Friday 28 October 2016

Sylvia’s work had organised a short cultural induction as in her new role as Regional President for Royal Canin in Asia Pacific she will be spending a bit of time in this part of the world.

First we headed to the Yu Gardens, situated in the centre of town and with the entry through a shopping centre. From there we made our way across a bridge with lots of corners in it to stop evil spirits coming across.

Originally built in the1559 by Pan Yunduan, who later became the governor of the Sichuan province, it has been partially destroyed or let go to ruins and rebuilt several times. As we meandered through the gardens Jamie gave us a rundown on the various buildings from different dynasties. Ponds are full of fish. A fourteen meter high hill has been built at the back and is the only hill in the surrounding area.

We watched a porcelain orchestra play – apparently a rare event.

As we wandered out through the shops silversmiths hammered away carving out jewellery.

During the 1840’s the local governor had a British ship that was bringing opium from India set on fire. He was concerned about the affect this shit was having on his people. The Brits got a bit pissed off and had a big punch up with the Chinese. The Chinese lost and this part of the world including Hong Kong and Taiwan was then colonized by Britain and France for a while. We spent time exploring the old French Quarter, which has been fully restored and now houses numerous cafés, restaurants and high-end shops. During out last visit friends Jim and Liz, who were living here then, brought us here for dinner.

Not far away were a group of stand-alone and semi-detached houses, some now shops and others hotel rooms. Apparently you rent the whole house  for 3 to 5 k a night.

It was in this area that we saw a really bright idea. I will see if the picture can tell the story.

Our last stop was the Bund to look at the various towers on old buildings. Last time we were here was at night so it was great to see the contrast.

The Shanghai Oriental Pearl Tower stands out but is now dwarfed by other newer and taller buildings. The balls on the tower represent pearls, which are a big thing in this area.

The Shanghai Tower at 632m tall is now the second tallest building in the world and was shrouded in fog. The Shanghai World Financial Centre standing next to it at 492m was apparently originally  to  have a round hole in the top but the government would not allow it as it looked too much like the Japanese flag – hence it has a rectangular hole instead.

We strolled across the road to look at the inside of the Peace Hotel, a glorious building with wonderful art deco interiors before heading to the airport to catch our flight to Kyoto.

Monday 31 October

As we left the hotel in Kyoto we found a sign pointing to the subway. This lead down to a 5m wide passage that ran the two blocks under the shops to the station. Kyoto surprised me with its transport infrastructure. With only 1.5 million people they seem to have city trains running every few minutes in all directions.

As we headed south at 280kph on the bullet train we pretty much, when not in tunnels through the many hills, were running through towns. In fact over the 350 odd kms it was, apart from a few cultivated fields, almost a non stop city.

We rolled into Hiroshima late morning. Leaving our bags in the easy-to-operate station lockers we took a stroll to Peace Park. For a city that has been completely rebuilt over the last seventy years we were quite disappointed in the lack of architecture. It looks like a bunch of different people threw up a pile of buildings. The nice stone-lined riverbanks were at least a saving grace.

Arriving at Peace Park the first building we struck was the Atomic Dome. Designed in the 1920’s, by a Czech guy, by the 1940’s it had become quite a renown building around town because of its green copper dome.

The Atomic Bomb had exploded very close to this building. Everyone inside died but the structure partially survived as did many other concrete buildings in the town. This one has been preserved as a memorial.

In front of the building were a bunch of plastic sleeve folders in a number of languages. Set up by Mito Kosei. “an A-Bomb In-utero survivor” – in other words his mother was pregnant with him in Hiroshima when the bomb went off. He came and had a chat to us whilst we were reading his stuff. He informed us how President Obama has been here here last year and signed the book in the museum supporting a ban on all nuclear weapons. But in typical hypocritical style only a couple of years before had his boys carry out some nuclear tests. Mito has spent much of his life collating information about the nuclear bombings in Japan and has a very informative website: http://blog.lovedoor.jp/mitokosei/

This park is in a really nice area with trees, statues, green grass and steps running down to the river.

There is a big bell in the park that anyone can ring so after my crack at a temple on Saturday I had to give it a ding.

As we wandered over to the museum we passed the memorial arch which contains under it the books with the names of those that perished here.

We bought our tickets, picked up a couple of audo guides and headed upstairs to the museum. With just over 30 talking points this place really gets the message across. To keep it simple the Atomic bomb went off a few hundred meters from here. Detonated 200 feet above the ground it stated with a fireball 250 m in diameter.   The shock wave went out flattening most things out to a 2km plus radius; a heat wave set every wooden building (which was most of the city) on fire out several kms. After the blast went out and up it then sucked in winds of over 900kph as the tremendous heat and blast went up.

