• Maglev Mania and the Standby Shuffle

    23rd April 2010 As usual, I was up before Sue had so much as blinked an eyelid. After breakfasting solo, I trotted off to the Crowne Plaza for my daily fix of the Shanghai Times and a satisfying go at the crossword (I’ll admit to a bit of guessing). I returned to the Ibis to… Continue Reading

  • Shanghai Shenanigans and a Tunnel with Disco Fever

    22nd April 2010 After breakfast and a bit of faffing about, we decided Shanghai was calling. Luckily, the Metro was just a short stroll away. Once we’d mastered the mysterious art of the ticket machine (which, it must be said, made more sense than the average British parking meter), we hopped aboard a packed but… Continue Reading

  • Ashes to Asia: The Great Shanghai Lock-In

    19th April 2010 As we returned from the airport, we decided to hop on the afternoon shuttle bus to Tai Mai Market. This proved unexpectedly fortunate. As we sat on the bus, another British couple climbed aboard and struck up a conversation. They informed us, somewhat gleefully, that they’d rebooked their return flight for the… Continue Reading

  • Shanghai’d by a Volcano: A Civilised Stranding in Asia

    19th April 2010 Here’s a summary of our Asian adventure, so far… We began with a four-hour delay at Heathrow (thank you, Virgin), but once we were airborne, things ran smoothly. Our transfer from Shanghai airport to the Crowne Plaza in Pudong was efficient by taxi. Our hotel was technically near the airport, though it… Continue Reading

  • Cake, Cameras and a Car for Lucas

      7th March 2010 I’ve had a birthday. Jamie brought a cake, and he and Sue serenaded me with a version of Happy Birthday that could charitably be described as brave. I don’t recall ever having a birthday cake as a child, though that might be selective memory or simple repression, but given my lifelong… Continue Reading

  • Snowbound, Grumble-Free (Sort Of)

    21st February 2010 The original opening paragraph, a perfectly reasoned and articulate tirade on the nonsense of global warming, has, regrettably, been deleted. You see, the new me no longer whinges about tax hikes, council rates, carbon offsets, or anything else likely to raise the blood pressure. I absolutely will not mention the fact that… Continue Reading

  • Confessions of a Converted Curmudgeon

    7th February 2010 Having just re-read my last blog entry, it seems I’ve officially joined the ranks of the Grumpy Old Men. This suspicion was confirmed earlier in the week while watching Grumpy Old Women on TV, a show I thoroughly enjoyed, not least because I found myself nodding furiously in agreement with most of… Continue Reading