Being a fan of period dramas, the occasional flight of fancy and being just the right side of 60, Lyndall decided it was time to embark on a Grand Tour of Europe

There were a few minor differences between her and the original 18th-century aristocratic travellers. She isn’t a wealthy young gentlemen out to complete her education, acquire culture and return home suitably polished and marriageable. Nor did she have a tutor, valet, footman or bear-leader (the unfortunate soul paid to keep young aristocrats out of trouble) in tow.

She had a passport, comfortable shoes, a vague grasp of European history and a healthy appreciation of food and wine. What more could you need?

Lyndall