11. Croydon U3A Magazine, Summer 2019

Croydon U3A Magazine

Summer 2019

The Third Age Trust (Operating as the University of the Third Age) Croydon U3A Reg. Charity No. 102946612

Website address www.u3asites.org.uk/croydon

. Table of Contents

Editorial 1 Chairman’s Message 2 Outing – A Friary and a Rural Museum 2 – 6

General Meeting Talks Open Spaces 6 - 10 Croydon Airport 10 – 11 ‘Change your thoughts and you change your 12 life’ Groups Wildflowers 13 - 14 History of London 3 15 - 17 Learning from a visit to a sewage treatment works - Science and Technology Group 18 - 21 China 21 – 22 Story The Double Act 22 – 23 Six Months in Another World 23 - 29 When Do I Retire? 30 - 32 Climate Change and Travel 32 - 33 Using a Laptop 33 - 34 A Local Derby 34 - 35 Oddments 35 - 36

Cover Picture – The Science and Technology Group on a visit to the Thames Water Sewage Treatment Plant at Long Reach Picture credit – John Smith (more pictures from John with the report on pages 18 - 21)

Editorial In a village near Coulsdon there’s a bungalow named Beggars’ Keep. (Note the position of the apostrophe, indicating that more than one beggar lives there.) Of course, it’s a contradiction in terms. A ‘keep’ is a stronghold, capable of being defended. A beggar could hardly aspire to such a place, unless it was in ruins. But the bungalow looks well kept. So one must credit the owner with a sense of humour. Perhaps also with the virtue of modesty, unlike the names of neighbouring bungalows: exotic and flaunting the experience of far flung travel. I’d be happy with the name, Beggars’ Keep. I’m glad that Heather Hardie has treated us to an account of her adventurous six month ‘holiday’ (perhaps ‘expedition’ is more appropriate) in countries of South East Asia. I had thought we would have to publish it in two instalments. But we have room for all of it. So board your plane, fasten your seatbelts and take off into Heather’s Wonderland! David Talbot provides a thought-provoking plea for holidays at home to reduce pollution from air travel. Should we abstain from life-enhancing experiences such as Heather’s in that cause? A conundrum! Thanks to Group Leaders for telling us what their Groups are up to. And to our other contributors. The deadline for the Autumn issue of the Magazine will be Wednesday 9 October. I shall welcome contributions. Gordon Thynne Picture tea garden in Sikkim in the Himalayas – Heather’s wonderland Credit - Subhrajyoti07 (Creative Commons from Wikimedia)

1 Chairman’s Message Dear Members, It’s exam season again, and for years I have been involved with GCSE assessments. It’s pretty hard going to ensure consistency across a huge team of examiners. One of the questions that’s had me thinking is about the Big Bang Theory. I can recite the ‘facts’ but my comprehension of them is a bit elastic. I really have no concept of ‘billions of years’. My SATNAV often tells me to ‘keep on this road for a long time’ and I can cope with that!! Here’s a gem to get your grey cells around, from Professor de Strooper* – if the whole population (of about seven and a half billion) were each hooked up to a computer and working together, that would still be less than one tenth of what’s going on inside the average brain!!!! All this science about the origins of the universe and how the brain works and regenerates itself fascinates me. That’s what is so great about having a little time on our hands – we can explore the world of ideas and theories. People’s ‘bucket lists’ often seem to include places to visit and experiences to be had. Mine is more of a list of things to find out about and try to understand…… Lifelong learning really does rock. Keep the brain busy and do a bit of physical stretching at the same time. Happy retirement and very best wishes to all, Jenny (Chairman) *Director of UK Dementia Research Institute at University College, London, since December 2016 – Editor Outings A Friary and a Rural Museum On Thursday 16 May a full coach of U3A members went to a Friary near Aylsford in Kent. Aylsford Priory, or ‘The Friars’, was founded in 1242 after the arrival of Carmelites from Palestine. Coffee and shortbread (not bread and water) were laid on before we assembled in a medieval hall to hear about the history of the place. 2 Many other Carmelite priories were founded in England and Wales. (Friars differed from monks in that they were not isolated from the surrounding community, but went out preaching and teaching.) In 1538, after the dissolution of the monasteries, the Priory was granted to Sir Thomas Wyatt of nearby Allington Castle. After various changes of ownership, Sir John Banks, a naval supplier, bought it in the 17th century and turned it into a fine mansion. Samuel Pepys, himself a navy man, was a visitor, and commented: ‘I was mighty pleased with the sight of it’. In 1949 the house was put up for sale and the Carmelite order was able to buy back their ‘motherhouse’. Father Malachy, the first Prior, conceived the idea of an open-air shrine. Adrian Gilbert Scott, one of the famous family of architects, designed this and neighbouring chapels. They stand in a semi-circle, raised up above a piazza. It gives the impression of an amphitheatre for a congregation of pilgrims. As well as a notable architect, talented artists embellished the shrine and chapels, notably Adam Kossowski* who designed and made ceramic illustrations of biblical themes. At the rear of the piazza is an ancient tree, a False Acacia (or Robinia). Its massive girth bears out the reputed age of over 500 years. Beyond it is a homely duck pond. We were fortunate in being able to appreciate the lovely grounds and gardens in fine weather. We came not as pilgrims but as ordinary sightseers. But something of the dedication and devotion that had gone into the making of the place couldn’t help but impress. It must be a remarkable experience to be one of a party of enthusiastic pilgrims. Picture - 500 year old Robinia (Gordon Thynne)

