‘That was the weirdest thing I’ve ever done,” said my husband, flopping on a sunbed. “I was lying in a steam room while some woman in a swimsuit covered my eyes with a cold flannel and threw ice over my head.” After a traditional hamman treatment — Turkish bath — he could do little more than lift his cocktail.

‘But Mauritius is a honeymoon destination,” complained my fiancé. “You can’t go there without me.” He wasn’t wrong. Located in the Indian Ocean, 1242 miles off the southern tip of Africa, flying to Mauritius felt like a journey to the edge of the world.

Somewhere in South Korea is a young woman who was named Leah, after my daughter. When we met on a sunny Friday morning in Seoul she said her “English name” was Eileen, adding that she wanted to change her Western moniker because it sounded like “alien.” Could I suggest an alternative?

It was 7.30am one December morning and I was stretching my limbs in the bright morning sun to the softly spoken instructions of yoga teacher Lauren Eckstrom from ESP Wellness Center. She gently coaxed out more length and deeper breaths until I could almost touch the bright blue skies.

On January 1 1927, excited fans crowded into Miami’s Coconut Grove Theatre to see The Sorrows of Satan, the new “moving picture” by D W Griffith.

We were halfway through day three of our week in France and I was practically down on my knees begging my children to sit down and watch TV.

Perhaps I shouldn’t have been surprised to spot a row of Israeli flags lining an entire city block in the Argentine city of Mendoza. After all, Argentina has the world’s sixth largest Jewish population, even if most live in the capital Buenos Aires.

La Tomatina

Where: Buñol, Valencia , Spain

When: A week long celebration culminating with a squashed tomato fight on the last Wednesday of August

What: There is no reason for this event other than pure fun.

Those of us who remember Margate and Cliftonville from childhood seaside holidays now have a reason to travel back to the East Kent coast on a sentimental journey.