I'm just back from three weeks in China. Hazel's dad's been based in Shanghai for two years asking when we were going to be visiting, and I'd been looking at spending a week in Shanghai and Hong Kong with work, telling them about www.elexica.com and why Simmons & Simmons has it, so it was an opportunity too good to miss.

Holiday-wise, Hazel's dad, Zhang and the team at Rail Partners put together a fantastic itinerary involving lots of long train journeys and internal flights to the sights, and staying in 3-4 star hotels rather than in backpackerland (mainly because IWW got us great rates through the excellent elong online travel service). Yes, a sign that we're getting old(er) I guess.

Gap filling and photos to follow....

Planning
Weather: Shanghai
FCO travel advice: China
Wikipedia: ChinaChina
Lonely Planet: China

Itinerary and what we got up to

• Saturday 13 / Sunday 14 October (photos): Fly London Heathrow to Shanghai, Virgin Atlantic. Arrive Shanghai early morning, airport bus No 6 to Shemun Yi Lu (18 RMB). Power nap then afternoon walk around Shanghai to get our bearings - walking through People's Square and along Fuzhou to the Bund where we took a lot of photos of Pudong's ultramodern skyline and the Huangpu river, complete with boats carrying electronic advertising hoardings. Return walk took us along Nanjing Dong Lu, with all its shops and shoppers. Dinner at the Malaysian Chinese (Nonya) restaurant on Dagu Lu.


• Monday 15 October (photos): Coffee out at a Western cafe on Dagu Lu then rendezvous with Ivor to pick up updated itinerary and train tickets. Lunch then bus to Shanghai train station (2 RMB). Shopped for overnight supplies before relaxing in the soft sleeper lounge before boarding the Shanghai to Xi'an overnight train T138 (depart: 15:57, soft sleeper: 516 RMB)


• Tuesday 16 October (photos): Arrive Xi'an 07:58 (but late in). Put day packs into left luggage (we travel light) and catch public bus to Terracotta warriors (left luggage 3RMB per item; bus: 7 RMB; entry: 90 RMB, audio guides 40 RMB), return to train station and catch taxi to check in at Tianyu Gloria Plaza hotel (room: 498 RMB). Walk past endless electronics shops to Big Goose Pagoda (entry: [ ] RMB; pagoda climb: [ ] RMB), walk to Little Goose Pagoda (closed) to eat at Maogong Xiangcaiguan restaurant. Walk back to hotel (too much walking today ...don't underestimate the size of the Xi'an city blocks!). Overnight in Xi'an.


• Wednesday 17 October (photos): Taxi to Xi'an old town, explore the Muslim quarter, the Great Mosque (my favourite part of Xi'an), the Drum Tower, the Bell Tower, walk along the restored town walls from the South Gate to Heping Lu / Yanta Lu gate. Walk back to hotel. Taxi to airport (along empty 4 lane motorways). Xi'an to Guilin by air (China Eastern Airline MU2307 dep: 13:40 first class flight: 1826 RMB). Airport coach to central Guilin, taxi to Guilin Bravo Hotel (room per night: 658 RMB). Walk around the Rong Hu and Shan Hu lakes, featuring pagodas and pretty nighttime lighting of the lakes, trees, paths and bridges. Eat in at the Guilin Bravo hotel, overdosing on pak choi, greens and water chestnuts... I wouldn't agree with the Lonely Planet guidebook's assessment that there is "...good food available in the hotel's Chinese Japanese and Western restaurants". Overnight in Guilin.


• Thursday 18 October (photos): Li river cruise (The river scenery is lovely, but you lose something when you're following 50 or so other cruise boats in convoy and after a long wait at the departure quays which are themselves an hour or so minibus journey from Guilin.) and potter around Yangshuo where we indulged in coffee, lemon meringue pie and recent editions of the China Daily English language newspaper at the [ ] cafe. Highly recommended: close enough to the main drag to keep an eye on the action, but far enough away for there to be peace and quiet and mercifully few street hawkers. Return to Guilin by minibus, and a tortuous rush hour fellow passenger drop off. Eat out at the ?Charlotte? lakeside restaurant (much better than the Bravo Hotel's Chinese restaurant). Overnight in Guilin.


• Friday 19 October (photos): Potter around Guilin, walking around the lakes in search of a good coffee (success in the shape of a specialist coffee shop on Shanhu Bei Lu, where an Americano came with fried eggs and toast and a view of the morning dance exercise sessions on the pavement across the road) heading for Seven Star Park (Qixing Gongyuan) for a stoll up the limestone karst hills for views over Guilin, and around the Disney-esque kitsch tourist attractions at river level, plus the zoo where we watched several sessions of fish feeding frenzy. Taxi to Guilin airport (100RMB fixed fare) for flight to Shanghai Hongqiao airport courtesy of Shanghai Airlines (FM9332, dep: 20:25 arr: 22:35 first class ticket: 2146 RMB). IWW on hand to lead us through the airport onward connection conundrum - taxis avoid the airport from 10-11pm so that they benefit from the late night fare surcharge that comes into effect at 11pm. IWW elbowed us onto the Airport Express bus into the centre of Shanghai (4 RMB) and thence a short hop home in a taxi.