Then came the black rain. All the particles, soot and vapour from the rivers had been sucked up into the stratosphere forming a massive cloud that then rained black radioactive rain on part of the city and surrounding areas. Of the approximately 380 thousand people in town 140 thousand were dead by Christmas 1945. Some close to the point of impact in the open simply evaporated. On the steps displayed from a bank building 200 odd meters away one can see the outline of a where a person was sitting as the surface of the stone had melted around the shadow.

Roof tiles, statues and ceramics melted and changed shape. Roof tiles further out had the surface melted and reset as a rough surface.

As we progressed through the gallery we listened to stories of the state people had found their loved ones, some with flesh hanging from their bones, others cooked to a crisp and some still alive their bodies black with burns. People had kept clothing and items that the loved ones were wearing or carrying on the day. All this is on display.

It then goes into the stories of those that survived the blast but then suffering tremendous thirst drank the black rain. Many died within days after developing a purple rash and then vomiting blood as the radiation ate and destroyed their organs. There is a hand on display belonging to a guy who when the blast struck was in a building with one hand resting on the window sill. His hand was cooked and parts of the fingers burnt off. He survived but grew these long round black nails from where his fingers had been. When the nails broke off they bled black blood until they healed and grew again.

Many samples were taken by scientists – some are now on display.

It must have been hard for the powers that were responsible for unleashing Fat Boy on this city not really having an idea of just what the devastation would be.

It is interesting to note that the railway station about 2kms away was up and running the next day, the bank with the human shape on its step was operating in four days, and power was restored to what was left standing in two weeks. In spite of that little medical aid flowed in. The population was not told  that Atomic Bombs had been used for several years.

After the museum we hopped on a ferry and went to Miyajima Island about 15 kms away. With deer roaming the streets, kids with their square school bags skipping down the street, a multi-storey pagoda and walking tracks through nice bush it was a very nice contrast.

Monday 24 October – The Hidden Mt Fuji

I took the 9.40am bullet train south to Odawara. My speed app topped us out at 280kmph, a bit slower than the European trains.

I was surprised by the normality of houses in outer Tokyo.  With 13 million people in the city and 37 million in the Tokyo-Yokohama urban area one would have expected lots of skyscraper type apartments.

Quite soon there were fields surrounded by houses.

In less than thirty minutes we had covered the 67km (including a few stops) to Odawara. Here it was easy to purchase a two-day travel pass that allowed one to use all local transport. As I stood in the queue a man asked where I was from. “New Zealand” I replied. He went and got me a brochure and organised the ticket when I got to the counter. Studying the brochure later it wasn’t in English!!!

A packed, slow, local train took us to Hakone. Only half the people could fit on the connecting train so we stood in line (they are bloody good at lining up here) for 30 minutes until the next train arrived. Packed in, squeezing room only, we headed up the hill. The line is quite steep for a train line, meandering its way up through forest and tunnels.

We stopped a couple of times when the driver and conductor swapped and the train went the other way to negotiate the steep terrain.

Arriving at the end of the line we were counted through onto the platform for the Funicular, which was actually dragged up the hill by a cable. Once again squeezing room only.

Arriving at the top lead us into the ropeway (cable car). This is the first  two-cable car I have come across.

I had hoped to see Mt Fuji on this journey but again it is hidden by cloud.  At the top of the hill is a thermal area with plumes of steam gushing from the unstable ground, above which is situated a tourist centre.

The cable car took us down the other side to Lake Ashinoko. There is a hint of autumn in the surrounding, mainly deciduous, forest. A large golf course rests in the valley to the north of the lake.

Disembarking the cable car at the lake I asked the question “could I walk around the lake to the other end?” I got a look of horror. “Walk!! No walk you have to take boat.” And whats more it was a pirate boat. On the boat I got for the 30 minute trip to the other end.

The brochure showed views of Mt Fuji from the bottom end of the lake, but again it eluded me as it had done from both the towers in Tokyo in the weekend.

This whole exercise is about moving people whilst giving them a glance of what life outdoors might look like. Cruising down the lake a pre-recording squawked across the speakers telling us some points of interest.

The little town at the bottom of the lake is a modern tourist town. The only Japanese style building I saw was a hotel on the lake side. I took the bus back to Hakone along a steep, winding, well-maintained road.

Tuesday 25 October

I have found Tokyo architecture so far rather sterile and uninteresting. It is worth bearing in mind that there is nothing old here. Back in the old days everything was built of wood and over centuries the city was razed to the ground many times by both fire and earthquakes, the last big fire being during WWII when the city was fire bombed.

Sylvia had suggested Odaiba Island might be worth a visit as she had been there yesterday with work. I decided to stroll there, which took me through the Shinagawa train station – a good 500mlong and packed with slow moving people. Once away from the station the streets were quiet. The odd group of young kids with teachers headed for the park, each group in different coloured hats.

The route lead me around some waterways before I arrived at the Rainbow Bridge (at night it apparently lights up in many colours). At 1.5kms long it’s pretty impressive. With two decks carrying vehicles, trains and the odd pedestrian it probably carries more traffic in a day than the Rakaia, New Zealand’s longest bridge at 1.7km, does in a year.

