“Let me make one thing clear up front: if you’re looking for a calming retreat in the city centre, look away now. No one, dear reader, comes to Berns to sleep.”

I occasionally wonder whether Shakespeare was the first writer to have enjoyed the services of a PR. At the time, that is; the subsequent foundation of the RSC, amidst much related Bardolatry, has seen to it that Big Bill remains top literary dog in the English language…

“When arriving at a five star resort, it is best to avoid doing so in a tuk-tuk…” Alwynne Gwillt arrives at the final stop of her India tour in traditional style…

“A small, quiet road and a smattering of rocks are all that separate you from the wild, southern Atlantic Ocean.” Paul Bignell hides away at the Schulphoek Seafront Guest House.

Excess. It’s on the mind of any British traveller to New York. In a space smaller than Zone 1, the 1.6 million inhabitants of Manhattan carve out a living based on excess…

“We began our experience with Vaamika by way of a SunRay speedboat – a sexy, cream and tan leather beast that motored us out to the island from the mainland just as the sun was waning…”

“We had been travelling on India’s train network for nearly 20 hours, finally landing at New Jalpaiguri – the last major train station before the ascent into the West Bengal mountains…”