tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-83655978649168816662024-02-07T03:34:57.784+00:00Edge of the MapWeblog of Kevin WallaceKWhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18335001094857381380noreply@blogger.comBlogger89125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8365597864916881666.post-39257566959227393942014-01-01T11:49:00.001+00:002014-01-01T11:49:38.990+00:00Now the Party's Over ..<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-vEaG-ETDSgg/UsMrun7BEgI/AAAAAAAAFm4/0BfwVwtztTU/s1600/daldin3a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-vEaG-ETDSgg/UsMrun7BEgI/AAAAAAAAFm4/0BfwVwtztTU/s1600/daldin3a.JPG" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Every ingredient grown or raised within a hundred metres of the table</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><i><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Have a happy New Year, and Mutlu Yillar .. A few final
thoughts through this Blogging medium, accompanied by some photos from the past
year, including Phaselis and Saklikent, New Year’s Eve and birthdays,
Cappadocia and Antalya, Konya and Dalayan, Lycian cliff carvings, the beach,
the mountains, old towns and modern cities, autumn evenings and summer nights,
spring days and winter mornings .. thanks to those who shared them with me ..</span></i></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><i><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"></span></i></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhegH9ibSN80mdfhHL3-_5odelNPpSAPtk7BRXum6tnBPhd2dIkz7BmFR7K9Zlxw9nNvjRG8TvLhi6lxzQf4xJDelTe6TEDXRR_mLrtw3iusNrqKBPMlY-ZqtRO-31j1oC-0-bJ-8s2gMOf/s1600/autleav2a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="243" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhegH9ibSN80mdfhHL3-_5odelNPpSAPtk7BRXum6tnBPhd2dIkz7BmFR7K9Zlxw9nNvjRG8TvLhi6lxzQf4xJDelTe6TEDXRR_mLrtw3iusNrqKBPMlY-ZqtRO-31j1oC-0-bJ-8s2gMOf/s400/autleav2a.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The first autumnal leaves</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><i><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"></span></i></span></div>
<span style="font-size: small;"><i><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Thanks for having followed this journey .. having now
completed the additional teaching qualifications I’ve been working on another
prospect has suggested itself – whether I move on or stay put is yet to be
decided, however with time so short I really don’t know when I’ll pass this way
again, though expect me anytime .. so, meanwhile, enjoy life and sprinkle
some sunshine on your route so that others might follow the light you leave
behind ..</span></i></span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Can you see the above photo in the distance?</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><i><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Don’t demand that others change to receive your affection, release your anger and regret, open your
heart to possibility, free your mind from obstacles to love, for no one knows
which way the roads lead when we arrive at a crossroads .. and one day,
perhaps, if it’s meant to be ..</span></i></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-3hw8spM4eOY/UsMiUWJ8LvI/AAAAAAAAFlA/KW_2l6mLGs4/s1600/balloonsgoreme2a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-3hw8spM4eOY/UsMiUWJ8LvI/AAAAAAAAFlA/KW_2l6mLGs4/s320/balloonsgoreme2a.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Early morning balloons over the fairy mountains</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">A new year; a new day, a new
place, renewed hope, news travels. Seasons change with the weather, minds
change decisions, passions change relations, hearts exchange love, yet while
autumn leaves reluctantly in a defiant show of colour, winter seeps in through
cracks of time to chill us with memories of the past as the fire in our spirit
warms us with anticipation for the opportunities of the future.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">And here comes the festival
of winter blurring truth in its snow-blind promotion of the acquisition of
contemporary commodities. As the Santa of capital gains slides down dirty
chimneys a few brave souls can be caught staring into the flurrying snow to
seek the secret of design within every flake that glistens like an angel on its
journey to earth.</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Mx6OlRQRwLM/UsMix9SAPLI/AAAAAAAAFlI/cuvVN-k6ndc/s1600/rd2antal3a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Mx6OlRQRwLM/UsMix9SAPLI/AAAAAAAAFlI/cuvVN-k6ndc/s1600/rd2antal3a.JPG" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The 200 km wide mountain wall between Fethiye and Antalya</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">As I embark on a new phase
of life, challenging and altering my perspective with travel and different
people to work with, I continue to question my need to transform and improve my
own existence in light of the over-simplification of a complicated world by
those who inform us of reality; a world where snow is a hazard to business
rather than a joyful celebration of earth’s makeover in frozen splendour.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-rUEq9DE4ixY/UsMjqdxnVUI/AAAAAAAAFlQ/gkpNtn_Ql04/s1600/okto15a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="181" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-rUEq9DE4ixY/UsMjqdxnVUI/AAAAAAAAFlQ/gkpNtn_Ql04/s200/okto15a.JPG" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">While the band played</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;"></span><span style="font-family: Arial;">The reconfiguration of the
world in the image of global trade as means to develop social relations and the
inevitable complicity in environmental and social harm has altered the paradigm
of our time; we now live in a world truly self-absorbed in its vision of
successful living – the mirror reflecting an image of a photograph of a
painting of a bowl of wax fruit.</span>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">Networking to
promote individual career steps passes as honest friendship, conversations that
are open to public interpretation take place 'in real time',</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-S4oIqQ2xKgs/UsMkIkorYKI/AAAAAAAAFlY/O2rc-T4r2O4/s1600/Jodinout1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="199" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-S4oIqQ2xKgs/UsMkIkorYKI/AAAAAAAAFlY/O2rc-T4r2O4/s200/Jodinout1a.JPG" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Jo doubling up</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">while
records of every move we make are gathered through phone and computer signals
to direct advertising and facilitate government accounting.</span><span style="font-family: Arial;"> </span><span style="font-family: Arial;">Every day, on social network
sites and blogs, in newspapers and on television, I read and hear people asking
so many questions about religion and patriotism, about war and the principles
of ethics, about peace and honesty, the meaning of capitalism for the future
and the lack of help for the starving. So many people lost in confusion and
searching for answers in this chaotic world and it seems that few have learned
from the experiences of the old days when they were new years.</span>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-2IyPg_a28zU/UsMklYNtHXI/AAAAAAAAFlg/FmjgLhg-V3M/s1600/cANnye1A.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-2IyPg_a28zU/UsMklYNtHXI/AAAAAAAAFlg/FmjgLhg-V3M/s200/cANnye1A.JPG" width="197" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I know that look</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">History and learned wisdom,
in the contemporary collective conscious as presented in the forums of the
media pageant, has become a passé reference to the obsolete,</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">as if each
generation simply created anew the world about them from the blank slate of
personal experience; yet they look around in bewilderment at each passing day
and the tragedies that accompany the rising sun and the morning papers, or
rather after a glance at the soundbites of internet and television, and wonder
what’s wrong.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">The answers have always been
available to those who seek, and there are many who trod this path before us;
the questions haven’t changed, the obstacles haven’t changed simply because
we’ve shifted from analogue to digital, they’ve only become more obfuscated by
the messages that compete for our attention.</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-MAa9T44_dHE/UsMk34gpgOI/AAAAAAAAFlo/QOOqovZvWTg/s1600/BeSeem1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-MAa9T44_dHE/UsMk34gpgOI/AAAAAAAAFlo/QOOqovZvWTg/s1600/BeSeem1a.JPG" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">As Rumi said ..</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">Yet, those in the vanguard
of political leadership show little vision or strength of opinion to make the
real changes that could guide the world from economic and environmental crisis
to contentment and peace.</span><span style="font-family: Arial;"> </span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-kV05QuJPhwE/UsMnD3GCafI/AAAAAAAAFl0/sKxcvW95WWY/s1600/beachgift1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="218" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-kV05QuJPhwE/UsMnD3GCafI/AAAAAAAAFl0/sKxcvW95WWY/s400/beachgift1a.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A present washes up on the beach</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">This is a time of great upheaval
in the world, from the so-called Arab Spring uprising to the continual
bombardment of innocents in places with unusual names, from the consolidation
of unimaginable amounts of wealth by a shadowy minority to the incredible
overuse of chemicals in the food purveyed by our local supermarket chain.</span>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-fxMkpq4Qs4s/UsMnf3ZoaII/AAAAAAAAFmE/CRw4acOfXks/s1600/Dalya2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="241" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-fxMkpq4Qs4s/UsMnf3ZoaII/AAAAAAAAFmE/CRw4acOfXks/s400/Dalya2.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Lycian cliff dwellings - very old!</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">The cult of celebrity is a
bizarre phenomenon that insinuates its way into every aspect of modern life.
These people, many of whom have never created anything other than an image of
themselves never mind contributed to culture or society, clutter our media
outlets with their latest acquisitions, be they clothes, cars, houses, husbands
or fatherless children.</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-7Og132VAXPw/UsMnctWtHuI/AAAAAAAAFl8/HN1rBuc54qQ/s1600/dalnit1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-7Og132VAXPw/UsMnctWtHuI/AAAAAAAAFl8/HN1rBuc54qQ/s320/dalnit1a.JPG" width="245" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Dalayan and the Lycian cliff dwellings</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;"></span><span style="font-family: Arial;">Somehow these celebrity
names and faces bring comfort in the security of constant change to those with little
fanfare in their own sheltered lives: do you really need to know or even care
who which reality show contestant married which basketball player this week?
Will another year of the ever-quickening media chase bring to us anything that
means something to our collective human character?</span>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">Renowned for drunken bashes
and inane twitter comments the ‘darlings of the media’ have become an integral
part of the kaleidoscopic community that serves up and feeds on artificially
exaggerated controversy designed to instil confusion into an already ethically
polluted public sphere. You know the names: reality shows winners, silver spoon
princesses, former athletes, pop stars and fashion icons, kissing and telling
in cheap supermarket tabloids which act as pimps for these minor figures in the
grand parade of history.</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Xj1oxVSSQn4/UsMoCijTBII/AAAAAAAAFmQ/Lo5KGolClR4/s1600/ferrispalm2a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="239" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Xj1oxVSSQn4/UsMoCijTBII/AAAAAAAAFmQ/Lo5KGolClR4/s320/ferrispalm2a.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A night out with the boys</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">Every day we turn on the
news to be faced with alleged acts of terror and a continued tightening of
legislation on personal freedom in the name of security or the interests of
regulation against corporate infringement. What future is a world
managed by competing committees of executives for whom the idea of pleasure is
acquiring property and resources at the expense of those who can offer no
resistance to the megalomaniacs and their limitless power?</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-rxFFTMp3pGU/UsMooL1YLdI/AAAAAAAAFmg/iN9D2AiTCO4/s1600/DWdal1b.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-rxFFTMp3pGU/UsMooL1YLdI/AAAAAAAAFmg/iN9D2AiTCO4/s200/DWdal1b.JPG" width="129" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Cody chillin' with the turtles</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">To fool the public with the
usual bread and circus events these high-ranking citizens offer tokens of
participation to the world through the media outlets they own and the sporting
clubs and entertainment franchises they control. They offer up ‘stars’ in
designer clothes claiming to use organic drinks or eat pork to stay slim and
glowing with health.</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9qNh_iJmF9MIDCbP0ON-eZjAxbe62CBF2zVs7368rXt6veUpSfZSK8mzNAihyphenhyphenDgHHlW1oz8UmrcwerAWXjfszA7e1RZm49i_plxQnf1M-kMs6WBWPkFBPf6kRLZTTqx1dfRgNBHE4RrVk/s1600/KAyla1c.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="146" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9qNh_iJmF9MIDCbP0ON-eZjAxbe62CBF2zVs7368rXt6veUpSfZSK8mzNAihyphenhyphenDgHHlW1oz8UmrcwerAWXjfszA7e1RZm49i_plxQnf1M-kMs6WBWPkFBPf6kRLZTTqx1dfRgNBHE4RrVk/s200/KAyla1c.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">At the pub</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">Vast amounts of money are
paid to produce spy thrillers that expose the dark underbelly of modern
government or make animated films whose underlying message is to treat the
earth with care without mentioning the resources used to create these wonders
of artistic expression.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">Hundreds of millions of
people dine on meat flown in daily from an ever-decreasing rain forest turned
cattle yard and use materials created from minerals stripped from South
American mines by hungry peasants whose only appearance on the big screen will
be in the film about their suffocating death below the Andean surface, but how
else will we feed the world and still have silicon chips for our modern
wizardry?</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial;"> </span>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-2j9TU_sgLKc/UsP7REmHASI/AAAAAAAAFoY/judjQzI41uw/s1600/rockmount1b.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="286" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-2j9TU_sgLKc/UsP7REmHASI/AAAAAAAAFoY/judjQzI41uw/s400/rockmount1b.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A view too stunning to pass by</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">Earth Day is an example of
the insanity of collusion these people offer. For one hour on a certain day
once a year an international conglomerate in a sprawling and wealthy Middle
Eastern nation will turn off the lights on the fountain in a public square to
show solidarity with the environmental movement. Wow! An impressive gesture
that does absolutely nothing to affect the problems associated with the
drainage of their oil fields or their sewage tanks into the blue Gulf water.</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSh2cuzUiXgkrqtMTCOhWKcRis9w9z3NrynS8K7N5sxSrFid_IgaWiU-so61KNK2OKymvTkCdHSy6buaKrgEXyn00Pv-p_2sMVEtXZjzs_cCSrfidTIhuNdDJ9gy8i4xEskNT2teyTj5Pf/s1600/GWcap5a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="261" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSh2cuzUiXgkrqtMTCOhWKcRis9w9z3NrynS8K7N5sxSrFid_IgaWiU-so61KNK2OKymvTkCdHSy6buaKrgEXyn00Pv-p_2sMVEtXZjzs_cCSrfidTIhuNdDJ9gy8i4xEskNT2teyTj5Pf/s400/GWcap5a.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Gabriel visits the valley of mushrooms that inspired St Basil's in Moscow</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: Arial;">A huge city in the Far East
will shut down the external coloured spotlights on a famous building for one
hour to show unity of purpose with those who seek a reduction in energy usage,
while a hundred thousand office buildings continue to direct a neon blaze into
the night sky obliterating the stars from sight. Again, wow!</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCXXN9ShCyhVEOVp0kyo4-r_puXqVYuXC0tYjpQ6P56pjShxqOKQ8oWGn9znrdHSo_lmsmbX-MipADu_q5p_aap3AxdNjC2aOUawbX2tlpPnY353-ajygbVgA5MeoHbPVYpEVejZGQkZ4L/s1600/Antataturk1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCXXN9ShCyhVEOVp0kyo4-r_puXqVYuXC0tYjpQ6P56pjShxqOKQ8oWGn9znrdHSo_lmsmbX-MipADu_q5p_aap3AxdNjC2aOUawbX2tlpPnY353-ajygbVgA5MeoHbPVYpEVejZGQkZ4L/s1600/Antataturk1a.JPG" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ataturk watches over Antalya</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">A rich Western nation whose
people tremble in their loafers at the idea of paying an extra dollar for a
tank of gasoline is going to ask business to put their computers on stand-by for
an hour at night to lessen the impact of global warming. Wow! The Earth thanks
you for the inconvenience.</span>
</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhk4rB0A0TXv2cwBC9nmkguZVnbGwF0irzm68N3HukpVaSl3O8wmFjWR_PrXQMXHmDkrxgIUjQ9lPa6d9D_RRVvE19VO_sXJTRaYpAFKU8Xbz0JEOjiBwOIpfIl6OxHlAlvCl72Sp9yRhVM/s1600/dudriv1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhk4rB0A0TXv2cwBC9nmkguZVnbGwF0irzm68N3HukpVaSl3O8wmFjWR_PrXQMXHmDkrxgIUjQ9lPa6d9D_RRVvE19VO_sXJTRaYpAFKU8Xbz0JEOjiBwOIpfIl6OxHlAlvCl72Sp9yRhVM/s320/dudriv1a.JPG" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">River Duden below the falls</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: Arial;">Hypocrisy is the name of the
game in global business and no more so than in the headquarters of the
conglomerates that control the international market. While making grand
gestures through worldwide conferences with overt references to renewing
commitment to preserving the natural resources of this beautiful planet these
multinational corporations strip away all life-sustaining organisms to create
ever-higher profits for the few with the blessing of those invested with the
trust of ordinary people to investigate this continued crime against nature.
[no comma in sight, just read 3 or 4 words at a time]</span>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-tUrJreh7QJY/UsMviuzJc2I/AAAAAAAAFnM/QsLWVCVrdN8/s1600/ozsevdon1a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="153" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-tUrJreh7QJY/UsMviuzJc2I/AAAAAAAAFnM/QsLWVCVrdN8/s200/ozsevdon1a.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">We even made the papers</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: Arial;">I sit watching the BBC World
News channel, a ‘public trust’ corporation paid for by the license fees of
taxpayers in the UK, and every 10 minutes I’m being bombarded by advertisements
for bio-technological agricultural seed manufacturers, petrochemical refinery
corporations, first-class airlines and computer-based business investment
banks. Yet, we are led to believe by the government and the board members of
this global organisation in the independence and integrity of their news
administration.</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Wc78iMzaVBc/UsP746q9zfI/AAAAAAAAFog/bJO4wmEB_9o/s1600/oznsev1b.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="141" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Wc78iMzaVBc/UsP746q9zfI/AAAAAAAAFog/bJO4wmEB_9o/s200/oznsev1b.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Another birthday</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: Arial;">Yes, we are being led
through the abundant fertile garden of earthly delights into the history-barren
wasteland of an ever changing tomorrow and will deserve the future we arrive at
in our gas-guzzling corporate cars. Unfortunately, we will all pay eventually
for our own greed and complacency in the face of this acceptance of a world
managed by those whose vision is limited by the prophets of consumption and the
latest tweeted trend as if these disposable communications held genuine
profundity.</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-8N9gUDsdluU/UsP-LnzSMTI/AAAAAAAAFpE/6QJMsBgsmeA/s1600/6PhasSev2a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-8N9gUDsdluU/UsP-LnzSMTI/AAAAAAAAFpE/6QJMsBgsmeA/s320/6PhasSev2a.JPG" width="234" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A walk in the forest of Olympus</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: Arial;">Or possibly, people are just
tired of significance and sense and simply want to escape the dystopian
depression presented by the new world order wherein we have found ourselves
lost in an overabundance of culture and communication.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">Perhaps, if hope survives
the present, we’ll meet again in a better tomorrow, a space where the need to
achieve success will be measured by the hearts we touch with love rather than
the toys we gather around us.</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-6MrjaEWjfF8/UsP8po0h0ZI/AAAAAAAAFow/9rSF8PVt3Ag/s1600/KW2013aa.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-6MrjaEWjfF8/UsP8po0h0ZI/AAAAAAAAFow/9rSF8PVt3Ag/s200/KW2013aa.JPG" width="159" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Love that white raw silk jacket</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: Arial;">Perhaps in the future there
will be a great nothing, void of memory and vision, or, if enough people reach
out in optimism, from heart to mind, we’ll touch thoughts across the universe
between to realise the dream of union in a confident spirit with a green and
pleasant tomorrow on this tiny spinning blue planet with its new year of
revolution around our silent sun.</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-4hgXLE-lOy8/UsP9osOq4RI/AAAAAAAAFo8/1zhwUCVEby0/s1600/Froggie%27s+pad1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-4hgXLE-lOy8/UsP9osOq4RI/AAAAAAAAFo8/1zhwUCVEby0/s200/Froggie%27s+pad1a.JPG" width="196" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A friend's daughter made a home for Froggie</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<i><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">So, enjoy life and sprinkle some sunshine on your route so
that others might follow the light you leave behind .. don’t demand that others
change to receive your friendship, open your heart to possibility, free your
mind from obstacles to love, for no one knows which way the roads lead when we
arrive at the crossroads .. and one day, perhaps, if it’s meant to be .. SEE YA
.. </span></i><i><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span _mstdst="0_0:8" _mstsrc="0_0:5" class="" id="Dst[0][0:5:0:8]">Görüşürüz</span> .. {;o)</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">*<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>*<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>*</span></i></div>
KWhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18335001094857381380noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8365597864916881666.post-75774853054804165472013-11-29T08:30:00.002+00:002013-11-29T08:43:49.331+00:00Down in the Dumps<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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</xml><![endif]--><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><i><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><i><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: purple;">Turkey: a country not a food .. </span></span></span></span>Food and Guns may not
seem to have any natural literary connection to you – but, they are inextricably linked to each
other in how we perceive the world, and how we interact with one another, and
our future may well depend on recognising that relationship ..</i> </span></span></i></span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><i>With Jake and Dinos
Chapman’s exhibit </i><span style="color: cyan;"><a href="http://www.juxtapoz.com/current/juxtapoz-in-hong-kong-jake-dinos-chapman-the-sum-of-all-evil-white-cube-gallery" target="_blank">The Sum of All Evil</a></span><i><span style="color: cyan;"> </span>showing in Hong Kong and recent events in
<span style="color: cyan;"><a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/09/24/us-kenya-attack-idUSBRE98K03V20130924" target="_blank">Kenya</a></span>, I’ve taken this opportunity to reflect
back on a piece I wrote following yet another school massacre in the US .. I’ve
updated something I hadn’t posted – but now I just want to rid myself of some
feelings so I can continue to earn peace with my own condition in this world ..</i></span></span><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><i> </i><i>because it is
Thanksgiving in America, perhaps those who give thanks should ask themselves why they feel it necessary to kill and eat animals by the million to express that sense of gratitude ...</i></span></span><br />
<br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Z0Peu4uztyY/UphEAdwRFKI/AAAAAAAAFf4/jwCuVtBrrtc/s1600/Dudenpk1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Z0Peu4uztyY/UphEAdwRFKI/AAAAAAAAFf4/jwCuVtBrrtc/s1600/Dudenpk1a.JPG" /></a></div>
<br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">I love food, I love to cook
it, serve it to my friends, and eat it. A weekly trip to the local market is a
vibrant experience that helps connect me to the local community. I love to
discover new foods and ways to prepare meals, and sharing with others around
the dining table makes it an even greater joy. Thanksgiving in America is a time for
families and friends to remember reasons to be grateful for the lifestyle they
have today. It is an occasion when food is the centre of a community gathering
to share the love of our connections to each other.</span></span><br />
<br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ckxV1CrUg1Q/Upg7jBZBxpI/AAAAAAAAFeI/buSrEaNvdrg/s1600/closetoedge1b.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ckxV1CrUg1Q/Upg7jBZBxpI/AAAAAAAAFeI/buSrEaNvdrg/s1600/closetoedge1b.JPG" /></a></div>
<br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Unfortunately, these days most people don’t have time to reflect upon the traditions and comfort that
food brings to life, hurrying as we are between schools and jobs and other
obligations, squeezing a quick trolley run around the hypermarket into the busy
week. Somewhere in that hustle and shuffle we are losing the connection to the
land that feeds us, as food has become big business rather than a way to bond
with family and friends in a delicious celebration of living.</span></span><br />
<br />
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ysjf6WL0igg/Upg_m2xEaGI/AAAAAAAAFeY/2Rdou10l-7Q/s1600/capdin1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="309" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ysjf6WL0igg/Upg_m2xEaGI/AAAAAAAAFeY/2Rdou10l-7Q/s320/capdin1a.JPG" width="320" /></a><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Do you ever think about how
that food arrives in the supermarket to grace your dinner plate? How it gets
from the farm to your house? Are you aware how few family farms now exist in
relation to a hundred, or 50 or even 20 years ago? Did you know that a few
global corporations are buying the rights to food production and patenting the
seeds that grow your food, so that farmers are no longer allowed to plant
vegetables without their permission? How can we allow a few people to control
to the agriculture of the world?</span></span><br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-e-bAXCCyuWI/Upg_rrnkAmI/AAAAAAAAFeg/VELY6FF3jDA/s1600/capdin2a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-e-bAXCCyuWI/Upg_rrnkAmI/AAAAAAAAFeg/VELY6FF3jDA/s320/capdin2a.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">How can we continue to allow
weapons manufacturers to control the future of our children? Why don’t these
people who collect and use these tools recognise the incongruence between the
free access to weapons and everyone else’s security? Is their pursuit of
happiness, through killing or having the ability to kill, more valuable than
the life and liberty of others?</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Why do we choose to accept
the decisions of those who would lead us into war, or who continue to sell off
the valuable natural resources that we are all dependent upon? Who decided
these people were best qualified to lead nations and determine the future
course of humankind (don't throw democracy at me - there are statistics to prove that 'most people' didn't vote them into power)? How can the system change to benefit the majority rather
than a handful of speculators on the value of our
inheritance?</span></span><br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ZBYXtG1Ao2g/Upg_9Z9V7QI/AAAAAAAAFeo/XPSa6_L66c8/s1600/capkahv1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="270" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ZBYXtG1Ao2g/Upg_9Z9V7QI/AAAAAAAAFeo/XPSa6_L66c8/s400/capkahv1a.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">So many questions, and the answers
are lost in the confusion of personal interest and greed. Even when those
politicians trot out heartfelt and sympathetic concern for the latest victims
of liberal gun laws there is an insincerity lurking behind the choice of words
in their speeches. When politicians suggest we must do more to protect our
children, and ‘we must change’, he or she is really saying we should have more
security in schools rather than we must change the actual gun laws. They mean
we must have more paperwork before these rapid-fire automatic-reload machine
guns are sold at gun fairs.</span></span><br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-VmVTxk5ivho/UphBNEBPm7I/AAAAAAAAFe8/TO6hmbIcx5Q/s1600/prawnshitake2a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-VmVTxk5ivho/UphBNEBPm7I/AAAAAAAAFe8/TO6hmbIcx5Q/s320/prawnshitake2a.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">They mean, ‘we’ the authorities, will continue to
be bought and paid for by various lobby groups to continue the manufacture and
distribution of weapons to be unloaded on a media manipulated, culturally and
socially anesthetized public. And, of course, the old
argument of the gun lobbyists, that a free nation retains its independence by
having a secure right to protect themselves from over-intrusive government, is
pure nonsense.</span></span><br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-p3dNTXGpHU8/UphBW5c6ePI/AAAAAAAAFfE/RcdLPbOJSb0/s1600/prexbrunch1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-p3dNTXGpHU8/UphBW5c6ePI/AAAAAAAAFfE/RcdLPbOJSb0/s200/prexbrunch1a.JPG" width="198" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">If lawmakers were to say, “Okay, everyone must hand over any gun
not specifically designed for self-defense or hunting,” who is going to be the
first to turn their weapons against government agents rather than hand them
over? Because in that scenario you won’t be protecting anything, you will be
the aggressor, an enemy of the people, you will be shot down, and the media will be quick to splatter your image across the airwaves with the timelessly enduring label 'psycho'.</span></span><br />
<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQRucBr42R_iivR2i9G9h1lS2BUE3GdrofCGpvdEP_GwrmWk_Tn4DaRZd4PJ1uh22RCf2PHbzlT9p0ornhxTDLIliBx7M0ZTyPzfizorciaO6uluJtnhZcH6cbjcb_RJBg6PZmwnK_SgJT/s1600/kissinbod1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQRucBr42R_iivR2i9G9h1lS2BUE3GdrofCGpvdEP_GwrmWk_Tn4DaRZd4PJ1uh22RCf2PHbzlT9p0ornhxTDLIliBx7M0ZTyPzfizorciaO6uluJtnhZcH6cbjcb_RJBg6PZmwnK_SgJT/s1600/kissinbod1a.JPG" /></a><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">A shame, but time will
witness deadly results to the way ‘we’ have allowed this unabated proliferation of deadly
weapons to people who want a personal killing tool.</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">T</span></span><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">ime after time it has been shown that
though words are spoken no action will hinder the production and sale of these
instruments of death; if this continues, </span></span>the future will be a
frightening place indeed.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">I believe that apathy to these acts of violence begins on our dinner plate.</span></span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYP2vSrqUBTsayYdXXPmx51i0-bv3lNmQebrOxrPJCHjGFIqHp8pn7DJEXcnTwFULAqwDvQ07bGSY_B4Rc4eW8K8zonfv_awc8bQGdxZ3TQFdC9CMH8bbhNFXq0zB0HCSKxjYmTTluKHag/s1600/KBtheknif1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="295" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYP2vSrqUBTsayYdXXPmx51i0-bv3lNmQebrOxrPJCHjGFIqHp8pn7DJEXcnTwFULAqwDvQ07bGSY_B4Rc4eW8K8zonfv_awc8bQGdxZ3TQFdC9CMH8bbhNFXq0zB0HCSKxjYmTTluKHag/s400/KBtheknif1a.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"> Our general lack of concern
with the animal population (save a couple pandas because they are cute, but
never mind the millions of chickens and cows and other ‘farm animals’
slaughtered daily) extends to our understanding of death and killing directly.
The regular eating of meat without recognising the relationship to killing
numbs us to the correlation between violent death and human pleasure. The media
contributes its fair share of promotion to the aggressive nature of angry,
confused and frightened people everywhere, drawing on the worst aspects of base
instinct to muddle the issue.</span></span><br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-AeGPR2LsUto/UphMGtI6uII/AAAAAAAAFhc/rsovb-36DZE/s1600/coastcurves15a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-AeGPR2LsUto/UphMGtI6uII/AAAAAAAAFhc/rsovb-36DZE/s1600/coastcurves15a.JPG" /></a></div>
<br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">These issues are related,
because without the blood-soaked industry of live food production, which in
itself is a further cause of deforestation (to provide feed and grazing land
for meat producing animals such as cows), ordinary people would have greater
access to resource rich lands to plant crops and establish farms without need
for genetically modified seeds to induce larger yields. The infiltration of
corporate seed manufacturers into the organic marketplace has created a deadly
reliance on these patented genetically modified organisms which will come back
to haunt us in future generations, and slowly (regardless of recent European
legislation) these altered seeds and pesticide-dependent plants are insinuating
their way into your kitchen.</span></span><br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-hxI6KaA86wc/UphFldfT8KI/AAAAAAAAFgE/cIrURxMdZXw/s1600/watswrl1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="290" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-hxI6KaA86wc/UphFldfT8KI/AAAAAAAAFgE/cIrURxMdZXw/s320/watswrl1a.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Some of my students over the
past year have been agricultural engineers, as this region, with its rich soil
and excellent climate, is a veritable cornucopia of food production. I’ve been
told many stories of the work they are involved with in the thousands of acres
of experimental greenhouse plants. The major producer of patented varieties of
seed, Monsanto, sends annual supplies of their newest strains to be tested
for compatibility with the soil and sunlight and growing techniques, and these
engineers observe and analyse the results. The most suitable varieties are then
passed on to the farmers, eventually to end up on your dining table.</span></span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGiefDs6cQppvUf0qnxZAdoRiRRH5n1-lUfr47TU25x00y9aE7ONUTa_9JFpzKEsTBpspUoy0o0JaHWGMlojxtG-q6wONkf2L3U_ngVvHcwIxJ3HnVe0NRiC_4U6xahlvC7sPSoNXuiEPT/s1600/agrigirl1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGiefDs6cQppvUf0qnxZAdoRiRRH5n1-lUfr47TU25x00y9aE7ONUTa_9JFpzKEsTBpspUoy0o0JaHWGMlojxtG-q6wONkf2L3U_ngVvHcwIxJ3HnVe0NRiC_4U6xahlvC7sPSoNXuiEPT/s400/agrigirl1a.JPG" width="182" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Every year the farmers must
buy new seeds because the only seeds they are now allowed to buy have been
genetically modified not to reproduce naturally. Larger, perfectly uniform red
peppers and square watermelons may </span></span><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">be aesthetically eye-pleasing</span></span>, but what purpose do they
serve other than making them easier to stack?</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Naturally grown and
naturally reproduced vegetables taste fresher and are healthier, being filled
with more nutrients than these generic, modified organisms, so why do we accept
these substitute foods? When did we begin to place greater value on the way
things look over taste and our health? At what point did the image of a squash
become more important than its direct nutritional benefits? Like a scene from
the film <i>Soylent Green</i> we now can watch on media channels the process of
turning chickens, if one can call a beakless, legless, featherless life form a
chicken, into sandwich filler, and the confinement of young animals to tiny
cells in order to boost production; yet still the world consumes these bizarre
and unnatural foodstuffs.</span></span><br />
<br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-6PqIzbXvuPk/UphM2GpEiCI/AAAAAAAAFhk/rs2StZ94Th8/s1600/RecycleTurk1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="252" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-6PqIzbXvuPk/UphM2GpEiCI/AAAAAAAAFhk/rs2StZ94Th8/s320/RecycleTurk1a.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Daily I see media images of
children who live in and around garbage dumps, who swim in waters clogged with
plastic and paper waste, who play in the residue of chemical plants, and it
disturbs me to realise that while these children, victims of war and corporate
greed, are foraging amongst the discarded detritus of modern lifestyles, most
people in the West have become impervious to the discrepancy arising from a very real and yet
contemporary technological disparity and disproportionate access to opportunities
for betterment.</span></span><br />
<br />
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-R9WHn6QGhNU/UphGzRuIZBI/AAAAAAAAFgk/UVE31tRiVEE/s1600/brkfstrsp1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-R9WHn6QGhNU/UphGzRuIZBI/AAAAAAAAFgk/UVE31tRiVEE/s320/brkfstrsp1a.JPG" width="320" /></a><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">If these wars were really a
battle to improve the lives of these innocent children then perhaps within
debate their ends could justify them. If patented food was being used to feed
them it could be argued that we are developing more efficient production to
service a growing population. However, what we see is continued economic gain
for the few and a downward spiral of disillusionment, despair, disease and
death for many.</span></span><br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-mEy4iBNeSnw/UphG-Qj5u7I/AAAAAAAAFgs/wwzh5zuP2Ic/s1600/fruitplat1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="241" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-mEy4iBNeSnw/UphG-Qj5u7I/AAAAAAAAFgs/wwzh5zuP2Ic/s320/fruitplat1a.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">We continue to splatter the
big screen of the cinema with images of graphic gratuitous violence and murder
and pay to see these blood fests thrown into the popular culture with random
abandon for the connection with and consequences of real life. And yes, there
is a difference between an ancient Greek tragedy wherein someone is killed by
the sword and contemporary cinematic gun battles – there is no moral imperative
or punishment in the arbitrary killing of today. Why did he do it? No one knows
and no one cares. So, life intercedes and ‘life imitates art more than art
imitates life’, to quote Oscar Wilde.</span></span><br />
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</div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-hYdLOTH4kck/UphPETPkHqI/AAAAAAAAFh4/fgoLtFbnmII/s1600/KWphateatr1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-hYdLOTH4kck/UphPETPkHqI/AAAAAAAAFh4/fgoLtFbnmII/s1600/KWphateatr1a.JPG" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">It’s all around us, from
those charged with attacking and killing people in other nations for a vague
honourable purpose or insane devotion to a perverse religious viewpoint, to
those who attack and kill their own neighbours for whatever socially twisted
reason, to those who would kill animals for pleasure or sport, and those who
indulge in excessive and brutal entertainment.</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">There are many reasons why these
things happen, but the first thing to be done is to remove all the weapons from
all people, everywhere. That means all firearms removed from all people. The
manufacture and distribution of weapons must be stopped to move forward
socially, spiritually and humanely.</span></span><br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-mOzvNRV13_4/UphGjmDSGKI/AAAAAAAAFgc/U4CH1TD5oo4/s1600/sunrismar1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-mOzvNRV13_4/UphGjmDSGKI/AAAAAAAAFgc/U4CH1TD5oo4/s1600/sunrismar1a.JPG" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Then, acknowledging the harm
of violence that contemporary culture has embraced, perhaps we can rid
ourselves of the mistaken belief that humans need protein from dead animals to
survive healthily. Violence toward animals, in the form of captive consumption,
is the root of deathly pursuits – for if we accept killing on the vast factory
scale we have embraced today, then by extension we can easily accept the
killing of other forms of life. We have become immune to torture and death, we
have become anaesthetised to pain and suffering, we delight in the results of
this fatal parade of blood-based food. Eating the flesh of mammals like
ourselves prepares us to kill. Refraining from this deadly activity opens our
minds and hearts to the realisation that we all share basic characteristics of life.</span></span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHr_R84G4ZC__AX3BOSqWY2Pqz0LGkXyitml82Ppu3HLtowDK0KpGofS2xktf94Q_rEs3nt7ypwVWUzRG2fGBcPPCFZJ3aSz-xX829ClQP_9B9KqM82sBYyie73Ue0IMEJwVVDHhNKTgbS/s1600/katdog1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="193" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHr_R84G4ZC__AX3BOSqWY2Pqz0LGkXyitml82Ppu3HLtowDK0KpGofS2xktf94Q_rEs3nt7ypwVWUzRG2fGBcPPCFZJ3aSz-xX829ClQP_9B9KqM82sBYyie73Ue0IMEJwVVDHhNKTgbS/s400/katdog1a.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Once the weapons are gone, we can
try to recognise what is in our minds; that our spiritual connection with the
earth is essential to maintain life on the planet. Then we can act with justice in
liberty to free ourselves from these bonds of insanity to discover the roots of truth and apply those principles in our daily life.</span></span><br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-gHXOWrS8LLk/UphHpvzy_rI/AAAAAAAAFg8/znifCliG_rc/s1600/aqushroom1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-gHXOWrS8LLk/UphHpvzy_rI/AAAAAAAAFg8/znifCliG_rc/s1600/aqushroom1a.JPG" /></a></div>
<br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">As the sun dips behind the
mountains that line the coast and sets over the warm, blue sea I consider my
options, and realise there are changes to be made in my life too. As I prepare
for the next step on my own path, a path that is taking me closer to my home, I hope that others will find within themselves a
spark of realisation that we shouldn’t continue to consume and destroy
everything in our path simply because we can; having the ability to do
something doesn’t mean it’s the best or right thing to do.</span></span><br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-O1LVuUMtAOw/UphKY2pXKxI/AAAAAAAAFhI/GpUZrs3DnJA/s1600/volcsunset1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-O1LVuUMtAOw/UphKY2pXKxI/AAAAAAAAFhI/GpUZrs3DnJA/s1600/volcsunset1a.JPG" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">As I prepare to move on to
destinations new, my prayer of hope is with those who suffer at the hands of
these industries, these fanatics and these stubborn fools, anywhere and
everywhere. Let’s begin the change to a better world by recognising our place
in the process of distribution of death and the part we can play in stopping
this madness. If we are to have a reason to give thanks in the future, then
surely “we must change” .. indeed! Many Thanks.</span></span><br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">* * * </span></span></div>
KWhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18335001094857381380noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8365597864916881666.post-39099285825175517622013-10-30T11:50:00.000+00:002013-10-30T12:42:04.858+00:00Such a Perfect Day<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">I’ve been to many of the
local beaches over the long summer months; with the sun shining in a vast clear
sky every day, the water temperately affectionate and every hue of blue and
most weekends free to roam, the invitations from friends to swim and bask along
the shore have been irresistible. From the peaceful pebbled shores of ancient
Phaselis and the delight of the sunset between Roman columns at sandy Side,
from cosmopolitan Konyaalti to presumptuously chic Lara, each is uniquely stunning and contributes to making this coastal paradise one of the
best places one could hope to live out the dream.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-K45MtZx7U_Y/UnDiyLDrSNI/AAAAAAAAFZ8/Hv8Y4Dcq0AM/s1600/okto1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="280" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-K45MtZx7U_Y/UnDiyLDrSNI/AAAAAAAAFZ8/Hv8Y4Dcq0AM/s400/okto1a.JPG" width="400" /></a></span></div>
<br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">It’s been a remarkable
season of travelling and busy schedules that included weddings and birthdays
and visitors from near and far, and the weather, perhaps surprisingly, is still
beautiful now in October. It’s no longer stifling, with the dense humidity from
the mountain passes that settles as an oppressive tempest of moist yet searing
heat scorching everyone who dares to test its waning power, but rather a
comfortable warmth that encourages evening café walks and balcony breakfasts.</span><br />
<br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-62-qm51T9xc/UnDj3GuBmII/AAAAAAAAFaI/hUyqO9DBpNw/s1600/okto2a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="246" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-62-qm51T9xc/UnDj3GuBmII/AAAAAAAAFaI/hUyqO9DBpNw/s400/okto2a.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">And of course, there is the exciting party atmosphere of Oktoberfest
that draws thousands from across the city and region to Ataturk Park where the
stage had been set for some of the biggest rock and pop bands in Turkey.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-vUdzP5UncBU/UnDikD-r5LI/AAAAAAAAFZ0/BE_klPBlj_g/s1600/2indai1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="239" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-vUdzP5UncBU/UnDikD-r5LI/AAAAAAAAFZ0/BE_klPBlj_g/s320/2indai1a.JPG" width="320" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">The ubiquitous yellow taxis
were doing significant business on this busy weekend of music and mingling.