The Odaiba island was originally built in the 1920’s as a fort and later expanded. Now it has on its wide open spaces a number of well designed buildings. These include the Fujitsu building,

the Science museum,

and a number of other interesting structures. Unfortunately I discovered Tuesday is museum closed day.

I caught the local train and headed back to the city. I had found on the net the international headquarters of Kyokushin Karate. As I had studied an offshoot of this style reasonably intensively for over 30 years I thought it would be good to check it out. Nishi-Kawaguchi was about 40 minutes on the standing room only train. A short distance from the station I found what had been the headquarters. A helpful man in the, now small dance school studio, explained they had moved from there six months ago. He marked the new address on my map. It was only a couple of kms down the road. On arriving there I could not find the building.

I was struck by the neat and tidy presentation of the area so decided to stroll back into town. The streets are spotlessly clean; even rubbish bags are stacked neatly and covered with a net. There is a nice mix of ten to fifteen story apartments spread among the small, very tidy, two and three-storey houses.

As I strolled through the suburban streets and even small town centres I was surprised by the lack of people about. Apart from the main roads there were hardly any cars. I crossed rivers and canals.

There are large playing fields and tennis courts along the river banks. A couple of streets were closed to traffic where a marked flourished.

As I passed through Kita I discovered a dry stone creek with nice displays in it.

As the journey progressed and about 8km out from the city centre suddenly the streets were packed with people. I had hit a shopping precinct.

I had a quiet chuckle as it dawned in me that the majority of the people I have seen in this city have either been getting on a train, on a train, getting off a train or shopping!! A few hundred meters further and it was back to hardly anyone on the street.

As I got closer to the city double-decker motorways erupted from earth and strutted a few kms overhead before disappearing back into the ground as a two-storey tunnel.

Two man made rivers converged then disappeared under the street I stood on.

Rain set in so I jumped a local subway back to our hotel. During the days 29km stroll I had seen no rubbish, only one building in disrepair, and apart from the trains and shopping precincts few people.

Wednesday 26 October – Pussies Galore

Last night at the hotel bar we had watched with great interest at the detail that went into mixing a drink. With a huge selection of whiskeys and other spirits in the cabinet, the barman selected the glass and ingredients and laid all out in a straight line on the bar. Then the process began of chilling the glass by pouring in ice and water, stirring thoroughly, draining the water off with a sieve, then adding the ingredients, the top of each bottle wiped carefully before the lid goes back on. The drink or drinks are then placed neatly on a tray for the waiter to deliver. The attention to detail is something you see everywhere around this city.

I had read an article in the local paper a couple of days ago about population decline. A survey of Japanese people aged 18 to 34 found that 70 percent of woman and 60 percent of unmarried men were not in a relationship. Moreover many of these singles never got cuddly with 42 percent of men and 44 percent of woman still virgins. Sylvia explained that as Japan has become more urbanised people are turning more and more to pets for company. I had laughed when seeing a pram load of dogs, complete with coats, pushed through the crowds on Sunday.

Sylvia then went on to say how they have cat cafes in Tokyo where people pay to go to sit and play with pussies. With that conversation in mind I went on a mission to find a cat café.

Heading south out from Shinagawa station I was surprised to find that less than 4kms from the centre of Tokyo there are low rise residential dwellings. Very small and well kept they lined the streets until I reached a shopping precinct where the surrounding buildings got taller.

I passed a construction site with diggers at work – the site was immaculate.

A little further down the road some guys were digging up the road. A flag man bowed and pointed the safe path out to me. As the digger lifted the dirt from the hole a man with a shovel and another with a broom insured no dirt was left on the tarmac. Spare tools were stacked neatly in a wheelbarrow.

Arriving at the cat café I found a photo on the building. Comparing the calligraphy in the photo to that on the signs in the foyer I was able to establish it was on the third floor.

A lovely lady welcomed me as I went in. I used one of my three Japanese words, “konichiwa” to greet her with. With a bit of sign language soon the English price list was out.

For a small fee I was soon inside, photographing the very relaxed pusses. The space was very clean and tidy with not a whiff of the very friendly cats.

I don’t think I will be racing back to a cat café next time I am in Tokyo but it is a great experience finding out how different we are in different parts of the world.

Sylvia: Saturday 22 October

We had a leisurely start to the day with breakfast in the hotel then headed down the road to the nearest subway station to start our exploration of Tokyo. I had studied a number of guides and come up with the most recommended route for our weekend here.

The subways here are very easy to use. Each line is colour-coded and given a letter and each stop is numbered. I had downloaded a really simple-to-use app so just had to load in the starting station and where we wanted to go, then it told me the line(s) to use and which stops to get off at. The subway stations are clean and well marked with the letters and colours of the lines easily visible, even in the largest and busiest stations – although I am sure at peak hour it can get hectic as many of the stations were very busy even during the weekend. In general people are very patient and line up to wait for the trains, and even queue to get on to the escalators then stand neatly to the left so people in a hurry can rush past.

