A GREAT SHOW

Hokitika Guardian, 27 September 1930, Page 3

A GREAT SHOW

ANT WER P EX POSITION

INDUSTRY AND HISTORY. “The British Court, at the Antwerp ■Exposition,"is "very "filim”"''Writes Miss Gladys Watkins, of Wellington, Iroin Alalinesfi* Belgium. ; - It is ad)yauti(ul buiiding, : reflected in- an 'expansive sheet of water. One of the finest features of it is a flat map“of tlie wiirld set in water, with the ocean routes being traversed by tiny steamers going to and from the various ports. f l lie colonies are all shown in red, and one can at a glance, read the statistics of the products of each as compared witn those of alien countries. “There is one big alcove in which arc displayed exquisitely-wrought models of the Spanish Armada and Drake’s fleet, which destroyed the floating might of Spain,” she continues. “There are also some, wonderful paintings_ in panoramic form of the various British colonies ; and also some famous historic scenes, illustrative of. the ,s,pro,ad of. Empire, such as the landing ,of . the Pilgrim Fathers, Captain Cook’s landing in Australia- etc. ■- .. < .... > “We went from the British to tlie. Belgian court.? One of the most interesting sections there was the display of diamond and diamond-cutting, in an. iron enclosure. Eacle firm of merchants, had a window, and displayed fin it diaf mrinds in the rough, uniuounted, mounted, bracelets, tiaras, and rings. These diamonds were of all tints—white, ,veltnw, blue, green, etc., and tlie sparkle from them made one blink. From there we took a r ; glance at Holland—a fine show surrounded with wonderful beds of begonias, in all .shades.

“Italy shows some lovely s.tatu.ary, a small gallery of paintings, and an enormous, .gallery of.all kinds of .aeroplanes.. 15y (i p.m. we were til ed out, so we had a rest for an hour, and then went to. “Old Belgium,” which is the. finest thing that every lias been done: at an exposition. It contains life-size models of all the beautiful . old med'e.vnl houses of / Belgium,retaining all thsii. beauty and charm. They have even an old churoll, with a carillon: All ..the waitresses in the cafes-wove- 1830- costumes, as do also the policemen and other officials. We chose a cafe where the tables were beer-barrels,, and drank beer and ate sandwiches bought-in the place. “As we sat night fell, and the lights were turned on one by one, and the sight became Vven more entrancing, as we could see the moon reflected in the lake. The Flemish houses are adorable. They had ideas all their own, until Spain imposed its influence oh tlieir architecture. We .stayed in old Belgium until 9 p in., and. then went hack to the exposition grounds- in a tiny train wll.ich.gpe.s.all pypy the place, and from which the best view is procurable of the illuminated buildings, fountains, takes'' gardens qtci,; the!ight' in.g effects being the last wfud in modernity. “The place is lighted almost entirely hv whrtt is called ‘‘ground lighting.” There is one marvellous fountain on which the colours play in an amazing pattern. You can watch this for an hour without seeing a colour combination repeated. It is all delightful.