Y'know, the first - and only time I'd been abroad throughout the whole of my 24 years' marriage to my previous wife - was on our honeymoon ... which comprised a 4~day mini cruise to Oslo, I'd seen advertised in a women's magazine.

... oh boy, the North Sea crossing from Newcastle's Tyne Commission Quay was rough (never seen waves like yon - either before or since) and it was little surprise to learn that practically everyone on board the 'MV Braemar' (including many seasoned crew members) had suffered seasickness during the turbulent outward leg of the journey.

Family responsibilities - caring for her widowed invalid mother coupled in due course, with the arrivals of our two children - meant my wife had to give up a long-standing, pre-marital career as a professional photographer, leaving me as sole breadwinner. Added to which, she, in turn, inherited her mother's rheumatoid arthritis! So, in the event, our Norwegian honeymoon turned out to be Iris's one and only trip abroad; her general health deteriorated over the years ... leading to her early death a year prior to what would've been our Silver Wedding.

Luckily (for me) my kids were grown~up and self~sufficient by the time of their Mum's passing, and my daughter (who'd spent 3 months in America following graduation as a Speech & Language Therapist from Glasgow University) suggested I cash-in my wife's Life Assurance policy and take a much~needed vacation. So, in the summer of 1992 ... having been granted extended leave of absence from work, I spent 5 weeks travelling coast~to~coast across the United States.

Subsequently, I took early retiral and, thereafter, using the lump sum I'd accrued due to my length of service combined with transferrable superannuation payments from my previous employment, was able to travel widely in Europe and farther afield ... including China and eventually, of course, the Philippines.