Forty Winks Friday, Dubrovnik Old Town

Forty Winks, Old Town Dubrovnik style...

Unexpected delights on the road

Sometimes life throws you little gems just when you need them most.

We set off from Zagreb before the crack of dawn to beat the holiday traffic, 

without a hit of caffeine as the apartment we stayed at had run out.

I hate to think what the traffic was like later as it was pretty heavy at 5am, 

all the rest stops were packed with holiday makers, their cars stuffed to the brim.

A few hours into our drive, we stopped for a break, the queues to the bathrooms huge,

the queue to the cafe shambolic so we had to forgo our much needed coffee.

As we meandered along the A1 freeway toward Split, we saw a sign 'Gospa od Puta'

we had no idea what it meant, but as we drove over a bridge and saw this....

We had to pull into the rest area. What a stunning place, lots of people around but nowhere near as busy as

the other rest stops on the way and one thousand times more beautiful.

Gospa od Puta, our Lady of Travel with baby Jesus, was placed at the Krka rest stop

on August 14, 2011.

Standing at 3.5 meters high, she watches over travelers on land and on the water,

and some pretty spectacular scenery.  

After a relaxing break wandering around the statue and the walkways, gazing at the

sensational views we happened upon a tunnel under the bridge. We discovered a restaurant and 

shopping area. We finally had our much needed coffee and to top it off it was one of the 

best coffees I have ever had! So if you find yourself driving the A1 from Zagreb to Split in Croatia,

forget about the other service stops and head to the Krka rest area, visit the 

Gospa od Puta, enjoy the views...and the coffee!

Hitting the road... Frankfurt to Dubrovnik, Croatia

I was born in  Cottesloe, only a kilometer or so from the beautiful,

iconic Cottesloe beach and grew up close to the Indian Ocean. The beach has always been a big

part of my life. Now living in Frankfurt we are a far from the smell of the sea.

So what does an Aussie/Kiwi family do to rectify this...well, we jump in the car and 

drive for twenty or so hours over two days to spend a few weeks 

by the Adriatic Sea in Croatia of course.

We drove through Germany, Austria, Slovenia and Bosnia to get to Croatia in the time it takes to 

drive from Perth, Western Australia to the South Australian border.

It still amazes me to see road signs with directions to three different countries on them

and games of 'Spotto' involve not makes of cars with the odd 

'Eastern States' number plate thrown in but number plates showing people travelling

from Germany, Belgium, The Netherlands, Slovenia, Russia, Poland and more. 

The motorways/freeways were great, despite lots of traffic. 

You have to pay road tolls to pass through Austria and Slovenia and place a vignette

on your windscreen. We also paid tolls to pass through some of the longer tunnels on the way.

Traffic slowed at border crossings, giving us a chance to look at the local landscapes.

Farms in Slovenia overlooked by gorgeous old buildings.

We were all happy to arrive in Zagreb for an overnight break in our journey and enjoyed a fabulous
Croatian BBQ dinner at a very friendly local restaurant. The waiter was horrified when we told him we were driving to Dubrovnik in the morning. He told us half of Europe heads that way on Saturday mornings and
advised us to get a really early start to avoid long delays. Best advice ever as the roads were already busy
 by 6am and service stops packed with holiday makers.

I was spellbound by the spectacular landscape and mountains as we drove through Croatia.
The mountains that were revealed as the early morning mist lifted.

The beautiful azure blue lakes we drove by.

Time flies when you are driving past scenery like this,

made me add even more places to my list of destinations to visit.

We were all pretty happy when there was finally a road sign with our final destination on it!

The motorway came to an end and we drove the last few hours on roads that wound their way by 

the most beautiful bays, villages perched on hilltops and boats tied to shore, waiting for their next trip out.

Traffic crawled near the Croatian/Bosnian border, but with views like this out of the car window,

we didn't really notice the delay. 

What a road trip! What a destination!

Time for adventures of the sun, sand, sea kind...with a bit of history thrown in!

Breaking our trip into two days made it much more bearable if longer. 