• Saturday 20 October (photos): Day trip with IWW, car and driver to the water towns over towards Tai Lake. First stop Tongli, second stop Zhouzhuang. Both were busy with Chinese visitors (although apparently we were there on a relatively quiet day) and it was rather like wandering around a Disney recreation than a living town. Delicious dinner at the Four Seasons hotel's Japanese restaurant taking advantage of the all you can eat sushi menu and all you can drink draft beer deal, and the cigar-friendly, jasmin tea (with complementary biscuits) serving lounge.


• Sunday 21 October (photos): Tour of Shanghai with IWW by bus, foot and taxi, featuring the Old City (mostly under demolition), Yuyuan Bazaar (another modern replica housing shops geared for tourists - of which there were loads) and Yu Gardens (similarly heaving), [the Chinese revolutionaries HQ], sandwich lunch at patisserie Paul in Xintiandi followed by a stroll through the lovely french-style Fuxing park (featuring open air performances of traditional dance from the north/west of China) and the French Concession. After a rest chez IWW we headed out again for the Bund and evening ferry ride to/from Pudong for night time photos of both sides of the river. Dinner at the mediterranean place on Dagu Lu. Hazel's downfall was to go for the lamb pitta....


• Monday 22 October (photos): Taxi to Shanghai Hongqiao airport for early morning flight to Kunming (dep: [ ] arr: [ ] economy fare: [ ] RMB ). Met at airport by one of Zhang Min's contacts with train tickets and a ride to the train station. Bags into left luggage then a leisurely potter around Kunming city, taking in various cafes, the Carrefour (they're in lots of the cities - a bit of a strange experience shopping in a familiar French hypermarche, in China), various small parks, the relocated City gates, Jinmabiji Square and surrounding alleys and the East and West pagodas. I don't think the LP does it justice. Overnight train to DaLi (N810 dep: 22:13 soft sleeper: [ ] RMB)


• Tuesday 23 October (photos): Arrive Dali train station 07:28, No. 8 public bus from the train station to the old city (30 mins or so). Stroll around Dali old town, and indulge in a traditional Tibetan breakfast on Huguo Lu before joining the ever descending crowds to admire the water channels, the old town streets, the "still real" market, the town walls and gates. The public bus service having disappeared (or at least proving impossible to track down) we caught the 13:45 minibus from Dali to Lijiang (45 RMB). Taxi to Lijiang South Gate (7 RMB) and navigate our way to the Lijiang Wangfu hotel (520 RMB per night). Explore on foot to get our bearings. Again, lots of domestic tourists thronging the streets. Dinner in a restaurant Qiyi Jie overlooking the Yu river (I think... or else it was a large water channel!).


• Wednesday 24 October (photos): Explore Lijiang - the traditional shop houses (albeit not as trad as they once were), the waterways, town square, Black Dragon Pool Park (the guide book gets is right, it does offer outrageously photogenic views of Yulong Xueshan - Jade Dragon Snow Mountain - and the park itself has a beautiful lake with bridges and pavilions and temples). Back in the old town, climbed up to Looking at the Past Pavillion, tried a glass of Yulong tea in a cafe with views out over the old town roofs. Dinner was sizzling vegetable and tofu hot pot at the Blue Papaya.


• Thursday 25 October (photos): Up for 06:30 breakfast and hotfoot through town to catch the No 7 bus to Jade Dragon Snow Mountain National Park (10 RMB; departs from the square opposite the statue of Chairman Mao. Park entry costs 80 RMB plus an additional 80 RMB payment for something I forget, but it seemed reasonable at the time, and there was a laminated sheet with an explanation in English of the various charges), stopping off en route to rent a full length down jacket for Hazel. At [ ] we joined the well organised system for the cable car ascent to the snow fields of Yulong Xueshan ([ ] RMB). we spent a good few hours climbing the stairways up to [ ] m and taking lots of photos, although the peaks and glaciers themselves remained determinedly shrouded in cloud. Return bus to Lijiang - with the same driver and lady conductor - via Baishui (with beautiful turquoise lakes and "moon" waterfall) and Baisha, which now calls itself Jade Peak Village - clearly with the tour group in mind. Second visit to Black Dragon Pool Park (for frustratingly cloud-free views of Yulong Xueshan, and "grannie" tracking). Indulged in coffee and cake at Don Papa's - a french patisserie despite the Italian sounding name (it also does pizza!) - before exploring the backstreets on the west side of Dong Dajie where life is a little bit less tourist-driven. Chilled out in Sifang Jie (Market Square) watching the tourist groups and the "get your photo taken with a Naxi horseman in traditional fur-plus-rifle outfit" operation). Dined out on momos at Lamu's House of Tibet - very chilled. Overnight in Lijiang.


• Friday 26 October (photos): Another very early morning breakfast to allow for (relatively) tourist free photos in the old town, including watching the grannies gathering in Sifang Jie and taking more photos of snow capped Yulong Xueshan peeking out over the rooftops. Indulged in mid-morning coffee at Don Papa's, thawing out on the suntrap roof terrace before more mooching around the backstreets and ultimately ending up at the modern market by the South Gate, which I loved. Taxi through the countryside to Lijiang airport (80 RMB; 30 mins) for Shanghai Airlines flight to Shanghai Hongqiao (FM9452; dep: 14:30 arr: 18:50; economy flight: 3158 RMB).


• Saturday 27 October (photos): Shanghai Museum with IWW then a DIY No 36 bus trip to Jade Bhudda Temple. Dinner out at The Naked Cow - 3 bottles of fine red wine, tasty beef for H and IWW, scrummy pizza for me - and a final jasmine tea and cigar session at the Four Seasons.


