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FG! 16 NOVEMBER 2013
NO PROBLEM CAN BE SOLVED FROM THE SAME LEVEL OF CONSCIOUSNESS THAT CREATED IT - EINSTEIN! 1
FRIENDS’
GAZETTEY O U R V I T A L A L T E R N A T I V E
ISSN: 2053-4426
GURU’S VISITCANCELLEDFOLLOWERS of an Indian guru were left shocked and disappointed after a foreign trip was cancelled less than 24 hours before i t was supposed to take place.
Gurinder Singh Dhillon, who lives in India, was set to visit followers in Bangkok, Thailand this weekend.
But his keenly awaited trip was cancelled at the last minute ‘due to ill health’.
One Australian follower who planned to fly to the meeting with a relative, said yesterday: “Baba Ji cancelled his visit due to ill health. We were told the night before we were leaving so it came as a big shock to us.
“ A p p a r e n t l y t h e ‘satsang programme’ will still go ahead, but he will not be there.”
And the disappointed follower continued: “We seem to be jinxed regarding Bangkok, because we were due to see him in 2011 and the programme was cancelled a few days before because of the floods that inundated the city.”
The unwelcome and unsettling development
comes as plans are under way for a double European trip by the guru, the leader of the Radha Soami Satsang Beas India group, in the spring and summer next year.
Accord ing to arrangements recently announced he is set to visit Malaga in April and the UK in August.
The UK visit is expected to become an annual event open to visitors from all over the world.
His visit to Malaga on the Spanish mainland in April is the first he will make for two years.
The guru will take time out of a busy schedule in India, his home country, to make the visit. He once lived and worked in Spain.
One seeker, of Spanish origin but who now lives in the UK, told FG: “We are looking forward to Baba Ji’s visit very much indeed. He comes to see us there every two years.”
The Spanish visit will be at the group’s headquarters in Malaga in April (25-27).
Bangkok trip scrapped at the last minute as onerous duties take their toll
Exclusive byFG reporter
The RSSBI building in Bangkok, Indonesia
FG! 15 NOVEMBER 2013
NO PROBLEM CAN BE SOLVED FROM THE SAME LEVEL OF CONSCIOUSNESS THAT CREATED IT - EINSTEIN 2
At a meeting in Adelaide, Australia it was announced that the summer visit to Bedford, England would become an annual event and would be open to visitors worldwide.
Hotels in the area are already taking international bookings for the event.
It is believed the guru has family connections in the UK.
UK visitors are not invited to Spain in April, probably because they are scheduled to have their own visit a few months later.
Gurinder Singh took over the mantle of mastership from his predecessor, Charan Singh, his uncle, in 1990. (Both pictured right).
He was the second youngest to take on the job, aged just 36.
He was beaten to the dubious honour only by Charan Singh himself who became the RSSBI leader when he was 35 years old.
Gurinder Singh fulfills a gruelling schedule of satsang tours both at home and abroad and under his guidance the group has grown immensely, expanding by hundreds of
thousands of seekers thirsting for spiritual experience and knowledge.
At last count international Science of the Soul centres (as they are called) numbered around 35, many built since he took over the leadership 23 years ago.
These stretch from California on the West coast of America to Honolulu in Hawaii to Sydney and Auckland in the Antipodes.
Meetings, or satsangs as they are called, last at least two hours often going into three or four.
After a discourse directly to the audience the guru takes q u e s t i o n s l a s t i n g , usually, an hour-or-so, minimum.
T h e I n d i a n t o u r schedule as published on the webs i t e i s p acked so l i d f rom J a n u a r y t h r o u g h December 2014.
It starts in Jaipur in December 2013 and ends in Ahmadabad.
I n b e t w e e n , t h o u s a n d s o f international guests flood to the Indian headquarters in Beas, Punjab making constant demands on his time.
Even short breaks are often filled with time-consuming and tiring trips abroad, as they are next year.
It is common knowledge that this leader has spent the most time bringing the teachings to seekers and disciples who constantly crave his presence at home and abroad.
No official announcement has been made regarding his condition or any progress generally.
FG! 4 JUNE 2013
!THERE IS NOTHING ON THIS EARTH MORE TO BE PRIZED THAN TRUE FRIENDSHIP - THOMAS AQUINAS 2
20% offfor FG readers
Indian Zing - the only restaurant in Hammersmith and Chiswick to be listed with 2 couverts- The Michelin Guide 2008.
Tel: 020 8748 5959Orders must be placed before 6.30pm
ask for Rahul Kulkarni(not Friday or Saturday)
Indian Zing Restaurant
236 King Street, London W6 0RF
SIXTIES superstar and initiate of Charan Singh has thanked FG readers and others for their ‘kind thoughts’ in the wake of her stroke.
Aussie Judith, who visited London in the 70s to go to a satsang meeting given by her guru, suffered a brain haemorrhage while on tour with The Seekers in her home town of Melbourne recently.
She was rushed to hospital where medical teams worked to save her life and limit any possible damage.
Jud i t h ’s mana ge r, Gr ah am Simpson, said in May: “She remains buoyed by the incredible messages of support she receives on a daily basis from all around the world.
“She has asked me to thank you all for your encouragement and
kind thoughts and to send you all her love.”
The FG readers sent their best wishes last month as soon as they heard of Judith’s plight.
The message read: “We are all thinking of you and sending you our best wishes for an early recovery.”
A special edition of FG was brought out to record the gesture.
Simpson continued: “She is in good spirits and looking forward to the challenge of recovery.
“Judith’s neurologist asked her to sing him something and, without prompting, she was able to correctly sing the first verse of Morningtown Ride, completely in tune.
“Later in the afternoon she asked me to test her on other songs, and she was able to sing - without a problem - the first verses of I’ll Never Find Another You, Come The Day and
I Celebrate Your Life My Baby. Judith, (pictured above) is looking forward to the challenges of rehabilitation and is determined to continue improving.”
All dates for The Seekers 50th Anniversary tour have been put on hold. !
Judith ‘buoyed’ by support
Affectionately yours: uncle and nephew relaxing quietly in an Indian garden.
FG! 16 NOVEMBER 2013
NO PROBLEM CAN BE SOLVED FROM THE SAME LEVEL OF CONSCIOUSNESS THAT CREATED IT - EINSTEIN! 3
Brick Lane, in London’s east end is well known for it’s Indian restaurants.
But, until this weekend, every one of them was meat orientated.
Now, for the first time, a brave and accomplished restaurateur is bringing a pure vegetarian menu to the palates of diners, who can rest assured that their tastes are being catered for.
As vegetarianism becomes more popular amongst Westerners young and old Guljar Khan hopes the eatery will take off ‘if God wills it’.
Khan already owns or part-owns a number of restaurants in the capital and elsewhere and is set to bring his considerable expertise and aplomb to running his fist vegetarian venture.
He is putting his money where his mouth is with an investment of around £200,000 in the new eatery.
In an exclusive interview with Friends’ Gazette he said: “Brick Lane is renowned all over the world.
“And to have a pure vegetarian restaurant in Brick Lane in the heart of the curry capital would be a big achievement for ourselves.
“We are very serious. I have a few restaurants in Brick Lane and I am seeing the opportunity for this vegetarian restaurant to take off. By the grace of God it will take off.”
Khan, a Bangladeshi, will use the classic Indian vegetarian name Diwana for his venture, though it is not linked to the well-known restaurant of the same name in Euston, north London “in any way”.
He has brought in a “renowned” vegetarian chef from south-India especially, known only as Ramesh, who
will make sure dishes are suitable to Hindu and other religious palates.
Diner, Hari Karam Singh, 34, of Shad Thames (pictured right) said: “The food is great quality.
“I was surprised to learn that this is the only all-vegetarian in Brick Lane.
“It’s nice to know as a vegetarian that there is no meat mixed in, in any sort of way.
“I have been vegetarian for about seven years.”
Opening times are 12pm-11.30pm seven-days-a-week.
There are around 16 tables seating four people each. A buffet is set up near the door at lunchtimes.
A manager is on hand at all times to attend personally to customers’ needs, Khan says.
Signature dish is their Delux Dosa priced at a “very reasonable” £5.95.
‘Curry Capital’ goes vegetarianTHE ‘CURRY capital of the world’ is set to get i t ’s f i rst-ever pure vegeta ria n restaurant, thanks to the determination and vision of a local restaurateur.
Special report by Stephen Ward
Brick Lane
FG! 16 NOVEMBER 2013
NO PROBLEM CAN BE SOLVED FROM THE SAME LEVEL OF CONSCIOUSNESS THAT CREATED IT - EINSTEIN! 4
Lunch-time buffets will start at £6.95 and prices will be held “for a few months at least”.
Buffets will offer around 30 to 40 items and new equipment will keep dishes piping hot - a concern with some customers elsewhere, Khan claimed.
“There aren’t many vegetarian restaurants in the east London area especially [here] where we have over
65 Indian restaurants just on Brick Lane itself.
“Brick Lane is known as the curry capital of Europe. I say it’s the curry capital of the world.”
Curry houses sprang up in Brick Lane in the 70s to give Bangladeshi ship workers on the Chitagong-Tilbury route a taste of home.
The street is now firmly on the tourist trail for both British and foreign visitors to the capital looking for genuine London life, not the manufactured, commercialised and stilted attractions of palaces and cathedrals. Brick Lane features among a growing number of ‘living’ London hubs such as Southwark market, Camden, Shoreditch, Spitalfields and the South Bank of the Thames.
The vibrant Whitechapel Gallery is just around the corner and since the late 90s, hot spots like 93 Feet East and The Vibe Bar, both built on the site of The Old Truman Brewery have sprung up.
The area is packed on weekends and evenings with a young, alternative crowd many of whom are beginning to veer towards a veggie or vegan lifestyle.
Good brick! Restaurateur Guljar Khan
HAD enough of the crowds at London art galleries.
Then a v is i t to the Roya l Academy’s Australia exhibition might be just the thing.
Reviewed as “the biggest show yet” with “a myriad facets” there were surprisingly few visitors when FG dropped in recently. “We’ve not had many in,” an attendant kindly informed our reporter. On view is a fascinating display from a surreal Ned Kelly to an elaborate ostrich egg inkwell. (pic below).
The exhibition is on ’till Dec 8.
Ned Kelly ain’t no crowd puller
������
q u a l i t y b h e l p o o r i h o u s e
Brick Lane
96 Brick Lane, London, E1 9RL Tel: 0207 247 0733
BUFFET
£5.95
THALI
£7.95
DOSA
£7.05
www.diwanabhelpoori.com for our on-line menu and information
FG! 16 NOVEMBER 2013
NO PROBLEM CAN BE SOLVED FROM THE SAME LEVEL OF CONSCIOUSNESS THAT CREATED IT - EINSTEIN! 5
A N A D M I R E R o f a Tibetan spiritual leader, who was blessed by him as a child, has spoken of her shock and grief at the news of his death.
Choje Akong Rinpoche, 73, a co-founder of the Kagyu Samye Ling centre in Scotland was attacked and killed at his residence in the city of Chengdu in southwest China.
He co-founded the centre in Eskdalemuir, Dumfrees and Galloway, in the border area of Scotland.
The monastery is one of the largest in Europe of its kind and draws thousands of devotees to its doors.
It stands as a beacon to Buddhist teachings and the path of inner enlightenment and practice in the centre of some of the most striking rolling countryside in the UK.
Shenpen Chokyi, who was blessed by the Rinpoche as a child and who’s son Sati was also blessed by the Tibetan Buddhist leader said: “I was shocked when I heard the news.
“I sobbed, and sobbed and sobbed. I don’t think I’ll ever get over it.”
The Samye Ling centre is in Eskdalemuir, in the Scottish borders, just a few miles away from where Shenpen runs the veggie/vegan Rennaldburn guesthouse.
Visitors to the monastery have stayed at Rennaldburn and a regular donation is made to the Tibetan charity, Rokpa, based at Samye Ling.
Co-founder and vice-president of Rokpa said the death had left behind an ‘irreplaceable gap’.
The dead man, Dr Choje Akong Rinpoche, was a British citizen.
He fled Tibet in 1959.He was stabbed to death along with
his nephew and driver in October, according to reports.
Chengdu police have said three suspects, all of whom are Tibetan,
have been arrested and confessed to the killings.
Rennaldburn is a 17th century f a r m h o u s e s u r r o u n d e d b y pastureland about 12 miles north of Langholm in the Scottish borders.
It is reputedly the first house built by Thomas Telford under the a p p re n t i c e s h i p o f a m a s t e r stonemason in his early teens. Visitors can cook for themselves in its pleasant and well-equipped kitchen.
Only vegetarian or vegan food is preferred within the self-catering premises and being committed Buddhists the organisers regretfully refuse bookings from hunters and/or anglers.
Grief and sorrow as founder ‘murdered’Samye Ling leader attacked and killed on visit to his residence in south western China
Can you sell?This magazine is going
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FRIENDS’
GAZETTEY O U R V I T A L A L T E R N A T I V E
SHAW TO STAR
IN INDIE FILM‘The synopsis looks very original’ Martin tells author after reading ‘economical’ script
Mar t i n Sh aw w i l l p l ay
Gevorkian Tigran, a Russian
baddie, with a KGB past in a
film based on the enigmatic
b o o k ‘ N o t h i n g a n d
Everywhere’ by Nigel Lesmoir-
Gordon.
Casting began at Chelsea's 606
club last Thursday under the
watchful eye of actress and
casting director Deborah Ward.
Plans are afoot to make a trailer or
‘teaser’ which will be used to raise
funds for a full-blown movie to be
shot early next year.
In an email Shaw tells Gordon: “The
synopsis looks very original, and the
w o r d s f o r t h e t e a s e r
economical, which I like.
