Category Archives: Travel Thailand is a treasure-trove of tropical plant life and ancient religious ruins. I like it best when the two coincide, as they do in Kamphaeng Phet: crumbling temples located on spacious well-tended sites, shaded by trees. Kamphaeng Phet Historical Park is part of the awkwardly-named UNESCO World Heritage Site: “Historic Town of Sukhothai and Associated Historic […]  Is there a country in the Western world that doesn’t take to the wearing of the green on St Paddy’s Day (March 17th)? Thanks to the abundant numbers of people of Irish origin living outside Ireland, shamrocks and Kelly green are known far afield. But, in Ireland, it is not only the shamrock which is […] An Old Irish Blessing May the road rise up to meet you. May the wind always be at your back. May the sun shine warm upon your face, and rains fall soft upon your fields. And until we meet again, May God hold you in the palm of His hand. If you walk Ireland’s Dingle […]  Sukhothai, the UNESCO listed collection of Thai ruins that was, in the 13th and 14th centuries, the capital of the Sukhothai kingdom, is a remarkable place. Inside the ancient walls are the remains of the old royal palace and twenty-six temples. What is even more remarkable, however, is the beauty to be found outside the walls. Beyond the northern walls […]  Masks and marionettes… In the street stalls and in the shops: elaborately sequinned and feathered masks of all sizes and shapes, and Pinocchio marionettes, pencils, pictures and paraphernalia. Apparently, Florence was the birth- and resting-place of Carlo Lorenzini (1826 – 1890), who (as Carlo Collodi) wrote the original stories of the woodcarver Geppetto and the marionette he crafted and […] |
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