Published on Metro.co.uk on 31st October 2017
So you think you might want to drive Route 66?
Well, buckle up because it’s going to be a seriously long road trip, spanning thousands of miles.
But this most iconic American road trip will not disappoint – you will have many places to stop and hidden gems to discover along the way, and you definitely won’t get bored (unless you hate driving obviously, in which case this is probably not the journey of a lifetime for you).
Published on Metro.co.uk on 24th October 2017
Some journeys are considered bucket list adventures, trip of a lifetime.
For some, it’s travelling around New Zealand in a camper van; for others, it’s spotting polar bears in the arctic circle.
Driving Route 66 from Chicago to Santa Monica has long been one of mine.
Published on Metro.co.uk on 20th October 2017
In case you needed reminding, there are only 60 odd days, or just over two months, left until Christmas.
All sorts of good things come with the festive season – parties, present and general merriment.
And then there are the pantomimes.
Published in The Mail on Sunday on 8th October 2017
Shuffling with the crowds along Kuan Zhai Alley, a network of lanes dating from the Qing dynasty, I breathe in deep.
A familiar blend of smoky chilli, toasted Sichuan peppercorns and crushed garlic invades my nostrils; it instantly feels like home.
This is my first visit to Chengdu in three years, and, like each of my previous visits, the city has taken on a new visage. But in a place like this, it doesn’t take long to get reacquainted.
Published on Metro.co.uk on 17th September 2017
I’m sitting in the corridor of a pub, giggling like a school girl with a woman dressed like a school girl.
‘Do you want to know a secret?’ She asks me.
I giggle some more, I don’t know why, and I reply ‘yes’.