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TEAM ME2ME
During this time of no travel and more free time than normal on my hands, I find myself part of a sailing team! I do need to point out one thing – I don’t know how to sail (which side is port…?)! One gorgeous sunny day, I joined friends for a race around the magnificent Table Bay in Cape Town! Now, in my mind… I was going on a booze cruise so came prepared with my cooler box full of beer and a few snacks… oops this wasn’t a booze cruise… The guys had their waterproof gear, boots, knee pads and game faces on ready to man their stations,…
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CROATIA, A BALKAN ROAD TRIP
Croatia was my last stop as I darted around the Balkans. I met the folks in Dubrovnick for a couple of days. Checking out the old town – most impressive town of the Balkans with its towering medieval walls and majestic buildings, streets polished to a high gloss from constant visitors. A little side trip to Kotor with them before saying goodbye. Split for a couple of days, walking around the town. A cruise to Hvar, Bracht & Pakleni Islands – very relaxing! Dubrovnik The Plitvice Lakes NP a UNESCO World Heritage site. Beautiful park, 16 lakes, connected by numerous waterfalls. All the amazing “Balkan Blue” colour and crystal clear…
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SLOVENIA
Slovenia was on my list, it is home to Lake Bled – another image sitting in my bucket list folder… A rainy day prompted me to drive here early from Split. Even in the rain the scenery through Croatia and Slovenia was beautiful. When I reached Lake Bled I drove around a couple of times to get my bearings and then found somewhere to stay. Before I got my bags out of the car, I jumped in a boat to visit the iconic island in the middle of the lake – truth be told, I thought it was just a trip around the Lake… nice view from the island! Once…
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BOSNIA
When I first entered Bosnia, I started seeing derelict buildings – but they didn’t look right, buildings don’t decay like that. It was only after I started seeing houses with holes in them that my slow brain caught up!! This was war damage! I had read that it was noticeable in Bosnia I just hadn’t realized how much! It seemed like every other building, was damaged in some way, mostly with bullet holes. It was the first time I had been in a country that reminders of war were still a very real part of every day life and not just a display in a museum or at a “tourist…
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SERBIA
Serbia wasn’t on my radar this year until… I was working out my route into Bosnia /Herzegovina. I never take the quickest routes (boring) I like to take the more scenic routes. So, while checking out the roads I come across a photo of a scenic viewpoint in the Tara National Park, Serbia (I looked a little farther than necessary…) it was stunning – I had to go!!! It was only 5.5hrs drive – well by the end of the day that had turned into 11! The drive there was truly stunning, steep mountain passes through Bosnia (had to cross it first) with at least 40 tunnels cutting through the…
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MONTENEGRO
One of my other bucket list destinations was Montenegro. I crossed late over the border from Albania into Montenegro and headed for the town of Ulcinj. It was dark when I arrived and chose a place up in the old city to stay. Up early to check out the sights – which were ok, nothing that spoke to me, so decided to head to Kotor via the other beaches in Montenegro. Again, I was a little underwhelmed with the beaches in Montenegro – but living in Cape Town I am a spoiled brat when it comes to beaches…! Montenegro became king when I hit Boka Bay and the old city…
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LAKE KOMANI, ALBANIA
Rruga Kole Idromeno Skhoder is the jumping off town for Lake Komani and the famous, spectacular Komani ferry ride. Skhoder is small town, with very few people in Spring, not sure what it gets like in summer. There are plenty of restaurants and bars to choose from especially on the pedestrian walkway Rruga Kole Idromeno. It really won’t take you long to explore the town on foot, and once you have, there isn’t a lot else to do. Skhoder also seemed to have plenty of accommodation available in most price brackets. I decided to stay in Hotel Tradita which is in a museum (a first for me!) the hotel was just…
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Berat, Albania
I first “saw” Albania when I was 17, sitting on a beach in Corfu. We were told, under no circumstances to kayak or swim over there as you will be arrested and might not be released – mmmm ok….! A few years later…?I find myself in Albania – cool!!! I arranged a driver from Ohrid to bring me to the airport in Tirana to get a car. No way I was being without one now! The first hire company, had a car, for half the price of Macedonia and I could drop it off in the North, and I was told if I crash the car no problem – perfect……
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Lake Ohrid, Macedonia
After Peja, I headed to Macedonia’s Lake Ohrid. The road (a little detour) took me winding through Mavrovo NP. Wow, this place is SO beautiful, amazing scenery, lakes, rivers, mountains, villages, monasteries truly spectacular. It took me a long time to drive through as I was stopping to take in the beauty whenever the road allowed. Little villages dot the mountainsides high high up. So high it looks weird (iPhones can’t get good distance shots…). Some of the villages you wonder why up there??? The people that live there are either in hiding or really hate strangers!!! When I eventually got to Lake Ohrid I had to say goodbye to Jessie…
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Peja (Pec) Kosovo
The Rugova mountains were drawing me to Peja. The drive was easy on a lovely highway until it abruptly stopped with a pothole and a single lane! The drive after the highway makes you think, all along the road is memorials to fallen soldiers from the Kosovo War. Most of them, big or small have the faces of soldiers on them, makes it feel very real. When you see a headstone with a name you are more removed somehow. When I started reading up on Peja the Rugova Gorge seemed to be a must to visit but not to drive yourself. I came across numerous posts saying how dangerous the…
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Prizren, Kosovo
