Harry’s Ramblings; Eastbourne’s cinema of dreams
The cinema came to Eastbourne in the 1890s, it’s not recorded where, but it must have been close to the town centre. Eastbourne is one of those strangely traditional...
Steve’s Sojourns: Murals and Markets in Sardinia.
Sardinia is one of the most beautiful islands in the Mediterranean. Its main delight is you never know what you’re going to find in some of the small villages...
Feed your body and soul in Conques – Meanderings through France n° 201
By Annick Dournes & Frédéric de Poligny Conques is a superb village east of Cahors and Bergerac in southwest France. Set in a remote semi-mountainous region,...
A Place to Stay; Where to Stay in Wales So you want a trip to Wales? Here are two cosy places that may just fit the bill!
Wolfscastle Country Hotel – Situated 15 minutes from Haverfordwest in the Pembrokeshire countryside with 20 en-suite bedrooms which offer a unique blend of rural charm, heritage & contemporary design....
Malta Diary Did Malta’s Neolithic inhabitants prefer to worship Astarte rather than Tanit? Were sacrifices of babies and children carried out?
ALBERT FENECH e/mail – Facebook: My Blog: Worship of the Goddess-Deity TANIT stretched back to Neolithic times and filtered down to the...
A Stranger in Vegas The Clark County Museum
Halloween is around the corners, and I have been thinking of something exciting to do. It’s been a very long time since I’ve experienced something unusual but at...
Victorians with smelly feet
I used to be a volunteer usher at my local Royal Hippodrome Theatre here in Eastbourne, so it was a natural progression to become a theatre guide. It was...
Celebrating Leonardo and Chambord 500th anniversary – Meanderings through France n° 200
By Annick Dournes & Frédéric de Poligny Once again Chambord was in the spotlight to celebrate the 500th anniversary of its foundation. Works began on September...
COVENTRY’S LADY GODIVA The City of Coventry is famous for many things, Ann Evans tell the story of its most famous woman – Lady Godiva.
A visit to Coventry would not be complete without discovering the city’s most famous woman from history, Lady Godiva. A bronze statue in her honour stands...
Steve’s Sojourns A river cruise down the Rhone with Shearings/ARosa
I like a river cruise! So we tried one with Shearings on the ARosa Stella with only 160 people on board. The ARosa Stella is not as grandiose...
18-19 Harry’s Ramblings. Camera Obscura latest
Eastbourne has a camera obscura atop the building at the end of its Victorian pier. Originally built in 1870, the pier had two previous buildings, both theatres, until the...
Was the Charles Bridge mortar watered with wine and milk?
Charles Bridge. One of the symbols of Prague. The oldest standing bridge over the Vltava river in Prague and the second oldest preserved bridge in the Czech Republic. Thousands...
Sweet Indian summer in Nantes – Meanderings through France n° 199
By Annick Dournes & Frédéric de Poligny According to opinion polls Nantes is one of French people favourite towns where they would love to live. Ideally...
Steve’s Sojourns A Place to stay in NORTH NORTHUMBERLAND
Sandwiched between Scotland and England Northumberland has drawn its lifeblood from both. If Scotland were to be described as red and England as yellow then Northumberland would be classified...
DISCOVER COVENTRY’S HERITAGE
Photos by Rob Tysall, Tysall’s Photography Ann Evans reminds us that Coventry’s Heritage Open Days are almost here. The City of Coventry is steeped in history and...
Steve’s Sojourns – Allier France
Nine times out of ten if you took a map of France and stuck a pin in what you thought was the exact centre of the country you would...
Fontevraud Abbey, the impressive Plantagenet family necropolis – Meanderings through France n° 198
By Annick Dournes & Frédéric de Poligny Fontevraud Abbey is one of the largest monastic cities in Europe founded in 1101. Two great historical characters, Robert d’Arbrissel...
Steve’s Sojourns – A Place to stay The Grande Bretagne Hotel – Athens
What you have here is one of the finest hotels anywhere in the world. It’s no surprise royalty, Hollywood film stars and anyone else who is anybody stays here...
19-19 Harry’s Ramblings. Warners Lakeside
For those unaware, Warners is a holiday company that brings cruising to dry land. They have quite a few holiday park complexes around the UK, specialising in short breaks...
