Remembering Fred Stroud - Akureyri, Iceland
Akureyri, Iceland
When I am on my travels around the world I will often go off to find Commonwealth War Graves Commission cemeteries. They are places of peace and beauty, particularly in Akureyri where Whitstable's Fred Stroud is buried. He died in WWII, age 24, on October 30, 1942.
Kent's Fallen website did not have a picture record of his grave so I was keen to do the honours.
On a warm day I walked from the port, up the hill to the cemetery that sits at the foot of the mountains and overlooks the fjord.
If ever there was an idyllic resting place, this was it.
I walked back through the botanic garden, past the town's deco church and pretty shops and new music hall to Boudicca, the Fred. Olsen ship that had sailed from Liverpool to circumnavigate the island promising I would return.
When I am on my travels around the world I will often go off to find Commonwealth War Graves Commission cemeteries. They are places of peace and beauty, particularly in Akureyri where Whitstable's Fred Stroud is buried. He died in WWII, age 24, on October 30, 1942.
Kent's Fallen website did not have a picture record of his grave so I was keen to do the honours.
On a warm day I walked from the port, up the hill to the cemetery that sits at the foot of the mountains and overlooks the fjord.
If ever there was an idyllic resting place, this was it.
I walked back through the botanic garden, past the town's deco church and pretty shops and new music hall to Boudicca, the Fred. Olsen ship that had sailed from Liverpool to circumnavigate the island promising I would return.
Louis Vuitton Fondation, Paris
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Bois de Bologne, Paris
Is it a ship? Is it a watermill? Is it a bird? An iceberg? The Louis Vuitton Fondation arts museum is anything you want it to be, but whatever way you look at it, Frank Gehry's architectural masterpiece, docked on the banks of the Jardin d'Acclimatation, proves 21st century buildings do not have to be square boxes.
In the November sunshine, this captivating centre for contemporary arts rises from a lake, complete with stepped waterfall, glistening under the blue skies. It's definitely the most exciting Parisian building built in my generation.
In the grotto, guest artist Olafur Eliasson's Inside the Horizon invites visitors to circulate among the sensory installations. It's sophisticated and flamboyant yet playful - and our Harry Worth impressions in the mirrors were soon being copied by half of Paris. :)
Is it a ship? Is it a watermill? Is it a bird? An iceberg? The Louis Vuitton Fondation arts museum is anything you want it to be, but whatever way you look at it, Frank Gehry's architectural masterpiece, docked on the banks of the Jardin d'Acclimatation, proves 21st century buildings do not have to be square boxes.
In the November sunshine, this captivating centre for contemporary arts rises from a lake, complete with stepped waterfall, glistening under the blue skies. It's definitely the most exciting Parisian building built in my generation.
In the grotto, guest artist Olafur Eliasson's Inside the Horizon invites visitors to circulate among the sensory installations. It's sophisticated and flamboyant yet playful - and our Harry Worth impressions in the mirrors were soon being copied by half of Paris. :)
MSC Virtuosa Cruises, UK (British 'Seacation')
Southampton, UK
It's going to take more than four nights to experience everything on this 18-deck megaship, which has four pools, a ten-pin bowling alley, a basketball court and classes from yoga to aerobics, plus jive and tango dance sessions.
There's bags of space in the 12 dining venues, including the five speciality restaurants. It's easy to book tables, shows and classes on touchscreens dotted around the ship or by using my electronic wristband linked to an onboard account. Rob, the robotic bartender, cracks jokes and serves cocktails at the MSC Starship Club.
The weather clears a little by morning. So I take a walk around the deck and feel the joy of being at sea, but with comforts close at hand. It's a pleasure I will never take for granted.
It's going to take more than four nights to experience everything on this 18-deck megaship, which has four pools, a ten-pin bowling alley, a basketball court and classes from yoga to aerobics, plus jive and tango dance sessions.
There's bags of space in the 12 dining venues, including the five speciality restaurants. It's easy to book tables, shows and classes on touchscreens dotted around the ship or by using my electronic wristband linked to an onboard account. Rob, the robotic bartender, cracks jokes and serves cocktails at the MSC Starship Club.
The weather clears a little by morning. So I take a walk around the deck and feel the joy of being at sea, but with comforts close at hand. It's a pleasure I will never take for granted.
