Here in the UK, we had a brief reminder over the past weekend of what summer is like. The sun came out briefly, big-bellied men took their shirts off and the London Underground stuck up posters warning passengers to carry water with them to cope with the searing 22-degree heat.
Alas, it was but a passing glimpse and we have settle back into the gloaming.
But all is not lost. Those of you keen to relive those balmy moments – and they were moments – can pop over to the myWanderlust photography section and bask in the entries in our ‘Beach’ themed photo competition. You’ll enjoy gallery after gallery of clear skies and azure waters and sand-fringed coves. The only disappointment is that no one posted a photo of Bette Midler. That’s the kind of left-field thinking that gets rewarded around these parts.
Before you leave the Photography section, your skin tight with sunburn and sand in places it was never intended to be, why not indulge in a little ‘spot the photos that aren’t about beaches’. You’ll be rewarded with otherworldly landscapes in Cappadocia by evesymm, puffins from Bev Bishop and Farawayvisions and the architecture of Istanbul, posted by Karen Warren.
Over at Experiences, Farawayvisions regales us with a hilarious tale of biking on the South Downs Way and the importance of a strong bra and strategically placed gel pads. Emily Rose Mawson, on the other hand, goes in search of a fairy dell on the Isle of Arran. You have to pop over here to check if she finds it.
On the Forum, Danny2798 is planning a honeymoon in Southern Tanzania and wants your advice on great safaris there. Scheungy wants to know what novels take you back to a particular time and place, bravely admitting to have read the new Dan Brown novel. Apparently, it took Schuengy back to St Marks Square in Venice. Dan Brown novels always take me back to charity shops.
As I suspected, Just Back From is starting to liven up this week as myWanderlusters begin to return from all corners of the globe. Alan Taylor is back from Cornwall where he watched the many moods of St Micheal’s Mount from a sitting room window. Markymark983 has returned from Angelsey where he got up close and personal with puffins on the South Stack. And Farawayvisions survived mooring next to a WWII bomb on the Western Solent. Boffin116, on the other hand has been to Sydney, and was not overly impressed. You can find out why here.
Finally, you must check out Gypsy King’s report from a recent trip to Haiti. It’ll have you booking a flight to Port Au Prince to check out the weekly vodou-rock concert at the Hotel Oloffson. There’s no cover charge and the rum punches are devastating.
