Prior Trip (Travel Blog 2016 to 2018)

And we’re off (April 2016)

It’s April and we are ready to hit the road, last week was manic, note never leave your job and your home in the same week, far too hectic. Now that everything is sorted we are really to go.

The plan is to travel in Australia for 5 weeks, 20 years ago when we did an 18 month trip around Australia, back then we took the Ghan from Adelaide to Alice Springs so we missed out on a few places like, Broken Hill, Cobber Pedy. So let’s get this show on the road, our first stop is Dubbo

Dubbo is a city in the Orana Region of New South Wales, Australia, with an estimated population of 36,622 as at June 2014, weather this time of the year is between 20 – 25 degrees. We stayed at the Ibis Dubbo, it was basic accommodation but very clean and the staff were very friendly.

We stopped here to see the Zoo and The Dish

Dubbo Zoo, I love the Zoo here as all the animals have plenty of space in their enclosures. They also have a large savannah were a number of different animal’s co habitat together. It is a large Zoo you can cycle, drive or walk around. There is a large playground and picnic area’s plenty to keep the whole family amused.

Feeding time for the Black Rhino’s

rhino

The Graceful Giraffe

a-giraffe

I love the Gates of the Zoo as it reminds me of the movie Jurassic Park

a-gates

CSIRO’s Parkes radio telescope you may know it as the “The Dish” if you have seen the movie it is loosely based on the Parkes telescope’s role in receiving pictures from the Apollo 11 mission, the first manned Moon landing in July 1969.

Built in 1961 it is 64-m diameters parabolic dish used for radio astronomy the telescope works day and night about 85% of the time it is scheduled for observing, students can control the telescope over the internet for educational projects it receives signals from space never sends them. It is used by 300 researchers each year with 40% of these users from overseas. It takes 15min to do a 360 degrees rotation and it weight is 300 tonnes.

Did you know: NASA copied the telescope’s design for the satellite tracking dishes of its Deep Space Network.

Martin the Dish or is it Martin and the Dish ???

a-dish

Broken Hill was our next stop.

Like many “outback” towns, Broken Hill was built on precious metals, having once had the world’s richest deposits of lead, zinc and silver. Although now depleted somewhat, mining still yields around two million tonnes annually. Sheep farming is now one of the principal industries in the area, Broken Hill has encouraged its widespread artistic credentials and is promoting itself as a tourism destination. Population of Broken Hill is now 18,856 it has declined over the years.

The reason I wanted to visit Broken Hill was for the art galleries, the International Sculpture Symposium, and to visit a mine, we were not disappointed.

The Highlight for me was the International Sculpture Symposium. Twelve impressive stone sculptures are situated on a hill located in The Living Desert Reserve in about 10km north of Broken Hill. The sculptures were carved in 1993 by artists from around the world, under the direction of organiser and artist Lawrence Beck. The best time for photographing sculptures is around sunset and sunrise. But really the sculptures look fantastic at that time, it is a very peaceful place and really show how amazing the Australian Desert can look and feel. The arrangement of the stones define a special flow from the Pinnacles Hills to Fred Hollows resting place in Bourke, It is said to be a Present for Fred Hollows in the Afterlife. Below are pictures of a few of my favourite ones.

Pro Hart Gallery

It was great to Visit Pro-Harts Gallery, I love that his work really portrays the Australian Landscape and the life he had in Broke hill, he was a family man and raised 5 children, he worked in the mines and said his painting kept him sane after long day’s underground. As we could not take photo’s of his pictures we took one of his hand painted cars.

Daydream Mine

Is no longer a working mine, it is situated 33km from Broken hill. The mine was discovered in 1881 and close in 1963. Silver was mined here. The couple that run the mine tours are great, Boss and Cookie have a wealth of knowledge about the mine and the surrounding area they are very down to earth and friendly, on the tour we went down —– feet it really helped understand the working conditions that the miners had, not something I could do for a living. After the tour Cookie has freshly main Devonshire tea ready for everyone, nothing like freshly made home cooked scones. This is well worth a visit.

