I’ve discovered a fascinating new website. Well, fascinating for news junkies like myself… It’s the Washington-based Newseum, which collects front pages every day from many newspapers in many countries. Below is today’s link page, saying there are 574 front pages from 53 countries. It it were a weekday there would be more – 800 of the world’s newspapers submit their pages. They include several New Zealand newspapers.
Jumping-off point for today’s North American newspapers. Clicking on a yellow marker brings up a small version of the front page for that locality's newspaper, and it can be made bigger for easy readingy. ( Click to enlarge this image.)
There are similar maps for different regions of the world and newspapers can also be selected from lists and pages of thumbnails. They open up very fast and are moderately readable on the computer screen. However, clicking a button can load a newspaper in much higher resolution PDF form.
The website also has general information about the world of newspapers, and descriptions of the physical Newseum museum and display centre, which opened in April 2009.
Sunday Mail (Brisbane), Sunday Sun (Calgary), El Espectador (Bogota). Click to enlarge.
Gulf News (UAE), Tribune (Mesa, Arizona), Leon Milenio (Mexico). Click to enlarge.
I accidentally came across this gem in the New Zealand Spectator and Cook’s Strait Guardian, 23 June 1849, at the National Library’s Papers Past website. Just the thing for young women to send to their brothers to encourage their undying gratitude? I think not. But it’s interesting, and gives an insight into a way of life for young people that is so different to 21st century New Zealand that it could come from a different galaxy.
Celebrants and gawpers moving, in the gathering gloom, to the Stonehenge Aoteoroa structure for the Alban Arthan ceremony.
Last weekend we booked ourselves into the annual winter solstice celebrations at Stonehenge Aoteoroa, near Carterton. It was, or claimed to be, an ancient Celtic and Druidic ceremony known as Alban Arthan – which can be translated as “The Light of Arthur.” The ceremony was followed, at the Carterton RSA, by a dinner during which there were presentations about the meaning and import of it all.
The ceremony, held in freezing southerly conditions with the rain…just…holding off, was interesting, if a little repetitive. Mostly inoffensive stuff: peace in the valley, changing of the seasons, darkness and light, rebirth and so on. I kept feeling, as indeed I do in Christian church services, that most of this was mom and apple pie stuff. OK, remind us once, but don’t go on and on about it – I heard you fine the first time.
The robed and hooded celebrants held north, east, south and west positions and took turns to add their two penn’oth worth from their geographical perspectives, making it all add up to an indivisible whole and harmony on Earth. Or so they said. They even managed to mix a little Maori into the ceremony, as in this example:
West: “Tane Mahuta, the element of the Earth. May the harmony of our circle be complete.”
South: “I proclaim the Festival of Alban Arthan, Light of Arthur, on this winter solstice.”
East: “The turning point of the whole world.”
North: “The time of Nardia and rebirth.”
West: “I proclaim the time of greatest night.”
South: “And this – the dark of winter between the death and the end of all things past and the birth and beginning of all things past and the birth and beginning of all things new and reborn. Look forward to the things that are beginning…the spark of new life that is the promise of the death and rebirth of the Gods and the morning joy of the Goddess, heralding the new year coming.”
East: “The winter solstice is marked throughout the whole world. It belongs to no one area or no one people, but stands for universal truth. At one we stand in this circle and attend the triumph of the dark. Now is the time to mourn that which is finished and dying.”
…and so on, and on. I may not have got all the geographical positions correct in that quote, but that’s the general flavour. We even got a Druidical (or was it Celtic?) version of the Indian Ooommmmmmmm…..
The after-match function was excellent. It was nice to be in the toasty warm Carterton RSA after freezing in the ferro-concrete circle. The roast meal really hit the spot. There were excellent presentations from both the Stonehenge Aoteoroa director and the Druids. The latter revealed themselves to be funny and pretty normal. I guess they take themselves seriously, but there was a welcome absence of the humbug that often comes from Christian apologists. No, I’m not about to join the cult, but I’m happy for them to carry on in their own fashion, doing less damage to the world than conventional god-botherers.
We thought the whole event, from the ceremony to the dinner, was excellent value for $35.
The two Druids, back in civvies, who told us what it was all about at the after-match function at the Carterton RSA. Sitting in front of them, wearing a celestial waistcoat, is astronomer Richard Hall, who gave an excellent talk about the winter solstice and Celtic star-lore.
There were no business commitments on the day we arrived in Seoul and Alex, our host, arranged for us to visit the the Korean Folk Village, a living museum in the city of Yongin, part of the broader Seoul Metropolitan Area. Even though it was a ‘canned’ tourist attraction, it was well done and very interesting. It was large – over 260 traditional houses plus gardens, set in 240 acres. Established over 30 years ago, it has developed some patina of age, while being extremely well maintained.
The village has a wide variety of buildings: traditional houses of the different social classes, farm buildings, community facilities etc. It was early summer when we were there and the deciduous trees were green and lush.
Close-up of one of the houses. The dangling yellow things are corncobs.
Extensive areas of gardens were still being worked. Click on it to see an enlarged version. Throughout the village, people dressed in traditional costume demonstrated traditional crafts and activities.
Our charming guide who travelled with us from Seoul and explained the village to us. Here she is demonstrating a traditional method of ironing cloth: beating it. She was dumfounded when Alex told her his grandmother used the same method. She simply couldn't believe that such activities could be within living memory.
Several school groups were at the folk museum.
Warning sign in one of the buildings.
Below is a short video of musicians at the Korean Folk Village. The dancing percussionists were accompanied by a single player of the taepyeongso, also known as hojok or hojeok. It is a double reed wind instrument in the shawm or oboe family.
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