Houxty1
Houxty One Joined: August 25th 2007
Logged in: April 20th 2011
Logged in: April 20th 2011
Travel Blog Posts
I’d completely forgotten about the magic of Christmas until I had kids of my own. Until then it had become a forced round of family meals and absolutely rubbish television schedules. And then, when she was about three and a half years old, my daughter reminded me exactly what it is all about. For two months before Christmas we played her favourite game which consisted of her pretending to be asleep while I crept around her bedroom in the guise of Father Christmas leaving mock presents dotted about the place. Come Christmas Eve, we put the milk, carrots and magic dust out for the reindeer while the obligatory mince pie and a stiff shot of Scotland’s finest fire water graced the mantelpiece next to an over-sized stocking. My daughter believed and loved every single moment and ... read more
Our guide Trygvor picked us up at the hotel and before leaving we poured over the latest meteorological charts downloaded from the local Weather Centre’s website just 30 minutes earlier. “It’s not a great night for the Aurora” was our guide’s very frank and somewhat disappointing summation “but, if we head south away from the clouds then we will find the Northern Lights”. With renewed vigour, we jumped into the warmth of Trygvor’s car and headed out of town. As we drove south away from the Arctic Ocean we were told to keep our eyes peeled, not on the Arctic firmament but the roadside. “An interesting Northern Lights viewing strategy” we all thought in unison “our guide is obviously stark raving bonkers”. Fortunately, he clarified his position. “There’s a ghost” he explained “a German soldier who ... read more
My family and i have just returned from a week in Tuscany. One of my great passions is food so it’s not particularly surprising that we feature this little gem in Tuscany. We ate in the same restaurant three times during the week, it serves simple but delicious food using fresh and locally sourced ingredients. The added bonus is that with sterling at an 18 month high against the Euro, it was also fantastic value. I took a photograph of the bill just to illustrate the point. "Let me talk you through it”. Firstly the setting. This is where we have our “Welcome Meal” on our Family Activity Holiday in Tuscany and I honestly don’t know of a finer setting. You can see the spectacular view from the terrace restaurant in the gallery on the right. ... read more
