Before I finish writing up last month's holiday I'd just like to wish my readers a very happhy Christmas and hope you have a great New Year.
To continue the story...
Tuesday 11 November
We returned to Petra to explore further. On our way to a viewpoint at the top of a hill we met another British tourist. After chatting for a while we realised that we were at 6th Form College together when I was 16-18. After leaving the college I met him once in 1981 and then just bumped into him by chance at Petra.
Later that morning as we were climbing another hill with Mazen we met one of his friends, a Bedouin lady called Hannan. We stopped at her jewellery stall and she invited us to have some tea. It was lovely to meet her and to chat. It was one of the experiences we would have missed without a guide.
We explored Petra on our own after lunch.
Wednesday 12 November
We left Petra to drive tom Wadi Rum in the desert. We transferred from our minibus to the back of a 4x4 pickup for a tour of the desert. We camped at a place where Lawrence of Arabia once camped, too. There were rock carvings of Lawrence and Faisal Hussein.
We walked out to a good viewpoint of the sunset efore returning to camp for dinner. We spent a happy evening with a French party singing songs and telling (and translating) jokes before going to our tent for a night in the desert.
Thursday 13 November
Sue and I got up early to walk out to see the sun rise over the desert. This was beautiful, and well worth the early start. Returning to the camp we had breakfast and packed. We got back to our minibus for a drive to Aqaba. This was to be a day of chilling by the seaside.
When we got to our hotel we arranged a ride to a diving club as Sue was keen to go snorkelling ya coral reef in the Red Sea. We picked up our snorkelling equipment and went to the beach. I didn't have a happy time snorkelling. I'm not as good a swimmer as Sue and at one point was quite scared of drowning. Sue got me safely ashore before going for a brief snorkel dive to the reef. She really enjoyed it, but was sad that I wasn't there. I need to take some lessons and swim regularly if I am to be confident in the water.
Friday 14 November
We left Aqaba after breakfast and drove to Amman. We went straight to the old citadel to see the Museum of Antiquities including the Dead Sea Scrolls and some of the earliest sculptures ever found, from the Jericho area. We stayed at the citadel until sunset and then went to our hotel. Mazen took us to a wonderful Arabian restaurant for dinner, this was the tour company's compensation for our hassles at the beginning of then trip.
Saturday 15 November
Our flight home left on time mid-morning. We were cruising over the Adriatic when the cabin pressure dropped and the oxygen masks came down. The plane descended rapidly in a steep spiral dive before levelling out. The Captain finally came on the intercom to tell us that we would be making an emergency landing in Belgrade.
The Serbian authorities eventually coped very well with our unexpected arrival. At first we had to wait in the gate area, but after a few hours we were given transit passes to go into the main airport where the gave us sandwiches. We could then wander the shops and bars until our replacement plane arrrived. I had been in contact with our taxi firm at home (mobile phones and SMS are a great invention) so they knew we would be late. We eventually got home at 1:30 am on Sunday, 9 hours late.
It was a slightly scary end to one of our best holidays ever.
Check out the photos on Flickr.
Wednesday, December 24, 2008
Tuesday, November 25, 2008
Jordan - Part 2
Monday 10 November
We had an early breakfast and arrived at the gates of Petra at 7am. Mazen our tour leader wasn't authorised to act as a tour guide at Petra so Ahmed, a local guide, spent the morning showing us round the site. As well as our admission to the site and Ahmed's services we also had to pay for a horse ride for the kilometre or so from the main gate to the entrance to the Siq, the narrow rock canyon which leads to the city itself.
Fortunately for me, we didn't have to take the ride we had paid for and I didn't have to pay any extra money to be excused, although I would have felt it was worth it. Although we were listening intently to Ahmed as he told us of the history of Petra, the moment we were really waiting for was our first sight of Al Khazneh "The Treasury" the tomb carved into the rock, which every visitor to Petra knows.
We hadn't realised quite how big the whole Petra site is, with many tombs and temples, and an amphitheatre. Ahmed's guided tour gave us an overview of the main areas as well as giving us an interesting summary of the city's history. By late morning his tour was over, so after a stop for tea Mazen took us up the track with 800 stairs which leads to the monastery at the top of a small mountain above Petra. Along this way were more tombs and looking back there were breathtaking views. All along the route there were other walkers as well as donkeys for hire for those who didn't want to walk up.
At the top we saw the monastery and more breathtaking views. We had more of the sweet mint tea which we had grown to enjoy before retracing our steps back to the main Petra site for lunch.
We spent all afternoon there, too, visiting an old Byzantine church with amazing mosaic floors as well as looking at more of the tombs.
The site used to be inhabited by Bedouin who have now been relocated to a nearby village. Many of these make a living from horse and donkey rides or selling refreshments or jewellery. The children take part in this, leading donkeys or selling mineral rocks.
One jewellery trader called Suleman told us that he was born in one of the caves in Petra. His English was really good, and he could do a perfect Cockney accent. I asked him where he had learned it and he said he just copied the tourists. I would have been less surprised if he had told me that he'd worked in Brick Lane market. He was a very thoughtful and philosophical man he appreciated the income that tourism brought him, but felt that he had lost something with the passing of the simpler life of the past. "If you get more, you need more" he said. He liked to spend his weekends out in the desert with his children.
On the other hand he was using some of his money to send one of his sons to private school for a better education than the village school could provide, and I think he would be happy if at least some of his children were to have professional careers.
That evening Petra was open for one of the "Petra by Night" sessions which they hold. Sue and I assembled at the gates with hundreds of other people. We were given a fairly stern briefing from a local official before we set off, almost in procession. There was to be no talking and no flash photography until we arrived at Al Khazneh, and we were not to walk in large groups. There was one concession to humour - "married couples can walk together of course, and for the singles, good luck!"
So we set off on our "school outing" and straight away some people were talking and using flash photography. The way was lit with candles in paper bags, and the square in front of Al Khazneh was full of candles. We all sat on mats on the ground and listened to local musicians while drinking sweet sage tea before we had a brief speech of welcome. The walk back seemed more natural with people just chatting in small groups. If the organisers had wanted a more solemn air on the approach then maybe they should have had a more formal procession led by musicians or singers.
Saturday, November 22, 2008
Jordan - Part 1
It's been a while since I wrote anything here, but I finally have something worth writing about.
