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India

India poetry politics Wales

Black history matters

June 8, 2020

Earlier this year I had a poetry residency at the National Trust’s Chirk Castle in North Wales, with the aim of engaging with the natural environment and the grounds surrounding the castle. It’s the second time I’ve worked on a project there, the first being a few years earlier when I was invited to work with groups of young people from the local school to write poetry in response to the castle. On both occasions I felt a deep need…

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creating feature field recordings India poetry

poetry and song

May 11, 2020

Sometimes beautiful things come to you from out of the blue and they make you smile. This is a piece by my friend Moushumi Bhomik incorporating sections from a poem of mine. The photo is of us travelling on the overnight train from Kolkata to Jalpaiguri in 2018. Her words about it are below. I’m so lucky to know such lovely, creative people. “Song for My Father, with Sophie MckeandI met Sophie, a beautiful poet and spoken word artiste, in…

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creating dailyconnectionwithnature feature India nature

Dharma

April 5, 2019

When my mental landscape shifted dramatically some years ago I had to be outside as much as possible, immersing in nature. This was the strangest experience because I wasn’t brought up with the outdoors. My family cannot name all the birds and trees, I had no concept of the cycles of the moon and felt no great desire to spend long periods of time alone in nature. When that changed and the natural world exploded into life I felt compelled…

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dailyconnectionwithnature feature India nature travel

When the mountain reveals herself

November 16, 2018

  Been awake for ages. Lying here in Italy but still on India-time. Trying to process these past few weeks but can’t seem to pull it all together in my head. Feels like the threads of creation I was hanging onto have begun to unravel out of my fingers and I’m not sure how to pull them back together anymore. This past year’s focus has been to slow it all down; to not chase things not meant for me; to…

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India nature travel

Dragonfly (part 2)

November 13, 2018

  ‘A dragonfly only needs to skim the surface of water to create a cascade of ripples’ (Chinese proverb) Managed to get a great shot of this beautiful dragonfly recently while in the north of Bengal.…

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feature food India travel

rural theatre at the border

November 11, 2018

Passing through the Mekhliganj corridor that connects the pockets of Indian villages in Bangladesh felt strange. The 1947 Partition of Bengal created enclaves of what feels like terra nullius (no man’s land) split by vast corridors twice the width of a highway fenced in and manned by armed guards so that the people of India can travel between villages that would otherwise be cut off by the surrounding Bangladesh. We travelled to the border that is the Teesta river, and looked over…

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feature India politics travel

the price of tea

November 10, 2018

India and Wales share a love for tea. That golden brown brew is part of the culture flowing through the veins of our nations like rivers. In Wales we have a wealth of herbal teas, but these infusions wouldn’t be called tea in India – tea is from the tea plant, everything else is a hot drink that is ‘not tea’. In north-Wales, English speakers call it a brew and Cymraeg speakers will say it’s a panad. The difference on…

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family feature food India travel

bengali hospitality

November 6, 2018

  Bengali hospitality and cuisine take some beating and I’m discovering first-hand why they’re legendary. While travelling across this ever-changing country new friends are delighting in introducing me to Bengali cuisine; eating here is part of an education in the culture and a way to make a deeper connection with the land. I’m beginning to realise how important sweets are in Bengali and Nepali culture. Bought from small shops a bit like European patisseries, these are often milk or cheese…

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India travel

Overnight trains

November 4, 2018

  The overnight trains in India are a revelation. I loved them last time I was here and this time was no different. It makes sense in a country this big, when you think about it, to be able to cover 500+ miles overnight. Its a lot slower than flying but it’s cheaper and I’ve never had any problems. I haven’t travelled alone on the overnight trains, the first time was a group of six writers from Wales, and this…

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feature India

Kantha embroidery

November 3, 2018

I’ve discovered, and fallen in love with, Kantha embroidery. It’s a traditional craft in this part of the world (Bengal/Bangladesh). Old saris are stitched together to make a blanket or throw for the home (or for children). Not only is it beautiful but it’s recycling done right. I bought a cheap cotton tunic to wear whilst here as it’s so hot, but when I got it back I realised that it’s too tight across the chest. I was inspired by…

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