carlygillham

Mauritius

2007-09-26T16:05:00.001+01:00

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>UPDATE TO COME>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

Australia Visit

2007-09-26T16:04:00.002+01:00

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>UPDATE TO COME>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

New York

2007-09-26T16:04:00.001+01:00

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>UPDATE TO COME>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

Portugal: Surf Camp

2007-07-09T14:37:00.000+01:00

Sat June 30 - Sun July 8, 2007

We spent a couple of beautiful warm days exploring Lisbon before heading to Peniche for surf camp!!

A typical day in surf camp:

7am - Start waking up and determining which parts of my body are a) sore or b) sunburnt...

730am - Nic rises routinely to kickstart the Australian surf team in to action and while I can't resist stretching my arms and prodding my sunburnt hands, feet and nose, no amount of bag rustling and clothes gathering motivates Pink (aka Scott) from his bed until the last possible moment. We all apply after-sun together... awwww...

915am - The Australian surf team meet at their favourite cafe to compare burns, sore muscles, rashes (Shannon) and injuries (Nic's stitches in his head being the worst) over coffee, omelettes and chocolate au pains. Sun screen is applied...

10am - Surf camp meeting to collect wetsuits, boards and discuss the all important surf location for the day!

1015am - Wetsuits on. Stretching. Pretend surfing on the beach. Tips from hot instructors.

1030am - 1230pm Wipeouts from Nic. I fight going out to sea with the waves, swear a lot, get towed out by Todd, eventually catch a wave in but I'm too tired to stand. Todd waits and waits and waits and waits for that perfect wave.... Scott stands knee deep in the water with a hoodie and camera, cursing his sensitive Danish (?) skin. Shannon tries to reduce sunburn and rash by wearing socks surfing, only to have them swallowed by the sea. We all watch Nic in wonder and fear as his body and feet get thrown to the ocean floor while his board tried to constantly escape his wipeouts by popping violently in to the air... until it eventually attacked him and left him with stitches in his head!

1230pm - 2pm Lunch and much needed rest to discuss additional injuries, sunburn and tactics.

2pm - 4pm Repeat of earlier session!

4pm Return to camp, eat icecream, watch video of us looking ridiculous in the surf, play ping pong, drink beer and eat dinner... exhausted we all go to bed at 10pm!

The last day in Peniche we did a day trip to the beautiful medieval walled village of Obidos.

Devon & Gloucester

2007-05-29T11:53:00.000+01:00

Sat May 26 - Mon May 28, 2007
What a packed long weekend! It left me quite exhausted but satisfied. Asha organised the tour for herself, Nic and me through a company called RoadTrip which I was pleasantly surprised by as our leader, Dave, was relaxed and flexible in his approach to dealing with the 16 people in the group, taking away the stresses of decision making and organising but leaving things open enough to feel a bit independent. He was also an excellent source of information, as he knew far more than I could read in my trusty Lonely Planet :)

We were based in a clean and friendly B&B in Exeter, where the three of us shared a room with a lovely Kiwi girl, Nic. The four of us explored Exeter together Saturday morning, taking in the ruins of a Norman Castle, Exeter Cathedral and the Quay. The Norman Castle was built in 1068 by William the Conqueror and apparently one was built in every town conquered to maintain control. This one had a plaque listing the 3 last women in Exeter hanged for being witches in around 1685.

Dave then drove us through Dartmoor National Park where we tasted cider at a 400 year old farm. We were shown through the whole process which seemed rather old fashioned with a straw press, dark and dingy rooms and cob webs everywhere. The 'Scrumpy' itself was too tart for me, but others in the group seemed to like the sweet vintage one and the one brewed in a rum barrel so they bought attractive 5L plastic bottles of it to take home.

Next we climbed up the beautiful Hound Tor, which is a peak of rocky hill, for serene views over Dartmoor that would help clear anyone's head, before briefly seeing a clapper bridge, which is an ancient style of bridge in Devon.

After dinner at a pub Nic, Ash and myself settled in to our B&B to play our own version of Taboo while the rest of the group hit the university town of Exeter for a night out, only to end up in a Walkabout.... :)

Sunday morning was spent getting lost in the beautiful narrow country lanes surrounding Berry Pomeroy Castle before actually exploring England's most haunted castle for a while. I'm not sure how they measure it's the most haunted, but I didn't care as the weather had improved, the sky was blue and the sun was out, shining through the ruins and making the moss covering its walls a stunning green colour!

We then dropped a few group members off in the Dartmouth harbour town before going caving... this was definitely a highlight of the weekend for me... kitted up in strange suits, wellies, hard hats and head torches, we climbed in to the dark depths of a limestone cave covered in mud and stalactites to eventually reach an underwater lake that has depths of up to 19feet (I think that's what the caving guy said anyway...). Exhausted but thrilled with the experience, we all went back to our B&B in Exeter for an evening of much laughter over dinner, drinks and Asha's version of Trivial Pursuit.

Our last day, Monday, was spent making our way to Gloucester to see the hilarious and crazy Cheese Rolling Contest. Check out the video below....

Our trip back to London was through Gloucester and the Cotswold's beautiful countryside and stunning villages where Dave stopped to collect some Elderflower to make some of his home made wine. All up a fantastic weekend of varied activities, music and personalities... enough to satisfy anyone!

Paris

2007-05-10T10:13:00.000+01:00

Sat May 5 - Mon May 7, 2007
I was so excited about going to Paris for the weekend but as the date approached I became a little apprehensive thinking about how most people visit The City of Light for a romantic weekend and I was going alone! But, alas, the romance of Paris won my heart through her beautiful open parks, sculptures, architecture, people, travellers, buskers and art.

My first day was spent with an architect named Ega, who works in Fiji, checking out Saint Chapelle, the beautiful Notre Dame, the overwhelming Louvre (home of the Mona Lisa), sipping wine on the av des Champs-Elysees and seeing the Arc de Triomphe before spending hours in the park watching the changing colours of the Eiffel Tower as the sun set behind it and it started to sparkle with a million lights.

I spent the second day contemplating works at the Musee Rodin where I saw famous works like The Thinker and The Gates of Hell, the Picasso museum where I saw many of his famous works and sculptures and the amazing Musee d'Orsay where I was regularly close to tears by the incredible works of the impressionists like Monet, Renoir, Manet, Pissaro, Boudin, Degas, Van Gogh, Signac, Seurat, Bonnard, Gaugin, Cezanne and so on. That night I went out with a large group of travellers from the hostel to drink in the Latin Quarter.

My last day was spent with 3 boys from Florida I met at the hostel, exploring the beautiful winding streets of Montmartre and climbing up the tower in the Sacre Couer to overlook the whole of Paris. I had a wonderful day with them... very relaxed with lovely discussions and views! I was so fortunate to meet the people I did on my weekend and was pleasantly surprised by the polite attitude of the Parisians... it seems they aren't as rude as their reputation suggests. I can't wait to go back :)

Kent: Day Trip with Asha and Liz

2007-05-10T09:27:00.000+01:00

Sat April 21, 2007
I drove the lovely Asha and Liz around Kent for a day. We made the most of the gorgeous weather, blue skies and bright yellow canola fields to visit quaint medieval villages like Chilhem, check out the delicious produce at the French market in Canterbury, visit the amazing Canterbury Cathedral, taste some British wine and get educated on the wine making process at a cute vineyard, stop off at Sandwich's pebble beach and catch a glimpse of the white cliffs of Dover before wearily driving back to London. All up a wonderful day with the girls :)

France

2007-04-08T18:24:00.000+01:00

Fri March 30 - Tues April 10, 2007
Frantic French Holiday: 10 days Calais to Nice!

Cossel and I started our Easter break by catching a ferry from Dover, England to Calais, France where we picked up our small, black Renault that was to see practically the length of France in 10 days on our journey to Nice whilst becoming our portable suitcase, kitchen, engineering forum, psychologist’s office, traveller pickup and French tutor. After getting lost, meandering through many small villages and practicing our French to an introductory language CD (thanks mum! “Parlez-vous anglais?”) for a couple of hours we arrived in our first seaside town, Dieppe. Set between two limestone cliffs the town’s port is lined with bistros where we treated ourselves to delicious French meals of fish, mussels, soup and crème brulee. The first of my photography themes began here too with the discovery of a beautiful carousel.

After lunch we headed inland to Rouen, where we admired the Gothic cathedral of Notre Dame and wandered the medieval streets of timber houses, seeing an early 16th Century gatehouse with a beautiful clock called the Gros Horloge. I also enjoyed the unusual shapes and style of the Eglise Jeanne d’Arc, which was intriguing and beautiful with its stain glass windows and contemporary looking peaks. It marks where Joan of Arc was executed in 1431 during the Hundred Years’ War when the English occupied the city. In an effort to see the rock formations of Etrat on the coast, we left Rouen before nightfall but with a heavy fog setting in, we changed route to go straight to Honfleur.