“Why descr ibe what the
audience can see?
“Wish more writers would get
that.” Shaw's road to stardom began
as ex-policeman and karate
expert Raymond Doyle ! in 70s
TV classic ‘The Professionals’.
Since then he has starred in a
string of television and stage
hits winning a Tony nomination
and a Drama Desk award for
best actor for his role as Lord
G o r i n g i n a B r o a d w a y
production of Oscar Wilde’s
‘An Ideal Husband’.
He is currently starring in
classic courtroom drama Twelve
Angry Men in Birmingham.
His role (juror number 8) was
played by Henry Fonda in the
Hollywood 50s movie directed
by the legendary Sidney Lumet.
Shaw was approached by Gordon
when they both attended a meeting
of an Indian meditational group in
Bedford in the spring.
They have both belonged to the
group since the 70s.
Other actors being considered for
t h e m o v i e a r e B o l l y w o o d
heartthrobs Suraj Sharma (Life of Pi)
and Shahid Kapoor who is said to be
AN AWARD-WINNING star of film, stage and
television is set to appear in a new indie movie
about Russian gangsters, a lost manuscript and a
mathematical genius.
FG! 3 SEPTEMBER 2013
RIGHT MAKES MIGHT, NOT THE OTHER WAY ROUND - BARAK OBAMA" 1
The ancient oracle which is used by many to foretell the future as well as giving much-needed guidance for living in the 21-st century and beyond was a hippy favourite in the 60s.
It is referred to by many writers and singers of that era, including the iconic Joni Mitchell when she croons “It was the hexagram of the heavens” in Amelia.
Now Shen Chokyi, 44, has come up with a whole new way of looking at the texts with a set of cards, visual images and writings.
Chokyi, who lives in Eskdalemuir in Scotland, feels she has been called by the I Ching itself to undertake the task which took, in all, 13 years to complete.
In an exclusive interview with the FG she said: “I feel I was called [by the I Ching] to do it. I came up with a sequence which starts with earth and ends with heaven.
“It’s a very geometric sequence. It follows the same pattern through each line so you can track it all very easily. Then I found out that’s actually the same way that the Mayans do their calendar.
“It starts with the pure feminine and ends with the pure masculine.”
The I Ching or ‘Yì Jīng’ is one of the oldest of Chinese classic texts.
The book contains a divination system accessed by the throwing of coins, yarrow stalks or, more recently, by pressing a button on-line.
The answers to questions, which could be life-changing or trivial, are read using a coded system of hexagrams - six short lines written from the bottom up. Combinations of broken (feminine/yin) or solid (masculine/yang) lines make up the book’s 64 hexagrams which claim to
interpret most states of the human condition on a global as well as an individual level.
“I do really revere where it comes from. The roots. And that’s what I’m trying to connect with,” Chokyi said.
Chokyi’s highly idiocyncratic work is called Zhouyi Zuvuya, a mixture of the name for the I-Ching itself and a Mayan term for the way in which all things come back to themselves.
“I started doing illustrations of what I feel to be the image of the individual hexagrams and I’ve given them titles.
Some of the titles show the way through. The I-Ching is all about that,” she explained. !
Chinese classic gets a fresh look as artist ‘called’ to give hexagrams a facelift
NEW VISION ON ANCIENT TEXTS
FRIENDS’
GAZETTEY O U R V I T A L A L T E R N A T I V E
ISSN: 2053-4426
What’s a butcher’s granddaughter doing in a vegetarianrestaurant in London’s west end? - Find out on page six
THE BOOK of Changes, or I-Ching, has undergone a major revamp after an author and artist felt it was time to widen its visual appeal.
FG!
24 JULY 2013
EVERYBODY KNOWS THEY’RE GOING TO DIE, BUT NOBODY BELIEVES IT - DERRICK BELL (AUTHOR)!1
FRIENDS’GAZETTE
A CONTROVERSIAL play which portrays a member of the British aristocracy as a ‘sexy flirt’ is set to debut in Scotland this month.Nehru, His Inner Story, touches on an alleged affair between Edwina Mountbatten, wife of the last Viceroy
of India, and the country’s first prime minister, Jawaharlal Nehru.A movie on the same subject starring Cate Blanchett which showed the couple in bed, kissing and
dancing was pulled after pressure from the Indian government.Deborah Antoinette, who plays Lady Mountbatten in the latest version, told FG: “[This play] portrays [Lady Mountbatten] as a sexy flirt.”Some say Lord Luis Mountbatten was inexperienced in love and preferred the company of men, which drove his wife into others’ arms. Nehru, His Inner Story, is on at the world-renowned Edinburgh Fringe starting on Saturday.It has already toured India and London to critical acclaim.It is written and produced by Pramila le Hunt, a Tory candidate in the ’83 UK election and one of the first women of Asian origin to stand for Parliament for the Conservatives.The play’s publicity states: “[Nehru], the first prime minister of free India speaks his truth . . . bonding with the family ladies and Edwina Mountbatten, towards whom his lonely heart reached out.”
A report in The Daily Mail about the movie, Indian Summer, made in 2009, reads: “A film about the romance between the wife of the last British Viceroy of India and
the country’s first prime minister has been shelved after Indian officials tried to pressure the director to tone down the script.“Indian Summer, which was set to
star Cate Blanchett and Hugh Grant was based on a non-fiction book about Lord Mountbatten.”Dilip Shankar, a prominent Indian
actor and personality, was a casting director on the movie four years ago when it was scrapped.He takes the title role in the new stage play and modestly goes about the business of the play, including the affair, without any fanfare.
NEHRU AFFAIR SET FOR FRINGEScandal that rocked India gets Edinburgh airing despite government concernExclusive by Stephen Ward
1 AUGUST 2013
FG!
3 JULY 2013
IF I DIDN’T LEAVE MY BITTERNESS AND HATRED BEHIND, I’D STILL BE IN PRISON - NELSON MANDELA!1
FRIENDS’
GAZETTE
HUNGRY vegetarians
and vegans could soon
be tucking into forgotten
favourities like pan-
c a ke s , s p o n g e s a n d
muffins - even scrambled
eggs - if an egg-citing
new product takes off.
Beyond Eggs aims to replace eggs
with its concotion of ground peas and
starches. And it hopes to do it so well
that the difference is virtually
undetectable.
Top-level talks with a ‘large food
company’ are already underway but
these are being kept secret in case
the idea gets poached.
And the likes of Bill Gates, Tony
Blair and Indian entrepreneur Vinod
Khosla are poised to cash in on what
could become an egg-straordinary
opportunity.
Rejecting eggs can present huge
difficulties in the West where egg-free
eating is wholly foreign to the culture
- even for vegetarians.
Bread, cakes and mayonaise usually
contain eggs which lacto-veggies and
vegans can’t eat because they can’t be
sure of the eggs-act ingredients.
And breakfast favourites like
scrambled eggs have to be shunned,
causing looks of eggs-asperation from
hotel waiters.
