Article archive

Serendipity

25/02/2013 18:20
f. Serendip, a former name for Sri Lanka + -ity. A word coined by Horace Walpole, who says (Let. to Mann, 28 Jan. 1754) that he had formed it upon the title of the fairy-tale `The Three Princes of Serendip', the heroes of which `were always making discoveries, by accidents and sagacity, of things...

The Lords of the Isles

11/02/2013 19:03
From Northern Ireland coast it’s clearly seen North Channel opposite bank, the steep profile of other lands. If not for water temperature would even be easy to reach swimming. Is the Kintyre peninsula, the island of Mull, and other Scottish coast. Further north, from White Park Bay it’s also seen,...

On the Banks of the Nile

11/02/2013 18:23
I may imagine Naguib Mafuz sitting in a table at Fishawa Café. Holds a cigarette between his fingers. Leafing through his notes. A little bit further, to the right, his cup of coffee. Occasionally lifts his head and looks carefully at his thoughts perhaps searching a particular recall. A waiter,...

Auckland All to Black

28/01/2013 11:30
In 1999 I used to meet with French fellows who lived in my neighbourhood. In those months of the end of the year the Rugby World Cup was at its heydays. Some were fierce supporters and  even one of them had played before, when he was younger. Optimism reigned. On October 24 they win the...

Red Hand Counties

20/01/2013 15:09
There was a time when the kingdom of Ulster, Ulaidh in Gaelic, one of four that existed on the island of Ireland with Connacht, Munster and Leister, left no heir to the throne. To solve such mismanagement was agreed a challenge, a boats competition, whoever who touched before the bank would be...

Sri Lanka Old Sinhalese Capitals

20/01/2013 10:56
  The woman enters sparingly in the old temple, bows her head respectfully in front of Bodhisattva’s statue, she leaves some flowers and sets a thin smouldering incense sticks that immediately release a deep sandalwood fragrance. Others faithful remain and slowly and ceremoniously repeated the...

Amsterdam Tulips and other Herbs

12/01/2013 20:09
In its years of glory Ajoblanco countercultural magazine published at the beginning of summer a special issue, a travel guide. It talked about from the legendary Magic Bus, a DKW linking Paris and Kathmandu via Kabul and Tehran, to the freak capitals of Europe (the meaning was not the same as...

Maldives The Squared Town

12/01/2013 19:45
Almost, as Male’ has a nearly rectangular shape. In has only two kilometres long by just over one wide, housing a hundred and fifty thousand people, roughly half the population of the Republic of Maldives, which is capital. In fact much of its surface area is land reclaimed from the sea. But there...

A Greek Lion in Venice

03/01/2013 16:40
Venice is full of wonderful terraces where to stay quietly sipping coffee or spritz and meanwhile keep an eye on life passing by just in front. There is one which is peculiar enough, despite not having any notable feature, its metal tables are ordinary, the premises has no special charm that...

... and some licenses about local names.

31/12/2012 18:53
Sometimes in dreams, I recreate in absolute detail my own neighbourhood, but the streets are transformed and change their name and appearance. Squares are rearranged in the new urban grid and even bars are transformed inside renewing their parishioners and bartenders. Interestingly, from one...
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