Morts Musings

I hate the winter, I mean, really hate it! It’s dark, it’s cold & it’s damp- I honestly don’t see very much to like about it at all!
So, with the financial sting of Xmas, and the January tax bill, beginning to become a hazy memory, & no significant drains on my income in the foreseeable, I’ve been cheering myself up with thoughts of where I’d like to head for my Summer Holidays. Yep, it might only be daydreaming at the moment, but it’s a pretty good distraction from the drudge of work and the cold, dark winter days.
Being unsure how my finances are going to be doing come high summer, I’m just throwing some ideas around at the moment, doing some of the research and ground work, so that I have some informed ideas when it comes to decision time. Anyway, I figure I may as well throw my thoughts up here; If nothing else I’ll know where to find my notes when I need them, and there’s always the chance that they may be of use to someone else. *shrug*

So, first up, I’m going to aim my sights pretty low price-wise, and think about grabbing a week or two out in Spain.

It has a number of advantages as a holiday destination for Brits. It’s in Europe, which cuts out any kind of worries about visas or the like. Also, EU countries are part of the “European Health Insurance Card” Scheme; essentially, once you’ve applied for (& received) your free card, you’re entitled to free emergency care throughout the EU, and some other European countries. It’s not a complete replacement for travel insurance, something which might still be worth looking into at a later date, but if you’re travelling on a shoe string, are disorganised, or don’t mind taking a chance, it’s a pretty good safety net to have in place.

Being part of Europe also makes driving a lot less of a hassle, ok, so they drive on the wrong side of the road, but once again, as part of the EU, it’s possible to drive on a full UK licence in Spain. Over all I’d say the way to go is car hire- Spain isn’t renowned for it’s public transport system. I mean I’m sure it would get you where you wanted to go eventually, but I resent my time being wasted by tardy trains at the best of times, & on holiday I’d probably find it frustratingly infuriating.

Another advantage is that, being more or less due south from the UK, it is pretty much the closest country with decent weather. There are also a load of the low cost carriers who fly out to Spain, which should make deals pretty easy to find; being over 6 foot I’m not too keen on the lack of leg space which inevitably comes with a budget flight, but at least it’s not a long flight.
The prevalence of English in the country is also an attraction for me, it’s not that I mind trying to learn other languages, it’s just that I’m woefully bad at it; I’m all for making the effort, but my spoken Spanish breaks down after the most basic greetings and food/beer orders, so it’s nice to have a back up plan.
Having said that I’m not one for expecting countries I visit to totally pander to Brits, and I actually like getting off the beaten tourist track. I’m all for the odd lazy day in the sunshine, but it seems like a waste to spend too much of a foreign holiday basking on the beach; after all there’s all the other sites to see as well, and being a big fan of history it would seem almost criminal to me to go to all the effort of travelling to a foreign country and then not spend a little time taking in some of the culture.

As far as where to go in Spain is concerned I’m really not sure at this stage. Between the Costa Verde and the Pyrenees the north of the country has some beautiful scenery, and is definitely less touristy than a lot of the south, but weather on the Atlantic coastline is always a little more unpredictable than the Mediterranean coast. It is tempting, but good weather is a big draw for me, so I may well go for the south of the country instead.
I’m certain there must be un-touristy places in the south, and I know for a fact that there’s a lot of very interesting history going back to the time of the Moorish kingdom of Al Andalus, & the Reconquista.
If I’m heading to the south then Malaga airport is looking like a pretty good bet, and if that’s the case then getting car hire from Malaga Airport seems to make sense.

As I said at the top, these are all pretty rough ideas at the moment; I’ll have to do some more looking around at some point to narrow down potential locations a little more…

I saw this piece in the Telegraph last week, and have only just had time to comment on it; The long and short of it is that a group of people decided to take up residence in a big old Paris mansion, but without bothering to go through any of the standard stuff which one generally does when one moves into a new home, you know, things like signing a contract or paying rent; to put it another way, they’re squatting.
So what’s newsworthy about that, you ask? squatting is hardly a new concept. Well, fair question, the thing in this case is that the squatters are actually a group of clean cut, well-educated, professionals, who, at least partly, are protesting about the price of rented accommodation in Paris, and, to their credit, they’ve done a fair amount of maintainence and repairs on the property, which has been uninhabited for about 40 years. Even the mansion’s owner, having met the group, was persuaded that they were a decent bunch who weren’t wrecking her property, although legal complications have meant that moves to evict the group are still on-going.

