Week 6

[Nigel]

Congratulations on a fine race and a new PB in Murcia, Antonio. Clearly you're getting faster as you travel towards Madrid ! I remember walking around Murcia's fine old town last year, and then steeply uphill for some fine views over the city.

It was a great report on the race, and an amusing runner's story about the guy giving up cigarettes, and having to decide at 6am between lighting up and going for a run. Not many would have chosen the run.

Interesting thoughts about the cinema, too. 'Love Actually' has a lot of critics for its lightweight plot and shameless references to 'Four Weddings and a Funeral', but I agree that one of the things it did do extremely well was its photography of London. It was the first film I had seen for a long time which photographed London like an American city.

Spent another very enjoyable evening at 'Lost in Translation' this weekend. Another atmospheric city film, with mixed reviews. Lots of people I know hated it, because they thought that nothing really happened, or because they felt it was derogatory about Japan and the Japanese. Many others enjoyed it for its observations on Tokyo. Again, the photography of the city was marvellous, and it was a thoughtful account of being a traveller in a strange city.