I’m starting out with the best of intentions – to write the blog as often as I can. That could turn out to be a hollow promise: it depends how much time I have and what sort of Internet connections I find in Laos. The trip I’m taking is to Laos with Explore, starting and ending in Bangkok, with 17 days on the road. I’m flying to Hong Kong, then back to Bangkok to start the tour. Early in January, I’ll fly back to Qatar on business (sadly not in business) and finally back to the UK around January 12th. So – the Hong Kong flight. All I can say is, thank goodness that’s over! Everything considered I was probably lucky to escape yesterday. For a start the flight out of Heathrow was delayed by about ... read more

Sorry no time for photos - check back and I'll add some later. Quite a lot has happned in the last few days but we’vr been out of touch with the rest of the world, so no chance of Internet connections. So - time for a very quick resume and then I’ll check out the facilities at our final resort. It’s New Years Eve now and we travelled most of today to reach Kovalam which is right in the south of Kerala, quite near to Trivandurum. But in reverse order.... On Wednesday night we stayed on a houseboat in the backwaters of Kerala. Think Norfolk Broads, ten times bigger, hot, sunny and full of palm trees. It’s a mixture of rivers, canals and lakes, all linked together with housres, palm trees and rice paddies lining the ... read more

Thursday afternoon now which means it’s Christmas Eve. We’re in Madurai, heading west from the previous stop in Tanjure. Everyone is starting to get temple fatigue now so it’s probably a good job that this is our last day of temple visits. To be fair, those we’ve seen in the last couple of days have been pretty spectacular. The facts and figures have started to wash over my head because I’m sure the last two towns have both claimed that they have the biggest, tallest or most towers. I think they’re all trying to compete for their place in the Guinness Book of Records! We arrived yesterday afternoon after driving from Tanjure via Trichy. On the way we visited (you guessed it) another temple. That one had seven separate sections accessed through gateways or arches. The ... read more

I first visited Dubai longer ago than I care to remember. Well actually I can't remember the year but I vaguely recollect that Emirates launched that year with a single second hand plane. According to wikipedia that was October 1985 so it must be true. Wherever possible we took the British Caledonian, Hong Kong flight which had a refuelling stop in Dubai. It was always cheaper and less crowded than BA and used modern DC-10's (all long since scrapped I'm sure). The airport at the time was single runway, single terminal, with only a handful of planes on the tarmac most of the time. One thing which sticks in my mind is stepping out of the aircraft cabin to walk down the steps for the first time and being hit in the face by the heat ... read more

And so, week 5 on the road and I seem to have landed in Qatar. Actually not quite five weeks, I think I got a few days at home but it just didn’t work out. I kept leaving my laundry in a bag, ready for collection but honestly, the service was rubbish. Or perhaps I’m jinxed - the hotel here managed to lose my trousers for a day and I had to wear shorts to the office. A drop in standards I know but I think I can be excused - it did reach 42C yesterday. The flight out was uneventful and great value at £340. See, I still try and get value for money, even when it’s not my money (wish the boss was reading this). I really don’t mind taking a short break and ... read more