A small bag of hand gel and a wipe can bring much joy in 2020... It seems to be almost socially unacceptable to be flying at the moment. Or at least sharing the experience that you've flown somewhere given many people are either unable to unwilling to do so in this twin economic and health crisis. Countries are closed without quarantine, flights are non-existent, airlines are going under. But if you are flying at the moment or want to know what it was like, here are two experiences. Flying may not be returning to 2019 levels for many years. But the disappearance of crowded airports, long flight delays and ever-changing rules about what could and couldn't get on board is a welcome change this summer. Before 2020 a trip during the summer meant: Sardine lounges . Penned in crowded airports and terminals with poor ventilation and little room to sit. There you would stand around gates with the hot, sweaty and slightly flustered hordes travelling with you. Security theatre . You w
The Gargano area in the Province of Foggia, which is part of the Apulia region in Italy is a mix of contrasts. With a series of seaside towns along the coast line, one of Europe's oldest forests and one of the oldest shrines of worship at Monte Gargano there is a lot to explore and some excellent food that is grown locally. A trip on an open top boat is an excellent way to appreciate the geography and contrasts of this ancient land, in particular the beautiful grottoes that are dotted along the coastline. The tour starts out from the port at Rodi. There is a ticket office in one of the shops and you head to the end of the port to board the boats. The boat sets out from Rodi and and heads south along the coast past the seaside towns of San Menaio, Peschici and Vieste. Along the way you past several trabucchi, which are the old fishing platforms that were used to catch fish. These landmarks are now locally protected. You also will see the old medieval watch towers that were used
A recent flight to Nice has highlighted that not many people are flying. In the middle of August, on a Friday night, shops and restaurants were closed at Heathrow. You didn’t have to worry about finding a seat to relax. There were plenty of them, even with the social distancing boards in place. While it was lovely to have so much personal space, on the other hand, you couldn’t help but wonder about the future of travel, particularly when airports in Europe don’t seem to be as burdened by such rules. And when none of this “Covid theatre” prevented the delta variant from entering the UK in the first place. Perhaps people are voting with their feet due to the complex rules and scenarios. Leaving the UK for any trip seems to be determined to confuse the confound the most seasoned traveller. Despite the pages and pages of guidance on the government website, nothing is straightforward. Perhaps there are so many scenarios they attempt to cover that anything is possible. There are the green,
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