In the garden today

 Pheants, partridge, blackbirds, magpies, wood pigeons, deer, squirrel, hare and butterflies 

Time for Cannabis: The Prison Years 1991 to 1995 - excerpt HMP Whitemoor

Taken from Time for Cannabis, The Prison Years, available on Amazon in paperback and on Kindle

HMP Whitemoor

During my time on remand in Norwich I had somehow managed to give up smoking cigarettes. This had been on New Year's Eve; not exactly a resolution but a definite conscious decision. I had passed through the time of bail and the tremendous stress involved with the court case and awaiting sentence without starting again. Even the months of boredom awaiting transfer had not driven me back to that particular demon and deadly weed!

On the day of transfer to Whitemoor Maximum Security prison my resolve came very close to breaking. After a journey which seemed to take hours (it actually took just over an hour), with myself and another convict P handcuffed together in the prison bus, we arrived at Whitemoor only to be whisked through and placed in a waiting cell in reception. Although from the outside the building looked remarkably new and clean, situated out in the Moors, the most striking feature was the heavy repressive "vibe" I felt as we entered. As P made himself a thin roll-up I suddenly wanted my first cigarette in eleven months. I can only be grateful to P for offering me one when I'd mentioned it! If he had not done so my cravings would have increased to the point where I would have happily begged, but it was his very offer which hardened my resolve. I decided to turn away from the demon and await a nice cup of tea on the wing instead.

F or a maximum security prison, the search of our possessions, all in prison transit boxes, was remarkably light and brief. My disposable gas lighter was disposed of, as they were not allowed here. We were then taken through the endless locked gates, down the long camera-filled corridors, and put onto C wing.

Whitemoor consisted of four wings, A, B, C, and D. Wings A and B were reserved for the nonces and beasts. Sex offenders and the worst type of serial killers, being under constant (and maybe understandable) threat from the rest of the prison community, are considered vulnerable by the authorities, and in Whitemoor there are two wings to themselves. In theory at least they are never allowed to mix with other prisoners, for their own sakes. In fact this seriously disrupts the system, since it results in the necessity of constantly monitoring the flowing of prisoners to ensure that they do not cross, which slows down movements. They have their separate library evenings, separate gym. sessions, separate work and separate exercise times on the Astroturf.

What is not separated, believe it or not, is visits! This is probably due to the more or less correct assumption that nobody will attack anybody else whilst on the way to, or during, a family visit. Although the two types of prisoner are taken to the visiting hall, under escort, at different times, the time spent waiting for the movements from these "vulnerable" wings for visits to cease, before the rest of us can move, and the fact that the nonces are sitting down one end of the hall and us at the other, only adds to the general resentments and hatred. At our end we are constantly concerned lest our small children stray down the other end of the hall. The hatred we feel for most of those men is often shared by many of the screws.

Personally, I can only think that such a system of trying to run two maximum security prisons in one was devised by a crazy man!

Each of the four wings at Whitemoor houses three spurs, labelled blue, red and green. It would come as no surprise to anyone experienced in the prison system, that although the floors of the spurs are coloured orange, green and blue, this bears absolutely no relationship to the spurs' names! Each spur houses approximately 42 inmates on three landings.

During my stay there was free flow between spurs but not between wings, although C wing (my wing) and D wing did mix on education, exercise, at work, and in the gymasium.

Being a new prison the cells were equipped with flush toilets and wash basins. The windows were heavily barred; the view out of mine was of a small patch of grass separating us from another wing. I could not see the sky, day or night. At night the area was floodlit. Day and night it was observed through cameras. All the cells were singles. The noise factor was quite high, even at night. Outside the cell door was the landing, and on the ground floor ("the Ones") some men had put tables and chairs so that they could sit and play cards, talk, or eat together. Also on this ground floor there was a pool table and table tennis table but one had to find one's own table tennis ball.