• Sunday 28 October (photos): Shanghai metro Longyang Road station, where Hazel headed off on the Maglev to Shanghai Pudong International Airport, leaving me to backtrack a little to explore the Pudong side of the river and to read Black Swan Green in a quiet riverside park before strolling back to base. Four Seasons for all you can east sushi dinner.... and the end of the holiday part of the trip.

Main impressions

• In London terms, Shanghai is Canary Wharf to Hong Kong The City. It's got glittering newly built office blocks on every street, and very little "old" building left - and, with the exception of the listed buildings of the French Quarter, most of what remains is being rapidly demolished to make way for modern housing and office blocks. The pace of change is phenomenal - the Time Out Guide to Shanghai quotes Sir Norman Foster as saying, "The process of urbanisation, which in Europe took 200 years will take just 20 years in China". In Shanghai, the change from low rise shophouses to skyscraper apartments, commercial centres and office blocks has taken place in less than 10 years.


• Most of the places we visited outside of Shanghai were mainstream tourist destinations. What I wasn't ready for, however, was the sheer scale of domestic Chinese tourism, and it is as clear an indicator as any of the country's prosperity. One consequence is that very few of the mainstream destinations manage to retain any sense of reality and historical sites are surrounded by (or in some cases, converted into) businesses targeting the tourist yuan. If you're looking for "ancient" China, you'll need to look beyond the places we went to. I'm still hankering after the remote deserts, mountains and towns of Xinjiang, and the snow festival of Haerbin.

Jo Angell (my sister in law) is studying an MA in Design for Textile Futures at Central Saint Martins School of Art and Design.

Very excitingly, her collection of wallpaper designs based around the bittern won first prize in a competition set by wallpaper company Graham & Brown 'To design a collection of innovative wallpapers with a focus on sustainability'. The bittern is a bird whose reedbed habitat is seriously under threat from rising sea levels.

Even more excitingly, her wallpaper featured in the Space section of Guardian Weekend magazine today! Sadly, not featured in Guardian Unlimited Weekend, the online version.... but you can see samples on Mac's Flickr stream, and on the Graham & Brown website.

No, not mine!

Phil and I have enjoyed a lovely long weekend celebrating Jess and Mike's wedding in Monza and Milan.

We took the relaxing and green route as far as getting there and back was concerned, travelling by train with the excellent assistance of Seat61.com for itinerary information and RailEurope for booking tickets.

Our journey out on Thursday comprised:
London Waterloo - Paris Gare du Nord (Eurostar, and by far the most expensive leg of the journey)
Paris Gare du Nord - Paris Gare de Lyon (RER)
Paris Gare de Lyon - Milano Centrale (TGV)

Very easily done in a day, with a leisurely sun worshipping lunch in Paris in between trains and minimal border/security controls. We were at our hotel in Milan - Hotel Sanpi, 10 minutes walk from the station, recommended but bring your own iron - by 9.30pm, and eating pizza 20 minutes after that.

On Friday we walked through the Giardini Pubblici into the centre of Milan, passing by La Scala and the Duomo, window shopping in Galeria Vittorio Emmanule II and mooching along the pedestrianised zone down towards San Bablia. After an al fresco late lunch on car free Via Dante we wandered up to Castello Sforzesco and spent the rest of the afternoon snoozing and reading in the gardens.

That evening, Mike hosted a dinner at L'Infinito, an excellent idea which allowed the wedding guests a chance to meet and get to know one another before the Big Day. A lovely evening, with superb food and wine and in great company.

Saturday brought more blue skies and the day of the wedding. As instructed, we assembled at 11.15 by the suitably wedding cake-esque fountains in front of the Castello from whence coaches took us to Monza, and Villa Mirabello in the Parco di Monza. After a simple civil ceremony, with the Mayor of Monza, resplendent in tricolore sash, presiding over the vows and paperwork we adjourned to the courtyard for champagne and canapes.

Back in Milan the celebrations continued in the Palazzo Visconti, just across the road from San Bablia, where we enjoyed more drinks and canapes before sitting down to an amazing meal in splendid surroundings. After non-traditional (for Italy) speeches, and the cutting of the gigantic wedding cake, guests chatted and mingled as Mike took up the clarinet and joined the three piece band for some early 20th century jazz (?) classics.

A lovely, lovely day.

Sunday saw our return to London by train - the exact reverse of our outbound route, and just as easy. Leaving the hotel at 8.30am, we were back in our flat for 8.30pm.

I reckon we'll be taking the train for long weekends in Europe again.

Our first full week at the Naze Marine Holiday Park, which allowed for:

* a lot of reading
* a couple of lovely days sitting on the sea front, making full use of the beach hut
* watching the whole of Freaks and Geeks (complete with a pre ER/blonde Linda Cardellini and a pre Dawson's Creek and ER Busy Philipps)
* an afternoon in Frinton, buying second hand books and eating delicious ice cream
* a tour of Curiosity Garden, peering into the windows of 2007 issue caravans
* lunch and dinner out with Phil's mum and dad

The replacement bus service made the journey there and back a bit more tortuous than the usual easy train ride, but once there we had a really relaxing week.

The caravan park wasn't as busy as I'd expected - perhaps people had decided not to risk a second cold and wet bank holiday (week). Any which way, it meant that it was nice and quiet - so no complaints from me, and we did have some lovely sunny days.

