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Barbara Meadows
My two sons are regular bloggers as they have been travelling all over Europe and South East Asia. I am doing a bit of travelling this year myself so thought I would get in on the act as well! It's a great way to keep a record of people, places, photos and life experiences.Barbara Mary
Travel Blog Posts
April 10th 2010
I couldn't stop laughing! I was sitting in the back of a taxi at night and Colin, Michael and Joel were pushing the taxi up a hill, through the main street of Moshe in Tanzania, to a petrol station. We had just negotiated a price to take us out to a garden restaurant for dinner and had no sooner got into the taxi than it ran out of petrol! The taxi driver had been quite content to let the Mazungu (white people) push until I suggested in no uncertain terms that he should be out there pushing too! I stayed in the taxi to watch our belongings !When we finally got the taxi to the petrol station we were asked for part of the fare so that the taxi driver could pay for some petrol!! Welcome ... read more
July 20th 2009
Shashe Bible Training College It was an amazing feeling driving into the Bible College after so many years! It had been raining and there was green grass everywhere! To arrive 'ka pula' (with rain) is a real blessing and we did feel blessed to be back after so many years away! We checked out our old house, the swimming pool, workshop, the Bible College buidings and met up with Dave Long who was there with some AEC (Africa Evangelical Church) young people on a conference. I took a photo of Colin and the boys outside Comrades' House. This dormitory block was built using donations from Colin and a group of runners who completed the Comrades' marathon in South Africa. It was great to catch up with MmaSepunki, who had worked for us for many years and ... read more
July 15th 2009
Return to Botswana Having worked in Botswana for 17 years it was an amazing feeling to be heading back there for a visit after 11 years away! Our sons, Michael and Joel, who had been studying in Singapore, met us at Joburg airport. Amidst the excitement of not having seen Joel for 6 months and Michael for a year, we still remembered to take the family self-portrait! After a special evening with friends in Joburg, we were in the air again and touching down in Gaborone. It was sooo good to see so many of our friends at the Sir Serestse Khama International Airport to meet us. In some ways it almost felt like we hadn't left! Surprisingly, our Setswana came back and we had fun using it again! Gaborone has really changed: new shopping complexes, ... read more
December 17th 2008
Our two sons, Michael and Joel, have been off studying/travelling all year! Michael has been doing a Masters in Environmental Engineering in Singapore, taking time out mid-year to travel through the Central Asian Republics and Iran. Joel took a semester off and travelled for 5 months, mostly overland from SE Asia to Europe! He had a wonderful time travelling through India, Pakistan and Iran. I was blessed to have been able to catch up with them twice this year. The first time was when I met up with Joel in Kathmandu in April to do some trekking and the second time was when my sister, Linda, and I decided to take Mum on a holiday to Singapore in October to celebrate her 80th birthday. Linda's son, Tim, joined us and we spent a week exploring Singapore ... read more
September 15th 2008
Frantic Start 'Quick Mum, jump on!' shouted Joel behind me as I tried to climb on board the moving bus. We had been waiting at a little roadside cafe for transport to Naya Pul when we saw a bus rattling around the corner. We grabbed our bags and ran. The bus slowed down and just as we were about to board, it started off down the hill. I hesitated but everyone told me to jump on so I grabbed the rail and clambered on board. The fact that the bus kept stopping and starting as we boarded was a bit disconcerting as I was sure that the bus had faulty brakes and I wasn't sure I wanted to trust myself to this driver! As Joel jumped on board behind me I found my way blocked by ... read more
July 10th 2008
Nepal Bound When Joel asked me if I would like to meet him in Nepal during the April school holidays, I jumped at the chance! Joel had taken a semester break from his studies and had just begun five months ot travel by visiting Thailand, Burma and India and the plan was to meet up in Kathmandu. An added bonus was the opportunity to have two stop overs in Singapore and catch up with Michael who was studying there. I had three days with Michael and spent most of them recovering from a bad headache! At least Michael was able to study for two imminent exams! Thanks Michael for looking after me so well! I arrived in Kathmandu a few hours before Joel so sorted our accomodation and then went back to the airport to meet ... read more
March 22nd 2008
The Final Leg of the Journey Flying on budget airlines is certainly cheaper but often not faster! It took us 1 hour and twenty minutes on a bus from Barcelona to Girona Airport to catch our flight. When we arrived in France at Beauvais airport we had another 1 hour and 20 minute bus ride into Paris itself! We made our way to a cheap hotel that we had booked on the internet and another 2 or 3 trains later on the Metro we emerged to find our hotel was literally situated on top of the entrance to our Metro stop! Talk about convenience! There was even a creperie next door and we became regulars in no time! Paris We had both been to Paris before so spent a leisurely few days taking in some of ... read more
January 14th 2008
No, I'm not still on my long service leave! I'm just way behind in finishing off my blogs! I have three to go and am determined to complete them these holidays as they are my way of recording my epic trip! Barcelona It was a toss up between Madrid and Barcelona as the next stop but the lure of seeing Antoni Gaudi's architecture tipped the scales! It was a 14 hour bus trip from Granada but it gave us the opportunity to see great views of the Sierra Nevada Mountains and the desert regions on the way through. We also saw all the orange trees in the Valencia area. On arrival at the bus station we took a taxi to our hostel that was situated right near La Rambla, the famous street that runs through the ... read more
January 4th 2008
Monastery of Montserrat The Monastery is situated about 50 kms northwest of Barcelona. It took us an hour and a half on the train and then we took a cable car to the monastery that is situated 1236m up in the mountains. Pilgrims come from all over the world to pay homage to the Black Madonna (La Moreneta), a 12th century wooden sculpture of Mary that was found in these mountains. There were breathtaking views from the cable car. We arrived just in time to attend the daily mass at 1pm that is put on mainly for the benefit of the tourists. We managed to find a seat in the packed church and particularly enjoyed two items presented by the Montserrat Boys' Choir. The service also included a prayer and a reading from 1 John which ... read more
October 6th 2007
Sleeping in a Bus Station this Time! Exhausted and more than a little sleepy we finally pulled into the bus station at the uncivilised hour of 2.30am... We had travelled the whole day from Rabat to Tangier by bus, Tangier to Algeciras by ferry and then on to our current destination, Granada by bus. Oblivious to the curious stares we were getting from the other people in the waiting room we decided to settle in for the night, spreading our Berber blanket out on the floor, securing our backpacks and trying to make ourselves as comfortable as possible. We were just starting to doze off when two guards arrived to tell us in no uncertain terms that we were not allowed to sleep on the floor. As the metal benches all had armrests between the seats ... read more
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