The next stage of our trip takes us to the Solomon Islands for a 14-day dive adventure aboard the MV Bilikiki. This has been a long-time ambition of ours and the trip was carefully planned around these dates and Christmas in NZ; for dive boats such as this you have to book a year in advance. Continue reading
With staff & UWS team outside Kiri Vongsa school
‘A long time ago in Kiri Vongsa’ sings Bunthynn, the United World Schools Education Officer as we set off from Banlung – to the tune of the Bethlehem carol. A jolly start to an adventure! If you want to see a map of our journey click here for a link to Ross’s website. Continue reading
Sunset at Angkor
After months of planning we are finally on our way! Our travels will take us to Singapore; Cambodia to visit the charity where I am a trustee, United World Schools, and the school we sponsored; to the Solomon Islands to dive for two weeks (via Singapore and Brisbane briefly); then to New Zealand for 5 weeks, joined by Tommy, to see all our old ‘nannies’ now married with children; next to French Polynesia for more diving and some island-hopping, including to the Cook Islands before crossing the date line to LA for one night and three weeks in Colombia. Phew! Continue reading
Sharing the good news from my other site healthylivingwithcancer
Yes, it’s that time of year again: another trip to the Marsden and a clear chest x-ray. As ever the x-ray is done within 10 minutes of my arrival and I’m ushered into my appointment 5 minutes early, and out 15 minutes later. The NHS is a wonderful thing.
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This gallery contains 5 photos
Prague Castle at dusk, where Hermann Ungar worked in 1929
I had been invited to Prague to commemorate 90 years since my grandfather Hermann Ungar died aged only 36 from sepsis. He was a Czech Jewish writer who was beginning to build a reputation for himself as a formidable talent amongst the Prague and Berlin literary circles of that time, which included Kafka, Stefan Zweig, Bertolt Brecht among other illustrious names. At the last minute the dates were changed but I had bought tickets and booked the hotel so off we went. Continue reading
Alhambra in the dying light – see Charles V monstrous carbuncle square box towering over the elegant Islamic buildings
So here we are in Granada, home to Alhambra, which means the Red Fort. It is correct to simply call it Alhambra as ‘al’ means ‘the’ in Arabic. Granada itself is named after the old Jewish settlement, Medina-al-Granata, or Pomegranate City, the fruit being a symbol of fertility, which is said to contain the same number of seeds as the volumes of the Torah. We have a free day to explore before our extortionate tour; still nervous about whether we have been scammed, we are relieved to get a text confirming the meeting time. Phew! Continue reading
The Mezquita from the Roman Bridge
We leave Seville quite late (after our trip to the Alcazar) for Córdoba. On the way we detour to the most extraordinary site, the Madinat Al-Zahra (the shining city) built from 940 AD by the first Caliph of el-Andalus, Abd al Rahman III. Very little remains as, after the fall of the Umayyad Caliphate, the city was ransacked for its stone and marble. It was not excavated until 1911, and now only one-tenth of the site has been revealed. The museum showcases the extraordinary opulence of this period, with carved marble columns, gold ornaments and jewellery, bronzes and ceramic vessels. Continue reading
At the Plaza de Espagna in Seville with Don Quixote
We have been promising ourselves a trip around the sights of Andalucía for some time and booked it all rather last minute. As it turns out, the experience has been so rich, and we have taken so many photos, that I am forced to divide our week into blogs for each of the three main cities: Seville, Córdoba and Granada. Continue reading
View out over the vineyards from Chateau Malherbes
This is our fourth visit to the splendiferous Villa du Soleil. This year our hosts JB&C invite our other chums R&C with a brief to come armed with Brexit parodies to the tune of Gilbert & Sullivan…(these can be seen on my Instagram account). As well as a garish shirt competition, it is a tradition to play musical games and quizzes to counteract the effects of copious amounts of rosé. Continue reading
Belgrade skyline with St Michael’s Cathedral centre stage
We are in Belgrade for a family wedding. Cousin Nico is celebrating his recent marriage to Dragana, who is Swiss of Serbian heritage, in the Orthodox Cathedral in Belgrade. A great excuse for a gathering of the clans – literally, as cousin Christine, Nico’s mum is Scottish and her mother and sisters are coming from Belgium and Tunisia. The dress code is kilts, even for baby Stevan. Continue reading
