A WELSHMAN IN CROATIA

 

In Croatian the word for three is tri

Just as it is in the Welsh language.

It is tre in Italian and trois in French

And in Spanish it is tres,

But the Croatians have got it right

Although all their other numbers

Are quite different in Welsh.

 

Here in the summer Dubrovnik sunshine

There is time to wonder about such things

Seated by the hotel swimming pool

Enjoying wine from the supermarket

Covertly sneaked in because it's cheaper;

As a Cardi it's my duty you see.

 

Govorim samo malo Hrvatski

I speak only a little Croatian,

But this minor similarity

Draws me closer to the country;

Two small nations united easily

Both struggling for their own identity.

 

(From the Collection 'Not Really a Stranger' by David Subacchi. Cestrian Press 2016).