Our first stop was the Meiji Shrine, built in 1920 to house thee souls of Emperor Meiji and Empress Shoken. It is in a lovely forested area, which seems to be very rare in Tokyo. There were several Japanese in traditional costumes including many young children and we were lucky enough to see a very solemn wedding procession.

After leaving the shrine we headed out through Harujuku and Omotesando to Shibuya. These are all typical Tokyo shopping areas and definitely not particularly our thing. I was impressed though with the Shibuya crossing, an incredibly busy intersection near the Shibuya station. I have never seen so many people crossing the road at once before, and every 2-3 minutes when the lights changed the same number of people were waiting again. It is quite something to watch. We were also quite taken with a robot in Harujuku.

We stopped very briefly in Shinjuku and then into Roppongi where we headed up to the Tokyo City View and Sky Deck for views over the city. Unfortunately it was pretty smoggy so the views weren’t fantastic.

We then headed back to our hotel in Shinagawa for the evening. We wandered through a beautiful Japanese Garden out the back of the hotel and found a great bar where Roger could enjoy a cigar, then headed to an excellent Japanese steakhouse for some exceptionally cooked wagyu beef to cap off the day.

Sylvia: Sunday 23 October

Today started in a similar fashion to yesterday but we opted first to head out to the older part of Tokyo, Asakusa, to see the Sensoji Temple. In order to get to the temple we had to fight the crowds along the Nakamise shopping street which is lined with market stalls selling all manner of Japanese souvenirs. The temple itself is quite impressive and it is fascinating to watch the throngs of people as they buy their fortunes, waft themselves with incense and pay their respects. This is the oldest temple in Tokyo said to have been built in 628. There was even a female street artist with her performing monkey outside.

We wandered around the temple and down to the river then up to the Tokyo Skytree, apparently the tallest tower in the world. The air was less smoggy today so we tried our luck again and despite some fantastic views couldn’t see Mt Fuji. The tower was pretty impressive though with two observation levels (350m and 450m) and even a glass floor some 350m above the ground. The lift ride between the 30m and the 450m observation decks was quite impressive as the roof was glass so we could watch our progress up the inside of the tower.

Next we headed to the Edo-Tokyo Museum which has a number of models depicting life in the Edo period and also some background on the Tokyo earthquake and Tokyo during the war. Outside the museum is a statue of one of the emperors standing on a tortoise. I am sure this has some major significance but Roger, who has found the crowds somewhat challenging, particularly given the slow pace they move at, suggested that perhaps he was on a tortoise because he wanted to go faster than everyone else.

We tried to visit the sumo museum but it was closed so we decided to call it a day and head back to the bar instead.

Wednesday 19 October

A 50 minute train ride places me in Antwerp, about 45kms north of Brussels. My mother was stationed here in the latter part of WWII on an anti aircraft battery. She had always spoken highly of the place. At her seventieth birthday she told us a story of being strafed with machine gun fire by a Messerschmitt. The plane was so low that she could see the face of the pilot. She suddenly had the realisation that over the last four years of being in the anti aircraft batteries in England there were people in the planes they were shooting at!!

Arriving at the railway station really set the tone for what turned out to to be a stunning city where the new blends in with the old. The railway station looked from the outside like a cathedral.

As I wandered the streets towards the river buildings adorned with gold spires contained shops.

Down toward the river is  the Cathedral of our lady, O-l-Vrouwekathedraal. Started in 1352 with the first stage of construction finished in 1521 it has never been completed. There are statues out the front of men chiseling stone. A green bike is parked in alongside  in case they want to head home!!

Squares are surrounded by bars and cafes, and adorned by amazing buildings.

Statues are prominent in both squares and streets. Reaching the river a viewing area allowed a clear view.

Next was a castle and a little further along another almost castle building.

Then I spotted a large copper-coloured modern building which had to be a must see. Negotiating my way around and over some major road works I was eventually at its door.

What I found inside was, to say the least, amazing. I had stumbled across the Museum aan de Stroom. Each floor contained archeological exhibits superbly displayed from all parts of the world. The lighting was not bright but done in such a way that photos came out with no flash. It was indeed a walk back through time.   On each floor one looks out over the city through wavy floor to ceiling glass.

Copper-coloured stone is on the walls and ceiling on each landing. Each floor contained a range of exhibits from dunnies right back to an Egyptian Mummy from 1000BC.

From the roof, between showers, there is a great view of the city.

After taking in the museum I strolled through the streets back to the station for the short ride back to Brussels.

 Thursday 20 October

At breakfast a couple of days ago, Anne, a colleague of Sylvia’s had suggested a visit to Ghent. Arriving by train about 40k west of Brussels I headed south out of the station through streets lined with nice old buildings, eventually reaching a large canal, or maybe river (it’s a bit hard to know which is which in this part of the world). It is always amusing seeing the top of a boat moving along what from a distance looks like a road.

