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And we’ve all gripped the armrest on that coach, taxi or uber in the European roads that lead to ruin but what about the countries where all roads lead to roam.

But it might surprise you which are the safest and which are the most dangerous.

With Norway and the Nordic countries (Sweden second and Denmark fourth) coming out tops.

And don’t they always?

Norway leads the way in Europe when it comes to electric vehicle charges.

It’s just the walking that trips me up in the fjords or was that a shape-shifting troll?

Norwegians could

Off the beaten track: In Norwegian fjords

Our survey today, from Vignetteswitzerland.com, analysed the latest data from the European Transport Safety Council.

To see which countries had the highest road deaths per million inhabitants.

Norway is statistically the safest country to drive in in Europe.

With 2022 showing that the country only had 21.38 deaths per million inhabitants, the lowest of any European country.

Compared to 2012 data, this is a 26.48% drop from across the decade, with 2012 having 29.08 deaths per million inhabitants.

No sweat in Sweden

Sweden comes second on the list of safest countries, with just 21.72 road deaths per million inhabitants.

Compared to 2012 data, this is a drop of 27.74% from when the country had 30.05 road deaths per million inhabitants.

Coming in third place is the United Kingdom, which comes in with 25.89 road deaths per million inhabitants.

The change in road deaths is less significant than other entries on the list.

With a drop of just 9.51% from 2012, where road deaths sat at 28.61 per million inhabitants.

Denmark takes fourth place, with 26.22 road deaths per million inhabitants in the 2022 data.

A 12.38% drop from 2012 when the country had 29.93 road deaths per million inhabitants.

Swiss like clockwork

Rounding out the top five is Switzerland, which comes in with 27.58 road deaths per million inhabitants.

A 35.29% drop from the 2012 data, the most of the top ten safest countries, with 42.62 road deaths per million inhabitants.

Now the best ways to get around Switzerland, of course, are on a pair of skis, by foot or by train.

Or why not all three?

We’ll save the countries where the driving is out of control.

Eyes on the road

Suffice to say the top five are Romania, Serbia, Bulgaria, Croatia and Portugal.

Mind you, I’d say that the most hazardous country is anywhere I’m driving.

And don’t even let me on the other side of the road… which is exactly what mes amis in the French Riviera decided.

Instead take the load off and let someone else behind the steering wheel.

In the countries where all roads lead to roam.

Countries, UK

Darlings of the Fringe

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All the greats started out at the Edinburgh Festival… The Python Boys, Not The Nine O’Clock News, Robin Williams, Fleabag and the Forth Stanza, darlings of the Fringe.

You’ll obviously have heard of us, Martin MacIntyre, award-winning Machair and Edinburgh University Gaelic Writer of Residence.

Douglas Watt, who spawned the 17th century retrospective whodunit John McKenzie series of novels.

Stewart Mercer, Professor of Primary Care and Multimorbidity at Edinburgh University.

Ed McCabe, owner of London’s Ceilidh Club and Kelta Fit dance exercise programme.

And your award-winning Travel writer, globetrotter and friend to the stars.

Who 21 years ago this month rocked the international Fringe (well, got a dozen guests each night of our poetry group run).

Fringe benefits

And that’s the whole thing about the Fringe.

It is open to every wannabe theatrical thesp, coming comic or proselytising poet.

The Fringe wrapped up as all events and shows like to put it today.

And with being just 20 miles from Edinburgh, here in coastal North Berwick, I dodged the crowds to return up the Royal Mile to our venue.

Which, of course, I have done hundreds of times in passing… and still no plaque!

Dara’s darling

Now all of those greats had a dream in common and small beginnings.

As Irish comedian Dara Ó Briain reassured one Fringe act this year when only one person attended their show.

Before with Dara’s endorsement the said act Georgie Greer packed the audiences.

Fringe favourites

Back when we were wowing the aisle with such social observation as Ken, political wrap as A Wake Up For The People.

And Vasectomy on St Andrew’s Day, Tarraing Sorcha, Poem on a Till Roll and Letting Go.

Social media was in its infancy.

