Yeah, I finished this year’s Uni course. Hopefully, that’s it! If I pass this course, I get to put on a dress and go to a graduation ceremony. I don’t know which I’m more excited about. I get my result the week before Christmas, so I have a while to wait yet. Yeah, you’re right, it is a bit cruel to release results so close to Christmas. Perhaps the OU get a kick out of ruining festive celebrations.

I am still in the same job, yes, but not for long. In a couple of weeks, I’ll be starting my new job in a library. It feels like the right time to make a change. I’ve been working for the same company (although in several different departments) for ten years now. Enough’s enough I think. Pardon? Yeah, I’m looking forward to it. It’ll be the fresh start I need. Plus, the library is 2 minutes walk away from my house, so I don’t have to worry about cycling in the forthcoming snow and ice.

Talking of snow and ice, I’m going to Switzerland in January. Yes, again! It’s one of the highlights of my year. I really can’t wait to stomp about in that lovely, deep snow, to stare open-mouthed at the scenery and breath in that crisp, clean alpine air. Oh, and of course, I can’t wait to gorge myself on melted cheese and potato-based foods. After a day of freezing fun, there’s really is nothing better.

The script? Oh, thanks for remembering. Yeah, it’s slow progress, but progress nonetheless. I’m going to really knuckle down to it in November. The plan is still to complete the first draft before the end of the year. There’s a part of me that wonders whether that’s going to happen. As they say, you can’t rush art. It won’t be the end of the world if I don’t complete on time, but I’ll certainly try to reach my goal.

Yeah, you’re right, it has been nice to catch up. I’ll definitely try to keep in touch over the course of the autumn/winter season. Perhaps we could meet up for Christmas? Oh… well, alright. A simple ‘no’ would have sufficed.

Take care.

I time my weekend in Paris very deliberately to coincide with the last stage of the Tour de France. Me and Dennis, the Aussie fella I befriended, stationed ourselves near the big screen and watched as the riders set off.

Four hours later and it was all over. And so, it wa time for the laps of honour. First, local school children in their Maillot jaune’s…

…followed by the riders themselves.

It was good to see a solid British contingent amongst the thousands of fans.

After a tiring day on my feet, nothing for it but to kick back and watch on TV what I had just seen in person.

My last day in Paris and a day spent looking for street art installations. Apart from a few finds, my search was disappointingly fruitless.

The Jewish Quarter, the Marais, is a lovely area of Paris. Perfect for a quiet stroll in the drizzle.

And when the rain gets harder, head for Shakespeare and Company, the English language bookshop on the baks of the Seine.

There’s some bits in this edition that aren’t quite as self explanatory as I would like. So, take my hand and I’ll guide you through;

• 00.44: Riding the Paris Metro.
• 02:25: Paris Plage is an annual summertime event. Every July and August, roadways on the right bank of the Seine are blocked off and host various activities, including sandy beaches and palm trees.
• 04:53: A brass trio playing in a highly touristy area on the left bank.
• 13:50: A Ukulele player deep within Paris’ metro system.
• 14:22: Here, I refer to a problem with my mobile. My operator was having problems with roaming all over the world.
• 26:34: As Adam wraps the tour up, a stranger sits on the luggage rack of one of the bikes in the group and starts shouting, much to the surprise of the female rider.

And that’s not all there is from Paris. I recorded so much stuff, there’s a bonus second programme from Paris coming soon.

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Another year, another trip to Paris. *Sigh* Life is difficult sometimes. Allow me to take you on a short guided tour of my weekend, HTG Postcard style.

I spent the entire weekend just wandering aimlessly, dropping into interesting shops and food outlets. I spotted an ice cream parlour and couldn’t help myself.

With ice cream in-tow, a wandered the banks of the Seine towards Pont Neuf, where I intended on meeting Jason Bourne. Disappointedly, he didn’t turn up, the unsociable swine!

With feet starting to moan, I headed for Jardin du Luxembourg, my favourite park in Europe. It’s so tranquil and beautiful and so well used by people from all walks of life. I pulled up one of the hundreds of green metal chairs by the duck pond and just watched people enjoying the late evening sunshine.

Another park beckoned on Saturday morning, Jardin Atlantique, which is literally on the roof of Gare Montparnasse. It had an interesting atmosphere. Very green, very industrial. Its style suited its location.

And if that wasn’t enough, I visited another park of interest. The Promenade Plantée, also known as the Coulée verte is a 4.5 km-long narrow park running along the length of an old railway viaduct. I enjoyed strolling along and then peering over the edge to see what was happening below.

