There are no wombats on Kangaroo Island, South Australia. Or dingoes either, for that matter. What they do have, aside from the eponymous marsupials, are pure-bred Ligurian bees, as we discovered when our island tour took us to Clifford’s Honey … Continue reading The Bees of Kangaroo Island
When I suddenly received an e-mail out of the blue from my old school friend Z, I was surprised to learn that she was getting married. I had always admired the way Z had studied for a PhD and become … Continue reading The Teapot is in Bahrain!
‘Lane 1 Closed for Pruning’ said the road sign on the way into the city from Changi Airport. You don’t see that on the M4. Despite the horticultural hazards, we arrived safely at our hotel to the unexpected but welcome … Continue reading Green Singapore
If you stay in one place long enough, the world will pass by. What better place to sit, on a baking hot July afternoon in Taormina than a shady bench in the Public Garden, with a view of the bay … Continue reading Sicilian Interlude
The pigeons lined up at the edge of the pool, as if daring each other to be the first to take the plunge. Their cooing was the only sound to be heard in the Patio del Yesu. At ten-thirty in … Continue reading A Tale of Three Courtyards
“I would have got away with it if it hadn’t been for those pesky time-travelling racoons!” Not a sentence one uses every day, but in this case it fitted the situation perfectly. I was exploring Kitakyushu, on Japan’s southernmost island, … Continue reading In Search of Bungo
The local newspaper gives a count of the number of days the ‘siege’ has lasted, but in truth Doha does not feel like a city under siege. It is far more of a city under construction. Everywhere are building sites, … Continue reading City Under Siege?
In the final episode of Star Trek: Deep Space 9, the Chief O’Brien is returning to Earth and considering where to live. Worf, his Klingon colleague, has just one word to say on the subject: “Minsk.” That is one of … Continue reading Recommended by Klingons
The inflatable Santas struck a slightly discordant note among the monkey-tamers, snake charmers and henna-painters of the Djemaa el Fna. This ‘square’ is described in one of my guidebooks as the heart of traditional Marrakech, and certainly it is the … Continue reading (Un)Christmas in Marrakech
There are two ways of tackling a short city break. One is to rush around, aiming to see as many of the ‘sights’ as possible in the time available. The other is to try to see just one or two … Continue reading Tripe and Bosch in Madrid
Travels with me aren't 