On to Coober Pedy

Coober Pedy is situated in the Outback of South Australia, 846km north of Adelaide and 685km south of Alice Spring. Coober Pedy is the Opal Capital of the world. The first opal was discovered in 1915 Coober Pedy produces 85% of the world’s opal.

We came to Coober Pedy to see the Opal mines, underground living, and the Breakaways. Again we were not disappointed

It is fascinating to see the underground lifestyle, many of the homes, hotels, churches and restaurants are underground. Living underground means you can escape the heat in summer and the winter cool desert nights. We stayed in a great underground motel, all the rooms are underground and have on-suites it was very clean. There is also a communal kitchen that service a continental breakfast each morning. The couple that run the hotel are very friendly and extremely helpful. It is also very reasonably priced. I would definitely recommend this place.

John’s Pizza Bar and Restaurants have great pizza a great place for dinner and coffee.

We took a tour that covered, an opal mine visit, Josephine’s Gallery, Faye’s Underground home, Underground church, Golf course, dingo fence, Opal fields, Moon plans and the Breakaways. The tour was 6 hours and it was fantastic. Adam our tour guide had a lot of local knowledge, it is really worth taking one of his tours as you learn so much more.

img_3950-2

We bought some local aboriginal art work, we thought if we are ever going to buy aboriginal artwork this was the place to do it.

Adelaide

We had a few days in Adelaide to say goodbye to my brother and his wife. We always have a great time catching up with them.

Lady Bay Resort

Lady Bay Resort is a golf resort about an hour south of Adelaide we had a week stop here, it was very relaxing, we played golf, went to some amazing unspoilt beaches like Normanville and to visit a few wineries.

The Beach at Normanville

Lady Bay resort

McLaren Vale Wine Region

We continued on to the Victorian High Country Mt Bulli

We stayed at the Sebel resort for a week, great place the apartment we got was amazing. The weather was a lot cooler here, but it was lovely to see the autumn colours. We went on lots of walks and drove up to Mt Bulli which was freezing, the wind was howling, so we did not stay to long.

The Sebel Resort

Great friends that came to visit.

Back to Sydney

It is now time to travel back to Sydney where we take a flight to Dubai.

Slovenia

Slovenia borders Italy to the west, Austria to the north, Hungary to the northeast, Croatia to the southeast, and the Adriatic Sea to the southwest. It covers 20,273 square kilometres and has a population of 2.07 million. One of the former states of Yugoslavia, Slovenia is a member of the United Nations, the European Union, and of NATO.

We are so happy we decided to add Slovenia to our trip, Ljubljana is Slovenia’s capital and a beautiful small city, it has plenty of green spaces, including the expansive Tivoli Park. The curving Ljubljana River is lined with outdoor cafes, bars and markets, it divides the city’s old town from its commercial hub, it is a vibrant, cyclist-friendly oasis, teeming with cultural activities, culinary delights, and architectural splendour. Ljubljana Castle is a castle complex standing on Castle Hill above downtown Ljubljana. It is a key landmark of the town. Initially a defence structure and since the first half of the 14th century the seat of the lords of Carniola, today is used as a major cultural venue.

Our Airbnb was in a great spot in the old city centre we stayed here for 3 nights then drove out to Lake bled for 4 nights.

Lake Bled wow what a picturesque place. The main attraction is a single island, home to Assumption of Mary Pilgrimage Church. It has a fairy-tale feel about it. We did some great hikes here. Ojstrica and Mala Osojnica are the hills which rise above the west shore of Lake Bled. The hike is easy and present a delightful alternative or addition to walks along or around the lake. You are rewarded with one of the best views of Lake Bled, the island, castle and Karavanke mountain chain in the background. Another day we took a small boat out to the island in the centre of the lake to visit the church and to ring the bell. We had a very nice coffee in the restaurant on the island. In the afternoon I went to the small beach on lake bled and got in for a swim. Water was lovely.

