Puglia is poor. Driving from north to south, we witnessed grim estates on the outskirts of Brindisi, derelict buildings by the score and lots of litter. But the sun was shining and bushes bursting with colourful flowers lined the pot-holed motorway. The city of Lecce’s suburbs were as ropey as Brindisi’s but it was the…
Tag: Architecture
Life among the trulli of Alberobello, Puglia
Puglia is famous for its strange, conical-roofed trulli. They pepper the landscape, peek out from olive groves and stand lonely in the fields. But Alberobello is the place to see them in all their glory. In the heart of the town, nestled on both sides of a shallow valley, they pack the streets and alleys….
The castle at Sintra in Portugal
Sintra’s an easy day trip on the train from Portugal’s wonderful capital Lisbon. Hilly, with great views and some fairy tale architecture, it’s easy to see why the rich, the famous and royalty built their mansions around the village as an escape from the city. Sintra itself is touristy and busy but the real attractions…
Stratford-upon-Avon – home of Shakespeare
Call me uncultured but I’ve never been into William Shakespeare. I was made to read As You Like It at school but that’s about it. However, the man’s life and the mysteries that surround it are intriguing. So off we trotted to Stratford-upon-Avon in Warwickshire for a family event, staying at the Q hotel, with…
Tenerife: A drive to La Laguna
If I learnt anything in Tenerife, it’s never to trust a sat-nav. After the traumas of getting to Teide, our expensive piece of tech managed to land us, somewhat embarassed, in the pedestrianised shopping streets of the UNESCO World Heritage Site of La Laguna. All I wanted to do was park the car but it…
Seville: From the cathedral to the river
As a young and angelic choirboy in the early 1970s I sang every week to the glory of God at St John’s Church in Caterham. But the experience never left me with a lasting faith. Listening to Canon Vile droning on from the pulpit, the endless hours of practice and the weekly Sunday school visits resulted in a…
Seville: Noble homes and spectacular plazas
Picking a good hotel is all about research and we’re in the habit of choosing some great ones. The Palacio de Villapanes ranks among them. Once the home of a noble Seville family, it boasts luxury bedding, great service and fancy design. A giant coat of arms on the grand marble staircase is one of the…
Seville: The Alcazar and the Metropol Parasol
On days when the news is dominated by atrocities and stories of hate, I find it good for the soul to go to somewhere like the Alcazar in Seville. It is a place of beauty, the work of generations of craftsmen and visionaries from many races and religions. It was our first full day in Andalusia,…
Croatia: Joining the crowds in the city of Dubrovnik
The admirers of cliche tell us that travel broadens the mind. But it’s also a curse. There are times when we, as tourists, threaten to overwhelm and destroy the very destinations we’ve travelled so far to see. Dubrovnik’s old town is but one example. Croatia’s most popular destination, it’s a city under seige from swarms…
Chatsworth: A day out at a Derbyshire country house
It must be tough being a duke. There’s the grand country house to call home, no end of properties to rent out to the peasantry, stunning artworks to hang from the walls, acres of land to farm and gardens to landscape. Chatsworth, the spectacular Derbyshire estate of the Duke and Duchess of Devonshire, has all…
Verona: A Roman survivor
Italy may change but some things remain resolutely the same. The food is great, the architecture is awe-inspiring and the locals can’t resist a shiny puffer jacket. On our first evening in Verona, nursing a beer in a touristy but quiet bar in the Piazza Bra, there were plenty of puffer jackets on display. Veronese and…
Italy: A weekend in Bologna
Bologna, the capital of Italy’s Emilia-Romagna region, is home to the oldest university in the Western world, incredible food and a wonderful cityscape of terracotta-roofed buildings. But there are other features of the city that don’t feature so prominently in the guidebooks, not least the amount of graffiti. Perhaps it’s something to do with Bologna’s history…
A cemetery, a murder and a musician in Savannah
Too much high living, rich food and booze had taken their toll on my guts so I didn’t feel too perky on our Sunday morning in Savannah. I steered clear of breakfast and watched Graham tucking in instead. But there was no stopping the sightseeing. Our first stop, with temperatures again high, was Bonaventure Cemetery,…
A day touring Savannah’s grand homes
Sleep was troubled in Savannah, ahead of a day exploring the city’s Historic District. The air conditioning kept turning itself on and off and my long-dodgy and painful shoulder kept waking me. But breakfast in our hotel was delicious, including a pulled pork sandwich with a firey tomato jam and scrambled egg. Our posh innkeeper…
A day touring Charleston’s historic plantations
After a day of exploring Charleston’s historic heart it was time to drive into the countryside, to visit a couple of the plantations that helped the south so rich and so notorious for slavery. The road to Drayton Hall took us through industrial and nondescript suburbs, along dual carriageways lined with fast-food joints and out-of-town stores. Later…