After Adam and Eve were evicted from their Garden they went off into the countryside and continued their evolution practice, without the guidance of Mr. Snake nor a continuing diet of Apples.

They therefore continued their new life direction with no visual means of support nor a job or work contract, so they hunted, fished, picked fruit and pretty much survived for the next mega decades until, along the way some bright spark learned to cultivate the land, grow more and more food as well as raising the odd beast and animals that provided milk as well as more food as well as taking the skin and fluffy coverings to clothe themselves. Mankind was now on the way.

This is the story of the twenty most important years of my life, which I spent in the Algarve, the southernmost province of Portugal. I dedicate it to my daughters, Meinke and Pauline and to my granddaughter Sancha, so it may become part of their history.

CLICK HERE to read.

The Madhouse frenzy of San Franpsycho has increased considerably since my last visit.

The public cocktail is definitely more colorful. Purple hair and blue lips are very prominent along with grand tattoo displays on any available square inch of bare skin including the occasional forehead.
Cycling is also now very much in vogue. Boris’s American cousin is doing a roaring trade. The resulting morning and evening mayhem, with 4 wheels, 6 wheels, 8 wheels and the 2 wheels, challenging for the same piece of tarmac, should be avoided. And definitely when the motorized standup scooters and skateboards join the mix.

Since retirement, a visit to the Hermitage museum in St Petersburg has been on the wish list. Finally we looked up the flights and found to our delight that such a trip wouldn’t break the bank. The hassle of visa collection in Lisbon proved to be what it was “hassle.” But still thrilled at our panache and courage we set off for an early Christmas present in Russia.

Visitors to London from the States have to be entertained, and what better way than an open top tour of the Capital on a double decker bus.

The “hop on, hop off” availability appeared to suit all concerned and we were soon determining our “hop on” and “hop off” spots. I must admit that initially I had trouble understanding the tour maps. Red and Blue routes criss-crossed and the directional arrows were seemingly randomly placed. Finally I got the hang of them after a “tour conductor” explained.

An observational poem for those 'by the sea', by ADN reader Richard Thurman.

"The coldest winter I ever spent was a summer in San Francisco."

The signs advertising 'free tasting room' increased to 3 per mile as we wound our way through the beautiful rolling landscape of the Sonoma valley past Calistoga along the Russian river and onto Healdsburg.

The rewards of grand-parenting are many and varied. They bring exposure to different environments, new sets of people, baby bottles, little fingers, bowed legs and of course nappies.

Having completed the early shift and despatched mummy off to work and the younger "pair" to the nursery we took to the streets for a late morning coffee and a re-familiarization tour of the local surroundings.