Aylesford Priory the Great Courtyard (top) and the Shrine (bottom) Picture credits – Ian Capper Creative Commons from geography.org.uk 4

Aylesford Priory the Relic Chapel (top) and Cuxton Chapel at 'Kent Life' (bottom) Picture credits – Gordon Thynne 5 From there we travelled in the trusty Banstead coach down more lanes to the Heritage Farm Park, ‘Kent Life’. Animals, a Playbarn and a Train make it an attraction for children. For us sedate adults there were re-creations of cottages and public buildings and … well, the Train. Amongst the reconstructed buildings described to us by a pleasant and knowledgeable guide were a row of cottages, furnished as though in the 1940’s, with an Anderson shelter in the garden; a ‘tin’ chapel from Cuxton which had done sterling service as a place of worship from 1897 to the 1950s; and huts provided as accommodation for hop-pickers (a whole family in what was no more than a hovel). Hops are still grown there, and the oast houses are the last ‘working’ ones in the country. The train took us up the hill where we were treated to (self-service) tea, coffee and cakes in the former village hall of Ulcombe (built 1895 and still with its corrugated iron roof). For the less able and more lazy, the train took us down again, to board the coach for home. The Travel Team’s efforts had been much appreciated. Gordon Thynne *Adam Kossowski, Polish artist noted for his works for the Catholic Church in England, where he arrived in 1943 as a refugee from USSR labour camps.

Reports from General Meetings Open Spaces On 8 May Cora Pfarre, the City of London Corporation’s Conservation Ranger for the South London Commons told the General Meeting about the work of the Corporation’s Open Spaces and Heritage Department in the management of the Croydon and West Wickham Commons. Farthing Downs is a scheduled ancient monument, with its Iron Age lynchets, traces of an ancient farming system, and Iron Age burials. There have been some half-dozen excavations, starting in the early 1900s. In those days finds were often taken home as curios by antiquarians, unfortunately losing their context and now probably lost.

6 Signpost on Farthing Downs Credit Des Blenkinsopp (Creative Commons from geography.org.uk) Anti-aircraft ditches were dug across the Downs during World War II. Although filled in, they still appear as white lines on aerial photographs and as undulations in the road. Together with New Hill, which the Corporation bought in 2003, Farthing Downs comprise 95 hectares of chalk grassland habitat. This is now quite rare as 80% of such grasslands have been lost since the 1940s. Left ungrazed while national resources went into post-war reconstruction, much of the Downs reverted back to scrub, losing the specific chalk grassland species. Cora told the meeting that it is now possible to find 20 - 30 plant species in a single square metre. Maintaining this biodiversity involves having a breeding herd of Sussex red cattle, and volunteers pulling out yellow ragwort.

7 The ragwort is important as a good source for nectar feeders, but left to seed it would crowd out other plants and be a hazard to livestock as it is poisonous for horses, sheep and cattle which may eat it later in the summer. Last year 9 tonnes of ragwort was cleared across the Commons. The Sussex red cattle are a placid breed which cope well with the public visiting the Downs and are excellent at keeping the grasses short but with the variety of growth which could not be achieved by mowing. Jacob sheep are also grazed under agreements with their owners. A particular problem, though, is uncontrolled dogs. Each year there are cases of chased and injured sheep (and even deer), and dog faeces can also spread a disease which has led to the loss of unborn calves. While Cora’s talk drew attention to the flowers which were appearing in May, particularly the many wild orchid species, others appear throughout the summer. The management of plant diversity also helps to maintain butterfly species such as the brown hairstreak butterfly. This likes young growth Blackthorn, so the Blackthorn is cut back over a three year rotation so that there is always some new growth on a third of the bushes.

8 Kenley Common has heritage from the World War II fighter station. (The airstrip is owned by the RAF but the Corporation owns the surrounding land.) There has recently been National Lottery funding for the Kenley Revival project to preserve historic features like the Spitfire pens and firing range and to provide information boards. At Riddlesdown there is a quarry which isn’t usually open to the public because there would be too great a risk of accidents, but the rangers take groups to look at its geology. These days are bookable through the City Commons Eventbrite link. On all the Commons there are problems about removing trees affected by ash dieback disease. Judging by experience on the continent, this disease is expected to kill 95% of ash trees. (Ash is recognisable by its black springtime buds and is not related to the Rowan or Mountain Ash, which has a similar leaf shape but has autumn red berries.) As ash trees are affected by the disease, those along boundaries and paths need to be taken out before they go internally or fall. Sadly, research has not found a genetic strain to account for the 5% of ash trees which resist the disease. At West Wickham and Spring Park there are areas of woodland where the rangers are reinstating coppicing of the sweet chestnut trees to provide poles. A problem here is that there have been deliberately started grassland arson fires. This undoes the careful work of the rangers and the local volunteers. Photo credits – Bee on Ragwort (p.8) - Christine Matthews - Pyramidal Orchid (p.8) - Glyn Baker - and Brown Hairstreak Butterfly (p.9) - Janet Richardson (all Creative Commons from geography.org.uk) 9 Cora told us that the Commons are highly protected from development under the Corporation’s Open Space legislation and under the designations as Sites of Special Scientific Interest. Under the new South London Downs National Nature Reserve agreements with English Nature they will continue to be well-managed for biodiversity and amenity. If you would like to find ranger-led walks etc. please visit the website of Eventbrite (look for the title of the event following the link below). New volunteers are always welcome. Barbara Lister Ranger-led wildflower walks and other events are published for booking on Eventbrite at: www.eventbrite.co.uk/o/citycommons-17228025876

Croydon Airport Croydon airport is not only famous for being the first London airport. It has also been used as a location by writers, most famously Agatha Christie in her novel ‘Death in the Clouds’. Others who have mentioned the airport include Freeman Wills Croft in his book ‘The 12.30 From Croydon’, Evelyn Waugh, Elizabeth Bower and Winston Churchill. I have recently been reading two books by Jacqueline Winspear entitled ‘Elegy for Eddie’ and ‘In this Grave Hour” where Croydon Airport is a location. ‘The Swiss Spy’ by Alex Gerlis also mentions the Airport. Another fact that people may not know is that the day after her husband’s execution, Margaret Joyce, better known as Lady Haw-Haw, was told by the Governor of Holloway Prison that she must pack her belongings as she was to be returned to the Continent. The following morning she was driven under armed escort to Croydon Airport for a 9am flight to the military detention centre in Brussels. She returned several weeks later and lived the remainder of her life in England. Margaret Wilson (Margaret’s thoughts were prompted by the talk on Croydon Airport by Graeme Roy at the General Meeting on 10 April. I recall a book about air travel that I had as a boy – one of the pictures showed Croydon Airport with luxurious-looking ‘airliners’. Editor) 10 Croydon Airport closed in 1959 and the building is now used as offices but its historic features, including the first departure lounge and first air traffic control tower, are open to the public on the first Sunday each month from 11 to 4 pm. The control tower – Pauline E – and the De Havilland Heron outside airport House - Peter Trimming – both Creative Commons from geograph.org.uk

11 ‘Change your thoughts and you change your life’ At the General Meeting on 12 June Alan Wise, Health Pychologist, talked about having a positive attitude to life. A small amount of stress helps with motivation. But one in four of us suffer from stress at some time in our lives. Sources of stress can be: ▪ having too much or too little to do ▪ lack of communicaton ▪ low self esteem and major life events such as breakdown of a relationship, redundancy or bereavement. In our approach to stress, some people approach situations as a challenge, while others react as to a threat. A little support from anti-depressants is helpful, but getting to the root of the problem through a talking therapy such as CBT [Cognitive Behavioural Therapy] may help more. We can’t control what happens to us, but we can control our attitude. What matters is good thoughts. When you go to see a doctor about stress, he can give you only about ten minutes of his time. He is likely to recommend medication, but relaxing drugs will only deal with symptoms and can cause problems themselves when continued for too long. Asking about working with a psychologist to get to the root cause could be an alternative to discuss. Today social media send out much negative content provoking thoughts that we are not good enough. These negative thoughts and anxieties can take a long time to overcome. They can be weakened by auto-suggestion by telling ourselves that every day we are getting better, and better and better. It’s worth remembering, too, that happiness is not innate: inner contentment comes from living in the moment and appreciating the simplest things. Alan gave examples from his own experience of the discovery, under hypnosis, of causes of depression. The best medication, Alan said, is love. Gordon Thynne/Barbara Lister Further information on CBT is given on this Mind webpage: www.mind.org.uk/information-support/drugs-and-treatments/cognitive- behavioural-therapy-cbt/cbt-sessions/#.XQJlnxZKjIU 12 Groups Wildflower Group The Wildflower Group met up in Littleheath Woods in April to see some of the first flowers of the year. Generally, woodlands are not rich in flowers because of the low light levels but spring is the time when the woodland flowers make the most the any light in the woods before the leaves appear on the trees. The recent warm weather meant that we were not disappointed; there was plenty to see. In May we visited Mitcham Common which, at first sight, didn’t appear to be very promising. However, we saw a good number of flowers including a few which are quite unusual – for our area at least. It was lovely weather and we thoroughly enjoyed being out in the sun. Next month we are going to Hutchinson’s Bank, a site of special scientific interest which is always rewarding. It is managed for butterflies too so we may be lucky to see some rarities. Shirley Shephard

Alexanders top right, Star of Bethlehem bottom left (photos Geoff Roe)

13 Wood Sorrell top left and Spotted Medick bottom right (photos Geoff Roe)

14 History of London Group 3 Over the past year History of London (3) has enjoyed a full programme of outings and talks. Our outings have included visits to Museums, starting with the Museum of London Docklands for a guided tour explaining how the Romans dealt with death. At the Design Museum, as well as admiring the building, many of us had a nostalgic view of gadgets from our younger years. We found ourselves part of history again at the Fashion and Textile Museum’s ‘Swinging London’ exhibition. At the V&A, another bespoke tour this time introduced us to the recently reopened Cast Courts, where we could wonder both at the casts and at the buildings etc. from which they were reproduced. We have also visited the RNLI and Wesley’s House and Chapel where we were lucky enough to experience a Re-enactment Day with volunteers dressed in period clothes and demonstrating contemporary household activities. In addition we have had three walks: those around Wapping/Limehouse and Trafalgar Square each had an historical theme and that at Shoreditch/Spitalfields covered history and social change. Our year will close with a visit to The Charterhouse. The monthly talks have covered a wide variety of subjects from exploring London through various periods to interesting people such as Charlie Chaplin. Locations we learned about included Soho and Eltham Palace. We are part way through a journey along the River Thames from its source through London to the sea. Social events were not neglected, with many members enjoying a Christmas lunch and some meeting for a New Year coffee and chat. The first bookings have been made for talks in the 2019/20 session. We continue to seek out new places to visit – or perhaps re-visit – on our outings. We would welcome ideas and help from members with organising and checking out locations. Fiona Nicol and Linda Drummond