With the fog and night truly set in and Pont de Tancarville closed, the mysterious Pont de Normandie tested our spirits by seemingly disappearing and it took us far too long to cross to Honfleur but we were rewarded with a quaint town lit up by its interesting shops and galleries and inviting restaurants, cafes and creperies. Unfortunately kitchens were closing as we arrived so after a healthy meal of a port and chocolate crepe, we wandered the town by night, peering in to boats and then the galleries amongst the warren of streets rising in to the hills around the old harbour. Honfleur is definitely amongst my favourite towns from this holiday and I would have loved to stay longer than a day to soak up its picturesque views, try the myriad of restaurants and contemplate the array of interesting art works.

Next were the D Day beaches on the Normandy coastline where Operation Overlord took place 6 June 1944, which lead to the liberation of Europe from Nazi occupation. We started at Sword beach where the British contingent landed and followed the coastline to Juno beach and Gold beach. We saw the Mulberry Harbours in Arromanches, which provided a bizarre sea view of massive cement caissons sitting in the ocean – they sit there as an eerie reminder of what went on and you can’t help but be amazed that they were towed from England.

Nearby was Bayeaux, where I was thrilled to see the Bayeaux Tapestry and check out the gargoyles on the Cathedrale Notre Dame. The 70m long Tapestry tells the story of William the Conqueror’s Norman invasion of 1066. It was finished in 1077 and even though it is close to 1000 years old the colours and condition of the tapestry are amazing. It was fascinating to see how the story unfolded in pictorial form and the commentary they made on the times… for example, one scene has Le Mont St Michelle in it while another shows Halley’s comet passing overhead while the Norman soldiers are depicted with shaved heads and the Saxons with moustaches.

Le Mont Saint Michel was our next stop. This rocky tidal island out from the Normandy region captivated me with its impressive Benedictine abbey whose village of winding streets filled with houses and shops seem to cling to its foundations, cradling in for protection within the fortifications of crenellated ramparts and towers. It has a mystical quality about it with its isolation and fort like qualities, but it still maintains a communal feel with residents and businesses sustaining there as if it is just another village. The history here is astounding and far too much for me to delve in to here, but it was named after the Archangel Michael appeared to Bishop Aubert of Avranges in the early 8th Century. I hope you appreciate this photo in the meadows nearby, as it was only possible because I somehow convinced Cossel to round up the local sheep for me! :)

Blois was next on our changing itinerary as we decided it would be an ideal place to base ourselves for a few days to explore the Loire Valley. Here we visited impressive Chateaux, drove through quaint country roads and sampled local wines. My favourite Chateaux was the ultimate in castles for its size and maze of corridors and rooms, Chambord Chateaux. It was owned by an almost-king of France, and it has an incredible central double helix staircase designed by Leonardo da Vinci. The beauty and history of this region was amazing. I would love to revisit in grape season!

The links in order: Chenonceau Chateaux, Chiverny Chateaux, Chambord Chateaux, the beautiful views throughout the Loire Valley.

We drove a mammoth 650km from the Loire Valley down to the south of France in one day, seeing everything from flat expanses of fields through to snow blizzards in mountain ranges. To Cossel's delight and my fascination, we stopped to contemplate two famous bridges, the Millau Viaduct built in 2004 and the 2000 year old Pont du Gard. The Millau Viaduct is the tallest vehicular bridge in the world, and looks impressive spanning the beautiful valley of the River Tarn whilst the Pont du Gard's exceptional life span and construction of massive stones and no mortar (it is held together with iron clamps) is bewildering and magnificent.

Avignon was a wonderful place to sample some superb restaurants, patisseries, boulangeries and cafes. We enjoyed a truly delicious three course meal one evening in a square near the Palais des Papes which is one of the largest and most important medieval Gothic buildings in Europe. The city is surrounded by ramparts built by the popes in the 14th century. Along the ramparts are interesting towers and large gateways inviting you to explore the myriad of small, ancient lanes filled with interesting galleries, shops and patisseries, all exquisitely displaying their produce or wares. I was in constant awe of the attention to detail the French apply to all things they display and sell, from simple wedges of cheese to expensive pieces of homeware or art. The photo of the bridge is the Pont d'Avignon which is famous and recognisable as only four of the eighteen piles are left. Avignon also stays in my memory for the characters we met - the busker dancing and whistling in the square and our hostel owner who's reply to "Parlez vous anglais?" was "No, but can you speak French?".

We stopped in Aix en Provence (photolink 1) to check out the city of fountains, visit the Cezanne gallery (which was still under construction unfortunately), eat lunch, sip coffee on a boulevard, wander around the old town and visit a couple of galleries, before heading on to Marseille (photolink 2). At our hostel in Marseille we met a beautiful French Candanian girl named Caroline who was travelling through Europe on a tight budget for 6 months and had just had 180 Euros stolen :( As she was feeling a little shaken from her experience and wanted company I took her under my wing and before we knew it we were 3 until the end of the trip. I was thrilled to have her company, enthusiasm and suggestions and within a day we were chattering endlessly. Now a group of 3, we set out to explore Marseille, starting by checking out the fresh (and still alive) seafood at the harbour market on the way to catch a ferry to Chateau d'If which was the setting for Dumas' novel, Count of Monte Cristo. Caroline was so excited about seeing this famous place and we spent ages wandering the grounds with poppies growing and seagull eggs in nests before exploring the fortress jail that had amazing views of the blue ocean. Back on the mainland, we climbed the hill to view the cathedral Notre Dame and panorama over the entire city before heading off on our drive along the Cote d'Azur.

Our first stop after Marseille was Cassis (photolink 1) which, along with picturesque views of the ocean and its cliff, Cap Canaille, has a quaint ancient fishing port lined with old buildings painted in colourful pastels. With Easter so close finding accommodation was impossible and we luckily snapped up the last beds in the region in a lovely motel in the middle of nowhere. Moving on from Cassis, we continued along the Cote d'Azur stopping for photographs and picnics to appreciate the brilliant weather and breath taking scenery of the red cliffs dropping in to the contrasting bright blue ocean (photolink 2). We also stopped for an over priced coffee in one of the terrace cafes on the promenade in St Tropez to ogle the luxury yachts in the harbour and the slowly cruising sports cars going by. With our curiosities satisfied and not feeling like this was the sort of place worth staying in, we admired the myriad of art works nearby before continuing along the coastal road with its more soul rewarding vistas.

We headed inland to Grasse to check out the region where all the world's perfumes (bases) are made to learn about the perfume making process and the role of the Noses. There are only 200 Noses in the world who have a special genetic skill and are trained for at least 10 years to distinguish different smells blind folded (including, such subtleties as, for example, what country the jasmine flower they are smelling is from!).

We based ourselves in Nice for a couple of days where we stayed in a pretty cool, old monastery that had been converted to a hostel. We visited the colourful flower market that excited my senses with colours, smells and food in all directions. It was here that we all tried fresh sea urchins... mm mmmmm! Unfortunately the combination of renovations and the Easter break prevented us from visiting a few places with missing the Matisse Museum being the most disappointing. However, the Chagall museum of biblical works was still open and I was thrilled to see these large, colourful works in person! The other photos in this section are varied as they are from all over Nice during our wanderings and explorations.

With Cossel eager to check out a major project he'd been involved in off the coast of Monte Carlo, the famous Monte Carlo casino and Grand Prix track, we all drove via the mountain top village of Eze (photolink 1) to Monaco (photolink 2) for a day trip. While I felt I had seen enough huge marinas with over-the-top yachts and cars everywhere, I thought I'd regret it if I didn't go, so I was glad to occupy my time whilst there in the incredible Oceanographic Museum (aquarium), where I was captivated by the animals and sea life there... especially the eggs I could see the baby fish moving around inside!!

All up, the holiday was a bit frantic but thoroughly worth while. We hadn't really planned anything aside from the arrival and departure points, expecting we could plan everything in between en route with the guidance of the Lonely Planet. However, the itinerary recommendations for the suggested time period were very unrealistic and at times we were very exhausted and perhaps a little rushed. However, I feel I have experienced a wide range of France and it has made me realise that there is so much within every small segment of this rich country worth exploring.

Windsor and Eton: Day trip with Nicholas

2007-02-25T09:34:00.000Z

Sat February 17, 2007
Nicholas and I decided to visit the Queen by popping in to Windsor Castle and the nearby famous college town of Eton.

At the end of a pretty standard high street, unpon a hill overlooking the Thames, sits the largest and oldest occupied fortress in the world. The contrast is incredible as we imagined the Queen popping down from her 5 hectare home decorated vastly with famous art, antiques, royal gifts and assortments of strange olde crockery to M&S to appease an impulsive Royal urge.... maltesers? doritos?

In the grounds of Windsor Castle is Queen Mary's Dolls' House. This amazing dolls' house (castle) was built in 1923 to have everything scaled 1:12 and was fitted out with the latest in appliances for the day. All the mechanical, electrical and engineering equipment works, including the plumbing, lights and lifts. All the furnishings, towels, cutlery etc. were made by the leading artisans and manufacturers of the day while every miniature book on the bookshelves are authentic and were carefully chosen. I was absolutely stunned by the detail and size of this dolls' castle. Next up was the Windsor Collection of paper works where we got to ogle fantastic originals of Leonardo da Vinci's studies and marvel at the characteristic backward writing he used to take notes.

The State Apartments were impressive. It displayed amazing paintings by artists like Van Dyck, Rembrandt and Rubens and I was captivated by the grandeur of the architecture, decor and evident lifestyle behind these walls. St George's Hall, still used for state dinners, was massive and I could only begin to imagine what it would be like to sit at a table that large, surrounded by royalty with every plate, glass and object lined up to perfection (with rulers).

Before heading off for lunch, we visited the beautiful St George's Chapel with its wonderful Gothic architecture. We then crossed the Thames to visit the exclusive Eton college, but as visitors weren't allowed that day, we decided to end the day by admiring the expensive range of small shops and boutiques in the area before settling down with tea and scones.

Horsham: Visiting Yvonne

2007-02-14T14:14:00.000Z

Sun February 4, 2007
I finally made it down to Horsham to spend the day with the lovely Yvonne Gills, relative and pen pal of my Gran's. As they have never met but stay in regular contact via phone calls and letter writing (Gran TYPES hers on her computer!!!) they were both thrilled that I made the link between them a bit closer. Yvonne was gorgeous and talkative, making sure I stayed for lunch and had plenty of biscuits and tea while I was there :) Mum, make sure you show Gran this entry please...

Morocco

2007-01-15T16:51:00.000Z

Tues December 26, 2006 to Fri January 12, 2007
Mick and I arrived in Marrakech late Boxing Day night, tired after a delayed flight and Christmas Day behind us, to be stung with our first overpriced taxi and self-given tip... whilst bargaining and tipping is something we're very used to, the struggle to get reasonable starting prices (sometimes we were quoted higher prices than if we were in London!) and correct change was to end up characterising Marrakech for us and was fueled by the masses of European tourists who go there. The massive square, Djemaa el-Fna, was alive with snake charmers, henna painters, spice stalls, story tellers and incense burners. Whilst an ancient practice, it's cruel to see the little monkeys chained up for performing and horrible to learn that the insides of snake's mouths are sewn together to avoid being bitten, resulting in many snakes dying from mouth infection or starvation. Behind the square the colourful, winding souqs got us lost amongst the babouches, kilims, lanterns and metal work that were bright, ornate and interesting but so overpriced that starting the bargaining process seemed futile. After visiting the Ali ben Youssef Mosque and Medersa, Musee de Marrakech and the Jardin Marjorelle we needed to get out of the chaos, away from the tourists and more in our budget range so we decided to catch a bus to Ouarzazate, but with the largest festival of the year about to occur, Aid el kbir, all buses were full or not operating and so we caught a grand taxi for a grand price with an English couple instead.

After checking out the Taourirt Kasbah in Ouarzazate, we caught a bus to Boumalne Du Dades. We had escaped the mayhem to be rewarded with peaceful views of geometric rose coloured buildings casting bold shadows in to the valley with the snow capped peaks of the Atlas contrasting against the brilliant blue sky behind them. On Aid el kbir, when Muslims celebrate Abraham's willingness to sacrifice his son by sacrificing a sheep after morning prayers, we decided to trek in to the Dade's Gorge. We set off on our walk knowing we wouldn't see much unless we hitched because it was 30km one way. With everyone celebrating Aid el kbir and everything closed we didn't think our chances were good but luckily we were picked up by 6 German/Austrian men in old Mercedes, led by Florian who has done a Moroccan journey every year for the past 8 years. He filled me in on local customs and stories and enabled us to see so much of the gorge. It was fantastic!

To celebrate the first day of the year we decided to hitch-hike to Source Bleue de Meski. An oasis! The first leg of our journey was in a modern people mover with a Moroccan family visiting from France. At 130km/hr it didn't take many English/French lessons and Connect 4 games with their daughter before we reached Tinehir for a coffee break amongst the men, in the sun. Keen to press on, we hitched in style again with another family to Er-rachidia where we wanted to stop for lunch. By this time, 1pm, the restaurants had stopped cooking so when a Moroccan man offerred as lunch at his home we accepted. A delicious meal of Kayla and Brochettes (kebabs) was very satisfying before our short trip to Source Bleue de Meski. This was an amazing place! An oasis in the middle of the desert with a nearby Kasbah ruin seemed like an ideal place to spend the night so we hired a tent and blankets, set up and explored our surroundings before settling in for the long, COLD night on the very hard ground.

Our next destination was the Saharan Desert! We caught a lift with a Moroccan man who works as a bodyguard for the King. He took us to Erfoud, stopping to show us the Ziz Valley where the desert plateu drops down dramatically to an oasis filled with date palms and scattered with small villages. Our bodyguard was so kind, offerring stops for photographs. We finally got to Merzouga and chose a very affordable auberge called Lac du Sahara at the base of the largest dunes of Erg Chebbi. The view was surreal. We spent the next couple of days climbing the dunes and admiring their changing colours and shadows.

Reluctantly leaving the desert, we decided to push on to Fes. We hitch-hiked back to Er-rachidia where we bumped in to our bodyguard again before catching a bumpy overnight bus to Fes, arriving at 4am. Delirious from our journey, we decided to explore the medina and view the tanneries while it was still quiet. The tannery was situated below the terraces of shops surrounding it so viewing was always going to be a matter of a tip or sitting down with mint tea to purchase something... in our state, tipping was our only option as we were in no state to start the bargaining process! The smell of animal excrement, body parts and additional ingredients to the dyes like cow urine, pigeon poo and sulphuric acids meant we weren't keen to stay too long but the view and history of the process explained by locals was fascinating.

Continuing north, we decided to chill out in laid back Chefchaouen in the Rif Mountains for a few days. With everyone here perpetually stoned (this is where the term Reefer originates) shopping was a breeze and bargaining became fun again. We loved exploring the blue medina, breathing in the clear air, soaking up the sun on the roof terrace of our Spanish-owned gueshouse and sipping mint tea watching people walk past. The food here was delicious too! Our favourite was the lamb, prune and almonds tagine!

With our holiday closing in we decided to rush back south to a seaside location, Essaouira. With it being a full day of travel to get there, we had 4 hours in Casablanca on the way where we took the opportunity to visit the world's third largest mosque, Hassan II Mosque. It was incredible - the size, the technology, the materials. The doors are made of titanium, the floors inside are heated, the minaret sprays laser beams across the night sky towards Mecca...

Essaouira was the perfect place to finish our holiday. After seeing big cities, oases, deserts and mountains, what better way to finish than with the ocean? Our guesthouse was inside the walled town of narrow lanes, overlooking the stone ramparts & turrets out to the Atlantic Ocean. I loved wandering through the bustling port with its numerous blue boats and ropes being untangled, exploring the beautiful shops within the medina and spotting the hand of Fatima door knobs. Fatima is the daughter of the prophet, Muhammed. The symbol can be seen all through Morocco as it resembles a way of getting protection from the evil eye, hence providing protection - "Hand of God".

In summary, I can't be positive enough about the Moroccan people. Friendly, warm and inquisitive, they truly follow the Qur'an in respect to strangers, as we were constantly invited to people's homes for dinner, mint tea or to stay the night:

"And do good unto your parents, and near of kin, and unto orphans, and the needy, and the neighbour from among your own people, and the neighbor who is a stranger, and the friend by your side, and the wayfarer, and those whom you rightfully possess. Verily, God does not love any of those who, full of self-conceit, act in a boastful manner..." - An-Nisa (4:36)

All through Morocco I saw people frequently give to beggars and those poorer than themselves. The call to prayer, especially early in the morning, was both beautiful and eery - a sound that will play in my head every time I recount this holiday. The food, whilst containing lots of meat and bread (which is considered sacred) was at times very basic but as we went north the combinations of tagines was fantastic (just remember not to use your left hand whilst eating, which can be difficult with no cutlery!). I bought a gorgeous Moroccan cook book to recreate some of the delicious meals I ate. All up, a wonderful holiday I'd recommend to anyone!

London: Birthdays

2006-12-08T10:11:00.000Z

Sun November 19 and Sat November 25, 2006
Alkis celebrated his birthday at one of our favourite venues, The Troubadour, surrounded by friends from all over the globe. It was an evening full of wine and laughter which made Monday a little difficult...

Nic and I went to Asha's Gangsters and Glam party for her birthday! It was wonderful to catch up with Asha, Phil, Danielle, Todd, Shannon and Scott and to meet loads of new friendly people.

London: Covent Garden

2006-12-08T10:08:00.000Z

Sun November 12, 2006
Although Covent Garden is a usual place to visit on weekends in London, Alkyoni and I spent Sunday taking photographs to learn how to use her camera.

Salzburg

2006-12-08T09:37:00.000Z

Sat October 28, 2006
Nic and I went to Salzburg, Austria, to celebrate my birthday over 3 days :) It was wonderful to have some time to ourselves and most of the time was spent relaxing, seeing sights, talking endlessly and appreciating Autumn in all its beauty.

We stayed in the New Town, visiting Mirabell Palace (first photo link) on the way to the Old Town (second photo link) where Mozart's birthplace is the central building of the shopping area. It is surrounded by gorgeous streets filled with cute signage and designer boutiques. Unfortunately there was nothing interesting or endearing about the museum within Mozart's birthplace... it contains no actual information about Mozart and houses objects that are of little or no interest at all..

We visited Salzburg’s cathedral which is apparently the most impressive baroque cathedral in the world (see photo link to the left) and wandered around the great fortress of the Archbishop Princes of Salzburg (see photo link below). The autumn views of the entire city were gorgeous and it seems an artist from the 18th Century agreed... we visited the Panorama Museum and were astounded by the impressive large scale panoramic painting he produced that showed a 360 degree view of Salzburg as we had just viewed but centuries beforehand. The detail and scale was truly incredible. Apparently its original purpose was to advertise Salzburg to the rest of Europe and promote trade by taking this enormous painting travelling. The rest of the museum had smaller paintings from the same artist of other European cities.

After visiting the Panorama museum, we explored the Residence of the Prince Archbishops of Salzburg. One evening we spoilt ourselves with an 18th century style three course meal in an old ballroom whilst being entertained by 5 string musicians and 2 opera singers who played/sang Mozart pieces. It was a fantastic evening. I loved the food, the wine, the music and the people we met!

Brighton

2006-09-25T17:55:00.000+01:00

Sat September 23, 2006
I decided I should make the most of the warm weather while it lasts by visiting Brighton on Saturday. I spent a relaxing day with Shashi, strolling along the beach past the burnt West Pier, visiting the incredibly opulent Royal Pavilion (King George IV's sea-side residence) and investigating the wonderful collection of shops and restaurants in the North Laine.

Greece

2006-09-19T16:54:00.000+01:00

Sat August 19 - Sun September 3, 2006
Athens - Sizzling in the Urban Jungle
I spent a few days at the beginning of my holiday staying in Alkis's uncle's central flat in Eksarhia, which had superb skyline views of Athen's urban jungle of ever-growing antennas. While Alkis frantically caught up with friends and family, Angelina and I braved the 42degC heat to visit Plaka, the Archaelogical Museum and the Museum of Cycladic Art, with stops for coffee, food and shopping.

We enjoyed an evening at a local taverna in Metaksurgio eating an assortment of squid, gavros (tiny marinated fish), Atherina (tiny fried fish) and Saganaki (fried hard cheese) before drinking at a bar in Monastiraki with an excellent view of the lit Acropolis. Another evening was spent gorging on traditional Greek takeaway... Souvlaki!!

Milos - Hearts and Flowers
On the Tuesday we woke early (5.30am!!!) to make our way to Piraeus, the port, to catch our boat to Milos. After 7 hours we couldn't wait to set up our tents in Achivadolimni and cool off in the nearby clear waters. The next 4 days were spent exploring the island by car; swimming off the white rock shores of Sarakiniko; losing myself in the narrow cobbled lanes of Plaka's white washed geometric homes with blue trimmings; watching the sun set at Plathiena; playing with the multicoloured rocks at Firiplaka; eating in a village called Tripiti; driving along a coastline of beautiful scenery to Gerontas; visiting the village of Pollonia; swimming between the cliffs of Papafragas (known as the pirate's lair during the 18th Century). We made a cafe called Paleos our post-lunch venue for coffee, learning Greek and discussing the myriad of traditional dishes I had tried and would try, including the spiky fruit fragosika, stuffed tomatoes and aubergines, fava, mussels in spicy tomato sauce, Horiatiki (Greek salad), chickpeas, mousaka, domatokeftedes and Soutzoukakia to name a few. I have also become quite addicted to Greek (Turkish!) coffee and their delicious cold coffee (Freddo) is perfect for hot days.

I loved Milos! The combination of camping, beautiful weather, gorgeous clear waters, various types of beaches, peaceful and less touristy atmosphere with A&A's lovely company and insight in to Greek tradition, history, language and food made me very relaxed and fulfilled. (the Hearts and Flowers reference is because whilst camping, I would listen to music at night - one evening I heard a Lamb song called Hearts and Flowers - I haven't heard it before - needless to say for those who understand the reference, once again, home was brought close to me.)

Kimolos - Siesta with the Saints
One day we visited nearby Kimolos. We ate and napped outside a church in the main square of Hora before a lady opened her Kafenio, O Kabos. As Alkis was helping her unpack the chairs after the siesta, Angelina reminded him to be quiet to which the elderly lady responded

"Don't worry, you won't wake the saints"

and pointed towards the church. She served Gliko tu Kutaliu (Teaspoon deserts of sweet preserved fruit) with our Greek coffee, gave us peaches to take with us and sprigs of basil to smell. She made my day... she was genuine, friendly and warm.

Santorini
Santorini's submerged caldera is impressive, creating dramatic views of cliffs plunging in to the sea and home to steep narrow passageways of shops, cafes, restaurants and homes that look as if they are spilling down the cliffs during the day and hovering above them at night. We stayed in Fira, enjoyed exploring Ouia and loved wine tasting at the oldest vineyard on the island.

Athens again
After a few days on Santorini we packed up all our gear again to head back to Athens where we were lucky to stay with Alkyone and Amaryllis in Kolonaki. Thankfully the temperature had cooled a little and I spent an afternoon visiting the Acropolis and surrounding areas before being treated to Angelina's cooking. I spent my last few days in Athens with the girls, dining and partying for Amaryllis's name day with all their welcoming friends while A&A went to Volos to relax and catch up with family. I had a wonderful holiday, it's just a shame I ended my holiday so dramatically by missing my flight home!

Isle of Wight

2006-07-31T18:47:00.000+01:00

Fri July 21, 2006
Needing an escape from busy London and desperate to get to our Greece holiday in August, Alkis, Angelina and myself decided to compromise and break up the monotony by relaxing on the Isle of Wight for a couple of days. Little did we realise just HOW relaxing it was going to be... whilst there is certainly some quaint scenery, everything is slow paced primarily due to the average age of the population there and most of it was disappointingly tacky. While I completely understand the British mindset of requiring casinos and arcades along the beachfront and piers to ensure visitors are entertained during the inevitable bad weather, it just seems to take away from the "beach" experience a little. As I sat enjoying a glass of wine at a Sandown beachside cafe in the evenings, looking out to the horizon and watching the water gently lap the sand, I was bathed in a glow of neon pink from the enormous kitsch building front of the casino behind me... no cute little cafes with subtle lighting to suit the scene.. no interesting bars to sit in and watch out over the water...

Thankfully Shanklin's old village of thatched roof buildings and beaches lined with brightly coloured beachhuts was a little more interesting and visiting Ventnor's small harbour for lunch in one of the cafes that overlook it was worth the short visit. Cowes was also worthwhile as it is the yachting centre of the island (and arguably the world). Unfortunately it was a bit quiet while we were there and we just missed the busiest and best time to go apparently... which is Cowes Week, in the early part of August. None-the-less, we got to see some yachts, explore some of the narrow streets and do a spot of shopping (well, some specialised and pricey boat paint for Colin at work!).

The break was relaxing, albeit a little boring and disappointing... but there are still some cute photos from the trip and it was nice to spend some time with A&A... again!

London: Socialising

2006-07-20T11:33:00.000+01:00

July Weekends

I don't normally put these sort of events online... but I have had such busy, lovely and WARM weekends in London recently, I thought it was worth it! (Besides, there were no entries for July on my blog!) The first link below will take you to photos from when I went touring London with the Grady family one weekend. We had a lovely time being taken around London by their good friend Malcolm, who later treated us to dinner, trifle and home made green tomato chutney!

