The weather-beaten Cuban capital is a party-lover's paradise, says the DJ and producerI came to Havana to record an album that reflects the impact of hip-hop, R&B and Jamaican dancehall on Cuban music. I'm also making a music travel documentary as part of a series called "International Radio 1", which is me and other Radio 1 DJs reporting on different music scenes around the world.My connection to Cuba is the music. I used to go to Ronnie Scott's in the 80s and heard amazing Cuban jazz musicians like Irakere – their cut of "Chekere Son" is a club classic for me. Cuba's got a deep tradition and, through the music, I've been fortunate to be able to get beneath the surface and connect with the spirit of its people.My first visit, in 2008, allowed me to take in this grandiose, weathered and largely decaying city and hook up with a new generation of young artists who have created their own agenda.Day oneDespite President Barack Obama relaxing US pressure on Cuba, the impact of the embargo is still obvious. Not even a funky old Chevy to pick me up at the airport – I'm disappointed. The journey into Havana is quick – there's no traffic. I check in at the Hotel Saratoga(Paseo del Prado and Dragones Street; +53 7 868 1000; hotel-saratoga.com), a neoclassical-style building which has a great little bar, the Anacaona, named after a women's orchestra that played there. I've hardly showered before darkness drops like a cloak over the city. There are a few street lamps here but they're prone to being extinguished by the regular power cuts.After finalising our schedule, I check out Havana's Jazz Café(third level of the Galerías del Paseo shopping mall, open noon-2am daily). You have to make your way past ladies of the night on the stairs. The cafe books top musicians and the vibe is good, even if the sound system's not great. That said, it's better than at another jazz club, La Zorra y El Cuervo(The Fox and the Crow), on La Rampa (155 Calle 23, open 9.30pm-2am daily), which you enter through a red English telephone box. It is one of the worst-designed clubs I've seen, but people seem to love it. At weekend matinees, called Afternoons of Remembrance (Saturday and Sunday, 2.30pm-7pm), bands play music from the 60s and 70s.Day twoI'm an early riser. It's already hot and I'm off for a run.  I leave the hotel, run past the imposing government buildings down the Prado – a Barcelona Ramblas-type avenue – to the sea and up along the Malecón. That sea spray helps me survive, even if it is a little salty. When I reach the Hotel Nacional de Cuba(Calle 21 y O, Vedado; +53 7 836 3564; hotelnacionaldecuba.com/en), I double back. I feel good, and ready to start work.I've got about a week to produce this album for my Brownswood label (brownswoodrecordings.com). It's a collaboration with Havana Cultura (havana-cultura.com), an impressive art project run by Havana Club that showcases the work of artists living in the city and around the world.Our first stop – and home for most of this trip – is Egrem, the legendary national recording studios in downtown Havana. It's where all the major figures of the Cuban music scene have recorded, including Benny Moré, Arsenio Rodriguez and, of course, the Buena Vista Social Club.That evening we drop into the best live venue in Cuba – Casa de la Música de Centro Habana(Calle Galiano, Miramar; +53 7 862 4165), which is managed by Egrem. It's the official venue for all the hot salsa and timba bands, and I get to check out Los Van Van, one of Cuba's major timba acts led by the legendary Juan Formell. There are matinees at the weekends, which are good for hip-hop and rap.Day threeThanks to jet lag, I've come to love walking around different cities at the crack of dawn, and Havana at 6am is priceless. It's always good to chat to the doormen and newspaper sellers. But music is the lifeblood of this city.The biggest music on the street is reggaeton (where reggae and dancehall meets bomba, plena, salsa, merengue, latin pop, cumbia and bachata, hip-hop, contemporary R&B and rap), and the organic sound of the rumba, but as people get more access to the internet, Cuba is becoming part of the wider world. The Havana Cultura website has put us in contact with lots of incredible musicians, singers, poets and rap artists, including a remarkable new voice in Danay and Ogguere, arguably Cuba's finest hip-hop crew.We meet at Egrem under the guidance of our 27-year-old musical director – the globally acclaimed jazz pianist Roberto Fonseca. Though I'm here to work, I still feel drawn to do the odd touristy thing. In the evening, I enjoy drinking daiquiris at El Floriditain Habana Vieja (Obispo No 557; +53 7 867 1299; floridita-cuba.com), one of Hemingway's favourite haunts.Day fourA rumba session spontaneously gathers momentum in the studio – it's wicked. We decide to get the rumberosinto the studio and get busy on the track. That night I walk to Las Vegas(Calle Infanta No 204; 00 53 7 836 7939; open 10pm-3am), an old cabaret venue. More echoes of downtown Barcelona. Normally, it's electronica and techno – check the resident DJ Dark from Doble Filo.Day fiveCallejón de Hamelis an alley in central Havana that reminds me of the Pelhourinho district of Salvador De Bahia in Brazil. The place is alive with colour and it's mostly down to the neighbourhood being claimed as a physical, living canvas by resident artist and sculptor Salvador González. There are brightly coloured murals and objects that celebrate Afro-Cuban religion. On Sundays they have big, open rumba sessions; Salvador is always around. You can meet and buy art works direct from the man himself. I got a couple of great pieces, but a word of warning: you need a special contract signed to get the artworks out of the country.  Day sixThe food in Cuba is typically Caribbean and can be quite bland. Anyway, here's a couple of places to check:La Guarida(Calle Concordia No 418; +53 7 863 7351; laguarida.com) is a paladar– privately owned restaurants found in the living rooms of ordinary families trying to make an honest dollar. It's down a dimly lit backstreet, and you have to go up three flights of stairs in a former mansion that is now subdivided into flats. The four inter-connecting rooms of the restaurant are crammed full of bric-a-brac, and it's a great place to have a special meal. Juan Carlos Tabío used the house as a set for his 1994 film Strawberry and Chocolate. Unfortunately, there's no serious wine list.  For that sort of thing, you need to go to another paladar– La Fontanain Miramar (Calle 3A No 305; +53 7 202 8337), on the posh side of the city, where the embassies are. La Fontana is like being in a great spot in Miami – the main restaurant is outdoors and has little ponds with fish, and round the back there's a great bar. But my favourite place is El Aljibe(Calle 7; +53 7 204 1583/4), which is also in Miramar; it does the best chicken, rice and beans in town.Day sevenAt the studio we have Chucho Valdés's sister, Mayra Caridad, guesting and putting a twist on "Chekere Son" and Fela Kuti's "Roforofo Fight". It's a rum-fuelled session and the results are blazing – Nigeria meets Cuba. There's not much time to walk around the city, but I am taken to the most glorious, hidden, enchanting garden called Los Jardines de la Tropical(Avenida Tropical y Rizo; open 9am-5pm, Tue-Sun; free), where a ballet group is rehearsing. Don't ask me how to get there, but be prepared to land in the set of a Guillermo del Toro movie – all grottoes, mazes and pavilions set amid the overgrown vegetation.Day eightOld Havana has been tidied up and restored to its previous grandeur for the tourists – old-school baroque Havana meets Disney. I check out the Havana Club museum of rum(Avenida del Puerto 262; +53 7 861 8051; havana-club.com; open daily from 9.30am-5.30pm), housed in a renovated 18th-century colonial townhouse, where you get to understand the roots of the drink and down a cheeky mojito.From there, we travel to Santa Maria beach(Playa del Este), about 30km from the centre. Looking across the beachfront, it's a picture postcard tropical Caribbean paradise but it is surrounded by Costa Brava-type hotels – a reminder that tourism brings a pile of unwanted cultural baggage that is inevitably balanced against the euros.It's the last night and I play a DJ set at the Turf Clubin Vedado (Calle Calzada). It's a bit like going into the 606 Club when it used to be on London's King's Road – a small, tight doorway in a residential area. Inside, there's room for about 100 people. It's a mostly white, educated, studenty crowd. The ceiling is low, it's sweaty and the vibe is good. The perfect culmination to one very hectic mission.• International Radio 1, a new four-part Monday night series starts on 4 January at 9pm on BBC Radio 1.• Havana Cultura – a double CD – is out now on Brownswood Recordings.HavanaCubaCity breaksBars and clubsCultural tripsguardian.co.uk© Guardian News &Media Limited 2009 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms &Conditions| More Feeds

  â€¢ Passenger backlog will take days to clear• Snow strands thousands in cars overnight• Airports work to resume service after weather delaysEurostar passengers stranded for days in London queued to get the first resumed Eurostar services to Paris this morning as more ice and snow overnight caused fresh travel disruption.The most fraught Christmas getaway in years continued with a warning from travel operators that the backlog caused by cancellations of flights and train services could threaten the travel plans of many more people in the coming days.Eurostar began to slowly clear its backlog of thousands of passengers waiting to reach the continent when a restricted service through the channel tunnel resumed at 7.30am.Anyone holding a Eurostar ticket to travel to France today would still not be able to leave before Christmas Eve, after the service was suspended for three days due to the particularly fine snowin northern France.More problems arose elsewhere as heavy snow overnight caused thousands of people to be trapped in their cars. Hampshire police said 3,000 people were stranded in heavy snow around Basingstoke. Along stretches of the M40 in Berkshire and Buckinghamshire, eight rest centres were set up for stranded drivers.The AA's president, Edmund King, advised drivers not to expect rescue services to reach them if they ignored warnings and ventured out in the worst-affected areas."Whenever there is bad weather, authorities always warn people not to undertake non-essential journeys, and usually I would take that with a pinch of salt. But on this occasion, I really would warn people that if they choose to travel they must remember rescue vehicles may well be unable to reach them," King said."Ringroads turned into ice rinks, and councils either didn't seem to be gritting in time, or didn't use enough grit and salt. In Basingstoke, the council didn't seem to start gritting until 2.30pm, by which point it had been snowing for an hour and a half."Staff at Gatwick airport were working to clear a backlog of passengersafter reopening the runway last night, while Aberdeen, Luton and Southampton were also working to resume flight operations but warned travellers of continued delays.Manchester airport – where passengers had to endure long waits just to reach the check-in desk – gave out food, water and blankets overnight to people stranded by delays.Yesterday many flights bound for Luton and Gatwick airports were diverted to East Midlands, causing a knock-on effect as planes were left overnight at the wrong airport. Cancellations were reported at Stansted, Aberdeen and Bristol.British Airways cancelled all European and UK domestic flights out of Heathrow after 7pm, and services from London City were "significantly disrupted".The AA reported its busiest day for breakdowns in a decade yesterday. Some 16,000 breakdowns were recorded by mid-afternoon, compared with the winter average of 10,000 a day.The cold snap has come at the worst time for rail companies, which have reported a surge in domestic passenger demand this Christmas, fuelled by fears of airline disruption. The Association of Train Operating Companies said 814,000 advance tickets were sold in the first 10 days of December, 12.5% higher than last year.Network Rail is carrying out £100m of investment and 730,000 man-hours of engineering work over Christmas, markedly less than in recent years when mainline services were beset by delays after Christmas. There will be 8,000 more trains and 44% fewer replacement bus services than last year. Engineering works likely to cause most rail disruption are on the line between Bristol and Newport.The cold weather is expected to continue for the rest of the week, with daytime temperatures rarely above 3C (37F) or 4C, and with temperatures of –5C to -7C common at night, said the Met Office. Heavy snow warnings have been issued for today in many parts of the Midlands and southern England.Tomorrow and Thursday there will be sunny spells with showers falling as rain or snow, but not as heavy as in recent days. Christmas Day is likely to start sunny before a front moves in from the west, bringing rain or snow.WeatherTransportChannel TunnelAir transportRail transportRail travelRoad transportHelen PiddDan MilmoJames SturckeMatthew Weaverguardian.co.uk© Guardian News &Media Limited 2009 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms &Conditions| More Feeds