I followed the river around the edge of the city on a wide bike path next to a motorway.

Lots of little canals run off the main river with pleasure craft moored at the sides. Coming to a large straight canal, which looked like it had been purpose built for rowing, I followed it back into the city.

Crows picked mussels off the stone edge and dropped them on the road to break them open.

Heading into the city centre I noticed most of the streets were curved showing off the stylish old buildings and canals running through the town.

Arriving in the city centre I was blown away by the number of large cathedral-like churches. It was like a few hundred years ago they had a major church building competition. There are three Catholic ones within a couple of hundred metres.

All the buildings around the square are unique.

Just down the road is the Castle of the Counts. Dating back to the twelfth century it is still moated on one side and is made up of huge stone rooms, spiral staircases and well designed battlements around the outer walls.

As with most castles at one point in time it was a prison and place of torture.

The embattlements even have long drop dunnies into the moat.

From the top turrets there are great views across the city and its many spires. These are just a few I photographed from one spot.

Visit over, I followed the winding streets back to the station for the trip to the Brussels airport for our flight to Tokyo. Security is still intense at railway stations and the airport with the ever-present soldiers patrolling and red shirted security guards mainly standing around in groups talking.

Tuesday 18 October 

Having arrived in Brussels by train last night, I headed to the Midi station and caught the train to Waterloo, while Sylvia headed off to work. A short stroll and I arrived at the information centre. Nineteen euros got me a ticket to all the sites of the famous battle. Apparently I had an ancestor on my mother’s side who was a quartermaster at the battle of Waterloo.

First stop was the Wellington Museum, originally the inn where the Duke of Wellington set up his HQ. I grabbed an audio guide, which gave a great account. Each room is set up as an exhibit with a great array of weapons and other memorabilia. Interestingly the Duke was at a society ball in Brussels when he heard Napoleon had arrived down the road to do battle.

Next I jumped on a bus and headed for Lion Hill, about 4kms away. The then emperor had this built after the battle to mark the spot where his prince son was wounded. Over thirty meters high with a lion on top it commands a view of the battle field. At the base is an amazing underground museum.

I again grabbed an audio guide and spent the next ninety minutes intrigued as I walked through a hundred or so years of history leading up to this great battle.

First was a printing press which digitally printed out papers from the era. A guillotine with an interactive display chopped off heads, each with a name, as they dropped into the basket below.

The exhibits walked through time up to the battle which was played out in a 3D cinema.

I was struck by a particularly poignant quote from Wellington that was displayed in the museum: “Believe me, nothing except a battle lost can be half so melancholy as a battle won.”

The 3D cinema was so well done and overwhelming that I watched it twice. Thousands upon thousands of men and horses battled each other – over forty thousand of them losing their lives. Most of the bodies, of both men and horses, were burnt after the battle, although even today the odd skull appears as farmers cultivate their fields. From the exhibit it appears that the soldiers were either very young or man was a lot smaller back then.

The museum leads through into a large auditorium which was built some years ago and has a panorama of the battle, complete with the sound of gunfire and the deathly screams of both man and mount as they fall in thousands to cannon balls or musket balls, or are cut down by the force of a blade.

From there the route lead me outside and up the steps to the top of lion hill. In the summer one can get interactive goggles here to watch the battle; summer is over here so I missed that one.

Napoleon’s forces in blue

It was here it struck me that two hundred years ago over three hundred thousand men, tens of thousands of  horses and cannons were gathered on the surrounding fields engaging in one of histories more horrendous battles.

• Wellington’s combined force of British, Dutch, Belgians and Germans – 106,000 men
• Blucher’s Prussian forces who joined the battle later in the day and helped to stave off defeat – 117,000 men
• Napoleon’s French force – 124,000 men

It is hard to imagine so many troops packed into this location especially as I face South towards Napoleon’s HQ about 4kms away with Wellington’s HQ about 4kms north.

In 2008 I visited the Blucher museum in Kaub on the Rhine River south of Wiesbaden. Blucher had, in the early eighteen hundreds, built a bridge across the Rhine using boats so he could take his army across the river and give Napoleon a good thrashing. On the same trip I visited the Napoleon Museum and tomb in Paris. Surrounding his tomb were major battles he won; the losses were not mentioned.

From there I took a stroll down the road to Napoleon’s headquarters. Along the way there is a monument to Napoleon. It depicts an eagle in distress with what look like bullet holes in its wings.

The house and barns were seconded from a local farmer; the barns and orchard were destroyed after the battle. There are a few artifacts in the house and a short video, which shows Napoleon’s generals expressing their concerns and trying to offer some advice the night before the battle. No notice was taken with Napoleon’s last words “we will be sleeping in Brussels tomorrow night”.

