Fiesta Time (5): International Poetry Festival, Swansea 2011

Statue of Dylan Thomas outside today's festival venue, the Dylan Thomas Theatre, Swansea

I have just come in from a magnificent day of poetry, dance, acting and music from the USA, Wales, Israel, England, Cornwall, Scotland, Canada and Italy. Tomorrow we will hear poetry in translation, but more of that when the time comes. Old friendships have been renewed and new international friendships have been made. We have heard poems of mourning and poems of jubilation. We have laughed and we have been almost moved to tears. We have heard dialect poetry, and have seen poetry written in many languages in the various books by the participating artists - from Catalan to Korean. Thank you, Stanley (of Cross-Cultural Communications, New York) and Peter (editor of The Seventh Quarry, Swansea), for organising such a remarkably cosmopolitan event. Roll on tomorrow for the next round ...