The journey north Today began when Bruce’s phone alarm went off at 0444 and mine followed at 0445. (He has a penchant for using non-standard times!) We both knew that
Category: Big Trip
Thailand Contrasts (2022): Days 8-11: At Leisure on Phuket
Our room Our Phuket hotel, where Bruce had arrived on schedule on the first day of the new month, was the Hilton Arcadia Resort & Spa, situated at Karon Beach.
Thailand Contrasts (2022): Days 6-7: An interlude in Leiden, then onwards to Phuket
Leiden Yes, Day 6 and I was still in the Netherlands – but on track to travel this evening! I had my usual Hampton breakfast before showering, packing and checking
Thailand Contrasts (2022): Days 3-5: Last few hours in Amsterdam … or so I thought!
The reason why I’m treating this as a block of three days will become clear soon enough. Today started out well enough and initially ran as planned. After checking out
Thailand Contrasts (2022): Day 2: A full day in Amsterdam
Breakfast, which was included in my hotel deal, consisted of typical continental fare, with the occasional nod to UK tastes that I largely avoided! After eating and showering, I caught
Thailand Contrasts (2022): Day 1: Getting started with a North Sea hop
It was the most unassuming of starts to an intercontinental trip: a short hop to Amsterdam in Economy. Regular readers will know that this is not necessarily unusual for me.
Thailand Contrasts (2022): Introduction
Although the Covid-19 pandemic certainly wasn’t over, 2022 finally brought a significant recovery in long-haul travel. Bruce and I envisaged one joint-venture extended trip this year, based on Thailand. The
California, Here We Come! (2021): Diary Epilogue
At this point, the sightseeing was over and all that remained was to get home. One of the reasons for choosing Paris as the end point of our intercontinental tickets
California, Here We Come! (2021): Days 16-18: And now, a long weekend in Paris!
Final Accommodation On Friday morning we relocated to central Paris for a three-night stay at the perfectly decent Holiday Inn Paris Montmartre. With just 54 rooms, it is one of
California, Here We Come! (2021): Days 14&15: Miami Interlude and Return to Europe
A few hours in downtown Miami I woke up after what felt like a short night, due to the combined effect of the 3hr time change the previous evening and
California, Here We Come! (2021): Day 13: Transcon in (Some) Style
St Andrew’s Day brought the first steps in our homeward journey, initially with a short hop back down the west coast to LA, then with a transcontinental flight to Miami,
California, Here We Come! (2021): Day 12: Gallery day
After breakfast this morning, there was some business to attend to: before embarking on our eastbound return journey to Europe the following day, it was essential to do more laundry.
California, Here We Come! (2021): Day 11: Sausalito, the Castro and North Beach revisited
Trip to Sausalito Today’s breakfast was at a nearby Blue Bottle Café, and this was followed by our usual shower routine before the day got underway in earnest. One notable
California, Here We Come! (2021): Day 10: San Francisco on Foot
Today began at a leisurely pace: we had a very light Starbucks breakfast and returned to base for showers. The first real event was our 1130 reservation for dim sum
California, Here We Come! (2021): Day 9: Arrival in San Francisco
Emeryville – San Francisco Today’s objective was delightfully simple: to relocate across the bay to San Francisco and get settled in for the longest and most luxurious hotel stay of
California, Here We Come! (2021): Day 8: An Amtrak Thanksgiving
Los Angeles – Emeryville It was Thanksgiving Day – and our big Amtrak day! It began with a little bit of early-morning stress, but we eventually succeeded in finding a
California, Here We Come! (2021): Day 7: From San Diego to Los Angeles
Morning walk in San Diego Once again, it was the same early-morning start for Bruce. After breakfast and showers, we took a morning walk in glorious sunshine, through downtown and
California, Here We Come! (2021): Day 6: Walking in San Diego
Gaslamp Quarter to Balboa Park Bruce again had his early-starting half-day at work. As previously, he popped out at 9am to pick up some breakfast for both of us, this