The three spurs joined together and led into an area which was originally meant as a dining area, where the serving hatch was; situated. Meal times were at 8.15 am, noon and 4.45 pm, when we would go along and collect our slops on plastic plates and eat it with plastic knives and forks.

The quality of the food, out of kindness, can only be described as very poor. The ingredients were fine, but mostly ruined during cooking or standing round for literally hours before being brought from the main kitchens to the wings for serving.

Most of my meals were binned. The prison service needs severe criticism for the quality of food in most prisons. One wonders if the fact that most prisoners are fed at a cost less than the dogs who patrol the grounds, reflects the true feelings of the authorities towards convicts.

Do they regard us as animals? If they treat people like animals then the chances are that animals is what will eventually be released back into society.

We had access to small but reasonably well-equipped inmate kitchens where we could cook whatever we wanted, which could be ordered via the canteen once a week, and those who had money mostly did this.

We were allowed to spent up to £5 per week on top of the wage, which was about £6 depending on occupation.

There was also a water boiler so we could make our own tea. Each week we were provided with tea bags, sugar and powdered milk for this purpose. There was a great deal of pilfering from the main kitchen, a necessary part of life in this nick, everything from milk to chickens.

The other facilities around the wing consisted of a video and TV room, communal showers, and, later on, washing machines. There were three monitored telephones per wing, operated by special HMP phone cards bought from the canteen.

Outside and between the spurs was a small fenced-in and filthy yard (made filthy by the inmates throwing rubbish and scraps from their overlooking windows, and seldom cleaned); this yard was about 30 feet square; this was where some 240 inmates were allowed for 40 minutes twice daily for exercise, or, in the summer, to sit in a clean area in the sun.

The general attitudes of the inmates, I believe largely caused by their treatment, manifests in their attitude to their environment and the few facilities. Everything from the TV's to the pool tables are subject to the vandalism that reflects the tension and the lack of self esteem felt by the men. During my stay at Whitemoor there were a number of incidents of release of tension in this way. One case involved a man, quite intoxicated on the local brew, Hooch, pissing on to the pool table from the third floor!

There was a considerable amount of Hooch on the wings, and a lot of hard drugs. The drugs somehow kept the lid on the place, most of the time. Each wing contained some 15 to 20 lifers, many with recommendations of long sentences, as well as a lot of guys doing over twenty years. Almost everyone was doing over eight years.

My ten-year sentence was small compared to most. In a situation like this most men have little to lose, and the atmosphere is one of constant tension and frustration, like you would expect from caged animals. Once a place like this "goes off" there can be untold damage, violence, and even loss of life. Hence the screws, affectionately known as "kanga's" are just as tense and wary as the inmates. (Kanga = kangaroo = screw = prison officer). During my stay of ten months at Whitemoor there were not many occurrences of trouble calling for the presence of outside "mufti's" or riot squads. I lived there in quiet times.

The first time I witnessed such an occasion was three days after my arrival, but I will come to that shortly.

The day after our arrival we were taken down to the stores to collect our clothes and kit. I must say that it was a surprise to find that most of the clothes were in reasonable condition. We were given two pairs of jeans, three striped blue shirts, underwear and socks, tee-shirts, a jumper and a denim jacket.

Of course we would not really need cold weather clothes since we were hardly likely to be going out much. These items were all put into a transit box which we carried back, via about eight sets of locked gates, to our cells.

Upon arrival at HMP Whitemoor, in theory, each inmate was to undergo a period of induction in a separate building known, for some reason, as the "spud unit" . This is where one would be told how the place was run, what was offered to you and what was required of you. Unfortunately, when we arrived this unit was full up with overflow from the block. The block, a segregation punishment unit, and the spud unit were full during my whole stay at Whitemoor, although I myself never visited either. Some guys spent their whole time at Whitemoor down there, and never came onto the wing. Every prisoner in the block, though, had to have a cell reserved for him on the wing, which meant quite a few empty cells, some of which were never occupied. This was something of a joke against the authorities.