Tim and Helen's wedding on the SS Great Britain, today. A simple ceremony on the upper deck followed by a cruise around the docks in a smaller vessel before returning to board the SS Great Brit for fine dining, speeches and a spot of dancing.

A lovely, relaxed celebration, with lots and lots of smiles.

And the sun shone!

I've finally finished sorting through my photos from Iran, shrinking and uploading them to Flickr.

Mehran, Stan and Reza really were a winning team, and I would recommend a visit to Iran to anyone - it doesn't really matter where or when, and different people will be interested in different things. Once you've been and seen what an an amazing and beautiful country it is, and that the people you meet in the bazaars and at the sights are so welcoming and hospitable, rightly proud of their history and culture, I am sure you will want to return - I know that I do.

I've so many favourite memories - wandering the backstreets of Yazd, marvelling at everything in Esfahan, exploring the bazaars and mosques of Shiraz, hearing Persian poetry by moonlight at the mausoleum of Hafez, being presented by a beautiful flower by a young woman as we walked back to the hotel one evening, getting dressed up in traditional nomad wedding dress, carrying out conversations by way of the Lonely Planet Persian phrase book, being interviewed for local telly near Bazm and for an advertorial in the Abbasi Hotel, tucking into melon (various varieties), cheese and fresh bread with a breathtaking view of Mount Dena and minutes later chancing upon Qashqai nomads and their flocks on the annual migration to summer pastures - the young and the weak getting a ride tucked up snugly in carpets pockets on the back of a donkey, unexpected hail and film crews in ancient Hamadan, the Zoroastrian Towers of Silence (even when disrupted by the 21st century noise of young blokes on motorbikes), the kitsch souvenir shops, signage and stalagmites and stalactites at Ali Sadr Caves, staying in amazing converted/restored caravanserai in Yazd and Esfahan, relaxing in the Eram gardens, taking tea with the nomads near Bahvanat and trying my hand at churning butter in a goatskin, the smell of freshly baked bread and the production line four man bakeries in Kashan, Shiraz and Hamadan, the amazing switchback road climbing up and through the Alborz Mountains, through the green of the orchards and wheatfields, the grandeur of Persepolis and the peace and tranquility of the gardens of Fin, the stunning colours decorating the mosques and traditional houses, palaces and citadels - and flowers everywhere.

How: Wild Frontiers' Land of the Peacock Throne tour
When: April/May 2007
Weather: Tehran
Advice / Info: FCO, CIA Iran Country Profile, BBC Country profile: Iran Wikipedia: Iran, Lonely Planet: Iran, Pars Times: Iran

This afternoon I spent a lovely few hours planting out the two clematis that Jean sent via TJBR (together with a potted sage and fuschia) and the african (?) poppies Jo added to Jean's contribution to the BJH roof terrace. And now, four hours later, it is chucking it down, with thunder and lightning thrown in for free.

I hope my poor tender plants survive.... the current collection comprises:

- jasmines x 2
- sweet peas (Walton, on a similarly wet bank holiday weekend)
- tomato plant (from Jean and dad's April visit)
- two sweet pepper plants (from Jean and dad's April visit)
- bright red geranium - freshly liberated today into the great outdoors after a spring/summer of TLC
- clematis x 3 (1 from Hereford last year, 2 sent by Jean)
- sage (from Jean)
- african poppies (from Jo)
- fuschia (from Jean)

Tomato plant with rainstorm raindrops

At least the downpour will keep the snails and slugs at bay. I spent a satisfying quarter of an hour or so last night scooping up at least 10 the new leaf eaters (grrr) and corralling them in an empty flower pot. I was planning another recce/removal session this evening... let's see if it dries up.

Back from a relaxing few days in Seville with Catherine and Fiona. The plan had included rather more sunbathing by the pool of the lovely Hotel Al Andalus Palace, but the cloud and occasional rain put paid to that. We did manage a couple of afternoon and evenings on the sun loungers - on the first and last days of our five night stay.

Palm trees and clear blue sky, from the poolside, Seville

Instead we swopped sunbathing for shopping - or more accurately mooching around the shops in Seville city centre, and taking time out for food, drink and people watching.

As planned, we indulged our cultural sides too - exploring the Cathedral and Alcázar in Seville and making a day trip to Córdoba on the excellent AVE train system (aka TGV, Spanish style).

Córdoba old town was lovely - but must be so much better under blue skies and blazing sunshine. We didn't really have the chance to appreciate the benefits of the cool calm interior of the Mezquita mosque/cathedral or the roman bridge across the Guadalquivir, or the shady narrow alleyways. That didn't stop us from enjoying an ice cream or two though.

Definitely places to go back to - very moorish (ho ho). Even Ryanair there and back worked out OK.

To see Cat, and her new house in Saltaire. What with the planned day trip to Córdoba when Catherine, Fi and I are in sunny Seville, June looks like it will be UNESCO World Heritage Site-tastic.

After a late night train journey from "St Pancras International" and an unplanned 60 second dash to catch the last train out from Leeds to Saltaire we had a very relaxing weekend.

Saturday saw us walking in the Yorkshore Dales around Malham Cove where we got to see nesting peregrine falcons courtesy of the special RSPB monitoring station there. Late pub lunch was a winner too, and back at Cat's we had a girlie evening watching Dr Who and the final of Any Dream Will Do. Lee definitely got our vote!

On Sunday we walked down to Salts Mill for some shopping and lunch; then back on the train to London. See you soon Cat.

Why couldn't it have come last weekend??

