Category Archives: Events

April 2nd, 2011

  • James Littlewood & Tracey Dornan – Boy girl bike road

    She dreamt of seeing the world, but couldn’t justify the carbon. He had always dreamed of the challenge of cycling to Hong Kong. With no previous experience of cycle touring, lycra or life together this is the adventure of one couple and their view from the saddle on an attempt to circumnavigate the globe by bicycle and boat.  A cycle ride of 18,000 miles through 23 countries.

  • Lord Ian Strathcarron – Byron and the Grand Tour

    Two hundred years ago, between 1809-11, Lord Byron completed his Grand Tour of the Mediterranean. He was 21 when he left London. After catching a packet from Falmouth to Lisbon, his entourage rode down to Sevilla and Cadiz. He then sailed from Gibraltar to Sardinia, Sicily, Malta, Greece, Albania, back to Greece then Turkey, Malta again and then with a heavy heart home to England. His voyage was exotic and poetic, erotic and eccentric.

    On June 14th 2008 British sailors Ian and Gillian Strathcarron boarded their yacht ‘Vasco da Gama’ in Hampshire and sailed off to recreate Lord Byron’s Grand Tour. Their own voyage was propitious and perilous, mysterious and mischievous – but seldom abstemious.

    The presentation is taken from the resulting book ‘Joy Unconfined! Lord Byron’s Grand Tour’

London branch meetings are held at The Church of Scotland, Crown Court, behind the Fortune Theatre in Covent Garden at 2.30pm the first Saturday of each month, unless there is a UK public holiday that weekend.

There is no London meeting in August, but we start afresh each September.

15th January 2011

The January Chester meeting is on 15th January 2011.

  • My Time Living in Japan with Matthew Proe
  • “Hill tribes of northern Vietnam”  with Vic Blundell

Please note that our second talk has replaced the planned programme of “CYCLING THROUGH EUROPE” which will be given at our March meeting.

Our meeting will be held at the usual venue – The Grosvenor Museum, 25-27 Grosvenor Street, Chester CH1 2DD, just 15 minutes walk from Chester Railway Station,  or catch the free bus into the city centre. Doors  open at 1pm – for 1-30pm start. Tickets £3 inclusive of refreshments.

Our future meeting dates to add to your diary for 2011 are 19 MARCH, 28 MAY, 16 JULY, 17 SEPTEMBER AND 19 NOVEMBER. Please come along to the to the January meeting – we value your support at our Chester meetings and also appreciate your feedback.

See you 15 Jan 1pm for 1-30pm start at the GROSVENOR MUSEUM.

December 4th 2010

John Pilkington

A stroll through the axis of evil – Lebanon, Syria, Iraq & Iran

Dick Curtis

“It all started in Kashmir ….”

A year away from work and travelling by “whim” was a life-enriching revelation.

January 8th 2011

Four 20 minutes Mini-talks and our New Year Party

Our January meeting gives four speakers to present 20 minute talks, an opportunity to introduce subjects within a tighter format. We hope that talks may include topics that couldn’t be sustained over a normal 40 minute talk or offer a launch for new speakers.

Speaking this month we have:

  1. Neil Harris – Myoko Festival: Apatani New Year, northeast India
  2. Sohail Azhar – Pakistan
  3. Richard Timmis – Naukluft Hiking Trail, Namibia
  4. Liz Cooper – Wildlife of the Okavango Delta

By tradition we follow this meeting with a New Year Party post-meeting everyone is invited to bring food and drink and participate! (We have permission from the church for you to bring wine, but beer, cider and spirits are not allowed).

London branch meetings are held at The Church of Scotland, Crown Court, behind the Fortune Theatre in Covent Garden at 2.30pm the first Saturday of each month, unless there is a UK public holiday that weekend.

There is no London meeting in August, but we start afresh each September.