Very few men seemed to regard a trip to the block as any sort of threat, despite the stories of beatings by the officers down there, and the resulting "shit protests", a situation where inmates would cover themselves and their cells with their own excrement, a practice which originated in the prisons to stop such beatings, the assumption being that no officer would want to enter such a cell or touch such a person; mostly true!

But for us new arrivals, the running of Whitemoor was to remain a mystery which we had to unravel ourselves, as we were not able to go on induction. Hence we were put straight on the wing, a different wing to our mates from the time of remand in Norwich.

For the first two days it was the height of boredom, confusion, and tension. On the third day the situation changed. There was a contained riot and lock down, although in fact it was the other way round; the riot and smash up resulted from the lock down!

Apparently some men had been discovered with weapons and files, trying to file through the bars of a cell window. This was only natural of course. But the result was that the inexperienced and out-of-touch Governor, whom I never even saw at any stage during my sentence (he was probably justifiably too frightened to show his face), ordered that the whole prison be "spun" (searched) and any "excess kit" removed.

The doors were not unlocked that morning. The screws, being well trained fascists who follow orders to the letter and without question, proceeded to search each cell in turn. As the officers moved through the wing, coming closer and closer to my cell, I could hear more and more shouting and banging and smashing.

Eventually it was my turn.

Three screws came into the cell and ordered me to strip for a search. They then searched the cell. The items that I had and which were confiscated were: a plastic chair which had been in the cell when I arrived but which technically belonged in the video room ( all the chairs were actually in cells), a metal tea spoon I had brought from Norwich, a plastic shaving mirror, a second blue plastic bowl I had also brought with me, and a second white plastic plate!

Dangerous stuff, particularly the mirror which, if waved in an officer's face, could send him into serious shock!

After they left my cell the situation outside worsened. It was now well past lunch time and the spins were continuing; we were not being given lunch! Then shouting started and rumour spread that a man on the ones had refused them entry to his cell, by barricading his door.

Of course, there are procedures for this, and entry was forced, and, so the shouts claimed, the man had been grabbed, had his arm broken, and received a serious kicking. Then the place "went off". I could hear sinks and toilets being smashed everywhere.

From my small window I could see flaming papers descending into the yard outside. Individuals were being dragged off to the block, some being quite badly kicked and punched. The long-timers were shouting threats at the screws. I heard one prisoner shout "I'm doing a long time you bastards, just wait til I get my chance." The civilian "mufti" squad was called in. Unknown to us the whole outside of the prison was surrounded by coach loads of police and army, and helicopters filled the skies. Safely inside my cell I must admit to being quite amused and entertained; it certainly broke the monotony!

At about 6 PM. my cell door was opened and I was told to go and collect my dinner. We were being let out two at a time, and about thirty or so officers were standing around the wing. I was escorted down to the serving hatch and back by no less than four padded and visored "mufties" who never uttered a word and neither did I; it just seemed so funny to me! I collected a dinner, stone cold, and after one taste, back in my cell, flushed it away. I had been allowed to fill my Thermos flask, so at least had a nice cuppa. This procedure took several hours, and was repeated as soon as it was over, so we could have an equally bad evening meal. The day ended quite quietly and I went to sleep, wondering what the hell was going to happen next.

The following day we were still locked in our cells, all work and education and association being cancelled, whilst various inmates were taken away for instant transfer throughout the national prison dispersal system. Altogether I think some 40 to 50 inmates were moved out.

It didn't make a lot of difference to me, since I did not know anyone anyway, but it was certainly an experience, and a demonstration of the trouble that can be caused by an ill-worded command from an out-of-touch Governor. Apparently this same Governor had caused a riot several years earlier, in Norwich prison!

The following day we were still left locked up. This was known as a "lock-down", and let out a few at a time for a late and cold breakfast. We all stayed in our cells until after lunch, when letters from the Governor were pushed under our doors, saying that if things remained quiet we would be returning to normal routines soon. As it happened, that was on the following day.

