woz on the beach 

basking in the warmth

The following day we headed off for the beach and found a beautiful little seaside town. It was 20 degress, a good 15 degree hike up from the averages we'd had for the last few weeks and so it really felt like summer. We eagerly threw off our shoes and ran through the water wishing we had thought to pack bathers when we saw the locals rugged up in snow jackets, hats and scarves, pointing at us from the shore and even taking photos as we frolicked in the sun!

a casual stroll

After seeing the sun set we decided to walk part of the way down the mountain and enjoy the warm night rather than take the bus. On our way down a very friendly young Sicilian couple stopped their car to offer us a ride down the mountain (or at least that's what I think they said given it was all in Italian!) and although we felt perfectly safe in accepting their offer we were enjoying the night and the view and continued our trek down the mountain. But long after the sun had set we didn't see a single bus we discovered the very friendly young Sicilian couple obviously knew something we didn't and we realised we would have to make it down the mountain on foot. I think it took us around 3 hours to walk down the mountain and then back through the town to our hotel and so by the time we got back we were completely exhausted. It was a long day, but so much more adventurous than taking the bus with the rest of the tourists!

off the beaten track

We discovered this little spot at the end of a "track" through the forest which only Woz would dare to venture through at dusk in such a remote and foreign place. We stayed there for what seemed like hours and watched the sun set and didn't see another person.

hidden treasure

We had heard that we could take a bus which would take us up one of the mountains so we could see the view so on Saturday afternoon after strolling through the markets in the morning we did just that.

The view on the way up the mountain was gorgeous. We were able to look out over the town, it's surrounding mountains and the vibrant blue ocean. The top of the mountain seemed offer very little but it's view with a few shops scattered along an otherwise barren, winding dirt road. But as we looked around we discovered a church. I'm not much interested in churches having seen so many now but we decided to go in anyway. Inside was incredible. From the outside looked like a typical european church, but behind its stone facade was a cave which formed a beautiful natural cathedral.

where would we be without woz's trademark market shots?

the local fruit and vegetable market

local produce

our plane and one of the mountains we could see as we flew in

and that was sicily ...

A few weeks ago Woz and I were flown to Sicily courtesy of his boss who shouted the office a three day weekend all expenses paid as their annual Christmas break-up. We had an amazing time, flying to Palermo via Rome, a place I can honestly say we would have missed out on had we not had this opportunity. There are so many places to go and see and Palermo wouldn't have been high on our list but we were so glad to experience it.

We flew in on Friday afternoon and I can already tell I am not going to be able to describe how beautiful it was. This next part could take me several hours to compose. We had been flying over the ocean for quite some time and were decending without view of land in front of us, and then we saw it ... sharp cliff faces and a beautiful little Sicilian town nestled amongst the mountains. It was breathtaking and so much more beautiful than we had expected.

the icy pontoon

brrr ...

Well, summer has most definitely given up her fight and winter is beginning to sink its teeth in.

Each morning this week we have risen to find everything covered in a thick layer of frost. The first morning I stepped out of the boat onto the pontoon which had completely iced over. Being a typical Aussie, for the majority, my only experience of snow has been on a day trip to Mt Bulla and so I didn't even think that it might be a good idea for me to hold on to the boat as I stepped out. So, the inevitable happened and my highly practical stiletto heeled boots slipped from under me and I'm not exactly sure how I avoided falling into the icy water. My handbag wasn't so lucky. Needless to say I have been very cautious every morning stepping off the boat, and my parting words to Woz as I close the door behind me are always a frantic, "Don't forget about the ice!"

bikin' around

Our weekend away in France was amazing. We ended up taking the train over from Dover to Calais rather than the ferry, which took around 30 minutes. We had two beautifully sunny days. Despite the sun, it was bitterly cold riding from home to Dover so early in the morning and we had to stop off to buy extra gloves to slip under our summer riding gloves. (Note to self: buy winter gloves before fingers drop off).