15 Top the Design Museum (photo Geoff Roe), bottom V&A Swinging 60s exhibits (photo Fiona Nicol)

16 Top John Wesley’s chapel, bottom a re-enactor at Wesley’s house (photos Geoff Roe)

17 Science & Technology Group Learning from visiting a Sewage Treatment Works On 14 May the Science and Technology Group visited the Thames Water sewage treatment works at Long Reach, close to the Dartford Crossing. It was a beautiful sunny day and we were shown areas of the site by Gregory Baker who is part of Thames Water's educational outreach team. Starting with a briefing on the scale of the company's operations supplying tap water and treating wastewater for the whole Thames valley, we were taken through the processes from extraction from rivers and boreholes, through filtration and supply, sewer maintenance, and the processes which we were about to see on site to return treated wastewater to the Thames. The site at Dartford treats sewage from over 1 million people which arrives at the rate of 4 cubic metres each second, and considerably faster at 10am peakflow or in the event of heavy rain. Processing to get this water clean enough for discharge takes about 3 hours. Our visit avoided the most smelly area, where the arriving sewage is screened to remove as much plastic etc as possible. We started the site tour at the settlement and skimming tanks where the solids settle and are scraped from the bottom, allowing the much clearer liquid to weir over into a channel taking it on to the next stage of processing. Here it is aerated and mixed with a biological culture of microorganisms which feed on the remains solids. (This was the most dangerous area we saw as aeration makes the liquid much lower density than normal water so anyone falling in would sink rapidly.) Leaving the aeration lanes the liquid is much darker brown because of the amount of microorganisms it is carrying. The final stage is more settlement in the conical tanks you have probably seen (with large circular tops and rotating scrapers pumping off algae and any fats which have made it through processing). The microorganisms now sink and are pumped from the bottom back to the aeration lanes to work on more incoming liquids. Clear water now weirs over and is taken away to the river outfall. At this stage the gulls from the river are happy to settle on the tanks.

18 Viewing the process at the stage just before the treated water is ready to return to the Thames. Picture by John Smith. We did not see the processing of solids extracted in settlement but these are now sent to biodigesters which generate the biogas used to provide electricity which meets 70% of the operation’s power requirements, (Because gravity is used to take sewage to the plant, it arrives well below ground level so a lot of energy is needed to bring it up again.) The company also has some wind turbines. After the gas is extracted the residue is a soil improver rich in minerals which is used in farming. Brown and sticky it is called cake - rather different to the cake which often concludes the Group’s normal meetings! The site is managed for biodiversity, with wildflower plants encouraged to support rare wild bees. Around the tanks these are allowed a full year of growth before an end of season mowing. After the site visit we returned to the education centre and got to look for tardigrades and other microorganisms through microscopes.

19 Looking for micro-organisms. Picture by John Smith The most important things we learned were that all the wet wipes ever made are still around. Their artificial fibres will not breakdown for many, many years. Even ones which are marketed as ‘eco’ can have large amounts of artificial fibres and all are capable of contributing to blockages and fatbergs forming in the sewers. They should never be flushed away, and fats and oils should be thrown out with general rubbish using a sealed container not poured into drains. Even tissues are much stronger than toilet paper and if flushed these can reach Dartford intact - or block your drain. Make sure you don't let the roll in the loo run out without a fresh roll to hand. Also causing problems are cotton buds. These have plastic parts which have a diameter thin enough to go through the screening uncaught. Again these should not be flushed. The sheer amount of water used by Thames customers is surprising. On average domestic customers use over 150 litres of water per day. This is several times what is used in more water-stressed climates, though the South East is itself more water-stressed than other regions.

20 As London has grown the amount of wastewater flowing down for treatment has also expanded. The Bazalgette sewers were built when there were 2 million Londoners and allowed for that to double. At 8 million and rising, and each using far more water than our Victorian forebears, the system is now under pressure and untreated discharges to the river now happen often (when rainfall pushes flows beyond capacity). And finally a plea to drink tap water. It is 400 times cheaper than bottled. The bottles are plastic waste: okay if recycled but many are not, and the industrial processes involved require 3 litres of water for every 1 litre of bottled water. If your tap water has a chlorine taint, this is because the supply must be kept safe right to the furthest reaches of the pipes. Chlorination is not permanent, given a short time - an hour or so - in a jug in the fridge the taste will go. Our visit was truly educational and similar visits can be arranged for groups from age seven upwards. There is no charge, so consider suggesting this for any schools you have a connection to. If you would like to see some of the features described without going to Long Reach, there is a Royal Society the video at: www.youtube.com/watch?v=tJIHsxvj5YI Barbara Lister China Group The main focus of the China Group is on coming to terms with China’s rise and its impact on the rest of the world. We study its growing global influence and its major initiatives in banking, investment and infrastructure development. At the same time, members research specific topics of historical and cultural interest, such as the Silk Road, tea, jade and pottery. Talks have been given on all the above subjects as well as on the formative Song and Tang Dynasties and on the elements of the Chinese writing system – the latter by a native Chinese. Our main concern is to deepen understanding of the phenomenon of China’s global expansion. The challenge this presents to the West and the UK, in particular, is one of reconciling ourselves to a new world order.

