As luxury train rides go, it would be misguided to not consider South Africa's The Blue Train amongst the very best.

The world is a weird place. It’s not something we always appreciate as we go about our day-to-day lives, but every so often you learn something about this planet of ours, suspended in a potentially infinite cosmos, that makes you stop and pause for thought.

When Kenneth Branagh’s action-man Hercule Poirot first bounds onto the screen, we find ourselves in Jerusalem 1933. And while this is sure to be an unfamiliar opening to many of Christie’s more avid readers, we’re soon back into comfortable territory as Poirot’s sense of self-importance and masterful pomp come bubbling to the surface during his self-absorbed denouement.

All Hallows Eve, the one night of the year when daemons, ghosties and probably even the monsters under your bed are free to roam the land of the living.

“I could never have imagined such expanses of unspoilt, natural country without actually seeing it myself, it was like a glimpse into another age, another world, and it made a very strong impression on me. It was strange to be sitting in a train, which is the product of technology — the invention of mankind, and travelling through land so untouched and unspoilt by man and his inventions.”

It’s 10.32 in the morning and I’m sat beneath the leafy boughs of a Portuguese arbour, sipping on delicate green wine made with grapes harvested from the very vineyard I’m looking out over. This is how life is in the Douro Valley, and with so many quintas to choose from you might as well start early and visit as many as possible.

As vibrant and full of flavour as the countries they originate from, South American cuisine is often a wonderful representative for the continent’s lust for life as well as fairly ecological, utilising local crops and ingredients that have been harvested in this part of the world for generations. Savour the taste of ancient civilisations in Peru or experience tender steaks in Argentina; when your taste buds are calling out for a zing of excitement, this is the place to go!

Whether you read a chapter or two each night to your children, or grandchildren, or enjoyed secretly devouring page after page by wand light, er of course I mean lamp light; the Harry Potter novels and later film franchise, are sure to have had some kind of impact on most denizens of Britain’s green and pleasant lands. With its messages of tolerance, bumbling wizards inhabiting tumbledown cottages, filled with eclectic and magically misbehaved nick-knacks, and scenic descriptions of swathey Scottish landscapes, it’s obvious to any discerning reader that good old Blighty is almost as much a leading character throughout all seven books as Harry himself.

Cruising is big business, especially now as cruise companies head into ever more unchartered waters. Once the simple statement, ‘we’re heading off on a cruise this summer’ would have evoked images of a sedate lap around the Mediterranean, but no longer! With lines such as Hurtigruten offering adventures across Scandinavia and unique experiences up for grabs in Asia - Halong Bay in Vietnam not only offers warm waters for swimming and mind-boggling geological formations, but cruising is the only way to access this island labyrinth - it’s no wonder that the demand for holidays afloat is increasing year after year.

What do the black death epidemic, that ravaged much of Europe during the 17th century, and an epic five-hour play performed over 100 times in the space of a few months have in common? Very little most would think, but then most would be wrong…

How many of us have wanted to walk straight into the pages of our favourite books? While it might not be possible quite yet to experience the lives of the fictional heroes and heroines we’ve walked side by side through life with for a little while, and sometimes who’d want to (think of just about any character from a Stephen King novel).

Over the past decade, the choice and variety for vegetarians wanting to eat out has boomed – it’s not just stuffed peppers and goats cheese tartlets anymore! But there are some destinations that seem heaven sent for those keeping to a meat-free diet, places where local delicacies cater more to a vegie palate than any other and where it may even be the meat eaters who are in the minority! So here are 5 of the expected and the unexpected when it comes to global vegetarian hotspots.