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Green Days In England
Can you imagine going to buy a coffee at Heathrow and being told they don’t accept British currency? Or that JFK Airport doesn’t take dollars? As is customary we entered Tunis Airport with a handful of local currency left in our pockets, probably just enough to cover a bite to eat and a coffee before we boarded the flight home, trying to strike that balance between not running out too soon and not having any left at the end. All we got for our last remaining dinar was shakes of heads and wry smiles: once you’re airside, nobody accepts them. You can pay in euros, you can pay by card,…
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Nostalgia Trip #8: Peak District Weekend
The long drive from Aberaeron to our next destination at Ashford-in-the-Water in the Peak District takes us over the Welsh mountains and around Shrewsbury and Stoke and turns into a fairly tortuous journey with precious few major roads. It’s only 180 miles but it takes five hours. It’s fitting that this prettiest of Derbyshire villages should be our base for the weekend, and even more fitting that our planned walks include a hike through Monsal Dale. Growing up in Mickleover, on the edge of the city of Derby but within easy reach of the Peak, it was a common feature of my childhood to take off for weekend family walks…
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Reunion In Constable Country
Dedham Vale is one of those quintessentially English locations full of charm and full of history; the countryside is gentle yet beautiful, the villages within the Vale the stuff of picture postcard perfection. You could film a period costume drama here without changing anything except the traffic. Straddling the boundary between the counties of Essex and Suffolk, this is where the world famous artist John Constable was born, lived most of his life, and was of course the subject of a large number of his most famous works. As you stroll around these parts it’s easy to see why Constable was so enamoured, it’s a lovely area to this day.…
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A Perfect Day in Constable Country
It is almost 100 days since COVID-19 put a halt to our travels and forced us to return home to England. During that time we have stayed close to home and enjoyed our local countryside and seafront walks, but now we are seeing light at the end of the tunnel, restrictions gradually being lifted and once again we have our sights set on travel in the not too distant future. Today was a landmark day for me, Michaela. With Phil and I living in Kent and my Mum living in Suffolk, the restrictions had prevented us from seeing her…. until today. I last saw my Mum on 23 January, 5…
