Time For Change

 

Congratulations to all US blogger friends!

Before I forget it - Liège

Ten days ago we visited Liège, which is only a little over an hour on the motorway. Often when we have passed the traffic control tower at Liège airport on our way to France, we have said we must go there some time. Otherwise you are normally more inclined to go through Belgium as quickly as possible because the motorways are in such bad condition. You tend to just sit it out, listening to music or planning the rest of your life or similar cerebral activity. But now we thought we would give it a go!

We had no time to book an interesting hotel or B&B and ended up staying at a central Ibis, which caters for your basic needs at a decent price. Since the country is made up of (still a very distinct division!) two regions-cultures-languages they sometimes find a third language a bit hard to master, hence this example of "English".

Is that a particular species of bird that descends from above and inserts its sharp claws into your soft flesh?

We found the writer George Simenon still sitting on a bench plotting his next Commissaire Maigret case.

Liège is an old industrial city, which has seen some hard times, but now seemed to be on the up, exemplified by all the building work going on. It reminded me of Liverpool, which also saw a downturn and is now being rejuvenated. There was an interesting mix of old/degenerated, old/ugly-sixties and trendy modern. Along the river Meuse we found lovingly restored houses on one side and high-rise blocks of flats on the other. On the pretty side were quite a few houseboats, making it all very attractive.

Interesting art was abundant.

We walked a lot, and had to climb these 406 steps ...

... to get here ...

... to see this view of central Liège.

All that exercise made us feel a "craven" and we were lucky enough to find a floating restaurant.

The menu was, as expected, rather short, but they served a good snack/lunch and I felt compensated for all the plodding along the river and up steep hillsides. I knew the place better now, not only the local football team, Standard Liège, beaten not long ago by my team, Liverpool FC. Perhaps that was why I compared Liège to Liverpool before, and perhaps also this picture above my head in the restaurant.

A Donkey or an Elephant?

   Duckhead says: So, one guy is a donkey and the other one is an elephant. One is stubborn and stupid and the other one is clumsy and thick-skinned? What's that all about? Why not a stallion and a bison! That would be more American, wouldn't it? A powerful thoroughbred and a nearly-extinct reminder of the past. Time for change. Quack quack!

 

Petrified

We were in Liège a couple of days (more about that later) and I used my little camera all the time, or so it seemed to Mrs S, who had to endure some embarrassment when I photographed sometimes slightly weird objects and people started to stare. Among these is a series of shots of this porthole. I just loved the round shape and the beautiful, subdued colours.

We were looking for somewhere to have a light lunch as we were walking along the river Meuse and a line of various moored, floating vessels; houseboats and old barges turned into theatres and one into a restaurant. The restaurant turned out to be rather spacious, with modern design. The walls were, as expected, lined with portholes to let some daylight in and for guests to see out. However I ended up facing the quayside and felt a bit short-changed at first, but then I realised I had this unusual photo opportunity. Reflected in the quayside porthole was the round light of the opposite porthole, and through this round disc of light I could actually see across the river and the windows in a tall building there.

A white cable runs across the porthole and I have not attempted to remove it because it think it adds to the authenticity of the shot. There are also two reflections which you might be able to spot and some plants growing between the stones. But look in the bright circle, the opposite porthole reflection; there is something in there and it has taken on the texture of the stone since the surrounding light is so strong and the focus is on the stone rather than the glass. Can you see what it is? The shape in the bright light is my hands holding the camera. This is the first time in my life I have been truly petrified, or at least the image of me. Amazing, isn't it?

P.S. Tomorrow I will be going to Sweden to see my two-month-old grandson for the first time. I can't wait!

Lazy Eyes

Duckhead says: Have you noticed how so many of the newsreaders and TV journalists (at least on the BBC) seem to have one wonky eye? Is that a requirement? Or have they been on a training course where they have learned to read the autocue with one eye and stare dead straight into the camera with the other one? Quack quack!