The concert photos are from when I saw the Red Hot Chilli Pepper's at Earl's Court... I met Shash through Don while he has been over here visiting... it was wonderful to catch up with Don and get integrated in to his friendship group over here. He's really missing London but made the most of his holiday to visit friends and travel through Croatia, Greece and Turkey.

The other link is a photo Anthony took, where he captured me busting my 70s moves at a dinner party Nic and I held at our place with the A Team (Alkis, Angelina, Amaryllis, Alkyone and Anthony), Shash and Reshma (who I met in a hostel whilst in Cornwall). Dan and Elisha made appearances occasionally and ensured good music played continuously. Everyone contributed scrumptious culinary treats including tiramisu, home baked bread, spicy Indian aubergine, pork, chicken, stuffed mushrooms, chickpea salad... and much more...

It has also been wonderful to catch up with Stuart recently... his time in Cork, Ireland, has come to an end so I have had a couple of opportunities to catch up with him while he's been in London on his way back to Australia...

Cornwall

2006-06-07T09:36:00.000+01:00

Fri May 26, 2006
I spent 4 relaxing days with Alkis and Angelina in Cornwall for some much needed time out from the constant running around I seem to be doing lately. We based ourselves in a hostel in Penzance where I got to meet lots of people and learn everyone's life stories in a short time, including Mrs Whale, a woman in her 70s or 80s in my dorm who would wake up at 3am to read! We spent our first day exploring Penzance and walking to Marazion, a small village that overlooks St Michael's Mount. Unfortunately the day was rather dreary and the putrid smell of rotting seaweed being carried through the town in trucks that dripped its tainted seawater behind was enough to make anyone retreat! You can see photos from the first link below. The last day was spent at Porthcurno (see link to the left) which is around 3 miles east-southeast of Land's End, the most western point of England, and is home to the Minack Theatre which is perched on the cliff overlooking the bay. It was a gorgeous sunny day but it is just a shame the water was so cold it sent Alkis running up the beach after quickly dipping his toes in :) Nonetheless, it was so therapeutic being on a beautiful beach and breathing in the sea breezes.

Our second day was spent exploring the myriad of old fishermen's cottages, shops, galleries (including a TATE) and cafes amongst the narrow, winding, hilly cobbled streets of St Ives that overlook the busy and interesting harbour filled with colourful boats and fishing nets (see the 2nd link below). Our third day was spent in the colourful fishing villages of East and West Looe (see the 3rd link below) that are joined by a 7 arched bridge over an estuary. You'll notice in these photos one of a monument to the "Glory of Cod" as Alkis read it... before exclaiming "oh well, it IS a fishing village"... hehehe... which reminds me of my embarrassing comment of the weekend... whilst walking from Penzance to Marazion I thought I spotted lots of crabs scuttling along the beach so we went down to have a look only to see them start flying away! hmmm.. they were birds :( Anyway, we had a fantastic weekend and tried traditional things like Cornish pastries and clotted cream (but refrained from posting it, as was frequently advertised.. still not sure how or why...). I only wish we could have stayed a little longer.

p.s. for those who will understand this reference... I was sitting in a country style Cornish cafe one morning eating breakfast when the 80s song "I won't let the sun go down on me" came on... I NEVER hear that song... it was quite emotional for me to hear it so far away from home, in a beautiful place when I was so relaxed... it immediately made me think of everyone back home... I love and miss you! xxx

London: I've become a tour guide!

2006-06-07T09:35:00.000+01:00

Sat May 20, 2006
I acted as a tour guide for my English Aunt and Uncle, taking them to see the outsides of Arsenal football stadium, Buckingham Palace, Westminster Abbey, Big Ben, London Eye, St Paul's Cathedral, Tower of London and Picadilly Circus... it was an exhausting, extremely wet day full of laughter! There are also photos in here of when I took Kim and D around London and we met up with Stuart who is in Cork, Ireland for a few months.

Belgium

2006-06-07T09:20:00.000+01:00

Fri May 12, 2006
After my first journey on the Eurostar I arrived in Brussels very late in the evening to then catch a train to Brugge and see Kimmie and Doug. I was so excited to see Kim - an old friend, a familiar, friendly face was very wanted, needed and welcome. More than that, I was finally going to understand more about Kim and where she was born... I now understand where her chocolate addiction originates (with every second store being a chocolate shop) but it doesn't explain why she doesn't drink beer! The wonderful array of Belgian beers is astounding, but then again, she wasn't of drinking age when she left :) Anyway, Brugge was fantastic! We had wonderful weather to enjoy the tiny medieval streets and canals... even though the buildings are actually more present than it looks because of all the 19th century renovations that took place... nonetheless, the combination of old, fake-old and new was enchanting and well worth the visit.

The photos on the left are from Blankenberge, Kim's birthplace... a seaside town, the beach is about 3.3 Km long and while it is lined by an ugly wall of apartment blocks, it still houses lots of little beach huts (mostly plain and white, apart from the ones I got photos of!) and has an eye-catching Pier. Most of these photos, however, are of Kim and her family... it was her grandfather's 94th birthday while we were there... as you will be able to tell from the photos.. he's quite a character!

The next place was Brussels... While the historic market square in Brussels was certainly impressive, I was disappointed with the dirt and harsh attitudes of sales people in the shops... no sign of the hospitality and friendliness of Brugge-people... only demanding, yelling sales assistants who didn't seem to care whether they sold anything or not... I still have one lady's words ringing in my ears.... "GET OUT!!" as she pointed me towards the door... all for looking at a little teapot after I had been waiting for quite a while to ask how much it was... Oh yeah... and this photo seems to sum up Brussels... Manneken Pis... a small monument of a boy peeing that has more than 600 kitsch costumes they dress him in and a number of different stories that surround his origin...

Edinburgh

2006-05-09T17:07:00.000+01:00

Mon, May 1 2006
Here are some photos of when I spent 3 glorious days in Edinburgh with Nicholas. It crossed my mind how lucky I was to be able to catch up with a treasured friend in an amazing city that neither of us live in when we are both so far away from our home and history... and we were blessed with warm weather and blue skies for at least 2 of the 3 days also!

We both enjoyed everything from wandering around Edinburgh Castle and the intricate buildings and monuments that adorn the city to the views from Calton Hill and the hike up Arthur's Seat.

You will also see some shots from when we also visited the Royal Yacht Britannia.

London: Catching up with Yvonne

2006-04-28T16:38:00.000+01:00

Wed, Apr 26 2006
The Gillham family members will be happy to see that I, the Australian-Gillham travelling representative, have finally caught up with the American-Gillham travelling representative, Yvonne Gillham! As you will see in the photos, Stefanos came along to ensure I didn't bore her too much :) After we had located Yvonne, lost on Oxford Street, we had a lovely evening in an English pub in Soho and eating at Pizza express... :)

Stonehenge: Day trip with A&A, Shane and Pedro

2006-04-23T11:39:00.000+01:00

Sat, Apr 22 2006
After numerous stories about horrible weather at Stonehenge at any time of year, I was blessed with warm weather and blue skies for my day trip with Alkis, Angelina, Shane and Pedro. It was quite funny to suddenly see so many bare ankles around as people took advantage of the warmth to wear open shoes and 3/4 length trousers. After a seemingly long drive through small towns, English scenery and villages of quaint thatch roofed homes we finally arrived at Europe's most famous prehistoric site, Stonehenge. Thankfully there are plans to reroute the roads that currently surround the site making it one massive traffic island... the development will hopefully get rid of the constant background noise of traffic and give the site a more open feel. Apart from that, it was wonderful to be outdoors on such a fantastic day, see a 5000 year old site of such enormous mystery and have a picnic with great company.

Netherlands

2006-04-18T17:45:00.000+01:00

Fri, April 14 2006
Happy Easter! My Easter was spent relaxing with my friend Stefanos in Amsterdam, enjoying the sunshine at open air cafes, drinking Heineken in its birthplace, taking in fantastic works at the Rijks museum (including Rembrandt's Nightwatch), seeing the collection in the Van Gogh Museum (which was breathtaking not only for Van Gogh's works but more because it included an exhibit comparing Rembrandt's and Caravaggio's works), exploring the canals and generally trying not to get run over by trams and bicycles. One of the interesting things I saw from the canal boat was the smallest house in Amsterdam which is only 1m wide... apparently it is because builders were taxed depending on the width of their building's frontage - so the narrower the house, the cheaper. After World War II, urban planners took to the skies and crammed increasingly small apartments into tall tower blocks. I would have loved to see inside... how do they fit a kitchen or bathroom?? The narrow fronts also cause problems for moving, so the fronts are angled and fitted with hooks to hoist furniture up and through the windows. Some of the photos here include The Dam in the heart of the city encompassing the Royal Palace and a massive square where performers are often found and around Rembrandtplein where my hotel was. The photos of the people playing chess were near an area called Leidseplein where there is an abundance of of restaurants, cafes and shops. The following links will take you to my miscellaneous shots, collection of black and white shots, night shots (some from when visiting the infamous Red Light District where scantily clad women stand behind red neon-lit windows and try to attract your attention for "business") and some photos of the tulips and other flowers found at the flower markets in Amsterdam and the fields outside Amsterdam.

