Firstly, let me confess that I have never actually met Maxine face to face! A few years back, a mutual friend connected us, with it in mind that Maxine might be a good person for me to talk to about my relocation plans… which actually have yet to materialise. Our conversation about turning 60 revealed … More Maxine
Turning 60 is a series of profiles of people turning 60 around the same time as me. These people may be friends old or new, colleagues, and the occasional person of interest who I have persuaded to take part! Based on conversations arising from a set of interview questions, my aim is to present a … More The ‘Turning 60’ project
Let me start by saying that I had an amazing trip. I am, however, glad to be home! I felt the difference of being a year older than last year, I felt the impact of having ‘stuff’ going on at home and needing to stay connected, and I also discovered that the format of this … More Cambodia and Vietnam – reflections on my trip
My Hanoi stay has been in two parts, with a trip to Halong Bay in the middle (see my previous post here). I arrived into Noi Bai airport after a slightly delayed (which it seems they *all* are) 1-hour flight from Da Nang, and it then took me almost twice as long to locate my … More Vietnam part 5 – Hanoi
A trip out to Halong Bay was pretty much a non-negotiable on this trip. Sandwiched into my Hanoi stay, I booked myself onto a 2-day / 1-night cruise and decided that this would be my ‘treat’ to self… so booked myself a suite with its own terrace. Sounds good, no? Well, I have to tell … More Vietnam part 4 – Halong Bay
This post may seem like a bit of a diversion from my set of blog posts on my travels in Vietnam, but bear with me! Today, after a heavy morning of sightseeing (about which more in the next post), I went for a massage on the recommendation of a fellow traveller. And it got me … More Massage!
I had intended to treat Hoi An as ‘downtime’, booking a hotel outside the city centre with its own beach. It hasn’t quite worked out like that, although having settled bedside the pool on Thursday morning it was really difficult to move my bum and go exploring! My plan for the beach on Friday afternoon … More Vietnam part 3 – Hoi An
When is your first day in Hoi An not your first day in Hoi An? When you decide to book a full day tour to Hue! This was a deliberate decision to keep the pace up before allowing myself to settle into the more relaxed rhythm of my beachside hotel, but after a late arrival … More Vietnam part 2 – Hue
It’s a shame that my first impression of Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC) was the international arrivals hall of its airport! Immigration was slow and the luggage slower… not helped by the baggage carousel belt stopping at least three times when items got stuck 😩 Nevertheless, I was finally united with my taxi transfer, and … More Vietnam part 1 – Ho Chi Minh City
The second part of my mini-tour of Cambodia was to Siem Riep. We did a minibus transfer that took the best part of the day, with several comfort stops and lunch at a community-run silk farm – fascinating. We arrived at our hotel at around 5pm – a really lovely hotel, with a fabulous pool, … More Cambodia – part 2
50shadesofbrave 