Gawne Free
Chris Gawne Joined: June 12th 2008
Logged in: January 14th 2009
Logged in: January 14th 2009
We left Australia on July 13th and traveled from Melbourne to Canada via Bangkok, Thailand, England, Ireland, Scotland, France, Malta, Poland, Spain & the USA.
We are spending Christmas in Grande Prairie, New Years in Victoria, BC & then a few days in San Francisco after which it's home to Australia in mid January.
Travel Blog Posts
Grande Prairie
The Shane Summary: Spent 3 weeks & Christmas at Grande Prairie, Alberta, Canada & then spent 10 days & new years eve in, Victoria, British Columbia, Canada. It was cold but great. From there we flew to San Francisco, California, USA, for 3 days where it is unseasonably warm. After San Francisco our holiday ends & we fly home. The Full Monty: We (Christine & I) arrived in Grande Prairie, Alberta Canada, just prior to Christmas where we stayed with Peter, Carroll, Sharley & Josh. The coldest temperature we experienced was -34 degrees and the warmest was -6 degrees. Until you actually experience such low temperatures it difficult to understand how cold it is. The locals still function as normally as they can. One thing that caught us a bit by surprise was how little they ... read more
Malta
Yes, we're still travelling!!! Now a word of warning. If you are going to read the Full Monty get yourself a cuppa & a snack - say no more. It's been a while since we last posted a blog, but, well, we've been having too much fun & thought we needed to give you a break from all my ramblings. The Shane Summary: Spent October travelling to Malta, Poland back to England & then November we stayed in the south of France doing stuff including a day in the Principality of Andorra. End of November travelled to Frankfurt where the journey continued to New York for a week (for some. I returned home for a week for work) & then on to Canada where we are now. The Full Monty: When we last posted on 2nd ... read more
Oupia
Shane Summary: Left England & went to Paris for 3 nights & met up with Andrea & her family, Bern 1 night, Venice 3 nights, Florence 3 nights Y& now in Oupia, south of France for 2 weeks. Saw lots of old stuff & drank red wine - lots. The Full Monty: It's bloody hard to bother yourself with doing a blog when you're kicking back in the south of France enjoying the products of the local vigneron's, but here goes. Well since our last post I believe I have been proved right when I predicted Geelong were right for the picking. Pity I thought it was against St.Kilda in the 1st week of the finals. Macca's happy but Longy & Rod Wilson will be pretty annoyed, besides, Hawthorn have had enough of a good thing ... read more
Eastbourne Aunties
Shane Summary: Still in Eastbourne just catching up with aunties & chilling out. Public Acknowledgement: Big public thank you to Catherine Thorne & Cath Milner for moving all our furniture into Dana Street. Thanks girls Apology & Answer: Forgot to give you the answer to my teaser in the last blog. The other British city that has World Heritage City status is Edinburgh. Interestingly that is under threat according to our tour guide who took us around Edinburgh when we were there. Apparently the local council has made a few rash planning decisions which has now placed that status in jeopardy. Welcome & Thanks: To new readers & followers of our trip (Sarah). Thanks for the feedback & messages we get. I must say the Shane Summary is proving quite popular Visit: Lauren’s Blog: http://gawnetravelling.blogspot.com/ Claire’s ... read more
Bath
Hello. A slower update than anticipated. The Shane Summary: Catch up on some stuff I missed in the last blog. Did a 13 day bus tour of Ireland & Scotland. Hired a car & drove from Edinburgh to Eastbourne staying in Cheshire on the way. Had a great time. The News in full: Cath Thorne was the first correct answer to the quiz. Winchester Cathedral was recorded by the New Vaudeville Band (forgot about Wikipeadia). Missed a few highlights in my last blog: London - Dot riding on the London eye with Tim. Highest Dot's been since she had laughing gas during birth!; Winston Churchill's War Time Cabinet Rooms (do yourself a favour); Imperial War Museum; Covent Garden which is the former London Fruit & Veg Market & now a market of stalls & shops with ... read more
Nether Wallop
Hello! Long time, no hear (or is here?), but have been on holidays, plus the computer is popular with people, the connections sometimes not flash & sometimes I'm not too flash!! Anyway, the Shane Summary: After Oxford we drove to Andover & vistaed relatives, then to London where we stayed in a flat & visited tourist spots & old things (they're rally good at old here), attended Christine's uncle & aunts 50th wedding anniversary. Then travelled to Dorset where we stayed in a house in the country & visited tourist spots. We leave here Friday & go to Eastbourne & collect one of Christine's other aunts & then travel to Ireland and start a 14 day bus tour of Ireland & Scotland. The Full Version: The first notable difference is that Tim is still with us! ... read more
Airport
Well, the first entry outside of OZ. The Shane Summary: We went to the airport, booked in, got on a plane. Arrived in Bangkok & stayed for 2 nights. Went to another airport, booked in & flew to London. Toured around England. Had lots of help from family & friends to see us off from Melbourne, which was great. All went smoothly and Thai Airlines were great, made sure we boarded first so things were easier for Dot. The few days in Bangkok were great fun. The Siam@Siam Hotel was excellent & being right in the middle of Bangkok made it easier to get around. Bangkok was great & a lot cleaner (air & streets) than we imagined. Then locals are among the most friendly & easy going people we’ve met. If Bangkok is indicative of ... read more
Well, finally our departure date has arrived. 9 hrs & 28 minute until departure as I write, but who's counting!!! The past couple of weeks has been hectic with us moving out of Langwarrin and making sure everything is right for the move to Ballarat on return!! Had to move Tim out of his Ballarat digs & we managed to break the drought. It started raining as we packed the trailer & didn't stop for the next 12 hours. No power at the new Ballarat address made it interesting unloading Tim's gear there!! But we managed through. Cath was a little ray of sunshine that brightened up an otherwise stressy day!! Thanks to all the well wishers & people who were able to find the time to send us off at either our place; St Judes ... read more
Welcome to our first entry on our travel blog. This entry is a bit of a trial run to make sure we get things working before we go. If you receive an e-mail alert from us it is because we have added you on to the invite list. Jus let us know if you don't want to receive the alerts & we'll delete your e-mail from the list (and won't be offended either). You can forward the removal request to gawney@optusnet.com.au. Well, we have 4 weeks today until we depart and the excitement is building. Went & bought a couple of new suitcases the other day preparing for the trip and Christine will certainly standout as hers is lime green!! I went for the more conservative red! Mum is all ready for her European / UK ... read more