21 Chinese technology in areas such as telephony and artificial intelligence (provided by companies like Huawei) is a potential threat to Western privacy and data protection which must be closely guarded. We acknowledge, above all, the need for the UK to engage with China in the interests of sustaining our economic prosperity after Brexit is resolved. We also discuss ways and means of encouraging Britain to become sufficiently competitive in its attitude to China by overcoming the arrogance and over- confidence of colonial times and an underlying, largely historically related, distrust of foreigners. It also means acknowledging the ‘stain’ left by the Opium Wars and making a serious attempt to understand Chinese culture. We need to create the kind of partnerships which will underpin mutually beneficial cultural and commercial relations – notably in areas like education and financial markets. We welcome new members to the Group. For further detail, email [email protected] . Barnaby Powell Story The Double Act Douglas and Maxwell were a comedy double act. Max was much smaller than his partner but there was a chemistry between them. Doug would love to gently insult him but Max was always ready with a smart retort, never allowing himself to be put down - giving as good as he got. They toured the variety circuit together and were a great hit wherever they went, year in and year out, moving on to television as that medium became more popular. The audiences never seemed to tire of their repartee and innuendo-laden patter. Sometimes Doug, normally the straight man, would become the comic and vice versa, so as to keep the act fresh. Despite their success, they both considered breaking up the act and going solo, but no, as with Jewell & Warriss and Morecambe & Wise, one depended on the other. The solo option would never have worked.

Sadly, all good things had to come to an end sometime. With the new wave of 'alternative' comics appearing during the eighties, their act started to become jaded, despite introducing some racier elements into their comedy, which did not go down too well with their more traditional audiences Their popularity waned. Douglas also began to notice a deterioration in Maxwell. He had let himself go a little and his left leg was giving him a lot of trouble. Eventually he could stand it no longer and he took Max to see a specialist, despite his partner's protestations. Various tests followed and eventually Doug was called back for the diagnosis, leaving Max back at home. ‘I think you'd better sit down, Douglas’ said the specialist. ‘There's no easy way of saying this but I'm afraid that Max is going to lose his leg. We had hoped to save it and we did all we could but my colleagues and I agree that we have never seen such a severe attack of dry rot and woodworm.’ Colin Read Six Months in Another World Why on earth would an apparently sane woman of 71 decide to abandon her busy, enjoyable life in London to spend 6 months backpacking around Asia? Well, I’ve always been adventurous and curious about other countries. The first really foreign place I saw, in my twenties, was Peru, where I was well and truly bitten by the travel bug. I loved the way everything was different – the people, the land, the language, the food and drink, even the smells. At my age, ‘time’s wingèd chariot’ is at my shoulder and want to do as much as I can, while I still can. So when I turned 70, I decided it would be right to have an adventure. I’d been to SE Asia before, but missed many countries, with India an especially big gap in my travel CV. So I decided to go to all the countries I hadn’t been to, especially Bhutan, about which I was very curious. The Land of the Thunder Dragon, in the fabulous Himalayas, ruled by a king and a parliament, where Gross National Happiness was a key measure? I had to see it for myself. I’d wanted to trek in the Himalayas again, since a marvellous trekking trip to Nepal 10 years before.

23 And I fancied being an intrepid lone traveller, as I’d been in South America 50 years before. Over time, this crystallised into a trip of 6 months, travelling with friends at the beginning and end, but alone the rest of the time, starting in Vietnam, then Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar (formerly Burma), India and Bhutan. To help with the budget, I rented out my house while I was away. I had so many wonderful experiences that I couldn’t possibly describe them all, so I’ll just tell you about a few. I’ll have to miss out hiking into the jungle before dawn to see a family of gibbons having their breakfast, all the fascinating ancient and modern historic sites, the cookery classes, the jungle treks, sleeping in hammocks and tree houses, the tropical islands, snorkelling for the first time in my life, seeing millions of bats streaming out of caves at dusk, the stunning tropical birds and flowers, the markets, swimming under waterfalls, the boat trip through the backwaters of Kerala, the traditional dance performances, Indian cuisine - the best food in Asia for us vegetarians, the ‘toy train’ ride from the hot northern plains up to Darjeeling, and the splendour of the Himalayas. I’ll also miss out the bits I could have done without, like the problems I had with my passport and my regular medication. Any 6 months of a person’s life is going to include something not-so-good, of course - it’s all part of the game. My first ‘wow’ moment came in Vietnam, with my friend Barbara. We went on a day trip to Phong Nha-Ke Bang national park, huge rocky towers covered in rainforest and riddled with caves, with a friendly bunch of people, none of whom were over 35. We hiked, explored caves, and had lunch on a beautiful riverbank while colourful butterflies fluttered over the water. But the really exciting thing was swimming into a cave. We were all kitted out with life-jackets, helmets, gloves and plastic shoes, then we crossed a raging river torrent up to our chests while hanging onto a rope for dear life, and scrambled over piles of boulders. We swam 600 metres along an underground river into the darkness of the cave, our little helmet lights forming a string of twinkles in the blackness. The water was freezing, of course. But we had never done anything like that before! It was quite scary, but very exciting Bobbing along in the cold murky water, the cave roof and formations dissolving into the darkness overhead, the bats flying past, the line of lights....unforgettable. 24 I couldn’t take a photo while swimming, but here’s our group all kitted out, ready to swim this is inside another cave I saw that day.