Utilising my two French words (bonjour and merci), I asked the guy on the desk, with the aid of Google Translate, about a bus back to Waterloo. He hit 15 on his calculator, held it up and pointed to a post up the road. Good timing! I supposedly had only 5 minutes to wait. As I waited for the bus in came the rain. With the aid of my poncho and a tree I stayed dry until the bus arrived some forty minutes later.

Back at the Waterloo station, again using my French words and pointing to my ticket, which had Midi Station on it, the guy said next train. I jumped aboard. Thirty minutes into the journey I check my Ulmon-Pro app to see we are heading out to the east side of Brussels. “Maybe we will hook around to the right and into Brussels” I think. Not so! We by-passed the city and were heading well north. Eventually we stopped at a multi-platform station. Dismounting luckily the first person I approached spoke English, and soon I was on a train heading to Brussels-Midi.

Sunday 16 October 2016

This is a tribute to my brother Gareth James “the barefoot blacksmith” who passed away in April this year. http://youtu.be/ZnO_4KbGbu8

We took a stroll from our hotel on Charlotte Street down to the banks of the Thames, passing the Royal Opera House, Covent Gardens and Somerset House.  Crossing the Waterloo bridge, as one looks up and down the Thames, the many buildings, old and new, blend in to make this iconic thriving city.

A short stroll down river is the replica Globe theatre. Opened in 1997 it is a replica of the original theatre which was situated three minutes walk away and back a little further from the river.  The gates are situated facing the river. Initiated by Richard Quinnell, MB, it was part of the architect, Theo Crosby’s, vision that the Globe should be a place of traditional craftwork – timber framework, lime plaster, thatch-work and blacksmithing.

Some one hundred and thirty blacksmiths from 14 country’s took part in making the gates. Attached to the gates are one hundred and thirty Shakespearian characters all sculpted out of wrought iron. On the top centre of the left hand gate as one faces the Thames is a mermaid. This was created in New Zealand by Gareth James, Blacksmith.

After admiring the gates, we took a tour of the theatre. Our guide, Ali, was brilliant, adding considerable wit and humour as she described both the history of the old theatre and the construction of the new one.

This is theatre number three. The first one, with its thatched roof, was built in 1599. In 1613 it burnt down when some bright spark fired a cannon from the loft as part of the special effects for a play. The sparks from the blank round set the thatched roof on fire. Incredibly, with half the exits they have today and some 3000 people packed in, they all got out alive.

A new theatre was built in 1614 with a tile roof. It was later dismantled and moved as the landlord wanted the land back.

This is from Wikipedia: “In September 1642 the Long Parliament ordered a closure of the London theatres. The order cited the current “times of humiliation” and their incompatibility with “public stage-plays”, representative of “lascivious Mirth and Levity”. The ban, which was not completely effective, was reinforced by an Act of 11 February 1648. It provided for the treatment of actors as rogues, the demolition of theatre seating, and fines for spectators.^“

This modern theatre, with its large exits, no cannons, and fire sprinklers in the roof thatch, is limited to 1600 people. The theatre only operates during the summer as it did back in the day. There is a winter theatre next door, which only holds 300. It is lit by candles as was the original one where Shakespeare played out his winters.

Saturday 17 September

After a well-deserved sleep in (well-deserved really for Sylvia as she has been in meetings and on calls from early to late all week) we headed downtown on the subway. Emerging at the World Trade Centre I was stunned by the changes here. The last time I was here in early 2002 the rubble had just been cleared from the towers and there was a big hole in the ground in which one could see the trains running through. Apart from the towers many other buildings had gone and some were being pulled down. The skyline is totally different in downtown. These days apart from the main tower there are many new buildings nearly as tall as it. The sites where the two towers were have been turned in to memorial waterfall pools with the names of all the victims around the edge.

The new tower at over a thousand feet high is an attractive nicely shaped building. It is surrounded by many new tall buildings one of which is pretty unusual.

We had a look at the Trinity Church at the end of Wall Street and the bull which was too surrounded by people to photograph before strolling uptown to Spring St. About three years ago out of the blue I got a thank you email from Toby, who had started karate with us in Auckland at the age of fifteen. He trained hard and was always very determined. Several years later he attained his black belt then set out on an adventure to New York. We had agreed to meet up for lunch while in NYC. To see him again after fifteen plus years and listen to his story was to say the least overwhelming.

On coming over one of the bridges into NY back on his first visit Toby decided this was the city for him. Initially he worked as a bicycle courier (an adventure in itself I am sure). Having always had a desire to get into TV production as his father was, he eventually got some work in a TV production studio. Eventually, in 2004, he and a friend, Stefan, went out on their own and started a production company called Eastern TV. THey have production studios in NY, Atlanta and LA and are best known for their show “Love and Hip Hop. At one stage they made a documentary for the history channel, “Cocaine – A history between the lines”, which involved talking to every one from the users to the drug barons and even involved an excursion into the Colombian jungle. Their business has become very successful, now employing some four hundred people.  He is now married with a young daughter and has a house in Brooklyn.

