John's Birthday (11 November 2007)

John wanted an Aussie BBQ for his birthday party so without any messing around we did it. It was so lovely to have all the family and friends together. Here just a sample of the photos.

From L to R: Ian, Verity, Jake (on the ground), John, Grant and Mary.

Just us enjoying the party and being together!

Click here to see more photos.

Aligator Gorge (14 October 2007)

We drove to Aligator gorge (inside the Mount Remarkable National Park) and went for a walk. Here we are standing in the riverbed, not much water as you can see.


It was a hot day but thankfully it was quite shady in the gorge due to the steep rocky walls. John even wore a colour coordinated shirt!

Mount Remarkable (14 October 2007)

We awoke early to get a good start on climbing Mount Remarkable. It was cool at first but warmed up to a beautiful (although hot) sunny day. Here is John at the start of the walk.


Here I am about one third of the way up with a view!


At the top and adding our stones to the summit cairn.


It took us about 3 hours to climb and 2 hours to return. Here I am on the way down passing one of the scree slopes. Overall a good experience.

Wirrabarra (13 October 2007)

We drove to Wirrabarra for the weekend. This is part of the southern Flinders Ranges and is about 4 hours drive north of Adelaide. Here we are nearby at a small place called "Stone hut".

John had a mountain bike orienteering race to enter but beforehand we had time to go for a nice walk. Here I am (not so comfortable) sitting on a tree stump in the Wirrabarra forest.

Adelaide Show (09 September 2007)

Well we went to the Adelaide Show again. It was pretty much the same as last year, this time we missed the woodchopping but we we saw the car racing and motorcycle jumping. Here is John armed with a crossbow and trying to win me a teddy bear.

Surfing (08 September 2007)

We went to Parsons beach (south of Adelaide) with John's cousin James. James has a lot of surfing experience and so was able to conduct some fishing at the same time. John is still very much a beginner - in fact this is the first surf since the lessons in Lima.

MTB Orienteering (01 September 2007)

Mountain bike orienteering (MTBO) is a great outdoor activity. One rides around on a mountain bike for about 2 hours, navigating to check points as quickly as possible. It is not all about speed, if you become geographically embarassed (lost) you become instantly uncompetitive. But more than that, it is fun and good exercise. We went to the Kuitpo forest on 01 September for an event. Here is John attaching his control card to the bicycle.

And here, just warming up before starting.

There are typically about 6 events between September and November each year.

Back at Home (August 2007)

After our beautiful trip to Peru and Europe, we were back home and back to the routine but there were a few things happening that we want to share with you all.

We went to the Hunting Adelaide Ball (where Ian and Verity Wheaton invited us). Here we are very elegant at the Hilton.



Cirque du Soleil was in Adelaide presenting "Varekai". We couldn't resist buying tickets and here we are sitting in very special chairs.



John at the entrance of Cirque du Soleil.



For a change of pace we went to see an Aussie Rules Football Game. What a good time. GO CROWS!



... and finally winter is almost over and we have already started to go to Henley Beach.

Singapore (4 July 2007)

Singapore main island has a total area of 682 square km and is the hub for many flight connections around the world. We stop in Sigapore for 24 hours and I was definetely amazed with the big commercial activity and the spectacular modern city.

Here we are walking under a terrible hot weather (nice park but extremely hot day).

Malls are everywhere and it is impossible to avoid shopping. Therefore some shopping and then we took our flight back home.

Frankfurt (2-3 July 2007)

Before taking our flight back home we spent 1 more day at Frankfurt and decided to visit the zoo and hang around. Here we are after some shopping.


The zoo was fantastic and we really enjoy it. Here our favorites photos with the zebras and the flamingos.



More photos? click here.

Romantic Road (2 July 2007)

We spent our last night on the Romantic Road in Rothenburg O.D.T. This incomparable former Free Imperial City rises above the Tauber Valley and was by far our favorite.


Here we are with one of the beautiful views of this medieval city.

Myself at the main square.

John with a huge version of the Nutcracker.

After Rothenburg O.D.T we made our way to Frankfurt but with a few more stops in Creglingen, Rottingen and Weikersheim.

Take a look to the following photos of Rottingen and Weikersheim.

More photos? click here.

Romantic Road (1 July 2007)

We started our 2nd day hanging around Landsberg am Lech. This town was founded by Henry the Lion on the banks of the river Lech. The plazas, patrician houses, the town hall and every little corner is lovely. Here we are.