Still, a sunny Saturday at the start of June has been lovely - lounging out on the balcony soaking up the sun, reading the Saturday papers and planting the Walton sweet peas (and rehousing snails - grrrr) in the morning ; in the afternoon buying books (and raffle tickets) at the St Giles Cripplegate summer fete, mooching around the first of this summer's monthly food festivals (aka markets) in Whitecross Street and returning with goodies galore.

After an early evening of getting up to date with my Reading entries and watching Dr Who, the day's about to be topped off with a dose of lightweight cinema in the form of Mean Girls, and some more Whitecross market treats. Yum.

... and a May Bank Holiday one to boot. Still, Saturday was dry so we got to stroll into town and returned with the revamped Walton and Frinton Gazette, the Guardian, essential groceries, a selection of traditional cakes from the baker's on the High Street and some Sweet Peas for BJH. Esconced in the caravan with all those goodies, we were able to snuggle under duvets and read and eat our way through the Sunday and Monday as the rain bucketed down, creating ornamental lakes all around the caravan park, including the Gyford caravan.

Back from a fantastic fortnight in Iran (more about that once I've downloaded and sorted through my 500+ photos).... Phil is spending the day in Bristol, but he left me a Welcome Home quest, consisting of fuschia kiss shaped post it notes hidden around the flat. So far I've found kisses:

- on the bathroom light switch
- in the washing basket
- on the washing machine door
- on the bedroom window frame
- on one of my bits of post that arrived while I was away
- under my pillow
- under the duvet on my side of the bed
....
- inside the bathroom cabinet
- in one of my slipper socks
- in my dressing gown pocket (he knows me so well...)
- on one of the bits of Barbican-related blurb that arrived whilst I was away
- inside my Wild Frontiers travel folder
- inside the tea caddy
- inside the biscuit tub
- on the top of the bookshelves in the lounge
- on the lounge rug (with the info that the most recent episode of "The Apprentice" is in the VCR)
....
- under the freeview remote control
- on the floor lamp light switch
....
- in my left hand washing up glove
- on the wood panel ceiling in the kitchen
- in the le creuset pan
- in the cutlery drawer
- in the breadmaker
....
- on the hot water cylinder
- at the back of the wardrobe
....
- on the green lentil jar
- in the dishwasher
....
- in my diary
....
- in our mailbox
- in my coat pocket
- in the back of the under sink cupboard door
....
- in the colander in the saucepan drawer
- tucked away in my knicker drawer
- in my beautiful blurb.com photobook Phil made for my birthday
....
- on the side of the red geranium plant pot
....
- on the lounge laptop keyboard
- in the drinks cabinet
....
- in the veggie cookbook
....
- in my photo printer

05 August 2007
- in the pocket of my short beige skirt (summer's finally shown up!!)

12 August 2007
- under my painted papier mache tea tray from Kerala

Life's been hectic recently as dad and Jean came to stay Saturday to Wednesday. Jean's daughter, Kate, had her West End stage debut in Whipping It Up on Monday, which we went to, and we went out for an early birthday dinner for me on Tuesday. On Saturday evening we had Phil's mum and dad over for a parentals dinner and on Sunday Tom, Jo, Barney and Rosa came round for afternoon tea, birthday cake and banana muffins and a mooch in the Barbican's busy, sunny private gardens. Exhausting!

So I spent yesterday - my birthday - having a lazy day (as much as work allowed) to recover. And enjoying my fantastic present from Phil.

I got my visa back yesterday. Applied for it through Travcour:

Saturday 24 March: The final pieces of paperwork for my Iranian visa application arrived (including details of who else is booked on the Wild Frontiers Land of the Peacock Throne trip)
Monday 26 March: Checked with Wild Frontiers that it was still worth applying for an Iranian visa. Their answer was "Yes, asap."
Tuesday 27 March: Posted forms, passport etc to Travcour. 1st class post, recorded delivery
Wednesday 28 March: Travcour emailed confirming receipt
Monday 02 April: Travcour emailed confirming they had got a visa and were posting everything back to me. 1st class post, recorded delivery
Tuesday 03 April: Passport and visa arrived.

I was rather surprised given the current state of affairs, but it suggests a quick turn around time by Travcour/the embassy. Then again, as Simon remarked, "They're probably not getting many applications for tourist visas at the moment."

I've been keeping an eye on the FCO travel advice, and as their Iran page says, "The overall level of the advice has not changed." Long may it continue.

Just spotted this on the BBC News website:
"Fifteen British Navy personnel have been captured at gunpoint by Iranian forces, the Ministry of Defence says."

That does not bode well for my trip to Iran in just over a month's time....

.... courtesy of Haddock. I can claim no credit. Joke 4 used to be my favourite, but 3 and 5 are new challengers for the title.....

Q1 What do you call a three legged, one eyed donkey playing old fashioned jazz piano?
Q2 What's a specimen?
Q3 What do you call 2 mexican fire fights?
Q4 What do you call a French man in Sandals?
Q5 What do mexican carpet fitters say??
Q6 Why does Edward Woodwood have so many D's in his name?

=============== Continue reading for the answers ...======================

I've enjoyed greatly Tim Mackintosh-Smith's TV versions of his two books, Travels with a Tangerine: A Journey in the Footnotes of Ibn Battutah and (the as yet unread) Hall of a Thousand Columns: Hindustan to Malabar with Ibn Battutah that have been shown on BBC Four over the past three weeks. It was a bit strange knowing that in the TV programmes Tim Mackintosh-Smith is recreating his original travels after a space of a fair few years, but his enthusiasm and expertise translate beautifully to the small screen, and the maps and footage really added to my appreciation of how far Ibn Battuta[h] (and Tim M-S) travelled.

