You never understand your own country until you have visited other nations. Around the World tells stories of a lifetime of travelling when I was seriously younger, younger and not so young.
My father wanted my brother to go to school in Belfast at the Royal Belfast Academic Institution or what they called “Inst”. So, I went with him in 1954. The magic of Europe is in the photos. Thanks to my father for a two-week tour of Europe and a week touring Northern Ireland.
With a wife and two young children, a summer was spent visiting all of Ireland. The shock was the anti-Catholic mentality of my father’s cousins. Something not evident in the younger educated Belfast relatives. Priceless photographs of a beautiful country.
Saw armies of children in blue uniforms coming out of school and stopping traffic in Manila. Was propositioned by a girl of 14 whose father was part of a Communist group living in the hills. Learned that if US companies do not expand their manufacturing facilities in these nations, they will go Communist. Creating jobs for the armies of kids coming into the labour market was the greatest threat faced by the West at that time. It was the beginning of the global economy.
If you want to rejuvenate your economy, plant trees. It worked for Fiji.
The Museo del Prado, like the Louvre in Paris is an experience of a lifetime. And will I ever forget our two weeks in Malta and living in a grand estate on the island of Gozo. The harbour of Valetta is a bit of history. You could not control the Mediterranean Sea unless you controlled this harbor which could hide a whole fleet of armed vessels.
Singapore is a world class city and a great place to locate your head office if you are a global company. And if you love emeralds, sapphires and rubies you do not want to miss Thailand.
You never get sick of visiting places like Venice or the mountains of Switzerland, but nothing in life will ever beat the art museums of Amsterdam or the warmth of the Dutch people. They remember the Canadian soldiers that liberated them at the end of WW2.
It was the young people speaking English without a trace of an accent that we will remember. It was a sign of a society preparing to be the world’s largest economy. Nothing will ever prepare you for the historic sights of China or the energy of its people.
Great photos of some of the sites of London. Westminster Abby was our favourite. Our daughter studied the crypts of all the Kings of England and said they all had her nose.
Such a mix of modernity and history. High tech and old tech. I will never forget our visit to the ancient city of Kyoto. You must get away from Tokyo to see the real Japan. Pristine.
We witnessed two economies. A military-industrial economy that was advanced and a consumer economy that was a disaster. Doors and chairs that did not work. Plaster falling out of buildings. Gross food. Glad to leave. It was not a surprise that it all collapsed.
A nation devasted during WW2 but making an amazing recovery. Loved the energy of the people. Looked for the death camp Treblinka, but it had been destroyed. It was where my grandfather’s family were gassed.
How could such a decentralized economy work? But it does. It is the Swiss people. Highly organized and disciplined. And everything they do and make is a product of their precision. At a restaurant, a lady making a sandwich cut the bread like she was making a Swiss watch.
Had a personal meeting with General Suharto, the President of Indonesia. I was given a medal which was considered an honour. I also met one of the Generals that said he helped assassinate about 600,000 Indonesian Communists during the time of the Vietnam War.
Met all the government officials that were part of the government when New Zealand was facing bankruptcy in 1984. A Labour government had to implement all the policies promoted by so-called right-wing governments. If I wasn’t a Canadian, I would want to be a New Zealander.
It was a week after the assassination of Prime Minister Rabin. And Israel was soon understood to be a nation in conflict. But one of the most entrepreneurial, scientific and innovative societies in the world. If anything is happening in technology assume Israel scientists and engineers are involved.
Rio de Janeiro is one of the most dangerous and beautiful cities in the world. And they warned us not to use the local cabs. A complex society of many languages and cultures. It was supposed to be one of the great societies of the future, but I could not see it.
Ten years of holidays in Maui. One of the most beautiful islands in the world. And in the 1990s I saw Hawaii adapting to climate change with the massive installation of wind turbines.
If you love places like Paris and Rome, you will love Prague. But again, we were warned to watch the cab drivers, who were not honest. It seems Communist societies destroy the very soul of its people.
Loved the people. Hated the Communist system with all the boredom and conformity. How about restaurants that all have the same menus. Old Havana is like Old San Juan. History that must be preserved.
The best cruise ever and so many great stops like Stockholm and St. Petersburg. And, we will never forget Tallinn, the capital of Estonia. Didn’t know such wonderful old cities existed in that part of the world.
Nothing like the stops in all the great cities of Italy, Turkey, Greece, France and Spain. And great wine everywhere you go.
Loved Tasmania, the home of Errol Flynn and the Tasmanian Devil. And learned about all the varieties of sheep that were the base of the economies of both countries. And the best wool for men’s worsted clothing comes from the Merino. I learned that from my dad.
One of the most memorable experiences of a lifetime. Like seeing 10,000 penguins. Like seeing endless mountains of ice. Cold, beautiful and scary. If that ice melts, then say goodbye to a lot of low-lying nations.
Interesting to learn that the warming of the ocean had brought schools of fish species into Greenland waters. Climate change will mean a boom to these northern societies. Love the names Reykjavik of Iceland and Qaqortoq of Greenland.
More evidence of global warming with the melting of the glaciers in Alaska. Of the stops on the tour, my favourite was Victoria, BC. Totem poles everywhere on this cruise.
It was Amsterdam to Budapest. A different experience where you get to know all your passengers and walk off the ship into the most wonderful ports along the great rivers of Europe. Will never forget the names on plaques outside German homes where Jewish people lived and were taken away and gassed during WW2.