After arriving in Calais we sat down to breakfast in a cafe and marvelled at how quickly we were in a new country with a new language, culture etc. We didn't hang around Calais long and headed off along the coast with no particular destination in sight. We rode past the white cliffs of Dover which seemed so close. The cliffs were gleaming white and very beautiful.

By evening we ended up in Le Touquet, a little coastal town which in the summer must be bursting with energy as it certainly wasn't quiet while we were there, late in Oct. It was a gorgeous town, with beautiful little houses and shops. Unfortunately we don't have a single photo of our trip (only the one above taken before we left England - sorry, one of me again) as we decided simply just to soak it all in. So you'll just have to trust me!

It was surprising how many towns we passed through that had an area of the town completely encircled by high walls and towers. Most towns had overgrown the small space within the wall and had, over time, spilled out into the fields that must have surrounded it. Something we would have liked to have found out more about given more time, but, Monday morning was calling and so it was back home on Sunday night.

London put on an amazing welcome for us as we rode in - fireworks going off in every direction, as far as the eye could see. It was "Guy Fawkes Night" which is a bizarre English celebration traditionally accompanied by firework displays, the lighting of bonfires and the ceremonial effigy-burning of one Guy Fawkes. Thankfully we didn't see that!

the lion king

On her last night in London, Claire shouted Woz and I a night at the theatre as a thank you for having her stay with us. She completely spoilt us with fantastic seats to "The Lion King". An absolute must see. Claire took this shot during interval and although it doesn't really capture the "Lion King" experience, it's a photo of both Woz and I, which are as rare as hen's teeth!

france here we come!

Woz and I have decided to take the bike on it's first international road trip across the channel on the ferry to France. We'll just go for the weekend and on Saturday morning Woz has convinced me to get up at 5am (I'm not exactly a "morning person" as Tim, Sharon, Stephen and Matthew can testify) ride for two hours to Dover, and then catch a ferry across to Calais. From there we're not really sure where we'll end up but we decided it was now or never as winter is definitely approaching. Today is actually a beautiful sunny (but cold) day so hopefully the weather will hold out for us!

in royal company

Yesterday was a very exciting day for the school I work at as we were honoured with the presence of Her Royal Highness the Princess Royal (as we were told to address her). Princess Anne came to officially open up the school so obviously we finally got the carpet steam cleaned, new pot plants, equipment repaired etc. which was a bonus. One of our team of interpreters was selected to interpret the assembly and it was very funny to watch his spoken accent turn very BBC all of sudden. Indeed!

She visited each class and spoke with almost every student and teacher. Of course I was the picture of etiquette when she addressed me and would have made my family proud. Perhaps it was all that practise as a child when Dad would tell us, "The queen is coming" and we'd have to clean up the house and ourselves quicksmart.

at least we tried ....

After telling Claire how nice the Eiffel Tower looks when it sparkles we hung around for almost an hour waiting to see it. I was incredibly puzzled because each time I'd been to Paris I'd seen it sparkle and knew that they lit it up fairly reguarly. But, after waiting for almost an hour we gave up and headed for the metro to catch the last train home. As we stepped underground we took one last hopeful look to see it look just as it had for the last hour. So, we got our tickets and got on the train with no regrets. We'd tried. Only a minute later as our train took off, out the window we saw it, sparkling it all it's glory. Sigh. This is a photo from our train window!

the eiffel tower by night

claire and em

isn't it pretty?!

claire

outside the louvre

a gorgeous day in paris

me!

two words .... bird flu

chasing the pigeons

claire in st mark's square

local kids playing in st mark's square

st mark's square

The last time Woz and I were in Venice it was late December and in St Mark's Square there wasn't a person in sight, let alone a pigeon. But this time we discovered it as it should be experienced, buzzing with cafe-goers, photographers, oh and did I mention pigeons?

glove envy

gondolas on the canal