Daniel's Adventures

JULY / AUGUST / SEPTEMBER 2008

2008-10-04T09:47:00.000-07:00

Thought it was about time for another update. It has been a mixture of busyness and laziness that you have not heard from me, but all is well on the darkening side! This weekend is my cousin Jess’s 18th so I’m off to Shrewsbury tonight.
In work news I am travelling to La Rochelle (France) in a week to do an install there, and then to Interlaken (Switzerland) to speak at a mass spec conference. I have had this week back in the office – it has been good to have my feet on the ground for a bit.

I have put a number of photos up here which are a combination of the stories below
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=163898&l=b5d54&id=882525575

Cornwall / London Bike Trip / Greenie’s 30th 5/7

Back in July I rode to Falmouth, in the far south west corner of England on my VFR. I caught up with Zita, visited Lands End and the Minack Theatre. This is an amazing amphitheatre built into the side of the southernmost cliff of England. The Tempest didn’t stop, even for the rain!
On the Saturday I rode across to London to celebrate Greenie’s 30th birthday. It was great to catch up with you mate, it was a good show.

Lintott Wedding 27/7

At the end of July I was privileged to be the best man at Andrew and Karen’s wedding. I met Andrew, a kiwi, through UCanDance in Christchurch. The weather in Suffolk was brilliant, the wedding beautiful and everybody happy.

Farmer Phil’s Festival 15/8

The annual festival was another wholesome experience only dampened somewhat by very soggy weather toward the end. Phil had another great line-up of bands and as always it was great to catch up with all the family and friends again. I reckon I had the best job, in behind the bar under cover. I parked on high ground so was able to drive out, but most of the punters had to be towed out by tractors and 4 wheel drives.

Scotland Bike Trip 19-23/8

One big tick-in-the-box trip for me was to ride up to Northern Scotland and find a bit of family history. Over 5 days I rode from Warrington – Edinburgh via York – Aberdeen – Inverness – Dunbeath – John-O-Groats – Inverness – Isle of Skye – Falkirk – Warrington.
My Great Grandmother Gunn, who lived till 98 and moved the family out to New Zealand originally came from the Braemore-Dunbeath area. It is a tiny fishing village up in the far North-East of Scotland, where little remains except for the Gunn museum. I found her picture in the archives and had a good chat to the historian.
http://maps.google.co.uk/maps?hl=en&um=1&ie=UTF-8&q=dunbeath&fb=1&sa=X&oi=local_group&resnum=1&ct=image

The roads up in Scotland are fantastic. I liken them to 4-wheel-drive tracks for motorbikes as many are single lane, undulating their way across the amazing countryside. They are not fast, but more of an adventure, the only passing opportunities are marked “Passing Place”.
I discovered an amazing piece of twisty road over the Bealach Na Bo, between Applecross and Tornapress. Top Gear rated it as one of UK’s best roads. You can understand why I was grinning! It was one of many highlights, this is a place that has to be seen to be believed:
http://maps.google.co.uk/maps?hl=en&um=1&ie=UTF-8&q=applecross+tornapress&fb=1&sa=X&oi=local_group&resnum=1&ct=image

Paris 30/8

I have had a few work trips to Belgium already, and on this occasion I took a weekend trip to Paris. I had never been to France previously, and the weather was glorious. I spent the two days just walking about the usual touristy areas – Champs Elysees, Arc de Triomph, Eiffel Tower, Notre Dame and Sacre Coeur. Many people were splashing about in the fountain pools and generally lazing about in the parks as it was so hot.

Chester and Lake District

Marcel (Austria) and Sarah (London, but from NZ) travelled up to Warrington by train to meet me for the start of a road trip up into the Lake District. We began with a leisurely visit to chester, walking around the city walls and town. Following day we headed for Keswick and climbed the walker’s compulsory introduction – the Catbells. It is an easy ridge which gives great views over Derwent Water:
http://maps.google.co.uk/maps?hl=en&um=1&ie=UTF-8&q=cat+bells+CA12&fb=1&sa=X&oi=local_group&resnum=1&ct=image
Next day Marcel and I left Sarah in Keswick and took on the Langdale Pikes walk. This was a pretty serious walk (for me) in the high peaks of England with some breathtaking views:
http://maps.google.co.uk/maps?hl=en&um=1&ie=UTF-8&q=pavey+ark+stickle+tarn+cumbria&fb=1&sa=X&oi=local_group&resnum=1&ct=image
We followed with a day of rest and hired an Indian canoe, paddling to most of the islands on Derwent Water. Later we drove up to Hadrian’s Wall and over a couple of days has a good explore of Vindolanda and several stretches of the wall.

