I loved exploring the Plaza de España in Seville. It was my favourite place in the city when I visited in May. Surrounded by lakes, bridges and fountains, the Plaza de España is a sweeping, palatial building full of alcoves that represent each of Spain’s provinces. Beautiful bridges span the ornamental lake. The Plaza de España […]
In early October I visited Croatia. I’ve wanted to go to Croatia for several years, so was excited to land in Zadar, a coastal city with classical ruins and buildings made of white stone. After exploring Zadar we travelled inland by bus, across beautiful misty mountains and moor. The climate and scenery changed, as we […]
In the heart of Tintagel village, on the Cornish coast, lies this 14th century cottage. The building was a yeoman’s farmhouse for centuries. It became a post office in the Victorian period, when it acquired a licence to be a letter receiving station for the district around Tintagel. Inside the Old Post Office are Victorian […]
Lucy Cavendish is not a well-known college, perhaps to the delight of its students. It is not on the tourist trail, but set among the ‘hill colleges’ near the Castle mound. Even there, it is not a large, obvious college like Fitzwilliam or Churchill, and is tucked away off a little side road. Lucy Cavendish […]
Robinson College is the youngest college in Cambridge. It was founded in 1979. Robinson College was created after a £17 million gift was made to the University of Cambridge by Sir David Robinson, a British entrepreneur and philanthropist, for the purpose of founding a new college in Cambridge. Constructed entirely of distinctive red brick, Robinson […]
An incredibly photogenic college, Newnham lies a little way off the beaten track. Newnham College was founded in 1871 by Henry Sidgwick, as Cambridge University’s second college for women. The first women’s college in Cambridge was Girton College, which was founded two years earlier. In Cambridge, Newnham is both the name of a college, and […]
Clare Hall is perhaps the most unusual-looking of the Cambridge colleges, and makes for a surprising visit. Designed more akin to a block of 1960s flats than a traditional college, Clare Hall nonetheless has an interesting history. Clare Hall was founded in 1966 directly by Clare College, as a college of advanced study that would […]
Founded in 1326, Clare College is the second oldest college in Cambridge. Clare College has perhaps the best location of all the Cambridge colleges: a site that spans both sides of the river, and is right in the city centre, off the pedestrianised and picturesque Trinity Lane. Set in the heart of the old University […]
A Roman temple sits on a hill above the old city, on what would have been the eastern edge of Cordoba in Roman times. From there it would have been easily visible for miles around, and a striking symbol of imperial power. The temple’s construction was begun in approximately 41 AD and completed in 81 […]
We arrived in Cordoba by train. It was 34 degrees when we arrived so not as hot as Seville. The train had been spacious, clean and air-conditioned, and heading for Malaga. We were impressed as it was much nicer than British trains. We caught a bus from the train station and after a quick journey […]
Seville was stop one on my tour of Andalucia, the southernmost region of Spain. We flew from Stansted, over the Pyrenees mountains, laced with snow. Further south the land became brown and dry, despite the presence of rivers and large lakes. There were fields and fields of orange trees, planted in orderly rows. Near Seville […]
A couple of summers ago I visited south Cornwall, where we took some beautiful walks along the South West Coast Path. Maintained by the National Trust and spanning 630 miles, the path connects walking trails through Dorset, Devon, Cornwall and Somerset. The coast path follows picturesque and scenic routes along cliff tops and beside beaches […]
The Llechwedd Slate Caverns are an old mining network under the mountains of Snowdonia. The caverns and tunnels are hewn from the solid rock of the mountains. Llechwedd lies in the town of Blaenau Ffestiniog, once the largest town in north Wales after Wrexham, but its population fell with the decline of the slate […]
Last July I visited Luxembourg City for the wedding of two friends. It was the first time I had been around in Luxembourg properly rather than just passing through. My friend Tom collected me from the station and we drove past the European Court. I hadn’t been in continental Europe since early summer 2009, and […]