Recent stuff

We have just finished an intensive period of Jewish Holy days.

 

One of the festivals was Succot (“Tabernacles”), at the end of which is Shemini Azeret (The eighth day of solemn assembly). On this day, we pray for wind and rain, traditionally because of climactic conditions in the middle east. I am not sure this prayer would have been included in the liturgy if Moses had led the Children of Israel to the UK.

 

Anyway, here is my take on it.

 

Prayer for Rain

Make the rain to fall and the wind to blow

And in deep winter, crisp white snow.

Lord, spread your moisture on the earth.

Give next year’s crops a healthy birth.

Precipitation now despatch

On football, golf and cricket match

And let it rain down cats and dogs -

But not till I’m home from Synagogue.

 

It seems the Greek economic situation is sending all Europe into a tailspin.  Here are the lyrics the Bee Gees might have used if they were writing their songs today:

 

Greece

We’ve got big problems. Things are really tight.

They’ve got a massive debt. They’ve got to put it right.

There’s a big danger it has gone too far

if they believe they can go back to the Drachma

Greece is the word.

 

They think our bail-out plan’s a major pain.

Why don’t they understand?  Their government is to blame.

Their leader’s lyin’, only real is real.

We’ll stop the handouts soon, if they back out of the deal.

Greece is the word.  

 

(Greece is the word, is the word that you’ve heard

It’s got debt. It’s got meaning.

Greece is the time, is the place of commotion.

Greece is the country we’re feeding.)

 

We take the pressure and we throw away good banking policies, and all of Europe must pay.

There is a chance that we can make it so far

if they pay back the debt, but at a high APR. Greece is the word. 

 

(Greece is the word, is the word that you’ve heard

It’s got debt. It’s got meaning.

Greece is the time, is the place of commotion.

Greece is the country we’re feeding.)

 

You’re the one that I want

I got bills, they’re multiplyin’ and I’m losing control

‘Cos the pressure you’re applying, it’s electrifying.

 

Better pay up, cos I need a man

Who can show his word is true

Better cough up, you gotta understand

By the banks we’re getting screwed

Nothing left, no more dosh for me or you

 

You’re the one that I want

You are the one that I want

Ooh Ooh Ooh, Honey.

The one that I want,

You are the one that I want

Give me back my money

TYou’re the one that I want

You are the one that I want

OOh ooh ooh,  your cash I need

Oh yes indeed.

Boys and their toys

We're in the Isle of Wight, as we often are at August Bank Holiday, staying with our friends Ian and Janet Marsh.  Ian runs a company called Fighting 15's, which sells miniature wargames figures. Ian and I have been playing wargames for years. Our favourite period is the Napoleonic Wars, and last night, we played a game using Ian's rules called "Huzzah!", which have been in development on and off for about 10 years.  My French army won, simply because we managed to persuade Ian's Prussians to retreat before we did.

Here are a few photos of some of the miniature figures, showing off Ian's exquisite painting skills.

These are French troops , deployed to defend the village of Schlitz.

French infantry in 1806 uniforms. Ian bases his army on 40mm square bases, 4 figures each in two ranks of figures. You can see the superb quality of his painting. Each group of 4 bases represents one battalion (approximately 600-800 men).

Saxon Chevaulegers (light cavalry), still wearing 18th century -style uniforms in 1806. Ian's cavalry is based on 40mm square bases, two or three figures per base. A cavalry regiment typically has 6-8 bases.

Prussian Dragoons, supported by the Saxons.

Still cruising..

Thursday, 18th August.

 

We docked at Malaga at 0700. Ruth and I were booked on an excursion to see the Alhambra Palace at Granada. Our tour left at 8.05, so we had a very early start. After a two-hour drive into the Sierra Nevada mountains, we arrived at Granada.  Entry to the Alhambra is by timed entry via pre-booked ticket.  The Alhambra was a castle/palace fortress built by the Nasirid sultans of Granada, commencing in 1238. Granada was the last Moorish kingdom to be reconquered by Catholic Spain in 1492, and was the capital of Spain until Philip II moved the capital to Madrid half-way through the following century.

