Another staying-put day, as Ferrara is one of my key destinations. It contains the Biblioteca Ariostea, a very old library named after Ludovico Ariosto, who wrote Orlando Furioso and is Ferrara’s most famous son. Less famously, the library features in my novel, Daughters of Fire.
Continue readingInterrail day six – the Bernina Express!
3 May
Or, more informatively, Zurich to Ferrara through the Alps. This is one of the bits of my trip that I have been most looking forward to. There’s a special, scenic, narrow-gauge train through the mountains called the Bernina Express that is reputed to be one of the most spectacular train routes in the world. And it’s included in my Interrail pass!
Continue readingInterrail day five – Leiden to Zurich via Cologne
2 May
This is quite an exciting day for me because I have never been to Germany or Switzerland (except airside at airports, which doesn’t count). Up until now I had at least been to whichever country I was visiting before, if not the particular city
Continue readingInterrail day four – Leiden
1 May
This is Sunday, the day of rest, and I could do with a rest after all that travel, so I’m glad I have nowhere to go today. Instead, I’m just enjoying a sunny day in Leiden.
Continue readingInterrail day three – Bruges to Leiden
30 Apr
Thankfully I slept a lot better in Heidi’s attic than in Hotel Barry. I did slip coming down the vertiginous, smooth wooden steps in my socks while carrying a rucksack, but fortunately managed to keep my balance and only hurt the soles of my feet rather than breaking my neck.
Continue readingInterrail day two – Brussels to Bruges
29 Apr
Well it was not a great night. Hotel Barry won’t be getting a complimentary review for its lumpy pillows and pokey bathroom, although it wasn’t their fault that a man (who was presumably either mentally ill or extremely drunk) yowled outside the window at 2am. A late night rummage in my logically-packed bag for ear plugs solved that problem, but I have booked somewhere else for the way back.
Continue readingInterrail day one – Glasgow to Brussels via London
28 Apr
This is the first of my posts about my big, much-postponed interrailing adventure. If you’re following the WhatsApp group, this is more or less live for you. If not, this is in the past (as it is unwise to advertise on the internet that your house is empty), so consider it a historical document.
Continue readingHow to be an interpreter
23 AprMany of you will know that as well as being a writer and editor, I also interpret and translate Albanian to English. Since the war in Ukraine began, I’ve already been asked how someone can become an interpreter, and I expect there are a lot of people asking the same question. As more Ukrainians arrive, there is a greater need for Ukrainian interpreters, and there are Ukrainians with good English who would like to plug that gap.
But although non-linguists assume that to be an interpreter you just need to speak both languages, there’s actually a bit more to it than that. Obviously, speaking both languages very well is the baseline, but this post is about all the other stuff that professional interpreting involves. Please share it with anyone who might find it helpful.
Continue readingTasty deconstructionism
29 Mar
I’m in the throes of moving house at the moment, and as the new place started out as an empty shell, there’s a lot of work to do. All the to-ing and fro-ing is having a detrimental effect on my diet, since I have very little time to cook, let alone plan meals. (As an example, on the day I started writing this, my lunch consisted of a packet of crisps and two squares of chocolate. Very balanced.)
Continue readingModern Theology for Modern Slavery: Review of Slavery Free Communities by Dan Pratt
25 Feb
Another book review for you this time. Slavery Free Communities was kindly lent to me by my friend Joan, and I took far too long to read this, considering there were other people waiting in line. I’m fairness, my tbr pile is insane. Anyway, I’ve finished it now, I’m passing it on to the next readerg hopefully today, and I’ve used the remainder of my time with it to write a big long review.
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K C Murdarasi 