We decided to have one last chance of a holiday in the sunshine this year, so we booked a trip to Jordan. The holiday was an independent pre-planned tour, just the two of us with a local guide rather than a big party.
Friday 7 November
We took a Friday afternoon flight and landed at Amman at about 11pm local time. Processing in the airport, buying an entry visa and collecting our luggage, took some time and we were among the last people from our flight to get through the airport. We looked for our driver, but there was no-one obvious so we phoned the contact from the tour company which we were given in our joining instructions. She said that she would make a call and get a driver to us.
The local taxi drivers were anxious to help and eager to get our business so while we were waiting one of them called our hotel. To our horror they told us that our booking had been cancelled but they still had a room free. We had further calls from the tour company (our rep and her manager) about our driver and the fact that we weren't expected until the following day. After at least another hour we finally got our driver and drove about 30km to the hotel.
Saturday 8 November
After breakfast at the hotel we gave the tour company manager another call and established that he would get a driver to us for that day's excursion. Sammy the driver was charming and friendly and took us on our first trip to the old Roman-era city of Jerash. We spent much of the afternoon touring the ruins before having a late lunch. We were due to visit the Dead Sea the same day, but we discussed this with Sammy and agreed that as it would be dark when we got there we should postpone the trip until tomorrow.
We got back to Madaba for a second night in our hotel and managed to visit the old Orthodox church of St George with its Byzantine-era mosaic map of the Holy Land. In the evening we found a good local restaurant and had another call from the tour manager who told us that our guide would meet us at breakfast. This confused us slightly as we hadn't realised that we would get a guide and a separate driver for the trip.
Sunday 9 November
We met Mazen our guide at breakfast. He discussed the mix-up over the cancellation and the fact that we had missed out the Dead Sea the previous day. He then got off on the wrong foot with Sue by suggesting that we skip the Dead Sea and follow the King's Highway from Madaba. The Dead Sea was one of the things Sue was most looking forward to so she made it quite clear that dropping it from the schedule was not an option. Our guide was chastened and with a quick look at the map we came up with a schedule that we were happy with.
Our first tourist sight of the day was the church on Mount Nebo, the site from which Moses is reputed to have seen the promised land which he would never reach. We looked across the plain of Jordan to Jericho, and knew that Jerusalem lay beyond the hills, too.
Our next stop was the Dead Sea and Sue eagerly changed into her swimming costume, I followed with less enthusiasm, I am not a water baby! We floated in the Dead Sea and after a few minutes I felt I had "Done That" and was ready to get out. Sue was floating happily and thought it was great. Unfortunately my next step was to get some water up my nose and into my throat. It is so full of minerals that it stings, to make matters worse I got a drop in my eye as I was trying to get to shore. I managed to get a drink of fresh water and a beach shower and then decided I had had enough of the Dead Sea. Sue went back in and floated around for a little while longer.
We drove along the shore of the Dead Sea passing the rock pillar known as "Lot's Wife" before turning inland. We stopped for a picture of the sign marking sea level - the Dead Sea is at about -400 metres and is drying out fast. It may be gone in 50 years, like the Aral Sea, if nothing is done. Driving further inland we stopped at the town of Karak where we had lunch before visiting the old Crusader castle there. A local guide gave us a tour of the castle and its underground passages before letting us wander round the ruins taking pictures.
In the afternoon we drove through dramatic scenery before we arrived at the modern town of Petra just as it got dark. Petra was the other "must see" destination on the trip and we would have three nights and two full days there.
To be continued...
We decided to have one last chance of a holiday in the sunshine this year, so we booked a trip to Jordan. The holiday was an independent pre-planned tour, just the two of us with a local guide rather than a big party.
Friday 7 November
We took a Friday afternoon flight and landed at Amman at about 11pm local time. Processing in the airport, buying an entry visa and collecting our luggage, took some time and we were among the last people from our flight to get through the airport. We looked for our driver, but there was no-one obvious so we phoned the contact from the tour company which we were given in our joining instructions. She said that she would make a call and get a driver to us.
The local taxi drivers were anxious to help and eager to get our business so while we were waiting one of them called our hotel. To our horror they told us that our booking had been cancelled but they still had a room free. We had further calls from the tour company (our rep and her manager) about our driver and the fact that we weren't expected until the following day. After at least another hour we finally got our driver and drove about 30km to the hotel.
Saturday 8 November
After breakfast at the hotel we gave the tour company manager another call and established that he would get a driver to us for that day's excursion. Sammy the driver was charming and friendly and took us on our first trip to the old Roman-era city of Jerash. We spent much of the afternoon touring the ruins before having a late lunch. We were due to visit the Dead Sea the same day, but we discussed this with Sammy and agreed that as it would be dark when we got there we should postpone the trip until tomorrow.
We got back to Madaba for a second night in our hotel and managed to visit the old Orthodox church of St George with its Byzantine-era mosaic map of the Holy Land. In the evening we found a good local restaurant and had another call from the tour manager who told us that our guide would meet us at breakfast. This confused us slightly as we hadn't realised that we would get a guide and a separate driver for the trip.
Sunday 9 November
We met Mazen our guide at breakfast. He discussed the mix-up over the cancellation and the fact that we had missed out the Dead Sea the previous day. He then got off on the wrong foot with Sue by suggesting that we skip the Dead Sea and follow the King's Highway from Madaba. The Dead Sea was one of the things Sue was most looking forward to so she made it quite clear that dropping it from the schedule was not an option. Our guide was chastened and with a quick look at the map we came up with a schedule that we were happy with.
Our first tourist sight of the day was the church on Mount Nebo, the site from which Moses is reputed to have seen the promised land which he would never reach. We looked across the plain of Jordan to Jericho, and knew that Jerusalem lay beyond the hills, too.
Our next stop was the Dead Sea and Sue eagerly changed into her swimming costume, I followed with less enthusiasm, I am not a water baby! We floated in the Dead Sea and after a few minutes I felt I had "Done That" and was ready to get out. Sue was floating happily and thought it was great. Unfortunately my next step was to get some water up my nose and into my throat. It is so full of minerals that it stings, to make matters worse I got a drop in my eye as I was trying to get to shore. I managed to get a drink of fresh water and a beach shower and then decided I had had enough of the Dead Sea. Sue went back in and floated around for a little while longer.
