After traversing its waves since 1987 you would think that P&O Ferries knows the name of that stretch of water between Dover and Calais. It seems that The EU however has other ideas. John Hillman reports.

As I walked across the Millennium Bridge one morning, over the River Thames, I felt a slight tremor underfoot and feared that the ‘wobbly bridge’ had once again fallen foul of its well documented design fault. Could this mean another year of damned closures whilst engineers attempt to make the most scenic river crossing in the world safe again?

Fortunately my concerns were somewhat eased as I glanced across to St Paul’s and saw that, far from the bridge wobbling, it was in fact London itself that shook like a detoxifying scoundrel. Oh just an earthquake then, that’s fine.

As an aside, I once experienced a similar moving sensation whilst on a P&O Ferries’ ferry from Dover to Calais; however after raising the alarm I was informed by the ship’s steward that the moving sensation was a result of us being at sea, which wobbles too, apparently.

Anyway, the quake has of course been hushed up, for its epicentre (I am reliably told) has been traced to the very spot in St Paul’s Cathedral where Vice Admiral Horatio Nelson lies entombed.

This strange turn of events remained an unexplained mystery; however after some careful research I can reveal that sources close to Her Majesty believe it to be recent machinations in Brussels that are to blame.

The realisation of the Trans-Manche Zone, by a rather Orwellian sounding group called the INTERREG Programme, means that not only has the English Channel been officially renamed the Anglo-French Pond, but most shocking of all, it has resulted in the creation of an entirely new region which merges Kent and Cornwall with Normandy and Lille, all presided over by Alain Le Vern, a French socialist president.

A French Socialist President, with dominion over Royal Tunbridge Wells? And there I was wondering why an earthquake would emanate from Lord Nelson’s tomb. Meanwhile my journalistic counterpart in Paris tells me that a strange cackling sound can be heard wafting eerily out of Napoleon’s Gallic grave, and drifting off slowly down the River Seine. Strange times indeed.

Image Credit: Wikimedia Commons

Tags: Britain, France, History, P&O Ferries by John Hillman
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Most people who grew up in the 90s will remember the Moomins, a family of roundish white “trolls” who distinctly resemble hippos! Rosie Khdir ventures to the Belgian Comic Strip Centre to see their creators Dreamworld exhibition.

Tove Jansson played a major part in my childhood entertainment, as I sat endlessly watching the TV adaption of her comic books, The Moomins. These sweet looking creatures are probably held fondly in many peoples memories and are no the subject of an exhibition in Belgium.

The Belgian Comic Strip Centre is hosting a “voyage of discovery” through the Moomin stories, in the form of puppet films, illustrated novels, comic strips and picture books.

The story of the Moomin Dreamworld began when Tove Jansson, a Finnish cartoonist illustrated her first book The Little Troll and The Great Flood. In 1939 the Moomin family was born and they were later joined by characters such as the Snork Maiden, Sniff, Snufkin and Fillyjonk.

The books were first published in Swedish but the 13 books were later translated in 30 languages. By 1950 Jansson had inspired readers in 40 countries and published in 26 different languages.

Tove also created Moomin comic strips for the Finnish paper Ny Ti between the years 1947-48 and also for the London Evening Standard from 1954 to 1959. Since then it has been turned into a comic book, an animated TV series and even a movie.

The exhibition which began in March and ends on 29th August 2010 has been the result of collaboration with the Finnish Cultural Institute for the Benelux and the Finnish Embassy in Belgium.

The display of Jansson’s fine works is charming and will, for many, provide you with a good dose of Moomin nostalgia. For more information visit the Belgian Comic Strip Centre website.

You can get to Belgium with P&O Ferries using the Hull – Zeebrugge route, or alternatively via Dover to Calais from where it is just a short drive along the E40 to the Belgian border. Prices start at just £30 for a car and up to nine people.

Image credit: koiart71

Tags: Belgium, History, Lifestyle, P&O Ferries by Rosie Khdir
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We are all fans of the occasional weird and wonderful museum and De Kattenkabinet in Amsterdam is one not to miss. Rosie Khdir discovers the Cat Cabinet, a museum dedicated to our feline friends.

In the most unsuspecting part of Amsterdam, in the more financial oriented district, lies a charming museum with a rather unusual subject – cats.

The Cat Cabinet is a museum that specialises in the display of cat themed art. The small museum, situated in an old residence at the Herengracht, was set up by William Meijer in 1990 in memory of his cat Tom Cat John Pierpont Morgan, named after the American financier.

The museum has an impressive collection of cat-related paintings, drawings and even a unique dollar bill that was created especially for J. P. Morgan (the cat). On his 15th birthday a single edition of a dollar bill was printed and adapted so that Washington’s portrait looked like J. P. Morgan and instead of “In God we trust” it reads “We trust no dogs”.

Here, many quirky pieces of art are mixed with the more well known from a Toonders Studio’s cartoon of Tom Poes to a photograph of the famous writer Truman Capote and his cat. There is also a Picasso original entitled Le Chat displayed in the museum.

