Interesting Facts

On my trip to the UK recently I was dismayed to read and hear all the negative press about the opening up of borders to new countries in the EU. It really made me ashamed to be British. Now the figures have started to come in and so far the millions of Eastern Europeans anticipated by the tabloid press and other people who should know better has turned out to be 24. (Yup 2 dozen, and they are probably wondering what they let themselves in for. On New Year's Day, politicians, including Keith Vaz, and journalists gathered at Luton airport desperately waiting for the arrival of millions of unemployed Romanians, only to be greeted by two new entrants, both of whom already had jobs. Of course people will travel to look for work.  That's how I ended up in Germany.) "Britain's an island; it's always had a constant ebb and flow of immigration - it makes it a better place." John Lydon

People making a wish with their spare change literally throw away just under 3 million pounds every year, according to the "Fountain Money Mountain" report. (Tourists regularly throw a copper or two into wishing wells and fountains, and a study has shown they spend an average of 31 pence at tourist sites such as Rome's Trevi Fountain. A wishing well is a term from European folklore to describe wells where it was thought that any spoken wish would be granted. The idea that a wish would be granted came from the idea that water contained deities or had been placed there as a gift from the gods, since water was a source of life and oftentimes a scarce commodity. The tradition of dropping pennies in wells, ponds and fountains stems from this. Coins would be placed there as gifts for the deity in thanks. I have tried installing one in my garden, but it doesn't seem to be working yet.) Original photo by Dystopian_Optimist