“Beyond the throb of the engines is the throbbing heart of all.” John Betjemen St. Pancras station in London is quite the most amazing space, a vast vaulted ceiling headed by a gold clock, set high above a fleet of sleek Eurostar trains. The station dodged the Luftwaffe’s bombs, but fell out of favour during [...]
Every now and then, a restaurant comes along that just hits the nail on the head. Red Chilli is one of them. Down a dark flight of stairs on a busy corner in the northern part of the city, you’ll find a first-rate Chinese restaurant, busy and bustling, people queuing for tables. Waiting staff with [...]
We thought we might be staying longer at The Drunken Duck, by default. The night had been cold, and the previous day’s showers had frozen over the lying snow. We checked out and set off down the country lane to the side of the Inn, the car wheels skidding on black ice. I was beginning [...]
I’ve written before about Opposite in the Victoria Quarter in Leeds, and I don’t normally write about places a second time, but this story needs telling. I spent yesterday morning trudging round the centre of Leeds with the rest of Yorkshire looking for elusive Christmas presents, things for those people who’ve got everything and need [...]
We’d walked a long way, from the famous bridge over the River Kwai into Kanchanaburi, the nearest town. Thailand had been hard work. It was hot. Very hot. Even the women who patiently and carefully watered the grass in the Allied cemetery were wilting among the stark white tombstones, each bearing a British name and [...]