See the photograph above? Now that is one gorgeous place to swim, dine or enjoy a luxurious spa day. But here’s what Kings Meadow Pool, now known as the Thames Lido. But in 2009, here’s what the place looked like. And seeing what the place looks like now...
Host or guest, enter the Airbnb numbers into your phone now. You’ll find them by using the button below. HOW TO CONTACT AIRBNB Airbnb has grown enormously – worldwide – since the service started in 2008. To be honest, I suspect that even the founders...
Incredible Irish designer Eileen Gray designed the house that I – and plenty of other people too I’m sure – would describe as a dream home. Completed in 1929, the house overlooks the sparkling blue sea. It was a labour of love – more about...
If you’re American, you might not be as gobsmacked by this as I am. To me, it comes into one of those only-in-America categories. But the Wienermobile – for that is what the vehicle you see illustrated is – really is a thing. I admit that I had to go...
Heir B & B is what the press are calling it. Snigger. But no, Prince Charles isn’t actually about to place Buckingham Palace on Airbnb – but he is creating ten new guest accommodations at the Castle of Mey in the wilds of Scotland. The prince’s...
Here’s a mosque that dates back for hundreds of years. It’s said that the mosque was built in 1421 by Ayuba. Ayuba was a trader who was spending the night in Larabanga because he was travelling across the Sahara. The story goes that he was given...
Although shelters and huts can be found on beaches throughout the world, the beach hut remains an icon of the British seaside. In some British beach locations, they have evolved from fishermen’s huts or even from bathing machines – that nineteenth century...
Yes, if you host on Airbnb, the company is going to send you ‘price tips’. And so many hosts are insulted by these… ‘My nightly rate is $150 per night and Airbnb tells me to reduce it to one-third of that – how dare they?’ Well...
James Bond’s arch-enemy Ernst Stavro Blofeld is hiding out in his mountaintop retreat in Switzerland. It is inaccessible by any means other than a scary helicopter flight. But Blofeld is a criminal mastermind and his goal is a simple one – world...
You probably didn’t know that May 5th is designated as Betty Willis Day. In fact, it may be that you’ve no idea at all who Betty Willis was. But I’ll bet you know one of her pieces of design work. Yes, the Welcome to Fabulous Las Vegas sign. Graphic...
I’m seriously in love with travelling on sleeping-car trains. And the Sunrise Izumo can take you almost 600 miles across Japan. It’s an excellent way to travel and the sleeping facilities are excellent. We’ll talk about the cabins in a minute but...
So, I’ve read about this. The William Shatner triangle. Every aircraft has them, or so its said. I invariably forget to look. I get stuck in to my book or a film and I forget all about looking for the thing. Can you look for me next time you fly? I’d...
Thought that Hitler shot himself in his Berlin bunker in 1945? Not according to Argentinian legend. Hitler escaped from Berlin and made his way to the Hotel Eden in La Falda, Argentina. The hotel had originally been built by a German national and by the time of the...
Right. Imagine this. You awake in your delightful apartment that’s right on the canal in Fort Lauderdale. Take your freshly-brewed coffee onto the pleasant dock to watch the sun rise (if it’s early enough) or the leisurely water traffic sail by. When...
The Gateshead Millenium Bridge is an amazing sight when stationary but once it moves – to allow river traffic to pass under it – it’s quite astonishing. You can see how it does so in the time-lapse video below. In many places in the world moving...
When you’re booking accommodation, do you want to stay with a host or a landlord? If you offer accommodation to others at your property, do you consider yourself a landlord or a host? What’s the difference? Let’s see what the dictionary has to say....
In this context, ‘popular’ refers to folk art – art and creative activities that are traditional to the people of Mexico. The museum opened in 2006 and it’s located in an old firehouse that was designed in the 1920s by architect Vicente...
Did you know that the Glasgow Underground system is the third oldest metro in the world? It opened in 1896. The oldest, of course, is also in the British Isles, the London tube which is a great granddaddy in comparison, having opened in 1863. By the 1970s though, the...
Swimming is one of the most popular forms of exercise and these days, more and more people are enjoying the benefits of swimming outdoors. In England. Yes, although many people in other countries seem to think that Egland is always cold and always raining (it...
In 1939, Roland Stickney designed a prefabricated diner in the form of contemporary streamlined railway trains. These were put into production and were made until 1949. Only two are still in operation and one is the Modern Diner in Pawtucket, RI. Typical of the trains...
