Thursday 24 November 2011

The Woes at Thomas Cook

There is a lot in the press about the financial problems at Thomas Cook and whether there is a place/need for tour operators. As mentioned previously in this blog we have recently returned from a fabulous tour of South Africa. What we did and saw in such a short period would have been impossible to arrange independently. We also had the services of an excellent tour manager and local guide. So there is a place for tour operators; perhaps the secret is in the word tour.

Wednesday 23 November 2011

Political Donations

There was a report out yesterday regarding the funding of political parties. Basically it suggested that taxpayers should fund them. My question is why? Why should there be any central funding of political parties? Limit individual donations to £5000, no corporate donations, no trade union donations just money from members. If the parties cannot attract individual members then they go under.! Perhaps then we will see all parties reflecting the views of people in the street rather than the present concentration of focus groups, political advisers, PR gurus etc. If the politicians and  parties cannot make do with money that they have how can they expect to be able to run the country?

Monday 21 November 2011

Thank you Helena and Sam

Blogging has its advantages as you will see. This past weekend Julia and I went "t'up" North to see her twin sister Phil and husband Peter. They live in Baildon, just north of Bradford, and we had a great time with them - thank you Phil and Peter. On the way home on Sunday we went to see Helena and Sam in their house - the first time we had seen it. It is in Stockport and while not massive is a fantastic first house - photos below. Whilst we there they gave us a fantastic present as a thank you for the help we had given them - a bottle of Berry Bros and Rudd No 3 Gin. They got the idea from reading a previous post where I extolled its virtues - so blogging does pay!





Monday 7 November 2011

More from South Africa

I have managed to prune the 1400+ photos that I took down to a slightly more manageable 900+. It is amazing how many you take when in "rapid-fire" mode. There are still more to be consigned to the rubbish basket (trash can for any American viewers).






Memorial at Islawanda