“The life, work and riotous pleasures of Dylan Thomas in Fitzrovia.” That was the title of a wide-ranging festival celebrating one of our greatest poets in 2014, his centenary year. It was also a celebration of Fitzrovia, the culturally rich district which played an important part in his life in London. The 19-year-old first came up on… Continue reading
Browsing Category Travel Blog
Can Welsh tourism cash its NATO dividend?
When the clattering helicopters, and the ominous motorcades with chunky black president-carriers much bigger than we used to have gone, the Wales of that very tempting Welsh Government video remains. President Obama is unlikely to return before the third week of January, 2017, when, under the constitution, he has to leave the Oval Office. (He… Continue reading →
Swansea’s field of dreamers, poets and six sixes in an over
On August 31st, 1968, West Indies cricketer Garfield St Aubrun Sobers became the first player in the, roughly, 200 year history of the sport to hit every ball of an over for six, playing for Nottinghamshire against Glamorgan at the St Helens ground in Swansea. To date the feat has only been repeated once in conventional,… Continue reading →
Could new clean, green trolleys spark up city centre transport?
Public transport belongs in the heart of the world’s historic towns and cities. But what sort of transport? Underground trains are best. Then, as you move above ground, the cleaner, the better. Trams, gliding elegantly through ancient streets, are one clean public transport solution. But creating a new system in an old city can… Continue reading →
Restaurant revolutionary serves up taste of 21st-century Turkey
Turkish restaurants give you a wonderful welcome, but too often I wonder if they either find visiting summer tourists too easy to please, or they didn’t think we are worth the trouble. The country has an immense supply of home grown vegetables and fruit, available in even the smallest village. Yet in the standard tourist place,… Continue reading →
Stonehenge heads for the future: new visitor centre welcomes the world
A new visitor centre opened at Stonehenge six months ago, in December, 2013. Its purpose was to “restore the dignity” of the monument. Mission accomplished? —- The A303 is one of the few major roads in Southern Britain that, in my opinion, is still a pleasure to drive. This is the alternative route from London… Continue reading →