Cultural weekend in Vienna
Klimt’s Beethoven frieze at the Succession Museum
To complete my heritage journey, we hop on a train to Vienna, a mere 1.30 hrs away from Brno. As a small child, I spent a couple of summer holidays with my Czech grandmother, who rented a small flat somewhere. It was heaven: knedlíky dumplings for breakfast every day, crème fraiche with mandarin slices, visits to the eponymous hotel for Sacher torte with her various cousins, the Prater (the big wheel was a favourite) and to her old boyfriend, Alois Podhajsky, then director of the Spanish riding school! I’m afraid we did none of these things!
VIP visit to Boskovice!
The day after the colloquium, the organiser Mojmír Jeřábek and Táňa Klementová have organised a trip to Boskovice to visit Hermann Ungar’s birthplace and tour the old Jewish ghetto. We are accompanied by a group of elderly members of the German Club from Brno. A number of the older generation still have German as a first language (as did my family and most assimilated Jews) – a legacy of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Continue reading
The Ungar/Kafka Colloquium in Brno, Czech Republic
Sunrise over Brno
I have been invited to give the keynote speech at a symposium in Brno on Hermann Ungar and Frantz Kafka, where leading experts will gather to discuss their lives and work. It’s pretty daunting, 80 people, and will involve simultaneous Czech translation. In addition there will be an interview in the Malý Mehrin, a small Jewish cultural centre which is planning to build a museum near the station, chaired by Táňa Klementová, a local historian. Then there will be a VIP visit to Boskovice where we will be hosted by the mayor. Wow! And all because I’m Herman Ungar’s granddaughter! Continue reading
Big cats galore in Ruaha: Tanzania’s gem
A typical Ruaha vista
I have never been here before, although it is the second-largest National Park in Tanzania. Much more famous and frequently visited are Serengeti, Ngorongoro and Manyara but, having spent so much time in small tented camps like Goliath in Mana Pools, Zimbabwe, I have no desire to go backwards in my safari experiences. So we pick Nomad, which is owned and run by Bimb Theobald, a business partner of our great tea-broking/growing friend Robin H. We made the best choice! This outfit really understands the balance between sustainability and luxury and invests in their staff. A winning combination. On our way in we come across two wild dogs, far from home – the den is miles away. They haven’t been seen for six weeks so we are very lucky. Continue reading
Return to Mafia island after 60 years!
Neville (left) inspecting the ruins on Juani island
Mafia is a trip down memory lane. The last time I was here I was six and accompanying my mother and Neville Chittick on the archaeological dig to unearth the 10/11th century Islamic ruins. It is one of the main reasons for our visit – that and diving. We also want to go somewhere less touristy than Zanzibar. Continue reading
Spreading the word about Farm Africa at the AGRF food security summit & visiting an SME project
We have been planning this trip to Dar for sometime. Ross and I are sponsoring a networking event for Farm Africa, as we did in Nairobi last year to excellent effect, to coincide with the AGRF Food Sustainability summit. Based on women and youth empowerment this is a real opportunity to spread the word amongst potential and existing donors about the great work we do in East Africa, and especially Tanzania.
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Asian Odyssey: getting mucky at Black Sand Dive Retreat
It’s 3 am on Easter morning and we are woken by gospel singing blasting out full volume. This continues until 5 am, when various competitors join in from the surrounding villages. We are near Bintung, a Christian stronghold in the majority-Muslim Indonesia and the singing marks the beginning of an Eater procession. We have come here to finish our holiday with some muck diving at Black Sand Dive Retreat. Ross has been here twice before, and I once – Manado is short hop (three hours) from Singapore and was on our long weekend itineraries. Continue reading
Asian odyssey: eat, dive, sleep on the Dewi Nusantara
We arrive in Ternate to the sound of the Imam calling the faithful to prayer. It is the height of Ramadan and we are in the North Maluku archipelago where we are to board the Dewi Nusantara for the fourth time. We speed out past a huge green mosque where our three-masted home for the next few days is anchored. She really is a splendid vessel, 5 metres wide and 60m long. The staterooms are luxurious with huge king size beds and a spacious en-suite with piping hot water – just what’s needed after an hour-long dive.
Asian odyssey: Singapore to Siladen
The first port of call on our thrice-postponed diving trip to Raja Ampat is Singapore. Since my broken and dislocated shoulder at the end of December I have been doing my physio religiously every day and having acupuncture, cranial osteopathy and massage. I’ve brought with me three different wet suit combos to see what I can actually fit my shoulders into so I am well prepared. Continue reading
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