Well, what an introduction to Whitemoor for me!

It was like a lesson on in-cell smash-ups and "ship-outs", mostly involving men I did not know but with whom I had considerable sympathy, both because we were all locked up and because the removal of such petty yet helpful everyday items from our possessions was nonsensical and inhumane. Why these men were in prison in the first place, was irrelevant to me.

This is a question which remains unasked until one gets to know someone better. For me the reality was that whoever they were or whatever they had done, the system was almost certainly as bias against them as it had been against me. A heck of a lot of men in places like Whitemoor were awaiting appeals on both conviction and sentence.

I feel pretty certain that some of these men were innocent, and many may eventually have won their appeals.

Of course the facts that innocent men can get convicted by their so-called peers, and that on the other hand guilty men can have convictions quashed due to technicalities or misbehaviour by the police, forensic scientists or prosecution service (CPS), makes quite a mockery of the legal system. Who knows whether it is preferable to bang up a few innocent in order to keep the guilty off the streets, or to free a few guilty in order that miscarriages of justice on the innocent cease.

 

Whatever conclusions one reaches, whatever one's feelings about how prisoners should be treated, prisons like Whitemoor seem devised to remove individuality (at which they are unsuccessful), induce fear and even paranoia, and produce a very angry, bitter, twisted, warped personality on release.

 

surnames

I was just thinking of surnames with meanings, such as colours, emotions, occupations, creatures, utensils, slang!!   Can you think of any more - please add in comments.

White, Black, Green, Brown, Gray

Bliss, Hope, Love

Abbott, Archer, Baker, Barber, Bishop, Brewer, Butcher, Butler, Clark, Cooper, Cook, Deacon, Driver, Earl, Farmer, Fisher, Fletcher, Fowler, Gardener, Marshall, Mason, King, Pope, Potter, Priest, Prince, Sheriff, Smith, Taylor, Tinker, Weaver, 

Bird, Bull, Crow, Fox, Lamb, Partridge, Peacock, Squirrel

Bucket, Kettle

Johnson, Trump 

My books on Amazon and meta ai comment

 

http://www.buffry.org.uk/ a free publishing.html. Check out the books 

Towns, cities, villages,rivers and places that I have visited over the years

You can see some of my travel videos  HERE - likes and comments appreciated, thanks:

