To Charlotte, named after Queen Charlotte, she who was married to George III, the mad King I believe. One of the districts is called Mecklenburg, another one of the Queen's names, and yet they revolution was strong in this area. There are many inconsistencies in history and this one makes me wonder. General Conwallis billeted his men in the town and called it a "Hornet's Nest" because of the resistance he encountered in the area. In true American style, the people promptly adopted a picture of a hornets nest as the towns symbol. I spoke to a woman in the visitor centre who has lived here all her life. She was impressed to have attracted a Northern Irelander into the town as opposed to a free stater. It was only after I left that it occurred to me that she was the first person I have met to know there was a difference.

She told me that the town was a "sleepy little ol' southern town" until a few years ago, and truth to tell, it is not that far from that time even now. It has charm and some elegance but it can be appreciated in a day. Nevertheless it is a place that I instinctively liked.

It is a little cooler today, a relative term. Around 78 Degrees F I am told, whatever that is in Celsius. Tomorrow I'm off to the mountains for coolness, wine, history and whatever else comes along.

Post script. I was served at dinner by a boy from the area who spoke very like a young elvis, more of a mumble that anything else. His name, he tol' (sic) me was Malachi which he pronounced as Mah - la - Kai. I told him in Ireland the name is pronounced as Mal - ak - kee. "You from Ireland"? "Boy, y'all having a bad time right now" he said. I didn't know what he meant. "It must be hard fir y'all" he repeated, "Living so close to Iraq an all."

New York - HOT to the point of heatstroke. The City has opened "cooling centers" for the old and vulnerable to live until the heat abates. I ask a woman who complains of the heat and about how much hotter it is in June now than it used to be about global warming. She looks puzzled for a moment and then it dawns on her what I meant. Her features are gathered into a dismissive scowl, "that's Al Gore crap!" "Damn fool thinks he can make a living outta scarin folk!" And that was that. We stood on a corner in blasts of hot air coming from high rise buildings as they struggled to cool their occupants. The message appears not to be getting through and I suddenly felt quite depressed.

Off to the Carolina's in the morning (isn't there a song with a theme like this?) More when I land and get a feel for the place.

And so it begins

Hi all,

Thanks to the Winston Churchill Memorial Trust, I'm off to New York and North Carolina in a couple of days. The trip is for me to study how the Judical system in these areas helps to reduce rates of youth crime by enhancing employments opportunites for young offenders. I'll try and post updates as often as I can and let anyone who wants to know, how it's all going.

Paul.