ENJOYING NEUVILE-ASK & SIX NATIONS CHAMPIONSHIP

Today, The Grandma got up early so as not to miss the plane that took her to Brussels where Joseph de Ca'th Lon was waiting for her to drive to Neuville-Ask where they plan to attend the France-Italy Six Nations match this afternoon.

It has been an intense morning of accumulated sleep and coffees, but now they will rest a little at the hotel, write this new post, watch the first half of the FA Women's Cup match between Manchester United and Chelsea, and Joseph will give her a summary (if possible) of their stay at the Olympic Games. Then, they will go to the Stade Pierre Mauroy where they hope to experience a great rugby spectacle, possibly the most honest sport and with the fairest play in the entire sports panorama.

Joseph is a fan of Ireland and The Grandma of the U.E. Santboiana where she has great friends like Toni, Susanna, Àngels or Mima, who have made her enjoy this spectacular sport. If you like rugby, any Six Nations match should be watched, and if possible, lived.

Tomorrow they will make a quick visit to Lile before returning to Basel and Barcelona, where both must continue with their respective lives.

Neuvile-Ask is a very beautiful city, where Picard is historically spoken, with a great sporting tradition where its women's basketball team stands out, but it is also one of the headquarters of the French national rugby team when it plays in the Six Nations. 

Neuvile-Ask in Picard or Villeneuve-d'Ascq in French  is a commune in the Nord department in northern France. With more than 60,000 inhabitants and 50,000 students, it is one of the main cities of the Lille metropolitan area (Métropole Européenne de Lille) and the largest in area after the city of Lille itself. It is also one of the main cities of the Hauts-de-France region.

Built up owing to the merger between the former communes of Ascq, Annappes and Flers-lez-Lille, Neuvile-Ask is a new town and the cradle of the first automatic metro system in the world (VAL).

Neuvile-Ask is nicknamed the 'green technopole' thanks to the implantation of many researchers, including two campuses of the University of Lille and many graduate engineering schools, and companies in a pleasant living environment. Owing to its activity centres, its Haute Borne European scientific park and two shopping malls, Neuvile-Ask is one of the main economic spots of the Hauts-de-France region; multinational corporations such as Bonduelle, Cofidis and Decathlon have their head office there.

Outside its academic, scientific and business facilities, Neuvile-Ask is known for its sporting events, boasting two stadiums (Stade Pierre-Mauroy and Stadium Lille Métropole), some top division sports teams, its museums, its green spaces, and its facilities for disabled people.

Its name means new city of Ascq in French. Ascq is possibly derived from the Dutch word for ash. The name of the city is generally written without the customary (official) hyphen.

The city counts approximately 10 km2 of greenspace, lakes, forests and arable lands. It is located between Lille and Roubaix, at the crossroads of the principal freeways towards Paris, Ghent, Antwerp and Brussels.

Development on what is now Neuvile-Ask can be traced back to the Celtic Gaul era, and are anchored in two feudal mounds, a Gallo-Roman site and a Carolingian one.

The area was selected in the 1960s to accommodate a new town then designated the name Lille-Est, which was to channel the growth of the agglomeration of Lille city and development of institutions based in the area. The commune of Neuvile-Ask was created in 1970 by the amalgamation of the communes of Ascq, Annappes and Flers. Its name evokes at the same time the new (neuve) and the old: former commune Ascq and its memory as martyr town of 1 April 1944, date on which the Nazis massacred 86 men (Ascq massacre).

The city's merger with Lille was contentious and failed twice (1972 and 1976). The Hôtel de Ville was completed in 1977.

The Stade Pierre-Mauroy, also known as the Decathlon Arena-Stade Pierre-Mauroy for sponsorship reasons, is a multi-use retractable roof stadium in Neuvile-Ask, Metropolis of Lille, Northern France, that opened in August 2012. With a seating capacity of 50,186, it is the fourth-largest sports stadium in France and the home of French professional football club Lille.

Initially named Grand Stade Lille Métropole, the stadium was renamed on 21 June 2013, after the death of the former Mayor of Lille and former Prime Minister of France Pierre Mauroy (1928–2013).

The stadium, which hosted UEFA Euro 2016 and 2023 Rugby World Cup, can also be turned into an adjustable arena being expandable to 30,000 seats where indoor sports games and concerts take place. Therefore, multiple Davis Cup events, EuroBasket 2015 and 2024 Summer Olympics basketball and handball tournaments matches have been held in the building.

More information: Six Nations Rugby

 Rugby is a game that's constant. 
If you are not growing with it, 
you get left behind.

Owen Farrell

WALES VS ENGLAND, THE SIX NATIONS CHAMPIONSHIP

After reading the complete Arthurian saga, The Grandma wants to visit Wales, where all the Arthurian legend began.

She has decided to visit Cardiff, the capital of Wales to assist to The Six Nations Championship in Stadiwm y Mileniwm.