Norwich (Castle, Two Cathedrals, River Wensum, River Yare, River Tas), Great Yarmouth (Rivers Yare, Waveney and Bure, seaport, beach), Lowestoft, Acle, Cromer, Wells, Sheringham, Wells-Next-Sea, Blakeney, Holt, Potter Heigham, Marsham, Aylsham, Horning, Swaffham, Dereham, Fakenham, Kings Lynn, Stalham, Salhouse, Little Plumstead, Great Plumstead, Wymondham, Wicklewood, Great Ryburgh, Holme Hale, Coltishall, North Walsham, Walsingham, Ling, Attleborough, New Buckenham, Long Stratton, Newmarket (Racecourse), Ipswich (River Orwell), Colchester, Witham, Braintree, Chelmsford, Harwich, Bury St Edmunds, Watford, London (River Thames, London Bridge, House of Parliament, Trafalgar Square, Big Ben, Madame Tussauds, / Planetarium, Markets, British Museum, London Bridge, Tower of London, Buckingham Palace, Hyde Park, Kensington Gardens, Kew Gardens, Hamstead Heath, metro "The Tube"), Dover (White Cliffs), Goudburst, Cranbrook, Tunbridge Wells, Leeds Castle, Exeter, Exmouth, Southampton, St Helens Guernsey, Isle of Wight, Glastonbury (Tor), Stonehenge, Canterbury, Hastings (beach, fishing port, Castle - the "whispering Dungeons"), Battle, Brighton, Hove, Worthing, Horley, Guildford, Taunton, Salisbury (River Avon, Cathedral), Romsey, Oxford (River Thames), Cambridge (River Cam, Bottisham airfiled museum), Ely (Cathedral), Peterborough, Reading (River Thames), Winnersh, Slough, Swindon, Bath (River Avon, Roman Baths), Bristol (River Avon, Clifton Suspension Bridge, Zoo), Cheddar Gorge (caves), “Bloody Tight” cave, Weston-Super-Mare, Newport (River Usk), Cardiff (River Taff, River Rumney, Tiger Bay, Castle, St Davids Cathedral), Bridgend (Afon Ogwr / River Ogmore), Nelson, Rumney (River Rumney), Barry (beach, castle), Porthcawl (beach), Swansea (River Neath), Neath, Brecon (Bannau Brycheiniog Brecon Beacons National Park), Lampeter, Aberystwyth, Rhyll, Chester, Stoke-on-Trent (River Trent), Ironbridge (River Severn), York (Clifford’s Tower), Sheffield (Rivers Don, Sheaf, Rivelin, Loxley and Porter Brook), Blackwood (River Sirhowy), Argoed, Llandudno, Manchster (trams, canal), Mount Snowdon (Highest Mountain in Wales), Forest of Dean, Coleford, Rye, Bourton-on-the Water, Cheltenham, Gloucester, Birmingham (Spaghetti Junction), Telford, Nuneaton, Coventry, Newport Pagnell, Luton, Welwyn Garden City, Knebworth, Royston, Nottingham, Southend-on-Sea, Middlesbrough, Rosslare, Waterford, Cork, Dublin (River Liffey, Guiness Factory, Castle, Halfpenny Bridge), Liverpool (River Mersey, Cathedral), Keswick, Skafell Pike (Highest Mountain in England), Langdale (camp site), Helvellyn (mountain), Coniston (lake and Mountain: "Old Man of Coniston"), Windamere (largest lake in England), Kendall, Lancaster, Carlisle, Glencoe, Perth (River Tay), Aviemore (River Spey), Fort William (River Nevis, River Lochy), Ben Nevis (Highest Mountain in Scotland and the UK), Loch Ness, Aberdeen (River Dee), John o’Groats, Kirkwall, Thurso, Kingston upon Hull (River Hull, Humberside), Leeds (River Aire), 

 Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllantysiliogogogoch,

EUROPE

Paris (Eiffel Tower, The Louvre, Champs-Élysées, Notre Dame, Montmatre Dali Museum, River Seine, metro), Doedogne - Lascaux (replica cave with ancient wall paintings), Carla-Baye, Toulouse (River Garonne, Pont Neuf), Foix (castle), Grotte de Mas-d'Avril) (cave with road), Dions (vandage), Gevry Chambertin, (wine), Beaune (River Bouzaise, wine), Rennes-le-Château (Saint Mary Magdelene Church), Pont du Gard (River Gard /Gardon, Roman Aqueduct), Carcassonne (River Aude), Saint Pastour, Villeneuve sur Lot (River Lot), Avignon (River Rhone, Cathedral), Montpellier (River Lez, Cathedral, Three Graces fountain, trams), Nimes (Colloseum, River Gard /Gardon)), Cannes, Saint- Tropez, Aries (Collosseum), Saintes-Maries-de-la-Mer, Cadaques, Figueres (River Muga, Dalhi Museum), Ibiza, Formentera, Valencia (River Turia), Vitoria, Barcelona (Boqueria market, Las Ramblas, Cathedral, Sagrada Familia, Gaudi artitecture: Casa Batilo, Casa mila - La Pedrera, Cannabis Clubs – Weed You, Doctor Dou, The Resin Club, Dragon Club, Cannabis Hemp Museum, Encants Market, beach, port, trams), Cordoba (River Guadalquivir,  Mezquita-Catedral: Cathedral-Mosque), Alora (Castillo Arabe), Malaga, Benalmádena, Torremolinos, Fuengirola (beach, Castle Shail), La Carla de Mijas (beach), Calahonda (beach), Sierra Gibralgalia, Alhaurin el Grande, Coin, Mijas (Miniatures Museum - Carromato de Mijas, donkey rides), Marbella (marina, beach), Ronda (River Guadalevin, Puente Nuevo bridge), Estepona, La Linea, Gibraltar ("The Rock", St Michaels caves, Barbary macaques monkeys), Algeciras, Matala (beach and caves), Agia Gallini, Heraklion, Knossos (Palace of Minos, Fresoes), Rethymno (beach and harbour), Mystras (UNESCO World Heritage Site, Byzantine ruins), Githio (Diros Caves / Caves of Vlychada), Sparta, Kalamata, Olympia, Patras (beach, flower clock), Kalavryta (rack railway to and from Diakopto with 49 bridges), Corinth  Canal (4 miles long, 80 feet wide, 300 feet high), Athens (Acropolis, Parthenon), Thessaloniki, Puerto de la Cruz, (black sand beach), El Draco - Dragon Tree, Mesa del Mare, Mount Teide, Las Caletillas, Candelaria (Basilica of St Mary, statues of Guanche kings), Los Cristianos (market, beach, "Yellow Submarine"), Los Gigantes, Las Americas (beach), Valle Gran Rey La Gomera, Albufeira (beach), Lagos (Portugal), Lisbon (River Tagos /Rio Tejo, Sao Jorge Castle, Tram rides, Belem Tower, Monument of the Discoveries, Praça do Comércio, Museu de Carveja - Beer Museum), Oporto / Porto (River Duoro, Port Tastings, Igreja da Lapa Cathedral, Lapa Church Bell Clock Tower, Liberty Square, Dom Luis I Bridge, Palacio da Bolsa, Ribeira World Heritage site, Sao Bento Train Station, Majestic Café, funicular), Braga (Bom Jesus do Monte, Cathedral)), Viana do Castelo (River Lima), Povoa de Varzim, Ponte de Lima (River Lima, statues "Alegoria as Feiras e ao Folclore", "Memoria do Campo"), Arcos de Valdevez, Braga, Barcellos (market), Povoa de Verzim, Santiago de Compostella (Rivers Sar and Sarela), A Caruna, Sada, Bilbao (River Nervión, Guggenheim Museum), Vitoria, Brussels, Bruges /Brugge (“Venice of the North”, River Reie, Dalhi Museum, De Halve Maan Brewery, Market Square, Belfry Tower, Cathedral chocolate, canals), Ghent (trams), Antwerp (Cathedral, port, trams), Den Haag, Rotterdam, Amsterdam (River Amstel, canals, Coffeeshops, Cannabis Hemp Museum, Cannabis College, Red Light District, trams), Haarlem (River Spaarne, Coffeeshops, Grote Kerk, Bavo's Church, canals, Windmill), Ijmuiden, Groningen (Coffeeshop), Zwolle (Coffeeshop), Leiden (Egyptian Museum), Helsinki (Cathedral, port, trams), Copenhagen, Hamburg, Berlin (Brandenburg Gate, Egyptian Museum, metro), Munich, Frankfurt am Rhein, Boppard, Rudesheim, Cochem, Heidelberg, Cologne / Coln (River Rhine), Berne, Geneva (River Rhone, River Arve, Lake Geneva, Jet d’Eau, Flower Clock, Egyptian Museum, trams), Lucerne (River Reuss, Swiss Transport Museum, Natural Museum, Chapel Bridge, Kapelbrüke, Lake Lucerne, the Dying Lion), Gruyere (Fondue Restaurants), Lausanne, Zurich (River Limmat), Rome (River Tiber, Colosseum, Spanish Steps, Trevi Fountain, Pyramide, Panteon, Roman Forum, metro), Vatican City (Cathedral St Peter's Basilica, Sistine Chapel, Museum), Pisa (Leaning Tower), Genova / Genoa (Old Port, Nervi, funicular, Christopher Columbus house, Orietal Museum, Aquarium), Alessandria (Rivers Tanaro and Bormida), Lu Monferrato (Church of Santa Maria Nueva), Sacomonde di Crea  (Roman Catholic Sanctuary built on a hill, World Heritage site, chapels containing life-size terracotta statues and frescoes), Vignale Monferrato (Wine, World Heritage site), San Salvatore Monferrato, Mirabello Monferrato, Occimiano, Conzano, Casale (River Po), Vercelli (River Sesia), Isole del Pescatore (Lake island), Baveno (lake), Orta (lake), Verbano (lake), Mombella-Laveno (lake), Turin (River Po, Egyptian Museum), Verona (River Adige), Bergamo (Rivers Serio and Brembo, funicular), Lucca (River Serchio, Duomo di  San Martino Cathedral, Piazza dell'Anfiteatro, San Michele in Foro, Guinigi Tower, city walls), Monterosso al Mare (beach), Comogli, Levanto (beach), Florence (World Heritage Centre, River Arno, Duomo Cathedral, Palazzo Vecchio, Ponte Vecchio), Venice (Venetian lagoon, St Marks Basiica, Piazza San Marco, Doge's Palace, Ponte di Rialto, Grand Canal, Bridge of Sighs), Palermo (Cathedral, Royal Palace and Palatine Chapel, Fontana Pretoria, Square of Shame / Piazza della Vergogna), Cefalu (Cathedral), Belgrade (River Danube), Prague (River Vitava, Castle, Wensleslas Square, Castle, Charles Bridge, Synagogue, Old Town Square / Staroměstské náměstí, Astrological Clock, Mucha Gallery, trams), Kutna Hora (Sedlec Ossuary /Bone Church, Cathehdral), Český Krumlov (World Heritage Site), České Budějovice (Beer Factory), Brno (Cathedral of St Peter and Paultrams), Budapest – “Pearl of the Danube”, (River Danube, Wine Festival, Childrens Railway, Buda Castle, Parliament Buildings, Fishermans Bastion, Chain Bridge funicular, trams), Bucharest (River Dambovita), Sibiu, Brasov (Council Square) , Sighișoara (Supposed birthplace of Vlad the Impaler / Dracula), Bran Castle- supposed Castle of Vlad the Impaler), Bratislava (River Danbue), 