  Sally Shalam has stayed in hundreds of hotels, B&Bs and cottages, witnessing a revolution in hospitality, but which are the best? She picks her top 10 of the decadeWhat a difference a decade makes. It's almost safe to say goodbye to Brit Grot. I'm talking about the kind typified at a Lake District B&B I booked nearly three years ago (the only one within reach of a remote wedding). Carpet tiles (yuck) in a shared loo (yuck) which reeked of damp, and food worthyof a Bushtucker Trial. It was all the more shocking because in the last 10 years I have witnessed a new era dawning in which, finally, independent accommodation, food and service often exceed expectation, and sometimes even deliver levels we'd forgotten we deserved.These days, disappointment no longer lurks around every corner. For each establishment still loitering in the dark ages, I have stayed at scores that set their sights sky-high.The country house hotel deserves much of the credit for dragging standards up. Take Babington House, the Somerset outpost of private London club Soho House, a country pad which opened its doors (to all, not just members) at the close of 1998. Zoe Ball and Norman Cook famously picked it for their wedding reception in 1999. Their guests enjoyed dramatic style in the bar and drawing room and understated sumptuousness in the bedrooms. Brit-luxe had arrived.That same year, Hotel du Vinopened its third property. Not, as the first two, a Georgian townhouse in the stockbroker belt, but a bold warehouse conversion in Bristol. With clubby chic and bistro dining, Egyptian cotton sheets and fabulous bathrooms, HduV brought Brit-luxe to an urban setting.Fast forward to 2005. By now, Michelin-starred chef Michael Caines had picked up the baton and launched ABode hotelswith a millionaire business partner. He observed the affordable room rate mantra (even now you can get change from £100 a night), but brought fine dining to his hotel restaurants and even created a sexy subterranean bar for ABode Glasgow, befitting its central location near Sauchiehall Street.Into this maelstrom of activity dived Yo! Sushi entrepreneur Simon Woodroffe, with Yotel– minimal, pod‑chic bedrooms at our airports – and Pret A Manger co-founder Sinclair Beecham, who slid a tasty filling into London's East End regeneration with his Hoxton Hotel, whose booking system mirrors that of many budget airlines so that room rates are frequently offered at single-figure prices.As the internet revolutionised how we choose and book accommodation, hoteliers had to wake up and smell the coffee (being brewed at home in Alessi cafetières by a discerning public wanting visual reassurance via a website before parting with any cash).The wider tourist industry has taken its cue from the innovators, translating and reworking Brit-luxe on a small, individual scale. In 2009 I am no longer gobsmacked to find a monsoon shower or antique bath in a B&B, and those who do not keep up standards are quickly outed on the net – either by a poor website or consumer reviews.Crack open the Bolly. The writing is on the wall for grim cottages – champagne glasses, thick towels, smart decor now come as standard. In a recession, Brit Grot simply cannot survive. These are my seminal stays of the past decade.The Samling, CumbriaMy favourite hotel. First visited in 2001, when I fell in love with its hillside setting overlooking Windermere, suites in converted stone outbuildings, unstuffy atmosphere, discreet service. I worried it would all change when the von Essen hotel group took it over in 2008, but all's well. At the start of this year I found a daringly minimal new room (The Dovenest), and ate elegant modern food – the sort which makes me want to beat doubters of British restaurants with a big stick. It's a massive treat, the website doesn't do it justice – must have a word . . .• 01539 431922, thesamlinghotel.co.uk. Winter midweek special, from £140pp pn including breakfast and dinner.Cliff Barns, NorfolkFor me, the self-catering revolution started here, in 2003, when designers Russell Hall and Shaun Clarkson converted a barn in Narborough to an eight-bedroom getaway complete with use of a beach hut at Old Hunstanton. Board games, bunk rooms, farmhouse kitchen for kids' meals, hot tub and sauna for shattered parents, and an interior – wagon-wheel chandeliers, cowhide and plaid aplenty – straight out of the High Chaparral. At last, a house in which humour didn't come courtesy of creaking beds, thunderous plumbing and lacy horrors at the windows. Clarkson and Hall have not stood still; last year they opened Carrington Housein Snettisham, which takes the wild interior to a new level.• 0870 850 5468, cliffbarns.com. Sleeps 18, three-night weekend from £3,290.Trinity House lighthouse cottages, nationwideIn the past decade, 27 former lighthouse keepers' cottages have become holiday lets through Rural Retreats. Sad though I am that the lighthouse keeper is no more, I can think of no better way to celebrate our coastal heritage than by staying at one. I have tried two – at North Forelandnear Broadstairs in Kent (the last lighthouse to be automated, in 1998), and Whitbyin North Yorkshire. They are at the simpler end, for what is a very upmarket cottage company (the standard of welcome hamper you now find in all sorts of places were once only to be found in Rural Retreats' properties), but you come to these places for isolation, magnificent seascapes, the eerie lighthouse beam at night, and clifftop or shoreline walks. • 01386 701177, ruralretreats.co.uk. From £494 per week low season. The Cove, CornwallThe first time I stayed in an aparthotel (on Tenerife) I thought it a brilliant discovery – kitchen and plenty of space, plus hotel facilities (the bar, rather than pool, coming into its own when rain set in for two days). The next time, it was a bank holiday in Lamorna Cove, Penzance. Sun blazed, I swam outside with uninterrupted views of the sea, ate warm croissants delivered each morning to my whiter than white contemporary apartment, and strolled along fragrant garden terraces. To date, I haven't found anywhere else like The Covein the UK. Family friendly (stay outside school hols if you want peace), with 15 rooms, restaurant and tiny spa.• 01736 731411, thecovecornwall.com. From £150 per night.  Saracen's Head, NorfolkThis is as far from one of those self-conscious arriviste pub-with-rooms concoctions – all shiny leather and overpriced food – as you can get. I have yet to find the perfect blend of pub/restaurant/room. The Saracen's Head, a former coaching inn at Wolterton, doesn't have much of the "pub" element, but it has the other attributes in spades. Unpretentious bedrooms, and two fingers up at po-faced menus (fricassee of wild and tame mushrooms, anyone?). Outside, a blackboard claimed to offer the last decent meal for 100 miles. Chef Robert Dawson-Smith wants to retire, but the lovely Saracen's remains unsold, and he in the kitchen. So until further notice, it remains in my top 10, as an antidote to bland conformity.• 01263 768909, saracenshead-norfolk.co.uk. From £90 per night B&B.The Torridon Boat House, Wester Ross Remote, romantic, but most importantly, proof that style and a stunning setting can be enjoyed in winter in the middle of nowhere. It was a wrench (after two short midwinter days) to turn my back on the 180-degree view of Loch Torridon beyond the terrace of this two-bedroom cottage on the Torridon Estate. Contemporary open-plan living, two bedrooms (only one has Loch views) and a bathroom. The kitchen was a joy, but the estate's former hunting lodge is now a hotel. Which meant a bar and restaurant were on tap for loch lobster, truffle-glazed Highland beef fillet, Scottish cheeses, homemade oatcakes and a whisky selection running into the hundreds – chuck in Berocca with the thermals.• 01445 791242, thetorridon.com/boathouse. Sleeps four. From £825-£1,300 per week. Hotel closed January.The Ashton, LancasterA respectable newspaper recently compared entering this B&B with "interrupting a séance". Made me hoot. If you don't like fashionably dark paintwork then, yes, skip this entry, but my first impression was an interior soothing, stylish and packed with personality. Then I went to my bedroom, which had a Hypnos mattress, Ren toiletries, monsoon shower, beautiful linen and incredible attention to detail. "Landlady" James Gray has raised the bar by a mile this year, creating a "destination B&B". In other words, I'd revisit Lancaster for The Ashton, not the other way round.• 01524 68460, theashtonlancaster.com. From £125 per night B&B. Pear Tree Farm, HerefordshireStruggling to find an apt description for this bed-and-breakfast in Wigmore run by a Guardian-reading duo, I finally went for "gastro-B&B". This new genre is giving pubs up and down the country a run for their money. At Pear Tree Farm, youare being cooked for (as opposed to "Table Six, bad highlights, purple handbag"). My set menu made much of Herefordshire produce, and everything – from the candlelit dining room to the classical music, homemade bread and calming vibe – conspired to make it a night to remember.• 01568 770140, peartree-farm.co.uk. Two-night minimum stay, £105 per room per night. Bryn Eglur, CarmarthenshireMy list would not be complete without online rental company Under The Thatch, which has carved out its own niche in Wales. My favourite is Bryn Eglur, a 300-year-old cottage which has been rescued from dereliction and gently, sensitively nudged into modern use without travesties such as phone or telly being shoved in. A mark of our hunger for simplicity (as opposed to minimalism), it's as much about what you don't have as what you do.• 01239 851410, underthethatch.co.uk. Sleeps up to four, but best for two. Three-night weekend break from £229.Shakespeare House, BuckinghamshireThis place is proof that the lines between hotels and B&Bs are blurring. Breakfast (freshly squeezed orange juice, perfect poached eggs) is served on lovely china before a crackling grate in a dining lobby; afternoon tea (finger sandwiches, scones, everything homemade) in the drawing room; dinner (a goat's cheese tart perhaps, beef fillet or lamb shank, and hot chocolate pudding or poached pears) in the Chinese Blue dining room. The Bard himself stayed here (when it was a coaching inn), but now the sheets are Versace and Shakespeare Househas made it into the pages of the 2010 Good Hotel Guide. • 01296 770776, shakespeare-house.co.uk. B&B from £85.HotelsUnited KingdomBed and breakfastsLake DistrictKentYorkshireCornwallNorfolkLancashireScotlandWalesSelf-cateringSally Shalamguardian.co.uk© Guardian News &Media Limited 2009 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms &Conditions| More Feeds

  Tougher visa rules follow arrest in US of Mumbai terror suspect who visited India on multiple-entry visaBritain and the US have lodged a diplomatic protest with India after the government in Delhi introduced rules barring tourists from returning to the country within two months of any visit.The new visa rules, which also apply to other foreign nationals, are apparently a reaction to the arrest in the US of a Mumbai terror suspect, David Coleman Headley, who had entered India on a multiple-entry visa.The British high commission in Delhi has urged the Indian government to rethink the policy, which is expected to hit tourists planning to use India as a base for touring the region.It will also be a blow to thousands of Britons living in India on long-term tourist visas. Many foreigners living in India prefer to use tourist visas rather than go through the complicated process of trying to secure a visa that would grant them the right to residency.Some apply for six-month tourist visas and then travel to nearby countries, such as Nepal, to renew them. Those on longer-term tourist visas ‑ for five or 10 years ‑ are also required to leave the country every 180 days and tend to fly out for a couple of days before returning. Under the new rules, that would no longer be an option.Posts on internet travel forums suggest that some British tourists have already fallen foul of the rules and have found themselves stranded and unable to return to India after visiting neighbouring countries.On the IndiaMike forum one poster, from London, described how he had been renting an apartment in Goa and had travelled to Nepal to apply for a new six-month tourist visa, only to be informed that he would not be allowed back in for two months."This is insane," he wrote. "How can you introduce a rule without any prior warning and let ppl [sic] make plans and pay for flights etc and mess everything up for them … I now have no option but to get a transit visa and leg it back to Goa, get my stuff and leave … all this achieves is me and 1000's of others having to cut their plans short and spend none of that cash into the system … Well done!!"A spokesman for the British high commission said the high commissioner had written to protest. "We have discussed this matter with the government of India. As yet there is no real clarity over the details of the proposals or of how they might be implemented. We understand that the Indian government is reconsidering its plans. We shall keep a close eye on this as it develops because it has the potential to impact on a large number of British nationals."Details of the plans are yet to be published but reports in India suggested