Go Ape

For my birthday celebrations I organized an afternoon at “Go Ape” which is a high-wires adventure company with several sites around the UK. I took a group of 5 to the Delamere Forest site and had a blast hanging from the trees. It is a combination of obstacles and swings, ending in a 240m zipline into the distance.

June 2008

2008-07-02T15:11:00.000-07:00

Very changeable weather this month with more than a few days of heavy rain threatening to cause floods reminiscent of this time last year. Thankfully there have been a few nice days too. Local friends Rich and Helen had a barbeque recently in their back yard to celebrate the end of term. They happened across an excellent burger cookbook and were dead keen to try it out. I could hardly walk at the end of that night.
Liverpool is the “European Capital of Culture” this year, and one of the themes is “Superlambananas” all around the city. It’s a bit like the painted cow thing in Holland, but stranger. There is even a Sgt. Pepper themed one outside “The Beatles Story” at the Albert Docks.

Back at the start of the month I jumped on the bike and headed down to see cousin Phil at the farm. It had been some months since I visited. Most times things change little, but on this occasion it was obvious the work that had been going on there. He had almost finished the entry patio to the main house, and had all but painted what used to be a derelict stone barn. It was now an almost complete self-contained house ready for rental. I had never seen walls so thick that every window is a bay.
Trust me to turn up on a toy, as Phil was keen to have a go. Wide-eyed he climbed on the back of the bike and we headed down to another pub I had never been to. Not surprisingly he knew everybody there, and they knew all about him. Not a bad guy to know.

See photos at
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=35712&l=95267&id=882525575

Had two trips with work to the continent this month – one to our customer in Brussels and my first trip to Germany for a new installation in Hamburg. The job went well and I took the weekend to have a good look around the city. The port of Hamburg consumes the entire south bank of the Elbe River – it is huge. I jumped in a tour boat to get a closer look but sadly didn’t get the whole picture as it was all in German. Ah well. It’s pick-a-language in Europe, and I’m lucky I speak the international one because most people know it.
During the week Germany had two Euro2008 football matches that were riotously supported in town in front of the big screens. Colleagues and I got amongst it but didn’t dare wave a British flag, not that I would anyway.

See photos at
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=127168&l=90e16&id=882525575

Another big event in town was the Hamburg Harley Days. For the whole weekend the city streets funneled a constant rumbling as if an earthquake was approaching. They reckon 30,000 bikes made it into the city based around a site at the end of the Reeperbahn – the red light seedy bar strip of town. The bikers delighted the crowds with wheelies, burnouts and sidecar balancing (a bit like a car on two wheels) up public roads. The Polizei were pretty lenient on all of this, but still insisted on fining me 5 Euro for jaywalking. XXXX! I know what that means now. There were Harleys of every description, representatives of the Orange County Choppers, local and international customs, V8 bikes, trikes, trailers you name it. Shame I had to come back to the UK really.

See photos at
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=127151&l=a84a3&id=882525575

May 2008

2008-06-01T09:26:00.000-07:00

Amsterdam 9-12 May

Some time ago my manager Steve began organizing a boat trip from Newcastle to Amsterdam. Four of his mates and I went along with him in the end on a very memorable trip. We caught the ferry from Newcastle on Friday evening and returned on the Sunday evening having spent Saturday night in Amsterdam. It ended up costing less than £100 for the 3 nights including the boat trip. The ferry is run by DFDS in Newcastle. I can’t recommend it enough.

