A Celebration

My parents have been married for 35 years. We decided to celebrate while we were in Paris because my grandmother (who is 80 years young) is also along for the trip. We ate at Cafe de l'Alma on Avenue Rapp. It is decorated by Francis Champsaur, an emerging name in interior design. Residence Magazine reviewed the place by saying 'a tester sans tarder.' (One to try without hesitating.) We were thrilled with the experience. Bon anniversaire!

You May Think My Blog Is Out of Date

...And you would be correct. I am in Paris now staying in an apartment on Avenue de la Bourdonnais with a gorgeous view of the Eiffel Tower. We have a balcony on the top floor which allows a great picture of the Tower at night lit up. Our internet connection is sparse but I will post pictures very soon. We went to the Louvre today and appreciated Venus de Milo, the Mona Lisa and hundreds of other beautiful paintings/sculptures/sketches by Leonardo de Vinci, Raphel and Michelangelo. Wish you were here. My parents and grandmother are enjoying their first trip to Paris and we are celebrating their 35th wedding anniversary tonight.

L'Oreal in London

(Photo from Ginger Group website.)

My friends with Ginger Hair Group, London (and soon Italy) went to the L'Oreal Colour Competition last night.

Kingsley said the guinea fowl was boiled and the hair styles reminded him of boring bobs. In his words, "I was doing the bob last year!"

Party favors included a bottle of champers and a bottle of Armani Remix.

Before Our Media Exercise...

Lucy interviews Captain John. We get suited up for the field...



Penelope is thinking (in French): "When is this silly ride going to be over? I want to get onto the battlefield!"



These pics are on the coast in Denmark. The lighthouse in the picture is on the hill overlooking a village on the edge of Esbjerg. This is Penelope, Rupert Nichol, me, Lucy Rohr, Brooke Johnston and Mr. Ian Aitchison.



We set up camp on an Army base. The facilities were good. The bathrooms even had heated floors.

Media Day NATO Training

The NATO Marines did a pretty intensive live training exercise on our last day in Denmark. Hope you enjoy the pictures.

Traveling Germany

One of our lovely stops along the trek from Denmark to Poland included Lubeck, Germany. This city is close to the Denmark border and boasts history and non-Disney like, tourist-friendly areas.

We purused the market stands hosted by villagers in the area. Wares included antiques, rugs made from Sheep wool, Amber jewelry, local wines and hand made pottery.

In the Piazza filled by the market, we also found a nice cafe where we shared lunch. Lucy, Brooke, Penelope, Rupert and I dined on smoked Salmon salads, Sausages, Beef Mash and of course cold beer served in Steins.

The Telegraph, A Country Pub in London

I guess I really haven't had a proper pub lunch since landing in London. I say this because today I had a delicious lunch, served in a historic pub, on a famous green. The food was cooked to perfection, flavored subtly and served with pride.

Yesterday, for something new, my honey suggested we go to The Telegraph Pub in Putney Heath, London. A friend had recently described the atmosphere and location of the place with genuine enthusiasm. The sun was in the sky this morning and we set off for shopping. Afterwards, we needed energy in the form of good food.

The Telegraph's slogan is "More Thank A Pub, A Slice of History." We discovered not only history but community members enjoying the sun, a cricket game nearby and nice food. Over plates of thinly sliced beef and lamb, covering piles of fresh vegtables, patrons discussed local Football and upcoming summer plans.


Lcoated in a surprisingly large green area of South West London, this Pub stands for more than a nice brew. The venue sits near the old Telegraph Station, which served as a communication link from London to the south shore of Great Britain beginning in 1796. Apparently each station used a system of shutters, which could be raised or lowered according to code communicating with the next station.

The Pub sits on a beautiful park which was famous in the 18th century for duels and highwaymen and Tibbet's Corner. The corner is the site of a gallows, which is now contained in the center of a roundabout. Many famous people reportedly dueled here, including William Pitt the Younger, who was Prime Minister at the time.

