LATEST ARTICLES
London Canal Museum
Main image courtesy of Ell Brown I've written often suggesting that visitors to the UK venture beyond the usual London tourist traps. But if you are in London, the Canal Museum is a great place to visit. The UK was the first country in the world to have a nationwide...
The Mille Miglia, Alfonso Portago and the Kiss of Death
The Lombardy region in Northern Italy is a fabulous place to visit - and still so very Italian. If you're visiting the area I have a great, albeit sad little story for you to bore entertain your companions. The story dates from 1957 and the list of characters includes...
Varosha, Cyprus
Just look at the sparkling ocean. Wouldn't you love to swim in the clear, warm Mediterranean water? There's a lovely beach too, of course, and in days gone by this resort was popular with the rich and famous. It wouldn't have been unusual back in the day to see...
Kennington Road, London
If you're visiting London and have had your fill of the usual tourist attractions, then head to Kennington Road where you'll find the site of a gory murder, the childhood home of Charlie Chaplin, a war museum, a one-time residence of Vincent van Gogh and an excellent...
Will America Now Change Its Toilet Habits?
If I were to go to the shops now in search of a few rolls of toilet paper, the chances are I'd be disappointed. You know why - the current situation with the coronavirus has sent the US population panic buying. And the item that they mostly bought in their panic was...
The Living Root Bridges of Meghalaya
It must be very difficult these days to create new buildings and structures, bearing in mind the ecological pressures brought to bear upon architects. But the local people of northeastern India discovered many years ago that you don't necessarily need building...
Middlesbrough & The 1898 Smallpox Epidemic
Believe it or not, there are actually several good reasons to go to Middlesbrough. You may have the impression, as I did, that this is a pretty ugly old industrial town. Okay, it is. But there are still many things to see and do there. There are a handful of stately...
Visiting the UK: The Museum of Timekeeping
Clocks - marvellous things. Strangely, clocks and watches are still popular, despite the fact that we have digital readouts on our phones, laptops, car dashboards, cookers, microwaves and so on. True, clocks are more likely to be decor items these days and watches are...
Craco, Italy: Ghost Town
Considering that it's a completely abandoned ghost town, Craco has seen a good amount of activity in recent years thanks to film & TV companies, occasional religious festivals and of course, visiting travellers. As you can see from the map below, it's located in...
The Oldest Vegetarian Restaurant in the World
I never really think of Switzerland as being a pioneer in vegetarian cuisine. Yet the world's oldest vegetarian restaurant is in Zurich - the Hiltl Restaurant which opened in 1897. It's still in business today - in fact, there are several locations now throughout...
What’s All the Fuss About Sustainable Travel?
Okay, feel free to completely ignore this because it's just a rant. But in the news at the moment is a story about the recently disgraced Prince Harry giving a lecture about his new company / initiative to encourage sustainable travel. I, and Price Harry's father who...
Cueva de las Manos, Argentina
At first glance, they look modern don't they? As though someone got a can of spray paint and directed it towards they hand to make a silhouette? That's what I thought anyway but these cave paitings are actually thousands odf years old - between 9000 and 13000 years....
The Original High Fiver – Palette
A travel product has to be pretty good to amaze me. So often they are a waste of suitcase space or they are something that can easily be adapted from another product or even DIYed at home. But the Palette impresses me. I usually muddle along with those travel-size...
The Edinburgh Floral Clock
They can be found all over the world now, these floral clocks. Indeed. there was even one at Michael Jackson's Neverland home. But the tradition began in Edinburgh in Scotland well over a hundred years ago. Over the years I must have walked past dozens, if not...
What are Alberghi Diffusi?
What is an albergho diffuso? If you're looking for a vacation experience with a difference then these accommodations in Italy might be just what you're looking for.Almost thirty years before Airbnb made famous its 'live like a local' concept and slogan, that's exactly...
Why Do Brazilians Speak Portuguese?
Brazil is only one of ten countries that have Portuguese as their official language. Portuguese is one of the top ten spoken languages in the world (it's difficult to get an exact figure) and yet Portugal, like England that spawned one of the most used languages in...
Talbot House, Belgium
Now you might have heard the expression 'as dim as a Toc H lamp' or you could be familiar with a track called Pow R. Toc H.from Pink Floyd's Dark Side of the Moon. So it may be that you've heard of Toc H but do you know what it means? It's a fascination story and yes,...
There Are No Bad Guests Just Bad Hosts?
You've heard that saying I'm sure - that there are no bad dogs, just bad owners? And I'm sure that it's mostly true. Note the 'mostly'. I imagine that there are some dogs that have weird brain malfunctions that make them a little odd but in most cases, a puppy starts...
Visiting France: Abbaye de Sénanque
The abbey was founded in 1148 - which by anyone's standards is a very long time ago. Little has changed since that time. To this day. the monks gather, seven times every day, to pray within the chapel. And just as they have for hundreds of years, in order to help...
What is a Histopad?
How's your imagination these days? We don't really have to use them too much now, do we? We can go anywhere and see anything on our various screens. We can do unimaginable things thanks to virtual reality. But I'll bet that many of us still get a big dose of...
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