I had long been enamored of the stories swirling around the eerie Leap Castle in County Offaly....

The Musée des Beaux-Arts is located in the centre of the ancient town of Dijon, in what used to be the palace of the Valois Dukes of Burgundy. The architecture is stunning, with its high mansard roof and neo-classical trimmings, it was created slap bang in that last century when the ancien regime was floundering and the flames of revolutionary fervour were being fanned.

Yes, I’ve been to paradise. From what I’ve seen of the world so far, I would have to say that Thailand still has places that are a little bit of paradise on earth.

The Louvre Egyptian Collection, Paris

I love the Saturday market at the Ferry Building in San Francisco. Outside is a veritable explosion of street traders selling all kinds of things, nearer to the building are a number of outdoor restaurants.

The first time I saw Venice, it was in November, time of floods when the water rises and infiltrates St. Mark’s square. We were there for three days and each day the water rose higher until eventually they put up a rough scaffolding of wooden tables lashed together on which you could walk without having to wade through three feet of canal dredge.