Gardening

I love winter gardening: there's little to do. At least, that’s how it seems – as the bindweed shrinks into the soil, the raspberries have done their stuff and hardly anything is trying to grow. But it is a false sense of time-to-spare, for the garden is gathering its loins for a massive spring assault on our sense of leisure.

I have survived the second leg of my UK tour for Guardian travel. The tour was billed as a time to meet people who do interesting things. And I certainly have done that, but I've also been challenged: the first time by plunging into icy waters in Penzance in February and, now, by flying in a gyroplane...

How do you define stoicism? Is it 'putting up with agony' for any reason? What if the stoic is mad or feels no pain while doing what for others would be immeasurably brave?

Alastair emerging post-swim

Well, I now consider myself a Serious Stoic. Watch the video on the Guardian travel website and let me know if you agree.

I was in Cornwall for the first leg of a UK tour for the Guardian meeting people who do interesting things. I  plunged in my (mostly) bare flesh into the February sea in the company of a handful of far madder Stoics who do this sort of thing every day.

Alastair in icy waters

Alastair survived his plunge into icy waters at Battery Rocks in Penzance.

He says: "Once I was numb it was exhilarating. I even went back in for a second dip."

The Guardian is covering the escapade and we'll let you know when video evidence appears online.

Thanks for your well-wishing and tips... The temperature on that day was 4 degrees, by the way!

Photo courtesy of The Guardian

Alastair Sawday

Tomorrow I am wading into the freezing ocean at Battery Rocks in Cornwall in the company of a stoic 70-year-old woman who swims there every day. For unmentionable reasons I feel bound to stick to the plan whatever the weather. Does anyone have any tips that might save me from agony and total humiliation?

We've had some LOVEly features in the press... In the Financial Times 'Expert Selection' section you'll find Alastair's recommendations for boltholes for two, and in Venue magazine, Toby Sawday's top ten romantic retreats for the love-struck. If you want to spring a surprise for your loved one in February, take a look... Or tell us if you've had a memorably romantic Sawday's stay...

Under pressure from all sides, worn down by emails, requests to sponsor half-marathons and attend happiness seminars, we yearn for a break. The trouble is, the allotment needs weeding, the roof is leaking and the car insurance is about to expire. But so are you. So, the need for short breaks is transparent – and desperate.

When we choose our Special Places we look for warmth and something extra special. We look for those things in our owners, too.

Told that children are not welcome, do you sigh with relief?  I tend to sigh with sadness, for it strikes me as an eternal truth that people who welcome little ones are more likely to welcome you. They are more easy-going, more at ease with themselves and more likely to go extra miles for you all.

Nancy Mitford’s views on children are thus: ‘I love children, especially when they cry and someone takes them away.' And someone called Leo Rosten memorably wrote: 'Anybody who hates dogs and babies can't be bad.' He would be lynched today.