If it is at all possible for an Olympics to fly under the radar, the 2006 Winter Games in Turin came close. Nobody felt much sorry for the capital of Piemonte, Italy, however. After all, Torino has a famous Shroud, automobile icons Fiat and Alfa Romeo, a little football outfit by the name of Juventus, … More

I have plans to tour Malaysia later this year and want to spend a few days in Singapore at the end of the trip. Food is definitely a big part of why I travel and I know Penang and other parts of Malaysia will not disappoint. I do have some reservations about Singapore though. Is … More

Few enclaves of the United Kingdom serve up charm of the achingly quaint variety quite like South West England. The foremost region is not all tidy hamlets of course but if you want it, the South West has cathedrals and throwback village architecture galore. What stands out most, however, are the contrasts. South West England … More

When the Gondwana supercontinent split up in the early Jurassic, some 185 million years ago, it set the stage for some uncanny biodiversity down the line. The rupture of Antarctica from Australia in the late Cretaceous cemented the deal. This set-up is a slightly dramatic, roundabout way to illustrate why we hurl so much hyperbole … More

Kate Moss – most recently seen at Splendour in the Grass and on a yacht in Saint-Tropez – is clearly one of those celebs we most associate with the high-roller, glam side of the UK capital. The press and public have a love-hate relationship with the model citizen that is often difficult for people across … More

As a scatter of paradisal island goodness and paramount springboard to the mother of all reef systems, the Whitsundays simply rule. The loose archipelago off the central coast of Queensland lures over 700,000 annual visitors – a modest total, in all honesty, which keeps the prestige factor intact and saves the pristine chain from overt … More