#and we are currently the centre of the most greens seats in the country

[sydneysageivashkov]

they've defrosted antony for the bcc election everyone is taking this very seriously

[darkmaga-retard]

At risk.

John Ellis

Sep 03, 2024

1. Volkswagen AG is considering factory closures in Germany for the first time in its 87-year history, parting with tradition and risking a feud with unions in a step that reflects the deep woes roiling Europe’s auto industry. After years of ignoring overcapacity and slumping competitiveness, the German auto giant’s moves are likely to kick off a broader reckoning in the industry. The reasons are clear: Europe’s efforts to compete with Chinese rivals and Tesla Inc. in electric cars are faltering. “VW is recognizing just how serious the situation is,” said Harald Hendrikse, an autos analyst with Citigroup. “We’re living in a difficult geopolitical world, and Europe has not won that battle.” With car sales still nearly a fifth lower than pre-pandemic levels in Europe, manufacturers including VW, Stellantis NV and Renault SA were operating more than 30 factories at levels analysts consider unprofitable, according to data from Just Auto. That includes Volkswagen’s sprawling home factory in Wolfsburg — Europe’s largest. (Source: bloomberg.com)

2. Chancellor Olaf Scholz has described the results of two state elections in east Germany that saw massive gains for populists as “bitter” and warned mainstream parties against forming coalitions with “rightwing extremists”. The Alternative for Germany won the election in Thuringia, the first time a far-right party has secured victory in a state election in the country’s postwar history. In the neighbouring state of Saxony the AfD came second to the centre-right Christian Democratic Union (CDU), garnering 30.6 per cent of the vote, just behind the CDU’s 31.9 per cent. The election was a disaster for the three parties in Scholz’s coalition, his Social Democrats, the Greens and the liberal FDP, which all saw their share of the vote slump. The Greens and FDP did so badly that they will no longer be represented in the Thuringian parliament. (Source: ft.com)

3. Eurointelligence:

Brandenburg was the state known for royal fireworks in Potsdam, where Prussian kings resided and for whom Johann Sebastian Bach wrote his famous concertos. The Brandenburg state election on September 22 could produce a firework of a different kind. For Olaf Scholz’s SPD, this is the most important of the three state elections because this has an SPD-run state since unification. Brandenburg is one of the last SPD strongholds in the country. The president state premier is Dietmar Woidke, who has been in his job since 2014. In the 2019 election, the SPD was the largest party, followed by the AfD and the CDU. The current polls have the AfD in the lead with 24%, followed by SPD, CDU and Wagenknecht, in a range from 17-20%. The Greens and the Left Party are polling at exactly the 5% threshold for representation. The result will depend to a large extent on whether they are both in, both out, or one in, one out. The error margin of these polls allows for many possible outcomes. Moreover, the latest poll is a month old. Last Sunday’s election will probably have a trend-begets-trend effect as we often observe after elections: The winner’s poll rating improves shortly after an election. Sahra Wagenknecht has been one of the relative winners. BSW is no longer just an idea but a concrete political party that wins seats in elections. The elections in Saxony and Thuringia gave her the role of the power-broker. We would expect her to keep doing well. For the SPD, the news headlines right now are awful. If the SPD were to lose its safest state, this would indeed be a moment that could affect the politics of Berlin. (Source: eurointelligence.com)

[bluewavesofchange]

The girl and the dragon

I don't own Yugioh or it's characters, nor do I own Beauty and the best.

Long ago before the world we know today, in the country side of France was a small farming village. The people that lived there were kind and lived together in peace, no hardships were known and the village grew larger with each passing year, its wealthy and prosperity a contribution from one of the ruling families in the area…

 

If you stood on the tallest hilltop beside the river that flowed beside the village you would catch a glimpse of the towering castle in the distance. Its walls constructed out of white stone that glimmered when the sunlight washed over it when the giant ball of fire was high in the skin, giving it an enchanting glow. The building was a wonder to behold, housing grand bedroom adorned with furniture carved out of the white oak, the beds felt like clouds when you slept upon them and covered in the finest silks and furs. A large ball room with a sparkling chandelier that brought light and life to the rooms white marbled interior, bringing a magical world to life as the large parties and balls would be hosted by the family of the castle, royalty and important members of state would attend to these events, rumoured had it ambassadors from countries as far as Egypt would be there.

 

The dining hall could seat hundreds of guests and the kitchens were stocked with only the finest of foods and only those with peak culinary skills would work the stoves and ovens, producing the most delectable foods and pastries. The walls in the library were lined with shelves upon shelves of books, scripts and titles that you could only find elsewhere in the world. Any scholar would be honoured to be in such a place.

 

But the true jewel of this castle was its vast gardens, rows upon rows of white rose bushes adorned the area, intricate sculpture’s and fountains brought the space to life, the grass soft and green like a new carpet that no one has stepped upon yet. Large white oak trees lined the outer walls and in the centre of the garden stood something truly out of a fantasy story…an old cherry blossom tree that bloomed all year around, the petals of the flowers were pristine white instead of pink and rumour had it that the blossoms held healing properties that could heal any illness and disease.

 

The rulers of this palace were known as the Kaiba’s; their family had reigned over the area for generations. The current master of the house was named Hikaru; he was a tall regal man with long brunet hair, piercing blue eyes and a pale complexion. He was firm but kind, holding himself to a high standard and treated those around him with respect and dignity, even the servants and house keepers. Any person that met him would instantly adore him and fall for his admirable personality.

 

And beside him was his beauty of a wife, she was an unusual jewel in this land, her pale skin could be described as angelic, her eyes were like sapphires that sparkled with kindness and compassion, her hair white long and flowed like a water fall and her heart was just as sweet and loving as her husbands. An aura of grace and elegancy followed her wherever she went, always wearing a smile and helping anyone that was in need. Her name was Amilia but her beloved and those she held close to her heart called her Ami.

 

Whenever the couple was seen together they were happy and anyone could see the love that they had for each other. You could feel the connection and passion between the two of them. They met during a ball at Amilia’s home, her father introducing her to a young Hikaru who was a rowdy and rough young man back in his day, chasing after the ladies of the court and causing problems for his father. However the day he laid eyes on the white beauty he fell madly in love for her, his heart racing as he felt like he was flying from just being in the presence of this angel before him…and Ami?

 

Well she found him humorous and rather odd. She had had many suiters and her father was adamant to marry her to a wealthy and powerful man. But she wished to marry for love, to find the other half of her heart and soul, to live the life that was told in the books she would spend her days reading…

 

And she found that in Hikaru, at first he had tried to use his normal tactics of wooing and enticing woman with his looks and charms but she would have none of it…rejecting him every step of the way…then he started to change…he matured and grew into a man that came to care for others and be kind and compassionate. He would write her poetry, send her flowers, and ask to spend time with her in her gardens as he got to know her for her mind and heart rather than chase her for her beauty. In turn she fell deeply in love with him, she learned that he loved to ride horses and spend his time writing and dreaming of the adventures he could have in the lands beyond the horizon. And in turn he learned that she had a love for nature and could make any plant grow even if it was on deaths door. She had a love for the arts and knowledge, spending her days reading or painting exquisite murals that decorated the walls of her home.

 

They grew closer and closer every day until he finally asked her father for her hand and within a year they were married, dignitaries and royalty from all over came to witness they union between the two, their wedding taking place on the first day of winter, the first snowflake falling upon as if to bless them and their future and true enough by the next snowfall the following year Amilia gave birth to her first child, a little boy with his father’s baring’s who they named Seto.

 

He was the pride and joy of Hikaru and Ami, he was intelligent and had the same compassion and kindness as his parents, the boy spending his days with his father, learning under him about the world and the kingdom that would one day be his responsibility…while teaching him to ride horses and to write, to hold himself as a true gentlemen and ruler. And in the evenings Seto would spend with his mother, the white haired woman teaching him to read and of the arts. Unlike his mother he found painting rather dull but could sketch life like pictures and had a knack for music, he easily learned to play the harp and piano, playing beautiful songs for his mother while she painted…

 

And when it was time for bed, both parents would tuck their son in and would sit with him till he slept, his mother reading stories to him of fantastical places with dragons and magicians, his favourite tales…

 

As wonderful as the child’s life was and the love he received from his parents was wonderful but he still felt lonely. Despite his intelligence and skills, he wasn’t a very social child and wouldn’t know how to interact with others despite his father’s guidance. There was one boy he got along well with who was the prince of a kingdom in Egypt whose family would travel to their lands for trade (mostly for grapes for wine in exchange for spices). The prince was named Atem Sennen, he had a caramel like complexion with unusual red eyes and strange hair, a mix of black with maroon tips with a few streaks of blond going along the dark strands, his bangs the same bright colour.

 

Seto found the boy odd whenever their families came together; the prince was bubbly and could talk your ear off about basically anything. He was charismatic and bright with a big smile on his face, trying anything he can to interact with Seto, bugging him wherever he went. At first he found it annoying and would try to hide from the other whenever he was at the castle but Atem would easily find him and think it was all a game…and soon it truly turned into one. The boys soon became friends and looked forward to seeing each other, Seto telling the Egyptian prince about the books he had read and even tried to teach the other music, although Atem found it all boring and would rather drag the brunet to the gardens to play.

 

But even though Seto had the strange child as a companion, he still felt lonely but that would change the day his mother told him she was having another child…

 

He was 8 years old when his little brother was born whom his parents named Mokuba. He wasn’t sure about having a brother at first, the thought of sharing his parents with another didn’t sit well with him but the moment he was brought into his mother’s chambers after she had gone into labour and got to hold his baby brother for the first time, he made a vow to always protect him and do anything in his power to make sure he stayed happy.

 

And that’s what the family was for 4 years…they were happy…days spent in each other presence, laughing and spending time together, whether in the gardens or the library or in their rooms, they were always together, an over whelming sense of joy filled the castle that everyone thought would last for years…

 

However not every story is a fairy tale…

 

One day Hikaru went out riding when a giant storm hit…a flash of lightning strike the ground spooking his horse…causing it to run off and ended up going off a cliff…both man and steed plummeting to their deaths…when he was found days later the news devastated Amilia and her children, the entire castle mourning the loss of the kind and gentle man…a few days later the lady of the castle taking her own life with a blade to her broken heart…leaving behind her two sons…

 

Seto and Mokuba were heart broken and alone, the servants trying their best to help the two boys work through their grief but someone needed to take over the duties that Hikaru was responsible for…and Seto was still too young to take over…

 

So the boy’s uncle was given a temporary title and would rule till the oldest brother came of age…but Gozuburo was not a man like his older brother…he was cruel and cold, wanting nothing more than power and wealth…he didn’t care for the two boys and would’ve sent them away had it not been for Hikaru’s will naming Seto his heir…and getting rid of the brothers would make him look suspicious…

 

So he would train the boy, turn him into his image and ensure that he would keep Gozuburo as his advisor and grant him his own title and wealth someday…but as it had been said, there was not an ounce of compassion and care in the man’s heart…

 

He would enact harsh punishments upon Seto whenever he failed at a task or tried to speak back to the man, locking him in the tower for days without food or water…beating him, giving him lashings and even going as far as to brand the child with a hot poker…the warm loving home that Seto had once known became like a prison of hatred and pain, his soft heart slowly hardening as the boy he once was grew into a man that was cold and indifferent. His face remaining emotionless and harsh in his ways, treating others as if they were beneath him, focusing on the wealth of the kingdom he would soon have domain over…he became unbearable, people only tolerating him because of his position and status…

 

The only people that could stand him was Atem (who truly worried for his friend, having seen him change over the years. The bright eyed boy degraded to a depressed and cruel man) and of course Mokuba…

 

The little boy was mostly left alone, nothing more than an afterthought as Seto was Gozuburo’s main focus. Only the servants and maids would try to keep the child company to keep him from his loneliness and neglect. And even though Seto tried to keep close with his little brother it became harder as their caregiver started keeping the boys from each other, making sure that they saw nothing of each other as he wanted to isolate Seto from everyone else…

 

And Gozuburo’s plan would’ve worked…had he not laid his hands on Mokuba. It was a few weeks before Seto’s 16th birthday and Mokuba wanted to do something for his brother. Despite the fact that they had grown apart he still loved his big brother and wanted nothing more than to see him smile again. But as he was trying to get Seto’s attention while he was studying, Gozuburo struck the younger boy, raising his fist and pinching him through the face. The child fell to the ground and the man would’ve kicked him if Seto had not intervened, grabbing Gozuburo and pushing him into a wall, not saying a word as he glared daggers at the man.

 

The older man hurried out of the room leaving the brothers behind, Seto glaring at the door before turning to his little brother and kneeling down to help him up, giving the young child hope that some part of his brother had come to the surface but all Seto did was tell him that he shouldn’t show weakness in front of his enemies…that it was pathetic to show care and compassion. And with that he went back to work…leaving Mokuba with a broken hope…his brother truly was gone…

 

The following day Gozuburo’s body was found splattered in the courtyard having fallen from the balcony of his room…or maybe he was pushed out…the truth would never be known.

 

With him out of the way Seto was free to take over his late father’s kingdom…

 

On the night of his 16th birthday a large banquet was hosted at the palace with many guests from all over, including Atem and his sister Mana attended. The ball room was filled with men and woman dressed in the finest attired, dancing and socializing, servants walking around serving fine food and wine, ladies trying their best to flirt with the newest head of the Kaiba family. But none of them got further than introducing themselves as he pushed past them to greet the other guests…

 

The ball was under way when a storm came out of nowhere, lightning striking across the sky as raining was beating down on the roof of the castle, and the front doors are blown open as a large gust of wind fills the room…a hag covered in withered cloak stumbles her way into the grand palace. The party attendees looking at her in disgust as they tried to get out of her way as she made her way towards the eldest Kaiba, the tall brunet glaring at her, demanding to know who she was and why she was there. The old woman states that she was just looking for a place to stay for the night while she waits out the storm…pulling out a single red rose with black tips, offering it up to the Seto as payment for letting her stay.

 

The brunet throws his head back and laughs, stepping forward as he insults her and her offering, slapping it out of her hand and commanding her to leave. The hall is quiet for a moment before the lights in the ball room go out as a laugh echoes from the shadows…the shaking old hag slowly standing up straight, towering over the tall brunet as her cloak falls off her figure, her blood red hair flowing in the wind as her golden eyes glimmering brightly as her long black dress faded into the shadows beneath her feet, her arms covered in strange symbols covering her arms, the tips of her fingers blackened and her sharp teeth on full display as she smirked.

 

The shadows along the walls took the shape of monstrous creatures, roaring and hissing at the guests as they shrieked in fear as they ran out of the castle at the sight of these creatures and the witch that had interrupted the party…only a handful of people remaining, Atem and his sister being part of the group…

 

The strange woman grabs Seto by the throat and lifts him in the air, mocking him for how pathetic he had become and how he was unworthy of the name of Kaiba, how his father was more of a man than he would ever be as he had grown cold and selfish, thinking others beneath him…she threw him across the room, the teen hitting a wall as his brothers tries to get to him but the Egyptian Prince stops him, not wishing for the young boy to get hurt while trying to find a way to help his friend…

 

The red haired woman lefts her hand as the rose she had offered to Seto start to glow as it lifts into the air, the witches eyes starting to glow bright as well as the markings on her arms as she started to chant, her voice thundering through the halls as the remaining guests and servants are overwhelmed by shadows, the darkness seeping into their flesh as their body started to change, bones breaking, skin tearing, their screams of pain and agony fills the room…Seto is the last to become in trapped in the darkness, his body overcome with a pain he had never experienced before, not even the worst of Gozuburo’s punishments came close to this…

 

As the shadows cleared they left behind mutated versions of the people the witch had cursed, monstrous versions of who they once were…in the centre of it all was Kaiba…a set of large white wings protruding from his back, his arms, legs and torso covered in blueish scales, his fingers now claws, his teeth sharped, his pupils split like those of a dragon as his cheeks and jaw were covered in scales too, his hair whitened and the tips of his ears elongated into 3 webbed spikes…the witch smirks to herself as she glides over to him, dropping the mystical rose before him…saying in a sultry voice that she was not without mercy…

 

She would give him till his 21st birthday to break the curse she had placed upon him and the people within the castle…if he could learn to care and love another and get them to love him in return then the spell wold be broken…if not and his heart remained cold and selfish…then he would remain this way for eternity…the others condemned to the same fate…when the last petal falls she would return and seal his doom…

 

 

She disappeared, her dark laugh echoing across the land…her shadows and magic darkening the forest surrounding the castle, the trees itself becoming cursed as they grew tall and wicked, hiding the once glowing castle in the shadows…even the village and its inhabitants had their memories clouded so no one would remember the family and the grand structure that could be seen in the distance…

 

Seto Kaiba, humiliated and horrified by his appearance what he had brought upon those around him sealed himself away in his tower…with nothing but the rose safely put away under a glass dome and a magic mirror as his only window to the outside world (gifted his mother a long time ago)…

 

The years passed by as any hope of breaking the curse faded away…Seto giving into disappear…for who could ever learn to leave a beast?