I had not visited Amsterdam before. Many people think of pot smoking and red lights, but that’s just the top of the iceberg really. The city is designed mainly for boats, cycles and pedestrians. There are dedicated cycle lanes everywhere, which is a welcome relief from the narrowly curbed streets of the UK where traffic is forced to stay behind cycles till there is no oncoming traffic. I was however witness to a couple of incidents where pedestrians walked purposefully across the lanes and bore the brunt of Dutch blasphemy from the cyclists. Having said that, from experience it is the best way to see the city.
We all boarded a tour boat and had a motor around the canals. Buildings line the busiest canals in a continuous façade. They stand 4 or 5 levels high, and almost as deep, but are narrowly packed in like a crowded bookshelf on the prime real estate. They are taxed on their width, hence the shoulder-squeeze. The stairways suffer the most, so furniture moving is dealt with in a unique way. Each gable has a short beam protruding with a hook. Tenants attach a pulley block to the hook and raise their bulky possessions on the outside.
There are many new buildings and as many museums housing works from artists such as Rembrandt and Van Gogh. We spent a lot of time simply exploring the streets, cafés and canals. I’ll certainly go back to this amazing place.

See photos at
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=115744&l=a9845&id=882525575

Belper and Ryan's Christening 17/18 May

I worked in a couple of visits on this weekend – On Saturday to Belper and Sunday Shrewsbury. My mate Greenie had recently returned from his trip south to New Zealand, so we met up with Marianna and Carol (another Kiwi friend) on the Saturday. We went for a pleasant walk along the canals near Whatstandwell and had a very English tea and scones with jam and cream at a secluded café. I had a great catch-up with the Kiwis, then headed south-west to Shrewsbury the next morning.

I began the day with a delicious meat pie lunch with Cousins Vin and Linda in Hadnall. We all then jumped in the car, picked up Ruth in Shrewsbury and headed to Ratlinghope church for new cousin Ryan’s Christening. I had not seen Phil and the crew since last year, so it was a good opportunity to catch up with them all again. The christening was followed by a reception in Annscroft, where we all mingled for the afternoon.

See photos at
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=120395&l=ea851&id=882525575

Sonia’s leaving weekend 24/25 May

Sonia and Eva are both from Barcelona. I got to know them over the past year through salsa dancing, and they were coming to the end of their time teaching English here in the UK. They put on a nice evening of Spanish food, and I completed the banquet with one of my tiramisu specialities. Liverpool friends Sonia, Hannah, Chris, Ali and I headed to Liverpool for the evening and visited a number of places I had not seen or heard of. One nice bar was Alma da Cuba – a church fitted out in a carribean theme. Another place that I can’t remember the name of was so humid and wet that the condensation on the low roof had made the floor completely wet. Don’t think I’ll be going back there!
The next day Chris, Hannah and I went back into Liverpool for an explore. Following a nice brunch we walked through the main street to the Albert Docks. We paused for a coffee next to the “The Beatles Story” area and looked on the new arena dominating the foreshore. There are more things to do than I imagined in this place. Previously undiscovered yet on my doorstep, so thanks guys.

See photos at
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=120398&l=765ed&id=882525575

April 2008

2008-05-05T10:49:00.000-07:00

Belgium 7/4/08

This was my third trip to Belgium, and like the last two it was for work. I went to install one of our instruments at a new customer’s premises near Seneffe, south-west of Brussels. As I have said before I am not overly inspired by the low-lying country here, but the slightly more terraced nature of the local area necessitated the invention of a couple of impressive structures that are unique to Belgium. The canals often change levels, and boat passage is normally done as they are in the UK through gated locks with a height difference not a lot more than 3 metres. Where there is a greater height difference the job is normally done by a series of “staircase” locks stepping down a section of hillside. Belgium has two very impressive boat lifting structures in the Seneffe area, which deal with height differences of 68 and 73m.
The first is the Ronquiers inclined plane, roughly a mile long which shuttles huge tubs of canal water up and down. At both ends the tub is able to mate with the canals, allowing coal barges to motor right into them. Each of the two operating tubs are lifted by counterweights traveling in a channel under each tub. The tubs straddle the channels on two rows of 59 rail-axle sets each side. Impressive
The second is the Strepy-Thieu boat lift, which moves tubs of water vertically on both sides of a central structure using counterweights and hydraulics. This boat-lift currently has the greatest height difference in the world at 73m, but will soon be dwarfed by the ship lifter on the three-gorges dam in China…

See photos at:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=106719&l=28e48&id=882525575

Kalman, Kate and Claire in Warrington

Weekend of the 19th April, had a visit from Kate and Claire from Warrington and Kalman from London. This was nothing more than an excuse for a party! Kalman cooked a fabulous Chinese meal and we all headed out to the new Warrington club Synergy. Sunday morning the girls headed home and I took Kalman to our local gem which is Chester.

