Blog Archive

Fjords, friends and journey’s end

Well, New Zealand was a surprise. It’s been on my list of ‘places I’d love to go to one day’, but I hadn’t had time to research our ports of call – Auckland, Bay of Islands, Wellington, Akaroa, Dunedin and the fjords. I loved them all but these were the highlights: Bay of Islands – continue reading »


Art lessons across the Pacific

Maui – Honolulu – Pago Pago (American Samoa) – Apia (Western Samoa) – Auckland Since last writing, I’ve crossed the equator and the date line. I’ve visited Maui, Honolulu, American Samoa and Western Samoa, and we’ve just docked at Auckland, New Zealand.  During the last weeks I have taught classes on colour mixing, perspective, the continue reading »


Rolling down to Old Maui

It’s a damn tough life full of toil and strife we whalemen undergo And we don’t give a damn when the whaling’s done how hard the wind does blow For we’re homeward bound from the Arctic ground with a good ship taut and free And we won’t give a damn when we drink our rum continue reading »


Diary of a roving art tutor (1)

Week One: Barbados to Mexico The cut is deep and narrow But it lets a big ship through So thank you to the men Who sliced a continent in two First of the Gatun locks on the Atlantic side The Panama Canal has always been a source of fascination for me – the audacity of continue reading »


Sketching my way to Sydney

At the age of twelve I sailed aboard the P&O liner ‘Orsova’ from Singapore to London. This was a sensible long haul travel option in the sixties, especially when you were moving house from one side of the world to the other. My father’s spells of duty as meteorologist lasted about three years, and we continue reading »