With nearly two-thirds of 2026 over, here is a quick update on the ticks so far for this year:

After leaving Chinchon, we headed to our 2nd stop of the day. El Escorial or as it is officially called, the Monastery of San Lorenzo de El Escorial. By this time, the temperature had climbed to the high 30's and the walk across the large open square in front of the Palace felt like a km long. Or maybe that was the previously mentioned anis? 

This was another one of those places on my list that's near Madrid and I'd never been to before. Once again, getting here by bus/train was complicated, so I took the easy option of booking a tour. Always good to check out what other guides do and I always learn something new. 

Over 60 years on this earth and yet to eat at a Michelin starred restaurant. Now I've eaten at a few mentioned in the Michelin Guide, but none with a star. The majority are expensive, so out of my budget. Travel or fine dining? The travel always wins, it's an easy decision.

With 4 days off between tours, it didn't seem worth heading back to the UK, so I decided to explore another city I hadn't been to before - Valladolid. It's the primary seat of government and de facto capital of Castilla León and also the capital of the province of Valladolid. With a population of around 370,000, it's a fair sized city. 

With our failure to get to Segovia the day before, we decided fuck it, let's just book a tour and we can visit Segovia and Avila at the same time. So we set off bright and early to our designated meeting spot and after a coffee and some breakfast, jumped on the bus. I spend half my life on tour buses. Not complaining. 

So good to catch up with Fiona and Sally in Madrid and a perfect opportunity to go visit some of the towns surrounding Madrid that I'd not yet been to. 1st up Alcalá de Henares - in truth, by default, as we were heading to Segovia but it got a bit hard and this train was leaving.

On a hot 40 degree day we arrived into San Sebastian and headed up to Monte Igueldo. The views that greeted us, were, as always stunning as we made our way up and through the theme park. Monte Igueldo amusement park is adorable in that “retro carnival that may or may not be haunted” kind of way.

It's hard to believe the 1st Harry Potter book came out 29 years ago! The 1st movie then came out in November 2001 - so coming up to 25 years. WTF, where has time gone? I wonder if all involved knew just how big it would be? All that movie magic had to happen somewhere. A world that made Harry, Hermione and Ron the  conquering of evil wizards they are today - not too mention a lot of money for all. 

A two tick day - woo hoo! After our rather lush afternoon tea experience at the Ritz, B and I went from one extreme to the other and headed to the Viktor Wynd Museum. I think the actual place is called The Last Tuesday Society and it has an absinthe parlor and the Viktor Wynd Museum part is downstairs.

Very excited to hear B was coming over (the Old Chook) and that we'd be able to catch up and maybe get a few ticks off the list. This one was a bit of a surprise last minute bonus. Always wanted to have Afternoon Tea at the Ritz in London. It is of course meant to be the most fancy one - not that I'm particularly fancy or even like fancy things, but it would be nice to do.

The Yorkshire Dales conjure images of lush green valleys, rolling hills, ancient drystone walls and sheep. So on my recent trip up to York, I wasn't going to miss the opportunity to visit the area. With not much time, I booked myself on a day trip and although the day was cold for June and drizzly, I was assured that this was normal for these parts. Aye up then, off we went. Located in North Yorkshire, it's only about an hour or so away from York. Soon we had left the city behind and entered those lush green valleys.