La Rochelle strives to be different. Facing the world on the Atlantic coast, it has always stood apart from the rest of France, one of the great seafaring cities. With typically French poetic verve, one of La Rochelle’s unofficial names is “Daughter of the Sea.” The English crown ruled it, between 1154 and 1224. It… Continue reading
Browsing Category Travel
Touring Northern Ireland in a motorhome
Tourist boards will have us believe the places they promote are blessed with unending sunshine. Think, when did you last see an umbrella in a travel brochure? I’m sure Ireland wouldn’t stoop to such meteorological subterfuge. What’s the point pretending they bask under skies of cerulean perfection, when we know the rain they had this morning… Continue reading →
No gear change for Barbados, top island in the sun
2016 is the year to celebrate Garfield Sobers, probably the greatest all-round cricketer who ever played the game. He was born and still lives on the Caribbean island of Barbados, and that connection is reason enough to pay a visit. I suspect, however, that this scintillating island would be noticed and remembered by more people this… Continue reading →
St Petersburg, City of War and Peace where bedtime is abolished
St Petersburg is vying for a place among the world’s great short-break destinations, after the BBC’s War and Peace. I remember this city from long ago, as black and white Leningrad. But I much prefer the remastered Technicolor version, with its fine palaces, canals to match Amsterdam, wide boulevards on a par with Paris, and… Continue reading →
How people of Jericho built Britain’s daftest, most heroic railway
The ITV “Yorkshire Western” Jericho celebrates the men and women who built the Ribblehead Viaduct, centrepiece of the wild, fabulous and slightly mad railway, running over the top of England in the 1870s. The viaduct, that heroic vindication of their labours, still stands, part of a living, working Settle-Carlisle Railway, one of the great scenic… Continue reading →
Rough Guides lists Jordan as one of its top 10 countries to visit
Jordan is a proud and welcoming nation, keen to show off its spectacular landscape and fabulous history. In 2016 it won a special accolade. Rough Guides included it in its top ten list of countries to visit. I was there recently. This is my must do list. It includes an outstanding Roman city, the fabulous rose coloured… Continue reading →