Wales vs England is one of the best rugby matches that you can enjoy nowadays.

The Six Nations Championship (known as the Six Nations, branded as Guinness M6N) is an annual international rugby union competition between the teams of England, France, Ireland, Italy, Scotland and Wales. 

It is the oldest sports tournament contested by the Home Nations. The championship holders are Ireland, who won the 2024 tournament.

The tournament is organised by the unions of the six participating nations under the banner of Six Nations Rugby, which is responsible for the promotion and operation of the men's, women's and under-20s tournaments, and the Autumn International Series, as well as the negotiation and management of their centralised commercial rights.

The Six Nations is the successor to the Home Nations Championship (1883-1909 and 1932-39), played between teams from England, Ireland, Scotland, and Wales, which was the first international rugby union tournament. With the addition of France, this became the Five Nations Championship (1910-31 and 1947-99), which in turn became the Six Nations Championship with the addition of Italy in 2000.

England and Wales have won the championship the most times, both with 39 titles, but England have won the most outright titles with 29 (28 for Wales). Since the Six Nations era started in 2000, only Italy and Scotland have failed to win the Six Nations title.

The women's tournament started as the Women's Home Nations in the 1996 season. The men's Six Nations Under 20s Championship is the successor to the Under 21s tournament which began in 2004.

The tournament was first played in 1883 as the Home Nations Championship among the then four Home Nations of the United Kingdom -England, Ireland, Scotland, and Wales. However, England was excluded from the 1888 and 1889 tournaments due to their refusal to join the International Rugby Football Board. The tournament then became the Five Nations Championship in 1910 with the addition of France. The tournament was expanded in 2000 to become the Six Nations Championship with the addition of Italy.

Following the relative success of the Tier 2 nations in the 2015 Rugby World Cup, there were calls by Octavian Morariu, the president of Rugby Europe, to let Georgia and Romania join the Six Nations due to their consistent success in the European Nations Cup and ability to compete in the Rugby World Cup.

The tournament begins on the first weekend in February and culminates on the second or third Saturday in March. Each team plays every other team once (a total of 15 matches), with home ground advantage alternating from one year to the next. Before the 2017 tournament, two points were awarded for a win, one for a draw and none for a loss. Unlike many other rugby union competitions, a bonus point system had not previously been used.

A bonus point system was first used in the 2017 Championship. The system is similar to the one used in most rugby championships (0 points for a loss, 2 for a draw, 4 for a win, 1 for scoring four or more tries in a match, and 1 for losing by 7 points or fewer). The only difference is that a team that wins all their games (a Grand Slam) are automatically awarded 3 extra points -to ensure they cannot be overtaken by a defeated team on bonus points.

Before 1994, teams equal on match points shared the championship. Since then, ties have been broken by considering the points difference (total points scored minus total points conceded) of the teams. The rules of the championship further provide that if teams tie on both match points and points difference, the team that scored the most tries wins the championship. Were this decider to be a tie, the tying teams would share the championship. To date, however, match points and points difference have been sufficient to decide the championship.

The Wooden Spoon is a metaphorical award given to the team that finishes in last place; a team which loses all their matches is said to have been whitewashed. Since the inaugural Six Nations tournament in 2000, only England and Ireland have avoided finishing last. Italy have finished last 18 times in the Six Nations era, and have lost all their matches in 12 tournaments.

More information: Six Nations Rugby

Rugby is a game that's constant.
If you are not growing with it, you get left behind.

Owen Farrell

THE MONT BLANC TUNNEL, LINKING FRANCE & ITALY

Today, The Grandma has been talking about the Montblanc Tunnel that joins France and Italy, and that was opened on a day like today in 1965.

The Mont Blanc Tunnel is a highway tunnel between France and Italy, under Mont Blanc in the Alps. 

It links Chamonix, Haute-Savoie, France with Courmayeur, Aosta Valley, Italy, via the French Route Nationale 205 and the Italian Traforo T1 (forming the European route E25), in particular the motorways serving Geneva (A40 of France) and Turin (A5 of Italy). The passageway is one of the major trans-Alpine transport routes, particularly for Italy, which relies on this tunnel for transporting as much as one-third of its freight to northern Europe. It reduces the route from France to Turin by 50 kilometres and to Milan by 100 km. Northeast of Mont Blanc's summit, the tunnel is about 15 km southwest of the tripoint with Switzerland, near Mont Dolent.

The agreement between France and Italy on building a tunnel was signed in 1949. Two operating companies were founded, each responsible for one half of the tunnel: the French Autoroutes et tunnel du Mont-Blanc (ATMB), founded on 30 April 1958, and the Italian Società italiana per azioni per il Traforo del Monte Bianco (SITMB), founded on 1 September 1957. Drilling began in 1959 and was completed in 1962; the tunnel was opened to traffic on 19 July 1965.

