Afghanistan's Hidden Treasures in Melbourne

 We visited the Melbourne Afghanistan exhibition and were very impressed with the quality of the artifacts on view. The workmanship of ivory, glass, and bronze of Indian Persian and Greek influences was breathtaking, as was the sheer quantity of gold on display. With so much destruction and looting in that recently benighted land, many cheers for the people who saved these treasures from the raiders and destroyers.

A quibble-we felt the Museum put the exhibition into an inadequate space and did not provide appropriate flow lines for the crowds. After we stood in a queue for one exhibit for quite while one of the attendants pointed out that we could scoot in the back of the flow and cut in. So we did, but felt guilty... Moreover we encountered some selfish behaviour.  One blonde was being given a private tour by an imposing apparent Afghani. They stood close in front of each exhibit and entirely prevented the rest of the crowd from looking until moved on by request. Another very large lady hugged each exhibit case in turn while making copious notes on an outsize clueboard. The magnificence of the display and the story of its rescue from marauders deserved better from the Museum.
(Museum website images)

Criteria for travel insurance

A discussion among colleagues recently touched on the subject of the increasing cost of travel insurance for overseas trips. One participant said that insurance for a 3 week trip to Spain and UK had been quoted at $1700. Others commented on the pickiness of companies about pre-existing medical conditions and age.
For our next planned trip to France, booked and paid for many months ago, we have decided to rely on the complimentary insurance available on our bank premium credit card (if we pay for the air fares using the card). This is a matter of risk management.
The excess per claim is $250.
For us the main risks in order of worry were:
1. Cancellation of trip or hurrying home because of events concerning very aged relatives. This was a risk spanning 9 months. The policy seems to cover the risk without regard to their age, but pre-existing medical conditions are an exclusion. We did not even contemplate applying for waiver for their medical conditions, so there would be plenty of scope for resisting a claim.
2. Getting ill ourselves.
We have nothing to declare by way of existing illness. Coverage seems unlimited and there is no cut off for excessive age of travellers.
3. Loss of or damage to our travel gear.
 Cover conditions seem reasonable.
4. Liability from our hire car.
While we have taken the normal insurance cover/waiver from the hire care company, the complimentary policy covers any excess up to $2250. There is also legal liability cover of $2,500,000.

While we did not undertake a major survey of what better insurance could be bought, especially in regard to item 1, we concluded that the extra benefit/risk ratio would not justify the additional cost above the complimentary policy provided through the card purchase.
Perhaps one day, as there are more aged travellers tending to have long lived relatives, some insurer may create (at an economic price) a separate "Don't you worry about that" policy just to cover the old folks at home.

A Migrant Tale

I have known Harry (derived from Leonhard) well for much longer than any of my own seniors (including my own parents).

A childhood in Austria, detained as an enemy alien in England after flight from Hitler (alone in the nick of time after Kristallnacht - he was briefly arrested, leaving parents who perished), sent to Australia for internment. The Dunera trip here must have been unpleasant with mistreatment by the British military guards (see a good wikipedia account : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HMT_Dunera ), but Harry was always afterwards explicitly thankful for the opportunities (especially university education) that being an Australian gave.  The train trip for internment at Hay climaxed at the sight of, and being given, butter from a half pound block, and jam, for his bread.
He volunteered for the army and served within Australia. Later, his wife strongly vetoed him joining up again for Korea.
He made a career as a chemical analyst in the Commonwealth public service (Customs), including  a posting in Canada for six months which he really enjoyed, and it provided a memorable experience for his young family.
He was an existentialist and intellectual who made buying good books from Reader's Feast a hobby, was happiest reading Shakespeare, Proust, and Goethe, or listening to Stravinsky, enjoyed opera (strangely he loved Wagner's), theatre, and movies.
He hand built a house at Mount Martha, and made furniture and remodelled the kitchen for the home in Ashburton.
He was very generous financially to family and other individuals,  and also in constant support of Melbourne University. 
Harry died last Sunday 30 June, aged 91. There was a private funeral yesterday afternoon.




 Lino cut print?  Hanging in Harry's study, given by Ludwig Hirschfield-Mack, a camp inmate who is also exhibited in the NGV.