Polyrhythm’s adventure to Wolverhampton

Last week, as Polyrhythm, we bravely ventured into the murky depths and befuddling road systems of the Black Country, to Gatis community centre in Wolverhampton. We were welcomed by their lovely team, mainly comprised of youths, and made to feel quite at home there. We also got a taste of the multicultural city life, which was refreshing for those of us so used to life in Cornwall.  
We arrived on Monday (8th of August), and we were given our first impression of the grounds, the people, the atmosphere, and we were excited. Their teenagers gave our teenagers a tour of the site, also giving us a chance to mingle and form friendships. I think the adults just sat down and talked, but I guess that’s just what they do. We went round the play area, then where we would be camping, then the fire pit, then to where they grew some vegetables (no bearing on our trip but still good fun). Not long after, those of the Polyrhythm team that were there (and knew how) showed the lovely Yam Yams how to build solar-powered generator kits. It went well, we all got talking some more, and then we had a bit of a jam. Those two events were the main reason why we had come, aside from general networking and friend-making.  After our eventful day of travelling and meeting people, we had some pizza and were introduced to battered chips, probably a Black Country delicacy. After us campers set up our tents, we gathered around the campfire, with guitars and some bongos, and played some nice little tunes.
I was up early the next morning in a damp tent because I hadn’t put it up properly (too lazy for that) and wandered around. I talked to the people I saw, some of them zombified in their morning state, but still fresh faces nonetheless. Around midday, as I recall, we did some more jamming, preparing songs to play that evening in front of some special guests (my parents). We decided on a few tunes, the ones who weren’t confident were taught, and then there was an African drum workshop outside. This man turned up with a plethora of djembes and for a good hour or two, we were lost in the vibes.  That night was another spent around the campfire, except this time with a barbecue and a couple more people. After that night, Polyrhythm headed off to Scotland but without me, the drummer, because I didn’t go so that’s all I can write about really.  
All in all, it was a great experience, introducing us to some lovely people who, with any luck, we’ll be working with again in the not so distant future. It’s great to reach out to other community projects, work with each other, magpie ideas, and just coordinate on an attempt to give the youth something to do. I think we had succeeded at that by the end. A massive, massive thank you to everyone at the Gatis community centre who made us feel so welcome, it was a delight to work with you and we can’t wait to collaborate again. 

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