View of Lake Bled from
Ojstrica and Mala Osojnica

Another hiked that is a must is Vintgar Gorge is a 1.6-kilometer gorge in north western Slovenia in the municipalities of Gorje and Bled, four kilometres northwest of Bled. Carved by the Radovna River, it is the continuation of the Radovna Valley. The sheer canyon walls are 50 to 100 meters high, with a total slope measuring about 250 m. The stream has created many erosive features such as pools and rapids, and terminates in the picturesque 13 m Šum Falls, the largest river waterfall in Slovenia, we continued the hike from the gorge up to St Catherine Church, we had a lovely lunch here.

We had two wonderful meals at Sova restaurant on the banks of lake bled, best food we have had for a while, so definitely worth a visit.

Geographically Slovenia would be a great place to live as it is only an hour’s drive to Italy, Croatia, Austria and Hungary. It would be perfect to live here for six months of the year and the other six months in Australia, how wonderful would that be.

Germany, Munich and Berlin

Germany is the largest country in Central Europe. It is bordered to the north by Denmark, to the east by Poland and the Czech Republic, to the south by Austria and Switzerland, and to the west by France, Luxembourg, Belgium and the Netherlands. Capital: Berlin, Currency: Euro (€) Germany was a founding member of European Union in 1993. It is part of the Schengen Area and became a co-founder of the Eurozone in 1999. Germany is a member of the United Nations. Approximately 82,5 million people live in Germany (30.09.2016). It is the most populated country in Europe, and the 14th in the world

Our two stops in Germany are Munich and Berlin. We were looking forward to catching up with friends for the Octoberfest.

Munich was all about the Octoberfest. Wow what an amazing festival, we had not realised how big this festival really is, there are 14 large Tents some holding up to 17 thousand people, everyone dresses up in the traditional costume of Bavaria. We spent our few days drinking Beer, eating gigantic pretzels 🥨 apple strudel and lots of Bavarian food. It was so great to share this time with some great friends.

The group enjoying a beer or two, Angela, Rodi, Gina, Andrew, Martin and I.

We did have one day out when we visited the largest thermal spa in the world THERME ERDING, Turquoise water, summer temperatures & refreshing cocktails await you in an impressive holiday ambience with real palm trees. There are our 30 themed saunas and over 300 beauty & spa offers. For fun & action can find it in their Wave pool & Slides area. 27 slides with three different difficulty levels. Afterwards you can relax in our wave pool with gentle waves. It really is an amazing place, to spend the day or a few days. We said goodbye to Gina and Andrew both heading back to the States and continued to Berlin with Angela and Rodi.

From here we went to Berlin. It was interesting to visit Berlin again, we had been here in 1990 a month after the wall came down. Two other friends joined the group Thelma and Jim, I have known Thelma for a very long time she and I went to school together in Ireland, we both emigrated to Australia, Thelma went to Perth and I went to Sydney but it is great that we kept in touch. It is always great to catch-up but particularly when we are all on holidays and in Berlin.

There is definitely a more relaxed feel about the place, and lots of positive young travellers. We did a great bike tour, Fat Tire Bike Tours, that brought us all over the city, a great way to see and learn about the history of Berlin. Some of the tour highlights below

Brandenburg Gate
Checkpoint Charlie
Berlin Wall
Nazi Architecture
Site of Hitler’s bunker
Reichstag (parliament building)
Bebelplatz
Museum Island
Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe
Berlin Cathedral
Potsdamer Platz

It was great too share the experience of these three places with great friends. Thanks guys for making it so special.

Witty Observations

While travel in each country I thought I would capture all the funny or interesting things we saw, heard or experienced.

