This section contains thought-provoking articles across a broad range of topics loosely connected with the theme of travel, and of travelling within Europe. These range from the practical to the philosophical, and are intended to spur debate...
What does a peaceful little riverside town in Devon (UK) have to do with law and order? Ottery St Mary (pop. 7,000) sleeps in a patchwork of fields and meadows around the River Otter, appearing to have fallen here from the higher ground at the top of the Otter Valley, collecting haphazardly as a glut of buildings, cobbled streets, and a smart town square (writes Jim Alexander).
I recently met a man who had decided to walk up the coast path from Cornwall, through Devon, around Wales and back into the UK (writes Jim Alexander). He was, understandably, knackered – and none too coherent, his reddened face under protective bandana somewhat intensified by the local cider he’d just knocked back.
Checking in to a hotel or hostel is one way to find a bed during your travels, but a more interesting way can be to find a homestay arrangement instead (writes Amanda Kendle). Travel agents or specific homestay websites offer services to connect you up with locals who have a spare bed or room where travellers can spend a night or a week, often at a much cheaper rate than the local hotels.
There’s a mythology where I live (writes Jim Alexander): the Secret Spot, a place where waves and perfect isolation combine. The Secret Spot is the original dream of freedom, on which all the advertising, the movies and the crowds of shepherded tourists are based.
There are many of us who are constantly in search of a type of calm, the kind of calm that is only available on the distant horizon (writes Antony Hayes). When it is found, we are content in the moment but find it short lived because as time moves on, so does the elusive beauty which defines the travelling heart.
Being ill on a holiday is not something one would generally reminisce fondly about, but sometimes when illness strikes you, it can tell you a lot about the place you’re in and the people around you (writes Careena Bruen). This is my tale of extreme vomiting – and so much more! – in a small town in the foothills of the Pyrenees
What does a peaceful little riverside town in Devon (UK) have to do with law and order? Ottery St Mary (pop. 7,000) sleeps in a patchwork of fields and meadows around the River Otter, appearing to have fallen here from the higher ground at the top of the Otter Valley, collecting haphazardly as a glut of buildings, cobbled streets, and a smart town square (writes Jim Alexander).
I recently met a man who had decided to walk up the coast path from Cornwall, through Devon, around Wales and back into the UK (writes Jim Alexander). He was, understandably, knackered – and none too coherent, his reddened face under protective bandana somewhat intensified by the local cider he’d just knocked back.
Checking in to a hotel or hostel is one way to find a bed during your travels, but a more interesting way can be to find a homestay arrangement instead (writes Amanda Kendle). Travel agents or specific homestay websites offer services to connect you up with locals who have a spare bed or room where travellers can spend a night or a week, often at a much cheaper rate than the local hotels.
There’s a mythology where I live (writes Jim Alexander): the Secret Spot, a place where waves and perfect isolation combine. The Secret Spot is the original dream of freedom, on which all the advertising, the movies and the crowds of shepherded tourists are based.
There are many of us who are constantly in search of a type of calm, the kind of calm that is only available on the distant horizon (writes Antony Hayes). When it is found, we are content in the moment but find it short lived because as time moves on, so does the elusive beauty which defines the travelling heart.
Being ill on a holiday is not something one would generally reminisce fondly about, but sometimes when illness strikes you, it can tell you a lot about the place you’re in and the people around you (writes Careena Bruen). This is my tale of extreme vomiting – and so much more! – in a small town in the foothills of the Pyrenees