Dozens lined up at the gates in anticipation of shuttling people back and forth
from every neighbourhood and hotel as more arrived in a steady stream to drop
off arrivals at the park entrance across from the glass pyramid. We hustled
over to the ticket booths to claim our free entry badges, supplied by a
wonderful friend who manages to keep the local ex-pat community involved in so
many events, and made our way through the throngs to find a table at our
favourite pub stall near the stage.</span></div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-dskz1TOyjRg/UnDkSvfz7YI/AAAAAAAAFaQ/ZZPuJsRS0gk/s1600/okto12a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-dskz1TOyjRg/UnDkSvfz7YI/AAAAAAAAFaQ/ZZPuJsRS0gk/s320/okto12a.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">There had been local bands
playing on the small stage since early afternoon, and jugglers, clowns, popcorn
sellers, food stalls and flag-waving patriots all hustled for attention, but it
was now time to light up the main stage and welcome the main acts of the
evening.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">As the first raucous chords blasted out from the massive speakers we grabbed
a few beers from the ever-smiling girls at the booth and started as we meant to
go on, with bubbly stuff in one hand and arms locked in dance.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">By the time we were on the
tables for the final encores of the third band we had shared laughter and friendship
and hugs and silly stories with the usual gang that includes people from every
continent and a few new faces that were enthusiastically accepted into the
crowd. I’m blessed to have such a diverse mix of people around me, and to be in
a place where so much happens, from the annual piano and blues festivals, the
renowned Portakal Film Festival and Oktoberfest, and as you would expect, all
the various holiday theme parties organised at local clubs by the group.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Summer is a hectic and fun
time in this part of the world; a busy work schedule complemented by a range of
activities all available on the doorstep.</span><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmS5xZ29YhbANzbxliccvxwDD5irKZpij6X34TSw2k8IULD85Grtz-r6gtB5D3xNed361ncDS8G-hdKkpeF7Qu6o09hYkw7RRNsldsWjR09hKDG_3o66vGbjwuscHE2odgrqUIaKgO0QYg/s1600/4Phasrocks3a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="218" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmS5xZ29YhbANzbxliccvxwDD5irKZpij6X34TSw2k8IULD85Grtz-r6gtB5D3xNed361ncDS8G-hdKkpeF7Qu6o09hYkw7RRNsldsWjR09hKDG_3o66vGbjwuscHE2odgrqUIaKgO0QYg/s400/4Phasrocks3a.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">The natural beauty of the beachfront
and the nightlife of the old town, the mountain treks and the crowded
restaurants, the jostle of tourists and the drives to historic sites of
variable interest all compete for attention. Driving along the coast with my
sons one sunny day, after visiting Saint Nicholas’s church, we stopped for
lunch so they could eat crabs fresh from the bay. We fed scavenger fish with
the scraps dropped off the terrace over the water and talked of the similarity
with the Chesapeake in Maryland, where they first learned to enjoy the flavour
of claws from these blue-shelled creatures.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjc0vWBa3vQci3HNTVjnLsmF1uOoybV5Hi135gE1dzfXF9i2vRl5Gf4jh_MEhfVMXEUTedp7IAEvz6Mnib1wJQGZr4PUBwnbbZHhhhJsAVCF6q8knGjP1sIzQYYNKT9PVqwqcpIPkEeRAx6/s1600/cavcov1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjc0vWBa3vQci3HNTVjnLsmF1uOoybV5Hi135gE1dzfXF9i2vRl5Gf4jh_MEhfVMXEUTedp7IAEvz6Mnib1wJQGZr4PUBwnbbZHhhhJsAVCF6q8knGjP1sIzQYYNKT9PVqwqcpIPkEeRAx6/s1600/cavcov1a.JPG" /></a></div>
<br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">On the way back to Antalya
we discovered an isolated beach nestled in a rocky inlet, and decided to take
an afternoon swim. Donning flippers, we swam out to the cave we had seen from
the road and spent a while skimming soft white stones into the smooth turquoise
sea before putting on masks and exploring the underwater caverns teeming with
multicoloured fish on the other side of the cove. The sunset was spectacular
and as we dried off in the balmy heat the endless sky faded from sapphire to
ginger and into inky darkness behind the ridge.</span></div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Oi__ezwrkEA/UnDmc2z06JI/AAAAAAAAFbE/qrJNzcCp4yU/s1600/okto6a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Oi__ezwrkEA/UnDmc2z06JI/AAAAAAAAFbE/qrJNzcCp4yU/s320/okto6a.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Turkish weddings aren’t at
all like traditional celebrations in the West; with no religious sacrament
involved and little in the way of ceremonial pomp most of the accoutrements are
recent embellishments added by young women who have watched American films and
been entranced by the elaborate dresses and oversized cakes. Basically, there
is a signing of documents and a shaking of hands and occasional dance by
fathers that seal the deal. However, on any given weekend there are dozens of
couples exchanging a hasty vow and posing for photographs in the scenic
beachfront park.</span></div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-aDqjJOxu5Xs/UnDoN7OozxI/AAAAAAAAFbQ/Dlau4Eu7wW0/s1600/GWrumitomb1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-aDqjJOxu5Xs/UnDoN7OozxI/AAAAAAAAFbQ/Dlau4Eu7wW0/s320/GWrumitomb1a.JPG" width="196" /></a></div>
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-D3j23jD0M0g/UnDmEZJz9vI/AAAAAAAAFa4/O-bp6lqQdCk/s1600/Canwed10b.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-D3j23jD0M0g/UnDmEZJz9vI/AAAAAAAAFa4/O-bp6lqQdCk/s320/Canwed10b.jpg" width="240" /></a><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">My lovely friend and
colleague invited me along to witness the occasion, so with my eldest son still
visiting we took the opportunity to go along for a unique insight into this
Turkish rite of passage. We watched in puzzled astonishment as the hasty
proceeding finished in a flourish of flashbulbs surrounded by many other
couples going through the same ritual before they all ran off to waiting cars
to drive themselves home.</span></div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-lrxLJEj6K30/UnDon8yDCpI/AAAAAAAAFbY/xlIKkXRXmeQ/s1600/BanuRobbday1c.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="160" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-lrxLJEj6K30/UnDon8yDCpI/AAAAAAAAFbY/xlIKkXRXmeQ/s200/BanuRobbday1c.JPG" width="200" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Birthday parties,
anniversaries and other commemorations of the passing time are
generally more interesting affairs, with friends turning out to
drink, dance and talk late into the night, often at public venues offering live
music and food.</span><br />
<br />
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-sUHf_VbbGnA/UnDqF2pTPLI/AAAAAAAAFbs/KEkT6LbJjNQ/s1600/okto8a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-sUHf_VbbGnA/UnDqF2pTPLI/AAAAAAAAFbs/KEkT6LbJjNQ/s200/okto8a.JPG" width="149" /></a><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">I’ve attended quite a few of these gatherings over the past
year; with the active social scene it’s no wonder they turn into
occasions for the community to congregate and congratulate with much tipple and
many a toast of cheer.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Although the bands at
Oktoberfest were energetic and well-known, I’m not overly enamored with
Turkish rock music. It’s easy to dance to and hits all the right notes,
sounding as much like anything else on the market these days, but for me that’s
really the problem with most contemporary bands.</span><br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-wa0HFCY2PQ0/UnDppeWfiOI/AAAAAAAAFbk/udPvk-2JJHI/s1600/okto11a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-wa0HFCY2PQ0/UnDppeWfiOI/AAAAAAAAFbk/udPvk-2JJHI/s400/okto11a.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">There isn’t anything new and
dynamic about this version of pop, beyond the sporadic infusion of conventional
beats with traditional melodies played on electric instruments, it comes across
as just one more attempt to reach the top of the charts rather than expressing
something artistically fresh and unique.</span><br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-uHXjOT18EJk/UnDrFUysIWI/AAAAAAAAFb4/2rL_eoq_isk/s1600/okto9a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="278" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-uHXjOT18EJk/UnDrFUysIWI/AAAAAAAAFb4/2rL_eoq_isk/s320/okto9a.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">The singers sing beautifully and the
keyboards players maintain the melodic harmonies, the guitarists do solos and the drummers thumps
their tubs, but the inspiration is lacking behind one more version of a tragic
heartbroken love song. C’est la vie, the world turns and the music business
thrives by selling cover versions of the same old stuff to a sedated audience,
but, at least we could all dance to the recognisable rhythm of good old rock and roll.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">It’s now late in the month
and Halloween is upon us, there was a costume party I was unfortunately unable
to make due to changing plans, but I know I was missed and the heartfelt
thoughts of others mean much more than the routine of frivolous action. Memories
of great times with friends near and far are the best of recollections. The
reminiscences of places visited and the warmth of family comforts are more
important than momentary self-serving seeking of fame and temporary acquisition
of plastic possessions, and thank goodness, because objects and items don’t
last as long as memories.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Like the ever-present sun
setting into the sea on a sultry summer evening, the things we leave behind are
the feelings of tenderness and love shared with others. The desire to leave a
lasting impression is greater than the need to accumulate disposable apparatus of
little value; this is part of what drives artists and musicians to create.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">But
being remembered after death for an accomplishment or article has little significance
if there is no knowledge of the sentiment that produced the effect. It is life
itself where the art is achieved.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Moments of genuine
connection are the best remembrance of success, and companionship with others
underlies the sense of victory over death. In the end, when the dust of the day
has settled across the beach and the stars have scattered as tiny points of
light across the midnight sky, we are left with the knowledge of camaraderie
and special relationships that make the struggle for acceptance of self in this
life worth the time we spend working to maintain the necessities of living.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">To
paraphrase the influential recently departed musician Lou Reed, my only hope is
to make every day a perfect day, to be glad I spent it with you and you with me,
to help me forget my self, and to show me how to sow what others will
wish to reap.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">*<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>*<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>*</span><br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">If you're interested in hearing any of the bands pictured above follow these links to the official videos:</span><a href="http://youtu.be/aNBGdiZMw-U" target="_blank"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> Model</span></a><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> <a href="http://youtu.be/OhnQ8yrkibk" target="_blank">Yüksek Sadakat</a></span> <a href="http://youtu.be/-cv6Mz4ysdk" target="_blank">Cambaz</a><br /></span></div>
</div>
KWhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18335001094857381380noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8365597864916881666.post-70284434908170177342013-10-18T17:15:00.000+01:002013-10-18T17:15:09.602+01:00A Life Underground<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgy9RKIDTVMroceeKmB9Xj4skXjzcvWTDTOn4gkfqx1ieRfizZOLsCmfSmvTSoSr0SVYiC1bCZgwsR24_4JzD0fYs5hQ_pHC-loLdfp3DU8L_jAzzcvB3YH_tL-bZfaWCogV3LuNg6aPvL3/s1600/cap26c.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgy9RKIDTVMroceeKmB9Xj4skXjzcvWTDTOn4gkfqx1ieRfizZOLsCmfSmvTSoSr0SVYiC1bCZgwsR24_4JzD0fYs5hQ_pHC-loLdfp3DU8L_jAzzcvB3YH_tL-bZfaWCogV3LuNg6aPvL3/s1600/cap26c.JPG" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">The sun turned the colour of
blood as it cast a brilliant final glow across the evening sky here in the
valley of stone mushrooms. As sunset once again drew a veil across the heavens
I sat on a cushion across a low table from my sons, smoking the inevitable
hookah and drinking a brew of pleasurably spiced tea. This is what I live for,
the salutation of the dazzling morning sun that welcomes me to another day, and
the evening blaze of colours that announces not the end of day but merely a
pause, a suspension of the brightness of the light till it circles back to wake
us with its unblinking eye.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Throughout the endless weeks
of high school classes and adult speaking clubs that cluttered my waking hours
during the summer season I’ve managed to squeeze in some exciting adventures,
visiting some now recognizable and a few unfamiliar locations. I enjoyed them
all with friends or family members who’ve made the trek to enjoy the scenery,
nightlife and the variety of culture and history on offer in this fascinating
region of the world.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgq58lb8hcIb3_8nwDzUa9UnnGV6UxvQXw9dzB12VahuS5DHdTy3Mh0Tv4gwGz-Ndwmwo1842hr4CrwpM8jMwWDh51S3y2qefPS-F0FpmAH4WB5llHOo6HVYwlNG2B2YvtId681zP9zdvVF/s1600/cavcruci1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="290" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgq58lb8hcIb3_8nwDzUa9UnnGV6UxvQXw9dzB12VahuS5DHdTy3Mh0Tv4gwGz-Ndwmwo1842hr4CrwpM8jMwWDh51S3y2qefPS-F0FpmAH4WB5llHOo6HVYwlNG2B2YvtId681zP9zdvVF/s320/cavcruci1a.JPG" width="320" /></a><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">I’ve been blessed with two
sons, and for the first time in a few years we were able to arrange our
schedules to meet for a couple weeks at the same time in the same place. One with time off from his job in the Far East, and the other coming </span><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">from Western Europe</span></span> for an extended stay</span><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> </span>before an exciting career change. We decided
to make a real holiday of it here at the crossroads of those continents by
travelling to places neither would have the opportunity to see in their
respective chosen homelands.</span></div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-M1fDs7Kxit8/UmFRVPiqv2I/AAAAAAAAFWc/hoPzc0_ZbRQ/s1600/cappk1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-M1fDs7Kxit8/UmFRVPiqv2I/AAAAAAAAFWc/hoPzc0_ZbRQ/s320/cappk1a.JPG" width="260" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">At least three or four times
this year I’ve been over the Toros Mountains in either direction, to Bodrum to
visit friends and Konya to consider a position at the university, and
eventually returning again to witness the imposing natural grandeur of
Cappodocia. This time I was resolutely determined to investigate the ancient
Byzantine churches with their enduring iconic paintings and wall carvings, and
journey underground through the once inhabited caves that link as an endless
chain beneath those majestic monuments of the natural world.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">These troglodyte
communities were
hidden below the towns and villages of this desert region as protection
from advancing armies of Romans, Arabs and Khan's Mongols in succession.</span></div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-BzPnYcXk2CQ/UmFSe4L1ryI/AAAAAAAAFWk/MTKgnhSD_3U/s1600/cavemil1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-BzPnYcXk2CQ/UmFSe4L1ryI/AAAAAAAAFWk/MTKgnhSD_3U/s320/cavemil1a.JPG" width="240" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Some of these
cave systems are reputedly much older than the early Christian period generally
ascribed to them (though I don’t subscribe to the extraterrestrial theories
that some have suggested). Evidence clearly shows that Christian settlers and
hermitic communes continued the excavations, however no definitive date of
origin has yet been determined. The mystery of how and why they were first dug
still eludes archaeologists and historians, and entices scholars of ancient
culture.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">The subterranean town of
Derinkuyu, just south of Nevsehir,</span><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> which could sustain as many as five thousand people,</span> is part of a network of interlaced cavern
refuges stretching over dozens of kilometres.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">It contained everything the
community might have needed to survive for extended periods; living spaces and
wine presses, halls of worship and storage facilities as well as cisterns and
secreted airshafts. To provide defence during times of crisis there were large,
heavy, circular stones strategically positioned beside crucial tunnels, to be
rolled into place and secured with a locking mechanism should the need arise.</span></div>
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beaten and occasionally lighted tunnels is an unnerving experience, and once or
twice discovering ourselves in a darkened and narrow channel I was quick to
shine the tiny flashlight back to the route we’d ambled down in a crouch.</span></div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-JrTqyKYWFSY/UmFTZPoHZAI/AAAAAAAAFW8/krgWuYQAsGg/s1600/cavroom3a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-JrTqyKYWFSY/UmFTZPoHZAI/AAAAAAAAFW8/krgWuYQAsGg/s200/cavroom3a.JPG" width="149" /></a><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Hours
spent in challenge to discover some key to the reasons for this underground
world resulted only in a sense of bemused confusion and nervous laughter as we
attempted to find the infrequent arrows that direct intrepid visitors through the
warren of chiselled halls and passages.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">There are many of these
underground cities throughout Cappadocia and some are better preserved than
others, though several are as many as eighteen levels deep, containing hundreds
of rooms and labyrinthine passageways that meander up and down through eerie
cloisters. One can only imagine the bizarre lifestyle of the people who chose
such a severe existence in this wild volcanic realm with its suggestively structured landscape.</span></div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-xyaD3mrnDvE/UmFVvuk1xUI/AAAAAAAAFXU/lWP_XInudTM/s1600/cappsy1b.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-xyaD3mrnDvE/UmFVvuk1xUI/AAAAAAAAFXU/lWP_XInudTM/s1600/cappsy1b.JPG" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Heading back into the
sunlight from the sheltering grotto of those prehistoric caves we decided on an
afternoon hike into the open country. The fairytale mushrooms loomed above and
around seemingly distorting proportion and perspective. A ramble through the
spectacular landscape is not only breathtaking and awe-inspiring; it raises questions
of the depth of faith these anchorite communities maintained across centuries. As if caught in a dream sequence from some childhood story in all its
magical intensity we strolled and ran and leapt through this natural
wonderland.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Not content to merely admire
the rock-hewn churches from without, the next day we made our way through the
crowded turnstiles that guarded the most famous post-iconoclastic visual art of
these devout ascetics. Bishop Basil of Caesarea (nearby Kayseri) had, in the
fourth century CE instructed the residents to dig cells into the soft rock to
create churches and dwellings for the growing monastic population, and despite
attempts by later settlers dozens of these illuminating sanctuaries still
exist; albeit some have become faceless as the Islamic prohibition on graven
images persisted past the Byzantine ruling on representational drawing.</span></div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-7wMLX7XZ75o/UmFWtSG1msI/AAAAAAAAFXc/VW_VYb9aH5o/s1600/cavgard1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-7wMLX7XZ75o/UmFWtSG1msI/AAAAAAAAFXc/VW_VYb9aH5o/s320/cavgard1a.JPG" width="201" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">The first churches built
contained only a minimalist revelation of symbols, though after the iconoclast
debate of the 8<sup>th</sup> and 9<sup>th</sup> centuries the paintings became
vivid and representational. Having previously only seen these images in
textbooks and magazines I was taken by three-dimensionality of the figures. I
was led to believe that Byzantine art of the period was purely flat and superficial
in their semblance to reality, however these works of art displayed an
awareness of form and colour I hadn’t expected. No photograph can reveal the
depth of shadow and fullness of shape these illustrators had been capable of
portraying, more so than early Orthodox icons I’d seen in other churches.</span></div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-JI7bynMq6PE/UmFXPL1wtzI/AAAAAAAAFXk/XppguIB7AVQ/s1600/cappaint4a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-JI7bynMq6PE/UmFXPL1wtzI/AAAAAAAAFXk/XppguIB7AVQ/s320/cappaint4a.JPG" width="240" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">There was a small group of
restoration artists from an Italian university finishing their daily work on
one of the magnificent wall paintings and I momentarily interrupted to ask a
few questions. One young lady was obliging and spoke some English, so we
settled into an informative conversation about the rich temperas and use of the
inherent shape of the rock basilica to design the anamorphic paintings that
covered the arches and ceiling as well as the walls. Apparently there was some
restoration in the 1970s that brought out the vibrancy in the dyes and tints
visible around us. She and her colleagues were now slowly cleaning an area
previously untouched, though she was more artist than historian her appreciation
of the meaning behind the work itself was noticeable as she told of the efforts
to maintain this historical site.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Christ on the cross, Mary
and Joseph at the manger, the Holy Trinity gathered round a feast table, the
apostles and supreme winged angels, they were all here in glorious tableau of
colour. In several of the churches we visited there were representations of
Saint George slaying the dragon, giving rise to the ancient legends that have
spread throughout Christendom of this all-conquering hero, or rather
posing questions about the adopted patron of England and the Crusaders who
crossed this enchanted land in the 12<sup>th</sup> and 13<sup>th</sup>
centuries, when the last of these rupestral churches was dug into the valley.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipvlxMaLixANELCptGlIzopgZsAb7BGq8a1x657TyLddKVJ5KH7SBRbRKZ-Tz-cWiibAohI5Pi2MfOAp-NK1T-utvt-9xL7YvwuXpvYOsyrD2oPrfsDeoJeMSOvPKnHnN56vMkfwocAXze/s1600/capdrag1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="215" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipvlxMaLixANELCptGlIzopgZsAb7BGq8a1x657TyLddKVJ5KH7SBRbRKZ-Tz-cWiibAohI5Pi2MfOAp-NK1T-utvt-9xL7YvwuXpvYOsyrD2oPrfsDeoJeMSOvPKnHnN56vMkfwocAXze/s320/capdrag1a.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">These colourful testimonials
to an ancient way of life, to a belief ingrained in rock, the convents and
churches, the secret underground dwellings and phenomenal sculptures that
retain their dramatic impact today, still occupy the minds of academics and
artists with their power of faith and incomparable skill of décor in this vast
curious landscape.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">The complexity of this post-iconoclast art is beyond
intriguing from an ethnological point of view, and provides freedom to the
creativity of imagination that roams among these mushroom mountains like the
eagles that soar overhead into their eyries high among the peaks of the hoodoo
spires.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIdOv7yQZ2DyAJcPQq9uZEwUUmMGkWJGzY5RJKqINzX-XMGiv4dwye55DrXmvUtsGhJBh-P1sarB32zpewGN_QtcZ4vjy-zUHJ7aIu4-0e8lxktsBUsgeJqBnu1iReF_0EtlsbyNoxHq8A/s1600/GDWcap1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="256" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIdOv7yQZ2DyAJcPQq9uZEwUUmMGkWJGzY5RJKqINzX-XMGiv4dwye55DrXmvUtsGhJBh-P1sarB32zpewGN_QtcZ4vjy-zUHJ7aIu4-0e8lxktsBUsgeJqBnu1iReF_0EtlsbyNoxHq8A/s320/GDWcap1a.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Returning again to these
fossilized formations above and beneath the Cappadocian plateau has merely
whetted my appetite for further travels. My heart seeks discovery of additional
evidence of continuity of revelation by turning the key of awareness that is
revealed in the natural world here in this exquisite terrain.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Yet within, I
know the art and architecture of devotion is always simply another human
attempt to explain the disclosure of self and our connection with each other
through time in a diversity of environmental conditions and cultural
expressions.</span></div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-bC3v-6zPmxQ/UmFaAT_c09I/AAAAAAAAFYU/KaqD64HQcRo/s1600/caveman1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="215" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-bC3v-6zPmxQ/UmFaAT_c09I/AAAAAAAAFYU/KaqD64HQcRo/s400/caveman1a.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">The quest wasn’t yet over
for us, more adventure awaited in the coming days, but for this moment our
hearts were filled with joy in recognition of mutual interests and the love of
life that had granted us time to share on common ground; ground that saints and
martyrs, heroes and villains had trod before us.</span></div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-bzSgvZDklLQ/UmFT_mLwVwI/AAAAAAAAFXI/Ao5mf-f2a8Q/s1600/cap27b.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="291" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-bzSgvZDklLQ/UmFT_mLwVwI/AAAAAAAAFXI/Ao5mf-f2a8Q/s400/cap27b.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">The shadowy subterranean
trails of art that cross this historic site were merely paths on the way to
enlightenment for them and now we too.</span></div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-H3B6uV6S8pw/UmFZTjn0kDI/AAAAAAAAFYM/AIj-jWdn5ek/s1600/KWcap111a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-H3B6uV6S8pw/UmFZTjn0kDI/AAAAAAAAFYM/AIj-jWdn5ek/s200/KWcap111a.JPG" width="150" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJ8QmdCOxjk8aj7ayg3a2hQZ2pXgO1uCU-1hk1JB-_UYJdoOgD75A68z9WFvN69mByAUYumAHRvJ0vYpuH55eNnPTrFEgNTNkSebuGM-IQfWyP9Qt0TOlVUTdVW4TqzJSxF3Wg-H3-DcnX/s1600/GWcap1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJ8QmdCOxjk8aj7ayg3a2hQZ2pXgO1uCU-1hk1JB-_UYJdoOgD75A68z9WFvN69mByAUYumAHRvJ0vYpuH55eNnPTrFEgNTNkSebuGM-IQfWyP9Qt0TOlVUTdVW4TqzJSxF3Wg-H3-DcnX/s200/GWcap1a.JPG" width="138" /></a><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Their lives, and what they left for us
to find are a part of our own history, and so we acknowledged their lingering
presence as old friends, as ancestors whose blood unites a family. For blood is
the sacred essence that sustains life, a life that continues to remind us who
we are and who we have been, as beings in process of becoming, </span><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">fingertips </span>reaching
eternally toward the risen sun.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">* * * </span></div>
KWhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18335001094857381380noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8365597864916881666.post-32640527795418971492013-09-07T15:47:00.000+01:002013-09-07T15:47:26.527+01:00Ramblin’ Man ..<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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</xml><![endif]--><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Verdana; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"><span style="color: #38761d; font-size: large;"><b><span style="font-family: Verdana;">Just a-Ramblin’, Man ..</span></b></span><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"></span></span> </span></span></span><br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-cP9y45CQtRw/UisXCZqGCHI/AAAAAAAAFPg/KGeN6zKVmt4/s1600/umbmah1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-cP9y45CQtRw/UisXCZqGCHI/AAAAAAAAFPg/KGeN6zKVmt4/s400/umbmah1a.JPG" width="298" /></a></div>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Verdana; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">Everybody
ages and everybody has the choice of how best to manage life passages and
phases. Everyone is different, yet most people evolve in life through meeting
challenges brought about by stages of transition. Crisis presents opportunity,
and opportunity involves change. Change means that some things are gained,
whether tangible or emotional, a degree of wisdom or meaningful encounter, and
some things or people or dreams vanish in the waves of swirling memory. </span>How one manages the shift in time’s tide, and the
choices one makes when confronted by external factors, determines personal
character as well as wealth and status, situating one in relation to others and hopefully developing awareness of a healthy balanced way of life.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Verdana; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">Most
men, it has been suggested in a recent study, carry more regret in their lives
than women. According to this study, men in ‘middle-age’ begin to reflect over
their lives and question the decisions they’ve made and the place they occupy
in the world. They consider the friends they failed to stay in touch with, now
lost to time, the lovers who might have been ‘the one’ they let slip from their
grasp through foolishness or ego, the career paths not taken to pursue the
expectations of family or work obligations and the ventures and prospects
passed up for excuses that seem insignificant or even forgotten in retrospect. Men measure accomplishment differently to women.</span></span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Verdana; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">Many modern men don’t
consider themselves successful if they haven’t managed to realize a
quantifiable amount of the material wealth the media and culture of celebrity
have sold us as being essential to happiness today. Fast sports cars and
expensive technological gadgetry, a second home or larger sailboat are the
kinds of objects that define prosperity for men in a consumer-orientated
society that places value on possessions over experience and family and capital
gains over sincerity, happiness and understanding.</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Verdana; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">People
everywhere are encouraged to ‘get a foot on the property ladder’ as if they
were climbing the stairway to heaven, or build a portfolio of investments as if
a book of numbers will satisfy dreams of triumph over adversity. The sport of
conquest is being fought all around and as one moves closer to the centre of
the circle the stakes get higher. It’s a game of winner takes all and the
champion of men is the one with the most playthings – whether they are casinos
or football teams, a catalogue of assets or a share in the future of a Fortune
500 corporation.</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Verdana; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">'Clothes
make the man' we are reminded, and without that bespoke suit, handcrafted
platinum watch-face and Italian leather shoes the lesser-tailored man is pushed
aside on the pavement of life. The name of the designer is key and the fashion
of accessories unlocks jewels in the crown to the new captains of industry and
high finance.</span></span></span></div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-zZwu-mecuX8/Uisl_xyYzDI/AAAAAAAAFS8/RUmJBrXLDU4/s1600/antfirstv1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-zZwu-mecuX8/Uisl_xyYzDI/AAAAAAAAFS8/RUmJBrXLDU4/s1600/antfirstv1a.JPG" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Verdana; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">But,
what happens to the vast majority of contemporary men whose dreams, like the
joys of youth dimly remembered through the daily routine of maintaining the
modern lifestyle, have been pushed to the back of the mind as though with age
comes the inevitable acceptance of an unremarkable existence? Men are often
said to go through a ‘mid-life crisis’ when they question the point and purpose
of everything they hold dear; typically associated with regression to
immature action.</span></span></span></div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-FDjUM7CLNgs/UismjkfFEFI/AAAAAAAAFTI/dO4fy45Zu48/s1600/Umbmah2a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-FDjUM7CLNgs/UismjkfFEFI/AAAAAAAAFTI/dO4fy45Zu48/s320/Umbmah2a.JPG" width="178" /></a></div>
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-GHbVwlxAelE/UismxcQOgHI/AAAAAAAAFTQ/CqKp4OHL_Iw/s1600/coastcurves10a+(2).JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-GHbVwlxAelE/UismxcQOgHI/AAAAAAAAFTQ/CqKp4OHL_Iw/s320/coastcurves10a+(2).JPG" width="181" /></a><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Verdana; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">Without
a vast accoutrement of accomplishments many men at this age seek solace
elsewhere. It may be in a bottle of booze or an extra-marital fling, it might
be in retreat to a hobby or in running off to the far-flung corners of the
globe in search of enlightenment or, as happens at this time every year, men
turn to sport in the form of competitive money-saturated circuses designed to
entertain between the numbing regularity of television adverts.</span></span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Verdana; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">Either way,
many 40 to 50-something men spend their days seeking validation and consolation
for the few remaining years and hoping for a vindication of the choices made.
Athletic events, like gladiatorial competitions, provide brief escape from the
overload of daily life, yet very
few events televised around the world at incredible expense and with
ridiculous fanfare have any point or purpose beyond satiating that need for
distraction from the mundane.</span></span></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3MqPx8qAIiAjvZGKv7X7bRVQm4qZc7HewiW8fIGO14zn-9y-jU6tEzT9L1389ie-jKQa9TJGauCqiFVl33Mt-ViTsb7Ebx_6o9_Cbj1EDihIsosARMFDtqfUOBqcDXRto2U2y1gzNny0o/s1600/Antmarbay2a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3MqPx8qAIiAjvZGKv7X7bRVQm4qZc7HewiW8fIGO14zn-9y-jU6tEzT9L1389ie-jKQa9TJGauCqiFVl33Mt-ViTsb7Ebx_6o9_Cbj1EDihIsosARMFDtqfUOBqcDXRto2U2y1gzNny0o/s400/Antmarbay2a.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Verdana; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">Nowhere are similar rewards given to people whose
life is spent remunerating caring for a person suffering through illness or
injury or the accomplishment of helping another to learn to read or diligently
developing the gift of intelligence through academic study. Nor is there
discussion of the spiritual illumination that can come from such extreme
physical exertion. Thanks to greed in corporate power brokers brawn is
winning over brain in the high stakes competition of garnering profit.</span></span></span></div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-CEBs39zpWfI/Uisu1o3NNOI/AAAAAAAAFUU/R3r0lXj4Pbs/s1600/Sidetemp12a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="258" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-CEBs39zpWfI/Uisu1o3NNOI/AAAAAAAAFUU/R3r0lXj4Pbs/s400/Sidetemp12a.jpg" width="400" /></a><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Verdana; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">Twenty-odd centuries ago there was perhaps a purpose and relevance to running fast and
jumping high. Knowing how to throw a javelin further than an opponent,
wrestling another man to the ground, vaulting a high wall or lifting a heavy
weight were skills that might have had life or death consequences on the
battlefield in days of hand-to-hand warfare; today they’re simply irrelevant to
daily life. Is it really such an amazing talent to be able to swim faster or
jump farther than another person?</span></span></span></div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-s6E07CDwtf4/UisbbUMWD-I/AAAAAAAAFQg/k95nyutOjKk/s1600/sunarch1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="304" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-s6E07CDwtf4/UisbbUMWD-I/AAAAAAAAFQg/k95nyutOjKk/s320/sunarch1a.JPG" width="320" /></a><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Verdana; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"> Unless
desperados are chasing you or you’re out to kill a wily fox with a
pack of dogs, knowing how to make a horse jump a fence isn’t very useful.</span></span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Verdana; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">Physical feats, regardless how interesting as momentary diversion, no longer
have meaningful implications for ordinary life and deflect our focus from the
consequences of other happenings in the world. Today’s wars aren’t fought in
hand-to-hand combat, street battles called uprisings and rioting and looting,
revolutions and demonstrations are, but genuine military intervention has
become a video game scenario of targets and missiles where subject and object are interchangeable commodities.</span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Verdana; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">I’m
not anti-entertainment or sports; I enjoy watching my team play a good game and
celebrate when they win. Like many children, people who undertook the challenge
of setting new records fascinated me.</span></span></span><br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-19xJ2ojf_gE/UisdGaIu0rI/AAAAAAAAFQ8/hbS64wgSYWw/s1600/Ebruwedd3a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="271" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-19xJ2ojf_gE/UisdGaIu0rI/AAAAAAAAFQ8/hbS64wgSYWw/s320/Ebruwedd3a.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Verdana; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">What is intrinsically erroneous is
athletic accomplishment taking precedence over activities of mind and spirit.
While these spectacles draw crowds that make medieval jousts seem quaint, deeds
whose importance is of greater significance and challenge to the spirit of
humankind have been sidelined to focus on games that resemble a global carnival
sideshow run by billionaires (many of whom are the same people who invest in
military industries) for the huddled masses.</span></span></span></div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-8jl3DdK6Bvc/UisdZB3d0iI/AAAAAAAAFRE/OxrLu5YwQEY/s1600/Ebruwdd5a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="222" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-8jl3DdK6Bvc/UisdZB3d0iI/AAAAAAAAFRE/OxrLu5YwQEY/s320/Ebruwdd5a.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Verdana; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">Additionally,
the monetary payoff usually comes from advertising
deals to promote products often made by underprivileged, oppressed people,
frequently children, in less fortunate places in the world. While wars rage,
and new assaults are launched, sponsors and shareholders continue to
profit and invest in spreading this phenomenon to untapped markets, places
the continuous battles seek to convert to consumer culture.</span></span></span></div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-91RH9Jq0p_c/UisejAilWeI/AAAAAAAAFRQ/UsDx51n_bOE/s1600/weddingbike1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="188" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-91RH9Jq0p_c/UisejAilWeI/AAAAAAAAFRQ/UsDx51n_bOE/s400/weddingbike1a.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Verdana; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">There
really hasn’t been enough discussion about the exclusive rights to the Olympic
vendors by McDonald’s, a company not known for providing healthy and
substantial food, and other globally exploitative brands of fizzy drinks and
shoe wear manufactured by children in backwater villages and disease-infested
ghettos where hundreds share toilets in sewage-filled alleys.</span></span></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOmHgPjwFEu5K1JfKtbhMIs1oH_qv4vjNdx78Wq8HccMCkYyvqsYvbqRpTKxDH-U_GNCeacpRtQfhQIL0xeY4zlgNS5_FzMTt6vJZ33bFQFYkH-COyTaaqnKIlIRQp35Fo-OrjgeA8Lc-l/s1600/Antalya1sta.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOmHgPjwFEu5K1JfKtbhMIs1oH_qv4vjNdx78Wq8HccMCkYyvqsYvbqRpTKxDH-U_GNCeacpRtQfhQIL0xeY4zlgNS5_FzMTt6vJZ33bFQFYkH-COyTaaqnKIlIRQp35Fo-OrjgeA8Lc-l/s400/Antalya1sta.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Verdana; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">The organizers, governments, sporting associations and corporate sponsors
apparently thought it better to make truckloads of cash, or at least earn back
some of the money spent on stadia that stand idle for long periods and through
selling off the logo rather than promoting healthy living and fairness in
competition. Perhaps with a greater focus from the higher level of perception
involved in sports, the achievement of mind over corporal matter in challenging
circumstances, we could lift ourselves from the crisis of confidence the world
is suffering in the more serious issues of aggression that await us in the
future.</span></span></span><br />
<br />
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-LM7oTLGL-k0/UisgpQM9J4I/AAAAAAAAFRw/FLwS9dPa0JM/s1600/Phasold1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="298" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-LM7oTLGL-k0/UisgpQM9J4I/AAAAAAAAFRw/FLwS9dPa0JM/s400/Phasold1a.JPG" width="400" /></a><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Verdana; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">These ‘games’ promote the idea that success through running and jumping
and throwing things can bring participants celebrity status where wealth and
fame await. Then again, this is the age of cashing in regardless of ethics;
style over substance and celebrity over character.</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Verdana; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">Unlike
the late Joseph Campbell, well-known writer and speaker on subjects of
myth and religion and a former college athlete, I believe it’s important to
delve into the substance of spiritual revelation through the means employed by
those before us.</span></span></span><br />
<br />
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-0rVMNnjIugY/UisfrKlxwNI/AAAAAAAAFRk/5xf4ZWInlvQ/s1600/waytodem1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="230" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-0rVMNnjIugY/UisfrKlxwNI/AAAAAAAAFRk/5xf4ZWInlvQ/s320/waytodem1a.JPG" width="320" /></a><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Verdana; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">I remember his last series of in-depth interviews
with Bill Moyers when he said he had never used any of the substances, either
organic or manufactured, used by the shamans of various cultures he
investigated and lived with, but instead received his transcendent awareness
from an early experience of being on the ‘running team’ at college.</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Verdana; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">I
was and still am a fast runner and reasonably fit for my age. I like
to stay healthy and maintain a good balance of physical strength
and agility; I swim regularly and walk along the beach and, of course, I love
to dance.</span></span></span><br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-YvfK6IF5NZE/Uiso4yhOq_I/AAAAAAAAFTc/LGW1lNTmjjA/s1600/puds1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="279" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-YvfK6IF5NZE/Uiso4yhOq_I/AAAAAAAAFTc/LGW1lNTmjjA/s320/puds1a.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Verdana; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">Although Mr Campbell was an interesting speaker and well-informed
academic on the topics of myth and ancient belief systems, his
conclusions were often superficial to the writings he analyzed and lacked
insight to the methods and enlightened experiences of his informants.</span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Verdana; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">Eventually </span></span></span><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Verdana; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Verdana; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">contributing to feeding our competitive instincts</span></span></span>,
this type of thinking eliminates the internal transcendent connection from
sporting endeavour to leave only the corporeal; it removes the psyche from the
soma to expose only the husk while hiding the kernel.</span></span></span></div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-MRN-3boJgYA/UisiPIB0zGI/AAAAAAAAFSE/AoQ0DVKglxs/s1600/Umbmah3a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-MRN-3boJgYA/UisiPIB0zGI/AAAAAAAAFSE/AoQ0DVKglxs/s400/Umbmah3a.JPG" width="297" /></a></div>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Verdana; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">The consequence of attaching
so much importance to physical aptitude is in substituting desire of an
idealized image of body for development of character and facility of mind.
Previous athletic competitions, whether Roman, Greek or of the Eastern martial
arts, had relevance to the lives of those who participated and watched;
contemporary sport is dedicated to wealth-seeking rather than purposeful
activity.</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Verdana; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">There
is more to genuine spiritual awakening than the light-headedness of physical
exertion, which is a secondary and inferior substitute for the actual
experience of union, like self-stimulation compared to the joy of making love.</span></span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Verdana; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">The true mark of spiritual progress is in the life we live, relationships with others and the natural world. This is almost certainly the
reason Campbell rationalised and deconstructed the spirituality he
encountered in his travels and study; searching for meaning in today's image-saturated world without being open to first-hand experience
is a fruitless journey.</span></span></span></div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-TyqzclVr4rE/Uislbn6OXhI/AAAAAAAAFS0/ZgP7LwEm4-0/s1600/antfistv2a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-TyqzclVr4rE/Uislbn6OXhI/AAAAAAAAFS0/ZgP7LwEm4-0/s1600/antfistv2a.JPG" /></a></div>
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Verdana; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">Let’s
elevate sports once again to the realm of heroes, those who revealed character
as well as strength and agility. Modern man, in his search for meaning during
this time of transition and growth, is running blind into a dilemma of
conflict.</span></span></span><br />
<br />
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-HC3xcMtdLxg/UistwtoHA0I/AAAAAAAAFUA/7jcdXtD__aI/s1600/PhasKev1b.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-HC3xcMtdLxg/UistwtoHA0I/AAAAAAAAFUA/7jcdXtD__aI/s200/PhasKev1b.JPG" width="186" /></a><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Verdana; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">To reach maturity we must search for reconciliation of body and
spirit in this age of aggression and instability; healthy activity combined
with spiritual progress and mental acuity will provide a model of achievement
that can inspire both the youth of today and the seeker to provide balance of perspective in competitive involvement.</span></span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Verdana; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">*** </span></span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Verdana; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">Sunshine
bestows life and sweetness grows in love like the fruit of a tree; only through
genuine concern for a peaceful existence and social health will decisions be
fashioned that benefit humanity and our world.</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Verdana; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">* * * </span></span></span></div>
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KWhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18335001094857381380noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8365597864916881666.post-32059040320001811442013-07-22T18:39:00.001+01:002013-07-24T21:23:21.572+01:00<div class="MsoNormal">
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</xml><![endif]--><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; font-size: x-large;"><span style="color: #3d85c6;"><span style="color: white;">The</span> <span style="color: red;">Russians</span> <span style="color: white;">are</span> Coming</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">The setting sun blasted a
triumphal arc of colour into the early evening sky beyond the Toros Mountains.
I watched from the terrace as a shimmering halo spread across the western
heavens in a dance of time with the rugged peaks and shadowy valleys. The
warmth of the sun’s auburn glow barely receded as slowly the mountains devoured
the fiery disc. A tiny green lizard scampered into a recess in the rocks below
watched by a bored cat sheltering under the shade of a flowering bush. I could
sense the movement of the tide as the moon pulled away to the other side of the
blue earth, and wistfully wished for a perceptible breeze to cool the sultry
night.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOdtIODZNtav8-2iUrH4IpnKjyknNxVoLkgnhZixT6wsf2KFTPENMjIy2273rpOHciQcY5WtEoe1jz7Zif-63XwOXc9u-2gbCaYMoxIj2FQqYw_KRzo4kvpuYBljaQpiwtWppnJ75Gzxnv/s1600/KWplume2a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="311" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOdtIODZNtav8-2iUrH4IpnKjyknNxVoLkgnhZixT6wsf2KFTPENMjIy2273rpOHciQcY5WtEoe1jz7Zif-63XwOXc9u-2gbCaYMoxIj2FQqYw_KRzo4kvpuYBljaQpiwtWppnJ75Gzxnv/s320/KWplume2a.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">I sat back with a refreshing
drink and began to think about all the reasons to discover more about the world
we live in, and by extension ourselves. I thought about the power of the earth
and how we utilise its resources, the minerals locked in rock, the plants and
animals, the water, the sun and the wind. I considered how our personal relationship
with the world in environmental and cultural terms is multifaceted and complex,
and though uniquely individual, shared through tacit agreement and compromise
with everyone else on the planet.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">How we interact will determine the course of our shared future; a future that depends on
creating clean energy solutions to the environmental issues we face.</span></div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-QFsM5w03H98/Ue1ehyc3CdI/AAAAAAAAFLk/SY9EfJ10_6I/s1600/DudenFalls3a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="311" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-QFsM5w03H98/Ue1ehyc3CdI/AAAAAAAAFLk/SY9EfJ10_6I/s400/DudenFalls3a.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Without doubt, solutions are needed to address concerns over shifting weather
patterns, pollution and the uncompromising energy demands of today’s
technologically driven world. We interact with everyone else on the planet
through various governments, corporations, associations and institutions, art
and culture exchanges and academic conferences as well as media sources, not to
mention the simple friendly hello to the neighbours and being decent in dealing
with the people we regularly encounter in our daily lives. And then, of course,
there is travel.</span><br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-pVlqdpwbgIw/Ue1csZBAQSI/AAAAAAAAFLM/QnJe3IfStH4/s1600/Phaselisbeach3a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="191" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-pVlqdpwbgIw/Ue1csZBAQSI/AAAAAAAAFLM/QnJe3IfStH4/s400/Phaselisbeach3a.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Tourism is a huge industry
in today’s modern global economy. In Turkey alone there are 31.5 million annual
visitor arrivals</span><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">,</span><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> contributing over
23 billion dollars to the marketplace. O</span></span>ver 20 million tourists arrive in the 'high season' between June and October, with 3 million coming from Germany and 2.7 million of those summer
visitors coming from Russia, whereas only 1.7 million arrive from the UK. More
than 1.7 million tourists arrive in Antalya in August</span><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> alone,</span> and most of them are
Russian. Beyond the financial benefit opening passage between countries
engenders good relations between people of different cultures. So many Russians
spend their summer here that the council built a park, complete with the
ubiquitous Antalyan fountain and lovely monumental clichés of Russian culture.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">The travel
industry, and the people who utilise the resources dedicated to this sector,
puts its own strain on the energy consumption of the host nation. So many of
the ‘eco-tourists’ today anticipate visiting beautiful, maintained,
environmentally friendly historic sites and resort areas, yet expect that
energy supplies to achieve access to splendid scenery will not unnecessarily
damage the environment. To achieve the stated goals of reducing toxic
emissions, managing waste and exploring cleaner energy methods we need to
become more involved with our community. We will require a concerted effort to
consider the effect of our actions on the general welfare of humanity, and
knowledge of the systems around us to partake in the awakening consciousness
toward healthier and renewed earth.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8zwiFm1Nl7mxtgAAidmlhnrIoS8x7R4v8m3-GeoWev9VB8RLznYOW7g8Pjfvso7J2V_kDR-7B4fIuto8fRNE_JXnEEe0dvCrpYJgyglIn5gs9nIP6LKwheUwbrprz1cW8UiFNeEqP-XCI/s1600/DudenFalls1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8zwiFm1Nl7mxtgAAidmlhnrIoS8x7R4v8m3-GeoWev9VB8RLznYOW7g8Pjfvso7J2V_kDR-7B4fIuto8fRNE_JXnEEe0dvCrpYJgyglIn5gs9nIP6LKwheUwbrprz1cW8UiFNeEqP-XCI/s400/DudenFalls1a.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Turkey's energy consumption
has almost doubled in the past decade - from 130 billion kilowatt hours to 240
billion kwh, meaning the speed of its increasing rate of demand for natural gas
and electricity is topped only by China. Because of the ever-growing need for
more power, Turkey has begun to build nuclear power plants. The construction of
the first was to be built in the north in 2010 by the Russian company Rosatom,
and the second station, currently under construction, will be near Mersin on
the Mediterranean coast by Akkuyu, a subsidiary of Rosatom.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjL4mjeJJwiUFpk5mJD8-ueRgT-utZpRwdcPqw1Z9tCvTl1EBgpTb6CjJT9LYpg0mlfFUpWVaLXM-xpoYuPaKiockFuLsIzdX_4Gdw9I3SMDMXThaqETKFnC9uhWpltn8Re-LVGai4TYfjk/s1600/Larab13-2a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="220" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjL4mjeJJwiUFpk5mJD8-ueRgT-utZpRwdcPqw1Z9tCvTl1EBgpTb6CjJT9LYpg0mlfFUpWVaLXM-xpoYuPaKiockFuLsIzdX_4Gdw9I3SMDMXThaqETKFnC9uhWpltn8Re-LVGai4TYfjk/s400/Larab13-2a.JPG" width="400" /> </a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Meanwhile, only a month or
so ago, Turkey's largest wind farm was opened in the northwestern province of
Balikesir. One hundred countries worldwide now produce electricity with wind
power. Last year, more wind turbines were erected than ever before, according
to statistics released on 16 May 2013 by the World Wind Energy Association
(WWEA) in Bonn, Germany. According to the organization's World Wind Energy
Report 2012, last year wind turbines with a total energy potential of 45
gigawatts were constructed internationally. Worldwide, in 2012, some 60 billion euros ($77 billion) was invested in wind farms and turbines.</span><br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-YXiNf2myeMU/Ue2wwOXrBII/AAAAAAAAFO8/KAxIeruylfk/s1600/sumsnack1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="282" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-YXiNf2myeMU/Ue2wwOXrBII/AAAAAAAAFO8/KAxIeruylfk/s400/sumsnack1a.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">China and the USA are the
biggest investors in the industry, both adding 13 gigawatts to their capacity.