*Information from "Secrets of Wimbledon & Putney Heath by Clive Whichelow.

The Bird Has Landed

Thanks for hanging with me during the NATO mission. I made it back to London with no problems. Will post more pics and video soon. xxx

NATO Article Day 3

In the Simpress NATO Newsletter (a simulated press exercise):

NATO forces to land in cover of darkness
By Denae D’Arcy
May 17 2007

NATO forces are packing up and moving to a new training location today. Spokesmen won’t comment on exactly where the mission will take place but it will be conducted in the dark. The night landing exercise will be somewhere in the Baltic Sea.

Marines are embarking on NATO ship Largs Bay and other landing ships and will conduct a full scale landing on the beach at night. Largs Bay will come close to shore, flood its internal dock on the underside of the ship, and open its rear door.

Marines are then able to move toward the beach by landing craft. Once the craft reaches shallow water, Marines will drive their vehicles onto the beach.

A NATO Spokesperson says “Landing under cover of darkness means there is an element of surprise and we can operate without people knowing what we’re doing. Coming in by day attracts opposition.”

NATO Print Articles

A couple of my articles published in the NATO newsletter, prepared by members of Simpress (simulated press)... This is a training scenerio only.

NATO Stages Force Demonstration
By Denae D’Arcy
May 16 2007

NATO invited Media onto pride of fleet HNMLS De Ruyter today for a briefing of training exercises.

Forces are preparing for rapid deployment to Poplarland and hosted a Media Day to inform citizens of recent activity.

Poplarland has requested NATO assistance as fighting among insurgents escalates.

Admiral Sir James Burnell Nugent spoke about the NATO Response Force, which allows NATO to respond swiftly to crisis around the world.

“The Force is rapidly deployable, with high readiness able to deploy within 5 to 30 days and able to sustain an operation for long periods of time, 30 days of longer before re supply.”

Members of the media were also allowed to tour sea going vessel, Largs Bay, which is a ship used to deliver supplies, transport Marines and aid in evacuations.
###

NATO Forces Train With Live Fire
By Denae D’Arcy
May 15 2007

NATO forces in Mapleland hosted live training exercises today in order to prepare for service. Forces believe they will be deployed to Poplarland soon to help with an escalating crisis there.

Today’s exercises on the vast, sandy terrain near Oxbul included Marines securing buildings by breaking down doors and clearing the spaces.

NATO Captain John Fidler says: “We want to get our Marines ready for any environment, be it combative or humanitarian.”

Training today also included practice with live rounds and aerial tactics. 100 NATO Marines took to the battlefield for a simulated company attack from land and air. The live ammunition exercise lasted for two hours with a debriefing period afterwards.

###

Published In Avantoure

My article about shark diving in Ghansbaai, South Africa was published in Avantoure Magazine. Please check out the table of contents and download a copy here.

NATO Wednesday

I slightly burned my hand today while firing a GPMG with the Royal Marines. No medivac needed. Ha. For civilians, the accronym stands for General Purpose Machine Gun. In fact, I had to lie on the ground face down while doing it. We were shooting blanks but wow, it was loud and exciting.

We fired the guns after watching men drop down out of helicopters onto roofs in their training village. The village in Denmark is apparently quite a high tech training ground for troops. They blow up buildings, kick in doors, smoke out the bad guys and practice saving civilians in humanitary crisis.

One of the Marines on assignment was interviewing reporters. He pulled me aside for comment and asked me on camera if I would want to be embedded with a unit. I told him I'd have to toughen up a bit first!

I certainly have a new respect for members of the military. The food is horrible. The weather is either rainy and cold or dry and hot. Deployed ground forces sleep in tents and have to be prepared for anything. To experience it all of this first hand is very different from just seeing pictures on the news. I'm exhausted from just hiking around in a combat vest and helmet. I can't imagine carrying a weapon, ammo and a pack in full military gear for hours.