Among the sculptures, posters, cartoons and books you may see the whip of real furry tail – don’t worry you are not hallucinating – the museum has five friendly resident felines!

Not only will you be entertained by the comically serious nature of the exhibits you can also enjoy the splendor of the house itself, with its decorated galleries, crystal chandelier, library and the beautiful painted ceiling in the music room.

The museum is easy to get to; visitor can get the tram to Koningsplein and it is only a few minutes’ walk from there. It really is a must for cat lovers!

Amsterdam is just a short drive from the International port of Rotterdam which is serviced by P&O Ferries’ Hull – Rotterdam route.

Image credit: Môsieur J. [version 3.0b]

Tags: History, Netherlands, P&O Ferries by Rosie Khdir
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Brussels has a reputation as a rather staid city, steeped in history, fine cuisine and European politics, but not exactly exotic. Tomas Mowlam finds a substantial slice of tropical Africa in amongst the bustle of the Belgian capital.

The Royal Museum for Central Africa (Musee Royal de l’Afrique Centrale in French, or Koninklijk Museum voor Midden Africa in Dutch) is one of the best European museums dedicated to Africa, and probably the largest collection of Central African artefacts.

The vast area of Central Africa contains jungles, exotic wildlife, the remains of ancient civilisations and heartbreaking stories of war and exploitation. Verdant and vibrant, it’s a fascinating region.

Now is one of the best times to visit the museum; the end of April this year is the centenary anniversary of the museum and there’s a whole raft of new exhibitions to celebrate. The Congo River is a huge exhibition dedicated to the 4700km long, twisting river which gives the country its name and its life.

It’s also the last chance to see Ungayithenga inhlizyo mongo wami, loosely translated as you can buy my heart and soul; they are beautiful sculptures of elephants made from recycled timber, by the artist Andries Botha.

To say the museum has a collection doesn’t really do it justice; there are over 10 million (albeit preserved) animals, 180,000 different objects, like masks, tools and weapons, 20,000 maps and 8,000 musical instruments.

Under the direction of King Leopold I, from 1885 Belgium seized the largest of all European colonies in Africa – the Congo. Belgian rule was brutal and the Congo was exploited for ivory and then for rubber and minerals.

Virtually all the objects here were collected between 1885 and 1960, by soldiers, explorers, traders, missionaries and scientists.

The museum has great guided tours, music workshops and special activities for kids. At time of writing these included Insects of Africa – guaranteed to thrill kids fascinated by creepy crawlies, Elephants – dedicated to one of Africa’s iconic animals as well as storytelling tours, and percussion workshops.

Open Tuesday to Friday until 10am until 5pm and on the weekends until 6pm. Leuvensesteenweg 13, 3080 Tervuren.

You can get to Belgium with P&O Ferries using the Hull – Zeebrugge route, or alternatively via Dover to Calais from where it is just a short drive along the E40 to the Belgian border. Prices start at just £30 for a car and up to nine people.

Image Credit:l.deleze

Tags: Belgium, P&O Ferries by tmowlam
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The Dutch city of Utrecht is packed with medieval masterpieces. Much of the city’s history is visible in the buildings and the streets you walk down, but one building dominates it all – the Dom Tower. Tomas Mowlam explains all about this fascinating landmark.

Look up and the chances are you’ll be able to see the Tower. The imposing stone structure was one of the largest medieval European towers constructed and it was a clear statement of power by the Church of Utrecht. Though not everyone was so happy; the Dutch preacher Geert Groote protested against the project calling it vain and wasteful. Killjoy.

Vain or not, it’s undeniably impressive; formed from two blocks with huge vaulted arches, and with a lack of visible buttresses it seems to erupt straight from the ground.

Construction started in 1321 and was completed in 1382. Originally the tower was 109 metres tall, though when it was restored in 1910 the Dutch cheekily added another 3.5 metres to it.

One of the chief wonders of the tower is the belfry and the fourteen bells, which weigh over 32 tonnes. They were cast in 1505 by Geert van Wou, one of the most famous bell-founders in the Netherlands.

Seven bells were sold off in 1664 to fund the new Carillion (a collection of bells which acts as a musical instrument), but were recast in 1982. The largest of the bells is Salvator, which weighs a mammoth 8.2 tonnes and has a diameter of over two metres. They are still rung regularly.

The tower has been through the wars; a fierce storm ravaged the Cathedral in the winter of 1674, and the unfinished nave was destroyed. The rest of the Cathedral and the tower were never re-connected and are now separated by the Domplein square and street.

The storm of 1836 damaged the top floor of the tower, and the town even considering demolishing it. Thankfully cooler heads prevailed, though restoration took five years.

Utrecht lies between Amsterdam and Rotterdam, just a short drive from the International port of Rotterdam which is serviced by P&O Ferries’ Hull – Rotterdam route.

Image Credit: bbcactii

Tags: Netherlands, P&O Ferries by tmowlam
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