Together they are the top two producers of wind-powered energy while Germany is third, with a mandate to eliminate nuclear power from their
nation within the decade.</span><br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-ksJRk-ynJ_Y/Ue1fQ0831aI/AAAAAAAAFL0/t1ZXKg1o6iw/s1600/solarshop1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="197" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-ksJRk-ynJ_Y/Ue1fQ0831aI/AAAAAAAAFL0/t1ZXKg1o6iw/s200/solarshop1a.JPG" width="200" /></a><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Yet, Turkey is now starting down this dangerous path.</span><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"></span><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"></span> <span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">"Renewable resources
like wind, sun, and geothermal energy are part of Turkey's basic energy
strategy," said Energy Minister Taner Yildiz. “But there is not yet enough
investment - Turkish growth is,” he claimed, “quicker than investment in this
sector. Turkey must diversify its energy sector. We have to produce double the
amount of electricity we are producing now. That's why the planned nuclear
power stations are so important." Of course, with the necessary long-term investment solar and wind energy strategies would succeed over nuclear.</span><br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-hrGTDTNcGxo/Ue1of9c1_dI/AAAAAAAAFN4/Anx4_7AaoY0/s1600/konyaltbeach1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-hrGTDTNcGxo/Ue1of9c1_dI/AAAAAAAAFN4/Anx4_7AaoY0/s1600/konyaltbeach1a.JPG" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">In a land blessed
with so many days of uninterrupted sunshine, surrounded on three sides by bodies of water, exposed to the wind from these seas, as well as having
trapped energy in the form of volcanic seams, one would think that there would
be many opportunities to advance production of these primary power sources.</span><br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-rkPluHWRXsw/Ue1hkUJoKTI/AAAAAAAAFMg/nh1_TUdlwsI/s1600/Bakinite5c.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-rkPluHWRXsw/Ue1hkUJoKTI/AAAAAAAAFMg/nh1_TUdlwsI/s320/Bakinite5c.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Yet, money talks and deals are made and nations collaborate with corporations
to invest in financially rewarding, yet dubiously safe enterprises that will
determine the fate of all inhabitants of the earth.</span></div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-J7KkfxoA244/Ue1hQ3VRkNI/AAAAAAAAFMY/SSqdBqGez7s/s1600/wafflealt1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="220" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-J7KkfxoA244/Ue1hQ3VRkNI/AAAAAAAAFMY/SSqdBqGez7s/s320/wafflealt1a.JPG" width="320" /></a><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Wind power energy plants
have been increasing by up to 40% in some Eastern European countries, such as
Ukraine and Poland, as well as in Brazil and Mexico.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">However, there are those
who oppose wind farms due to the intrusion on their view (such as Donald
Trump’s recent foray into golf course resort hotels in Scotland) or because of
the noise created by the whirring blades of the wind turbines.</span></div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-AyJRW0KqkuQ/Ue1h-7xBpgI/AAAAAAAAFMo/kLlhWvL2co8/s1600/Phaselisbeach12a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="301" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-AyJRW0KqkuQ/Ue1h-7xBpgI/AAAAAAAAFMo/kLlhWvL2co8/s400/Phaselisbeach12a.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">US researchers
claim that ‘infranoise’ at 60 decibels is debilitating, with symptoms reported
being dizziness and sleeplessness. With the sound of normal conversation
notching 60 decibels it’s surprising we ever sleep at all.</span></div>
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</span><br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-AA7exmRsWD8/Ue1iNR5VqYI/AAAAAAAAFMw/Re3g_IFC4vQ/s1600/Pasanite1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="299" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-AA7exmRsWD8/Ue1iNR5VqYI/AAAAAAAAFMw/Re3g_IFC4vQ/s320/Pasanite1.jpg" width="320" /></a><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> At Vensys, a wind turbine
manufacturer in southwest Germany, CEO Jürgen Rinck says he's read the studies
and believes that the amount of infrasound generated by wind turbines is too
low to cause problems for human beings. Germany's Environment Minister, Peter
Altmaier, says, “so far, it has only been proven to be damaging to humans at
very high levels, around 170 decibels.” In Germany, the authorities have laid out
strict regulations for the levels of allowable low frequency noise from
industrial machinery. For sounds of 10 Hz for instance, the volume needs to reach 95
decibels before it is deemed problematic.</span><br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-rj8ITkmbMFI/Ue1kE9jWYGI/AAAAAAAAFNE/QKluB5FqB2o/s1600/cevreveorman1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-rj8ITkmbMFI/Ue1kE9jWYGI/AAAAAAAAFNE/QKluB5FqB2o/s320/cevreveorman1a.JPG" width="208" /></a><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">There are still those who find the
sight of a tall, slender windmill on the horizon an eyesore, though no doubt
they enjoy having electricity and wouldn’t want a potentially deadly nuclear
plant on their doorstep either.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Away from government and
business, life is a treat in these summer months, and I’ve begun to be spoilt
by good weather, interesting places to visit and friends who keep me involved
in various activities, from nights in the old town to days in the sun to student / teacher events.</span></div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-EZe_tERxUuE/Ue1sRzOYgsI/AAAAAAAAFOI/8eUSsQ4tipI/s1600/AKDsumpty1c.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="268" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-EZe_tERxUuE/Ue1sRzOYgsI/AAAAAAAAFOI/8eUSsQ4tipI/s400/AKDsumpty1c.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">We frequently go to relax</span> and swim at the site of the ancient Lycian city of Phaselis, now a
recreational beach from where one can sail along the coast stopping at inlets
and magical bays scattered with the remains of various civilisations. The rocks are mainly limestone and the
shoreline is covered in peanut pines and small clusters of laurel, willow, fig,
wild rose, tamarisk and spruce and at higher elevations, cedar.</span></div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-qY4bR-fUPPk/Ue1sTd6NUxI/AAAAAAAAFOQ/uGAf5eGnhRk/s1600/AKDsumpty2c.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="268" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-qY4bR-fUPPk/Ue1sTd6NUxI/AAAAAAAAFOQ/uGAf5eGnhRk/s400/AKDsumpty2c.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-j39wCTOBVNI/Ue16ShSj7_I/AAAAAAAAFOo/t0Exw3RV25k/s1600/sshak1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="164" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-j39wCTOBVNI/Ue16ShSj7_I/AAAAAAAAFOo/t0Exw3RV25k/s200/sshak1a.JPG" width="200" /></a><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">As well as many
species of bird and fish there are bears and boars, wolves and wild goats
living in the dense wooded areas. The water is blue and warm and inviting as
reprieve from the blazing sun, and all only a short distance from the front
door of my solar powered house.</span><br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-qkTaCSBCYBk/Ue1ka05cKRI/AAAAAAAAFNI/lWN7Hiqu_0o/s1600/DudenFalls4a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="283" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-qkTaCSBCYBk/Ue1ka05cKRI/AAAAAAAAFNI/lWN7Hiqu_0o/s400/DudenFalls4a.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Visiting nearby Kurşunlu
Waterfall this past Sunday was an especially serene experience. Made a National
Park in 1991, the intervention has created an oasis within the city,
occasionally busy with tourists yet still offering a tranquil break from the
rush of the surrounding metropolis.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> This spectacular natural formation conceals
a grotto of tunnels behind the falls that offers a cooling respite from the
stifling heat, and simply walking through the rocky chasm created by these
thunderous falls provides a cool fillip of mist.</span><br />
<br />
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Fi_r5KJfcTk/Ue1lA8K0Y0I/AAAAAAAAFNY/Ny-Crjb0n94/s1600/Bakinite2a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="165" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Fi_r5KJfcTk/Ue1lA8K0Y0I/AAAAAAAAFNY/Ny-Crjb0n94/s200/Bakinite2a.jpg" width="200" /></a><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> Often, at night, we take a
picnic of drinks and snacks and walk to the seashore, a blue flag pebble beach
where everyone swims till the wee hours; the water is so invigorating in the sweat of darkness. Friends gather and enjoy the evening air, food, drink
and good conversation, sharing hope for a more peaceful and ecologically balanced world.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">It is possible, and even cheaper in the long run to keep our planet clean and
our air free of contaminants. When honest people belief in a
better way of life get together anything is possible, even helping to create a
future free from the taint of the nuclear monster, the disaster waiting to
happen, the terror of meltdown.</span><br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-QaRw0uF8CVs/Ue24SdjpSmI/AAAAAAAAFPQ/3FbDXN3xTAQ/s1600/balloonsunrise2a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-QaRw0uF8CVs/Ue24SdjpSmI/AAAAAAAAFPQ/3FbDXN3xTAQ/s400/balloonsunrise2a.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Since the Cold War era people in the West have worried about the threat of Russian nuclear power. That fear seemed to subside following the break up of the Soviet Union, though without consideration of loose cannons getting hold of missing weapons grade material. Nations such as Japan (a sad irony) and Russia are assisting in the development of this now unleashed atomic wave, and there is reason to suspect that the spread of this awesome power will continue as long as it is economical yet financially profitable, regardless of the inherent danger.</span><br />
<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3ue937TxOjmL39qHtCoA_cs4ogsZovdw8YNqtSnDoCGUtwubG-__VT49uc05HAA3xxHlCwphEu8mRPoaxSYm5hWDwYxrPhlBHTYKLith6sga6CmXOapKFwphwUKSjAEkUk0R5cMku8HLe/s1600/Phaselisbeach1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3ue937TxOjmL39qHtCoA_cs4ogsZovdw8YNqtSnDoCGUtwubG-__VT49uc05HAA3xxHlCwphEu8mRPoaxSYm5hWDwYxrPhlBHTYKLith6sga6CmXOapKFwphwUKSjAEkUk0R5cMku8HLe/s1600/Phaselisbeach1a.JPG" /></a></div>
<br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">We must do what we can to spread a positive
message of liberation from these corporate energy suppliers, buy into the cleaner and safer alternatives wherever possible and work for solutions to our energy
needs. For our children and their children, so that tomorrow everyone can swim with a spirit of concord in the freedom of a clear blue sea, reliant only on the power of mother nature to provide the energy we use.</span><br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">* * * </span></div>
</div>
KWhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18335001094857381380noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8365597864916881666.post-28485650836551520022013-06-08T10:36:00.000+01:002013-06-09T22:21:57.277+01:00What's Happening in Turkey<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "Courier New",Courier,monospace;"><span style="color: blue;"><b><span class="short_text" id="result_box" lang="tr"><span class="hps"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="color: red;">Turkey:</span><span style="color: #999999;"> A Demonstration of Tradition</span></span></span></span></b></span></span></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: blue;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><b><span class="short_text" id="result_box" lang="tr"><span class="hps">çapulcu</span></span> : <span style="color: #cc0000;">looter.</span> vurguncu : <span style="color: #cc0000;">profiteer.</span></b></span></span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJ-EF-hMkuFoML9t0-eMmWNtdjKw_7TdiCea9haDfs_MNxBMRnqX9Yrz-akM6S_fSTZIV3R4s55riuE5pBP0ePs5MOpH4bPXOQWzE8bIhK7l63TzOfAyuCtzeZZkKA1Ck1z9fdO1SIs5ao/s1600/Antnite13a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJ-EF-hMkuFoML9t0-eMmWNtdjKw_7TdiCea9haDfs_MNxBMRnqX9Yrz-akM6S_fSTZIV3R4s55riuE5pBP0ePs5MOpH4bPXOQWzE8bIhK7l63TzOfAyuCtzeZZkKA1Ck1z9fdO1SIs5ao/s1600/Antnite13a.JPG" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><i>Outside the street’s on fire in a real death waltz<br />
Between flesh and what's fantasy</i></span></span></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><i>And the poets down here don't write nothin’ at all</i></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><i>They just stand back and let it all be<br />
And in the quick of the night they reach for their moment<br />
And try to make an honest stand</i></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><i>But they wind up wounded, not even dead<br />
Tonight in Jungleland ..</i></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><i>~ Bruce ‘ The Boss’ Springsteen ~</i></span></span></div>
<br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span class="uficommentbody">At
exactly 9pm on Monday night I was enjoying a pistachio milkshake on the
upstairs terrace while a parade complete with banners and trumpets was passing
on the next street. Housewives and working mothers started flashing their
apartment lights on and off, coming onto their balconies and
terraces banging pots with wooden spoons, children were waving flags,
motorbikes and cars started tooting their horns and even a couple songs were
being sung - this has happened each night this week, lasting for 30 minutes or
so, as ordinary people show support for the 'protestors', the </span></span><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span class="uficommentbody"><span class="short_text" id="result_box" lang="tr"><span class="hps">çapulcu</span></span> or
‘looters’ as Prime Minister Erdogan has named them; a title many now flaunt as
pseudonym for advocate of truth, the ordinary citizens of Turkey who have
decided too much is finally enough.</span></span><br />
<br /></div>
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</div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span class="uficommentbody">What
began as a peaceful demonstration of environmental concerns over the razing of one
of the few remaining small parks in the city of Istanbul, on Taksim Square – a popular
shopping and cultural area, has become a national movement against the
restrictive policies of the ruling AK party. The demonstrators, on the first couple days
mostly students and young people, sat in front of the bulldozers, which stopped
after felling a couple of trees. With heavy-handed, and possibly unwarranted
intervention by the metropolitan police some of the protestors retaliated in
the usual way these things go and soon got out of control, with some frightening
running battles in the streets.</span></span><br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEig9LCMfQlxMgCAt5gnFzY3emZ0fdOAcgpS44MvPrIWsSH5LshZvgbQlnJIK1YRTcqM7871P8zgIO2zxDVGIwpLIVmHiHkPNxSyxfY1fwPlI0xTrWBkXBw-8LLDtXfzZTZanVDLddHxQTrM/s1600/Antnite1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEig9LCMfQlxMgCAt5gnFzY3emZ0fdOAcgpS44MvPrIWsSH5LshZvgbQlnJIK1YRTcqM7871P8zgIO2zxDVGIwpLIVmHiHkPNxSyxfY1fwPlI0xTrWBkXBw-8LLDtXfzZTZanVDLddHxQTrM/s320/Antnite1a.JPG" width="315" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span class="uficommentbody">The
next day the dedicated activists cleaned up the park and continued their public
protest. Although the Turkish and international media had been all but silent
on this event, social networks came alive through the internet, disseminating
information worldwide, prompting the Prime Minister to state that social media
was the ‘greatest threat to society’. Soon people in other cities in Turkey,
and all around the world, also took to their parks and public squares to show solidarity with the
protestors in Istanbul and their ecological noble cause. So, a couple nights ago I thought I’d head into the
city centre here in Antalya to see the demonstrations for myself.</span></span><br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-vWrvEgBaaJM/UbKEgA1_wmI/AAAAAAAAFJk/Dtco9QAfAO0/s1600/Antnite34a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-vWrvEgBaaJM/UbKEgA1_wmI/AAAAAAAAFJk/Dtco9QAfAO0/s1600/Antnite34a.JPG" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span class="uficommentbody">What
I found was thousands of ordinary people of all ages gathered in a public
square in this beautiful Mediterranean coastal city. The atmosphere was celebratory rather than aggressive, and unusually, there wasn't a police officer to be seen in the city. Some of the organisers had
the foresight to create wonderful holographic projections of Ataturk and other
uniquely Turkish symbols of freedom that were aimed into the dancing waters of the fountain;
one of the special qualities of this city is its amazing variety of fountains
and water displays and this was an excellent use of public space to excite
unity among the growing assembly. People cheered, waved flags embroidered with pictures of Ataturk, sang songs and held placards calling for the resignation
of Prime Minister Erdogan.</span></span><br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-lq9AgS24-X8/UbJ28JOlf8I/AAAAAAAAFGg/KKV7hXaaam0/s1600/Antnite26a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="220" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-lq9AgS24-X8/UbJ28JOlf8I/AAAAAAAAFGg/KKV7hXaaam0/s400/Antnite26a.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span class="uficommentbody">There's
no doubt the AKP have won elections, as did George W Bush, and the apparent
economic success of recent years has often been attributed to his policies.
However one of the current concerns is that the PM is trying to change the
constitution to allow him another 10 years, at a point when he's become
somewhat dictatorial in his agenda, making decisions based on pure profit. He’s
been accused of 'selling out' to foreign nuclear power companies (Turkey had been
non-nuclear until very recently, with the second plant opening near Alanya
within a year), property developers, who have littered Istanbul with </span></span><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span class="uficommentbody"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span class="uficommentbody">exclusive apartment
complexes and </span></span>shopping
centres, 93 until this one in Taksim goes ahead, and GMOs, a particular worry for many of the agricultural engineers I
encounter in Antalya.</span></span><br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-iHIQ4Y7VFC8/UbJ34soNrBI/AAAAAAAAFGw/emTe__KV-2Y/s1600/Antnite11a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-iHIQ4Y7VFC8/UbJ34soNrBI/AAAAAAAAFGw/emTe__KV-2Y/s1600/Antnite11a.JPG" /></a></div>
<br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span class="uficommentbody">Although
Erdogan has tried to step onto the world stage, intervening along with Brazil
in attempting to secure discussions over nuclear proliferation in Iran, his
home policies are contrary to his perceived negotiating skills. On his return from Tunisia last night he gave a speech restating his objectives and claiming to represent all 74 million Turks regardless of creed. As I write this Prime Minister Erdogan has said there won't be anymore police intervention at the park protests until Monday, though what lies beyond that is at this point anyone's guess.</span></span><br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-65nBNxP5KW0/UbJ4sC8Ez9I/AAAAAAAAFG8/YuBAH00x4OQ/s1600/Antnite27a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-65nBNxP5KW0/UbJ4sC8Ez9I/AAAAAAAAFG8/YuBAH00x4OQ/s320/Antnite27a.JPG" width="273" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span class="uficommentbody">There has already been
concern over the government's lack of public consultation on proposed laws such as noise
curfews for nightclubs in tourist resorts, a ban on sales of alcohol after
10pm, warnings for ‘public displays of affection’ and his favouring
the religious right on issues such as the educational curriculum – with the far
reaching implications of those policies, all politically contrary to the
secular wisdom of the heralded founder of the modern state Kemal Ataturk.</span></span><br />
<br />
<i><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span class="uficommentbody">This family's shirts, in reference to Erdogan's denunciation of the protestors as </span></span></i><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span class="uficommentbody"><i><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span class="short_text" id="result_box" lang="tr"><span class="hps">çapulcu</span></span></span> or looters, read in English as: 'father looter' 'mother looter' 'young looter' and 'mini looter'.</i> </span></span><br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-80v6FIIQUtk/UbJ6p-jcaLI/AAAAAAAAFHU/wgDqtsYY1Ng/s1600/Antnite22a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-80v6FIIQUtk/UbJ6p-jcaLI/AAAAAAAAFHU/wgDqtsYY1Ng/s320/Antnite22a.JPG" width="278" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span class="uficommentbody">This
current standoff, and there have been a couple of coups in Turkey over the past 20 or 30 years, has particular implications for women. There have recently
been regulations against access to ‘the morning after pill’ and there is talk
of outlawing the right to abortion. The PM has come out recently saying women
should stay at home and ‘have three babies’. It is well known that his own wife
wears the long buttoned coat and full head covering of the strict sect of Islam
that is gaining influence here, though whether because others agree with his
purported religious stance or they are raking in the cash by aligning
themselves with his policies is debatable – or, it is open to debate in a
society with free speech; as many of the journalists who have questioned him on
this are now languishing in prison without trial.</span></span><br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-BlIu3V4HfjE/UbJ2gL1YG1I/AAAAAAAAFGc/oOLei2iP5ME/s1600/Antnite29a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="263" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-BlIu3V4HfjE/UbJ2gL1YG1I/AAAAAAAAFGc/oOLei2iP5ME/s320/Antnite29a.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span class="uficommentbody">Most
women here don't wear a headscarf or other religious covering. </span>'Turkish' women are generally opposed to the
headscarf and see the increasing popularity of wearing the hijab amongst the
elite (wealthy women who wear a headscarf and paradoxically wear
designer clothes, shoes, jewellery and watches, wear make-up and drive in the
back of BMW 4x4s) as a threat to their own civil liberty with many I've spoken to expressing concern over the closeness the AKP has with Iran.</span><br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/--QGeygSa95M/UbJ88ipTveI/AAAAAAAAFHs/D3TNCJrEVAs/s1600/Antnite23a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/--QGeygSa95M/UbJ88ipTveI/AAAAAAAAFHs/D3TNCJrEVAs/s320/Antnite23a.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Most Turkish women don’t
want to be told to cover their hair, they want choice over their own bodies, and they’ve
called on history to defend their rights; the historical legend that is the
founder of the modern state, Kemal Ataturk whose name is emblazoned on the rear
window or bumper of every other car and whose influence is so prevalent his
picture, like George Washington, hangs in every classroom.</span><br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-V0wqJbQ46Vw/UbJ9JpxhVdI/AAAAAAAAFH0/HGws1RU8MZU/s1600/Antnite16a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="269" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-V0wqJbQ46Vw/UbJ9JpxhVdI/AAAAAAAAFH0/HGws1RU8MZU/s400/Antnite16a.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Ataturk was a nationalist,
and he was responsible for things that still scar the relationship between
Turks and some other ethnic groups, such as the Kurds and Armenians. There is
still animosity and conflict due to bombings and killings on either side
of the divide. On a day-to-day basis most</span><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> Kurds and Turks get on fine, though
they generally don’t mingle socially. Kurdish people tend to have the lowest
paid jobs and expectations for advancement and feel anger over being denied the
right to use their own language in schools and other public institutions. Many Kurdish women wear scarves, but they aren’t the ones worrying the
average ‘Turkish’ woman, that fear comes from the power of the ‘elite’ wealthy
designer headscarf-wearing Islamists who support the current government’s
ambitions.</span><br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-4uD1xqOuKVg/UbJ_fHYtnXI/AAAAAAAAFIU/Okj64mxp-O8/s1600/Antnite19a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-4uD1xqOuKVg/UbJ_fHYtnXI/AAAAAAAAFIU/Okj64mxp-O8/s1600/Antnite19a.JPG" /></a></div>
<br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Ataturk was nationalist at a
time of rising state conflict throughout Europe and it was a tactic he employed
to secure this country’s position in the modern world; he used his version of
nationalism to help the newly emerging Turkey develop an identity that was
uniquely modern and secular and equality-driven in an age before women in
England and America had the vote. He stood for the youth and a better future
for men and women, he dressed in Western suits, banning the headscarf
as outmoded, and he liked a drink, much to the displeasure of the current
regime.</span><br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-UNkEXuMLVRk/UbJ_2_NnILI/AAAAAAAAFIc/ZYpGJaPzOPU/s1600/Antnite41a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="196" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-UNkEXuMLVRk/UbJ_2_NnILI/AAAAAAAAFIc/ZYpGJaPzOPU/s400/Antnite41a.JPG" width="400" /> </a> </div>
<br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Erdogan recently said some of the laws on the books were written ‘by
alcoholics’ and anyone who drank alcohol was ‘alcoholic’. So much for his
respect for the founder of this nation, an error of judgement along with
sending tear gas into the crowds in Gezi Park, that may come back to haunt him.</span><br />
<br />
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-6WVr5GOngcQ/UbKAT5uf7II/AAAAAAAAFIs/h1KCBb5Hjys/s1600/Antnite8a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-6WVr5GOngcQ/UbKAT5uf7II/AAAAAAAAFIs/h1KCBb5Hjys/s1600/Antnite8a.JPG" /></a><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span class="uficommentbody">All
around the world we’ve been seeing the rise of similarly despotic conservative
fundamentalists who would reshape society in their stone-age image of divided
gender roles and superstitious beliefs curiously mixed with resource
exploitation and capitalist consumption.</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span class="uficommentbody">In Turkey, people from almost every
walk of life have joined together to remind the government they are servants of
the people, not only the influential far-right Islamists. I’ve seen and spoken
to teachers, doctors, engineers, scientists, students and secretaries who
marched into the streets to voice their disapproval and demand the right to be
heard; these are not ‘looters’ and this is NOT a riot, these are professionals
and hard-working ordinary citizens who want the government to recognise their
primary right to liberty and self determination.</span></span><br />
<br />
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<br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Turkey is a vast state and, although
Ataturk united the nation under one flag and language, regional differences, as
in any large region, are evident when travelling around the country. Urban,
metropolitan centres are obviously more cosmopolitan and teeming with
contemporary lifestyles that people in Western nations would recognise as their
own, whereas village life is still more 'traditional' - and the Turkish respect
tradition.</span><br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-0-I7EoiuXRc/UbKCNe6PSnI/AAAAAAAAFJM/EEFiztsE5J8/s1600/Antnitea.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-0-I7EoiuXRc/UbKCNe6PSnI/AAAAAAAAFJM/EEFiztsE5J8/s400/Antnitea.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">However, the 'tradition'
those on the front lines of the park gatherings are drawing on is
that of the greatly admired and revered Ataturk, who was secular and modern in
his views, with a far-reaching vision, opening avenues of trade to the West,
and releasing people from the yoke of religion, rather than the analogy of the
Ottoman hierarchical structure that the current government seems to favour.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span class="uficommentbody">Most people in Turkey that I've spoken to want a forward-thinking, secular
government, equality in living standards, a life free from interference and an
open and tolerant society with economic opportunity for all .. oh, and a nice
park to gather in on sunny summer days.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><i>People have the power</i></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><i>The power to dream / to rule<span style="background-color: white;"></span></i></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><i>To wrestle the world from fools</i></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><i>It's decreed the people rule, Listen</i></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><i>I believe everything we dream</i></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><i>Can come to pass through our union</i></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><i>We can turn the world around</i></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><i>We can turn the earth's revolution</i></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><i>We have the power</i></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><i>People have the power ...</i></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><i>~ Patti Smith ~</i></span></span><br />
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KWhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18335001094857381380noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8365597864916881666.post-28818944959001890052013-03-12T22:01:00.001+00:002013-03-13T01:12:11.793+00:00Cold Turkey<div class="MsoNormal">
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-szh4ZruStIE/UT-ie_3JeQI/AAAAAAAAFBA/Yn7lf2BOqOA/s1600/mtoros.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-szh4ZruStIE/UT-ie_3JeQI/AAAAAAAAFBA/Yn7lf2BOqOA/s1600/mtoros.JPG" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">High in the Taurus Mountains is a veiled treasure, an astounding
location where dreams and reality collide in a brilliant display of winter
sunshine. Following the bumpy single lane road for 50 kilometres through the
densely forested foothills where boar and stags rove freely to the top of the
highest peak in the area was as challenging as it was rewarding.</span><br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/--vuej02rNE0/UT-gQ1Yf3TI/AAAAAAAAFAw/7RV9Na73qsI/s1600/mtoros1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/--vuej02rNE0/UT-gQ1Yf3TI/AAAAAAAAFAw/7RV9Na73qsI/s1600/mtoros1.JPG" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">The early
spring thaw hadn’t yet begun in earnest, so although the approach was clear of
ice and mud the mountains were still deep with packed snow. They glistened in
the crystalline air with the glaring clarity of Technicolor against a black and
white backdrop.</span><br />
<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4Hv2xuiH0qSK6_sT4Evz3CmVA4aOuRk_VOr4iJLd_8NYUd35-txcCh2LRRlOiDpXVJUOKpdZB67ytRVML5P8Vxneq_KewowlSNy-I6lpRw5sv4RVhz7uzxXSMrKbilwltkE4SoG5mfjdn/s1600/KWsakridge1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4Hv2xuiH0qSK6_sT4Evz3CmVA4aOuRk_VOr4iJLd_8NYUd35-txcCh2LRRlOiDpXVJUOKpdZB67ytRVML5P8Vxneq_KewowlSNy-I6lpRw5sv4RVhz7uzxXSMrKbilwltkE4SoG5mfjdn/s320/KWsakridge1a.JPG" width="240" /></a><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">We headed out early on a midweek morning, expecting to be on top of the
mountain enjoying lunch after a brisk hike to the observatory on the peak. With
its Russian built telescope and pollution-free viewing position the platform is
ideal for indulging in scene gazing, and promises a breath-taking spectacle.
Neither the vista nor the food at the restaurant disappointed, though there were
the usual farcical incidents thrown in we had a great stay on the summit.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">The rugged peaks of the 'Toros' mountain chain run the entire
breadth of Turkey’s southern coastal border, from the Mediterranean to the edge of the
Tigris and Euphrates rivers where they meet the steppes of Asia.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUhDj9IcgsKB07SWqcoGb84DotXpSf56phKpUeYhnDK-TcgS3nqK6VT9vADQ2ejffzoZG3eKLOTJSmJi-2HtUTiPFYo4TWurhAitIHrgXBU9IzKGE9a3eFNw_Z2yn-D5Oi4HTaQsXamZuI/s1600/saklntre1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUhDj9IcgsKB07SWqcoGb84DotXpSf56phKpUeYhnDK-TcgS3nqK6VT9vADQ2ejffzoZG3eKLOTJSmJi-2HtUTiPFYo4TWurhAitIHrgXBU9IzKGE9a3eFNw_Z2yn-D5Oi4HTaQsXamZuI/s320/saklntre1a.JPG" width="234" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Dotted amongst the high jagged peaks are many
fashionable resorts with an endless diversity of wonderland scenery. As more
of the slopes in Western Europe become crowded with tourists, people are
discovering the southern region of Turkey is about more than fabulous
beaches, ancient temples, nightclubs, amazing scenery and fresh local produce,
there are also spectacular winter sports areas.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Named ‘hidden town’, the charming resort we chose to visit, nestled
in an isolated spot deep in the majestic landscape of this scenic snow-capped
region, is one of many areas throughout the country gaining renown as exciting
alternatives to the crowded Alpine trails. At over 2400 metres, or almost 8000
feet, the end of the line for the chairlift is still more than 1200 metres
below the highest of the mountains in the range.</span><br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Kug-RZRNR5c/UT-ZeWmiwjI/AAAAAAAAE_o/73TLaW2sEKs/s1600/skiliftply3a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Kug-RZRNR5c/UT-ZeWmiwjI/AAAAAAAAE_o/73TLaW2sEKs/s320/skiliftply3a.JPG" width="249" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Though I’m not keen on exposed heights, I didn’t want the ladies to lose
their nerve either, so I suggested they ride together while I went solo down
the steep slope. It only takes five and a half minutes, but the 745-metre cable
is suspended above a treacherous looking valley and looks across to the distant
glacial ridge, which allows for the sensation of a longer trip.</span><br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-chp6ZUYUI-M/UT-ZjEcYALI/AAAAAAAAE_w/wA5jSxAVMjI/s1600/skiliftply4b.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-chp6ZUYUI-M/UT-ZjEcYALI/AAAAAAAAE_w/wA5jSxAVMjI/s320/skiliftply4b.JPG" width="287" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">As the chair
swings out beyond the edge of the cliff and one is left dangling high above the
crest of the mountain that vertiginous sensation takes the breath away and the
suspension of disbelief is shattered, however, it also gave me the opportunity
for some great photos.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">The pristine water of this mountain reservoir halfway down the slope is
where my home drinking water is bottled, its source being the streams that
direct the melting snow from the neighbouring mountains of course. The perfect
spot for a picnic on a spring day, this emerald lake is situated off the beaten
path amongst the woodland pines. Above and beyond its own natural beauty the
location also offers a panoramic view of Antalya spread out like a magic carpet
around the bay at the base of the mountains.</span><br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-6QBVmNf4KkA/UT_FPqzMFOI/AAAAAAAAFCI/Y6JsFi4U1I4/s1600/KWsaklak1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-6QBVmNf4KkA/UT_FPqzMFOI/AAAAAAAAFCI/Y6JsFi4U1I4/s400/KWsaklak1.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Like giant Lego shapes or a child’s building blocks, these mountains
have been chiselled and chopped into massive slabs of pure marble used for
housing materials. The size is extraordinary and it’s difficult to grasp the
scale without realising that those tiny little figures in the distance are
actually huge bulldozers and dump trucks that would dwarf most usual lorries.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrWbl-gFCW4ouhaqR1em81BkbTaAX-m79y15iquAea7KiOjub6-u6WUj29nGNuaLtUa9xogb81CkyPcylSsZAj8tztgJZL5biIbz6BqTWWF5u-K3-0yT7kKlAlTS77v0dYJWVeLAjLy6fU/s1600/sakmarble3a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrWbl-gFCW4ouhaqR1em81BkbTaAX-m79y15iquAea7KiOjub6-u6WUj29nGNuaLtUa9xogb81CkyPcylSsZAj8tztgJZL5biIbz6BqTWWF5u-K3-0yT7kKlAlTS77v0dYJWVeLAjLy6fU/s320/sakmarble3a.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">One
of my Turkish friends said she thought the quarry was ugly and an eyesore in the natural
landscape of this otherwise unspoilt terrain. Marble is a rock with specific
mineral qualities and is in great demand locally and abroad for it’s beauty as
well as functional properties, and this rock mine will undoubtedly provide many jobs which are </span><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">extremely important to the manufacturing industry.</span></span><br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-9R40y9QDzrc/UT-d7frqg3I/AAAAAAAAFAY/QAZGSbFHS2Y/s1600/breadstack1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-9R40y9QDzrc/UT-d7frqg3I/AAAAAAAAFAY/QAZGSbFHS2Y/s200/breadstack1a.JPG" width="171" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Weighing the environmental damage against the economic necessity and maintenance of a decent standard of living becomes a balancing act that requires negotiation and compromise. Although it isn't pretty to see such incredible natural formations destroyed, with so many mountains available and so much need for housing in the area it becomes an understandable necessity to create</span><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> substantial foundations for the growing population of this region, </span>and it does provide a way to incorporate environmentally harmonious material into the architectural design of the region.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigBypmg9RLGr9CZeYoOv1Fpd2FX8sy-T47FYzgsfcpUHowI_1oUl27UBKiEOsRS-EyckHL51fyPpUy-S8tYVJ6MmkziSRaw0JImXEQCJ3gNZFKuR5m-ZU0u2EQ9UBHOacUdndwCmH9CblO/s1600/Hipartygazet1b.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigBypmg9RLGr9CZeYoOv1Fpd2FX8sy-T47FYzgsfcpUHowI_1oUl27UBKiEOsRS-EyckHL51fyPpUy-S8tYVJ6MmkziSRaw0JImXEQCJ3gNZFKuR5m-ZU0u2EQ9UBHOacUdndwCmH9CblO/s320/Hipartygazet1b.jpg" width="239" /></a><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">A few days earlier there had been a theme party at one of the café
nightclubs near the aquarium, and the local crowd turned out in hippie garb to
get into the spirit of the age. A couple of Turkish film stars turned up for a
photo session (though admittedly they were in formal attire and had popped out
of the Latin dance club across the small lake) and everybody wanted in on the
act. We even hit the local gazette in full psychedelic splendour as the
paparazzi clamoured around snapping at the hippy version of a red carpet. With
a live band doing their best to replicate the feel of those lost heady days, a
special reduced price on drinks for our group, and a contest for best-dressed
hippy, the party lasted long into the night. </span><br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-QnBRsWxNh8o/UT-fCN3K7zI/AAAAAAAAFAg/SazeUyOHoSs/s1600/sundaybreakfast1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-QnBRsWxNh8o/UT-fCN3K7zI/AAAAAAAAFAg/SazeUyOHoSs/s320/sundaybreakfast1a.JPG" width="246" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Sundays there is a notable regional market in an otherwise sleepy
village in the foothills. We went for a stroll and breakfast in a tree house a
few weeks ago and enjoyed pomegranate juice and some of the best flat breads
I’ve ever eaten. Tortilla style wraps were filled with pretty much
anything you wanted, you only had to ask and it was all brought out from the
massive open air griddles to your chosen tree house, of which there were many
dozens scattered throughout the woods. I opted for a traditional style
breakfast at the suggestion of my hosts, which included pizza-dough thick wraps
with eggs, cheese, meats and vegetables cooked into them, salads and a
selection of sauces, and of course plenty of sweet black tea.</span><br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-rFg7VLSjTig/UT-fQQdGWUI/AAAAAAAAFAo/1vQCc29BDnc/s1600/KWmb1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="246" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-rFg7VLSjTig/UT-fQQdGWUI/AAAAAAAAFAo/1vQCc29BDnc/s400/KWmb1.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Thanks to the supportive turnout of the community it was another great
night in the old town when we headed out for Billy’s speak your mind comedy and
poetry gig a couple Saturdays ago. I threw together a short set after the
hysterically outspoken Scot had done his thing and local mountain guide
Turkeman told a harrowing tale of avalanches, then we all went dancing to live
rock music in a traditional Ottoman building near the
marina.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAUxYubVhKlRjXwnNLlkwLy4z41mIXzm3tStqUHqA3DKkJvb5OVYI1hHYyXWKiOSCO6SOxXKLYoqUkPalo63Pgnm7MlEticreurUeeUlkXejpRCxIAEgVEDBwp74BYvABBYiOzyhVxn4Of/s1600/sakridge1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAUxYubVhKlRjXwnNLlkwLy4z41mIXzm3tStqUHqA3DKkJvb5OVYI1hHYyXWKiOSCO6SOxXKLYoqUkPalo63Pgnm7MlEticreurUeeUlkXejpRCxIAEgVEDBwp74BYvABBYiOzyhVxn4Of/s1600/sakridge1a.JPG" /> </a><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">I met a friend for lunch one afternoon near the famously steep and
slippery 40 steps that run alongside the ancient city walls, and was surprised
to discover this remarkable and somewhat concealed marina was nearly as busy
with tour boats in March as I’d seen them mid-summer.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRAoesr7QBlaPNWKbu1_GH7Npf5R2vORZhx6PJ4o1Pe3fn6Q5s0vyFtwMnIO4zqUacIHhqaw12sehowsZ9XhAMOOaIIxQpdg-QJG1gLH_Jxo6CWKP85qaEXia-LIzzo1UoMPHiaOm_ys3R/s1600/Kaleicicstl1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRAoesr7QBlaPNWKbu1_GH7Npf5R2vORZhx6PJ4o1Pe3fn6Q5s0vyFtwMnIO4zqUacIHhqaw12sehowsZ9XhAMOOaIIxQpdg-QJG1gLH_Jxo6CWKP85qaEXia-LIzzo1UoMPHiaOm_ys3R/s320/Kaleicicstl1a.JPG" width="240" /></a><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">We enjoyed a leisurely
walk around the cobbled passageways and alleys of the old town and after a
couple glasses of a fine regional wine decided to take the longer but less
steep route back past the old clock tower through the central pedestrianised
shopping district.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Overall, winter hasn’t been too bad here; with temperatures ranging from
12 to 24 degrees (the 50s-70s Fahrenheit), and only occasional brief flooding
of the roads around the city as the tremendous storms lash the coast from the
sinister clouds that gather as thick disapproving eyebrows over the
mountaintops. Most days the sun has shone and the cafes were doing a steady
trade while at night the torrential rain would batter the city accompanied by
the rumbling peals of thunder and flashes of frightening bolt lightning that
illuminated the craggy peaks of the Taurus Mountains.</span><br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-ZxO-WeFgkuA/UT-jGyeTKOI/AAAAAAAAFBQ/HwL1pvoeD_g/s1600/Antwinter1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="258" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-ZxO-WeFgkuA/UT-jGyeTKOI/AAAAAAAAFBQ/HwL1pvoeD_g/s400/Antwinter1a.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">As you probably know from previous posts, my upstairs terrace looks out over the nearest of the weather-beaten and
wrinkled mountains, and they almost cast a shadow across this protective basin.
As the sun descends beneath behind their rocky tops on a winter day and casts
beams of kaleidoscopic light across the valley the evening cool settles as the
snow on the jagged pinnacles.</span><br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-gX1_QZpm_1M/UT_LnirAc4I/AAAAAAAAFCY/RNrvPA3G9xQ/s1600/Antmountview1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="218" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-gX1_QZpm_1M/UT_LnirAc4I/AAAAAAAAFCY/RNrvPA3G9xQ/s400/Antmountview1a.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">A great place to live and work, this city and its inhabitants are among
the nicest anywhere in the world – with the Mediterranean climate and the
facilities of every large city right on the doorstep, why would I be anywhere
else?</span><br />
<br />
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-z7dfzplP9_w/UT-jTNgoWYI/AAAAAAAAFBY/Ldem40vk4e0/s1600/saklift1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-z7dfzplP9_w/UT-jTNgoWYI/AAAAAAAAFBY/Ldem40vk4e0/s400/saklift1a.JPG" width="302" /></a><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">I hope your winter has been as fruitful and interesting as mine,
with events and courses, visits to scenic and fascinating locations, nights
with good friends and days out with some wonderful people.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Although season has been
chilly, it certainly hasn’t been nearly as unpleasantly cold as other places
I’ve lived, and has been as mild as can be expected in northern latitudes,
giving me another reason not to quit cold turkey.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">But, the world is ever-changing, and sometimes opportunities come along that demand attention; often we have to take a chance and delve into the unknown of the future with ambition in order to uncover our capabilities.</span><br />
<br />
<br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-4szbgF67L8s/UT-j_YlBQ-I/AAAAAAAAFBg/pvWHM_a6oa0/s1600/saklak1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-4szbgF67L8s/UT-j_YlBQ-I/AAAAAAAAFBg/pvWHM_a6oa0/s400/saklak1a.JPG" width="300" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Turkey has become a friend, a lover, a compatriot and guardian, however new treasures and discoveries await and only time will reveal knowledge of what destiny keeps hidden. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">I'm simply grateful for the fresh water and food I eat, the friends who keep me company and the many wonders I've seen. The natural world is my home not a place to be conquered - it belongs to us all and we must do what we can to heal and not harm.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">The fresh water we drink comes from the springs beneath the earth that rise up to form lakes, the air that we breathe needs a healthy filtration system too and that requires forests and jungles, and the ground where we grow our food, it too needs minerals to keep it healthy, just as we do.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5AorMLbjdSu6dWY2v2bmWPWVRrLvDqlbSHdcdqfu1hyphenhyphenbfbDWpyZgg3lVzEseUXyoANR8L5Ftch1fgVdRTo72vo7i03LX0XtvuIq7kuKfVhz6E_9Hw3Zj9QwPslFo-ywYdXPXNKyMlgPn1/s1600/JanDaff2b.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5AorMLbjdSu6dWY2v2bmWPWVRrLvDqlbSHdcdqfu1hyphenhyphenbfbDWpyZgg3lVzEseUXyoANR8L5Ftch1fgVdRTo72vo7i03LX0XtvuIq7kuKfVhz6E_9Hw3Zj9QwPslFo-ywYdXPXNKyMlgPn1/s400/JanDaff2b.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">All of life is connected, and all of life is contrary, let's work for that healthy homeostasis in nature. Both the organic and the social must be in balance and as spirits in this material world we must guard the only means of life that we have to ensure its lasting health and beauty.</span><br />
<br />
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-vbY2kAea0MY/UT-k9E6H_QI/AAAAAAAAFBo/iKRy8bCz17E/s1600/sakici2b.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-vbY2kAea0MY/UT-k9E6H_QI/AAAAAAAAFBo/iKRy8bCz17E/s400/sakici2b.JPG" width="400" /></a><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">So, as springtime colours the world and blue skies and
sunshine push the threatening clouds away again till the end of the year, I will be
dreaming of the future and living for the present – the gift of living on the only planet we have. Let’s take care of
it and remember Earth is the source of everything we need to live.</span><br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">*<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>*<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>*</span></div>
</div>
KWhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18335001094857381380noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8365597864916881666.post-30467694032912787912013-01-01T21:00:00.001+00:002013-01-03T14:13:18.468+00:00<b><span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: red;">Noel Baba ..</span><span style="color: lime;"> Happy
New Year!</span></span></span></b><br />
<br />
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-7XBwkIWBVqc/UOM4Vd2nGNI/AAAAAAAAEug/PtLgW1prgH8/s1600/babadem3a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-7XBwkIWBVqc/UOM4Vd2nGNI/AAAAAAAAEug/PtLgW1prgH8/s320/babadem3a.JPG" width="239" /></a><span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-family: Arial;">I’ve been asked by a few
people why I haven’t written a festive Blog this year, so I thought I’d better
grab an hour from the busy day to put a few words down and upload some photos.
