Ongoing problems. And intolerance.

Internet in the hotel continues to be erratic, to say the least. At times I connect but when Phil, seated next to me, tries his laptop tells him that he cannot connect as there are too many users! As a result of these vagaries, I did not manage to post photos yesterday. So I was going to post them today but the laptop is being stupid and won’t let me log on to the internet. So here they aren’t. Maybe tomorrow!

Yesterday or the day before, at breakfast, I saw one of the hotel staff remonstrate with a couple of young athletes, members of a team of some sort who have been sprawled around the foyer for days or playing table tennis barefoot in the area near the dining room. It seemed that they were having a second breakfast and the staff member was telling them that “breakfast is just once”. They tried to protest that they were just having a cup of coffee and a bun but she was adamant. “Tomorrow once only!”

I did wonder how going back in for another round was different from someone who ate two breakfasts’ worth of food at one sitting. At least one of the young people we went to Greece with recently regularly had at least three plates of food at breakfast time. Mind you, the breakfasts were better there than here!

The heatwave did not materialise yesterday. The lizards I saw must have been opportunists, taking advantage of the little bit of sunshine available for that sort time. Rain has come back here. Storms are forecast. But it could be worse. Venice for example is flooded. Of course, we all know Venice suffers regularly from “acqua alta” - I have photos of Saint Mark’s Square looking like a swimming pool - but water levels are reported to be up by 150+ centimetres. That’s an awful lot of water. I feel quite glad that we have seen Venice several times before the tourism overwhelmed it and before it sinks into the lagoon.

I read that experts say that Trump’s rhetoric stokes hatred and in particular antisemitism. His own daughter is married to a Jew and converted to Judaism, so where does the antisemitism come from. Maybe it’s just general anti-foreigner stuff. Apparently he wrote that “some very bad people” were mixed into the caravan of several thousand people, mainly from Honduras, currently travelling through Mexico. “This is an invasion of our Country and our Military is waiting for you!” Trump added. Odd use of capital letters noted!

And finally, there is a rumour going round about a new 50 pence coin being minted in the UK to celebrate Brexit. As with the idea of a day of Brexit celebration, I find myself wondering what is the point. The new coin is said to be going to sport the words “Friends with all nations”, or something similar. So we can be friendly with all nations but feel free to verbally abuse and even punch in the face anyone who does not speak English on the public transport system.

Another case of government declarations somehow authorising intolerance and violence!