United Kingdom First Impressions and No, Nos!

The following piece was written for Learning English Cambodia
"Why study in UK?

You’ve succeeded at last.  Your dream has come true and you’ve finally arrived to be a student in the United Kingdom. Well you will have had your first introduction to this quaint nation’s many peculiarities. You’ll face many more before you’re safely settled in to your new home for the next chapter in your life.

Yes that first introduction is to the queue, the orderly queue, that you went through at Border Control. Woe betide anyone who jumps the queue, any queue, in the UK. They are soon admonished.

Best years of my life 1969

Image of Kingston 1969.  The arcade is just like the one where Eric Clapton once strummed his guitar and where we bought our secondhand LP records. The guy passing by hiding his face has more than a passing resemblance to one who used to lurk for hours in the Kingston Penrhyn Road refectory. He hasn’t changed much since but these days Ashby de la Zouch pubs are more his haunts (and feline rather than female company!)

Almost without fail on a Saturday night in the Fleece Inn Alnwick, the very familiar tones of Bryan Adams and “Best Days of Your Life” – or “Summer of 69” will be performed and rapturously received, by what can only be described as a dwindling grey-haired audience.

Scents and sensibility

The ‘Golden Champa” Chanel’s secret ingredient or Ladakh’s secret to keep? 

My ears pricked up immediately on hearing about India’s decision last week for direct rule of Kashmir.  I once had some remote (very remote of course) involvement with Ladakh and some good people there.  There are mixed views as ever on India’s move but one thing I do recall is how honourable and ethical were our erstwhile Ladakhi colleagues. That’s something very rare in Cambodia.

St Helena - Free Yourself from Mental Slavery

The BBC World Service airs some brilliant shows. One today (8 August 2019) surrounds the topic of Bob Marley’s “Songs of Redemption”.

It gave me “Emancipate Yourself from Mental Slavery” the final hook needed to complete my long-held contention about why the UK constantly fails in its efforts to make Saint Helena Island self-sufficient.

The Rise and Fall of Public Service

Ealing Town Hall

My UK public service career began here in 1970 as a pre-graduate experience placement. In 1974 I joined Surrey County Council, moving on to Devon County Council in 1975 and to Dorset County Council in 1978 where dealing with “Social Services” was the biggest challenge.  I left for overseas life and work in 1985, going to St Helena; Saudi Arabia, Malawi and Rwanda before settling in SE Asia working mainly in Cambodia. My profession and training is in “organisational development” and “human resources” - how to obtain the best performances from people.  I retired from full-time work in June 2016, only to encounter maladministration at Northumberland County Council.

Update June 2022 - it seems I am not the only one to have misgivings about the way Northumberland Council was operating. Belated Vindication? Please see this article, latest update below and links to reports. The main report makes graphic and sad reading.

Please see the sequel to this blog and my website entry - the case for better public service everywhere also published here.

Bournemouth Dorset 1984

Mr Ricketts couldn’t believe his luck.  He’d asked for a pay rise and got twice as much as he’d asked for.  His trade union representative Mr Watson beamed approvingly: “Never” he said  ”Never has his union won a pay upgrade by two whole grades”.  Mrs Bicknell chairing the Appeals Committee addressed all three of us. “We don’t care what the rules are supposed to be.  We are correcting an injustice and that is our job as elected Councillors.”

The Unlikely Foreign Aid Worker

A follow-up to my most popular Blog “Smarter Aid, not More Aid”.

Play on words. Cambodia is known as the Kingdom of Wonder but because of corruption this is changed to Kingdom of Plunder. This is the default position in human resources management where seldom does the best person get the job.

Life can be strange.  Although things can work out as expected for people, often they don’t.  We see that there are some born to follow family traditions. Sometimes we also see children who harbour very early keen ambitions for what they want to do in life, and they adopt clear study and career paths.  For others opportunism matters more than a concerted plan.  Then there are a few of us – Lally Brown is one - who have discarded sensible plans to let fate take its course.

Time and Tide Waits for No Man

Marooned on the Holy Island Causeway

Please click on this link to enjoy the full video.

If there is one thing in Northumberland that reminds me of parallels in Cambodia it is the Holy Island crossing, where fools never cease to try beating the tide and end up marooned in mid-sea.  Even a Buddhist monk in this video defies his Karma as if to allow me to make my connection here with Cambodia.