Pain au chocolat, croissant, fresh fruit and coffee for breakfast – mmm! Mind you, we didn’t get out to the Pâtisserie until about 10am which we thought was late. Not so – everyone else seemed to be still in bed! We decided to stick to the local area today and wandered down to the Musée de la Chasse et de la Nature (Museum of Hunting and Nature). This wonderful, low-key museum gives an amazing insight into our attitudes to hunting through the ages – from the divine (i.e. the goddess of the hunt, Diana), to the Middle Ages’ view of hunting as a training ground for battle, through to the aristocratic pursuit of leisure. Housed in the former Hôtel de Guénégaud, it feels like you are wandering through somebody’s home. There are many rooms, each of ... read more

Friday 25th to Monday 28th March Friday morning saw us on an early-ish train from Exeter to London. John managed to get some work done during the two and a half hour trip while Ali enjoyed the scenic views of the countryside. In London, we stayed in a private hotel (essentially a B&B) in Kensington, quite close to Kensington Palace and Gardens (and Peter Pan). It's a very attractive area and nearly every house is 'three (or four) up and one down' and painted white. This gives the streets a very light and airy feel. Interestingly, in nearby Notting Hill, the houses seemed to be painted in contrasting colours (often pastels). Another thing we found interesting was the numerous shared (but private) gardens. These are enclosed (locked) gardens, only accessible to the residents of the adjoining ... read more

Oxford Saturday 19 to Tuesday 22 March On Saturday we flew to Heathrow from Hamburg then drove to Oxford (back on the left hand side of the road!). On Sunday, John had the day off, so we spent the day driving around the Cotswolds. It was a beautifully sunny day. On our travels, we came across the "Rollright Stones". These are a collection of limestone standing-stones and a barrow (like the one from which Tom Bombadil rescued Frodo and party), dating from Neolithic times. One of the sites is a stone circle. We were treated to the sight of a group of (what we presume were) current-day Druids (complete with flower circlet headgear) performing a ceremony, which we guess was to welcome the equinox. Apart from that, even though the other things we saw were very ... read more

Monday 14th March 2011 This was a total work day for John, but we flew to Helsinki in the evening. It was -2C when we arrived and to our delight, we could see snow on the ground as we flew in! Tuesday 15th March 2011 Another work day for John, but at least Ali got to have a look around Helsinki, well and truly rugged up for the daily maximum of 1C! She was totally blown away when, on reaching the harbour, to find it totally iced up - wasn't expecting that. Ali spent the day finding interesting sites to revisit with John the next day. Wednesday 16th March 2011 We must mention the breakfasts! We thought the breakfasts in other countries were pretty full-on - but Helsinki takes the cake! There was a much greater ... read more

Wednesday 9 March to Friday 11 March 2011 John started work in earnest on Wednesday, with a meeting in Brussels which went well. Ali recuperated from the hectic schedule by staying in the big round bed all day - reading and eating John's share of the Pim's biscuits! Once John finished work, we spent the evening wandering around Brussels a bit more, including the flash Galeries Royales Saint-Hubert (in the Wallonian) or Koninklijke Sint-Hubertusgalerijen (to give it the Flemish name). It gets really confusing sometimes when there are two names for everything! We finished the day with dinner at La Fin de Siècle - a very cool cafe style restaurant that is obviously popular with locals and visitors (thanks again Lonely Planet). Off early next morning by train to Utrecht (in the Netherlands) via Rotterdam. We ... read more