I took video of my shooting exercise and will post it soon. Sadly, I was too weak to cock the GPMG but I put a magazine in an automatic rifle like a champ! Shells were flying everywhere. Thanks for reading and sharing my enthusiasm.

NATO Tuesday

We went out on live training with the British Marines. We suited up in bullet proof vests, helmets and ear protection. Denmark is on the coast and has a very sandy terrain so it was difficult to walk out to the training area.

Two helicopters hovered overhead. One was high up, providing an aerial overview of the battlefield while the other was tactical. The exercise was live and we watched Marines firing infintry rifles, grenade launchers, machine guns and mortars.

Approximately 100 Marines were involved in the scenario which included a company attack from land and air.

We were albe to get amazing video of the live exercise including explosions, helicopters, tanks and BVs which are made for traveling on rough terrain.

These Marines are training in Denmark for imminent deployment to Afghanistan. They will likely be gone for 6 months.

We're On Board

Our little team arrived in a rainy Esberg, Denmark this afternoon around 2pm. We took a flight from Standstead and the weather is the same here as in London, chilly and rainy. Good thing I brought a jacket and umbrella. Go team.

After a quick tour of the quiet Oksbul Army Training Camp, we checked into the barracks nearby. We all have our own rooms which are about as nice as a Carson Newman College's dorm rooms. Not very luxurious or new. In fact...bit of sidebar here...I once pulled down a pair of jeans from my closet in Butler dorm. As I yanked them down, things began to fall on me. I noticed the things were writhing. My jeans were covered in tiny red ants which had apparently hatched overnight. Our building was infested. We couldn't move out and the fix it guy gave us a can of roach spray. Perfect.

Back to Denmark. The accommodation is clean, dry and neat. I don't expect to be staying in a hotel and I am thrilled I'm not sleeping in a tent under these wet skies. We have plans to have dinner in Ho and go bowling afterwards with some of the Officers with NATO.

Happy Mom's Day

To my mother who inspires me with her kindness, smarts and determination, Happy Mother's Day! Can't wait to see you soon.

To my grandmothers who teach me love through example and perseverance through trials, Happy Mother's Day! I am blessed to have such a wonderful family. Love you.

A Suggestion of Poetry

A friend of mine who is a Shakespeare fan and has a serious love of poetry asked me to check out The Invitation by Oriah Mountain Dreamer. This is lovely. Hope you enjoy!

The Invitation
It doesn’t interest me what you do for a living.
I want to know what you ache forand if you dare to dream of meeting your heart’s longing.

It doesn’t interest me how old you are. I want to know if you will risk looking like a fool for love for your dream for the adventure of being alive.

It doesn’t interest me what planets are squaring your moon...I want to know if you have touched the centre of your own sorrow if you have been opened by life’s betrayals or have become shrivelled and closedfrom fear of further pain.

Read more of this poem by Oriah Mountain Dreamer here.

NATO

So I leave tomorrow morning from Standstead with 3 classmates and NATO Lt. Cmdr Rupert Nichol. There is even a press release on our University's website. Woo-hoo.

We will fly to Esbjerg, Denmark. On Wednesday the 16th we will have a substantial "media day" lasting from 7:45am to 4:45pm in Esbjerg. On Thursday the 17th we depart for Gdynia in Poland and we will visit the NOBLE MARINER airbases in Germany on Thursday and Friday.

I am now flying out of Hamburg (Lubeck), Germany on Friday the 18th. I'm looking forward to the trip. We will be driving from assignment to assignment so hopefully we'll see some of the country side during the week. I'm just looking at my Atlas now and it would be awesome if we could get over to Copenhagen. Doubt we'll have the extra time...

Here's some information from my pre-trip reading material. (It's a bit boring but the whole NATO experience will be pretty interesting, I'm hoping.)

The aim of exercise media in NMR07 is to give the training audience exercise value in handling media duirng operations at unit level. Exercise meida comprises a mix of military personnel and civilians. The military are reservists employed by nations in media related posts such as media minders or as combat camera or journalist teams. The civilians are either trainees or professionals who are working for the experience.

