Chris Pratt Photography
When I told people I was going to spend a week on the Leeds Liverpool Canal most of them looked at me gone-out; this was pretty much the reaction I expected, as it was my initial reaction when the trip was first mooted – sitting one sunny afternoon outside a country pub, obviously. But if […]
A mate of mine was racing his Caterham 7 at Goodwood, not the frenetic Revival or Festival of Speed but a club meet. A sprint, so only one car on the track at a time. What a great day out, no crowds, no queue for the burger van and easy access to the garages and […]
In 1988 I travelled from Bangkok to Nong Khai, on the banks of the Mekong River in Northern Thailand, on the strength of a rumour that the river crossing border to Laos and its capital Vientiane would open; we sat there for three lazy days and nothing happened. More than thirty years later and 25 […]
Out for the day around Brick Lane; doing a bit of teaching. These kids are good, so just the odd tip and a bit of banter is the order of the day. Still, not much time to myself and my eyes mostly on other things – but you need to show as well as tell, […]
Only thirty or so years ago but even then, in 1986, the fishing village of Tai O – on a far corner of Lantau Island – was a far cry from the burgeoning glass and concrete city centre of Hong Kong; just a few miles and a ferry or two away. I don’t know to […]
After many visits (documented on this website) to Ile de Re, just off La Rochelle on France’s Atlantic coast, I’ve finally ventured an hour south to Ile de Re’s big sister, Ile d’Oleron. Advised to do so by an acquaintance, a little research uncovered a bigger island, less well developed and characterised by multi-coloured wooden […]
It’s full-throttle, as the man says – the cars have gone to bed but the children haven’t. Saturday night, no rain, and Razorlight on the main stage… Who Needs Love?
If all fails there’s the El Rastro flea market, the most popular in Madrid – or in Spain, depending on who you ask. When you are tired of shopping and the street performers and the crowds, look for this little restaurant in the side streets – it serves sardines, beer and well, sardines. No cutlery, […]
For me Brick Lane is memory lane, although I’m not sure how much I remember surrounding the late nights culminating in a trip to the bagel shop – apart from the bagels and collecting next day’s Sunday papers from around the corner, before going home and eventually to bed. Anyway, over the last thirty years […]
…drive on the pavement. I first went to Saigon (Ho Chi Min City or HCMC – but Saigon as in Bia Sai Gon or the Saigon River) in 1991; then there were a few cars, smoke belching buses and the rest was 90% bicycles, 10% mopeds. Now it’s 90% mopeds and the city’s roads are […]