After lunch we strolled to Union Square then took the subway back to the hotel. In the evening we visited Constantine and Petra, a lovely couple we had met in Botswana early last year. We ate dinner on the terrace surrounding their Upper Eastside Lexington Ave Penthouse.

Then it was off to the Cherry Lane Theatre, a 225 seat Greenwich Village play house. The ‘Roads To Home’ wasn’t exactly an enthralling play so we bailed at half time. As we were leaving the theatre Sylvia received an alert from her work that there had been a bombing in West 23rd St, about 20 blocks north of us – that probably explained the traffic congestion. We enjoyed the rest of the evening  (actually a little bit into the morning) chatting and drinking champagne back at the penthouse.

Sunday 18 September

We headed back to the World Trade Centre, this time for a trip to the top of the new tower. In the old tower, which I went up several times, you got in a huge lift which swayed its way to the top, then got out wandered around and looked at the stunning views. It has now become quite an experience. The lift walls are a 360 degree video screen playing scenes of the history of NYC and the tower as you go up and panoramic views as you go down.

As we left the lift another video played, then the screen lifted to expose the view. Then we were herded through to another gallery where there was a sales pitch on  an iPad one could hire to tell you all about what you are seeing from the observation deck. Then we finally got to stroll around and look at the views. The sky was quite hazy so it didn’t make for good photos.

We took the train up to Union Square then strolled uptown. I was intending to show Sylvia where I used to train at karate in NY but 23rd street was closed off at 5th Avenue. Dozens of cameras faced down the empty street, journalists pumped their microphones in front of the cameras no doubt driving maximum sensation from this tragic, evolving story. A woman pestered to no avail a policeman to get in and retrieve her car.

We continued our stroll uptown cutting across to 7th Ave and arriving at Time Square, which as usual was packed as buskers, including the “naked cowboy”, tried hard to extract money from people. Police presence was high with body armour and submachine guns on show.

As we got closer to the hotel there were even more police, I presume as dignitaries were starting to arrive for a big UN meeting.

All too soon the weekend was over and Sylvia was on her way to another meeting in Brussels. Tomorrow I head back to Rio to do some work down there.

Monday 12 September
Arriving in Tucson last night my long-time good friend Murray picked me up and drove us the 150k (just down the road here) back to Hereford in Southern Arizona where he and wife Row live.

We are up early and out to the local air force base where Murray is supervising some construction work. I sat in a local diner while Murray went on base to get his workers sorted for the day. Soon he was back and we were on the road south to Naco, a small run down town you enter when crossing into Mexico. There is already a double high fence on the border here.

The border crossing into Mexico is quite simple: just drive through, no passport check. There must be a few US bad guys hiding down in Mexico.

We head south through quite lush looking scrubby country. Most of the year this land is barren and dusty but they have had their annual rain recently. The sealed road is a little narrow and uneven with many small shrines on the roadside, I presume for those who have died in car accidents.

This area in recent years has had a strong Drug Cartel presence. Apparently they have now mostly been driven out of the area. Judging by the state of some signs there is also a bit of a shooting target shortage.

We soon reach the main road to Cananea. There is a new road being built alongside the existing one with seal and road markings looking ready to use. Just one problem no bridges. Yes!! Did someone forget to order them??  One would have to be desperate to drive this road at night as in places the road just ends and you have to swerve across onto the new bit, no cones or signs, just stay alert.

We make it to Cananea. It’s a dusty, pretty run down town supported by a huge open cast mine. The tailing heaps stacked up like large hills go on for miles. Started by a colonel back in the eighteen hundreds it produces copper and gold. After three and a half years of strikes, in mid 2010 three and a half thousand police descended on the town driving striking miners out of the mine.

We found a local restaurant and had a cheap but very tasty lunch. The trip back across the border was a little different than on the way over. As we drove into the booth there must have been 30 cameras facing our vehicle.

A white-haired, grumpy, antique US border guard grilled us as to why we had been to Mexico. “For a look”, we replied. “I don’t know why anyone would want to go there for a look” was the reply. More questions followed including a check in the back of the pick-up before he waved us through.

We headed over to Bisley where Murray pointed out where he had done the reclamation work on the old mine tailing hills there. He was finishing this off when I was here nearly five years ago. Now you wouldn’t know they were there as they blend into the landscape.

During my last visit we went to Tombstone to watch the reenacted gunfight at the OK Corral. This starts in the street with a couple of other shoot outs and leads people into the corral for the grand finale. Apparently last year as they were reenacting this in the street one of the bad guy actors had been to the range that morning and forgot to change his bullets over for the show. He drew his colt and fired his six shots. The marshal dropped hit once, the other bullets ricocheted around the streets, one ending up in a bar hitting the barmaid in the left breast. Apparently the guy doesn’t act that part out anymore.

The evening we spent catching up and recalling old times. Murray and I have known each other since the mid seventies; we met through karate and have stayed in touch ever since.