The exercise media has a dual-role; train commanders and their key staff in dealing with the media and create a realistic media environment to enhance the realism of the scenario and events therein. Each member of the exercise media may be required to sign a Waiver of Responsibility by national hosting ships/units for the move, transport or life support of exercise media at certain times during the exercise.

We actually get a fake scenario for our exercise. This is how it plays out:

The major regional actors will be nations of Mapleland, Willowland, Elmland and Ashland. Willowland, Elmland and Ashland are European Union (EU) members. Mapleland is not. None of the nations belong to NATO. In the northern part of Mapleland, a new autonomous state independent from Mapleland, has been declared by its new government as "Poplarland" with boarders defined by rivers.

The fake crisis:

The geo political scenario is based on a request from the Mapleland government to the United Nations to provide a peacekeeping force on the ground in the self proclaimed autonomous region of Poplarland in response to a lack of a safe and secure environment for ethnic and religious minorities, doubts about the security of the chemical weapons stocks and concerns about the strategic oil and gas resources in the region under the control of Poplarland. The ethnic and religious constitution of Poplarland differs significantly from the rest of Mapleland. There is a significant minority of 1.5 million Willowese immigrants living near the border with Willowland. The vast majority of the remaining 4 million ethnic Maplanders follow the Protestant religion which is in contrast to the rest of Mapleland which is predominantly Roman Catholic. The NRF is authorized to operate in Mapleland and to be prepared to carry out Non Combatant Evaculations (NEO) and initial Entry Operations (IEO) in preparation for a NATO environment for all ethnic and religious groups in the region, using whatever means to ensure the security of the chemical weapon stocks.

I will be sure to update you during the week...

NATO Media Exercise in Denmark

I'm getting ready to head out of London on Monday, May 14th. I am traveling with a group of University Westminster students to Esbjerg, Denmark for a week of media play. We are acting as journalists in a war-time situation. Our group was hand-picked and we are needed to help the NATO officers complete media training. The Officers will apparently "brief" us daily and then we construct the news stories. The tapes are also used to continue media training. Hopefully I'll have access to high-speed internet (more than I can get on campus) on site and I can update you on the fun.

South African Braai

I went to one of these and it was almost as bad...(such a fun time with real people who know how to cook and relax). Can't wait to have one of these in my 'back yard.' This video was even endorsed by my sweetheart Kingsley and good friend Paul.


http://youtube.com/watch?v=vq2SOmwzjUU

New Books on the Shelf

I went to Oxfam yesterday to browse the books and came up with a few. I am on page 52 of The Olive Farm by Carol Drinkwater. It reminds me of Under the Tuscan Sun. The author spends all of her pennies on a villa in the South of France. She moves there with her beau and has his two twin daughters to look after for the summer. She doesn't speak English very well and the water does not work on the land yet. A nice book so far, descriptive writing and funny ancedotes.


The other book I found, probably the most useful in this stage of my life: Media Directory 2006 by Chris Alden. This is produced by the Guardian and is a landmine of information. The book boasts sections on Government contacts, Talent Agents, PR contacts, Advertising advice and all the phone numbers and emails you would need to work in Media in the UK. The book normally sells for £20 pounds but I stumbled upon it for £3. I certainly recommend a copy of this for all of my University pals. Please feel free to copy a couple of pages from mine.



A Certain Age by Rebecca Ray also made the final cut at the checkout. Haven't had much of a chance to go through this one but it looks to be a quick read on the struggles of growning up. The main character is 14. Rebecca Ray is my age and already a successful author. I look forward to reading this when I find the time. Hopefully it won't disappoint.

The wildcard book I picked up is: The Sunday Times Buying A Property in Spain by Nick Rider, Harvey Holtom & John Howell. I have this crazy idea of buying property abroad. Step one is to do some major research. That's why I slipped this one in the pile. Step two is to make some money so I obviously have to get a job before I even buy any more books. A gal can dream though, right?