Foreign Perspectives

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One problem with Spain is that in the summer some areas are just way, way too hot.

Madrid is one of those which means that the best time to see it is around now or if you can’t go soon then in late September when it’s cooled down again. That’s about the best time to see some of the fantastic sights around Madrid too such as the lovely city of Segovia which in many ways is better than Madrid itself as it’s a much more approachable city without quite so much of the over crowding that you often get in Madrid.

Although it’s a great place to see, Segovia hotels aren’t nearly so thick on the ground as Madrid hotels so you might find that it’s easier to base yourself in Madrid and do Segovia as a daytrip if you don’t book far enough in advance. Much better the other way round though if you can manage it.

Similarly cute is Toledo although which you can also reach in around an hour from Madrid although south of the city this time. As with Segovia, Toledo hotels aren’t nearly as numerous as those in Madrid so it’s usually best to book that little bit more in advance if you can.

Everybody’s already seen Madrid but Segovia and Toledo are something that little bit different. Quieter, yes, but no less interesting and a whole lot easier to grasp than the sprawl of Madrid.

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Cyprus is a slightly peculiar place to go on holiday.

One peculiar effect of the British history is that they drive on the left in contrast to pretty much all of Europe. It sounds a trivial thing but it made the place seems that little bit more like “home” to me.

However, it isn’t home and it has a very long Summer season thanks to its position in the eastern Mediterranean. In addition to the obvious attractions as a beach location and, of course, quite a substantial nightlife, you’ll also find that there are lots of Greek era remains just about everywhere you go.

A flight to Cyprus is fairly cheap these days and you’ll find oodles of reasonably priced accommodation there. Very much worth a trip if you’re looking for a combination of somewhere that’s abroad but not too foreign, has beaches but isn’t only beachy.

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Whenever you’ve a peak of bookings, you’re sure to have a peak of cancellations too.

Today for instance is a public holiday here which means, among other things, that the buses aren’t running. So, right on cue, we received a call this afternoon from someone who can’t reach us today. Since the cancellation conditions state that you need to cancel one day in advance, this would normally mean that we’d be billing him for the room tonight but we managed to pick up another booking for his room so he gets off without paying.

As there’s also a bank holiday on Monday, we’re pretty full at the moment and have just found out that the above guest doesn’t have any transport of his own and that a part of four walkers is coming to stay on Saturday night. That leaves us with five people checking out on Sunday who we now know don’t have any transport until Tuesday as there won’t be any buses or taxis on either Sunday or Monday.

I suspect that both lots may want (well, need) to stay another couple of days.

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