Our 2nd day on the Romantic Road was long and full of driving through Freidberg, Ausburg (where we got lost), Donauworth and a well decided stop at Harburg to have lunch. Here we in the Harburg castle.

The afternoon took us to Nordlingen im Ries and Wallerstein where we took this good photo in front of famous plague or trinity column.

Days are very long, during summer time, in Europe so our trip continue to Dinkelsbuhl. This former free Imperial Town is localted in the middle of the Romantic Road and surprise all the visitors with 16 towers, numerous fortifications and magnificent patrician buildings. John love this town.

The end of the day took us to Rothenburg O.D.T. our favorite bavarian town. Myself and with one of famous german toy stores in Rothenburg O.D.T.

More photos? click here.

Romantic Road (30 June 2007)

One of the best ways to experience the medieval Germany is via the Romantische Strasse or Romantic Road. The route is ideally located in southern Germany connecting several bavarian towns.


We made our way through the Romantic Road from South to North starting in Fussen and finishing in Wurszburg.


During our 1st day we visited Fussen, Schwangau (see our post called Neuschwanstein), Halblech and Steingaden where we were amazed with the beauty of Wieskirche.

We kept driving north and found Wildsteig, Rottenbuch, Peiting and Shongau. In Shongau we were so lucky to find a Wine Festival. Here I am with the festival as the background.

We ended our 1st day in the Romantic Road visiting Hohenfurch and Landsberg am Lech (where we passed the night). Here is John with a beautiful view of Landsberg am Lech.

More photos? click here.

Neuschwanstein (30 June 2007)

After a wonderful time in Liechtenstein we made our way to Fussen (Germany). We started the famous Romantic Road with a stop in Fussen to get some advice from the tourist information office. Our 1st stop was the well famous Schloss Neuschwanstein built in the 19th century by Ludwig II, King of Bavaria, and inspired in the Richard Wagner opera masterpieces.

This photo is a classic.

More photos? click here.

Liechtenstein (29 June 2007)

The Principality of Liechtenstein is situated in the border of Austria and Switzerland. This small principalitity which borders have remained unchanged since 1434 is a beauty.

Here we are with the view of the Prince Palace.

If you go to Liechtenstein don't forget to hike in the Furstensteig. Amazing views.

It was just amazing to walk in this trek and I will never forget the scary passes (it was a challenge).

More photos? click here.

Grossglockner Hochalpenstrasse (28 June 2007)

The Panoramic view while travelling the Grossglockner Hochalpenstrasse in Austria, Europe, is stunning. Every stop is a new sight of the Alps.

Edelweiβpitze (2,571m asl). Unfortunately the weather was not so kind to us (very cloudy).


Here we are at Fuscher Lacke (2,262m asl).
The highest point of the road is the Hochtor (2,503m asl). As you can see lots of trekkers decided to cross the same day as us.


Can you spot the Hochtor tunnel behind us?

More photos? click here.

Eagle's Nest (27 June 2007)

During the planning time of our trip John said to me: "We have to visit Eagle's Nest" and we did it for many reasons. First because John's love for military history, second for the truly fantastic site it is and third due to the amazing Alps views.

Hitler's "Eagle's Nest" was designed and built for Adolf Hilter's 50th Birthday by his personal secretary and Head of the Nazi Party Chancellery Martin Bormann. The monument is called "Kehlsteinhaus" in German because of it was originally intended to be a "Teahouse" for the head of the Third Reich.

Here we are.

To reach the "Kehlsteinhaus" we had to drive to Berchtesgaden, take a bus, walk through a marble-lined tunnel 400 feet into the heart of the mountain and take the original brass elevator 400 feet straight up into the Eagle's Nest building at the top of the mountain.

Here is John at the beginning of the tunnel.

The view was just amazing. Here Lorena with the stunning background of the Alps.

More photos? click here.

Salzburg (26 June 2007)

Salzburg is the 2nd largest city in Austria, Mozart's hometown and the scenic place where the Sound of Music was filmed. Salzburg is beautiful from every sight and the Alps give the city this special sense of freedom and peace.


Here we are.



Is not a surprise for anyone that I am a big fan of "The Sound of Music" and as you can all imagine "The Sound of Music - tour" was a must. Enjoy the pictures and don't feel worried about singing "do, re, mi"; I did it during the whole trip.

More photos? click here.