We are off trekking again, accompanied by our two trusty Labradors, Griffin and Wallis. This time we are heading to the Alpujarras. It’s a narrow, 70Km valley that runs East/West from the heights of the Sierra Nevada until it falls into the Mediterranean Sea around Almeria. The arid hillsides are slashed by deep ravines and […]
I hate airports
I hate airports. In the last 15 months I have been through 68 different airports, some of them more than once, but none of them a pleasure. Hurry up and wait describes the whole, unpleasant experience that begins before leaving home and clings like a bad smell for some time after reaching your intended destination. […]
Around the world and back again
We took the train from Fes to Tangier and then a taxi for the 60 km journey to Marina Smir where Captain Neil was waiting to whisk us back to Europe in Koala. I guess it was time to go home. We stood on the quay, looking across the narrow waters to Spain with mixed emotions. For a year […]
Fes, Morocco — our final city
It’s Ramadan, it’s boiling hot and we’ve made it as far as Fes in Morocco. The easiest way to get here from Zanzibar would have been to fly into Europe and then back out again, but that seemed gutless. The hardest way would have been to walk but that, I’m ashamed to say, held even less appeal. […]
Sun, sea and scuba
When I step off a plane I can always tell if I am on a tropical Island. It’s the smell: the aroma of salt mixed with seaweed and sand suspended in the heavy humid air. It is a wonderfully intoxicating perfume that makes the heart beat quicker while, at the same time, relaxing the mind […]
On top of Africa: Mount Kilimanjaro
I’m not sure what possessed me to book a climb up to the top of Mount Kilimanjaro (5,895 metres/ 19,200 feet) but I suppose I thought it was a good idea at the time and something Debbie would enjoy. As we trudged our way to the summit, in the dark early hours of the morning, […]
African wilderness: Ngorongoro Crater
The first thing we noticed about the Ngorongoro Crater is the cold. Crater Lodge is perched on the top of the rim at a height of 2,200 metres (7,200 feet) and several layers of clothing are required at night. We have log fire blazing away in our (very large) hut that just about keeps the […]