The tunnel is 11.611 km in length, 8.6 m in width, and 4.35 m in height. The passageway is not horizontal, but in a slightly inverted "V", which assists ventilation. The tunnel consists of a single gallery with a two-lane dual direction road. At the time of its construction, it was twice as long as any existing highway tunnel.

The tunnel passes almost exactly under the summit of the Aiguille du Midi. At this spot, it lies 2,480 metres beneath the surface, making it the world's second deepest operational tunnel after the Gotthard Base Tunnel.

The Mont Blanc Tunnel was originally managed by the two building companies. Following a fire in 1999 in which 39 people died, which showed how lack of coordination could hamper the safety of the tunnel, all the operations are managed by a single entity: MBT-EEIG, controlled by both ATMB and SITMB together, through a 50–50 shares distribution.

An alternative route for road traffic between France to Italy is the Fréjus Road Tunnel. Road traffic grew steadily until 1994, even with the opening of the Fréjus tunnel. Since then, the combined traffic volume of the former has remained roughly constant.

The idea of building a tunnel underneath Mont Blanc to avoid the need for long journeys dates back to the nineteenth century during the heyday of the railway. However, the idea did not receive widespread attention until 1907, when Francesco Farinet, a Member of Parliament of the Aosta Valley, advocated constructing of the tunnel.

In 1908, a first design was presented by French engineer Arnold Monod, to much interest from Italian and French politicians.

Due to political turmoil and World War I and World War II, the project did not start until 1959, when excavations on the tunnel officially began. This was preceded by the signing of a national charter for the tunnel construction, ratified by the parliaments of France (1957) and Italy (1954). That same year, the STMB (Société du tunnel du Mont Blanc) was formed, which became ATMB (Autoroutes et Tunnel du Mont Blanc) in 1996.

In 1962, the French and Italian drilling teams met on 4 August. The opening was successful, with an axis variation of less than 13 centimetres.

The tunnel was inaugurated by the French president, Charles de Gaulle, and the Italian President, Giuseppe Saragat on 16 July 1965. 

The tunnel opened to traffic on 19 July. Surveillance cameras were installed in 1978.

More information: Tunnel MB

 Manufacturing is more than just putting parts together.
It's coming up with ideas, testing principles
and perfecting the engineering, as well as final assembly.

James Dyson

WALES & ENGLAND, THE FIRST HOME NATIONS IN 1882

Today, The Grandma has been relaxing at home. She has been reading about sports and she has paid attention about the commemoration of a great event. On a day like today in 1882, Wales and England contest the first Home Nations, now Six Nations, rugby union match.

The Six Nations Championship is an annual international men's rugby union competition between the teams of England, France, Ireland, Italy, Scotland, and Wales.

The Six Nations is the successor to the Home Nations Championship (1883-1909 and 1932-39), played between teams from England, Ireland, Scotland, and Wales, which was the first international rugby union tournament. With the addition of France, this became the Five Nations Championship (1910-31 and 1947-99), which in turn became the Six Nations Championship with the addition of Italy.

England hold the record for outright wins with 29. Since the Six Nations era started in 2000, only Italy and Scotland have failed to win the Six Nations title.

The women's tournament started as the Women's Home Nations in the 1996 season.

The tournament was first played in 1883 as the Home Nations Championship among the four Home Nations -England, Ireland, Scotland, and Wales. However, England was excluded from the 1888 and 1889 tournaments due to their refusal to join the International Rugby Football Board.

The tournament then became the Five Nations Championship in 1910 with the addition of France. The tournament was expanded in 2000 to become the Six Nations Championship with the addition of Italy.

More information: Six Nation Rugby

Following the relative success of the Tier 2 nations in the 2015 Rugby World Cup, there were calls by Octavian Morariu, the president of Rugby Europe, to let Georgia and Romania join the Six Nations due to their consistent success in the European Nations Cup and ability to compete in the Rugby World Cup.

The winners of the Six Nations are presented with the Championship Trophy. This was originally conceived by the Earl of Westmorland, and was first presented to the winners of the 1993 championship, France. It is a sterling silver trophy, designed by James Brent-Ward and made by a team of eight silversmiths from the London firm William Comyns.

It has 15 side panels representing the 15 members of the team and with three handles to represent the three officials, referee and two touch judges. The cup has a capacity of 3.75 litres -sufficient for five bottles of champagne. Within the mahogany base is a concealed drawer which contains six alternative finials, each a silver replica of one of the team emblems, which can be screwed on the detachable lid.

A new trophy was introduced for the 2015 Championship. The new trophy was designed and crafted by Thomas Lyte silversmiths and replaces the 1993 edition, which is being retired as it represented the nations that took part in the Five Nations Championship. Ireland were the last team to win the old trophy, and coincidentally, the first team to win the new one.