We drove along the shore of the Dead Sea passing the rock pillar known as "Lot's Wife" before turning inland. We stopped for a picture of the sign marking sea level - the Dead Sea is at about -400 metres and is drying out fast. It may be gone in 50 years, like the Aral Sea, if nothing is done. Driving further inland we stopped at the town of Karak where we had lunch before visiting the old Crusader castle there. A local guide gave us a tour of the castle and its underground passages before letting us wander round the ruins taking pictures.
In the afternoon we drove through dramatic scenery before we arrived at the modern town of Petra just as it got dark. Petra was the other "must see" destination on the trip and we would have three nights and two full days there.
To be continued...
Thursday, September 11, 2008
I want one of these!
Just idly browsing the web I saw this article in The Register. A toaster that will toast any image or text onto the bread. This is the second coolest computer peripheral I have ever heard of.
The coolest?
I have a brother-in-law who works in a drawing office for a company which makes Big Metal Bits for the oil industry, and they have a plasma cutter that will cut out your design in 1/4" (6mm) steel plate. Just don't select the wrong printer!
Sorry about the lack of blogs. Been doing lots and writing little.
I'm currently working in Scotland, staying in a hotel on expenses and trying not to get too fat.
The coolest?
I have a brother-in-law who works in a drawing office for a company which makes Big Metal Bits for the oil industry, and they have a plasma cutter that will cut out your design in 1/4" (6mm) steel plate. Just don't select the wrong printer!
Sorry about the lack of blogs. Been doing lots and writing little.
I'm currently working in Scotland, staying in a hotel on expenses and trying not to get too fat.
Monday, July 07, 2008
Thoughts on English Teaching
Another academic year has ended. Some of my Prague friends are returning to the US permanently soon, but I still have a hard core of people I can go back to see.
My class have had the results from their reading and writing exams. Everyone passed their reading exam, although two failed the writing. I'm pleased with their performance and hope that some of it reflects on me. After the last lesson we adjourned to the pub and wished each other well.
I won't be teaching the next academic year, the UK state education system requires that I take more qualifications and I can't manage a day job, a part-time Education course and a class at the same time. Maybe in a few years I will take the qualification and teach part-time but for now I want to continue in IT and save for a retirement, or semi-retirement at least.
One of my colleagues at the day job gleefully made me aware of a quotation from the philosopher Alain de Botton the other week - "You become a TEFL teacher when your life has gone wrong."
I haven't tracked down the source of the quotation yet to put it in context. I don't completely agree with the sentiment, but I can see something of what he means. Teaching in TEFL is a way of stepping out of everyday life while still having a job and keeping your brain in gear.
I have enjoyed my time teaching very much, and I'm sure that I will miss it once the summer is over.
While searching for the source of the quotation I discovered the following tale of TEFL life from the Daily Telegraph a few years back. It paints a bleaker picture than the life I had in Prague, but it is true that unless you can teach in places where the demand for teachers outstrips the supply it is difficult to survive on the salary. The great thing about my time in Prague was the social life and the friendships I made. Looking back a year on I still think it was the best thing I could have done in my "grown-up gap year".
My class have had the results from their reading and writing exams. Everyone passed their reading exam, although two failed the writing. I'm pleased with their performance and hope that some of it reflects on me. After the last lesson we adjourned to the pub and wished each other well.
I won't be teaching the next academic year, the UK state education system requires that I take more qualifications and I can't manage a day job, a part-time Education course and a class at the same time. Maybe in a few years I will take the qualification and teach part-time but for now I want to continue in IT and save for a retirement, or semi-retirement at least.
One of my colleagues at the day job gleefully made me aware of a quotation from the philosopher Alain de Botton the other week - "You become a TEFL teacher when your life has gone wrong."
I haven't tracked down the source of the quotation yet to put it in context. I don't completely agree with the sentiment, but I can see something of what he means. Teaching in TEFL is a way of stepping out of everyday life while still having a job and keeping your brain in gear.
I have enjoyed my time teaching very much, and I'm sure that I will miss it once the summer is over.
While searching for the source of the quotation I discovered the following tale of TEFL life from the Daily Telegraph a few years back. It paints a bleaker picture than the life I had in Prague, but it is true that unless you can teach in places where the demand for teachers outstrips the supply it is difficult to survive on the salary. The great thing about my time in Prague was the social life and the friendships I made. Looking back a year on I still think it was the best thing I could have done in my "grown-up gap year".
Practical Jokes
This Yehuda Moon cartoon made me chuckle and reminded me of something that happened years ago.
I worked in a hospital lab at the time and a few of us there were fond of practical jokes. One Friday I was going for a weekend cycle trip straight from work so I had a big saddlebag with all my luggage for the weekend.
I left work at about 6, strapped the bag to the bike and rode about 30 miles to a Youth Hostel. When I got there I unpacked my bag and found that one of my friends had slipped a 10lb lead weight into it. Like Yehuda I was embarrassed that I hadn't noticed the extra weight before I set off.
The bad news was that the lead weight was lab property, so I couldn't just ditch it. I had to ride with an extra 10lb in my bag for the whole weekend.
I worked in a hospital lab at the time and a few of us there were fond of practical jokes. One Friday I was going for a weekend cycle trip straight from work so I had a big saddlebag with all my luggage for the weekend.
I left work at about 6, strapped the bag to the bike and rode about 30 miles to a Youth Hostel. When I got there I unpacked my bag and found that one of my friends had slipped a 10lb lead weight into it. Like Yehuda I was embarrassed that I hadn't noticed the extra weight before I set off.
The bad news was that the lead weight was lab property, so I couldn't just ditch it. I had to ride with an extra 10lb in my bag for the whole weekend.
Tuesday, June 10, 2008
Airport Food
I took Friday and Monday off to go to Prague for the weekend, travelling on my own as Sue had other commitments. For the first time I was flying out from Terminal 5 at Heathrow. The new terminal had its teething problems when it opened, and when I found out that on Thursday they were introducing a new tranche of long-haul flights at T5 I was prepared for trouble. I decided to leave home early to allow more time. I could always spend the extra time exploring the new terminal.
As it happened there were no delays. There was a minor hitch at the car park. I had booked in advance so the number plate recognition system was meant to print out a personalised ticket with my car number and tie that to my pre-paid reservation. It didn't recogise the number, so I had to go to the desk to sort that out on Monday when I returned.