that people of Indian origin living in the UK will also be caught up in the rule change.Many British passport holders with Indian origins use tourist visas to visit relatives in India rather than tackling the bureaucratic minefield involved in applying for a Person of Indian Origin card, which would allow them entry into the country. They will also be subject to the no return for two months rule.The Indian government has apparently sought to defuse the row by giving consular officials the power to grant exemptions in exceptional cases, although there is as yet no clarity on how that might be applied.British diplomatic sources also suggested the changes had alarmed some Indian companies with nationals working overseas, who feared that their business interests might be affected if other countries introduced reciprocal arrangements.The decision, by India's home ministry, comes after officials reviewed the case of Headley, who is under arrest in the US accused of scouting targets for terrorist attacks, including the Mumbai attacks last year which left 166 people dead.He was found to have used a multiple entry business visa to make nine trips to India, during which time he is alleged to have visited a number of potential targets.India has already cracked down on business visas this year, informing thousands of holders that they must return to their home countries and prove that they meet much stricter criteria before new visas will be issued.Ironically, the clampdown comes as the country attempts to boost its tourism industry. Last week the home minister, P Chidambaram, announced the trial introduction of a visa on arrival scheme for citizens of Singapore, Japan, New Zealand, Luxembourg and Finland and said a country the size of India should be attracting at least 50 million visitors a year. About five million tourists visit India every year, including an estimated three quarters of a million Britons.A final draft of the visa regulations is expected to be issued next month but in the meantime a number of embassies in India have notified their citizens of the changes. The Indian embassy in Berlin has also posted the rule on its website, noting that "a minimum gap of two months is mandatory between visits as tourists to India".The introduction of the new system coincides with a visit to India by the business secretary, Lord Mandelson, who has been trying to calm Indian concerns over changes to Britain's immigration rules.IndiaIndiaUnited StatesMumbai terror attacksGethin Chamberlainguardian.co.uk© Guardian News &Media Limited 2009 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms &Conditions| More Feeds

  Shake off the Christmas Day sloth with raft racing, barrel rolling or a dip in the mudTenby Boxing Say swim, Dyfed, Wales Now in its 29th year, the Tenby Boxing Day Swim is the highlight of the town's Christmas calendar, with some 600 swimmers and thousands of onlookers flocking to the town's beach. Most swimmers are in fancy dress – this year the theme is "seasonal songs" – and there are raft and canoe races and a blazing bonfire to warm up freezing swimmers after their dip. The charity event takes place on the North Beach, and the swim itself is at 11.30am.• tenbyboxingdayswim.co.ukThe Keynsham Mummers, SomersetEvery Boxing Day the streets of sleepy Keynsham, between Bristol and Bath, take on a dramatic air with the Keynsham Mummers Play, which has been performed in the town since the beginning of the 19th century. The play was revived in the 70s by the Bristol Morris Men, who produce it each year in full costume. Every performance differs slightly, because the script of the play doesn't have an ending. It's performed at 11.30am at the Keynsham Centre and at noon at the New Inn.• bristolmorrismen.co.ukHaslemere run, SurreyThis three-and-a-half-mile fun run is made more, well, fun by the provision of a pint of winter ale for each runner two miles into the race. There are non-alcoholic men's and ladies' races as well, and runners can sign up on the morning – from 10am, with the race beginning at 11am. The non-alcoholic run costs £7, or £8 including a pint – with money going towards the Holy Cross Hospital in Haslemere. The run begins at the Crown &Cushion pub on Wey Hill.• download a registration form from boxingdayrun.orgGrantchester barrel rolling, CambridgeshireThe tradition of Boxing Day barrel rolls dates back to the 60s, but was revived in 2003 and has grown over the past six years. Four teams compete from Grantchester, just outside Cambridge; this is followed by the grandly named "County Championships", with one team from Grantchester and three from the neighbouring villages of Barton, Coton and Newnham in a relay race up and down the main street. The races start at midday and last around 40 minutes, with prize-giving taking place at the Rupert Brooke pub.• grantchester.infoBeach football, Scarborough, North YorkshireThe traditional Comedy Football Match on Scarborough Beach dates back to the late 19th century, when the game was first played as a charity fundraiser for the wives and children of fishermen who went down in a serious storm. These days, it's more fun than serious: players are in fancy dress, and there is beer and cigarettes at half-time and forced dunkings in the sea afterwards. After the final whistle, there's a raft race in the harbour, and players and sailors repair to nearby pubs.• For information on the town and area see scarborough.co.ukWalk into the sea, TeignmouthSlightly less scary than full body immersion, the Boxing Day Walk at Teignmouth in Devon does involve heading straight into the sea – but you can turn round and walk straight out again without any accusations of wimping out. All "walkers" are sponsored, with funds going to the Royal National Lifeboat Institution, which organises the event. Fancy dress is encouraged, and costumes are judged at 10.45am, with prizes for best child, individual and team, and trophies for the most money raised. The "walk" begins at 11am – and you can register before the event or on the day.• +44 (0)1626 776936; rnli.org.ukWheelbarrow race, SwimbridgeCostumed teams will hare through the streets of Swimbridge in Devon on Boxing Day, pushing one team member in a wheelbarrow. The race begins at the Jack Russell pub, with teams congregating at 10am and the race beginning at 10.30am. At 11.30am, there's a tug of war on the other side of the village by the river, after which everyone heads back to the pub, which opens formally at midday, for drinks and lunch. Entry costs £5 per team.• swimbridge.comMatlock raft race, DerbyshireExperienced race-goers would say that watching the rafts hurtle down the river Derwent from Cawdor Quarry in Matlock to Cromford Meadows is far better than actually being in one. The home-made rafts – navigated by teams dressed as superheroes, 19th-century naval heroes and firemen – are pelted with flour- and water-bombs by spectators standing on the bridges. The race starts at 10am, and the 40 or so teams come from around the UK, all competing to win the coveted trophy. About 10,000 people watched the race last year, so arrive early to bag a good viewing spot. All funds go to the RNLI.• matlock.gov.ukKenilworth duck race, WarwickshireBoxing Day may be traditionally known for its horseracing, but the picturesque town of Kenilworth devotes the day to duck racing, when 1,500 rubber ducks are let loose on the river in a race that delivers prizes of up to £100. Tickets to back each duck cost £1, and are available from stalls on the day and in advance from shops around Kenilworth. The race takes place at Abbey Fields and the ducks are released into the water at midday.• syscomm.co.ukMaldon mud race, EssexIt may actually be held on the 27th, but spiritually the sight of hundreds of people wading through muddy lagoons and marshes around Maldon is in keeping with bonkers Boxing Day traditions. Tickets to take part are sold out, but watching people wading around in mud is possibly more fun, although people come from as far away as the Shetland Islands and Germany to wallow in freezing cold slime. The event takes place at Promenade Park, at 1pm, with all money raised (more than £50,000 last year) going to local charities.• maldonmudrace.comNippy Dipper Boxing Day Dip, AberdeenIf there's one thing sure to cure a groggy head after Christmas it's a dip in the freezing North Sea. This annual event, run by the Aberdeen Lions Club for charity, sees more than 100 swimmers – usually in fancy dress, from Santa suits to mermaid costumes – take to the sea for a Boxing Day dip. It starts at Beach Esplanade, opposite Beach Leisure Centre, at 10am. Don't be late, because by about one minute past most are back out again. Too much of a wimp? Spectators are welcome to come and cheer on the dippers.• aberdeencity.gov.ukTalyllyn Railway, GwyneddIf you haven't already eaten your own body weight over the festive period, head to Wales, where the historic Talyllyn Railway is running mince pie specials from Boxing Day into the New Year. The narrow-gauge line runs for seven miles through Fathew Valley, starting at Tywyn, on the Cambrian Coast, and heading inland to Nant Gwernol. The train proceeds at a stately nine miles an hour, providing slow motion panoramic views of the wintry countryside – plenty of time to scarf your pies and drink your sherry. There's no need to book. Trains run at 10.30am and 1.50pm daily from Boxing Day till 2 January. Adults £12.50, accompanied children (5-15) £3.• talyllyn.co.ukChristmas and New YearFamily holidaysUnited KingdomWalesCambridgeYorkshireDevonPeak DistrictEssexScotlandRail travelguardian.co.uk© Guardian News &Media Limited 2009 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms &Conditions| More Feeds

  In summer, the Grand Canyon is all crowds and traffic jams. In winter you can have one of the most awe-inspiring places in the world to yourself'I have heard rumours of visitors who were disappointed," JB Priestley once said about the Grand Canyon. "The same people will be disappointed at the Day of Judgment."I have to confess I was disappointed on my first visit to the canyon, more than a decade ago. One July, on our way to Los Angeles, my family and I swung off the highway, made the 60-mile detour to the South Rim, and found ourselves caught in a long traffic jam. When we eventually managed to park, and walked to the rim, the scale of the sight off the edge was so great it was hard to muster a response. It was so vast, and so familiar from pictures, it might just as well have been a picture. What impressed me most was the Babel of languages audible among the visitors pouring off the tour buses. It sounded like Times Square on a Saturday night, with every continent represented in the hubbub.At this magnitude, scale is deceptive. Pedro de Castañeda, a Spaniard on the Coronado expedition of 1540, whose members were among the first Europeans ever to see the canyon, reported that a group of them scrambled some way down, and found that boulders they'd seen from the rim were not as they'd thought, the height of a man, but "taller than the great tower in Seville" (presumably the Giralda Tower, nearly 100m high).We only stayed an hour or two. But before we left, from the rim I saw a trail, pale as chalk, winding down a huge slope beneath a cliff. There's something about a trail seen from far away. That thread snaking over the landscape – where does it go, who uses it, why does it seem so intimate with the land? And why does it arouse such an intense longing to follow it? An unknown path seems almost necessarily a metaphor. We like to conceive of life as a thread, after all, a path crossing unexpected terrain on its journey to another element. When the trail winds across empty desert, up and down huge hillsides – as in the Grand Canyon – it's all the more insistently allegorical.There wasn't time to follow it, and I left with a nagging sense of opportunity lost, and that pale thread of a path still pulling at me.It wasn't until last winter that I got to answer that pull. And the first thing I learned is that with the Grand Canyon, winter is the time to go. As the chief district ranger, John Evans, told me, "You'll more or less have the place to yourself." Although the canyon is a desert, it's like an oasis in winter – a place of peace, sequestered from the rest of the world. In three days of hiking I saw only two or three mule trains, each carrying baggage, not riders, and perhaps two dozen hikers.Winter is cool, and cool is good for hiking. It's true there's snow on the trails, and long-moulded tongues of ice pounded into enamel-like smoothness by the mules that go up and down with supplies, but that's only on the highest reaches. Drop 500m from the rim and you'll probably be free of it. Sunlight becomes a blessing instead of a 50C curse when you step out of chill shade into some welcome warmth.To experience the canyon, you have to leave the rim. The frustration aroused by the bigness, the grandness, on a rim-only visit becomes a liberation once you drop down. The modern world falls away. It's a trip not just out of the human realm, but into the deep geology of the earth. Layer upon layer of the planet's crust is revealed, stratum by stratum: the Toroweap limestone, the Coconino sandstone, the Redwall limestone, the Tonto Group; the Vishnu schist deep down, close to two billion years old, nearly half the total age of the planet – the stuff that is under our very feet as we go about our lives is laid bare here. And in the silence and stillness, in the solitude of the canyon in winter, it's all the more impressive.Teddy Roosevelt said that all Americans should try to see it. He also declared: "We have gotten past the stage, my fellow citizens, when we are to be pardoned if we treat any part of our country as something to be skinned."Alas, he had no idea what was coming. But the Grand Canyon has not yet been skinned. Though not for want of trying.As I prepared to go, and talked to friends about the trip, I was amazed how many people knew the inner canyon well. One acquaintance told me he had spent 300 nights below the rim, falling just short of a lifetime's ambition of a full year. In a grocery store in Santa Fe, where I live, I got talking with a Grand Canyon-crazy runner who hikes from rim to rim in a single day several times a year. A woman in a coffee shop told me about the time a 10lb falling rock nearly knocked her off a trail. I began to get the feeling that the Grand Canyon is truly a national monument, analogous to the Lake District in its centrality to the nation's psyche. "Each man sees himself in the Grand Canyon," Carl Sandburg said. It's something all Americans share, and can take pride in.This was all very well, but the canyon is a mile deep, and the trail itself about 10 miles long, and that translates to a very arduous walk, especially for an eight-year-old. By some arcane family algebra, it was the turn of Saul, our younger son, to come with me.After an impossibly smooth two-hour ride in the vintage coaches of the Grand Canyon Railway from the town of Williams, Arizona, the nearest major settlement south of the canyon, we checked in at Bright Angel Lodge near the canyon rim, to reconfirm our bookings for Phantom Ranch, down in the bottom. The woman behind the desk glanced at my son and said: "I hope you're planning to leave immediately, if not sooner."It was already 1pm, and most hikers set off in the morning.My heart dropped. Saul is strong, fit as an Olympic athlete, indomitable as a Gaul, but still only eight. Was it crazy and cruel to ask him to walk down and then up a whole mile of elevation? What if, having got him down, he hurt himself, or his feisty spirit gave out? And what if my own legs failed me?The fear amplified during the first spectacular mile of trail, where we had to pick our way precariously over ice. But then we were out on the spine of a ridge, the aptly nicknamed Ooh-Aah Point, that dropped precipitately to either side, and the ice was all melted away. Here, it wasn't so much about looking at a view as being in the midst of one.As we gazed around us, two condors came gliding right over, so close we could hear the wind ruffling their feathers."Keep in the middle," I implored Saul, as he took to scampering along the parapet of rocks. Apparently, kids can't resist a parapet, no matter the drop beyond it.I wouldn't want a creationist to misinterpret this, but I always find geology more or less unbelievable. Were these hundreds of square miles of limestone hundreds of feet deep truly formed by trillions of marine creatures dying? Could a river really carve out a gash this deep? But before the construction of the Glen Canyon Dam, in a single day the Colorado River used to carry away 380,000 tonnes or more of silt, enough to fill a train 25 miles long. Each day. A river this size is indeed an efficient grinding tool.Below us, sweeping brown plateaux bulged as if they were soft upholstery. There were cliffs of blue, pink, orange, mauve, and deep purple bands of rock – the banners of God, as an early explorer said. True enough, the stark minerality of the desert always seems to arouse the inner mystic.The scientist John Strong Newberry, part of an 1857 expedition to the canyon, said: "Nowhere on the earth's surface, so far as we know, are the secrets of its structure revealed as here."After the cliffs of pale Coconino limestone, we descend the Redwall limestone, into a deep tub of crimson stone. Finally, at Skeleton Point, we catch the first glimpse of the river, thousands of feet below, announced by a distant roar.A vast sweep of shadow is coming off the rim above, spreading over the Tonto plateau. We plunged in and out of the shade on the switchbacks. So far, we had seen just four people. Then, just after Tipoff Point, the path brought us to another dizzying corner, overlooking an ancient rusty amphitheatre of Tonto Group rock one way, while to the other, the air drops away to another sight of the Colorado River far, far below, clay-red, rippling, bloated. One of the two suspension bridges down there was visible, too. It all looked like a telephoto shot, the unfamiliar vertical distance baffling the eye.Around 4pm, when we'd descended around 1,200m, deep in the echoing inner canyon, amid runnels and gullies of deep shadow, beneath shoulders of shale and scree, Saul got a kind of oxygen narcosis, skipping around, singing "Blue-blue-blue-blue" from Austin Powers, while my left knee went supersonic, screeching at me to please take one pace up instead of down. Then Saul discovered the echo deep in the billion-year-old rock. "Go away, echo!" he shouted vainly, again and again.Endless new levels, new shears, shelves and tables to descend. Then all of a sudden, there was the bridge again. This time, we could see its individual railings, and as we approached, through a tunnel hewn straight through the rock, the thick, deep air beside the rushing river was like a balm. Whether it was the late afternoon light, the fatigue, the pain in my knee, or the relief of getting down, I found myself wallowing in a wonderful endorphin bath. The world went glassy. The canyon cliffs and trapezoids and pinnacles of rock all became resonant. I watched myself walk, as if the real me were a deep witness to my life, rather than the one who apparently lives it.Down here, with the enormous Colorado River beside us, encased in the immense walls of the inner gorge, we passed the old settlement of Anasazi Indians who lived here 1,000 years ago. They planted corn and squash, and used nothing that didn't come from their immediate surroundings. It occurred to me that today it takes a whole afternoon on vertiginous trails to accomplish the reverse: to enter an environment without human imports. This is surely the kind of immersion a hiker seeks; this is why it felt like a pilgrimage to come here. It was good to reflect that if America has a heart, this just might be it.By the time we reached Phantom Ranch, its own side canyon, Bright Angel Creek, was deep in chilly shade. On reaching the quiet huddle of stone and timber cabins under their grove of silvery cottonwoods, the trees tattered with old dry leaves, with a bunk waiting, and hot showers in the bathhouse, and the creek plashing by – I was flooded with relief. But even though we'd descended to 700m above sea level (from over 2,000m) it was still freezing.When the ranch bell rang for dinner, some two dozen guests trooped from their cabins through the frigid dusk to the main lodge, where we quietly feasted on stew, corn bread and salad. We were from all over, all walks of life: a student from Quebec, a trucker from Kentucky, a fisherman from Alaska, a college student from New York, a woman in insurance, from Pennsylvania. All these trappings of people's lives seemed to fade in the context of this deep retreat from the world. We were just people, making the pilgrimage from cradle to grave.At 8pm the dining room turns into a kind of mess hall. People sit around playing cards, or Trivial Pursuit, drinking wine or beer, and the counter opens for the sale of odds and ends. On a shelf sits the box for river mail, where letters wait for rafters coming downstream.It was 2am when a cry pierced the peace in our cabin: "I feel sick, Daddy." No sooner had I sprung from my bunk to fetch the rubbish bin than Saul was hunched over it, retching. By 6am he was hot with fever. It had happened: stuck at the apex of a mile-high inverse mountain in winter, with a sick child.At first light Bright Angel Creek was chalky, vague. Then distant bluffs of red stone got picked out by the sun, and more and more bright geometries emerged. While I was wondering what to do, rows of Easter Island-esque monoliths along the top of a cliff turned bright, and when the early sun struck the high outcrops, I could see how they got their Egyptian and Hindi names. They did look like sphinxes and Oriental temples. At 8am I went to the lodge and asked if they had a thermometer. They radioed down to the ranger station, and 10 minutes later Eston Littleboy Jones, a ranger equipped with a holstered automatic pistol and a Taser gun, was tending to my son.Saul's eyes lit up at the sight of the guns. A quick check-up, and he was bouncing back. By 11am he was insisting we walk the Overlook Trail mentioned by Eston, one-and-a-half miles up to an outcrop overhanging the creek, then the River Loop Trail. Apparently, it was a swift-moving stomach bug.My legs were stiff as stilts. It was as if, never having been near a Stairmaster, I had decided to spend all of yesterday on one. But hiking seems to ease them.From one of the two suspension bridges we stared down at the river."It looks like they're fighting a war," Saul said of the white waves. "Fighting to get up the river." The frothing eddies did seem to be struggling with the current. Two plumes of ripples curved into one central stream like trails of smoke sucked into a flue. The canyon walls created a constantly changing concertina effect with volume. There was a great bow of a pebble beach, except the pebbles were the size of cars. It's a landscape from The Lord of the Rings, with a perilous cliff path to match. Any minute our way would be blocked by an orc.The next day we made the climb back up the Bright Angel Trail. Like the Kaibab Trail, this was also built for mules, having first been a Native American trail to the creek at Indian Gardens, half-way up. Mule trails are good for hikers. The beasts won't put up with anything too steep. The trail makes its way up cliffs in endless switchbacks.Rows of flying buttresses, a soaring ship's prow throwing a huge flag of shadow across a cliff, a forbidding wall of masonry half a mile above us: the views never stopped coming. Way above, on the whitish cliffs just under the rim, something was winking. Could it be the windows of El Tovar, the old hotel where we'll be spending the night? Along the climb at Devil's Corkscrew, a chain of little waterfalls has carved out smooth dark basins in the rock. Again and again it struck me how perfect the temperature is for hiking. Through a grove of willow the stream flashed by, icy cold.On that day we passed five hikers. Once again, it was just us and the canyon. And the circling condors overhead.On the last two miles, stalactites of milky ice hung beside the trail. Then solid grey snow was underfoot, like lacquer, impregnated with dust, slowing us right down. As we stood still waiting to see if we could catch the sound of wind in the feathers of a condor gliding by, we heard from up above the deep gurgle of the first motorbike. After three days away from carbon culture, the modern world seemed like Thunderdome now.Finally, we slumped into El Tovar, the oldest Grand Canyon hotel, with its fireplaces of stone blocks and masses of dark timber, a perfect hiker's rest.The truth is, when I pulled into the Grand Canyon years before, I didn't even comprehend that it was a canyon. It was such a vast landscape it seemed it might go on in pinnacles and gulfs for hundreds of miles. But once you've been down into it, you know what it is. You understand. At least a little. And the mere thought of being disappointed by it? I'm positively looking forward to Judgment Day.© 2009 New York Times News ServiceEssentialsGetting thereVirgin Holidays (0844 557 3859; virginholidays.co.uk) offers a seven-night fly-drive to Las Vegas from £499, including flights and car hire. The historic railway (+1 303 843 8724; thetrain.com) from Williams takes two-and-a quarter hours. Returns from $70 adults, $40 children.Where to stayThe Grand Canyon Railway Hotelin Williams (+1 800 843 8724; thetrain.com) is not an atmospheric old railway edifice but a comfortable, modern hotel, with doubles from $169. El Tovar(+1 888 297 2757; grandcanyonlodges.com)has been open since 1905 and shouldn't be missed. Doubles from $174. Phantom Ranch(details as El Tovar) is a collection of cabins in the bottom of the canyon. Dorm beds from $42. Bright Angel Lodge(details as El Tovar) is a 1935 timber warren, full of charm, with doubles from $90. Availability at hotels in the canyon can be a problem, but the village of Tusayan, a mile outside the park, usually has vacancies. Doubles at Red Feather Lodge (+1 866 561 2425; redfeatherlodge.com) cost from $73.MORE INFORMATION The National Park Service's website (nps.gov/grca) is helpful, as is grandcanyonlodges.com. .United StatesAdventure travelWalking holidaysGrand CanyonMountainsDesertsguardian.co.uk© Guardian News &Media Limited 2009 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms &Conditions| More Feeds

