HX Report
Irishman in the Middle East
Weekly Photo Challenge – Mirror
Posted on September 2, 2016
Followers of the HX Report will have seen this one before. It’s a shot taken on solstice morning, 21 June 2014, of Knockfennel Hill, which overlooks Lough Gur lake in MB’s HX homeland. MB took the shot in perfect early-morning calm, when there wasn’t a whisper of wind in the air.
The perfectly still lake surface was like clear glass, which provided the perfect mirror for the adjacent hill and the sky overhead. At left of pic, one can see a small white cloud in the sky and its mirror reflection on the surface of the water. The dark tree and its reflection provide some additional contrast to the shot and a point of interest. MBs perfect mirror!
Pompeii
Posted on August 11, 2016
MB & family visited the ruins at Pompeii during their recent Italy trip. Pompeii is close to the city of Naples in the Campania region of Italy, and as bad luck would have it, lies approximately 8km from Mount Vesuvius. Read More
Rome
Posted on August 9, 2016
From the movie GLADIATOR –
Marcus Aurelius: Are you ready to do your duty for Rome?
Commodus: Yes, father.
Marcus Aurelius: You will not be emperor.
Commodus: Which wiser, older man is to take my place?
Marcus Aurelius: My powers will pass to Maximus, to hold in trust until the Senate is ready to rule once more. Rome is to be a republic again.
Commodus: Maximus?
Marcus Aurelius: Yes. My decision disappoints you?
Commodus: You wrote to me once, listing the four chief virtues: Wisdom, justice, fortitude, and temperance. As I read the list, I knew I had none of them. But I have other virtues, father. Ambition. That can be a virtue when it drives us to excel. Resourcefulness, courage, perhaps not on the battlefield, but… there are many forms of courage. Devotion, to my family and to you. But none of my virtues were on your list. Even then it was as if you didn’t want me for your son.
Marcus Aurelius: Oh, Commodus. You go too far.
Commodus: I search the faces of the gods… for ways to please you, to make you proud. One kind word, one full hug… where you pressed me to your chest and held me tight. Would have been like the sun on my heart for a thousand years. What is it in me that you hate so much?
Marcus Aurelius: Shh, Commodus.
Commodus: All I’ve ever wanted was to live up to you, Caesar. Father.
Marcus Aurelius: [Marcus Aurelius gets down on his knees] Commodus. Your faults as a son is my failure as a father. Come
[Gives Commodus a hug]
Commodus: [Commodus hugs Marcus and cries] Father. I would have butchered the whole world… if you would only love me!
[Commodus begins to asphyxiate Marcus while they hug, Marcus grunts]
MB recently traveled to Italy with family. It was his first visit to the country of pasta and pizza, and much more. And it included a two-day visit to the eternal city – Rome. Previously, MB would have selected Istanbul as his Nr 1 city on the planet. But Rome now occupies that position.
Rome is described somewhere as the city of a lifetime, as it will take a person a lifetime to understand it all. It is truly an architectural assault on the senses, with some incredible structure around every corner one turns. Huge culture and history abound, from pre-Christian to Roman Empire to Christian to modern. And food………… Such food!
As ever, MB had his gladiatorial weapon of choice in hand – his camera. The following are some of the results:
Weekly Photo Challenge – Cherry On Top
Posted on July 22, 2016
Many hundreds of people, or even thousands, visit the Grange Stone Circle each year, 1km or so distance from HX. Most feel a sense of energy or awe in the very scenic surroundings.
From the loughgur.com website:
It is the largest standing stone circle in Ireland, 150 feet in diameter and enclosed by 113 standing stones. The largest stone is Rannach Chruim Duibh (Crom Dubh’s Division) and is over 13 feet high and weighs 40 tons. The entrance stones are matched by a pair of equally impressive slabs on the southwest side, whose tops slope down towards each other to form a v-shape.
The placing of hands and forehead on the 40-tonne headstone, to feel the power and energy of the circle, is considered the ‘cherry of top’ of the visit by many.
Grange Stone Circle
Turkey
Posted on July 16, 2016
Less than 24 hours ago, the bridges over the Bosphorus Straits were closed by Turkish army units who were attempted a coup. The coup failed. For medium-term or longer-term impacts we must wait and see. MB is no fan of Erdogan, but he does not support any coup.
