Seasonal Paradise

Paintball For Bonu's Birthday

Mums Moving Day, In The Van

 

Mum moved out of her independent living apartment in Victoria Canada, and moved to Malta.

Mark, Mum and Mike. 

Malta Speed Boat Racing

 

Canyon Hiking in Crete

Imbros Canyon with Justin.

In Crete With Justin

Justin (fastlife.com) and I, taking in beers and great food on the Rethymno's waterfront.

Delphi

Touring Delphi in Greece was a real treat. It was the heart of Greek politics and culture 2500 years ago. The inspiration for the Olympic games was born in these hills. The Pythian Games. And the most important Oracle was based here in the remains of this temple in our pic below. It was a gloriously spectacular site back then with statues, temples, a theater and stadium.

Our New Ride

We spent 6 months in Malta without a car.  Today we picked up a shiny new ride for pottering around Malta and for our 'date nights.' We like to go out a couple of times a week for date nights to different restaurants in Malta, usually in St Julians and Valletta. Now we have a fun way of getting there and back, and discovering the rest of the islands. The Honda RC30 (the race version of the VFR750) with it's single side swing arm was my dream bike when I was 18. Now, 21 years later, we picked up a VFR800. It rides like a dream, and is one of the best reviewed all-rounder bikes ever produced. 

Light Travellers

 

Trevi Fountain

The Trevi Fountain is a must-see in Rome. Perfect for a bottle of champagne just before lunch. (we didn't do that this time, but will, next time).  

Wake Up! We're Going To Rome

At 7:10am Irena woke me up. "Get your clothes on, the taxi is here,
we're going...but I'm not telling you where." I jumped in the taxi 10
minutes later. It wasn't until we got to the airport that I realized
we were going off-island. To Rome. A little birthday trip.

The first stop was the amazing Colosseum. Did you know, 700k people
died there in 450 years. No wonder 2/3 of the outer walls were
removed to build St Peters. This was hardly a place to be
particularly celebrated by the Catholic church in the 1500's. Far
better to hack some of it away for a better cause. Still, its an
amazing site.

1885 Years Old And Intact - Rome's Panthenon

Simply the most magnificent building we've ever laid our eyes on.  We dined in the Panthenon square at dusk and enjoyed good food, a nice bottle of red wine, and the best service we've ever had.  We'll be back one day.  

 

Stockholm Boat For Sale

In early August I paid OculusAI a visit in Stockholm. I took a rainy walk around Stockholm, and discovered a lineup of old classic boats, many of which were 80-100 years old. Some were for sale. The little sign on this poor little boat indicated it was for sale. I think we could afford this one. What do you think Irena?

Kon-Tiki Museum

I remember reading and being inspired by the Kon-Tiki story, as a kid. So it was a real thrill to visit the Kon-Tiki museum in Oslo in early August. In 1947, Thor Heyerdahl and his international crew set off from Peru, and landed in the Polynesian Islands 101 days and 4300 miles later. Thor wanted to prove that Polynesia was settled by South Americans using simple balsa-log boats.

Seaplane Take-Off From Vancouver

We visited Markus and Annie in Vancouver for the day.

  

Seaplane Approach And Landing In Victoria

Seaplane Ride, Victoria-Vancouver

We took a seaplane rides for a daytrip to Vancouver. Then learned
that two planes had crashed in the prior month. Time to do our will
(and avoid seaplane rides).

Mountain Rescue

A dozen mountain rescuers came out to carry an older woman down the mountain who had broken her ankle. It was easy to twist an ankle on all the rocks.

Mirrored Lake At Kildermorie In Scotland

Fishing In Scotland

First Time Shooting

Sasha Backpack

Test Ride

Trying out my schoolfriend Neil Bunn's chopper. He's customized this 30 year old air cooled in-line 550cc four banger.

Irenas First Hill

At the top of Irenas first hill, in the Wolds, on her first bike ride in England, on her first ride on her new bike, the first bike she's ever owned.

Cycling With Old Friends

Cycling with schoolfriends in England. Neil Bunn, Nich Clappison and Dave Bunn. Before they kicked my ass cycling in the Wolds in NE Lincolnshire.

The End of Our Pre-Honeymoon

We went to Venice as our 'pre-honeymoon' before going to Prague to get married. Here we're in the water taxi, headed back to the Venice airport just after dawn.

Venice Water Taxi

On A Venice Water Bus

Dawn Ride

I've not sat on a road bike in 16 years. This morning I took a trek through Prague and through to the Czech countryside at dawn. I rode South from the Charles bridge, past the yacht club and down to the golf club. Great! Nothing hurts. Then I discovered my limits by hanging a left and going up an extended 1 in 7 climb that kicked my ass. I had to stop three times on the hill, no less. Pitiful. I've got a lot of work to do. Last time I was riding a road bike I was a teenager, 40 lbs lighter. That's like hauling an extra bike and a half around.  ~19km with my detour.  Map it.

Taking The Rough With The Smooth

The cycle path on the way in to Prague is quite precarious. The lines are smooth, the rest is cobblestones, which are amplified by superhard 23c tires. Off in the distance, in the middle of the shot sits Prague Castle.

Ghosts In Mdina

We only encountered one ghoul in Mdina.

The Magical City of Mdina

Back on the main islland of Malta we decided to swing by the ancient city of Mdina. This city dates back 2000 years to Roman time. Most of the internal buildings were built around 500 years ago.

The Azure Window

Behind us is Gozo's Azure Window

Gozo Kempinski

The Gozo Kempinski from our balcony. Alas the outdoor pool is not heated. The indoor pool was a perfect 32 degrees and quite the match for the outdoor pool. The indoor jacuzzi was only 34 and the steam sauna was also not quite hot enough for our tastes. The restaurant and cafe balconies had similarly spectacular views but the food was horrendously overpriced compared to equal or better class local restaurants. We had a nice surprise with the Kids Club free daycare. The service was first class and faultless and Irena enjoyed a flower laced bath and a facial and mask at the spa on Sunday. We'll be back.

Comino Island

On the way to Gozo we ferry past Comino which is THE hotspot during the summer with it's incredible blue water beach. It's pretty dead during the winter when the water is too cold to swim in.

The Moment Of Truth

Irena managed this balancing act on our Segway tour of Tampa on Valentines day. This is the moment she stood hands free for the first time. We rode along the Tampa Bay waterfront and even piled into an elevator. We went 10 floors up in a parking garage to ride around on the rooftop after dark, looking up at the Tampa skyscrapers. Magic Carpet Glide provided our tour from Channelside. $50 each for a couple of hours tour. The 2nd generation Segways were easy to operate and so smooth to ride.