You never know what you might find under the great glass roof of Cardiff Market.

Once you brave the fresh, yet challenging, aroma of the fish counter that dominates its Trinity Street entrance, you find yourself in an emporium of, well, almost everything. Whether you're flicking through stacks of classic vinyl at Kelly's Records, smelling the roses at Secret Garden Florist or enjoying a hot pizza at Ffwrnes, there's always something new to discover.

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Tucked between The Bacon Stall butchers and Hard Lines coffee shop sits is the bright purple frontage of a tiny stall. It's decorated with oversized tarot cards, evil eye charms and colourful graffiti-style signage. 'Problems, love, money, health - what will your cards reveal?' asks one.

When I visited the stall on a Friday lunchtime, a laminated notice was hanging from the door, informing passers-by that a reading was in progress. As I took a seat outside, I heard a fast-talking, yet somehow soothing. voice from within. It belonged to Lee Petulengro, an international psychic, medium, healer and spiritual consultant - who is known as one of the most trusted and well-respected clairvoyants in the UK.

His stall, named Mystic, has been at Cardiff Market since 2000 but things have changed slightly in the age of Covid.

Lee has been working at his market stall for over 20 years
Lee has been working at his market stall for over 20 years

"That was one of my regulars on the phone - she calls every couple of months or so. I do most of my readings over the phone now, especially since the start of the pandemic. Some of the regulars still come in now that places are re-opening again, but there's no passing trade anymore - the market is a thing of the past, not just here but in Pontypridd and Newport as well.

"A lot of people think you have to do readings face to face in order for them to work, but that's not true - a true tarot reader like myself can sense someone's energy regardless of how I do it, it could be over the phone or by message or a video call."

To say I was sceptical of Lee's gift is an understatement - I like to think I'm a pretty open-minded person, but I've never really believed in astrology or tarot.

Lee's stall used to be a fridge used by the butchers next door
Lee's stall used to be a fridge used by the butchers next door

A floor lamp in the corner illuminated the crystal ball which was placed between myself and Lee. But for such a cosy setting, there was an unmistakable chill in the room - was I imagining things already? Luckily, Lee was quick to provide a possible explanation. "This place used to be a butchers' fridge," he said, adding a frankly unnecessary extra element of creepiness to proceedings. "We were upstairs before, but when this became available I took it - it does the job anyway!"

While its easy to be deceived by his thick Welsh accent, Lee, 43, is originally from Puerto Rico in Gran Canaria, and comes from one of the oldest known families of palmists and astrologers in the world, dating back to the 14th century. His great-grandfather was Xavier Petulengro - also known as the 'King of the Gypsies' - who came to Britain from Romania and wrote a number of books on palmistry and astrology, while his great-grandmother, Rose Lee, read the fortunes of countless celebrities - including Shirley Bassey - from her booth on Blackpool's Golden Mile during the 1960s and 1970s.

I asked him if he enjoys his work. "I don't know anything different," he said. "We were taught the craft from a young age - I've been reading since I was 11 years old, and it was the same for my father too."

"You've just got to be honest with people and stay professional when you're doing a reading. You have to remember that you are the messenger, you've got to read the cards and be honest about what they tell you. These readings can be positive or negative, just like life, and some people can get upset - but you can't take on their emotional baggage or let your emotions get in the way. Luckily, I'm an Aquarius and that makes it easy for me to detach."

Lee, who is originally from the Canary Islands, descends from one of the oldest known families of palmists and astrologers in the world
Lee, who is originally from the Canary Islands, descends from one of the oldest known families of palmists and astrologers in the world

"I had one with a client the other day where I told her that her Dad was going to die," said Lee, very matter-of-factly. "I saw him passing over, and a few days later she texted me to tell me that he had died."

There was a long silence, and I didn't really know what to say to break it. Did I even want to know my fortune anymore? Ultimately, I realised I had come too far to back out now and it was time for my reading.

I decided that I would get the full works - a palm reading, tarot cards, a birth chart consultation and, finally, a look into the crystal ball. Lee charges £50 for this comprehensive reading, which can last anywhere between 20 and 40 minutes, while other readings are available from £30.

So, what happened?