Ireland (Hanging in a Pub in Dublin)

img_0229-1

Wild Atlantic Way Ireland advertisement for a Sailing Trip

img_0285-1

Coffee shop in Ireland

A Friend in Ireland sent me this one.

A very cute cottage in Adair a lovely town in Ireland

img_5354-2

Donegal Town in Ireland were it is hard to find a women this sign was outside a pub.

img_5007-2

My Irish friends mum has this hanging on her wall

img_4955-2

Nice old car with Martin’s family name

Seen in Waterford Crystal factory in Ireland

Laundrette in Dubrovnik were people are encouraged to leave a message, what did we do before the posted note.

Outside a pub in Dubrovnik

I told Martin he should get one beer while I did some shopping in Italy so he did. The biggest beer he could find.

Very smart car parking in Italy

This is the vehicle that the postman or women delivers the mail in Sorrento, I wonder how this would go down in Australia or Ireland

In Lecce an electric car being charged, safety comes first.

Coffee shop in Dublin

An Italian restaurant in Brazil

Gee and I thought it was Martin !!!

Salzbury

Salzburg is the fourth-largest city in Austria (for details on Austria as part of this blog see August 2017). Its historic centre is renowned for its baroque architecture (heavily decorated style in buildings) and is one of the best-preserved city centres north of the Alps.

Flag of Salzburg

The fast-flowing Salzach River run through the centre of town, your gaze is raised inch by inch to graceful domes and spires, the formidable 900-year-old clifftop fortress and the mountains beyond

The city centre is very beautiful and is the birthplace of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Salzburg was the setting for the musical The Sound of Music, also the nineteen sixties movie Where Eagles Dare.

Martin was keen to visit. Hohenwerfen Castle to see Where Eagles Dare had been shot back in 1969 it is a medieval rock castle, situated on a 623 metres precipice overlooking the Austrian market town of Werfen in the Salzach valley, approximately 40 kilometres south of Salzburg. The fortress is surrounded by the Berchtesgaden Alps and the adjacent Tennen Mountains. Just beautiful.

The Salzburg Festival was on while we visited it is a prominent festival of music and drama, eating local food and drinking some great beer, they also had a good selection of Gin I might add. The festival was established in 1920 and is held each summer.

Great evening in Salzburg with our good friend Andrew

We stayed in the beautiful town of Hallein which is surrounded by alpine mountains and was a short train or bus trip into Salzburg City.

Corsica – Ajacco, Piana and Bonifacio

Corsica is an island in the Mediterranean Sea and one of the 18 regions of France. It is located southeast of the French mainland and west of the Italian Peninsula, with the nearest land mass being the Italian island of Sardinia to the immediate south. A single chain of mountains makes up two-thirds of the island. Population: 330,000 Capital Ajaccio

The Flag of Corsica

The Flag of Corsica was adopted by General of the Nation Pasquale di Paoli in 1755 and was based on a traditional flag used previously. It portrays a Moor’s Head in black wearing a white bandana above his eyes on a white background. Previously, the bandana covered his eyes; Paoli wanted the bandana moved to above the eyes to symbolise the liberation of the Corsican people.

Corsica although only 12klm by ferry from Sardinia is quite different. It is so much greener and lush and about 10 degrees cooler. This mountainous island of thick brush, pristine beaches, white cliffs, amazing views, is a hiker’s paradise. We stayed 6 nights and shared our time between Ajaccio, Piana and Bonifacio

Ajaccio is where Napoleon is from, we went to visit the house he was born in, it is very interesting and worth a visit. It was nice to wonder through the old town of Ajaccio. We spent a day out at the Parata Headland and saw the beautiful Sanguinaires Islands and lighthouseonly it is only about a 30 minute drive from Ajaccio, this whole area is beautiful and has some gorgeous beaches.