Sadly I can't say the same for the BBC Four website/listings - despite searching and navigating and knowing when the three programmes were screened, I had to resort to Google to find the details on Travels with a Tangerine, and could only track down episode 3: Trade Winds.

An excellent dim sum lunch at the New Loon Fung followed by interesting conversation at the Nanobyte bar. Now very full of salt and chilli beancurd and crispy noodles. Beautiful Chinese New Year lanterns festooning Gerrard Street.

Came home and updated my Flickr buddy photo.

Phil tagged me to find out five things most people don't know about me. It feels a bit like one of those round robin emails I always delete, but this online verson seems to be receiving positive responses from a surprising range of people. Look - in terms of Five things tags, I'm 2 degrees of separation from Tim O'Reilly!

So, here are my five things:

1. I'm a physical freak
I have an area on my forehead where my skin is fused to my skull. You can see it if I raise my eyebrows. My memory is that it was caused at my nan's when either my nan or my mum opened the dining room door as I was crawling towards it. But seeing as it happened when I was a baby, I'm reliant on my dad to post a comment to set the historical record straight if required. And yes, I am a bit more vain than most people who know me would expect ....

2. Computers bored me stupid as a teen
My mum got the family a BBC B when I was about 11 o 12, and taught herself enough Basic to build programs for the French classes she taught at Arden School. Tom soon learned how to program the PCs in WHSmiths to fill the screen with "Tom is ace" and variants before disappearing off into the world of Elite. I on the other hand couldn't see the point in learning how to use a keyboard (Typing wasn't a class O-level students were encouraged to do), let alone how to code. More fool me. I still haven't got into gaming mind you.

3. I've (probably) broken the law
I had my first driving lesson on Ewyas Harold Common in my mum's MGB GT age 15. Still love driving, still love Herefordshire, still love MGs.....

4. I've been a league-level canoe polo player
I was a member of the St Andrews University canoe polo team and played in the Scottish league. I wasn't very good, but I made up the numbers. I could just about manage an eskimo roll if required. Actually, more often than not it was a case of releasing my spraydeck and doing an emergency exit.

5. I'm scared of flying
Yes, quite an admission from someone who loves to travel far and wide. During the world tour with Hazel I got most used to it, but nowadays the excitement of every big trip carries with it the flying fear factor. I find that browsing the duty free shops plus the routine queuing for overpriced coffee and cake helps keep the adrenalin under control in the departure lounge, and then a a good book carries me through to the start of the in flight entertainment and through those odd occasions when the in flight movies let you down and the PC games require a level of comprehension and coordination beyond me. The return flight fright is generally offset by having new trip friends to talk to, but I always keep a good book in reserve just in case. In fact, making sure I have enough to read on any trip is A Must. I've learned the hard way to make it frivolous fiction or spritely autobiography rather than a weighty tome of an "I *ought* to read this" nature.

Feel free to add in a comment with any other gems you feel fellow readers should know about me.

Today has ended up being a day spent on the Mac.

First off, I uploaded photos of our somewhat solitary but very relaxed and enjoyable Christmas Day (dinner and presents) to Flickr and activated my Pro Account renewal gift token from Phil. Next I set about geotagging my Flickr photos as far as possible. London, Walton and Herefordshire proved relatively straightforward, but lack of decent map data for Pakistan's North West Frontier Province and Northern Areas proved an insurmountable barrier to geotagging my Hindu Kush Adventure photos, and I suspect that all of my non-Yalta Crimea pics are far from accurately located..... Indeed I do have to gripe about the map functionality generally: why does the map move so far/fast when you click the left/right/up/down arrows? How do you stop the map moving when you spot the location you need? Why let you search for a location and then not pinpoint its coordinates when you click through to the map - eg Foros, Crimea, Ukraine?

After a break for lunch, I thought I might as well join the merry Twitter throng. Having spent the Christmas holiday in the constant company of Phil's buzzing treo - aka altering Phil and his nearest and dearest to the arrival of a new Twitter from one of his friends - it was an obvious move. Quite how I'll fit it into my work day, I can't imagine. In fact, I suspect that it will turn out somewhat similar to my Haddock-ing, catching up at the end of the day.

Last but not least, I tweaked the SparklyTrainers templates, to include four random Flickr pics on the homepage, to update the link to Sparkly Trainers >> Photos so that I now goes to Flickr rather than Fotopic and to change the colour scheme for Sparkly Trainers >> Reading (and added entries for my Christmas reading so far).

Yes, it's the week before Christmas which means the annual festive night out with Rachel and the now traditional karaoke-fest at Zyrus on Clerkenwell Road. Emo kids eat your hearts out, this is where 80's power ballads and rock anthems rule. Brilliant. Glad I only had to manage a half day today mind you....

I finally made the change from black&purple to white&red, courtesy Phil and his ace CSS skillz.

Still wondering if perhaps I shouldn't have gone for a sunshine shade of orange instead of the red, to match with the background colour in Phil's photo of me......

A lovely weekend - after a very successful DIY pizza lunch with TJBR we all headed over to the Barbican to watch the matinee performance of Dick Whittington, which was good although I wasn't too sure how much the Dame enjoyed herself. Back to base for tea and cake.