Initially, I was going to write about how ‘Father Christmas’ or Santa Claus,
got his name brand recognition, why people all over the world know his name and
general character in one form or other and follow the custom of giving gifts at
this time of year. But if you want to know about all that you can easily Google
it. So, instead I’ll just let you know what Christmassy type things I’ve been
up to lately.<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial;"></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">There have been parties and
gatherings galore over this festive period, and I received so many invites I
couldn’t possibly have attended everything. Fortunately, I have some wonderful
friends who insisted on coming round to ensure I didn’t have a lonely Christmas
night.</span></div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-TkTV2D88jFs/UOM4sZXRqrI/AAAAAAAAEuo/Ziz_8UOo1m8/s1600/bcsxmsn1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="216" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-TkTV2D88jFs/UOM4sZXRqrI/AAAAAAAAEuo/Ziz_8UOo1m8/s320/bcsxmsn1a.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">I quickly tossed some shrimp on the barbie, with Cajun seasoning and
grilled veggies, a massive portion of my special nachos (is this a traditional
Christmas dinner? one Turkish friend asked, to much bemused laughter)
and melt-in-the-middle chocolate puddings with hot cherries and
sauce, accompanied by Baileys and other assorted tasty festive treats.</span></div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-FdkzD2glvZM/UOM47Qyn28I/AAAAAAAAEuw/Q34rEHcIems/s1600/pentview14-12-12aa.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-FdkzD2glvZM/UOM47Qyn28I/AAAAAAAAEuw/Q34rEHcIems/s400/pentview14-12-12aa.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">After the hectic weeks
leading up to the celebrations I could do with a rest and a few days just
chilling, but New Years Eve on the beach after the party in a fabulous
restaurant in the heart of the Old Town of Kaleici was simply amazing.</span></div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-FM-WHrWJzHY/UONMK59bbJI/AAAAAAAAE7I/DTLzyzadcKQ/s1600/Terrawoman1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-FM-WHrWJzHY/UONMK59bbJI/AAAAAAAAE7I/DTLzyzadcKQ/s320/Terrawoman1a.JPG" width="206" /></a><span style="font-family: Arial;">A few
days ago I attended a friends birthday lunch in Lara after returning from the airport to collect my wife, who was off on yet another whirlwind holiday trip abroad. I spent several days running around shopping malls this past week
(anyone who knows me knows I really don’t like these massive consumer palaces),
while entertaining, visiting friends, going to late night parties (nothing
starts before about 10pm here) and completing my class schedule – no time off
for Christmas in Turkey, so thank goodness for two days off at New Year.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">How did all this mayhem and
magic begin one often hears people say, so I’ve included a little sample of the
stories behind the man we call Saint Nick.</span></div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-DgmN8nQaIzU/UOM6KyHQBII/AAAAAAAAEvM/mIiX0PRJ_6k/s1600/demre3a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-DgmN8nQaIzU/UOM6KyHQBII/AAAAAAAAEvM/mIiX0PRJ_6k/s320/demre3a.JPG" width="240" /></a><span style="font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Nicholas
was born over 1500 years ago in the town of Patara, near Antalya, along the now
Turkish Mediterranean coast. His father died when he was young, leaving
Nicholas a vast fortune. Instead of spending it on himself, Nicholas started
anonymously donating the money to the poor, especially needy children. He rose
through the Byzantine ranks of the Church to become the Bishop of Myra
(modern-day Demre in Turkey), where he is credited with performing several
miracles, including saving sailors from drowning and resurrecting three boys
who had been killed by an evil butcher. Today, St. Nicholas is the patron saint
of children, sailors, teachers, students and merchants. </span><span style="font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiG5_s1AO3duPzW1Rg0JEVLXmZnOCzPUssKH6_chwdesD1g-8tT1d89kxUCyL2x88qv04bEOh8hha5lFDbtcSulEO4xE06sHschsqho9MJXoH7SMmAFtJTrnmwfW2e4Cy3oNlMUZupe2Q_c/s1600/antxmas4c.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiG5_s1AO3duPzW1Rg0JEVLXmZnOCzPUssKH6_chwdesD1g-8tT1d89kxUCyL2x88qv04bEOh8hha5lFDbtcSulEO4xE06sHschsqho9MJXoH7SMmAFtJTrnmwfW2e4Cy3oNlMUZupe2Q_c/s320/antxmas4c.JPG" width="253" /></a><span style="font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">The
most famous anecdotal fable of Saint Nicholas concerns a poor man (often said
to be a nobleman fallen on hard times) who had three daughters. The daughters
had no chance of marriage, since their father could not pay for a dowry. </span><span style="font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">One
night Nicholas left a sack of gold on the doorstep of the nobleman's house,
which was enough for one daughter's marriage. The next night, he tossed another
sack of gold through the window for the second daughter. On the third night,
the window was closed, so the Bishop climbed onto the roof and dropped the sack
down the chimney. The next morning, the daughters found the gold in the
stockings they had hung to dry by the fireplace, </span><span style="font-family: Arial;">thus starting</span><span style="font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;"> the tradition of hanging stockings on Christmas Eve, and also the
symbol of three gold balls hanging outside pawnshops.</span></div>
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<br />
<br />
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-xwnZ1QEffIA/UOM7vJB_XPI/AAAAAAAAExw/mcoAGhqOEJ4/s1600/claus2a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-xwnZ1QEffIA/UOM7vJB_XPI/AAAAAAAAExw/mcoAGhqOEJ4/s200/claus2a.JPG" width="157" /></a><span style="font-family: Arial;">There is an actual 4<sup>th</sup>
or 5<sup>th</sup> century Saint Nicholas’s church in Demre, Turkey, complete
with statues of Bishop Nicholas surrounded by children and carrying gifts,
which is now a museum selling icons and bars of soap and coffee mugs with
pictures of the historic site hand-painted on them. I recently took a drive
along the coast to visit the birthplace of the revered saint, stopping near the
town for some freshly prepared blue crabs that are famously farmed in lowland
region where the high rugged mountains push against the sea.</span><br />
<br />
<br />
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-rt3Mvodmle0/UOPwbqaF8jI/AAAAAAAAE8o/1eFJcErWvLw/s1600/KVCNYE1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="160" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-rt3Mvodmle0/UOPwbqaF8jI/AAAAAAAAE8o/1eFJcErWvLw/s200/KVCNYE1a.JPG" width="200" /></a><span style="font-family: Arial;">Over the week of 6<sup>th</sup>
December, St Nicholas day, scientists, religious representatives and peace
activists arrive in Demre along with the usual busloads of Russian tourists for the annual Santa Claus Peace Award,
and of course, various local and international officials make a big deal of their openness,
generosity and humanitarian stance.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Arial;">Anyway, before I digress too
far into history and the politics of religion, overall it’s been a busy and
exciting year for me, with many changes and adventures, travel and work, performing and writing.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9Sti87E983GEaHcj2SgvU3LY7J3uHSnzcuizgRukSpAeHzf1FSBEusHB7QTCB3gHJC_Np9BzynQlPmFwVAazenMQO3IskaPMgn30mdw5v2lzUjbNURe0fQQAo7MCZpEn2AQ8yVZhFuCpg/s1600/coastcurvestooa.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="233" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9Sti87E983GEaHcj2SgvU3LY7J3uHSnzcuizgRukSpAeHzf1FSBEusHB7QTCB3gHJC_Np9BzynQlPmFwVAazenMQO3IskaPMgn30mdw5v2lzUjbNURe0fQQAo7MCZpEn2AQ8yVZhFuCpg/s400/coastcurvestooa.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial;">Since beginning the year by driving through the snow
covered hills of Bulgaria, flying back and forth to the UK to teach and take
courses, living on the Aegean and teaching in a small college, I’ve travelled
into the canyons of Cappadocia and down the Mediterranean coast and over the
Toros mountains to the beautiful beaches of cosmopolitan Antalya where I’ve
been blessed with wonderful opportunities and met so many interesting and
charming people who have made me feel so welcome and loved.</span></div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/--QCc77Hwg5c/UOM82-dw0eI/AAAAAAAAEyQ/Zw2ydTeBTxw/s1600/cansevdance1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/--QCc77Hwg5c/UOM82-dw0eI/AAAAAAAAEyQ/Zw2ydTeBTxw/s320/cansevdance1a.JPG" width="301" /></a><span style="font-family: Arial;">Various regions of the nation
definitely recognise the holiday in completely different ways. In the little
town I was living in last year, none of my students or fellow teachers did
anything special for the holiday and many didn’t know Saint Nicholas was from
Turkey, or what night was the ‘new year’. Whereas in Antalya people go to New
Year parties, dress up and exchange gifts, dance and sing and drink and fall in
love over a hectic seasonal schedule filled with the Western activities
associated with this time of year, shopping and get-togethers and hot wine and
decorated trees.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-FqAMNdfNglE/UOM5BQDN0HI/AAAAAAAAEu4/J6EFhLq8joo/s1600/5mdispla1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"></a><br /></div>
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-FqAMNdfNglE/UOM5BQDN0HI/AAAAAAAAEu4/J6EFhLq8joo/s1600/5mdispla1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-FqAMNdfNglE/UOM5BQDN0HI/AAAAAAAAEu4/J6EFhLq8joo/s320/5mdispla1a.JPG" width="238" /></a><span style="font-family: Arial;">Noel Baba (Father Christmas)
is the Turkish version of Père Noël, the French name for the widely celebrated
figure of New Year celebrations.</span><span style="font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";"> </span><span style="font-family: Arial;">Noel Baba is the bearer of gifts to children and adults alike for the
New Year.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">Just like the Christian Christmas celebration, in Turkey the jolly red-suited and white bearded man is
expected to leave his gifts under a pine tree called New Year Tree. The story
of Christmas, and the celebration of New Year gets rather muddled for most
Turkish people, many of whom think New Year <b>is</b> Christmas – they even use
pictures of Santa Claus in advertisements for New Year’s Eve parties! Though, naturally, they can't figure out how the West confused him with the birth of Jesus.</span></div>
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</span></div>
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-k2vkMcSzTC8/UOM-o1U9TtI/AAAAAAAAE0Q/IJoEE_NayE4/s1600/draginc1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a><br />
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-k2vkMcSzTC8/UOM-o1U9TtI/AAAAAAAAE0Q/IJoEE_NayE4/s1600/draginc1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-k2vkMcSzTC8/UOM-o1U9TtI/AAAAAAAAE0Q/IJoEE_NayE4/s320/draginc1a.JPG" width="223" /></a><span style="font-family: Arial;">So, this festive season,
between Christmas celebrations with an entertaining group of friends from
America, Britain, Turkey, France and Australia, a blow-out birthday party for a
colleague, the folly of New Year gift giving, shopping and work, I’ve also been
entangled in a series of personal life-changing decisions. Too busy to savour
much personal ‘me’ time lately I’ve resolved to take a little time to consider
some future choices, and get back into my regime of exercise and meditation and
healthy eating. However, I’m going to start planning a Far East holiday
soon, I need it! I’ll visit my son in China, or sail along the Vietnamese
coast, or just spend some time at the full moon parties in Thailand.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial;"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-AQdRhk_Jijs/UONBd4rIZdI/AAAAAAAAE14/6cnXKoDzG2I/s1600/NYsweets1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"></a><br />
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-AQdRhk_Jijs/UONBd4rIZdI/AAAAAAAAE14/6cnXKoDzG2I/s1600/NYsweets1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="151" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-AQdRhk_Jijs/UONBd4rIZdI/AAAAAAAAE14/6cnXKoDzG2I/s200/NYsweets1a.JPG" width="200" /></a><span style="font-family: Arial;">At this time in the New
Year, as reflections of the past glimmer like incandescent snowflakes gusting
along the tops of the jagged peaked mountains, disappearing into glacial drifts,
we look expectantly toward a better future; a new year with a new number and a
new name to create the illusion of potential prosperity and success, the hopeful thoughts of a new day.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">On this day every year, as everyone hibernates for the day, to recollect and calm the frayed nerves that have frazzled in the excitement of too many days of parties and too many weeks of anticipation, I
simply try to feel the capacity for love we all have, put aside the animosity
and fear and troubled thoughts to open my heart to the possibilities of this
wonderful life, and tell myself that hope is a word for optimistic anticipation
– of the potential and promise of a New Year.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">I dream that it can be a year when war and suffering
end, a year when poverty and unnecessary pain end, and the sadness of
broken hearts is reconciled with the thankfulness of moments shared in the
honesty of true and lasting affection. There wasn't a magical transformation on the 21st of December, as many thought was predicted. And why should people expect such intervention that releases us from the responsibility of working for peace and social equity? If there is to be a transformation it has to come from within us, it has to spread out around the world as people come together in love and the spirit of giving, the joy of living and the honesty of shared feelings of friendship.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">Love to all my friends near
and far .. have a great season of joy and peace .. seek the discovery of love
and all its subtle pleasures .. and have fun, laugh and enjoy every moment of this fleeting existence - life is love ..</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;"></span><br />KWhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18335001094857381380noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8365597864916881666.post-51548761476154058092012-11-20T14:17:00.000+00:002012-12-05T16:37:23.799+00:00<span style="color: orange; font-family: Verdana; font-size: large;"><strong>Castles in the Sand</strong></span><br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-keZedIq25jU/UKuHtbOOKYI/AAAAAAAAErc/EJP9K5JAXSk/s1600/Antpyramit1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="192" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-keZedIq25jU/UKuHtbOOKYI/AAAAAAAAErc/EJP9K5JAXSk/s400/Antpyramit1a.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana;">A</span><span style="font-family: Verdana;">s a child I loved
building sandcastles on the beach. I remember making massive fortresses with
moats and towers and finding seaweed or crab legs, brightly coloured shells and
stones and various flotsams to decorate my creations. When my children were
young we had opportunities to build these wonderful and imaginative creations
and I really enjoyed the chance to help inspire them in this wonderful
amusement, although sometimes I think they preferred to bury dad in the sand. I
think it’s a tradition all over the world to build these fun and inspired
structures and even as adults we never lose our sense of playfulness when we
spend time on the beach, especially with kids.</span><br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-fc8A7XnnJEw/UKuIAyjpB3I/AAAAAAAAErk/jft1HCw-p8Q/s1600/anatpoint2a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-fc8A7XnnJEw/UKuIAyjpB3I/AAAAAAAAErk/jft1HCw-p8Q/s320/anatpoint2a.JPG" width="240" /></a><span style="font-family: Verdana;">Oh, but where does the
time go? It flies, so they say, when you’re having fun, and drags like
shuffling feet when things are bad. We never have enough time to do the things
we want to do, and yet we often squander time and later wish we’d done
something more useful. Every minute I didn’t spend with my kids as they were growing
up is time I regret, and every moment I was with them is a treasured memory I
am thankful to have. So many times I have wondered why I wasted a split second
of my life, and so often I have given thanks for all the wonderful experiences
I have had, and then I try to remember that a full life has ups and downs and
the bad times also make us better if we learn from the lessons time continues to teach.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-F6tVpNIk3UI/UKuIegWlqHI/AAAAAAAAErs/UqAtXCIpNwE/s1600/wfallaff1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="220" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-F6tVpNIk3UI/UKuIegWlqHI/AAAAAAAAErs/UqAtXCIpNwE/s400/wfallaff1a.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana;">I’ve been far too busy
lately to post anything here, and for that I offer my humblest apologies,
because I do like to update this Blog and provide a few interesting photos for
those who drop by – still about a hundred visitors a week, and so I thank you
for your patience. However, between a demanding work schedule, friends who
always, seem to have something going on that I “just can’t miss” and my own
travels to see interesting sights, I never seem to have the free time to write
these little essays anymore.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-uKzxwXrSgrU/UKuI5ZOCWTI/AAAAAAAAEr0/VrUwu5QhdcE/s1600/pirateant2a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="178" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-uKzxwXrSgrU/UKuI5ZOCWTI/AAAAAAAAEr0/VrUwu5QhdcE/s400/pirateant2a.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana;">So, having a break between
classes today I decided to write this, and say sorry for any glaring errors. I
have marked out a couple mornings over the next few weeks to write about some
interesting things I’ve been part of recently, therefore I promise to get a
couple more posts on here before the Christmas season wraps me up in a
multitude of activities.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-6q9MKcPGV5o/UKuJYFMvNTI/AAAAAAAAEr8/rzhYZaxOjUw/s1600/Antssculpt1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="236" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-6q9MKcPGV5o/UKuJYFMvNTI/AAAAAAAAEr8/rzhYZaxOjUw/s400/Antssculpt1a.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana;">However, I did make a
special effort to get along to visit the Antalya Sand Sculpture fair down at
the end of Lara beach, past all the open air discos and family barbecue and
picnic sites, where the beach just rolls on around toward Alanya on the other
side of this massive and magnificent bay. The theme for this year was
“Hollywood movies” and many of the sand carvings really brought the characters
from these top box-office spectaculars to life. Some of the creations were
simply amazing, showing genuine talent and ability and of course, begged the
question, are they art?</span></div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-e7SATxBWDOs/UKuJvGkoVDI/AAAAAAAAEsE/gc4mHyUpUcc/s1600/Antsculpt4a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-e7SATxBWDOs/UKuJvGkoVDI/AAAAAAAAEsE/gc4mHyUpUcc/s320/Antsculpt4a.JPG" width="240" /></a><span style="font-family: Verdana;">I suppose it depends on
your definition of ‘art’, but many of the works certainly necessitated
craftsmanship of a superior level, and some showed great creative inspiration
and interpretation, while others simply captured a scene from a particular
film. All the ‘artists’ were invited practitioners, and there were sculptors
from America, Great Britain, Spain and Saudi Arabia, Turkey, Australia, Mexico
and Brazil to name a few places listed as homelands for this troupe of creative
individuals who travel the world exhibiting their skill and finesse on the
finest beaches and large indoor arenas.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana;">When I lived in Mallorca
I became friendly with a Spanish guy who was squatting in a villa on the beach who was a fabulous
sculptor of sand images.</span><br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-aBo7D0xeHAI/UKuJ6skrYxI/AAAAAAAAEsM/YuOKROW8XFo/s1600/Antsculpt3a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a><br /></div>
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-aBo7D0xeHAI/UKuJ6skrYxI/AAAAAAAAEsM/YuOKROW8XFo/s1600/Antsculpt3a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="311" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-aBo7D0xeHAI/UKuJ6skrYxI/AAAAAAAAEsM/YuOKROW8XFo/s320/Antsculpt3a.JPG" width="320" /></a><span style="font-family: Verdana;">I often stopped to chat with him (his English
being as poor as my Spanish we generally ended up just sharing a smoke and a
coffee while admiring the view) to discuss his technique for creating the
beautiful artwork and talent he demonstrated for coins people would toss in his
hat as they strolled along the promenade. He certainly could have taken part in
these types of competitive events.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-2j8CFVDpegM/UKuKqKANQPI/AAAAAAAAEsU/NtcvJFi5nRU/s1600/marsculp1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"> </a><span style="font-family: Verdana;">Although I only made it
for the final day of this international event, having pencilled it in as a
“must visit” happening several months earlier, I still felt well rewarded for
the effort. Many of the creatives who design and produce these monolithic
sculptures deserve wider recognition, and their extraordinary skills are
certainly worthy of finer appreciation.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana;">A</span><span style="font-family: Verdana;">lso, during October I
visited the 49<sup>th</sup> annual Antalya Portakal <i>(orange)</i>
International Film Festival and enjoyed the highlights of the annual event as
an interested spectator peering into the cultural life of this fascinating
Mediterranean city. There were many Turkish television and movie stars in
attendance, and a few actors and directors made themselves available for
lectures, workshops and interviews, which made the whole event rather
educational as well as entertaining.</span></div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/--ckcxmpJlCA/UKuGwMRlmMI/AAAAAAAAErU/dneW8PZ9UK4/s1600/affkw3a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/--ckcxmpJlCA/UKuGwMRlmMI/AAAAAAAAErU/dneW8PZ9UK4/s1600/affkw3a.JPG" /></a><span style="font-family: Verdana;">It hasn’t yet
reached the status of Cannes or the Sundance festival, but it was a unique
experience for me to be surrounded by all these Turkish celebrities, many of whom I'll admit I
didn’t even know. Although, I was thrilled that Özgü Namal attended, as I really enjoyed
her performance in the beautiful and emotionally moving film <i>Mutluluk</i>
(mutlu means happy, mutluluk means happiness or, more specifically: bliss), which was recommended to me by a friend, and previously
won the award for best film at the festival. I’m still learning to recognise
various Turkish personalities, and to be honest I doubt I’ll ever grasp the
entire realm of major and minor cultural figures, but I do know a few that have
already become part of my personal attempt at a directory of “celebrities regularly recognised”.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-CDaLwVpRrLc/UKuMl0cF85I/AAAAAAAAEsk/MzvD6s9KtzY/s1600/pyramitaff1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-CDaLwVpRrLc/UKuMl0cF85I/AAAAAAAAEsk/MzvD6s9KtzY/s1600/pyramitaff1a.JPG" /></a><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-CDaLwVpRrLc/UKuMl0cF85I/AAAAAAAAEsk/MzvD6s9KtzY/s1600/pyramitaff1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a><span style="font-family: Verdana;">I’ve also been
working on some new poems in anticipation of a regular open mic night a friend
and I are starting at a popular venue in the city centre for people who want to
perform their own songs, do stand-up comedy or recite poetry, as well as
providing a platform and forum for literary discussion and base for offering
poetry workshops. So, I will post a couple new pieces on my other Blog when I
get some extra free time. I’ll have to practice before performing
again as it's been a while. For though the memories of special nights
still remain, nothing replaces the activity of actually doing as opposed to
thinking.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIt8F81Tg37Ou80vYxr-l2-3Q3INJ9ZJUJPsT7EU5xEmFFghFa8GE8Q65lSfIb3kBLK5K-8jF95IvEczXIiUTQlozOQxEVXg-AtzEPz3OEUEE24monncizKzITjt-Ijld5PpWzY7-OV-XJ/s1600/anatpoint1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIt8F81Tg37Ou80vYxr-l2-3Q3INJ9ZJUJPsT7EU5xEmFFghFa8GE8Q65lSfIb3kBLK5K-8jF95IvEczXIiUTQlozOQxEVXg-AtzEPz3OEUEE24monncizKzITjt-Ijld5PpWzY7-OV-XJ/s1600/anatpoint1a.JPG" /></a><span style="font-family: Verdana;">As castles in the sand are
eventually washed away by the surging tide, time also slowly erodes the clarity
of memories, leaving only traces of the foundation of reasons and the result of
so many actions. As a great healer, time softens the hard edges of hurt and
disappointment so the fruitive activity born of hope can grow once more. Live
long enough, they say, and you will surely experience the intimacy and purity
of real love and the inevitable pain of heartbreak and regret.</span></div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana;">However, life can be like
those temporary sand sculptures; we build dreams again and again to inspire
others to find optimism in everyday occupation and to create something that
lasts for the next generation to discover with youthful eyes and strong hearts.
In this way love gains power, and with determination and integrity, and a mind
open to trust and acceptance, we can look to the future with starry eyes in
certain knowledge of the ultimate ‘mutluluk’.</span><br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-S0wLgArjPUU/UKuN6obDXRI/AAAAAAAAEs8/95KA-p9Jb7k/s1600/coastcurves8a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="253" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-S0wLgArjPUU/UKuN6obDXRI/AAAAAAAAEs8/95KA-p9Jb7k/s400/coastcurves8a.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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KWhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18335001094857381380noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8365597864916881666.post-4351936598293800472012-10-19T12:30:00.000+01:002012-12-05T16:39:57.265+00:00<div style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="color: cyan; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><strong>Magical Mushroom Land</strong></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><em><strong>What a long, strange trip it's been ..</strong></em> </span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"></span></span><br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuJiwi64gw2hmvpGd2NUuWqyUvxoHnj9M5HSHPOKbZ4taT1nxbFQIHesKPVCYGFoserwRYbq66axNTBQha0Qm9703-Zz0-pRlIrXsMbbgYM4kaMVQUvhrS1pj_gxXIt1a2Fs18zq8WWxTp/s1600/goremecap1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuJiwi64gw2hmvpGd2NUuWqyUvxoHnj9M5HSHPOKbZ4taT1nxbFQIHesKPVCYGFoserwRYbq66axNTBQha0Qm9703-Zz0-pRlIrXsMbbgYM4kaMVQUvhrS1pj_gxXIt1a2Fs18zq8WWxTp/s320/goremecap1a.JPG" width="231" /></a><span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Over the hills and far away,
down through the rabbit hole of imaginings I encountered a supernatural kingdom
where dreams and nightmares come to life in a fantasy landscape that towers and
looms above as so many enchanted mushrooms grown out of proportion to reality.
These massive monoliths with their slightly vulgar yet majestic appearance
stand proudly in the dry and sun baked garden of delights that is buried deep
in the heart of the nation, the inner world where few dare to travel, a land
called Cappadocia.<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">After traversing the high
Taurus Mountains and crossing the 200 kilometre expanse of flatland that
separates one realm of nature from the other, these giant cave dwellings rise
from the floor of a hidden valley like so many fairytale chimneys.</span></span></div>
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</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; text-align: left;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-cZyIFVzzGP0/UIErOQtl_FI/AAAAAAAAEkw/KMDFS3CU1cc/s1600/caveview1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="251" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-cZyIFVzzGP0/UIErOQtl_FI/AAAAAAAAEkw/KMDFS3CU1cc/s320/caveview1a.JPG" width="320" /></a> <span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Stacked and
layered across the vast gorges and canyons of this obscure territory these
strangely shaped rock formations with their pointed heads and long stems or
squat bulbous domes on thick shafts of softer stone were created by seismic and
volcanic activity combined with the erosion of the wind over millions of years
of geologic history.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">
</span><span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">From Konya to Nevşehir, or
new city, I drove along the ancient Silk Road used for centuries by the
caravans that traded between the Far East and Europe.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"></span></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-HQBeckGzeC0/UIErsU8mQwI/AAAAAAAAEk4/f7KwVaNnBPY/s1600/Silkrd1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="211" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-HQBeckGzeC0/UIErsU8mQwI/AAAAAAAAEk4/f7KwVaNnBPY/s400/Silkrd1a.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">I</span></span><span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">n 1271 Marco Polo used
this safe and relatively quick road to travel from Venice to Mongolia and
China. Making the trip several times he accompanied traders on the route and
stayed at some of the marvellous caravanserai during the long journey, traversing
an Asia at peace thanks to the unification of warring tribes by the Khan
dynasty.<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">
</span><br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-0j1C_6I66FU/UIEsMKSyzQI/AAAAAAAAElA/z3mV22azMLs/s1600/goremeroad1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-0j1C_6I66FU/UIEsMKSyzQI/AAAAAAAAElA/z3mV22azMLs/s400/goremeroad1a.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Legend has it that Alexander
the Great first established this road network that cuts through mountains and
across the flat land of inner Anatolia, and as trade follows conquest the
merchants soon followed his lead. The Romans, Byzantines and Seljuks all used
this road, making improvements, building the inns, or caravanserai, that
eventually developed into small towns to cater for travellers carrying valuable
commodities such as luxurious silks from China, spices and nuts from India, and
inventions that soon changed the world; along with an exchange of information
and culture.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">
</span><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-lkJqGtHvXW0/UIEsb8lU_dI/AAAAAAAAElI/MqhI4PXPvu0/s1600/goremetown2a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-lkJqGtHvXW0/UIEsb8lU_dI/AAAAAAAAElI/MqhI4PXPvu0/s400/goremetown2a.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">First settled in the Roman
era, the town of Göreme, situated in the valley and partially carved from the
rock into cave homes, has around 2,500 permanent inhabitants. It was a
favourite place for ascetics during the Byzantine period when monasticism
balanced the authority of the church with hermetic principles based on mystic
austerity.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"></span></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-BKYSZcZH_YY/UIEsrXk4OqI/AAAAAAAAElQ/ZOBuTfnn330/s1600/goremehouse2a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="223" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-BKYSZcZH_YY/UIEsrXk4OqI/AAAAAAAAElQ/ZOBuTfnn330/s400/goremehouse2a.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Though there are remains of traditional dwellings dating back to the
fourth century, troglodyte villages and underground towns are more
prevalent due to the ease of carving through the stone rather than shaping it
for block structures. The Hittites established nearby ‘cities’ 3 millennia ago,
however there is archaeological evidence of settlements in the area going back
an incredible 7500 years.</span></span><br />
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; text-align: left;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-04RfjlaKYc4/UIEs3dM9bxI/AAAAAAAAElg/BZd5Qx-2c08/s1600/goremecap3a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-04RfjlaKYc4/UIEs3dM9bxI/AAAAAAAAElg/BZd5Qx-2c08/s320/goremecap3a.JPG" width="300" /></a><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-04RfjlaKYc4/UIEs3dM9bxI/AAAAAAAAElg/BZd5Qx-2c08/s1600/goremecap3a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a><span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Basil the Great, Bishop of
Caesarea (Kayseri) from 370 to 379 CE, instructed anchorite communities to inhabit
these ‘cells’ dug into the rock formations. Groups of hermits
excavated a network of caves to serve as storage, refuges, residences, and even churches.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">It was Basil who instituted
reforms in the monastic life of those who had fled from society after the
Romans absorbed Christianity and assimilated the clergy into the accepted fold
of spiritual communities, making it a state sponsored religion.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"></span></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2293oZHUZP1Kit2A3MyPxPRGEpt37FJFLaN49QAVG6xsUCb9OaDj-P4gX7ZIHkcYjqUbtotG4V7m9xSMSYB_Lr6UJ5roT1wsDDQKwtHNJ51i3iZYVPRkujdFZqx1GQIoyn8mLzYryhgrt/s1600/goremebasilica2a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2293oZHUZP1Kit2A3MyPxPRGEpt37FJFLaN49QAVG6xsUCb9OaDj-P4gX7ZIHkcYjqUbtotG4V7m9xSMSYB_Lr6UJ5roT1wsDDQKwtHNJ51i3iZYVPRkujdFZqx1GQIoyn8mLzYryhgrt/s400/goremebasilica2a.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Basil created a
special class of monk; effectively under the control of the Church they guided the
principles of the community of believers through abstinence and charitable
works. The great cathedral in central Moscow is named after him, and looking at
thess particular rock formation in the Göreme Valley of Cappadocia it is easy to
see where the architects derived their inspiration for those colourful
‘onion-domes' and other subsequent basilicas.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">
</span><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-NHLoP8RtSdY/UIEuHTJaxrI/AAAAAAAAElw/YIhSaiCETkE/s1600/goremebasilica3a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="231" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-NHLoP8RtSdY/UIEuHTJaxrI/AAAAAAAAElw/YIhSaiCETkE/s400/goremebasilica3a.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">During the iconoclast period
(725-842) the decoration of these sanctuaries was held to the strict minimum of
symbols, but after 842 until the end of the 12th to beginning of the 13th
centuries many rupestral churches were created in these bizarre hoodoos,
evidence of which can still be seen inside several of the large caves – though
photographs of the paintings are not permitted.</span></span><br />
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-hTBvmRAgWsE/UIEvrwTL58I/AAAAAAAAEmA/SioZrF4Qt0w/s1600/goremevalee2a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-hTBvmRAgWsE/UIEvrwTL58I/AAAAAAAAEmA/SioZrF4Qt0w/s320/goremevalee2a.JPG" width="199" /></a><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-hTBvmRAgWsE/UIEvrwTL58I/AAAAAAAAEmA/SioZrF4Qt0w/s1600/goremevalee2a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a><span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">A hoodoo is a tall, thin
spire of rock protruding from the bottom of a barren drainage basin or region
of badlands. The hoodoos consist of relatively soft rock capped by harder, less
easily eroded stone that protects each column from nature’s forces. They
typically form within sedimentary rock and volcanic rock formations. Nearby
Erciyas volcano, a prominent and distinctly isolated peak that dominates the
horizon at 3,916 metres (12,848 ft), is still active with occasional minor
eruptions, and contributed to the gradual formation of this fantastic moonscape.</span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">When hard rock, such as
limestone or basalt covers a softer rock like sandstone or tuff (volcanic ash)
and then becomes exposed to an erosive power, water or wind, cracks in the
resistant rock allow shaping of the softer stone underneath and with small chunks
of the protective layer left hoodoos can begin to form.</span></span><br />
<br />
<div style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Jrjr4yPtnPU/UIEs1Bo5Q5I/AAAAAAAAElY/kOLZKX-56ZU/s1600/goremevalekw1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Jrjr4yPtnPU/UIEs1Bo5Q5I/AAAAAAAAElY/kOLZKX-56ZU/s320/goremevalekw1a.JPG" width="229" /></a><span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">One can see a similar
type of hoodoo in ‘the Badlands’ of South Dakota, as well as the related
formations of ‘buttes’, which can also be seen in nearby Utah and Wyoming.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">When erosion wears away the
softer rock the stratified layers become visible, and one can see stripes of
colour as the different minerals are exposed to the elements to create vibrant
colourfully banded mountains, just like those in the ‘Painted Desert’ of New
Mexico near the Petrified Forest and not far from that other great gorge, the
Grand Canyon. In the Southwestern states, the <span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;">Anaasází, </span>or ancient Pueblo Indians, created cliff houses cut
into the rock and used ladders to gain entry to provide safety from enemies.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">
</span><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-U9cj-F6NkpA/UIExl7qalvI/AAAAAAAAEmI/QNgXs7bXjRQ/s1600/goremevale3a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-U9cj-F6NkpA/UIExl7qalvI/AAAAAAAAEmI/QNgXs7bXjRQ/s400/goremevale3a.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Naturally, these similarly
fashioned regions throughout the world contain geological histories that have
unlocked many ancient mysteries, including providing fossil clues to the
composition of the earth and the lives of dinosaurs as well as ancient
communities of monks and nomadic humans; as both the American west and
Cappodocia were frequented by volcanic eruptions and trapped many remains of
these prehistoric creatures in the sedimentary rock.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; text-align: left;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNjGRKKXMbSnHNkyNwkSIihdt4Qe7lskWM8AOMK0Wh8WNOewUpUSoUEao4FV1t-SgNPedDyVcj7wMsX_Y7gxTFO7WK5Vuo5b99RSWXWCL74HpNiHQfK1JkNqmXXiDR9ge2UnAFcHGp4C13/s1600/goremevale2a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNjGRKKXMbSnHNkyNwkSIihdt4Qe7lskWM8AOMK0Wh8WNOewUpUSoUEao4FV1t-SgNPedDyVcj7wMsX_Y7gxTFO7WK5Vuo5b99RSWXWCL74HpNiHQfK1JkNqmXXiDR9ge2UnAFcHGp4C13/s320/goremevale2a.JPG" width="294" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNjGRKKXMbSnHNkyNwkSIihdt4Qe7lskWM8AOMK0Wh8WNOewUpUSoUEao4FV1t-SgNPedDyVcj7wMsX_Y7gxTFO7WK5Vuo5b99RSWXWCL74HpNiHQfK1JkNqmXXiDR9ge2UnAFcHGp4C13/s1600/goremevale2a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a><span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">As the effects of erosion
from wind and occasional hard rain expose the alternating layers of hard and
soft stone beneath the cap unusual shapes and patterns develop that are further
affected by attrition, thus forming these spires and pillars, the various
magical mushroom shapes and bulbous onion domes, the columns and obelisks, the
thick, squat pyramids and incredible corrugated towers that reach heights of
forty metres.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">
</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Nowadays, the town of Göreme is frequented by busloads of Chinese tourists
(those that can get time off from their busy work schedules according to
several I met over the few days I was there) and American backpacker types
looking to follow the hippy trail across Europe and Asia.</span></span><br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-fmLTRnTzxt0/UIEysR90b6I/AAAAAAAAEmg/amyIYRDM1aA/s1600/cavecrpt1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-fmLTRnTzxt0/UIEysR90b6I/AAAAAAAAEmg/amyIYRDM1aA/s400/cavecrpt1a.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">While the Chinese sit
comfortably on their tour buses and photograph the sights, the Americans
congregate around the souvenir stands and lounge on beanbags and cushioned
sofas drinking beer and discussing the merits of various places they’ve
visited, eschewing the convenience of the modern for the rougher, less
accessible locations as though parleying for status.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">
</span><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-9yVQ9nIfYPg/UIEyXPR71GI/AAAAAAAAEmY/f1wOQr4ipUE/s1600/goremefatboys1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="232" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-9yVQ9nIfYPg/UIEyXPR71GI/AAAAAAAAEmY/f1wOQr4ipUE/s400/goremefatboys1a.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Dressed in shorts and
t-shirts with slogans designed to express their uniqueness or in absurdly
tie-dyed ‘hippy’ clothes that are really designer imitations of the standard
wear for many of the traditional women who come to the markets from poorer
towns in the mountains, staring with large sad eyes at these wealthy foreigners
who seem to mock their poverty with those wooden beaded necklaces and ready
cash pulled from colourfully fringed handbags.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"></span></span><br />
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Q92vtwqXxt8/UIE0LwzBoQI/AAAAAAAAEmo/g-ZiO1_gus4/s1600/cstlview1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Q92vtwqXxt8/UIE0LwzBoQI/AAAAAAAAEmo/g-ZiO1_gus4/s320/cstlview1a.JPG" width="273" /></a><span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">These poeticly romantic but often overzealous travellers proclaim
in their loud twanging accents over bean burgers and margaritas the wonderful harmony
of their eco-friendly lifestyle and desire to commune with nature and the local customs (though the nachos at Fat Boys were a welcome treat, and the Australian owner was a genuinely nice guy).<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">I too have to answer for my
touristic ventures and am ready to acknowledge that this global industry tears
away at the fabric of these natural wonders. However, many of the people in the
area have profited greatly from the influx of annual visitors to these parts,
opening their traditional cave homes to tourists seeking an authentic
experience, and many restaurants and shops that service the needs of the
holiday-makers have done quite well from the continued trade.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana;"></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyat39v1JX_kbX94EUs2s0SL1bHOaqGGjt06QSEODcDIulkFQQ5Wrwvxx3XXP80BhSO2-L67ni_vKl4Z-KDPHdiFLhurg8zlH8v9CWTXbpPkog1NP-waaVPPOp1VpML85I4USjPYbyaZpA/s1600/goremevalee1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="272" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyat39v1JX_kbX94EUs2s0SL1bHOaqGGjt06QSEODcDIulkFQQ5Wrwvxx3XXP80BhSO2-L67ni_vKl4Z-KDPHdiFLhurg8zlH8v9CWTXbpPkog1NP-waaVPPOp1VpML85I4USjPYbyaZpA/s400/goremevalee1a.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Sure, the
industry is overcrowded with gap-year students who think they know better than
others how to participate in environmental tourism, and dominated by companies
that provide packaged holidays for those too afraid to meet others unlike
themselves, but overall the desire to see these marvellous sights is
understandable, and with correct management everyone can benefit from measured
acculturation and shared wealth of knowledge as well as assets.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana;"></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; text-align: left;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-GVT58UobdF4/UIE2a02T77I/AAAAAAAAEnA/SM3cKjEolU4/s1600/moonovergoreme1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-GVT58UobdF4/UIE2a02T77I/AAAAAAAAEnA/SM3cKjEolU4/s320/moonovergoreme1a.JPG" width="271" /></a><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-GVT58UobdF4/UIE2a02T77I/AAAAAAAAEnA/SM3cKjEolU4/s1600/moonovergoreme1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a><span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">I love visiting new places
and seeing these unique wonders of the world, and personally waited over twenty
years to visit this spectacular volcanic basin, ever since I first learned of
the Christian communities that sprung up in these caves during the early
monastic period. It was a trip well worth the wait, and everyone should have
the opportunity to visit natural marvels such as these fairy mountains in
Cappadocia to see the power of nature and the work of hands inspired by the
enduring creative and resourceful human spirit.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">* * *<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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KWhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18335001094857381380noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8365597864916881666.post-53894136981456527562012-09-30T08:30:00.000+01:002012-12-05T16:41:51.546+00:00<div style="text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="color: #93c47d; font-family: Arial; font-size: large;"><strong>Whirling Words of Wisdom</strong></span></span></div>
<i><span style="font-family: Arial;"></span></i><br />
<i><span style="font-family: Arial;">“When we are dead, do not turn your eyes to the
ground seeking my grave! My grave will be in the hearts of the wise” ~ Mevlana
Jelaladdin Rumi</span></i></div>
<br />
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-qMtYmWUuAN8/UGftQoyoKGI/AAAAAAAAEiE/1vCvEc0g44o/s1600/Rumistat4.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-qMtYmWUuAN8/UGftQoyoKGI/AAAAAAAAEiE/1vCvEc0g44o/s320/Rumistat4.JPG" width="225" /></a><span style="font-family: Arial;">Poet, mystic, dancer,
humanist, scholar, seeker; Rumi was all of these, and to his followers he
embodied the light of divine love on earth. His life was entirely devoted to
the search for union with the one God and believed the only real path for man
was to discover knowledge of self. Rather than philosophy and its method of
reason, which introduces doubt through the rhetoric of disputation, Rumi
considered the way to understand love of God and others was through the
experience of love itself. In other words, faith needs faith.</span><br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-NHip4iV8EtE/UGbiczb8kzI/AAAAAAAAEfI/2IE-5MbswMk/s1600/Rumitomb1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-NHip4iV8EtE/UGbiczb8kzI/AAAAAAAAEfI/2IE-5MbswMk/s320/Rumitomb1a.JPG" width="236" /></a><span style="font-family: Arial;"></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">Mevlana Rumi was born about
1207 in Balkh, on the Iranian border with Turkistan, where Zoroaster was from;
a city of many faiths reputedly founded by the Magi.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">His family fled a few years later to escape the
Mongol invaders, and after wandering through Persia, visiting Mecca for the
Hajj and staying a while in Damascus, they eventually moved to the capital city
of Seljuk territory, Konya, where his father was renowned as a teacher. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">Living
in the medrese, or theological school, Mevlana grew up learning scripture from
the most esteemed tutors of his day. After succeeding his father as professor Mevlana
went on to establish the Mevlavi Sufi order of mystical Islam.</span><br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-oW2jXvl6Xnk/UGblrgILSzI/AAAAAAAAEfo/XzA_fYPX8Ko/s1600/mevkulturctr1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="171" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-oW2jXvl6Xnk/UGblrgILSzI/AAAAAAAAEfo/XzA_fYPX8Ko/s400/mevkulturctr1a.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: Arial;">“Come, come who or whatever you are. Should you be an
unbeliever or a heretic, still, come. Our lodge is not a lodge of despair. With
a hundred repentances unheeded you may be, still, come.”~ Mevlana Rumi</span></i><span style="font-family: Arial;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Q78rIYjS3UY/UGbhzWvyYhI/AAAAAAAAEfA/ZvLlEsvptZQ/s1600/dervishstat1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Q78rIYjS3UY/UGbhzWvyYhI/AAAAAAAAEfA/ZvLlEsvptZQ/s320/dervishstat1a.JPG" width="239" /></a><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-NHip4iV8EtE/UGbiczb8kzI/AAAAAAAAEfI/2IE-5MbswMk/s1600/Rumitomb1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"></a><span style="font-family: Arial;">Mevlana Rumi is the inspiration behind and first to introduce into formalised religion the phenomenon of the trance dance “Sema”, commonly known to the world
by the name of its devotees the Whirling Dervishes. Although also performed for
tourists who arrive daily in the city of Konya to visit Rumi’s final earthly
resting place, its practitioners take the dance with its accompaniment by drum
and flute, seriously. Divided into seven sections, the dance represents the
movement of the universe and the passage of a spiritual seeker through the stages
of his or her quest to unite with God. The ‘turning’ of the Dervish dance
symbolizes the fundamental condition of existence; everything turns in harmony
with all other things.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgp0Whp3BBlMdHc1wRHyFm-IycLd1EvIolAvDUcE-P8dwaD-5mcf-onPIsQgWHXOKhWSOxIfSG1sAvBeWWioOjFv7BzxY8Zz1uCfWCLrWarlu19rzV8K9393elxXOEc18vANDkSumBFA3Mm/s1600/swirla1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgp0Whp3BBlMdHc1wRHyFm-IycLd1EvIolAvDUcE-P8dwaD-5mcf-onPIsQgWHXOKhWSOxIfSG1sAvBeWWioOjFv7BzxY8Zz1uCfWCLrWarlu19rzV8K9393elxXOEc18vANDkSumBFA3Mm/s1600/swirla1.JPG" /></a><span style="font-family: Arial;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial;">The planet turns, the galaxy
spins, protons and electrons within the atoms that make up the human body all
spin and turn in a magnificent pattern, and so do the dancers. The rotation of
the dancers mirrors the eternal balance of the forces of nature in the material
universe, whilst the ‘turning’ from outward things to inward thoughts emulates
the elevation of the mind to love and service of mankind; from the turn to
truth and abandonment of ego to union with God and a re-turn to the earth in
death before becoming a mature spirit.</span><br />
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<i><span style="font-family: Arial;"></span></i><br />
<i><span style="font-family: Arial;">I was raw, then I was cooked, now I have been burnt.”~
Mevlana Rumi</span></i><span style="font-family: Arial;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-zdffCjLed7g/UGbj-sKiVjI/AAAAAAAAEfY/QIeha7bLk18/s1600/Konyactr4a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-zdffCjLed7g/UGbj-sKiVjI/AAAAAAAAEfY/QIeha7bLk18/s320/Konyactr4a.JPG" width="298" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">When I was a child I loved
to twirl in circles, to become dizzy with delight as the blood would spin
quickly through my brain leaving me feeling light as a feather. So, I do
understand this sensation of pleasure that can come from the Dervish dance and
from the exhilaration of light-headedness. Many cultures use music and dance as
a means of achieving the impression of divine connection, and there is a great
history of poetic and rhythmical attempts to express this sensation of bodily transcendence.
