Author Archives: JJS

The great winter escape

Posted on January 5, 2026 by JJS

🇬🇧 (That we escaped from too soon) ☃️ You know that feeling when you check out of a hotel at 10am and then watch from the taxi as they start handing out free champagne in the lobby at 10:15? That’s … Continue reading →

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My ridiculous ambitious writing plan

Posted on January 4, 2026 by JJS

🇬🇧 How I became a human content factory Happy New Year! That magical time when we all pretend we’re going to become completely different people overnight. Gym memberships skyrocket, salad sales boom, and somewhere, a dusty notebook whispers, “Maybe this … Continue reading →

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Looking back… and looking up

Posted on December 30, 2025 by JJS

As one sometimes does in the quiet days just before—or just after—the New Year, I found myself looking back at the main events of the past twelve months. It’s a reassuring ritual: a mix of memory, curiosity, and the comforting … Continue reading →

Posted in Air travel experience, Airports, Uncategorized, year in review | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Settling back

Posted on December 30, 2025 by JJS

🇬🇧 It feels exceptionally good to be home after ten excellent days in Germany, spent doing what holidays are meant for: seeing family, meeting friends, eating far too well and completely losing track of time. I have now been home … Continue reading →

Posted in Everyday life, French life | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Trip to Germany for Xmas

Posted on December 29, 2025 by JJS

🎄The Suitcase That Knew Better Far too early really. So early, in fact, that even the alarm clock seemed to apologize when it went off at 4:45 a.m. But there are moments in life when sleep must be sacrificed on … Continue reading →

Posted in Airlines, Travel, Travel & Experiences | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Giulietta

Posted on December 15, 2025 by JJS

🇫🇷 Ode à l’essence super et à l’insouciance Je suis tombé par hasard sur une photo d’une Giulietta exactement comme la mienne. Même couleur, même air de défi mécanique, même promesse de liberté. Années 69 ou 70. Autant dire que … Continue reading →

Posted in Nostalgia | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Memories from the Lay-by at Lakenheath

Posted on December 12, 2025 by JJS

🇬🇧 Back in the days when I lived in Surrey — before the M25 spared us the joy of crossing London — I had a couple of important customers up in Norfolk. That meant a monthly pilgrimage northwards, usually involving … Continue reading →

Posted in Nostalgia, Planes Space and bits, Road Trips | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

🥐Paris Rules the World (Again!)

Posted on December 5, 2025 by JJS

🇬🇧 Yes, dear readers — your humble (but très chic) Parisian narrator is gloating just a little: for the fifth year in a row, Paris has been named the world’s #1 city destination in the 2025 ranking by Euromonitor International. … Continue reading →

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The month that was – November 2025

Posted on November 30, 2025 by JJS

🇬🇧 How I survived pubs, panto, poultry and painkillers Today is the last day of November and, for those of us raised on catechism, hymns, and the comforting fear of eternal damnation, it also happens to be the first Sunday … Continue reading →

Posted in Monthly Recaps | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

My daily rendez-vous with caffeine, headlines and questionable pyjamas

Posted on November 26, 2025 by JJS

🇬🇧 There is absolutely nothing I cherish more in life than my sacred morning ritual: a steaming cup of coffee, the global news at my fingertips, and me — majestically draped in pyjamas that have seen better centuries and a … Continue reading →

Posted in Daily Life | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment