Save the Hull Banksy. But save the BHS Mural Too.

For a moment, Hull received global attention again. A painting of a boy brandishing a wooden sword appeared overnight. A graffiti-art gift from Banksy.

Unusual things to do in Canada: prison accommodation

Looking for unusual things to do in Canada? Visiting Ottawa? You should try incarcerating yourself in a real prison. I did.

My biggest travel disappointment

Aged 22 I travelled around the world. A 4 week bus trip across Canada was the final leg. Here I was to experience my biggest travel disappointment.

5 ways to get lucky in 2019

2018 didn’t go your way? Lady Luck pissed on your chips? If the answer is yes, you’re probably desperate enough to try some superstitious claptrap. You’re in the right place.

South King Street: the rough end of Newtown, Sydney

South King Street, previously the rough end of Newtown, has taken the well-trodden path to gentrification. But isn’t playing by the usual rules.

Australia gay marriage survey: 8 reasons why Australians said YES

In 2015 Prime Minister Tony Abbott was under sustained pressure to legalise same-sex-marriage in Australia. He had no intention of allowing that to happen.

8 reasons why Australia vote in favour of Same-Sex-Marriage

In 2015 there was global momentum to legalise same-sex-marriage. Tony Abbott, Prime Minister and midwife-in-charge, was under sustained pressure to follow suit. The UK, USA, New Zealand, Ireland, Canada, all culturally aligned countries, had said I Do. Public opinion in Australia was becoming more favourable to the idea.
Tony and his fellow dinosaurs, the Liberal Party’s Christian Right, had to come up with new, creative ways to block social progress. They would use all means necessary to preserve their fictional 1950s-family-values version of Australia.

Backpacking in Varanasi, India

In Varanasi, among the 2000 or so temples, is a charity-run hostel called ‘Salvation House’. The guests come to here die.

Backpacking in Varanasi, India: what you can expect.

In Varanasi, among the 2000 or so temples, is a charity-run hostel – Mukti Bhavan (‘Salvation House’) – where the guests come to die. The room tariff includes the wood for the funeral pyre.
To be clear, this isn’t a centre for suicide. Not an Indian version of Dignitas, the Swiss one-stop-shop for euthanasia. The very old and very sick come here, when death is imminent.

Unexpected Dangers in India

In India the perilous roads, the ever-present risk of shitting oneself were both expected. We quickly learned that there are unexpected dangers too.

Backpacking in India: unexpected dangers.

Danger comes from unexpected places in India. Perilous roads, the ever-present risk of shitting oneself.  We had a long list of potential hazards.  But little brown Geckos were not included.

Backpacking in India: avoid farting

Budget travel brings an unavoidable level of intimacy. Oversharing in extremis. De-briefings requested and given after each visit to the toilet.

Backpacking in India: a cautionary tale about farting

Budget travel brings an unavoidable level of intimacy. Oversharing in extremis. De-briefings requested and given after each visit to the toilet.

Arriving in Delhi as naive backpcker

We were carried by a motorcade of tuk-tuks through the dark, dusty streets of nighttime Delhi on a frightening, fruitless search for a hotel room.

Backpacking in India: arriving in Delhi

Carried by a motorcade of tuk-tuks through the dark, dusty streets of Delhi looking for a hotel room. It was like we were caught up in a surreal Nativity Story interpretation. THIS was the adventure we wanted… wasn’t it?

I quit university to see the world

Age 22, I wrote a letter to my future self. In a moment of transcendent clarity, I committed my thoughts to paper so I could look back and remember that feeling.

Quitting university. Arriving in India as a backpacker

Age 22, I wrote a letter to my future self. In a moment of transcendent clarity, I committed my thoughts to paper so I could look back and remember that feeling. It was as if I’d been driving through a dimly lit, noisy tunnel. Coming out of the other side into silence. Sunlight. Sweet relief.

Naked

I’m naked. Well, almost. I’m wearing only a fig leaf.
That’s the way it feels sometimes, writing this blog. Looking at my comfort zone through the rear view mirror. I enjoy it. But It’s exposing.

Part 13: Student Bashing

Standing outside the train station on London Road, I looked across at the skyline of Leicester. ‘Whatever happens, I’m not coming to this shit-hole’, I thought.

Embrace The Newtown Gnome

In a world of divisive politics, orange presidents and Brex-shit, we can at least agree on one thing. Garden gnomes are tacky.