London: The Great Britian Aussie Biscuit Battle

2006-03-14T10:15:00.000Z

Fri, Mar 10 2006

Tackling the important issues on middle earth of the Firstco office in Celbridge Mews, Andy decided it was time we settle the Penguin vs TimTam debate once and for all. While it is true that the British Penguins were made decades before the Australian TimTams and that TimTams are probably rip offs, the real question was not about authenticity or moral high ground.. it was plain and simple... Which one tastes better?

After a series of blind taste tests by a cross section of the public, including English, Australian, Scottish, Irish, Greek and South African subjects, it was a close contest, with the old trusty McVities Penguin, first produced in 1932 by William McDonald (a biscuit manufacturer in Glasgow) was beaten by the young new comer who first hit the supermarkets in 1964, TimTams, by 6 votes to 5.

As a side note... Tim Tams were named after a horse that won the Kentucky Derby in 1958. A member of the Arnott family, Ross Arnott, attended the race day and decided ‘Tim Tam’ was the perfect name for his new biscuit.
Penguin - Perfect when you're P... P... P... peckish was apparently one of the first biscuits to be advertised by name rather than company, and according to its website, its association with the giant Emperor Penguin is "synonymous with the brand's appeal".

Leeds & York: Visiting Nic

2006-03-14T10:13:00.000Z

Sun, Mar 26 2006
In March I also spent a weekend in Leeds and York with Nicholas. Nicholas lives in Leeds which is a couple of hours north of London on the train and York is a quick 20 minutes from Leeds. Unfortunately I was very sick that weekend so I couldn’t get out and about in the cold weather as much as I had intended. Leeds is basically a university town filled with students, bars and shops so I didn’t feel like I missed out on much by staying indoors whilst there.

York, however, is one of the most historically significant of England's great, old, impressive cities and there was no way I was going to miss out on seeing the largest medieval gothic cathedral north of the Alps. The York Minster has been a place of worship for over 1000 years and it is a treasure house of stained glass and architecture. I particularly loved the stain glass and the high, intricate nave of the Minster. The Quire was beautiful, mostly because of the wooden choir stalls that were restored after the 1829 fire. One of the fascinating things about the Minster, is seeing the remains of the Norman Cathedral below it at ground level in the minster crypt. You will also see a photos of the city walls that surround central York and Clifford's Tower's. I also visited a great bar called the Evil Eye Lounge, as recommended by Stefanos... well worth it for the decor and cocktails!

Oxford: Day Trip with Scott

2006-03-14T09:33:00.000Z

Sun, Mar 19 2006
I went to Oxford for a day trip with Scott one weekend. Oxford is famous for its university and has been home to royalty and scholars for over 800 years!!! It was lovely to see the famous and prestigious university with its ancient buildings and gorgeous architecture. Unfortunately it was very rainy and miserable that day so the photos are quite dull but it was still great to get out for a day.

London: David comes to shop

2006-02-12T11:15:00.000Z

Sun, Feb 12 2006
Last week David arrived in England to spend a week of furious reuniting with friends in Brighton and shopping in London before heading off to Zurich to ski. While he was here we enjoyed the picturesque views of London from the London Eye and visited Dali Universe. All in all a thoroughly enjoyable but exhausting week!

London: New Year, Damien, Nic, Aaron and Heidi

2006-01-04T11:30:00.000Z

Wed, Jan 4 2006
HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!
Over the New Year period I caught up with Nicholas (and Damien, of course, who was staying with me) by going out for lunch and then shopping in the beautifully festive Oxford and Regents Streets. Aaron and Heidi also arrived as part of their Europe tour so we visited Picadilly Circus and the Tower of London while they were in town. New Year's Eve was spent at Asha's place for drinks and nibblies before going to a local pub in Hammersmith for dancing and the countdown. Now I am back to work and looking forward to more visitors and travel throughout the year!

Here are some photos of the Tower of London...

London: Maida Vale, Work and Christmas

2005-12-28T13:04:00.000Z

Wed, Dec 28 2005
Here are some pics of my lovely home in Maida Vale with some photos of my stunned flat mates in their natural environment. Dan is a nurse, Jo manages a bar in West End and Tori owns a deli around the corner from us. It only takes me 15 minutes to walk to Firstco at Royal Oak where I seem to be settling in nicely with my work mates.

Christmas was spent with Damien at his cousin, Jen's place... we had a fantastic time drinking, eating (thanks to Jen's friend and flat mate, Troy, for being in a state to get up and cook the Turkey Christmas day!), watching Britain's top Christmas songs on TV, playing Pictionary (the new style... including drawing on people's backs, with eyes shut, etc.) and watching DVDs (an eclectic collection in retrospect... Bridget Jones' Diary, Alfred Hitchcock's The Birds and Kath and Kim!)... oh yeah, and watching Pimp my Ride (my new favourite BAD TV show!). All up it was a wonderful couple of days and to top it off, it snowed after Boxing Day! By the way... the strange facial makeup was courtesy of Jen who was so thrilled with her eye liner present that she had to use it.. on everyone...

Yesterday I got some hair extensions sewn in, so here are some photos of me with VERY long hair :) Not sure if I'll keep them, but it was a bit of fun anyway...

We had a very fun and musical night celebrating Jen's birthday...

London: Seeing Nicholas

2005-11-23T12:18:00.000Z

Sat, Nov 19 2005
I finally caught up with Nic. Even though he lives in London, he spends all his time in Leeds working, so it was wonderful to finally have a day with him! We had breakfast on High Street Kensington before strolling around Holland Park, chatting endlessly and catching up on all we had missed over the past 9 months or so. We ended the day with dinner at Hammersmith. It was fantastic to see him so happy and well :) This photo was taken by Nic and the link goes to his web site.

London: Sight Seeing with Cossel

2005-11-23T10:30:00.000Z

Sat, Nov 12 2005
In traditional Cossel-style genorisity, he kindly gave up a lot of his time to introduce me to London one weekend. We started off by catching up over breakfast at Nottinghill before exploring Portobello market. I can't wait to go back there to buy the awesome jackets a lady had for sale at one stall! Aftwerwards we went to Kensington gardens and palace and saw the Albert Memorial Hall. The statue in front of the memorial hall is interesting but seems a little ostentatious to me :(. The sunken garden was beautiful too but I can imagine it would be even more so in Spring. I love the way the parks look in Autumn here... the colours are so vibrant! We also had coffee in Hyde Park, strolled through Green Park and walked past Buckingham Palace to see Westminster Abbey, the Houses of Parliament and Big Ben. Westminster Abbey was very impressive and Rememberance Day events were being held the day we visited. Its early Gothic style is very beautiful. We crossed the Thames to see the London Eye and crossed back to walk the Strand, seeing the Oblisk, Cleopatra's Needle, Somerset House and St Paul's Cathedral. With the day closing in, Cossel took me for a drink in lovely Covent Garden and then we went out to Hackney for a delicious Vietnamese soup... which was yummy, but not as good as back home in West End! There are also some photos in this section from Trafalgar Square. I have also been to TATE modern which was excellent.. am going back for the Henri Rouseau exhibit soon! Camden markets was also fantastic... once again, can't wait to go back and buy clothes!

Milton Keynes: Guy Fawkes

2005-11-23T10:17:00.000Z

Fri, Nov 4 2005

My first Guy Fawkes celebrations were held with Adam and Beth and some of their friends in their back yard. Adam had a ball with everything from sparklers to rockets!

Czech Republic

2005-11-23T01:15:00.000Z

Tues, Nov 8 2005
On Saturday the 29th October, I caught a train to Manchester where Damien met me and took me out to delicious, enormous pancakes. It was wonderful to see him again! I was quickly reminded of his creative, sensitive and friendly nature. That night, we celebrated Damien's housewarming and the next day we flew to Prague for 4 very cold, but enchanting days. I thoroughly enjoyed my time in the Czech Republic, not only for the sites, but the excellent company and the cheap 1L steins of Pilsner :) Prague was incredible for me... as the first major European city I have visited, I was absolutely captivated by the architecture and history:

Prague Castle, overlooking the city in beautiful Gothic style and stunning blue stained glass windows
Charles Bridge completed in 1400
St Nicholas church, considered one of central Europe's finest Baroque buildings (although the abundance of pastel pink and green marble did nothing for me!)
Petrin Hill with its lovely gardens that were bright with yellows and reds from Autumn setting in
The Jewish quarter with its sad history and touching exhibitions
The Old Town's atmosphere with its various architectural styles, cobbled streets, abundance of cafes and of course, the Astronomical Clock!
The New Town provided insight into Communism and the history of Welceslas Square
The exhibitions on Mucha, Jan Saudek and Kafka.. I was especially taken with the Mucha exhibit :)

We ventured out of Prague to visit the Sedlec Ossuary in Kutna Hora one day. It was incredible.