But now a new era is dawning as
California-based company Hampton
Creek Foods tackles the issue from a
health, environmental and ethical angle.
The welcome news has been
greeted by one American follower of
RSSBI, whose adherents follow a
strict lacto-vegetarian diet, simply as
‘Yummie’!
Founder and CEO of Hampton
Creek Foods Josh Tetrick, 32, a vegan,
said: “We’re trying to take the animal
totally out of the equation.”
And he stresses : “This i s a
mainstream project for everyone
around the world to enjoy.”
Tetrick says about
1.3 trillion eggs are
la id ever y year
worldwide and 99%
are from battery
cage birds.
Tetrick’s visionary
mixture , set to
launch in February,
is made from bits
of ground-up peas,
sorghum, sunflower
lecithin, canola and
“ a f e w o t h e r
ingredients”.
It is cheaper and
lasts longer on the
shelf and, Tetrick
claims, Hampton
Creek Foods is on
the verge of a
major deal with a
large food company but details are
being kept under wraps.
According to gigaom.com the
company is just one of a new type of
eco-food innovators that is being
‘incubated’ in Silicon Valley, USA.
It is backed by heavy weight
financier and risk taker Vinod Khosla
through his firm, Sand Hill Road. Bill
Gates - an investor in Khosla’s firm -
gave Hampton’s muffins a taste test
last year and couldn’t tell the
difference between a muffin made
with eggs and a muffin made with egg
substitute, Beyond Eggs.
BEYONDEGGS-CITING!
Bill Gates (right) takes a bite of a Beyond Eggs muffin with
Hampton Creek Foods founder, Josh Tetrick (left).
Vinod Khosla, Bill Gates and Tony Blair keen to support bid to crack egg-free market
UK eggs-clusive by FG reporter
FG! 4 JUNE 2013
!THERE IS NOTHING ON THIS EARTH MORE TO BE PRIZED THAN TRUE FRIENDSHIP - THOMAS AQUINAS 1
FRIENDS’
GAZETTE
A FAVOURITE haunt of FG readers could be ruined if government plans for a £32.7bn high speed rail link go ahead.
Drummond Street in north London is home to the likes of Diwanas, Chutneys, Ravi Shankar all pure Indian vegetarian restaurants, as well as Indian sweetie mecca Ambala.
But HS2, as the link is officially known, would mean vast expansion of Euston stat ion devastat ing surrounding streets for up to ten years threatening the restaurants’ future, it is claimed.
Objections to the plans will be heard at the Court of Appeal in London next week (June 10), but the Department of Transport has vowed to ‘continue to defend any challenge’.
An exceptional hardship scheme (EHS) has been set up for residential, agricultural and small business owner-occupiers affected by HS2.
Mohammed Salique, who runs Diwana, told local paper Camden New Journal: “We get a lot of trade from people who are waiting for a train. We rely on this and when work starts it will finish us off for 10 years.” Redoam Pasha, of the Ravi Shankar Bhel Puri House, said:
“People come here from everywhere – from Southal l , Harrow and Wembley, from Manchester and Birmingham.”
Gupta’s was set up 30 years ago specialising in making and selling Indian sweets.
Ricky Gupta told the CNJ: “They will put in double yellow lines along the road so no one will be able to park. To lose a customer is easy, to gain a customer is very hard.”
HS2 Ltd. estimates that the “Y Network, providing two corridors north of Birmingham (one direct to Manchester and the other to Leeds v ia East Mid lands and South
Yorkshire) will cost in the region of £32.7bn.”
The first section from London to Birmingham is expected to cost £17bn. This stage is slightly more expens i ve due to tunne l l i n g requirements out of London and through parts of the Chilterns.
Transport Secretary, Patr ick McLoughlin, said: “HS2 is absolutely vital for this country, providing a huge economic boost which will generate a return on investment that wil l continue paying back for generations to come. But you cannot build a new railway line without causing some disruption.” !
End of an era?
Pictured right: Restaurant bosses and workers fear closure (pic courtesy CNJ)
Final decision on £33bn high speed rail plan set for Monday next week
FG!
13 MAY 2013
DEPTH OF FRIENDSHIP DOES NOT DEPEND ON LENGTH OF ACQUAINTANCE - RABINDRANATH TAGORE PAGE 1
FRIENDS’GAZETTETM FLYING HIGH Pg3 ALLERGIES ARE REAL Pg4MICE POO IN NUTS Pg5
TOP quality basmati rice could be cut with lesser types of grain in a bid to fool the public and make millions, a government watchdog has warned.Basmati rice is a firm favourite with
vegetarians and others who savour its fragrant taste, excellent texture and the way the grains stay separate in the pan and on the plate.Now unscrupulous suppliers are
cutting this expensive top grade grain dubbed ‘the prince of rice’ with other cheaper varieties in a bid to cash in on the UK market currently worth £100m a year.Government watchdog, the Food
Standards Agency (FSA), issued a warning about the scam last year but says the con merchants have not gone away and the public should continue to be vigilant.
Basmati sells for two or three times the price of other types of rice so the incentive to cheat is tempting - especially this year when the price of basmati is set to rise significantly.According to trade mag Supply
Management a price hike of almost 80% can be expected because of reduced production in India and Pakistan where basmati is grown.The FSA regularly gets reports of
suspected ‘adulteration’ a spokesman told FG. “We get reports from local
authorities. The most recent was in March. We usually get half a dozen reports a year from around the country which could go up.”The way to recognise if rice has
been tampered with is usually during cooking. The shape of some grains would not be as long or thin as they should be.
A 2010 UK test on rice supplied by wholesalers found four out of 15 samples had cheaper rice mixed with basmati, and one had no basmati at all. Basmati rice was unavailable in the
UK in the 60s era, when rice was considered suitable for puddings only (see recipe p6).Only as immigration from the sub-
continent flourished has rice, let alone basmati, become a favourite amongst the English.Now it is a staple food, competing
with bread and pasta in popularity. Supermarket shelves would not be complete without large displays of rice for sale in even the smallest up-country villages. In Canada basmati is sought after as a food for diabetics who prefer it to flour. The Rice Association says the 2012
harvest in India was up to 40% down on 2011 largely because the
What is the Food Standards Agency?The UK’s Food Standards Agency is an independent food safety watchdog set up in 2000 to protect the British public’s health and consumer interests in relation to food.It was originally proposed in 1997, amid concerns about food poisoning, intensive
farming methods and Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (BSE) or “mad cow disease”. Food policy experts wanted a new food agency responsible to the Secretary of State for Health, independent of the food industry, but at “arms-length” from ministers.
In 2010 the FSA had 2,000 employees and an annual budget of £135m but this was reduced as a result of the coalition government’s spending cuts. A shake-up by the new government led to the FSA handing over some of its
responsibilities to government departments so it could focus solely on food safety policy and enforcement.Courtesy FSA website
Look out for rice fraud!Price hike of 80% could tempt con artists to cut with cheaper grain
FG!
