Travel to see people and places and always try their local food
What better way to celebrate 50+ years of friendship than a retro reunion. Moving into the 8th decade is not always possible for some! People start dropping off! So it was with great celebration that four of us who had been at university together decided to arrange a 4 day retreat. We had attempted this … More Retro reunion
We left South Golden Beach as the rain gauge topped 60mls at midday. Torrential rain followed us all the way to Brisbane as a tropical low hovered over the central east coast of Australia. Much needed rain was falling all up and down the eastern coast and ranges. Dousing fires that had been burning for … More Brisbane Adventure in the Wet
Turning 70 is certainly a milestone so I suggested to my adventurous daughter that we hike the 12 Apostles Walk together as a celebration. Revealing this piece of information to some people brought out horrified exclamations of ‘I couldn’t think of anything worse’ – this, after I revealed the weather forecast – or ‘why would … More Hiking with the Twelve Apostles Ladies
Cycling the Lower Rhine was a dream we had after our experience cycling along the Danube in 2015. We arrived bright and bushy tailed at the MS Arkona, moored on the Rhine at Kehl, the German side of the Rhine outside Strasbourg. The river boat hospitality system was very familiar – Theo the hospitality manager … More Cycling the Lower Rhine
Aussies in Alsace – Our journey from Hamburg by train took us through green fields increasingly streaked with rain to Baden Baden. Here we left the relative comfort of the Deutsches Bahn to stand on the wind swept concrete platform and waited for the French SCNF to take us to Strasbourg. My limited French enabled … More Aussies in Alsace
The Georgian Military Highway is the only route whereby Georgians and Russians can visit each other’s countries. Early 19th century paintings show Russian military personnel travelling by horseback up a narrow track through the towering Tergi gorge. During the 20th century, German prisoners rebuilt the road and a cemetery is dedicated to them at the … More The Georgian Military Highway over the Great Caucasus to Kazbegi
In Georgia, wine making is so intricately bound to religion that the grape vine is the symbol of the Virgin Mary and the grape, fruit of the vine, Jesus Christ. Archeologists date grape seeds back to the 5th millennium BC. In the mountainous Svaneti region, the fertility goddess Lani was replaced with the Virgin Mary … More Georgia – 8000 years of continuous wine making tradition
Our journey began at the Brisbane domestic Virgin Airlines check-in. Just escaping a downpour, we scurried inside with our minimalist luggage and fronted up to the ‘International passengers’ sign, hoping our luggage would be booked right through to our final destination-Tbilisi. ‘Tbilisi?’ Said the gorgeous airline attendant, behind the counter ‘Where’s that?’ Even prompting with … More Why would anyone go to Tbilisi?
Cumquat Marmalade at Tét – Chúc Mùng Năm Mới Yesterday I made my first 2019 batch of cumquat marmalade. Our cumquat tree is the one citrus tree in our garden which does really well. It must get the perfect combination of light and moisture and every February it becomes laden with fruit. Thus begins the annual … More Cumquat Marmalade at Tét – Chúc Mùng Năm Mới
Our last chance to experience the Aurora Borealis was in Sinettä and Rovaniemi. In Sinettä just a few kilometres from the Arctic Circle, we had the wonderful experience of sleeping under the stars. Well, potentially under the stars. As we lay in our glass igloo and inspected our Aurora app, the forecast suggested a good … More Glass igloos, bread making and berry picking in Sinettä
Come wandering 