I’d never been to Malta before and was surprised initially at how developed it was. There didn’t seem to be any nature or wildlife, only large houses, churches and building cranes as far as the eye could see. I was staying in a hotel in Valletta and was speaking at a conference there. Most of… Read More »
The last time I visited the KGB museum in Vilnius, my guide was a former inmate. I found this very touching and I was pleased today when I could guide myself around. Even though it was 29 years ago, the one enduring memory was of the padded cell with blood spattered walls. I was not… Read More »
When I calculated how long it had been since I lived in Kaunas I couldn’t believe it was 29 years and I first visited on my way to the Siberian expedition some time before. At that time it was a pretty difficult place to live. There were only 6 foreigners in the4 city and we… Read More »
I was very impressed with Montenegro when I was here in the summer and promised myself I would come back for longer next time. So when I was leaving Tanzania it provided a perfect opportunity. i was also keen to see the country off-season because I had an idea that I could get a cheap… Read More »
Quamped = Disappointed, downhearted. Derives from an old English dialect word, quamp, meaning “to dampen someone’s spirits.” My planning was perfect. I had been to the central train station – Beograd Centar – to carry our a recce, find the right buses to take and to check which platform I needed. The following day I… Read More »
When I lived in the Balkans back in the late 1990’s I never made it as far as Belgrade. But Croatia and Serbia are not dissimilar. As I walk the streets of the capital the road layout, the tree-lined streets, the trams and the graffiti are familiar. The time I spent in Poland and Croatia… Read More »
I suppose I should have remembered that if a person goes to a popular tourist destination in the height of summer, they should not be surprised when they cannot move for other tourists. The Blue Mosque is a big draw and I queued up to get inside in order to wonder as the magnificence of… Read More »
The whole reason for my travels this time have been to get to Greece and specifically the islands. I had done My Family and Other Animals for O level and as a result had got into Gerald Durrell in a big way reading many more of his books. So when I arrived by ferry onto… Read More »
It’s not that I don’t like Italy but that it’s a diversion I didn’t want in my Balkan Odyssey. However, when you’re travelling without a firm plan and with no travel tickets or accommodation booked then you are opening yourself up to disappointment. I had spent a satisfactory day back in Croatia and had booked… Read More »
I had no intention of going to Dubrovnik or anywhere in Croatia for that matter but I could not get out of Kotor to the south due to lack of buses and tickets so in order to keep to my overarching plan of getting to Greece I had no choice but to go back north… Read More »