Detail from Chris Beardshore’s Morgan Stanley garden
My host Jane and I meet bright and early – 7.45 am to be precise – at Sloane Square to get to the gates before the throng, or so we thought! Our expectations are soon dashed as it seems the whole world has the same idea. We wander through the stalls selling all sorts of garden-related stuff (but I am in a no-buy mode) until we hit the show gardens. Continue reading
The grandest of the Saadian tombs
We are celebrating Ross’s second retirement. He said he wanted a rite of passage to get him out of pharma mode and back into real life. So here we are! On advice, we have decided that five nights downtown in a hot, noisy Riad is probably too much so we are staying in the Palmeraie district in a lovely place, Les Deux Tours, set in luscious gardens complete with vegetables, goats, hammam, large pool, hidden 4-poster beds for a post-prandial nap, and immaculate service. Our room lies behind a Mediterranean blue door and has its own secret garden. Spoiling indeed. Continue reading
View of the Atlas with Branson’s’ Kasbah silhouetted
Any visit to Marrakech longer than 3 days necessitates a day trip to the Atlas Mountains. If you’re there for a week I would recommend an overnighter so you can enjoy some trekking in this magnificent scenery. May is a good month, before it gets too hot and while there is still snow on the peaks, rendering the views spectacular. Continue reading
Spencer is marrying Jessica in Barbados; he and his brother Reed are playpen mates of both Tommy and Louise so it’s an invitation we really can’t refuse. Continue reading
We’re going to Barbados – for a wedding! The son of our old friends who live there is getting married, so we have hired an apartment – but more of that in the next blog. Cashing in on so-called BA freebies means we have to arrive a little early – so we find ourselves in Bequia spending a few chilled-out days doing some diving and getting into training for the wedding! Continue reading
This year the weather played havoc with both skiing and Fasnacht plans…we abandoned the slopes for the fabulous Kunstmuseum and Chagall. We rise at 3 am to get to the town centre for Morgestraich, the early morning procession that kicks of at 4 am with the lights out and the bells ringing – before a cacophony of cliques set up their rather tuneless caterwauling as they parade around. At 4 am it is a magical and mystical sight, giraffe notwithstanding. Continue reading
The young Picasso in Montmartre
Storm Erik came to Switzerland and banished us from the slopes. What better way to compensate than with that superb fall-back, a visit to the Fondation Beyeler in Basel.
The Dents du Midi from the 8-man chair in Les Crosets
It’s January and the annual Queens College ski reunion. This is the 10thyear that old Cambridge friends have gathered in Switzerland, and now France, to remember trips of yore, including the celebrated one to Avoriaz where Ross and I met 40 years ago! Continue reading
Enjoying the glorious weather with cousin Diego Oyarzun Reyes, Dents Blanches in teh background
Christmas was Louise’s favourite time of year and, after my mother died, all four of us would decamp to the mountains to ski and enjoy ourselves. My main job – after cooking – has always been to ‘do’ the stocking for my three dependents…then in the early hours Santa delivers them to the foot of the respective beds. Continue reading
Santa Claus is coming to town! The Basel Christmas Market is world famous for its old-fashioned had-crafted decorations and yummy food stalls – not forgetting the gluhwein. We even get a visit from St Nicholas and the Grim Reaper at dinner! we hope this sint a bad omen for 2019 was my 5 year scan comes up! Continue reading
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