Learning from travel: lessons in life

Learning from travel: lessons in life

Travel as a teacher?  When I was 20 I hadn’t been on a plane and last year I took near on 60 flights… Whilst I’m not as well-travelled as many, I’ve definitely been taught a few important things on my travels…. It isn’t necessary to go abroad to explore and relax – some…

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Je t’adore – l’hotel parfait

Je t’adore – l’hotel parfait

No sooner has Christmas disappeared from the shops than Easter appears, but look carefully and spot the hearts and suchlike for Valentines day!  We are low-key about it, as the other 364 days (365 this year) are the ones that matter.  However, as part of the love-ly travel link up with Emma, Angie, Jessi and guest host Kaelene this…

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January fun and frolics

January fun and frolics

January for its dryness was very wet indeed.  That’s wet from the sky not a bottle. I decided to do my first dry January and apart from a glass of red wine at 2am on 1st January as something of a night cap, I’ve had a lovely month of fruit juice and soda water,…

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Truth in quotes & pictures – the sea

Truth in quotes & pictures – the sea

Anyone that has dipped into my corner of the world wide web can’t have failed to have noticed I am slightly obsessed by the sea, it’s my happy place!  It appears I am not the only one to think this way, there is a plethora of quotes and sayings about the sea, and…

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Travel dreaming – I wish I was in…

Travel dreaming – I wish I was in…

This last week winter finally arrived in the UK – which effectively meant that the rain stopped for a few days and fell as snow and we all turned up our heating and focussed on the fact that the evenings are lengthening and kidding ourselves spring can’t be that far off even though…

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Truth in quotes & pictures – the sun

Truth in quotes & pictures – the sun

Do you spend any time on Instagram or Pinterest looking for inspiration? It is impossible to miss all of the quotes that are pinned and shared.  Some are pointless it has to be said, but there are plenty that get a nod, a wry smile, a like or a re-pin. I thought I…

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Take 12 trips

Take 12 trips

12 months, 12 trips.  Easy you’d think for somebody that likes to travel?  Not so.  There are months when we are either busy or away travelling with work and just want to hold the sofa down or enjoy a weekend in the garden and not go out and have an adventure.  Despite this,…

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Penelope & Parker in December

Penelope & Parker in December

December has been wet, I’d have lost count of the number of storms if it wasn’t for the new approach of naming each with a consecutive letter of the alphabet. I believe we were up to F by the end of December and I think it is fair to say most of the…

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10 not so perfect 2015 moments

10 not so perfect 2015 moments

Blogs tend to focus on the picture perfect postcard side of life… Nobody really wants to read about the less successful or less beautiful parts of the year.  But actually looking back on some of the less glossy moments of the year has made me chuckle. Looking back on some of the less glossy…

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1 more step along the world I go

1 more step along the world I go

One more step along the world I go… It is incredible how much changes in a year, as we travel from the old things to the new…  The amount of things we do, the people we meet, the memories we make – 365 short days turn a year into something rather memorable! It…

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Wishing on a star – 2016 travel

Wishing on a star – 2016 travel

Limited hours of daylight and plenty of rain and cold.  Winter is definitely here, and here for a while yet! This is always the time of year when alongside enjoying the festivities it is a good time to start to think about where the year ahead may take us.  Top of this list is…

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Penelope & Parker in November

Penelope & Parker in November

Winter definitely arrived in November, it teased us for a while and then bam – hat, scarf and gloves and winter coats are de rigeur once again.  It isn’t all doom and gloom though – the days start getting longer again soon!  November has been busy but yet it seems to have stretched…

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The story of (my well travelled) Christmas (decorations)

The story of (my well travelled) Christmas (decorations)

I have always enjoyed the Christmas break – a time to recharge and reconnect with family and friends.  I am already excited about an enjoyable Christmas (and I have of course had my flu jab to ward off any more christmas-flus!).  I love decorating the tree each year, the house looks so snug…

