Blood, sweat, tears and toil

Today marks the 70th anniversary of the D-Day Landings, the largest seaborne invasion in history. 5,000 landing and assault craft, 289 escort vessels, 277 minesweepers, 160,000 troops crossed the English Channel, 10,000 hit – 4,414 dead Allied soldiers, 1,000 German soldiers dead, over 3,000 civilian casualities. Southsea Beach and Portsmouth Harbour were vital embarkation points… Continue reading Blood, sweat, tears and toil

Gold and orange / triumph and tragedy

Day Three in England…a full day…a knife to the throat…the gold of victory…the first port of a legend… Last year, prior to my best pal’s wedding, we arranged to have a barbershop shave to ensure that no five-o’clock shadow faces would cloud the perfect nuptial day. Iain thought it might be a lark to have… Continue reading Gold and orange / triumph and tragedy

The Queen is dead, long live the Queen

Rule Two regarding life in England: The press is generally horrid. I have only been on English soil two days and already the press exasperates me. I rarely see people buy newspapers as they either subscribe online or they read the free newspapers found at any rail or Tube station. The free paper Metro, suitable… Continue reading The Queen is dead, long live the Queen

Skip to the loo

Day Two in England and I remain truly a stranger in a strange land. Today I travelled to Winchester…what a prize! First rule of travelling in England: People do NOT talk to strangers on the train, especially in the morning… Such a contrast to life in Montreal where there are bus drivers who spontaneously break… Continue reading Skip to the loo

Sounds and signs in discord

One of the greatest difficulties with English language teaching is trying to explain why English words with similar spellings can have such different sounds. Compare for example words like though(th-oh), through (thr-oo), thorough (thur-oh) and tough (tuff). Or why words with different spellings have the same sound, like to, too and two. And there are… Continue reading Sounds and signs in discord

Sympathy for the dialect

Every nation has its faux pas – things that you shouldn´t talk about or joke about…EVER. For example, don´t call a New Zealander “an envious Aussie”, or a Canadian “a wannabe American”, unless you like your tires flattened. Don´t call la Manche the English Channel when you are in Paris or call the French “brie-eating surrender… Continue reading Sympathy for the dialect

No-smile zones

A place is neither good or bad of itself.  It is our perceptions of that place that give it its reputation.  Some places naturally excel due to their inherant beauty, like Venice, Bruges or Florence. Other places may not leap to mind immediately as tourist destinations, but the warmth and intimacy of their people make the… Continue reading No-smile zones

A sense of accomplishment (my favourite SOB)

I know that I am probably not alone in this – “Why can´t you be more like (Insert name here.)?” – situation. I am certain that there are, or have been, people in your life who seem to shine brighter than those around them. They radiate success, confidence, achievement and accomplishment, and are the envy of… Continue reading A sense of accomplishment (my favourite SOB)