11 APRIL 2013
WORDS ARE EASY, LIKE THE WIND; FAITHFUL FRIENDS ARE HARD TO FIND (WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE) PAGE 1
FRIENDS’
GAZETTEDEVOTEE
RESCUED Pg3
DAVID SET
TO WED! Pg4COULD THEY
MEAN US? Pg5
A Christian minister who
used to tease his veggie
friends about their diet,
turned vegetarian himself
after God spoke to him.
The ‘Damascene’ conversion came
after Dan Woodhouse, a student
Methodist minister, had prayed
intensely and had a ‘gut feeling’
before taking the life-changing step.
Coincidentally he visited Methodist
Central Hall in Westminster, London
on the day he ‘switched’, the very
same building Charan Singh had once
given satsang in the 70s.
Dan, 25, appeared on television
recently talking about his dramatic
change of heart. (See separate panel).
He gave an exclusive interview to
Friends’ Gazette afterwards.
“There are certain points in my life
when I will be praying about
something and I will feel a gut feeling
about whether something is right or
wrong. It is just a knowing. It is a
very strong sense that I should or
should not do something.
“It is the kind of thing I cannot get
out of my head.”
Dan (pictured right) had visited
Central Hall on the momentous day.
“That was the first time I went into
the hall,” he said.
“I went there for a service. We were
funnelled into a back room with a tv
link-up to the great hall.” (pictured
overleaf). He became a vegetarian
later the same day.
Dan, a Nottingham man, is studying
t h e o l o g y a t We s l e y H o u s e ,
Cambridge. He hopes to become a
Methodis t min i s ter when he
graduates. He appeared on Channel
Four’s 4thought spot recently
speaking out about how and why he
had turned vegetarian.
“They wanted a Christian
perspective on vegetarianism,” he
said.
“I talk about my road-to-Damascus
conversion to vegetarianism. I used
to have vegetarian friends and I used
to tease them a little bit like St Paul
and then somebody told me about
[the environment] and I saw the
light. Since Christmas I have been
vegan. (cont. p2)
What Dan told the nation on the Channel 4 slot
I became a vegetarian
after feeling it was a
crucial part of caring for
the environment, God’s
creation. Growing up I
always ate meat. I always
enjoyed meat. I relished a
plate of meat. I would
often ignore other foods
including vegetables
because why wouldn’t I
just have a big plate of
meat because obviously
[it was] the nicest thing. I
believe that God has
called me, personally, to
not eat meat any more. If
God’s speaking to me I
will find that I will start to
really feel it in the pit of
my stomach. But then,
often, it will be
confirmed by the random
things that tend to
happen. I happened to be
going on a march and I
came across this person
dressed in a cow suit
holding a big sign which
said you can’t be an
environmentalist and eat
meat. And that just
summed up all of my
thinking and all of my
praying. And in that
moment I knew. I
thought ‘Yeah, that’s
right’. The environment
is starting to fall apart.
It’s groaning. If it’s being
damaged then for God’s
will to be done we would
be pulling in the opposite
direction.
And I think in today’s day
and age that means eating
a lot less meat than we
currently do.
Would Jesus eat very little
meat, or no meat? I think
probably at the moment
he, maybe, would be a
vegetarian, although I
wouldn’t like to say for
definite.
God turned me veggie!Devout Christian sees the ‘light’ in Damascene-type conversion
FG! 11 MARCH 2013
FG Friendship isn't about whom you have known the longest. It’s about who came, and never left your side. anon! PAGE 1
FED UP with pile-it-high, sell-it-cheap Indian street food Drummond Street style? Then tuck into some haute cuisine curry in elegant surroundings - and enjoy a whacking discount! Thanks to a special deal between Friends’ Gazette and Indian Zing restaurant, readers can enjoy a delicious meal and get a generous 20 per cent off the bill. Proprietor Manoj Vasaikar said:
“I’m happy to make this exclusive offer to readers of the FG which we think is a great publication.” Orders must be placed before 6.30pm on weekdays only (not Friday or Saturday) and food must be eaten on the premises. This article appears here free-of-charge. All benefit goes entirely to readers and their friends. Please take a copy of this page with you to activate the discount and ask for RAHUL KULKARNI when you get to your table. Indian Zing, 236 King Street, London W6 0RF. Tel: 0208-748 5959.
FACT CHECKER• Text books in Pakistani schools
foster prejudice and intolerance
of Hindus and other religious
minorities - study by a US gov-
ernment commission reveals.
• Issues arise over cremation of
Hindu dead according to relig-
ious customs in Pakistan.
• The Human Rights Commission
of Pakistan said in 2010 that at
least 25 Hindu girls are abducted
in that country every month -
which is almost one every day.
• The abduction of a 14-year-old
girl in Sindh in August 2012 was
not an isolated case, says HRCoP.
• The Hindus of Pakistan are a
religious minority in an over-
whelmingly Muslim society. They
constitute about 5.5% of the
population of 170m.
• Hindu Pakistanis live primarily in
Sindh, which borders India.
• Most Hindus in Pakistan are well
educated, working in commerce,
trade and the civil service.
A PROMINENT satsangi couple are set to quit their home in Pakistan because of growing religious intolerance in the troubled country. Dilip Kumar Motiani and his wife Devi, who are Hindus, have decided to call it a day and join their chil-dren in Europe on a permanent ba-sis reluctantly turning their back on generations of life in the sub-continent.
Son Vinod, 32, who lives in Oxford, and is a regular attender at the London satsang in Ladbroke Grove, said: “It [the situation] makes me feel very uncom-fortable, insecure and scared. “My parents are already considering emigration from the point of view of securing a permanent residence here so they can come to and fro as and when they want as opposed to having to apply for a visa, but this has now prompted them to not only (cont p2)
Parents flee religious turmoil‘I feel uncomfortable, insecure and scared’ - son
FRIENDS’
GAZETTE
CURRYING FAVOUR!DISCOUNT DINNER GOES WITH A ZING AT A TOP WEST LONDON RESTAURANT!
Vinod Motiani and his mum Devi hope soon to be reunited in the UK.
FG!SPECIAL BULLETIN 21 MAY 2013
WORDS ARE EASY, LIKE THE WIND; FAITHFUL FRIENDS ARE HARD TO FIND (WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE)
FRIENDS’GAZETTE
LONDON Friends have sent ‘best wishes’ to Judith Durham, the famous 60s folk singer, who was admitted to hospital last week after suffering a brain hemorrhage. The message was sent by email on Sunday lunchtime after the group heard of her plight. Durham, 70 in July, was taken ill after she performed with the group
The Seekers in Hammer Hall, Melbourne, Australia.On returning to her hotel after the gig last Tuesday she complained of ‘having difficulty’ working the tv remote in her room.She was rushed to hospital by manager Graham Simpson. He had
dialled an emergency medical advice line for help.Durham was a follower of RSSBI master Charan Singh. She attended a bhandara satsang given by him in Westminster in London in the 70s. The Seekers’ Golden Jubilee Australian Tour has been postponed until further notice.Speaking to the Australian press last Thursday Simpson said: “I had a call from her just before midnight and that call just led me to think something just wasn’t quite right.
