Woman, 78, vows to keep on travelling

A 78-year-old woman, from Warwickshire, who has spent most of her life travelling the globe with her husband, says she has no plans to slow down.

Ann Cooper and husband Alan, 85, have backpacked since they got married, going over land to the likes of India, through Iran, Afghanistan and Pakistan, and she said seeing those places bombed amid the latest hostilities in the Middle East leaves her shocked and saddened.

The couple have just returned from Rwanda, 14 years after her husband first went when she refused to go with him.

"I was really surprised. It was like one vast botanical garden. Green, lush plants and flowers everywhere, the people were friendly, the food terrific," Cooper said.

She has travelled extensively through the Middle East and South Asia and said what is happening in Iran now, brings back memories of her time in the country.

"That was when the Shah was in power. It was very civilised. As we approached a town, there was always a big roundabout planted with trees and flowers to welcome you. And people were lovely, friendly, educated," she said.

Cooper said that they look to get off the beaten track and just book flights to a destination and take it from there, booking into local hotels and taking public transport to get around the country they are visiting.

However, she said that sometimes external events means they spend longer in one place than they intended.

"We decided we would go to Canada or Australia. We were going to go overland to India and get a boat to Australia. But when we got to India, there was the Arab-Israeli War.

"That trip was about eight months!"

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