However, simple physical exertion to escape corporeal entrapment of the soul
doesn’t encapsulate the totality of understanding this method of attaining
bliss. True ecstatic union is achievable only through fruitful activity.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-IhKKrEsZIpI/UGbkGxF0W3I/AAAAAAAAEfg/kAPOFy92nYo/s1600/stemcap4c.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-IhKKrEsZIpI/UGbkGxF0W3I/AAAAAAAAEfg/kAPOFy92nYo/s320/stemcap4c.JPG" width="238" /></a><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-IhKKrEsZIpI/UGbkGxF0W3I/AAAAAAAAEfg/kAPOFy92nYo/s1600/stemcap4c.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a><span style="font-family: Arial;">Archaeologists, historians
and all manner of academics seek tangible proof of their theories; if it isn’t
material culture it is disregarded as unverifiable. To dig something
substantial from the ground is remarkable, to use linguistics to unlock written
codes is clever exegesis, but to discover that connection through experience is
revelation. As an anthropologist I trust in participant-observation; that is,
to enter within and yet stand outside, to analyse from knowledge.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial;">Although icons, relics,
places of pilgrimage and holy books, or the enactment of rituals give time and substance to help connect with belief in a concrete
way, true faith is neither dependent on nor validated by material objects or
hallowed ground; it is more about awareness, a consciousness of spirit within
the atoms that create what we call real.</span><br />
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<img border="0" height="206" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-3iKVXk9uzcI/UGbl-QByncI/AAAAAAAAEfw/5R3vkG62pAA/s400/Konyamtr1a.JPG" width="400" /></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: Arial;">When knowledge acquired by mystical experience
strikes the heart it becomes a helper. When knowledge acquired through the body
strikes the senses it becomes a burden. ~ Mevlana Jelaladdin Rumi</span></i><span style="font-family: Arial;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-usW-K2rkzgw/UGbmr9q9vvI/AAAAAAAAEf4/rS4uXAaVKvE/s1600/Alaaedin1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-usW-K2rkzgw/UGbmr9q9vvI/AAAAAAAAEf4/rS4uXAaVKvE/s320/Alaaedin1a.JPG" width="267" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">Mevlana commented at various
times on all topics, including the realm of science, for which he offered additional
words of wisdom that stand as admonition to much of the work being done today:</span></div>
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<em>“the wise men of our time split a hair into forty parts and are well versed in
things which are no concern of theirs. In fact, what is of real importance is
that which is closest to them. In other words, they are ignorant of
themselves.” ~ Mevlana Jelaladdin Rumi</em></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;"><em><o:p></o:p></em></span> </div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">To Rumi, the goal of the
mystic is to attain truth through self-knowledge that is revealed by love, only
through love can love be understood, and the process of reason is inherently
incapable of explaining love. Love, he said, leads to service; a compassion for
helping others in this life, and the final section of the dance is the
expression of servitude.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;"><o:p></o:p></span> </div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-2CNOUgfyScg/UGbm2JBhK8I/AAAAAAAAEgA/h3V9ybWjIP0/s1600/chamewtsta1a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="212" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-2CNOUgfyScg/UGbm2JBhK8I/AAAAAAAAEgA/h3V9ybWjIP0/s400/chamewtsta1a.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">Though he was married twice
and had many children, his greatest love other than for God, was for his friend
and advisor Shemseddin of Tabriz who was likely killed by jealous rivals for
the position at the right hand of the mystic Mevlana. Prior to his final
disappearance, probably drowned in a well in the city, Shems had fled from
Konya after news that some of Mevlana’s disciples were plotting his murder.
During this absence, Rumi shut himself off from his followers. Attempting to
convey his overwhelming despair he wrote poetry to and about his friend and
advisor. His sorrow, it is said, was like a river flowing or volcano erupting
(something they know about in this area), and in time brought him to the
perfection of love.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMh6EiN2kupHUePo5z-WpKDkuHqEYUNRqikNHIfetgUa2bpdlCgUVe-m7hb_4ZNRa4odJnLdi6I06sDAsRfbPPiCTmpvTFpGn22LGzme6laYeHLYpHrWb0dGn-DwRShfxqnGmD7rV396ac/s1600/volcano1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMh6EiN2kupHUePo5z-WpKDkuHqEYUNRqikNHIfetgUa2bpdlCgUVe-m7hb_4ZNRa4odJnLdi6I06sDAsRfbPPiCTmpvTFpGn22LGzme6laYeHLYpHrWb0dGn-DwRShfxqnGmD7rV396ac/s400/volcano1a.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: Arial;">I reflected the images of your face like a mirror...</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: Arial;">I want nothing but his perfection, nothing but his
face…</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: Arial;">Where are your precious words now?</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: Arial;">Where is that mind that solves mysteries?</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: Arial;">Where is that foot walking in the rose garden,</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That hand
that held mine? ~ Mevlana Rumi</span></i><span style="font-family: Arial;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-nNHjFd6CbWA/UGbnbSQIxLI/AAAAAAAAEgY/BVdufvduDn0/s1600/mantarhse1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="287" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-nNHjFd6CbWA/UGbnbSQIxLI/AAAAAAAAEgY/BVdufvduDn0/s320/mantarhse1a.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">Famous for the Persian rubai, Rumi generally wrote his poems in the Mesnavi (Masnawi) style, which
is characterised by verses in couplets that have the same measure and rhyme
with each other. He wrote thousands of couplets, 25,618 on display at the
Mevlana Museum alongside his marble sarcophagus, which was donated by Suleyman
the Magnificent in 1565. His tomb is sheltered under the distinguished green
cone-shaped roof of the mausoleum. Additionally, his vast collection of lectures
and letters that touch on the themes of politics, love, religion, servitude and
Sema have been preserved for presentation to the thousands of pilgrims who
visit annually.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYBkz9vrKS3sURuuGeH32zacUArl6s5WqTiBpTXEOsZ-LC08BrRX2D316n0XcxXhjqSxhGPcxUw0I29ZqqbLvf0BbffdL_X1a4ZYSJHDXwss-7Y6GaaUS43CZgxHhhwQAeFAghWyfr3eLD/s1600/Konyactr3a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYBkz9vrKS3sURuuGeH32zacUArl6s5WqTiBpTXEOsZ-LC08BrRX2D316n0XcxXhjqSxhGPcxUw0I29ZqqbLvf0BbffdL_X1a4ZYSJHDXwss-7Y6GaaUS43CZgxHhhwQAeFAghWyfr3eLD/s400/Konyactr3a.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">With the Muslim prohibition
on graven images (not usually adhered to today) came the incredible calligraphy
that adorns so many fabulous buildings in this region, and the Mevlana museum
is exceptional in its use of this approach to decoration. </span><span style="font-family: Arial;">Colourful and
ornamental passages from the Koran and the poetry of Rumi adorn the walls and ceiling
of this impressive building. The entire city is a living museum to the history
of the Sufi way and the Mevlavi culture, and even its modern structures retain
the character of these ancient architectural techniques.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;"><o:p></o:p></span> </div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-3PXSgIZ6XDc/UGboEyrZW-I/AAAAAAAAEgo/mRFrU-3MntY/s1600/Konyafntn1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="303" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-3PXSgIZ6XDc/UGboEyrZW-I/AAAAAAAAEgo/mRFrU-3MntY/s320/Konyafntn1a.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial;">Konya is a beautiful city of
fountains and flowers, an oasis in the midst of the desert region where
Anatolia meets Cappadocia, an extensive flat plain surrounded by massive
distant mountains. It has the feel of a settled and calm retreat set amongst
the hustle and bustle of contemporary business activities. While trams flash
past and cars spin around busy traffic islands like metal dervishes, teagardens
invite the passer-by to relax and enjoy the surroundings of ancient monuments
and the permanence of a tranquil way.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">I sat under date trees on a small rise
beside the 800-year-old Ala'addin Mosque, drinking fresh orange juice. Looking
out across the Seljuk Palace and beyond to the green dome, I breathed in the
perfumed air of jasmine and honeysuckle, happy in the knowledge that I had
witnessed this sanctuary for the enlightened. It is a place I will hopefully
return to, to seek further knowledge and understanding of this discipline of the Sufi, and
explore the valuable insights of the mystic mind of Mevlana Rumi.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
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<i><span style="font-family: Arial;">“Either seem as you are, or be as you seem.”</span></i><br />
<i><span style="font-family: Arial;">~
Mevlana Jelaladdin Rumi</span></i><span style="font-family: Arial;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial;"> <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">*<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>*<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>*</span></div>
KWhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18335001094857381380noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8365597864916881666.post-13263260889629854572012-09-17T08:51:00.000+01:002012-12-05T16:46:06.331+00:00<div style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span style="color: #0b5394; font-family: Verdana; font-size: large; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><strong>Cleopatra's Bath</strong></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana;"></span> </div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-XR2nBbWP5Bg/UFbTWvOkBYI/AAAAAAAAEd4/DymZNM34ioY/s1600/pampool4a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-XR2nBbWP5Bg/UFbTWvOkBYI/AAAAAAAAEd4/DymZNM34ioY/s320/pampool4a.JPG" width="263" /></a><span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 11pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Out here in the middle of nowhere, beyond the edge of the
map, is a place so strikingly majestic, so naturally endowed with healing
properties, that Cleopatra would travel from Egypt to bathe in the thermal
springs and relax in the restorative mineral waters that cascade down the sides
of this mountain paradise. With her retinue in tow she would set up camp at the
source of the natural spring, above the cliffs in the Roman city of Hierapolis,
and be treated to a beauty regime even the wealthy of today would envy.</span></div>
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</div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Qf0ycNUTxgQ/UFZCDeb95LI/AAAAAAAAEZA/lrfXCMsExlk/s1600/pamlak2a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Qf0ycNUTxgQ/UFZCDeb95LI/AAAAAAAAEZA/lrfXCMsExlk/s320/pamlak2a.JPG" width="240" /></a><span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 11pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Pamukkale, as this region near the city of Denizli is
called, is an attraction that draws visitors from all over the world. I first
bathed in these travertine pools 20 years ago when on a drive back from Istanbul to our coastal holiday resort, my friends and I decided to detour over a hundred kilometres from the
main road to see this spectacular landscape.</span></div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 11pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 11pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Exhausted from the excitement of the big city, as we lounged in the soothing thermal waters under the burning sun, churning the fossilised
rock of thousands of years into jelly, even then we recognised the peril of unabated
tourism to these magnificent natural creations.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 11pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"></span><br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Zzb3miRDTSQ/UFZDiDP3rLI/AAAAAAAAEZQ/yXmiruhDLEc/s1600/costales1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="241" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Zzb3miRDTSQ/UFZDiDP3rLI/AAAAAAAAEZQ/yXmiruhDLEc/s400/costales1a.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 11pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"></span><span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 11pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"></span> </div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 11pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">For several thousand years these bright white cliffs and
pools, called travertine, have been a health resort for those seeking effective
management of a variety of medical conditions.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 11pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"></span> </div>
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ADp2EBoJATo/UFZD5ByzQ6I/AAAAAAAAEZY/pPtnCXXmcOE/s1600/pampool2a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ADp2EBoJATo/UFZD5ByzQ6I/AAAAAAAAEZY/pPtnCXXmcOE/s320/pampool2a.JPG" width="240" /></a><span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 11pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">The spa water is apparently an
effective remedy on everything from rheumatism to kidney and urinary tract
infection, from eye disease to ailments of the respiratory and circulatory
systems. With a temperature of 36c degrees the water is comfortably warm, and
with a Ph value of 5.8 and radon value of 1480 picocuries per litre it provides
a much sought after invigorating infusion.</span><br />
<br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 11pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"></span><span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 11pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">The spring water, high in calcium carbonate, flows down
the cliffs at 260 litres per second to form the travertine pools and slopes
that have a texture and structure similar to a coral reef.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 11pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"></span> </div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTrt70RGoAZcdHOk4fSJC1S5ChRvnEcwTv67EkSSJ7E0nke1UuVzeoCAlExnJ7afJnnGRV2ic9yBnfqrJMytRUtoWtkZp1fGZ30sUjDMZaBOwgsgqeZOlrGlhopBYQjWn-ozAQFN6XNZ1x/s1600/pampool11a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTrt70RGoAZcdHOk4fSJC1S5ChRvnEcwTv67EkSSJ7E0nke1UuVzeoCAlExnJ7afJnnGRV2ic9yBnfqrJMytRUtoWtkZp1fGZ30sUjDMZaBOwgsgqeZOlrGlhopBYQjWn-ozAQFN6XNZ1x/s320/pampool11a.JPG" width="227" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 11pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">In the past the
water flowed at 390 litres per second and the travertine were much more
numerous. In much the same way that coral reefs are being destroyed by over
fishing and tourism, the Pamukkale travertine are disintegrating due to
exposure to foot traffic and endless coach loads of curious visitors.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 11pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"></span> </div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 11pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"></span><span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 11pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Although steps have now been taken to reduce the traffic
over the travertine, allowing visitors access to a small but still significant
portion of the mountain, there has clearly already been a damaging impact on
the fragile calcium constructions.</span></div>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-qvt3sV7vsmU/UFZFLBeHAYI/AAAAAAAAEZo/pKoegY-XasQ/s1600/pamclf1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-qvt3sV7vsmU/UFZFLBeHAYI/AAAAAAAAEZo/pKoegY-XasQ/s320/pamclf1a.JPG" width="240" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 11pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">As an ancient natural formation it is of
course right that all people should be allowed to view and benefit from this
area, however adequate measures must be in place to ensure its continued growth
and lasting beauty.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 11pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"></span> </div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 11pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"></span><span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 11pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Three-quarters of the world's coral reefs are at risk due
to over-fishing, pollution, climate change and other factors.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 11pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"></span> </div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 11pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">The organisation
Reefs at Risk Revisited collates the work of hundreds of scientists from around
the world and spent three years compiling documentation on the health of coral
reefs that was publicly released last year. The main reason for that change,
the report claims, has been a massive increase in damage from exploitative
fishing, particularly in the Indian and Pacific Oceans.</span></div>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-hQ5bLI0pSmM/UFZGAdkJtGI/AAAAAAAAEZw/HRU6XfZU0QE/s1600/pamview2a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="222" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-hQ5bLI0pSmM/UFZGAdkJtGI/AAAAAAAAEZw/HRU6XfZU0QE/s400/pamview2a.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 11pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"></span><span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 11pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"></span> </div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 11pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">The damage ranges from simply catching more fish than
nature can replace to the use of extreme fishing methods such as dynamiting
fish to stun or kill them, which also blasts the coral formations to dust.
Other major threats are pollution carried in rivers, coastal development, and
global climate change.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 11pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"></span> </div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-EQMUNnCIE_k/UFZGVSoJakI/AAAAAAAAEZ4/X3-DcJw8fHc/s1600/Kcact1a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="254" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-EQMUNnCIE_k/UFZGVSoJakI/AAAAAAAAEZ4/X3-DcJw8fHc/s320/Kcact1a.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 11pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"></span><span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 11pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Coral polyps are tiny creatures that live in
partnership with algae to provide nutrition to build the reefs and give corals their array of pastel and vivid colours.
When the water gets too hot the algae are expelled and the coral turns white, a
process called bleaching. If climate projections become reality, then by 2030
roughly half of the world's reefs will experience bleaching in most years,
peaking to 95% by about 2050.</span></div>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Va_r9dVfn8I/UFZGrU6KkRI/AAAAAAAAEaA/UuV5haVIo_Y/s1600/pampool10a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="221" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Va_r9dVfn8I/UFZGrU6KkRI/AAAAAAAAEaA/UuV5haVIo_Y/s400/pampool10a.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 11pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"></span><span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 11pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"></span> </div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 11pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Having evaluated more than 2,500 protected areas of reef,
the report compiled by a group of more than 20 research and conservation
organisations, led by the World Resources Institute in Washington DC, concluded
that even though over a quarter of the world's coral is nominally protected
only one-sixth of the areas offer sufficient safeguards.</span></div>
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-tBRbRIL0Ai0/UFZH3Aq4_jI/AAAAAAAAEaI/mnG29zzk_1s/s1600/pampool8a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-tBRbRIL0Ai0/UFZH3Aq4_jI/AAAAAAAAEaI/mnG29zzk_1s/s320/pampool8a.JPG" width="240" /></a><span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 11pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 11pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">In Pamukkale, a UNESCO World Heritage site, matters have
improved over the past twenty years as the management organisation has tried to
balance the demands of tourism with the protection of this unique and delicate
environment.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 11pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 11pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">When I first visited people swarmed over the cliffs in flip-flops,
swimming in the pools and jumping from level to level without regard for the
chunks of calcium and carbonate stone that chipped off under their feet. </span><span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 11pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Thankfully, evident disregard for the monumental
precipices no longer happens.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 11pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"></span> </div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJaLJ3L6IjFSVlHl5jfStvHC_4mZZ8MvJr2ht3LvEuoSlt6RDl5ztPJ0Iu-e1FBLKb7MNm9PdpWxaxCZBnp3E_cVsl6pVGO-kQgerJOJ_iRirqGBNL3ap29s24OXRslQEDW_zLrUlzjfO4/s1600/pamglide1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJaLJ3L6IjFSVlHl5jfStvHC_4mZZ8MvJr2ht3LvEuoSlt6RDl5ztPJ0Iu-e1FBLKb7MNm9PdpWxaxCZBnp3E_cVsl6pVGO-kQgerJOJ_iRirqGBNL3ap29s24OXRslQEDW_zLrUlzjfO4/s400/pamglide1a.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 11pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">There are still thousands of tourists
arriving every summer, but access has been limited to certain areas that are
frequently monitored for harmful effects. Also, the day-trippers (yes, I
recognise my place in the hordes of sightseers) are now asked to remove all
footwear and can only view most of the site through cameras and strategically
positioned binoculars.</span><br />
</div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-LvB-oOlrIT8/UFZUycRv4DI/AAAAAAAAEcw/Io-kFn9dS_g/s1600/pamview3a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="195" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-LvB-oOlrIT8/UFZUycRv4DI/AAAAAAAAEcw/Io-kFn9dS_g/s200/pamview3a.JPG" width="200" /></a><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-LvB-oOlrIT8/UFZUycRv4DI/AAAAAAAAEcw/Io-kFn9dS_g/s1600/pamview3a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a><span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 11pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">The normal condition of the travertine is a dry, solid
state, so some of the natural spring water is artificially directed over parts
of the travertine to create the stunning and visually dazzling vista most
people associate with the site. Many people still bathe in the accessible thermal
ponds, and rub the soft mineral-rich mud all over their bodies in hopes of a
curative for ailments or skin beautifying enhancement.</span></div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 11pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-iSPVmPMkPWw/UFZOzny2NjI/AAAAAAAAEbo/W25MqBw7Jeg/s1600/pamtrav7a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-iSPVmPMkPWw/UFZOzny2NjI/AAAAAAAAEbo/W25MqBw7Jeg/s320/pamtrav7a.JPG" width="288" /></a><span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 11pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Therefore the pools are
regularly emptied and dried to prevent the build up of moss and dirt that can
discolour or erode the rock face, and to preserve the beauty of this
exceptional location for future generations.</span></div>
<br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 11pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">I</span><span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 11pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">’m glad to see progress in the conservation work
happening at this amazing place, and hope my contribution to a healthy and
beautiful world has an influence, regardless how small, on maintaining the
sanctuary of this site for others.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 11pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"></span> </div>
<div style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-t_S1ocA6J44/UFZKFGhJiiI/AAAAAAAAEag/83sB9DaRpRw/s1600/KWpam1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-t_S1ocA6J44/UFZKFGhJiiI/AAAAAAAAEag/83sB9DaRpRw/s200/KWpam1a.JPG" width="200" /></a><span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 11pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">I enjoyed the experience of the therapeutic effects and delighted once again in the visual splendour of this
outstanding wonder of the world. I wish you too could experience this magical radiant region, climb the strangely grainy cliffs to bathe in the thermal mineral water where Cleopatra came to rejuvenate surrounded by the scenic beauty of this natural environment, and participate in the conservation of these spectacular travertine pools.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana;">* * *</span></div>
KWhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18335001094857381380noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8365597864916881666.post-6767183868854368442012-09-01T22:29:00.001+01:002012-12-05T16:49:00.557+00:00<div style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Tahoma;"><span style="color: #674ea7; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><strong>Somewhere in the Middle of Nowhere</strong></span></span></div>
<div style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana;"></span> </div>
<div style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-R1RypswvxHA/UD9Pxy8oh6I/AAAAAAAAETg/ssh7BKmwihw/s1600/1signpost3b.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-R1RypswvxHA/UD9Pxy8oh6I/AAAAAAAAETg/ssh7BKmwihw/s320/1signpost3b.JPG" width="252" /></a><i><span style="font-family: Tahoma;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">There’s an old joke that
goes like this: A group of women are protesting at the American nuclear
naval base at Holy Loch in western Scotland, watched over by a
few bored sailors. One elderly lady holds up a placard and shouts
to a young recruit, “hey, why don’t you take those nuclear missiles and
stick them in the middle of nowhere?” The sailor replies, “lady, I’m from
Brooklyn, believe me this <b>is</b> the middle of nowhere.”<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">
<span style="font-family: Tahoma;"></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Tahoma;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">It’s amusing the way
perceptions are coloured by different visions of the world and one’s sense of
place. What may seem off the beaten track to one person is the centre of the
social world for another.</span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Tahoma;"><span style="font-family: Verdana;"></span></span> </div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Nj58x0PBixY/UD9SL7pP4QI/AAAAAAAAEUk/GO8VK9K6n2E/s1600/shipspass1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Nj58x0PBixY/UD9SL7pP4QI/AAAAAAAAEUk/GO8VK9K6n2E/s320/shipspass1a.JPG" width="259" /></a><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Nj58x0PBixY/UD9SL7pP4QI/AAAAAAAAEUk/GO8VK9K6n2E/s1600/shipspass1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"></a><span style="font-family: Tahoma;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Whether humans emerged in a particular place then
spread around the globe in a manner of diffusion, or there was a simultaneous
but divergent evolution of the species in various parts of the planet we might
never know, but either way we’ve since managed to circumnavigate
Earth, mapping time along the way. We’ve also pretty much run out of places to
discover, populate and exploit that haven’t already seen activity from some culture or
other.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Tahoma;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Even so, there are still
amazing and jaw-droopingly stunning places in this world that most Westerners
don’t know exist.</span></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; text-align: left;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-c5pbn9qo1NA/UEAYkzHrkfI/AAAAAAAAEVw/yconU_-M_dc/s1600/helichut1b.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-c5pbn9qo1NA/UEAYkzHrkfI/AAAAAAAAEVw/yconU_-M_dc/s320/helichut1b.JPG" width="301" /></a><span style="font-family: Tahoma;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">There are fascinating cultures with fine art and complex
architecture, beautiful music and dance and stories as rich as the tapestries
draped in great cathedrals that some simply don’t understand or appreciate. The
same applies to people in other places whose awareness of the world is also
tainted by religious and ethnic stereotypes and government propaganda
insinuated into the imagination of its populace through a complicit, or at the
very least acquiescent media.</span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; text-align: left;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNa26HUKhWFvfY3aZHQ_tvq-1GXkuAhAcYqOnkbxr620Ull1yltXzC5pL5n7zWkAsCiDcV4T_DjSZZSViblQd_ipFHobHlye6rlb0wuMoLMk4DoCt5k4kOi8kqwFBNH7QthFBZYojxBkS3/s1600/solofly1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNa26HUKhWFvfY3aZHQ_tvq-1GXkuAhAcYqOnkbxr620Ull1yltXzC5pL5n7zWkAsCiDcV4T_DjSZZSViblQd_ipFHobHlye6rlb0wuMoLMk4DoCt5k4kOi8kqwFBNH7QthFBZYojxBkS3/s1600/solofly1a.JPG" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNa26HUKhWFvfY3aZHQ_tvq-1GXkuAhAcYqOnkbxr620Ull1yltXzC5pL5n7zWkAsCiDcV4T_DjSZZSViblQd_ipFHobHlye6rlb0wuMoLMk4DoCt5k4kOi8kqwFBNH7QthFBZYojxBkS3/s1600/solofly1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"></a><span style="font-family: Tahoma;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Global news organisations
are controlled by a very few people and hugely wealthy organisations whose
interest lies in distributing a version of events that maintains the power
structure of the industrial-consumerist enterprise, and the people who report
for them are simply cogs in the machine of the crisis and disaster business.
I’ve become so disgusted by and yet indifferent to the biased accounts of
events I see regularly on the corporate news channels that I’ve simply stopped
watching television.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Tahoma;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"></span></span> </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Tahoma;"></span><span style="font-family: Tahoma;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">You wouldn’t believe how
much less stress I have in my life because every minor problem somewhere that
is blown up into a major incident by these hounds of tragedy no longer actually
affects me personally. In fact they never did, but now at least I don’t have to
hear about it from these in-your-face soundbite-programmed sources.</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Tahoma;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"></span></span> </div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Y_ndZ5YIYIg/UEAZM_lT5rI/AAAAAAAAEWA/MDkWGoac5bU/s1600/antglac1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Y_ndZ5YIYIg/UEAZM_lT5rI/AAAAAAAAEWA/MDkWGoac5bU/s400/antglac1a.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Tahoma;"></span><span style="font-family: Tahoma;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"></span></span> </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Tahoma;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Perhaps that sounds a bit
like I’m hiding from the world here in the middle of nowhere. On the contrary,
I’m more involved now than I had been for a few years before
leaving the security of middle England and America, not simply letting
life wash over me filling my mind with sadness and trouble.</span></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; text-align: left;">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-W_8gayZW8BY/UEAfyWDFbuI/AAAAAAAAEX4/OsgQ0ZvaIFE/s1600/chandlebar1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a><br /></div>
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-W_8gayZW8BY/UEAfyWDFbuI/AAAAAAAAEX4/OsgQ0ZvaIFE/s1600/chandlebar1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-W_8gayZW8BY/UEAfyWDFbuI/AAAAAAAAEX4/OsgQ0ZvaIFE/s320/chandlebar1.JPG" width="320" /></a><span style="font-family: Tahoma;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">I'm definitely somewhere. Most westerners may not be familiar with here, but
it’s the heart of my world and the pulse of life is all around. Observing
actual experience and becoming a participant is liberating and gives one a direct sense of influence over what is happening than sitting in front of a
flickering screen absorbing the negative and harmful ions that beam out at us
from all corners of the globe.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Tahoma;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"></span></span> </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; text-align: left;">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-QKsurtd12T8/UEAbEZZ9ABI/AAAAAAAAEWQ/utG15_UuttM/s1600/cotcandy1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-QKsurtd12T8/UEAbEZZ9ABI/AAAAAAAAEWQ/utG15_UuttM/s320/cotcandy1a.JPG" width="240" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Tahoma;"></span><span style="font-family: Tahoma;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">I worked for many years in
hospitals and homes for the mentally ill, and it is interesting that
schizophrenics would frequently present themselves saying that “rays and beams”
were being aimed at them. Naturally, this is a culturally constructed
manifestation of the condition of paranoia (one of the 4 attendant symptoms of
the diagnosis), however, how far from the truth are they?</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Tahoma;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"></span></span> </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Tahoma;"></span><span style="font-family: Tahoma;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Their extreme response and
inability to adapt to the stress of life pushed them over the edge into that
‘abnormal’ state of mind where treatment became necessary. But the rest of us,
the sane ones, we simply put the madness of the world on the back burner, bury
it in some closet of the mind and carry on about our business while the bombs
drop and the children starve and the truly insane ones behead people for
dancing.</span></span></div>
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</div>
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNZUSir_clcTvWj3jiIcfwil78CDEq5rWRKHy78hPPOXCMYGYiU95jbT_JVtuBGJWssVPLxRnvxppR-GUFiPIIEMkii4qVBGQcfGxxq7YUl9CMeV5GtN0n53FHdxJ8F3LmUb1rlw9G21px/s1600/slidstr1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNZUSir_clcTvWj3jiIcfwil78CDEq5rWRKHy78hPPOXCMYGYiU95jbT_JVtuBGJWssVPLxRnvxppR-GUFiPIIEMkii4qVBGQcfGxxq7YUl9CMeV5GtN0n53FHdxJ8F3LmUb1rlw9G21px/s320/slidstr1a.JPG" width="320" /></a><span style="font-family: Tahoma;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">I had a friend who
slept with the radio tuned to a news station all night, and woke up every morning feeling depressed and run-down. I told her I used
to do that but had realised the negative effects of hearing bad news, even
in my sleep, was causing me to feel more weary than rested. I suggested she try
what I had done and listen to easy listening or classical
music. She didn’t, and her constant anxiety and frantic behaviour continued.</span></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; text-align: left;">
</div>
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRbkcMx0hE9OVyZFe62sb-hxwe2T0I0I918NeEAzQX-YOBy8dRTLqhC-YHKd6HXZ3oykcm458XEoxCoYBoFjWxiJGfT1rEo5Mh3WlAxJnnBQVkmGE0Wa0KPJ1Q69SRA9ZWw7H_A8dzuBRM/s1600/Kostail1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRbkcMx0hE9OVyZFe62sb-hxwe2T0I0I918NeEAzQX-YOBy8dRTLqhC-YHKd6HXZ3oykcm458XEoxCoYBoFjWxiJGfT1rEo5Mh3WlAxJnnBQVkmGE0Wa0KPJ1Q69SRA9ZWw7H_A8dzuBRM/s320/Kostail1a.JPG" width="204" /></a><span style="font-family: Tahoma;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">While I hope she no longer
surrounds herself with the depressive misfortunes of this world that dragged
her dreams into darkness, I now sleep to the chant of crickets and wake to the
songs of birds. What a difference it makes to one’s state of mind to slumber to
the lullaby of nature.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana;"></span> </div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">
</span></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i><span style="font-family: Tahoma;">Everybody knows this is nowhere ~ Neil Young</span></i><span style="font-family: Tahoma;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">
</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Tahoma;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Tahoma;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Over the past few weeks
I’ve been on the road again, down the coast past the middle of nowhere to the
beautiful Mediterranean city of Antalya, with its many extravagant fountains
and urban parks in full bloom. I visited the region on assignment and stayed a
few nights at a lovely hotel on the famous Lara Beach where I was the only native
English speaker.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana;"></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh11Unh2mcDzHKW371xy8GiDGxRBoeb9WgdIYSq61cNS7eeL3t1jXgYaLeyuqXB_uW2pRy-M874TBuy9H_PLJydDKcYhi-9zPo925ci2dw-q1wbJK6uFVspcg-soq2Q8Ijqyk34IKeWgUzu/s1600/antpirate1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="178" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh11Unh2mcDzHKW371xy8GiDGxRBoeb9WgdIYSq61cNS7eeL3t1jXgYaLeyuqXB_uW2pRy-M874TBuy9H_PLJydDKcYhi-9zPo925ci2dw-q1wbJK6uFVspcg-soq2Q8Ijqyk34IKeWgUzu/s400/antpirate1a.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Tahoma;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Tahoma;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">There were the usual German, French and Turkish guests, though
several parties of Iranians were also enjoying their summer holidays, and
everyone was using English to communicate outside his or her respective group.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Tahoma;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"></span></span> </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; text-align: left;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-iMNian9DMcU/UEAcJXv6k9I/AAAAAAAAEWw/zBnBBKTMUNA/s1600/antbook1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="164" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-iMNian9DMcU/UEAcJXv6k9I/AAAAAAAAEWw/zBnBBKTMUNA/s200/antbook1.JPG" width="200" /></a><span style="font-family: Tahoma;"></span><span style="font-family: Tahoma;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">The global language, as
some of my students have called it, is quickly becoming an indispensable tool.
Whether of a personal or business nature people everywhere uses these same
verbal symbols to establish contacts and relationships and exchange information
for all sorts of purposes. However, the variety and form of English is subject
to change according to education, employment and method of learning.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Tahoma;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"></span></span> </div>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYxfQ-0nAHXsYOX3EXQx3ab3m1hji0RctPrRv3ScUgjDAJaSZCu5gLbANr71A9CGDRu33sr9pwbri3B_4kl2vckVN5cknSSDQAGjMYtFNk-JtN0MffRdw8fnGFjOdLM3ftvofUjCKCQ03Q/s1600/antfishman2a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYxfQ-0nAHXsYOX3EXQx3ab3m1hji0RctPrRv3ScUgjDAJaSZCu5gLbANr71A9CGDRu33sr9pwbri3B_4kl2vckVN5cknSSDQAGjMYtFNk-JtN0MffRdw8fnGFjOdLM3ftvofUjCKCQ03Q/s1600/antfishman2a.JPG" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Tahoma;"></span><span style="font-family: Tahoma;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Regardless of the standard
of teaching local parlance is still thrown in to the mix, which results in some
very interesting compositions. With work in editing and publication coming my
way, I know I’ve got my job cut out for me when I read some of the translations
in magazines and brochures, and even published books.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Tahoma;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"></span></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-mt_Pd6tIIgw/UEAdNjgzCsI/AAAAAAAAEXI/KKcXxSkfaH8/s1600/antbookphoto1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="111" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-mt_Pd6tIIgw/UEAdNjgzCsI/AAAAAAAAEXI/KKcXxSkfaH8/s200/antbookphoto1.JPG" width="200" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Tahoma;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Although this book,
presented to me as a gift by the hotel staff in Antalya, has some stunning
photographs of the region. Interestingly, one of the photos is almost identical
to one I took myself while visiting Dudem Falls; apparently people go fishing
daily in this same spot in the mist of the roaring water.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Tahoma;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></span> </div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">
</span></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: Tahoma;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Wherever we may wander, wherever we may roam,</span></span></i></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i><span style="font-family: Tahoma;">the
centre of the circle will always be our home ~ John Lennon</span></i><span style="font-family: Tahoma;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">
<span style="font-family: Tahoma;"></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Tahoma;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"></span></span> </div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeRewbzT86UaiL-LRZ7VFqullxxevQVFRpZ1tNNZdPlouiOojvfxumfGaag5uOeBa0bPEVusR9yr4FCSFMcTgXzYSYTKKtpJYTpar4UMwsZhVNAv2J4DCEhLz9Ly06DzINW_Y0vYJMLCoI/s1600/whatdickens1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeRewbzT86UaiL-LRZ7VFqullxxevQVFRpZ1tNNZdPlouiOojvfxumfGaag5uOeBa0bPEVusR9yr4FCSFMcTgXzYSYTKKtpJYTpar4UMwsZhVNAv2J4DCEhLz9Ly06DzINW_Y0vYJMLCoI/s200/whatdickens1a.JPG" width="197" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Tahoma;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">The luxurious hotel I teach
at a couple days each week is a strict Islamic complex with separate swimming
pools for men and women and not a bar in sight; I’m always the only non-Muslim
in the compound, and treated with great respect. This resort on the Med was
fully integrated. There were a few women sitting around the pool area or on the
beach wearing long coats and headscarves (God only knows how they manage in the
50c degree heat and stifling humidity reminiscent of the USA’s East Coast at
its worst), however, most were in bikinis and happily benefiting from the
therapeutic sunshine, drinking margaritas and splashing in the sparkling clear
water.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Tahoma;"></span><span style="font-family: Tahoma;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"></span></span><br />
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-waTZR7aHTXw/UEAbRRPdTqI/AAAAAAAAEWY/zbd3UOcGBrA/s1600/dewil1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-waTZR7aHTXw/UEAbRRPdTqI/AAAAAAAAEWY/zbd3UOcGBrA/s320/dewil1a.JPG" width="320" /></a><span style="font-family: Tahoma;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">I wondered how many
Westerners have ever thought about Iranians taking holidays never mind wearing
swimsuits, smoking and drinking alcohol and associating freely with people from
other countries. Let's be straight about this, I don't want Iran having nuclear power, or the technology to make weapons. But, I don't want anyone having that power regardless of their political association or nationality, not the USA or UK or Israel, not Pakistan or India, not Japan or Germany, no one. There are alternative energy sources available if we would invest in the future of these cleaner methods.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Tahoma;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Tahoma;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Wouldn’t it be wonderful if every day people could cast out their
line into the sea of culture and find something sporting and exciting to
grapple with, just for the enjoyment of it? Difference is what makes us all
unique, and in diversity we find similarities.</span></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihe6SnJB4s-ldMk3LVp2J5nhUUJ2BcySxhm98S4-s_oiFdW8ZABzYGXnYfY3wCN62ZbC049ck0alB6TgMpTNxvpCB8bCFCXWcaZn8Jjbej7BDVc3d4dp_sfdVIilLl4dnCWsgWBIVdw-Oi/s1600/sweetstuff2a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a><br /></div>
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihe6SnJB4s-ldMk3LVp2J5nhUUJ2BcySxhm98S4-s_oiFdW8ZABzYGXnYfY3wCN62ZbC049ck0alB6TgMpTNxvpCB8bCFCXWcaZn8Jjbej7BDVc3d4dp_sfdVIilLl4dnCWsgWBIVdw-Oi/s1600/sweetstuff2a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihe6SnJB4s-ldMk3LVp2J5nhUUJ2BcySxhm98S4-s_oiFdW8ZABzYGXnYfY3wCN62ZbC049ck0alB6TgMpTNxvpCB8bCFCXWcaZn8Jjbej7BDVc3d4dp_sfdVIilLl4dnCWsgWBIVdw-Oi/s320/sweetstuff2a.JPG" width="164" /></a><span style="font-family: Tahoma;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">An anthropologist mentor from the University of Maryland once told me that differences within cultures are greater than
differences between cultures. If everyone understood that simple fact then
just maybe there would be less enmity and strife and unnecessary misunderstanding and we could rid the
world of politicians and those who create and thrive on catastrophe and chaos.
