A holiday in the sun - Banyalbufar in Majorca

Our first overseas holiday with little Sophie now 18 months old. The village we are staying in Majorca is called Banyalbufar. It is on the north-west side of the island, a charming mountain village overlooking the sea. The road going down to our hotel Sacoma is narrow, and our rather inexperienced taxi driver couldn't manage to turn at the last corner, so we had to carry our luggage and Sophie and walked the last 200 meters - not recommended when it is steep downhill in the blazing sun! I like the village, it has a rather enchanting feel. The landscape is pretty, houses and greenery scattered on the terraced mountains stretching out to the sea. The houses are all build on the hills, making the walk up and down the village quite interesting. Apart from farming, the village relies on tourism in summer but it does not seem to be overly developed and commercialised. Our room has a small terrace overlooking the sea, which is lovely. There is a large terrace in the hotel open area where you can sit and have a drink and watch the sun painting the sky before setting to the water in the evening. It is a dusty path to the town beach which is pebbly so not an ideal place to bring a toddler. Sophie seems to enjoy herself in the toddler's pool. There was a "eres negre"(you are black) festival which offers tapas and wine on a seven stop route in local bars/restaurants and music at sunset. One day I took Sophie for lunch in the restaurant when Mark went to the beach for a swim in the sea. The restaurant is the winner of the tapas festival n 2012/2014 and has an interesting tapas menu. I set up Sophie's buggies in the shade, luckily there is a bit breeze going through so she comfortably fell sleep.

An ordinary day in London

It is mid summer, and the sun is shining and it is hot, it's been a great summer by any standard. I had a rare chance to spend a day by myself, which is an usual treat these days. I have been on a "get ready to launch" mode this weekend, getting my hair coloured and picking up some summer sale bargains - a necessity to overhaul my wardrobe before I start my new job on Monday. I was having a relaxed stroll in Kensington high street, I just had my morning coffee, not in a rush to anywhere other than doing some shopping. Then I saw the big crowd with banners gathering around Kensington tube station. I quickly realised this is a protest against Israelis bombing in Gaza. There were more and more people joining as the march was moving along the street, on the other side of road there is a small gathering of Jews opposing Israelis war in Gaza as well. I felt moved. For a moment, I was feeling guilty about going about doing my leisurely shopping when there are serious conflicts in the world and people who are suffering from war. But I don't know the solution to these issues, there don't seem to be one. For so many years, the same pattern repeats itself, it is heart breaking to watch the innocent children dying but unless we find a solutions both parties will accept, I don't see the end to this. Sadly I remind myself the old saying the end of one war is the beginning of the new war, this does seem to be the case for the second world war. I carried on with my bargain hunt and got home after lunch. I turned on the TV, ironically there is a special programme about price George's first 12 months on sky news. I watched with disbelief, feeling somehow this is another nostalgic coverage that keeps us from reality. Same thing as commonwealth games. This must be the least recognised sports event and who cares other than the royals chewing on the remains of the British Empire.