Who is Online

We have 70 guests and no members online

Tourists

 

China in now the World’s second largest economy and, as we all know, the bespoke manufacturer for the whole World.  Consequently there are some very good bargains to be had in local markets where replicas of fashion Brands can be found at very low prices.  But in the upmarket shopping centres the prices are very similar to those in Australia.

Another good reason for visiting China is the food.  There is a wide range of cuisine.  In Beijing there was even a local French patisserie.  Food is generally of a very high standard and we ate in a range of restaurants from a small ‘hole in the wall’; where a local wit laughingly mimed that we would throw up; to expensive tourist restaurants.  We were not sick, even though the meal cost us about two dollars each.

On one bus trip, which was predominantly for locals, we were the only Europeans.  We ate lunch, included in the fare, in a large barn-like cafeteria with the other passengers from the bus.  The others were most concerned that we have our fair share of the communal servings on our table and were surprised that we could use chopsticks efficiently.  Again, the food was fine.  We soon became connoisseurs of Great Wall wine that comes in a wide range of prices and qualities; from cheap and nasty to very nice.

Generally speaking it is easy to travel and China as most public signs for, example in the metro or at the Airport, are written in English; in addition to the Chinese characters. 

 


image016Typical Metro Station 

Some Chinese people also speak English.  And the Chinese are used to making themselves understood as there are many local dialects.  My favourite example was when Wendy needed a toilet.  No one understood the five or six euphemisms or alternatives for toilet that she tried.  But our friend Sonia simply made a ‘psss’ sound.  A Chinese woman immediately understood and directed her to the ladies convenience.

But learning some basic Mandarin is a good idea.

 

No comments

Travel

Egypt, Syria and Jordan

 

 

 

In October 2010 we travelled to three countries in the Middle East: Egypt; Syria and Jordan. While in Egypt we took a Nile cruise, effectively an organised tour package complete with guide, but otherwise we travelled independently: by cab; rental car (in Jordan); bus; train and plane.

On the way there we had stopovers in London and Budapest to visit friends.

The impact on me was to reassert the depth, complexity and colour of this seminal part of our history and civilisation. In particular this is the cauldron in which Judaism, Christianity and Islam were created, together with much of our science, language and mathematics.

Read more: Egypt, Syria and Jordan

Fiction, Recollections & News

His life in a can

A Short Story

 

 

"She’s put out a beer for me!   That’s so thoughtful!" 

He feels shamed, just when he was thinking she takes him for granted.

He’s been slaving away out here all morning in the sweltering heat, cutting-back this enormous bloody bougainvillea that she keeps nagging him about.  It’s the Council's green waste pick-up tomorrow and he’s taken the day off, from the monotony of his daily commute, to a job that he has long since mastered, to get this done.  

He’s bleeding where the thorns have torn at his shirtless torso.  His sweat makes pink runnels in the grey dust that is thick on his office-pale skin.  The scratches sting, as the salty rivulets reach them, and he’s not sure that he hasn’t had too much sun.  He knows he’ll be sore in the office tomorrow.

Read more: His life in a can

Opinions and Philosophy

Bertrand Russell

 

 

 

Bertrand Russell (Bertrand Arthur William Russell, 3rd Earl Russell, OM, FRS (18 May 1872 – 2 February 1970)) has been a major influence on my life.  I asked for and was given a copy of his collected Basic Writings of Bertrand Russell for my 21st birthday and although I never agreed entirely with every one of his opinions I have always respected them.

In 1950 Russell won the Nobel Prize in literature but remained a controversial figure.  He was responsible for the Russell–Einstein Manifesto in 1955. The signatories included Albert Einstein, just before his death, and ten other eminent intellectuals and scientists. They warned of the dangers of nuclear weapons and called on governments to find alternative ways of resolving conflict.   Russell went on to become the first president of the campaign for nuclear disarmament (CND) and subsequently organised opposition to the Vietnam War. He could be seen in 50's news-reels at the head of CND demonstrations with his long divorced second wife Dora, for which he was jailed again at the age of 89.  

In 1958 Gerald Holtom, created a logo for the movement by stylising, superimposing and circling the semaphore letters ND.

Some four years earlier I'd gained my semaphore badge in the Cubs, so like many children of my vintage, I already knew that:  = N(uclear)   = D(isarmament)

The logo soon became ubiquitous, graphitied onto walls and pavements, and widely used as a peace symbol in the 60s and 70s, particularly in hippie communes and crudely painted on VW camper-vans.

 

 (otherwise known as the phallic Mercedes).

 

Read more: Bertrand Russell

Terms of Use

Terms of Use                                                                    Copyright