You may have noticed that I went camping in North Devon recently. I really like Ilfracombe and my little mind was blown by the scale of the beaches – although I was less impressed by the number of washed-up jellyfish. I had a free weekend and I’d have a weekend away in the UK. I… More Camping in North Devon
From the hill above my campsite – well, actually, the campsite continues right up onto said hill – you can see two huge expanses of beach, Woolacombe Sands and Croyde Bay. I’m very impressed with them both and the beaches of North Devon were to continue to impress me. I went to Woolacombe when I… More The vast beaches of North Devon
The first thing I saw in Ilfracombe was Verity, a 66 foot high bronze warrior woman holding an enormous sword above her head and a set of scales behind her back. Truth and justice, you see. But Verity is entirely naked, heavily pregnant and flayed down her whole right half, exposing muscle and flesh and… More Ilfracombe & a large pregnant lady
Following the Notre Dame fire, my trip to Winchester and to the Sistine Chapel, the next stop on my “before it burns down” tour was Salisbury Cathedral. I mean, if it’s worth coming all the way from Moscow to see, it’s worth coming from Wessex to see. Easily done because my car spent eight hours… More Before It Burns Down: Visiting Salisbury Cathedral
You may already know that when I was a student, I was a very keen caver. That all ended twelve years ago with graduation and I’ve been back twice since then, the last time being four and a half years ago. I just don’t get to go anymore because you need someone to go with… More Cavers do it in rubber socks: a half day in Goatchurch
Last Monday, a lot of big old heavy solid permanent monuments very suddenly became a lot less permanent. My reaction to the Notre Dame fire, once it had been established that most of the building had miraculously survived, was to book flights to Rome next month, primarily to see the Sistine Chapel. I also went… More A day at Winchester Cathedral
On Friday I went off to Norden at some ungodly hour in the morning to grab a parking space before it filled up with rail enthusiasts. Where’s Norden? It’s the park and ride at the northern terminus of the Swanage Railway. The Swanage line was closed due to cuts in 1972 and by 1979 had… More A day out on the most famous steam train in the world
All Girl Guides and Girl Scouts have five homes around the world, the World Centres. We have one of them right here in London, Pax Lodge, and I spent the Thinking Day weekend there. Thinking Day is the most important day in the World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts (WAGGGS)’s calendar – it’s… More Turn Back Time: A Pax Lodge Challenge Around London
Is this a post about my weekend in Glasgow in July or is it a post about traveller’s guilt? I don’t know. I went to Glasgow in July and although I did do some things, mostly I sat in my lovely flat, reading books and eating toast and lying in the bath. I don’t feel… More Me-time in Glasgow
Welcome to 2019 and welcome to the latest edition of my annual Two Bears Adventure series. This is Tom (also known as Tom Bear and, well, I am a polar bear, hence two bears). You may remember him from Two Bears in Swanage, Two Bears in Charmouth or Two Bears in Edinburgh. This year we… More A day at Lyme Regis: Tom & Juliet’s Annual Adventure