On Sunday, Phil's mum and dad came round for a traditional Sunday roast - a nice excuse for a roast chicken with all the trimmings. Paul joined us as he was going to see In the Face of History - European Photographers in the 20th Century. Between the five of us (four meat-eaters) we managed to get through a couple of platefuls each and still had some remains for leftovers. A lovely day.

We booked with Lastminute, we travelled on Eurostar, navigated via Mappy and stayed at the Hotel du plat d' etain - I must remember that if you book a "cheap" citybreak you are guaranteed to be given the smallest, shabbiest room available.... our room was OK, but definitely on the compact side (as in I think that the bed was a 3/4 size...) which the angular 80s decor did little to disguise.

Still, we spent a happy Saturday mooching around the foodie street markets around Les Halles, along the Seine and back along the Rue du Bac. On Sunday we walked up to the Sacre Coeur and down to the Tuillerie Gardens, but I'm ashamed to say that stressing out about finding veggie food resulted in grumpiness on Saturday night and Sunday lunchtime/afternoon .... sorry Phil!

My photos and Phil's on flickr.

Yes, I've booked onto Wild Frontiers' recce tour to Iran in April/May next year.

I decided that:
(1) it isn't going to get any safer to go there any time soon, and the chances are it might get even more difficult to visit - so better to go sooner rather than later/never;
(2) I needed something to look forward to over the winter, and to help out on the "work-to-live" ethos; and
(3) If I didn't book asap the trip might get booked up, or I'd become too stingey to shell out.... either way I'd be missing out on (what I anticipate will be) an excellent trip to a destination that has long been on my travel wishlist.

My Amazon Wishlist has been updated accordingly.... for those of you wondering what to buy me for Christmas (hint).

Outline itinery is:
Day 1: London to Tehran
Day 2: Tehran
Day 3: Tehran to Hamadan/Hamedan
Day 4: Hamadan/Hamedan
Day 5: Hamadan/Hamedan to Kashan
Day 6: Kashan to Yazd
Day 7: Yazd to Bam
Day 8: Bam to Persepolis
Day 9: Persepolis to Shiraz
Day 10: Shiraz to Yasuj
Day 11: Yasuj to Isfahan / Esfahan
Day 12: Isfahan / Esfahan
Day 13: Isfahan / Esfahan to Tehran
Day 14: Tehran to Bandar-e-Anzali
Day 15: Bandar-e-Anzali to Tehran
Day 16: Tehran to London

Maps of Iran:
Iranian Cultural & Information Center - "Sensitive" map
Perry-Castañeda Library Map Collection - Iran Maps

Taken by Rob and now available on his Rob's Journeys Flickr pages. So we get to enjoy his Skardu adventures (vicariously at least).

I quite often meet friends for a drink near London Bridge, and we always have a conversation along the lines of "where shall we meet?", "mmm, don't really know anywhere round there", "OK, how about [insert randomly selected venue from BeerInTheEvening here]".

So I sought recommendations from friends for pubs near London Bridge/Monument, "ones that serve good beer and aren't always rammed to the gills". Here are the results:
=====
The Rose
The Royal Oak
Market Porter
The Southwark Tavern
The Wheatsheaf
The Boot and Flogger
The George Inn
The St Christopher Inn

... and available in my imaginatively named "Hindu Kush Adventure" set on Flickr.

Day 1 (28 September 2006): Depart London on overnight BA flight to Islamabad
Day 2 (29 September 2006): Arrive Islamabad, drive to Peshawar
Day 3 (30 September 2006): Peshawar
Day 4 (01 October 2006): Khyber Steam Train up the Khyber Pass
Day 5 (02 October 2006): Drive over the Malakand Pass to Dir
Day 6 (03 October 2006): Drive over the Lowari Pass to Ayun
Day 7 (04 October 2006): Ayun town tour and into to the Rumbur Valley, staying with the Kalash at Balanguru
Day 8 (05 October 2006): Balanguru and hike to the Nuristani village of Shakanande
Day 9 (06 October 2006): Balanguru and hike to Pelaga, the Wild Frontiers hideaway
Day 10 (07 October 2006): Balanguru to Chitral town - sightseeing and shopping!
Day 11 (08 October 2006): Chitral town to Hindu Kush Heights hotel
Day 12 (09 October 2006): To Mastuj, via Buni Zom, for dinner with Colonel Khushwalalt Ul Mulk
Day 13 (10 October 2006): Over the Shandur Pass to Phander
Day 14 (11 October 2006): Phander to Gilgit, then on to Karimabad along the Karakoram Highway
Day 15 (12 October 2006): Karimabad (shopping!) and the Eagle's Nest Hotel
Day 16 (13 October 2006): Karimabad to Chilas, back along the Karakoram Highway
Day 17 (14 October 2006): Chilas to Islamabad
Day 18 (15 October 2006): Early morning flight to UK

Note: those links will take you to the photos for each day - but they display in reverse order. If you go to my "Hindu Kush Adventure set, you'll see my photos in the correct order.

At last. Lots of compliments from work, and a bunch of new users have registered on the revamped www.elexica.com.

Home from my 18 days on the Hindu Kush Adventure - shared plenty of both in Pakistan's North West Frontier Province and Northern Areas with a bunch of crazy ladies (Ali, Amanda, Ann, Annie, Joan, Thelma, Trisha) , and honourary 'girl' Rob, with Benedict, Stan and Zafar guiding the way.

