A lot of locations for stories are based on places that I’ve visited.  So, any time I’m on holiday, I’m also discreetly observing, and noting, the places with an ulterior motive.

At some point in time, they’ll finish up in a story.

Places like Florence, London, Paris, and Venice have all been used in recent stories.

Of course, places change, and there are some that I can’t get to, so it’s useful having Google Maps and Street View.  These can either make up for lack of memory and a refresher.

Especially if you need to visit Africa.  Parts of my stories are set in Nigeria, not exactly a place I would go, no matter how much I wanted to get the lie of the land, nor would I go to the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Rwanda, maybe, but in investigating locations, it is interesting to discover that places like Kenya and Rwanda are reasonably safe.  Uganda is more or less the same, but whether I’d visit, as inviting as it might be to see the wildlife (animals that is) I’m thinking Google Maps will do for now.

And as a matter of curiosity when I was a child in school most of those countries were British colonies and held a deep fascination for any child.

How much has changed since?