How much more civilised and cultured could we be as humans if everyone tried to
learn from each other? What level of freedom we could enjoy if all people were
able to express their culture in a tolerant and involved society.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Tahoma;"><span style="font-family: Tahoma; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;"><em><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Utopia: 1551 from Modern Latin, lit. “nowhere”,
first used by Thomas More as the short title of his book (1516) about an
imaginary island enjoying perfect legal, social and political systems, from
Greek ou “not” and topos “place”.</span></em></span></span></div>
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<img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-eGWX6zVU5zg/UEAeUsPqFxI/AAAAAAAAEXg/EQ1GPkOeoWw/s320/setshipsal1a.JPG" width="231" /></div>
<span style="font-family: Tahoma;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Freedom has obligations as
well as rights, and that means respect for others without harming anyone else
along the way. Relativists consider all cultures and truths as equally valid,
but how do we in the rest of the world deal with the mindless savagery of those
people who abhor dancing and the ordinary enjoyment of gender-integrated
companionship so deeply that they would kill those who engage in this natural
human activity?</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Tahoma;"></span><span style="font-family: Tahoma;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">I’m a great believer in
education and that through knowledge we come to understanding and compassion,
though in the meantime, something must be done to prevent these acts of terror,
everyone everywhere must stand against this insanity.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Tahoma;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Tahoma;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">It seems to me that the
middle of nowhere is a state of mind, and those who refuse to respect free will
are smack dab in the centre of mystery and fear, and that is a dark and
dreadful place.</span></span></div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-17ASQr3HMFA/UEAefDw2oMI/AAAAAAAAEXo/b_60pEHgB7s/s1600/sunsetant2a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-17ASQr3HMFA/UEAefDw2oMI/AAAAAAAAEXo/b_60pEHgB7s/s320/sunsetant2a.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Tahoma;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">It's a funny old world, as they say, but I love the variety and splendour of life in a liberated contemporary society, and through education and try to do my part to calm the choppy sea of confusion that other less well-meaning people spread with culutral disinformation and bitter lies about spiritual truths.</span></span></div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-hbARPoaYOp8/UEAeqdrFjPI/AAAAAAAAEXw/ntcINYSIx5Q/s1600/KWboatswim1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-hbARPoaYOp8/UEAeqdrFjPI/AAAAAAAAEXw/ntcINYSIx5Q/s1600/KWboatswim1a.JPG" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Tahoma;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Let's hope a light will soon appear in the hearts and minds of these madmen and all people can live to express joy and happiness without fear of reprisal from the deceptive and violent evil ones who claim to act in the name of God. Love truly is the answer to all of life's most difficult questions. Through sharing that truth we come to wisdom, for love in all its many forms is the starting point and the finish line, the alpha and omega, the beginning and the end of wisdom.</span></span></div>
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KWhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18335001094857381380noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8365597864916881666.post-45715780027417924462012-08-21T08:06:00.001+01:002012-12-05T16:51:35.964+00:00<div style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span style="color: orange; font-family: Tahoma; font-size: large;"><strong>The Curiosity of Pipe Dreams</strong></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Tahoma;"><em>Life on Mars? Or, Life on Earth?</em></span></div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-6prh_vV41dQ/UDMj5MfYbmI/AAAAAAAAERI/OrZf3__Zbis/s1600/dragfly1b.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="236" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-6prh_vV41dQ/UDMj5MfYbmI/AAAAAAAAERI/OrZf3__Zbis/s320/dragfly1b.JPG" width="320" /></a><span style="font-family: Tahoma; mso-bidi-font-size: 8.5pt;">NBC
News, 11th August 2012: </span><i><span style="font-family: Tahoma; mso-bidi-font-size: 9.5pt;">This week's arrival of NASA's Mars rover Curiosity set the
stage for a potentially game-changing quest to learn whether the planet most
like Earth ever had a shot at developing life, but follow-up missions exist only
on drawing boards.</span></i><span style="font-family: Tahoma;"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Tahoma;">I sit late at night on the
terrace off the sitting room of the top storey and gaze with curiosity up at the stars. The
sky is so clear here where no city blurs the darkness with neon, so the heavens
blaze with a thousand points of light. I point out to myself the recognisable
luminescent clouds of burning gas and spinning rocks that humans named
and have tracked for thousands of years.</span><br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/--LcIc4FpXhk/UDIP9kEVEjI/AAAAAAAAEN0/rLXMo759VSo/s1600/antrainbow1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="238" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/--LcIc4FpXhk/UDIP9kEVEjI/AAAAAAAAEN0/rLXMo759VSo/s400/antrainbow1a.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Tahoma;">There’s Saturn and twinkling beyond the
edge of the crescent moon is Venus I think to myself, over there is Polaris
beckoning me toward some distant location. Overhead are cloudy nebulae, tiny
iridescent red giants and the streak of meteorites gathering wishes from
lovers, though we know they are melting rock and ice burning through the
atmosphere.</span><br />
<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilqcYWDS2QrAWLAs7MnZebDP105SZbGRZCHASP0PCJUQ4j9jo4ty_Y3ojM9_cEip2icqbZ22aIRFjMBxGi2WSDQ4j4VqcWbe_FATXkgp5BWlN_VIPyZtqlT0FGQt5btNV2uIbCS4JI1wkJ/s1600/Bgam1b.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilqcYWDS2QrAWLAs7MnZebDP105SZbGRZCHASP0PCJUQ4j9jo4ty_Y3ojM9_cEip2icqbZ22aIRFjMBxGi2WSDQ4j4VqcWbe_FATXkgp5BWlN_VIPyZtqlT0FGQt5btNV2uIbCS4JI1wkJ/s200/Bgam1b.JPG" width="137" /></a><span style="font-family: Tahoma;">My pipe stands beside me, scenting the air with the aromatic
fragrance of apple and honeydew, the water bubbling under hot coals, and I
breathe in the dreams of infinity.</span></div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-b2_v7pmrJ0A/UDIROur7SYI/AAAAAAAAEOE/bL2iS7JRWDs/s1600/litehsekpr1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-b2_v7pmrJ0A/UDIROur7SYI/AAAAAAAAEOE/bL2iS7JRWDs/s320/litehsekpr1a.JPG" width="235" /></a><span style="font-family: Tahoma;">I’ve been accused of having
the occasional pipe dream when I tell people my future plans, yet here I am.
Most of those people are the type who never leave their hometown and expect
their friends and family to do the same, for all time – as though their
ancestors didn’t arrive from somewhere. Unfortunately, many grow old without experiencing the riches of other cultures first-hand
and learning the independence and openness of mind that comes from frequent
travel and living abroad. Do some people simply lack an innate sense of curiosity?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Tahoma;">Are all forms of travel
necessary to learn about the human condition? A few days ago I read an ‘open
letter’ posted on Facebook that went like this: <i>Dear religion, while you
were arguing over which chicken sandwich it was okay to eat, I’ve landed on
Mars. Yours, Science</i>. What a load of rubbish. This intentionally
antagonistic post is entirely misleading on several counts, and clearly written by someone whose lack of understanding in matters of theological debate is equal to their ignorance of science.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-zXj2x7ATvpE/UDISvzE8GXI/AAAAAAAAEOM/1fAXwgGv3bY/s1600/antdoves1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-zXj2x7ATvpE/UDISvzE8GXI/AAAAAAAAEOM/1fAXwgGv3bY/s320/antdoves1a.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Tahoma;">There isn’t a religion in
the world arguing over which chicken sandwich is okay – for those that advocate
giving up meat, chicken is simply off the menu, and for those that accept fowl
eaters as part of their flock how chicken is cooked or served is of no
relevance. Secondly, no one has landed on Mars. A camera landed on the surface
and sent back photos of rocks and a rugged surface of what appear to be
mountains – at extraordinary expense.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Tahoma;">What if a person had
touched down on the red planet? Does that disprove the notion of God? Not at
all, for any God worthy of that title either created what exists beyond the
firmament and is therefore independent of our trivial validation, or exists in
some alternative realm that is not enslaved to the material, as we currently
are. Does it fly in the face of religion? Well, only the most conceited and
ridiculously obstinate forms of fundamentalist tripe that refuses to
acknowledge allegory and metaphor as legitimate forms of truth and narrative.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcTpYPpP9f2YSyaI0x8oDLuNKa8iIt9K1ELA4ouzO-Q853J_SPjtzgD2lpuTHkPcUwKGh3rLSXgvTadnkgoivDZLNrPIFWsoOYlWIwfcehOrXXI0jXF3SkiUIrMSxdd5UCy4Cn77fFZhm7/s1600/bellydance3a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcTpYPpP9f2YSyaI0x8oDLuNKa8iIt9K1ELA4ouzO-Q853J_SPjtzgD2lpuTHkPcUwKGh3rLSXgvTadnkgoivDZLNrPIFWsoOYlWIwfcehOrXXI0jXF3SkiUIrMSxdd5UCy4Cn77fFZhm7/s320/bellydance3a.JPG" width="239" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Tahoma;">A couple weeks ago Jeremy
Paxman, a highly intelligent if somewhat arrogant television interviewer in the
UK, got in a bit of bother when he said anyone who believes in the literal
interpretation of the Genesis creation was “stupid”. Quite right Mr Paxman.
However, anyone who doesn’t appreciate the marvellous imagery and symbol-laden
telling of our origins with its revealed logic, veiled meaning and predictive sequence
of events is also a fool and an imbecile. There is much to be learned about our
sense of identity, and consequent to its importance in so many cultures over
several millennia a whole host of subsequent literary and creative references
to be found in this account (and throughout the entire volume of books we call
the Bible) that anyone unfamiliar with the stories and tradition, poems and letters and
myths and parables is lost to the world of art and ignorant in the revelation of history.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-XXJkDrLEHFw/UDIU45BzcGI/AAAAAAAAEOc/_m2mGsT0M14/s1600/antline1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-XXJkDrLEHFw/UDIU45BzcGI/AAAAAAAAEOc/_m2mGsT0M14/s400/antline1a.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
<span style="font-family: Tahoma;">However, more importantly
for the purposes of this post, what if people do visit Mars or any other
planet? What good has come from the moon landing over 40 years ago? Teflon?
Could the scientific advances made due to rocket-based space flight have come
about by directing resources into more human-focused services? In what way has
a person landing on the Moon changed life for the better?</span><br />
<br />
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-f3lL8N3SFJw/UDIVUTgM15I/AAAAAAAAEOk/vg4y2mXVudg/s1600/joinme1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-f3lL8N3SFJw/UDIVUTgM15I/AAAAAAAAEOk/vg4y2mXVudg/s320/joinme1a.JPG" width="240" /></a><span style="font-family: Tahoma;">Have we gained
insight into the human condition or developed energy substitutes that free us
from petrochemical dependence? No. Instead, we’ve now given up the shuttle
program and resorted to missile based launches to throw inanimate machines into
the void in hopes of capturing a photo for those who care about irrelevancies
such as where in the universe there might be another planet with earth-like
properties.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Tahoma;">If we locate another
potential life-sustaining rock spinning around a star somewhere on the other
side of the Milky Way what knowledge will be gained? Oh look, two hundred
million light years away is a probable planet that might possibly have some potential
for life forms. Did we need to spend billions upon billions to acknowledge
chance through ‘scientific’ corroboration? We will never be able to physically
arrive at any planet orbiting a star many millions of light years away –
certainly not in our lifetime, and not without entirely revising Einstein’s
equations. Talk about pipe dreams!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-aGUmjCHV5DY/UDIWVDkkNsI/AAAAAAAAEO0/_Lshsxgvtqs/s1600/bigbang1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="257" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-aGUmjCHV5DY/UDIWVDkkNsI/AAAAAAAAEO0/_Lshsxgvtqs/s320/bigbang1a.JPG" width="320" /></a><span style="font-family: Tahoma;">I wonder whether modern
astronomers are actually more enlightened than ancient astrologers from China
or Greece. They have telescopes capable of seeing into the past – for that is
what we see when we look to the sky at night – light from prehistoric suns, but
what more have they taught us?</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Tahoma;">If a star is a million light years away that
means it has taken a million years at the speed of light to reach earth. Given
that it takes about 8 minutes for light to arrive on earth from our own sun,
and it takes several days for our rockets just to reach the Moon, and Mars is
but a stone’s throw in the vastness of space, just try to imagine how far away
those stars are from us. Perhaps you’ll need a pipe to dream that far into the
future, or rather, the past.</span><br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-6rTtAgofVro/UDMpar_0PpI/AAAAAAAAESU/pMqT--0Z9Wo/s1600/Icarus1c.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-6rTtAgofVro/UDMpar_0PpI/AAAAAAAAESU/pMqT--0Z9Wo/s320/Icarus1c.JPG" width="242" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Tahoma;">The ancients looked up to
the sky and creatively connected the dots to give names to groups of stars; we
still call these collections of twinkling lights the constellations. They
didn’t really believe those stars were crabs and scorpions or winged horses and
raging bulls, however, they recognised that giving semblance of order to those
pinpoints of illumination enabled people to use the gift of imagination to
better characterize understanding of relationship to these distant objects. Now
we ‘discover’ new stars every day as we peer further into the void, and we
number them or give them the name of their ‘discoverer’, and who remembers or
cares about these practically invisible dots other than committed astronomers.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-9ljgIRpiMP8/UDIWl_13fgI/AAAAAAAAEO8/1Kl-_gQXd9s/s1600/augustmoon1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-9ljgIRpiMP8/UDIWl_13fgI/AAAAAAAAEO8/1Kl-_gQXd9s/s320/augustmoon1a.JPG" width="240" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Tahoma;">When I was a child I
believed in space exploration and even built replica Apollo and Gemini rockets
when that dream was so close to reality. (Though I wonder now about those
landings: not the argument of conspiracy theorists on plastic flags, but rather
the improbable physics of force of propulsion without resistance of atmosphere).</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Tahoma;">I’ve read both scientific journals and fantasy fiction on space travel and
future development of colonies in distant places, seeing the human race as
potentially space conquering beings whose future was among the stars.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Tahoma;">Of
course, I’d love the excitement of the solar system and black holes and all the
other weird phenomena to capture the imagination of today’s youth the way my
friends and I were captivated during the Apollo 11 mission, but, I would rather
we allocated those funds to eradicating poverty than pictures of lifeless
mountains on dead planets.</span><br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-9f74s0-LcVU/UDIXJHWAb5I/AAAAAAAAEPE/cHjjsGUFXAs/s1600/antglac4a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-9f74s0-LcVU/UDIXJHWAb5I/AAAAAAAAEPE/cHjjsGUFXAs/s400/antglac4a.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
<span style="font-family: Tahoma;">If you think those pictures of Mars are amazing, look at Earth and see some truly awesome sights, then work to protect our planet rather than sitting idly at a telescope and gazing with irrational unfulfilled curiosity into the emptiness of an airless space.</span></div>
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-jrKf3ZY8TUE/UDMrF-7ouEI/AAAAAAAAESc/4WiSBdGado0/s1600/Alpsflight1a+(2).JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a><br />
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-jrKf3ZY8TUE/UDMrF-7ouEI/AAAAAAAAESc/4WiSBdGado0/s1600/Alpsflight1a+(2).JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-jrKf3ZY8TUE/UDMrF-7ouEI/AAAAAAAAESc/4WiSBdGado0/s320/Alpsflight1a+(2).JPG" width="320" /></a><span style="font-family: Tahoma; mso-bidi-font-size: 9.5pt;">Personally, I prefer mountains on earth with
shades of greens and browns rising where rivulets of glacial
water enriched fertile soil, to sandy and rough ochre tinged
precipices offering strength to vegetation clinging on their edges, through to
jagged ashen peaks cutting majestically into the crisp thin air of a life-sustaining atmosphere.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Tahoma; mso-bidi-font-size: 9.5pt;">I like our salty oceans and fresh water lakes, turquoise and sparkling clear or murky with algae that glows emerald
and jade as it feeds the underwater world, that magnificent variety of life
that exists at depth.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieu9_lXzzhoS_odxA2Susi3rdUAsUcu3cQdN33YK2YycPySlKiY-Vy-OTE0YVSRv-nFh6axx1xKt0a_fcGld_zLiNZcT3O_UXTocqE2w3cKACIZgFea2E_rUYLOELj_0gKJa77JfRizuu1/s1600/lngdagi1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="186" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieu9_lXzzhoS_odxA2Susi3rdUAsUcu3cQdN33YK2YycPySlKiY-Vy-OTE0YVSRv-nFh6axx1xKt0a_fcGld_zLiNZcT3O_UXTocqE2w3cKACIZgFea2E_rUYLOELj_0gKJa77JfRizuu1/s400/lngdagi1a.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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<br />
<span style="font-family: Tahoma; mso-bidi-font-size: 9.5pt;">I love the forests and jungles teeming with animals and
insects of every description that together create an ecosystem we depend on.
They deserve our concern as they slowly diminish due to our exploitative
intervention in the natural habitat. The many facets of life here on our own
planet should be the first priority of science and its extraordinary
capabilities in this century.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZDddO-tlR8kqXNLm4tNzO_MqM3vWUfLzqpRTALB9-WYns_XXBncTvsL0irfFkODLy4pvN4KjLDcNqj-VBCWq2gGokjCGPTaGCPiKpLS-qWpCF94as_VprwUEi6Y2iiamWxJfH1bw5uvot/s1600/BirdKus1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="188" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZDddO-tlR8kqXNLm4tNzO_MqM3vWUfLzqpRTALB9-WYns_XXBncTvsL0irfFkODLy4pvN4KjLDcNqj-VBCWq2gGokjCGPTaGCPiKpLS-qWpCF94as_VprwUEi6Y2iiamWxJfH1bw5uvot/s400/BirdKus1a.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
<span style="font-family: Tahoma; mso-bidi-font-size: 8.5pt;">America’s National Broadcasting Corporation news
program reported on 1<sup>st</sup> August that </span><span style="font-family: Tahoma; mso-bidi-font-size: 9.5pt;">just over half of the counties in the U.S. are now
labelled ‘natural disaster areas’ following the announcement that the U.S.
Department of Agriculture added 218 counties in 12 states to the list. Half
the nation is deemed a natural disaster yet they spend billions sending cameras
to Mars to take pictures of dry and lifeless red mountains that humans are
unlikely ever to walk upon. If we do discover water under the surface of Mars
will we send giant tankers to collect it for the thirsty back on Earth?
They should go back to the drawing board.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-K0qxPU4ujQA/UDIZTvJCHxI/AAAAAAAAEPc/bCr_wNqWDFY/s1600/antkonprom1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-K0qxPU4ujQA/UDIZTvJCHxI/AAAAAAAAEPc/bCr_wNqWDFY/s320/antkonprom1a.JPG" width="240" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Tahoma;">Life
grows from visions of something better for those who create reality from
imagination of purpose and a healthy curiosity, but let’s recognise the truth of existence. </span><span style="font-family: Tahoma; mso-bidi-font-size: 9.5pt;">We all need Earth to stay
healthy; without it we are nothing. </span><span style="font-family: Tahoma;">Travel
is an eye opening experience and discovering the Earth we live on is an
astonishing way to encounter ourselves and the culture we create, I recommend
it to everyone.</span><span style="font-family: Tahoma; mso-bidi-font-size: 9.5pt;">
In the meantime don’t be deceived; there is no escape to other planets
regardless of what science fiction novel or film you might believe in. The idea
of space travel to supplement our dwindling resources or discovering alien life
that will save the human race from self-destruction is the real pipe dream.</span><span style="font-family: Tahoma;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Tahoma;">Science can and should play
its part in developing solutions to the problems faced by our world. What I’m
against is wasting billions on flights of fantasy that put pipe dreams into
perspective as plausible calculations of life than a pointless venture by a few
into the vacuum of the unattainable.</span><br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-CXDcGKlu9iU/UDIaMOXtxqI/AAAAAAAAEPk/3Oqzg0THKXw/s1600/exploraton1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-CXDcGKlu9iU/UDIaMOXtxqI/AAAAAAAAEPk/3Oqzg0THKXw/s320/exploraton1a.JPG" width="248" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Tahoma;">The only people who benefit from this
endeavour are Peter Pan types who never grew up and still think of themselves
as explorers of distant stars – the ‘trekkies’ who can’t accept reality and so
indulge fantastical dreams of playing astronaut, and of course the military
industrialists who wage war on freedom with their spy satellites, nuclear
missiles and Reagan-funded laser beams.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Tahoma;">Scientists would convince
you they have answers to the questions people pondered since the earliest
humans attained self-awareness, and they wish to relegate all religious
experience to the realm of ethical enquiry. Unfortunately, this seems to be a
symptom of the times we live in, an age of information over imagination.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVhWr-F6Tu73ykL0Spgr8cPlRlU-2PrnSPLSPNh0igrmRmks7rbN2ZFhUHlG9gsnlDFsPdo0Yq5F05zKhWMSjB_nHBLSssdXtDsK4ktuaOYHQ8Sh9M6Mt2yTLgze7tg-Nh3oUJCcJsk-gH/s1600/pomeg20121a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVhWr-F6Tu73ykL0Spgr8cPlRlU-2PrnSPLSPNh0igrmRmks7rbN2ZFhUHlG9gsnlDFsPdo0Yq5F05zKhWMSjB_nHBLSssdXtDsK4ktuaOYHQ8Sh9M6Mt2yTLgze7tg-Nh3oUJCcJsk-gH/s200/pomeg20121a.JPG" width="194" /></a><span style="font-family: Tahoma;">Scientists can only provide
a diagram of what already exists; they describe facts of nature in mechanistic
terms or replicate observable events, but they don’t create life. An astronomer
merely sees what is and always has been, and provides an account of truth that
changes with every age, from medieval scholastics to enlightenment
rationalists, from Persian astrologers to the mystics of Orthodox Christianity,
from Egypt to Peru.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Tahoma;">This is the age of the scientist and engineer, most of whom</span><span style="font-family: Tahoma; mso-bidi-font-size: 9.5pt;"> lack the humanistic vision
of a creative God who endowed the genesis of life with a spark of spirit,
though they frequently tamper with the very foundations of evolution</span><span style="font-family: Tahoma;">; this too will pass.</span><br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-QcSv8H48pU8/UDIbTTUonnI/AAAAAAAAEP8/9eU1EpzTdSs/s1600/KWantfalls1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="202" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-QcSv8H48pU8/UDIbTTUonnI/AAAAAAAAEP8/9eU1EpzTdSs/s400/KWantfalls1a.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
</div>
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<span style="font-family: Tahoma;">Look to the stars and try
to calculate the uncountable billions. Look to your heart and feel the beating
pulse of age. Look in your lover’s eyes and see the smiling reflection of
time’s breath. Look at the sun and recognise the colour of dreams. Look within
and appreciate the supremacy of love. Look at us all and sense the opportunity
of our age.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Look out, for there are
those in this world who would steal this moment to replace wonder with fear and
truth with the façade of power.</span><br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-f4IlnK3WR-E/UDIbxtfIApI/AAAAAAAAEQE/l78_wK1vYDs/s1600/sunsetbench1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-f4IlnK3WR-E/UDIbxtfIApI/AAAAAAAAEQE/l78_wK1vYDs/s1600/sunsetbench1a.JPG" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Tahoma;">Look to the future and hope that we can still
dream through the marvel of imagination, because that’s where truth is. When
that truth is shared amongst equals it becomes authentic. Indeed, fulfil our infinite curiosity, but if you want answers
to age-old questions or solutions to today’s problems, look inside your mind
and see the light of those stars shine like constellations as thoughts connect
to create ideas – that’s where we live and where dreams become reality.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Tahoma;">*</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Tahoma;"><em><strong>There are no rainbows on Mars!</strong></em> </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Tahoma;">* * *</span></div>
KWhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18335001094857381380noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8365597864916881666.post-14507549897503957012012-07-30T22:20:00.000+01:002012-07-30T22:20:24.015+01:00Over the Edge<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOsqQHSd2hSvOnghtpgeoLdagwdVpxziABn2dt09VoFw59esjZUygaAr-BIs-CabODKClfpmdWeHg3oOVJJUk05KGNWbzZU0yIK1T6AfrjOPjqtzW_1zb533g0nWujojovHujYjHeHWEkU/s1600/AntDudwfall1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="245" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOsqQHSd2hSvOnghtpgeoLdagwdVpxziABn2dt09VoFw59esjZUygaAr-BIs-CabODKClfpmdWeHg3oOVJJUk05KGNWbzZU0yIK1T6AfrjOPjqtzW_1zb533g0nWujojovHujYjHeHWEkU/s400/AntDudwfall1a.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">While extending apologies for not keeping up with the Blog for a while, I'll tell you I've been extremely busy - getting an all-over tan is hard work! Also I've been travelling again and working on some new projects. This week I'm in Antalya, a city of over one million people situated on the Mediterranean coast. Although I'm here interviewing I've managed to take some time to see the sights and will post a few photos as soon as I get a chance to write something and upload to this site. All the best, and seriously, stop watching television and get out into the world!</span>KWhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18335001094857381380noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8365597864916881666.post-29593878826203792882012-07-04T15:12:00.003+01:002012-07-05T01:52:47.656+01:00B&B .. A Jolly Sporting Summer<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-PxUvo2DiziI/T_Q8mP2U-dI/AAAAAAAAEHY/t_g-x7Qfauk/s1600/1pirateparrot1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-PxUvo2DiziI/T_Q8mP2U-dI/AAAAAAAAEHY/t_g-x7Qfauk/s400/1pirateparrot1.JPG" width="400" /></a><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">Summer has
officially arrived, unpacked its bags and popped the cork on a bottle of
chilled wine. Shirts are off; shorts and sandals are on, and tinted glasses
that shield the eyes from the searing brightness of the long days complete the
wardrobe.</span><br />
<br />
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</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-1v7nYdGaAqc/T_RAmDSH9LI/AAAAAAAAEIQ/wDIgznZoVp8/s1600/tabooks1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-1v7nYdGaAqc/T_RAmDSH9LI/AAAAAAAAEIQ/wDIgznZoVp8/s400/tabooks1a.JPG" width="276" /></a><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">Yes, it’s been an
eventful few months, and that doesn’t even include how exciting it’s been for
the Queen celebrating 60 years of uninterrupted service to the crown, the great
football nations participating in the European Cup or the Olympic torch making
its way around Britain in the hands of celebrities, war veterans and patriotic
volunteers on its way to London for the grand spectacle of sporting champions
and logo-competitive corporate sponsorship.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">Between teaching at
the elegant and exclusive resort hotel with its 35 swimming pools,
squeezing in early summer youth classes with students from the Ukraine, working
on my tan and planning a relocation for the
autumn, I’ve been back and forth to the UK a couple times and travelled a bit
along the coastline of Turkey and islands of Greece to visit favourite sites of
interest.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;">And of course, I’ve been trying to stay in touch with friends near and far and dropping in to galleries and museums whenever and wherever I can.</span><br />
<br /></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEieXNa0u6EbwVBmow8Ewf_J-MsKOVN-i-xkOEOUrIdlzFmr5wUEo_u4Har1bbMPlLQkudsCCgh6eNZSbmTgnoAuJ1UvQZJgNMyy0YAapzRA8s2aKfX7C740klw9KNroMAboiCdLwJcNee/s1600/sedativebeach1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="147" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEieXNa0u6EbwVBmow8Ewf_J-MsKOVN-i-xkOEOUrIdlzFmr5wUEo_u4Har1bbMPlLQkudsCCgh6eNZSbmTgnoAuJ1UvQZJgNMyy0YAapzRA8s2aKfX7C740klw9KNroMAboiCdLwJcNee/s400/sedativebeach1a.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLOdtfknOTnRHG_bhvSIQIomYsUgx2O7Qvr_HmpfYIiV37oOeNZJ3OHFOdw4NbAIdc0r9f3-goD8N6hyDkvuioNNUblTQsiA2mGoAEWyWkNgzj2UzOeDgrwhQeuTrYuD_ScARy-0J0vOV6/s1600/DaVinci1a-BirminghamMarch2012.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLOdtfknOTnRHG_bhvSIQIomYsUgx2O7Qvr_HmpfYIiV37oOeNZJ3OHFOdw4NbAIdc0r9f3-goD8N6hyDkvuioNNUblTQsiA2mGoAEWyWkNgzj2UzOeDgrwhQeuTrYuD_ScARy-0J0vOV6/s320/DaVinci1a-BirminghamMarch2012.JPG" width="240" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">It was fortunate
that after a few days doing coursework in Birmingham I had some free time,
providing me the opportunity to see DaVinci’s drawings as well as so many
other fine artists on display in the museums this second largest of
England’s cities ha<span style="font-size: small;">s <span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">to offer.</span></span></span><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS";"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">The
contrast of seeing both Paolozzi and Leonardo, a man who helped change the approach to drawing, together yet from their separate eras, was
spellbinding</span>. </span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS";"><span style="font-size: small;">I also stopp</span>ed in to a few commercial galleries
to see if there was anything of interest and nearly purchased a limited edition
Dali sculpture, but alas I have already stored most of my small collection.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhb4XAcpa48tQhwEY6jwRqHujVLJUKxZXtAoqH5xqRcZ_6S2npBX8R2Mo5Wz2vPCJinGIOxm6tQIltEVrTmOoB-1EJPL7KrtGk5TgVZIWCLTe8VFv9p_2t2RogNVYMXHMlhzCi03dWc96JF/s1600/BirmPaol1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhb4XAcpa48tQhwEY6jwRqHujVLJUKxZXtAoqH5xqRcZ_6S2npBX8R2Mo5Wz2vPCJinGIOxm6tQIltEVrTmOoB-1EJPL7KrtGk5TgVZIWCLTe8VFv9p_2t2RogNVYMXHMlhzCi03dWc96JF/s320/BirmPaol1a.JPG" width="258" /></a><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">Hopefully, later this year I’ll be arranging to pick-up a beautiful
and vibrant painting I saw displayed on <a href="http://simonwithers.weebly.com/" target="_blank">Simon Withers’ website</a>,</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">though I could
opt for a limited edition Billy Connolly line drawing or naively executed
watercolour by the prodigiously talented Bob Dylan!</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">Once again though,
it was the masters of colour and form that inspired me, and some of the
contemporary artists on display reminded me just how worthy modern art can be
when connected to significant subject matter.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ROI2h2CZeTA/T_MLCsxMsNI/AAAAAAAAECA/SVbtMJvMkFU/s1600/BirmGorm1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ROI2h2CZeTA/T_MLCsxMsNI/AAAAAAAAECA/SVbtMJvMkFU/s200/BirmGorm1a.JPG" width="150" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-x3-iUnRyrPs/T_MMpbQKFKI/AAAAAAAAECQ/nfPEadPU6RM/s1600/Wits1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-x3-iUnRyrPs/T_MMpbQKFKI/AAAAAAAAECQ/nfPEadPU6RM/s200/Wits1a.JPG" width="153" /></a><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">Whether it’s the rough public
sculpture of Anthony Gormley (with fortunate placement of a bird's nest 'halo' behind) or the neat placement of a William Wilberforce
likeness (the anti-slavery campaigner spurred on by his faithful wife whose
absence is notable), Birmingham clearly appears to value visible arts.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS";"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">The emblematic façade of the Bullring shopping mall, the stunning Symphony Hall
and National Institute buildings greet visitors wandering along the inner city canals. If architecture is your interest, this town has constructions of
the exceptional and unusual.</span><br />
<br /></div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-S05Vt5TgZks/T_MLt6QA5JI/AAAAAAAAECI/VHNaPypJdkU/s1600/BirmBull1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="263" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-S05Vt5TgZks/T_MLt6QA5JI/AAAAAAAAECI/VHNaPypJdkU/s400/BirmBull1a.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">With restaurants
and shops aplenty there’s always something to entertain those with cash to burn
in Birmingham. A season of festivals and concerts provides an endless variety
of music and arts for the culture-minded, while pubs and clubs cater to the
noisy after-hours set looking to drown in tasty cocktails and dance to the
latest thumping rhythms.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-7BOYxhiQE6E/T_MOdaJTPPI/AAAAAAAAECg/DHVD4w_sT6g/s1600/BirmJazz1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="238" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-7BOYxhiQE6E/T_MOdaJTPPI/AAAAAAAAECg/DHVD4w_sT6g/s400/BirmJazz1a.JPG" width="400" /></a><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">I only recently started going out in this city, but I
heartily recommend a couple days sightseeing and exploring for those who manage
to escape the pretentious madness of London this summer.</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">It seems a time of
crisis, whether global economic disruption or military conflicts against
apparently threatening nations, creates a need for the pomp and circumstance of
national flag-waving entertainment.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-LMZ4RRXaYps/T_MN7iF0_rI/AAAAAAAAECY/MY6P_YzZDHA/s1600/Birmctr9a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="206" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-LMZ4RRXaYps/T_MN7iF0_rI/AAAAAAAAECY/MY6P_YzZDHA/s400/Birmctr9a.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Ek7lLiJTnVs/T_MOrNMMw8I/AAAAAAAAECo/daY3FT6wBJU/s1600/Birmsha.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Ek7lLiJTnVs/T_MOrNMMw8I/AAAAAAAAECo/daY3FT6wBJU/s320/Birmsha.JPG" width="240" /></a><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">The Romans were expert at diverting public
opinion during unsettled times through the use of circus performance and staged
gladiator battles, and the states of today (though they’ve yet to learn the
importance of bread for everyone) have learned that lesson well. After all, who
doesn’t enjoy the spectacle of sports personalities strutting across our
television screens; and the regalia of imperial symbolism and celebrity fanfare
paraded through the streets do wonders for the loyalty of the masses
overwhelmed by the overheads of an ordinary life.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">With audiences
regularly in the hundreds of millions each of these glorified happenings
provide a sensational opportunity for the multinational companies to bombard us
with yet more vaguely enticing commercials for all kinds of things we didn’t
know we needed till we couldn’t live without them.</span><br />
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-8peDmaCXZQo/T_RMY2gyMUI/AAAAAAAAEJQ/0u2fUhjBE6g/s1600/Birmctr5a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-8peDmaCXZQo/T_RMY2gyMUI/AAAAAAAAEJQ/0u2fUhjBE6g/s400/Birmctr5a.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">As the running shoe and
leisurewear manufacturers gear up their factories magazines go into overdrive
to promote the high standard of living that most people aspire to attain.
Gorgeous models, stick figures in designer outfits, shake their asses and
rattle their on-loan jewellery to persuade the celebrity-obsessed hoi polloi
that all it takes to be somebody important is the correct seasonal accessory.</span><br />
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj11BPMthAeomPTxqM424pSBkjpplSSOuYVbISez0D1X6iDpPedSflu4-6-hL_D0Y5oUPV2e0zi2eKqq8NWgW_GU1DpbGE_270JE0h2rg6QxpRUXSK27mxtXbubSNQsCIAWDzsYSdOGoK77/s1600/Birmctr3a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="296" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj11BPMthAeomPTxqM424pSBkjpplSSOuYVbISez0D1X6iDpPedSflu4-6-hL_D0Y5oUPV2e0zi2eKqq8NWgW_GU1DpbGE_270JE0h2rg6QxpRUXSK27mxtXbubSNQsCIAWDzsYSdOGoK77/s400/Birmctr3a.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">Hand-held
technological devices assembled in developing nations are becoming increasingly
essential to our every waking moment, and their ubiquitous appearance alongside
athletes waving medals suggest that you too can be successful with the power of
today’s media at your fingertips.</span><br />
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-WiuTpkDbiuI/T_MT7zMqtrI/AAAAAAAAEDo/jluCkQaoWSQ/s1600/Birmctr7a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-WiuTpkDbiuI/T_MT7zMqtrI/AAAAAAAAEDo/jluCkQaoWSQ/s320/Birmctr7a.JPG" width="309" /></a><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">Middle-eastern airlines and specialty beer
brands compete in neon and flash lighting across advertising hoardings around
the fringes of major arenas for our hard-earned cash, transferred
electronically of course.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">With the right razorblade,
tasty nibble or exclusive scent of some Hollywood heroine, anyone
it seems can be part of the club. Sleek, gas-guzzling autos designed by
those with more available resources but less common sense than most
environmentally sensitive people, are promoted on billboards and in video games
played by children. Subsidised by petroleum conglomerates to race across
computer displays driven by recognisable faces these pollution machines are
heating the world that our constantly running a/c units try to
cool down in a race to equalise the ecosystem.</span><br />
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-rF-Ne_B9XbY/T_MUXFRJsrI/AAAAAAAAEDw/sk1B6VFZSd0/s1600/BirmFlower3a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-rF-Ne_B9XbY/T_MUXFRJsrI/AAAAAAAAEDw/sk1B6VFZSd0/s320/BirmFlower3a.JPG" width="240" /></a><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS";"> Pop stars happily
dance onto the stages of the mandatory commencement concerts and groovy summer
festivals and sing of love and consumerism under the blasting fireworks of
closing ceremonies for princely sums, as overt advertisers sell yet more
reasons to accumulate plastic trash and be part of the all-too-cool-for-school
in-crowd.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">Yes, the bold and
the beautiful are radiating wealth and positively glowing in the beacon of
light that is financial freedom.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-p5j6vjHgVLk/T_MUgtiGR-I/AAAAAAAAED4/_bMXv6qM3lc/s1600/Birmcrosscrn1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-p5j6vjHgVLk/T_MUgtiGR-I/AAAAAAAAED4/_bMXv6qM3lc/s320/Birmcrosscrn1a.JPG" width="260" /></a><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">The eternal torch, that icon of liberty to a
synthetic world, is still snaking its way round the Isle of Britain and only
recently passed through Derby and Nottingham where friends and family gathered
to watch it wind through the streets on its way to the capital city.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">As the
world awaits the Olympic games, many in less fortunate circumstances suffer through the ongoing oppression caused by famine, greed and war. We should give that a thought.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS";"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-cawhvhFpGqQ/T_MXwqNecoI/AAAAAAAAEEw/UChULw0K3mI/s1600/moshabodd2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-cawhvhFpGqQ/T_MXwqNecoI/AAAAAAAAEEw/UChULw0K3mI/s320/moshabodd2.JPG" width="240" /></a><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">Millions are
starving in scorched central African nations while renegade soldiers
turned politicians endlessly debate and negotiate the best deals for themselves
in the exploitation of mineral rights in these parched locations.
Some of these bastards (oops, I mean international representatives) were even invited to politely dine with the Queen of
England at her sixtieth anniversary banquet, and pop-up occasionally to
celebrate royal weddings and such, so obviously they’re important as business partners
and we shouldn’t complain about the heaps of bodies of dead children in mass
graves whose blood is on their hands. Maybe that’s why Her Majesty always wears
gloves.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">The Formula One
calendar races into England for the annual event next week and no doubt all the
best people will be in attendance. With so much up for grabs in the reputation
stakes it will be yet another highlight of a summer that has Andy Murray
thrashing his way through Wimbledon and British drivers topping the F1 leader
board.</span><br />
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-7VZimg8PSts/T_RNQhHP8jI/AAAAAAAAEJY/EbS4TMRlUyE/s1600/akkbea121a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="182" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-7VZimg8PSts/T_RNQhHP8jI/AAAAAAAAEJY/EbS4TMRlUyE/s400/akkbea121a.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">All this excitement
in one summer for a country dealing with ‘austerity measures’ put in place by
the barely elected coalition government just seems so very antithetical to the
economic difficulties that define the entire state of affairs. There’s a
serious depression in European banking circles, people are being made poor and
out of work, and there’re wars in places where real people are dying,
not to mention a lack of funding for the National Health Service and .. oh,
never mind, let’s have a parade! There’s plenty to choose from this
year.</span><br />
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-LJ_Imj9XXM8/T_MY0lR5E8I/AAAAAAAAEE4/w-ysXejuKdQ/s1600/KWfireplace1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-LJ_Imj9XXM8/T_MY0lR5E8I/AAAAAAAAEE4/w-ysXejuKdQ/s320/KWfireplace1a.JPG" width="253" /></a><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">Even though winter
was long over when last I was in England and the sun was shining warmly
throughout my stay, it was still cool enough in the evenings to require a
jacket. I spent evenings surrounded by friends old and new around the comfort
of a log fire; accompanied by the familiar flavour of locally brewed ale they
reminded me why I still enjoy visiting that damp and windy isle.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS";"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">For all its
faults it is a special place and tourists continue to flock to its white cliffs
and ancient castles, its massive medieval cathedrals and gothic towns, its
trendy and exclusive shopping districts and fashionable nightspots, the famous
landmarks and recent attractions and of course everyone hopes for a glimpse of
the Queen or, at least, Pippa’s derriere.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS";"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-yf57HHZiUwU/T_MZQZ5vmtI/AAAAAAAAEFA/Ft6DQW9700w/s1600/Marin20122a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="282" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-yf57HHZiUwU/T_MZQZ5vmtI/AAAAAAAAEFA/Ft6DQW9700w/s400/Marin20122a.JPG" width="400" /></a><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">Time rolls on and
the celebratory occasions that mark the passage of ages are repeated for each
successive generation, allowing those who cling to rocks against the sirens’
wail to believe in the special presence of their moment. No amount of sporting
leisure or political exercise can turn back the clock of history, and many people
are slowing awakening to a realisation of the counterfeit truth behind these
extravagant gestures of the privileged.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS";"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-I4tORg7gLDE/T_MaYuPZXOI/AAAAAAAAEFI/aymof1MZCpM/s1600/Rebug1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="314" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-I4tORg7gLDE/T_MaYuPZXOI/AAAAAAAAEFI/aymof1MZCpM/s320/Rebug1a.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">Competitions are
essential to sport – the difference between other leisure activities and sport
is the arena of challenge against another participant. But
competition has no place in the arts. Whether poetry, music, painting
or film, arts are subjective and personal and certainly can’t be evaluated
on results in the same manner as games.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">To attempt to play out the arts in a
forum of competition is always value-laden and biased according to opinion and
personal preference of style – who can say whether Magritte is better than
Rubens or Titian better than Degas, Bowie better than Sinatra or Beyonce better
than Ella, Whitman better than Ovid and Keats better than Goethe or Coppola
better than Kurasawa?</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ZxaZp8_3xZM/T_MbHIYv1KI/AAAAAAAAEFQ/oUxvUT4G5qY/s1600/BirmMus3a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ZxaZp8_3xZM/T_MbHIYv1KI/AAAAAAAAEFQ/oUxvUT4G5qY/s320/BirmMus3a.JPG" width="231" /></a><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS";"></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">Let's not even <span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">discuss oranges; as the <span style="color: #333333;"><a href="http://www.preraphaelites.org/the-collection/artist-biography/john-everett-millais/" target="_blank">John Everett Millais</a> p</span>ainting 'The Blind Girl' illustrates it's difficult to describe the beauty of a</span> rainbow but it can be equally exacting to capture it visually. First shown in 1856 this moving now resides in Birmingham. Though a pre-Raphaelite he painted landscapes and portraits equally with another of my favourites 'Bubbles' at the Royal Academy in London.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS";"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">Tennis and football are determined in a match played
between equals to determine a winner; the arts are a different animal altogether
and should never be confused with the activity of competitive sport lest they
defeat themselves with the politics of opposition. Then again, as everyone knows when art is bad, agreeing on what is better or best is purely futile and locks one into politics rather than creativity. Collaboration but not committee
is the more fruitful option.</span><br />
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-zWbvfeova8E/T_MdEvIq3XI/AAAAAAAAEFY/oSp0TBr03Q8/s1600/Bedou20121b.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="257" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-zWbvfeova8E/T_MdEvIq3XI/AAAAAAAAEFY/oSp0TBr03Q8/s320/Bedou20121b.JPG" width="320" /></a><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">It is high time we
gracefully accept that we’ve moved on from spectacles of status and
changed course, or we become caricatures of the equality and freedom our
ancestors strove so hard to achieve. </span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">To those in the future who will need real
progress and maturity of decision-making to manage the complications of their
time, this generation will doubtless appear a superficial example of
corruption, consumption and waste.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br />
<br /></div>
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-mMJnFAyI5yA/T_MicIJeodI/AAAAAAAAEGg/WsnWW7jWGok/s1600/OctoKusa1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="231" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-mMJnFAyI5yA/T_MicIJeodI/AAAAAAAAEGg/WsnWW7jWGok/s320/OctoKusa1a.JPG" width="320" /></a><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">Life continues
in spite of crisis and age and time are no barriers to discovery or experience
for those who expect something more meaningful than the circus of daydreams
populated by soiled performers of transparent ancient rites and
self-congratulatory corporate puppets.</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">Of course it’s time
to enjoy the frivolous festivities of summer, I certainly do, and for now we
should all feel free to laugh in the face of adversity even as it encroaches on
our everyday lives.</span><br />
<br /></div>
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-3cejd0DtjDQ/T_Meftbnw1I/AAAAAAAAEFg/-W7cTIjNO3A/s1600/KGI20121a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-3cejd0DtjDQ/T_Meftbnw1I/AAAAAAAAEFg/-W7cTIjNO3A/s320/KGI20121a.JPG" width="239" /></a><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">We can dance in the sunshine to the music of love, for this
is our time on the earth and we should soak up the pleasures it has to offer,
as fruitless as some of the activities may occasionally appear. However, keep
in mind that in this age of competing austerity and unbelievable wealth, when
some live in luxury and others die for lack of food, in the cognitive
dissonance of contemporary society where we turn on the news to be assaulted
with horror before a karaoke night out at the pub, the piper is the one calling
the tunes, and for sure he’ll want to be paid when the sun goes down and the
music fades; and the price will be: our future.</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">* * * </span></div>KWhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18335001094857381380noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8365597864916881666.post-21437174333858448982012-06-02T15:00:00.000+01:002012-06-03T08:11:45.871+01:00Northern Lights<div style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-fM15dubH1LM/T8oHXW4VkpI/AAAAAAAAD7M/bDPZoHrAiZw/s1600/Lpooldock2b.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-fM15dubH1LM/T8oHXW4VkpI/AAAAAAAAD7M/bDPZoHrAiZw/s400/Lpooldock2b.JPG" width="400" /></a></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;">First impressions
can last a lifetime, while beliefs and attitudes change over time. The opinions
of others aren’t always based in a recognisable truth, nor do they always
correspond to our own. One need only read reviews on a particular
artist or work of art, a film, book or even a luxury hotel or new
restaurant to see that evaluations differ according to expectation. Personal experience however, brings invaluable
knowledge in formulating genuine understanding of the insider perspective. So
it is with people we meet, befriend and even dare to love, and places we visit once as a tourist or a child but then return to
after awareness of life has taught us about formulating belief based on instant judgments.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-iKnvYSjh1nw/T8oI1gQZcnI/AAAAAAAAD7s/DjnaTIXKaJc/s1600/Lpoolsign1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-iKnvYSjh1nw/T8oI1gQZcnI/AAAAAAAAD7s/DjnaTIXKaJc/s320/Lpoolsign1a.JPG" width="203" /></a></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;">Yesterday I watched
as the Olympic torch was carried in procession through the streets of that distinguished northern English city, Liverpool.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;">A token of freedom and power, the torch
signifies continuity and the spark of genius that lives on in the soul beyond
the reach of the forged glimmer of temporal concerns into the hopes of creative
enterprise. At once a false god and a beacon of truth, the torch is recognised
by people everywhere as a symbol of liberty and the spirit of the advocate come
to bring light to the darkest regions. In the shadows of history Liverpool was
indeed a sinister place, garnering riches from evil pursuits and feeding on the
poor and frightened while amassing wealth through politically devious means. Time
and the long experience of hard living however, can change everything, like love it can eventually break down the most stubborn and hardened hearts.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-CcqVyAQp1V0/T8oOy4LMCZI/AAAAAAAAD88/Wmz2UbHbVME/s1600/Lpoolradtower1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-CcqVyAQp1V0/T8oOy4LMCZI/AAAAAAAAD88/Wmz2UbHbVME/s320/Lpoolradtower1a.JPG" width="227" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">Liverpool is and
has been many things to the world in its long and chequered history. To some it
is a magical realm of extreme excess populated by happy-go-lucky shaggy-haired
boys living in yellow submarines and blue meanies who have littered the
overgrown strawberry fields with decrepit council houses and boarded-up shop
fronts. Since its decline as a major hub of the slave trade and world-renowned
shipbuilding it has evolved and changed into a centre of creativity and
advanced its situation with a focus on tourism.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">Along the Mersey
riverfront are stunning new art galleries and hotels and striking postmodern
architectural blocks that contain sporting arenas and concert halls, and a
sense that the purpose and meaning of life that had escaped from this northern
town long before the Beatles made their getaway has been renewed with a
vigorous attempt at smart style and a desire for tourist dollars.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-eLo3mGwT2N8/T8oIfTSPn9I/AAAAAAAAD7k/uyrSAmpB9rc/s1600/Lpooldock1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="182" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-eLo3mGwT2N8/T8oIfTSPn9I/AAAAAAAAD7k/uyrSAmpB9rc/s400/Lpooldock1a.JPG" width="400" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">Among its crumbling
façades are fashionably hip nightspots and must-see places of interest; museums
to pop stars and maritime navigation, the slave trade and football
heroes sit remarkably comfortably alongside chic restaurants and busy market
stalls selling all manner of imported foodstuffs, retro-fashion clothing and
locally crafted handiwork.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMjA_jQJ3ZlKQhgykuc_dNIbnOwuISXdfozkCLOuN1v1d_olNGfrXnF7UNf-KKF8Hxe2FEcZQJDEI0e2E9T8psia7ug5zQyxOXNXITwetbNX1ub8LefQQW-13pNzstYhEdYjaAgJEsbDCf/s1600/LpoolGCentral1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="305" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMjA_jQJ3ZlKQhgykuc_dNIbnOwuISXdfozkCLOuN1v1d_olNGfrXnF7UNf-KKF8Hxe2FEcZQJDEI0e2E9T8psia7ug5zQyxOXNXITwetbNX1ub8LefQQW-13pNzstYhEdYjaAgJEsbDCf/s400/LpoolGCentral1a.JPG" width="400" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-iitolpUpwXk/T8oJfLpmSTI/AAAAAAAAD78/9fQZvqv0amI/s1600/Albertdock1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-iitolpUpwXk/T8oJfLpmSTI/AAAAAAAAD78/9fQZvqv0amI/s200/Albertdock1a.JPG" width="127" /></a>Boutiques and
coffee houses now crowd the narrow and confined lanes that weave labyrinthine
through the old town to the visually arresting indoor shopping arcades,
Liverpool is learning to accentuate the best of what it once took for granted.