Time for lunch! Cleverly, I turned up in the Jewish Quarter on a Saturday when obviously, all the shops and food places were closed. All but one that is, that claimed to serve the best Falafel in the world. I can’t agree more! I stood on Rue des Rosiers in the drizzle, happily scoffing my way through my lunch surrounded by several others who were doing the same.

In the evening, I hopped on a bicycle and joined the gang at Fat Tire Bike Tours for a ride, a boat trip and another ice cream. Afterwards, some of us went to la Dernier Metro, a pub down the road for a few bevvies. Ironically, I missed the last metro and didn’t get back to my hotel until 3am. Good times!

Head over to Part Two for more photos from my weekend in Paris.

In this second edition of my trip notes from Spain, I muse some more on the Spanish and Spain itself, I have a splashing time at the Water Park and we visit the smart and sophisticated city of Alicante. Sun block and hats at the ready! Let’s go!

Monday

0057 CET
Spain is an odd place. Everyone stays up very late, even on a Sunday night. Right now, I’m ready to turn in, yet down on the street, people are having lively conversation, cars drive past with music blaring and the bar/restaurant is playing music which is audible up here. For all you can critise Britain and the British for, at least it’s built into almost the entire population that make unecessary noise past 2300 hours is not cool. Only drunks break this rule. Everyone else tiptoes about as if it’s ilegal. Here in Spain though, it’s perfectly acceptable to play music in a residential area at 1 in the morning or have a fireworks display at 4. Thankfully, the bins are being emptied as I write this so at least I won’t be woken up by that like I was at 3 last night. Still horribly sticky tonight. The crikets are playing their soothing music. Aqua park after a sleep. Goodnight.

1836
Man am I beat! And also, man, am I burnt! Spent the day at the local Water Park, Aquopolis, with slides, flumes, wave pool, etc. Good fun, but rather expensive. Bit cooler today, helped largely by a steady breeze. Everyone seemed to have fun, even Jill who conquered her fear of putting her head underwater by going on a couple of rides. Near the end of our time in the park, I had a nasty reaction to the chlorine in the water and couldn’t keep my eyes open. Right now, we’re all shattered. Oddly, just mentioning my eye problem here has brought the pain back slightly, suggesting it might be partly all in the mind. Later, Jack and I prepare dinner; a tomato, rice, chick peas, spinach and chicken concoction. Mmmm.

2316
Dinner was a success! Really tasty!

Tuesday

1046
On the bus to Alicante. Hopefully it’ll provide an opportunity to experience some real Espagna.

1204
Really enjoyable journey. Now to see some sights.

1759
Wow! Alicante is nice! I thought it was a typical seaside town, but it’s actually a smart and sophisticated city with attractive plazas and squares, interesting architecture and lots of of attractions. We wandered the streets, visited the Castillo de Santa Bárbara (a castle) on Mount Benacantil and generally chilled out as best we could in the heat. The castle is well worth a visit. It’s surprisingly large for a free attraction. You can walk up, or you can pay a couple of euros and take the lift. Glad we came! Very hot today. Some temperature displays were indicating it was 36 degrees, although I doubt their accuracy and think it was nearer 30. On the bus back now.

2050
Nothing better than cooling off in a pool after a days sightseeing in the sun. Now, where’s my dinner?

Wednesday

1015
Well, that’s it. That’s Spain done and dusted. What did I learn? Well, the Spanish don’t clear up after their dogs. Spanish streets smell of urine. It’s mostly paralysingly hot. Spain can be generally pretty ugly. The Spanish are a noisy lot who don’t seem to need much sleep. But above all, there’s nothing like good friends. I came to Spain thinking this trip would be dominated by me trying to decide whether I like Spain or not, but in actual fact, it was about spending time with the people I care about and having fun. And I did. While Spain might not be my ideal holiday destination, I learnt that that didn’t actually matter. So long as I was with friends, I could have been in Baghdad for all it mattered. Sometimes, it felt a bit like I was in Baghdad too. So, as I choke back the tears, I’m pootling along the coast road one last time, en route to the airport.

1050
I swear I just saw a flock of flamingos grazing on the salt lakes. They were so pink and flamingo-shaped, they had to be flamingos.

1316
Alicante Airport is one of the best airports I’ve been to. Really big and cool with plenty of space and plenty of shops and comfortable seats. Because it’s so big, it’s very easy to find a quiet spot to write trip notes. Flight starts boarding shortly.

