I spent the entry into 2007 as I meant to go on for later in the year, not in the UK. Geographically not very distant, I had a great time in Dublin with Erika’s family, with many things to see and do: visitdublin.com, or Dublin for Visitors, or Discover Ireland. A bit of local knowledge, and some tourist-traps! We started with a bit of an unashamed tourist tour, starting with Grafton Street (which even I have heard of, although my knowledge of Dublin is pretty limited, and I’d not had time to look up much about it before going!), then round various spots of ‘interest’, via Butlers Chocolate Café (www.butlerschocolates.com), which was DELICIOUS, if a little crowded ... read more

After 19 months working for the University of Manchester, I've taken the opportunity for Voluntary Redundancy, which will allow me some time to work on writing, catching up with people, and - most importantly - travelling. The last day at work was great - having been counting down for the last 24 days (the advent calendar was a great idea Karen, although it confused a few people as I started to open it 24 working days before 21st - appeared a bit premature!) I finished off the last few bits of work, left everything neat, with notes for others to take over, then dashed around saying goodbye, before going for our office dinner at Pacific in Manchester's China Town (v. nice food!). In the afternoon, after watching a bit of ice skating, headed for url=http://www.kro.co.uk/control.php?_command=/DI... read more