“I went and spoke to her in her room and thought ‘Ok, I think we need to do
something about this’.“I know her very well ... and it was just a sense (that something) wasn’t quite right.”Fellow Seekers’ member Keith Potger visited Durham at her bedside last Thursday morning and said she was resting comfortably as the pair had a long chat.Durham would have tests which would probably go on for about 10
days, Potger said.“She’s doing well,” he told the Australian Associated Press.The London Friends’ message read: “We are all thinking of you. Best wishes from us all.”Durham an Australian native shot to fame in the 60s. In November 1964 the Seekers released I'll Never
Find Another You composed by Tom Springfield, British singer Dusty Springfield’s brother.In February 1965 the record reached number one in the UK and Australia, while the band’s 1966 recording of Springfield and Jim Dale’s Georgy Girl (from the film of the same name) reached number two in the United States. SW
‘Best wishes Judith’London Friends send message as 60s singing star rushed to hospital
Judith Durham
The Seekers: (l-r) Keith Potger, Bruce Woodley, Judith Durham, Athol Guy
The late Dr Choje Akong Rinpoche
FG! 16 NOVEMBER 2013
NO PROBLEM CAN BE SOLVED FROM THE SAME LEVEL OF CONSCIOUSNESS THAT CREATED IT - EINSTEIN! 6
FRIENDLYCOMMENT
The case for milkAS veganism takes hold. Here’s a different perspective.
The Hindu view on a lacto-vegetarian diet reads as follows:
Milk is a food sanctioned and designed by God, by Krishna, for humans and not just for the calf.
The cow produces more milk than the calf needs and this is not accidental but by design.
Out of affection for her calf the cow will give as much milk as possible.
In our system of cow care we let the calf be with its mother for two weeks and drink whatever he or she likes and we will take the surplus.
From the third week up to six months we graze or pen the calf separately and give him or her access to the mother twice a day.
The calf's share of the milk roughly equates to 25% of the day's total. It is natural for a cow to provide milk for people, this is how Krishna created it.
Drinking milk from a cow is not wrong but is completely natural and divinely arranged.
To drink milk is OK, to take milk from a cow that has been impregnated for the purposes of producing milk is OK, to milk the cow is OK, to sell the milk is OK.
The farmers should do it properly though. They should not prevent the cow having a relationship with her calf. The cows and calves should not be killed. The bulls should not be killed.
The cows should be milked properly and the whole herd should be cared for with attention and kindness for their entire life.
What the farmers are doing and how they are abusing the cow should stop.
FG is taking a break over Christmas - see you in Jan 2014
ISSN: 2053-4426
Published by Stephen Ward Publications, London, England.
Chinese whispersI WAS very interested to read the article by your correspondent in China.
She was very brave to interview other Chinese people in the streets.
We have lived in Bei Jing and we know what it can be like.
You must look everywhere to see who is watching and listening to what you are saying or even whispering.
Everyone knows how China and the Chinese government is paranoid about the internet and tries to block freedom of information.
What have they got to hide? One wonders.
However I was very disappointed that your article didn’t mention anywhere the one incident which demonstrated the Chinese opposition to freedom, and freedom of information.
That was Tiananmen Square. Even recently there was a news blackout when a car fire broke out there and five people were killed.
Well done on your brave reporting and that of your correspondent but you must make sure you include all relevant matters in your reports
otherwise the article is not complete and readers wonder if you have a motive in leaving facts out.
Wei Long and Mei HuaLondon
Liz and Elton also cameIT was fascinating to read about what is happening to The Lighthouse in Ladbroke Grove.
This is one of the most iconic buildings in London, if not in the world. Yet you have chosen not to report fully on the facts about this building.
Yes, Princess Diana, bless her heart, visited it on a regular basis.
She brought her own unique and beautiful dynamism to the work that was going on there.
But you omitted to mention other well-known people also visited. One such was Elizabeth Taylor who was very concerned about the impact of AIDS in the world. Sir Elton John also came.
You also failed to report that the remains of some residents are interred in the garden of the building.
You really must report fully in what is otherwise an interesting and informative publication.
Name withheld London
The late, great Miss Elizabeth Taylor
FG! 16 NOVEMBER 2013
NO PROBLEM CAN BE SOLVED FROM THE SAME LEVEL OF CONSCIOUSNESS THAT CREATED IT - EINSTEIN! 7
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‘But make sure you have a strong heart to go with it,’ vegan weightlifter says
GIVEME MUSCLE!“STRENGTH isn’t what your muscles do, it’s more complex [than that].”
That’s the message from record breaking vegan strongman Patrik Baboumian.
Speaking exclusively with Friends’ Gazette the Iranian-born German continued: “There is strength of mind and strength of the heart.
“Without a strong heart the muscles are quite useless.” Patrick was one of the special guests at the hugely popular VegFestUK show held in London’s Olympia in Earls Court last month.
Around nine thousand vegetarians, vegans and their friends flocked to the venue to get the latest
on food, clothes, personal products and plenty more, all with superb ethical credentials.
“I define strength on the basis of how compassionate I am. Veganism is one thing that is required to be able to call yourself compassionate. You don’t want to do any harm to other sentient beings,” Patrick explained.
Patrik is the world champion in the log lift and front hold and European champion in raw-power lifting.
He also holds Germany’s Strongest Man title.He turned vegetarian in 2005 and vegan in 2011.In 1985 his family fled Iran in the wake of that country’s
war with Iraq and settled in Germany.He bears an uncanny resemblance to fictional strong-
man The Hulk. He watched the TV programme he says, aged just three; “in the company of my parents”.
Patrik Baboumian, world champion
FG! 16 NOVEMBER 2013
NO PROBLEM CAN BE SOLVED FROM THE SAME LEVEL OF CONSCIOUSNESS THAT CREATED IT - EINSTEIN! 8
B A C K P A C K I N G B r i t s traveling in Australia are b e i n g t a r g e t e d b y unscrupulous Antipodean rogues preying on their desire to stay longer in the land Down Under, the Foreign Office has warned.
Brits are only allowed to work in Australia or New Zealand officially for one year.
They usually take up a number of casual jobs in pubs, clubs and hotels, exactly the same as their Aussie counterparts in the UK.
But Australian law states that if they work on farms then their visas can be extended for a year.
In an official statement the British Foreign Office warns: “Beware of
scam adverts offering to help you extend a working holiday visa.
“Second year working holiday visas are available if you have worked in a rural area for three months during the first year of your working holiday.
“Some British nationals have falsely claimed to have worked on farms using information bought from scam advertisers.
“As a result, they have had their visas cancelled and been excluded from returning to Australia for three years.”
Backpackers in Byron Bay, Australia - a favourite destination
with British visitors.
