THE GARDENS OF COLETTE
by Ann Evans Additional photos by Michelle Garrett. Many writers take inspiration from nature – the plants, the seasons, the scents and the wildlife. But in Les...
HOLIDAY HORRORS! How cruel crime can ruin your holiday.
Most of us are excited when we are going away on holiday. But this can cause us to block out what is happening around us, often right under our...
Champs-sur-Marne and Rentilly castles: two views of the French heritage – Meanderings through France
Annick Dournes & Frederic de Poligny Although they were both built during the Ancient Regime and are only a few miles one from the other these two castles...
Malta Diary The “Upside Down Village” at Qrendi and Hassan the Barbary Pirate
The Maltese archipelago that is the main islands of Malta and Gozo as well as half a dozen other smaller islands is mostly composed of Globigerina Limestone and...
Welsh Witterings: Storytelling, Smoky Fires and Mud
This week I togged the girls up in thick jumpers, coats and wellington boots and clutching a torch and a picnic basket we headed off to Tipi Valley in...
THE PERSIAN TRIANGLE MYSTERY
ARCHAEOLOGY NEWSFLASH Was the Great Pyramid in Egypt built in a location chosen because of its geometry from where the legendary Noah’s Ark was located? Also were both Darius’...
Mumbai Memoir 20- Sail with the wind!
Mumbai has been blessed with a natural harbour. Located on the West coast of India, the city has witnessed a lot of maritime activities since its ancient days....
Malta Diary The Cemetery of The Damned and the Chapel of Bones
Thankfully, Halloween has never really caught on in Malta, an American concoction of which the least said, the better. However, the recent outbreak of Ebola and forecasts of widespread...
12 PLACES THAT I’D LOVE TO VISIT AGAIN.
Hunan Province, CHINA Hu Nan Province, in central China, is one of the most foreign places that I’ve ever visited. I was the only alien there, and I was...
Muted Midlothian Magnificence
IAIN ROBERTSON Muted Midlothian Magnificence Location is everything in the accommodation scene and, with an easy, long driveway access from not only the nearby Edinburgh City bypass,...
MOTORHOME TRIP TO THE COTSWOLDS
By Gareth Butterfield It’s often said that the countryside is at its most beautiful during the autumn months. So why does it coincide with the end of...
ARCHAEOLOGY NEWSFLASH THE FORBIDDEN VALLEY. NOAH’S ARK
from Jonathan Gray – My hands shook as I read the warning note. “Firstly, you should be aware that there is an ongoing war between the Turkish Security...
FLANDERS WWl. FORGIVEN BUT NEVER FORGOTTEN! Part 3.
By Lyn We travelled on our minibus to Diksmuide, beside the River Yser. The entrance to the museum is an 84mts high gravestone! 10 people are buried here; nine...
Nissan Pulsar – the same old, same old, except it’s not
It has taken around seven years for Nissan to shake off its soft-roader ethos and herald the return of the hatchback, which Iain Robertson was ready to harangue,...
FLANDERS WW1, FORGIVEN BUT NEVER FORGOTTEN! Part Two
By Lyn The morning after attending The Last Post at the Menin Gate, we had a freshly-cooked breakfast in the Hotel Palace, then we walked along the road with...
Cracking Corsa is the best value Vauxhall by far
IAIN ROBERTSON Waxing lyrical is not something that Iain Robertson delivers with much willingness, because he thinks he should be more serious about critical appraisals but he might change...
Exploring the Work and Inspiration of Laura Ashley at Llangoed Hall
Llangoed Hall, in Powys, is a Wye Valley hotel that combines country house charm with, exceptional dining and beautiful gardens and a very good croquet lawn, so I didn’t...
FLANDERS WW1, FORGIVEN BUT NEVER FORGOTTEN!
By Lyn Funnell We Brits are a forgiving lot. We seem to suffer from collective amnesia. Any tragedies, wars, etc are out of sight, out of mind and...
SHELLY BEACH SNIPPETS No 23 October, 2014.
G’day from down under where Sydney is suffering from wild wild weather, with trees uprooted, flash flooding, lightning strikes, and heavy snow in the mountains. Meanwhile in South Australia...
The prickly subject of Cactus
While Iain Robertson took an instant dislike to the all-new Citroen Cactus at its Paris ‘reveal’ earlier this year, driving the first example on UK roads has provided...
Mumbai Memoir 19- From Darkness into Light!
