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Monty Brett Environmental and Cultural Courses Newsletter |
May 2010 |
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Classical Music Trip to New York and
Washington DC It hardly seems
possible that this trip is now just a wonderful memory. It was a fabulous mix of music, art,
culture and sightseeing. Dr Richard
Cock, who accompanied us, was his usual amiable and charming self, and added
huge value to the trip by giving talks on the music we heard. Highlights of
our serious music menu included violinist Joshua
Bell, young pianist Joyce Wang
playing with the Tacaks String Quartet, Mozart’s opera Die Zauberflote (The Magic Flute),
Puccini’s Tosca, the Philadelphia Orchestra and the New York Philharmonic. We saw two
Broadway shows, Jersey Boys (the
story of Franki Valli and the Four Seasons), and Billy Elliott, and the very famous Cirque du Soleil in their new production
called “Ovo”, all of which were
outstanding. I was in New York a bit
longer than the rest of the group, and also managed to see South Pacific, Chicago and Stephen Sondheim’s A Little Night Music (starring Angela Lansbury and Catherine
Zeta-Jones). We toured the
Juilliard School of Music, the Steinway piano factory,
Radio City Music Hall and the Metropolitan Opera House. In fact, the
trip was so successful that Richard
and I are seriously considering
doing another one next year, with a similar mix of concerts, operas and
Broadway shows interspersed with sightseeing and private tours. To register your
interest in such a trip, please email me on kim@montybrett.com. Tree Identification Course Starts next Thursday, 27th May. During
this 4-evening course, husband and wife team Dr Bob and Prof Mary Scholes
will cover 40 of the most common tree species you’re likely to encounter in
the bushveld, with plenty of tips on how to identify them. They’ll also look at the role trees play in
the ecological functioning of the bushveld.
The Sappi Tree-Spotting Guide
– Bushveld is the recommended field guide for this course, some
copies of which will be on sale on the first evening. Dates: May 27, 31,
June 3, 7, 2010 Duration: 4
evening sessions, 12 hours in all Times: 18h30 – 21h30
each evening Venue: Wanderers
Club, Illovo, Johannesburg. Course Cost: R620 per
person To book: Email
Kim on kim@montybrett.com. Our Raptors Course was very
successful – everyone I spoke to said they enjoyed it very much. Our lecturers Clive Hopcroft, Geoff
Lockwood and Gerhard Verdoorn were excellent as always, and bird-rehabilitation
expert Lorna Stanton kept everyone mesmerised on the last night with her
display of live birds including an African Hawk Eagle, a Black Sparrowhawk, a
Yellow-billed Kite and an exquisite Black Eagle. A huge thank-you to everyone on the course
for giving so generously to Lorna’s cause. Monty and Clive’s Guide to South African
Birdsong We have two CDs
available, Part 1 and Part 2, both of which are newly updated with the latest
name changes. The cost is R100 per CD,
plus R30 for packaging and postage.
You can order them through Kim on kim@montybrett.com. Monty and Clive
recently visited a great spot on the Pondoland Coast in Transkei called Mbotyi River Lodge. It’s an exquisite piece of virgin forest
with waterfalls and beautiful scenery.
The area is excellent for birding - some of the specials include
Narina Trogon, Peregrine Falcon, Spotted Thrush, Blue-mantled Flycatcher,
Yellow-throated Longclaw and a Half-collared Kingfisher. The Buff-spotted Flufftail occurs in the
area during summer. The food at the
lodge was excellent and the staff and guides were friendly and
efficient. You can contact the Lodge
on 039 253-7200/1, or on 082 674-1064. Enjoy the World
Cup. Warm regards, Monty Brett Courses Tel: (033) 266-6113 Fax:
086 652-7662 Cell: 082 824-9378 email: kim@montybrett.com website:
www.montybrett.com |
Our contact details Monty & Kim Brett P O Box 314 Nottingham Road 3280 Tel: (033)
266-6113 Email: kim@montybrett.com Fax:
086 652-7662, or (033) 266-6970 Web: www.montybrett.com |
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Quotes |
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Liberty is
responsibility. That is why most men
dread it. George Bernard Shaw Happiness in not
achieved by the conscious pursuit of happiness; it is generally the
by-product of other activities. Aldous Huxley Man: an animal
so lost in rapturous contemplation of what he thinks he is as to overlook
what he indubitably ought to be. Ambrose Pierce |
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Animal
trivia |
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Dinosaurs didn’t
eat grasses – there weren’t any grasses at that time. A giraffe can
clean its ears with its tongue. Etruscan shrews,
the smallest mammals on earth, consume 130% of their bodyweight every
day. Their hearts beat 1200 times per
minute, and are about three times the relative size of a thoroughbred
racehorse’s heart. There are 17
different species of duiker in Africa. |
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Important
Note |
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Unwanted emails are a headache. If you would
prefer not to receive our newsletters anymore, please reply and simply type
“unsubscribe me” in the body of the email. |
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Parting
Thought |
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We make a living by what we get; we make a life
by what we give. Winston Churchill |