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Recharging in Cornwall

Recharging in Cornwall

After a busy few months at work (and Mr P working hard to beat my business airmiles haul) we were unreasonably excited about two nights away – together – in Cornwall.  Surprisingly it is only our second trip down there this year – we were well overdue some cornish charm and R&R. It was…

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Flashback Friday 41: Solent Sailing

Flashback Friday 41: Solent Sailing

This is the final flashback friday –  Penelope and Parker after 2 years (well actually it is 2 years and 5 days since I registered on WordPress, a little longer since I started on A Luxury Travel Blog) is now a complete record of my adventures – either as a flashback or as another…

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Sisterhood of the World Bloggers

Sisterhood of the World Bloggers

My good blogging friend Kelly has welcomed me into The Sisterhood of the World Bloggers fold and I am happy to answer her questions – on a dreary winters evening it has warmed me up no end!  I love Kelly’s blog – we have a similar take on life (work hard, travel hard…

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Flashback Friday 40 – AP:DC – Washington, my favourite city

Flashback Friday 40 – AP:DC – Washington, my favourite city

I consider myself very lucky to have travelled to Washington 3 times with work, and even luckier to have friends that live nearby (thanks Emily for having me to stay) and family that have been fabulous tour-guides.  In my visits I have decided that Washington DC is my favourite city – thinking about…

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Flashback Friday Travel 39 – Jamaica

Flashback Friday Travel 39 – Jamaica

April in Jamaica was a splendid idea, I remember our trip very fondly indeed.  I must confess, I was nervous about going to Jamaica – it has a little more ‘edge’ to it than other bits of the Caribbean and Mr P had been there before when gang violence hit Kingston which is more…

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Travel Linkup – favourite things

Travel Linkup – favourite things

The Sound of Music is my all-time favourite film, still – as I reach my mid-thirties!!  Imagine my delight when  Kelly, Emma and Rebecca and their lovely co-host Frankie, The Mischievous Mayfairy, announced this month’s travel link-up was about our favourite things.  Instantly I was humming the tune, followed swiftly by ‘Edelweiss’ which is my favourite.  I wondered as I…

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October with Penelope and Parker

October with Penelope and Parker

And so we say hello to November… I’m really not sure how that happened – Christmas doesn’t feel that long ago!  October was another month spent at home – I have enjoyed being based in the UK with work and spending weekends relaxing with Mr P, seeing friends and enjoying a spot of…

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Flashback Friday Travel 38 – Oman

Flashback Friday Travel 38 – Oman

Oh – man, or ooo – man – whichever way you say it, Oman is an incredible place to visit – a stunning coastline, beautiful mountains and dunes and some incredible hotels.  We rounded off a busy year of travel in 2012 with a week in the Sultanate of Oman.  Oman, well more…

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Flashback Friday Travel 37 – Devon and Cornwall

Flashback Friday Travel 37 – Devon and Cornwall

Every May half term when I was at primary school we would go to Dartmouth for a week – we stayed just on the waterfront near to the cannon and chain ferry and the house had a lovely window seat that I used to sit at for hours watching the world and reading…

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Flashback Friday Travel 36 – The Cote d’Azur

Flashback Friday Travel 36 – The Cote d’Azur

It isn’t all high glamour and high prices on the Cote d’Azur – we had a fantastic week there in August 2012 and found relaxed and charming places to visit.  We did of course go off in search of the glamorous areas, and dine out fantastically on one evening – but life is all about…

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Autumnal loveliness in the UK

Autumnal loveliness in the UK

Autumn is, probably, my favourite season to be in the UK.  Yes – it is chilly (but then isn’t our summer), but it is also cosy and the time of year when we most enjoy being at home and catching up with friends.  Summer is always busy, spring sneaks up on us and…

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Blog addicts anonymous – travel linkup

Blog addicts anonymous – travel linkup

My name is Anna and I am a blog addict… I am thrilled to be co-hosting this months travel linkup and what a fun theme – blog addicts anonymous – this month we are laying bare the blogging addiction in an online self-help group…  Over the first week of the month (the 1st –…

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