Saturday 17th July 8.30am we boarded The Avanti train -not the fastest- pulled out of Logrono with us and the 29ers. yee haa Time to just sit and take in the Spanish countryside- olives grapes olives grapes and more grapes and olives. The occassional little all white village and of course the ever prominent belltower- a very pleasant way to spend 6 hours after the gift of our 4 day hike (even managed to repair my trousers). Change over at Madrid to the AVE, short for very fast train - ran like a Spanish clock not quite Swiss but you would not of wanted to be a minute late for departure. At 2.30 we pulled into Cordova in Andulucia having topped 325 kph!!! Cordova was to be our homebase while we visited some of the ... read more

Our car/taxi/ two train trip to San Sebastion was successful with the 2 x 29ers, they are staying together really well and all up doing a great job, actually we have our Mern to thank a bit for that as he did take a little parcel back to the UK for us to ship back home, thanks again mate. I really thought I had been pretty lean and mean with the packing but once you hit the road of long distance travel you soon realise, you can only wear so many things and you really don´t need a whole lot more ,and a whole lot more baggage,just means more to worry about and more to carry!!! Our first encounter with Spain was such a good one , when on arrival in San Sebastion we stopped ... read more

With the daily light lasting well until 10.30pm and temperatures of about 25-28 our days were good and long and really quite pleasant for doing the old tourist things and then having our little apartment, which we loved, just made life en Provence so idyllic. The cathedral bells gave us our clock, handy for us who don´t own a watch! Those last few days we spent visiting the villages of Remy de Provence were we bought Ian 2 yummy rustic looking linen shirts to protect him from the next few months of sun(and that they have been doing)in the markets, soooo cheap, but European looking!!And we had a lovely day out at Bonnieux(where Pierre Cardin and other French designers live, Loumarin and Lacoste, all just oozing with everything one thinks of when they think---Provence, past many ... read more

We just wanted to share with you the wheels of this unique little village in Provence where we stayed for our week en Provence via a photo collection of the wheels that originally,date back from around the 17th century. These wheels assisted in the production of all the paper, grains and silks in the region. The tracery of rivers, all surrounding Isle sur la Sorgue were dotted with 77 of these working wheels , but now only 14 remain, they were and are ,all powered by one of the largest natural springs in the world . They add a unique charm and character to this 14th century village, that we came to really know after a week of our early morning walks winding in between the canals and narrow winding streets. And get this in ... read more

Nous avons aime beaucoup Paris Oui lala, en fin!!!! Nous sommes arrives!!!(hi to all our French speaking friends, or those who understand) Housesitters arrived, all tucked in.Seem like they'll be good. 21st June 4.30am said our sad farewells to Tashi, I'm sure she'll miss us? On with the expensive backpacks and down to board the bus to Mascot.(We really missed our mate Barb, no show without punch!) Both so very happy to have saved our Frequent flyers for the last few years, off to the lounge, just somehow makes you feel so much better! 3 movies later and arriving into Hong Kong for our 8 hour stopover, but at least we could sit in the lounge, have a shower and enjoy some of the comforts of business class, memories of old! Cathay's beds are very comfortable,Al ... read more