On a typical new moon night Mumbai already glitters brightly as traffic indicators, street lights and vehicle headlights seems like millions of ‘ fire flies’ moving around the...
The non-500 Fiat that is only slightly livid
While accepting that the product name-game can be exceedingly tough for some carmakers, Iain Robertson ponders over the marginally annoying method of drawing attention to an enhanced Panda....
YASMINE SMART; A CIRCUS DYNASTY.
By Lyn Funnell Every Christmas, after dinner, we’d all settle down to watch the Queen’s speech, followed by Billy Smart’s Circus, which was pre-recorded. I loved it, and so...
Stonehenge, A Giant Leap back to Prehistory.
During the autumn of 2014, I found myself travelling on a modern, state of the art coach to visit the prehistoric temple of Stonehenge in Wiltshire. I had...
A “British Paradox” in Paris: The FrogPubs.- Meanderings through France
Annick Dournes & Frederic de Poligny If British pubs and French cafés are both places to have a drink and a snack with friends you can’t obviously take...
Rolex-Middle Sea Race – Doldrums Start, Gale Force Finish, Malta
The yachting 2014 Rolex-Middle Sea Race (the 35th) commenced with a bang on Sunday 19th October as the start cannons boomed the “off” high up in the Upper Barrakka...
THE BALANCING BARN – A FUTURISTIC FANTASY!
Dangling halfway over a Suffolk hill, the Balancing Barn isn’t everyone’s first choice of holiday accommodation. In fact, Hubby John and I couldn’t get any friends to come with...
The 21st Century Circus Show!
]Billy Smart’s Circus comes to town! Coulrophobia is a fear of clowns. It’s a recent term, probably from the 80s. I used to love Billy Smart’s Circus. I...
Malta Diary ~ the nerve-control centre of the lost continent Atlantis?
It is an indisputable fact that in terms of size, being one of the world’s smallest countries, on a per square metre (or mile) comparison, the volume of historical...
Meanderings through France ~ Hokusai in Paris: an exceptional exhibition
From 1st October 2014 till 18 January 2015 more than 500 prints, paintings and drawings by the world best known Japanese artist Hokusai are shown in the “Grand Palais”...
Ingenious VW California is the ‘Apple’ of the camper industry
Camper vans and caravanettes have hardly been the most desired vehicles in the life of Iain Robertson but, having experienced the potential luxury of a gypsy’s life on the...
Meanderings through France ~ The Florac endurance ride: Lozère celebrates horses and nature
In 1975 the Florac endurance ride was the first one organised in Europe together with the creation of the Cévennes National Park and its amazing landscapes. Wining this mythical...
World Wanderings ~ Aswan, a legendary town at Nubia’s door (Back To Egypt, Part 4)
Whether you go to Aswan to go on a cruise on the Nile or on the Lake Nasser you should take some time to visit this town and make...
World Wanderings ~ Sahl Hasheesh on the Red Sea coast (Back to Egypt, Part 2)
For sunny holidays from Europe or to prolong your journey from Cairo or after a cruise on the Nile, the Red Sea sandy beaches are an easily reached destination:...
World Wanderings ~ The wonders of Luxor (Back to Egypt, Part 1)
News is good: it’s safe again to travel in Egypt. Due to the events of the last 3 years since the revolution in 2011, the amount of tourists dramatically...
High spots and fast tracks with Suzuki S-Cross – Part 3
Concluding his week-long busman’s holiday, Iain Robertson drove an amazing 3,000 miles around the UK in pursuit of some of the most spectacular driving routes, to create a travelogue...
High spots and fast tracks with Suzuki S-Cross – Part 2
Continuing his week-long busman’s holiday, Iain Robertson drove an amazing 3,000 miles around the UK in pursuit of some of the most spectacular driving routes, to create a travelogue...
High spots and fast tracks with Suzuki S-Cross – Part 1
Taking a week-long busman’s holiday, Iain Robertson drove an amazing 3,000 miles around the UK in pursuit of some of the most spectacular driving routes, to create a travelogue...
Malta Diary ~ Not exactly the Henley Royal Regatta – but much older and much fiercer!
The first Henley Royal Regatta in England was held in 1839 and boasts to be one of the oldest in the world. However, compared to Malta’s 8th September Regatta...
Meanderings through France ~ Arles, a blend of ancient and modern
Located in Provence between Nimes and Marseille, crossed by the Rhone, Arles is the Northern gateway to Camargue and has been a city since 2500 years created by Greek...