These winding paths have become vogue and charmingly inoffensive in their
glance back at a cumbersome past through the rose-tinted glasses of nostalgia.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">The stylish and
expansive Albert Dock area with its massive Ferris wheel, grand amphitheatre
and of course a well-stocked regional Tate gallery, has become a centre for
modern culture.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQ8obU7bSAhCxq9UskTh5wIANT5IR6l9fTbpjmZxvBaoe7QEfMDXJkscFRLsSbtaLU_AlDFymfK_HU9nJMX1EQT3RCPg91BIBywqHj62b4pHI_ZOkTZEA66A1TALLgV3WezKdsvLVbW2Lu/s1600/Ltatenum1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQ8obU7bSAhCxq9UskTh5wIANT5IR6l9fTbpjmZxvBaoe7QEfMDXJkscFRLsSbtaLU_AlDFymfK_HU9nJMX1EQT3RCPg91BIBywqHj62b4pHI_ZOkTZEA66A1TALLgV3WezKdsvLVbW2Lu/s200/Ltatenum1a.JPG" width="150" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">Standing proud in the once dirty and teeming docks are
masterpieces of contemporary art and magnificent glass and steel structures
resplendent as the morning sun reflects off the river.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">In the middle of
this oasis of wealth one can feel a touch of higher-class elitist values
emanating from this industrial capital of another era.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-YeYZ2Hvsz7A/T8oNFFacDSI/AAAAAAAAD8s/sOO10oyseEQ/s1600/BluecoatLpool1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="133" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-YeYZ2Hvsz7A/T8oNFFacDSI/AAAAAAAAD8s/sOO10oyseEQ/s200/BluecoatLpool1a.JPG" width="200" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">A visit to the Bluecoat
gallery confirms the odd need some artists have to pour their personal
anxieties onto the stone floors of history. This space, where Yoko Ono first
exhibited in the UK is, like so many modern galleries, a place where boundaries
are pushed but few actually succeed in defining style with human warmth. Go
along if there is something happening, as the events are often better than the
substance of the work.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-YirMhwkxduk/T8oJ2w6GQNI/AAAAAAAAD8E/HUWHSN6HZvs/s1600/EdPLtate2a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="255" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-YirMhwkxduk/T8oJ2w6GQNI/AAAAAAAAD8E/HUWHSN6HZvs/s400/EdPLtate2a.JPG" width="400" /></a></span></div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-8JtxkiX5N1U/T8oZCSr6WaI/AAAAAAAAD-Q/S79ZY5ZhMro/s1600/CADLpooltate1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-8JtxkiX5N1U/T8oZCSr6WaI/AAAAAAAAD-Q/S79ZY5ZhMro/s320/CADLpooltate1a.JPG" width="240" /></a><span style="font-size: small;">In the dockside
Tate one can be persuaded that contemporary art has depth and feeling to
balance the intentional twisting of cultural roots. Paolozzi’s homage to
Michaelangelo represents the broken dream of Western idealism while Dali’s
surreal lobster phone sits comfortably beside Monet’s tranquil ponds and
Warhol’s dancing girls.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">Chamberlain’s scrap metal appears admirably intentional
across from the manufactured needlessness of Lucas as Hockney and Moore compete side by side
to reassemble an age of beauty in simplicity of form.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">A special exhibition of writing and free expression was on display for those who wanted to partake; current national poet laureate Carol-Ann Duffy had installed a large whiteboard onto which visitors could randomly assemble prewritten words and phrases to create an immediate and temporary work of collective public poetry.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-NtVdfhjRtFs/T8oKRLzQZ9I/AAAAAAAAD8M/Gu-IwMMTcAA/s1600/IrishpubLpool1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-NtVdfhjRtFs/T8oKRLzQZ9I/AAAAAAAAD8M/Gu-IwMMTcAA/s320/IrishpubLpool1a.JPG" width="240" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">The two big
football clubs that contend for dominance in this small city were playing each
other on one of my recent forays into the heart of the metropolis, and
challenging chants and friendly banter echoed across the street from the
doorways of competing Irish pubs offering sports and fist fights for the
hometown fans.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">American franchises might attract more generic entertainment for
most visitors to this friendly city, though in true northern spirit it’s still entrenched in ancient
adversarial rivalries that transcend the understanding of most ordinary
day-trippers.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">Although springtime
was pushing buds and green leaves from withered branches and the sun blessed me
with its presence for most of my stay, the evenings chilled with a dash of rain
that made ducking for cover in the world famous Cavern Club a sincere pleasure, and though definitely a kitsch attraction for those seeking reminiscence, it was one of
the highlights of my visit to the old town.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOh9wWxvEZ_OeoIlxDAm7UHJs8OIa47sk304FYk0VrbLjh7dB0QBhmDzEd8FgYJTR2PJqwLNtLEERIHi80Imsof0-pNQBfQslEOES8IfxW9kf-488jIWdDi4cXQSLsmmokHMDzZ2znhVDR/s1600/CavernClub1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="167" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOh9wWxvEZ_OeoIlxDAm7UHJs8OIa47sk304FYk0VrbLjh7dB0QBhmDzEd8FgYJTR2PJqwLNtLEERIHi80Imsof0-pNQBfQslEOES8IfxW9kf-488jIWdDi4cXQSLsmmokHMDzZ2znhVDR/s400/CavernClub1a.JPG" width="400" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmwpnTnK5OCvFHkYs__wi2-3qQPJgiVRMtmLqjuUiFfBe2HsxfGdRo8nvUUkn0S8SKI_kW2g_3RCMgAZozDVhDWlnKrmFFLIpp4ZcIJ8PQhYMNKr3F_Yi_sEzprWou-H_X5aGwi8UFJhsE/s1600/JLbanner1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmwpnTnK5OCvFHkYs__wi2-3qQPJgiVRMtmLqjuUiFfBe2HsxfGdRo8nvUUkn0S8SKI_kW2g_3RCMgAZozDVhDWlnKrmFFLIpp4ZcIJ8PQhYMNKr3F_Yi_sEzprWou-H_X5aGwi8UFJhsE/s320/JLbanner1a.JPG" width="240" /></a>With memorabilia from various
stages of the Beatles’ career, especially the days playing as house band in
this recreated underground hotspot with its coarse brick arches, one can easily
spend hours and dollars relaxing with local ales to the note-perfect sound of
tribute bands and look-alike performers.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">The singers and
musicians do their best to entertain with songs and witty Lennonesque asides,
and we weren’t disappointed as everyone sang along with the classics and danced
to the bebop rhythm of the rough and ready early numbers while black and white
newsreels and films flickered like peeling paint on the bare stone walls. Continuing the
theme, the next day we headed over to the Beatles museum and lost ourselves in
the groovy pomp of sixties revivalism.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-WzXZDjYSUG8/T8oH76BNIbI/AAAAAAAAD7c/YLEiJun2dOY/s1600/KWBeatles1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-WzXZDjYSUG8/T8oH76BNIbI/AAAAAAAAD7c/YLEiJun2dOY/s200/KWBeatles1a.JPG" width="150" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">Educational and amusing the attraction is filled with
artefacts from the heady days of self-discovery when people believed a song
could change the world. It offers a chance to revisit memories or experience a
sense of what it must have been like to chart a course to success only to
discover that real accomplishment is but noble survival when proclaiming peace
in the midst of those who prefer to forge weapons from ploughs than peace from
promises.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">During
<a href="http://www.exemplarart.blogspot.co.uk/2008_07_01_archive.html" target="_blank">European capital of culture year 2008</a>, I was invited to show some of my work in
a fabulous gallery space near the Albert Dock. The presence of so many artists
and musicians in the city at that time made me feel as though I too had
accomplished something special. I’m looking forward to my return to show in
Liverpool again, and perhaps next time I’ll stay for longer.</span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-xDVwosUCEHk/T8oOp8bKpiI/AAAAAAAAD80/IX7MveTDWx0/s1600/CapCulture081a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-xDVwosUCEHk/T8oOp8bKpiI/AAAAAAAAD80/IX7MveTDWx0/s400/CapCulture081a.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">My
first impressions of Liverpool were favourable and it has continued to grow on
me, rather like a friend one sees only occasionally but upon meeting again
is comfortably talkative as if picking up the thread of an unfinished story.</span></div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-uGmbiIi0W6g/T8sIZfHc8MI/AAAAAAAAD_M/roYVxDBFbnA/s1600/chococup1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="179" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-uGmbiIi0W6g/T8sIZfHc8MI/AAAAAAAAD_M/roYVxDBFbnA/s200/chococup1a.JPG" width="200" /></a><span style="font-size: small;">I
suppose this is partially due to the circumstances of my initial foray into the
regentrified docklands area, its up and coming attitude and the sense of
history around every corner, and also because Liverpool itself is a hospitable
place with so much to do and see.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrFHEZiQ67oNRwIzHdm65tGbT9pSSGiMLgFBvQFaciBAsW7aHjdhFhz1TruHl8qoIhzyfq2xK9ZQUNIM7iPMydf6R_xaElgPoybj4rnQBkylHXMG_aTrEQCtO4ewUFnWwpzcFZUNzr1dK2/s1600/DalilobLpooltate1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="149" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrFHEZiQ67oNRwIzHdm65tGbT9pSSGiMLgFBvQFaciBAsW7aHjdhFhz1TruHl8qoIhzyfq2xK9ZQUNIM7iPMydf6R_xaElgPoybj4rnQBkylHXMG_aTrEQCtO4ewUFnWwpzcFZUNzr1dK2/s200/DalilobLpooltate1a.JPG" width="200" /></a><span style="font-size: small;">Some people give a great first impression and
we are instantly taken with them, but then they leave us with regrets when we
discover they aren’t who we thought or hoped they would be, while others
impress us with their integrity and grow into lifelong friends; Liverpool is
the friend you want to see again.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: small;">Liverpool
welcomes the stra</span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">nger,</span> </span>invites honest app</span>raisal and holds its head up as a city
in transition from the gloomy age of reason and the time of industrial
invention to the colourful era of creation and personal discovery.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;">The beacon
of light that shines across the Mersey today will delight and inspire all
visitors to this at-once grimy and glittering urban centre. A torch has been
lit and the spark of the wonder of tomorrow lives in the rejuvenated hearts of
those who call Liverpool home.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-YHN-mI4me0w/T8oKoIOG5MI/AAAAAAAAD8U/4Yze1vWbkJc/s1600/KWJL1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-YHN-mI4me0w/T8oKoIOG5MI/AAAAAAAAD8U/4Yze1vWbkJc/s320/KWJL1a.JPG" width="294" /></a>Although I’m not a
local I feel connected to this wonderfully cosmopolitan city through creative
association and endeavour, for surely wherever like minds gather to share
thoughts and express positive and heartfelt emotions, in places where feelings
and opinions are made tangible and the substance of dreams congeals through age
and acceptance into an candid exploration of contemporary culture, I will be a
welcome guest.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">* * * </span></div>KWhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18335001094857381380noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8365597864916881666.post-47558202457197357352012-05-09T22:30:00.000+01:002012-05-10T09:37:20.118+01:00On the Wings of Age<div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">
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Time flies when you’re
having fun, so the saying goes, which means, to make a cliché true, I’ve been
enjoying changes on wings of passing age. I might look older but I feel younger. Change is as good as a rest they say, and time is
changing the world for me once again. Life over the past few months has been
full of experiences reminding me who I am, where I’ve been and where I’m going,
as well as throwing in a few interesting surprises that reminded me of other ideas I'd been harbouring in the back of my mind. It's time to look to the sun once more, hoist the sails and put to sea again.</div>
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Sometimes we go somewhere in
attempt to discover our inner selves, and other times we leave our usual place
behind to lose ourselves in the bustle of a different crowd or, perhaps seek a
relaxing retreat to settle some emotional matter, giving us a chance to calm
anxious thoughts. Some take a trip to feel the sun on their face or, like so
many others I meet abroad, a break from the routine and standards of home
simply to enjoy cut-price beer and cheap sex.</div>
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Occasionally, often by pure
chance, we who seek something more meaningful find a place that opens our mind
to new ideas on the course of life, provides a deeper understanding of the
nature of culture or stimulates reflections on the value of time. Either way,
our awakening to a new dawn of expectation can creatively and spiritually
fulfil we who travel in the desire to grow and learn through a continual
experience of withdrawal and interaction.</div>
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Leaving one town or country
to go to another for a longer term entails both opportunities and risks, but a
fresh challenge and the development of self that comes with the adventure can
make all the difficulties worth the effort of making that change. I’ve made
that change so often it has become a way of life, the life I love.</div>
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Since my last post on this
Blog I’ve driven from the southern shores of the Aegean to the western banks of
the Black Sea, travelled from the south coast of England to the northern hills
during a week of auspiciously sunny days and thrown in a few other adventures for good measure. In January I swam contendedly in the
warm sun-drenched waters of the Mediterranean and comically slid along icy grey
streets on the Romanian border. During March I spent time visiting friends
in the UK and taught a selection of classes to an interesting variety of
people in several countries.</div>
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Taking time to do some
self-reflection and personal investment I upgraded my teaching qualifications
through courses in the UK and went along to some superb art exhibitions and
concerts.<br />
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Trying new food always excites me and gives me ideas for improving my
own culinary skills and lately that has been a real part of the adventure too.
I’ve also begun a new project teaching English to the managers of a 5-star
hotel based in Istanbul while continuing to educate my regular students at the
language school here on the coast, and I’ve also squeezed in time to work on my
own visual art, hopefully with a new imaginative vision, toward the aim of
showing again later in the year.</div>
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I’m a person who needs
objectives and goals to give me a purpose and reason. Unlike so many today I’m
not obsessed with fame and celebrity, money and possessions or small town
dreams of picket-fenced suburbia. I’ve been there and done that,
as they say. I’m much more interested in the complete complex experience of
living, while time allows.</div>
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This post being personal
commentary I won’t be spending any additional words discussing the recent
elections in France, where the left-leaning party has managed to oust the war
supporters in favour of banking reform. But didn’t Sarkozy look miserable
during his final laying of the wreath at the VE Day commemoration? Nor will I
write about the vote in Greece, where the anti-austerity party is attempting to
force a coalition to denounce negotiations over the Euro that have left so many
struggling to survive.</div>
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Both these results are
essentially a thumbing of noses at financial measures around Europe that have
seen the banking class get richer while everyone else pays their catalogue of
overdue bills, and reflect a growing trend of desire by ordinary people toward
establishing accountability for these schemers. However, Britain needn’t worry, for ‘The
Queen’ in all her jubilee splendour is opening parliament for the next term of
conservative designs to suppress the meek for the good of the wealthy. But, not
a word on the earthly campaigns of those entrusted with power; this is only
about me.</div>
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No one knows what the future
holds, but we plan and strive and work and participate in anticipation of the
future for a better today tomorrow. Sometimes our hopes are fulfilled, other
times we learn to adjust the expected result of the preparation. As John Lennon
sang, “<i>life is what happens while you’re busy making other plans</i>,” and
enjoying the life you create today is the best way to ensure you don’t miss out
on what is happening as you think of tomorrow.</div>
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Too many people spend their
time waiting for that to come day when they can enjoy life, and forget to
experience the moment of now. One day I’ll have enough time to travel, one day
I’ll have enough self-belief to write, one day I’ll have enough confidence to
show my work, one day I’ll have enough money to buy the things I want, the
occasion to take that course, self-assurance to leave this place and be with the one I love, and on and on ..
so they say.</div>
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One day like some day is a
vague postponement of action and a definite act of procrastination. It is an
excuse for not engaging with the world and life. It separates the achiever from
the loser, the go-getter from the do-nothing, those who smile in the sunshine
from those who cry in the rain (unless of course you like the rain – where the
daisy blooms!), those who engage with the world from those who sit in their
garden and talk of things they’d do if only ..
excuse after lazy excuse ..</div>
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I lost years of my life
waiting for someone or something to come along and kick-start my stuttering
motor back to life after a series of incidents left me feeling powerless
and alone. Slowly I was finding a way back to my rightful position when another
series of events altered the plan again. A spark of life had returned and just
as steps were appearing beneath solid ground a mistaken notion walked in. I
thought it would be smooth sailing with sunrise as my rudder and happiness
directing a course to the stars. Unfortunately, that turned
out to be a failed investment of time as I learned once again the hard lesson
that not everyone is as honest as we expect, trust and loyalty are vague
concepts to some, and pretty outside isn’t always a reflection of
inside.</div>
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However, that exhausting
experience freed me from the constraints of waiting for dreams to happen and I
began to shape my own future again, a tomorrow where anything is possible and
all things are available with properly focussed effort. I rediscovered inner
strength and left behind what was only making raising myself from the shadows
of depression an emotional struggle. To do this I had to get away from negative
influences and darkly depressing pressures, to create something new and
enduring for myself, to go back to a life that made a positive contribution to
the world, a return to the self – then things began to happen to make life
healthier and more pleasurable again.</div>
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Now, I love travelling once
more, I love meeting people and sharing experiences, the friends who
welcome me into their lives, moments spent in calm solitude knowing that no
moment is forever, visiting various countries and cities, learning about
cultural differences and similarities, coming home to the place I relax after a
hectic day at work, a busy week on the road or an eventful month abroad. I love
what I do to earn my daily bread, the places I go to do it and the
people I encounter doing it. I love this creation I call my life; I love the
art of living.</div>
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I’ve learned to eliminate
from my life the people who don’t deserve my trust, the people who only value
what I have to give rather than who I am in my heart, the people who want more
than they are prepared to give in return, and those who lack due respect for my
life choices. I’ve learned to surround myself with people who place worth in
friendship, whose decisions are based in integrity, the things that assist me
to do my work or make life tolerably comfortable, desires that fulfil ambitions
and a respect for myself that supports my current activities and future dreams.</div>
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In contrast to the photos I'm posting, the sun is shining here,
baking the lush green earth into hues of brown and red, and the temperature is
soaring as summer approaches with its promise of longer days, tan muscles and
lightening hair. The flocks of tourists are returning with their pink bellies
and lust for all things tonic and loud. But for me life for me has become real
again, and real is liberating, therapeutic and invigorating. Time waits for no one and as someone with something to offer I wait no longer, I look to the sun to inspire my travels and allow the winds of change to direct me toward my next destination.<br />
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So do yourself a
favour, catch the fire, seize the love, free the dove and watch your spirit fly
to lofty heights on the wings of age, because that’s where real life exists.
Don’t wait for others or expect politicians or celebrities to do it for you.
Learn to respect yourself and others; work to complement this world with your
dreams of hope and truth then genuine happiness and success will follow as
surely as the sun rises.<br />
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<span style="font-size: small;"><i>These photos were taken in January while exploring the
edge of the Carpathians and the Black Sea - time permitting over the next
couple of weeks I’ll update this page with a few photos and thoughts on my
recent activities abroad. Until then, drop in and say hello or tell me your own
story ..and if you keep an eye on my other Blog I'll probably post a new poem or two over the next couple weeks ..</i></span></div>
</div>KWhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18335001094857381380noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8365597864916881666.post-837834428710263722011-12-31T15:25:00.000+00:002011-12-31T15:25:26.312+00:00Mutlu Yillar; The Tabula Rasa<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">As New Year’s bells ring out
across the globe and firecrackers disguised as rockets scatter their
pyrotechnic blaze of colour into the night sky in announcement of the passing
time, people everywhere will contemplate the past and look to the future with
anticipation. It is only another moment in life, yet it signifies more than a
mark on the calendar; when the clock strikes midnight and the world enters 2012
people will turn the page to write a new chapter filled with hope, or wipe the slate clean in attempt
to paint a healthier, more honest vision of our changing reality on the blank canvas that is tomorrow.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">We proceed into the future
with joy in our hearts and the expectation that somehow humanity, with all its
flaws and failings can create a more promising opportunity for the present from
the lessons of yesterday. I welcome this New Year as a present waiting to be
opened; a personal opportunity to initiate plans for new projects with
happiness as the measure of success and an imminent future that holds promise
for the revelation of truth.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">If truth is indisputable
fact, there is no one truth that encompasses all culture and time; history has
become a relative position. Human beings in certain places through different
ages must determine an agreed set of understandings that can be operated within
to form an ordered universe of expectations, what we generally call the rules
of socialisation, the paradigm of the age. We create matrices of worlds within
the spheres of politics and emotion, spirituality and economy and our use of
language and all the aspects of interaction that we term the public, and then
look to the creative community to share this notional concept of thought
through the finest art, as an authentic experience of the contemporary culture
of each civilisation.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">Not all painting or
sculpture or music or poetry or any of the skills and talents we associate with
‘the arts’ is truly art, for art, though it can often entertain and amuse, is
of the highest calibre and most likely to pass the test of time when it
reveals, enlightens, informs and teaches us about ourselves in any given period
of history. History, and even time itself, is a fluid concept and perspective
determines the importance of events in the past.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">Artists in previous centuries
seeking a return to the natural revived the primitivism of the art of
Cro-Magnon cave dwellers with its ochre and red dyes and two-dimensional
portrayal of animals, while by contrast early Christian icons, although using
colour and gild with regularity, can appear static and unnaturally posed.
However, each style communicates intent and was created for a reason.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">Renaissance painters
excelled at capturing deep, rich tones and shades in fabric accentuated with
detailed folds in garments and dimension of matter so that there is a
perfection of realism in presentation, however many of these fine works are
filled with symbolism and the juxtaposition of context of bizarre objects that
are entirely unreal in the situation of the subject; parrots and pears swirl in
the air with scrolls and orbs.</span></div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-wxqDgqnMFo8/Tv8mNXC8NWI/AAAAAAAAD0s/t1PFCts4COI/s1600/Egretdayout1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-wxqDgqnMFo8/Tv8mNXC8NWI/AAAAAAAAD0s/t1PFCts4COI/s320/Egretdayout1a.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">Islamic artists in the latter centuries of the
first millennium utilised magnificently complex calligraphic techniques to
portray various elements of the natural world whereas 20<sup>th</sup> century
cubists attempted to capture the inner person through a reordering of the human
form in geometric shapes. More recently the abstract expressionists, pop art
lithograph creators, urban primitivism and stencilled graffiti has captured the
imagination of the world. All these methods can have equal value in the eye of
an audience seeking revelation and/or awareness of the social environment
through visual experience.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">In the past couple weeks a
few of the most widely-known American artists of the late 20<sup>th</sup>
century passed away into the annals of art history, and only time will tell whether
the work they leave behind continues to be valued as the generations shift
toward new methods and techniques and an evolved understanding of what it is to
be human in the age to come.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;"><a href="http://www.johnchamberlain.cc/biography/bio0.html" target="_blank">John Chamberlain</a>, the ‘son
of a saloon-keeper’, began turning scrap metal into sculpture back in the 50s.
He was a native of Indiana who served in WW2 and using his grant became a
hairdresser initially, then after becoming inspired by DeKooning, Giacometti
and Van Gogh attended university in Illinois. He dropped out of the Art
Institute of Chicago after 18 months but continued at college in North Carolina
and went on to have work exhibited all over the world. Aluminum foil, Plexiglas
and foam rubber as well as metal torn from wrecked cars were among the common
materials he worked with to create his pieces, which consisted of joining
together existing forms to reference historical sculpture in contemporary
terms. His monolithic twisted designs with their kinetic energy exuding
modernist theories of non-linear literature quickly attracted attention from
avant-garde galleries and he represented the US at the Venice Biennale in 1964.
A retrospective of his work will be on display from February at New York's
Guggenheim Museum, where his first retrospective was held in 1971.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;"><a href="http://www.theartstory.org/artist-frankenthaler-helen.htm" target="_blank">Helen Frankenthaler</a>, though
highly considered in certain circles, and reviewed with much praise in the
media over the past week, leaves me cold. As an abstract expressionist known
for splashing colour thinly and randomly onto untreated canvas her art says
very little, although that is merely my subjective aesthetic opinion. Her work
has been compared to Jackson Pollack, though I really don’t see the similarity
other than they both painted on the floor. Pollack’s work, though appearing to
the untrained eye as dribbles and splashes of paint reveals something more, as
beneath the patterns and swirls we see form and substance, the contours of dancers
and revellers, the staged procession of life, whereas Frankenthaler’s work
appears as blotches of faded dye seemingly purposeless on a landscape of
nothing, commonly referred to as ‘color-field painting’. As the daughter of a
New York supreme court justice her background allowed easy access to those in a
position to encourage progress into the art world; as she attended only
the ‘best schools’ it was perhaps inevitable people would pay
attention. However, maybe this helps explain why her work is bland, without
intent or connection to a state of mind that requires realisation of deeper
connotation.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;"><a href="http://www.jamesrizzi.com/" target="_blank">James Rizzi</a> is by contrast a
3-dimensional painter of jumbled and seemingly chaotic scenes of a style that
was been termed ‘urban primitivism’ by Tina Weymouth of Talking Heads fame
after he completed the cover for the first album of her offshoot band The
Tom-Tom Club. His paintings are filled with images of people and buildings
surrounded by stars and palm trees and radiant suns all bursting with activity
and colour to create mesmerising panoplies of gratuitous excitement. His unique
approach includes raising a number of the figures in each painting away from
the canvas by gluing identical copies of the component onto the surface using
wire, producing an interesting caricature effect of depth. In 1996, he became
the first official artist for the Summer Olympics in Atlanta and the following
year the Montreux Jazz Festival.</span><span style="font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";"> </span><span style="font-family: Arial;">In 1998, he made the official posters for the Football World Cup in
France. I had the opportunity to purchase one of his fabulously energetic
paintings in the late 80s, although at the time it was already out of my
financial reach and I can only suppose that they will now extend far beyond my
modest budget – however, I look forward to the coming retrospectives.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">So, when the New Year rolls
around again, when the midnight chimes wake you to the reality of the blank
canvas of life, that tabula rasa that awaits a brushstroke in the form of paint
or pencil, spatula or fingertip, remember that what you portray is a reflection
of the sweat or tears or blood or laughter and love you represent as an
individual. We are all the canvas that is filled with images and memories of
the emotions and actions of existence, and every day is an opportunity to shine
the light of truth across the empty space of tomorrow.</span></div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-z4KDAoqx7_Q/Tv8nKeqLPeI/AAAAAAAAD1c/f8sANEO5LiU/s1600/lizbeach2a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="177" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-z4KDAoqx7_Q/Tv8nKeqLPeI/AAAAAAAAD1c/f8sANEO5LiU/s400/lizbeach2a.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">We are merely travellers
through the pages of a book that has many characters and plots. This grand
story of life that fills our world with dreams and hopes, sadness and mirth,
pain and ecstasy, is neither pre-determined nor exclusive, but it does follow a
narrative. The story is our perception of the knowledge we gain on the trip,
though those events may not adhere to traditional chronological rules. There
are hints of the levels of realities that we inhabit in every organism and
molecule of life and light that surround us and it is up to us to reach out to
touch the esoteric form, to connect with the human situation, allowing faith in the
fragmentation of shape and structure to redefine us as we continually imagine
new ways to create the future in hope and dreams and the art we bring into
being that informs the journey. Make the memories and dreams you create worth
the trouble of the adventure and activity.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">*<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>*<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>*</span></div>KWhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18335001094857381380noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8365597864916881666.post-55375048494887571282011-12-23T14:17:00.000+00:002013-11-15T23:22:02.238+00:00Seasonal Greetings: Of Quaaludes, Quinine, the Quad and Quixotic Quests<br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-fVwo_Tws88U/TvSCJdNjALI/AAAAAAAADvo/1LaGwC_q4sA/s1600/drinkcracker1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-fVwo_Tws88U/TvSCJdNjALI/AAAAAAAADvo/1LaGwC_q4sA/s320/drinkcracker1.JPG" width="261" /></a><i><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt;">“I’m a sinner,” he shouted tossing the Black Beauty into the
back of his throat while letting the Quaalude dissolve under his tongue in a
bubbling swirl of lager. She was feeding him lust in chemical form and he ate
hungrily, a wolf at Red Riding Hood’s door. With enough speed in his system to
keep him going all night the ‘lude would settle him nicely into that dreamy
tantric state where music becomes soft as clouds.</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt;">“We’re all sinners, honey,” she idly offered swigging a
caramel coloured soft drink.</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt;">“</span></i><i><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt;">Qui dormit non peccat,” he slurred.</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt;">She looked up at him through pupils the size of roses under
eyelids drooping as dew-laden petals and said, “You’re mocking me?”</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt;">“No, no, it’s Latin for ‘the sleeper does no sin,’” he
replied, sensing his misplaced authority. “Basically one of those sentimental medieval phrases designed to hold people in place through inactivity”</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt;">“Uh huh, well baby, this here is Latin too,” she drawled,
turning back to the foil containing thousands of tiny granules of the finest
bean Colombia exported.</span></i><span style="font-family: Arial;"> </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt;">Alright, alright, that’s just a ploy, a ruse, a pointless
piece of misdirection and inane dialogue as a segue to discuss freedom of
speech .. Yeah baby! Freedom of speech .. and, well, growing up in confined
spaces ..</span></div>
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<span class="messagebody"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt;">Not long ago I received the following message
on Facebook: It's National Book Week. The rules: Grab the
closest book to you. Go to page 56. Copy the 5th sentence as your status:</span></span></div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-MlEDKQNFn48/TvSD6bYa4wI/AAAAAAAADwA/3LqBieUDGjo/s1600/athenskw1c.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-MlEDKQNFn48/TvSD6bYa4wI/AAAAAAAADwA/3LqBieUDGjo/s320/athenskw1c.jpeg" width="243" /></a></div>
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<span class="messagebody"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt;">Here is the line from the book I
opened: “She’s already passed around Quaaludes, offering one to every person
but me.” It is from the book <i>A Visit from the Goon Squad</i> (winner of the
Book Critics Circle Award 2011) by Jennifer Egan, winner of the Pulitzer Prize
for Fiction 2011. In it she openly discusses the so-called recreational
substances her characters encounter throughout the decades without allowing
that to become the focus of the characters’ motivations.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt;">This past summer I read the best- selling novel ‘Stories We
Could Tell’ (</span><span lang="EN" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt;">2006) </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt;">by Tony
Parsons (he of NME fame and author of ‘Man and Boy’) for the second time, and
was not surprised by the drug taking behaviour of its 70s protagonists. I’ve
read many an SF novel and seen enough films to be frequently confronted with
the characters altering their reality with mind expanding chemicals, from
Valley of the Dolls to the Matrix (an entire reality built on the blue pill or
the red pill). Whether the reckless endangerment of Trainspotting, the soul
searching of Man With the Golden Arm or the groovy self-discovery of Easy
Rider, a culture of exploration and experimentation has been prevalent in
entertainment for several generations.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt;">The psychedelic music of the sixties, the speed and ‘ludes
of the self-indulgent seventies, the cocaine fuelled rise of the yuppie in the
80s are only indicators of the common experience of the times. Unfortunately,
in our current age we seem to be going through a period of alcohol depressed
apathy that disguises itself as morality and the ordinariness of convention.</span></div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-2jMQN_Q10Oc/TvSEfv8fsQI/AAAAAAAADwY/Vh8ep3jSyQg/s1600/Kcatfount1a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="283" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-2jMQN_Q10Oc/TvSEfv8fsQI/AAAAAAAADwY/Vh8ep3jSyQg/s320/Kcatfount1a.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt;">Not long ago I watched Jonathon Ross interviewing the actor
Jeff Bridges about his drug preferences. Bridges was on the show to talk about
his film ‘Men Who Stare at Goats’ which is concerned with the military’s use of
LSD as a tool for creating specialist soldiers who can kill using mind control.
Bridges discussed his own regular use of LSD for recreation and an aid to
improved meditation, and asked Ross what he thought about it. Ross claimed in
‘hey I still work for the BBC’ mode, much to the chagrin of Bridges, that he’d
never tried it.</span></div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-KZ7j8EPq8s4/TvSE5WotV8I/AAAAAAAADwk/cLF-VlTKo-w/s1600/acropfrieze1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-KZ7j8EPq8s4/TvSE5WotV8I/AAAAAAAADwk/cLF-VlTKo-w/s400/acropfrieze1a.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt;">Which brings me to the reason for this little rant; censorship of art in the media. Particularly that which a few simpletons might find offensive. A little while ago I posted a comment on a friend's art Blog, mentioning the beauty and
serenity of a photographed scene in four sections as being trance inducing,
soft and fuzzy - using a reference to Quaaludes. Although she appreciated
the comment, she was unsure about having a ‘controlled drug’ mentioned on
her Blog, and asked me to resubmit deleting the analogy. Just so you get
it, here’s the comment in its entirety:</span></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt;">These are stunning photographs (name omitted) .. I like the
way you’ve placed the sky at the top and the sea at the bottom creating a
vertical panorama .. the sunset is as brilliant and powerful as you mentioned.
When I first looked at the central photo collage I thought of a phrase around
the idea of a quadrant and the connection between the other pics, however on
ensuring myself of its meaning I came across the word ‘Quaalude’ which is a
pharmaceutical, a hypnotic sedative, the trade name is derived from the words
‘quiet interlude’ .. so in an odd way I thought that was more appropriate for
these photos of your tranquil and yet illuminating walk along the beach .. nice
work. KW</span></i></div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-MiDVJDqv0ww/TvSFHEhOfGI/AAAAAAAADww/tD60BlSykiY/s1600/tablebysea1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="270" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-MiDVJDqv0ww/TvSFHEhOfGI/AAAAAAAADww/tD60BlSykiY/s320/tablebysea1a.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt;">Obviously I was asserting that the beach walk was like a
‘quiet interlude’ and that I had come across the definition while looking up
the word ‘quadrant’ in relation to the layout of the photos. Now, of course
it’s her choice to publish or not, each person is free to censor their own Blog
as suits them – but personally, I think most people in this day and age are
mature enough to understand this pharmaceutical reference in context,
especially with the provided explanation.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt;">Every day a significant proportion of the population is
prescribed tranquillisers, sedatives, anti-depressants, inhibitors, uppers and
downers and all around the towners. I think almost everyone is aware of the
difference between over the counter remedies, prescription medication, illegal
narcotics and shady street deals.</span></div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-paw3ilSKvzs/TvSFaeCREvI/AAAAAAAADw8/TFMql8_iJyw/s1600/chapndog1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-paw3ilSKvzs/TvSFaeCREvI/AAAAAAAADw8/TFMql8_iJyw/s320/chapndog1.JPG" width="199" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt;">Not so many years back the British Council, and your
mother’s doctor, recommended a glass of Quinine a day to keep malaria at bay,
as well as other tropical illnesses, upset tummies and low sex drive. Now,
Quinine is available in most countries, including the UK, as a drink mixer, yet
it’s still a controlled substance in the United States. And who can forget that
Coca Cola originally contained the ‘pep me up’ additive, cocaine?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt;">Damien Hirst famously printed pictures of tablets, capsules
and medications of various colours and shapes onto Plexiglas light boxes to
illuminate the fascination we have with curatives in this age of addiction, and
completed a series of pharmaceutical-style advertising posters for such
foodstuffs as baked beans and sausages. So, let’s not avoid the reality we live
with daily and that we can and should approach wide eyed.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt;">Maybe I’m wrong, but surely artists need to be open to
experience, open to life, open to the truth – however you want to define it. If
we hide from the realities of life, the hidden aspects as well as the brighter
moments- we give strength to those who would draw us into an age of darkness
where speech is monitored and suppressed to maintain control over our thoughts,
and visual art becomes a propagandist tool to sway public opinion.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt;">Language is
the way we define ourselves, whether that is spoken or visual there are
inherent meanings and interpretations in linguistic structure and expression
that allow freedom to grow and spread, responsibly and without restriction, for real people are capable of filtering their own experience.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt;">However, just this week it happened again on the Ross show
(now moved to ITV due to his anger at being censored and suspended by the BBC
for making an on-air lewd phone call to an elderly actor) as the witty and
intelligent Tim Minchin was edited out of his Friday 23<sup>rd</sup> December
show for singing a song that might be offensive to the feeble-minded community
of fundamentalists (or just mental, I’m not sure). I’ve posted the song in this
Blog as it was to appear so you can judge for yourself if it is offensive or
was justifiably cut from a “pre-Christmas” show.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt;"></span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/uIBduMtSqdU" width="420"></iframe></span></span><br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt;">Clearly the editors of Mr Ross’s show feel we are not
capable of determining our own position on the satirical elements of comedy. I
am a grown up – it is my duty to engage with and challenge the wrongs in this
world and also to reveal and illustrate the incongruities and hypocrisies of
the social construct.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt;">As an artist I want to entertain, amuse or enlighten
in an imaginative manner. So while Jonathan wants to hide his personal party
habits behind a screen of denial or bemused superiority, those who seek to
construct a world of truth open their lives to scrutiny so as to inform others
that they are not alone. It is a function of art to transmit a message of
contemporary humanity through creative means. And, I’ve read and studied the
Gospels, and in my opinion Jesus quite liked a party and therefore one would
think, He enjoyed a bit of a giggle – so, I think He would’ve found this song
amusing, and the debate over it’s offensiveness a storm in a teacup – which He
would’ve easily quelled.</span></div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-BcHpqt87msI/TvSGcb_XfoI/AAAAAAAADxg/Ioe7Wfvglas/s1600/greencay1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-BcHpqt87msI/TvSGcb_XfoI/AAAAAAAADxg/Ioe7Wfvglas/s320/greencay1a.JPG" width="273" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt;">Where are
today's artists on the issues that affect all of us? Do they have anything to
say on the issues of world importance or are they too busy congratulating each
other on yet another pointless postcard exhibition where the only people attending
are those showing work?</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt;">Over the past few years funding for the arts and the
buildings and services offered by various local councils has been dramatically
reduced. In Derby, the city I resided in for the past six years in the UK, the
funding has been slashed so severely that the arts council will soon be a
‘team’ of one and the new centres for the arts, the <a href="http://www.derbyquad.co.uk/" target="_blank">Quad </a>and <a href="http://www.deda.uk.com/" target="_blank">DeDa </a> (both spaces I have performed and exhibited in and attended many events at) will have their
funding entirely cut within the year – this after spending 20 million
pounds ($30m) on building and funding these centres a few
years ago.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt;">Self-concerned
individuals worried about the crumbling of the Arts Council in the UK or pleased
with Mr President's declaration of funding for artists who create works that
support the <a href="http://www.artinfo.com/news/story/33800/obamas-2011-budget-prunes-arts-funding/"></a>"cultural self-image of the United States" are typical in this community of late (While overall <a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/02/01/AR2010020103598.html">funding
for the National Endowment for the Arts</a> is being reduced, contrary claims
are published on his <a href="http://www.barackobama.com/pdf/issues/additional/Obama_FactSheet_Arts.pdf">website</a>).
