Budapest

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I had been to Moscow once, but the rest of the family had never been to any country that was once part of the USSR until our trip to Budapest. It’s an interesting mix. Still lots of Soviet-era buildings, but the people have removed all the statues reflecting the brutalist style of the Soviet years. The city is now being re-vitalized, with great shopping and restaurants.

Of course they have always had their own culture, based on their own language, music, and theatre.It’s a good city for walking – up to Buda with its castle and museums; down and along the banks of the Danube; through the tree-lined streets. And of course good restaurants and pleasant bars along the way for refreshments.

We found the people friendly and relaxed.

I didn’t take a lot of pictures, but here are a few.

Cornwall pictures up

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I just posted the pictures of our visit to Cornwall. This was a birthday present from Marina – a big secret, well kept. We dropped the boys off with my parents, and took off westwards. It was a real thrill to find ourselves right out on the point of St. Andrews, finding our way down a narrow path on a windy night, and arriving at a beautiful lighthouse, with fantastic views out over Falmouth Harbour and towards Brittany.

We also spent time in Padstow (yes, we did eat at a couple of Rick Stein’s places, and in fact we stayed at a hotel he owns: the St. Petroc’s). We also visited the Eden Project, as well as spending a few hours enjoying a cup of coffee and a snack at an excellent coffee / antique shop in Exeter down by the river.

Marina found the lighthouse through Rural Retreats. If you haven’t stayed in a lighthouse and you love the sea – you must.

China and France pictures in the gallery

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Just re-posted the pictures of my trip to China and Hong King in 1986, and our 2006 trip to France: Paris for the marathon and Disney World, and a taste of Brittany and Normandy – our first visit.

The trip to China took place just before I moved from England to California – it was part of a round-the-world trip that began in England, and continued to California, New Zealand, Japan, Hong Kong/China, and finally back to England.

I enjoyed Hong Kong – especially all the water, and the opportunity to explore some of the islands around Hong Kong. I really liked Lantau, but I am afraid it must be very much changed now that there’s a road bridge and of course the new airport on the west side.

So far I can’t find any pictures from that part of the trip. I have a lot of negatives and slides filed in boxes somewhere…

Paris, Brittany and Normandy

A spring trip to France, taking in the Paris Marathon, Euro-Disney (yuk!), and a few days exploring Brittany and Omaha Beach and Bayeux in Normandy.

Paris by Eurostar

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I love Eurostar. It’s so much more convenient than flying. We can take the train in to Waterloo Station in London, and walk across to the Eurostar terminal in the same building. Through security, and then onto the train, which whisks us into the centre of Paris – the Gare du Nord – from where the Metro quickly takes us to our hotel. It’s not quite that easy – because we’re using public transport we end up with a taxi from home to the train, and then a bit of a walk between Gare du Nord and the Metro because of the line we’ve chosen – but still, we get it done with kids and luggage and no disasters. Continue reading “Paris, Brittany and Normandy”

Lots of new photos

Africa and Scandinavia: I’ve finished the galleries for these two trips.

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You can access them from the links at the top of the screen, or go there directly.Our trip to Scandinavia took place early in 2006, right in the middle of winter, and we expected everything to be very dark. In fact, we found that with the snow reflecting any bit of light there was, we could see quite well, even very late at night.

We especially enjoyed Oslo. It sits in a perfect location, well inland, but on the top of a fjord. Hills around, a safe harbour, and quick access to sailing, skiing, and tobogganing (in winter). The town centre is quite small and seemed friendly. I’d spend a lot of time there, but it is a very expensive place to visit.

2005

More travel, some inside the UK and some outside.

Gong Xi Fa Cai,

2005 was our second full year in the UK. It’s been busy with school, work, and a lot of travel. It’s also been quite traumatic with family illness, and all of us getting a bit older. Wiser, I cannot say. Our 2004 letter is not online, so this will touch on some of our activities over that time too.

The highlights have been the time we’ve been able to spend with our family, and the travel – Paris, Budapest, Venice, Prague, Turkey (Istanbul and the south coast), Cornwall, the North East and the Lake District (pictured), and most recently a trip to Norway and Sweden. Of course we have also been back to the US as well. Rather than include a lot of pictures of our travels here, you can find them on the website (they will be re-published here when I get a chance). It’s one of the great joys of being in Europe that so much culture is so close. Continue reading “2005”

2002

Dear Family and Friends,

Wishing you a Happy New Year and a Happy Chinese New Year!! Gung Hay Fat Choy (Wishing you prosperity) as the Chinese would say. It’s hard to believe it’s been over a year since our house remodel has been completed. We’re continually doing things to turn our house into a home. There seems to be an endless list of things to do, but we’re making progress. In the next year, we will be focusing more on the outside rather than the inside. We’ll extend the lawn and build a play area and perhaps put up a swing or two. Continue reading “2002”

I should point out that many of the pictures posted here were taken with film over the years and scanned in – but in any case, if you find them interesting, here they are.

Posting photos on the web is problematic – you have to downsize them and compress them – neither practice is good for the image, but until we all have infinite bandwidth, I guess data compression is a fact of life.