Elaine Massung May 31, 2023

Sacre Bleu!

This French expression of surprise or dismay seemed fitting when I realised it has been well over a year since I last shared a new blog post. It’s not due to a lack of travelling or a lack of desire: I have half-written articles and random paragraphs stashed all over my hard drive, as well as a mega-outline for last… View Post

Elaine Massung July 3, 2019 London

POSTCARDS FROM LONDON: SUMMER EDITION

I first visited Europe when I was fourteen. This was well before digital cameras were common and full eons before I could even imagine having a camera, phone, and computer combo that fit in my pocket. I borrowed my father’s basic 35mm camera for the trip and, for those who don’t remember a time before digital, that meant I was… View Post

Elaine Massung May 8, 2019

THE SWEET TASTE OF TRAVEL

Gallons of ink, both real and virtual, have been spilled extolling the virtues of travel, with quite a few pints by yours truly. Whether described as expanding one’s horizons, sampling new experiences and cultures, or simply part of shaking up a daily routine, it can’t be denied that going to new places can introduce you to things you never imagined… View Post

Elaine Massung November 14, 2018

Bristol Bound and London Memories

[ As Seen on Social Media: I’m afraid there’s no new MissElaineous blog post this week, but I have put together a collection of photos based on the daily photographs from Facebook and Instagram. However, if you’re interested in reducing your waistline as well as your “wasteline“, check out the new Off the Ground blog post about how I lost… View Post

Elaine Massung October 31, 2018

London Accompaniment

Our inside joke started way back in the distant year of 2010, when MrElaineous was still known as Jon and I was just about to embark on the phase of my PhD euphemistically known as “writing up” (reality: “academic hell”). I had a paper accepted to an archaeology conference in Granada, Spain and Jon was interested in going as well;… View Post

Elaine Massung October 17, 2018

Opening Doors in London

Imagine a house you’ve lived in for years. You can navigate to the bathroom in the middle of the night without turning on a light or stubbing your toe. You know those spots of scuffed paint or the peeling wallpaper you keep meaning to fix. You are familiar with every step, every floorboard creak, every quirk of architecture or design.… View Post

Elaine Massung December 20, 2016

London Walkabout

We started off our Sunday in London by going to church … the Greek Orthodox St. Sophia’s Cathedral to be precise. While putting together the surprise trip for my birthday/anniversary, my husband stumbled across this five-star gem on Trip Advisor. As it is only open one day a week, he made sure to plan activities in the area accordingly, so we soaked up the… View Post

Elaine Massung December 16, 2016

London. Eventually.

While the weather gods may have smiled on us at Shaftesbury and Longleat, we apparently neglected the appropriate offerings to the spirits of the railway. We arrived at Chippenham Station just in time to hear that our train was cancelled. A quick check of the First Great Western app showed that problems were to be expected for the next hour. That was okay, no… View Post

Elaine Massung June 24, 2016

London Town: Part 3

The final surprise during our recent trip to London was on the last day: my husband had squeezed in a booking to a photography exhibition for the morning before we were to head back to Chippenham. It seemed very straightforward: leave our hotel, hop on the Circle Line to Barbican, enjoy the exhibit, back on the Circle Line to Paddington. Simple. Except that the Circle… View Post

Elaine Massung June 21, 2016

London Town: Part 2

The second day of my surprise London adventure was just as grey as the first, so I’m afraid there are very few photos from our explorations.  There are plenty of words, however, and I hope that will suffice for the time being. A few years ago, my lovely mother-in-law got me membership to the British Museum as a Christmas gift, and this has become… View Post

Elaine Massung June 17, 2016

London Town: Part 1

Those of you reading this who know me, probably also know that I like to be in control. I like to know what’s going on, have things planned, and be aware of every last detail whenever possible. So it may come as a slight shock that I recently went on a surprise trip to London that my lovely husband had put together. The only thing I… View Post

Elaine Massung March 28, 2016

AN EASTER GETAWAY

Samuel Johnson famously declared that “When a man is tired of London, he is tired of life; for there is in London all that life can afford.” What was true in the 18th century remains just as accurate today. England’s capital city is just over an hour away from home by train, and it’s a place I visit regularly for work and pleasure.… View Post