Fully decorated, it is a thing of beauty. After our dinner, Veronica's family all took a slice and quickly embraced it. Who doesn't love a good pav?
Sunday, December 24, 2023
Pavlova Christmas
Fully decorated, it is a thing of beauty. After our dinner, Veronica's family all took a slice and quickly embraced it. Who doesn't love a good pav?
Friday, December 22, 2023
Christmas in Hong Kong
They weren't real trees, but instead were ultra illuminated and hyper coloured steel structures. Again, not very European in feel, but that was fine. Mere replication and imitation often merely makes you yearn for the original even more. It makes the imitator seem to be just that, nothing but a poor imitation lacking the soul or uniqueness of the original. I thought this was far more fitting for Hong Kong.
Thursday, September 28, 2023
Bali sunset
As the evening progressed, the small lights on each of the tables began to shine and the smoke of all the BBQs filled the air.
With all the incredible places to visit in Bali, a beach dinner in Jimbaran continues to be one of my favourite experiences.
Friday, September 08, 2023
Heavy rains
The typhoon had come and gone. So Hong Kong was now back to normal.
Well that's what we all thought.
Instead we were all in for a big surprise. As I prepared for bed one night, I could hear the rain outside. It had been wet since the typhoon, so this wasn't anything out of the ordinary. The rain was getting heavier. I could hear the rain coming down hard. It was still nothing out of the ordinary. Heavy rain can be common in Hong Kong, so much so that there's a system of warnings in place at the Hong Kong Observatory to warning people when it gets too much. I didn't think much of it as I lay in bed and closed my eyes. I could still hear the heavy rain. It was actually quite a soothing sound and I was soon asleep.
I woke up to the sound of rain.
I wasn't sure if I had slept. The rain sounded as heavy as it had been when I had fallen asleep. I wondered if it was still early or if I had only been asleep a short time. I looked at my clock. There was no mistake, I had slept the full night and it was the morning. I thought that maybe it was just a coincidence that the rain had been at its heaviest when I slept and when I woke. Strangely, in the back of my mind I did wonder whether the heavy rain had persisted through the night.
I stepped out of bed and looked out the window.
It hadn't been a coincidence. It had indeed rained heavily all night. We were to find out later that this had been the heaviest rain that Hong Kong had ever experienced. It was a once in 500 year event that had completely saturated the city and left flooding all over. There was reports and videos of landslides, flooded buildings and general mayhem.This was a different case altogether, and the flooding had gone above that first step which meant a long and expensive clean up for many of the ground and basement stores throughout the city.
Saturday, September 02, 2023
Super typhoon days
The worst of it hadn't lasted that long, but there was damage everywhere. It didn't seem too serious, but trees had been felled and there was garbage and debris scattered everywhere.
What was most amazing though was that everything seemed to be restarting already. Only a few hours had past since the warning signals had been lowered and everyone was already getting on with their lives. Chainsaws roared everywhere as the clean up crews were busily dealing with the trees. We had a farewell dinner planned that night for Rachel. We had been worried it would be cancelled and yet it all still went forward without a hitch.
Tuesday, August 22, 2023
A comfortable journey home
As with all experiences so extravagant, I couldn't help but think back to the times I had as a younger traveler. Simply being able to go overseas in any capacity was already something I had never dreamed would be within reach, so to get to this level seemed to be an absurdity. I was happy, but also incredibly grateful for it all. I still couldn't help but wonder what my younger self would think knowing this would occur.
Monday, August 21, 2023
A familiar Rome
I still enjoyed visiting all the lovely sites in Rome. Walking the streets, at every corner there was an incredible historic monument waiting to be seen. Standing in front of the Pantheon will always make me happy and fill me with a sense of awe. Veronica loves the beauty of the Trevi Fountain. But more than anything, what we wanted to do was to eat and to eat well.
On the Tuesday, we also made a point to go out to the Testaccio district so we could eat at Felice. The waiters were still a bit curt and mean, but nowhere near as bad as they had been the first time we had visited. One thing that didn't change was the quality of the food. It was still the best pasta we had anywhere in Rome. As we had chosen to come on Tuesday, we were also lucky enough to be able to get the Pollo alla Romana again. All of it was washed down with a nice of bottle of Italian red that Veronica ordered.
We had extra time on this visit before we went home. Any normal visit would be taken up almost entirely with visits the the usual places. You would go to the Vatican, to the Colosseum, the Forum, the Spanish Steps, Trevi Fountain, Borghese Gallery and so forth and so forth. I still liked all of these places, but I had no specific need to visit them all again. Some of them I would see just wandering around and because we would be visiting places in their vicinity, but not having them on our must visit list meant we had more time to see other things. One place that I had tried repeatedly to visit over the years was the Basilica of San Clemente. It had been recommended to me back during my first visit by my friend Pete, but each time I had tried to visit it had been closed. This time, it was third time's the charm and we were finally able to get in.