At Kratie, a pretty, sleepy little town on the Mekong River in Cambodia, I went kayaking with a guide and another Englishwoman, to see the rare Irrawaddy dolphins. People often come to see them in motorised boats, which disturb them and lessen the chances of seeing them.

25 But in our kayaks, we could quietly paddle along and see them frisking and leaping out of the water very close to us. Around 90 of these beautiful, playful animals form the largest of only 5 remaining pods in the world; they are critically endangered, not least by plans to build a dam to generate hydroelectricity. The conflict between economic development and environmental conservation, aggravated by endemic corruption, often has sad results in these very poor countries. Probably the most fascinating historic site I explored was the Plain of Jars in the Ammanite mountains of Laos. Clusters of huge stone jars of all sizes are scattered over an area of many square kilometres. They're 1500 to 2500 years old, and nobody knows who put them there or why. If you want to know more, see www.bbc.com/travel/story/20150810-laos-strange-plain-of-jars. Their history is inextricably linked to that of those who destroyed many of them - the Chinese about 300 years ago, and the Americans during the 1960s and 70s, in the "secret war", during which Laos had more bombs dropped on it than were dropped in the whole of WW2. It made Laos the most bombed country in history, and the people are still living with the consequences. Vast swathes of the land have still not been cleared of unexploded ordnance, which regularly kills and cripples Laotians, including children. Myanmar, with its friendly people, beautiful varied landscapes and millions of temples, was probably my favourite country. I explored one of the biggest and most beautiful Buddhist temples in the world, a village carved out of solid rock and a place where hundreds of caves contained thousands of statues of Buddha. I hiked from the northern mountains to lovely Inle Lake, stayed in paradise - a bamboo hut on a deserted beach – and climbed huge volcanic rock towers. But one of my top experiences was a train journey – on the Circle line, the cheap slow train that encircles Yangon, heading from the centre of town right out to the farms and fields. It was a most entertaining trip, a great way of seeing Yangonites in their natural habitat.

26 There were lots of hawkers and the passengers were a colourful cross-section, from respectable housewives with their shopping, to old men falling asleep, workers, farmers, stallholders taking the entire contents of their stalls home, bunches of giggling teenagers and a pair of flamboyant gay guys. Picture – a trackside market on the Circle Line (Heather Hardie) The food-sellers carried huge trays of food on their heads and little plastic stools looped over one arm. There were sweets, fruit, cobs of sweetcorn and everything from a snack to a full meal, with several condiments. A marvellous way to people-watch! The highlight of my trip to Bagan (also in Myanmar) was to see the sun rise over this massive complex of over 2000 temples and pagodas, built from 11th – 13th centuries AD. My tuk tuk driver took me to a tiny monastery which only a few people had found - you can join the tourist hordes elsewhere. I climbed candle- lit stairs and waited in the cool, quiet pre-dawn light, for the sun to rise, gradually revealing an awe-inspiring sea of spires rising through the treetops. Some people (those who have $300 to throw about) take a dawn ride in a hot air balloon, and these stately giants added immeasurably to the atmosphere, as they glided silently over the temples while the sun came up. Picture – Dawn at Bagan with hot air balloons (Heather Hardie) 27 It sounds bizarre to match these ancient and modern events, but they fitted perfectly to make an unforgettable experience. Better than Angkor Wat! But I’m not primarily a seaside or city traveller – it’s the mountains I love most. So I journeyed to the north of India, to Darjeeling - little finger crooked as I ate cake and drank Darjeeling tea on a sunny balcony – then to the mountain state of Sikkim. From 38 degrees in Kerala to freezing nights in the Himalayas! Here I travelled by shared 4-wheel-drive, squashed between other travellers (at least 10 people in 7 seats), on the most appalling roads, to the little towns of Pelling and Yuksum. I did treks and day walks with various travellers I met. Perhaps one of the best moments was arriving at a tiny village on a trek with a young Frenchwoman; there was no official accommodation, but someone will always put you up if you can pay. The owner of the few flower-bedecked shops found rooms for us at his uncle’s house next door – the facilities: a toilet and cold tap in the back garden, and a delicious dinner at the tiny restaurant. Picture – the prettiest house in the village (Heather Hardie)

The other great moment was on a day hike I did with a young Israeli guy, up a hill to the Yuksum monastery, the oldest in Sikkim. It was the most perfect sunny warm day (at midday the temperature can rise above 20 in good weather), the monastery was beautiful and utterly peaceful. We basked in the sun, in the silence, surrounded by gardens and forests – perfection.

28 Picture - Bhutanese dancers at a rhododendron festival (Heather Hardie) The trip did turn out to be a great adventure, and I loved having to be self-sufficient, to make all my own decisions and plan no further than the next place ahead. I met lots of wonderful, friendly people, both locals and travellers, saw marvellous places and had so many fabulous experiences.

