After a Saturday consisting of teaching, parents' meeting and duty in the House, what better thing to do than grab an overnight bag, jump in the Madmobile and head off to the coast? The seaside in particular was Llandudno, where the whole town centre is shut down and turned into a massive street fair. I went out there to visit Mr Jack and Judith, who own the gallopers and the chair-o-planes that I worked on during my university holidays.
I loved working on the fair. The colours, sounds and smells are indelibly etched into my soul, and even now the smell of fried onions or the rumble of a diesel generator can bring a smile to my face. Llandudno's street fair is one of the busiest weekends of the season; the last time I worked there was the weekend before my university finals. I've spent today rediscovering skills I thought I'd forgotten: walking the platforms as the ride turns; lifting children onto and off of horses; behaving in such a way the the customers' perceptions of fairgrounds are challenged and altered. More than once my accent caught people unawares; several expressed surprise that I was a teacher.
The gallopers were built originally in 1887 and, despite modification and restoration, are still driven by a steam centre engine and music is provided - in a somewhat out-of-tune way - by a Gavioli organ which runs off cardboard books of music. I'm at risk of sounding like a real anorak here, so I'll let the titles of these (slightly blurry, camera phone) pictures do the talking instead:
The best part of today has been seeing everyone again. I've not really been out on the fair for six years, but - apart from a few more wrinkles round the eyes, or a slightly fuller boilersuit - no-one's changed. The jokes are still the same, the quips and comments haven't altered, the same people are always the topic of conversation. It felt like I haven't been away for a week.
I feel relaxed, invigorated and not a little sunburned. Perhaps I should get out more often.
No comments:
Post a Comment