He was 36, travelling with his wife Frieda (aka Queen Bee), making a brief excursion from Sicily to the interior of Sardinia, a week’s journey. It was January 1921. I am 50. She Who Must Be Obeyed, though younger, has an Age Which Must Not Be Numbered or Mentioned. We made a brief excursion from… Continue reading Jerusalem lost between Europe and Africa
How SHE came to be
Before I tell the marvelous saga of Sardinia and our adventures there, it is necessary to remark that Day One of this sojourn, 27 July 2015, marked the 20th anniversary of how SHE came to be in my life. I am tempted to begin the tale with words like: “It was a dark and stormy… Continue reading How SHE came to be
Travelling with the enemy
It has often been said that the two true tests of a relationship are: 1) Your ability to assemble IKEA furniture together 2) Your ability to travel together In regards to the first test, She Who Must Be Obeyed and I have failed that test. She is impatient with my stumbling efforts, convinced She knows… Continue reading Travelling with the enemy
Great expectations?
Well. in an hour and an half’s time, a mini-adventure begins… Off to Sardinia with She Who Must Be Obeyed… What to expect? What to expect? Mediterranean. Hot hot hot weather. A Canadian in Sardinia = a penguin in Hell? A land of sardines? A land of sardonic laughter? A land of danger? In the… Continue reading Great expectations?
Running against the wind
I know I should be grateful. Yesterday, my wife Ute organised the purchase of my first laptop and my first tablet. I now will have the capacity of leaving home and be interconnected with the world even more than I was in the past with my non-apps, not very smart mobile phones. Then why don`t… Continue reading Running against the wind
Unloved in Jerusalem
There is a phrase that beguiles me with its unknown source that “a prophet is rarely respected in his own Jerusalem.” This phrase comes to mind when I consider the Rhine towns of Feuerthalen, across from Schaffhausen, and Rheinau, downriver 181 km / 113 miles if discussing walking distance. Feuerthalen, population 3,500, is Schaffhausen’s unremarkable… Continue reading Unloved in Jerusalem
The Grand Guestbook
They say we are judged by the company we keep. Let’s look at some of the people who have kept company with the Rhine Falls: It never ceases to amaze me how often in history great changes begin with only one individual. Before 1548, the Rhine Falls were relatively unknown. There was (and still is)… Continue reading The Grand Guestbook
The secret sites above the Falls
The biggest problem with being a tourist in Switzerland is the distinct feeling that the Swiss don’t want you to visit and certainly don’t want you to learn anything about the country. Switzerland certainly does not go out of its way to market itself aggressively in comparison with countries like the US or France. The… Continue reading The secret sites above the Falls
Wolves in sheep packaging
“No one could tell me, but I learned something else about Schaffhausen, a tiny curiosity of history. The town was bombed by American aircraft in 1944. (See Oops! Did we do that?) The Americans insisted that it was a mistake – a bombing force had lost its way and, thinking it was still over Germany… Continue reading Wolves in sheep packaging
Smells like team spirit
I know…I know.. Working at a place like Starbucks, it is normal for there to be a lot of personnel change. People move away for personal reasons. People get transferred. People leave for better opportunities elsewhere. But there is something uniquely special about working in an environment like a restaurant or a cafe as opposed… Continue reading Smells like team spirit