A HOUSE BY THE THAMES In 1996 my husband Rob and I bought a holiday house on an 18th century estate called Harleyford, by the banks of the River Thames in Buckinghamshire. For the next fifteen years we divided our time between England and Australia. Originally we
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Blood On My Boots was one of the titles I considered for my book on the Thames Path. I love social history , especially murder mysteries, and many bodies have ended up in the river. The book was eventually published as All Along the River;
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BARING IT ALL IN THE BLACK FOREST While visiting the Black Forest my partner Rob and I discover there is more to the region than chocolate cake and cuckoo clocks. Our holiday apartment is owned by the Klumpp family, who are as sturdily hearty as their name
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A TOUR OF TASMANIA VIA ITS MAGICAL CAVES After an absence of many years, my partner Rob and I returned to Tasmania, where we both grew up. While we were staying on the North West Coast we went to see Gunns Plains caves. My first visit was
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Harrogate means a whole lot of things, but especially Bettys Bakery and Agatha Christie. My friends call me Miss Marple , so it’s no surprise that I went to Harrogate recently on a pilgrimage to the Old Swan Hotel. Agatha Christie sought refuge here during a personal
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For many years my partner Rob and I travelled around the UK staying in Bed & Breakfasts. Some were absolutely charming, with equally charming hosts. Others were….well pretty awful (read ‘Unravelling With My Aunt’ on this website and you will get the picture). But as we both
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Hello from Editor Des and some English friends Well I have been traveling around England and OH MY WORD, I do like all the lollies here. I have to remember to call them sweets though, because English people think lollies are only on sticks! I thought
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OLD MEMORIES LINGER! I grew up on a hilltop farm in Tasmania….next stop ANTARCTICA! In winter, biting winds and sleet often prompted my father’s diary entries to begin, “Very rough day!” No wonder we appreciated my mother’s ‘comfort cooking’ ; rabbit pies, rich beef stews, pastries and
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Hello. Here is the first article from my trip to Lille, in northern France. Pauline Conolly helped me, but not very much. Dr Bob Conolly took the photographs. I hope you like our work. Editor Des. xxx IN THE BEGINNING In
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Australians have always been enthusiastic travelers. Sadly, ‘grey nomad’ caravanners and thousands of cruise passengers are now experiencing very difficult times. I was reflecting on this, and the fact that travel is not always pleasant. The word derives from the medieval Latin – trepalium; ‘an instrument of
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