Would I do it again? Yes, and I’ve learned some lessons from this trip about how to do it a bit better, too. I wonder if Africa would be a good adventure for my 80th…..? Heather Hardie

A crowded day at Shwedagon Pagoda, Yangon, Myanmar

Picture credit - Kyaw.m.naing (Creative Commons from Wikimedia)

When do I retire? The answer depends on how one interprets ‘retirement’. I first had early retirement at the age of fifty, 33 years ago. My office job in local government/education was ceasing to exist due to reorganisation of the education system. So it was farewell to what was once Taberner House. (My ‘demolition’ beat it by a number of years!) I had had a varied early career, including: a management trainee in industry; a part-time BBC TV local newsreader; and an advertising salesman for ‘The Sunday Times’. My middle career was in teaching and as an education officer. It seemed a reasonable idea to return to teaching. The problem was that my retirement was in April, and good teaching jobs would be for a September start. I was, of course, apprehensive. I had been away from ‘the chalk face’ for 12 years; and that had been in rather selective posts in a boys’ grammar school and a teacher training college. An advertisement offered two part-time jobs, one to teach History, my degree subject; and the other Politics for which I had no obvious qualification. At my interview I said I would do both if they offered a full-time job. The gods smiled on me, as the only questions I was asked were about History. However, the job would not start till September, so I took another leap into the unknown, covering at a fairly local secondary modern girls’ school for a teacher on maternity leave. I survived. A particular memory sticks in my mind. One teenage girl seemed to spend most of her day being excluded for other teachers’ classes for disruptive behaviour. I was not immune to this, but was determined not to follow the trend. One day at the end of a lesson she parked herself on my desk with a large cardboard box, and asked if I would like to see her pet snake. I thought this might well be outside school rules, but I agreed and viewed the creature. My reward was a marked improvement in her behaviour for the rest of my stay. We also had what seemed a very mature dialogue as to whether she and I were ‘working class’ or ‘middle class’, and agreed one of each!

30 After 15 years of highly enjoyable, principally sixth form, teaching, I had to retire again, at the normal age of 65. So what next? Plenty of what I might call ‘placebos’, such as local societies, even ignoring Probus: Friends of the London Mozart Players, of Croydon Airport, and of The Imperial War Museum; together with two Fine Arts Societies, Croydon Branch of the National Trust, the Croydon Retirement Association (now sadly defunct), two ex-RAF National Servicemen’s Clubs and, of course, U3A – though I can hardly ever attend the monthly meetings because of lunchtime concerts in Purley. What these organisations want is active committee members. I have never been one, principally because I started as a volunteer interviewer for the oral history archive of The Second World War Experience Centre. I did 170 a year to begin with, and the total when I stopped was 1,600. As a spin-off, I found myself doing local talks about the incredible variety of people I had met. These continue, but now on a smaller scale, and are purely oral – no fancy pictures. Some of my interviewees were famous: such as Lord Weatherill, Lord Healey, Dame Cicely Saunders, Derek Bond, Brian Rix, Richard Baker. The less famous have sometimes been more interesting, with some horrifying tales to tell. Two of these died last year: Fergus Ankhorn, the Conjurer who was a Japanese POW and had to perform tricks for his captors; and Eric ‘Winkle’ Brown, with the record number of landings on aircraft carriers, who also interviewed Goering and the Commandant of Belsen. Both men had substantial newspaper obituaries. I hadn’t been a journalist, so had no real qualifications for this interviewing. I made early mistakes. One was with a counter-intelligence man who met me at Virginia Water in his Daimler, then entertained me at length over coffee so that when it came to the interview he had already told me nearly everything off tape. Then there was a retired headmaster who had been with African troops in Burma: I like to have pre-war background, but it took nearly an hour to get him off this, and then his wife wanted to set the table for the evening meal. I left him to record himself – two or three hours, I believe!

31 As you will see, I haven’t quite ‘retired’ yet, and I want to end with one thought for this technological age: never neglect the importance of the spoken word, an axiom that my late father, Godfrey Talbot of the BBC, would endorse. Your talk may have a lot of pretty pictures, or lots of words on the screen; or you may be a wizard at modern message transmissions, but now, and in the future, it will, I think, be the spoken word that will survive. David Talbot

Climate Change and Travel It is all too easy to be cynical about the mass demonstrations that brought parts of central London to a standstill in the Spring. Of course, we must all realise that many bigger countries than the UK contribute far more to pollution in various ways, and they are unlikely to take much notice of what we do. Indeed, we know that the President of the USA is sceptical about the whole business and its adverse effects. But this does not undermine scientific assessment of what is going wrong. Some people criticised Emma Thompson for taking a long-distance flight to join the demonstrations, since she and her fellow passengers were contributing to what she was protesting about! We look at news pictures of polluted cities, for example in China, and we have to acknowledge that many countries would find a rapid switch from fossil- produced energy impossible. We also know that some jobs do involve air travel from one country to another. But is there a way to reduce air travel and avoid building new runways and airports? The answer must be: yes, there is. The former Bishop of London, Richard Chartres, once stated that, even on business, he did not agree with air travel, and I think he had its pollution in mind. If, for instance, it is short-haul flights to European and British destinations, boats and trains, the latter electrified, can be used instead. But who travels to distant destinations? To a large extent it is holiday makers, and they have no need to travel abroad on air-polluting aircraft when there are plenty of excellent holidays available in the UK, and these at either inexpensive or up-market hotels.