Having allowed extra time I got to the terminal in good time, and since I had printed my boarding card at home and had no checked luggage I was through security very quickly. In fact the entire journey from home to airside took about an hour.
It was lunchtime so I was hungry when I went airside. I checked out the eateries straight away. There were the usual Pret a Manger and Costa Coffee bars, but I wanted more than a sandwich. The pub serving food was very busy. I passed Gordon Ramsay's Plane Food and took a look. Main courses were about £15.00. Restaurant prices, but not totally outrageous. So I went in.
The place was about 40% full. The waitress was friendly and informal but very professional. I had a mineral water while I studied the menu and wine list. I went for the salmon fishcakes and a glass of New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc. The wine was crisp with tart apple flavours. The fishcake was perfect; a crisp crumb coating, not at all soggy, a lovely creamy filling with a hint of tarragon, and meaty chunks of salmon. It came on a bed of spinach which was moist without being soggy, and there was a creamy mustard sauce which went better with the salmon than I had expected. There was a small side salad and I had ordered fries which were hot, crisp and tasty. It was the best salmon fishcake I have ever eaten.
I finished my glass of wine while I studied the dessert menu. I went for the Knickerbocker Glory (a large ice-cream sundae for those who don't know the term). It came in a tall sundae glass; there was a soft jelly base, lots of fresh fruit and fruit sorbet filling the glass. On top was a good helping of thick whipped cream with vanilla, sprinkled with freshly-toasted sliced almonds and a fresh black cherry on top. It was wonderful.
There were two flaws in the perfection, the Americano was more like an Espresso, but was beautiful coffee nonetheless, so I didn't complain. The more serious problem was that the spoon was too wide to reach the bottom of the sundae glass so I couldn't eat all of the jelly. I mentioned this to the waitress, who said that she agreed with me that this was a problem and reported it straight to the manager. Maybe they will have different spoons next time.
It was an excellent meal, the best airport meal I have ever eaten, and the most relaxing time I have spent in an airport. At just over £40 including service it was expensive, but good value for what I got.
Sue was quite jealous when I told her about it so we will have to go there again next time we pass through Terminal 5.
As it happened there were no delays. There was a minor hitch at the car park. I had booked in advance so the number plate recognition system was meant to print out a personalised ticket with my car number and tie that to my pre-paid reservation. It didn't recogise the number, so I had to go to the desk to sort that out on Monday when I returned.
Having allowed extra time I got to the terminal in good time, and since I had printed my boarding card at home and had no checked luggage I was through security very quickly. In fact the entire journey from home to airside took about an hour.
It was lunchtime so I was hungry when I went airside. I checked out the eateries straight away. There were the usual Pret a Manger and Costa Coffee bars, but I wanted more than a sandwich. The pub serving food was very busy. I passed Gordon Ramsay's Plane Food and took a look. Main courses were about £15.00. Restaurant prices, but not totally outrageous. So I went in.
The place was about 40% full. The waitress was friendly and informal but very professional. I had a mineral water while I studied the menu and wine list. I went for the salmon fishcakes and a glass of New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc. The wine was crisp with tart apple flavours. The fishcake was perfect; a crisp crumb coating, not at all soggy, a lovely creamy filling with a hint of tarragon, and meaty chunks of salmon. It came on a bed of spinach which was moist without being soggy, and there was a creamy mustard sauce which went better with the salmon than I had expected. There was a small side salad and I had ordered fries which were hot, crisp and tasty. It was the best salmon fishcake I have ever eaten.
I finished my glass of wine while I studied the dessert menu. I went for the Knickerbocker Glory (a large ice-cream sundae for those who don't know the term). It came in a tall sundae glass; there was a soft jelly base, lots of fresh fruit and fruit sorbet filling the glass. On top was a good helping of thick whipped cream with vanilla, sprinkled with freshly-toasted sliced almonds and a fresh black cherry on top. It was wonderful.
There were two flaws in the perfection, the Americano was more like an Espresso, but was beautiful coffee nonetheless, so I didn't complain. The more serious problem was that the spoon was too wide to reach the bottom of the sundae glass so I couldn't eat all of the jelly. I mentioned this to the waitress, who said that she agreed with me that this was a problem and reported it straight to the manager. Maybe they will have different spoons next time.
It was an excellent meal, the best airport meal I have ever eaten, and the most relaxing time I have spent in an airport. At just over £40 including service it was expensive, but good value for what I got.
Sue was quite jealous when I told her about it so we will have to go there again next time we pass through Terminal 5.
Thursday, May 29, 2008
New Toy
I have been thinking of getting a quiet low-power PC to replace my file server at home. After a bit of looking around this system fitted the bill. My system isn't quite the same as the one in the link as they appear to have replaced the Celeron 220 CPU with an Atom during the last few days. I guess it's axiomatic that any PC is obsolete as soon as it ships.
The system is designed to run Windows Home Server but I got a £50 discount for discarding that. The system has two 500GB disk drives and 1GB of RAM so it is an ideal platform to run an OpenSolaris server with everything mirrored across the two disks using ZFS. The basic installation went very smoothly. All I need to do now is make some minor tweaks to the network configuration and set up my ZFS filesystems.
Future plans for the system include setting up an IMAP server, adding SlimServer software to stream music, and getting a GPS receiver so that I can run a stratum 1 clock (NTP timekeeping projects are what allows me to buy new toys at the moment).
The system is designed to run Windows Home Server but I got a £50 discount for discarding that. The system has two 500GB disk drives and 1GB of RAM so it is an ideal platform to run an OpenSolaris server with everything mirrored across the two disks using ZFS. The basic installation went very smoothly. All I need to do now is make some minor tweaks to the network configuration and set up my ZFS filesystems.
Future plans for the system include setting up an IMAP server, adding SlimServer software to stream music, and getting a GPS receiver so that I can run a stratum 1 clock (NTP timekeeping projects are what allows me to buy new toys at the moment).
Spring Bank Holiday
Last weekend was the Spring Bank Holiday so we went away cycling to Marlborough in Wiltshire. Saturday was fine and sunny so we had an excellent ride across Berkshire with a nice lunch in Kingsclere.
At one point we caught up with a man who was doing a charity ride on a solar-powered recumbent tricycle. In fact we caught up with his convoy as he had a lead car, a Volvo estate towing a large trailer, a following car and a motorbike with him. We didn't stop to ask him quite what environmental point he was making, we just overtook him and carried on our way.
