MANNERS AND OTHER MATTERS

The "Peace" Rose (photo LP) This morning, when I returned home after a weekend away, enjoying the spring blossoming native wildflowers during  my walks,  I was delighted to see that the first of the spring roses had bloomed.  This rose is called "Peace" and comes from a 50 year old bush which was given to me by friends who were demolishing an old house;  the rosebush would not fit with their new garden. Geraldton Wax, a native bush which parades it's beautiful flowers only in Spring (photo LP) Some details about the "Peace" rose from Wikipedia:  It was developed by  French   horticulturist  Francis Meilland  in the years 1935 to 1939. When Meilland foresaw the German invasion of France he sent cuttings to friends in Italy, Turkey, Germany, and the United States to protect the new rose. It is said, that it was sent to the US on the last plane available As Meilland sent his cuttings just before the war, communication b...

In the courtyard of the Masjid  Jemak I have recently returned from having a great week with my daughter in Malaysia.  While I had previously visited Kuala Lumpur to make presentations at conferences and visit clients when I had an office in Singapore, I had never had the opportunity to explore the city. And what fun we had! The shopping was amazing…ranging from Chanel and Gucci boutiques to the stalls of Chinatown with the “knock off” Longchamp and Louis Vuitton bags, badly copied CDs and millions of copied watches.  But unlike Bali, the street vendors were not “pushy” and loud, but respectful as we wandered around the colourful and lively stalls.  The city was decorated everywhere we went with Malaysian flags, draping from all the buildings, whether they were in the city centre, Chinatown or the Indian section of the city.  The Malaysian National Day was celebrated on September 16. During our selfstyled  “cultural tour”, where we walked for kilometres...