The Alhambra, and the neighbouring Generalife Gardens, are absolutely beautiful. Here are a few photos..

 

This is a reflecting pool leading to the Sultan’s meeting rooms at the far end. It is said to have been the inspiration for the Taj Mahal.

 

  Note the decorative tiles, the carved woodwork on the walls, the Moorish Arches and the gardens beyond.

 

A view of the Alhambra from the Generalife Gardens.

 

 

A courtyard in the Generalife Gardens, the Sultan’s pleasure garden.

 

Back at the ship, we continue to lead in the daily trivia quiz series which lasts until the end of the cruise.

 

Friday, 19th August.  Gibraltar.

The schedule for the day is a tour of the newly-opened (to the public) World War II Tunnels, followed by visiting various members of Ruth’s family who live in Gibraltar.

 

One of the apes on the upper rock took a shine to Ruth. [Ruth is the one in the glasses]

 

 

 

This is a 5.25” naval gun, originally from a British World War II battleship, placed in battery in Gibraltar in about 1950, but never fired.

 

 

Here is one of the apes looking towards our cruise ship.  Royal Caribbean’s tag line is  the nation of “why not”, and I am torn between titling this photo “Why not” and “Maybe next year”.

 

Ruth cousins treated us to dinner in the Kosher restaurant in Gibraltar – it was nice to eat meat again for the first time in nearly a week.

 

 

We’re now back on the ship. A day of rest tomorrow at sea, then we fly home on Sunday morning.

Just cruising

We’re on holiday this week, cruising in the western Mediterranean.

 

We flew from Gatwick at 6am Sunday to Palma, in Majorca.  In the airport at Palma, the following poem came to me.

 

“The Traveller’s Prayer”

We hail you, airport baggage carousel.

We crowd around you and to you we pray.

“Deliver all our luggage safe and well,

And pref-erably some time soon, today.”

 

 

We had a tour of Palma before being taken to our ship The Grandeur of the Seas.

 

 

 

Bellver Castle is very impressive. It is a circular castle, built by the Knights Templar in the early 14th Century, overlooking Palma.

 

 

 

It was originally built with one surrounding moat, then a second moat was added later to protect it from these new-fangled cannon things.

 

Here is a picture of the Cathedral of Palma. It has beautiful stained-glass windows which survived a major earthquake intact. It took about 300 years to build, and by the time they’d finished, the original Gothic style was now out of fashion so it was given a Baroque fascade.

 

 

On board ship, we were shown to our cabin, and then had to attend lifeboat muster drill.

 

Here is a poem I composed about that.

Lifeboat Drill

“It’s lifeboat drill, but no-one is flustered.

All hands are on deck, ‘cos we’re keen to be mustered.”

 

We arrived in Barcelona on Monday morning. It was Feast of the Assumption, so all the museums were closed, (boo!) , likewise most of the shops (hurray!).

We took a bus tour round the city, which took s past the Olympic Park from 1992, the Nou Camp stadium, the beaches, the Segrada de Familia Church designed by Gaudi but still unfinished when he died several decades ago [What is it about Spanish builders and Churches? It makes British road-building programmes look positively dynamic.], and we ended the trip by strolling down the famous pedestrian market La Rambla,

 

The Olympic Flame thingy.

 

A view from near the harbour.

 

 

Torre AGBAR – Barcelona’s version of the Gherkin building. I’m not sure whether it’s pickled.

 

 

The front of la Segrada de la Familia

 

 

 

 

A street performer in La Rambla.

(This is what happens if you don’t use sun-screen).

 

Today (Tuesday), Ruth had a reflexology treatment, so both my wife and my son have an “ology”.   The ship docked in Ibiza and we walked around the old town for a while  and did some shopping .