Sunday morning was wet, not heavy rain but a determined drizzle. We decided to ignore the rain and rode out from Marlborough over the downs before turning south to Avebury, a village with a stone circle. Not as famous as Stonehenge, but the stones are accessible. In the afternoon the weather cleared up so we walked into Marlborough from the B&B.
On Monday we had planned a longer ride home, but there had been heavy winds overnight and it was raining heavily. From Marlborough we rode through the Savernake Forest. The road is paved, but heavily potholed.
Sue hit one pothole in the rain and jarred her wrists, bringing her to a brief halt. I managed to ride into another pothole puncturing both tyres. I called out to Sue who was just ahead of me. She came to a stop and we surveyed my tyres. Just then there was a crash and a tree fell into the road about 200 yards ahead of us. If we hadn't stopped we might have been under it.
Fixing the punctures took about 20 minutes and it rained heavily all the time. By the time we left the forest it was later than we had intended and our progress was slowed by the weather. As we made our way to Great Bedwyn Sue suggested that we could check out the train times. I had been having the same thoughts as I thought that two punctures and a brush with death before elevenses was a bit much.
As luck would have it we got to the station about five minutes before the next train and caught it to Theale near Reading. We got to Theale at about 12:15 and almost immediately came upon a nice pub. Hot soup and hot puddings revived us, and we had just under 20 miles to ride in the afternoon. Still it rained so by the time we got home we and our luggage were quite wet, but that was easily dealt with by hot showers and the washing machine. In all it was a good trip, and we didn't feel at all guilty about taking the train. At my age I'm not sure how many more character-building experiences I need.
At one point we caught up with a man who was doing a charity ride on a solar-powered recumbent tricycle. In fact we caught up with his convoy as he had a lead car, a Volvo estate towing a large trailer, a following car and a motorbike with him. We didn't stop to ask him quite what environmental point he was making, we just overtook him and carried on our way.
Sunday morning was wet, not heavy rain but a determined drizzle. We decided to ignore the rain and rode out from Marlborough over the downs before turning south to Avebury, a village with a stone circle. Not as famous as Stonehenge, but the stones are accessible. In the afternoon the weather cleared up so we walked into Marlborough from the B&B.
On Monday we had planned a longer ride home, but there had been heavy winds overnight and it was raining heavily. From Marlborough we rode through the Savernake Forest. The road is paved, but heavily potholed.
Sue hit one pothole in the rain and jarred her wrists, bringing her to a brief halt. I managed to ride into another pothole puncturing both tyres. I called out to Sue who was just ahead of me. She came to a stop and we surveyed my tyres. Just then there was a crash and a tree fell into the road about 200 yards ahead of us. If we hadn't stopped we might have been under it.
Fixing the punctures took about 20 minutes and it rained heavily all the time. By the time we left the forest it was later than we had intended and our progress was slowed by the weather. As we made our way to Great Bedwyn Sue suggested that we could check out the train times. I had been having the same thoughts as I thought that two punctures and a brush with death before elevenses was a bit much.
As luck would have it we got to the station about five minutes before the next train and caught it to Theale near Reading. We got to Theale at about 12:15 and almost immediately came upon a nice pub. Hot soup and hot puddings revived us, and we had just under 20 miles to ride in the afternoon. Still it rained so by the time we got home we and our luggage were quite wet, but that was easily dealt with by hot showers and the washing machine. In all it was a good trip, and we didn't feel at all guilty about taking the train. At my age I'm not sure how many more character-building experiences I need.
Tuesday, April 29, 2008
More Cycling
Brian's comment about his classic Bianchi bike reminded me that I had some more to write about the racing bike. I have an older racing bike, similar to Brian's, but a slightly earlier vintage. I saw a frame in my local bike shop in 1985, a Coventry Eagle in Reynolds 531 tubing (as most lightweight bikes were in those days).
It was a nice lightweight training frame, with braze-ons for the downtube levers, but no mudguard eyes. I was looking for an Audax bike so I really wanted to be able to fit mudguards. I spoke to the bike shop owner who said "I'll give Barry a call to see if he can do a special for you". Barry Hoban was a former pro cyclist who was manager of the Coventry Eagle factory in mid-Wales. A couple of days later he said "Barry can do you a frame with mudguard eyes, do you want it in red or blue?" I ordered the blue one as I already had a red bike.
When the frame came and I built the bike up it was great, the first time I had a really fast responsive bike, as opposed to a lightweight tourer. I took that bike on a few special trips over the years, riding out to watch the World Championships in Belgium, riding in the French Alps, but more recently it has just hung on the garage wall as a trophy.
This year as I got a bit fitter I decided that I should ride this bike on fine days, so I gave it a bit of an overhaul. One afternoon early in March Sue and I went for a ride so I wanted to ride the blue bike. We got about 400 yards before I had to stop to tighten the handlebars. Sue was a bit dismissive about the old bike, I think she was a bit concerned that it might not be safe. I assured her that it was perfectly safe, and promptly scared myself to death at the next junction.
I had forgotten that the side-pull brakes of the 1980s are a world apart from modern caliper brakes. I went out on the bike a couple more times, and Sue worried about me each time. I reassured her, but was always a bit nervous of having to stop in an emergency.
And so, dear reader, that is why when I saw the modern racing bike on sale at work, Sue had nothing but encouragement for me. I just wish I was devious enough to have planned it that way!
It was a nice lightweight training frame, with braze-ons for the downtube levers, but no mudguard eyes. I was looking for an Audax bike so I really wanted to be able to fit mudguards. I spoke to the bike shop owner who said "I'll give Barry a call to see if he can do a special for you". Barry Hoban was a former pro cyclist who was manager of the Coventry Eagle factory in mid-Wales. A couple of days later he said "Barry can do you a frame with mudguard eyes, do you want it in red or blue?" I ordered the blue one as I already had a red bike.
When the frame came and I built the bike up it was great, the first time I had a really fast responsive bike, as opposed to a lightweight tourer. I took that bike on a few special trips over the years, riding out to watch the World Championships in Belgium, riding in the French Alps, but more recently it has just hung on the garage wall as a trophy.