  For a cheeky pint before the turkey, or a treat after the Boxing Day walk, 50 bon viveurs reveal their favourite yuletide boozers. Part one looks at the South-West, Midlands and East AngliaRead part twoand threeSouth-west1. The Luttrell Arms, SomersetRebecca Front, actorWhen your soul's been hardened by six hours on the M5, the one thing guaranteed to open the creaking lych gate of the Christmas season is a half of Exmoor Foxin the Luttrell Arms, Dunster. At the heart of a beautiful medieval village complete with castle, yarn market and deer park, this 15th-century coaching inn is now a rather genteel hotel, but don't think it isn't welcoming. Pass the smart restaurant and go into one of the back bars, and you'll find everything you need for the perfect Christmas pub: huge log fires, tall-backed settles, and even – if you pick the right night – carol singers: Dunster has the rare distinction of having its own carol. Gather in winter fuel in the form of huge portions of fish and chips or spare ribs, and pretend – as we do – that you live in this blessed corner of Britain.• High Street Dunster (01643 821555, luttrellarms.co.uk). Christmas opening: 25 Dec 11.30-1.30; 26 and 31 Dec 11.30-3.30.Rebecca Front played Nicola Murray MP in the BBC's recent The Thick of Itseries.2. Square &Compass, DorsetTim Hayward, food writer and photographerBrigadoon was a town that appeared for a single night once every hundred years. The Square &Compass in Worth Matravers is a pub on similar lines. It appears only when you've walked a sizeable chunk of the Dorset Coast path and popped up on to the cliff tops near Chapman's Pool, footsore and gagging for a drink. It's been run by the same family for generations, welcomes all forms of livestock and has no bars – just tiny serving hatches into a maze-like warren of ancient rooms. Their pasties are legendary, their ales and ciders ambrosial, and there's a charming little museum made up of odd bits of local archaeology and specimens picked up from the beaches by the family. It's at its best this time of year. People assume the cliff walks will be brutal in winter, but nine days out of 10 it's perfect – clearing the head with crisp sea air and the beautiful scenery of the Jurassic coast – and nothing could be more hospitable at the end than the uneven stone floors, unmatched furniture and huge log fire of this bonkers little boozer.• Worth Matravers, near Swanage (01929 439229, squareandcompasspub.com). Christmas opening: 25 Dec 12-2 (snacks only).timhayward.com.3. Rose &Crown, SomersetJulian Temperley, cider makerThe Rose &Crown, known affectionately as Eli's, is a Somerset – if not a West Country – legend. A pub with no bar in Langport, which has been in the same family for the last 130 years. A main tap room leads off to lots of little rooms where the feeling is that a seat may well have been passed down from Grandfather. However, like most of Somerset, it is also a welcoming place with excellent beers and ciders. I have been delivering cider there for the last 35 years, and in those years the only change has been the generations running the place. Langport once had a civil-war battle fought over it. Now its claim to fame is that it is the home of Eli and local cider, and where, with luck, you may find the local crooner Paddy Mounter singing with his jazz band, The Gents.•Huish Episcopi, Langport (01458 250494). Christmas opening: 25 Dec 11.30-1.30.Julian Temperley distills cider brandyon his farm.4. The Wyndham Arms, SalisburyZak Avery, beer blogger and writerThe Wyndham Arms is very dear to me. When I first drank there in my late teens (at the end of the 80s), it was home to the nascent Hop Back Brewery, who turned the beer world upside down by brewing ales that were light and golden, rather than chewy and brown. Summer Lightning is their most famous beer, but for seasonal drinking, the deliciously fruity and chocolatey Entire Stout may be more appropriate. For me, a Christmas visit there is to sprinkle everything with the sort of bonhomie that you get only by entering a small busy pub on a cold winter night. It is a classic no-frills, edge-of-town-centre pub, rejecting the notion of gastropub makeovers, theme nights and drinks promotions. The result is a hotchpotch of people, attracted by the beer, and the slightly old-fashioned notion that you can just turn up, order a pint and start chatting to the person next to you. Although the hugely successful Hop Back Brewery has relocated, the Wyndham Arms is unchanged, a reassuring constant in a sea of desperate reinvention. Indeed, the attraction of it at Christmas is that it's essentially the same as at any other point of the year, just with more goodwill being spread around.•27 Estcourt Road (01722 331026). Christmas opening: 24 Dec 12-1; 25 Dec 12-3; 26 Dec 12-12.30am; 31 Dec 12-2am; 1 Jan 5-midnight.Zak Avery is author of 500 Beers (Apple Press, £9.99), due out in March (thebeerboy.co.uk).5. The Anchor Inn, Devon Hilary Bradt, founder of Bradt travel guidesBeer is a little fishing village, less than one mile's walk from my home in Seaton along the South West Coast Path. Its pub, the Anchor Inn, overlooks the sea with outside seating in the summer. But it comes into its own at this time of year, when the crowds have gone and the log fire blazes. Last year, just before Christmas, my friend and I arrived on a freezing day with only a pound in our pockets. What, we asked sadly, could they sell us for a pound? Two brimming glasses of mulled wine were put on the counter, accompanied by a beaming smile. How could it not now be my favourite pub?• Fore Street (01297 20386, anchorinn-beer.com. Christmas opening: 25 Dec 11-10.30 (fully booked for food). 31 Dec 11-1am.6. The George Inn, WiltshireWilfred Emmanuel-Jones, the Black FarmerMy absolute favourite pub is the 14th‑century George Inn in historic Lacock – a village most widely recognised as the location for TV dramas such as Pride &Prejudice and Cranford. On two occasions I have even done a stint behind the bar: the first to celebrate my 50th birthday, and in September this year to celebrate 25 years with John, Adam and Judy Glass, the delightful owners. At this time of year, the warm welcome is enhanced by roaring open fires, and there is always a choice of good ales: Wadworth 6X, the locals' favourite, Wadworth JCB or Henry's IPA.• 4 West Street, Lacock (01249 730263). Christmas opening: 25 Dec closed; 26 Dec 8-5; 31 Dec 5-1am (free entry, but fully booked for dinner); 1 Jan 8-5.theblackfarmer.com. 7. The Bridge Inn, DevonIsabel Choat, Travel editorI've been meaning to do the Topsham 10 – a crawl of the village's finest pubs – since my mum moved there in 2002, but last time I was there I had to settle for a quick snifter at the Bridge Inn on Christmas Day instead. It has to be quick as the pub is only open from 12 till 1pm on the 25th – a good time to avoid sprout-peeling duties. History oozes from every nook and cranny: the pink-washed building dates back to the 16th century, it has been managed by the same family for 110 years, and it is resolutely unmodernised. No piped music, no lager taps – in fact, no bar. Instead, six ales are served straight from the cask at a hatch. Brave (or crazy) souls head here to warm up after the annual Christmas Day swim at Exmouth. I'll give the dip a miss and head straight to the inn. I've got my eye on a half of Jingle Ale, followed by a Reinbeerand, time permitting, a Yo Ho Ho with extra Ho. Why not? It's Christmas.•Bridge Hill, Topsham (01392 873862, cheffers.co.uk). Christmas opening: 25 Dec 12-1; 26 Dec 12-2; 31 Dec ticket only; 1 Jan closed.The Midlands28. The Galton Arms, Worcestershire Charles Campion, food criticThe Galton Arms in Himbleton is pubby perfection. The locals are friendly and the bar staff specialise in an engaging blend of banter and brisk efficiency. The open fire burns brightly. The head-cracking low beams are gnarled. The food is pub food, workmanlike, a throwback to days before gastropubs. And the beer? This is one of the very few places that serves Batham'sbitter (which would run away with the prize for the Black Country's finest export, if only any were on sale outside the west Midlands). Batham's is a pale, hoppy brew with an almost citrus freshness. It is a refreshing and sneaky beer that doesn't taste as strong as it is, so when you have two pints you're convinced that four would be fine. When you've had four, your judgment is so impaired that you think you can handle six – and you quickly find out that you cannot. I am very fond of an "early doors" pint or two, and the perfect gentle evening in the run up to Christmas would be spent in a seat near the fire wrapped in the pleasant murmur of dedicated drinkers. A golden pint of Batham's, fresh and alluring in a tall glass, and some of Jay's excellent pork scratchings.• Himbleton, Droitwich (01905 391672). Christmas opening: 25 Dec 12-2; 26 Dec 12-7; 31 Dec 12-5 (evening ticketed event); 01 Jan (12-7).29. The Mug House, Worcestershire Shaun Hill, chefThe Mug House in Claines is a rare – possibly sole – survivor of the time churches kept an ale house in their grounds. A reminder that not everything changes for the better, historically. It's a 15th-century building sitting up against a grand church and its graveyard. Fields of vegetables are the alternative view. All this just a couple of miles outside Worcester city where I live. The food is simple and in good portions but not the main attraction: this is a proper pub, not a restaurant masquerading as one. The setting, slightly tatty furnishings and good beer are the draw. Banks' beer, both mild and bitter, is the backbone of the Midlands, longer lasting than the car industry, and probably better for you. Sadly, it's the only holy ground I'm likely to visit over Christmas, but it will be welcome nonetheless.• Claines (01905 456649, clainesfriends.org.uk/mughouse.html). Christmas opening: 24 Dec no dinner; 25 Dec 11.30-2 (no food).Shaun Hill is chef/owner of the Walnut Treein Abergavenny, Monmouthshire. 30. The Bell, Birmingham Gavin McOwan, Guardian TravelThe best thing about the Bell – and I speak as a Brummie – is that it doesn't feel like it's in Birmingham. Hidden away up a sleepy lane in Harborne village, you'd never guess you were only four miles from the Bullring. This 300-year-old coaching inn is as close as you'll find to a country local in a big city. True, there's no roaring fire, but I always feel a Ready Brek glow whenever I pop in – especially at Christmas when the comfy lounge and tiny snug are heaving with bonhomie. Like all great pubs, it is timeless and, like a few on this list, there's no bar, only a hatch in the corridor which serves a guest ale or two and the local Brew XI, which still costs £1.89 a pint. Sadly, I won't be making the Christmas Eve stagger from the Bell back to my mom's this year as I'll be spending it at home. What I'd give for a boozer half this good near me.• 11 Old Church Road, Harborne (0121-428 4609). Christmas opening: 25 Dec 11.30-2.30 and 7-10 (food bookings only); 26 Dec 11.30-midnight; 31 Dec 11.30-12.30am (12-4 food); 1 Jan 11.30-12. 31. The Bear, Oxford Oliver Thring, food bloggerThe Bear, like many other things in Oxford, is an institution. Nearly 800 years old, it sits mute and reserved under stone spires and gargoyles. English oak panels the walls and gently warps. It's a jostling, indelicate place, packed to the stooping beams with students from nearby colleges. In winter, the blizzard howls outside, steam fogs the windows, the fires flicker and spit, beer slops to the creaking floor, young voices rise in laughter. Guidebooks always mention the "historic tie collection", which is as quaint and daft as it sounds: hundreds of the things, blazoned with the emblems of club, school and regiment, trimmed and pinned in cases on the walls and ceilings. This is a warm, cramped retreat from the thrumming city and the echoing cloisters – a refuge where you eat a homemade pie and drink dark, hoppy pints, and let the cold day pass till Christ Church's bell sounds the time to go home.• 6 Alfred Sreet (01865 728164). Christmas opening: 24 Dec 11-6; 25 Dec 12-2 (no food); 26 Dec 12-6 (food until 6); 31 Dec telephone to make a booking.oliverthring.blogspot.com.32. Barrel Inn, Derbyshire Marina Lewycka, novelistOn a cold day, when there's snow on the ground, there's nowhere nicer than the Barrel Inn at Bretton, near Eyam in the Peak District. The walk there is lovely, from Stoke Ford up through Bretton Clough, with a steepish climb at the end and a lovely bench halfway up, with a view through the treetops over to Abney, where you can catch your breath and share your snacks with the birds and the occasional mad sheep. And then, another half mile or so up the road, the Barrel Inn is waiting for you with a lovely blazing fire and a few blissed-out dogs slumped in front of it, and a traditional pub menu with massive helpings of everything, and always a selection of local beers. I recommend Green Abbot, but take care! The one problem is, you not only have to remember where you parked your car, you have to walk at least a mile back to it. Of course, you can just drive there, but it's not nearly so much fun.