London Weekend 26,27/4/08

This was my second real weekend in London, and the highlights were going with Sarah Moore to see both the Spanish Harlem Orchestra and Fat Freddy’s drop on two different nights, The former is a brilliant latin band with brass, singers, percussion, piano, sax, flute, the lot. The latter a dubby New Zealand band on tour. Both were great nights. On the days Sarah and I walked, ferried, tubed and trained our way around London. We toured the Tower bridge, visited the Royal observatory, markets, Hyde Park and Harrods. Kalman was stuck working for most of the weekend, so I paid him a visit at his work in an apartment block.
I had not taken the train before, but I did this time from Warrington to London. The Virgin trains were a bit of a novelty for me as they tilt their way around the twisty sections of track. I watched the carriages from my seat in the rear, up through the centre of the train. It was almost like a rollercoaster seeing the leading carriages cant and veer away in anticipation of mine doing the same. Why was nobody else as interested as me I wonder?

See photos at:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=112989&l=7b4a8&id=882525575

A new toy

Just this week I spotted and bought a motorbike on ebay. It is something I have wanted since arriving in the UK, but a mixture of things like travel, money and a miserable winter have prevented it thus far. I already had an unassembled shed, so with help from my mate Rich we had it up in about a day. Thankfully the bike fits in – just.
Spoke to my brother Matt in Aus yesterday, and uncannily he bought an identical model bike about 2 weeks ago, a Honda VFR750FS. Now, off to the Isle of Man!

See photos at:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=112998&l=604f2&id=882525575

March 2008

2008-03-30T10:23:00.000-07:00

All but this weekend of March I have managed to fill with travel and catching up with people. I thought I'd stay in and clean the oven today, change the sheets and write a novel.

On the work front, Syft has extended its reach into Canada with the first install of several machines there. I have been involved in remote support to a degree. Here in the UK we received a new “Voice200” instrument for demonstration and trials. There are several different organizations lined up to come and see it, so I will be busy. Next week I will be in Belgium installing an instrument at a contract laboratory, and training the users and our distributors over there in its use.

Now for the weekends:

1-2 March, Cornwall

Back at the start of the month I flew down to Newquay on the North coast of Cornwall to catch up with Zita and see the area. I met Zita briefly on my travels through Canada 3 years ago, and since then have kept in touch.
Zita introduced me to her pride and joy – an old blue MG BGT that she bought recently, though her Mum Pat had owned the car several years and owners earlier. We began a tour of the countryside with a picnic lunch overlooking the harbour. It was windy and cold, but still very nice. We visited several small bays and fishing towns, including St. Mawes, and the gun emplacements protecting Falmouth Harbour. Near Zita’s childhood town of Ponsanooth is a forested valley containing old mining relics. The river in the valley is dammed several times along a short stretch, each with a water race feeding one or two water wheels. There were 5 or 6 wheelhouses but no wheels, the timber and steel components having rotted away, leaving the water to fall through the channels. We took the ferry at King Harry and finished at Pat’s place in Falmouth. We had a very nice home cooked dinner and relaxed for the evening.
Next day I was to experience Pilot Gig rowing first hand. These are long clinker-built dinghys used to row Ship pilots to their vessels in old times. The teams of 6 rowers became competitive as they were not paid if their pilot arrived at the ship second. Now days this is an international sport, but still containing 95% Cornish participants. Zita’s Mum Pat lives it. Pilot gigs are on the coffee mugs, tea towels and in most of the pictures on the wall. This day I was planted in the bow of one such Gig and given a gentle ride out to the harbour head. It was then my turn to row back. Thankfully I didn’t make too much of a fool of myself having rowed similar dinghys with the scouts back home. Shortly after we jumped into the MG and headed to Lizard point for a pasty. No ordinary pasty, but the best I think I’ll ever have. You’ll need to go to the most southern tip of the UK for it, but there you go. Not far from Lizard is the Predannack airfield where Zita spent many years of her youth flying with the Air Cadets and now trains new cadets in glider flight. The air speed was “out of limits” on this day, so there were no gliders in the air but I did enjoy having a close look at the gliders. We also explored the old hulks of aircraft in the “fire dump” area, including Harrier jets, an air ambulance and several helicopters.
Final day we explored the north coast, traveling toward Redruth. The Carn Brea restaurant sits precariously on an outcrop of rocks overlooking Redruth, an unusually isolated place for a restaurant. We moved onto the coast and had lunch on the beach. Here the coast road runs along the edge of rugged cliffs. At one point there is a good view over the edge, known for suicides unfortunately. Didn’t have too much time before I had to catch my flight back so we scampered back up the coast to Newquay.
Thanks Zita for an amazing weekend!

