Doing the best that I can, at writing, running and living
North Cyprus covers, roughly, the top third of the country. And given that it is squat and wide, you would normally be travelling across it between the east and the west. The northern edge is covered by the Kyrenia Mountain range, often called the Five-Finger Mountains after one of the central peaks that has five… Continue reading North Cyprus – Part Two
We are in Cyprus, taking a package tour of the Turkish northern part, although we did dip our toes in to the Greek part yesterday by crossing the Green Line in Nicosia for an hour or so. I don’t remember having done a package holiday before. It’s the kind of holiday where you get to… Continue reading North Cyprus – Part One
I know I shouldn’t, what with the crumbs and all, but I’m eating a pain au chocolat on the bed with a glass of red to wash it down. It’s a moment of decadence that I can enjoy while we relax, before watching our second play in two nights. And luckily, it’s not my bed. … Continue reading RSC: Hamlet – Back in Stratford
My brother-in-law, Bhupendra, said he really didn’t want to do it. He wore a grimace on his face that seemed to be reliving a past trauma, and I began having second thoughts about pushing the subject. The concierge at the hotel, however, suggested that if we were in the 12-4pm sweet spot, we might just… Continue reading India: Days 11 and 12 – The Last Days
I spent yesterday morning trying to carve a path in the ice between the house and the pavement. We’ve had another flurry this morning, so I know what I’ll be doing today. A slight difference to the past two weeks but at least the activity warms me up now that I’m back home in the… Continue reading India: Day Ten – Karla/Bhaja Caves
The Dharavi Slum is a strange place. Some parts of it are made up of quite nice, if small, homes. Some parts do look a little squalid. Within the area itself, a few flats have been built, for the more well off ‘slum’ dwellers. There are jewellery shops as well as street hawkers. There are… Continue reading India: Day Nine – Dharavi Slum
Surprisingly despite getting to bed at around half one in the morning after my trip to the Taj, I was ready for breakfast at nine. Evidently my stomach demanded that I made recompense for having to leave too early the day before. In most English hotels, the posh ones included, you usually get the cooked… Continue reading India: Day Eight – New Year’s Eve
I stood up close to a section of the makrana marble and tried to block everything else out. The thousands of painstaking hours required to shape the green, red and black stones and lay them into the ivory-white with such perfect precision is breathtaking when you think about it. A love story it is said.… Continue reading India: Day Seven – The Taj Mahal
In preparing for this trip, I looked for the nearest Parkrun, naturally. But surprisingly there are none in India, which is a shame. For a place like Mumbai, the starting time would have to be 6am, but there are a lot of possible locations to hold it, and certainly a lot of runners. I didn’t… Continue reading India: Day Six – Bombay Running
Madhu sits on a mat on the ground and works away while she talks to us. Her eight-inch curved blade pushes down the thin bamboo strips as she weaves them through the vertical warp of her basket. She could probably do it with her eyes closed, she has made so many. Her silver jewellery flashes… Continue reading India: Days 4 and 5 – A Field Trip
