124. Riga
This was my first visit to Riga since January 2005. This time (July 2026), I flew from Leeds-Bradford with Ryanair. The scheduled flight time is something like 2hrs40 but we landed 20 minutes early in both directions. The main difference being that I was off the plane, through immigration and baggage reclaim in less than…
123. Ljubljana (Slovenia)
Ljubljana This trip was made in May 2026 and the plan was to use Ljubljana as a base from which to visit Marabor, Celje and Kranj, then go on to Trieste… I flew to Ljubljana from Manchester Airport with easyJet. Scheduled departure at 13.10 and arriving at 16.35. There’s a taxi booking office in the…
122. Scotland 3
The Final Gem Towns Tour: This post features the remaining Gem Towns of Edinburgh & Leith (counted as one), Haddington, Kelso and Culross as well as Dunbar, Dunfermline and North Berwick. This trip was in April 2026. Edinburgh This is just a snapshot of Edinburgh, there’s lots more to see… Old Town and Royal Mile:…
121. Italy 2
This post features Rome, Florence and Genoa from a trip in March 2026 and Trieste, Gorizia and Udine in May 2026… Rome It’s worth considering why you’re going to Rome and what you want to do when you get there. You can spend a lot of time queuing to visit attractions such as the Colosseum…
119. France 4
This post features Paris, Chartres, Laon, Le Mans and Orléans from a trip in July 2025. For this trip, I flew from Leeds-Bradford to Paris Charles de Gaulle with Jet2. At Paris CdG I took the RER train from the airport station. We landed at Terminal 3 and it’s a bit of a trek to…
118. Scotland 2
This post is split into different sections. The first section covers a trip to Inveraray and Campbeltown, via Glasgow.The second section covers a trip to Inverness, Invergordon and Cromarty. 1. Inveraray and Campbeltown If you’re not driving, then the only practical way to do this trip is by bus. I used http://www.citylink.co.uk and the City…
117. The Peasants Are Revolting: Heroes and Villains
A brief, and by no means complete, history of rebels and rebellions in England and Wales. It makes for interesting, sometimes depressing, reading as you realise how little some things have changed and see that, with the rise of AI (artificial intelligence), the age of the Luddites (in its correct or original meaning) has made…
116. Germany 6
This post features Magdeburg, Goslar, Quedlinburg, Halle (Saale), Dresden, Meissen, Zwickau and Görlitz, while Berlin makes a cameo appearance and there’s a sneaky peek at Poland… The main reason for doing this trip was to visit Magdeburg and Saxony-Anhalt – the last of the 16 states. Saxony-Anhalt has the highest concentration of World Heritage Sites…
115. Luxembourg
According to legend, Luxembourg was founded in 963 by Count Siegfried, a descendant of Charlemagne. The city was siezed in 1443 by Philip the Good, Duke of Burgundy. It was later integrated into the territory of the Netherlands and drawn with them into various battles and disputes. In 1684 it was conquered by Louis XIV,…
114. Gem Towns: Scotland and Wales
This post follows on from the Gem Towns: England post. The list of gem towns was produced in response to the Buchanan Report of 1963, relating to the devastation and loss of heritage in the UK, specifically Worcester. A list of 324 historic towns across the UK was drawn up. From that list, 51 were…
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