See photos at http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=103251&l=5a2e1&id=882525575

8-9 March, Kate’s Birthday, Shrewsbury

I have spent several weekends of late in Hadnall and Shrewsbury with family. I have come to know the family well, enjoying Farmer Phil’s Festival, a wedding, birthday occasions and random nights out. The previous visit was for cousin Linda’s birthday. We enjoyed a nice dinner at the local Crazy Horse restaurant, and I left the next day with a ’74 Honda CB125 in a bucket… This time was for Kate’s birthday, which began with several wines round at friend Claire’s house. We had dressed in a “school” theme (who would have guessed, being a teacher?) and proceeded to visit our favourite Shrewsbury spots, The Hole in the wall, Liquid and Diva. Kate is not talking to me now, after I posted a picture of her in an inebriated state at the end of the night.
Next Day we all visited WJ Furber’s recovery yard. Think vehicles and motorcycles of every age and type, in various states of insurance write-off from minor scrapes to full endos. I’m told that every vehicle in the Blackhurst/Harding family for the last decade has come from this place. There is an old military vehicle there with grass growing in it that Vin is still trying to bargain out. This place opened my eyes and fed my twitch for mechanical projects. I might go there tomorrow. No, must not. No. Yes.

See photos at http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=98081&l=639ce&id=882525575

15,16 March, Bonsall and Belper

I had promised my cousin Judy (in Bonsall) a visit after my 2 months away in New Zealand. Literally down the road in, my old mate Marianna lives with boyfriend Chris in Belper. The trip across the Peak District via the Cat and Lion was beautiful and twisty. It makes me wish I was on a motorcycle as there are usually several blasting past the cars, only to be re-passed at the Cat and Lion pub.
England has had a typical winter of rain, wind and moaning poms. The former has made the countryside quite green - a nice sight through the prominence of skeletal trees and hedges only now showing remote signs of bud.
Judy had arranged one of her famous English meals with dessert accompaniment from Phil, Sue and Caroline. Phyllis also made it out, making it a nice family get-together. Next morning Judy and I had breakfast at the Queens head near the Bonsall Cross, then I made my way south to Belper. I stopped briefly at Matlock Bath to see the motorcycles but with the weather still being wintry cold there were only a handful.

I pulled up to Chris’s parents place in Belper where Marianna, Chris and family welcomed me. Marianna had our day all planned out, so first we were off to her and Chris’s flat in Holloway - She calls it the Granny. We walked from the Granny to her work in Lea – a huge outdoor education facility for school groups.
Later we met Chris and his brother for a meal in Belper. The rain was coming down, and to our surprise we came across several sections of road that were littered with toads. Some dead, but mostly live at the time, padding their way across the roads looking for a mate. Anyone who knows Marianna will imagine the loud reaction to every toad.. “Watch out it’s a live one!”
We enjoyed our dinner together and followed it with a Guinness at the local. On the verge of St. Partick’s day this was the right choice. On our way home, to our sadness we came across scores of dead toads. As we neared the Granny on a less traveled road, there were still a few making their way or mounted in the puddles. In a gesture of life preservation, Marianna and Chris jogged ahead in the car headlights scooping them up, lobbing them into the safety of the bushes.
Sunday morning we visited Masson Mills in Matlock Bath. This is one of Sir Richard Arkwright’s signature mills, used for the manufacture of textiles. There is an amazing range of old machinery inside, all preserved and used right up till about 10 years ago. The levels are used for a shopping centre now, which was Marianna’s reason for going. I was delighted to find out why Arkwright is the “Father of the Factory System”.
Thanks Judy and Marianna for a delightful and interesting weekend.