 

 

Across the world at a port at a far off Japanese town, an old man and his two grandchildren were boarding a boat that would take them to a new land…beside him was a 16 year old girl with pale skin, blue eyes and long raven hair and on her back was an 11 year old boy with violet eyes and strange multi coloured hair that was tied back in spiked up pony tail, he looked a lot younger and smaller than what he actually was, people mistaking him for being 7 or 8. He looked sickly and pale, coughing every now and then as the girl tried to comfort her brother…she looked at the boat uncertainly as her grandfather held her hand, a soft smile on his face, promising her that leaving was the best chance that they had to finding a cure for her sick brother and that they would build their new life in a far off place…

 

She hoped he was right…

 

However she would only find what she was looking for 5 years later when she came across a dark castle not far from the village where her family had settled…coming across the monster that resided in its walls.

[myimaginarywonderland]

So, for anyone wondering what is happening with Germany, here's a quick summary.

Yesterday we had to elect a new chancellor since Angela Merkel has been in that position for 16 years.

Now, the German parliament might be different than some other countries. We basically have 6 big parties there but from those 2 or three always form a Koalition. Koalitionen are formed so that a chancellor can be elected since we only vote for a party who chooses someone of them as that person. Since a party never has a big enough majority to elect them, multiple parties go together to make that majority.

However, there were basically only three parties who were likely to form a Koalition like this. One party was the CDU, a Christian conservative party that has basically been in a Koalition for as long as I can remember. They were also the party Angela Merkel is from. To replace her they choose Armin Lachet. Now, he is one of the worst choices they could have done because he a.) failed to fold his ballot correctly so that everyone could see who he has voted for which technically is seen as voting fraud since he might influence others with his choice but we just looked over that. B.) He literally can't form a sentence that makes sense or not contradict himself. There have been multiple talks or interviews where he downright was rude and interrupted others and denied statements that he had mad prior to this year.

Another party was the SPD, a social democratic union who wanted to elect Olaf Scholz. Now, he was involved in a financial scandal but other than that, he also just seemed a bit disrespectful or lacking in manners.

The third one was the Green Party with Annalena Baerbock. This party is mainly focused on climate change, making a green future and making it digital. She has been the best choice out of these three since she had clear ambition and was always able to answer questions.

Now, we have three other main parties who are in our parliament.

We have the AfD which has been questioned many times for being extremely right but they somehow always passed. They are homophobic, racist, anti maskers who basically were formed a few years ago and got popular because a lot of people where unhappy with Merkel during the immigrant crisis and voted this party out of protest.

We also have the FDP which claims to be liberal, yet is the textbook example of rich capitalist who just don't really do anything? Sure, they have never really been in power but they also just make empty promises.

And lastly we have Die Linke which is basically the party that is always seen as extremely left because they talk about topics like Gender etc. Many people don't vote for them as they see them as "too progressive."

Now, we have many other smaller parties but sadly none of them have really been able to reach 5% so they don't get a seat in our parliament. However there's great options here and much more fleshed out ones then the people 6 ones but since the main 6 are so established, especially with elder people, we won't see them change anytime soon.

So, yesterday's results showed that the SPD had the most votes overall, very closely followed by the CDU.

Now, both parties wouldn't have enough votes for a majority so they would need to get 1 or two other parties for a Koalition.

The SPD has made it quiet clear that their ideals are too different from the CDU to form one with them, so that leaves them out of the equation.

The AfD is disliked by every party and all have refused to cooperate with them which also means they aren't an option.

Die Linke sadly didn't reach the 5% mark. However they still got in since you need 3 Direktmandate or 5%. For anyone wondering what a Direktmandat is, this basically means that a Candidate of that party won in a certain region (they got the most votes and would be elected as a representative of that region.) Since they scored so low and barely got in, they also aren't an option which you guessed it only leaves the FDP and the Green party.

Now, before I continue I want to explain a bit more and what I touched upon in the last paragraph. When we have a federal election, you get two votes. The first is directly for a representative of a party from your region and doesn't influence the general vote as much. However this vote can secure certain people of parties a place in the parliament. The second vote is the important one since with that you vote for a party which will then elect the chancellor. So, there will be different vote results because there's two votes.

Going back to the original point, we know now that only 4 parties could form a Koalition. And it needs three of those to form a majority.

The options for that Koalition would be the SPD, the Green Party and the FDP (which is also known as Ampel Koalition which basically means traffic light Koalition since the SPD is red, the Green Party green and the FDP yellow.) This would not be ideal however it would be what the majority of votes represent and would want (this is more left than the last Koalition and would mean that the people who voted based on climate change would hopefully be listened to.) When forming a Koalition it is important to note that certain goals of the parties will be compromised since they all tend to aim for different things which means you should form a Koalition with the parties that least make you compromise your goals. This coalition would mean that Olaf Scholz becomes chancellor which would not be ideal but the Green and SPD would mean that climate politics might actually become serious and they also have more similarities. We would still have the FDP which sucks but at least two other better/good parties.

The second option would be the CDU, the Green Party and the FDP, also known as Jamaica Koalition because the CDU is black. Now, this is what a lot of us don't want because a.) We dislike the CDU and know they won't do shit and b.) We know the FDP also won't do shit. Furthermore this would mean that Armin Lachet becomes chancellor which is bad. Additionally, the Green Party would completely lose credibility since they only gained so many votes because of their climate ideals which would all not be meet should this happen (the CDU doesn't care and the FDP is capitalist, so they wouldn't do some of the major changes the Green Party wants to do.)

For now, we don't know who will be chancellor or which of these options will happen since the FDP and the Green Party want to talk with each other first and then approach the SPD/CDU. Since they are smaller but still know that there decision is the decided, they want to first look which party most likely fits them. However, Christian Lindner, who is the head of the FDP had already said that they think the SPD is too far left which is why a lot of us are worried. (I would also like to point out that that statement is complete bullshit but you probably already got that from my tone. The SPD is left but in reality probably more centre than anything else. The only actual left parties of the big 6 are Die Linke and Die Grünen in my eyes and even the last one is more leaning for me. Might also be because I am very heavily left but yeah.)

We are currently just waiting for the decision and disaster to happen.

[melisa-may-taylor72]

For the first time an Argentine publication was specially invited to the United States to attend the concert, party and subsequent press conference of the group QUEEN. This compliment that corresponded to PELO, made it possible to see and hear the performances of the English band in New Orleans and Miami. We also got interviews with the group and its current producer. As a preview of all that material, we reproduce the review of the New Orleans concert witnessed by our special envoy.

🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹

New Orleans, Louisiana. New Orleans with all its huge genesis of jazz and blues. With a history of mystique and art born on the banks of the Mississippi River. A city where the constructions and the european style (Franco-Spanish) coexist in eloquent contrast with the steel, cement and glass that constitute the visible face of this country. And this is where we come to listen to one of the most powerful English rock bands: Queen. It’s no coincidence. Their new album is called “Jazz” and New Orleans breathes it everywhere. This charming city that seems unreal, welcomed a group of journalists from various nations, invited especially by EMI to attend the concert, the party and subsequent press conference that Queen was going to give. New Orleans was the third date of the 32 concerts that the band was going to perform in 29 cities throughout the country. With overwhelming success in Europe, this tour marked Queen’s final coup in the United States. And they did, because the band is playing like never before, with much more rock and roll than when they started. This is what happened on stage.

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An hour before

The concert in New Orleans would take place in the Auditorium, an immense theatre belonging to the city with a capacity for 20,000 spectators. This was Queen’s third performance in the United States, having played two days earlier in the legendary Memphis (Tennessee). The show would start at eight o'clock in the evening, and an hour earlier we decided to go to the concert site to recognize the field. The Auditorium is located practically in the centre of the city, so the access to the place, and later exit, were done quickly and efficiently. The concert is barely an hour away and the people is waiting in front of the gate numbered one hundred. We approached to chat a little with the boys who wander around drinking soft drinks or the very light American beer. Almost everyone sees Queen for the first time and, not coincidentally, their number one band is Led Zeppelin. Everyone shows they know a lot about the band and gets excited when a colleague from Argentine television and his cameraman starts filming them with the camera. 
When we retire, we observe the four enormous trucks that carried the stage that Queen uses in their shows. We return to the hotel where a special bus will take us to the stadium.

🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹

The stage 

The Auditorium of New Orleans is a large rectangular cement stadium. It has a plateaus tray that surrounds it completely. In the lower part no seats were placed, while upstairs it is easy to settle in the bleachers, where there are a lot of exits and corridors to the outside. People enter comfortably and quickly and there are few policemen, who act as ushers, indicating where to place themselves and how to avoid crowds. New Orleans has among its traditions the Mardi Gras (our carnival) so it is customary to attend disguised events. Thus four witches, a mummy, three wild animals, a princess, two Martians, and some more difficult to identify parade before our gazed eyes. Everything serves to color the party. The stage is about thirty meters in front and ten meters in deep. At the sides there are two platforms one meter high, just below the columns of reamplification. These hang from the ceiling of the stage in two groups of six. The stage is open, in the dark. You can only see a kind of grill of lights, hanging directly in front of the audience. In a few minutes the stadium fills up. The turnout is estimated at 18,000 people. All tickets were sold in advance, at the sole price of $8.50. There are no numbered locations and the ones that arrive are the ones that get the best location. There are no fights and everything runs smoothly. In the area without seats are located two huge consoles: to the right the computerized system of programmed lights. These are the stage lights, up and to the sides, and the ones that fall from behind in front of the stage. To the left is the console, with sound -one of them- and just like the previous one it doesn’t have no guards or barricades around it.

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Opening

It’s half past eight and with the stadium full, all the lights go out. The screaming is infernal and is only subdued by Queen’s music. The stage is illuminated when the huge console of 500 red, green and white lamps is lit alternately. As a dense column of smoke emerges from the floor, the console begins to rise backwards, finally forming the roof of the stage. The effect is achieved and makes the crowd shout even more. Music is the basis of rock and roll. Now we see the musicians. May on the left, Deacon on the right, Mercury on the right, and Taylor with his drums back to the center. On the right you can see the great grand piano that Mercury used several times. The battery is mounted on a three-storey platform with white light spots directed at the public. Above Taylor’s head hangs a huge gong also surrounded by lights, and to his right, a pair of timpanis. Mercury sings “We Will Rock You” in a revamped rock and roll version. The bass supports the tones with astonishing security and the rhythm invites movement. 
Mercury sings like on records, the whole group sounds perfect in a clear, undistorted stereo. It moves with the grace of a contortionist or a classical dancer, always clinging to the microphone reed, a kind of cane that will be used in a thousand ways throughout the show.

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Berry and Hendrix

“Good night, New Orleans,” shouts Mercury and the audience responds enthusiastically. We still can’t react to such a flood of light and sound, when Mercury sits at the piano to attack.
“Somebody To Love”, a beautiful gospel song that allows us to enjoy Queen’s best instrument: their voices. The band threshes the song safe, comfortable, and on the end Mercury plays a solo that stands the audience up. Almost without breathing we passed to one of the top albums in Queen’s career: “A Night At The Opera”. The opening, “Death On Two Legs,” is Brian May’s blunt and overwhelming guitar display. There are probably a dozen guitarists more skilled than him in rock, but very few have the ability, style and imagination that he possesses. His guitar is main part of Queen’s original sound, at times with a rancid and distorted hue and sometimes clear and classic. Almost without stopping they continue with “ Killer Queen”, one of the first successful songs in Buenos Aires. A combination of hard rock with Beatle style vocalizations. The main instrument in this song are the voices of Mercury, Taylor and May. This time the next song “I’m In Love With My Car” is hooked and starts with a heavy riff. Mercury’s voice transforms into Chuck Berry. May makes a very polished solo with a very Hendrix sound (he loves him) and Mercury stands next to him gesturing with the microphone as if he were an imaginary guitarist. At the end he sits at the piano and abruptly the song becomes “Get Down, Make Love”, a true monument to heavy rock. A dense, choppy riff, supported by the piano and the forcefulness of rhythm. Then the stage lights go out and the lights begin to turn on the audience. The lights run through the stage rack in a precise effect. May plays all sorts of effects with his guitar, accompanying Mercury’s vocal acrobatics. The drums explode and the riff repeats itself tirelessly. The next track is “You’re My Best Friend” a moment of tranquility for everyone with this song in the best style of the ‘60s.

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The new trick

We all need a break, but it’s very brief because Mercury announces that the next one is a John Deacon song, using a play on words. He sits at the piano and starts “ Spread Your Wings”, a typical American ballad, with a Mercury deeply inspired by Mc Cartney - isn’t that wonderful? The end is prolonged with the band to all orchestra and the surprise arrives. From the top of the stage, another stage begins to descend with a complete set of drums. The synchronization is perfect, and when the song ends the stage is already installed. The new stage fits perfectly with the platforms located on the sides, leaving the musicians one meter above the audience. May takes the guitar, Taylor sits on this new drum set that has the cover of “ News Of The World” on the drum. That’s how the acoustic set begins. It starts with a very raw, super rancid boogie. With this song we forget certain insecurities in Mercury’s voice, perhaps because of tiredness.
Mercury clarifies that the next track was specially composed for New Orleans and will not be played on tour “Dreamers’s Ball”.The fake trumpet solo is a beautiful parody by Brian May. The audience is delirious and clapping. Everyone participates and the festive atmosphere is increasing. In front of the new stage a curtain of lights is formed that astonishes and gives rise to the jokes of the musicians. The acoustic end is in charge of May and Mercury. Alone, sitting in the middle of the new stage, they sing the beautiful ballad “ Love Of My Life ”. The audience is restless and doesn’t pay much attention to this number. In our country it would have had a sepulchral silence, but they see bands like this every week. 

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Acrobatics and rock

“39” ends this singular set. A correctly played skiffle, where the vocal arrangements replace the bronzes. Everything is dark for a few seconds and when the spots are turned on, May is placed on the left platform and Mercury on the opposite one. They start with the riff of “It’s Late” and the stage rises again. At the right time it allows Deacon and Taylor to be seen on the original stage. May and Mercury descend and the song becomes more intense. Not surprisingly, our astonishment was overcome. Mercury and May constantly cross from one end of the stage to the other. This is democracy, no kid is left without seeing his idol up close. “Fat Bottom Girls’ is the single from Queen’s new album. A song with country airs and a title that… we leave it to the music writer. The beginning of the song is a vocal acrobatics of the four. A resounding display of their ability to sing, with those undulations of the chorus that we thought impossible to hear live. The song comes to life with May’s riff, perfectly marked by Taylor with a crushing tempo. They continue with “Sheer Heart Attack”, an accelerated rock and roll from the LP “ News Of The World”. May’s guitar becomes incisive, crackles and howls. There is one of the most fantastic rock guitarists. Halfway through the song, Mercury leaves the scene for an inspired May. Then a long improvisation begins. First a funky rock that slowly morphs into a total experiment. May uses the Echoplex and we discover that he admires Hendrix without itching. His guitar is multiplied, first by three and then by ten. The notes are scattered throughout the auditorium, filling it with mysticism. Listening to May pull out unimaginable sounds from his guitar, one understands the ‘why of the dispensing of synthesizers in Queen’s music. The guitar replaces the strings, the winds, and the keyboards, of course. Everything is done on the basis of a simple but effective polyphony. May obtains a diabolical combination of sounds between the attack of the strings, in high, with the finger prepared for the intervention of the harmonic, and the dose of saturation and maintenance (sustain). This orchestral concept of the guitar has references in two other great English guitarists: Steve Hackett and Robert Fripp.

