Something amazing happened last Monday. Well, amazing to me. I was scrolling through my emails on the train into work when I spotted a notification. A pingback link to my site. Normally I would have waited and checked the link later, but something caught my eye. Wait…was it National Geographic Traveller linking to my…
Category: Travel inspiration
Revisiting an icon – when is the best time to visit Iguazu Falls?
I’ve been lucky enough to visit Iguazu Falls twice now and it’s definitely an amazing place to add to your South American trip. But the two experiences were quite different; one in February (summer) and one in July (winter), when the water reached exceptionally high levels due to floods in Parana state. You can read…
Adventures in the Bolivian Pantanal
“We usually eat them whole, with our hands.” She mimed chomping across the bony flesh, then gestured to the knife and fork on the table. “But you can use those.” Piranhas have a fearsome reputation but most of the time they’re harmless enough. Just don’t get into the water with them during mating season….
What’s in your travel bag? My 5 travel essentials
I recently joined Instagram, which is a terrible time-waster great source of travel inspiration. I love the wanderlust-inducing travel shots, but also the small insights into people’s worlds, halfway around the globe. A morning coffee here, a pet photo there. And I love the little details about travel most of all. I’ve been meaning to…
I left my heart in…Chapada dos Guimaraes
“Ah, my other son. He’s in some tiny town in the far north, in Piaui state. I’ve never heard of it.” Our laid-back guide rolled the window down and shrugged. There’s many unknown places in Brazil. Take Chapada dos Guimaraes. It may be the official geodesic centre of South America, but until we…
Falling in love with travel again
This isn’t the post I planned to write this morning – I have a whole list of things to share from my recent trip and I will get to them! But I am missing being on the road like crazy today, so here goes. You may have noticed a slight change in the focus of…
Bolivia to Brazil – trip highlights in photos
I’ve just returned from a great trip which took me from Bolivia to Brazil, through stunning landscapes and surprising cities. While I gather my thoughts, here are a few of the best pictures from my trip. Above – with ‘sticker Pope’ in Santa Cruz, Bolivia. We were there during the papal visit, along with an…
Mamiraua – discover the Amazon in a unique place
Many years ago Mamiraua was my first introduction to Brazil and I’ve been in love ever since. Nothing I’ve done before or since has left such an impression as that journey. Below are my original travel diary notes of my first impressions. Tefe looks pretty relaxed after Manaus, or maybe it’s just the illusion…
Five gorgeous Scottish drives
Scotland is home to some stunning scenic drives – many of which can also be accessed partly by public transport. Although I don’t drive, I’m lucky enough to usually visit with family members who do. Here are some of my favourite drives on the west coast of Scotland. Glen Fruin across to Garelochead Photo credit-…
Explore the Lakshadweep Islands – camping on your own desert island
I never had the Robinson Crusoe fantasy, until I laid eyes on Thinnakara, a tiny coral island in the Lakshadweep islands, 200 kms off the Keralan coast. The Lakshadweep islands are the Maldives without the intensive tourism. They form the northern tip of the same chain of coral islands and atolls and were known as…