I can’t really remember when or where I first came across the Guardian Weekly. It might have been in Germany in the 80s, when studying there, or it might have been on one of my travels in Asia, but I’ve been reading it on and off for years.
Whenever I live and work abroad I always try to seek it out. Having been teaching English as a foreign language now since 2000 I’ve been fortunate enough to enjoy life in several different countries in Asia and Africa.
The GW has often become part of my routine in unfamiliar cultures and I love it for that. When I was working in Egypt for a few months in 2012 my weekend was Friday and Saturday, and I would love to cross the river Nile on a Thursday after work and stroll into the beautiful leafy district of Zamalek, on an island in the river, and go to one of the newspaper sellers on the street to buy the latest GW.
And then I would spend my Friday mornings, which had the lovely, peaceful, slow atmosphere of a Sunday morning back home in the UK, sitting on my balcony in the district of Mohandessin, with a mug of coffee and the GW, enjoying a relaxed, calm start to my weekend.
The news might be a little old, but I always learn something new, especially when I read the book reviews and discover one I’d never thought of reading but plan to as a result of having seen the review.
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