Tuesday 13 September

After a brew of good coffee and a goodbye to Row we headed for Tucson. I am always intrigued by the size of everything in the US, particularly the interstate roads – at least two wide lanes in each direction with a corridor wide enough to build many more lanes. Generally they go in straight lines with large sweeping corners where they change direction. The first of these were originally built in the 1950s with the specific purpose of moving troops and equipment should there be an attack by the Russians. Interestingly it was quite quickly realised that this infrastructure created huge growth in the economy. They are still administered by the Army Engineer Corps.

At one point along the way there were some 200 locomotives parked on a railway siding; apparently they have been there for months and nobody seems to know why.

Arriving at Tucson we took a drive around the Bone Yard. Apparently one can do a tour but we didn’t have time. This is the place where retired aircraft are parked up and by the look of what we saw sometimes turned to scrap. There are thousands of them here on this huge piece of land.

Murray dropped me off. Airborne it is always interesting to look down on the sheer vastness of the US.

The flight is via Chicago so its late when I arrive in Nashville to meet with Sylvia.

Wednesday 14 September

We are staying at Cool Springs just south of Nashville where Sylvia has meetings. I took a drive to Lake Radnor. Surrounded by a tree clad park with a walking track around it, lots of people were out strolling.  At the beginning of the track is a big sign with the rules, some of which were: do not go off the track, do not visit the lake shore, no music or weddings, no picnics, no jogging or running, no pets. Just in case you didn’t remember them thirty meters into the track was a sandwich board with a stop sign on it repeating the rules. I guess when you have big concentrations of people you have to have rule makers and it looks like they love making rules.

On the drive back through Brentwood I was amazed by the number of super large houses with their large, unfenced grounds running to the street.

In the evening we caught up with Earl and Gayle from Kentucky. Sylvia had met Earl on a trip to the Antarctic a few years ago. We enjoyed a good yarn over a meal.

Thursday 15 September

I took a bit of a stroll down to the local Home Depot. Everything is big around here.

Around 1pm we set off on the three hundred plus mile drive to St Louis, heading north west through Kentucky. The interstate along large parts of the journey is bounded by trees but in places it breaks out into large cropping farms.

We stopped at a Subway about half way. This is quite a normal sight in Kentucky and many other states as the laws allow for the open carry of guns.

As we reached the southern side of St Louis the memorial arch stood out in the distance.

Friday 16 September

I dropped Sylvia off for some meetings at the Royal Canin US head office and hit the highway for downtown St Louis. A massive lightening storm was underway and heavy rain drenched the road to the point that the front-wheel drive, underpowered Pontiac went into aquaplane mode several times with  the ESP light flashing on the dash board as it did so. The traffic was moving at 50 mph so one can’t slow down.

St Louis is where Captian Lewis and Lieutenant Clark set off to explore the west in 1804. Arriving downtown I headed to the old court house. Completed in 1864 with construction taking over 40 years it’s quite a nice building with a large dome with hallways running off in four directions.

There I bought a poncho for the stroll to the Arch. The idea of a monument to Lewis and Clark originated in 1935 as a tourist attraction but I don’t think in this form. The project dragged on for a while. In the early 50’s the arch concept was conceived. The architects budgeted for 13 people to die during the building process. Thankfully despite having no safety harnesses no one died. The two sides of the arch were built together; when they reached the tipping point a bridge was lifted up and fitted between them.

Theodolite readings were taken at night to insure the accuracy of construction was within 1/64 of an inch. As planned the two sides had to be jacked apart to fit the last piece in.

The ride to the top starts underground. In true US style there are people telling you to stand here, move there etc., but eventually a door opens and in front of me is a barrel shaped car with five seats in it.

In I get up and go alone in the barrel. A small window allows a view of the inside of the structure, cables, trusses, beams and stairs dominate the view. Just below the top the barrel stops, door opens. A few steps up hill and I am at the top 190 meters above the ground.

The view from the top is great, the small windows are sloped forward so you can look strait at the ground. On the south side is the grand Mississippi River.

The arch can handle six thousand visitors a day. I am sure by now they have got a good return on their 13 million dollar investment.

Visit over I picked up Sylvia and we caught a flight to New York. We stayed at the Sherry Netherland hotel on 5th Ave at the southeast corner of Central Park. With its ornate foyer this place still has lift operators. They ride the lifts and push the buttons for you. One of these guys had been working at this hotel for twenty years.

After checking in we took a stroll around the local area. Across the on the corner of the park hundreds of people gathered, all looking eagerly at their phones – a Pokémon hunt was on. The streets were as busy as i remember them from my many visits during the eighties and nineties.

We found a cigar club where people pay to have a locker to keep their cigars and whisky, cognac etc in. Smoking is banned on the streets and parks in NY. I ordered a cigar and a G&T. The cigar was reasonably cheap but the G&T set me back $35 locals plus a charge for the tonic!!!