jey

Excellent food and atmosphere. Occasional reek of peat smoke. Huge range of organic beers, cheaper than poorer quality designer beers elsewhere. Despite what the organic and vegan labels might lead you to think, its totally unposerly, unselfrighteous and just a great bar

Drove down from lewis on a cloudless blue March day. The bay around Luskentyre was a palette of turquoises, silvers and blues. Wandered along the beach – with hills of North Harris hazy in the distance. Enormous, tranquil, beautiful.

Sailed there with a group of friends, chartering two boats for a long weekend. Sea was like the proverbial millpond, the two boats 40 to 50 yachts, rafter together and took the dinghies into Staffa.

Sailed over to Glenarm with a group of kids on the Ocean Youth Trust boat Alba Venturer a few years back. Almost first thing I saw was kerb stones painted blue/red/white, other than that seemed a sleepy wee village. Film crew was in that day using it as a 1950s backdrop.

Stayed at one of Ian’s wee chalets hidden away at the top of the island (http://www.dryisland.co.uk/). Beautifully peaceful and quiet. Floating bridge is strange but practical.

Stayed at the lovely Taigh Mairi cottage (http://www.taighmairi.co.uk/) at the Braes, overlooking Raasay.

going west you’d be in manhattan before you found a better one … and going north you’d just get very very cold

3000 mini (and forgotten about) terracotta warriors lonely in a little room in the town museum

more bonsai trees than i believed possible …

with the exception of one morning, it rained every day for 4 days in Xian. stayed at the garden hotel next to the pagoda; average hotel with great central garden