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Colorado Morning, New Mexico Night
On a day that would eventually caress eighty degrees the early morning chill forced me to don a jacket for the first time since leaving the UK to visit the breakfast room for coffee and load the car....
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The New Santa Fe Trail
Santa Fe, or indeed any part of New Mexico, had not been in our original itinerary for this trip. But once we had decided to substitute yet more canyons for a spell of sophisticated southwestern...
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Beating the Balloons to Albuquerque
After its day off in Santa Fe, we were easing the car back into action today with the short journey, just 61 miles, to our next overnight stop, Albuquerque. Although it was likely to take little over...
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The Highway That’s The Best
Today was the first of a four day drive back to our starting point in Las Vegas. Much of that journey would be on, or close to, Historic Route 66. Excited at the prospect, we left Albuquerque on I-40...
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Wigwams, Jackrabbits and Jackson Browne
Fuelled (no pun intended) by coffee from the Armco gas station next door, we left the El Rancho Hotel in Gallup early, not only because the journey was 225 miles to Flagstaff where we were scheduled to...
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A Grand Day Out in the Canyon
When we put together the original itinerary for this trip we decided, in the light of the array of other stunning sights on offer, none of which we had visited before, we would omit the Grand Canyon....
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Happy Trails to the Mother Road
Our last day on the road and one on which we hoped to catch more vintage Route 66 sights before we said a fond farewell to The Mother Road. We had nearly 300 miles in front of us before we reached Las...
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Road Trip Reflections
So, 2,325 miles and 17 days later, was the road trip worthwhile? Absolutely. It could not have gone any better: check-in was courteous and efficient at every hotel /motel, and most rooms were spacious,...
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Dogs, Crab, Hats and Beats: Just Another San Francisco Day
Our first full day in San Francisco and there was much to look forward to, including brunch at the Cliff House and our fifth trip to Steve Silver’s Beach Blanket Babylon in the evening, he timing of...
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Sami Sunchild: An Enduring and Endearing San Francisco Icon
Any visitor to San Francisco who still hankers for the Summer of Love might seek some solace in the Red Victorian bed and breakfast on Haight Street, between Belvedere and Cole. The Jefferson Hotel, as...
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My Ten Favourite Christmas Songs
Or it may not be. For doesn’t the music you prefer to listen to so often reflect the mood that you are in at that moment in time? And then there’s the thankless challenge of breaking down an initial...
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San Francisco Photo Gallery: Fort Mason
Despite its proximity to tourist traps such as Fisherman’s Wharf and Ghirardelli Square, the former United States army post of Fort Mason, is a bit of a hidden gem as far as non-residents are...
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San Francisco Photo Gallery: Fisherman’s Wharf and Pier 39
There are many people, not least those who write guide books aimed at the more discerning visitors, who sneer at the simple pleasures to be gained on the northern edge of the bay. And I’ll confess that...
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It’s A Life
Born in October 1952 on the day tea rationing ended in Britain (good timing that, given my mother’s obsession – and subsequently mine – with the brew) and, as an only child, I enjoyed a happy...
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Stow Lake: Won’t You Try Saturday Afternoon
Stow Lake is frequented more by residents than tourists who are rather drawn to the heavily promoted, and undeniably impressive, adjacent attractions of the de Young Museum, California Academy of...
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Friedel Klussmann: The Woman who Saved the Cable Cars
Those “little cable cars” climbing “halfway to the stars” are one of the best loved and most iconic experiences for any visitor to San Francisco. But few tourists hanging onto that lead rail as the...
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San Francisco Photo Gallery: City Hall
Sometimes overshadowed by the more instant charms of the waterfront and Union Square, and by the seediness of the surrounding Civic Center area, City Hall is one of San Francisco’s most precious...
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Kentish Photo Gallery: Scotney Castle
My home county of Kent has some of the finest castles and country houses in Britain. But my personal favourite is Scotney Castle near Lamberhurst on the Sussex border, a privately owned property for...
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San Francisco Photo Gallery: Noe Valley
Last year my wife and I rented an apartment in the San Francisco neighbourhood of Noe Valley, bordered to the north by the Castro and the Mission, and Bernal Heights and Twin Peaks to the east and west...
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San Francisco Photo Gallery: Nob Hill
Next time your cable car teeters tantalisingly on the intersection of Powell and California, hop off and take the short uphill hike to Nob Hill, so named for the grand edifices built and once occupied...
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