This year as I got a bit fitter I decided that I should ride this bike on fine days, so I gave it a bit of an overhaul. One afternoon early in March Sue and I went for a ride so I wanted to ride the blue bike. We got about 400 yards before I had to stop to tighten the handlebars. Sue was a bit dismissive about the old bike, I think she was a bit concerned that it might not be safe. I assured her that it was perfectly safe, and promptly scared myself to death at the next junction.
I had forgotten that the side-pull brakes of the 1980s are a world apart from modern caliper brakes. I went out on the bike a couple more times, and Sue worried about me each time. I reassured her, but was always a bit nervous of having to stop in an emergency.
And so, dear reader, that is why when I saw the modern racing bike on sale at work, Sue had nothing but encouragement for me. I just wish I was devious enough to have planned it that way!
Sunday, April 27, 2008
Open Top Cars
I was reading Brian Herman's blog earlier today and noticed that the banner photo is a MINI convertible. Brian has had his MINI for almost three years now, and he is really pleased with it.
I have one quibble, though. The car in the picture has the roof up. Surely the first rule of open-top cars is - "If it isn't raining (or snowing) the roof should be down!"
Although I have never owned an open-top car I have driven them on several occasions, and I have always followed this rule. I once spent a day in an MGB Roadster driving through Berkshire trying to avoid the rain showers. Unfortunately I couldn't dodge them all and was hit by a very heavy shower. By the time we had the roof up we were both completely soaked and everything inside was misted up. It was about 15 minutes before I could see out properly.
In a dry place like Colorado, and with a modern electric roof and air-conditioning this shouldn't be a problem so I do hope that Brian doesn't spend all his time driving with the roof up.
I have one quibble, though. The car in the picture has the roof up. Surely the first rule of open-top cars is - "If it isn't raining (or snowing) the roof should be down!"
Although I have never owned an open-top car I have driven them on several occasions, and I have always followed this rule. I once spent a day in an MGB Roadster driving through Berkshire trying to avoid the rain showers. Unfortunately I couldn't dodge them all and was hit by a very heavy shower. By the time we had the roof up we were both completely soaked and everything inside was misted up. It was about 15 minutes before I could see out properly.
In a dry place like Colorado, and with a modern electric roof and air-conditioning this shouldn't be a problem so I do hope that Brian doesn't spend all his time driving with the roof up.
Cycling Update
At the beginning of this year I decided to get back my fitness on the bike again. I have been quite successful so far, with a steady buildup over the months. There has been only one week when I haven't ridden at all.
I mentioned our four-day trip to Herefordshire at Easter. We didn't ride out there, but we managed to ride on the day we drove out there and the day we came home, so we did as much as our fitness allowed.
I saw a second-hand racing bike on the electronic notice board at work, so I checked it out and bought it. It is a Principia frame in aluminium with carbon forks, with Shimano 105 equipment. The bike is very lively and responsive, and I enjoy riding it. I have one niggle - I bought a new cassette to give me a lower bottom gear and it is difficult to adjust the rear mechanism so that it shifts cleanly into bottom without hitting the spokes.
Riding on weekdays is difficult at the moment. I live over forty miles from work so I can't commute by bike, and I am teaching on two evenings a week, but I have worked out a partial solution. I can take the bike to work in the back of the car and then ride home, leaving the car at work. I can then go to work by train the next day and then drive home that night.
I did this a couple of weeks ago before our Croatia holiday and it was quite successful. The ride home was 41 miles and I did it in just under 3 1/2 hours. I intend to do this once a week (weather permitting) until the end of term, and then step up to twice a week from the end of June. I should then be noticeably fitter and hopefully a bit lighter.
I mentioned our four-day trip to Herefordshire at Easter. We didn't ride out there, but we managed to ride on the day we drove out there and the day we came home, so we did as much as our fitness allowed.
I saw a second-hand racing bike on the electronic notice board at work, so I checked it out and bought it. It is a Principia frame in aluminium with carbon forks, with Shimano 105 equipment. The bike is very lively and responsive, and I enjoy riding it. I have one niggle - I bought a new cassette to give me a lower bottom gear and it is difficult to adjust the rear mechanism so that it shifts cleanly into bottom without hitting the spokes.
Riding on weekdays is difficult at the moment. I live over forty miles from work so I can't commute by bike, and I am teaching on two evenings a week, but I have worked out a partial solution. I can take the bike to work in the back of the car and then ride home, leaving the car at work. I can then go to work by train the next day and then drive home that night.
I did this a couple of weeks ago before our Croatia holiday and it was quite successful. The ride home was 41 miles and I did it in just under 3 1/2 hours. I intend to do this once a week (weather permitting) until the end of term, and then step up to twice a week from the end of June. I should then be noticeably fitter and hopefully a bit lighter.
Doesn't Time Fly?
I've just realised that I haven't updated this blog since mid-March. My only excuse is that I have been too busy having a life to write about it. This would lead you to ask what I have been doing.
At the Easter weekend we went away for a cycling trip to Herefordshire, staying in Eardisland which is one of the Black and White Villages. The weather could have been better, we had strong winds, rain and hail on most days, but we had a good time and managed to have some decent rides on three days with a half-day walk and a trip to Hay-on-Wye on the Sunday. I managed not to buy any books while visiting Hay, which is a remarkable achievement for a bookworm like me.
The following weekend we were visiting relatives in North Wales, and I attended the retirement party for Dr Clive Williams who was head of the Chemical Pathology department at the hospital where I worked in my first job. It was a very interesting evening, meeting many people who I used to work with until I left in 1986. A surprising number of people are still there from my day.
We went to Dubrovnik for a week's holiday and returned home last Sunday. It was a lovely time, although after a promising start the weather turned cold and wet for most of the week. I will put up some pictures on Flickr when I have gone through them.
I have had a minor reorganisation of this blog page. I have kept the minimalist layout, but I have separated out other peoples blogs from other links and have set up a separate humour section.
In the blogs I have added a link to Brian Herman's blog. Brian only set this up a few weeks ago but he has been busy posting.
At the Easter weekend we went away for a cycling trip to Herefordshire, staying in Eardisland which is one of the Black and White Villages. The weather could have been better, we had strong winds, rain and hail on most days, but we had a good time and managed to have some decent rides on three days with a half-day walk and a trip to Hay-on-Wye on the Sunday. I managed not to buy any books while visiting Hay, which is a remarkable achievement for a bookworm like me.