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Grand Finale

The end of the song is the beginning of another brilliant rock: 
“Keep Yourself Alive,” the opening song of the album “Queen I’. The end is by Taylor, who does some passages on the tom-toms and the timpani, with sound effects of glissando. Mercury leaves the center of the stage. Next to the piano an assistant is waiting for him who has helped him all night by holding him and reaching for the microphone. Freddie sits down and the first bars announce "Bohemian Rhapsody”. The screaming is hellish. Mercury’s piano playing is perfect. 
May does a solo identical to the studio version, and I wonder how they’ll do the opera part… There’s the answer. The stage explodes with smoke and colour and the musicians disappear. The stars are now the lights. The immense, luminous ceiling that covers the stage makes all series of combinations and routes, always synchronized with the music. What my mind associates most quickly to describe what happens, are the images of the film “Close Encounters”. 
But before leaving this hallucination, they magically appear for the rocker ending of “Rhapsody…”. The end explodes of light on the drummer’s stage, with a blinding effect, and Taylor hitting the giant gong, which he uses only in that song. The group disappears and the whole stadium stands up and asks for more. The classic lighters begin to light up in a sign of approval. Some red light bars also appear; similar to those in “Star Wars”, one can’t help but smile at such sophistication. Several minutes pass in which the public kicks the cement until it shakes.
Then they return to the stage to play “Tie Your Mother Down”. We are all standing up and living the ceremony of rock. 
The four of them have changed their clothes. May looks like a fairy with her long hair, her very long body that moves in the wide sleeves of his kimono. 
Mercury is standing on the stage, dancing and gesticulating, until May joins him for his solo. Again the drum lights explode and the band disappears again. Nobody wants to leave, we think they won’t come back. Exactly two hours ago the concert started. 
Yet they return and again a different outfit. They changed for the last two encores, a masterstroke… Taylor’s drums start with a super-heavy beat. It’s “We will rock you ” in its original version. Mercury only sings the first few stanzas, leaving the chorus for the crowd. 
Everyone responds, and this chorus of thousands of throats singing in time moves us to a shiver.
May and Deacon have already embarked on the final phrasing, located on the left side of the stage. Suddenly, on the opposite side, a spotlight 
finds Mercury and starts “We Are The Champions”. Once again, 
you see the crowd supporting the melodious chorus. A great ending. 
The four musicians step forward and bow. With the stage empty, covered with smoke, the lights are lowered again, while the recording of the closing track “A Night at the Opera (God Save The Queen)” is played. 
No one leaves, everyone howls frantically. But Queen won’t be back. Some take comfort in running to buy their T-shirts and badges of the group, which are only sold at concerts.

Article by “Pelo” Magazine, November 1978

@natromanxoff, @mephisto92, @moviestorian, @x5vale, @39-brian, @onegoldenglance, @crosmopolitan, @an-abyss-called-life, @his-majesty-king-mercury, @i-live-for-queen, @brian-39-may, @toomuchlove-willkillyou, @brimaymay, @sail-away-sweet-sister, @drummerqueenrmt, @old-fashioned-roger-boy-deactiv, @briianmaay, @l-over-bo-y, @inui-mycroft, @deacytits, @iminlovewithrogscar, @drowseoftaylor, @brianmayislongaway, @balticlover, @astrophysicist-guitar-god, @miez-lakatz, @brianmayoucease, @jesus-in-a-life-boat, @roger-taylors-car, @silapril, @sherrifanciesfriskyfreddie, @tenderbri, @brianmydear, @thosequeenboys, @millionairewaltz-carpediem, @painandpleasure86, @bribrifrenchfry, @xlucylennonx, @a-night-at-the-abbey-road, @inthedayswhenlandswerefew, @madformeddowstaylor, @queenrogertaylorfan, @let-roger-get-a-lunch, @queen-for-life, @rethought, @darlinginnuendo, @mymakeupmaybeflaking, @old-but-still-a-child, @let-roger-get-a-lunch, @warriorteam1924, @funnydressesweirdhairanddance, @painkiller80, @thefanhuman13, @yourtieddownmother, @hgmercury39, @brimi-stardust, @thefairyfellermercury, @retroromantics, @sailawaysweetbrimi, @sophiaintheskywithdiamonds, @foxmonkey, @holybrianmaywritingbear, @lydiannode, @39-yellow-daffodils , @ure-gonna-loveme-when-u-seeme, @kaykaybeachgirl, @rhysjoejoshtomfarisblog,
@redspecialandclogsandcurls, @briansrainbowsocks, @delilahmay39, @ohmybribri, @bless-the-queen, @infunitehearbeat, @sketchiesscketches, @everythingaboutfreddie, @doitforthevine67, @recordsoftheseventies, @tenementfunsterwithpurpleshoes, @drummah-in-a-rocknroll-band, @beatlegirl1968, @maylorsqueen, @shearrehartatacc, @gralto, @alittlepeoplemagic, @rainbowsockbrian

[incorrect-the-foxhole-court]

Northern Road Trip

This is my piece for the AFTG Gift exchange! I went for Andriel coz im a complete Andriel junkie, but i couldnt resist a little Renison on the side XD

This is for @andthenthefirenationattacked​ - I hope you like it! I’m sorry it’s not very good but I tried! (And if you wanna talk or fangirl about aftg at any point, i’m definitely around for that!)

Neil couldn’t remember a time he had felt this safe. Which, he had to admit, made no sense considering his current situation. Despite having family in England, an uncle who had once saved his life, the UK had never been a place that had screamed safety. And yet, here he was, standing in the middle of an endless stretch of rolling green hills that looked like they had been taken from one of Matt’s fantasy novels, and he felt…safe. It was as much a disquieting feeling as hope had once been.

The sky was a bright, forget-me-not blue that, after only five days in the country, he already knew was a rare blessing. Fluffy white clouds scudded across the sky, and the relief that they weren’t even a little grey had been unexpectedly strong when they had woken up this morning. Two cars idled behind him, the engines rumbling softly, and those inside were already betting on the upcoming games outcome and snacking on junk food that Kevin had already tried to throw out four times over.

Neil sucked in a deep breath, feeling the cold air settle in his lungs like shards of ice. Beautiful, this country, but cold. And wet. This was the first day they had been there that it hadn’t rained.

He could hear his old team behind him, laughing and joking, teasing Andrew for their stopping. It hadn’t been Andrew that had wanted to stop, but the goalie knew Neil too well now – had feigned car sickness to cover Neil’s need to see something. To see something other than exy courts and press rooms from the place his mother had come from. The woman had been cold and cruel and protective and beautiful, and standing there now, in the place she had always talked about, in Rivington, he could understand. The people he had met from around here felt like they had been born from the place itself. He could almost feel his mother in the wind’s cold fingers as it raked through his hair and cut straight through his winter coat to chill the blood in his veins.

“Neil! Come on! Andrew says he’s okay to keep going now,” Matt shouted, a grin on his face that was far too smug and pleased to merely be teasing.

Dan smacked him in the ribs as she disappeared around the other side of their hire car and slid into the driver’s seat. And then smacked the wheel in frustration, got out and went round to the passenger side door, grumbling about stupid English cars. Neil tuned out Matt and Allison’s teasing, both of them needling Dan about still not being used to which side of the car to get in, and turned to the other car. Renee smiled at Andrew before going to join the others.

Neil slid into the backseat next to Andrew, Aaron on the goalie’s other side, Kevin up front and Nicky driving. Within thirty minutes of driving, Andrew was asleep, head tipped back against the back of the seat – Neil wasn’t surprised, Andrew had barely slept since the flight, as though he was more scared than Neil that some relative would show up at their hotel. It wasn’t a secret they were in the UK; the whole world had known this is where they would be. The press had been covering the US exy team’s trip to the UK in excruciating detail for weeks. They had already had their games in Glasgow and London, and tomorrow, the last game of Us vs. UK, would take place in Manchester. London had been an easy win for the US Court, Andrew had barely bothered to try. Glasgow had been significantly more difficult. It had taken bribing Andrew to lock down the goal for them to come close to winning – even then it hadn’t been enough; they’d lost by two points.

Tomorrow’s game would decide who would face the Chinese team. And the old team from Palmetto State had come out to show their support as Kevin, Andrew and Neil, played their last UK game of the season, fighting to advance closer to the title of ‘Exy International Champions’. Kevin had been training and planning nonstop. It had taken Andrew’s knives to convince him to have this day off.

“Erm…Neil…?” Nicky asked, voice tight. Neil dragged his eyes away from staring out the window as the North sped by, and met Nicky’s worried eyes in the rear-view mirror. “Satnav is freaking out.”

“Get Andrew to fix it,” Aaron grunted, “he’s the tech wonder boy.”

“Waking Andrew up in a car has never been a good idea,” Nicky warned, no doubt thinking of that time all those years ago.

Neil could feel Aaron’s smirk as the man reached over and tapped his twin on the shoulder closest to Neil. From habit, Neil’s hand was out waiting as Andrew jolted from sleep, one hand instinctively reaching out. Their fingers twined together and held on tight. No elbow in the stomach, no fists flying, not anymore – they had been sleeping in the same bed now for nearly two years; Andrew was too used to being woken by Neil’s nightmares to react violently. Now it was a grasping hand and white knuckled grip, each proving to the other that they are here – that they are safe. On Andrew’s other side, Aaron huffed in frustration and turned his attention back to the steady stream of messages between him and Katelyn.  

“Satnav isn’t working properly,” Neil explained quietly, and Andrew shook off his grip, leaning forward to take it from Kevin.

“Going old school,” Nicky muttered to himself. “Gonna have to use these damn stupid road signs.”

Neil didn’t bother to watch what Andrew was doing to fix the machine – he had learnt a long time ago that when Andrew couldn’t sleep, he and one of the cats curled up on the sofa with an instruction manual of some sort. Andrew couldn’t sleep most nights. By this point, Andrew’s eidetic memory had given him the ability to fix almost anything technological.

It took them another hour and a half to reach the Lake District. They were aiming for a shop that the Northern players on the UK team hadn’t stopped raving about since the team meets had started. By the time they finally arrived, it was raining again.

They parked in a garden centre opposite a tiny little place called ‘The Grasmere Gingerbread Shop’ and stared out through rain-streaked windows. Nicky’s phone started ringing. He took the sat nav out of its holder, tossed it onto Kevin’s lap before balancing his phone in the slot instead. Allison’s face appeared on the screen, and then the rest of the others.

“So, how do we decide who goes out into the rain to get the damn gingerbread we drove for two hours to come and try?” Allison asked and Renee, in the driver’s seat beside her, tucked a few stray blonde curls behind her ear, dragging a smile from the otherwise annoyed face.

“Flip for it?” Nicky suggested.

Matt lost to Renee. Dan lost to Matt. Allison rolled her eyes and picked at a perfectly manicured nail, but called heads when she went up against Dan, only to lose. Storm clouds gathered on her face as she waited for the other car to decide who would flip against her.

Aaron called heads, Allison, tails. Aaron won.

Neil hadn’t heard swearing like that for a long time. He couldn’t help but smile. He had missed them all. He loved being on Court and he loved his team and exy, and playing with Andrew and Kevin, but he had missed being a fox.

Renee went with Allison, smiling as the blonde tried and failed to hide under the trees from the rain. Neil could hear through the cracked window Andrew was smoking through as Allison cursed everyone and everything for her having forgotten an umbrella. Renee just laughed and tugged her in for a kiss. Neil smiled again; it had taken them a long time to realise just how meant for each other they were – but now? Together? They were a sight for sore eyes.

Andrew blew another cloud of smoke past Neil’s face. He couldn’t help the deep inhale as the smoke curled past his nose. Andrew watched, utterly unimpressed – but Neil could read the affection in the stare. Smoke was no longer the reminder of his mother, of the fire, of how it had smelled when her body had burned. Now it was Andrew, it was nights on the roof, the bite of his key in his palm, the feel of a thundering heartbeat beneath his fingertips. Andrew’s knee nudged his, and Neil smiled again.

Allison and Renee got back in the car behind and they drove to Windemere, where they had booked out all the rooms in a little bed and breakfast. The man at the desk was the most English person Neil had ever met. He was the embodiment of every single English stereotype, and Neil couldn’t get away fast enough.

Their rooms were all on the second floor, Dan and Matt disappeared into one room, Allison and Renee into another, Aaron claimed his own room, as did Kevin and Nicky. Nicky was already face timing with Eric before his bedroom door closed. And despite Allison’s usual warning of ‘keep it down’, there were delighted giggles and moans coming from her and Renee’s room.

Neil shook his head, smiling, and followed after Andrew into their room. Andrew was already lighting up next to the window, so Neil dropped the bag by the bottom of the bed and slumped onto the mattress, stripping off his black armbands and dumping them over the edge. He heard Andrew shut the window and the bed dip as he settled nearby. Neil reached a hand up, and Andrew’s fingertips trailed over his bare arms, dipping over every scar and mark.

Neil closed his eyes, even now, years later, most touches on those scars brought back the car lighter, the knife, his father’s axe…

But then Andrew’s lips began tracing every raised bump, slowly washing away the memories one by one, until there was nothing left but the two of them, Andrew’s hands under Neil’s shirt, Andrew’s lips pressed hard to Neil’s, and Neil’s fingers tight in Andrew’s hair.

He didn’t realise how much he needed it until Andrew tugged his t-shirt over his head and slowly but steadily began taking him apart. Neil couldn’t stop the moan that Andrew dragged from deep in his throat as Andrew pushed him harder and faster until Neil’s breathing became ragged and Andrew leaned up to press their lips together as though he could swallow Neil’s hard groans when he fell over the edge. He lay limp and sweating, breathing hard, with Andrew beside him, the man’s expression open and soft in a way he had only seen four times so far.

Neil reached out, “Yes or no?”

Andrew didn’t reply, just pressed his cheek into Neil’s palm and closed his eyes as Neil’s fingers played with the tiny hairs at the nape of Andrew’s neck. He wanted to say something, anything to remind Andrew just how amazing he was – how he always knew what Neil needed, usually before Neil knew himself, how even though Neil had long since learned to stand alone, it felt safe knowing that Andrew was there for him if he needed to lean on someone. But he didn’t have the words.

And he didn’t find them fast enough before Nicky pounded on the bedroom door.

“Come on, lovebirds, Allison ruined her hair to get this gingerbread, and Aaron and I went out for alcohol, come and have a drink and a snack like the old days. But put clothes on first!”

Andrew growled under his breath, but Neil smiled.

“When will he leave me alone?” Andrew said, shaking out his hand and pushing up to sit on the edge of the bed.

“He’s been in Germany with Eric for ten months. He can’t leave you any more alone.”

Andrew just stood and stared down at him a moment. “Come on junkie. Let’s go.”

Neil stood and went to the bathroom, cleaning himself up, before he joined Andrew at the now open door to the bedroom, stood in front of a very irate Kevin.

“We have a game tomorrow. Tomorrow. And they want us to drink and eat and party. Why did they come at all, they’re not playing,” Kevin said, face set; cold and hard.

“Tomorrow will be fine. We’ll win or we’ll lose, but it’ll be fine. Let’s go, it could be fun,” Neil said, shrugging. He’d never felt as safe as he was in that moment and he’d never seen Andrew as relaxed – that was all he needed. All he wanted.

They should take road trips more often.

“Three hundred and seventy-four percent,” Andrew murmured.

Neil didn’t bother to stop the smirk on his face.

----

That’s it! Again, I hope you liked it and I hope it was a good enough gift for you in the exchange! Have a wonderful day!

[antoine-roquentin]

markus soder, who recently lead a poll of germany’s favourite potential chancellors, likes to cosplay, including, well, some good old fashioned blackface. look out trudeau, you’ve got competition.

The German Söderweg:

To begin with, it’s worth recalling how drastically both he and the current Interior Minister (and preceding Minister President and CSU chair) Horst Seehofer misread the consequences of Merkel’s 2015 decision to keep the German border open to asylum-seekers. In their interpretation of events, the political crisis over refugees was the uncorking of a bottle that would release all of the conservative spirits that Merkel had suppressed. As Merkel seemed to reveal her true colors – that of a delusional humanitarian – Söder and Seehofer finally thought they had her cornered. 2015–18 was the period in which they tried to finish her off by riding the wind of the right-wing backlash toward her and her policies (Needless to say, there was no principle in any of this: in his days as the Health Minister under Kohl, it was Seehofer who was regularly criticized within his own party for being ‘communist’ when it came to the destitute). Seeing no threat from the AfD, Seehofer and Söder decided to relax the CSU’s Strauß doctrine (‘Never allow a democratically legitimized party right of the CSU’) and appeared to think that the fledgling party’s promotion of more forthright Euroscepticism could be helpful. Then comes the CSU’s Austrian romance. Let us revisit those happy days:

Mid-December 2017: The Austrian Chancellor, Sebastian Kurz of the ÖVP, and his coalition partner, Heinz-Christian Strache of the hard-right FPÖ, presented their coalition agenda withdrawing protections for refugees at the Kahlenberg, site of a decisive 1683 battle against the Turks.

Early January 2018: Alexander Dobrindt, head of the CSU’s parliamentary group, published his call for a ‘Middle Class Conservative Turn’ in Die Welt (Springer’s ‘prestige’ paper). Portions of it read like a less erudite version of Anders Breivik’s manifesto.