More information: Rugby Football History

Rugby is great.
The players don't wear helmets or padding;
they just beat the living daylights out of each other
and then go for a beer.
I love that.

Joe Theismann

ITALY, GIGLIOLA CINQUETTI & 'NON HO L'ETÀ PER AMARTI'

Gigliola Cinquetti

Today, The Watsons continue working in Rennette Watson's candidature to participate in the next Eurovision Song Contest.

The Grandma has offered them a new Cambridge Key English Test A2 Example and she has been talking to them about Gigliola Cinquetti, the Italian singer who became one of the youngest one to win the Contest in 1964 singing Non ho l'età a beautiful song that was a great hit in the 60's.

Gigliola Cinquetti is one of the singers who have participated twice in Eurovision. She returned in 1974 with the song Sì but it was the year of ABBA and their Waterloo and came second.

The Grandma wants to remember Gigliola Cinquetti, the artist who represented a country that is able to pass the most terrible of all catastrophes but continue as beautiful and strong as always. Forza Italia!

Download Cambridge KET Exam Model (2)

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Gigliola Cinquetti (born 20 December 1947) is an Italian singer and TV presenter.

Cinquetti was born in Verona. At the age of 16 she won the Sanremo Music Festival in 1964 singing Non ho l'età, with music composed by Nicola Salerno and lyrics by Mario Panzeri.

Her win enabled her to represent Italy in the Eurovision Song Contest 1964 in Copenhagen with the same song, where she claimed her country's first ever victory in the event.

Cinquetti became the youngest winner of the contest to date, aged 16 years and 92 days. Only one younger artist has triumphed since; Sandra Kim in 1986.

The song became an international success, even spending 17 weeks in the UK Singles Chart and ending the year as the 88th best-selling single in the U.K. in 1964, something highly unusual for Italian-language material. It sold over three million copies, and was awarded a platinum disc in August 1964. In 1966, she recorded Dio, come ti amo, which became another international hit.

 More information: Eurovision

In 1974, Cinquetti took part in the Eurovision Song Contest again, this time held in Brighton, Sussex, United Kingdom. Her song was called Sì, which translates as Yes in English, and which became quite controversial in Italy at the time, with a referendum on the legalisation of divorce in the offing, because of the title, and came second to Swedish foursome ABBA with their song Waterloo.

Cinquetti scored a bigger UK hit single, in terms of chart placing, than she had ten years earlier, with an English-language version of Sì, entitled Go (Before You Break My Heart), peaking at No. 8. 

Gigliola Cinquetti winning Eurovision in 1964

According to author and historian, John Kennedy O'Connor's, The Eurovision Song Contest -The Official History, the live telecast of her song was banned in her home country by the Italian national broadcaster RAI, as the event partially coincided with the campaigning for the 1974 Italian referendum on divorce which was held a month later in May.

RAI censored the song because of concerns that the name and lyrics of the song, which constantly repeated the word Sì, could be accused of being a subliminal message and a form of propaganda to influence the Italian voting public to vote Yes in the referendum.

The song remained censored on most Italian state TV and radio stations for over a month.

An English language version of the song, Go (Before You Break My Heart), reached number 8 in the UK Singles Chart in June 1974.

More information: Elegancepedia

One of her other songs, Alle Porte del Sole, released in 1973, was re-recorded in English as Door of the Sun and Italian by Al Martino, two years after its initial release, and reached No. 17 on Billboard's Hot 100 in the United States. Cinquetti's own English version of the song was released as a single by CBS Records in August 1974, with her original 1973 Italian version on the B-side.

Cinquetti went on to co-host the Eurovision Song Contest 1991 with Toto Cutugno, who had brought the event to Italy with his victory in Zagreb the previous year -the country's first win in the contest since her own twenty-six years earlier.

In the 1990s she became a professional journalist and TV presenter, and she currently hosts the current affairs programme Italia Rai on RAI International.

More information: Eurovoix

Lascia che io viva un amore romantico
Nell'attesa che venga quel giorno
Ma ora no.

Leave me to live a romantic love
Waiting for that day to arrive
But not now.

Gigliola Cinquetti

PAQUI JONES: ITALIAN ART, PASSION AND LATIN CULTURE

Paqui Jones and La dolce vita in la Fontana di Trevi

Paqui Jones. Artist. Italy.

I was born in Firenze, Tuscany, the country of Da Vinci, Caravaggio, Sofia Loren, Giorgio Armani, Luciano Pavarotti, Enrico Caruso, Federico Fellini, Marcello Mastroianni, Roberto Benigni, Gianni Versace, and Gianluigi Buffon... If I say the name of all famous Italian artists, I will talk for hours. Italy is a country located in the heart of the Mediterranean Sea which shares open land borders with France, Switzerland, Austria, Slovenia, San Marino, and Vatican City.  It's a large country with great famous people. The secret? Culture, effort, innovation and knowledge. I'm an artist. An actress is a person who creates art. My last film has been A day with The Jones, a documentary about the life of this incredible and multicultural family.

