"Happy Birthday, Your Majesty!"

A very bright and cold day dawned on Saturday.   As you will no doubt know, it was HM Queen's birthday, and like loyal subjects everywhere, we were heading off to the celebrations....

First frost of the year

Walking down the hill, we could see HMS Clyde in the harbour, bedecked with bunting. As we approached Victory Green, the crowd grew as we waited for the arrival of the Governor and the military commanders.

Victory Green, with former Upland Goose hotel behind

The green is about 500 yards by 50 yards, lying between the sea, and the main road along the front of Stanley.  It's usually empty, but for some ceremonial cannon, a mast from SS Great Britain (which lay in the harbour for decades), and dozens of Upland Geese enjoying the high-quality grass and the tranquility.  

HMS Clyde and spectators

At one end of the green are a couple of good shops and the West Store, which stocks mostly Waitrose products.  Facing the Green, are Stanley House, a boarding facility for children from Camp attending school in Stanley; the British Antarctic Survey (BAS) office; the former Upland Goose Hotel; the Police Station (and prison!).  At the west end of the Green, on the shore side, is another great gift shop; the Bank; Town Hall; and Post Office.  Downtown!    

Geese enjoying the quiet.....

Around Stanley House and the BAS office is probably the highest concentration of trees on East Falkland.

Vultures - do they know something?

Punctually, His Excellency, the Governor, arrives in a shiny Range Rover.  (By the way, he doesn't govern! He is the Queen's representative.  A Foreign Office diplomat who works closely with the Falklands Islands government on policy matters.  The UK is responsible for the Falklands' Defence and Foreign Policy.  Everything else is run by the Falklanders themselves.)

Accompanied by military commanders from the British Forces, South Atlantic Islands  (BFSAI), he takes the salute as Flags are raised and lowered.  The guard of honour - made up of members of the Falklands Islands Defence Force and counterparts from BFSAI - is inspected.  All seems in order.

Inspecting the troops.

Feathers fly

I've heard gun salutes in London a couple of times, but they were probably a few miles away from me - perhaps in Hyde Park.  You would notice  them, and think "What's that?  Oh, it's the Queen's Birthday", and get on with your sight-seeing.  It was less intrusive than a car horn warning you not to step off the kerb.

"KA-BOOM!"

Not in Stanley.  Not when the guns are 20 yards away.  I heard the first command "Fire!", and that was about the last words I heard for about 15 minutes... The geese got the fright of their lives and flew off cackling for all they were worth.   20 more explosions followed, echoing off the hills, and filling the green with smoke.

RAF and Royal Navy make an appearance

Eventually, the guns fell silent.  Someone, I think it may have been the Governor, suggested "3 cheers for Her Majesty...Hip, hip...".   The guard of honour sloped arms and marched off.  The Governor's entourage made their way back to Government House for a reception, and some of us wandered around waiting for the geese, and our hearing, to return.....

Job done

As we were dispersing, we bumped into a couple of ladies we'd met on Sea Lion Island in February.

http://peterspenguinpost.blogspot.co.uk/2012/02/sea-lion-island-where-giants-collide.html

Ashford Spinning Wheel

One of them invited us into her cottage overlooking Victory Green.  It was formerly part of the Upland Goose Hotel, which was the watering hole for senior Argentine officers in 1982, and, subsequently, members of the British press like Max Hastings.  The historic building has recently been converted into a row of cottages, keeping this part of town alive and attractive, although  there is still the occasional knock on the door from a visitor looking for the Upland Goose bar!

Warship in the harbour; Upland Geese on the Green

Our hostess was a retired travelling teacher.  On the sparsely-populated West Falklands, farms are so remote, primary schools are not viable, so teachers moved every few weeks from family to family.  Face-to-face lessons are supplemented by radio, and now Internet, teaching from the school in Stanley.

As she produced much-needed hot coffee and home baking, we couldn't help admire the many examples of her other skills in profusion around the house.  As winter was approaching, the spinning wheel was being brought out for the long, dark nights.  Crocheting, cross-stitching, felting, patchworking, knitting, weaving, basket-making, tapestry,embroidery and more was also in evidence.

There's quite a thriving craft "industry" in the Falklands, although it's definitely at the cottage level.  Cruise ship passengers usually snap up the high-quality, stylish  products, but I feel it could also benefit from a high-profile "Falkland Islands" brand - such as Fair Isle jumpers enjoy.  

Some reviews of shopping opportunities can be found here -
http://www.virtualtourist.com/travel/South_America/Falkland_Islands/Shopping-Falkland_Islands-TG-C-1.html

As I write, on St Georges Day, it is a Bank Holiday (for the Queen's Birthday) on the Falklands.  Here's hoping the traffic isn't too bad.

The Queen is 86 years old.  Who can remember another British Monarch?  Not many of us.  I wonder if the next monarch will get the crowds out in far-flung corners of the globe?

Happy St Georges Day to my English friends!

Peter
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