Category: travel

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Somerset in the sixties

Lovely BFI film about various places in Somerset including Weston-super-Mare.

Obviously. bit dated in places, but it does show off many of the attractions of the seaside resort which now no longer exist.

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First man on the moon

The foyer and reception of the ibis Styles Delft City Centre hotel is an eclectic  mix of sculptures, pictures, murals, and a Jurassic Park  pinball machine.

My favourite part though was the mural with human achievements, specifically the first man on the moon in 1969. Did they illustrate it with the lunar module? No they did not. What about the huge Saturn V rocket that got them there? No, that wasn’t used. What they did use was a picture of the rocket that Tintin used to get to the moon!

More photographs from the hotel.

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Then and Now’ish – Citroën

Well not quite a then and now.

The last time I was in the Netherlands was in October 2023 when I visited Amsterdam for a conference. Back then I took a photograph of a lovely Citroën DS23 Pallas from the early 1970s.

Citroën DS23 Pallas

I made a return visit to the Netherlands for a conference in September 2025 and walking around the canals of Amsterdam and saw another Citroën. This was a Citroën Dyane, probably either from the late 1970s or early 1980s. 

Citroën Dyane

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Why no helmets?

parked cycles in a cycle rack

It would appear that everyone in the Netherlands has a bicycle and cycles everywhere…

On a recent visit to the Netherlands I had first-hand experience of Dutch cycling. There are numerous cycle paths across the country and in Delft where I was staying there were loads.

One thing that really stood out for me was the complete lack of cyclists using helmets.  Alongside that was the huge number of cyclists as well, especially at peak hours, at some points it felt like the cycle path was part of the route of the Tour de France.

Now I am not saying they should wear helmets, mandate it, but the thought of crashing at 20kph would make me wear a helmet if I was cycling in the Netherlands.

So, why don’t they wear helmets?  Searching online, the key reason appears to be cultural.  This article from The Guardian explores the Dutch thinking.

When 42-year-old Myrthe Boss gets on her bike to go shopping in the Dutch town of Ede, she pops on a helmet. This act, considered essential in many countries, marks Boss out as something of a radical in the Netherlands, where helmet-wearing is rare.

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Suomenlinna #50places2025

Last week I was in Helsinki for work, attending a workshop. I was there for a couple of days, but did have some time to walk around and explore Helsinki. 

One place I saw on the map was the fortress island of Suomenlinna, which was just a short ferry ride away. Having arrived on the ferry, I walked around the island.

It was a beautiful island that was enhanced by the ice and snow. Across the islands were some beautiful buildings, sometimes I felt I was walking through a movie set. It was cold, around -6℃, but it was a crisp coldness and I was well wrapped up, so didn’t feel that chilly. I loved walking through the snow enjoyed the ice and bleakness of the island. I can imagine that in the heat of the summer it’s a very different place.

Built by Sweden in 1748 to deter Russian expansion, the Suomenlinna fortress was surrendered to Russia in 1808 during the Finnish War. This loss facilitated the Russian occupation of Finland in 1809. Following Finland’s declaration of independence in 1917, Russian forces withdrew. Finland’s Defence Department managed Suomenlinna until 1973, when control was largely transferred to civilian authorities. Suomenlinna is now one of the most popular tourist attractions in Helsinki.

I stopped for a coffee before heading back to Helsinki to catch my flight home.

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Helsinki #50places2025

Last week I was in Helsinki for work, attending a workshop. I was there for a couple of days, but did have some time to walk around and explore Helsinki.

I have been to Finland before, I was there for a conference in July 2006, nearly twenty years ago. Back then I was presenting at the EU e-Learning Conference in Espoo. It was a quick trip in 2006, flying out on Monday and then back home on the Wednesday. I flew from Bristol Airport and then there was a bit of a mad rush at Schiphol where I had to change to a flight to Helsinki. Schiphol is one huge airport…

Having arrived at Helsinki, I needed to get to Espoo and travelled by shared taxi to the hotel. I spent part of the evening walking around the area, before ending up in the hotel restaurant. It was lovely and sunny, and as being so far north, the sun never really set.

I spent the Tuesday at the conference. I had some time the following day before my flight to have a quick look around Helsinki. I caught a bus to the centre and back.

This time I flew direct to Helsinki from Heathrow. I arrived late afternoon, this time I took a train from the airport to the centre. I then walked to my hotel, so after checking in I did explore the area around the hotel. The following morning, I was up early so I went for a walk around the city centre. I then headed off to Espoo for my workshop, using the Metro to get there. The workshop was over two days.

I had an evening flight the following day. I woke up to 4cm of snow,  so after working at the hotel, after checking out I took a walk down to the harbour to catch a ferry to Suomenlinna.

Helsinki is an amazing city, and there is some incredible architecture and buildings. I was impressed with the public transport, there were trains, buses, trams, a metro, and even a ferry. I used the HSL app extensively for tickets.

It was nice to return to Helsinki and having a little more time to see something of the place, whereas back in 2006 it was very rushed.