Tere! from Viljandi, Estonia, Estonians are my kind of people. They walk around with straight faces, prefer to be as unobtrusive as possible and think collectively rather than individually. They talk openly of political matters, as though they are everyday items for discussion. Nationally, they have assiduously preserved large tracts of forest, coast and bog …Read More
Tere! from Haapsalu, Estonia, In the doorway of a souvenir shop in San Diego, there’s an official-looking plaque, fixed flush to the threshold so one has to step over it to enter. It says, “ On this very spot, in 1679, nothing happened.” It’s a brilliant juxtaposition to the general theme of …Read More
Hei from Helsinki, Did I read correctly that the Saudi prince has decreed that women will henceforth be permitted to drive cars and that the biggest rationale behind the decision is that this may unlock untapped economic potential in the kingdom? And did the edict come simultaneously with an order to arrest 19 …Read More
Privet from St. Petersburg, In retrospect, everything is possible – even momentous events like the Russian Revolution. But in that case, there was no axiomatic link between cause and effect. Such a revolt could never have been inevitable. Historians rightly ask the question: what circumstances allowed such a momentous occurrence? One of the biggest factors …Read More
Privet from Moscow, What do you do if you are a Soviet engineer when Stalin says widen the streets of Moscow but simultaneously preserve some of the buildings? Stalin’s modernisation of Moscow During the 1930s Joseph Stalin wanted to bring medieval Russia into the modern world. In 1935 a map of the city was produced …Read More
Xin Chào from Cam Ranh, The Việtnamese people have a long list of wonderful qualities ; mostly attitudinal and behavioural. But there’s one habit which assails the sensibilities. They don’t seem to care about the environment. They are very neat people who spend a lot of time cleaning their neighbourhoods and their own …Read More
Xin Chào from Mũi Né, One of the significant consumer trends in recent decades has been the big shift away from fake towards authentic. It’s a reaction to the relentless upsurge of fakery in all sorts of consumer items. The Chinese manufacturing juggernaut has flooded the world with plastic this and counterfeit that. Even international …Read More
G’day from Western Australia, The magnificent Karri and Jarrah forests in south-west WA have been here for a very long time. When the Europeans arrived in the nineteenth century, they brought axes and bibles. Even though we’ve had nearly 200 years to knock them all down, mostly the trees are still standing. Who do …Read More
Xin Chào from Côn Đảo, We are on Côn Đảo, a group of islands due south from Hồ Chí Minh City. The 16 islands look like they all formed the volcano and we are staying on the rim. The beachfront is within the massive crater, now filled by encroached seawater. It’s a warm day …Read More
Xin Chào from Côn Đảo, When the French colonised Việt Nam in the mid-19th century, they enforced their will on a proud people with brutality and strength. One little-known site here on Côn Đảo exemplifies this as well as any. In 1862 Colonel Roussex ordered 20 prisoners to dig the graves for dozens of murdered …Read More