-Good morning, Paqui Jones, and thanks to attend us.

-Good morning. It's a pleasure.

-Well, you don't represent the typical Italian profile: a Mediterranean one.

-I don't believe in it. There isn't an Italian profile because we've received lots of influences and you can find different people living in the same place. Since classical times, ancient Phoenicians, Carthaginians and Greeks established settlements in the south of Italy, with Etruscans and Celts inhabiting the centre and the north of Italy respectively and various ancient Italian tribes and Italic peoples dispersed throughout the Italian peninsula and insular Italy. The Italic tribe known as the Latins formed the Roman Kingdom, which eventually became a republic that conquered and assimilated its neighbours. Ultimately the Roman Empire emerged as the dominant power in the Mediterranean basin and became the leading cultural, political and religious centre of Western civilisation. The legacy of the Roman Empire is widespread and can be observed in the global distribution of civilian law, republican governments, Christianity and the Latin script.

-Uff. It has been a fantastic lesson of History.

-Culture is one of the bases of my country. We love ruins, statues, paintings, stones and all things that have a relationship with art. I'm an artist, then, I'm very interested in History because we cannot understand Art without History. They are connected.

-Italy is considered a happy and nice country for its tourists and visitors. Which is your opinion?

-Well, Italy is not a perfect country. There isn't a perfect country. It doesn't exist. All countries have lights and shadows, diamonds and rust but it's true that here, in Italy, people try to live life intensively, perhaps because we have two great menaces: earthquakes and volcanoes. Some years ago, we had another big menace: the mafia. It was the responsible of thousands of murders. They were terrific years.

-What's your reaction in front of a case like these murders?

-When you believe that you live in a nice society with kind neighbours, and this fact affects you more because you don't believe that it can happen next to you. These facts attempt against our lifestyle, our culture, our manner of understanding world. Violence is the failure of dialogue.

-Who was your reference in art?

-Well. Uff. It's difficult to choose only one artist because all of them were genius but I love Federico Fellini's films and it's impossible to forget that beautiful scene in the Fontana di Trevi with Marcello Mastroianni and Anita Ekberg in La dolce vita. This is one of the greatest moments in the cinema, without any doubt.

-How do you feel being a member of The Jones family?

-I feel very well. We're a good family. We work together to reach the same objective and we don't surrender easily.

-How is a normal day with The Jones?

-There isn't a normal day because is impossible. Have you got a normal day in your life? Every day is different and you must enjoy it as time as you can.

-How long have you been studying English?

-Since I was in the school. Italian population have emigrated dozens of times to search better opportunities. One of the most important Italian diaspora is in the United States of America. This fact has helped to young people to take conscience about the importance of learning languages, especially English.

-Then English is not difficult to learn for an Italian?

-Well, they are different languages from different families but Italy is a country with a lot of linguistic varieties and it's not very difficult to speak more than one language. We sometimes do it without realize it.

-I thought in Italy, you only spoke Italian...

-Uffff. No. There are approximately thirty-four living spoken languages and related dialects in Italy, most of which are indigenous evolutions of Vulgar Latin, and are therefore classified as Romance languages. Speakers from one locale within a region are often typically aware of the features distinguishing their local tongue from the one of other places nearby. The official and most widely spoken language across the country is Italian, a direct descendant of Tuscan, but not the only one.

-What can you explain about your life with The Jones?

-Well. I've filmed a documentary about them and it has been a great experience. It was very difficult to choose only one day to film because every day deserved a film. It has been a great experience and a great memory to remember. 

-And after?

-We will always have The Jones as Rick and Ilsa will always have Paris.

-Which is your best memory with the family?

-A lot. It's impossible to choose only one but I especially remember when we bought a house in Aix-les-Bains, a place that I love and when we saw how a closer friend won a bronze medal in a gymnastic competition. It was really nice.

-What about your future works in cinema?

-I'm preparing the main female role in a new film about Levi Strauss, the man who made trousers from the sailcloth and imported material from France in 1850. 

-What do you think about cinema?

-I think cinema connects people.

-And about music?

-Music is the most wonderful thing a human can create. It arrives directly to the heart and it is able to create the most incredible feelings that you can imagine.

-Which is your favourite singer?

-He’s Luciano Pavarotti, without any kind of doubt.

-And his most beautiful performance?

-Nessun dorma, an aria from the final act of Giacomo Puccini's opera Turandot and one of the best-known tenor arias in all opera. It is sung by Calaf, the unknown prince, who falls in love at first sight with the beautiful but cold Princess Turandot. However, any man who wishes to wed Turandot must first answer her three riddles; if he fails, he will be beheaded. In the aria, Calaf expresses his triumphant assurance that he will win the princess.

