Read this blog: The one where Matilda finally gets to use her emergency poncho Tuesday 4th and Wednesday 5th March 2025 Rain was forecast but it was still quite warm so Matilda took her emergency poncho rather than a waterproof jacket. Santa had put the poncho in her stocking about eight years ago just after she retired and she has been taking it on holiday with her ever since. When we emerged from the metro station it was raining heavily and Matilda finally got the chance to make use of this very well-travelled piece of attire. It proved quite successful: the only issue was that, because it was so light-weight, the hood kept blowing off. We planned to visit the Taipei Confucius Temple first. On the walk there we came across bear statues illustrating the “hear no evil, speak no evil, see no evil” adage with a fourth one [below left] with its hands behind its back illustrating the principle of “do no evil”. The saying is derived from/attributed to Confucius: “Look not at what is contrary to propriety; listen not to what is contrary to propriety; speak not what is contrary to propriety; make no movement which is contrary […]
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Read this blog: The one where we visit a genocide site Thursday 28th March 2024 It is quite unsettling to be repeatedly accosted on the street by smiling tuk tuk drivers asking enthusiastically “Killing Fields? Killing Fields?” as though you will be in for a real treat. Although we were ambivalent about visiting, we felt we could not ignore such a defining part of Cambodian history and arranged a tuk tuk to transport us to and from the Choeung Ek Genocidal Centre. It is difficult to know what to say about something so terrible but the Cambodians themselves are very open about the genocide. Tourists are encouraged to visit the site with the aim of ensuring that it can never happen again. The Choeung Ek Genocidal Centre and the Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum [formerly known as the S-21 prison housed in two former schools] are the only two sites so far which have been turned into museums detailing the crimes of the Khmer Rouge regime under Pol Pot. There are however several smaller local memorials including the former M-13 prison. Choeung Ek lies about 11 miles south of Phnom Penh city centre and is a former orchard and Chinese cemetery. […]
Wednesday 18th and Thursday 19th May 2022 Yesterday morning had been taken up with laundry but on Wednesday we booked places on the daily ‘hop-on-hop-off’ coach. This takes passengers into the closest town for sightseeing and you are provided with a map of the stops and the local places of interest. Our destination was Point Coupée, which is apparently one of the oldest settlements along the Mississippi River. As we boarded the coach staff, presumably from the local tourist office, handed out environmentally friendly reusable bags branded with the town’s name in the hope that people would spend some of their tourist bucks here. The name Point Coupée is derived from its position on an oxbow curve and means, unsurprisingly, ‘the point of the cut off’ in French. Someone at a garage/petrol station, now closed, clearly was a Pixar fan with a sense of humour. The lake which was created here by the oxbow when the course of the river changed is called False River and there were some attractive lakeside properties, many with their own little jetties. The stops on the hop-on-hop-off coach were not very far apart and we walked between them rather than waiting for another bus, […]
Saturday 2nd to Monday 4th April 2022 We had all promised ourselves a cooked breakfast so we strolled into Llangollen past the Riverside Taxidermy Studio which we remarked on at each time of passing: it seems such an unlikely business to be thriving in such a prime, picturesque location. After a very civilised and sustaining breakfast at the m’Eating Point we set off to retrace our route along the Llangollen Canal. There are sections of the canal known as ”narrows” between Llangollen and the aqueduct which are effectively single track with no passing places. Signs recommend you send someone ahead to check that there are no boats coming in the opposite direction and Gill and Matilda opted for a brisk walk to confirm that the route was clear. Although there was undoubtedly more traffic on the canal around the aqueduct, the advance party only encountered one boat travelling in the opposite direction. As they had not sent any scouts ahead, it was fortunate that those on board The Duke were alerted. As you start walking along the towpath a sign states that children must be supervised at all times crossing the Pontcysyllte Aqueduct due to the “wide gaps in the historic […]
Saturday 18th January 2020 Today’s route first took us past the Powder Tower. Originally called the Sand Tower, this was built in 1330 as part of the city’s fortifications and defences. Over the centuries it has been rebuilt and redesigned several times, and it took on its current form in around 1650. It is a formidable defensive structure at 25.6 metres high and 14.3 metres in diameter with walls which are 3 metres thick. It takes its current name from the gunpowder which was stored there and it now houses a War Museum. Jacob’s Barracks – a row of yellow, red-roofed buildings – extends along Torna Street from the Powder Tower down towards St Jacob’s Cathedral and the River Daugava. It is the longest building in Old Riga. Baron Hieronymus Karl Friedrich von Münchhausen, who was the inspiration for the eponymous character in the fictional book Baron Münchausen’s Narrative of his Marvellous Travels and Campaigns in Russia lived here in the mid eighteenth century. The street is now home to bars, shops and travel agents. Jacob’s Barracks were built just outside the city fortifications and now face some remains of the city walls [below] and the Swedish Gate [not pictured]. […]
Sunday 24th March 2019 We took a brief trip into the old city to the Clock Tower and the Sardar Bazaar. On walking out of the hotel, the helpful doorman who stands in front of the part of the palace which is still a regal residence, told us the price we could expect to be charged for a tuk-tuk. Whilst this was still a “tourist” price, it was helpful to have some guidance. The Clock Tower, or Ghanta Ghat, was built in 1912 by Maharaja Sardar Singh who also gave his name to the market in the surrounding streets. The Fort looms up behind the Clock Tower, which is now the main focal point. Although Ghanta Ghat is illuminated at night, there is a wind blowing dust or desert sand around the city and as we have an early train to catch we are not planning on seeing this. The staff in our hotel are appropriately and smartly dressed in tunics and the distinctive churidar trousers which were the basis for the famous Jodhpur trousers. Jodhpurs were developed by Sir Pratap Singh, a keen polo player and member of the Rathore clan of Rajputs who ruled in Jodhpur. Originally a […]
Sunday, 28th October 2018 Our journey to Brugge was marked by a number of events. The first of these was a very stressful moment when we thought we might run out of fuel but thankfully managed to fill up by diverting off the main road. Secondly, having previously been directed down some very rural lanes which were not necessarily suitable for a motor home the size of Alan, we chose to ignore our sat nav directions. This accounts for the large loop north on today’s route. We then had to wait for the drawbridge to lower. Brugge is one of our favourite cities and it is always a pleasure to return. Is it the architecture, the canals, the Tin Tin merchandise, the beer, the bars or a combination of everything? This time, we were however, very mindful that Ralf had been scared by the horses hooves on the cobbles and is not really a “townie”. We did however feel he should be introduced to “Bar Bertie” as this is a favourite hostelry and a bit of a tradition for us when we visit this city. Whenever we visit with John and Belinda Robinson, although there are so many fabulous places […]
Wednesday, 9th August 2018 The boat had travelled through the night southbound through Romania, before curving westwards along the Danube on the border between Romania and Bulgaria. At 10:00 the boat docked at Oltenita on the Romanian side of the river, south south east of Bucharest. With the exception of us and about 8 others, the passengers disembarked to join the waiting coaches. While they all drove off for the one and a half hour coach ride to the capital, and their tour, the boat, with us moved on to Giurgiu. We had a relaxing time on the boat as it travelled along the river. Because the weather has been so hot and dry across Europe, the Danube is about 3 meters shallower than normal. This meant that in this part of the river even on a boat with a draft of just 1.6 meters we had to travel slowly, meandering backwards and forwards across the river following the deepest channels. At 14:30 we moored at Giurgiu. In the photo below you can see the ‘Giurgiu-Ruse Friendship Bridge’ that connects Romania with Bulgaria across the Danube. This is one of only two bridges connecting the two countries across the Danube, […]