It was a very worthwhile visit and I was happy to have been able to finally see it all. The benefit of time is always the greatest gift and I was determined to make use of it.
One of the more touristic places we hadn't visited before was the "Mouth of Truth". It's strangely out of the way, with nothing being particularly close by. So given we were heading out to Testaccio for a meal anyway, I thought we could swing by to have a look. Veronica is ever the romantic, and I loved the movie Roman Holiday, so it was a good spot for us to both visit. Arriving early, we were near the front of the line. Within a few moments, the line seemed to grow exponentially and snake far outside of the gates. The line moved quickly, and soon we were able to reenact the famous scene of Gregory Peck and Audrey Hepburn without the surprise.
In the middle of summer, we spent our evenings at the Tiber festival. Wandring along the banks of the river, listening to music and taking in the joy of the crowds. It was a lovely time and the mood was perfect for us both.
My feelings in Rome had reached a ridiculous level. I felt almost guilty. I never expected my life to reach such a point of privilege that I could not only come to visit Rome, but that I could come to this place with a knowledge built on so many repeated visits. This was a city of incomparable splendour. It was filled with wonderous things. It had incredible food and drink. It was a city of history, that had stamped itself on the world. I wasn't a Roman, and I never would be, but I was thankful for the good fortune to be able to live for brief moments this beautiful Roman life.
Friday, August 18, 2023
Beaches and Isola Bella
The beach arched around to the island from two sides. Both the beaches forming a point towards the island. Depending on the tides, there would be a small bridge across to the island that was either entirely submerged or only slightly above the water.
There was a constant flow of people heading too and from the island. There was something strangely unique about being able to walk across from the beach to this island. It felt special. Something different and beautiful. I thought back to my travels when I was young with my family in Thailand and how we could walk from island to island across the sandbars. This seemed like the smaller and more compact Mediterranean version of that experience.
On the island itself were the remains of an old villa. It had been maintained to a degree, with some small art displays inside, and only a hint of the grandeur that must have once come with living in such a place. Looking out the windows, you could look out across the sea and back towards the main beaches and the long coastline. It didn't feel entirely real. It was almost as though this was part of an elaborate movie set for a glamourous movie about a gilded life in the Mediterranean.
We floated up and down between Taormina and the coastline over the next few days.
On our last day, we went to a different beach to the side of Isola Bella. It was equally beautiful, though a bit calmer without the big crowds seeking out the perfect picture of Isola Bella in the background. The hotel had arranged with the beach club for a car to pick us up, but it seemed to get lost on the way to us. When we finally arrived, the very apologetic beach club took us straight to the front seats and gave us complimentary granitas as an extra apology. It was a nice gesture and I was more than happy to accept.
There wasn't much reason to be unhappy or annoyed. A slight delay here and there is fine. When you're in a place with such beauty and calm happiness, I thought it was best to be more relaxed in all my responses.
Wednesday, August 16, 2023
Taormina
For a place completed inundated with tourists, many of whom would day trip in from the region or the much larger city of Catania, we found we were able to easily find places of quiet and calm. Of the main street that crossed the entire town, there were secluded spots where we were able to enjoy a meal or to simply sit and look out at the scenery.
As much as I enjoyed these more unique creations, we were ultimately drawn back to the tradition of Italy. Maybe there was something to be said about keeping a closer adherence to the past in Italy? We ate the traditional cakes, ate the red prawns and tried the granita.
All of it was amazing. I'm sure there was an element of the location adding to the enjoyment, but the quality of the produce used in everything was apparent in everything.
As with many of the other places we have had the good fortune of visiting, it seemed that the evenings were the best time. There was still an incredible liveliness and energy in the place, but the slight decrease in numbers and the heat made the whole place more welcoming and friendly.
The mood of every street seemed to be buoyant, as travelers and locals alike gathered in the restaurants and cafes. We continued our walking up and down, stopping in and out of the stores. Eating the gelato. Trying the granita. Having a drink. Browsing the shops. Over and over again, without any feeling of repetition or boredom. It was a lovely and idyllic time were were having.
Tuesday, August 15, 2023
Approaching Mt Etna
We arrived in front of the grand old hotel. We checked in quickly, and I immediately took Veronica with me down through the hotel garden to the pool with the spectacular view. Perched out at the very end of a cliff, it had a commanding view that looked out towards the ocean. I jumped straight into the water, wading up and down gazing back and forth towards both the sea and the mountain. This would be a good place to spend the next few days.