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Bierpinsel, Berlin
I imagine it's one of those Marmite things - you either love it or hate it. I think it's rather splendid, the Bierpinsel. This building, dating from the 1970s, is supposed to 'look like a tree' (truly) but from day one has been known as the Bierpinsel. 'Bierpinsel'...
Hipcamp: Travel For Today’s World
For many of us, the days of the pandemic made us think very carefully about travel. Yes, there will always be some people who will want go on the sort of trips that they did pre-quarantine, but for others, the thought of being cooped up on a cruise ship or a plane...
Visiting the USA: Safety in the City
There are plenty of statistics on the internet that tell us - accurately - whether a city in the USA is a safe place to stay or visit. The trouble is that most cities have areas that are wonderfully safe and absolutely splendid places for the visitor to travel to, but...
Hawa Mahal, Jaipur, India
This amazing beehive-like structure was built just in time for the millennium. No, not the one we remember - it was built in 1799. It's known as the Palace of the Winds and was built was part of the women's chambers of the City Palace. The structure answered a problem...
Don’t Miss Eating Salade Niçoise In Nice
For me, I don't know about you, one of the pleasures of travelling is eating authentic food it the location of its origin. I'm sure that you've found too that a Pizza Napoletana in Naples is nothing like the one from your local pizza place. Just one daft example. It's...
Airbnb Guests: How To Use Lists To Choose Your Rental
Choosing where you're going to stay on your trip isn't something that should be left to chance. The accommodation you choose can make or break your vacation. More and more people are using Airbnb (and similar sites) to make their accommodation plans and it's important...
Divided By A Common Language: Eggs For Breakfast
So, the guests had just left our Airbnb rental and I went in to check the place. I like to do this as soon as the guests have gone for several reasons. One of them, and probably the least sensible, is to check the fridge to see if they've left any goodies. And yes, I...
Visiting The UK: Chislehurst Caves
All over the world, there are mysterious caves. And many of them are open to visitors these days. They are truly fascinating and have been used for many purposes. Some date back for thousands of years. The Chislehurst caves are also available to visit and have a...
Sun City Resort, South Africa
Sol Kerzner came from a hotel background. His family started and ran a chain of hotels so when as a young man, Sol graduated from his Johannesburg university he joined the company and eventually ran the entire shebang. The hotel chain became the richest and most...
El Floridita, Havana, Cuba
There are plenty of bars that claim Ernest Hemingway as a once-upon-a-time customer. But I'll bet that the claim of El Floridita , the bar in Havana, has a pretty good reason. In fact, the Nobel Prize winner is still there drinking at the bar - in the form of a...
Showers – Simple Enough Surely?
You'd think so wouldn't you? A shower is a shower is a shower, right? When you're travelling the world, no. The trouble is, that like loos and food and driving, every country tends to think it's got it right. Let's take the USA as an example. (Why? Well, simply...
Survey Reveals An Unhappy USA
So you didn't know that there's an annual world happiness report? There is, and this year's results have just been announced and the big news is that the USA has slipped a few places yet again. In fact, it only just makes the top twenty. Scandinavia remains at the top...
Visiting The UK. Queensway Tunnel, Merseyside
Probably the most well-known method of crossing the River Mersey comes from a 1960s pop song - from the early days of Merseybeat. Continued to fame as a theme sung by football crowds, it is of course Ferry Cross the Mersey. Ferries have been used to cross the river...
Airbnb Guests: Is Your Booking Legit?
At time of writing there are over two million properties listed on Airbnb. So it's safe to assume that a lot of people stayed in Airbnb rentals last night, will tonight and will tomorrow night. And I suspect that 99.99% of them had a trouble-free and wonderful stay....
Visiting The Netherlands: Giethoorn
Just look at that photograph. It doesn't get much more idyllic than that, does it? I live in Fort Lauderdale, often described by people marketing the place as the 'Venice of America' and as you might expect, Giethoorn gets the 'Venice' nickname too. And I have to...
Divided by a Common Language: Telling the Time
I'm trying to remember when I last wore a watch. An old-fashioned analogue two-hands-and-a-dial watch like the one above. I remember that I'd just arrived at a gite in France (I'm thinking it was in the mid nineteen eighties) and removing the watch was symbolic of...
See Pier 54, New York
Local authorities are much better now at preserving historic buildings and places. It used to be that anything more than 50 years old was likely to be knocked down in the name of progress but the situation is a little better now. But Pier 54, with a curious maritime...
East Side Gallery, Berlin
I've rarely seen street art that I haven't appreciated. And that appreciation is doubled - no, much more - when the venue is the Berlin Wall. When the wall came down in 1989, artists from all over the world commemorated this with the creation of 105 murals painted on...
Luggage Covers: Yes or No?
Luggage covers are, for the most part, pretty revolting design-wise unless you get a plain colour or a transparent cover. But are they a good idea? They are easy to put onto your suitcase and simple to remove and launder. Plus they do keep your expensive suitcases...
Visiting the UK: Eleanor Crosses
It may well be that you've been to Charing Cross station in London and, like me, not really noticed the lavishly decorated monument that stands right outside. And if you're English - we tend to be a bit blasé about the history that's liberally scattered throughout our...
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