Bajan Breakfast Banana Bread, Smoky Mexican Bean Soup, Ah Yeung’s Sweet and Sour Fish, Tian Provencal, Cypriot Pastitsio, Alabama Peach Crisp, Nanny’s Fresh Orange Layer Cake … the list of delicious recipes from home and abroad sets my taste buds tingling. I’m enveloped in the foodie delights of Lavender and...

I was getting a crick in my neck but I couldn’t stop gazing up at the enormous golden Buddha, silhoutted against a vibrant blue sky. He gazed out across the town, oblivious to the people below. The searing afternoon heat shrouded me in a humid embrace and the scent of...

‘They Shall Not Grow Old’ is the title of an extremely moving documentary by New Zealand film director, Peter Jackson. They Shall Not Grow Old tells the story of British Soldiers enlisting to fight in Europe, many lying about their age to go save the world. It was commissioned by IWM...

A great wave of tranquility washed over me and for a few minutes, all was right with the world … I was sitting beside a labyrinth and stone circle, gazing across a field towards the Lake District mountains and Morecambe Bay. Crows wheeled overhead and in the distance a herd...

“Daddy, it’s alive, it’s breathing smoke!” The little boy shrieked with delight as the huge black engine chuffed under the bridge into the station. There was something supremely elemental about it as the steam hissed noisily, fire roared and smuts flicked over the admiring passengers. I was on the Keighley and...

Do you think a Gap Year is just for kids? Do you want to escape your humdrum job and do something worthwhile? Do you need encouragement to make a change? The ‘Adult Gap Year’ is becoming increasingly popular. In the latest World Travel Blogger article, Caroline Revell, of Original Volunteers,...

For those of a certain age, St Moritz is synonymous with the uber-cool jet-setters of the Swinging Sixties. Renowned playboy Gunter Sachs epitomised this hedonistic era when he married French pin-up movie star Brigitte Bardot. and made Switzerland their winter playground. The Gunter Sachs Lodge and The Dracula Club, overlooking the Olympic Bob Run course, are where people...

David Hockney looking at a picture of fellow Yorkshireman Alan Bennett – photo Salts Mill You may have heard of, or even been to see, the new David Hockney exhibition at Tate Britain in London. One of this country’s most loved and respected artists, Hockney was born in Bradford in 1937,...

It looked a lot bigger than I had imagined. It also looked a lot prettier, covered in views of Canada’s splendid scenery. “Don’t worry, you’ll be fine. Once you get on the road, you’ll soon forget its size and be enjoying yourself behind the wheel.” I was at the Cruise Canada pick-up centre...

With his hands clutching his long, flowing coat tightly around him, Sir William Hillary (1771-1841) stands high above Douglas Harbour, ready to face everything the weather can throw at him.  As founder of the Royal National Lifeboat Institution he was well aware of the changeable  meteorological temperament of his home,...

In this article in the World Travel Blogger series, photographer Angus Matheson describes The North Coast 500, a memorable road trip he did with his wife in the Highlands of Scotland. North Coast 500 – the greatest motoring adventure in the British Isles North Coast 500 In 2015 the North Coast...

The Toy Train to Shimla As we clattered along the narrow track, the mountains gradually emerged like shy ballerinas peeking out from behind a curtain of lush green foliage. Glimpsed intermittently at first, the foothills of the mightiest mountain range on earth rose amidst tiny hamlets and towering pine trees....

“No offence, but I want to be THERE, not here.” This was the response from Amber, a participant in one of my recent ‘Introduction to Travel Writing’ Workshops. The group had been given a table covered in travel magazines and I was asking them what had made them choose the one...

In our latest ‘World Travel Blogger‘ article, Canadian writer Cindy Baker shares her favourite things to do the beautiful city of Lisbon, capital of Portugal. The clatter of old trams, the smell of sardines on the grill, the haunting melancholy of fado music. In Lisbon, these traditions combine with a...

Barry McCann explains the history of a northern tradition that dates back centuries and illustrates it with some of photos from this year’s celebrations. Mayor of Preston in Guild Hall Procession There is a saying in Lancashire that goes “Once every Preston Guild” which is probably unfamiliar to anyone outside the county....