• Bretton, Near Eyam, Hope Valley(01433 630 856, thebarrelinn.co.uk). Christmas opening: 25 Dec 12-2 (no food); 26 Dec open till 6; 31 Dec open till 2pm. 1 Jan open after 6pm. Marina Lewycka's latest novel is We Are All Made of Glue (Fig Tree, £12.99).East Anglia25. The White Horse, Norfolk Fiona Stapley, editor, Good Pub GuideI've been visiting the wild north coast of Norfolk all my life, and for many years have been dropping into the White Horse at Brancaster Staithe for a drink, a meal – and even, on occasion, to stay the night. There's a proper front bar with good, local photographs, bar billiards, a relaxed atmosphere and plenty of regulars enjoying a pint and a chat. The local beer is good and the little bar menu has fair-priced, pubby food; there's also an outdoor front seating area with heaters. If I want a meal, I tend to head for the civilised and airy conservatory with its huge picture windows that make the most of the fantastic view out over the wide tidal marshes to Scolt Head. The food specialises in local fish (the crab is fantastic and I absolutely love the smoked haddock with a poached egg and herb butter sauce), and the puddings – such as milk chocolate mousse with white chocolate ice-cream – are just right if you feel a bit greedy.• Brancaster Staithe (01485 210262 whitehorsebrancaster.co.uk). Christmas opening: 25 Dec 12-2; 26 Dec 12-3; 31 Dec 11-2.30; 1 Jan 12-11.The Good Pub Guide 2010(thegoodpubguide.co.uk, £14.99).26. The Anchor, Suffolk Rupert Ponsonby, co- founder, the Beer AcademyA mere mile from Adnams Breweryin Southwold, and 400 yards from the sea, the Anchor at Walberswick is the sort of place that will lift the spirits at any time of year. The nine-bedroom pub is run by Mark Dorber, ex-maestro of the White Horse on Parson's Green, London's temple to beer; his wife Sophie is the head chef. The dining room seats 60 and the Christmas menu gives mouth-watering detail while avoiding the "hand-dived mutton" lingo of so many city menus. Most wine lists scare me. This one doesn't. It includes 90 wines with (hooray) 27 by the glass including five Christmas-time sweet wines and two ports. And for beer lovers, Mark has assembled one of the best international beer lists in Britain, centred on the great Adnamsbitter with its waves of spicy hop elegance, but with mulled Tally-Ho (Adnams Old Ale) and Deus, a champagne yeast-fermented ale served icy cold. Boxing Day, bring it on!• Walberswick (01502 722112, anchorat walberswick.com). Christmas opening: 25 Dec 11-2 (no food); 31 Dec 11am-1am.beeracademy.co.uk27. Butt &Oyster, Suffolk Roger Protz, author of The Good Beer GuideThis wonderful old smugglers' and bargemen's pub on the banks of the river Orwell has powerful literary associations. Pin Mill and the Butt were the setting for Arthur Ransome's novel We Didn't Mean To Go To Sea, and when Ransome was in residence he would entertain children of the Young family from London who were on holiday in the hamlet. Apparently he introduced them to the pleasures of beer long before they were of legal drinking age, and the impact encouraged one of them, John Young, to run the family brewery in Wandsworth in later life. From the main bar, with its flagstone floor and high-back settles, a great bow window gives fine views of the river, with barges and boats moored alongside, and thickly wooded banks on the opposite shore. The Butt used to be a major outlet for beer from the Tolly Cobbold brewery in Ipswich. Alas, Tolly is no more, but Adnams' magnificent ales from Southwold fill the gap with gusto. The Christmas menu offers rolled breast of turkey, seabass fillets and lamb shank, but the veggies among us are not forgotten with a goat's cheese starter and garlic mushrooms and baby spinach in filo pastry as the main course.• Pin Mill (01473 780764). Christmas opening: 25 Dec 12-2 (no food); 31 Dec no food in evening.Roger Protz is author of The Good Beer Guide 2010£15.99.Christmas and New YearPubsWalesNorthern IrelandScotlandFood and drinkFood &drinkWalking holidaysTurkeyguardian.co.uk© Guardian News &Media Limited 2009 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms &Conditions| More Feeds

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  The small seaside town of Nairn on the Moray firth has come second in TripAdvisor's list of the world's up-and-coming destinations for 2010, based on search activity and postings on the travel website. Nairn is said to enjoy one of the sunniest climates in Scotland, and be a "perfect base" for exploring the Highlands. It was beaten only by Troncones in Mexico, known for its miles of white sandy beaches, and was ahead of El Chalten in Patagonia. Charlton Heston, Burt Lancaster and Charlie Chaplin are said to have visited the town, now the home of Oscar winner Tilda Swinton.ScotlandScotlandMexicoMexicoguardian.co.uk© Guardian News &Media Limited 2009 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms &Conditions| More Feeds

  From glamping to wild camping, millions of us have got closer to nature over the past decadeThere was a time when a declaration that you were going camping would be met with sympathy, pity or the phone number of a good psychiatrist. You were clearly either someone who couldn't afford a "proper" holiday, a kidult pining for the days of Akela or Brown Owl, or a survivalist nut-job.Ten years on, camping has become not merely socially acceptable but aggressively aspirational. It's booming, too. Membership of the Camping and Caravanning Clubhas risen from around 150,000 households in 1999 to more than 250,000 today, while an estimated three or four million of us get our tents out at least once a year – a figure all the more remarkable given the recent run of disappointing summers.So where did it all go right? A raft of books portraying camping as hip and trendy certainly didn't do any harm. In 2006, Jonathan Knight's glossy Cool Camping: England(Punk, £14.95), a coffee-table tome of incredibly desirable campsites, became a bestseller – the series now covers Wales, Scotland and Europe, and has sold more than 150,000 copies. In its wake came the madness that was The Happy Campers(Bloomsbury) – with its improbable recipe for "Tess's Camping Tiramisu" – and then Cath Kidston floral tents, glamping, flashpacking and toff-roading.Meanwhile, a new-found desire to flee nasty old capitalism and get back to nature has also been catered for by a rash of sites offering so-called "mild camping" in yurts, tipis, böds, pods, treehouses, and even shepherd's huts. Feather Down Farm Days– whose tents are actually über-luxurious canvas-roofed bungalows – started with just one site in 2006, and now boasts 21.However, it should be said that the vast majority of campsites (one particular favourite of mine being Park Farmin Yorkshire) offer just a loo, a shower (usually) and a field. In a recession, the fact that they typically charge less than 20 quid a night for a family of four has clearly made such simplicity exceedingly attractive. Many holidaymakers have even gone one further and embraced wild camping. This was made legal throughout Scotlandin 2003, while in England and Wales, a friendly request to a farmer will usually secure a pitch for the night for free.With no reason to suggest that the UK camping boom is about to bust, it's no wonder people are already calling the next decade "the tenties".CampingBudget travelSelf-cateringScotlandWalesUnited KingdomDixe Willsguardian.co.uk© Guardian News &Media Limited 2009 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms &Conditions| More Feeds

  Dubai is the best known of the United Arab Emirates, but it's not the largest, or the richest and it doesn't even have the best beaches. Annabelle Thorpe sets out to discover the six other states of the UAEFor most people, the United Arab Emirates means just one place: Dubai. The glitter on the world's most famous city state may have faded a little recently, but the mix of ambition, money and outright hubris has created a 21st-century playground that has become impossible to ignore. But what lies beyond the hotels and the high-rises? Head out of Dubai and there are six other emirates to explore, each with their own sheikh, each determined to establish itself as different from the others.A British protectorate for almost 100 years, the UAE came into existence in 1971 when an agreement between local leaders and the British government ended. The capital and by far the richest is Abu Dhabi, with vast amounts of oil beneath its deserts; its sheikh is the overall ruler. The UAE is a world of contradictions – where racing camels change hands for over £1m but gambling is forbidden; where the temperatures can exceed 50C yet locals are more likely to go skiing than swim in the sea. It's conservative, still deeply Islamic and yet – in Dubai at least – Mammon is the true god. The UAE is a world where money dominates as nowhere else – from the millions of guestworkers who build the skyscrapers and send the money home to their families in Pakistan, Bangladesh and the Philippines, to the expats lured by tax-free incomes, to the sheikhs themselves, who pour their vast wealth into increasingly ambitious projects. This is a slightly crazy, multi-faceted region – and to see just Dubai is to get only one side of the story. The business emirate: Abu DhabiOnly in the UAE could millions be spent on mind-bogglingly ornate hotels, yet tourism be dismissed as "something we're not really interested in". But for rich Abu Dhabi this is very much the case: Sheikh Khalifa dabbles in tourism, but finance and business are closest to his heart. That's not to say Abu Dhabi isn't worth visiting; it is fascinating, for one thing, to experience a world where money really is no object. This is an emirate with the most expensive hotel ever built – the Emirates Palace(00 971 2 690 9000; emiratespalace.com). This gob-smacking monument to ostentation is so big that members of staff are posted around the sprawling resort to assist guests who can't find their room. Even if you're not staying, it's a must-see: drop in for afternoon tea, when men in pristine white dishdashas and ladies in full burkas sip tea and eat cucumber sandwiches. The city also has a charming heritage centre, with exhibits on traditional Arabic life and small shops where metalworkers, carpenters and jewellers make and sell their wares.Abu Dhabi's second city, Al Ain, is also worth visiting, an oasis in the heart of the blistering desert. There are amazing panoramic views from the top of the nearby mountain of Jebel Hafeet; there's a good road to the top, built solely because the sheikh decided he needed a mountaintop palace so that he could practise his falconry in the hot summer months. Millions was spent on building the road and the palace, but it is used only rarely.Back in Al Ain, there's not a huge amount to see, although it's worth finding out if your guide can gain access to the oases. These are the city's allotments, where peaches, figs, citrus fruits and all manner of vegetables are grown beneath palm trees, with water fed along irrigation channels called aflaj. The largest is the Al Ain oasis: a long road snakes beneath date palms and in the centre there's a small mosque. The sight of rows of fruit and vegetables amid lush vegetation becomes slightly surreal when you remember that you're surrounded by arid desert.Sheikh Khalifa has big plans for Abu Dhabi and – like the Dubai government – has embarked on a programme of land reclamation to create new islands. The first, Yas, is home to a gleaming new Formula One track, while Saadiyat Island(which means Island of Happiness) is set to be the new cultural centre for the region, with building work on Guggenheim and Louvre galleries starting next year. By the end of 2009, the region's first seaside golf course will open on Saadiyat, and hotels will come on stream in the next couple of years.The beach emirate: FujairahThe youngest emirate – it gained independence from Sharjah in 1952 – Fujairah is separated from its neighbours by the towering Hajar mountains and is the only emirate not to have access to the Persian Gulf. But the clear waters and white sand beaches of its coast on the Gulf of Oman have recently become home to a clutch of sizable hotels and resorts, offering the best snorkelling and scuba-diving in the region. The Fujairah Rotana(00 971 9 244 9888; rotana.com) is on a lovely beach and is ideal for families. Fujairah shares its northern border with the Omani exclave of Musandam, a region of stark beauty with vast mountain landscapes and, in the north, an almost fjord-like coastline. Day trips to Musandam are easy from Fujairah, and the mountains offer great off-roading.If you're staying in Fujairah, a trip to the Friday Marketis a must. Fruit and vegetable stalls line the roads, along with ramshackle antiques stalls that appear to be run by small boys, and round the back is a plant and garden section. This is a locals' market – although, as with most things in the UAE, it is staffed by Pakistanis and Bangladeshis. It's lively and colourful and if you escape without a carpet you'll be doing well. Oh, and don't be put off by the name: the Friday Market is on every day of the week, usually until the early hours. The other main site of interest is the Al Bidya Mosque, the oldest in the UAE.The cultural emirate: SharjahThirty years ago, while Dubai was still not much more than a slightly seedy trading port, Sharjah was at the forefront of tourism development. But Sheikh al-Qasimi had a change of heart and decided that western influences were not what he wanted for his people. Sharjah became a dry state, with strict sharia laws, which extend to western hotels. Even the Radisson Blu (00 971 6565 7777; radissonblu.com) can only run to mocktails and root beer. Fortunately, the