-Thank you very much, Paqui Jones.

-You're welcome.

Tramontate, stelle! Tramontate, stelle!
All'alba vincerò! Vincerà! Vincerò!

 Leave, oh night! Set, stars!
Set, stars! At sunrise I will win! I will win!

Giacomo Puccini 

COLD CASE: WHO KILLED OETZI THE ICEMAN?

Oetzi, the Iceman

Joseph de Ca'th Lon is in the South Tyrol enjoying beautiful landscapes, nice people and discovering the mystery of Oetzi, the Iceman. Joseph is reading an interesting article which has been written by BBC. He wants to share it with us...

High in a remote area of the Oetztaler Alps in northern Italy, 5,300 years ago, Oetzi the Iceman was shot in the back with an arrow. It hit a main artery and he probably bled to death within minutes. His body was preserved in the ice, making him one of the oldest and best-preserved mummies on Earth.

Oetzi was first discovered in 1991 and scientists discovered the flint arrowhead lodged in his shoulder 10 years later. But only in recent months have investigators, led by a senior police detective, focused more intently on how Oetzi was shot.

Was it murder? And who might have killed him?

Angelika Fleckinger, director of the South Tyrol Museum of Archaeology, where Oetzi's body is on display, called on a professional to investigate. He is Detective Chief Inspector Alexander Horn of the Munich Police Department, who is also head of behavioural analysis with the Bavarian police.

He admits to being slightly taken aback at the request.

More information: BBC

It was a funny situation, because when I was asked by the director if I work on cold cases, I said 'yes, I do', Inspector Horn said.

Oetzi's clothes

But this case was colder than most. 

The usual cold case that we have is 20 or maybe 30 years old, and now I was asked to work on a case 5,300 years old, he said.

Initially, Inspector Horn did not think he could help.

I thought that probably the body would be in a bad condition. But what I learnt very soon was that it was in perfect condition. It's even in a better condition than some of the bodies I am working on nowadays.

As well as visiting the scene of the crime high in the Alps, the inspector was able to draw on the extensive research done on Oetzi over the last 25 years, which includes detailed analysis of his stomach contents and the injuries on his body. Both were to prove key to Inspector Horn's theories.

It looks a lot like a murder, he says.

The killer seems to have caught Oetzi by surprise.

More information: BBC

Oetzi was shot probably from quite a distance, about 30m (100 ft), which is not a close-contact killing; it's a distance killing.

Inspector Horn says Oetzi seems to have been quite relaxed up on the glacier just before he was shot. His own bow wasn't ready for use.

Joseph de Ca'th Lon in the Otzi Memorial

About half an hour before he was killed, he was having a rest up there. He was having quite a heavy lunch or meal at least, so it doesn't seem like he was in a rush or fleeing from something.

Another crucial clue came from the injury on Oetzi's right hand, a wound he received one or two days before his death, probably during a fight.

That injury was something we would define as a classic active defence wound. That would be like if somebody... threatens you with an knife and he stabs you, if you grab into the knife and... try to push it away.

Oetzi did not suffer other defence injuries, so Inspector Horn believes he won the initial fight - which possibly took place down in the valley.

What we think… is that the killing up on the glacier is probably the continuation of this fight that happened about one-and-a-half days before.

More information: BBC

Knowing that he was unlikely to win in hand-to-hand combat, Oetzi's killer probably stealthily followed him up the mountain and shot him.

Joseph de Ca'th Lon in the South Tyrol Museum

The glacier is a very remote area and probably not a place where you would randomly run into each other, Alexander Horn says.

But who was the offender and what were his motives?

Inspector Horn says the offender didn't steal Oetzi's valuable copper blade axe and other gear, so it is unlikely to have been a crime for profit. He speculates that it was probably due to some strong personal emotion.

If there was hate, if it was jealousy, if it was revenge, we will not be able to tell you.

Angelika Fleckinger from the Museum of Archaeology says she is very happy so much progress has been made into the big mystery of Oetzi's death. 

But Inspector Horn says he is still unsatisfied.

I don't think there is a high likelihood we will ever be able to solve that case.

The offender got away with that murder - which I don't like, being in charge of investigations, he said with a wry smile.

I don't like the fact that we have an unsolved homicide there.

One of the few things that can be said for certain about Europe's prehistoric peoples is that they all came from somewhere else. 

Norman Davies

IRELAND & SANT BOI DE LLOBREGAT, PASSION FOR RUGBY

Ireland's Rugby Ball

The Ireland National Rugby Union Team represents the island of Ireland, both the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland, in rugby union. The team competes annually in the Six Nations Championship, which they have won twelve times outright and shared eight times. 

The team also competes every four years in the Rugby World Cup, where they reached the quarter-final stage in all but two competitions (1999 and 2007). 

Ireland is also one of the four unions that make up the British and Irish Lions, players eligible to play for Ireland are also eligible for the Lions.