What prompted this article was a viewing of the TV show, ‘Eggheads’, when the supposedly greatest quiz team in the country had one member who thought Littlehampton was on the Bristol Channel! On a more serious note, I have frequently found people in metropolitan London who have never set foot in North Wales, the Lake District or Scotland. So, please, let us put our own country first for our holidays. I’m sure that those who make a living from budget and other holiday lines can redeploy to work in some less polluting occupations. David Talbot Using a laptop I was busy writing an article on my faithful laptop the other day and was wondering how on earth I'd managed without it and the Internet for so many years. I was only a short way in when I realised I needed to do a little research using the same machine. No problem: just minimise it and surf the Internet looking for (and finding) the additional information I wanted. I also needed to check something with a friend, resulting in a quick email, to which he replied within half-an-hour (using his iPhone) providing with the information required. Back to the article. Shortly after, I was in need of a photo that I had recently emailed to someone else but had deleted from the camera. Did he still have it? Another email. He had forwarded it in turn to a third party, who obligingly sent it straight back to me within forty minutes, so I was able to incorporate it. An hour or so later, I needed a French translation. No problem. Google 'translate' and, hey presto, there's what I wanted. Phew! It's getting warm in here - I'll ask Siri to turn the air-conditioning up, which the machine does of course. Much better. Let's have a short break and a game of Solitaire patience, which came with the laptop. That's twenty minutes spent and I managed to get it to go out. Doesn't always. ‘Minesweeper’ is very hard to crack, without crashing out.

Ah, there's an email from a friend. I'd better deal with that. OK, that done it's back to the article. A long multiplication sum follows - can't do that in my head. Go into 'calculator' and, of course, there's the answer. I don't even need to search for the pocket calculator. Further on I need to check whether to use 'dispatch' or 'despatch'. Google, of course, has the answer. Away from the article for a moment, I'll just have a look at EBay to see whether that book I was after is available. Yes, a chap in Maidstone has a copy, so it's out with the credit card and I make my purchase. It should be with me in a couple of days. Excellent. I'll also renew that club subscription and arrange a transfer of funds between bank accounts on online banking. There's the telephone - never mind, the answering machine will take it. Ah - nearly forget. I must check train times for my journey to Norwich tomorrow. National Rail Journey Planner. No problems - I have the timings, the fare and can probably print myself a ticket. Where's the rail station in relation to the person I'm visiting? Google Maps will show me. I'll also check the latest national news headlines while I'm about it. Well, the time on my computer screen says 16.00 so it must be time for a cuppa. I don't have an icon or a phone app for that so I'd better make one myself. Besides, it's time I stretched my legs. The article will be finished tomorrow, after the machine's done a spellcheck. Just have to insert the title: Inactivity: Does this Contribute to Obesity?" Colin Read Oddments Each day in the U3A Diary recalls something that happened on that day. The range is wide. For example, from the week starting 8 July: 9 July: ‘Bertie’ achieves the greatest speed raced by a tortoise at 0.28 metres per second, Adventure Valley, Brasside, United Kingdom 2014 10 July: Lady Jane Grey takes the throne of England 1553. [In the following week 19 July records her overthrow after nine days]

11 July: Since its discovery in 1846, Neptune completes its first orbit around the sun 2011 12 July: Henry VIII marries his 6th wife, Catherine Parr, at Hampton Court 1543 13 July: The ‘Hollywood ’sign is officially assigned within the hills above Hollywood 1923 A Local Derby The following document has surfaced from the detritus of centuries. It is written in a (very) provincial dialect. Mention of a ‘curricle’ suggests a date of early 19th century – Henry Tilney had one in Jane Austen’s ‘Northanger Abbey’. Presumably the game of ‘Terebinth’ was displaced by cricket. As well as being the name of the game, Terebinth’ seems also to mean the equivalent of an ‘over’ in cricket. Other words are fairly easy: ‘cantle’ = ‘bat’; ‘bittern’ =‘ball’; ‘bevel’ = ‘run’. For the rest, your guess is as good as mine. Editor Purley men met Coulsdon men on Lammas Day just past for annual Terebinth on Lion Green. Coin were spun and Coulsdon cap’n put Purley facing sun. Young Jake had cantle first. Purley men rued him as wacklustre, but had another thought coming. Old Bob were Raff and blew his whastle. Whoosh! Jake swung cantle and hooted bittern up against azure. It come down wi’ Jim under, but he washbuckled it. Next terebinth, Jake swung cantle and missed. Bittern hit hat off Rector. Purley called foul, but Raff dispunged it. Jake slashed next one. It flew whimwham and tangletorned Ma Smitherlings. After she yucked bittern out of her whatdoyoucallums, she went off in a huff. Next bittern yockbucked Gaffer Lathkins in his flimflams and sent him all-a- yawing. Doc McKillem hasted on to Green and divvied him. Raff sent Jake off. He was disseminated, flung cantle to ground and gruntled to tent. Reverend Brown took cantle. Before bittern-hurl, he prayed. But God eyed somewhat else, and bittern witherskimmed off his leg. Neverwotstanding, he capered light as thrustledim and thwacked bevelpost betimely.

Up then comes Flailing Fred for Purley. He yoicked bittern. It sailed over Reverend and smithereened pane in Red Lion. Come noon, Coulsdon had 17 bevels. Drinks were tossed down, and Purley men squared up. Flailing Fred held cantle wrongended and swishswashed distumely. Raff put him right. Next bittern flew over Red Lion. By time it were founded, Fred’d thwacked seven bevels. Coulsdon men were discustumated and crowded Raff. Reverend Brown were trampled. Constable Stoneface trunchioned right and left like pendulum. Raff sent Fred off. On come Swiper Harry, champion cantler. He soon furbelowed Coulsdon and brought tally to 17. Next bittern he hit plumb at Squire Byron’s curricle on edge of Green. Ponies rampaged. Coulsdon were dudgeoned. After carousal in Red Lion, men were all amicablelike. Game were adjudged spifflicating.