Category: AWAY FROM THE DESK
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Looking Back V: Fifth trip of 2026 – Bilbao and the Basque region
Having not been to mainland Spain for around 30 years, I had mixed feelings about returning. On the one hand, I was curious to see how it had changed. It had been a long time, and I wondered whether my mental picture of the place remained in any way valid. On the other hand, after…
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Looking Back IV: Forth trip of 2026 – Malta
I’ve worked for the Maltese government since 2024, so you might assume I’d visited before. I hadn’t – at least not until this year. The irony is that I booked this trip entirely on my own dime after deciding I’d probably never get to Malta through my contractual work. About a month later, I was…
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Looking Back III: Third trip of 2026 – Iceland
Iceland gets rave reviews, so I knew I had to see it for myself eventually. As it turns out, every one of those reviews was deserved. This became one of the best trips I’ve ever taken. Nature feels wonderfully raw here. The island’s volcanic and tectonic origins aren’t hidden beneath the landscape—they are the landscape.…
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Looking back II: Second trip of 2026 – Kosovo
Tiny Kosovo has played a greater role in history than many in the West can imagine. In 1389 King Lazar of Serbia halted the march of Islam into central Europe on Kosovo’s battlefields. Were it not for this, Western history may have been unimaginably different. More recently, the meltdown of the former Yugoslavia started with…
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Looking Back: First trip of 2026 (Sibiu, Romania)
As a full-time academic, I had my busiest semester yet in the first half of 2026: four modules in total, leading three of them and playing a major role in a fourth. In all my years in academia, I’ve never encountered a workload quite like that. I’ve survived — and in fact, I’m proud to…
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Unforgettable Winter Trip: Belfast and Carrickfergus Highlights
I took a short, wintry escape to Northern Ireland, spending a couple of nights split between Belfast and Carrickfergus, and it turned out to be one of those trips that feels compact in time but rich in atmosphere and history. I based myself first in Belfast’s Titanic Quarter, a fitting place to begin any introduction…
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Poland’s Christmas Markets
The Christmas market in Poznań felt intimate and welcoming, set against the colorful Renaissance façades of the Old Market Square. Wooden stalls clustered around the illuminated town hall, filling the air with the smell of mulled wine, grilled oscypek cheese, and sweet pastries. Traditional decorations, handcrafted gifts, and festive lights gave the square a cozy…
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Winter Trip to Scarborough
I ventured north for the first weekend of December, dropping off gifts and seeing my brother’s new house. Also catching up with my mum, it was her retirement and birthday weekend. As part of the visit I spent a couple of hours in Scarborough on a beautiful clear day. A great start to the festive…
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Highlights from Sigur Rós’ Enchanting Performance, Royal Albert Hall
I was lucky enough to have two life firsts very recently: seeing Sigur Ros play live and seeing a show at the Royal Albert Hall. The combination was transcendent and hypnotic, a two-hour journey that blended sonic beauty with emotional depth, leaving the audience spellbound. Opening with the swelling strings of Blóðberg and anchored by…
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Albania, Macedonia, Montenegro & Croatia
It was an absolute delight to extend my tour of the Balkans to include these incredible countries this year. Dubrovnik was truly mind-blowing—its Old Town easily holds its own against any of the world’s most celebrated attractions. Budva in Montenegro and Ohrid in North Macedonia both met—and in some ways exceeded—my expectations. Tirana, meanwhile, was…
Dr Martin James 