Ireland's highest ever position in the World Rugby Rankings is second, which they reached for the first time in 2015.

Eight former Ireland players have earned induction into the International Rugby Hall of Fame, with five of them also having earned induction into the World Rugby Hall of Fame; one other former player is a member of the World Rugby Hall only. Former outside centre and captain Brian O'Driscoll, Ireland's all-time leader in tries scored, was considered one of the best rugby players in the world, and led Ireland to only their second Grand Slam in 2009.

More information: Homepage of the Irish Rugby

The Six Nations Championship, held every year in February and March, is Ireland's only annual tournament. It is contested against England, France, Italy, Scotland and Wales. Ireland was a member of the inaugural Home Nations in 1883, with France and Italy joining later to form the Five and Six Nations respectively. Ireland won their first championship in 1894, also winning the Triple Crown. Ireland's first Grand Slam occurred in the 1948 season and their second in the 2009 season. In total Ireland have been champions on thirteen occasions following their title in the 2015 Six Nations Championship.

At the 2011 Rugby World Cup and 2015 Rugby World Cup, the Ireland team entered the field of play at the beginning of their matches with the Irish tricolour and the Flag of Ulster, to which the six Irish counties in Northern Ireland belong.

Unió Esportiva Santboiana is a rugby union club established in 1921 and currently competes in the División de Honor de Rugby competition, the highest level of Spanish club rugby. The club are based in Sant Boi de Llobregat in Catalonia and plays in blue and white colours. 

More information: Unió Esportiva Santboiana 

 Rugby gave me a confidence. 
I was quite shy and relatively timid, but it gave me the confidence 
to be a little bit more out-going and back myself a bit more. 
 

Brian O'Driscoll

MAYA BOND: IMPOSSIBLE IS NOTHING

Maya Bond in Guatemala

Maya Bond. Magician. Italy.

I'm a member of The Bond's family. I was born in Catania, Sicily although my parents are from Guatemala and I have been living some years in this American country. Living in a city next to the Etna, the most powerful active volcano gives you another way to understand life. I studied Volcanology in the Università degli Studi di Catania and went to Guatemala to finish my degree doing a specialization in active volcanoes. I love fire and because of this I started to feel a great attraction to magic. Finally, I chose to dedicate my life to the magic without forgetting volcanoes. I like History, volcanoes and animals. You can share hobbies if you want. It's only a question of being organized and believing that impossible is nothing.


-Good morning, Maya Bond, and thanks to attend us.

-Good morning. It's a pleasure.

-Well, to start this interview I would like to know how you define yourself.

-I'm a magician, a person who creates illusion and different points of view with ability, concentration and tricks.

-Some people don't believe in these skills. How can you explain them to them?

-Impossible is nothing. Our scientists can't explain lots of things but this is not enough to avoid people continue believing in them. We can not explain the existence of God but this doesn't mean that we must deny it. We can not explain the origin of life and universe but it's obvious that there was a beginning.

-Do you believe magic has a part of mysticism?

-All things which have a connection with the unexpected world need a part of mysticism and perhaps this is good because we will continue searching these answers. If we knew all the answers and there was no mystery in the world, it lost interest and became cold. It's good we haven't all the explanations because the science will continue its searching and, as you know, science is progress and progress means more opportunities.

-How do you feel being a member of The Bond's family?

-Well, very well. We're a great family full of happiness, collaboration and sense of humour.

-How is a normal day with The Bonds?

-I think there isn't a normal day, if you consider normal like standard. Every day is a different day, isn't it? Then, why is the reason you try to do the same every day? Today is March, 17 2017. Is another date like this going to exist? No. This is The Bond's philosophy: enjoy your time and do whatever you wish because impossible is nothing.

-How long have you been studying English?

-Since I was a child. Sicily is a great attraction to tourism and you need English. For other hand, volcanology is an international subject and you must travel a lot, go to many conferences and visit lots of countries. English is the most common language in these events.

-Then, you speak two languages? Is it very difficult to do it?

-Well, in fact, I speak five languages. I also speak Sicilian, Q’eqchi’ and Spanish. I was living some years in Guatemala and I learnt them.

-What is Q’eqchi’?

-Q’eqchi’ is one of the 21 Maya languages that you can find in Guatemala. Moreover, you can listen to two more languages: garífuna and xinca.

-Which is the real situation of these languages?

-They're in a difficult situation. The colonization provoked the expansion of Spanish culture and Maya culture was destroyed. The language was a part of the culture. When there's a process of colonization, there is a special interest of eliminating any kind of reference to the native culture, because if you don't know anything about your own culture, you don't defend it and you accept the colonizer easily. The UNESCO has elaborated a great project for recovering as languages as it was possible but to keep a language is very important the conscience of being a part of this language, of being a part of this community, of sharing culture and habits and nowadays, in a global world, this is more difficult, although I think we are in the correct way.

