Category Archives: Great Thoughts

Amazing Roman Engineering: bridges, aqueducts and fortifications.

Posted on April 15, 2018 by Myra

Coming from Hadrian’s Wall country, I’ve always appreciated the phenomenal engineering skills of the Romans, but after my recent week in the south of France, I am even more impressed. On our first day we went to a Roman settlement … Continue reading →

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Three cheers for Easyjet after cancelled flight!

Posted on March 20, 2018 by Myra

The weather in Italy this month has been variable to say the least. We’ve had sunshine, warm enough to sit on a bench with a book, followed by torrential rain and even snow. We had a guest for the weekend … Continue reading →

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A Prize Trip to Paris, and thoughts on Alchemy and Museums.

Posted on January 20, 2018 by Myra

How wonderful to travel to Paris courtesy of a bit of my recent writing, and even better to travel unexpectedly first class on Eurostar. We travelled in luxury, then onward in somewhat less comfort on the Metro. (Where these days … Continue reading →

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Baden Baden: swimming in snow and darkness

Posted on November 20, 2017 by Myra

I have always liked spa towns, not so much for the spa treatments, but because they invariably have fine architecture and lovely parks. On this year’s drive back from Italy, we decided to take in the ultimate European spa town … Continue reading →

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Venice Biennale

Posted on August 28, 2017 by Myra

I’m always reluctant to pay the €30 entry fee to see cutting edge or politically correct art at the two sites of the Biennale, so I try to find interesting free venues which are often better. This year is no … Continue reading →

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All’s Well that Ends Well (Apart from Chaos at a Bavarian Market)

Posted on June 19, 2017 by Myra

My car was a write off after the autostrada accident, and I had to wait anxiously for the verdict as to who was responsible for the crash. (Knowing Italians, I suspected that the easy explanation would be that I’m foreign, … Continue reading →

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Dementia: Caring for Mother, 92

Posted on March 17, 2017 by Myra

My usual frequent trips to Italy have been cancelled because of my mother’s increasing frailty, physically and mentally. I realised that she could not longer live independently, mainly because she was forgetting to eat, and found what I thought was … Continue reading →

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Surprise trip to New York!

Posted on December 14, 2016 by Myra

My birthday, as readers and friends know, was something of a disaster, but then all was not lost when Bill spotted a “shopping trip” to New York for 4 days flying from Newcastle. It was a whirlwind visit, not helped … Continue reading →

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October Birthday Celebrations

Posted on October 8, 2016 by Myra

October is almost a whole month of celebrating my birthday, but it got off to a very bad start when our train to King’s Cross was delayed by 3/4 hour, with a knock-on effect. To make matters worse, the Gatwick … Continue reading →

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Quintessential England

Posted on June 27, 2016 by Myra

This weekend, staying with friends in a tiny village in Swaledale, Yorkshire, we drove to Easby, a hidden corner near Richmond where there is a large ruined abbey ( courtesy of course of Henry VIII) and the little church of … Continue reading →

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