Early January 2018: Viktor Orbán was the guest of honor at the CSU-Klausur, and gave an interview to Bild-Zeitung (that had been leading a pro-Kurz campaign for weeks by then): ‘We are not talking of immigrants or refugees, we are talking about an invasion’.

And so the CSU with Söder in the driver’s seat appeared prepared to go down the Austrian road: EU-critical, Putin-curious, agrarian-traditional, culture-war-trigger-happy, maximally Islamophobic neoliberal.

Then came the stunning upset. The CSU was humiliated in the 2018 October regional election. Söder lost 10 percent of the vote, much of which seemed to have been recouped by the Greens, who offer an ever more urban and online electorate the sought-after credentials of anti-racism and cosmopolitanism. With 16 seats lost in the parliament, Söder’s majority vanished. He had to build a humiliating, if not unprecedented coalition with the Free Voters of Bavaria, a hodge-podge ‘non-ideological’ party of the centre. It was now clear that the turn to the right had been a mistake. How did Söder respond? By conducting one of the most dramatic U-Turns in recent German history. Overnight he became a lover of bees and trees – calling for new regulations for their protection. He declared combustion engines would be banned by 2030. His progressivism even overshot what his party was prepared to stomach. At the CSU conference last year, Söder’s proposal for a quota of 40 percent women at all levels of the CSU was rejected by the party delegates. The CSU still has the best discipline of any party in the land, but there are audible grumblings from lower quarters. The CSU Landtag chair Thomas Kreuzer has been lately appending pointed reminders about ‘the farmers’ to Söder loyalty oaths.

What all of this reveals is not simply that Söder is now, belatedly, reforming the CSU in the same way that Merkel did the CDU. It shows that, with his eye on the Chancellorship, Söder knows that he has no choice but to forge a working alliance between main sections of export-oriented industry and the progressive middle classes. He grasps the objective pressure Merkel is under to balance the hegemonic alliance of big multinational corporations (as opposed to smaller, more conservative family businesses), moderate conservatives and urban liberals. Urbanization and export-orientation are two of the dominant forces shaping German social life: and they are moving the country in a progressive and liberalizing direction. (The AfD, caught in factional infighting, and experiencing diminishing returns on its novelty, has meanwhile become a party of last resort for disenchanted members of the state security apparatus and the Bundeswehr). Söder knows that he must divert some of the Green vote or at least make the prospect of ruling with them more plausible. The Austrian example was always an unworkable fantasy in Germany, even in Bavaria, where there are fewer traditional Catholics, the population is urbanizing, and there is a strong ‘progressive’ neoliberal ideology that emanates from BMW (Munich), Siemens (Munich), Adidas (Herzogenaurach), Audi (Ingolstadt), etc. Companies like this do not exist on the same scale in Austria; the country is 20 percent less urban than Germany; and Austrians never underwent any comparable ‘Vergangenheitsbewältigung’, as they still prefer to think they were not responsible for crimes committed by Nazi-Germany. Despite Kurz’s relative popularity among the professional classes of Vienna, and his wing of ÖVP’s closer position to the Federation of Austrian Industries (Industriellenvereinigung), which represents big capital groups, Austrian conservatives can still cobble together a majority without the sort of urban progressives on whom Merkel has increasingly come to rely.

[boardingadmission]

Find all boarding schools in dehradun

The Doon School

Welcome to The Doon School. We are a school which specializes in all boys boarding education for pupils aged 12-18. The school is probably the only All India school with applications from almost every state each year, as well as from Indian families overseas. Established in 1935, The Doon School is one of India’s finest schools, with a strong intellectual heartbeat. The Doon School is a full boarding school for boys only and not simply a school which welcomes boarders. The school’s beautiful seventy acre campus with a vast range of flora, fauna and bird life provide all boys with ample green space and fresh air where they are able to live and learn. It is an environment rarely offered by schools in large and small cities in India, or indeed some other countries. All boys are able to seek advice from the teaching staff, the Wellness Centre and the school counsellor living on the school campus throughout the seven day week. Boys discover that they have much more time to study and pursue their wider interests. There is no wasted time travelling to learn Sport, Art, Music, Drama and benefit from Careers Guidance as well as other necessary university and college entrance preparation.

St George College

St. George’s College (Mussoorie), is a premier boarding school in Mussoorie, in the state of Uttarakhand, India, affiliated to the ICSE council. The school, an all-boys residential and non-residential institution, spreading over 400 acres (1.6 km2) of land, was founded in 1853 by the Capuchin Fathers and entrusted to the Society of the Brothers of St. Patrick (Ireland) in 1894. It was opened in a cottage known as Manor House; the name by which the campus is still known. The students are known as Manorites. The school has an alumni network spread across the globe. In 2005, the Indian Air Force gifted the school a trainer jet aircraft, TS-11 Iskra, as a tribute to the distinguished service of the school’s alumni in the armed forces.

The Asian School

The School is situated on a 16-acre campus, Asian Acres in tranquil and verdant environs. The academic building is an impressive structure designed by a well-known group of architects from New Delhi. The residential area set amidst greenery with students being provided their own recreational area. We have four hostels, 2 for senior boys, 1 for junior boys, and one separate hostel for girls. A housemaster, tutors, and a matron live within the Student House providing round the clock supervision.

Welham Boys School

Welham Boys School is a residential school for boys, in Dehradun, affiliated to the C.B.S.E., India. Nestled in the foothills of the Himalayas over an area of 30 acres, the school lies amidst the hills and rivers of the Doon valley. Students from varying backgrounds and from many different parts of the sub-continent and beyond, attend the school.While I hope that you are enjoying the summer break with your children, which is not even halfway through, I am already missing their bubbling presence on campus and looking forward to welcoming them back all of us refreshed and with our batteries re-charged to take on the rigours of yet another term - Autumn 2018.

Welham Girls School

While inculcating the best of Indian culture and tradition in its students, the School aims at developing in them a sense of discipline and a spirit of service and fair play.The Welham community has grown from ten girls at its inception in 1957 to its current strength of 600 girls. The alumnae of the school have carved a niche for themselves globally and within India, yet the spirit to give and not count the cost remains unchanged.

Grace Academy Dehradun

Grace Academy is a senior secondary co-educational, day-cum-residential, English medium, unaided, Christian minority school which is affiliated to the Central Board of Secondary Education, New Delhi. Affiliation no. 3530076. The school began classes on July 10, 1990 with 29 students in grades Nursery to Third, with an expectation to add one class every year up through High School. Having started with rented rooms and tin shed temporary classrooms to accommodate grades Nursery through High School and senior secondary school.

Unison World School

An All Girls Residential School, it offers quality education with finest accommodation and living facilities to students from Grades 5 to 12. We wish to create opportunities for girls to achieve high standards not just academically but also in her life as a whole. While preserving the best in traditional Indian and International education and culture, we have opted for a student-centric, value based learning and education system with ample opportunities for individual growth and development.

The Indian Public School

The Indian Public School, Mrityunjaya Dham residential campus was started in 2001 and spread over an area of 80 acres, the entire school campus has patches of green and parklands. Tucked amidst the Himalayas (to its north) and the Shivalik ranges (to the south) the school provides a natural playground for children, keeping them in the lap of Mother Nature. In fact, the school campus has been planned in such a manner that only 20% of the total area will be concrete structures while the rest of the campus will be a harmonious blend of green patches, parklands and water-bodies. Our education system integrates the most relevant and meaningful features of the ancient Gurukul with the best of the scientifically designed modern systems enlivened by psychological and educational research. Living in perfect harmony with nature, both teachers and students in the school have ample opportunities to imbibe service-mindedness and inculcate ethical principles.

Bala Hissar Academy

Bala Hissar Academy places great emphasis on the physical development of its students and various games and sport are organized on a regular basis throughout the year. Basketballs, Cricket, Football and Table-Tennis are played under supervision of qualified PTI and students participate in inter-school sports competitions. An annual Sports Event is organised, generating a great deal of enthusiasm and excitement as it is the culmination of year long inter-house sport and games competitions.An Annual Prize and Speech Day is held is October with great fervour and excitement where outstanding students are awarded special prizes and scholarships. It is followed by Inter-School English Debate in the memory of Lt. Mrs. Humera Amanullah, the co- founder of Bala Hissar Academy. The importance of sports as an integral part of education cannot be undermined. This instills a spirit of sportsmanship, co-operation and responsibility in students.  At Bala Hissar Academy we try to ensure that all students benefit from a complete education. We take pride in developing the young men and women of tomorrow so that they are able to take their place in society with pride and confidence.

Beverly Hills School

The school has adequate and quality infrastructure consisting of well furnished classrooms, well-equipped Physics, Chemistry, Maths, Biology and Mass-Communication (Media Studies) labs, managed by a team of qualified and dedicated teachers and lab-technicians. The school has a state-of-art computer lab with all the systems on LAN and with internet. Interactive computer aided classrooms, empowers teachers to transform the traditional blackboard and chalk method into interactive sessions. The multimedia content enables teachers to explain complex concepts in an interesting and understandable manner, helping the students to retain information for a longer period of time and facilitates better learning. There is a Central Library having substantial collection of books on subject material, story books and encyclopedia .The campus has large play field for various outdoor games (like cricket, basketball, football, volleyball, badminton, etc.) and sports. A huge 700 seating capacity Auditorium is nearing completion.

https://boardingadmission.com/find-all-boarding-schools-in-dehradun

[swanning-around]

Possibly the best thing written on current UK politics, from Rex Varro, British Intelligence magazine - www.british-intelligence.co.uk

PRESSGANGED : BORIS JOHNSON AND THE BRITISH MEDIA

REX VARRO

1st September

​

It seems that people on the Right in Britain are broadly split into two camps: those who say Boris Johnson is a bullshitting waste of space, and those who think the prime minister will come good if we can just get past coronavirus.

I can see both sides of this. Yes, coronavirus dropped from a clear sky onto a government fondling an 80-seat majority and a country collectively sighing with relief at having avoided a Labour Party captured by communism and also having voted in a prime minister who promised an end to Tory lies about Brexit. Just like the moments in movies when someone asks what could possibly go wrong now, everything went pear-shaped very quickly.

Readers of British Intelligence being clever and well informed sorts, I do not need to recapitulate the sorry story of the past six months. True, Johnson became very ill – and some say he has yet to fully recover – but his absence made it all the more clear that the cabinet is like a giant rock band with a great front man: once he goes it is fatally reduced. I know that people pay good money to see Queen and The Blockheads, but as far as I am concerned, without Freddie and Ian it is a complete waste of time. True, you still have Priti Patel on bass as it were but it’s not enough.

Then there is the media’s obsessive hatred of Johnson. Back in the Eighties when I held left-wing views about society I often heard people moaning about Tory control of the media. It is hard to credit how strong and aggressive newspapers were in those days, yet even then I was sceptical about the supposed control papers such as the Sun held over public thought. The public’s innate conservativism was reflected by newspapers, not the other way round. It is typical that the Left got this arse about face, and still does. I still have Labour-supporting friends who rant about ‘Tory hate comics’, imagining that dying publications such as the Sun, the Daily Express and the Daily Telegraph are all that stands between them and a socialist Britain.

In any case, the ‘serious’ media, including many ‘broadsheets’, the BBC, Sky News, Channel 4 and ITV news, is now largely controlled by what is best described as a Blairite worldview. This means they hate Johnson. That they cannot see him as one of their own is indicative of how ignorant, unimaginative and saturated in received wisdom these institutions are. For Johnson is very close to the kind of politician they want: a social liberal, a can-kicker on debt, a wildly enthusiastic burner of public money and very much pro mass immigration. What, as they would say, is not to like?

Well, what they don’t like is that he’s posh – though that is OK if you are in the Labour Party –  went to Eton and above all has at times described women and certain minorities in jocular and pejorative terms. Yes, in his journalism he deployed a sub-Wodehousian style which while threadbare is not, to any sane grown-up, an indication of fascism.

The man deployed levity! He joked. He mentioned piccaninnies, bumboys and made mild fun of burkas. This is the most serious heresy for the media left. They know perfectly well that what Orwell said is true: every joke is a tiny revolution. The Left’s power increasingly resides in the controlling and policing of social attitudes. Real jokes, jokes that reflected events and behaviour in the world, were effectively banned a long time ago in the comedy revolutions of the Eighties and Nineties. The Left rejoices in snide sarcasm and social satire aimed at white people but jokes that kick against the fortress of identity politics can never be tolerated or forgotten, because if political correctness falls then the whole leftist project falls with it. Johnson’s crime is that he has never taken it seriously enough. That and also having the cheek to say he would stand by the result of the Brexit referendum.

Compare Johnson with the ultimate cuckservative Theresa May, with her capitulation to the Left on identity politics, policing and, don’t forget, her Frida Kahlo bracelet. What an easy ride she got from television news reporters (the most aggressively Blairite operators in the media)! She bought in to all their wrong ideas, accepted their premises and above all was committed to emasculating Brexit in broad daylight while promising the electorate that she was doing the opposite – a good old fashioned member of the political class in other words. If the media elite was not so fanatical and lost in a hammock-spin of fury over Brexit and Trump etc, it would realise that Johnson is not so far from May as his grassroots fans think: he has the primary Tory vice of seeking to work round issues caused by left-wing mischief making and wrongheadedness  rather than openly confronting and fighting them. Much of this will be due to entrenched public relations micromanagement inside Number Ten. Nevertheless, if Boris was the kind of freebooting maverick he is often sold as then he would have gone off-piste long ago. He hasn’t. The Conservative Party believes that it is easier and more electorally advantageous to ride the tiger of cultural Marxism rather than fight it, despite it being obvious that making war on PC is a vote-winner and, in the long game, the only way liberty, free trade and the rule of law – in short the centre right’s vision of society – will survive.

It must be recognised that revolution is being propagated in the West but Johnson is yet to show he is taking a different line to the Cameron/May governments. Cameron, a weapons-grade bullshitter, made speeches about social justice as did Theresa May, who in 2017 even instituted the pure socialism of a ‘race audit’ to tackle ‘burning injustices’. Johnson has been more practical with his talk of levelling up, but now Covid-19 has offered the Left the chance of perhaps its biggest power grab since 1945. It doesn’t want the crisis to end, at least not until it has seen society permanently changed, essentially a vast expansion of state power, state spending and interference in private life along with a new drive towards supranational relations to militate against the Brexit revolt. Worryingly, this is the agenda for the global elites. See what the World Economic Forum is doing with its ‘Great Reset’ initiative. Johnson fans often ask me how this can be achieved if there is no Labour government in Britain. Even asking the question reveals naivety: media campaigns, a left-leaning civil service, PR, forums, think-tanks, green papers and the like are the methods employed to chivvy ministers along, rather as a sheepdog herds its charges into an enclosure.

This all means that Johnson’s in-tray is massive and ominously fateful. This is not a time for standard soaking wet Tory tactics: fudging, ‘British compromise’ and managed decline. If this government gets the Covid fallout wrong the consequences will be far reaching.

What should Johnson do? Until it gets the sort of echt centre-left leader it craves, the media likes to present Britain as a pandemonium of dissent and protest. It is true that the revolutionary urge is growing, but race and environmental activists are comparatively small in number yet Johnson’s media handlers evidently live in fear of them or rather in fear of the media’s constant propaganda in their favour. Johnson should get all this in perspective and realise that the ‘silent majority’ does not want to live in the future the Left are dragging us all to. Therefore he is a lot safer than he thinks he is. In any case he is years from a general election so can afford to take gambles, be radical and forthright across the fields of education, law and order, sexual politics and international relations.

The lingering popularity of Margaret Thatcher, which was quite out of proportion to her actual achievements in office, was based on her straight talking and unqualified patriotism. Every prime minister since her time in office has more or less spoken with a forked tongue, aided and abetted by the media. Most reasonable intelligent ordinary people over the age of about 40 know the public have been lied to for years across a range of issues, the biggest one being immigration. Johnson must break the mould and set a precedent. Otherwise, and rather sooner than you think, this country will be truly ungovernable.

Rex Varro is a national newspaper journalist

Online Magazine of Ideas | British Intelligence | The Life of the Mind | Politics and Arts

©2019 by British Intelligence. Proudly created with Wix.com

[frozenartscapes]

I never got to watch Olafs frozen adventure!!! Tell me something What can we garner about arendels size based on the houses Olaf visited?

I’d say the town is a pretty decent size for a small town. Olaf went to a pretty wide range of homes during his little montage, from various houses in the village to a houseboat and all the way out to Oaken’s. 

Here in this concept art we get a pretty good sense of what the town centre looks like. Many of the houses are tall, at least two if not three storeys, slender, and ornate. The colours as typical for a Scandinavian town, and it definitely appears like everyone who lives in the town at least is very comfortable, well-off, and open to express their own individual traditions. 

