On any major trip that we have embarked upon in recent years, the “Relly Run” has become a mandatory component. Living, as we both do, half way round the world from extended family and our birth place, we always need to reconnect with our roots. This includes family members we hold dear but see rarely. …
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Malta…..August 2019
Airport hotels are a mixed bag. Some are stylish, comfortable, reasonably priced and inside the airport terminal. Some are luxury chain hotels charging exorbitant rates, knowing they have a captive customer base of top end travellers. Some deceitfully purport to be airport hotels simply by their location within a 15km radius of an airport. Some …
Umbria……..August 2019
Perhaps we had become a little too comfortable in England – the amazing summer weather, the fabulous fresh produce at reasonable prices in Tesco, the Wetherspoon specials with cheap beer and the friendly people. With Brexit looming menacingly on the horizon and a new prime minister to rival the maverick, divisive president of the New …
The Cotswolds…….July 2019
Some time back a colleague of Sue’s introduced her to Luxury Escapes, a website offering super deals at top-end hotels in a variety of locations worldwide. In a serendipitous moment as we planned this trip, a deal popped up near Wotton-under-Edge on the southern end of the Cotswolds. We had already decided to visit this …
Summer Holidays at The Seaside ……July 2019
The English weather is a much opined topic of careful consideration that, like politics, liberally sprinkles many conversations here in the UK. Not without good reason. The variable weather conditions dominate almost every aspect of English life, dictating people’s choice of activities and general mood. Summer can be a lottery, so we have truly been …
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Sports and Walks in Wessex
On a certain sunny Sunday in July, we struck sports gold with the British Grand Prix from Silverstone, the men’s singles final in Wimbledon and the one-day cricket World Cup Final at Lord’s, with England playing New Zealand in the latter. What a feast for sports fanatics! Neither England nor New Zealand had ever won …
Walking the Way Marked Path ……..July 2019
Driving in the English countryside. It’s exciting and challenging; it’s a sensory adventure; it’s almost an extreme sport; it’s potentially obsessive. Some years ago when we were driving the tiny laneways of Southern Ireland, we were shocked that the 50 mph speed limit didn’t change to accommodate varying driving conditions. It was bonkers! It seemed …
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Heavenly Devon …….July 2019
Last year on our relocation cruise to Europe we met a lovely couple, Jackie and David, who divide their time between England and New Zealand. So taking our trusty little Hyundai i30 hire car on its furthest trip to date, we said our goodbyes to the girls and the dogs in Stapleford and set forth …
The North….. June 2019
The public transport system in England is extensive and generally efficient and effective. You can basically get to wherever you want to across the country whenever you want. The cost of these services is, however, bewildering in its inconsistency and variation. We have all but given up on the overground trains, the cost of which …
London calling…….. June 2019.
Summer in England. What could be better? That is, of course, assuming that the sun is shining, there aren’t any rail strikes and the Brexit fiasco doesn’t cause an economic landslide. Mid-June 2019 finds us once again camped in London for a few days at the start of another extended holiday/road-trip. Only this time it’s …
Clapmacks Foray into Retirement 