According to the Monorail Society website, the first ever passenger carrying monorail was in my home town, at Cheshunt:
1825 — Cheshunt Railway
The first passenger carrying monorail celebrated a grand opening June 25th, 1825. It had a one-horse power engine … literally. Based on a 1821 patent by Henry Robinson Palmer, the Cheshunt Railway was actually built to carry bricks, but made monorail history by carrying passengers at its opening.
And I’m pleased to have been on the world’s oldest monorail which is still in operation: the Wuppertal Schwebebahn (above) which is also the only public passenger carrying dangling railway. It is certainly an interesting ride.
China is notorious for its efforts to control things in Tibet but the law that the Chinese government passed in 2007 was beyond absurd. According to the law it’s illegal for Tibetan Buddhist monks to reincarnate without the government´s permission.
On 3 August 2007 China’s State Administration for Religious Affairs issued a decree that all reincarnations of Tibetan Buddhist monks must have government approval, otherwise they are “illegal or invalid”. The decree states
It is an important move to institutionalize management on reincarnation of living Buddhas. The selection of reincarnates must preserve national unity and solidarity of all ethnic groups and the selection process cannot be influenced by any group or individual from outside the country.
It also requires that temples which apply for reincarnation of a living Buddha must be
legally-registered venues for Tibetan Buddhism activities and are capable of fostering and offering proper means of support for the living Buddha.
Reincarnation applications have to be submitted to four governmental bodies for approval: the religious affairs department of the provincial-level government; the provincial-level government; State Administration for Religious Affairs; and the State Council.
All of which is sadly part of China’s efforts to sideline the current Dalai Lama and take control of the selection (when the time comes) of both the Dalai Lama and Panchen Lama.
For more see http://humansarefree.com/2011/02/china-bans-reincarnation-without.html and https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/State_Religious_Affairs_Bureau_Order_No._5.
The Dong Tao chicken is a somewhat gruesomely bizarre breed with elephantine legs and feet. It is very popular in Vietnam where it is prized for its meat, which is considered far more delicious than that of normal chickens.
I spotted this on the menu of a Taylor Walker pub in central London — Mayfair, forsooth! — on Saturday. It raised quite a giggle amongst the assembled company.
Tart? Mayfair, 9 May 2015
Eccentric looks at life through the thoughts of a retired working thinker