And so as we take a trip back down Memory Lane, or the Royal Mile.

For those who were there, or followed us on our journey, to perform at the Scottish Storytelling Centre further down the Mile.

Or Sabhal Mòr Ostaig on the Isle of Skye.

They can say they saw us when we were just starting out and that we were their Darlings of the Fringe.

America, Asia, Countries, Europe, Ireland, UK

Our world is ever changing

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Our world is ever changing but not according to the cork map I’ve been sent.

OIt has taken me, in truth, the best part of a week to realise that this world at my fingertips was the one of my schooldays.

When Britain was still in denial about the loss of Empire.

Pin sharp

It was only after I’d stuck the pins in (I’d expected them to include them as in the picture) that I’d realised.

I’d covered Western Europe in red, blue and a spot of Irish green.

And adapted as your sticky pins only seem to come in the primary colours.

Red, white and blue

So you end up pinning the Oranje Netherlands in red which to be fair is one-third of their flag.

And Italia in verde green the same, though Il Bel Paese is more associated with sporting azzurro.

Some countries have spent generations fighting not to go red so it seemed wrong to pin Germany red, but hey ho.

Red, of course, means different things, in different places and America and the Arab World proudly flashes red.

We will pin them on the beaches

Of course it’s not just travel-longing Travel Editors who pin stickers to an atlas.

And world leaders are probably doing the same as we speak.

I’ve seen it too first hand at Winston Churchill’s War Rooms in Whitehall in London.

Now I’m thinking that I must have been delivered one of Winnie’s maps when I turned my attentions to Asia.

It can’t be a Mumbai mix

And saw that my mapmakers are still clinging to old British names of Bombay (Mumbai) and Peking (Beijing).

Before scanning back to Ireland to check that the names were correct.

It truly would not have surprised me if their cartographers were working to a 20th Century template.

I should have known when they insisted that my purchase was for a Queenstown map of the world.

Rather than a Cork one.

Our world is changing for sure, it’s just some are stuck in the past.

Countries, Culture

The day Travel fought back exceptionally

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This was the day Travel fought back exceptionally.

I have discovered since returning to the UK last year after 13 years in Ireland that a sinister exceptionalism, dressed up as nationalism, stalks the island.

Our clarion call

Britain wants to be treated as an exception in the world from the continent in which the Ice Age determined it must lie.

And within that island its northern part is claiming that it should be treated as an exception.

On account of it having voted against Brexit.

Day of action

Scotland, meanwhile, is caught up in knots.

Because it had voted to stick with England not long before the Brexit referendum.

The separatists want now to reverse that poll which they put down to dirty tricks and misinformation…

Much like an offside goal at the Euros.

They hope that a second referendum which would be in the gift of an anti-vote Boris Johnson.

To free them from the UK.

They want to open the doors to readmission to the EU if only Spain fearful of Catalonian secession would remove their veto.

People power

Yes, I know what you’re thinking…

Is this not a Travel site, jimmurtytraveltraveltravel.com and not jimmurtywafflewafflewaffle.com?

Quite right. Only that British exceptionalism is stopping us travelling while the land I left, European Ireland can.

So while the EU prepare to roll out its vaccine passport the UK pushes back its Freedom Day.

Scotland stand up

We’re going into next month, a Freedom which doesn’t contain any such document.

Those of us of a Scottish variety must wait until August.

Only then can we enjoy what we once claimed could never be taken from us… our Freedom.

As is the way with a controlling figure we are being seduced with the offer of something shiny.

To keep us happy in the meantime.

Hail Malta and the Balearics

Malta and the Balearics are being floated to be put on the Green List.

As welcome as that is we are particularly sore about this.

Because this is one situation where we promote exceptionalism.

We have long been advocating that there should be a special case made for the Spanish Islands.

So what about the Canaries? And the Greek islands?

For now, of course, our Travel sector must keep pressing our case.

Real freedoms for our exceptional Travel professionals and customers.

Yesterday was just the start, the day Travel fought back exceptionally.

MEET YOU ON THE ROAD

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The countries where all roads lead to roam