Stories from travels in

Mary Murphy

The Azure Window

Back in the days when I first started travelling, I had this urgent need to see everything. I’d visit cities having done my homework and

On the Waterfront: Take 2

I’ve been coming to Malta on and off since 2011 – maybe three or four times a year. And just when I think I’ve seen

Beyond expectations

I’m a firm believer in managing my expectations. If you tell me it’s going to be brilliant, I’ll settle for great. If you tell me

Dead, buried, but not forgotten

Someone told me a while back that people die twice. Once when they physically expire and again when their name is spoken for the last

Irish. In Budapest. Next week.

It’s not difficult to be Irish abroad, especially not in Hungary. And especially not during the lead-up to St Patrick’s Day. When he was writing

A hairy-man sandwich

Being caught in the embrace of two hairy men, their arms wrapped tightly around me as they shook me up and down all the while

Upscale street markets in Milan

I have a fondness for other people’s junk. One man’s trash is another man’s treasure and all that. I can’t think of a better way

Prostrate with grief

While on a visit to Milan, to the Cimitero Monumentale di Milano, I was a little taken aback to see a woman, lying prostrate on