Napoleon birth place

Statue of Napoleon

Napoleon and his brothers

Torra di a Parata

Sanguinaries Islands

Sanguinaries Islands and Lookout Tower

Lookout Tower 1608

Beautiful beach with the Sanguinaries Islands in the background.

Piana is a pretty village set in and overlooking the fabulous Calanqes de Piana (a series of red rocks and cliffs that plunge up to 300 metres into the Mediterranean below) the road between Piana and Porto along the stunning Calanches is one of the most beautiful drives we have ever encountered. The red rocks are truly beautiful although the drive has a lot of blind corners, therefore it is best to drive very slowly and carefully.

Calanqes de Piana

Great coffee shop at Calanqes de Piana

Calanqes de Piana beach

Bonifacio is a beautiful harbor city on the southern tip of Corsica. The old town is made up of narrow cobble streets, with plenty of shops, restaurants and beautiful old churches. The huge white cliffs are truly something to see against the blue Mediterranean Sea. The citadel, old town, and the views across the harbour and surrounding cliffs were a highlight of our visit.

Bonifacio Harbour

White cliffs of Bonifacio

We loved our time in Sardinia and Corsica, to really see Sardinia and Corsica I recommend you hire a car

Sardinia – Cagliari, Olbia, Alghero and Santa Teresa

Sardinia is the second-largest island in the Mediterranean Sea. It is located in the Western Mediterranean, to the immediate south of the French island of Corsica. Population: 1.652 million

Flag of Sardinia

The four heads represent four victories achieved by the Kingdom of Aragon against the invading Moors: Zaragoza, Valencia, Murcia and the Balearics.

We spent the last 21 days between two islands, Sardinia which is part of Italy and Corsica which is part of France.

Our first stop, Cagliari the capital of Sardinia, we stayed in a wonderful Airbnb which was close to everything the city had to offer. The apartment was spotless clean and very spacious, the host is a great guy that gave us lots of tips about what to see and do and good places to eat. if you ever stay in Cagliari I would recommend this apartment, to find it on Airbnb look for “ROSINA House-apartment design splendid view”.

I will remember Cagliari for its amazing cheese, we went to Mercato San Benedetto wonderful markets, that sold seafood, fresh fruit and vegetable, bread, meat and cheese. We spent about 30min going through several different cheeses with one of the experts. We finally decided on 3 different types of cheeses Grand Pandano, Pecorino and the final one was a Pecorino with truffles running through it the best cheese we ever had. Another thing I loved about Cagliari, each evening the locals gather together in the square to dancing, it was the sort of dancing that everyone could join in as the steps where simple. I joined in myself, it was great fun for everyone.
The old, historical district develops around what was once the “Rocca di Castro”, a fortress dating back to the Pisan period which gives the area an impressive and medieval quality and the elegant Umberto I terrace, which commands sweeping views over Cagliari’s jumbled rooftops to the sea and distant mountains makes for an impressive city. Crowning the Bonaria hill, this religious complex is a hugely popular pilgrimage site. Devotees come from all over the world to visit the 14th-century Gothic church sanctuary and pray to Nostra Signora di Bonaria, a statue of the Virgin Mary and Christ that supposedly saved a ship’s crew during a storm. To the right of the sanctuary, the towering basilica still acts as a landmark to returning sailors.

Mercato San Benedetto great markets, amazing selection of cheese

Beautiful streets in Cagliari

Santuario & Basilica di Nostra Signora di Bonaria.

