An old Mini to Kabul, a new one to Istanbul
24 May 2013 | Living
▲ 1972 – our Mini in Eastern Turkey with Mt Ararat in the background, that’s where Noah landed the Ark
Back in 1972 Maureen and I drove a Mini we’d bought in London for £65 to Kabul in Afghanistan, sold it for a small profit and carried on all the way to Sydney...
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Ruins of the Future
21 May 2013 | Culture
The other night I had a look around the unusual Sir John Soane’s Museum in London. Sir John (1753-1837) was a pioneering architect in his era who was responsible for the Bank of England building, although it’s subsequently been chopped around so much that little of h...
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Stand or Walk?
19 May 2013 | Culture
In New York recently I was musing how nobody seemed to walk on escalators and whether it was a cultural thing if you stand or walk? I’m an impatient person and also I reckon I could always do with some more exercise, so I will almost always walk. If there’s the option...
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Across Asia on the Cheap
2 May 2013 | Media
It’s coming up for its 40th birthday in October this year, the very first Lonely Planet guidebook resulted from the trip Maureen and I made across Asia in 1972. We drove an old Minivan from London to Afghanistan, sold it in Kabul and continued by whatever form of ...
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Up the Arcelor Mittal Orbit & in an Anish Kapoor Mirror
20 April 2013 | Culture
The Arcelor Mittal Orbit is the weirdly twisting tower constructed for the 2012 Olympics in London. The whole Olympic Park is in the process of being redeveloped so hardly any of it is currently open to the public. You can visit the tower and zip up to the 80 metr...
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