Foreign Office warns over visa scams
Wandsworth Devonshire Square Muswell HillIslington Torrington Place Westbourne Grove
eat in take-away shop in-store shop on-line
Three of our special November offers - check them out!
FG! 16 NOVEMBER 2013
NO PROBLEM CAN BE SOLVED FROM THE SAME LEVEL OF CONSCIOUSNESS THAT CREATED IT - EINSTEIN! 9
Scientology ‘a dangerous cult’ - French court saysThe Church of Scientology is to appeal to the Court of Human Rights against a conviction for fraud in the French courts, France 24 reports.
The proposed move comes after the church lost it’s bid to reverse a ruling of fraud in France’s highest appeal court last month.
Five people had accused the church of persuading them to spend tens of thousands of euros on personality tests as well as bogus vitamin cures, sauna sessions and ‘purification packs’. They pointed the finger at the five church members as well as the ‘Celebrity Centre’ and Scientology bookstore in the Rue Legendre, Paris.
In the original case in 2009 the church was found guilty and fined a total of 600,000 euros.
The five officials got suspended prison sentences and their boss in France, Alain Rosenberg, got a 30,000 euro fine and a two-year suspended sentence.
According to France 24 the church has “indicated that if its appeal was rejected it would seek recourse at the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg”.
The church has claimed that its religious liberties are being infringed.
But Scientology is not considered a religion in France as it is in the United States, Sweden and Spain.
On the contrary the French parliament there has branded it a ‘dangerous cult’.
The Church of Scientology is based in Los Angeles and was founded by science f ict ion writer L. Ron Hubbard.
It claims 10-million members world-wide including 45,000 in France.
Celebs like John Travolta and Tom Cruise (above) are well-known Scientology supporters.
‘Church’ pedaled personality tests, bogus vitamin cures, sauna sessions and ‘purification packs’
THE SON of a slain Sikh temple leader aims to stand for office in the US election next year in a bid to ‘bring democracy back to the people’.
Satwant Singh Kaleka was mown down by a crazed gunman in a gurdhwara he founded in America.
Now son, Amar, 35, hopes to win a Senate seat for the Democrats, in the political struggle to come.
Amar, a film director and producer, will battle Republican Paul Ryan for the seat. “All I want to do is bring democracy - a government of, for and by the people - back to America,” he told reporters.
Satwant was a small-business owner who founded the Sikh Temple of Wisconsin in suburban Milwaukee.
On August 5, 2012, a white supremacist walked into the temple and opened fire, killing Satwant and five others before taking his own life.
The FBI have been unable to determine a motive.
Son of slain Sikh leader set to stand in 2014 US election
I handed over the money in a weak moment - beauticianA BEAUTICIAN handed over £100 to London Scientologists ‘in a weak moment of self-doubt’.
‘Sandra’ (name changed) who works in central London took the Scientology personality test at their centre in Tottenham Court Road recently.
But shortly afterwards felt she didn’t want to go ahead with the ‘analysis’ and decided to ask for her money back. This was being held ‘on account’.
“I was worried they wouldn’t give it back to me,” she said. “But they were very understanding and after asking me if I was sure I didn’t want to go on they just handed my cheque back to me.
“I am a devout Hindu and my religion is quite enough for me but I was just drawn into what they had to offer in a weak moment of self-doubt.”
Church of Scientology policy states that money held ‘on account’ is returned upon request.
FG READERS’ PAGES! 16 NOVEMBER 2013
NO PROBLEM CAN BE SOLVED FROM THE SAME LEVEL OF CONSCIOUSNESS THAT CREATED IT - EINSTEIN! 10
ONE-BY-ONE he changes their minds. From guilty verdicts based on bigotry, prejudice and hatred to not-guilty ones using logic, clear thinking and a sense of fair play.
Twelve Angry Men at the Garrick in London’s West End is playing to full-houses, even mid-week!
At the centre of this riveting piece, written by Reginald Rose, is a trial in which a 16-year-old boy is accused of murdering his father with a switchblade.
Because he’s ‘one of those’ (a working-class immigrant, probably black) intent on ‘breeding like rabbits’ and determined to ‘get us’ - he’s guilty from the word go.
And it takes the cool head and sheer intellectual and moral courage of just one juror, (Shaw) to ensure that justice is done and the electric chair denied its victim.
As juror no 8, played in the original film by iconic Henry Fonda, he delivers an impressive tour-de-force - totally
commanding the starkly designed stage at all times.At one point, as a storm rages outside, his character
meticulously measures out the distance between one eye-witnessess’ bed and the window through which he purportedly saw the stabbing, proving convincingly, ‘it just couldn’t have happened that way’.
Under the deft direction of Christopher Haydon the actors deliberate around a huge table in the middle of the set which slowly and almost imperceptably turns full-circle as the play progresses, dramatically reflecting the changing arguments in the room itself.
Shaw is supported by an all-star cast which glitters with talent and box-office magnetism bringing the whole drama alive, including Robert Vaughn (Napoleon Solo, The Magnificent Seven and, more recently, Hustle); Jeff Fahey (Lawnmower Man, Revolution and Under the Dome) and Nick Moran (Lock, Stock . . , Harry Potter). Recommended!
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‘Angry’ Shaw’s
West End triumphReview by Stephen Ward
FG READERS’ PAGES! 16 NOVEMBER 2013
NO PROBLEM CAN BE SOLVED FROM THE SAME LEVEL OF CONSCIOUSNESS THAT CREATED IT - EINSTEIN! 11
Get away to bonnie Scotland!
Rennaldburnself-catering farmhouse
Rennaldburn is a 17th century farmhouse which sleeps seven to eight.
We also rent individual rooms ~ and can provide a veggie or vegan breakfast if
requested the previous day.
We are Buddhists and revere all life - so we do not take hunters or anglers.
Best rates. Reductions for FG readers.Find us on: www.gonebeyond.co.uk
Eskdalemuir, Langholm. Tel: 01387 373277
FG READERS’ PAGES! 16 NOVEMBER 2013
NO PROBLEM CAN BE SOLVED FROM THE SAME LEVEL OF CONSCIOUSNESS THAT CREATED IT - EINSTEIN! 12
Missed the bus? It’s not my f-ailte!
HAVING spent 25 years in London the seduction of living in a quiet rural retreat in Connemara, on the West coast of Ireland, was irresistible.
This quaint boreen (unpaved country road) is a lovely mixture of old and new. Modern, architect designed houses sit comfortably next to cottages and old stone sheds, just five minutes from the main road and the wild
Atlantic Ocean beyond.Next door there is a half finished house - a post Celtic Tiger remnant (remember that?). Young professionals zoom down the boreen on their way to work in the city, whilst the elderly lady at the end of the road sits outside on her kitchen chair waving to everyone as they whizz by. The bus to the city runs every two hours - no official bus stop - just stick your arm out.
