His Holiness the Dalai Lama no longer asks for his country back. He asks for Tibet to become a peace zone, to have some autonomy in its own affairs within the People’s Republic of China, for his people to be allowed the freedom to practice their Buddhist religion without fear or censorship. Here in the West, the Dalai Lama is regarded as a symbol of compassion and peace, a living example of Mahatma Gandhi and Martin Luther King’s legacy of non-violent resistance. In Tibet, people cannot own a picture of him or even mention his name without risking being thrown in jail.

There is no democracy or human rights in Tibet - or in China for that matter. But that won’t stop hundreds of runners and jumpers going for gold in Beijing, just like our business leaders and governments who in the name of ’freedom’ drop bombs on one country and do business with another. My heart goes out to the Tibetans, and the Chinese soldiers shooting at them. In the words of another Buddha, they know not what they do.

Om mani padme hum.

The sun's been shining here in London - nothing like a clear blue sky on a winter's day. I've been busy doing radio interviews for the BBC and writing out parts for the string quartet who are playing with me at a showcase next month.

My current tour schedule is up on myspace and on my website. More gig dates, including festivals, will be confirmed soon - if you want me to keep you posted, just join my mailing list.

Thanks for your support - I really appreciate it.

xx

xx

Oh joy, 22 hours in a plane… again. This time I stopped overnight in Japan where despite spending hours at the back of every queue in the airport, once I actually got to the hotel everything was great – a bed, a hot shower, the best spaghetti bolognaise I've ever had (bizarrely enough), and the Teachings of Buddha next to the Gideon Bible. What more could you ask for?

So I get to Heathrow the next day and there's my bass player who's somehow made it through customs despite his haircut, and we head off into the bus station with our guitars and bags and coffees in hand.

First off to the lovely Larmer Tree Festival near Salisbury, where it's raining. Rain is something we are really short of in Australia but here in England it's summertime so it's pissing down. Fortunately at the festival the tent stayed dry, we did our first gig and I had my first pint of cider in years. Ahhhh… this was something of a revelation! Apparently though cider is now cool here so I find myself being fashionable which is worrying but I can't help it for now. Cider is definitely the drink of this tour.

We do gigs in London, Cambridge, Hayling Island and Lymington, before turning up at the Cambridge Folk Festival, again to a small welcoming monsoon. By this time I'm half wishing I'd brought my wellies with me from Australia but they have been known to contain tarantulas so I thought best not. We open the festival, meet Paddy the sound-man who I haven't seen for years, and play in the Festival session accompanied by Heather Downie, a very talented young harp player from Scotland.

In between times, our very reliable and trustworthy tour bus has broken down with an as-yet-undiagnosed-but-possibly-terminal case of paralysis. This is where touring gets interesting. We hire a car, weeks old with an MP3 player and coffee holder (I am easily pleased), and head off to the Secret Garden Party festival for a gig on the last night. This is like turning up sober to the end of an office party, but once again cider comes to the rescue - despite being cider that looks the EXACT colour of piss, it tastes lovely and makes me feel much better about everything, including the sight of the toilets.

We've got a few days off now before we head into deepest, darkest East Anglia for gigs in Hertfordshire and Essex. If you're in the UK, check out my tour dates and come hear us play. Cider donations will be gratefully received.

Hope all's well in your world.

em xx