1340
Just finished eating a massive Valencia orange. Oranges really aren’t a good fruit to eat in public unless you don’t mind people watching you dribbling juice over yourself and over the seats and floor. What a mess! It was a delicious orange though.

1621 GMT
Back in Britain after a mostly smooth flight. A huge jolt on the approach resulted in a few screams and messy pants though. Noticably chilly and fresh here. I’ve had to put a jumper on for the first time in days. Earlier, I did a really nice sign-off, so now I’ll do a nasty one in the interest of balance; that was Spain, now bog off!

If you have no idea what a podcast is, this video will tell you everything you need to know to get started.

If you do know what you’re doing, the address you need to subscribe to is below. Or, if you find it more convenient, subscribe via iTunes.

Cut & paste this into your podcast application:
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In part one of my trip notes from my first visit to Spain, I discover that some Spaniards like A-ha, that Spain is a bit like Iraq and that no one seems to need any sleep. Oh, and I also come last in a Go-Kart. Phoar, is it getting hot or is it just me?

Saturday

0910 GMT
“Sure, I’ll go to Spain with you guys. I wouldn’t go otherwise.” Will I live to regret saying this? I doubt it. It’s only for four nights and there’s plenty of fun things to do and interesting things to see. The only thing that may affect the outcome of this trip is other people. I’m going to the Costa Blanca region of Spain, a British holiday maker hotspot. Already in the terminal here at Luton Airport, I can see a group of women wearing pink cowboy hats who are almost certainly going to be on my flight. Unless of course, there’s a knees-up in Inverness or Krakow. Here’s hoping! Luckily, I’ve prepared for such an eventuality. I’ve loaded several films on my iPhone, so if there is any yeehahing and general Cowgirl behaviour on the flight, at least I can escape it by being on the run with Jason Bourne.

0910
The behatted ladies aren’t on my flight! They just stopped drinking for long enough to board their flight to Dublin.

1019
Still in the departure lounge. They appear to be playing birdsong over the public address system. Barely audible, but definately birdsong. Nice!

1410 CET
In the plane, on the approach to Alicante. Just finished watching Yes Man staring Jim Carrey. Pretty good film. It did a good job of making me forget I was 39,000ft up. 30 degrees in Alicante. Great! I’ve got two buses to catch on arrival before I’m anywhere near where my friends are staying. On a side note, when it came to eating my lunch, I found my bag of crisps had inflated to popping point. I had to make a small hole with my teeth before opening in the usual way to avoid potato snack catastophe.

1430
Well, that was awful! Worst turbulance ever! The plane rocked, shook, swayed and dropped for all of the last 15 minutes of the flight. I adopted my unique safety position of clinging desperately to the tray table in front of me with sweaty palms.

1606
I’m on the last leg of the journey, the coach to Torrevieja. It’s absolutely packed, the back of my chair won’t stay still and it’s scorching hot. Still, could be worse. I could be in Fallujah. Actually, am I in Fallujah? It’s very desert like and run-down around these parts. Oh, Jesus! A checkpoint! No… Wait… It’s traffic lights. Going south now along a coast road with the med on my left with a single sailing boat on it. The sea really does nothing for me. There’s nothing interesting about it. I suppose the bit where the water meets the shore can keep me entertained for a bit, but otherwise, give me a mountain any day! Oohh wow! There’s a mountain!

1625
Coach driver is playing take on me by A-ha. Loudly! Good journey, running right along the coast of the med.

1943
Just got back from the pool. Very nice after a long journey and a long walk to the apartment (which will do just fine for four nights). First impressions of Spain; there’s no grass! Everything is sandy, brown or creamy brown or brownish. Like how I imagine Iraq to be.

Sunday

0016
Still out and about. Had a good meal of stone baked pizza in a restaurant right on the coast. Good value too. While we were eating, two chaps sang and played guitars in typically Spanish fashion. After dinner, while the girls were looking through the night craft market, jack and I enjoyed an outdoor natural history photo exhibition. Some stinkers, but also some amazing shots. Well worth a look. Off to the dodgems and to find a bicycle hire shop (for tomorrow) before turning in. REALLY tired!