For all the cross channel rivalry that’s existed between Britain and France, for pretty much a millenium now, I do have to say that, as a nation, the French have a great attitude to protesting and protecting their rights, an attitude which sadly the Normans seemed to leave on the continent, or which, at least, has been well and truly beaten out of the British at some point over the last thousand years.
Still, for all I admire the Gallic attitude to asinine laws and regulations, any Brits planning a holiday in France this year would probably be safer to take a conventional approach to arranging their accommodation, and, for that matter, travel arrangements, I’m not sure that even the French would take kindly to one borrowing an unused car or van. No, even in France car hire is probably still the safest bet for getting around, unless you’re planning on your stay being extended, and “at the pleasure” of the French authorities.

Often during recession the true magnitude of the situation can be measured by looking at how consumers behave, and especially how they behave during the holiday season; traditionally it’s a time of year when people are more inclined to spend, and although, to an extent, they’re inclined to push the boat out as much as possible, even when things are tight, there’s no doubting that concerns about finances, & the economy, do effect the holiday spend.

With that in mind, the news from the AAA (Automobile Association of America) that, after a sharp dip last year, US holiday travel is set to see a boost this year should be seen as an encouraging sign that the world economy is coming out of recession; Projections are that both airlines and US car hire companies, along with retailers, will all be having a happier holiday season than they did last year.
One odd little bit of news, at least to me as I’m sat here in a cold UK office, are the forecasts that Florida, the “Sunshine State”, is looking like it will buck this trend, with predictions being that it’s set for another poorer than average year.
With it’s year round good weather I’d have thought that flights to Florida would be heaving, and that Orlando car hire brokers would be rubbing their hands in glee as holiday makers flocked in, but apparently not. *shrug*
I don’t know, maybe the whole holiday travel thing is a phenomenon which, as a Brit, I’m just not getting; Sure some years I’ll travel to see family, but surely if you were travelling for the sake of a winter get-away you’d choose somewhere warm, like, for example, Florida. *shrug*
Anyway, if you are travelling this Christmas I hope you have a safe trip & a relaxing break!

Well, I’ve talked about the UAE, & it’s exotic sights, a little before, but I thought I’d revisit the subject, if only to point out this page I found about Abu Dhabi, which highlights some of the Emirate’s “must see” attractions.
I’m a big fan of military history, so I was immediately drawn to the description of the Al Jahili Fort. Although it’s not a site I got to see when I was out in the UAE myself, I did see a number of old forts & coastal towers while I was out there & remember being impressed by the distinctive architecture.

Al Jahili is from the same mould, although the fort’s main walls, with their round towers, are pretty standard, functional looking, defences, the fort’s main tower, with it’s four tiers, really is eye catching, and is a clue that Al Jahili was more than just a defensive fortification. Indeed, it was actually built as a summer residence for Sheikh Zayed the First at the end of the 19th century, but, like so many castles through the ages, also served as an obvious reminder to all who saw it of the owner’s power and wealth.

Today the Fort also hosts a museum which provides information about the locality’s history, as well as an exhibition about Wilfred Thesiger; A British explorer and writer who spent a great deal of time in the Arabian penisula, and North Africa, and who crossed the “Empty Quarter”, a desert region so hostile and desolate that even the local bedouins avoid it, not once, as Lawrence of Arabia famously did when he led a surprise attack on the Red Sea port of Al Aqaba during the second world war, but twice. The exhibition includes an extensive collection of Thesiger’s photographs which provide a glimpse of what the region looked like during the mid 20th century, before the oil days.

Dubai – according to many writers and under informed travel blogs it’s a place that is good for beaches, sun and shopping; I don’t think people expect much else.

Dubai is soulless and lacks charm and culture, but I also agree that there is something snobby about Western writers bashing it for those reasons.  Germain Greer writing in the Guardian earlier this year triggered heated debate from the readers after she rubbished the city following a four hour visit.

Dubai is tacky for sure, the construction insane and it’s future, when all high-earning western expats have returned home, is shaky at best. But, like all teenagers (Dubai is still in that difficult period) one day it will wake and with an appropriate sense of embarrassment clean up it’s act and get on with it.

So, sneer at the tallest building, yes, but what has the UK got to offer back? What have you got that stacks up against the beauty of Dubai Mall or the world class vision of the Burj al Arab? Exactly. Squat Diddly. You look at the iconic vision and world class ambition of the leaders there – who give a hell of a lot to charity – and you see these are great men who could teach Gordon Brown and his mob a thing or two about running a country.

Abu Dhabi and Dubai are fast becoming international hubs for airline travel – their airports offering service and standards second to none. As a result flights to Dubai are frequent and affordable so if the opportunity arises it is a city that should be visited and your own opinions formed.

What are your thoughts on Dubai – please leave your comments