Last full day in Rome and our last AI inspired itinerary. Today was a walk along the Tiber to Isola Tiberina, into the Trastevere area before walking up Janiculum Hill for the views. The timing of all of this was crucial as we needed to arrive at the Piaz…
Day two of our AI built itinerary of Rome today took us in the other direction down Via del Corso to the Piazza del Popolo, up into the Villa Borghese and back to the Spanish Steps. We’d learned from yesterday’s walk that the suggested route wasn’t …
We’ve been to Rome a few times before and so didn’t feel the need to do all the big ticket locations once again, well at least not to pay and go inside. We wanted some alternatives and so asked AI to help us out. Prompt me an Itinerary I flit between …
Today was the first time we had travelled to Europe since their new Entry/Exit System (EES) was introduced. I had read horror stories in the press about long queues and wait times as people got used to the technology and the bugs are ironed out. There see…
I’m on the V&A mailing list. Normally it’s only of passing interest but when I opened one and found that they were running an exhibition featuring the work of Aardman Animations I was there and booked tickets. Hold on a Minute...…
The underpass to Katesgrove, specifically the stretch beneath the IDR near County Lock, has had a series of murals installed in it, and I was keen to see it. What apparently used to be a somewhat grim, graffiti-prone passage has been turned into the Time …
Seeing as you asked so nicely I’ve unblocked you.
Ok so I run/am williamsdb and have no memory of blocking you which suggests it might be a mistake but then again your over the top response might be a clue!😂
I guess you could say that I am somewhat late to the party with this post, given that all those annoying Spotify Wrapped posts were flooding social media late last year. I don’t use Spotify, having a) a roll-your-own version in the form of Plex and b) m…
If you liked this post then you maybe interested in this. Reading has lots to offer and this guide takes you through my highlights - all of which are free.
www.neilthompson.co.uk/the-reading-...
It's well worth a visit and, as I say in the post, changes regularly.
lol, yes that area is notorious for flooding.
In Reading? If so do you know where?
I’ve been driving under the A329M flyover on Loddon Bridge Road for years, admiring the street art there and meaning to take a closer look. Today I finally did. The graffiti art under the A329M flyover near the Showcase Cinema and The George pub in Earl…
It’s time for my annual round-up of the year just gone (you can read the previous year’s reports here). This was my first full year of retirement so it will be interesting to see what, if any , impact that has had on the figures. I have worked from ho…
This is an awful thing to say, but Reading is really easy to get away from! It is incredibly well served with transport links to the M4 to the south and rail links which lead pretty much anywhere. One such destination is Oxford, which is only a cheap 20-m…
Knaresbourgh is beautiful any time of year.
In the middle of last year I visited Lightroom in Kings Cross to see The Moonwalkers. I loved it so much that I went back for a second helping and bought the soundtrack that accompanied it. When I saw that The Natural History Museum were offering a simila…
Last day in Washington DC and we needed to avoid last-day syndrome, particularly as we had the whole day to kill as the flight wasn’t until 22:45. We had done all the major sites and places that we wanted to visit but there were a couple more outposts t…
I posed a question on our Alexandria day asking “How do the blind of America cross the road?” as there didn’t seem to be any audio feedback. Our eyes and ears on the ground (👋Angela) got in touch to say that if you hold the crosswalk button long …
We were sat in Starbucks this morning having breakfast and watching a little tableau unfold on the pavement (“sidewalk”) opposite where five police officers were arresting one guy. I’m not sure why five officers were necessary given that the man off…
I must admit that of all the places I expected to find myself on holiday, the zoo wasn’t one of them— at least not without children. Don’t Panda to Them Like many of the museums on the National Mall, the zoo is also part of the Smithsonian Institute…
When we came to Washington last time, we stayed in Georgetown, a beautiful and affluent suburb of Washington. It was a nice area but probably a bit too far from the action. Foggy Bottom This trip we are staying downtown so we had to get the Metro over to …
Today we took the metro south to Alexandria, a city seven miles out of Washington in Virginia. We accept the reality of the world with which we are presented As we walked from the station to old town Alexandria I was struck with how well presented it was …
Jet lag wasn’t too bad. I’m sure that it’s perfectly normal to be wide awake at 5 am! Still it did allow us to get out early and avoid the crowds. National Mall Today we’d earmarked to do the sights, which in Washington’s case are all centred ar…
Just as the weather begins to change at home, we are off to warmer climes. Back in 2019 we did a combined trip to New York and Washington but felt that we hadn’t spent long enough in the capital so vowed to come back. Now we are here for a week. Wheneve…
Something new for Heritage Open Days this year and arguably, something without any heritage— a trip up the newly opened ONE Station Hill building in Reading. Having done all the other things on offer and seeing that this offered the opportunity to look …
We’ve not been able to do a leg of the path since late April. The reasons for this are twofold: firstly, it was very hot over the summer— too hot for us to want to walk; and secondly, I got plantar fasciitis in my right foot, making walking painful, s…
Today is the last day of my 6th decade. Tomorrow I will be eligible for free prescriptions and a senior railcard. I don’t feel old enough to warrant those and other concessions but the grey hair tells me otherwise! While browsing the bookshops in Hay I …
The final two stops on our Welsh tour today waking in the lovely Portmeirion and then travelling on to the bookish Hay–on–Wye. Portmeirion After all the hoi polloi paying day guests had left the village it became very, very quiet there and it was a pl…