AFRICA 

Ceuta, Tetouan, Fez (River Fes / Oued Fes, medina, Blue Gate / Bab Bouijloud), Marrakesh (market, snake charmers), Mirhleft (fishing village near Tiznit), Essaouira, 

Hammanet (Tunisia, medina), 

Cairo (River Nile, Cairo Museum, Tower), Giza Pyramids (Khufu, Khafre, Menkaure), Saqqara (Step Pyramid, Unas), Luxor, (River Nile, Luxor Temple, Karnak Temple, Valley of the Kings, Valley of the Queens, Valley of the Nobles, Ramasseum, Deir el_Bahari and The Mortuary Temple of Hatshepsut, Medinet Habu, Deir el Medina, Colossi of Memnon) Fayoum, Edfu (River Nile, Temple), Edna (River Nile, Temple), Aswan (River Nile, Dam), 

ASIA 

Istanbul (Pudding Shop, Hagia Sophia Grand Mosque, Bosphorus), Pamukkale (Thermal Pools), Afyonkarahisar, Antalya, Efes, Antakya, Antioch, Aleppos, Deir el Zur, Al Q’im village, Baghdad (River Tigris), Tehran, Mashhad, Herat, Khandahar, Kabul Chicken Street, Kabul River, Blue Mosque, Chicken Street), Khyber Pass, Peshawar (River Kabul), Islamabad, Rawalpindi (River Soan), Lahore (River Ravi), Wagar, 

