Dateline Monday 20th October 2025

Happy Monday, I hope you are healthy, happy, fine, fit, wonderful and well. Autumn has well and truly set in now Saturday’s weather was OK I guess Sunday’s weather was a typical Autum day bright first thing then by midday it was dull, overcast, grey and wet luckily, I went out for an early walk to Primrose Hill then stayed at home hugging a radiator 😊😊

All the Jewish high holidays are finally over it is a challenging month but also a very wonderful month, it is now done and dusted which to be honest is a relief, the Jewish population now goes on a serious diet for the next few weeks.

This week is Diwali the celebrations take place over five days known as Dhanteras (Day of fortune), Naraka Chaturdashi (Day of knowledge), Diwali (Day of light), Annakut (New Year) and Bhai Duj (Day of love between siblings) the festival is observed by Sikhs, Jains and some Buddhists.  It involves millions of lamps and other lights being placed at temples, shops, homes, businesses and other buildings in the countries where the festival is observed. Diwali symbolises the triumph of light over darkness, good over evil, truth over falsehood, and knowledge over ignorance. The third day, which is this year TODAY Monday, October 20, is regarded as the main and most important day

After Diwali all plans are for Halloween then Guy Fawkes night and we all know what happens after Guy Fawkes night, it is a race downhill towards Christmas and the end of 2025

I see our very own CLOWN Prince has fallen even further, I am surprised he hasn’t changed his name and moved into a bedsit flat in Shepherd’s Bush, oh I am being told that’s next weeks development.

What a caper! a broad daylight heist at the Louvre in Paris at 9.30AM on a Sunday morning, Les Flics (the cops) were probably on their second cup of café and third croissant of the day in the caf round the corner whilst it was going on,  the voleurs (French for thieves but you knew that) found a ladder left by a construction crew propped it up on the side of the building climbed up nicked the ancient French crown jewels then slid down the ladder to make their getaway, I guess the black and white stripey jumpers, the eye masks and the bag with the legend swag on it didn’t give the game away.     

Soap box time

TWO YEARS AND twelve DAYS since innocent and murdered Israeli citizens’ bodies were taken by the violent, medieval ,barbaric terrorist group Hamas who had murdered them in cold blood to be held as bargaining chips against the Israeli Government.  So far 9 of these deceased people have been repatriated to their families for a decent burial and closure however there are still 19 bodies still being held by Hamas and until the last one has been returned the soap box will remain

Off the soap box now

Good news

After 736 days in illegal captivity held by the barbaric death cult Hamas, the last 20 innocent living Israeli hostages are home—frail, scarred, but free

That’s it from a David point of view for this week.

MM and Company news update

IBTM

STEPHANE LOUISE General Manager of Hello Islands DMC Mauritius will be on the Euromic stand P85

Douglas & Erika of Mi Malta DMC will be on the Malta Stand B60

Loic from The J Team DMC Japan will be at IBTM on Stand J50 - the Japan stand

Marc Schwabach of Ambiance Incentives SPAIN will be at IBTM

Eva Hoffmann of Cornerstone Meetings DMC Germany will be at IBTM

IMOLA GORÓ of COSMOS Budapest DMC will be on the Hungarian stand 

Candy Lobo of TRAVCO DMC Dubai Abu Dhabi and Oman will be at IBTM

Austria

Martin, Evelyn and the team at e+o DMC Austria have told us that Austria Day is on 26th October it is a National Holiday deserves. Regular readers of my Monday blog will know I like to find out a little more and here is the scoop. After the end of World  War II, Austria was occupied by the four Allied forces Soviet Union, United States, Great Britain, and France, who divided the country into four zones. The capital Vienna was also divided in four, with the historic central district being jointly administered by the “Allied Control Council”. Although the Austrian parliament was democratically elected, every legislative regulation or political action of the government at first required consent by the Allied Control Council and later on could still be vetoed by it.

The negotiations over a State Treaty putting an end to the occupation could finally be concluded in the spring of 1955: the Austrian State Treaty was signed on May 15, 1955, in Vienna's Schloss Belvedere and entered into force on July 27, 1955. On October 26, 1955, the Austrian Parliament passed the constitutional law on permanent neutrality, which has been celebrated as the Austrian National day since 1965.

And that is about it for this Monday, you know as much as I know, wishing you an outstanding day and an awesome week ahead.