As a journalist, I have been involved in travel for many years, writing about destinations and countries and experiences, and reading what other people have to say. Leisure travel is supposed to be about rewarding, restful, restorative experiences. It can also be instructional and informative and, in the words of the cliche, mind broadening. The… Continue reading
Browsing Category Travel Blog
Masdar – future city in the desert reaches its zero-energy present
This is a revised version of an article I wrote in 2008. A number of the features described have already been built. ———- Imagine a new city about the size of Exeter where they will not use a drop of oil, an ounce of fossil fuel, or produce a breath of carbon dioxide to change the… Continue reading →
Amsterdam – popular demand for poster city on the canals
I’ve just been to Amsterdam for the opening of the Andaz Amsterdam Prinsengracht. 2013 is another big year, with the reopening of the Rijksmuseum after 10 years of renovation. And the New York Times placed the city sixth on its list of “The 46 Places to Go in 2013”. * Amsterdam, the refined, easy-going and eco-friendly… Continue reading →
We shouldn’t let politics darken Belfast’s bright new dawn
At the start of December I enjoyed a meal in good company in one of Belfast’s liveliest new restaurants. Made in Belfast, in the city cenre, was full on our visit. The name summed up the optimism and vigour of a city rebuilding itself, after many dark days. The walls were festooned, floor to ceiling,… Continue reading →
Back to Africa, with Attenborough the master wildlife storyteller
The Attenborough wildlife series is one of the great TV events, all the more to be relished and enjoyed because here is a man of 86, still in full bloom, continuing a body of work that links back to the very early days of television. Now he’s back on prime time BBC One, and it… Continue reading →
German railways guarantee zero-carbon travel
If we don’t count bicycles, electric cars (and only when you know the energy is produced by renewables), and commuting by yacht, zero-carbon travel for business or leisure still remains something of a chimera. So it is promising news that German national rail company Deutsche Bahn (DB) has become one of the first transport operators in… Continue reading →