In my recent blog entry about the cruise my wife went on during late July and early August I mentioned that I had bought one or two things whilst I was away. Well here the are ...
In Stavanger I happened upon a model shop that was having a sale (the Norwegian word for 'Sale' appears to be 'Tilbud' if the price tags on the boxes are anything to go by) and bought four ROCO Minitanks that I have not seen on sale in the UK. Mind you, I have not seen many ROCO Minitanks on sale in the UK at all for a long time anyway, so this was a bonus for me!
In Bergen many souvenir shops were selling models of buildings in Bryggen, which is the older part of town and which date back to the time when Bergen was part of the Hanseatic League. Although they are specifically Norwegian in style and origin, from a distance (i.e. on a wargames table) they will look sufficiently Northern European in style to pass muster.
In Civitavecchia I found a replica hat from the Russian Civil War on sale in the local market. Interestingly, this one has a green star (all the others I own have red stars) and this means that it was supposed to have been worn by the Border Guards (a forerunner of the border troops operated by the NKVD and KBG).
I also bought a small model of Michelangelo's fortress, the original of which guards the entrance to Civitavecchia's harbour.
My final purchase was in Florence (Firenze). This is a model of the Palazzo Vecchio, which is now the Town Hall, having previously been a ducal palace when the Medicis ruled Florence. The palace also served as the seat of United Italy's provisional government from 1865-1871 when Florence was the temporary capital of the Kingdom of Italy.
In Stavanger I happened upon a model shop that was having a sale (the Norwegian word for 'Sale' appears to be 'Tilbud' if the price tags on the boxes are anything to go by) and bought four ROCO Minitanks that I have not seen on sale in the UK. Mind you, I have not seen many ROCO Minitanks on sale in the UK at all for a long time anyway, so this was a bonus for me!
In Bergen many souvenir shops were selling models of buildings in Bryggen, which is the older part of town and which date back to the time when Bergen was part of the Hanseatic League. Although they are specifically Norwegian in style and origin, from a distance (i.e. on a wargames table) they will look sufficiently Northern European in style to pass muster.
In Civitavecchia I found a replica hat from the Russian Civil War on sale in the local market. Interestingly, this one has a green star (all the others I own have red stars) and this means that it was supposed to have been worn by the Border Guards (a forerunner of the border troops operated by the NKVD and KBG).
I also bought a small model of Michelangelo's fortress, the original of which guards the entrance to Civitavecchia's harbour.
My final purchase was in Florence (Firenze). This is a model of the Palazzo Vecchio, which is now the Town Hall, having previously been a ducal palace when the Medicis ruled Florence. The palace also served as the seat of United Italy's provisional government from 1865-1871 when Florence was the temporary capital of the Kingdom of Italy.
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Not a bad haul Bob. The buildings look useful - I especially like the little fort!I'm sure we'll see the ROCO toys in use soon.
ReplyDeleteTim Gow,
ReplyDeleteThe buildings are not very different in size from the traditional wooden 'Town in a bag' buildings I am currently using. The castle reminded me of pictures I have seen of the Russian fortress at Brest-Litovsk as well as being very suitable for most European wars from 1450 to 1850 (and possibly even later).
The ROCO tanks will hopefully appear in a battle near you sometime soon ... I hope!
All the best,
Bob
Its good to bring home some treasures from an expedition. I love the buildings, one can picture entire suburbs springing up. The clock tower and palace would look just right amidst a sea port, over looking a sea battle on the coast.
ReplyDeleteRoss Mac,
ReplyDeleteNot only are they nice buildings, but they also serve as practical reminders of a great holiday.
I need to get my collection of 'real estate' together sometime soon so that I can make an inventory of everything that I have. I suspect that the collection is much larger than I think.
All the best,
Bob
Bob - I think your collections of everything are bigger then you think!
ReplyDeleteTim Gow,
ReplyDeleteI hate to say it ... but you are probably right!
All the best,
Bob