Weekly Chat (Non-Osprey), 16 October 2016

Next Instalment of our Mediterranean Adventure:

Continuing the tour of Dubrovnik:   In the street was this tribute to a monk:  at first, I thought  the poor man had had his nose knocked off as is often the case, but in fact both his nose and his hands were worn from people touching him and perhaps offering him their prayers:

This small ornate fountain was very old; I did wonder if the top part had been restored, though.

Another large building, which could have been the Town Hall, I think:

There was a small food market in front of it, which is not apparently always there.  A lady in traditional costume kindly posed for me:  she had small sweets, jams and food goodies on her stall:

This famous clock dominates a lot of the town.  It has a bell, with the original sundial on the front, plus a turning golden ball which indicates the time of day also, and now has had a digital clock incorporated into the design!

As you can see, it was 1.30pm!

Our son has just phoned to say that his clever wife has climbed two flights of stairs this morning, Heather, you are so right, the physio's do not hang about. He also said that there is a chance that she could return home next Wednesday to continue her recuperation, as she has already passed all their tests. He is hoping to take her out in the garden this afternoon.

No biopsy results yet.

There were a great many churches within the city walls:  I forgot to mention that the walls are famous for being double walls, they were so determined to keep out their enemies. You could walk along these, all around the city which is built on a kind of peninsula.  But we did not have time, and some of our companions would have had problems with the many steep steps anyway.

My rough guide from a book tells me that most of the city was built in the 12th century.  The town was shelled in the 1991-2 civil war with Yugoslavia.

Here are some of the bells above a church:

The tiny side streets were a problem to navigate, with so many visitors! This one reaches up, up to the walls above us:

We were taken to a monastery, with monks still in residence.  They wore pure white woollen robes, and looked ghostly.  I dare not photograph them in case it seemed like an invasion of privacy, but most of the ones we saw were quite young.  Here are the cloisters inside:

It looked very peaceful and quiet.  There are flowers on some of these shrubs, but they don't show up well.

We went into a museum within the monastery - there were more relics of revered saints and previous important people inside, sometimes covered in a lot of gold leaf or in intricate boxes.  Photographs were not encouraged in case the flash of the cameras faded some of the paintings and wall coverings. But it was very interesting, especially a display of the wonderful jewellery worn by both men and women, often made of coral and gold, very beautiful.

OG   presuming that the person who gave your hare talk was 'Andy Howard" who we know quite well. He was Manager of Simpsons before he decided to take up photography professionally.

MARGO   So very sorry to hear your news.

DIBNLIB - correct - yes, it was Andy Howard - he did mention his previous career at Simpsons - not by name, but I knew that was where he was referring to!  His photography is stunning - he really gets close to his subjects to gain their trust.

Very interesting pics, LINDY. I know very little about that part of the world -

AQ - More churches for you to see. I find it fascinating to glimpse the life of the earlier settlers through their townships and churches and schools.

BRENDA - I didn't mention biopsy - almost afraid to do so - but hoping that you hear soon. It can't be many more days. Housework can indeed wait.

Youngest daughter and OH really enjoyed their meal out, last night (Café 1, Inverness) Eldest daughter had their two girls for a sleepover. I'm having a wee break now before some small chores. Our Danish friends phoned at 1230 to say that they were just north of Berwick. I had to think for a minute, since they pronounced it as Ber-wick! (Is actually pronounced Berrick).

My brother is having to face the possibility that he may not be able to stay in France for the rest of his life as he had hoped to do. His son - who at 39 has yet to make a success of living independently - was admitted yesterday, once again, to hospital in the UK . They are all over here at present, getting the UK house ready to market. Son has multiple physical problems, a lot of which are the result of his diet and lifestyle. That is what he has been told by medics but chooses to ignore. He has Type 2 diabetes which he doesn't control well - eats and drinks too much and is grossly overweight. He needs a CPAP machine at night, has sarcoidosis and other problems - not taking into consideration his chronic low self esteem, depression etc. Hospital admissions are now becoming more frequent. None of us can see how France and the French health care/social system will accept him long term. My sister in law is more accepting of the way that this is going to dictate where they live. My brother, as I said, much less so. Every phone conversation with him is pretty awful. I don't know what will happen to my nephew, once his parents die or can't look after him :-(

OG - sorry to read that you have such a nasty sore throat. I'm not sure what the whisky does, in a hot toddy - more likely the honey and lemon helps. May be the whisky just sedates! Hope that you start to feel better, soon.

Linda, Your photographs are just as I imagined it to be, but I have never been there. I should imagine that you could spend a longer visit to explore all there is to see.

OG, So sorry you are feeling so bad. Sounds as if you have caught a stinker. I am sure that 'the boys' are taking care of you.

Heather, Big problems for your brother and his wife. Your nephew obviously needs professional help, possibly in some residential centre.

Thank you BRENDA, I will take your advice.

OG, My OH had a colonoscopy two weeks ago, an endoscopy a week ago and a CT scan last Friday. He now awaits the results. It has been rather hectic around here recently. LOL
Thank you for asking.