Everyone is free to celebrate the winter holidays how they want, leading me to believe that Arendelle is way ahead of most of Europe when it comes to religious acceptance. (Also I’m going to assume that one woman is a baker by profession because no one would have had a personal oven big enough for that gingerbread Norway). So while it might be small, Arendelle has an insane amount of variety in its people if we consider time period and location.

But speaking of size:

You can get a pretty good sense of it here, taken from Frozen Fever instead of OFA. It’s not big, but I still maintain that this town isn’t all of Arendelle. It’s just the capital.

The map from FF depicts two nations we know: Arendelle, and the Southern Isles. Both of these countries’ capitals are marked by a castle icon (at least, that’s what we can assume for the Southern Isles). Both countries’ territories are indicated by colour: Arendelle that greenish-grey, SI by purple. And because we don’t see an edge to that green, we can assume all that land is Arendelle’s territory. Which makes more sense as to why Hans would want to be king of Arendelle - it’s a larger swath of land for him to lord over his brothers, likely has more resources in the mountains, and, based on the castle icons, has the bigger castle and potentially more wealth. This is all speculation, of course, since the only part of the SI that we see is a manure pit, but it would make Hans’ actions at least a little more understandable. If Arendelle was only the town that we saw, and the entire kingdom was contained within that wall (which, in itself, doesn’t mean much because walled cities were definitely a thing and didn’t actually mean that the owned land stopped at the wall) then why Arendelle would even be considered relevant in the year 1840ish when empires were all the rage and owning as much land as physically possible was all anyone was concerned about is beyond me.

But going back to the town: the capital is small, yes, especially for a kingdom that does seem wealthier than at least the Southern Isles. So I’m going to propose something new that I don’t think many people have thought of yet: what if this is a new town? Not, like, within Anna and Elsa’s lifetime, or even their parents, but within the past 100-150 years? Capitals can move, as can towns. Maybe what was the original capital was either deemed unfit or no longer as strategic as the current location? We don’t know much about Arendelle’s history, except for the fact that they’re a Nordic people living in the part of the world that can get very cold and they build primarily out of wood. So it’s not entirely out there to assume that a city-destroying fire occurred in the past. Take the real-life Norwegian town of Bergen, that has been destroyed and rebuilt due to large-scale fires over the course of its history. So it’s entirely possible that Arendelle’s capital was either moved here after the last capital burned to the ground or it suffered a devastating fire maybe 100 years ago and what we have now is what has been built up. The fire thing might also be why the royal castle - so the home of the most important people in Arendelle and the seat of power - is separated from the town by a small inlet, and the only way to get to it is via a stone bridge. Actually, that might also explain why all the houses are built largely in the same architectural style. Typically, in older cities and towns there would be a mix of things built throughout history. Cities that are largely homogenous in their architecture are ones that witnessed mass-construction within a relatively short timeframe. So, town burns to the ground and then is rebuilt within a couple decades, resulting in all the houses looking similar.

Sorry, I’ve gotten away from the question at hand, but it is true that OFA at least shows more of the kingdom than we’ve seen before. Most of the town can be seen in Olaf’s song, but we do get more wilderness adventures, leading me to believe that the forests around Arendelle are largely unpopulated because of the rampant wolf attacks and the random gorges that seemingly appear whenever it's most inconvenient. So that could be another reason why the town is so small, I suppose.

[takemedancingmaine]

40

I gather my BlackBerry, massive padfolio, and a bottle of water from my desk.

“Good to see you're feeling better,” James says as he holds the conference room door open for me and Philip. We both slip inside and as I take my seat I blush.

“Just glad to be well enough to work,” I say. It's the truth. When I looked at my BlackBerry last night on the train home from Jack’s I was unsurprised to see how much I'd missed in just a day of being gone.

I am glad to be back though because it means I am well enough to be here doing something that gives me a sense of purpose, something that drives me forward. I'm already working on pitching a story idea, centric to the shambles regarding Brexit.

We all know how awful it is economically and politically for Britain at the moment, with no one knowing how to handle it. My story would be about the nonexistent plans and promises of grandeur that caused the vote to swing toward it in the first place.

Did those who wanted to leave the EU have a game plan or were they just throwing out ideas? To me, and to a lot of people, it seems to be the second: haphazard ideas and sloppy plans with how to separate ourselves that we're now being forced to struggle with. It honestly seemed like even they thought that they would lose the vote so why even bother with proper planning.

Those leading the charge to exit need to be held accountable for the turmoil our country is currently facing.

I don't know if I should pitch it today though, I'm thinking the outline and my own game plan need to be sketched out further and more completely before I bring it to James or Seamus.

Philip launches into a story about school children all around the country and how it's looking like school boards locally and nationally are looking into better, more nutritious school lunches after a mishap at some food processing and distribution centre.

This not only calls to question the low current standards but it also forces the hand of the public to recognize that either the lunches get more expensive or school taxes will increase.

I take notes just so I'm informed if I'm asked to join on a project, but I'm feeling the exhaustion in my bones from my weekend. My brain is starting to fire at a more normal pace now and I'm not so tired mentally, not really at least, but my body feels overrun with exhaustion only two hours into the day.

After the rundown meeting, I set my sights on my story, researching, reaching out to sources, and endlessly reading. I've got two on the opposing side of Brexit and one with another in the works on the side for.

It's after I help Philip film an interview that will be aired tonight that I breach the topic with him.

He's sorting through his notes and compiling his things to head to the video room to start editing and rendering the clip when I stop him.

“Philip, can I run a story by you really quickly?” I ask, my voice quiet. I think that's what makes him look at me curiously. I haven't been that quiet around him since I started.

“What’ve you got?” He asks, leaning against the anchor desk as he looks me up and down, almost as if he’s trying to figure it out before I tell him.

“Brexit,” I say and I know immediately by the look in his eyes, the change in his posture that he's not on board.

Before he can open his mouth to say as much I cut him off. “I know it's been covered for over a year now, but I think there's an angle I can work.”

He gestures for me to keep going, but he still looks sceptical. I bite my lip, take a deep breath, and then launch into my pitch for it, all the research I’d done, and the sources I'd already gotten that were willing to discuss both on and off the record.

By the time I'm finished Philip doesn't look as sceptical, but he doesn't look excited either. I don't know what he's thinking until he opens his mouth.

“You're doing good work,” he tells me. “But I want you to dig deeper. What you've got is great, really. I just think you've got more there that you can really get into. Once you've dug deeper, bring it back to me and we can run it by James and Seamus.”

My heart stops and then picks up speed. He's going to let me keep going with this. This is massive.

I've done segment pieces before and helped produce interviews and smaller things, but this would be a whole show dedicated to my story if it's up to scruff. It frightens me and excites me at the same time.

I can feel myself locking up, all the nerves just firing in my body all at once, unsure of what to do. But then Philip gives me an expectant look with those dark green eyes he has and I shake myself.

“Oh my god,” I tell him, my own eyes wide as he gives me a small smile. “Thank you! I just… thank you.” I turn to leave, realize I've forgotten everything on the desk, and then turn back in a series of very disjointed movements.

Philip is smirking at me, waiting for me to leave before he goes to the editing room. Probably expecting me to pass out or something equally as ridiculous.

“Wren?” He asks when I’ve almost made it to the door. I turn to see him still leaning on the desk.

“Yes?”

“Your phone?”

I look down at my hands. There's no phone. I left my phone. I close my eyes and take a deep breath before walking all the way back.

“Take your time with this, Wren,” he says now that I'm beside him again. “You're bright and driven. Just take some time, make this as good as it can be. And if you need help, ask.”

“Thank you,” I say again, my cheeks flushing with colour before I grab my phone and scuttle off.

I really appreciate Philip. As the senior producer it's his job to help us, I know that, but his patience is second to none. He has a short fuse when it comes to ignorance or lack of trying. He loathes complacency and apathy, but he's always here trying to help us, the associate producers.

I think it's because he's young. He’s twenty-nine and was embedded in Afghanistan for three years. He literally had a trial by fire when he was offered the job to go over. Most twenty-four-year-olds would baulk and take the safer route, but Philip trusted James.

The two of them as a team have an enviable partnership and work chemistry that makes our newsroom flow with almost unprecedented efficiency.

I never knew I wanted to be in broadcast media, I always thought I was more efficient in print, but it turns out my background in print makes it easy for me to write copy for the show.

I never expected to be in broadcast, but now that I'm here, disseminating news to more than I could ever have imagined in such an efficient environment I can't look back on any other path for myself. I mean, this has opened so much up for me career-wise and personally, I've learned so much about myself.

So with Philip’s blessing, I get back to work once I'm at my desk.

“Hey, Liz?” I look up and across the mini barrier of our desk clump.

She nods and lets me know she's heard me. I wait until she looks up before I breach the subject.

“Your sister-in-law works in the Conservative party as a strategist, right?”

She nods. “She does.”

“I'm working on digging deeper into Brexit and I want to really dissect the planning and strategies and not just comment on the obvious. Do you think she'd be willing to talk to me about the 12-point plan?”

“If you put it to her like that, she might be,” Liz tells me. “I can give you her information and you can reach out to try. I won't guarantee anything though.”

“Thank you so much,” I give her an appreciative smile. “I promise I'm not trying to make her look like a monster. I just want to really cover the story wholly and get all sides instead of just having people shouting at each other as they do on other networks.”

“That's not going to be easy, but I do hope it works out,” she gives me a smile before a news alert beeps onto all of our computers and she turns to read it.

Her scepticism about the ability to pull it off is warranted. I'm about to start watching news clips of Brexit coverage so far when Liz slips a piece of paper onto my desk with her sister-in-law’s information scribbled onto it.

I give her a smile back before turning towards my monitor where I'm sure my brain will melt with misinformation and combust with the arrogance that will be showcased.

41

“You are unbelievable you know that, right?”

“And you are being dramatic,” I roll my eyes and pick up my drink.

“I think I have a right,” he says and flicks my knee as I sit on his countertop and decompress after a week of long nights at work.

I sip the beer in my hand and look over at him. He's cutting little tomatoes in half and drinking beer while we listen to a Simon & Garfunkel song.

He doesn't look up at me, but I know that he can feel my gaze on him, so I bring my beer back up and slurp my next sip. He cringes, slams the knife down on the counter and points at me, eyes narrowed.

“You are the fucking worst.”

I let out a laugh and bite my bottom lip to keep my smile from spreading too large.

“What happens if Charlie wakes up?” he glares before turning back to the tomatoes. “Think of that? Having to explain a boyfriend to your nephew might be awkward.”

“He's the heaviest sleeper this world has ever seen,” I shake my head. “He's not woken up at night since he was a baby.”

My brother just continues with the knife, dicing up a red pepper. His jaw is set tight, no give or leeway in his facial expression.

“C’mon, Liam,” I lean over, my face closer to his. “You know you're secretly rejoicing that you get to torment him.”

Liam scoffs and takes a swig of beer. “I'd feel better if I'd run a background check first,” he mumbles.

I laugh at my pouting big brother.

“Li,” I put a hand on his shoulder as I gesture vaguely with my other hand, the beer sloshing a bit in the bottle as I do so. “You're very intimidating. You don't need a background check to bolster your plan of attack.”

“It would've helped,” he shoots me a look, but there's a lot less force behind this one than his earlier ones. I drop my hand from his shoulder and poke his nose before letting it fall to my side. “You couldn't invite Piper to break the tension a bit?”

“I did.”

“Did she bail just to torture me?” He asks, false despair seeping into his tone. My older brother is a child.

“Of course,” I nod. “You know her. Demented as she is,” I roll my eyes before moving my left leg sideways to kick his hip. “No. She had an event at the gallery and has to be there late.”

“Ouch,” he complains. “And is there anything of hers up? Should we have gone as support?” He asks.

“Do you think if my best friend had artwork up at a gallery event that I'd be here?” I ask rhetorically.

He answers anyway. Of course.

“Of course you’d be here,” he scoffs. “You'd be watching Charlie while I attend the event,” he grins.

I pick up a piece of chopped pepper and throw it at his face. “Get an au pair, you miserable muppet!”

“I don't want Charlie to think it's a new mum or something,” he lifts both hands in exasperation, done with my bringing this up.

“One: they have male au pairs,” I sip my beer, realizing I'm already almost done with it. “Two: he's six, Liam. He understands more than you think he does.”

“Having a guy in the house would be weird,” he makes a face. “And also, I don't care,” he adds as a response to my second point. That's that apparently.

I raise my eyebrows at his attitude. I pause and as he starts gathering the rest of the ingredients I listen to the new song.

“Were you on drugs when you made this playlist?”

Liam groans. He closes his eyes and stops in place and groans again.

I smirk. I'm always teasing him for his music choices. I knew it would be enough to get his mind off the touchy subject.

“Seriously, we’ve gone from Simon and Garfunkel to Yellowcard, to I'm sorry was that Genesis?, and now we’re on Khalid.”

He opens his eyes and then his mouth to protest and I cut him off. “There wasn't even a theme to the songs, either. It’s like musical whiplash, but in an uncomfortable way and not a cool oh-my-god-this-actually-works kind of way. More in an oh-my-god-my-ears-are-bleeding kind of way.”

Liam picks up the piece of pepper from the floor and throws it back at my face. I don't dodge it in time. It bounces off my cheek.

“You cock,” I flip him off.

“You started it, you little fuck,” he points out as I pick the offending piece of vegetable off the counter and throw it into the sink with the garbage disposal.

We’re in comfortable silence for a minute, only a minute, before he breaks it, unable to restrain his mouth, hold back his curiosity.

“So how did you two meet? You've never even told me that,” he asks.

“Liam,” I close my eyes and lean my head back against the cupboards. “You will get your fill of questions answered if you just-” the sound of knocking interrupts me.

Before I can move, Liam laughs. “Well, he has good timing at least,” in reference to what I was saying when Jack knocked. “Thanks for getting him to knock, by the way. The bell’d definitely have woken Charlie.”

“Despite your belief, brothermine, I'm not a numpty,” I complain. “I'll be right back,” I slip down off the counter and pad barefoot toward Liam's foyer.

“Could've fooled me!” He calls out.

The lights are dimmed in the front of the house as usual and when I reach the door I peek behind me, he's not hovering over my shoulder. When I hear him clanging through a kitchen drawer I open the front door and I'm greeted by Jack.

He looks tense. I can tell by his shoulders and eyes, but his eyes when he sees my face shift a bit and some of the tension releases. I step back a bit and allow him to enter.

“Hi,” I give him a smile.

“Hi,” he attempts a grin. I try not to laugh at him. I can hear the kitchen sink running and so quickly I step forward and reach up to my tiptoes and give him a quick kiss. He does react, he does manage to kiss me back for a moment before pulling back and looking over my shoulder to make sure Liam isn't there glaring him down.

He's not.

“C’mon then, laddie, let’s do this,” I grab his hand and wait while he kicks his shoes off at the front door and then guide him back through the house to the kitchen.

I can tell that Jack is a bit in awe of the house, but he doesn't say anything as he passes through the hallway, glancing into the living room and then into the kitchen,

“Will you have a beer?” I ask as we step over the threshold. I let go of his hand and he nods.

“Please,” he nods and I watch as his eyes dart from me to Liam who’s just looked up from the counter in front of him.

As I pull a beer from the fridge and open it I try to judge Liam's initial reaction.

I've grown up with my brother my whole life. I've been able to push his buttons and read him better than anyone in this world, aside from his late wife. I've never had a problem knowing his thoughts, even after he'd been taught how to rein them in. It's a constant source of annoyance it is for him to have me always knowing what's going on in his mind, unable to hide anything from me.

Now though, I have no idea what he's thinking and that's odd and foreign for me, so I step back up to Jack, his beer in my hand before I turn to Liam and will him to look at me. When he finally does he's still blank and I still can't tell what he's thinking.

I squirm on the spot but train my brown eyes on my brothers, on eyes that mirror mine, and take a deep breath.

“Liam, this is Jack,” I say as if neither of them has already met the other. “And Jack,” I glance up quickly to see the tension has returned to his blue eyes, “this is my older brother Liam.”

Jack, for his part, steps forward a bit and extends his hand toward my brother. “Good to see you, Liam,” he says, not ignoring the fact that they know one another.

Liam shakes himself of whatever had come over him when he realized who was standing in his kitchen and, after wiping his hands on a dish towel, extends one hand out, grasping Jack’s in a handshake.

“It's all making sense now,” Liam nods in return. His voice isn't unfriendly but I watch as he scans Jack up and down in a way I'm sure he's never done before during any of their other meetings. “Wren,” my brother opens his mouth to speak again and I know that tone.

