Blogs from United Kingdom, Europe - page 6

There was once an excellent comedian named Jasper Carrott . Jasper came from the Midlands and toured around the country on the comedy circuit . He visited towns here and there talking about his town of Dudley which he pronounced in a black country accent and made fun of anything and everything . Those were the days before woke made it difficult to make fun of anything without offending . He raised a laugh when he shouted out that the inhabitants of Mold were unfortunate living in a place called Mould . Who would want to live in a place called Mould ? Sadly of course Mold sounds like Mould so it invited the joke from him . Laughing at yourself is an art we have sadly lost . Actually Mold is a nice place to ... read more

I don't mind a trip to Shrewsbury now and again . It feels that there is always something to do and something new to see . I know eventually I will run out of small alleyways to explore , the museum will have nothing new to see but at the moment I still have a list of things to do . Places to see and things to tick of that list that makes up the county town of Shrewsbury . Today was going to be no different . I was not sure how long I would have to waste . Today was just a small service for the car . A biennual change of brake fluid which should take only an hour or so . The garage would do a car Health check and send me ... read more

Gloucestershire. The Cotswolds. The area is very much on the tourist trail. Bus loads descend in the summer months on relatively tiny populations. Bourton on the Water. The Slaughters. Stow on the Wold. Similar column inches and visitor numbers are devoted to the Regency splendour of Cheltenham - home of grand Georgian buildings and of course, the famous racecourse. The county town of Gloucester is somehow overlooked by the hordes. Skirted by the M5 motorway by those on their way somewhere else and missed off the coach tour itineraries. It did not seem that way on this bright, sunny autumn morning. Traffic was busy. It showed congestion on the route towards the Quays. I cut off to head through the city centre. The major sporting stadium venue in these parts loomed. Kingsholm - home of Gloucester ... read more

This morning was my favorite moment of the trip. I woke up in Paris, the Eiffel Tower in view from the window. Showered, then before the crack of dawn, was on the cobble stone streets of Rue Cler, with the locals. Walking to the Boulangerie to get the best croissants in the world. The only other people were the staff of the hotels doing the same thing, getting the croissants and baguettes for the morning breakfast, including the staff of our hotel. “A quick on Jour Deux Croissants si vous plait.” Two fresh croissants handed to you for 2.80 Euros about $3 (would pay 8 in NY). “Merci, au voire.” Walking back in the crisp Paris fall air, I stopped, took a deep breath, and truly savored the moment, I am in Paris, I truly belong ... read more

Halloween , Marks and Spencers and football are words that do not often get put together. When I read the title of the blog back I think what on earth do they have in common . Halloween that import from the USA which seemed to grow in popularity . It is that time of the year .Schools had pumpkin competitions . Children of all ages took to knocking on door trick and treating . Houses displayed their carved pumpkins for all to see and those who hated it locked their doors and wished the night away . So many mixed feelings . There was probably less homage in our village to Halloween to be fair. Less population . More elderly and retired than children . However there were some displays in the gardens . I wondered ... read more