It has great beaches like Poetto beach, 8 km long which is only 15min from the city centre, the water is very clean and clear and great for swimming. From Poetto beach, on your right, you will see a beautiful rocky mountain the name is Saddle of the Devil, it has magnificent views over the sea to be enjoyed from its. Across from the beach the Molentargius Park covers an area of around 1600 hectares is a bird sanctuary. After 6 nights in Cagliari we hired a car and spent the rest of our time travelling around the island.
We stopped at some amazing places, Santa Teresa, Olbia, Alghero

Poetto beach

Saddle of the Devil Mountain

Olbia’s is based around Corso Umberto, a lively shop-lined street leading uphill from the waterfront. At the top of a low hill, it opens into Piazza Margherita, a kind of low-key hub of the city. We spent a day visiting 1. Chiesa di San Paolo is a church built on the site of an ancient temple, it has a beautiful multi-coloured dome and a handsome stone exterior belying its relatively recent date (1700s). Modern frescoes inside celebrate popular recent saints and religious figures including Padre Pio and Pope John Paul II. Olbia’s other significant church is just outside the heart of town. 2. The Basilica minore di San Simplicio is a Romanesque granite church dating back to the eleventh century.3. Fausto Noce Park is a favourite among the locals and tourist, there are lots of species of Mediterranean flora, benches, exercise paths, sports structures (tennis courts, football pitches, changing rooms, a small amphitheatre, and bowls club). Four fountains which decorate the park. We had a wonderful day. We stayed at the very nice Geovillage a sport wellness and convention resort, the pool area was very nice.

Chiesa di San Paolo

Basilica minore di San Simplicio

Fausto Noce Park

Geovillage

On the drive from Olbia to Alghero we stopped at Sassari to see the Basilica di Saccargia built in 1116 and the Fountain of the Rosello built in 1603.

Basilica di Saccargia

Fountain of the Rosello

Alghero one of Sardinia’s most beautiful medieval cities, is the main resort in the northwest. Its origins can be traced back to about 1300. The imposing town walls, the refined historical palaces, the old churches and harbour– together with the local restaurants, souvenir shops and bars make the old town the most vivid parts of the city.
The Neptune Grottoes can be reached by boat or by stepping down (the Cabirol Staircase) – with its 656 steps – which allows you to reach the Grottoes directly from the promontory, the view going down the steps is incredible the huge white cliffs with the amazing blue sea crashing against the rocks and the caves at the bottom make the climb worthwhile. Before 1959, the date when the staircase was finished, the Grotta di Nettuno could be visited just from the sea and, consequentially, only when the sea was calm.
We enjoyed a few afternoons on Porto Conte Beach and the lovely Hotel Corte Rosada which had a great pool area.

Alghero harbour area

Very interesting house boats

Steps down to the Neptune Grotto

Cliffs on the walk down to Neptune Grotto

Neptune Grotto

Santa Teresa Gallura is a town on the northern tip of Sardinia. The southern coast of Corsica can be seen from the beach. It is a seaside resort in a lovely coastal setting. The central square, Piazza Vittorio Emanuele, is a large open pedestrian space lined with cafe-bars and souvenir shops, coral and jewellery stores. The tip of the promontory is crowned by a historic watchtower, the Torre Longonsardo, which you can climb to admire the views, there is also a beautiful statue of either St Teresa or Our Lady looking out to sea. I could not find any information on it. I think it is a new Statue. It is lovely to walk from Santa Teresa to Capo Testa lighthouse, there are some very nice beaches along the way and the views and rock formations from the light house make it worth the walk. There is also a very nice bar (‘sea lounge club) – not cheap, but just so nice to enjoy a drink and snack, it’s also above an amazing little cove – Cala Spinosa which is breathtakingly beautiful. We had to stop for a swim here.

St Teresa or Our Lady looking out to sea

Capo Testa lighthouse

Sea lounge club

Cala Spinosa

M doing his best impression of Daniel Craig

From Sardinia we took a ferry to Corsica. Corsica is only 12 kilometres by ferry from Sardinia

Malta – Valetta, Birgu, Gozo and Camino island

Malta, officially known as the Republic of Malta, is a Southern European island country consisting of an archipelago in the Mediterranean Sea. It lies 80 km south of Italy. Malta is one of the world’s smallest and most densely populated countries, at over 316 km² with a population of about 475,000. Its capital is Valletta, which is the smallest national capital in the European Union by area at 0.8 km. Its largest town is Birkirkara, while its chief economic centre is Sliema. The official languages are Maltese and English, with Maltese also recognised as the national language.

