Friday 13th, 7.am, and we are sitting in our coach, (no. 16, there is no 13 coach as it is unlucky in Jordan), ready for a two hour drive to the mysterious city of the Nabateans, Petra, one of the seven Wonders of the World. We are full of anticipation. From this natural fortress, the Nabateans commanded the trade routes from Arabia and the East, until the Romans conquered them. On arrival we walked to the entrance of the Siq - a very narrow, twisting pathway...

Muscat, the Capital of Oman, was our next port of call and totally different. Sailing into the port, we observed the rugged mountain scenery which reminded us much of southern Spain. As we walked walked through this city we enjoyed seeing the people in their traditional costumes.We walked through the Mutrah Suq where the stalls were full of Omani items such as Dullah (bronze coffee pots), exotic spices and frankincense. I thought I was in church. After a li...

We arrived in Dubai at 6.00am having raced across the Arabian Sea, through the Gulf of Oman and around the Straight of Hormuz. The pirates couldn't keep up with us!!!! The shoreline here is very flat, as it is mainly reclaimed land, with skyscrapers on the skyline. We left the ship full of anticipation and excitement. Our tour was a mixture of the old and the new of Dubai. The old was the Bastakiya area, one of the oldest in Dubai, with its ancient houses bed...

We were awakened by our early morning call at 6 a.m., a little breakfast, and then out into this great big city, and as I thought it was certainly a city of contrasts. We saw towers of steel and glass next to stately stoned edifices. Our tour took us past the monuments built during the British era, including the Victoria Terminus Station, the High Court and Mumbai University and on to the former residence of Mahatma Gandhi, which is now a museum and memorial to ...

Cochin is the largest town in the state of Kerala, which is the most advanced of all India's states. Of particular interest on our tour was the Chinese fishing nets. Although there are no Chinese now their style of fishing is still carried on. These nets are set up on bamboo poles and held by huge mechanisms, which lower them into the sea, when the tide is in they catch sea fish and when the tide is out they catch fresh water fish. Also of particular interest...