Little Wandering Wren …. chats!

The European Summer of 2018, just like the Summer of ’76,  will long be remembered as a great one.  It has been very relaxed.  Indeed perfect for eating outdoors, family get-togethers,  watching tennis and attending the Henley Royal Regatta. The Summer of 76 Club made me feel pretty old.  It was one of the driest, sunniest and warmest British summers (June/July/August) in the 20th century,  and those of us who remember it, do so with great affection! England had a welcome distraction from the politics of Brexit, by making good progress in the FIFA World Cup Football 2018. English flags fluttered across the land and Gareth Southgate’s young English team had us believing the impossible that like their win in  1966 ‘Football’s Coming Home’   Personally, it has been really exciting, we've been in Russia to watch the football.  Whaaaaat , I hear you say? You can read all about our adventures  by...

I've got that many flags in my suitcase.  I've decided I'm a professional 'cheerer-on'er'.  Is that is a word?  United States:   Lovely Irina!   Australia: Aussie, Aussie, Aussie,   England: 'ere we go, 'ere we go ere we go oh !  Belgium:  Allez! Not to mention Mexico : Vamos!   .... and any other friends I pick up along the way. It's been an exhausting summer of sport and I'm only just watching... You can catch up with some of the action from  Nottingham's Nature Valley Open a pre-Wimbledon lawn tennis tournament: Anyone for WTA Lawn Tennis, Nottingham It's a quick turn around as we land in Moscow for the FIFA World Cup.  You can catch some of the football action here: From Russia with love We have been in Russia to celebrate the World Cup,  our son's 21st Birthday present. He was born in Belgium so we are cheering loudly for Belgium You can catch up with more of the ...

I'm sorry my blogging has been rather intermittent recently, I've been dealing with my own dramas. Well actually if I'm honest the dramas were all my own doing, It's a shame I never took up acting. As in the last few months, I would have won top awards as a Drama Queen, par excellence. I had a major meltdown, hated Bangkok, my life continually on the move and the focus of my fury was our new apartment. It was such a shame that it was all my own decision to move into the 'shithole' as I loved to call it. Which actually was totally unfair, as amongst the issues were that we had a real problem with the plumbing and the toilet blocked! I won't continue my train of thought on this one. Of course, long term Bangkok'ers just rolled their eyes, with a 'yep, get a grip' sort of a look. It was classic culture shock, which hit me by surprise, let's face it I've been living abroad for 25 years now.  Are you sure you're not ...

It has been a long, hard and bleak British winter which has made Spring  all the more delightful for everyone, and especially wonderful for me  arriving in the UK from the hot and humid tropics. Of course, we arrived to for a quick visit to catch up with family and friends  to find everyone apologising for the dismal, cold weather  - not at all I said, I love it cool these days! We've had a wonderful time, enjoying beautiful Britain in the Spring.  Everything seems particularly green this year. The flowers are out to delight, we just love the tulips at Dyrham House and the bluebells woods are stunning. By the May Bank holiday weekend, the weather was being reported as a 28-degree scorcher. Yeah right, it was spot on perfect for me.  I'm heading back to Bangkok this week where the temperature will be scorching no fib! I have finished off my Blogging from A to Z (2018) Challenge . Thank you to everyone who has poppe...

It's been a lovely week on Koh Samui Island, not that we've done much. It's the Thai New Year Songkran holiday and one of the busiest times of the year for travel. We've been Island hopping, last week Koh Phangan, the party island This week the more sophisticated, Bophut Beach on Koh Samui. I first arrived on the island of Koh Samui in the early 1980's. Back then we seemed to travel for days on the bus, train and a boat to arrive. Now it's less than one hours flight from Bangkok. It was an idyllic paradise for me, of beach huts under the coconut trees. It still has its charm, don't you think? Even though I no longer arrive with my backpack! We have been back to Koh Samui on several occasions since then, I still love Koh Samui. This time have chosen to stay close to the airport on Bhoput beach and close to Fisherman's village. It was a perfect place for us to kick back relax and unwind. The hardest decision of the day was where to h...

We've been away for a little holiday on one of Thailand's gorgeous islands, Koh Phangan. It's been a chance to kick back, relax, unwind, ignore the dawn break,  and check out the sunsets and do very little! I have continued with my Blogging from A to Z (2018) Challenge  with the following posts on my new Little Wandering Wren Wordpresss blog. The posts since last week are below with the links: H is for Happy Easter in Bangkok : I is for Images of Thailand : J is for Jim Thompson, Bangkok K is for Koh Phangan : L is for Life in Lumpini Park : M is for Muay Thai, Thailand Thank you to all of you who have stopped by there and here to say hello Have a great week!

Come with me, let's go on a little wander in Seoul, South Korea! I think like me, you might be pleasantly surprised. I loved the history (even if most of it is rebuilt),  I loved the trend of dressing up in period clothes to visit the Royal Palaces anyone wearing  the traditional Hanbok costumes  gets free entry into the historic sites,  how about that for a good idea? I loved the vibrant colours everywhere... I found the city extremely modern, the transport network was impressive at the people were surprisingly upbeat considering their neighbours.  It was spring so that means candy floss and cherry blossom season.  The weather was perfect! Practically the first place we went to was the Jogyesa Temple,  I mean how could you not be attracted to this colourful scene? The Jogyesa Temple is the main temple in Seoul and the centre of Korean Buddhism. It was built in the late 14th...