Hidden away in the heart of Italy is the Republic of San Marino (Repubblica di San Marino) which is the fifth smallest country in the world and the third smallest country in Europe. It is somewhere that had always been on my list of places that I wanted to visit and earlier this month in March 2025 I finally got there and in turn, San Marino became the 72nd country for me to visit. (more…)

A trip to Zhujiajiao (朱家角古镇) which is also sometimes known as “The Venice of Shanghai” had been on my list of places to visit for the longest time but it was also somewhere that I had never got round to visiting. So when I found out that my next trip to Shanghai would be my last trip to China for the foreseeable future, I knew that I had to make an effort to visit so I finally made the trip out to Zhujiajiao in September last year. (more…)