0756
Got back last night at 0200 after a long walk back to the apartment. It meant a slept for longer than I probably would have done (because of the mugginess). Still didn’t get much sleep though. The heat was opressive so I slept on the sofa in the lounge with the patio doors wide open. That provided a bit of air, but it also provided a night time soundtrack of people shouting and talking, cars going past, crickets (which are still going as I write this) and the bin lorry emptying the bins at 3 in the morning and a large fireworks display at 4. Still, didn’t bother me much. I slept between interruptions quite easily and the interruptions themselves were actually quite entertaining. Today, we’re going to try and hire some bikes and then cycle to a go-karting centre. Fun!

0826
Still sat on the balcony in the relatively cool air and peace. Here’s another Spain observation; I don’t know why anyone would want to come here. I haven’t seen anything that’s impressed me yet. Everythings ugly. Horribly designed buildings packed into as small a space as possible. Areas of waste land running along parts of the coast. Everything brown or cream. The sea is nothing more than an expanse of blue below another expanse of blue. What’s to see? The streets were absolutely packed last night. Sure, there was a fun fair and a night market and plenty of restaurants, but you get all that in other countries. Why come here? I really don’t get it. Don’t get me wrong, it’s not terrible by any stretch of the imagination. It’s just not the best place in the world.

1519
At the go-karting track. Just did my 8 minutes in a 270cc kart. We reckon they go down the straights at 40-50mph. Good fun, although a didn’t feel like I was in full control of the thing. The bike shop was closed, so we walked here. It was literally miles and the heat made it a bit of a chore. Despite this, it was still pretty enjoyable. Off now for my second run around the track.

1827
Got a taxi back. None of us could bare walking all the way back. Go-karting the second time was better. I had a more responsive kart and more guts. Back at the apartment now. Just had another relaxing and cooling swim in the pool. Sorting something out to eat shortly before watching The Little Mermaid on VHS. Party time!

Carry on reading my notes from the Costa Blanca in part two of this series.

If you have no idea what a podcast is, this video will tell you everything you need to know to get started.

If you do know what you’re doing, the address you need to subscribe to is below. Or, if you find it more convenient, subscribe via iTunes.

Cut & paste this into your podcast application:
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Introducing HTG 10.5

While I’ve got you attention, may I introduce HTG 10.5, the latest batch of modifications to this website. If you’re reading this in your feed reader, drop in and have a look. The major changes are:

• Wider pages to help make reading more comfortable.
• Larger, higher quality photos. The roll-out of larger photos in posts is on-going.
• More delicious white-space between elements.
• Contact form now up and running.
• Less-conspicuous adverts.
• Big red footer to finish things off nicely.

Hope you like both the changes to the site and the podcast.

Last weekend, my sister and I headed to Scotland for a wedding. Naturally, I jumped at the chance to go. Scotland has long been absent from my list of visited countries, so to tick it off was great. It would have been nicer to have spent some more time in the mountains rather than tearing about from one place to another, but in all, it was a very nice weekend. The photo above was taken from the edge of Loch Achray.

We’d travelled to Scotland via the unconventional method of an overnight train, namely, the Caledonian Sleeper. And sleep I did… for a couple of hours.

We arrived in Edinburgh just before 07h00 and were booted off the train shortly after that. We had an hour or so to kill before our next connection, so we wandered the eerily quiet streets. Edinburgh seemed very nice indeed.

Having continued our journey to Pitlochry, my sister and I rested from the chilly breeze in Victoria’s for a not-so-traditional Scottish lunch. The food was thoughtful and wholesome and the cafe itself was very pleasant inside.

The weather was very changable. Brilliant sunshine one minute, heavy rain the next. Even snow was forecast in some areas above 800ft. At least though you could see it coming. There’s something very ‘Norwegian Fjords’ about this photo.

Idyllic scenes of the Scottish Highlands were in abundance. Everything that you imagine to be there; greenery, conifers, craggy rocks and changeable skies full of varying colour were present.

This was the scene from the window of our accommodation, an old and grand mansion. The mountains in the background are the Trossachs with Ben A’an the highest of the peaks.

Will I be going back to Scotland? Certainly! I didn’t get my fill of the beautiful and dramatic scenery, nor did I manage to climb a mountain, such was the rushed nature of the weekend. Scotland is so near, I’d be mad not to explore it some more.

After a few minutes of research, I managed to find out that this was the second event in the Coop Beachtour, a series of seven Beach Volleyball meets. Courts are set up for around four days before being dismantled and moved on. Three days later, normality had returned.

The next event takes place 11-14 June in Locarno before heading on to Geneva, Zug, Winterthur and Bern. Visit the website for more information.