-Do you believe the new generations will keep the language?

-Yes. Although living in a global world means diversity, and diversity is something very good, every human needs to belong to somewhere, and even your life was a constant travel when you go to sleep and think to yourself, you speak only one language. This language determinates your culture and your culture indicates your place. We are the best ambassadors of our cultures.

-What can you explain about your life with The Bonds?

-Well, we're a multicultural family and this is one of our great secrets. You learn something every day because every one of us has something to explain and share. It's amazing and beautiful but we must accept that all has a beginning and an end.

-And after?

-We will never forget this experience. We will continue being a Bond but every one of us will take his/her path although he/she knows that he/she is not alone and we will be always a united family.

-Which is your best memory with the family?

-Lots of memories but, perhaps, one of the best was when I talk about Guatemala to The Bonds. It was a special day for me because I remember my good moments in this magic country.

-You have said, you like History and animals. Could you talk about your favourite event in History?

-Wow. It's impossible to choose one but when I was in Guatemala I discovered there is not only one History. All depends from the point of view because the History that we know is the History which has been written by the winners. We have never had the History from the point of view of the oppressed, of the colonized, of the cultures which suffered terrible wars and occupations. This is something that I learnt reading about Christopher Columbus, the man who believed the Earth was round and decided to sail west from Spain, on August 3rd 1492. He travelled during ten weeks. I remember the moment when a sailor saw a bird and an island and he named it San Salvador because they hadn't got more food and the island had been their salvation. This moment changed the destiny of all the American cultures forever.

-You have also said that you like animals. Which is your favourite?

-The whale shark. It's incredible. It's the largest shark and its teeth can be 7.5 centimetres long and it has 3,000 teeth. It finds their prey with its sense of smell.

-What kind of magic trick would you like to do?

-Without any doubt travelling in time like Mr. Spock in Star Trek.

-That's impossible, even for a magician.

-Remember: impossible is nothing. Albert Einstein said it was possible. He talked about parallel universes and time worms. People thought he was crazy but nowadays science accepts his theories and the most part of them have been verified.

-Then, we must accept impossible is nothing.

-Of course. I'm a believer like Nelson Mandela. Do you remember his quote? It always seems impossible until it's done.

-Do you like this message?

-Yes. It's a great message of motivation to arrive to reach your objectives. If nobody had believed in doing things, we would have lived Prehistoric times and we're in 21th century. Think in Levi Strauss, the creator of Jeans who realized the prospectors were cold because they had thin trousers. Levi used the sailcloth which he transported to make stronger trousers. The prospectors searched gold in the rivers and Levi helped to reach their dreams offering better conditions. It's not only a question of working hard but improving day by day.

-Thank you very much, Maya Bond.

-Thanks to you.

Nothing is impossible, the word itself says 'I'm possible'! 

Audrey Hepburn

CREATING A STORY: ESTHER POPPINS

WHO? Esther Poppins

WHERE? Rome, Italy

WHEN? In the past

WHAT? Enjoying life

I was in Rome, the capital of Italy, some years ago when I was a teenager. I went to there to learn and speak Italian. It wasn’t possible. I lived in a flat with some partners. They were from Alcoi. We spent the entire trip talking in Catalan. I returned to my home. The trip has been wonderful, Rome is a beautiful place to visit and stay and I lived fantastic experiences but I didn’t improve my Italian. I would like to come back again. 

Rome has not seen a modern building in more than half a century. It is a city frozen in time.

 Richard Meier

SEE YOU SOON, ITALY!

Asun Holmes & Corto Maltese in Venice

Yesterday, The Holmes reviewed some aspects of grammar and talked about adverbs of manner. They also created a Personal Message, discussed about job webpages and its difficulties and read a little more of Charles Dickens’ A Carol Christmas. The family stayed all the weekend in Venice enjoying the carnival and sailing by gondola thanks to Asun.

The Grandma explained a story about Navajo Language and Culture and how difficult is keeping them nowadays.

More information: Naval History and Heritage Command

Today, The Holmes have reviewed The Superlatives and some modal verbs like Must, Have to and Should. Moreover, they’ve created a composition using this new theory and they have worked Social English, too.

More information: Adverbs of Manner

For other hand, the family is spending its last hours in Italy. This morning they’ve visited Pisa; this afternoon Verona and in this moment they’re having dinner in Siena.

More information: Superlatives Adjectives

In a few hours, they’re flying to Belgium and later to London. Tomorrow, the family is going to continue its adventures. The Grandma is going to explain them some stories about numbers and they’re going to prepare new budgets and invoices.

More information: Must vs. Have to

More information: Shall vs. Should 

The new cooperative is ready and they must start to work in it.

 

How far that little candle throws his beams! 

So shines a good deed in a weary world. 

William Shakespeare, The Merchant of Venice