Lee started by asking me to lay the back of my hands out flat on the table to begin his first reading. I was a combination of anxious and excited as he carefully inspected my palms. There was no preamble. “You’re very much a private person, you can be quite reserved,” he said. “You’re very much a perfectionist and you don’t want your life to change.

“You’re strong-minded, you say things as they are and you don’t like a liar or a backstabber. You can be a bit opinionated at times as well.

I wasn't convinced - I agreed with all of that, but it seemed like vague generalisations that would apply to most people. I mean, who likes a liar or a backstabber?

If you can't tell, I'm nervous!
If you can't tell, I'm nervous!

Lee grabbed a pen and pointed to the middle of my palm. “Where your head and your heart lines combine, I can see you lack a little bit of confidence. You have a very active mind, you tend to worry and analyse your mind too much - and you come across as being more confident than you really are."

"You let your emotions rule your head sometimes and you can be very self-critical, you expect too much of yourself," he continued. "You can struggle to unwind sometimes, as inside you can feel hurt and rejection."

Ouch - it was a little on the nose but, again, I couldn't deny that there was some truth to it.

For a moment, it seemed like Lee had better news to share. "You'll be very good as a journalist," he said, to my relief. "But you'll be even better as a teacher - teaching is where you're meant to be as well."

As my friends know, I've always wanted to teach at some point in my life - I was a bit taken aback by how assured he sounded about my future career choices, but surely it was just a coincidence?

The lines on my palm suggested I struggled to unwind and let my emotions rule my head
The lines on my palm suggested I struggled to unwind and let my emotions rule my head

I was told my potassium levels needed improving, despite the fact that I'd eaten a banana on my walk into town less than an hour before. Momentarily, I thought I'd rumbled Lee - but his next question blew me away.

"Who's David?," he asked "He's a family member, yes? And he recently passed over, in the last few months?". My uncle David sadly did pass away in February this year. Lee told me that he's watching over me, which is a comfort, but I was now completely freaked out, to say the least.

I sat in a stunned silence as he finished the palm reading by asking, out of nowhere, if I was good friends with an optician - I am, and I had met her for a drink the night before. At this point, I was really starting to worry that I'd been under some sort of surveillance for the last few years of my life.

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Lee released my palms and reached under the table to bring out my birth chart. I already knew I was a Scorpio, but I soon learnt that my moon - which represents my emotional side - is in Pisces, meaning I understand other people's emotions more than I do my own.

My Mercury - the planet of communication - told me that I wanted a mental challenge, Jupiter told me I'm very intuitive, while Mars told me to look after my hips, which, believe it or not, had started to become sore earlier in the week - spooky.

The tarot - or "gypsy witch cards" - were next to come out and I was asked to sort them into three separate piles. A card representing love was turned over first.

"You've had stress in your love life not too long ago - what happened?" asked Lee. Oh God - I'm not going to go into details here, but he was on the money again. "You've got to close the door on it," he continued. "There's a new girl there for you now" - now that was more like it.

My tarot reading told me that new opportunities are on my horizon
My tarot reading told me that new opportunities are on my horizon

I was told that new opportunities will soon await me, including a job interview and a change of living arrangements. I only started at WalesOnline a couple of months ago and moved into my new flat even more recently - so given how spot this reading has been so far, I was pretty wary to say the least.

Finally, it was time to look into the crystal ball - which Lee said dates back to the reign of Queen Victoria. "You can be very cross, very debatable," he told me. "But you can be quite creative, quite determined and I can tell as well that your mind is very active.

"But things are looking good for you, in your career and your relationships - there's nothing for you to worry about," he continued. I thought that might be the only thing that Lee had got wrong during the whole reading- I remain pretty sure that, after that session, there is plenty for me to now worry about.

Looking into his crystal ball, Lee told me that things were "looking good" for me
Looking into his crystal ball, Lee told me that things were "looking good" for me

Having entered his stall as a complete sceptic, I left it just over 40 minutes later completely stunned by what he told me. I'm a believer now - or, at least, far more than I was before. To say it was a very surreal experience is an understatement - and it left me questioning everything as I walked back home. After taking a quick breather and making a few anxious phone calls, I convinced myself that I'll be fine - I just need to sort out my potassium levels, that's all.