Rex illiteratus est quasi asinus coronatus, ‘a king who cannot read is like a crowned donkey’. Or, if you prefer the literal translation, ‘an illiterate king is like a crowned arse’. These are almost thousand-year-old diplomatic words of Bishop John of Salisbury (ca. 1120-1180), expressing the notion that kings and other rulers, in general, shouldContinue reading “Donkey King of the Paulme Game. From Kaatsen to Tennis and Jai-alai”
Tag Archives: sports
Grassland Conversation. Where Less Is More
Being out on the grasslands may bring you face to face with farmers, fellow wanderers, or — of course — ‘birdwatchers’; see the note at the end of this blog post. Encounters with these countryside folk unfold in slow motion, and follow a sequence of clearly defined phases. Out here, less is more — justContinue reading “Grassland Conversation. Where Less Is More”
Racing on the Wadden Sea With a Silt Sled
The mudflats of the Wadden Sea seem endless. But what do you do with them? How do you give meaning to mud? Sure, one cubic meter of mudflat holds millions of diatoms, thousands of small crabs, mussels, snails, and worms. For birds, all this frutti di mare is like ordering à la carte. Birds areContinue reading “Racing on the Wadden Sea With a Silt Sled”
What’s Hip and Happening on the Grasslands?
How do Frisians spend their time off? Frisians in the Netherlands must have plenty of it, given that job prospects are among the poorest in the country. And those who do have a job are spared the precious hours that people farther south spend stuck in traffic every day. With all this time on theirContinue reading “What’s Hip and Happening on the Grasslands?”