Amritsar, (Golden Temple), New Delhi (Red Fort, Delhi Gate, Jantar Mantar, Mahatma Ghandi Museum, Old Delhi, Chandni Chowk, Connaught Circus), Jodpur, Jaiselmer (Fort, Camel Trek), Agra (River Yamuna, Taj Mahal, Agra Fort), Fatepur Sikri, (World Heritage site, abandoned city, Buland Darwazar / The "Gate of Victory, Tomb of Salim Chishti, Diqan-i-Khas / Hall of Private Audience, Jodha Bai's Palace) Khajuraho (Hindu and Digambara Jain temples), Varanasi (River Ganges), Haridwar (River Ganges), Rishikesh (River Ganges, Maharishi Mahesh Yogi complex now closed, Lakshman Jhula. Bridge, Buddhist Temples), Sarnath (World Heritage Site, Buddhist Stupas, said to be the site that Gautama Buddha chose for his first teaching after he attained enlightenment in Bodh Gaya., Bodhi Tree / Sacred Fig), Jammu (River Tawi), Srinagar (River Jhelum / Vyath or Vetesta, Lake Dal, houseboats, Lake Nagine, Nishat Bagh gardens, Pony Treks), Gulmarg, Aru (River Aru / Lidder), Kathmandu (Durbar Square, Monkey Temple, Freak Street), Patan (Durbar Square), Pokhara, 

UNITED STATES 

Miami (Metrorail, Science Museum, Arena).

A 17-minute excerpt of Prem Rawat's 2012 address Ezeiza Women's Prison, near Buenos Aires, Argentina.

Richard Large art exhibition in Norwich

WATCH ON YOUTUBE

Richard will be exibing some of his artwork at Anteros Foundation Magdalen Street Norwich 21st April to 3 May, all welcome

POP POP presents a vibrant collection of assemblages and collages by Richard K. Large, created entirely by hand on a kitchen worktop — without the use of computers. Using resin to construct his assemblages and traditional cut-and-paste techniques for his collages, Large embraces a tactile, direct approach to making that foregrounds materiality and transformation.

The exhibition reflects an evolving engagement with Pop Art. Large works with objets trouvés — objects that already carry their own histories and identities — reconfiguring them into new forms through layering, juxtaposition, and intervention. By adding unexpected elements, he creates fresh narratives and playful visual tensions, inviting viewers to reconsider the familiar.

Born in 1952, Large developed an early passion for sailing and travel, often combining the two. His artistic sensibility has been shaped by a long-standing admiration for Surrealist artists and their exploration of dreamlike associations and altered realities. Formative experiences working at Heal’s in London during the 1970s, alongside encounters with Middle Eastern and African art and design in Morocco and Egypt, further informed his visual language and sensitivity to pattern, form, and object.

Encouraged by positive responses from friends and peers, POP POP marks the culmination of years of experimentation and creative exploration — a celebration of reinvention, memory, and the transformative potential of everyday materials.

Luxor 2013

 Watch and please like and comment on YouTube

Sand Through the Hand, a song by Alun Buffry , words written in 1982

 

Sand through the Hand

by

Alun Buffry

(1982)

Life flows so quick like golden sand

Each grain a day passed through God’s hand

Each moment precious as a jewel

And Yet I waste it like a fool.

You looked at me my heart to sway

But blind I was and looked away

Back to desires and lust and greed

From which You begged me to be freed.

I never ceased to grab and hoard,

Always forgetting my sweet Lord,

That Love lives on within inside

From whom no soul would wish to hide.

I pray to you Lord, to be so kind

And give me strength to ignore my mind,

So from your path I’ll never stray

And at your feet my life will stay.

Those things for which once I craved

You showed inside and I was saved,

Life’s flow became a flow of bliss.

Each grain a chance Your feet to kiss.

And if ever off I stray again,

Please call me back to Holy Name

That Light inside me, make it glow,

Your endless love, please let me know.

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Sicily: Palermo, Cefalu