The boat made its way down the channel in the inky darkness toward the site we would be visiting for our night dive. We had already had our briefing while at the shop getting kitted up. As we near our location our dive guide Rory scratches his head, turns to us and says “Now that we are on the boat there is just one more thing I should mention...there have been crocodiles sighted while night diving in the channel. It’s best not to flap around on the surface, just go straight down.” Heidi enquired as to whether she might take a [View Full Entry]

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The Petronas Towers beamed out their dazzling lights into the KL night, looking like something from a sci-fi movie. Looking up from below I half expected to see spacecraft fly in low and land on the bridge that joins the two towers together. I’m not the biggest fan of big cities and I don’t spend too much time marvelling at modern architecture but I could not help but be quietly impressed. Hailey and I arrived at KL in the afternoon after the 6hr flight from Perth. Having pulled an all nighter, I arrived at Perth airport at 5am in a questionable [View Full Entry]

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With a giant stride I plunged into the water and felt a cold rush through my wetsuit. It’s been quite a while since I dived in anything approximating cold water and the shock of it momentarily took my breath away. Being a bit of a wimp, I was pleased to have a 7mm suit and hood although the temperature was actually quite civilised at 20 degrees. I looked down from the surface and the water was clear. I spied some of the largest snapper I have even seen. ‘Wow’ is what I was thinking. ‘This just might be as good as [View Full Entry]

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Flying from Cairo to Luxor was a luxury that made me feel spoilt. I liked the feel of Luxor, a kind of old world meets new world charm. Straight away I knew that 3 days would not be enough. Luxor, while big on the tourist map, still has plenty of places to explore where you can walk through a local market or down a street without a single western face. From Luxor you can explore the Valley of the Kings, Valley of the Queens and the Luxor Temple. We took a horse and carriage ride for 2hrs around luxor and as [View Full Entry]

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What can I say about Sharm El Sheik? It is an oasis of western-style comfort. The whole town is like a movie set transported to Egypt from Hollywood. The palm trees, flashy resorts, picture perfect poolsides, and manicured landscaping are replicated everywhere. Resorts rub shoulders with each other and vie for space with restaurants all along the boulevarde and boardwalk. The beaches, full of colourful sun lounges, are dotted with beach umbrellas, each slotted into a low table on which to rest your cocktail. Helpful staff in crisp uniforms attend to your needs. The resorts slide into the edge [View Full Entry]

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I am surprised by the number of time the phrase 'I just got back from Egypt' is met with 'Were you scared? Did you feel safe?' or 'Was it dangerous?' rather than 'What was it like? what did you see?' or even a question about the weather. So, for the record: I felt safe. Be not afraid. And please don't believe everything you read in the media about muslim countries. I'm going to preface this blog by saying I don't want to get into any religious or political debates..... but... I know the mass media would have us believe that every [View Full Entry]

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So I arranged a trip to palau. I was telling everyone I met. "I'm going to Palau". And they'd say "Cool... um... where's Palau?" and I'd say "Micronesia" and they'd say "Cool....um.... where's Micronesia?" - insert embarrassed tone and bashful expression here - And I'd say "Um....north". I didn't really, exactly know where it was either. Even now, after I've been there I have a little difficulty locating it on a world map. There. I admit it - insert embarrassed tone and bashful expression here. Worldly traveller indeed. But at least I don't think Micronesia is a fictional place made up [View Full Entry]

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"Wow, how many are there?" Asked the lady on the roadside. She was, of course referring to the bevvy of beavers that have taken up residence by our driveway. Busy as... well... beavers, they have been wreaking havoc in the most adorable sense of the word. Trees that have stood for many a year are painstakingly nawed to the ground. The stump hone into a perfect point, the trunk stripped of its branches and said branches, combined skillfully with mud are crafted expertly into a dam, blocking off our storm water drain. Creating their own private pool. The Beavers have become [View Full Entry]

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We pulled into the bus stop at Creekside around 5 in the afternoon after the scenic drive from Vancouver to Whistler. Jim's friend Jeff met us and helped haul our bags up the hill to his place. We'd planned to stay with him and Shannon until we found a place but Jeff gave us the news that his friend Rosie had told him the day before that she was looking for someone to rent her one bedroom apartment. Word of mouth is a powerful tool in such a small community and over the months here I have come to realise getting [View Full Entry]

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As we flew over the great expanse of Canada we actually caught up to the sun. It had be dark when we took off from London, Ontario but after a couple of hours we were able to relive dusk, hypnotised by the thin, burnt copper rim of the world arching around, dividing black sky from black earth. It was surreal, lasted not nearly longer enough and soon our attention returned again to the inflight movie. After five hours in a plane - the last of such trips for a while - we were touching down in Vancouver. I am ashamed to [View Full Entry]

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