My Sikh Friend

An envelope turned up in the post and I immediately reacted to the ominous timing. Why do I get mail from him now? I thought. It looked like his handwriting, but could it be his widow writing? I'll explain.

Six years ago when I had to spend a month in hospital, I had a bed neighbour whom I got to know quite well. He was an elderly gentleman waiting for some procedure which would take place sooner if he stayed in hospital rather than going home to wait there. It was a bit like standing in the queue in a supermarket, then remembering an item you've forgotten to put in your trolley. Would you go and get it, risking having to start all over again? So this old chap was in the priority queue so to speak, being pretty bored just waiting.

He and his family had been chased out of Uganda by Idi Amin together with thousands of others, moved to the UK and set up a business there. His family who came to visit always had a chat with me (and Mrs S if she was there), and they often brought him home-made food which looked very appetizing. Once I had got my appetite back I found the hospital food rather uninspiring, to say the least. So guess what, I was offered some of their tasty food to compliment the hospital Halal alternative, which I found more interesting than the standard food there. So there we were, a Swedish Englishman and an African-Indian Sikh sometimes having a Muslim meal or an Indian home-cooked dish. Sadly I could not offer any Swedish meatballs in return, but Mrs S offered my friend not only Tesco's yummiest fruit yogurts sometimes, but she also regularly took care of his lottery ticket at the newsagent's.

Since that hospital friendship we have always sent each other Christmas cards, despite the fact that I am not a believer and my friend is not of the Christian faith. He will be in his eighties by now, so I feared the worst when we had this letter, which turned out to be a card, our first Christmas card this year. My old friend Devi certainly knows how to meet a deadline, early! (Sorry, no pun intended!)

French Night Life

I used the firm support of an old bridge to take this night shot, and I am still surprised I managed to keep the camera still long enough. This is a stretch with restaurants and bars along a canal in Amiens in northern France. Amiens is famous for its cathedral among other things and is located in the area where many of the horrendous battles of the First World War took place. Driving along the narrow roads north of Amiens you come past cemetery after cemetery holding the remains of these young soldiers whose lives were cut short for some insane military/political reason.

Today it is a bustling town, dominated at night time by students and tourists who all enjoy the bars and restaurants in the town centre. I would like to think that I managed to capture the convivial and warm atmosphere in this colourful photograph.

Free As a Bird

One day last summer my attention was drawn to the bright sky. The sun was playing peek-a-boo behind the fluffy clouds, creating almost razor-sharp borders between dark and bright areas of blue. It was not until I got home and transferred the pictures to my PC that I spotted the two birds of prey soaring high above, riding the thermals majestically in circles. Simply beautiful!

Mycology Mystery Walk

As always I took my trusted camera with me when we went for a short walk just before sunset yesterday. The walk turned into a mystery mushroom walk. Right outside our house we came across the first one, a fairytale, pixie-kind-of mushroom, all red with white spots, warning off hungry creatures, but not the slugs you can see below. We followed our normal route, and due to the weather conditions lots of mushrooms had popped up over night. Some looked edible, others decisively not, so it was a pure photo hunt, nothing ended up on the dinner table.

As you can see the light was going so the conditions were not exactly ideal, and since I had to squat and optimistically aim the camera along the ground, some pictures are slightly out of focus; apologies for that. But I was astonished to find so many fungi so easily. I only wish I knew more about them, they are still mostly a mystery to me. Here is a selection for you.

As I was typing up this post I heard an almighty bang against a window downstairs; I rushed down and found this dusty silhouette on the kitchen window, which is approximately 75 cm wide (30 inches), so the wingspan of the unfortunate bird was quite impressive. Can you spot the bird?

Billowing Barley

At least I think it is barley. Correct me if I am wrong. I just love the movement, lines and texture in this shot. You can literally follow the path of the wind. Had the sun been out, the lovely greens and yellows would have been even more of a feature in this picture.