Flag of Malta

Malta has an array of things to discover. And no matter where you go, the scenery and architecture provide a spectacular backdrop. The colours are striking, with the honey-coloured stone of the buildings against the deepest of Mediterranean blues, just beautiful. Valetta and the three cities are stunning as they are surrounded by a beautiful harbour. We stayed in the city of Birgu in a wonderful Airbnb right on the Harbour. The city had a nice town square with some beautiful old homes with cobble streets. There is an area on the harbour that was designated for swimming, it was great to have a swim after a day of sightseeing. It was interesting to see how families would come to the swimming area in the evening time or to the town square, to socialise or just catch up on day to day living.

View from our Airbnb in Birgu

Harbour of Birgu

Valetta

Amazing storm that came through Valetta

Valetta Harbour

A tribute to all the fallen soldiers

Behind the Green door

Interesting Sculptures throughout Valetta

View from the upper Barrakka Gardens on Valetta

Church of St Publius Valetta

Traveling by ferry or motorised Gondola is a great cheap and wonderful way to travel in and around Malta. What is unique about Malta is that so much of the past is visible today. It is steeped in History, you can retrace the footsteps of St. Paul or see where the Knights of St. John fought their most famous battles. St Johns Co Cathedral is one of the best and most interesting we have seen, although plain on the outside, it is very beautiful inside. From Valetta you can see great views over to the three cities Birgu, Senglea and Cospicua from the Upper and lower Barrakka Gardens. On Birgu the oldest of the three cities we bought a ticket for 13 euro each, that got us into, the Forth St Angelo, Malta Maritime museum, and Inquisitors palace the only one left in Europe with public access. All very interesting.

We spent a morning at the small but picturesque fishing village of Marsaxlokk and an afternoon at the blue grotto. The blue grotto is several sea caverns on the south east coast of Malta. It was lovely to have a swim here.

Fishing village of Marsaxlokk very quaint

Blue Grotto

If this were not enough, there are two other islands – Gozo and Comino that boast wonderful water sports, and a more relaxed atmosphere. In Gozo we stayed at Xlendi beach village, it is a small place but perfect for a few days. We did a great boat trip out around the Gozo coastline stopping at places like blue hole, Dwejra Bay where we had a swim and snorkel it was divine.

Gozo

Xlendi on Gozo our second Airbnb accomadation

Boat trip around the coastline of Gozo

Dwejra Bay our swimming spot

From Gozo we took a day trip to the Blue Lagoon which is on Camino island, beautiful but too many tourists this time of year, we walked around to the side of the island for a swim as it was a much nicer spot with a lot less people.

Blue Lagoon

We have had a great 10 days in Malta 5 days in Birgu and 5 days in Gozo, Malta is a place that Martin and I said we could happily live, especially if we had a place on the harbour of Birgu or the Harbour of Valletta.

Panorama a Great Bar and Restaurant in Valetta

Morocco – Imill Atlas Mountains, Marrakech

The Kingdom of Morocco, is a sovereign state located in Northwest Africa. Morocco is characterised by a rugged mountainous interior, large tracts of desert and a lengthy coastline along the Atlantic Ocean and Mediterranean Sea. Population: 35.74 million (2017) Language Arabic (official), Berber dialects, French often used for business, government, and diplomacy, Currency used is Moroccan dirham

