Drought
Drought - a poem by Anne Harrison. Published in the collection Songs of A Sad Summer, available on anne-harrison.com
The Piazza Limbo, Florence
The Piazza Limbo, near the Arno in Florence, marks where unbaptised babies were once buried. Charlemagne, apparently, laid the foundation stone of the church here in 786 AD
Signs Along the Way
Some of the signs I’ve across while travelling, from joyful to simply obtuse in any language!
Finding Klimt
In the fin de siècle, the works of Gustav Klimt were seen as part of a radical new movement by the conservative Viennese.
An Angel, A Florentine Painting, and My Novel.
Sometime around 1252, a monk fell asleep and an angel finished his painting. If only the angel would do the same for my novel.
A Small Green Door
Behind this little green door lay my home in Venice for a short while; just outside the door, this magical city waited to be explored.
Discovering Corfu
The colours, the history and the heat of this island in summer (not to mention the samples of kumquat liqueur) left me entranced as I wandered her streets, guided only by the bell tower of St Spyridon.
Gardens in Venice
Gardens are everywhere in Venice, but often hidden from the casual eye. Some photographs of a few I discovered.
It Began Here
Thoughts on how I fell in love with Florence and how the city changed my life - of course it began with a painting by Leonardo da Vinci!
A Cup of Memories - a Poem
A Cup of Memories - a poem by Anne Harrison, from her collection Songs of a Sad Summer. Available at her blog Musings of a Witch Doctor (anne-harrison.com)
A Bamboo Bridge to Nowhere
Standing beside a bamboo bridge somewhere in Vietnam speaking broken French to complete strangers - the unexpected delights of travel!
London in Four Photos
Four of my photos taken in London in a recent trip, showing the variety of unexpected things to see and do when travelling to this metropolis.
The Poisons of Agatha Christie
Agatha Christie used an impressive of poisons in her writing - more than any other mystery writer. Here are the details and mechanism of some of them, including how they work.
Prague and my morning Becherovka
An early morning walk in Prague, aided with a nip of Becherovka, the local drink whose recipe remains a closely guarded secret.