It's a really beautiful part of the world, with a fascinating history and cultures - from Alexander the Great to the Great Game right up to the Taliban and the present day. The region's emerging tourist industry was virtually wiped out by 9/11 - so the sight of 11 westerners was guaranteed to generate excitement, together with lots of smiles and hellos. Plenty of hiking high up into the mountains and shopping in the bazaars kept everyone happy, as did Kalash home brew, Mastuj apple brandy, Karimabad's Chinese beer and red wine and pizza in Islamabad. And who said Pakistan was a dry country?!!

I only succumbed to vertigo once - looking out from Palaga, aka Jonny Bealby's hut perched on a mountain top high up above the Rumbur Valley where we were spending the night - even lying down on my charpoy the world continued to spin, but not for long. With my lack of head for heights I wasn't too keen on some of the roads either - particularly the KKH, which is chipped into mountainsides with sheer drops down to the Gilgit and Indus rivers a long way below. But it was worth it - I have returned with a rucksack of very dusty clothes, a collection of Chitrali hats, and lots of photos - edited highlights accumulating on Flickr.

Anno and Anna's wedding was today, and it was a lovely occasion. Afternoon tea in the grounds of Lewes Castle was a delight, and the speeches both funny and heartfelt.

We're at the stage where were eating tomatoes for every meal..... Highlights have been the tomato tarte (puff pasty + pesto + halved cherry toms + Parmesan slivers) and spicey chickpeas and tomatoes. They're lovely au natural too.

A lovely party to celebrate Jean's 60th birthday at Forty Acres with lots of family and friends old and new, even if it turned out a little wet and windy after the past x weeks of hot, dry weather. The marquee came into its own and Food From Here laid on a mouth watering menu, all sourced from the Golden Valley - right down to the Three Choirs wine. Delicious, and a few glasses helped oil the joints of those who could still co-ordinate their limbs for the ceilidh. and Jean's birthday cakes were fabulous, especially the photo transfers!

A decidely autumnal (aka dark, wet and windy) drive home, courtesy of Tom and Jo, who'd left Barney and Rosa in the tender care of Grandad and Aunty Jean for the rest of the week. We took the opportunity to discuss sports cars.... Mazda MX 5 vs Smart Roadster.

Persuaded by Rachel, I spent the weekend on a nostalgia-fest in Solihull, with the first ever Tudor Grange School reunion - to mark the school's first 50 years - on Satuday evening.

Carl drove us up to Rachel's mum's on Friday and on Saturday we called in at Rachel's dad's and then headed over to Jane and Dan's to see (meet in my case!) Merlin, and for an impromptu lunch.

Went to the fair at the school in the afternoon, but it was more for current students and parents so we didn't stay long and headed off into Solihull for some shopping instead.

Returned to TG in the evening all dressed up for the party, and met Fiona and Jenny in the queue, but there wasn't really anyone else we recognised, or in our age range for that matter. Still, a few glasses of fizz later we were being taken on a tour of the school by one of the current students - a lovely girl about to go into the 5th year - who coped marvellously with our nostagia fest, and we did bump into some more people from our era: Kirsty Ogden and Claire Whitely (as were), and Neil Karet and (I think) Spencer Griffin. I'd expected more staff to be there.

The highlight was the Memorabilia Room where we found a collection of school registers, report and magazines from various years, reviving such memories as Tom's woodwork prize, my magazine illustrations, Jane's articles on pets...

Rachel's mum collected us (and our helium balloons) c 11.30pm - by that stage it did feel just like being back at school, having parents doing the taxi service....

Jean and Robert's Golden Wedding party on the Thames yesterday + lunchtime BBQ at Tom and Jo's plus fun fair today = lovely family weekend.

After a delicious BBQ lunch at Tom and Jo's, most of us headed round to Priory Park and spent a happy hour or so at the Steam Fair. I especially enjoyed the dodgems with Barney at the wheel - not forgetting the risque illistrations on the slot machines and Jo and Rosa whirling past on the flying chairs.

Mind you, not sure how much dad appreciated having Geoff the Bear named after him, on the basis that Geoff the Bear looked a little grumpy.....

A lovely afternoon cruising along the Thames from Hampton Court pier to Teddington Lock and a little beyond, watching people messing about on the river in gorgeous sunshine. There was just enough of a breeze to keep us cool as the Western Belle motored along, complete with jazz band, Pimms and afternoon tea.

Organised by Nick, Jo and James, the guest list of people celebrating Robert and Jean's Golden Wedding Anniversary ranged from Jean's bridesmaids to assorted grandchildren and inlaws (resulting in the revelationary realisation that technically I'm Jo's sister-in-law!!). Barney, Rosa and I spent most of the afternoon on desk, posing with our complimentary fans, and pondering The Language of Fans.

Plus it means that Dad and Jean have come to stay for the weekend. Lovely.

Several clusters on the roof terrace ones, and some fairly well developed ones on the less flourishing fire escape balcony plants. Woo hoo!

On the rocket front, we sampled out first pickings on Saturday, and very pleasantly peppery they were too.

Garlic needs a little longer - my test bulb-lift was about the size of a large spring onion, with cloves not wholly developed. Not that it will be allowed to go to waste.....

We had an amazing sunset last night - reds, pinks, mauves, purples vibrant enough to prompt us to pause the video (My So-Called Life for 1994 US teenage angst nostalgi