ Watkin mentions. ‘D’ye know Jas, years ago, the fish that was caught in the Llwchwr river was carried on ponies via Dunvant and Olchfa in to be sold at Swansea Market; as well as the cockles from Penclawdd that were carried on donkeys, and on foot by women.’ They return home with four trout and all fall to bed wet, tired, exhausted but happy.
‘We’ll do eighteen holes, Cliff and then we’ll stop off for a jar in the clubhouse’. The Langland Bay course is a premier Welsh course with spectacular ocean views that Watkin and Cliff enjoy all afternoon on their round. Cliff, the real sportsman and all rounder, manages a par 3 with his handicap of as much as five, and he wins the game easily. Wat plays a relaxed round, now that the kids are his, and manages a par 4 but did slice few into the rough, the rough being the Bristol Channel at the edge of the clifftop. He reflects on the future back at the eighteenth hole and envisions a more settled and contented life without too many of the distractions, griefs and worries that marriage had brought to him, deciding to play life straight and walk the walk instead of talk the talk.