Was nice to have a wander around Zagreb and have a great local meal.

We took healthy snacks and some treats for the trip, so much nicer than the food available

at the service stops on the way. We also took lots of water and stopped for breaks along the way,

essential for the driver/navigator to refresh even if it added a few hours to the drive.

The girls are great travelers and happy to listen to their music, watch a movie on their tablets

or sleep as we drove. The dog was just happy to sleep!

We are now enjoying a few car free days and relaxing before we spend the next few weeks exploring this

most beautiful part of the world.

Forty Winks Friday. Table for two.

Sometimes after a big meal...you just want to have a nap!

Quality Father and Son time, a meal out and a nap!

Cheddar Gorge, Somerset UK

Two years ago today, my little family boarded our Malaysian Airlines flight in Perth WA,

ready to begin our new lives in England. Tucked into our hand luggage was a list written

by a Welsh family friend of 'must do's' while we lived in the UK. 

We ticked a few things off the list, but found ourselves living in Germany before we

managed to get to Cheddar Gorge.

On our recent trip back to England, we finally managed to give Cheddar Gorge a big tick!

Cheddar is a village in Somerset, and was famous for 'Cheddar' cheese as far back as 1170AD! 

Of course we had to stop for a 'cheesy' lunch in a local cafe, most dishes featured cheddar.

I also had a very delicious local cider to wash it down.

It is a lovely village to walk around and well set up for tourists.

We walked the 274 steps to the lookout tower to work off our cheddar filled lunch.

There are signs at landings on the climb up with information on how the 

landscape was formed millions of years ago.

To imagine how it was, in this same spot, so many millions of years ago is staggering.

As well as being educational, they also gave you a chance to catch your breath.

I was happy to see people far younger and fitter then me stopping to 'read the signs'

Another 48 steps and you are at the top of The Lookout Tower,

with sweeping views over the countryside.

The village of Cheddar.

The spectacular Cheddar Gorge.

Carved out of the limestone by water from melting glaciers during the last Ice Age

creating the 400 feet deep and three mile long gorge we see today.

From the Lookout Tower, we headed through the gate and did the Gorge Walk, 

a three mile meander through the stunning countryside.

There is much to do, nature to soak up, majestic cliffs to walk or climb around.

We had a lovely few hours at Cheddar Gorge, family time spent in the largest

gorge in England. We only had time for the walk...and lunch, so haven't been to the caves yet.

Some fantastic spots to stop for a picnic on the walks it is well worth a visit.

Glad to have finally made it and ticked Cheddar Gorge off our list!

Abingdon and the Kingfisher Barn

When we found that my husband's two week work trip back to the UK coincided

with the start of the girls' Summer holiday, it didn't take much to convince us to tag along.

We could catch up with friend's, our older daughter could attend her old school Prom night

and we could visit places we hadn't ticked off our 'To Do while living in England' list.

We stayed in the lovely market town of Abingdon-on-Thames in Oxfordshire.

Rich in history and very picturesque, is was a pleasure to walk the tow paths

on sunny days, explore the shops and we had some lovely meals in the local pubs.

Was so nice to be back in the English countryside and yet still close to our old stomping grounds

on the Oxfordshire/Buckinghamshire border.

Abingdon is an excellent place to stay for a holiday, with lovely walks by the Thames,

boat rides, history to explore and lots of good food to be found.

Plenty of parks and open spaces by the Thames to relax, unwind and enjoy the scenery.

The weir and lock in Abingdon.

Watching all the canal boats head toward the lock made me add

'Holiday on a canal boat in UK' to my ever increasing travel list!

English Knapweed add so much colour to the countryside.

As did the colourful fields along the way.

The Nags Head, a great spot to sip a real ale or two while watching the world go by

and it is only a few minute walk from where we stayed at the Kingfisher Barn.

The Kingfisher Barn

A lovely ten minute stroll from the heart of Abingdon, set in beautiful countryside,

with easy access to Oxford and the M40 it was a great place to stay. 