“Hmm?” I hum.

“Would you mind grabbing the cheese from the fridge while you're over by it?”

I would give a million pounds to know what my brother is thinking at this exact moment.

“Sure,” I nod and hand Jack his beer before I pop open the fridge and grab the cheese for the pizza. Once I'm beside Liam I look over at Jack who's still tense but thankfully doesn't look like he's going to bolt.

I watch as he meets my gaze before taking a sip of his beer. I knock my hip into Liam.

“So you met at school then, yeah?” Liam's eyes are on me as he finishes putting the sauce on the pizza. He's going back to the question he asked me just before Jack arrived.

“Brilliant deduction there, Sherlock,” I mock. I sneak a glance at Jack and although his shoulders are still tight he's hiding a smirk with the bottle in his hand.

“Every day you test me more and more,” Liam sighs as he picks up the spinach and starts spreading it over the pizzas that are starting to look like pizzas, finally. His eyes are a mixture of humour and annoyance.

“And every day you get further and further away from the Neanderthal you were before I was born,” I pat his shoulder. “You're welcome.”

“I was three when you were born,” he rolls his eyes.

“That's no excuse,” I fake a sigh. “You are so lucky to have me,” I shrug and then move to grab my beer. When I realize there’s only a sip left I place it down beside Liam, who quickly drains it as I grab a new one for each of us.

Liam knows I have this quirk where I never drink the last sip of beer from a bottle. From a glass, sure. From a bottle? No, thank you. He's used to finishing off my beers.

This time I stop beside Jack on the opposite of the island from Liam. I slide my brother's beer across to him.

“So,” Liam hedges, “Jack.”

“Hmm?” Jack hums as he looks up from his hands to my brother.

“Tell me a bit about yourself,” Liam’s trying to be casual. I know what he's going for though, trying to open Pandora's box. A lawyer tactic is to have your witness just talk and talk until they admit something they didn't intend to.

He's trying to get a reason to make him squirm. He's going to have a hard time though. He knows that Jack has been good with me, with my mental health, but he also knows that his own son often sings his teacher’s praises.

“What would you like to know?” Jack counters.

Liam glances up from the food and his eyes flick from me to Jack and then back to me. He's more than upset I didn't tell him. I also know he doesn't like that his witness just asked him a question. That's not how it works.

“Well, I already know you're a primary school teacher,” Liam shrugs. “But what else should I know about you now that you're dating my sister and not just teaching my son?”

I want to bite my tongue, believe me, I want to. However, since last weekend I've been getting stronger emotionally, back to normal pretty much, and after the numbness I experienced I was kind of edgy and raring to get into it with my brother, or anyone in general.

“Don't mind his vagueness,” I place a hand on Jack’s shoulder and throw an over the top smile my brother’s way. “He's just upset he's been kept out of the loop so he's trying to play lawyer mind games with you.”

Liam flips me the off and Jack actually lets out a small laugh at that.

“No, no,” Jack shakes his head at me and gives Liam a look that conveys understanding. “I play the same mind games when I'm out with Lily and her boyfriend Sam.”

“You have a sister?” Liam asks, some of his rigidity leaving subconsciously.

“I do,” Jack nods. “She's three years older than I am,” he adds. “And she decided the best time for me to meet her new beau would be my birthday dinner last month.”

Liam glances at me with an all too knowing look in his eye.

“It's like they think we’ll enjoy the meeting, either of us,” Liam shakes his head.

“Oi,” I look between them. “Don't even act like you haven't been asking me about Jack from the moment you coaxed it out of me that I was seeing someone.” I turn on Jack as Liam glares at me for being right. “And I know for a fact that you would rather meet anyone in Lily’s life than be left in the dark.”

“It doesn't mean I wanted that meeting to be on my birthday, love,” he gives me a smirk.

I roll my eyes. “You're both ridiculous,” I shake my head and Jack bites his tongue as he smirks at me. Liam has raised an eyebrow in confusion. “You get what you want, sorry it's not perfect.”

“It's two against one at the moment,” Liam points out. He raises his beer and extends it to Jack, who gives me a well-he’s-not-wrong look and he lifts his own beer and the two of them cheers.

42

After that initial bit of awkwardness, Liam and Jack actually ease into a pretty smooth flowing conversation.

The three of us talked uni courses, football, best and worst pubs in certain areas of London, and more. My brother and boyfriend-would I call Jack my boyfriend?-are actually getting along. I know I shouldn't be surprised. They're both reasonable people.

However, I spent my time being surprised by it, by them and just trying to engage with the conversations they were shifting between. It feels good. Liam's still mad at me, I can tell, but he's honestly eased his entire demeanour around Jack and I don't think he did it purposefully. I think he and Jack just get along

We’re sitting down at the table eating the pizza, each of us on our second or third beer when Liam gives me a look.

“So wait, at the school carnival…” he pauses as he looks pointedly between me and Jack who are sat across the table from him. “You two were seeing each other then?”

“Yep,” I nod as beside me, Jack shrugs and goes, “Aye.”

“And that was the night I interrupted,” Liam sorts through the timeline a bit more in his head. I can see the concentration on his face as he tries to sort through everything.

“Mhm,” I hum.

Liam gives me a look. “Sorry about that,” he says to Jack as I reach for another slice of pizza. Liam and I make really good pizza. Liam rolls his eyes at me before looking back at Jack.

“Nah, mate,” Jack shakes his head. “Family things happen. No need to apologize.”

Liam makes a face but doesn't say anything.

“Have you invited everyone to Friendsgiving yet?” I ask Liam now.

“Well you know that Piper is charged with sous chef duty and you're my cleaning crew, so I guess you both can come if you'd like…” his smirk turns to a laugh when I throw my napkin at his face. “And I talked to Graham, Ed and Mike, they're all coming with their partners. What about Molly and Bernie?”

“Bernie is visiting her mother, who just moved to Crete, that weekend, but Molly will be here,” I smile.

I'm so excited to see his friends from Uni. They were there for my first year and I absolutely love them. They're like additional big brothers but goofier and also give me stories of my idiot actual brother.

“Is she still with that girl…” he trails off.

“Which one?” I ask. “The one who kicked your ass or the American one?”

Liam glowers at me and I giggle.

“The first one,” he tells me, his voice low.

“Nah,” I shake my head and pick up my pizza slice. “They broke it off maybe six months ago. She's with a baker, now.”

“Wait, I'm sorry,” Jack interrupts. “Did I miss something? The one who kicked your ass?”

I laugh.

Liam glares at me again.

“Last year, my uni roommate Molly’s date kicked Liam’s ass at literally any competition he could think of. Chess, FIFA, press ups, holding their breath, literally kicking his butt when they wrestled.”

“God, I hate you,” Liam groans.

“D'you think Lily and Sam would like to join?” I ask Jack.

“I can ask,” he nods. “I'm pretty sure they'd love to, though.”

“Yeah?” I ask.

Liam nods. “Yeah, we’d love to have them,” he says.

I almost do a spit take with my beer. Liam and Jack must've really gotten on as we ate. Liam is starting to throw me off a bit with his responses.

“Do we need to bring anything?”

“Yeah,” I nod. “So the first time we did it I researched what Americans eat on Thanksgiving and we always eat traditional food. Turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes, macaroni and cheese, green bean casserole, pumpkin pie-”

“What the hell is green bean casserole?” Jack cuts me off.

“It's better to just eat it and then ask instead of the other way round,” Liam advises.

Jack still looks confused, but he nods anyway. “Will I even know what to make if I'm tasked to bring something?”

“I've already got you down for something,” I tell him.

“What's that?” He asks with concern and curiosity flitting across his face.

“Apple crumble,” I smirk.

“I think I can handle that,” he laughs to himself.

“Wait…” Liam glances between the two of us. “Those apple scones we had. Did you make those?” He looks at Jack.

“No. Your sister did.”

“But he did make those apple muffins,” I add.

“Mate,” Liam looks at Jack. “Those were so good. D’you bake often?”

“When I have the time,” Jack nods. “I find it relaxing.”

“I mean I read to relax, but whatever works for you, mate,” Liam chuckles.

“Shit,” I whisper when over Liam’s shoulder I see the clock that's telling me it's half one in the morning. “Liam, how dare you let me stay up this late!”

“How the bloody hell is it my fault?” He reacts with indignation.

“It just is,” I groan and slump my head down onto the table.

“You're so dramatic,” Liam chuckles. “D’you need me to drive you home, then?”

“I think I can handle that task,” Jack says from beside me.

I lift my head and smirk at Liam. He's glaring at me some more. I know exactly why, too. He wanted to drive me so that he could talk to me, maybe also be a bit cross with me and it would be more than just taking.

“Let me just go grab my things then,” I slump away from the table, leaving Liam and Jack, to go grab my things from upstairs where I stashed them when I'd said goodnight to Charlie.

By the time I come back downstairs wrapped up in my coat and pulling a hat on, Liam and Jack are in the foyer where Jack is slipping his jacket back on, laughing at something Liam has said.

I just quietly watch for a moment before either of them realizes I'm there. I don't know how they've not realised I'm here, the stairs are in clear view to the second floor. There's no hiding, but whatever.

They seem much calmer than they were before, no anxiety and nervous glances in my direction, no tapping of fingers anxiously on beer bottles, nothing out of the ordinary. If I didn't know any better, the scene I just walked into could be Liam and one of his mates from uni.

“Ready?” Jack turns to me once I'm beside him.

“I am,” I nod. He gives me a smile and I melt into his blue eyes, the comfort of them slipping around me like a weighted blanket. The sense of calm that envelops me is surreal.

“Night, Liam,” I turn to him and wrap my arms around him as he pulls me close as well. My older brother was waiting for his goodnight.

Sometimes I think his longer hugs are because he genuinely just wants to feel human contact with someone other than his six-year-old. Other times I think his hugs are a result of just feeling alone and overwhelmed. Holding another body close serving as his reminder that he's not alone and that we’d be there for him if he ever was feeling overwhelmed.

“Love you, Wren,” he whispers to me. “I'll see you Sunday, right?” He asks.

“You will,” I nod against him. As I pull away I run a hand through my hair. “And I love you too, Liam.”

He gives me a smile and then he and Jack shake hands before Jack and I are out the door and getting into Jack’s car.

[travelguideworldtour-blog]

Top 15 Places to Visit in Ireland

Welcome to the Emerald Isle! A property of greenery mystical ruins, rocky woods, woods that are leprechaun-dotted, bars that are shanty set into the ditties of coastlines beer pubs and folk, Ireland is just a miracle to behold. We have a good look in 15 of the spots which each traveler maneuvering into the corner of Western Europe needs to have on this menu. Kindly explore our listing of this finest places to See in Ireland:

  Dublin

Raucous Dublin needs no introduction! A town of Guinness-fuelled bars that capital city, and Georgian structure continues to draw travelers from all over with its own cocktail of heritage and culture, class and hedonism.

Place mid way down the gorgeous shore of the Irish Sea, the town boasts the gigantic St Patrick’s Cathedral (the greatest of its kind in Ireland) and the acclaimed Dublin Writers Museumwhere passengers may imitate the lifestyles of Joyce, Yeats et al..

Even the Guinness Storehouse brings tasters having its ales, Temple Bar Square is famous for the delights, killer restaurants and drinking joints and whilst whiskey distilleries are not much off.

Cliffs of Moher

Probably one of the most visited attractions like bulwarks of rock in all Ireland, the Cliffs of Moher rise up from the swells of the great Atlantic Ocean. Along with they have been coated using the signature meadows of green bud of the island, as Galway Bay’s waters wreck along with froth contrary to the rock below.

In a whopping 120 meters in elevation, these fantastic cliffs provide stunning views of the shore and the Aran Islands outside at sea, even while still an allnew visitors’ centre makes it simple for visitors to find the countless hundreds of millions of years of geological history which helped shape the stratas of sandstone and shale.

  Ring of Kerry

In case in Kerry, simply just take the opportunity to research what’s arguably Ireland’s most scenic road, ” the Ring of Kerry (Iveragh Peninsula). Needless to say you’ll be able to begin anywhere on the road, nevertheless many place from either Kenmare or even Killarney end, naturally , back at precisely exactly the exact same spot.

That is not likely to occur, although the journey nonstop may simply take under 3 weeks. En route there exists a feast of Atlantic Ocean views islands to see mountains that are sweeping, and scenic villages.

This region of beauty has a range of outdoor pursuits including cycling, watersports on beaches, golf, walking, horseriding, and freshwater fishing along with deep angling. For background lovers, there are placed against a picture of landscapes that were striking.

  The Rock of Cashel

Ireland’s most visited heritage site, the Rock of Cashel, stars in countless images of the Emerald Isle. Queen Elizabeth II of Great Britain even visited by helicopter during her 2011 official tour of the country. Perched upon a limestone rock formation in the Golden Vale, this magnificent group of Medieval buildings includes the High Cross and Romanesque Chapel, the 12th-century round tower, a 15th-century castle, and a 13th-century Gothic cathedral.

The restored Hall of the Vicars Choral is also among the structures. Tourist attractions include an audio-visual show and exhibitions. It’s also said that this was once the seat of the High Kings of Munster prior to the Norman invasions.

  Sligo

As the town of Sligo packs a punch with wealth of pretty town houses, arched stone bridges abbey plus its ancient center, it is the back country. Imbued with the love you’d expect of this place which helped form the mythical West Yeats, this part of outstanding all-natural beauty climbs to peaks with all an powerful monolith of Knocknarea Mountain (the mythical resting place of Queen Maedbh), comes teeming with moss-clad, centuries-old cairn stone and leaves for some truly breath taking views across the pebble shores and salt-sprayed towns of Sligo Bay.

  Killarney National Park

Nestled beneath County Kerry’s other temples, the untouched and crazy reaches the Killarney National Park are worth a reference in their own right. Attested trodden and from UNESCO by herds of red deer that is royal, this location hosts swathes of walnut, ash and yew woods.

All these come together together with the Lakes of Killarney, which sit mirror like beneath their Purple Mountains’ shirts. The region is a mecca for wild life fans and sailors, who are able to discriminate between more woods and bogs at the business of both kingfishers swifts and ospreys.

  Boyne Valley

Stretching out of County Kildare into the Sea’s heartlands, the Boyne Valley Is Currently the answer of All Belgium to This Loire of France or Even Meuse of Ireland.

Green and beautiful into the hilt, this property lives around this Emerald Isle’s moniker. Between its own boundaries, travelers may observe wonders for example the Newgrange monument (that’s thought to date back over five millennia) and the walls and gatehouses of Trim Castle — once the strong hold of Norman rule in Meath.

Together using oodles of paths weaving its riparian banks round Readily accessible from the administrative centre in Dublin the valley creates a nice escape from town.

  Dingle

Its eponymous peninsula’s administrative centre swells, Dingle sits between shore and the shores of County Kerry as well as the ridges of this pilgrimage area of Mount Brandon. Steeped in charm, bobbing fishing ships besets town and includes a salt-washed sea-faring personality.

Whilst whiskey from the distillery appears to be that the tipple of choice, irish is the speech of performance too.

Besides wallowing from the backwater vibe , match between the boutiques and pubs around Quay Street, go dolphin viewing, and travelers may choose to explore the panoramas provided by this Conor Pass.

  Galway City

Crowned by the Gothicism of St Nicholas’ Church, Galway City Flourished . Sights like Lynch’s Castle belie the history of this town’s retailer mayors using this age of time, whilst the actual nature of Galway lies within its own boho, unique facet, which bubbles upwards across the town’s roads together with actors and magicians on the weekend, even pops out from the cafes to the Promenade of Salthill, becomes excruciating throughout the town’s art festival in July, and that so it’s not far from your bars of Cross Street and the guts.

  Blarney Castle

For ever drawing outside of Cork’s guts, this collection of battlements and keeps is top among the set of the bucket list sights of Ireland. Some regions of your website have been rebuilt, as the Blarney House stands tall over the face of the castle, Now, and nature walks. The piece de resistance?

Well, which must be the Blarney Stone, which is supposed to imbue some that kiss it with all the gift of their gab that is Irish!

  Cork

Cork remains the 2nd biggest city of Ireland. Since it makes its way towards the branches of this Celtic 33, it is seen perched from the coastlines of its county, cut by the twisting River Lee.

Divergent to Dublin, fun-loving, a bit laidback and lively, the natives here enjoy distance between the interested coffee shops and bars, most which hide spouting the colonies of St Patrick’s from of their town.

Even the spires of the Cathedral of St Fin Barre over look that the town in Gothicism, as the Cork City Gaol can be just actually really a quality appeal in the outskirts — even when your little gruesome on top of that!

