My Grey Gap Year

09/04/2026

This makes we want to pack my bags!

06/11/2025

12/09/2025

Sometimes I found out without meaning to!

25/08/2025

Austrian food - just as well I don’t live here! I’m sure the only reason I didn’t put on 5 kg in a week was because we ate at home a bit, and walked a lot!
Think schnitzel, goulash, strudel, noodles, cheese sauces washed down with beer!

25/08/2025

I’ve just spent a fabulous week in the mountains just out of Kitzbühel, in Austria. It’s a well known upmarket ski resort in winter, and an active outdoors family playground in summer.
We rented a large ground floor apartment in a farm house on a working farm that was first built a few centuries ago! The walls were at least 50 cm thick.

My time was very family oriented to spend my last time with my granddaughter and family on this holiday.

We caught gondolas to 3 different mountains on different days, seeing a wild animal reserve, a large kids adventure park and right to the top of a very high mountain where we walked and visited a wildflower garden.

Lots of schnitzel, strudel, noodles and cheese was consumed !
Our farm had horses, cows and other animals.

18/08/2025

I spent a few days in Bavaria, in the south of Germany, visiting my son’s in laws.
It’s a lovely traditional village, originally built within the town walls.
It’s green and lush at present due to the abundance of rain.
We celebrated a birthday, had a visit to the lake for swimming and a lovely dinner at an outside hilltop restaurant.

14/08/2025

This was my take on Rome in very hot weather. I toured the city on a hop on hop off bus, plus walked the thousands of steps.
The Trevi fountain was chaotic. So much for throwing a coin over my shoulder to ensure my return - I could not get near the actual water without queueing almost 30 minutes in the hot sun!
So I made do with watching others. I. Didn’t see lots of coins tossing, but I did see a lot of selfies!
On to the Pantheon… last time I was there 10 years ago, it was free entry. Now it is €5, still a bargain. One of the benefits is that due to the design of the dome, you don’t really hear the volume of people’s voices.
I had a great lunch in a little local bar, discovered the gardens of the Palazzo Venezia, viewed the outside of the Colosseum, and plenty of churches, wandered into the Church on Piazza Navona and admired the fountains in the actual piazza.
As I’ve been to Rome before, I was less concerned with ticking famous things off the list, and quite happy to wander, absorb the vibe, drink coffee and eat gelato.

14/08/2025

Funny things that happen on your travels.
I’m booked on an Easyjet ( the Jetstar of Europe) flight to Munich from Rome leaving at 7.20 am. That means a 4 am rise, 4.50 am train to the airport to be safe.
Check in was seamless and the agent was delightful. But at the gate they were checking hand luggage sizes and making people fit their hand luggage into a frame ( which I’m told is actually smaller than the stated allowed size).
One guy is furiously trying to get the wheels off his carry on bag. Brute force from 3 men was required. Then they made him put it in the frame. It was a tight fit so he gave it a good shove to get it in. Then it got stuck and he couldn’t get it out!
As I boarded he was last seen tipping the whole frame upside down and using his foot to try to move the bag!
The sour faced attendant was not amused. The rest of the queue including his friends were laughing uproariously

13/08/2025

The courtyard of Palazzo Venezia, an accidental find, is a peaceful haven away from the chaotic business of Rome on a 37 degree day.

11/08/2025

Goodbye Queen Victoria. It’s been a great cruise!
Now, for 3 days in Rome, starting with a 38 degree day today! ( that’s over 100 for the Fahrenheit people!)

07/08/2025

Alghero, in Sardinia is a charming town of less than 50,000 people. I’m falling for these Mediterranean walled cities on the sea with narrow streets in their old towns, lovely views and their ability to make me rack up at least 10,000 steps on painful knees!

06/08/2025

A day in Marseille, the biggest port in France and one of the biggest in Europe means it has a slight industrial feel.
However, the old port is lively with lots of yachts in the enclosed harbour and men playing petanque.
In usual form the Catholic Church occupied prime real estate at the top of the hill for the Notre Dame de La Garde. The tourist information person said there were a “few” steps - I counted 204!
Then I walked around d the old town. It was busy but pleasant.