MB has traveled to Istanbul a number of times in recent years and took many shots of the Bosphorus and its bridges. Herewith:
Weekly Photo Challenge – Look Up
Posted on July 8, 2016
A stroll around the souq
Posted on July 7, 2016
Souq Waqif and surrounding streets. Doha, Qatar. 05 July 2016.
Of Camino De Santiago (and Onimac!)
Posted on July 5, 2016
Introduction by MB
The Camino De Santiago is a famous route of Christian pilgrimage that ends at the shrine of St James, in Santiago Cathedral in Galicia, NW Spain.
John Carew – HX Poet & Storyteller
Posted on June 27, 2016
MB has oft mentioned Lough Gur lake in posts of his HX homeland. He has told you a little of the mystique of the lake, and the fact that one of the adjoining hills (called Knockadoon) is home to one of the four Irish entrances to the Land of Everlasting Youth, called ‘Tír Na Nóg’ in the Irish Gaelic. The entrance, as MB has also previously informed you, is secret and is known only to certain ‘Guardians’ (such as MB). It is also heavily guarded by the fairies, and it is no easy task to get past them. Beware of HX fairies dear followers. Read More
Weekly Photo Challenge – Partners
Posted on June 24, 2016
Fishermen unload their catch at Ajman Fish Market, United Arab Emirates (UAE).
Late Friday afternoons provide a great spectacle at the Ajman docks as thousands of fish are landed and laid out on the concrete paving by species and size. Traders from the adjacent market then bid for their requirements by an open auction process. Retailers, hoteliers, restauranteurs, or members of the general public like MB, are then able to buy the fish in the air-conditioned market as they wish, and a team of workers is on hand to gut and clean the fish if you require. There is also a small shop at the end of the market, run by a Syrian gentleman named Mr Hussam, who will cook the fish for buyers by smothering in his secret (& delicious) sauce/spice/herb mix and wrapping in tin foil, before popping into the flame oven.
If you ever get to visit Dubai or Abu Dhabi and have a few hours to kill, MB highly recommends a visit. And if photography is a hobby, then so much the better. FYI – Ajman is one of the seven Emirates of the UAE.
Geneva
Posted on June 4, 2016
MB had to stop in Geneva for two days on his way back to the Middle East last week, and took the opportunity to take a few shots of the famous Geneva fountain, which was opposite MB’s hotel.
Geneva (Switzerland) is in the French-speaking area of Switzerland, right on the French border, and is located where the Rhone River enters lake Geneva. The city has a population of approximately 200,000 and is famous as a financial centre & for its watch-making industry, in addition to being the location for a number of UN organisations & the Red Cross. It also hosts the world famous Hadron Nuclear Particle Collider which is located nearby at a depth of 175M, extending under the French/Swiss border.
Everything in Geneva is expensive, and property prices are in the stratosphere. The airport includes a shop where one can purchase Rolex watches and another where one can buy Leica cameras; which both, in themselves, tell a story of the city and its visitor profile.
Some pics of the fountain & surrounding area:
Weekly Photo Challenge – Numbers
Posted on June 3, 2016
MB must mention that this golf ball, lying in the Dubai Emirates GC rough, is not MBs. You would generally find MB’s ball slap bang in the middle of the fairway, minimum 250 yards from the T-box!
Not MB’s golf ball
Limerick
Posted on May 29, 2016
The city of Limerick lies on the Shannon & Abbey Rivers in Ireland’s south-west, 12 miles from HX, give or take. It dates from Viking days, circa 800 AD, although there were older settlements in the locality. The architecture is primarily Georgian, with many buildings built from red brick and containing impressive Georgian-style doorways. The population is approximately 100,000, making it the Nr 3 city in Ireland. Sport is huge; with hurling, soccer and rugby (in particular) to the fore. Read More
The strange tale of the Irish Cherokee Indian & the lady with rebel blood
Posted on May 12, 2016
Strange incidents and coincidences ofttimes happen to MB. There he was doing almost nothing some few months back, eating organic chocolate or some such, when he received an interesting message on one of his blog posts. Read More
Weekly Photo Challenge – Earth
Posted on May 6, 2016
Earth.
MB took this shot of the base of a tree in a spice plantation in Goa, India in early 2015. He has no memory of what the tree was called or the spice it produced. Neither does he remember who owns the foot & sandal that also appears in the shot. Sometimes life doesn’t provide all the answers.
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