Stay up to date with notifications from The Independent

Notifications can be managed in browser preferences.

Letter from the editor: It’s the first day of the school holidays

 

Stefano Hatfield
Friday 22 July 2011 19:00 EDT
Comments

Your support helps us to tell the story

From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.

At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.

The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.

Your support makes all the difference.

In households throughout the land, families will wake up this morning with a mixture of near-hysterical excitement and a certain resigned trepidation. Yes, it’s the first day of the school holidays.

What are we all going to do for the next six weeks? You think that’s a terrifying prospect? When I lived in steamy New York, we had a touch short of three months “vacation” to fill! There, as here, one thing’s for sure: parents are not going to be short of advice from the media about what to do. And, for once, we will appreciate it.

As ever at i Towers we aim to mix the aspirational with the practical, and there’s no better example of that combination than our esteemed travel supremo Simon Calder’s column (p39). Read our handy feature on Mauritius (p38) if you fancy the exotic, and Brighton beach (p26) if you want to stick closer to home. However, as Mimi Spencer’s lyrical writing makes clear, Brighton is arguably almost as exotic. Before you start moaning about some mythical southern bias, there’s also fun to be had in the Scottish highlands (p40). Once you’ve got to that beach, what to eat? Be ambitious, and check out i’s resident chef Mark Hix’s guide to barbecuing crustaceans (p28).

I’m not sure if the weather will let me take my rightful place behind the barbie this weekend, but one thing I will be doing for the first time since the great Lance Armstrong’s post-cancer victory is tearing myself away from the fascinating Lord’s test to tune in to Sunday’s finale in Paris of what’s been an extraordinary Tour de France. So many of you have written in to i to commend Alasdair Fotheringham’s daily coverage, that it’s clear that you share our feeling that this has been the most thrilling Tour in years. To someone like me, who can scarcely wobble along the Thames pathway, riders such as Alberto Contador appear superhuman. Let’s hope that they haven’t have had a little illegal chemical assistance with their super-powers.

Have a good weekend, and keep those i company song suggestions rolling in! See you on Monday.

Join our commenting forum

Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies

Comments

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in