It was Samuel Johnson I believe who wrote, ‘When a man is tired of London he is tired of life’. That’s how I felt on arrival and my first full day here on Sunday – tired and wondering why on earth I’d swapped Mauritius for drab London – dirty, smelly and very expensive.
But it’s not [...]
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September, 2006 archive
Call me, almost but not quite, Dr Johnson
Twenty-four hours in Mauritius
As always, the sight of those jagged mountains made me all teary as the plane came in to land. I arrived yesterday on time, despite a late departure, at 4.30pm in Mauritius. Faisal’s silhouette (that distinctive Muslim beard) was a welcome site at the airport as I searched around for someone I recognised. It was [...]
Poste Restante
Poste Restante refers to ‘a department in a post office where letters remain until they are called for’ and is what is normally written on those letters. It comes from the French: poste, mail + restante, feminine present participle of rester, to remain.
It is easy now to stay in touch with family and friends back [...]
Which history? Restoration or vandalism?
The oldest boat still extant in Australia recently returned to its original home, Tasmania. It had been languishing in a boatyard in New South Wales. A Tasmanian maritime expert confirmed the boat as the Admiral, built of huon pine in 1865 and originally used to ferry dignitaries across the Derwent River in Hobart. The boat [...]