  Glendalough

Nestled between County Wicklow to the eastside of Ireland’s mountains, Glendalough’s valley brings people . The Saint Kevin of Glendalough dates from sometime in the 6th century, which set the abbey at the centre of this site, also showcases several of those medieval structure in the nation.

Where warblers flit involving the Conservancy and the trails pierce all around this cloister, travelers may look to a woodland of pine and fern, hazel and mountain ash.

  The Aran Islands

Brought in 1934 to world attention by the documentary Man of Aran, traffic have now been entrancing since. Since it was, this is actually really just a preference of Ireland. Gaelic is the primary language, a inhabitants really certainly are, and once you will feel as though you are at a timewarp.

The islands, wild, wind swept, rocky, and completely exceptional provide you a tourist experience. The stone fort of Dun Aonghasa and the cliffs of Aran will not be forgotten, once experienced. The culture is different from the mainland, the tradition can’t be found else where and also the scenery is breath taking.

  County Kerry

Famous because the Ring of Kerry drive’s house, this county of this Republic is you to write home about.

Between its own boundaries, this property in the heart of Munster hosts the kind of this towering, 1,000-meter-high Macgillycuddy’s Reeks and the church-dotted, cairn-peppered puzzle of this Slieve Mish, while outside at sea increase the rugged daggers of this Skelligs — even Michael using its own UNESCO monasteries and Small Skellig having its craggy outcrops.

Even the mountain lakes are just another highlight oceans which flanked by peaks from Torc and Mangerton and can come surrounded by farm lands that are rocky in Muckross.

  Limerick

Spread on the banks of the River Shannon since it widens to fulfill with up with the Atlantic on the western haunch of Ireland, travelers in preference of their attractions which have made Munster’s spot famous usually overlook the town of Limerick.

But will detect a town that on the re-invigorated after bankruptcy, upward and prepared to exhibit its Guinness bars and passionate love for the game of rugby.

Moreover, the area continues to be wallowing at the prestige of being Ireland’s National City of Culture, together with areas just such as the Belltable Arts Centre exploding with fresh productions and playsthe University of Limerick echoing with plain chant and the metropolis gallery of hosting events just such as the EVA International festival.

Top 15 Places to Visit in Ireland

[stevetervet]

Tasmania

Marketing executives of Australia, I bring good news. Your advertisement campaigns are working on my five-year-old daughter. Ivy only needs to hear the words “Did someone say KFC?” and she’ll instantly launch into a chorus of I Love It by Icona Pop. When asked what she hoped would happen in 2021, she didn’t wish for anything existential or even material, but rather answered: “That I get to watch Holey Moley.” But there’s one brand which stands out among the rest. We’ll pull up behind a ute at the traffic lights and hear from the back seat those immortal words: “Oh, what a feeling - Toyota.”

And there were certainly plenty of those moments as we started the new year with a road trip around the island state of Tasmania - 240km south of the mainland across the heaving Bass Strait. Right until the last moment, it looked like the trip might be scuppered by COVID as clusters in Sydney and Melbourne prompted other states to shut their borders but on this occasion, we were in the right place at the right time and the Apple Isle lay before us.

Needless to say, there were a few raised eyebrows along the way when we declared we had travelled from New South Wales - at one point we were even removed from a queue and had to answer further questions from management before gaining entry - but Tassie’s welcome couldn’t have been warmer. The people we met were so friendly and as for the place: well, where do you start?

At the beginning, I suppose, and the absolutely stunning Cataract Gorge in Launceston. Photographs simply can’t do its forested cliffs, glassy lake and ancient boulders justice and the temperature of the public swimming pool in the centre of the gorge took our breath away for a second time as Rachel wisely watched on with the towels poolside. We emerged from the water shivering - and with fellow tourists peering down bemused from the chairlift above - but very much refreshed.

Launceston, the second-largest city in Tasmania, hadn’t been forecast as one of the trip’s highlights but it proved to have been rather under-sold. The macaque monkeys (behind glass) in City Park, the windswept Tamar Island Wetlands and the hands-on Queen Victoria Museum were free attractions you’d pay good money to see elsewhere and Riverbend Park, in the city centre, boasts the best children’s playground I’ve ever seen. It’s no exaggeration to say Ivy would have spent all day there, so vast and varied is the site. Peering down over the park are four huge grain silos, now converted into a plush hotel with a fancy restaurant on ground level. Pricey, yes, but quality grub.

When you’ve been to Peppa Pig World, the bar for any other ‘world’ is set pretty high but where Seahorse World in the Tamar Valley might have been lacking Grandpa Pig’s Little Train, it compensated with a genuinely interesting tour of the tanks and even a chance to hold a little seahorse. From this breeding centre on the banks of the Tamar, seahorses are shipped to aquariums all around the world so if you’ve ever seen one, it probably came from there.

Our four nights in town were spent above a pub - better than it sounds or than we thought when we first pulled up - but there was a change of pace when we hit the east coast.

We quickly realised the weather in Tasmania can change almost as quickly as Boris Johnson’s COVID response and so it was that we huddled on a beach somewhere along the Bay of Fires eating our picnic lunch wrapped in jumpers and waterproofs as some pretty mean waves pounded the white sand. Even us crazy northern hemisphere types weren’t about to try swimming here.

Conditions at our east coast base were more clement, and naturally we hit the pool hard but also made full use of the other sports facilities - putting green, table tennis and basketball court to name but a few. Ivy’s ping-pong skills have improved exponentially since the turn of the year and some of our rallies were even worthy of the name. But every now and then comes a wild shot from the other end of the table which forces you to take evasive action as if facing a Pat Cummins bouncer.

Down the coast we drove, into the spectacular Freycinet National Park where the views across to Wineglass Bay are postcard-perfect. Peer over the edge and it’s a sheer drop to the rocks and waves below, look down at your feet and lizards are scurrying for cover. Disaster was averted at the last minute when the family parked next to us managed to retrieve the stuffed toy whose temporary loss had sent a little girl into floods of tears. What looked like a little elephant had in fact only been dropped a few yards from the car park at the top of the cliffs.

Swansea was a handy stopping point after that - a bit different to its Welsh namesake - but it was now all about the long run into Hobart. Of all the driving we did in Tasmania, less than 5% would have been straight and flat at the same time and those sweeping bends and undulations were never more evident than on the Tasman Highway which hugged rock faces and followed the bends of the Prosser River on the challenging and invigorating approach to the state’s capital.

Hobart, with a population of 250,000 or so, must be the hilliest city I’ve ever visited. There were cars parked at angles that didn’t look natural and even a walk to the closest intersection could be enough to raise a sweat.

But on flat ground a stone’s throw from the waterfront, the Salamanca Market truly showcases Hobart in its best light every Saturday. From tourist tat and cuddly toys to ornate wood carvings and local farm produce, there’s something to lighten everyone’s wallet although by far the longest queues were at the coffee vans. Classic Australia. The pandemic has forced Salamanca to trim its stall numbers and patron capacity, although social distancing in a market is about as likely as it is on the London Underground. However, in a part of the world which is totally COVID-free at the time of writing, mingling in a Tasmanian crowd carries none of the worries it would elsewhere.

Our thoughts were constantly drawn back to the UK not only by the daily news bulletins - reporting daily infection rates higher than Australia has faced in 12 months - but also its role in shaping Tasmania as we know it today. Nowhere is that more evident than Port Arthur, the former penal settlement where thousands of convicts were shipped in the 1800s for crimes ranging from cheese theft to murder. The remains of the penitentiary and neighbouring prison buildings are beautiful; their stories by comparison quite chilling and utterly thought-provoking as to the physical treatment and mental disintegration of so many men, young and old, having been extracted from their homeland with no hope of ever returning. Walking around the site makes you acutely aware of your liberty, even more so in the current climate.

You see, for all the places we visited in Tasmania, for all the experiences, the food tasted and selfies taken, it was simply the freedom to choose and to move which we had to be most thankful for. With the majority of our friends and family locked down on the other side of the world, doing it tougher than ever, there was absolutely nothing about our trip to take for granted.

It’s said Australia is the lucky country, and that rings true to an extent, although political choices have more to do with the state of play around the world than luck. Australia’s consistently tough stance on international arrivals during the pandemic has been a huge factor in keeping the COVID numbers here so low. Two week in hotel quarantine, at your own expense, is mandatory. Around the corner from where we were staying in Hobart was one such hotel with two soldiers guarding each door. Rules are rules here and they don’t muck about. On the one hand, it’s reassuring that we are in such a safe corner of the world right now - but what about getting back to England to see those loved ones again? When will a journey of that nature be feasible and, more to the point, when will Australia relax its stance to the point where we know we can make a ‘normal’ re-entry to the place we now call home? Forget the quarantine, simply getting a plane ticket is like finding a needle in a haystack. We hope to see you all again soon, we really do, but it's just impossible to put a date on that happening.

Meanwhile, sun-kissed Hobart looked a picture from the top of Mount Wellington and equally from the water as we took a ferry to MONA (the Museum of Old and New Art). The exhibits here were all to an incredibly high specification but often weird for the sake of being weird. More rewarding was the time we spent outside in the grounds, watching a band on stage while chowing down on chicken burgers (in the case of the meat-eating members of the family).

Another ferry carried us and the car to Bruny Island, where the pendulum of Tasmanian weather swung like never before. One minute we were slithering along muddy unsealed roads in search of the Cape Bruny Lighthouse (where the winds were too strong to reach the top of the walking track), the next emerging into warm sunlight at the Truganini Memorial overlooking the ‘Neck’ - a narrow spit of land joining the north and south parts of the island.

After the best part of a week in and around Hobart, it was nice to put the hammer down and cruise through the straw-coloured Midlands on the way north. A long line of red bricks running the length of the high street in Campbell Town bore the names (and crimes) or convicts who had not even survived the epic voyage to Australia, dying in transit. There were reminders everywhere of Tasmania’s convict past; less so the treatment of its Indigenous people.

While we had already been exposed to the island’s varying landscapes and weather patterns, entering Cradle Mountain-Lake St Clair National Park can only be likened to walking through the wardrobe into Narnia. Gone was anything even resembling summer as harsh alpine vegetation stood out against steely skies, with a cold wind blowing down the back of the neck in the way that makes you instantly reach for hooded tops. The steep climbs and harpin bends were all worth it just to witness the spectacle at altitude approaching 1,000 metres above sea level. “It’s due to snow the day after tomorrow” said the girl behind the Visitor Centre counter as she handed over our shuttle bus tickets. You could spend days bushwalking around Cradle Mountain, if you like that sort of thing, whereas we chose the hop- on-hop-off approach and still copped a fair pasting from the wind, rain - and UV. The chance to see Tasmanian devils and quolls up close, as well as a wombat in the car park, further added to the experience.

Back through the wardrobe into summer, or at least a north coast variant of it, and the final stop on our tour at tiny-but-picturesque Boat Harbour Beach. With water so clear you could almost count the grains of sand on the bottom, and rock pools and caves to explore every time the tide flowed out, the beach in itself might have fully sustained our four-day stay had the temperature been a smidgen higher.

As it was, we ventured slightly further afield to The Nut at Stanley (where one of the information boards mused ‘when is a nut not a nut?’ - an important consideration for allergy sufferers), Sisters Beach (horizontal rain although not unpleasant) and to Burnie one night to see Little Penguins emerge from the sea and return to their burrows. In rather less salubrious surroundings than the corresponding experience on Phillip Island, the night sky was pierced by the luminescent green glow from a nearby BP filling station. David Attenborough meets Alan Partridge, if you will.

Soon enough, those penguins would be heading back into the Bass Strait and so it was for us, boarding the Spirit of Tasmania for our overnight crossing which marked the end of our Tassie adventure. Housed in a cabin at the extreme bow of the vessel, our plunging path through a sea that was even choppier than normal felt like taking a ride in a washing machine being hit with cannon fire, so loud was the metallic crash of the hull against the waves every few seconds.

So the mouth of Port Phillip Bay had never looked more welcoming and it was a relief to set foot - or rather, wheels - on terra firma back in Melbourne.

But what a journey. In the land that time forgot, the extraordinary diversity and natural beauty of this island have carved out unforgettable memories. The devil is in the detail and I’ve no doubt we’ve only scratched the surface.

Oh, what a feeling - Tasmania.

[thamchenhan-blog]

Faced with global warming, aviation aims to turn green

Thesis

Will we someday be able to fly without the guilt of causing environmental damage? A handful of firms and regulators hope that the electric revolution in cars will also take to the skies, helping the industry cope with an expected boom in travel and reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

"Many people say that we must get rid of air transport because we will never be able to deal with emissions and noise, but this is an outdated approach," said Norwegian Transport Minister Ketil Solvik-Olsen, who recently hosted an aviation conference in Oslo.

Norway, the largest oil and gas producer in western Europe, is paradoxically a pioneer in the field of electric transport. The Nordic nation aims for all new vehicle registrations to be zero emission by 2025 and launched a first electric ferry in early 2015.

After land and water, the northern kingdom is now turning to the sky with the goal of electrifying all short haul flights in just over 20 years.

"In my mind, there is no doubt: by 2040 Norway will be operating totally electric," said Dag Falk-Petersen, head of the country's public airport operator, Avinor.

Arguments

Tesla of the skies?

Air transportation's impact on global warming is estimated at around five percent through CO2 emissions and other substances, including nitrogen oxide and water vapour.

As the number of air passengers is expected to almost double by 2036 to 7.8 billion per year, according to the International Air Transport Association's (IATA) projections, aviation's impact is on a course to increase substantially if nothing is done.

Meanwhile, the airline industry aims to cut its CO2 emissions in half by 2050 from 2005 levels.

While the international umbrella group Climate Action Network (CAN) says these goals are unrealistic, some airlines are beginning to look at electric-powered aircraft as an answer.

The small regional carrier Wideroe Airlines, operating in Norway's far north, plans to renew its fleet of twin-engine Bombardier Dash 8 planes with electric-powered aircraft by 2030.

"Aircraft producers see that they have to do it because otherwise there will be a new Tesla taking their positions," said Falk-Petersen, referring to how the upstart US electric car manufacturer has shaken up the traditional automobile industry.

Both of the major manufacturers of large passenger aircraft, Airbus and Boeing, are exploring the viability of electric planes.

Airbus aims to develop a hybrid model called E-Fan X, and has teamed up with British engine maker Rolls Royce and German industrial group Siemens. The first flight is planned for 2020.

"One of the biggest challenges is electricity storage," Glenn Llewellyn, general manager for electrification at Airbus, told AFP.

As with cars, the performance of batteries is a critical element, with the added problem that they are heavier than fuel and carrying them into the air is the most-energy intensive part of the flight.

"But at the same time battery technology is probably the technology in the world which has the most investment. So it will evolve," added Llewellyn.

'Any place in the world'

Zunum Aero, a start-up partly financed by US aeronautics group Boeing, meanwhile plans to bring a 12-seat hybrid plane to the market by 2022.

"The price that we're targeting is very much in line with the current aircraft but the operation cost is just a fraction, it's literally 60 to 70 percent lower than an equivalent aircraft in operation right now," said the startup's founder Matt Knapp.

Recommend

The expected lower operating costs of electric planes, both due to cheap electricity and simpler motors, means that the highly competitive airline industry could end up adopting them quickly.

Airbus offered several years ago updated aircraft with 15 percent fuel savings, and as jet fuel is a major cost for airlines, they quickly placed orders for thousands as they tried to get ahead of rivals.

The transition to electric could also provide another advantage: they are much quieter, meaning they may win exceptions to restrictions imposed due to noise near residential areas.

Combined with the fact that electric planes don't need such long runways, they could be used at some smaller airports close to city centres.

Avinor said switching to electric would also help airlines avoid any climate change related penalties that regulators could impose, such as higher taxes and flying restrictions.

Norway sees itself as a good test bed for electric planes.

"There are a lot of issues to deal with, with icy conditions, with heavy winds," says Widero CEO Stein Nilsen.

"But if we can do that here in Norway, I'm certain that this air plane will cope with any conditions in any place in the world."

Persuade : To tell the reader about the way to avoid the global warming

source : http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2018/04/08/faced-with-global-warming-aviation-aims-to-turn-green.html

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Global coronavirus cases top 13 million: Live updates | News

The World Health Organization has warned the pandemic could get far worse if countries around the world do not follow basic healthcare precautions. “The virus remains public enemy number one,” WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told a virtual briefing from WHO headquarters in Geneva.

More than 13 million people around the world have been diagnosed with COVID-19 and nearly 572,000 have died, according to data from the Johns Hopkins University. The United States, Brazil, the United Kingdom, Mexico and Italy have recorded the most deaths.

Here are the latest updates.