I jumped into Jessie (my car) and headed for the border. After negotiating so many border posts through Africa I’m always a little nervous approaching one wondering what challenges may await. Happy to say none! The Macedonia official winked at me through the drive-through window and waved me on, even though I had an entry stamp – oh well! The Kosovo side took a few minutes longer – “ah” he said “you come from Toronto” (I’m a travelling on my Canadian passport) I replied “sure” wasn’t going to open that can of worms none of my documents are from one country, I look a bit dodgy on paper… I decided…
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Skopje, Macedonia
As soon as we entered Macedonia we started winding our way down the mountain (didn’t realise we were that high up in Bulgaria) narrow winding road following a fast flowing river down into the valley. Macedonia countryside on this side is a lot starker than Bulgaria, short stubby trees like the Cape. The place I am staying in Skopje is at the top of a steep hill, didn’t mention that online! that said the walk down into town was painless and on the whole quite uninteresting until… I hit Macedonia Square – that was a bit of a surprise! After walking along another street filled with shops and restaurants I…
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Sofia, Bulgaria
Sofia, Bulgaria wasn’t part of my original route, I ended up flying here as I couldn’t find any direct flights to Macedonia or Kosovo. So, the way my brain works was simple, fly direct to a neighbouring country and work my way across – makes sense to me… Sofia is a funny town, I can’t quite put my finger on it. Very few tourists (it is May) but a long weekend in Europe. A lot of Sofia is run down with a few beautiful buildings and tree-lined roads dotted around and very confusing street signs! It has an easy, safe feel about it, everyone is going about their own business,…
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Balkans Tour
It’s finally time to hit the road again! Work commitments meant I wasn’t able to take an extended leave over Christmas so I have had to wait till now! This has had its advantages. Always taking time off at the end of the year rules quite a few places out due to snow and areas closing down for the winter. May is a perfect time to visit the Balkans, “Spring is in the air” and the tourists haven’t arrived yet. Not that tourists will be much of a problem in some of the countries and areas I will be visiting.
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The Wolfberg Arch – Total Isolation !
Going away for a weekend with super fit friends in the Cedarberg Mountains can lead to some interesting times! One morning the guys decided to walk up to the Wolfberg Arch about a 3-4 hour walk for them. I decided to start the walk with them and turn around when I got tired or too sore (a fall earlier in the year had given me problems with my knee). The others powered ahead within the first 20 minutes they were out of sight. I carried on enjoying the quite. When I got to bottom of the pass, I had thought this is where I would turn back, but decided to…
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Cederberg Mountains – Waterfall Farm, a place to leave the city behind!
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Weekend in Cannes
Cannes in August is not normally my vibe – it’s hectic, I usually like the quiet more remote places. A 50th and the chance to spend time with amazing friends I have known for over 30 years had the required pull to get me there, that and the fact John had hired a yacht… Who doesn’t want to say once in their life “while we were on the yacht in Cannes…!!!” Funny enough, this confirmed backpacker had no trouble imagining herself say just that! So, “while we were on the yacht in Cannes we…” sipped bubbles by gallon, danced to the best the eighties had to offer, jumped off the…
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Doha – No Point In Wasting a Long Layover
As I had a long layover in Qatar i decided to extend it by two days and see the sights Doha has to offer. It’s a cool place, well not temperature wise that’s for sure, I did go in summer so melting a bit was to be expected. Mr Habana’s hospitality as always went above and beyond. Meet some great people, saw the sights, visited the Souks, 4x4ing in the dunes. I really liked Doha. The construction around Doha in preparation for the Soccer World is quite something, I think I will go back when it is all done to have a look
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Cederberg Mountains – Waterfall Farm, a place to leave the city behind!
The drive to Citrusdal was stunning the little bit of rain the drought stricken Western Cape had received turned the fields an emerald green; the Winterhoek Mountains framed the rolling fields full of growing crops and grazing cattle. The Cederberg mountains are breathtaking, the higher you climb the beauty is stark with little vegetation, mountains made up of the distinct orange rocks common in the Cederberg. The bright blue skies contrasting against the orange, if you saw these colours in a painting, you would say “that can’t be real” Mountain after mountain greets you as you wind your way through the passes to our destination. The town of Citrusdal is…
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The Wolfberg Arch – Total Isolation !
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Amsterdam full of fun!
I can’t believe I had never made the trip over to Amsterdam while I was living in the UK. It is an hour door to door from my folk’s house!! Maybe it was a good thing as I loved Amsterdam, Prague was amazing, but I felt Amsterdam, and immediately knew I could quite happily live there (that doesn’t often happen, with Cape Town now my base). Amsterdam is home to the bike, thousands of them, not sure if they are there just for decoration as more seemed to be chained to fences than actually being ridden, Old basic nanny bikes (the type you would see Mary Poppins riding) less chance…
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Prague – The Beautiful!
I was so excited to be in Prague, as soon as I landed I had the most stupid grin on my face – I did get a few funny looks from grumpier looking people… I arrived late around 11 pm and soon realize by pure fluke I have picked the most perfect positioned place to stay. So quickly dropped my bags and headed out to explore, aiming for the river. Oh heavens, this place is beautiful! The city streets speak to me, my hand caressing the walls while I walk through the streets and over the 14th century Charles Bridge that links the Old Town and the Lesser Town up…