During the plague many people wanted to be buried there because the site was considered sacred from when an abbott sprinkled some earth from Jerusalem there. The Christian chapel was built in the 14th Century but development forced the clearing of the cemetry so a monk dug up the bones of 40 000 people and used them to decorate the church. The chandelier uses every bone in the human boday at least once!

Arriving in the UK

2005-11-23T01:01:00.000Z

October 2005
Well, thanks to Beth and Adam (left), arriving in the UK was relatively painless. They picked me up from Heathrow with my massive suitcase and drove me to Milton Keynes where I stayed with them for a week. Luckily, thanks to the flight being practically empty, I didn't get charged excess luggage for my massive suitcase and I got to lie down across 3 seats the entire way :) Beth and Adam took me out to an Italian restaurant for my birthday, which was lovely and I got lots of wonderful wishes from everyone back home... thankyou!

Thailand and China

2005-11-22T09:43:00.000Z

August - October 2005

Sun Aug 21, 2005
I had many tears and a long flight to Thailand trying to distract myself from everyone I was leaving and how upset the people I love and care about were.... I felt so blessed to have so many people care so much... I couldn't even watch a movie because my mind would wander, so I read an entire book... which is a good effort for me considering I am a slow reader... I received so many wonderful thoughtful wishes and gifts from everyone and I want to say how very much it means to me to have you all love me so much... I love you too!

I have finally made it to a beach in Thailand... after spending 2 smoggy, noisy, hot days in Bangkok organising visas for China. I am currently staying on an island called Koh Chang, in a part of it called Kai Bei... it's beautiful but unfortunately a bit overcast at the moment, oh well, it is the wet season... and there is still plenty to do... I spent today exploring the island by motorcycle and had lunch at Bang Bao, which is a gorgeous village with a jetty lined with stilt homes, shops and restaurants. Mick picked out a lovely groper for us for lunch which was delicious! Last night we walked down the beach from our bungalow to another set of bungalows called Porn's to have dinner and watch a spectacular sunset... life is too good here!!! I am hoping to Kayak to neighbouring islands tomorrow and maybe go snorkelling. You'll notice the photos of Mick with the dog and the cat... although the beach was completely empty, the dog decided that right next to Mick was the best spot.. maybe he liked his book? ....the cat seemed to agree... it wouldn't stay off Mick, despite being frequently moved :)

Sat, 27 Aug 2005
The weather on Koh Chang stayed overcast for a day so exploring another waterfall seemed in order. It had beautiful warm water and numerous types of mushrooms and fungi on the walk there to fascinate us and test out our photography. The next day was gorgeous... sunshine and blue sky... perfect for kayaking! So we decided to kayak out to the furthest island in view with a couple of kilograms of fruit for lunch (bought for less than $2). We were pretty excited about our small island for the day... until one third of the way there and my arms started hurting... but it was all worth it in the end... beautiful clear water and lots of coral and fish. After a few hours of snorkelling we decided to head to another island when the weather suddenly changed (Perfect Storm style) and we were blown off course. After at least 45 minutes of wind, tears (nearly), groaning, moaning and VERY sore muscles we finally hit land 1km down the beach from where we were staying. Exhausted, the rest of the afternoon was spent relaxing. :)

After Koh Chang, we made our way back to Bangkok and flew to Kunming in south China. Kunming is a large modern city but is incredibly clean and organised. It was quite a change to Bangkok! After reading the Lonely Planet we decided to make the most of our afternoon and evening in Kunming and head straight to Dali the next morning so we hired bicycles and head off to find the 'hidden' pagoda... AKA the West Pagoda. We got lost due to multiple detours and ended up riding for hours... thank goodness Kunming is flat! During the little adventure we stopped at a restaurant for tofu noodle soup and coke... 3 yuan total... that's 50c between us! By far the cheapest meal so far. The owner was a cute, little old man who knew quite a bit of English and he chatted away with us. The Bird and Flower market was nearby where I choked on the spiciest kebabs I have ever had and saw lots of turtles, squirrels, puppies, rabbits, beetles and tiny crabs for sale. We visited the Muslim area for dinner for an interesting but delicious meal that can only be described as Lamb Soup Pizza from its appearance.. hopefully you'll conjure up an appropriate image from that name :)

Arriving in Dali was like arriving in China Disneyland... it's gorgeous wandering through the beautiful old town filled with shops, lanterns, restaurants, cobbled streets and traditional architecture. We stopped at a restaurant for lunch and picked our meals by randomly pointing at the menu since there was no English in sight and ended up with one dish of what seemed like sour chilli turnip slices and another dish of unrecognisable green and purple vegetable similar to Chinese broccoli marinated in indecent proportions of chilli... needless to say pointing at other peoples meals might be more appropriate in future! We have also ridden bicycles to the 3 pagodas which were beautiful with a stunning backdrop of mountains striped with thick white clouds and bargained with people for the all important stash of nick nacks.

Today we are planning on a 2 day bicycle ride around the lake here, visiting villages and markets as we go... we'll be fit by the end of this trip!

Fri, 16 Sep 2005
I last left you in Dali, about to cycle around Erhai Lake, the 7th biggest freshwater lake in China... the first day we rode around 35km around the lake, but including our explorations of villages along the way it was more like a painful 45km. The first village was complete with a town centre set up with pool tables elderly men and children played at while women sat nearby selling their produce which was an ideal spot to break for a lunch of spicy noodle soup before setting off to lose ourselves in the maze of narrow lanes. We eventually found our way out and headed to Bai's House in Xizhou town.... on the way I had an accident... I was trying to relieve one side of my bum from the pain of my bicycle seat by sitting lop sided when my backpack started coming loose... I reached around to straighten it when I lost control and rode straight off the road and dropped vertically at least 5 feet into a mass of spiders and dirt. Thankfully I didn't fall a few meters earlier of later or I would have hit concrete. Mick and two men who were driving by rushed over to help me. I could hear the panic in their voices and feel the pain in my back and neck so I was sure I was badly injured... but as I started to regain a sense of my limbs it became apparent that apart from a few scratches I was fine! Thank goodness... Mick couldn't believe I was OK as he recounted me riding one minute and disappearing from view the next like something from a TV show. After I had settled myself we continued to Xizhou to check out the Bai (local minority people in that area) architecture before exploring Zhoucheng Town. This village was even more of a maze than the first which made for a fun afternoon running into locals. The next day was spent riding 7km to a market bustling with shoe fixers, chicken sellers and relentless Bai women bargaining and suggesting items to purchase even as we rode away. After another 35km of gorgeous villages along the lake we realised we had missed the last ferry back to Dali and might have to ride the remaining 50km... a prospect my bum wasn't too happy about! ...so, we asked a local man if he'd drive us and our bicycles in his small truck... which was fine, until it overheated 10km up the road... fortunately after a bit more riding we found another ferry terminal and finally got back to Dali in time to collapse into bed.

The next day we caught a bus to Lijiang where we spent a few days exploring the old town which was even more of a Chinese Disneyland than Dali with its cobbled streets, old architecture, abundance of guesthouses, restaurants, shops and hoards of Chinese tourists! It was here we learnt about Naxi culture and their unique hyrogliphic style script still in use today. We also found Rembrandt Cafe which is where Mick's brother, Lawrence, worked as a Western chef for a year and Shasha (his girlfriend and the owner) still works. Shasha was wonderful, taking us out for dinner to celebrate Mick's birthday with a delicious hot pot and Chinese wine and providing interesting insights into Chinese culture... she was beautiful, intelligent and interesting!

After Lijiang we went to Qiatou to trek the Tiger Leaping Gorge, one of the deepest gorges in the world, for a few days. It was tough going for some of it, especially the 28 bends uphill, but the scenery was well worth it. It was breathtaking overlooking the gorge from a height of 2600m (3900m from the waters to the snow capped peaks) and beautiful stopping to meet locals and staying in simple guesthouses along the way. The amazing scenery continued every day of the hike with marble and slate rock, scary landslides, rapid freezing waterfalls and streams, tropical plants, bamboo and low shubbery filled with small yellow, purple and white flowers.