neighbouring emirate of Ajman is not dry, and the border is in the middle of Sharjah city, so you don't have to walk too far for a pint. This is not to say it is an unwelcoming place: tourism in Sharjah is family oriented, and the many museums that Sheikh al-Qasimi has created – 17 at the last count – are all child-friendly.Sharjah city is definitely worth a visit: all tours start at the marvellously (and aptly) named Cultural Roundabout, where mock-Renaissance buildings housing various museums encircle the, yes, roundabout. The best museum to visit is arguably the Sharjah Art Museum, the largest art gallery in the Gulf, with an impressive collection of Arabic and Orientalist art. Take a break in the tea room on the third floor, with its beautiful vaulted ceiling painted with constellations and the night sky.As well as the cultural side, Sheikh al-Qasimi is more concerned than the other leaders with preserving what is left of the area's past. A collection of old buildings house yet more museums; and there's also an impressive fort. One old house, preserved as it would have been when the family lived there, gives an interesting insight into how moneyed Arabs lived before the arrival of the high-rise apartment.Sharjah's heritage centre lies on the north side of the corniche, and opposite it, traditional dhows from Iran still bob on the harbour, as they have done for hundreds of years. They used to unload their wares and sell them right there on the seafront. The soukhas moved now, to a fairly soulless two-storey building in the heart of town, but it is a great place to shop for souvenirs, and prices are lower than in Dubai.Sharjah is also the place to come if you want to get a glimpse of authentic Arab life. Head for the beach, but don't be surprised to see no one swimming. In Arabic culture, the beach is a place to meet and hang out, to picnic with family and friends. It's worth bearing in mind that beaches are perceived as family places, so groups of men aren't allowed on the beach without women. If there are people in the water, don't be surprised to see women swimming in full burkas. And don't think the rules don't apply to westerners: shorts and T-shirts are fine, but wearing a bikini on a public beach will raise eyebrows.And if you're on holiday with your partner, keep your hands to yourselves: overly amorous behaviour (and this includes kissing) can get you arrested.The fly &flop emirate: Ras al KhaimahTucked away in the north of the peninsula, Ras al Khaimah was once a small fishing community, and the remains of a ruined village can still be explored. Some travel brochures still refer to Ras al Khaimah as a fishing village with old-world charm, but they are seriously out of date. Right now, most of it resembles a building site, as this tiny, northernmost emirate gears up to try to get its hands on some of the tourist money flowing into Dubai.But if you want guaranteed sun without the bling of Dubai, or fancy a twin centre holiday, there are a couple of excellent fly-and-flop options. The Cove Rotana(00 971 7 206 6000; rotana.com) is a village-style development, nicely landscaped with rooms on small "streets" overlooking the sea. There are swankier villas by the shore, and the beach is stunning – it's a great family option. Ras al Khaimah has staged something of a coup with the opening of the first Banyan Tree(00 971 7 206 7777; banyantree.com) hotel on the peninsula; hidden away in Wadi Khadeja amid desert 20 minutes from Ras al Khaimah city, it opens in January, with stunning private villas around the dunes. Every villa has a private pool and there's an impressive spa.Pocket-sized emirates: Ajman &Umm al QwainThe two smallest emirates are worth dipping into if you're set on collecting the pack. Ajman's biggest claim to fame is the lovely white-sand beach that lies within the confines of the Kempinskihotel (00 971 6 714 5555; kempinski.com/ajman). If all you want is to lie on a palm-fringed beach, this is as good a place as any, and the nearby Ajman Forthas been converted into an interesting museum, with exhibits on Arab life (using some rather scary mannequins). Umm al Qwain is worth visiting just to say you've visited all seven, but a drive-through is probably enough.Getting thereCox and Kings (020 7873 5000; coxandkings.co.uk) has a seven-night Emirates Explorer tour with two nights each in Abu Dhabi, Ajman, Ras al Khaimah and one night in Al Ain from £1,595, including flights, B&B and a private driver. Etihad (0800 731 9384; etihad.com) flies from Heathrow to Abu Dhabi from £399.United Arab EmiratesAnnabelle Thorpeguardian.co.uk© Guardian News &Media Limited 2009 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms &Conditions| More Feeds

  Julia Buckley put her talents to the test at the home of US stage comedy, the Second City in ChicagoThink of an American comedian, and the chances are they will have trained at a particular comedy club in Chicago. The alumni list for the Second City is as long as it is impressive (see box below): book tickets for any of the daily shows and you could be watching tomorrow's Bill Murray or Joan Rivers.Less well known is that the club opens its doors to amateurs. Signing up for a taster course at the one of the world's most famous comedy venues is a daunting prospect, made more so by the fact that it specialises in the hardest of comedic arts: improvisation. It's no exaggeration to say that the Second City is the mecca of improv. And I am on a pilgrimage to be funny.There are sixteen of us in the class, each secretly hoping that we will return home more a little bit more confident, entertaining and spontaneous. "You're on fire tonight!" our friends will chime. And we will smile smugly and put it down to our Chicago holiday. At least, that's the idea.First thing Monday, we're running around the room, screaming "oil slick" at each other. It's what passes for an ice‑breaker in the land of improv.Ice duly broken, we introduce ourselves. There's a mix of ages in the group – from early 20s to mid-40s – as well as professionals. Some are as new to improv as I am, like Steve, a farmer, and Stacia, a lawyer; some are in the business already (Ben is a film director, Kelly an actress). Bridget turned to stand-up after her divorce; Anne and Justine share a past in amateur dramatics. Sadly, they're English, too, nixing my plan that if no one laughs at me, I'll blame the culture clash.Luckily, everyone takes an I'll-laugh-at-yours-if-you-laugh-at-mine attitude. Every action, however leaden-footed, is greeted with "Awesome!" or "Nice!" From the forced applause, you'd think we were actually good at mime.It's a gentler start than many pros have had at the "Harvard of Improv", as Vanity Fair called it. In the mid-70s, Peter Cook and Dudley Moore took to the stage at Second City's Toronto off-shoot, but according to club vice‑president Kelly Leonard, "were so drunk they could hardly speak." In Chicago, Jonathan Pryce was left trembling, while Stephen Fry was terrified when he volunteered during the making of his recent TV programme Stephen Fry in America."It's an art form that doesn't really exist in the UK," Leonard says. "You call a stand-up playing with the audience improvisation; here, it's a technique to create theatre. You've got to be fearless, you're forced to engage with strangers. To someone from the UK, it seems like an unnatural act."Our lessons are dominated by mime rather than wordplay. Our teacher, Andy Eninger, who's been in the business for 20 years, tells us that, without props, improvisers need to mime. Over the next three mornings we act out body tics and roller-coaster rides. We mime finding treasure, and I vow to work on my imagination when my pebble comes up against golden nuggets and pirate coins.Thankfully, the writing side is less excruciating. After free-writing each day, we learn sketch types and stock formulas. We brainstorm issues to arrive at a premise a few degrees removed from our initial idea (in our case, contraception for poultry, inspired by the plight of battery hens).After that, the acting gets easier. First I realise there's something other than fear bonding the class when Anne and I come up with a tasteless scene involving morticians and male appendages, and Lauren and Josh trump us with a sketch about flashing. That cultural clash I was worried about? Not here.And, in a breakthrough final session, instead of skulking in the corner, I'm the first to step up and form a living tableau beside ninja-chopping Steve. Andy says when I stop judging myself, I am "loose and funny". I feel valued and talented. It's a life-changing moment.But on the way out the photographer tells me he's never seen anyone look so awkward and it might have helped if I'd cast aside my "stuck-up Brit persona". I wonder if they do a refresher course.• Three-day courses at the Second City(+1 312 664 3959) take place every month and cost $285. Expedia(0871 222 9483) has four nights at the Hotel Allegro plus London-Chicago flights from £523. United Airlines(0845 8444 777) flies Heathrow-Chicago from £382 rtn inc tax. For further information, visit gochicago.com.The Witty City: Three More Comedy VenuesThe iO TheaterKnown as "improv Olympic" until the International Olympic Committee decided to stamp its mighty foot and enforce a name change, this theatre, founded in 1981, boasts its own list of storied alumni, including Tina Fey, Mike Myers, Chris Farley and many more. The emphasis is on the performances by "teams" of improv actors; it's worth staying up for the late-night weekend improv "jams", which are especially free-flowing, and a cheap ticket ($3-$5). The action takes place in two threadbare theatres crammed into a building just south of the famous Wrigley Field baseball stadium.• 3541 N Clark Street. +1 773 880 0199.Lakeshore TheaterA converted cinema on the edge of Chicago's "Boystown" gay neighbourhood, Lakeshore has quickly established itself as the venue for cutting-edge comedy, featuring acts such as the Australian comic storyteller Jim Jefferies, who returns for four shows in April. Lakeshore's artistic director, Chris Ritter, is unafraid to be contentious: one of the theatre's mottos is "Dane Cook sucks, and you know it", Cook being a hugely popular comedian who Ritter thinks is pandering to the lowest-common denominator. Although you can certainly buy a beer, there's no "two-drink minimum" rule which you find at many comedy clubs.• 3175 N Broadway. +1 773 472 3492.The Annoyance Theatre &BarA store-front bar with a theatre in the back, the Annoyance has the feel, one imagines, of early Second City. Indeed, its founder and artistic director, Mick Napier, has been the director of Second City's mainstage shows in recent years. But Annoyance continues to pump out frenzied, borderline anarchic productions, including the long-running film lampoon, Co-ed Prison Sluts. On Thursdays, Messing with a Friend showcases the gifted local improv actor Susan Messing.• 4830 N Broadway. +1 773 561 4665.Steve Johnsonwrites about entertainment and popular culture for the Chicago Tribune.ChicagoUnited StatesComedyTheatreguardian.co.uk© Guardian News &Media Limited 2009 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms &Conditions| More Feeds

  Ruling that ballot was illegal means nearly 1 million BA passengers will be able to complete their journeys as plannedThe high court has blocked the 12-day Christmas walkout by British Airways cabin crewafter ruling that the strike ballot was illegal.The decision means nearly a million BA passengers can complete their journeys as planned over Christmas unless there are wildcat walkouts by the 12,700 cabin crew who supported industrial action.The dramatic intervention is a humiliation for the Unite union, which had considered delaying the announcement of a massive walkout earlier this week after receiving repeated warnings from BA executives that the vote was invalid.The high court confirmed those fears by granting BA's request for an injunction against the strike after around 900 cabin crew were balloted despite taking voluntary redundancy. Mrs Justice Cox ruled that the balloting error breached the 1992 Trade Union Act.Unite slammed the verdict as a "bad day for democracy" and said it would hold a fresh ballot on a dispute over cuts in staffing levels. That is expected to take at least a month, meaning the 910,000 BA passengers expecting to travel between 22 December and 2 January can now carry on with holidays and visits to friends and relatives.Speaking on the steps of the high court, Derek Simpson, joint general secretary of Unite, acknowledged that there would be "great euphoria" among hundreds of thousands of passengers. BA said it was "delighted" that the threat of a Christmas strike has been lifted by the court."It is a decision that will be welcomed by hundreds of thousands of families in the UK and around the world," said the airline, which faced losing up to £30m a day if the strike had gone ahead."There was never any need for a strike and we hope that Unite will take this opportunity to reflect before deciding its next steps. We believe the public would want that too. In recent days, we believe Unite has formed a better understanding of our position and of the ways in which we could move forward," BA added.Talks between the BA chief executive, Willie Walsh, and the joint leaders of the Unite union were expected to resume this afternoonbut