It is ANZAC Day and back home we would have already been to and arrived home from the Dawn Service, had we been at home!
Instead we have woken at 7am in the Hokitika Seafront Hotel with our first decision to be made for the day to be what time should we go down for breakfast.
The 48 seater coach that had disgorged the over 60s on their tour was still in the car park which meant that probably the Read on...
We arrived in Phong Nha at 5am, just in time to see a breathtaking sunrise and rainbow over the mountains, the oldest karst mountains in Asia.
Were starting to wear down a little, so we used some of our time in Phong Nha, the adventure capital of Vietnam, to rest. We began by having a beer and watching the sun rise, and then getting another couple hours of sleep.
For lunch we made the hairy mot Read on...
You may or may not remember this bit of my personal travel water Pail list or crazy idea bourne back in late 60s or early 70s. Would you believe that I might have the same opportunity this month? I will be in Athens, and headed to Belgrade, Serbia, assuming the war does not get worse. Should I be unable or unwilling to travel to Belgrade, what are my options? I can think of several: a return to Is Read on...
Slow departure from the campsite because of the very (very) narrow railway bridge between the campsite and the road. Involved pushing passenger mirror in and then Bob driving through with me in front watching every inch of space on either side. Bob did it. He does has excellent spatial judgement.
And then the slow drive to end all slow drives. Think every vehicle in England is on the East West ro Read on...
Day 101 - Room 101 - as I woke this morning I was facing Day 101. The temperatures had dropped. My walk was shouting to me . 100 walks . 300 miles or maybe more . I really do need that Fitbit . I grabbed that cup of tea , cleaned my teeth and headed out . Up the hill . For some strange reason there was about. Tuesday there should be people walking. It was not raining so where were they? . 101 day Read on...
I slept for a few hours at a time, and had no problem getting up about 6am. We had decided to use the backpack service for our backpacks and take the small one. Im glad we did! We dropped off the backpacks at the main office and strolled around outside until 7am when breakfast was served. It was anything special, just coffee (in a bowl!), bread, orange juice and jam for the bread. We finished our Read on...
Actually in a lock as I type so not expecting to be able to post for a while. From memory the gorges will feature as the predominant landscape soon and that too will preclude posting so again it may be typing time for a while and possibly posting time quickly when I can.
Its just after breakfast, its always just after some meal or just before another meal when on board. Its coolish but not cold, Read on...
We had breakfast at our hotelthe Angel Hotel in Leamington Spa. It was a full English breakfast. The big difference was they would scramble eggs for Shealyn. The other thing is the breakfast included black pudding. It is made from pork or beef blood with pork fat or beef suet and a cereal, usually oats or barley and seasoning. It was not high on my list of things to try!!
We walked around town an Read on...
Happy Thanksgiving to all!! This is a story I wrote about years ago. The pecan Santa hangs in a place of honor on my tree.
The old man sat in the old overstuffed chair, sipping his apple cider with brandy, and listening to Jingle Bell Rock playing softly in the background. As he had always done, he had put up his Christmas tree, set out a few of the Dickens village buildings and figurines, and s Read on...
Wednesday July 6 – Success on the sleep front last night. My room is right next to the staff work room and they start early. Every morning at 6am I hear them raking the sand outside my door. This morning I think I heard a door close at 4:30am, so I took that opportunity to put in ear plugs and that blocked the other noise and I was able to sleep until 7am. This is the secret! Not ear plugs at ni Read on...