Is government funded art propagandist - or so pathetically weak in its vision
that the result is not challenging to intellectual thought, or so highbrow that
the general audience is left cold by it's self-indulgence? Perhaps a serious
discussion on the artist’s role in this maelstrom of ideas and ideologies is
necessary: the technocracy of a saturated media? A <i>wikimedia</i>?</span></div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-zvLjcl2iMic/TvSGPbkWnVI/AAAAAAAADxU/IihkdKNXDyk/s1600/seacloud1b.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="304" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-zvLjcl2iMic/TvSGPbkWnVI/AAAAAAAADxU/IihkdKNXDyk/s320/seacloud1b.jpg" width="320" /></a><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt;">I certainly hope those rights that my father, my sons and I
and all the people of every nation and generation previous and since rallied
for, protested for and spoke out for are never stifled, silenced or softened. When we begin to respond through fear – fear of what others will think,
fear of our own flaws, fear of the power of confrontation, the fear of what
lays within, then we slide into a shallow and quivering state of ignorance.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt;">A world of art
that does not engage with the issues of our time and contributes nothing to
future social understanding of what it means to be human in our age – that, my
friend, is what we really should fear!</span></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt;">“Think more openly. That’s the point.”</span></i><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt;"> </span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt;">– Gilbert and George</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt;"> * * *</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt;"><i>.. and no, I didn't resubmit the comment! </i></span></div>
KWhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18335001094857381380noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8365597864916881666.post-6437446456484813622011-11-22T09:18:00.001+00:002011-11-24T18:05:27.018+00:00Spinning the Wheel<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-9Sc280xjzPA/Ts3v-L2jpsI/AAAAAAAADtM/LdU0Tt6b4MY/s1600/arrivalset1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-9Sc280xjzPA/Ts3v-L2jpsI/AAAAAAAADtM/LdU0Tt6b4MY/s320/arrivalset1a.JPG" width="252" /></a></div>
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One of the lessons I use to
generate conversation in my classes is to ask the students to come up with a
directory of the most important inventions in history, making the initial
distinction between invention and discovery, of course. As I write their
suggestions on the board, reminding them to say, “I think the most important
invention …” we travel through time, discussing reasons and needs for each
object on the list. One of the first things every class mentions is the Internet.
However, it is surprising how few students are quick to point out that in order
to use this medium we need electricity, and to have energy at the flick of a
switch we must have power station dynamos, and to have those things we need:
the wheel.</div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-pD2wRph-jRg/Ts3yMauJo0I/AAAAAAAADtU/XzwDiAPqvEc/s1600/Fairousel3f.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-pD2wRph-jRg/Ts3yMauJo0I/AAAAAAAADtU/XzwDiAPqvEc/s320/Fairousel3f.jpg" width="246" /></a>That seemingly simplest of inventions
(or was it a discovery?) is paramount in creating the world we have fashioned
today. This doesn’t even begin to tap the requirement of rockets to put the
satellites into orbit in a circle around the earth so that communication can
happen with the touch of a finger.</div>
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There are many paradoxes in
the culture of life <i>beyond the edge of the map</i>. Straddling East and West, the mix
of past and present collide, creating unique and often complimentary
traditions. Although it generates many a faction within the nation, most
Turkish people, especially those living in larger or more cosmopolitan places
like Istanbul, embrace the present and look to the future in various ways.</div>
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English is taught in state
schools and language exams are required for acceptance at most universities.
Fashionable clothing, the latest mobile phones and new cars are much sought
after, representing western values and a homogenisation of culture that
suggests an evolving contemporary global identity. As a point in case, one of
the highlighted attractions of the 2010 Capital of Culture celebrations was the
widely publicised concert of the rock group U2. The fact they were on tour and
would be performing at other venues throughout Europe seemed to make little
difference – this mega band’s appearance provided public recognition that
Istanbul had arrived in the twenty-first century.</div>
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As a people, the populace of
this nation-state recognise the complex and often interchangeable nature of the
history of this vast country. Over the six millennia that this land has been
inhabited there have been many kingdoms and empires, often with competing aims
and ideologies. From the Turks, Ottomans and the Romans to the Byzantines and
the Hittites, not to mention several ancient rulers who left incredible monuments
to their existence, like those giant heads reminiscent of Easter Island – yet
more intricately detailed, at Nemrut Daği (who made them and why?)<br />
<br />
</div>
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The future is hotly debated.
Significant minority groups such as the Kurds have fewer fundamental rights
than those who can claim Turkish ancestry. English and Germans among other
ex-pat groups, who provide sizeable revenue for ‘resort’ communities, are
constantly being hit in the pocketbook with additional taxes, and many resent
the unfair nature of their position, which according to the current government
requires selective economic sanctions. European status is contested regularly
in the political arena as well as the cafes, schools and street corners where
the ‘ordinary’ people mingle and share views.</div>
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There are many opinions on
the possibility of joining a union with the other states further west. Many
feel they are economically better off now than ten years ago, and having to
adhere to regulations coming from Brussels would seriously damage this
progress. Additionally, if they were part of a diverse but interlinked economic
zone any failures beyond their control would adversely affect their own
stability. Like many Brits, they fear the Euro could drag everyone down if
there were serious problems in less developed nations, as was witnessed with
recent events in Greece, as well as Ireland, Italy, Spain and other once mighty
European nations.</div>
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Many feel an imbalance of
trade in certain goods, designed to redistribute wealth throughout the union,
would hamper their own agricultural development, and the possibility of
providing a haven for often wealthy Westerners might diminish as well. Also,
they fear this would impose a loss of free trade with non-European nations on their
other borders. </div>
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Also, the US is
a strong military ally regardless of what rhetoric is employed in the media and
various (Wiki) leaks that filter out through less mainstream sources, and
becoming part of Europe could reduce their role as a major player
in the emerging new order that includes China, Brazil and South Africa,
especially now that Turkey has the fifth largest army in the world. Although
privately, many quietly voice their concern over the apparent power these other
nations have within the borders of their homeland. Some view this intervention
with suspicion while others accept the inherent obligations to protect a way of
life that has made them amongst the wealthier states in the region.</div>
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However much the economic progress
of recent years has helped develop a better lifestyle for most people the
influx of foreign visitors has changed the face of this modernising nation for
better and worse. Although money from external sources creates job
opportunities, tradition and culture is impacted in other ways, not always
benefiting the indigenous population. Pollution, in the form of rubbish and
sewage, create their own environmental concerns, and the boom in property sales
has helped fuel inflation in the housing market that seriously affects lower
paid workers.</div>
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There are positive factors
though, and most people are quite happy about perceived progress as the
infrastructure is improved and luxury goods become more widely available. Most
people have computers and all the conveniences of modern living, and many
people drive cars whereas not only did most not have the opportunity to own
such a vehicle twenty years ago when I first visited the roads were fewer and
less well-paved.</div>
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Westerners are slowly waking
from their consumer dream to recognise the environmental devastation caused by
the advance of industry, and yet most will never freely give up their personal
luxuries such as automobiles, satellite phones and air-conditioning. However,
when it comes to developing nations governments in the West, pressurised by
growing popular opinion, seek to limit growth and a potential progress that
generally involves deforestation, dam-building, nuclear power facilities and
strip mining. The attitude seems to be, ‘we chopped down our trees and
irrigated lands by rerouting rivers, we poured toxins into the air and the earth and we now have all the benefits, but it would better serve the future of the world if you didn’t do this while we utilise your underpaid and under-privileged labour force.’</div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-zTWDOb2Md0A/Ts32Zro9eHI/AAAAAAAADuM/URBLu2An0hQ/s1600/KWdunebug1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-zTWDOb2Md0A/Ts32Zro9eHI/AAAAAAAADuM/URBLu2An0hQ/s320/KWdunebug1a.JPG" width="240" /></a>It is difficult to explain
to people from poorer nations with abundant resources why they should slow or halt
development when they see free enterprise working for Western economies. It
suggests an ulterior motive to maintain poverty and minimise standards
of living for those outside the bubble of 20<sup>th</sup> century technological
expansion.</div>
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How can we expect people to care
about the environment when they see the acquisition of consumer goods as the
method to equal opportunity? What can Western nations do to share the wealth
and still effect positive change for the environment? How is it possible to
alleviate ecological damage while accommodating the needs of others to have the
equal access to the contemporary comforts of life?</div>
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<br />
Clearly, we can’t continue
to deplete the resources of earth at the current rate with the impact of
pollutants ever greater, yet it is understandable that those without should
desire the same luxury and comfort available to the wealthy.</div>
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<br />
Who doesn’t
want a hot shower or instant fire to cook with? Who could do without electric
lights or central heating? Television is everywhere, and the media sells dreams of bigger cars, faster computers, integrated phones, imported food and
travel, not to mention thousands of products we're required to buy regularly, from shampoo and perfume to clothing and compact discs.
When do we finally have enough to be satisfied? Contentment, it
would appear, is the enemy of consumerism, and so the wheels keep turning.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-CzpkHgn9-34/Ts34tLRplFI/AAAAAAAADuk/Ch2hokwjqV0/s1600/beemug1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="270" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-CzpkHgn9-34/Ts34tLRplFI/AAAAAAAADuk/Ch2hokwjqV0/s320/beemug1a.JPG" width="320" /></a>As the world spins on its
axis, and communication is enhanced between those in far-flung nations the
distance in culture is narrowed to a point of contact. The homogenisation of
culture is approaching through media and technology, and people have developed
shared interests that span the globe. The Internet has opened a window and
though the sun shines in to light the way, the wind of change is howling.</div>
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The place where people
meet, clasp hands in friendship and see eye to eye is the start of honest discussion, and talk these
days is about equality and freedom and the suppression of the interests of the
majority by the few. Those who control the churning wheels of the machine want
to maintain growth of industries at the expense of many, but who
among us has another way? What message is powerful enough
to alter the spinning wheels of progress? Can words of truth, peace and unification be heard above the constant crackle of
communication? And is anyone really listening? <br />
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</div>KWhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18335001094857381380noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8365597864916881666.post-19176070437262216612011-11-08T12:10:00.001+00:002011-11-22T09:17:34.824+00:00What..! Sacrifice ..?<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-7DirJnlWqo8/TstoNYTUIzI/AAAAAAAADqM/SCXjIO5nfgs/s1600/8balloonman1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-7DirJnlWqo8/TstoNYTUIzI/AAAAAAAADqM/SCXjIO5nfgs/s400/8balloonman1a.JPG" width="335" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">For most people in
Turkey this is a long weekend off work and the time to visit family. I decided
to take advantage of a few days without classes to get into the sunshine and
take pleasure in the wonders of nature and the mingling of the holiday crowds.
As it was yet another beautiful day with temperatures still hovering in the low
20s (bottom end of the 70s Fahrenheit) I hopped in the car and drove along the coast to enjoy lunch in a seaside town, take a wander around the traditional markets, shop for some warmer clothes in ancticipation of the cooler season approaching and pay my respects to a few friends.I had planned a busy day.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">This week is an
important occasion that marks the 72 day period between Ramazan, with its
carnival atmosphere at the end of the daily fasting during the holy month, and
the commemoration of the Kurban. Turkish people call this holiday a Bayram, as
they do with most national or religious events that embrace celebratory
activities and time off work. Bayram translates literally as ‘festival’.
Muslims in other parts of the world generally call it Eid.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">With most people
free from employment obligations for at least four days and many off work for the week the usual tourist
areas swell for one last big occasion before winter closes the seasonal activity.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_-vMy1lnkcNt_LPaqWXGyD-9Xo7rLQgvG9844SuqYS36ZRQttLB5vJKca9YRePEUJA2JGyavXcAWRlSmZ_pV9298iwrWcmjLHnnN08N_bDWXopMhbzozJmK4yL4nxCo7Cai8BjgvGxV3H/s1600/1marcoast2a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_-vMy1lnkcNt_LPaqWXGyD-9Xo7rLQgvG9844SuqYS36ZRQttLB5vJKca9YRePEUJA2JGyavXcAWRlSmZ_pV9298iwrWcmjLHnnN08N_bDWXopMhbzozJmK4yL4nxCo7Cai8BjgvGxV3H/s400/1marcoast2a.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">Grabbing this opportunity the local businesses put on
sales and special entertainment to entice potential consumers, and it offered
me the chance to revel in the culture and customs as well as the sensations of
the bazaar. So, after my usual breakfast of fruit-laden cereals and bread
dripping with fresh honey, I set off on a mini-adventure (yes, like this Blog
it seems some things never change; I’m happy to say I might not
either).</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">The souk in the old
town consists of hundreds of stalls with their many handcrafted goods and
delicious and unique foodstuffs, ancient shops built into the old city walls
selling magnificent hand-woven carpets and skilled art works and dozens of tiny
teahouses bustling with the commotion of customers and older men, obviously the
regulars, playing backgammon at low tables. I made a couple purchases,
including a fresh from the docks balik ve ekmek (fish sandwich) with salad and
chips, and then spent time chatting to a couple locals as young men brought
teas on silver trays.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">Naturally, there is
more to the festivities than simply eating and drinking and everyone is aware
that at this time the sheep are slaughtered and meat donated to the poor by
those who can afford to purchase an animal and put it to the knife. Several
years ago the government outlawed the public practice of this massacre, calming the outrage of some sensitive souls who eat meat but don't want to see the action involved in getting it to their table - but it
was still happening everywhere when I first visited Turkey nearly twenty years
ago. Although nowadays most people either conduct the ritual on their own land
or have the gruesome deed performed by a licensed butcher and collect the meat
packaged supermarket style, back then it happened in the middle of the street
in practically every town.</span></div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Xn5e-wwPLh4/TrkVzza0ljI/AAAAAAAADo0/EV7jUYq9YEc/s1600/KWicview0711a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Xn5e-wwPLh4/TrkVzza0ljI/AAAAAAAADo0/EV7jUYq9YEc/s1600/KWicview0711a.JPG" /></a></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">I was driving
with my two companions from the same coastal area where I now live to Istanbul,
and after travelling all night we arrived in Yalova, across the Sea of Marmara
from the majestic city. We shared breakfast and after a boost of strong coffee
headed into the early summer morning sun for the final leg of the journey (in
retrospect we should have taken the ferry but the way we entered the city is a
memory I’m sure none of us will ever forget). Suddenly, as the clock struck
eight, the air was filled with the cries of fear and the terror of anticipation as the smell of blood hit the nostrils of every
sheep and cow within miles of the town centre. As we stood outside the hotel
where we had eaten a basic meal of eggs, cheeses and bread, hundreds of sheep
were being flipped onto their backs and having their throats slit. The dark red blood ran into the cobbles of the road as if tracing its way
around a maze toward the gutters, which quickly overflowed with the life of so
many dying animals.</span></i></div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ACGOIMUPd8s/TrkQ8cP1KGI/AAAAAAAADoE/v5Nm3h9UlBo/s1600/7cottonbud1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="285" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ACGOIMUPd8s/TrkQ8cP1KGI/AAAAAAAADoE/v5Nm3h9UlBo/s320/7cottonbud1a.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">This weekend I was
invited to come to a friend’s farm to witness the affair, but after some
thought I declined, as my conscience wouldn’t allow me to go through that
again. Instead, I’ve enjoyed the peace and quiet of the town I live in now that
the overseas visitors have all but disappeared for the year, watched some
football with the ex-pats who live nearby, and toured the nearby countryside to
watch the last of the cotton being harvested and gathered before shipped off to
the mills.</span></div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-_b_TY7G0Urk/TrkRCRBl7cI/AAAAAAAADoM/yGyLTN2fQMU/s1600/6cottonpick1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="238" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-_b_TY7G0Urk/TrkRCRBl7cI/AAAAAAAADoM/yGyLTN2fQMU/s320/6cottonpick1a.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">Some people it
seems don’t get time off, and the temporary labourers and farmers work from
daybreak till after dark to ensure the cotton is collected at the right time.
Soon these buds will be turned into fabric and the cloth sewn into the clothes
we wear. Many of the items will be available in local shops and everyone in the
chain of growth, production and sales will receive a small portion of the
receipts, however throughout the world many people are working in less
comfortable situations to supply shops in Britain, the USA and other nations
who exploit the poorest to maximise profits for 'brand name'
merchandise.</span></div>
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<div class="MsoNormal">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-CxcEfUTcuk4/TrkRb-liu3I/AAAAAAAADoc/EVOdq-zPZlg/s1600/10cottonbud8a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-CxcEfUTcuk4/TrkRb-liu3I/AAAAAAAADoc/EVOdq-zPZlg/s320/10cottonbud8a.JPG" width="239" /></a><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">Last Friday I was
teaching an evening lesson and thought it would be a good idea to discuss
Kurban Bayram and explain the origins of the festival to those who only
experience it from within the sanctuary of experience of family and cultural tradition, intending to stimulate conversation about this
ancient holiday. Tracing the roots of the events that have culminated in the
mass killing of sheep we touched on the culture of food, the distinctive
practices of various regions and the evolution of religion through the shared
history of Islam and Judaism as well as drawing comparisons with other
celebrations throughout the world and of course, speaking in English.</span></div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-bneKE4vo3kY/TrkRVfWp8wI/AAAAAAAADoU/URIWdITFk_4/s1600/11FrapKK2011.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-bneKE4vo3kY/TrkRVfWp8wI/AAAAAAAADoU/URIWdITFk_4/s320/11FrapKK2011.jpg" width="217" /></a><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">It all led to the
eventual discovery by the students that the festival was a commemoration of the
moment God (Allah/Yahweh) demanded that Abraham sacrifice his son (in Judaism
Isaac, in Islam Ishmael) as proof of his devotion. At the last minute God tells
Abraham he has passed the test of faith and tells him to sacrifice a sheep
instead, and so to this day a sheep is offered in the morning. At temples, mosques
and synagogues around the world sacrifices are made in the name of God, and
surreptitiously to feed the less fortunate, though not everyone recognises the
underlying resons for these shared events. Although several of the students
were aware of the purpose of the Bayram, they were surprised to learn that
Kurban actually means ‘sacrifice’.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">Looking out over
the harbour at one of my favourite castles as the sun set and the cruise ships
departed, carrying their wealthy foreign guests to the next destination on the
itinerary, I sipped a last coffee before heading back along the sea road to
relax for another day, and of course put together lesson plans for my classes
returning later in the week.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">I’ve sacrificed the warm blood of meat for many
years, although not putting mammal flesh into my personal temple of this body
hasn’t felt like giving something up, but rather as lifting myself toward a
higher passion. It’s been another gorgeous weekend in this wondrous land, but
every day in the sunshine is another day of life to delight in; if living with
the curious culture of a diverse people means I wake to the light of the sun in
my eyes, that’s a sacrifice I’m willing to accept.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-size: 12pt;">* *
*</span></div>KWhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18335001094857381380noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8365597864916881666.post-1146600140203114602011-11-02T08:00:00.000+00:002011-11-02T09:06:06.862+00:00Natural Terror<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">I’m fortunate to have awoken to beautiful scenery and sunshine this past week ..</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">However .. Just
over a week ago, on the 23<sup>rd</sup> of October, a massive earthquake
rumbled Turkey near the city of Van in the Eastern part of the country, and the
people who live there awoke to terror. I’d like to thank everyone who enquired
after my safety and sent good wishes by email, facebook, skype and the other media outlets. Fortunately, I’m far from the epicentre
of the quake zone and suffered no ill harm, however, I do know several people
with family in the area and wish them the best in these difficult times.</span></div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-EwlQOszk-ac/TrD0iIOJYYI/AAAAAAAADk0/2VjCxskhMsQ/s1600/2gorgcac2a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-EwlQOszk-ac/TrD0iIOJYYI/AAAAAAAADk0/2VjCxskhMsQ/s320/2gorgcac2a.jpg" width="253" /></a><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">Five days before
the unsettling tremor, on October 18<sup>th</sup>, 24 Turkish soldiers were
killed and 18 others wounded when an attack on police and civilians occurred
near the Turkish-Iraqi border as the PKK once again set out to make their point
for Kurdish independence in the region. At least 21 PKK militants were also
killed attempting to flee back into Iraq after their raid on the border towns.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">The town of Ercis,
the most devastated of the crisis caused by the natural disaster is also
located in the mainly Kurdish region. This raised the question once again of
Turkish-Kurdish relations and the spectre of terror that haunts the two
distinct cultural groups that live in this nation.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">As the Turkish
government and healthcare professionals, including people I know here on the
coast, rallied to send aid and provisions as well as 250 doctors and a
900-person team from the Emergency Aid Team, another bomb went off nearby killing several more people, courtesy of a female suicide bomber.</span></div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-i_JsFE7HS2w/TrD08aHEtYI/AAAAAAAADk8/p_P1BIjWNq4/s1600/kfamroad1a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-i_JsFE7HS2w/TrD08aHEtYI/AAAAAAAADk8/p_P1BIjWNq4/s320/kfamroad1a.jpg" width="239" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">The death toll from
the devastating earthquake has now risen to 596 with more than 4,150 people
injured. We have all seen the pictures of babies pulled from the wreckage, but
how many have stopped to consider the longer term rebuilding efforts this will
necessitate? The water network has been damaged and sewage may be seeping into
the pipeline polluting drinking supplies, and of course many thousands have
been left homeless and grieving.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">Given the area’s
large Kurdish population, the knee-jerk reaction of many, as seen on various
social media, was that this was “divine retribution against separatist Kurds
for PKK attacks.” SEMİH İDİZ <a href="http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/n.php?n=earthquake-brings-out-best-and-the-worst-2011-10-27">http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/n.php?n=earthquake-brings-out-best-and-the-worst-2011-10-27</a></span></div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-1ASPvEjv4nE/TrD1Sg6zsJI/AAAAAAAADlE/QQeH9KugQ0U/s1600/DunArka1a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-1ASPvEjv4nE/TrD1Sg6zsJI/AAAAAAAADlE/QQeH9KugQ0U/s320/DunArka1a.JPG" width="240" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">I was visiting
students in a nearby town this past week and those of Kurdish ethnicity are
often quite vocal about their desire to have autonomous political control in
the region many call Kurdistan, although they are more concerned with
maintaining their <i>‘cultural identity’</i> and perceive the Turkish-led
government as attempting to eradicate their history and language. People who
consider themselves true Turks are divided on this issue, with many believing
peace through talk is essential while others think all Kurds are part of a
terror plot, sending the money they earn to the violent opposition. Most Kurds
I meet simply want to integrate into a ‘modern nation’ with the same
opportunities as all other citizens.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">Naturally, I
support those who seek peace. Peace and compassion combined with outreach to communities
in need are our most valuable assets in times like these – what potential disaster is
needed for all people to recognise our reliance on each other for existence in
the face of tragedy? In 1999, when a massive earthquake struck in Western
Turkey, killing many thousands, the Greek state quickly sent assistance,
leading to renewed understanding of their common heritage and better, more
peaceful relations between the two nations, an achievement politicians had
previously failed to accomplish with all their posturing.</span></div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-oyWtYlQGw9I/TrD2JnAeXEI/AAAAAAAADlU/Ot7oHc3iCIY/s1600/16elecaret5a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-oyWtYlQGw9I/TrD2JnAeXEI/AAAAAAAADlU/Ot7oHc3iCIY/s400/16elecaret5a.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">Let’s break down
the walls of inequality and remove the barriers to peace to recognise our
common humanity for the benefit of all people who encounter these obstacles,
for there are no greater threats in life than the unstoppable power of nature
and separation from loving human interaction. I have always believed that a
truly civilised society is judged by the way it treats the least of its
citizens. When someone is hurting, do not turn your eyes away, but wipe away
the tears and help them to smile again, the world will be better for the little
effort it requires to be decent, especially to those less fortunate. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">In these days of occupation, whether on the streets or in far away lands, try to occupy your mind .. with thoughts of peace ..</span></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS";"> Over the past
few days unseasonably cold weather brought deep snowfalls to parts of America’s
East coast, including those places where I lived for so many years. Already
people are dying from this latest onslaught of nature. My thoughts are with my
friends and family there – hopefully it isn’t an indication of the winter to
come ..</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">While you’re at
it, spare a thought for those suffering in the floods of Thailand, and save a
thought for how lucky you are to be reading this instead of struggling with one
of these tragic events .. No one is immune from the power of a shifting
environment, so, if you happen believe there is karma at work in any of
nature’s actions, shouldn’t you be trying to ensure positive vibrations to
counter the terror ..?</span></i></div>
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<br /></div>KWhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18335001094857381380noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8365597864916881666.post-67405943104989213632011-10-07T17:02:00.000+01:002011-10-08T07:01:47.262+01:00Where Change Happens<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-avbnGsfylyg/To8TwFxhSqI/AAAAAAAADeQ/KdFp-ALeLgc/s1600/1Aksunrise1a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="265" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-avbnGsfylyg/To8TwFxhSqI/AAAAAAAADeQ/KdFp-ALeLgc/s400/1Aksunrise1a.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: Arial;">This is the 40<sup>th</sup>
episode in the travelblog I began on leaving the UK 18 months
ago and therefore I felt it appropriate to mention the significance of change and renewal as represented by the number 40.</span></i></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">Forty is a sublimely interesting and noteworthy number in many traditions
as well as to those who mark the days and years of life as a series of passages
through landmark events. Life begins at 40 we are told, and many who have
passed that milestone can affirm the truth of this assertion.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">Scripture tells us it rained
for 40 days while Noah and his family were on the ark that ultimately landed on
Mount Ararat in modern day Turkey. It is also written that Moses was forty
years old when he left Egypt and another 40 years passed before he returned to
seek the release of ‘his people’, then wandered forty more years in the
wilderness. Saul, David and Solomon each reigned for forty years. Jonah was in
the whale’s belly for 40 days.</span></div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-TWmh7u8xRWU/To8URt7bUeI/AAAAAAAADeY/kod6mqt-510/s1600/2townxurx1a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-TWmh7u8xRWU/To8URt7bUeI/AAAAAAAADeY/kod6mqt-510/s200/2townxurx1a.jpg" width="158" /></a><span style="font-family: Arial;">To study Kabbalah a man is supposed to have attained the ripe old age of 40 years while in Islam and Orthodox Christianity the post-death mourning
period is 40 days during which the spirit of the deceased is still
on earth. Jesus spent forty days meditating and being tempted in the desert
then remained on earth for 40 days after his resurrection. The period of the
Christian Lenten festival, which precedes Easter, is 40 days. Additionally, Mohammed
was forty years old when the archangel Gabriel first delivered to him the
revelation of the Qur’an.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">Music sales are registered a
success for reaching the ‘Top 40’, a nap is called ‘forty winks’ and naturally,
you will be aware the duration of the average pregnancy for women is 40 weeks.</span></div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-dEyQOcwYJfg/To8e_pJblmI/AAAAAAAADfg/2yPZmZWanUk/s1600/Kgeo1a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-dEyQOcwYJfg/To8e_pJblmI/AAAAAAAADfg/2yPZmZWanUk/s320/Kgeo1a.jpg" width="320" /></a><span style="font-family: Arial;">Interestingly, the planet Venus forms a pentagram, or five-pointed star, in our
night sky every eight years, with five star shapes in succession it returns to
its original point every 40 years (5x8=40). Many historians, numerologists and
religious scholars believe this cycle of the morning star may be the reason the
ancients attributed such significance to 40. Venus is inextricably connected to
Earth through mythology and astrology and retains symbolism that still affects
understandings of personality in even the least superstitious of people, after
all who doesn’t appreciate Botticelli’s ‘The Birth of Venus’ or know Venus is
goddess of love?</span></div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-i9Mgn-3FsJk/To8UjO9ds0I/AAAAAAAADec/-sRb0FbBHmQ/s1600/3dolphinbod2b.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="154" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-i9Mgn-3FsJk/To8UjO9ds0I/AAAAAAAADec/-sRb0FbBHmQ/s200/3dolphinbod2b.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">The examples continue, but
you get the point. Forty is intrinsically linked with a time of change and
renewal; it represents testing and purifying through the passage of time
combined with extraordinary experience. So, in maintaining tradition with the
wise and the mysterious, after this 40<sup>th</sup> travel adventure post, I
too will revise the way <i>Edge of the Map</i> is presented now that it has
matured <i>(and I'm bored with the style and too busy to continually work at it)</i>.</span></div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-pHnrXe4PTKI/To8VtjN9ubI/AAAAAAAADek/wsZsMxW5zFw/s1600/6Kmountroad1a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="211" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-pHnrXe4PTKI/To8VtjN9ubI/AAAAAAAADek/wsZsMxW5zFw/s320/6Kmountroad1a.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">I pulled back on the
throttle and drove down the winding gravel road toward the seafront. A couple turns of the wheels and I was gliding above the
sea cliffs past the marina. I took in the majestic scenery around the cape,
easing round the bends to enjoy the view unfurling in panorama before me.
Starting up the coast I left the wide expanse of the clear blue bay in my
mirror. Reaching higher ground, the wind in my hair and the sun on my face
brought my senses to life and I felt the freedom and exhilaration that comes
from knowing what lies ahead is open road.</span></div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-AKrvdOuz5a4/To8WTBUaLAI/AAAAAAAADew/TUr8MaFVnvg/s1600/4chandbeach1a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-AKrvdOuz5a4/To8WTBUaLAI/AAAAAAAADew/TUr8MaFVnvg/s320/4chandbeach1a.jpg" width="214" /></a><span style="font-family: Arial;">I had a couple stops of personal
interest before arriving at the rendezvous point and boating off to the tiny
secluded village on the turquoise coast that was my eventual destination so; I
turned off the main road through thick woodland.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;"> After my second sunrise of
the day, I traversed the high grey mountain peak and entered the upper plains
of the other side cruising toward the Asklepieion. Heat ripples rose like the
waves of a desert mirage from the softened black tarmac as the tires of the
motorcycle spun softly into the stones along the side of the road. Swigging
water from the leather cask slung over my back I surveyed the local countryside
of green and yellow meadows, dusty red mountains that rose up from fertile
olive groves and dark pine forest where boar and deer roamed free and gave
thanks for this earthly creation. </span></div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-lf9Ix1ATSzE/To8V-9d4PgI/AAAAAAAADeo/n0V00Cjv318/s1600/7Askeplionview1a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-lf9Ix1ATSzE/To8V-9d4PgI/AAAAAAAADeo/n0V00Cjv318/s320/7Askeplionview1a.jpg" width="270" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">Looking out over the Aegean
this site dedicated to the son of <a href="http://exemplarart.blogspot.com/2010/09/lap-of-gods.html"><i>Apollo</i></a> was originally built early in
the 3rd century BCE as a temple and altar of some significance to the ancients.
The king of Pergamon further enhanced it when he added stoa of the Doric order
a couple centuries later. The massive marble staircase, 38 metres wide, that
led up the hillside was lined with columns and statues of gods and important
figures of the day. Much of what actually occurred here in terms of ritual is
lost in the annals of history, however its importance as an altar is underlined
by the location and many artefacts uncovered in and around the temple grounds.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZM1QYLObn19-eYgSv1To_aL2zu539YfOcKoH4-RSGIT59w_15WFAwd048hHmQyh2jo-OXR5oxRQakxvzLBWUdBKo_2aNDN2CEPGLzohvT_2j1h0pDsTs8c0B9D-AxiUy3xvdbuxCefdq7/s1600/8asklepstair1a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZM1QYLObn19-eYgSv1To_aL2zu539YfOcKoH4-RSGIT59w_15WFAwd048hHmQyh2jo-OXR5oxRQakxvzLBWUdBKo_2aNDN2CEPGLzohvT_2j1h0pDsTs8c0B9D-AxiUy3xvdbuxCefdq7/s320/8asklepstair1a.jpg" width="244" /></a><span style="font-family: Arial;">The best thing about it
today, other than a few interesting relics, is the natural beauty of the
setting, with an incredible view across the straits to the islands in the near
distance. I stayed long enough to enjoy a freshly squeezed orange juice under a
mossy shade tree before setting off toward the 500-year-old fortress that was
built to protect the region from marauders and armies from near neighbours that
patrolled the coast seeking opportunities for expansion and conquest. The fort
and its battlements, though abandoned in recent years, still impresses with its
scale and stunning position on the cliffs high above the town. One can imagine
the mighty cannons that would have boomed warning shots across the bows of
invading forces and the echo of victory accompanying the many battles seen from
behind its towering walls.</span></div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-hvd1X3FXnxM/To8XTbhcgWI/AAAAAAAADe0/8uWZS1V9bCs/s1600/9inflight1a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="216" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-hvd1X3FXnxM/To8XTbhcgWI/AAAAAAAADe0/8uWZS1V9bCs/s320/9inflight1a.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">I was alone and undisturbed
as I enjoyed the spectacular view from the summit, and walking around the
crumbling castle I could only imagine the many stories of the brave men who
lived within these solid walls to protect the villagers’ ordinary lives in the
valley below. A citadel of immense proportions with cannons aimed out over the
blue sea, its purpose now rendered useless by the jets that occasionally stream
overhead, it served as home to hundreds in an age now long past.</span></div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-D5vw-FaKg9I/To8XbrXngbI/AAAAAAAADe4/kza3hs7GEfk/s1600/11goatparade1a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-D5vw-FaKg9I/To8XbrXngbI/AAAAAAAADe4/kza3hs7GEfk/s320/11goatparade1a.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;"> Today hawks
and ravens swoop on small prey along the edge of the rock face while a small
troop of soldiers practice manoeuvres in a fenced arena on the plains at the
base of the mountain where only a herd of goats foraging for sweet grass
provide any threat.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">I had an appointment to keep
and after a brief moment of daydreaming I hit the road again, cruising down the
other side of the mountain until the rocky peaks receded into serrated grey
shadows above me.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">A few fishing boats bobbed in the sun-streaked ripples along
the seafront as I drove into the harbour and I located my friend in the little
café on the strand. We wasted little time wading out to the boat and kicking
the little motor into life. The journey along the rugged shore was stunning and
offered us a bit of time for a dip in the crystal blue water of the tiny cove
where we anchored for lunch.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4LDNcyBhu32lo4dts5ej5l2O658UmirD43j2XxkqOWP2tO8XNI16vSnOBmnjlNV_5yZn70-F0GQaJSu-BulcIPG09Ez8pakYf4DdtY-huc4Rgj8cBwSpL_RxzFi8-o_Gtv7qbXw6NgZa5/s1600/13KWSB11a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="192" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4LDNcyBhu32lo4dts5ej5l2O658UmirD43j2XxkqOWP2tO8XNI16vSnOBmnjlNV_5yZn70-F0GQaJSu-BulcIPG09Ez8pakYf4DdtY-huc4Rgj8cBwSpL_RxzFi8-o_Gtv7qbXw6NgZa5/s320/13KWSB11a.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">I hadn’t commandeered a
speedboat for some years and felt a little out of my depth as we rounded the
peninsula and caught the crosscurrent with a sensation reminiscent of the day I
took my sons and dad out on an open water northern Scottish loch. The engine
wasn’t strong enough, I felt, to handle the pull of the waves where the Aegean
met the Mediterranean and although I managed to manoeuvre the speedy craft
through the drag it wasn’t the most comfortable feeling for this landlubber. I
was glad to round the cape and find an inlet to pause for a refreshingly cold
drink and another swim in the azure water before the final leg of the voyage.</span></div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-RQWmHhHuVBE/To8Vgq4a6EI/AAAAAAAADeg/8a35NoZ6sos/s1600/3firstcours1a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="202" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-RQWmHhHuVBE/To8Vgq4a6EI/AAAAAAAADeg/8a35NoZ6sos/s320/3firstcours1a.jpg" width="320" /></a><span style="font-family: Arial;"> Dinner was a feast of local
culinary delights and fabulous entertainment including an impressive lady who
did amazing things with raw flames. Hopefully, the effort I put into this
expedition, and the groundwork I laid beforehand will spark a fire and ignite a
positive change of schedule. I have lived a blessed life with so many memories
I can only give thanks for the opportunities I have been given, the paths I have
travelled and the people who have lived with my need for eternal transformation.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNBz0u6S675gKK6yWTp2i7eARXSgo8kURK0uTMl8xuAIGa-1Cp_RBelHIC2aPwg3NonvylWwET7MLGbTWT9PDgwh7s-XrZ5D_9RDi4AZcYGxfQ-tN692LpqpSar-RUeklL0DWaZ8DGNG1e/s1600/14rawflame1a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNBz0u6S675gKK6yWTp2i7eARXSgo8kURK0uTMl8xuAIGa-1Cp_RBelHIC2aPwg3NonvylWwET7MLGbTWT9PDgwh7s-XrZ5D_9RDi4AZcYGxfQ-tN692LpqpSar-RUeklL0DWaZ8DGNG1e/s320/14rawflame1a.jpg" width="208" /></a><span style="font-family: Arial;">Those who love me and nurture my hopes even with knowledge of my naturally
passionate and restless character are always first in my thoughts.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">My own time on this earth
has been marked by a sequence of actions and deeds categorically consistent
with the ‘normal’ experience of living, either because I’ve simply followed
nature’s course or by imposing upon myself a set of predetermined expectations
that became self-fulfilling. However, it hasn’t been an ‘ordinary’ life. I’ve
experienced most of the usual chain of events, university, marriage and
children and a regular job, to arrive where I am now with a reasonable
understanding of how each subsequent action was informed by the previous
providing me with appreciation of both a linear and cyclical vision of the continuity
of human existence.</span></div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-EGDtiFtmlAU/To8lOBpbw0I/AAAAAAAADfo/iw9aBczVS0U/s1600/13ODIslands1a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-EGDtiFtmlAU/To8lOBpbw0I/AAAAAAAADfo/iw9aBczVS0U/s320/13ODIslands1a.jpg" width="320" /></a><span style="font-family: Arial;">What goes around comes
around, like instant karma and the stars above, and we become renewed in faith
as we dare to dream. I believe we learn by opening our hearts and minds to all
potential experiences and applying those lessons. Unfortunately, I meet many
people who haven’t a clue about our origins or latent power and fear their
dreams of discovery remaining ignorant of the rainbows that swirl as
kaleidoscopes in our minds.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEix-CfmzUTpw8NW8NvbswnUOmoYcphnlml2oxSfJW0ccvZ50M8k7O9u5Jd50Kq1Uv4RAJSQQIa3X31mVg8oZQ9JLjOYtEPUL7hKikaTt9ox0CB6Krh7_UGEfmhDKvcJJb6VJ9vPL7GCvQE4/s1600/16KKbtree1a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEix-CfmzUTpw8NW8NvbswnUOmoYcphnlml2oxSfJW0ccvZ50M8k7O9u5Jd50Kq1Uv4RAJSQQIa3X31mVg8oZQ9JLjOYtEPUL7hKikaTt9ox0CB6Krh7_UGEfmhDKvcJJb6VJ9vPL7GCvQE4/s320/16KKbtree1a.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">Most people it seems are
obsessed with notions of success that remove them from true knowledge – a new
kitchen installed every three years according what some arbitrary design
consultant tells them is fashionable, a faster and bigger car every two years
and recognition of achievement amongst strangers; seriously, what is this
pedestal of fame and why do so many clamour after it as though it were the holy
grail of life? Everybody wants to change the world – but look where that has
taken us. The only thing worth changing is your mind. That’s where real change
happens.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">A change is as good as a
rest they say, and I had so many changes over the years that it became a way of
life for me; I must be well rested by now.</span></div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-t0wj4MUPh0w/To8bae5I6HI/AAAAAAAADfc/94cR3SXa1sM/s1600/10fortview32a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="175" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-t0wj4MUPh0w/To8bae5I6HI/AAAAAAAADfc/94cR3SXa1sM/s320/10fortview32a.jpg" width="320" /></a><span style="font-family: Arial;">I enjoy change and the challenges it
brings; I’m happiest in a liminal state where transformation leads to acquired
knowledge and growth. The Chinese character for change denotes both opportunity
and risk, and that appeals to me because I see no joy in a life that is forever
mired in habit. The same people, the same job in the same place, the same food
and the same thoughts signify stagnation and boredom to me. So, I present
myself with challenge to develop interests and discover opportunities for
spiritual and intellectual growth. Constant renewal helps to keep me feeling
alive and vital. </span></div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-34NsXESAnX0/To8a1C_NgjI/AAAAAAAADfY/xcjkTwOKhuE/s1600/17hrbrvine1b.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-34NsXESAnX0/To8a1C_NgjI/AAAAAAAADfY/xcjkTwOKhuE/s320/17hrbrvine1b.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">Though not everyone handles
change with the same determination and enthusiasm, everyone knows it always
feels good to come home, so I do believe some routine is essential to stability
of mind; continuity represents security for most people. Continuity and change
are two sides of the coin that buys wisdom and happiness. So, while life goes
on with its endless custom of change so too the things that keep us grounded
reinforce our sense of identity and connectedness to community.</span></div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-frXdMOl7MHc/To8Zm39TCwI/AAAAAAAADfM/EePlixVXqg8/s1600/15Kcruwall1a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-frXdMOl7MHc/To8Zm39TCwI/AAAAAAAADfM/EePlixVXqg8/s320/15Kcruwall1a.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">We all need
change and experience to grow and we all need continuity and security to feel like we belong, but as
Sitting Bull, the great Sioux Chief said, “we belong to the Earth, Earth does
not belong to us.”</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">So, as summer will become
autumn and the stars above us shift in alignment with nature’s laws of physics hold that thought in mind, and remember that maintaining a balance of
reality with the ambition of imaginings is key to a happy life, and living in harmony with nature is essential to future life on this earth. I too will
adapt and move on regardless of past dreams and aspirations, plans that succeed
and those that don’t, people who come and those who are gone, but I recognise age is but a
number and all numbers though significant in their own way are but abstract
signs on the road to paradise.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghxa3S4Y7OEtITtAsvmST5fdNmpHdwDijlLPpcOfS_HOd3v1JrPRrtNZdijLgS02LP75qslBvjAtsRrFOlqjKkaTvNToEYT9EyIbSHA7ySNUOkKyBZGGL1VQyV3FPqupvWXcQ96Cgu_Gf1/s1600/18treelace1a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghxa3S4Y7OEtITtAsvmST5fdNmpHdwDijlLPpcOfS_HOd3v1JrPRrtNZdijLgS02LP75qslBvjAtsRrFOlqjKkaTvNToEYT9EyIbSHA7ySNUOkKyBZGGL1VQyV3FPqupvWXcQ96Cgu_Gf1/s320/18treelace1a.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">Whatever your personal situation, whatever times
we live through, the ups and the downs of experience, all of life is connected;
as history flows from the past to the future so too we continue to change and
mature with our own unique and wonderful story of being and becoming in harmony
with the beautiful planet we live on.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">* * *</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif; font-size: small;"><i>Each team plays 40 matches in a regular Premier League
season, but unfortunately Arsenal, the team I’ve been following since 1971,
exactly 40 years, are having their worst start in many years. Thank goodness my
hometown team, Peterborough Posh are having one of their best seasons in a long
time. After being promoted into the Championship (one division below the
Premiership) through the playoffs they’ve been having a terrific run. Two
seasons ago, following 2 consecutive promotions, they crashed out of the
Championship with one of the worst ever records. However, with Darren Ferguson
(son of Manchester United manager Sir Alex) back at the helm, the Posh have
returned to winning ways and are maintaining a reasonable position in the top
half of the table. I, like most Posh supporters, will be happy just to see them
stay up, but so far they’ve exceeded expectations, beating Ipswich by a
stunning 7-1 and thanks to a last minute own goal, we beat the recent FA Cup winners from the south coast on their home turf
3-2. Up the Posh!</i></span></div>
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*</span></div>
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KWhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18335001094857381380noreply@blogger.com