union sources said the airline had not been in touch since an adjournment yesterday. Both sides are struggling to find a way forward but today's verdict could swing the situation decisively in BA's favour. The Unite leadership was dissuaded from postponing the strike date announcement by representatives from BASSA, the Unite cabin crew branch, who were keen to put momentum behind a 92% vote in favour of strike action.Public anger over the walkouts has been building this week and Unite's determination to stage another vote could be met with increased political pressure. A BASSA source said crew would be angry but would not stage a unilateral walkout next week. "That will not happen. The crews are very disciplined. There might be one or two wild ones but they have been suspended already." The mood on discussion forums on the BASSA website was one of anger at the Unite leadership for mishandling the ballot, and embarrassment over how cabin crew will face passengers on flights next week. Asked if the workforce had the stomach for another ballot, the BASSA source said: "The decision questions your faith in the whole system. It makes you wonder if you have the right to strike any more. It's like losing in the last minute of the cup final."Unite's joint general secretaries, Derek Simpson and Tony Woodley, said the dispute continued and warned that if negotiations failed there would "inevitably" be a further ballot. "While we have never wanted this dispute it is a disgraceful day for democracy when a court can overrule such an overwhelming decision by employees taken in a secret ballot," they said. "We will of course be studying the judgment, but the fact remains that this dispute is not settled. Passing the buck to the courts to do management's job for them was never going to be the answer."British AirwaysAirline industryTrade unionsTravel &leisureTransportDan MilmoTim Webbguardian.co.uk© Guardian News &Media Limited 2009 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms &Conditions| More Feeds

  Whether you're a couple looking for romance or a night owl in search of a party, we have come up with the potted guide to the New Year's Eve of your dreamsAll prices are based on a three-night trip departing on 30 December. For raversAmsterdamGetting there:BMI (0844 8484 888; flybmi.com) has flights from London Heathrow from £196. The train takes four hours 16 minutes but the only available tickets for New Year cost £342.Stay:Hotel Toren (00 31 20 622 60 33; thetoren.nl) occupies a handsome building on a quiet stretch of the Keizersgracht, a short walk from the Anne Frank House and some lively bars and restaurants. The rooms are all different: some airy and modern, others in traditional silks. Doubles from €195.Eat:Don't waste valuable partying time queuing for a table; get a bite on the run. Raw herring is a speciality, and there are dozens of haringhuisfish stands. The best is Zeebanket van Altena,next to the Rijksmuseum at Jan Luijkenstraat.As the bells strike:After its closure in the 60s, the Westergasfabriek lay dormant until 2003, when it was restored as a cultural hub of galleries and restaurants, with a 3,500-capacity performance space in the old cylindrical gasometer. Local techno promoter Awakenings has been holding all-night New Year's Eve raves in the gasometer since its reinvention, and this year's event, dubbed Amsterdam United (amsterdam-united.nl; tickets €57.50), will feature an all-Dutch line-up until Dave Clarke in the 4am-6am slot.The morning after:Stroll around the once run-down Jordaan area. Its winding streets are now home to cosy bars and cafes with a relaxed, studenty feel.BerlinGetting there:Easyjet (0905 821 9095; easyjet.com) has flights from £230.Stay:Though somewhat bland, the Intercity Hotel (00800 7846 8357; intercityhotel.com) has two things going for it: availability, and a perfect clubbers' location right next to the Ostbahnhof. Doubles from €107.Eat:For hearty German fare and a great atmosphere, head for Alte Pumpe (030 2648 4265; altepumpe.de), based in a pumping station on Lützowstrasse. Ask for a table next to the boilers and driving wheels – a prime photo opportunity.As the bells strike:The Ostfunk party at the U3 Tunnel Club (u3-tunnel.de), in a disused Metro station beneath Potsdamer Platz, is the place to go. From there, make for the cluster of clubs around Ostbahnhof station, where Berghain (berghain.de), a techno mecca in a former powerplant, will be partying well beyond midday on the 1st.The morning after:In Berlin, it's just an extension of the night before. Tresor (tresorberlin.com), a colossal club in, yup, an old power station, has lined up Detroit DJ Mike Huckaby.AntwerpGetting there:Cityjet (0871 666 5050; cityjet.com) has flights from London City airport from £145 return. It's only four hours by train, but available tickets now cost £329.Stay:Hotel Postiljon (00 32 3 231 75 75; hotelpostiljon.be), a minute's walk from the Grote Markt, has doubles from £80.Eat:After a beer or two with the locals, who congregate in the Grote Markt to down glasses of De Koninck in traditional bars such as Den Engel, escape to the reclaimed docks for dinner at the Velvet Lounge (00 32 3 237 39 78; velvetlounge.be, reservations essential), the city's hippest place to eat.As the bells strike:Make supper last till gone midnight, and watch the fireworks launch from a boat on the river Schelde. Finish up at the Dead Celebrity Ball at the Magiq Speigeltent (magiq.be) in the Hoboken district, or Petrol (00 32 3 226 49 63; petrolclub.be) down by the river.The morning after:Grab a pastry from Patisserie Schoenaers at Belgielei 109 (00 32 3230 71 98; schoenaers.be) and head for the stadspark (city park), perfect for a brisk New Year's Day stroll.MadridGetting there:Air Europa (00 34 902 401 501; aireuropa.com) has flights from London Gatwick from £150 return.Stay:De Las Letras (00 34 91 523 7980; hoteldelasletras.com) may be a little pricey, but the roof terrace gives a fantastic bird's eye-view as the city gears up for midnight. The sleekly stylish rooms will help the hangover, too. Doubles from €183.Eat:Forget formal dining; dip into the bodegasand tapas bars that line the streets. Top tips include Tabernilla del Gato Amadeus (Calle Cristo) and Juana La Loca (Plaza de Puerta de Moros).As the bells strike:The place to gather is the Puerta del Sol; bring bottles of cava and grapes – tradition dictates that 12 are eaten as the clock strikes midnight.The morning after:This is when the party really gets going: the Space of Sound Festival (spaceofsoundfestival.com) starts at 10am and takes over the 12,000-capacity Telefonica Arena, with 42 DJs in six rooms, including Sasha and Groove Armada. Tickets €80.MoscowGetting there:Swiss International Air Lines (0845 601 0956; swiss.com) has flights from Heathrow to Moscow from £320 return.Stay:The Moscow Savoy (00 7 495 620 8500; savoy.ru) has doubles from £110.Eat:The best food is Georgian; eat at Mama Zoya (16d Frunzenskaya Naberezhnya, 00 8 499 242 85 50), a reasonably priced restaurant on a boat opposite Gorky Park. The decor – gnomes, palms and mannequins – is odd, but the views across the river are blinding.As the bells strike:A minimal techno party in an ex-industrial district will see Moscow doing its best impression of Berlin. The Arma 17 club complex (00 7 915 404 00 44; arma17.ru) is in an old gasworks behind Kursky rail station, and has coaxed techno heroes Ricardo Villalobos and Rudolf to see in 2010.The morning after:Stroll through Gorky Park and blitz the hangover with the cold air at the top of the Ferris wheel.For romanticsParisGetting there:Rail Europe (0844 848 4070; raileurope.co.uk) has three-day return fares from London St Pancras to Paris from £309.Stay:Apartment Invalides (2binparis.com) is a charming one-bedroom apartment in the Orsay district, and costs from €160 a night over New Year.Eat:The century-old Chartier restaurant in Montmartre (00 33 1 4770 8629; restaurant-chartier.com), complete with fin-de-siècle interiors of polished brass, wood panelling and floor-to-ceiling mirrors, is a perfect spot to start the evening, with classic French dishes that will cost you half as much as many of the more pretentious brasseries nearby. Afterwards, wander towards the river via "Le mur des je t'aime", a 40-square-metre monument inscribed with "I love you" in 250 languages.As the bells strike:Head for the Promenade Plantée, an elevated walkway that runs through the 12th arrondissement. You'll pass plenty of revellers heading in the opposite direction towards the overcrowded Champs-Elysées, but carry on towards the Seine, where dozens of intimate bars line the streets around the Pont de Bercy.The morning after:Grab a coffee and croissant and go to the Marais district on the Right Bank. Home to a long-established Jewish community, it's a trendy area lined with boutiques, art galleries and stylish cafes.VeniceGetting there:Easyjet (0905 821 0905; easyjet.com) has flights from London Gatwick to Venice from £295.Stay:Venice gets heavily booked for New Year, but the gorgeous 30s-style Hotel Belle Epoque (00 39 041 244 0004; hotelbelleepoque.it) still has rooms available from €160.Eat:For the best seafood in town, book a table for two at Hostaria Da Franz (00 39 041 522 0861; hostariadafranz.com), by the canal on Fondamenta San Giuseppe, just 15 minutes' stroll from San Marco Square. Order the lip-smacking seppie(cuttlefish) cooked in black ink, and the anguilla(eel), prepared according to a secret recipe.As the bells strike:San Marco Square will be awash with smoochers this New Year's Eve. The second "Capodanno Love" event is aiming to fondle its way into Venetian tradition, having hit the headlines for its climactic mass kiss last year, when over 60,000 lovers locked lips as the clock struck 12. Then sneak away from the masses and north towards the Naranzaria (naranzaria.it) wine bar for a bottle of Prosecco on the loggia overlooking the Grand Canal.The morning after:Jump on a vaporettofor an hour's cruise across to the peaceful island of Murano.BudapestGetting there:Easyjet (0905 821 9095; easyjet.com) has flights from London Stansted from £249.Stay:The Mamaison Hotel Andrassy (00 36 1 4622 118; andrassyhotel.com) has a great location and a slick Bauhaus style; doubles from €106 on New Year's Eve, €77 other nights (room-only).Eat:Glide through the heart of the city on a boat trip featuring a four-course meal, with music provided by an award-winning local gypsy band and food prepared by Hungary's only Gault Millau-rated chef, Klöter Gregor-Grex. The buffet menu includes smoked salmon tartare, parsley soup with truffle oil and braised duck leg, and plenty of champagne and local wines. Book on tinyurl.com/budapestboat.As the bells strike:At the stroke of midnight, toast with a glass of Unicum, the staple Hungarian herbal liqueur with allegedly medicinal properties.The morning after:Soak away your hangover at one of Budapest's celebrated thermal baths. Avoid the overly touristy Gellert and head instead to the Lukacs, (Frankel Leo ut 25-29), handily placed for the city's best cake shop, Daubner Cukraszda (50 Szepvolgyi ut).LisbonGetting there:Easyjet (0905 821 9095; easyjet.com) has flights from London Gatwick and Luton from £223.Stay:York House (00 351 21 396 2435; yorkhouselisboa.com) is a small boutique hotel 10 minutes from the heart of Lisbon. Twin rooms over New Year's Eve from €150; doubles from €200.Eat:Set in the grand building of a former convent, A Travessa (00 351 21 390 2034; atravessa.com) is one of Lisbon's most characterful restaurants, serving all manner of Portuguese, Belgian and French dishes.As the bells strike:After dinner, wander towards the Bairro Alto for a shot of Ginjinha, a sour cherry liqueur, and on to the Principe Real district for a glass of midnight Champagne in the Pavilhão Chinês. This eccentric bar is ringed with antique cabinets housing bizarre collectibles, and has a smoky lounge and side rooms dotted with cosy loungers.The morning after:Hop on tram 28 for a ride through Lisbon's ancient – and remarkably steep – streets. Highlights include the grand Estrela Basilica and the charming Castelo de São Jorge.GhentGetting there:Rail Europe (0844 848 4070; raileurope.co.uk) has three-day return fares from London St Pancras to Ghent (via Brussels) from £192. The journey takes about three hours.Stay:In the heart of the city, in the Patershol district, Hotel Harmony (00 32 9 324 2680; hotel-harmony.be) is an intimate boutique hotel occupying a pair of 18th-century merchant houses, both elegantly decorated in bold minimalist style. Doubles over New Year's Eve cost from €180, including breakfast.Eat:For a candlelit dinner for two, nothing beats Tête-à-Tête (Jan Breydelstraat 32; 00 32 9 233 9500). Ask for a table on the enclosed terrace, with its canal views. The seafood is top notch – try the lobster bisque with Armagnac.As the bells strike:The new yacht harbour, Portus Ganda, is staging a big firework display.The morning after:Work off some of that Leffe beer with a stroll around the centre, taking in St Michael's Bridge, from where there is an impressive view of the city skyline.Christmas and New YearCity breaksMoscowAntwerpMadridAmsterdamBerlinParisVeniceBudapestLisbonGhentWeekend breaksShort breaksguardian.co.uk© Guardian News &Media Limited 2009 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms &Conditions| More Feeds