OK, I know the blog is at an all time slow...I put it down to me finally starting to relax!!....in fact I am getting far too good at doing very little, Sharron has me on a final written warning for not pulling my weight in the chores dept...fishing apparently doesnt count!!! So the blog will eventually fade and come to rest in the mean time...here is a quick update on our progress... Having had a fab weekend with John and Chrissy Smithers in their Chateaux near Gaillac...fine wine, superb cuisine, great pool....a proper bed and lots of laughs we headed for [View Full Entry]

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Having drunk as much champagne as we could in Epernay it was time to start our journey South....slowly!!! We have no specific route planned and were deciding on the day where to go where to stay and for how long....so long as we were heading south!! We headed for Beaune just South of Dijon in the Burgundy region of wine production and enjoyed a great lunch in Macon overlooking the river. "Jimmy the van" was doing really well and so we decided to head for the French Alpes so turning slightly east we aimed for Annecy just south of Geneve. We [View Full Entry]

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Well we have finally made it accross the channel to French France after spening two months back in the uk....a month longer than we ever expected or planned!! We had a great month back home in Dartmouth....thanks for the fab welcome home to all our Dartmothian friends!!!! The weather in April was fantastic, we tidied up the house and garden, did some coastal path walking, I got on the water in a canoe....and we did lots of socialising; eating and drinking way too much!!! Thanks also for all the offers of accommodation when we became homeless due to new tennants moving [View Full Entry]

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Hi All Many thanks for your great e-mails and comments on the NZ blog....the cheque from the NZ tourism department is due soon!!! We had a great flight from Auckland, the very strange thing is arriving on the morning of the evening you took off after 11 hours of flying, therefore gaining a whole day....we had lunch in Auckland before we left on the 10th and then lunch in LA, again on the 10th....Fantasic 2 lunches on the same day!!! We decided to stay in Santa Monica and not downtown LA, slightly less nutters apparently!!....Although we arrived in bright sunlight we [View Full Entry]

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Hi all Kia Ora!! Maori for be well...and indeed we are. The flight from Sydney to Auckland was quick and painless, two things that Sharron particularly likes in air transportation!! It took just 2 1/2 hours plus another 2 hours on the clock and so we were soon in the Worlds natural adventure playground New Zealand... Met by Anna Claire (daughter of Richard Seton) and whisked off to catch a ferry and then a taxi to Richard and Angelas island home on Waiheke....sounded good to us!! The welcoming party greated us as we rounded the drive to face the fabulous bay [View Full Entry]

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Ok, well done all those that got the picture competition correct...It was a chandelier made entirely of wine glasses!!! So we flew to Melbourne, a late addition to our Oz visit....a friend of mine from London had been credit crunched (made redundent) and found a job back home in Melbourne, so we decided to pop in and see her .... Melbourne is a great city, very European....a city that really does not feel like the other side of the world...if you know what I mean!! Old buildings, wide tree lined streets, lots of people!! We had a few good days of [View Full Entry]

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So we arrived in Perth a while ago now, really must try harder on the old blog thing!! Perth is a very isolated city, infact it is the worlds most isolated city.....Perth to Adelaide (closest large city in Oz) is akin to London to Moscow!!!....Australia is a very large place!! We had two very intersting nights in a B & B in the city...not our finest choice of accomodation, however we were walking distance to the waterfront and sights....The Swan River, Kings Park (Parrots!!!!) and much much more!!!! (Just a while ago to remember now!!) After the B & B we [View Full Entry]

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HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!!! OK I know that was a while ago and we are almost into February but we have been working hard.... on our tans since arriving in Western Australia!! Anyway.....here are some pics of our time in HK.... We stayed at the J W Marriot on HK Island, thanks to the daughter of a friend and mates rates!!!! We had a great room, recently refurbished and facing the harbour....it had been a while since we had a bit of luxury and a very welcome experience it was too!! This was the first time I had stayed at a J [View Full Entry]

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And so to Vietnam..............We started our adventure in Ho Chi Minh City...the largest city in Vietnam but not the capital....a population of almost 10 million...with at least 4 million motorbikes!!!! They even have seperate roads & lanes just for motorbikes....although the pavement is also widely used as a quicker option!!! The Vietnamise like many Asian countries carry everything and anything on their motorbikes, whilst at the same time either making or taking a call or sending a text!!! If me and the camera had been quicker I could have published an entire blog on this subject!!!..... [View Full Entry]

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HAPPY CHRISTMAS................................ Wishing you all a very merry christmas From Mark & Sharron in Hue............... [View Full Entry]

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