The English Column

Behind Closed Doors

Let us start by stating the obvious: Salzburg is a tourist Mecca. Wherever you go, hordes of tourists are standing around taking selfies, munching Mozart Balls and blocking every pavement and sometimes even the street. Most of these tourists are day trippers. They come by bus in the morning and leave

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Jet Lag = Biometric Confusion

July means vacation time for many. Long-distance trips can mean long-haul flights and you're bound to experience jet-lag. What is jet-lag, in a nutshell? In layman's terms, let's call it "biometric confusion"'. Your body's natural pattern is upset. (The more time zones you cross, the more "fretful" your

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Electric Car vs. Electric Bicycle

As you might know by now, I bought a new car last year or rather I leased one. I opted for a small SUV as I am a big man and cannot get into anything smaller. Even this SUV is tight when entering, but once inside I have a comfortable driving position. I do have to push my seat all the way back to get

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By Appointment to His Majesty …

If you have bought British products, you might have noticed the royal Coat of Arms printed onto the packaging. Below the crest you might read, "By appointment to Her Majesty the Queen, Sugar Refiners, Tale & Lyle Sugars, London Est. 1878”. Or you'll find the crest and text on the breakfast marmalade

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Black and Blue

So, the federal state of Salzburg has joined Upper Austria and Lower Austria in the black and blue club. Before I continue, let me just say that, as a foreigner and someone involved in the arts, I am no great fan of the Blues. In fact, I do not agree with most (if not all) of their ideas, but I believe

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A Creature Like No Other

An idea for this column occasionally catches my imagination but is so preposterous that I reject it and move on to something else. However, once in a blue moon, that idea will not accept rejection. Instead, it hovers around like a pesky fly until it finally gains the upper hand and appears in the newspaper

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Slinky But Not Stinky

So the election has come and gone. What was expected to happen happened and I am holding my breath to see what kind of politics comes about. I should not really care, because as a foreigner I am not allowed to vote, but since I have lived here for over twenty-seven years and pay my taxes here, I do care

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London's Royal Parks

Sitting on a comfortable deckchair in the shade of a giant horse-chestnut tree, the man said,"We Londoners don't take our splendid parks for granted, you know? When it's fine, I come here to eat my lunch. This green is great for my eyes, a rest after a morning staring at a computer screen. I enjoy the

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My Dream Garden

In the middle of a daunting kitchen renovation, which is thankfully reaching its final stages as I write this, I am contemplating about what to plant on my balcony. Not that I have a lot of space. There are already a multitude of shrubs and plants on it. I am more concerned with what annual flowers I

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Could You Be a Homesteader? Yes!

Imagine this: A brochure flutters into your mailbox, announcing that you qualify to receive 160 acres of flat, fertile land in the USA. Almost 650,000 square meters! At no charge! All you have to do is travel there (probably landing at Ellis Island), catch a train to a no-name town in the middle of nowhere,

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Kitchen Impossible!

Having a small time frame when I was going to be by my solitary self this last Easter, there were two options in front of me: either pack my bags and go for a well-deserved holiday or tear out the "vintage” kitchen and replace it with a new one. You may think I am crazy for choosing the latter (and

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Coronation Fever Everywhere!

Not only in Britain but also worldwide, the coronation of Charles III as King and his wife, Camilla, as Queen Consort of the United Kingdom and Commonwealth realms has aroused great media and public interest. In order to become king, a monarch doesn't have to be crowned. Edward VII reigned without a

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Eurovision Woes

Beside politics the Eurovision Song Contest is the most divisive element in Maltese society. It's literally all a song and dance act!

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Twenty Years Have Gone so Fast!

Stadiums have been the talk of the town as of late. Operation Overload came in the wake of the FIFA World Cup. 8 stadiums around Doha, Qatar. All but one built in preparation for the aforementioned event. Each facility got its share of the excitement - 64 matches in total, plus opening and closing ceremonies.

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Beware the Ides of March!

So, there we were around the middle of March putting on polo shirts or T-shirts, because the sun was shining and it was unusually warm. People at the dog park were so happy that they could shed those bulky winter jackets and I was seriously considering wearing a mask again which had proved so effective

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Easter Time is for Everyone to Enjoy!

My niece Julia recently came to stay and we soon found ourselves chatting about family holidays. Somehow we settled on Easter, which we both love. "Easter is simply the perfect holiday, don't you agree? A lovely spring break after a long winter.” And she began to reminisce,casting her mind back to

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Running for Office

Looking at the range of political parties running to be elected for the next legislature, it occurred to me that there is room for one more. After considerable deliberation I have decided to enter the fray by founding the Austrian Promises Party. Yes, that's right! We will promise you anything and everything

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Belated Happy Birthday!

My plan was to write about Yellowstone National Park's history last year at this time, for its 150thanniversary. Better late than never, so here goes! YNP's tale is as exciting as its wildlife. The original story goes like this: when the US acquired a huge tract of land from France in 1803 - the Louisiana

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No Sex, Please! We're British.

Life can be pretty weird. As we were going into carnival mode, where fun and humour are almost institutionalized and you are sometimes forced to be merry, a small bit of news made the headlines and the whole world cracked up. An artefact dug up in Northumberland in 1992 is now considered to be a real-life-sized

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