Moroccan Flag

We knew Morocco was going to be very hot this time of year, so we decided to spend some of our time in the quaint village of Imlil in the Atlas Mountains. It is 1,800 metres above sea level. The settlement offers stunning views over the valley and of Toubkal, the highest peak in Morocco. The drive to Imlil was interesting to say the least but as always Martin took it in his stride. The forests that surround the village are walnut groves, walnut, apple, and cherry harvesting has been the primary economy through the years, but in recent years the tourism trade has become the main source of income for Imlil. Not only do foreign visitors come to the mountains, but so do other residents of Morocco who want to escape the heat. It was at least 10 to 15 degrees cooler here than in Marrakech. We stayed in a wonderful raid on the side of a mountain, we needed donkeys to bring our luggage up the last 700 meters as it was too steep for cars to drive. We enjoyed simply sitting back and relaxing on one of the roof terraces while sipping some Moroccan mint tea and enjoying the landscape! We also did a small hike out to the Imlil waterfalls and the surrounding area. We had a few wild storms when we were here, it looked amazing across the mountains. We met two ultra-marathon runners they stayed in the same accommodation, both were training for Ultra-Trail du Mont-Blanc (also referred to as UTMB) is a single-stage mountain ultramarathon. approximately 166 kilometres. They were a very interesting couple and wow 166 kilometres I cannot imagine doing this, it kills me to run 5 Kilometres.

View from our accommodation in Imlil the Atlas Mountains

Imlil waterfalls

Accommodation and Donkey transport

After 3 nights we headed to Marrakech we stayed in the old city of Marrakesh, or “medina” is separated from the rest of the city (the Gueliz) by a brick wall that spans about 20 kilometres and has 14 entrances. this was a common setup for Arab cities at the time and provided protection much like the castles did for villages in Europe. It’s still where the action is in Marrakesh and the pace inside the walls is intense. We stayed close to the hectic main square of the Jemaa el Fna with its winding souks (market) of spices, carpets, leather, and pottery and were your senses are bedazzled in every way with snake charmers, vendors selling street food and everything else plus some interesting artists. But Marrakech is also a buzzing modern city, with an increasingly happening culture. Hot summers can be bearable as there are lots of green spaces, the well maintained Gardens flourish and offer blissfully cool and tranquil escapes from the dust and chaos of the city.

Kotubia Mosque and the Markets (souks)

Jemaa el Fna

Walled Medina and Martin having a coffee uptown

Bahia Palace in the media plus a wonderful sculpture made from old wheels

Cyber Park Marrakech

Beautiful courtyards in Marrakech

We had a wonderful time in Morocco, thanks to my good friend Lorraine for all the great tips.

Canary Islands

The Canary Islands is a Spanish archipelago and the southernmost autonomous community of Spain located in the Atlantic Ocean, 100 kilometres west of Morocco at the closest point.

Flag of the Canary Islands

Looming volcanoes, prehistoric sites, sandy coves and miles of Sahara-style dunes. We spent most of our time on Fuerteventura’s with it endless plains, punctuated by cacti, scrub and lots of goats. The Canary Islands has near-perfect year-round temperatures, which means whether it’s summer or winter you can enjoy You can pump up the adrenalin by riding the wind and the waves – kitesurfing, windsurfing and surfing are all big here or slow down the pace with camel rides, rounds of golf, horse treks and boat rides. If your idea of a perfect holiday is that enticing combo of R&R, you’re in the right place.There’s also a tidal wave of ocean-front bars where you can enjoy a cocktail at sunset while contemplating the gently lapping sea.

The last three weeks we spent holidaying from our travels. We have been relaxing in the Canary Islands with some great friends, Nicki, Ian, Anita, Gary, and their wonderful families. Both couples spent a year in Australia back in the nineties and what fun we had, so it was great to spend time with them again. Nicki was celebrating a big Birthday so we surprised her by joining them on their family summer break. The surprise went really well and Nicki was delighted to see us.

Costa Calma where we spent our first few days on the island

Corralejo where we spent 3 weeks with friends

A day at the water slide park with the children, we all had a great day

My favourite coffee shop

View from our Airbnb

Sand dunes and water sports

The holiday was perfect, relaxing by the sea, eating, drinking with great company. What more could we ask for. Feeling refreshed and ready to go again.