Here are a few photos

 

 

 

 

Tonight, there was a  party in the Windjammer cafe on the ship, where there was a late-night buffet, and various ice sculptures and food sculptures were on display.   I explained to Ruth that when the Captain announces “Take in the main course”,  he means “pull down one of the sails”, not “have another dinner”. 

Here are a few of them..

A parrot made from a pineapple…

 

What breed of dog? Clearly it’s a caulie..

 

 

Tomorrow, we’re at sea all day.

Rainbow

Whilst driving home yesterday evening, I was struck by the vividness of a rainbow which appeared.

Armed with my trusty mobile phone,  I took the attached two photos of it, and I'm rather pleased  with them, particularly since I was stationary in the car at the time, as opposed to being outside with time to compose the shots in more detail.

When I attended a biblical poetry class last year, we studied a poem by William Wordsworth called "My heart leaps", and the teacher asked the class to compose poems about rainbows. Here is a poem I composed, which is an alphabetic acrostic, i.e each line commences with the first letter of the successive colour of the spectrum. The rhyming scheme also follows that of Wordsworth's poem.

My poem touches on the theme that the rainbow is the sign from God that after the Flood (Noah's ark etc), God promised Noah that  he would never again destroy the world.

Since there are seven colours in the spectrum, and Wordsworth's poem has nine lines, the last two lines of my poem are the acrostic for Infra-Red and Ultra-Violet.  This poem will also appear one day as the Shir Hashavua for Noach.

"When God sees Red

Rumbling of thunder, flaying of rain.

Oh, no; howling wind as well.

You'd better watch out. prepare to repent.

God's on the warpath. Listen to him vent

Bolts of lightning. He's really angry again.

In case you forgot, God, your rainbow will tell.

Vengeance must be tempered with merciful intent.

I respectfully remind you that the rainbow is the lid on your anger.

Unfailingly, when you see red, the rainbow stops the danger."

English Heritage Festival of History

Michael Morpurgo talking about his book "War Horse"

We attended the Festival of History last weekend, and really enjoyed it. There was something for everyone; talks by famous writers such as Michael Morpurgo and Simon Scarrow; music; historical pageants and demonstrations; wargaming; shopping opportunities; wargaming; and more historical re-enactors of various periods of history than one could shake a stick at. What follows is a poem, and a selection of photos of various historical re-enactors.

The following poem came to me:

"The Re-enactors"
In costumes first worn long ago, they bring to life our history
With artifacts original, they dispel many a mystery
Their search for historical accuracy has infinite capacity
They'll tell you of their character with passionate sagacity.
They replicate what past folk wore with perfect authenticity
And camp in tents on wet weekends. Such zealous eccentricity!

Edwardian self-defence demo. Lady 1, Ruffian 0

                                                      So which of you guys is Norman?

Shir Hashavua - Mattot

Mattot

(to the tune of “In the Navy” by Village People)

‘Book of Numbers tells us that the tribes of Reuben and Gad and Manasseh, too

Said to Moses “we don’t want to cross the Jordan.” (Check out Chapter 32).

Moses said “Now hang on, that might be a problem. Our chance of victory it might harm.”

“Okay” said those tribes. “Our men will march before you, every man equipped and armed.”

(Chorus )

In the army, River Jordan we will ford.

In the army, every man will bring his sword.

In the army, we’ll be fighting for the Lord.

In the army. In the army.

In the land of Gilead, we will build new cities, for our wives and little ones.

Then our men will march with all the other tribes. We’ll stay until the job is done.

After that we’ll come back and we’ll settle down, and to the Lord we will give thanks.

While we’re fighting with the Lord God on our side; we don’t need any planes or tanks.

(Chorus)

In the army, we must face up to our fears.

In the army, we’ll be gone for seven years.

In the army, we will fight with shields and spears.

In the army, in the army.

In the army, we will be in many fights.

In the army, we’ll see lots of gruesome sights.

In the army, we will beat the Canaanites.

In the army, in the army.