After Qiatou we caught a bus to Zhongdian, on a high mountain plateau bordering Sichuan and Tibet. We visited a gorgeous 300 year old Tibetan monastery, some hot springs and watched locals dancing in the town square. It made us smile continuously watching old, young, traditional, modern, Chinese and Tibetan people mixing to music that sometimes seemed traditional and other times had a techno beat behind it. With no foreigners apart from ourselves there, it was wonderful to know that this heart warming performance was for their benefit only and that every night of the week it was done with the same enthusiasm and enjoyment.

After Zhongdian we headed to Xiangchen in Sichuan, along the Sichuan-Tibet Hwy. I was captivated by the changing scenery as we wound our way through, up and down enormous mountains with deep valleys, swift rivers and freshly cleared landslides. That night we stayed in an ornate guesthouse that resembled more of a temple before cramming in a mini bus full of monks to continue our journey the next day to Litang at an altitude of 4014m. The area we travelled was literally breathtaking visually and in temperature (soooo cold) but the Tibetan tents, yaks and sheep we saw dotting the rolling hillsides along the way made it worthwhile. Litang made for a great stop for interacting with locals and learning about Tibetan life. We spent most of the time here learning Tibetan words from locals we met whilst exploring backstreets. One day was spent at an enormous Tibetan dance festival nearby that hundreds of Tibetans had travelled to with their yaks, tents and homegoods for. It felt incredible to be the only foreigners amongst all these Tibetans who were in traditional dress, surrounded by bright green hills and dancing under the blue sky for the week long festival. They were so welcoming and friendly, frequently astonished by Mick's hairy legs! The cheeky children and Elvis-meets-Tibet-style motorcyclists with their big hair, sunglasses, rings and elaborately adorned bikes with bright tassles and fake flowers kept us amused for hours!

Kangding was next on our journey. Although nestled deep in a valley with an incredibly fast river flowing through the centre of it, the city was not as charming as you'd expect... rather it was a bit of a disappointment as I realised we were leaving the Tibetan world and re-entering the ugly concrete and tiled buildings of the Chinese world.

On Wednesday we caught ANOTHER bus... this time to Chengdu, a very modern city crammed with 4.1million people.. it has been hot and humid here, a change from the high altitudes, and the sun seems constantly shielded by thick cloud or smog (not sure which), but it was the perfect base for seeing the Grand Buddha in Leshan... the biggest buddha in the world at 71m high, it was carved into a cliff face by a monk in AD 713. It was certainly impressive mainly for its accurate proportions and size but although we arrived before MOST of the Chinese tourists, the overwhelming presence of large tour groups led by guides with microphones and bright flags overshadowed the experience a little... but such is China :)

Tomorrow we are off to Songpan, intending on doing a horse trek for a few days...

Fri, 7 Oct 2005
Starting from Saturday the 17th... we caught a 9hr bus in a very old rickety bus to Songpan where we spent 3 days riding horses through peaceful valleys of pine tree forests. The second day of the trek we reached Ice Mountain at a height of 5800m with us climbing to 4200m and camping at 3400m. After riding to the mountain we trekked by foot down to camp which allowed us to take in so much more of the secenery. Although not overwhelmingly colourful, the hills were alive with small bursts of colour from the small blue flowers along the ground to large areas of pink and yellow flowers and bushes of tiny bright orange berries. The last day of the horse trek was partly spent covered in black raincoats and getting very cold and muddy as it rained heavily throughout the morning. The afternoon cleared up and I settled in to the rhythm of my lazy horse and munched on sunflower seeds while a Chinese guide constantly slapped and "cha-d" the horse to hurry up. Meanwhile Mick's horse sat at the front of the group and competitively nudged any horse back if they dared look like taking over. He even got in to a gallop at one point, leaving him screaming "How do I stop this thing???" while clinging on for his life.

After our horse trek we boarded a bus for Langmusi, with sore knees, thighs, bum and backs from the riding. The first leg of the journey was 7.5hrs on a crammed bus to Zoige (stopping for lunch at a typical road side restaurant, except it had a whole yak carcass inside the dining area on a table with the head on the floor staring at us while we ate... at least we knew the meat was fresh!) where we then arranged a mini bus with a Swiss couple for the 3 hours to Langmusi... only it ended up taking 6 hours to cover the 150km because the roads were so bad with pot holes and mud! Once in Langmusi we managed to go to Leisha's restuarant for Baby McYaks (enormous and delicious!) before rain set in and the power went out. Exhausted anyway, we just went to bed hoping we could have a hot shower the next day. Unfortunately the power stayed off and the rain continued so we left for Xiahe on Friday the 23rd September.

Entering Xiahe lifted our spirits as the weather was beautiful at 24 DegC, monks were congrugating everywhere, there were lots of shops selling Tibetan wares and male muslims and Tibetans in thick, large rimmed glasses seemed to spend much of their days gathered on steps outside their shops passionately playing Mahjong. After delicious meals and Tibetan milk tea at the Nomad Restuarant, overlooking the Labrang Monastery, we explored the town excitedly. While we had plenty to occupy our time in Xiahe over the next couple of days, it was unfortunately raining so we left for Beijing via Lanzhou (the most polluted city in the world... apparently..) on the 25th September.

Arriving in Beijing at night time was wonderful as we got to relax in bright and colourful streets of restaurants and shops. After so much travel on buses we were relieved to be based in one spot and to spend nearly a week wandering the warrens of streets (called Hutongs, they are narrow, quaint alleyways of one storey homes that are rustic with courtyards but are being overtaken by development), markets, shopping malls, Tiananmen Square and the Forbidden City. We got lots of bargains whilst shopping at department stores and markets. Early one morning we set off to see the Great Wall at Simatai. It was so impressive looking over the mountains from the watchtowers to see the wall disappearing into the distance and imagining it being built at these amazing heights by hand so long ago, and at the expense of so many lives. The walk along the wall was quite steep at parts but it was worth it, with not many tourists, cute squirrels scurrying around and beautiful scenery.

On the 2nd October we caught a 28 hr train from Beijing to Guilin, arriving at 1am on the 4th October. The train trip was surprisingly good. We had hard sleepers in a section with a lovely Chinese family who spoke a little English and had an adorable, extremely well behaved 2yr old girl who kept me entertained in between reading and writing postcards while Mick practically slept the entire journey.

On the 4th and 5th October we cycled around Guilin, taking in the karst topography of limestone upthrusts that line the Li River and create beautiful silhoutted shapes into the distance. Whilst in Guilin we visited Fubo Shan, climbing it to reveal an excellent view of the mountains, the river below us and the city that seemed wedged between the bases of the upthrusts before spilling out onto flat land. We also visited Qixing Park which held our interest for the best part of a day with its lovely gardens, relaxed environment, camel hill (upthrust in shape of a camel), zoo and caves with colourfully lit stalagtites and stalagmites.

On the afternoon of the 5th we caught a 1hr bus to Yangshuo. As the Lonely Planet describes it, this is certainly a backpacker hangout (although I wouldn't classify most of the foreign tourists here backpackers!) but after 6 weeks without Western food, milk, butter and Western style toilets, we were thrilled to wind our trip down here, where we can have a little luxury but still be surrounded by amazing scenery and small villages. Yangshuo itself is a buzzing little town filled with shops, cafes, restaurants, bars and lanterns. It is not unlike Dali or Lijiang but without the hoards of Chinese tour groups. It looks incredible wandering the streets and looking up past the buildings to the constant backdrop of close limestone upthrusts.

One day was spent cycling a dirt track along the Li River through small villages before crossing the river by boat to visit Fuli town. We then cycled 17km up the Li River to Xinping town. From Xinping we managed to get a boat with a lovely Chinese family (who bargained hard to save us a lot of money) up the river to Yanding town, picking out the shapes of the upthrusts rising above us as we went. On another day, we rode along the Yulong river and back, which had us riding through rice fields and crops of bright yellow and green, to Dragon Bridge. Near Dragon Bridge we had a fantastic meal of beer fish and Chinese green vegetables. It was a long day on the bike and both of us have very sore bottoms :( , but as always, it was worth it!

Tues, 18 Oct 2005
Once back in Thailand, we hit the shops before catching a train and ferry to Koh Tao. Once at Mae Haad pier on Koh Tao, we found Ping Pong who took us to a fairly remote and beautiful part of the island called Laem Thian. She was friendly and talkative as she bundled us in to her jeep to drive us the very bumpy road to her guesthouse. We chose a beautiful bungalow on the beach with two balconies. It was the perfect location for chilling out reading, snorkelling, playing connect four and chess.. oh yeah, and drinking very tasty cocktails!

After a quite a few days we decided to go to Koh Phangnan to check out the Full Moon Party before we parted ways. It was a good night out, mostly sitting back with a drink and watching fire twirlers and tourists go mad...