Whole foods (Oct07)
A few years ago I went to a Whole Foods store in New York. This week I visited the London Whole Foods Market, situated on the old Barkers site in Kensington High Street. Rather like a trip to French street markets, the first thing that comes to mind is ‘Why don’t more shops make food […]
Steamy experience in Istanbul (Oct07)
One of the most fascinating experiences I had in Istanbul was having a Turkish Bath. When I entered the large steamy room and saw the mass of nude bodies on the marble plinth it was like a scene from a painting. And it made me laugh. Naked bodies abound in Istanbul’s baths I joined the […]
The fabric of Istanbul (Sep07)
As my plane turned towards Istanbul I saw the dry landscape below. It was ploughed into fields but there seemed to be no dividing hedges. The only visible green was trees edging the numerous creeks. Apart from that, every inch seemed to have been tilled by man. I don’t know what they were growing, but […]
Eco-holidays in Trelowarren (Sep07)
There can’t be many things more exhilarating than surfing – or body boarding to be more precise. Watching the huge waves rolling towards me, I was among a throng of fellow surfers at Polzeath, poised to catch the best roller, so I could skim on its back towards the shore. The wonderful thing about surfing […]
See Telegraph Blogs (Sept07)
September 2007 to October 2008 My Blogs are being posted on Telegraph Blogs. Please look there for the most recent editions! September 2007 onwards are exclusively on the Telegraph Blogs site. Blogs from this time have been transferred to my website.
Getting into the swim (Sep07)
Last year I didn’t have a proper holiday – a couple of days camping in the rain in Cornwall. In fact I can’t remember when I last had a holiday in the sun. So this year’s family trip to stay with friends in the South of France was really exciting – the first week in […]
Holiday dilemma: fly or drive? (Jul07)
My family are going to stay with friends in the South of France for our summer holiday. But how should we get there? We’re going by ferry and by car. In theory this is greener than going by plane – that was certainly part of my thinking when I planned the trip. But I’m not […]
Happy as a pig in mud (Jul07)
The bacon tasted really good. The superior rashers accompanied seared scallops – a first course served by the Royal Oak pub in Bishopstone. I was having dinner with fellow members of the Food Ethics Council after a trip to see Helen Browning’s happy organic pigs. It was their cousins I was eating for dinner. It […]
Green Alliance: can politicians save us? (Jul07)
Giles Chitty and Julia Hailes at Green Alliance Debate Jul07 Matthew Taylor, the Chief Executive of The Royal Society of Arts (RSA) whispered in my ear that he didn’t suppose I would make any jokes in my presentation because women don’t make jokes! He looked a bit surprised when I said that I was starting […]
Waste disposal is not for seagulls (Jun07)
I love the Brighton buses. Every stop has a sign telling you how long it is before your bus arrives. I also rather liked the sound of seagulls when I woke in the morning a stone’s throw from Brighton beach. But I discovered that residents are not so keen. I had thought that bird-related complaints […]
Save the rainforests (Jun07)
South American travels Cool Earth has really hit the news this week. So much so that when I went to look at their website it had crashed from too much interest. To me that’s really good news (the popularity of the site rather than the technical problems) because the main aim of Cool Earth is […]
What is a green building? (Jul07)
I’m not convinced that the Government’s goal of zero carbon buildings is a good one. For a start it only applies to new buildings. And wouldn’t it be better to invest in significantly reducing carbon emissions in a huge number of houses rather than going the whole way in a very few? Achieving the final […]