The following weekend we were visiting relatives in North Wales, and I attended the retirement party for Dr Clive Williams who was head of the Chemical Pathology department at the hospital where I worked in my first job. It was a very interesting evening, meeting many people who I used to work with until I left in 1986. A surprising number of people are still there from my day.
We went to Dubrovnik for a week's holiday and returned home last Sunday. It was a lovely time, although after a promising start the weather turned cold and wet for most of the week. I will put up some pictures on Flickr when I have gone through them.
I have had a minor reorganisation of this blog page. I have kept the minimalist layout, but I have separated out other peoples blogs from other links and have set up a separate humour section.
In the blogs I have added a link to Brian Herman's blog. Brian only set this up a few weeks ago but he has been busy posting.
Tuesday, March 18, 2008
Project Management Is Leadership
Those of you who use or teach Project Management and Presentation Skills as business skills might be interested in this presentation by Brian Herman.
Brian was my manager for a while in my past life. I have a very high regard for him, and when I read about his presentation in Alec Muffett's blog I took a look. Brian has an excellent lighthearted presentation style and a wonderful way with minimalist presentation slides. He gets the point across in a way which I find inspiring, it certainly holds the attention in a way that many presenters do not.
I recommend that you take a look. The whole presentation takes about 20 minutes so make yourself a cup of tea before you start.
Brian was my manager for a while in my past life. I have a very high regard for him, and when I read about his presentation in Alec Muffett's blog I took a look. Brian has an excellent lighthearted presentation style and a wonderful way with minimalist presentation slides. He gets the point across in a way which I find inspiring, it certainly holds the attention in a way that many presenters do not.
I recommend that you take a look. The whole presentation takes about 20 minutes so make yourself a cup of tea before you start.
Any Noun Can Be Verbed...
... and it would appear that adjectives can be adverbed, too!
There is a furore in the UK this week following an initiative by a marketing company to provide information to advertisers by, in effect, snooping on the content downloaded by web users.
See here for information.
The Foundation for Information policy Research (FIPR) is a think-tank which defends the rights of users against intrusive activities by companies and government. It has responded to this proposal, in my view quite properly, by pointing out the areas of UK and EU law which forbid such snooping.
Sadly the English language is a minor casualty in this skirmish. The following text made me cringe:
There is a furore in the UK this week following an initiative by a marketing company to provide information to advertisers by, in effect, snooping on the content downloaded by web users.
See here for information.
The Foundation for Information policy Research (FIPR) is a think-tank which defends the rights of users against intrusive activities by companies and government. It has responded to this proposal, in my view quite properly, by pointing out the areas of UK and EU law which forbid such snooping.
Sadly the English language is a minor casualty in this skirmish. The following text made me cringe:
[Regarding consent] Moreover, in many cases it is clear that any such consent is expressly or impliedly negatived.It is bad enough to make a verb from negative, to make an adjective from implied is just too much! Aside from that it is an example of clear English used by lawyers to make a legal point.
Sunday, February 24, 2008
Back to Prague - Part 1
We went back to Prague for a four day trip around last weekend. We had a great time walking around, revisiting old haunts and spending time eating, drinking and chatting with our friends.
We also managed to go to a surprising number of places which were new to us.
We stayed at the Ibis which claims to be in Mala Strana but is actually at Anděl. This was no problem for us as Anděl is a great local centre for restaurants and bars as well as being within easy reach of the tourist parts.
On Friday night Jay and Vladka managed to get most of the old crowd together for a pub night near our hotel - though they hadn't realised we were staying so close when they booked it!
On Saturday we walked up through the park from Štefánikova náměstí and followed the hill to near the Strahov Monastery. It was mid-morning so we stopped at the Strahov Monastery Brewery as we had never tried their dark St Norbert beer. I enjoyed it but Sue ws lamenting the fact that she didn't have a hot drink as the weather was cold and the beer had chilled her.
We remedied that later with hot soup and fruit dumplings on our way from the castle to Mala Strana.
In the afternoon we met up with Jay and went out to Spořilov to the Prvni Pivni Tramway.
This unlikely-looking place was rated in The Guardian's top ten bars in Prague but Sue regarded it with deep suspicion as she has this unjustified belief that I always seek out the dodgiest bars in town.
Jay knew of a small lake near the tram station so we had the bonus of a pleasant little walk in the sunshine before going for a beer.
The exterior of the bar is an ugly concrete block, but one of the rooms inside is fitted out like an old tram. The beer was good, particularly the Primator wheat beer. We couldn't stay long because the tables were all booked from 5pm. So we and Jay headed back on the tram to town and went our separate ways.
More from the weekend in the next entry.
We also managed to go to a surprising number of places which were new to us.
We stayed at the Ibis which claims to be in Mala Strana but is actually at Anděl. This was no problem for us as Anděl is a great local centre for restaurants and bars as well as being within easy reach of the tourist parts.
On Friday night Jay and Vladka managed to get most of the old crowd together for a pub night near our hotel - though they hadn't realised we were staying so close when they booked it!
On Saturday we walked up through the park from Štefánikova náměstí and followed the hill to near the Strahov Monastery. It was mid-morning so we stopped at the Strahov Monastery Brewery as we had never tried their dark St Norbert beer. I enjoyed it but Sue ws lamenting the fact that she didn't have a hot drink as the weather was cold and the beer had chilled her.
We remedied that later with hot soup and fruit dumplings on our way from the castle to Mala Strana.
In the afternoon we met up with Jay and went out to Spořilov to the Prvni Pivni Tramway.
This unlikely-looking place was rated in The Guardian's top ten bars in Prague but Sue regarded it with deep suspicion as she has this unjustified belief that I always seek out the dodgiest bars in town.
Jay knew of a small lake near the tram station so we had the bonus of a pleasant little walk in the sunshine before going for a beer.
The exterior of the bar is an ugly concrete block, but one of the rooms inside is fitted out like an old tram. The beer was good, particularly the Primator wheat beer. We couldn't stay long because the tables were all booked from 5pm. So we and Jay headed back on the tram to town and went our separate ways.
More from the weekend in the next entry.
Monday, February 11, 2008
And the winner is ...
I wrote recently about McQuarie Dictionary's contest to find the word of the year for 2007.
The winner is -
pod slurping
noun the downloading of large quantities of data to an MP3 player or memory stick from a computer.
