Out And About | A Zestful Quest

Life is still busy but good lately and I have one of those days today where I feel I have all the energy in the world to get things done that I need to have done. My appointment with the dentist went well, although I still think it’s a bit expensive but I’m not complaining and I don’t really understand the system here; more about that in another post. It’s done and I can smile again without being aware of something that shouldn’t be there. I’ve finished the web portfolio and since I’m a terrible perfectionist I had to do things right. So what I did was: ‘De puntjes op de ‘i’ zetten‘ another Dutch saying that literally translates to ‘Put the dots on the ‘i’…‘ which means, ‘Dot the i’s and cross the t’s‘. I’m happy with the result.

Last night I went to one of the local pubs where I met up with my Irish neighbour Neil and some of his friends, a couple from Australia, another neighbour and a friend of a friend of Neil. Neil bought a house down the road and moved out of the ground floor apartment two days ago. I ran into him that day when I came back from the dentist and we ended up having coffee and a chat. He invited me to join him and his friends to see someone perform at the pub. I had no idea who it was, nor did Neil and what he told me turned out to be wrong *LOL*. There were a couple of live bands playing at the pub yesterday and the main gig was Peter Case. He seems to be famous and has worked and recorded with famous people like John Hiatt and Ry Cooder.

It was a fun night out but I was surprised that someone like Peter Case would perform at my local pub of all places. I mean there are so many other venues out there, especially in London, where he could earn way more money. I think what he did is brilliant! You see, I didn’t have to pay an entrance fee and he performed for an hour and a half, that is quite rare these days! A gig is at least £30,-… There was a bowl near the door where people could put some money in for the artist, if they enjoyed the evening. You should’ve seen how much was in there! There was a crowd and it was nice to see people of all ages and walks of life… I have respect for artists like him who perform at pubs and don’t have a celeb attitude where it’s all about the money in most cases. And because of that I bought his CD to show my appreciation.

Tonight I’m invited to Neil’s housewarming party so I’ll have another fun night out. He bought a nice little house a bit further down the road, something I can only dream of for now until I have a steady income. One day soon… I’m allowed to have dreams aren’t I? *hehe* Talking about dreams, I got a really sweet email in from one of my readers and she doesn’t realise this because she doesn’t know, but she reminded me of another dream I have *thank you for reminding me!*. I must see the Northern Lights some day and I so envy people who live up north of Norway, Sweden or Finland because they have the opportunity to see this natural phenomenon more often than I do. I could go to Scotland but chances are rare. I think once I’m out of this mess I’m gonna treat myself to go and see this wonder of nature!

© Norbert Rosing, National Geographic

I’m off now: gonna reply to some more emails, build a website for a rock climber in Scotland, leave some comments for neglected fellow bloggers and then shoot off to a party… Am I hyper? Nah…

It was a beautiful sunny winter’s day today: a perfect day to go out and take pictures since the light outside is brilliant for photography during the winter months. I watched a documentary about The Magnificent Seven on the BBC a while ago and decided that evening that I just had to go and check things out for myself. The Magnificent Seven are seven cemeteries used by the citizens of nineteenth century London, the first was Kensal Green-1833, followed by Norwood-1838, Highgate in 1839, Abney Park, Brompton and Nunhead in 1840 and finally Tower Hamlets in 1841.

One particular cemetery caught my attention because of the amazing wildly overgrown Victorian tombs, mausoleums and gravestones. Not just that, this cemetery is also known to be of inspiration to Bram Stoker and his book Dracula. Additionally, the Highgate Cemetery is well known for its so-called occult past, being the site of the alleged Highgate Vampire according to the local tales. Some of the graves have been seriously damaged, vaults broken open and coffins smashed apart, mostly in the sixties and seventies by vandals and/or those looking for vampires.

Rumour has it that there also has been devils worshippers activity, some masses were held in a maze of catacombs that ran beneath the cemetery. One particular tomb hidden deep within the heart of the cemetery, a small mausoleum with a marble floor but which contained no coffins, had been converted into a small temple where these activities seemed to have taken place. These days access to the cemetery is only possible through a guided tour. Today the owners are The Highgate Cemetery Charity and management is by Friends of Highgate Cemetery Ltd, both charities.

The Cemetery houses a colony of urban foxes and lots of different plants including hornbeam, exotic limes, oak, hazel, sweet chestnut, field maple, tulips and one California Redwood [it’s unknown how it ended up in London at the cemetery but growing steady and tall]. Some fifty species of bird and eighteen of butterfly have been spotted here, and among the spiders, three rarely sighted in the United Kingdom. Today was the perfect opportunity to feel the vibes of this intriguing and amazing place and not just because of its history, but also because of its woodland paths, its Victorian funerary architecture and beautiful wild landscaping.