Karl’s Chronicles Article 3 The Door of No Return
The Castle stood white as skimmed milk on its small rocky ledge. The mood of the Atlantic came in powerful angled waves, slamming against the rocks but having little...
Harry’s Ramblings Eastbourne’s early music hall
Before the railways came to Eastbourne in 1849 on England’s south coast between Brighton and Hastings, it was quite a small series of almost joined hamlets, certainly less than...
Karnak – the largest ancient religious site in the world!
Egypt – sea, sand, heat, camels and yes, also rich history. About 3 million people go to Luxor annually. On the northern outskirts of Luxor, on the central Nile,...
A festive “grape harvest day” in Cheverny – Meanderings through France n° 197
By Annick Dournes & Frédéric de Poligny For the ninth consecutive year winegrowers and winemakers of the Cheverny DOC organize a wine festival on Saturday 7...
A Place to Stay. Dar Chennoufi, El Kef
El Kef, in Northwest Tunisia near the Algerian border, hosts an annual Jazz Festival which I visited this year. El Kef is a non-touristy city but it’s full of...
A Place to Stay. Steve’s Sojourns, Tinto House Hotel
I’ve just spent a night as a guest of the 3* Tinto House Hotel located in the heart of Southern Lanarkshire near the small town of Biggar. The Borders...
Welsh Witterings: Busy Times
The chaotic rhythm of my life continues this week as I try to complete deadlines, raise four girls, deal with the washing mountain and prepare for my television appearances...
Karl’s Chronicles Article 2 Ghana; Kwame Nkrumah – Changing Course
Arrive in Ghana and it doesn’t take long before you start to acquaint yourself with two impressionable forces. The heat that pulls you down and the courage and vision...
Steve’s Sojourns. Sniffed by the Inuits.
Fancy being sniffed by the Inuits? Well if not and you land on the small community of Oqaatusat in western Greenland be ready! I heard the sound of the...
Ranjit Recommends: The Bothy
The Bothy is the latest addition in a host of successful bar & restaurant chains by Drake & Morgan. Situated in the epicentre of West India Quay, The Bothy...
Rachel’s Wanderings in Spain – 8 – Estate Agents, Spanish Sunsets and Second Hand Cars
It’s been an odd month so far and we’re just over halfway through. The early part of the month saw me visiting family in the UK on a short...
Harry’s Ramblings Eastbourne Seafront
This is an hour long stroll along Eastbourne’s seafront from the pier to the bottom of Beachy Head, called Holywell. It is all on the flat, is about 4...
Dramatic landscapes and stunning sunsets on Dartmoor
Dartmoor, in the English County of Devon covers some 360 square miles and is an area of truly dramatic landscapes. It is the largest area of open country in...
Mumbai Memoir 110- Nostalgic Moments beat the city blues!
When it rains in Mumbai, the city literally gets paralysed and most of the Mumbai’kars prefer staying back at home to avoid the havoc of the rain-soaked streets. When...
Fort La Latte, Brittany’s most visited castle – Meanderings through France n° 196
By Annick Dournes & Frederic de Poligny Fort La Latte is an ancient medieval fortress built on top of a pink sandstone cliff overlooking the Channel, a...
A Place to Stay. Hotel Bon Sol & Spa, Majorca
I spent two nights at the Hotel Bon Sol Resort and Spa, five miles from Palma, Majorca. Mallorca (or Majorca – both spellings are acceptable) is still a virtually unspoilt...
A Place to Stay. Steve’s Soujourns The Battlestead Hotel
The Northumberland countryside between Hexham and Bellingham has some of the most beautiful scenery in the north of England and a short drive away from the majestic Kielder Water...
Karl’s Chronicles Article 1 Out For Eleven
Roll back the clock to the mid 80s. Halfway through secondary school with no real interest in the outside world, aside from what flickered in from the imagination of...
Summer Family Fun at Ironbridge Gorge Museums
There’s always family fun at Ironbridge, Ann Evans tells us what’s lined up for August Discover Victorian steam powered machines in all their full...
Steve’s Sojourns – Sunbathing at midnight
As we slipped gently out of Bergen harbour on the evening tide the sun began to wash the city with a soft orange almost golden cast. There a few...
Harry’s Ramblings. Eastbourne Sovereign Harbour
Eastbourne has a reputation for having a population of white-haired seniors, wheelchairs, walkers, miseries sitting on seafront wooden benches waving their sticks as pointers. Yes, they do exist, but...