Merhaba from Çirali, We’ve called another temporary halt, this time on the southern coast of Turkiye, not far from the big city of Antalya. We are staying for a few days at a beachside place called Çirali. The stony beach is on the Akdenız, which is what Turks call The Mediterranean. It’s very inviting …Read More
Merhaba from Gallipoli, Turkiye is wonderful, especially after the grime and dilapidation of Athens. Here, everything seems clean, new and welcoming. That includes Istanbul which we´ll be returning to in about two weeks. In the meantime we have completed one of the targeted pilgrimages: Gallipoli. One of the salient memories I have of ANZAC Day …Read More
Χαίρετε from Athens, On the verge of our trip to Istanbul, some reflections on our time in Athens: I commented a few weeks ago about the nation state. Having travelled through some of the Balkan states, it’s possibly opportune to posit a few ideas on the subject. loyalty and identity The closeness of the national …Read More
Geia sou apo Atina, We’ve arrived in Athens after a few days in Albania. Here there are two days of general strike and protest against economic stringencies but we should be able to see what we want – including perhaps a demonstration or two, which would be good. Mother Teresa Albania’s most famous export …Read More
Pozdrav iz Podgorice! Has the era of risk minimisation ruined our capacity to take responsibility for our own actions? Have we devalued surprise in the quest to make our lives safer? Has fun been taken out of the adventure? Tara River Yesterday we ventured into the northernmost corner of Montenegro for a rafting trip down …Read More
Greetings from Dubrovnik in Croatia. Dubrovnik greeted us on the first day of summer (21st June) and produced a beautiful warm day. In fact, the seven-day weather forecast is showing seven bright suns. George Bernard Shaw is quoted as saying that “those who seek paradise on Earth should come to Dubrovnik”. The old city is …Read More
Bongiorno from Italia As we are about to leave Italia for the last time on this journey, it’s a good time to compose the 1st chapter of the new book on the Italians. We have both enjoyed Italia as much as we anticipated, and for predictable reasons. Possibly the most striking thing about Italia is the people. …Read More
Bongiorno from Venice, We are both enjoying the Mediterranean cruise, perhaps even more than anticipated. The cruise ship is a gigantic monument to nautical ingenuity. It is 294 metres long and 32 metres wide. We enjoy the view from our porthole which measures 1.3 m in diameter. some on their way up, some on …Read More
Bon giurnu from Monte Carlo, First stop on the cruise was Nice, in southern France, where our penchant for trying all local delicacies was never going to extend to the eponymous biscuit. M. decided to stay on the ship today, finding the French Riviera a bit of a yawn. Cote D’Azure All the wealthy locals …Read More
Bonjour from the French Riviera. On our car journey through southern France, we travelled from Vichy to the coast via a long straight road aptly named Le Meridienne. The landscape was mostly rural and occasionally spectacular. Like Italy, France has quite a sizeable proportion of land which remains uncleared; not merely that which is …Read More