Move Along, Move Along

I am 35 years old. In those 35 years I have lived in 3 of the constituent nations of the United Kingdom as well as Germany, the Czech Republic, the United States and, briefly, Belarus. In my 10 years living in the Czech Republic, I lived in a small town called Mlada Boleslav as well as Prague, in total though I lived at 8 addresses in 10 years. I have spent my life moving around, and can happily say that I enjoy it. My little brother, only 1 year my junior, took a different path to adult life, settling down in the Highlands and pretty much staying put, though even he has moved house within the same town a few times.

I often think that Mrs Velkyal has had a calming influence on me, I can watch football without apoplexy these days for a start. In the 6 years we have been together I have only lived at 3 addresses, and 2 of those cover 5.5 years. Even so, I find it nearly impossible to not think about the other places in the world which pique my interest. Perhaps growing up in the British Army gives you a taste for going somewhere new, a taste for always being an expat. I get the sense at times that if we were to move to the UK, I would probably feel like an expat even there, after all I left just after I graduated and haven't spent an extended period of time in my own country since.

I keep a mental list of places that I would love to live in, just in case my numbers come up on the lottery and I am suddenly flush with cash. Near the top of that list would be a return to Germany, mainly to put my Germanophilia into full swing, I love the German language (no I don't think it is "too brutal for singing"), German efficiency, German food and German beer, I like Germans and find their sense of humour funny, yes they have one. If we were to move to Germany there are a couple of places I would most like to live in, Berlin and Celle.

Mrs V and I went to Berlin a couple of years back and absolutely loved it, had Obama failed to win the election in 2008 there was a very good chance that we would have moved there rather than here. Celle is a smallish town near Hannover, and the place we lived in as children, it is also etched in my memory as one of the most beautiful towns in Europe. My attraction there is simple, I would love to experience the town as an adult, it is also entirely possible from research my great uncle Bill did, that my father's family originally came from that neck of the woods.

One thing is for certain, I don't feel as though I am done with travelling and seeing places new and intriguing.

Recovered Memories

I enjoy taking photos, indeed at my parents' place in France there are boxes of photos I took in the dim and distant past before I got a digital camera. It is only in the last few months that I have been able to retrieve a lot of my photos because they were on the hard drive of my old laptop that died.

Normally this wouldn't have been a major issue, but the laptop in question had Windows XP in Czech rather than English. While my Czech is OK, dealing with technical language is a completely different ball game. So once I had my wireless router set up I set about re-installing Windows and getting all the files on to an external hard drive. With that process done, I have slowly been sorting and organising all the various bits and pieces that I managed to recover. So I thought I would post a few of my favourite pictures which have never before seen the light of this blog.

When we lived in Prague, I would walk home from work quite often and crossing the Nusle bridge was part of the walk. The bridge has high sided fences as it is a popular place to commit suicide. There is no river under the bridge, just a cobbled street and houses, I can't imagine how it must feel to live there and have people leaping to their deaths on the street outside.

Just round the corner from our flat was this tower and church, and we would walk by them several times a day.

I have always loved railway stations, the potential of all those places to visit. This one is the oldest railway station in Prague, Masarykovo nádraží and was literally opposite the building we lived in.

The other station we lived close to was Prague's main station, Hlavní Nádraží, from where we would get the train to České Budějovice and then on to our favourite getaway town for a weekend, Český Krumlov. This picture was taken from the window of the penzion we always stayed in.

In the final months we lived in Prague, Mrs Velkyal and I made a point of going to the various places in the city we had either loved or neglected to go to. One such place was the Estates Theatre, where Mozart received great acclaim for Don Giovanni, and I took this picture of the seats.

30 Day Song Challenge - Days 28, 29 and 30

Having skipped several days, I have decided to merge the last three themes into a single post and only have a single track for each theme.

Day 28 - a song that makes you feel guilty

"Summertime" by Billie Holiday



I can honestly say that there is nothing that I feel guilty about, and certainly no song that makes me feel guilty for anything I have done. The track above though makes me feel guilty for liking it, because I can think of no good reason to like it beyond the fact that I just enjoy listening to it - pure hedonism.

Day 29 - a song from your childhood

"Shoplifters of the World Unite" by The Smiths



This song always reminds me of two people, my eldest brother, and my best friend from primary school, who I haven't see since I was about 13. The Smiths were one of the first bands I liked, and still like to this day.

Day 30 - you favourite song this time last year

"Sleepyhead" by Passion Pit



Something of an unusual choice for me I am sure, but this time last year, having had my driving license for but a few months, I would drive around town listening to this song and generally being happy with life.

So there we go. All done.

30 Day Song Challenge - Day 27

Given that I can't play any musical instrument, today's theme of "a song you wish you could play" is pretty pointless. However, I wish I could play some form of bagpipe, so these tracks showcase a form of pipe.

Track 1 - "The Dreaming of the Bones" by Davy Spillane, featuring Sinead O'Connor



Davy Spillane is one of the world's leading uillean pipe players, a master of the ethereal wail which is so haunting.

Track 2 - "Gabriel's Oboe" performed by Carlos Nunez



Originally composed by Ennio Morricone for the film The Mission, this version is played on the gaita - a form of bagpipe from Galicia in Spain.

Track 3 - "The Three Pipers" by Carlos Nunez



Another Carlos Nunez track, in which he blends the sounds of the Breton pipes, Great Pipes from Scotland and the Uillean pipe.

30 Day Song Challenge - Day 26

Sorry, sorry, I was working in a brewery yesterday and was wiped out before watching Doctor Who. Today's theme is exceedingly easy, "songs I can play on an instrument". The reason it is so easy for me is that I don't play any musical instrument, unless you include strumming mindless chords on a guitar.

So, I can't give you any songs for today's theme, so I'll just put three clips from an artist song I have been listening to a lot lately - Cecile Corbel

Track 1 - "La Fille Damnee"



Track 2 - "Je Vous Pleure



Track 3 - "Corpus Christi Carol"

30 Day Song Challenge - Day 25

Our theme for today is songs that make me laugh. Again I skipped a day, but as I was brewing with my favourite brewpub, I think I have a valid excuse.

Track 1 - "Nightboat to Cairo" by Madness



If you've been following this challenge, you'll know that I like Madness a lot, and most of their songs are kind of the funny. "Nightboat to Cairo" is very in the usual Madness vein, quirky lyrics, daft video and just fun to listen to.

Track 2 - "Lucille" by The Corries



A parody on country music by the legendary Corries which never fails to make me laugh, and I am sure many of us have told tales of broken hearts over pints in the pub.

Track 3 - "Rabbit" by Chas and Dave



Perhaps it is just me, but music these days seems so tiresomely earnest and meaningful. Thank god then for Chas and Dave.

I think Chas and Dave take the accolades today, fun music that brings back lots of memories of childhood.

Track 3 - "

30 Day Song Challenge - Day 24

Songs I want played at my funeral is the theme for today. I really don't go for the whole "celebrate my life" thing any more than I want people to wail and gnash their teeth. What is a funeral at the end of the day? Saying goodbye and going to the pub for a booze up? With that in mind, let's go.

Track 1 - "The Parting Glass" as performed by Sinead O'Connor



What better way to say goodbye than to recall the many fine people and great experiences I have had?

Track 2 - "Asleep" by The Smiths



There are times when I think this song is the apogee of the Morrissey and Marr partnership, and when I am gone, "don't feel bad for me".

Track 3 - "Sae Will We Yet" as performed by The Corries



If there is an afterlife, I hope it is like Valhalla from Norse mythology, laden with drinking and generally living it up.

All great tracks, so I'll have them all thanks.