ISAF World Cup Sailing – Melbourne 2016

pc112465e — Rounding the mark and heading for home in the women’s 470 final

It was a beautiful early summer day and here I was a volunteer official on the finish line of the last round – the medal round – of the ISAF World Cup.

I know a little about race officiating but was a little nervous about such a big event as we waited at St Kilda Marina to pick of the other officials. My club the Hobsons Bay Yacht Club had provided our club boat to be the set the finish line and record the results.

Maria from Valencia (oh how I loved Spain) quickly assured us that we needed to just do as she said. Press the hooter when she said now, raise the flag when she said now etc.

She was a quiet woman but chatting away after fine tuning the reach angles and waiting for starts her experience was slowly revealed an on water official at two Olympics, Principal race offer for the TP52 series in Europe.

Great I just did what I was told, enjoy the racing and take some photos.

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA — 470 men’s start

From the boat we had a great view of the start and the final rounding mark leading to the finish.

We were officiating 5 races all deciding the series for that class.

There was the Men’s and Women 470 class.

The Finn a hard boat to sail for big strong blokes.

The women’s laser radial and men’s laser the boats of single handed skill.

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The last race the Men’s laser

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A tightly fought race,

with a fairy tale end.

pc112517e — Thumbs up as he gets the winners signal

With Pavlos Kontides winning his first ever international series gold medal, having won an Olympic Silver Medal and many other placings in a decade of senior sailing in the laser.

Impressions of Spain 3 – Alhambra

Sitting below the Sierra Nevada and above the fertile plane of Granada

is The Red

Alhambra

The site chosen by the Romans for a fort

Bought to its glory by the Moors as Christian Europe languished in its Dark Ages

Magnificent architecture

Mosaics

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Gardens

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Bought into flourish by the Nasrid Sultans over 700 years

Then occupied by Ferdinand and Isabella

Driving Islam out or Spain and establishing themselves as the Catholic Kings

In the Palace, Isabella signed the orders for Columbus to sail in search of the Americas

The dawn of the Golden Age

The centre of old Granada

Overlooking the Albacain, the Arab quarter

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pa112420e — Plaza Aliatar at night in the Albacain

Ransacked by Napoleon’s troops in 1882

Alhambra still stands magnificent even though losing its former glory.

Impressions of Spain 2 – Cadiz

Cadiz

Old City

3000 years old

Inhabited by

Phoenicians

Romans

Goths

Moors

Through to

the Spanish “Golden Years”

Flourishing

Gold and other trade from the Americas

Trading through its port

Building a flourishing city

Grand Cathedral

Filled with the silver and gold

flowing from the Americas

pa062303e — Silver alter in a Cathedral chapel

Now a coastal tourist city

Port of ferries, cruise and cargo ships

old town and new

new ways and old

The wonderful passion of spain

Impressions of Spain 1 – the Spanish

I saw the Dutch as having a stoic inner strength as a result of the battle the with external forces.

The Spanish temperament is shaped by the battle with their own wild passion.

Separatists in the Basque country and Catalonia seeking their own expression.

Civil ways

Anarchists

Communists

Capitalists

Living in the shadow of Spain’s “Glory Years”.

dsc_0014_3 — Parade on Hispanic Day dressed as in the “Glory Days” in Plaza Del Sol

“Glory Years” that spread Spanish culture to the Americas, Africa and distant corner so the world.

Especially in the Americas where the Hispanic culture is still strong.

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA As it shows on the Hispanic Day parade from Plaza de Mayor of the Hispanic groups.

So the passionate Spaniards celebrate with parades of national days and saint days.

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With a 100 or more buglers and drummers leading the parade of the patron saint of Cadiz

But in many ways the flamenco dance captures the raw passionate energy of Spain

The wild swing or the body

The rapid fire stamping of the feet

The dancer lost in the raw energy of the moment

The wild expression of the inner passion.

Impressions of the Netherlands and the Dutch

Having spent, off and on, a couple of weeks in the Netherlands and travelling a couple of thousand kilometres across Europe with a bunch of of Dutch Moto Guzzi riders has left me with some powerful impressions of this place and the people.

The core of the Dutch people are caught up in their history.

Having succeeded from the rule of Spain the Dutch have faced constant threat of invasion.

In the Rijksmuseum, The Threatened Swan, captures this aspect the Netherlands constantly threatened by the dogs of war.

Incorporated into France under Napoleon

Brutal occupation by Germany in WWII despite declaring neutrality.

There is the constant fight to maintain control of there country.

In the Rijksmuseum there is a further insight

Up past The Night Watch

On the third floor there plays a documentary video about the Dutch and the constant battle to control water.

Reclaimed land from the sea and mighty rivers

fighting flood and inundation

Water in the huge rivers flowing through the country to the sea.

Basillica Saint Nicholas on the Amstel Dam

Water in the canals and behind the dams and dykes of Amsterdam.

Tilting aparment buildings sured up against subsidence as the water tries to reclaim the land it once covered.

It’s this fight for control from outside forces that give the Dutch a core strength, an inner stoicism.

But the Dutch are more than stoic.

Ride from Nijmegen in the Netherlands to Mandello De Lario in northern Italy

Riding with an eclectic group of Dutchies over 8 days revealed a certain joi de vivre that sat well aside the stoic determination.

An eclectic group; women on classic bikes, old veterans of the tour, white haired old men on new bikes, riders from all walks of life. All pushing hard on the tortuously twisty routes through southern Germany, Austria, the Swiss and Italian Alps to Mandello.

Every night laughter good food and of course beer.

The Dutch love to laugh, and drink the beers they are so proud of without losing control.

After all beer is mostly water!