A delicate photo and a delicate tale to go with it…
I was rather pleased with this photo. It was a shame I had to break the law to take it.
To read the kiss-and-tell, cards-on-the-table, warts-and-all story of how Shifty and I risked hefty fines, serious lectures from the judge and delicate parts of our anatomy to bring you this little sample of Blue Mountains magic, CLICK HERE.
Filed under Hiking
Walking in the Dolomites. Nice work if you can get it.
Does this sound like a job for you?
You go to Italy twice a year, in spring and autumn to avoid the main tourist season. On each trip you spend a week or two walking through attractive countryside with a jolly group of like-minded people, staying in boutique hotels, eating the best local food and sampling the local vintages.
You get paid to do this.
Simon Tancred and a cafe that bears his name, plus a bit.
Lots of us aspire to converting our love of travel into a paying job or business.
Simon Tancred seems to have it nicely worked out. Continue reading
La Casa Magica, Villatuerta, Spain – charming, warm, old and threatened with foreclosure.
I received an SOS email last night. A 500-year-old albergue in which my cousin Iain and I stayed while walking the Camino de Santiago is in serious financial trouble. I suspect that is not uncommon in Spain at the moment.
I have no idea whether the inn’s owners Simone and Miguel are good or bad at running a business. I know they bought La Casa Magica at a bad time, just before Spanish property prices plummetted. They probably paid too much for their building. I’m sure they weren’t the only ones. Continue reading
Phillip Island, Victoria. Just looking costs nothing.
Thanks to Leo who contacted me with the Tourism Australia list of 100 things people can do for free in our country.
I was delighted with all the ‘hits’ and the comments on my previous blog post about Tourism Australia’s latest glamorous ad, apparently catering to the glamorous potential visitor.
We skinflint locals know that there are plenty of things to do DownUnder that won’t cost anything but the time and trouble (okay, a bit of transport money too) you take to get there.
I love lists, so of course I picked through Tourism Australia’s top 100 freebees, ticking off the ones I’d done. I scored 51.
Here are my top 10 ‘been there, done that’ Australia for tightwads experiences, in no particular order: Continue reading
Filed under Budget travel, Hiking, Travel-Australia
Even McDonalds make their yellow arches fit the local style.
Our epic Alpine expedition finished in Innsbruck. I suspect that, like us, most visitors expect Innsbruck to be no more than a place to stay between more extreme adventures.
Innsbruck has a long history with the Hapsburgs, a university, an Alpine Zoo and a lot of suits of armour in Ambras Castle. There are shops selling Tyrolean steins and lederhosen to tourists, rides in hose-drawn carriages and a couple of interesting museums.
But we just wanted a place to relax. Innsbruck’s old town has been preserved with businesses working hard to attract and charm us. The signs are good. Continue reading
Pointy church, pointy mountains.
Filed under Hiking
