Now that I sit squarely in the lap of midlife, that endless road of time that once stretched out ahead of me doesn't seem quite so long anymore.

WSJ: Making New Year's Resolutions Stick

Driving south, Table Mountain recedes in the rear-view mirror and congested streets give way to a cliff-hugging road and endless ocean views.

BBC: The perfect trip: South Africa

You pass flaming oil wells, through the emirates of Sharjah and Ras al-Khaimah, before the endless development withers and the straight road begins to buckle towards the Musandam border, where a cliffside track winds around the fractured coast.

BBC: Oman��s sleepy Musandam Peninsula