Rome
Another trip from 2006, when I spent six months exploring a different European city every other weekend as a break from a project based near Antwerp. In September Rome was…
Category: Travel
Venice
One of the most famous cities in the world, I visited Venice for the weekend back in October 2006. I enjoyed the sights, but probably enjoyed more just wandering the…
Vienna
I saw a lot of Europe back in 2006, unfortunately before I had a decent camera or ability to use it. I did enjoy a weekend in Vienna though, home…
Staying in a homestay
Increasingly popular, homestays are a great way to give directly back to local communities while traveling, and are always a memorable experience. Many of my recent trips have been with…
Mari Mari Cultural Village
Set up about nine years ago, Mari Mari Cultural Village is an evocative reminder of traditional Sabah culture, less than half an hour from Kota Kinabalu. It is also popular…
Sandakan and Gomantong Caves
The second largest city in Sabah, home to 400,000 people, Sandakan is basically a less attractive version of Kota Kinabalu. Similarly laid out on a narrow stretch of land between…
Sepilok
A wonderful spot for nature lovers, particularly those interesting in monkeys, orangutans and bears, Sepilok is home to a number of sanctuaries protecting these animals from the seemingly endless deforestation…
Kinabatangan River
The second longest river in Malaysia, the Kinabatangan River is a great place to see monkeys in the wild. Bilit Adventure Lodge is one of half dozen along the river,…
Sabah Tea Resort
The perfect spot to relax after summiting Mt Kinabalu, Sabah Tea Resort is a tranquil place near Ranau, in the foothills of the mountain. I stayed in one of two…
Mt Kinabalu
Mt Kinabalu is the highest mountain in Borneo, and the highest in South East Asia if you discount the Himalayan part of Myanmar and Papua New Guinea. It’s also one…
Around Mt Kinabalu
I spent a few days in the almost literal shadow of Mt Kinabalu, the highest peak in Borneo. A highlight was staying at a home stay in Tanak Nabula, a…
Kota Kinabalu
The capital of Malaysian Borneo, and gateway to the Sabah region, Kota Kinabalu is a relatively tidy South-East Asian city of half a million people which has enough to see…
Barcelona
One of the most varied cities in Europe, Barcelona is blessed with beautiful buildings both old and new, huge amounts of culture, and a lengthy beach downtown. Unfortunately word got…
Bruges
One of my favourite European cities, Bruges is a wonderfully preserved snapshot of the Golden Period from the 12th to 15th centuries, when it was one of the most important…
Ghent
A day trip from Antwerp back in 2006, Ghent is a lesser known but very pleasant Belgium town, filled with huge churches and historic buildings, plus lots of bikes and…
Berlin
One of my weekend European adventures back in 2006, I found Berlin to be a fascinating if busy place, even in mid-September then it was heaving with tourists. It has…
Unexpectedly good exhibitions in places I didn’t expect
I’ve visited hundreds of museum exhibitions over the years, with most conforming to what you’d expect from the location, I.e. naval museums in ports, classical museums in Rome and Istanbul,…
Things I leant about Myanmar (Burma)
A far more ‘normal’ country than I was expecting, Myanmar was a fascinating place to spend a couple of weeks. I did the standard tourist circuit though the centre (Yangon,…
Ballooning over Bagan v Lake Inle
Bagan is famous for hot air ballooning, Lake Inle less so, but both are quite magical experiences. Most people take balloon rides if they can in Bagan (you often need…
Lake Inle
One of the most visited places in Myanmar, Lake Inle is a tourist trap, but an enjoyable one. It’s the second largest lake in Myanmar, but a very shallow one,…