Letter from France: June 2013 part 1

Château de ChantillyOnly June 22: Musical Night at the Château de Chantilly
Next Saturday from 6pm to midnight, the gardens of the magnificent Chantilly Castle will host a musical night of about fifty short classical music concerts that will be played in a dozen stages throughout the park. Thousands of candles on the ground will create [...]

In the footsteps of Jean Cocteau

One of the appeals of Menton on the French Riviera is the largest museum dedicated to the works of Jean Cocteau (1889-1963), a famous French artist who died fifty years ago. Frederic exolores the museum and the three towns forever linked with his work.

Irish Passport Office

From the website:

“The Passport Office, which is part of the Department of Foreign Affairs, issues passports to Irish citizens.

All Irish citizens are entitled to apply for an Irish passport. Services are provided by the Passport Offices in Dublin and Cork and by Irish Diplomatic and Consular Missions overseas.”

The future of HMS Caroline

As you go up to the new Titanic experience in Belfast you pass a number of old buildings. Between them you might just spot a warship if the bus isn’t travelling too fast. This is HMS Caroline – the last survivor of WWI and a ship only recently decommissioned from the navy. But it looks to be in a rather sorry state.

The Great Wall of China: Potteries style

Just started in Stoke-on-Trent is a six week celebration of ceramics. Well what else would it celebrate apart from its premier division football team of course!

American ‘culture’ and British visitors

CD-Traveller mentioned a little while ago that British visitors were returning to the US after declining numbers over the last few years. One of the reasons we go is for the appeal of its heritage, according to a study recently released by their government.

Credit Crunch Camping: part 2

£100 for a long weekend (four days) away? Yes, it is possible! We found a basic (but extremely clean) campsite just outside Bristol, which only cost £15 for three nights.  After pitching the tent, we went for a quick walk in the surrounding woodland, before bed. The next day (Saturday) we set off for the [...]