I still prefer arse-antlers myself.
I also wrote a while ago about textonyms, words which are different, but use the same keys in predictive text mode on a mobile phone, eg 'home' and 'good'.
These have now gained some academic credibility. David Crystal has been studying them and the UK press picked up the story last week. The Telegraph's report is here.
Some examples of textonyms here.
The winner is -
pod slurping
noun the downloading of large quantities of data to an MP3 player or memory stick from a computer.
I still prefer arse-antlers myself.
I also wrote a while ago about textonyms, words which are different, but use the same keys in predictive text mode on a mobile phone, eg 'home' and 'good'.
These have now gained some academic credibility. David Crystal has been studying them and the UK press picked up the story last week. The Telegraph's report is here.
Some examples of textonyms here.
Thursday, February 07, 2008
Farewell Sheldon Brown
Sheldon Brown was an American cyclist who ran what I regard as the best technical website for cyclists. Whatever the topic, his site would have excellent advice and how-to guides. He did a nice line in April Fool jokes, and introduced me to the Sheldon Shake, an effective way of cleaning a cycle chain by putting it into a bottle half-full of solvent, closing the cap and shaking vigorously.
Sadly I read that Sheldon died of a heart attact a few days ago. He will be sadly missed.
Sadly I read that Sheldon died of a heart attact a few days ago. He will be sadly missed.
Sunday, January 27, 2008
Overestimating the British Public
A famous newspaper owner once said something to the effect that he would never go bankrupt by underestimating the intelligence of the British public.
A piece in the Guardian the other week took the opposite view. The author is a Polish journalist who is obviously intelligent, well-educated and has a good command of English. Unfortunately she has chosen to live in the UK where this combination of attributes makes her one of the minority.
The author is a bit snobby about the average British person whose vocabulary isn't as rich as hers and whose grammar isn't as accurate. I can sympathise with her to some extent; as she didn't go through the British school system she didn't learn the hard lessons about not showing off your knowledge to an unsympathetic audience.
It seems to me that her English teachers didn't advise on tuning her language to her target audience. I suspect that her teachers felt that accuracy was more important. I try to take a less lofty view with my classes and would point out elements of language which were grammatically correct but not used by, say, 99% of native speakers.
If she does persist in complaining about poor English among the native speakers, given Lynn Truss's success with "Eats, Shoots and Leaves" I wonder if there is an opening for a pedantic book on English usage written by a non-native speaker...
A piece in the Guardian the other week took the opposite view. The author is a Polish journalist who is obviously intelligent, well-educated and has a good command of English. Unfortunately she has chosen to live in the UK where this combination of attributes makes her one of the minority.
The author is a bit snobby about the average British person whose vocabulary isn't as rich as hers and whose grammar isn't as accurate. I can sympathise with her to some extent; as she didn't go through the British school system she didn't learn the hard lessons about not showing off your knowledge to an unsympathetic audience.
It seems to me that her English teachers didn't advise on tuning her language to her target audience. I suspect that her teachers felt that accuracy was more important. I try to take a less lofty view with my classes and would point out elements of language which were grammatically correct but not used by, say, 99% of native speakers.
If she does persist in complaining about poor English among the native speakers, given Lynn Truss's success with "Eats, Shoots and Leaves" I wonder if there is an opening for a pedantic book on English usage written by a non-native speaker...
Sunday, January 13, 2008
Newsbiscuit
One of my work colleagues sent me a link to Newsbiscuit the other day. This is a satirical news site, I guess it is the UK's answer to The Onion.
Here's a taster - Doctor's receptionist awarded honorary medical degree.
Here's a taster - Doctor's receptionist awarded honorary medical degree.
Tart Fuel and Arse Antlers
Every English teacher knows how important it is to have a good dictionary. Students whose first language is not English can have difficulty with slang, jargon and new usage of existing words.
They can try looking up words in a dictionary, but an older dictionary may not be any help.
I was pleased to read that the McQuarie Dictionary, Australia's National Dictionary, is running an on-line poll allowing readers to select their new word of the year for 2007 from the words which the dictionary has just included fpr the first time.
My favourites are:
arse antlers - a tattoo just above the buttocks, having a central section and curving extensions on each side.
floordrobe - a floor littered with discarded clothes, viewed ironically as a clothing storage system.
tart fuel - wine coolers and alcopops, viewed by men as deceptively alcoholic drinks that will lower a woman's resistance to sexual advances.
Another one which I need to watch out for is boomeritis - the range of sports-related injuries incurred by baby boomers as they pursue health and physical fitness programs into their old age, such as bursitis, tendonitis, sprains, strains and stress fractures.
The full list is here.
I hope that Angela is reading, I would like her perspective on this as an Australian.
They can try looking up words in a dictionary, but an older dictionary may not be any help.
I was pleased to read that the McQuarie Dictionary, Australia's National Dictionary, is running an on-line poll allowing readers to select their new word of the year for 2007 from the words which the dictionary has just included fpr the first time.
My favourites are:
arse antlers - a tattoo just above the buttocks, having a central section and curving extensions on each side.
floordrobe - a floor littered with discarded clothes, viewed ironically as a clothing storage system.
tart fuel - wine coolers and alcopops, viewed by men as deceptively alcoholic drinks that will lower a woman's resistance to sexual advances.
Another one which I need to watch out for is boomeritis - the range of sports-related injuries incurred by baby boomers as they pursue health and physical fitness programs into their old age, such as bursitis, tendonitis, sprains, strains and stress fractures.
The full list is here.
I hope that Angela is reading, I would like her perspective on this as an Australian.
Sunday, January 06, 2008
Fame at last!
Happy New Year to everyone, particularly Arno, my faithful reader.
I was surprised and delighted to receive e-mail from an editor at Schmap.com, an online tourist guide. They were looking for pictures for the latest edition of their guide to Prague, and asked if they could use one of the pictures on my Flickr site.
I said that they could, and the picture is now linked in their guide.
OK, it's hardly a commission from National Geographic, but it's better than no recognition at all.
I was surprised and delighted to receive e-mail from an editor at Schmap.com, an online tourist guide. They were looking for pictures for the latest edition of their guide to Prague, and asked if they could use one of the pictures on my Flickr site.
I said that they could, and the picture is now linked in their guide.
OK, it's hardly a commission from National Geographic, but it's better than no recognition at all.
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