Tuesday, July 14

05:15 GMT – Debt-relief measures failing to help Cambodian poor

Human Rights Watch says debt relief measures by micro-loan providers in Cambodia are failing to help alleviate the financial burden on families struggling with the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic who risk  being forced to sell land and housing to survive.

The rights group says the National Bank of Cambodia and the government should suspend debt collection and interest accruals for micro-loan borrowers who can no longer meet their payments because of the pandemic. 

“Many Cambodians fear losing their lands more than catching the coronavirus because they can’t pay back their loans and the government has done little to help them,” HRW’s Asia Director Phil Robertson said in a statement, urging the government to order a freeze on debt collection and interest accruals.

HRW says Cambodians have the world’s highest average amount of micro-loans at $3,804 per capita. 

Strong statement from Human Rights Watch detailing how MFIs in Cambodia threaten land tenure security and human rights, especially during COVID-19. European development banks and IFC still investing in sector without any enhanced borrower protection. https://t.co/KIIsMmK6gO

— Brendan O’Byrne (@BrendanOByrne) July 14, 2020

05:00 GMT – Worse than dismal: Singapore Q2 GDP plunges 41.2 percent

Singapore’s economy suffered a coronavirus-induced record contraction in the second quarter, putting it on course for its worst-ever slump this year.

Gross domestic product (GDP) plunged by a record 41.2 percent in the three months ended March, on a quarter-on-quarter annualised basis, preliminary data from the Ministry of Trade and Industry showed on Tuesday. Economists polled by Reuters were expcting 37.4 percent decline.

“We were expecting these numbers to look quite dismal, although this is worse than what we had expected,” Steve Cochrane, economist at Moody’s Analytics, told the news agency.

04:45 GMT – Tokyo theatregoers asked to come forward for testing

Some 800 Tokyo theatregoers are being asked to come forward for testing after at least 20 coronavirus cases were traced back to a production involving a Japanese boy band.

Health officials are focusing on the Theatre Moliere, a 190-seat theatre in the Shinjuku area of the capital, which put on the show ‘Werewolf’ for six days earlier this month.

The first case was reported on July 6 and involved a cast member.

04:30 GMT – DRC facing new Ebola outbreak as tries to control COVID, measles

Ebola is spreading in western Democratic Republic of Congo, with nearly 50 known cases across a large region bordering the Republic of Congo and the Central African Republic, according to the World Health Organization (WHO).

Mike Ryan, the WHO’s top emergencies expert, says the outbreak, first detected on June 1, remains “very active” and of great concern.

“In the era of COVID it is very important that we do not take our eyes off these other emerging diseases,” he said. 

DR Congo is also dealing with a measles epidemic that has killed more than 6,000 people and COVID-19, which has infected more than 3,000 and killed 188.

You can read more on that story here.

FILE PHOTO: Mwamini Kahindo, an Ebola survivor working as a caregiver to babies who are confirmed Ebola cases, holds an infant outside the red zone at the Ebola treatment centre in Butembo, Democratic Republic of Congo, March 25, 2019. REUTERS/Baz Ratner/File Photo [Reuters]

03:45 GMT – Malaysia and Singapore ease some border restrictions

Malaysia and Singapore are to ease border restrictions between the two countries to support essential business and official traffic, as well as residents who have long-term work permits for the other country.

The rules will include a ‘Reciprocal Green Lane’ for essential business and official purposes with all travellers having to undergo a PCR swab test before travel and submit a detailed itinerary for the duration of the visit. 

The ‘Periodic Commuting Agreement’ will apply to residents with long term work permits for the other country and allow them to return for ‘home leave’ after three months of working. 

The new measures are expected to come into force on August 10, the two countries’ governments said in a joint statement on Tuesday. The details of the arrangements – including health protocols and the application process – will be announced ten days before that.

Joint Press Statement by FM Dato’ Seri @HishammuddinH2O and Singapore FM Dr. @VivianBala on the implementation of the

reciprocal green lane & periodic commuting agreement. pic.twitter.com/vjQ0F3sSIY

— Wisma Putra (@MalaysiaMFA) July 14, 2020

03:30 GMT – Hong Kong prepares for toughest-ever coronavirus curbs

People in Hong Kong are preparing for the toughest curbs yet to control the coronavirus with the authorities warning that the risk of a large-scale outbreak in the territory is “extremely high”.

The new measures come into force at midnight (16:00 GMT). They include mandatory face masks on public transport, and a limit on the size of gatherings to just four people.

You can read more on that story here.

Masks will be mandatory on all public transport in Hong Kong under measures that come into force at midnight [Tyrone Siu/Reuters]

02:30 GMT – Mystery of Argentine sailors who caught virus while at sea

Argentina is trying to solve the mystery of how 57 sailors managed to come down with the coronavirus while they were at sea even though all had tested negative and spent 14 days in quarantine in a hotel before the voyage began.

The health ministry for the southern province of Tierra del Fuego says the fishing trawler is now back in port after 35 days at sea, with 57 of the 61 crew diagnosed with the virus after a new test. Two are now in hospital.

A team is trying to establish the “chronology of contagion” among the crew.

“This is a case that escapes all description in publications because an incubation period this long has not been described anywhere,” said Leandro Ballatore, the head of the infectious diseases department at Ushuaia Regional Hospital. “We cannot yet explain how the symptoms appeared.”   

01:25 GMT – No new cases confirmed in Beijing for eighth day

The wave of coronavirus cases connected with Beijing’s wholesale market that began in June appears to have been brought under control with no new cases of the disease reported in the Chinese capital for eight successive days.

China’s National Health Commission reported five new cases on the mainland on Tuesday, all among people returning from overseas.

#Beijing sees zero locally transmitted #COVID19 cases for the eighth consecutive day. On Monday, 21 people recovered and were discharged from hospitals, lowering the number of active cases in Beijing to 205. pic.twitter.com/W5fNQkEsWe

— CGTN (@CGTNOfficial) July 14, 2020

01:00 GMT – Nearly 1,000 workers at US immigration detention centres have COVID-19

More than 930 people working for four private companies that run detention centres for US immigration have tested positive for coronavirus, according to executives speaking at a congressional hearing.

The four firms are CoreCivic (554 cases), the GEO Group (167 cases), Management & Training Corp (73 cases) and LaSalle Corrections (144 cases). US immigration has reported 45 cases amongst its own staff.

Lawmakers are concerned about the spread of the virus across the US’ nearly 70 detention centres. More than 3,000 detainees have tested positive for the disease and two have died. There are currently about 22,580 people in immigration custody.

00:00 GMT – UK to make masks mandatory in shops

The British government will announce on Tuesday that people will have to wear masks when they go into a shop from July 24. 

“There is growing evidence that wearing a face covering in an enclosed space helps protect individuals and those around them from coronavirus,” a statement from the prime minister’s office said.

Masks have been required on public transport since June 15.

23:45 GMT (Monday) – Worldwide cases surpass 13 million

More than 13 million people around the world have now been confirmed to have had the coronavirus, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University.

Below are the five most-affected countries.

United States – 3,361,042

Brazil – 1,884,967

India – 878,254

Russia – 732,547

Peru – 330,123 

—-

Hello and welcome to Al Jazeera’s continuing coverage of the coronavirus pandemic. I’m Kate Mayberry in Kuala Lumpur.

Read all the updates from yesterday (July 13) here.

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The Rugby World Cup

A Road Trip, The Brave Blossoms arrive, a Sake Tour and the Tartan army 

September 28th 2019

So the second weekend of the tournament arrived! Excitedly, we joined our relatively new rugby friends Glen and Debbie on a road trip to Kobe. This weekend we were going to see the Scots, so we filled the few hours journey with a Scottish playlist of classics including the Pretenders, Primal Scream, Franz Ferdinand and of course, The Proclaimers. In hindsight this was good preparation for meeting the tartan army who we would find in excellent (loud) voice. 

We found that there was an ‘English Pub’ called The Harbour Tavern in central Kobe that was already open at 1pm showing the Tonga and Argentina game. 

The Harbour Tavern is somewhat hidden away in a tall building on the 7th floor but we found it. It definitely has the rustic feel and sticky carpet of a traditional English pub. We were quick to install ourselves in front of a big TV as we were particularly keen to see the next match which was the hosts vs Ireland.

After eating some dubiously microwaved ‘beef pies’ we were ready for the main event - Japan’s first proper test. Our Irish friends had travelled to Shizouka with the intention to see their team conquer the Blossoms, but they had not reckoned on the impact of Yu Tamura’s deadly accurate boot. The Irish were vastly outnumbered by the home crowd who went suitably nuts (very unjapanese) when Kotaro Matsushima very nearly scored a try within the first three minutes. 

After that wake up call Ireland looked to regain their composure with Garry Ringrose carrying a try over at 13 minutes. However Jack Carty was unable to convert it so Ireland were ahead by 5 points. 4 minutes later Yu Tamura scored his first penalty.  Ireland replied with a converted try putting them firmly ahead 12 points to 3. Our friends were delighted and we saw them celebrate on TV several times in their bright green wigs. But the Irish team made mistakes and by half time Tamura had kicked Japan back to touching distance  9 points to 12. 

The second half carried on the excitement for the Japanese crowd when the backs put together an attack off the back of a scrum- Lameki charged through the Irish lines only just being stopped before Tanaka was able to feed the ball out to Nakamura who then threw a long pass to Lafaele who popped it to the newly arrived wing replacement Kenki Fukuoka who charged over the try line. At this point The Harbour Tavern erupted as Japan took the lead 14 - 12. 10 minutes later Tamura added a 5th successful kick adding to his large collection of points. The Japanese started to believe this was winnable. Then with 3 minutes to go the try scorer Kenki Fukuoka intercepted a pass and very almost scored a try at the other end of the pitch. The noise was insane. When the whistle blew Japan had won the contest 16-12. There were a lot of very happy Japanese supporters. 

After celebrating Japan’s stunning win in the Harbour Tavern we went to look for some dinner. This was the point that it became apparent that the Japanese had become aware of the World Cup. There had been curiosity from the host country’s citizens - now there was enthusiastic interest. 

As we walked through the streets of Kobe, Rob and Glen were getting stopped by Japanese who wanted to high five them for wearing the Brave Blossoms strip. This enthusiasm was echoed the next morning when we went in search of a Japan rugby top the next morning, overnight they had disappeared. Rob also decided to wear his Japan top on our sake tour where he got mildly harrassed (stroked) by female cashiers. There was definitely a new level of excitement around the city, it finally felt like the World Cup had properly begun.

The next day was Sunday, we made our way over to Kobe’s Nada District, which is home to Japan’s top Sake producers.

Its location allows it access to high quality rice, good water, and favourable weather. Being close to the ports of Kobe and Osaka was also key for distribution.

We started early and enjoyed the beautiful sunshine as we toured the many breweries and museums with our Sake connoisseur friend, Ruth. We got the Rokko liner train line to Uozaki. This is near the lovely walk by the river. 

We then made our way down to our first stop -  Hamafukutsuru. The Brewery has won awards for its “Ginjo” sake. It was a good one to start with as they have an excellent museum on the second floor explaining the Sake brewing process in English with plenty of diagrams. Here we had a small tasting with one of the brewers. He was somewhat of a celebrity as he had clippings of a newspaper article that had featured him. He gave us plenty of different sakes to try as well as sherry and plum wine. Ruth invested in some sake ice cream and we were ready for round two. 

We headed to our second brewery with slight trepidation - if we consumed the same amount as the first in all the stops on the tour we’d be in trouble. Our next stop was Sakuramasamune. This was a smaller set up with a few traditional tools and equipment to see. It did have an attractive looking restaurant so that is where we stopped for lunch for motsunabe. 

After a suitably filling lunch our tour continued to three other breweries.   Kikumasamune Sake Museum, Hakutsuru Sake Brewery Museum and Kobe Shushinkan Brewery. These all had excellent museums which showed off the huge casks used in the brewing process. Some had photos of past techniques whilst in a slightly creepy approach one had life sized models recreating images from the past. 

As the afternoon wore on we hurried back to the city centre to watch the Wales v Australia game - a game that would potentially decide who would top group D. One we wanted Wales to win as we were hoping to see both Northern hemisphere teams in separate quarter finals in Oita. 

We headed for the “Aussie” pub, the Rock. Maybe a questionable choice. It was rammed mostly with Scots. As we squeezed ourselves into the place Rob and Glen went in search of beer. It was not the most comfortable place but the game proved a healthy distraction from our cramped situation. 

It was a close game with Wales taking the lead within the first minute with a cheeky drop goal. They continued to lead throughout but the six nations champions had to dig deep to stop the resilient Wallabies. The big number 12 Samu Kerevi proved very hard to stop. Dan Biggar ended up with concussion after an attempted tackle. Reece Patchell was mown down by the massive unit and somehow got rewarded with a penalty for his efforts. A brutal physical game that was close right to the end. Only the accuracy of the Welsh number tens boots kept the Australians at bay. To our relief the Welsh won 29-25.

We celebrated with a few drinks in some nice and not so nice bars and some Kobe Beef.

Game day

It was a bright sunny morning. We made our way over to Kobe’s China Town. After some tasty walking snacks, we had a sit down lunch to give us a solid basis for the drinking that was about to occur. So we were ready, off to the Fanzone. 

The Fanzone was located on the edge of the port area with views of the sea. There was a stage with scheduled entertainment that ranged from BMX stunt riding (not sure what that has to do with rugby, but was not the only time we saw this), to a Scottish pipers band, made up of expats and Japanese enthusiasts. There was a large covered seated area where most of the Scots gathered in their festive clobber. A few porter cabins provided food and soft drinks and then there was the bar with its complicated queuing system that kept the rest of the Scots busy. A small merchandise booth offered a small selection of souvenirs, a big screen which switched between showing highlights of the tournaments earlier games and the history of rugby in Japan. Lastly there was a skills area where people could join in some very sweaty touch rugby and a tacking skills area where small children could hurl themselves at a tackle bag and rebound onto a crash mat. Here we spotted an English guy we had met in one of the bars the night before. He was pretty hard to miss as he had a long red cape attached from his shoulders and flip flops. He was throwing himself into the touch game. We chatted to him after and his feet were caked is dust and dirt. 

After we had “absorbed” the atmosphere (alcohol) we decided to make our way to the stadium. This was a few kms away but there were plenty of World Cup Volunteers grasping flags marking our route. We just followed the singing really. 

It got a bit more tricky when getting on the train. We all squeezed in and got acquainted pretty quickly. With our faces practically pressed against the windows, we made it to the next station where the doors opened and let in some vital fresh air. However as the train progressed through the stations more people wanted to board the train. At this point a particularly massive young scot decided he would help make room for the new arrivals by grasping the top of the door and pushing backwards with his arse. Somehow we survived and found space for the new passengers. On arrival at the destination station we all exploded out of the carriage and followed the crowds to the stadium. 

We managed to find our friends at the stadium and made our way inside. We found our seats which happened to be near the front. 

The Japanese embraced the Scots as they touched down in Nagasaki, and their favourite player - Greig Laidlaw or Mr Greig as he is known. He has become something of a poster boy for the World Cup and is currently the most famous Scot in Japan. His popularity has eclipsed the usual stars of Hogg and Russell but his team mates love the game of the attention Greig gets. Apparently when walking through shopping malls they will quite regularly shout out ‘Mr Greig’ and watch delightedly as the mob descends on the scrum half. 

Greig puts the popularity down to the 2015 World Cup where a sizeable Japanese TV audience watched Scotland beat Japan. Greig had a great game scoring 20 points and the Japanese has remembered this.

The warm up started and sat with friends Justin and Mary, we could actually identify the different players faces. After the anthems it was time to experience our first live Haka of the World Cup and it did not disappoint! 

Samoa are a renowned physical side but Scotland had the discipline and the flair. 

Within eight minutes Mr Greig had delighted his fans by drawing first blood with a penalty.  This was followed up later with an impressive cross pitch kick by Finn Russell to Maitland to place a try in the corner. Laidlaw then scored near the posts after being fed by Richie, the no 7.

Ten minutes into the second half, Scotland had a driving maul which was collapsed by Samoa resulting in a penalty try (27-0). 

Maitland then was on for a try in the corner which was denied by Samoa but with a two-knee tackle. Another penalty try was awarded to Scotland. Final sore was 34-0 to Scotland.

The route back to the hotel was pretty eventful. Kobe had put on a lot of party opportunities for the kilt wearing jocks- one place with a covered shopping area putting on food and selling cold beers until the wee hours. But with the prospect of an early shinkansen and work the next day, we didn’t make it too late. Oh to be on holiday and at the world cup! Nonetheless, an excellent weekend in Kobe.