Letter No. 34September 2026
Slow and overland travel
Dear the Journey Between Places
On night trains, ferries and long bus rides, and on the value of the hours between one destination and the next.
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The archive
All letters
34 letters so far, to cities and villages, mountains and islands, and to the people who travel between them.
RegionSeason
Letter No. 33September 2026
Curiosity and expectations
Dear the Place We Haven't Met Yet
A letter about curiosity, expectations and travelling with an open mind, addressed to somewhere we have not yet seen.
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Letter No. 32September 2026
Independent shops
Dear the Local Shopkeeper
A thank-you letter to the bakers, grocers and booksellers who keep a neighbourhood alive, and how visitors can support them.
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Letter No. 31August 2026
Scottish Highlands, Scotland, United Kingdom
Dear the Scottish Highlands, Leave No Trace
Glens, lochs, single-track roads and midges. A letter about wild places, weather and the responsibility that comes with access.
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Letter No. 30August 2026
The Dolomites, Italy
Dear the Dolomites, Beautiful Does Not Mean Effortless
Pale limestone towers that glow pink at dusk, mountain huts serving polenta, and paths that demand more preparation than the photos suggest.
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Letter No. 29August 2026
The Azores, Portugal
Dear the Azores, Islands That Ask You to Slow Down
Crater lakes, hot springs, hydrangea hedges and weather that can change between one bend of the road and the next.
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Letter No. 28July 2026
Hanoi, Vietnam
Dear Hanoi on a Rainy Morning
Plastic ponchos in every colour, steam rising from noodle stalls under awnings, and the city carrying on regardless.
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Letter No. 27July 2026
Kyoto, Japan
Dear Kyoto in Autumn
Maple leaves turning crimson in temple gardens, the busiest weeks of the year, and how to enjoy the season without adding to the strain.
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Letter No. 26July 2026
Lisbon, Portugal
Dear Lisbon in January
Roasted chestnuts on street corners, empty miradouros and a city that feels more like itself when the summer visitors have gone.
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Letter No. 25July 2026
Spending where it matters
Dear Traveller, The Things Worth Paying For
Supporting independent businesses, local guides and cultural experiences, without assuming every traveller has the same budget.
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Letter No. 24June 2026
Crowds and timing
Dear Traveller, How to Visit a Popular Place More Gently
Practical strategies for timing, crowd awareness and considerate behaviour at the places everyone wants to see.
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Letter No. 23June 2026
Respecting residential neighbourhoods
Dear Traveller, A City Is Not a Theme Park
The laundry on the balcony is not decoration. A letter about remembering that the neighbourhoods we visit are where people live.
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Letter No. 22June 2026
Travelling alone
Dear Solo Traveller
On planning, safety, confidence, eating alone and the quiet pleasure of answering to nobody but yourself.
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Letter No. 21June 2026
Plitvice Lakes, Croatia
Dear Plitvice, Water That Never Stops Moving
Sixteen terraced lakes linked by waterfalls, wooden boardwalks over clear water, and a park that asks visitors to stay on the path.
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Letter No. 20May 2026
Patagonia, Chile and Argentina
Dear Patagonia, You Taught Us the Wind
Granite towers, a glacier that groans as it calves, guanacos on the steppe, and a wind that rewrites every plan you make.
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Letter No. 19May 2026
Lofoten Islands, Norway
Dear Lofoten, The Sea at the Edge of the World
Granite peaks straight out of the sea, red fishing cabins on stilts, cod drying on wooden racks, and weather that is always in charge.
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Letter No. 18May 2026
Hoi An, Vietnam
Dear Hoi An, Lanterns, Tailors and Quiet Mornings
A former trading port of ochre houses and silk lanterns that comes alive at night, and is most itself at six in the morning.
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Letter No. 17May 2026
Chefchaouen, Morocco
Dear Chefchaouen, A Town Painted in Blue
Steps and doorways washed in every shade of blue, the Rif Mountains behind, and a slower pace than Morocco's big cities.
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Letter No. 16April 2026
Hallstatt, Austria
Dear Hallstatt, Please Come Gently
A lakeside village of fewer than a thousand residents that has become one of the most photographed places in Europe. A letter about visiting more gently.
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Letter No. 15April 2026
Coyoacán, Mexico City, Mexico
Dear Coyoacán, A Village Inside the City
Cobbled streets, coyote fountains, churros on the plaza and the blue house where Frida Kahlo was born and died.
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Letter No. 14April 2026
Nara, Japan
Dear Nara, The Deer Bow First
A former capital where wild deer wander among temples, a great bronze Buddha, and a lesson in respect for animals that are not pets.
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Letter No. 13April 2026
Sintra, Portugal
Dear Sintra, Fairy Tale with a Sensible Pair of Shoes
Palaces in the mist, forests full of ferns, and hills that are steeper than every photograph suggests. Come early, and wear proper shoes.
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Letter No. 12March 2026
Seoul, South Korea
Dear Seoul, Never Sleeping, Always Kind
Palaces between skyscrapers, markets open late into the night, and a subway so well run it feels like a quiet form of hospitality.
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Letter No. 11March 2026
Edinburgh, Scotland, United Kingdom
Dear Edinburgh, A City That Tells Stories in Stone
A castle on a volcanic plug, closes that drop away into darkness, and weather that changes three times before lunch.
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Letter No. 10March 2026
Buenos Aires, Argentina
Dear Buenos Aires, Late Dinners and Long Goodbyes
Dinner at ten is early. Goodbyes take twenty minutes. You run on conversation, coffee, and a kind of late-night energy that never quite tires.
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Letter No. 09March 2026
Marrakech, Morocco
Dear Marrakech, We Got Lost on Purpose
A medina where maps give up, the smoke of grills over Jemaa el-Fnaa at sunset, and riads that open like secrets behind plain doors.
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Letter No. 08February 2026
Hanoi, Vietnam
Dear Hanoi, The Street Is Your Living Room
Plastic stools on the pavement, a bowl of pho at 6 a.m., and motorbikes moving like a river. You live your life outdoors and invite everyone to pull up a seat.
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Letter No. 07February 2026
Istanbul, Türkiye
Dear Istanbul, Two Continents, One Tea
A ferry crossing that costs less than a coffee, a tulip-shaped glass of tea, and a city that has been the centre of the world more than once.
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Letter No. 06February 2026
Cape Town, South Africa
Dear Cape Town, Between the Mountain and the Sea
A flat-topped mountain that wears a tablecloth of cloud, two oceans, and a history that asks to be understood, not just photographed.
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Letter No. 05February 2026
A first trip
Dear First-Time Traveller
A reassuring, practical letter for anyone about to take their first big trip: preparing, packing, budgeting and coping when things go wrong.
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Letter No. 04January 2026
Mexico City, Mexico
Dear CDMX, We Came for Tacos and Stayed for You
One of the largest cities in the world, sitting on a drained lake at 2,240 metres. You are loud, generous, full of murals and impossible to summarise in a single trip.
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Letter No. 03January 2026
Kyoto, Japan
Dear Kyoto, Teach Us to Slow Down
Fifteen hundred temples, a river with stepping stones shaped like turtles, and a rhythm that rewards anyone willing to stop rushing between them.
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Letter No. 02January 2026
Lisbon, Portugal
Dear Lisbon, You Made Us Climb to Love You
Seven hills, worn limestone pavements and a yellow tram that groans up the slope like it has opinions. You are not an easy city to walk, and that is part of the point.
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Letter No. 01January 2026
Our manifesto
Dear World
Why we write letters to places, what travelling with love means to us, and why affection for a destination should begin with respect for the people who call it home.
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