Adriatic Adventure

Third time lucky was the theme for Croatia, there has been an attempt to get there every year since 2007- and the wait was well worth it. Sun, sailing and salt water for six days. After a drive across Germany, through Austria, Slovenia and finally Sukošan, Croatia. From here it was onto a 32foot Bavaria which was more than enough room for the 4 of us. Emese and Bee took care of the sailing while Pali and I looked busy and pretended to tie nautical knots. First stop was the Kornati Islands which are almost devoid of vegetation and have the most devoted sheep herders / stone wall builders on earth. After a great night of serenity in isolation we ventured North for a quick peek at the Cliffs of Dugi Otok, where the girls let me steer the boat under full sail, do some tacking and a bit of a jive (I'm basically ready for the Sydney to Hobart!) The port for the night would be a little harbour town a bit north of Sali, the name escapes me, but it was charming, the food was great and a German fixed our power cord. We journey south from here with a few over night stops on the way to Skradin, a fantastic 2000 year old port city located far up the Krka river, along deep gorges (over 80m in parts) reminiscent of the the Top End of Australia. Skradin is the gateway to Krka National park and it's famous waterfalls. Our final port was Tribunj the clearest water in Croatia and by far the clearest water I have ever seen. Best trip yet!

Kornati diving

Balaton

Please refer to the original entry on Budapest- Jager chased with Goulash - Hungary is good. Not much needed to twist my arm into a visit of the Summer time get away, Lake Balaton. Popular amongst wine buffs and sailing fanatics alike, seeing an expanse of water like this almost satiated my appetite for ocean. The food, as anticipated, was fantastic, the weather was superb and the company was splendid. Lovely part of the world!

Copenhagen: By Land and Sea

July 2009

While the German government will not allow a straight swap for an Australian license, they do not mind me driving a hire car from one side of the country and right out the other, as fast as possible, once again. This time it would be a recovery mission for Bee's possesions in her Copehagen apartment, the new occupant prefering it baren. Without any preconceived ideas about what to find in Denmark, and having never had a plan to even visit, I found Copenhagen quite pleasant, not as expensive as I'd heard and reminded me of a blend between Dublin and Amsterdam... stay away from the pickled fish

Nordschleife

Generally, having the hire car upgraded to a brand spanking new 2010 E Class would be a good thing. However when the destination, Nurburgring's Nordschleife, is arguably the most gruelling production car test track on earth, this isn't good news. It would be an under powered, 4.8m and 1.7 tonne battleship that Andy C, Andy F and myself would be pushing around the 'ring. The car was indeed built for the cruise up the Rhein Valley, and had plenty of legs for the Autobahn (2400rpm at 180km/h) getting us to the accomodation at Altes Forsthaus in style and good time.

In their own words Altes Forsthaus was established 1924. Briefly after the opening, Daimler Benz noticed the advantages which this house offered: Direct proximity to the racing course, infrastructure to maintain race cars and simultaneous accommodation for the team. Until today nothing changed! The facilities were spot on, the menu had more meat than an abatoir and a well stocked bar that stayed open until the early hours. This is the closest accommodation to the entrance of the 'Ring.

Saturday morning saw further exploration of the Rhein Valley, with all of us getting a chance to settle into left hand drive. By the afternoon, we returned to catch the tail end of the days racing and get ready for the track to open for public laps. The massive Merc stood out in the car park amongst a sea of roll caged Beemers, Porsches and a surprising amount of R35 GTR's. I opted to take first lap, and suitably scared the boys- but their revenge would be at hand very soon.

In the Saturday and Sunday sessions, nothing short of a race ready BMW over took us, and many a 'superior' vehicle had the ominous grill of the E Class in their rearview mirror, before seeing our tail lights for the last time. Andy F put down a 9min55sec lap only 3 laps in- 170HP 1.7tonne, impressive. With the brakes seriously ready to combust, and the ABS retired, Andy C's climatic last lap was met with rain, but he persevered with some awesome moments, including overtaking a Caterham and finding some reverse lock out of a few tight turns; showing that the fateful day on a lonely Iluka gravel road is well behind him.

A modern pilgrimage. Nordschleife, I will be back.

Light reading in Subway?

Sausage Sizzle in the car park

Back markers meeting the E Class / GTR overtaking all of us.

Berliner ohne zucker

It became painfully obvious very early that 2 days would not be enough to even scratch the surface of Berlin. Fran did have the bright spark to hire bikes, which allowed us to cover vast distances, and was fun to boot. However, every little nook and cranny along the way needs exploring too. This post will be as brief as the weekend stay and as superficial as the experience. How long would be long enough? Comparing to time spent in London, possibly an ‘Active’ year to get the full spectrum and give it a fair shove, at least a week to form a more conclusive opinion.

waiting in Terminal 1 Frankfurt am Main

Luck of the Irish

Finally a trip to the mother land, still not as far west as Galway, that will have to come later in Life. Dublin is a lovely little city made even better by the outward friendliness and understated optimism of the Irish. They like a drink too... with accommodation right on Temple Bar, Dublin's infamous bar area, the level of drunkenness was quiet astounding for how early in the evening it was, even for a Friday, no rowdiness, just a lot of staggering and singing. On route and on time to rendezvous with Andy F and meet his lovely French girlfriend at THE Temple Bar. Saturday was a self guided walking tour, Tea with my new friends Tammy and Lindsey, Football with Fez (Hull City v Liverpool 1-3, Man U v Tottenham 5-2) and - of course- NOFX!!!! This was a fantastic gig, hard to believe they just get better- added bonus, they played 'The Decline' in it's 18min entirety!

Coffee Break

January 2009

After one week back in some of the most depressing weather on earth, I booked a weekend trip to Amsterdam to see the Vidlers. With only a days forethought, and a short amount of time there, I just went with the flow and had a total tourist experience. There were various highlights, including the Van Gough Museum and a chance to help out on stage at Casa Rosa.

Summer Cliche

December 2008 / January 2009

Having just made the brutal mistake of reading lyrics for The Waifs “London Still”. It’s now right up there with "Flame Trees" on my list of “Songs Not To Listen To While A Long Way From Home”. 5 weeks at home was not enough.

Brisbane
Jo's place was visited quite often, including a massive first night and equally unhealthy finale. After an almost 2 year hiatus from Brissy, the place seemed strangely inviting...




Gold Coast
A night out with Jo, Tea and Cake with the Wynn's, 6am casino entrance and a chance meeting of Haddo. Standard Goldy fun!




Byron Bay
Mum and Dad are in Byron now. Could not think of a better place to be for Xmas and New Years. Most people came and checked out the new pad. Fun was had by all!

Dyl on his hand-made, traditional, all wood, no fin slider.