The stroll from the Kingfisher Barn into Abingdon takes you by glorious farmland.

A walk fringed with flowers.

We stayed in the self catering Studio flat directly above the office. Part of the seventeenth century 

barn conversion, it was quaint and quirky with good facilities.

Perfect for our family of four, we had a full kitchen complete with oven

and plenty of cookware in the cupboards. We also had a washing machine.

After a week with no internet at home in Germany, we used our fair share of the complimentary wifi.

A welcome pack of juice, milk and a lovely lemon drizzle cake awaited our arrival,

which after a nine hour drive from Germany was very much appreciated.

We had lovely views across the garden and to the fields beyond.

The gardens are lovely, staff are nice and helpful and the location is great.

After ten days the girls and I moved on, back to our old village to stay with friends,

while my husband moved to into a B&B room for the remainder of his work trip.

He had breakfast included and a nice room with good facilities.

We paid for our own accommodation and all thoughts are my own.

We just all thoroughly enjoyed our stay in Abingdon and the Kingfisher Barn,

found it great value, with good facilities in a fabulous location.

Contact the Kingfisher Barn

Expat Connectivity

When I lived in Shanghai I was happy to keep in touch with family and friends via

emails and my Facebook page, adding photos and anecdotes of our daily life. 

It was often suggested that I start a blog but I didn't, due to slow internet and the

blocking of many sites, it was hard enough keeping my Facebook page up and running.

We moved to England and finally enjoyed a fast, reliable internet connection.  Oolong to Earl Grey was created and I started journalling the adventures my little family enjoyed. Who would have thought that a our new home in Germany would have us longing for internet access as 'fast' as we had in China.

Seems our nice house by the forest is in the "Internet Death Valley" of Germany,

despite being only thirty minutes from down town Frankfurt.

Lesson learned, before you buy or rent a house anywhere in the world, a little research 

on connectivity in the area is something to add to the list of 'things to do' before you move list!

As we deal with the on again, off again, off still, nature of our internet access,

here are some of the things we have been up to over the last few weeks.

Connecting with friends from over the globe, all organised with the help of the

World Wide Web...when available!

My youngest daughter and I spent a marvellous weekend in Paris catching up with 

wonderful Australian friends we first met in Shanghai.

After a delicious French dinner we relaxed on the grass of the 

Champ de Mars park and gazed up at the magical Eiffel Tower.

We wandered the streets of Paris on a glorious, bright day. 

Visited the Sacre Coeur. Stopped for delicious crepes and

a glass of wine or two. Spending a few days with

wonderful friends in the city of Paris 

was medicine for the soul.

We all tagged along on a two week work trip back to the UK with my husband.

We walked the tow paths, ate at old English Pubs, had an English ale or two. 

Caught up with friends and neighbours from our lives in England. 

Cheddar Gorge in Somerset had been on our never ending list of places to go 

when we lived in England, we finally made it there and crossed it off.

We had a lovely long walk and finished off with lunch in Cheddar,

of course we had Cheddar Cheese with our lunch!

My little family spent a few days with our fabulous friends from New Zealand and Ireland,

we all explored The Eden Project in Cornwall together.

The Biomes were incredible, a great day was had by all.

Educational and fun!

I spent a day in London with my lovely Irish friend. I last saw her when we were living in Shanghai. 

We joined my old English badminton ladies group for a tour of the Chelsea Physic Garden.

Was nice to connect friends from my life in China to friends from my life in England.

I love walking the streets of London, or any city for that matter.

My Irish friend and I met up with my cousin and walked,

soaking up the atmosphere and working up an appetite

for an amazing dinner at a marvellous French restaurant!

Adventures and face to face connections all organised on line.

An email here, Google map there, Facebook messages and Skype calls.

Love it or hate it, as expats, we need the internet to stay connected

with friends and family spread from Australia to China,

Canada to Ireland and beyond. Different time zones and schedules.

To meet up in person or to communicate and share ones lives from afar.

Lets hope we can sort out our internet woes and you will see more of

Oolong to Earl Grey.....to Riesling!