The morning bus releases a group of middle-aged men, who head straight to the pub in the village for their daily social interaction and to imbibe a 'couple of jars'. Returning home on the afternoon bus, there is a sense of fiesta. Everyone chatting in Irish, a rolling cadence of words and phrases that is pure, melodic, country.
One by one people get off at personally designated stops - we wouldn’t be doin’ with anythin’ official, as mentioned earlier.
'Just here is fine.' 'Past the church.' However, the driver knows us regulars and no
directions are needed. As I get off the bus, one of the morning tipplers also
gets off. He sways slightly and grins at me. 'Ta muid gaolta. (We are related).'
Usually I grin and walk on, but the other day I decided to ask him just how we were related.
'Ce'n taobh? Mo Mhamo no mo Dhado?(Which side. My grand-mother or grand-father.)'This was too much for his pickled brain.He scratched his head and mumbled loudly: 'F---ailte
F---ailte F----ailte.'Hmm, I thought - an interesting derivation of the
English four-letter swear word. The Irish 'ailte' at the end of the expletive some-how
removing any sting.He walked away, no doubt to sit by the turf-filled range
(fireplace).I meandered home with a grin on my face, inhaling the
smell of the turf smoke as it swirled lazily from the chimneys nearby.
Some things’ll never change.
Life in rural Ireland is all go for author, wife and mum Helena Abrahams (left)who once lived in the English metropolis.
B’Jaez - are you sure we’re not related all right!
BLINKIN’BRILLIANT!
TURNING the lights on (or off) could be just a 'wink' away thanks to research being conducted at a Catholic university.
Katia Vega, a beauty technology designer at the Pontifical Catholic University in Rio de Janeiro has come up with electronic make up which can operate lights switch on air conditioning or heating and, frighteningly, control aerial drones!
Wearing metal eye-shadow or false eye-lashes users can operate various devices simply by blinks or winks which remotely turn them off or on.
Vega said she was developing variations which could help improve the lives of disabled people.
PUC-Rio is consistently recognized as one of the top universities in Brazil. It was created in 1941 by the Society of Jesus (Jesuits) in order to develop knowledge based on humanistic values.
TRAVEL SPECIAL - BY STEPHEN WARD! 16 NOVEMBER 2013
NO PROBLEM CAN BE SOLVED FROM THE SAME LEVEL OF CONSCIOUSNESS THAT CREATED IT - EINSTEIN! 13
Sur le pont . . .WITH it’s world-famous bridge, the magnificent Pope’s Palace, the stunning medieval Fort of St Andrew’s - all surrounded in summer by sumptuous fields of lavender, Avignon and its people, including visitors, have plenty to ‘dance’ about.
Situated in beautiful Provence in the south of France the city draws in thousands of visitors a week all year long, who, having had their culture fixes, then proceed to the narrow cobbled and paved streets spending millions of Euros every year in the thriving cafes, shops and restaurants.
In the tourist office, assistant Antoine Verdier, is advising a French clair-voyante who desperately needs to
replace her crystal ball as her regular one seems to have gone missing!
After giving her directions and setting her on her way, Antoine, who speaks fluent English, Spanish, Italian and even a little Russian, tells FG: “We get all sorts of people in here. I have been here for 13 years and it is never dull. If you think about it, though, she should really have known where to find a new one anyway!”
Around since Roman rule, Avignon really came to prominence in medieval times when it became a centre for trade and communications.
The famous bridge spanning the Rhone was one of only three between the Mediterranean and Lyon. According to legend a local shepherd called Benezet (local dialect for Benedict) was inspired by angels to build it. When his appeals to the town authorities failed, he picked up
a vast block of stone, too heavy for any ordinary human to carry, and hurled it into the river. Convinced by this demonstration of divine will the bridge was swiftly built using the stone as a foundation. The poor shepherd boy was canonised and his chapel remains on the surviving portion of the bridge to this day.
These divine antecedants could well have been the reason why Avignon was chosen by the papacy as its home which, of course made the place hugely important, politically and economically.
Wealthy cardinals built extravagant palaces known as livrees both within the city and across the river in Villeneuve-les-Avignon.
All this keeps today’s culture vultures hailing from as far away as America, Canada, Russia, China and Japan extremely happy.
STEPHEN flew to Marseilles from Gatwick on EasyJet.From Marseilles airport he took a train to Avignon (16.10 euros). There is a free shuttle to the station.
He stayed at the comfortable and welcoming, five-star Auberge de Cassagne Hotel and Spa in Cassagne, part of Le Pontet a small suburb just north of Avignon.
There is regular public transport from just outside the hotel to the city centre. This dream hotel boasts some of the best accommodation and facilities in the area.
Rooms are all individual and set out chalet-style in spacious grounds. Satellite television is piped in and mini-bar and free coffee is provided in each room.
There is an outdoor and indoor pool and sauna, steam room and jacuzzi in a tailor-made spa complex open
until late seven-nights-a-week. Various treatments and pampering health programmes are on offer.
The restaurant serves vegetarian and vegan dishes as part of a comprehensive French and foreign menu.
Breakfast is included in the room tariff and is served in a comfortable and attractive restaurant by caring and attentive staff.
The hotel has been going for more than a decade and is run by friendly and knowledgeable couple Monsieur and Madame Boucher who are always on hand with help and advice.
Information on a number of trips and visits to the heart of Avignon are displayed in the foyer.
For more details go to : www.aubergedecassagne.com
Comfort and luxury are the order of the day at the Auberge.Left is one of the spacious rooms and right, the spa complex.
A dream hotel just outside the city
TRAVEL SPECIAL - BY STEPHEN WARD! 16 NOVEMBER 2013
NO PROBLEM CAN BE SOLVED FROM THE SAME LEVEL OF CONSCIOUSNESS THAT CREATED IT - EINSTEIN! 14
. . . d’Avignon
Avignon competes with Paris and London as a tourist attraction.
And, there’s extra good news, for despite the French reputation for being anti-vegetarian ‘awkward’ eaters can find plenty to tickle their palate and keep their conscience clear.
Japanese and Chinese restaurants can be found along with a number of delightful artisan bistros and cafes offering veggie options such as tarte chevre au tomate, cheese and spinach pizzas and egg free spaghetti with a spicy sauce.
Try the eateries and health restaurants in and around the old town near the Celestine convent.
Weather-wise Provence gets the lion’s share of sunshine in the whole of France with only the Rivera towns of Cannes and Montpelier and the island of Corsica in the competition.
Jean Paul Trinquier, who runs Cha Yuan in the Rue Viala, said: “That’s why we are so popular.
We have got the sunshine all year.”
And local resident Felicity Robertson (pictured top) who left England for ‘la vie Francaise’ nine years ago added: “Provence is a beautiful part of the country.
“We get sun all year round.”Public transport is plentiful
and punctual with regular buses to outlying districts.
There is also a busy rail station and a TGV direct to Paris and beyond.
Within the thick medieval walls of the town a bike sharing scheme enigmatically called Velopop operates pretty-much round the clock.
