#THROWBACKTHURSDAYIstanbul, 2015. Istanbul is one of the planet’s truly great cities. Mrs P and I had a wonderful week there. Admittedly, it would possibly have been a better seven days had we chosen to go outside of Ramadan. The call to prayer is a charming and exotic sound. But after three days of it waking … Continue reading →

Syria

We're at war. Again. Sort of. I'm not really sure why our latest campaign in Syria is being called a war. Obviously there is a war happening on the ground. We're not participating in that. We're just dropping bombs on distance targets from a safe distance. But anyhow. I have a few thoughts. Why are we … Continue reading Syria →

Europe’s Turkey

Let's see if we can put this in a nutshell. In the late 90s, Greece, with a little help from their German friends, fudged their books to get the drachma operating within the rules and regulations of the ERM and threw their lot in to join the Euro. They continued fudging their books right up to … Continue reading Europe’s Turkey →

Istanbulian Observations

Rat Free Zone Wherever you are, you are never more than a few metres from a rat. So the saying goes. It is not true in Istanbul. There are no rats. Probably. However, in Istanbul, you are never more than a couple of metres from a cat. In all likelihood, you are never more than … Continue reading Istanbulian Observations →

St George’s Day

It's that least memorable of special dates in the English calendar once again. When we celebrate, or forget to celebrate, our patron saint. The Scots have Burns Day and the Irish have St Patrick, and they get celebrated with gusto. St George? Meh. What's to get excited about? With the noticeable lack of dragons roaming the countryside … Continue reading St George’s Day →