See photos at http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=103263&l=a948b&id=882525575

21-24 March, Scotland

This trip was a bit of a last minute decision for an Easter filler, but I am so glad I went. I traveled as far north as Inverness, well and truly getting my fix of mountains, snow and culture.
Having never been into Scotland I was very pleased that friend Margaret (Mags) and her boyfriend put me up for Friday night in her house in Glasgow. Last time I saw Mags was on a four-wheel-drive trip into the Clarence Reserve in New Zealand about a year and a half ago. It was good chance for a catch up and wander through the city. Mags lives fairly central, close the Squinty bridge and Armadillo structures. We walked past several historical sites, through the museum and Strathclyde, Glasgow Universities. That night we enjoyed a few pints in town with a few of her mates.
Saturday I began my mission up the west side of Scotland, past Loch Lomond and through the beautiful Grampian Mountains. The roads and scenery reminded me very much of New Zealand: The roads were wide enough to see around corners, there were very few stone walls obstructing the view to the countryside, and the countryside was well worth looking at. In the ranges is a particular tourist spot where the wildlife comes right up to tourists – some a little too close! A great view spot, complete with Scottish piper. I headed inland at Glencoe for a look at Kinlochleven. This is a classic old town at the head of Lock Leven. I went for a walk up the valley following the six hydro penstocks up toward Blackwater Reservoir.
Back on the road I passed by the majestic Ben Nevis and set compass for the North-East. The “Great Glen” as many know virtually cuts the country in two, and contains a series of lakes including the famous Loch Ness. On this leg I stopped at several monuments – The Commandos, Well of Seven Heads at Lock Oich, Fort Augustus and Urqhuart Castle beside Lock Ness. At the end of a long day I found a place to camp on a farm in Drumnadrochit, on the verges of Loch Ness.
It had snowed through the night and was sleeting in the morning so I packed up pretty quick and continued on to Inverness. I found lunch in town then headed south to Edinburgh. There was a lot of snow crossing the Grampian Mountains once more. At 405m it was snowing heavily at the Slochd summit, but not enough to settle on the salt-saturated road surfaces.
Edinburgh has rightly earned the title of “Best place to live in the UK” as far as I’m concerned. It has the right balance of town life and culture with outdoor spaces, ocean and activities. I found a central backpackers for the night, and mixed in with the locals – mainly Kiwis and Aussies, for the evening. Next day I spent the morning walking about town, and climbed the townside peak of Holyrood Park for a view of the city.
I had intended to visit the Falkirk wheel (google it, engineers) but with a long trip back to Warrington in the afternoon I decided to leave it for next time.
What a fantastic place, and thanks again Mags.

See photos at http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=103268&l=2474b&id=882525575

Spain, Feb 2008

2008-02-13T09:47:00.000-08:00

This was ostensibly a work trip, but was fortunate to have a weekend involved to have a look around the cities. I was based in Tarragona, a beautiful town on the East coast of Spain. The season is Winter-Spring, so the temperature was still a bit brisk at around 8-10 degrees. Plenty of sunshine though, I had only a sprinkle of rain over the 5 days I was there.
On the Saturday I drove from the airport in Barcelona to Valls in the countryside, mainly to see our client. While there I headed up the local hills to Miramar, a tiny village set high on a ridge with only a single paper road access. I headed on further over the local pass to Montblanc, then headed out to the coast at Tarragona.

On the Sunday I drove up to Barcelona. On the way I spotted a Kart track at Vendrell. They were having a race meeting, so I watched from the viewing platform for a bit. For thrills and spills, see my facebook page : http://www.facebook.com/video/video.php?v=21355915575

Once in Barcelona I parked up in the middle of the city and walked around the sights including Les Rambles, La Sagrada Familia Cathedral and Parc Guell. There were plenty of people about, but certainly nothing like the crowds in Summer I'm told. The Cathedral was pretty impressive, but the higlight of what I saw in the day was Parc Guell. There are so many wonderfully unusual things here, mostly created by the legendary Antonio Gaudi.
Back in Tarragona I had opportunities to walk along the beach, see the coastline and try some new cuisine - swordfish among others!

I have posted photos at
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=91929&l=02320&id=882525575

NZ Summer, Australian New Year, Singapore

2008-02-09T14:00:00.000-08:00

True to form, I have been very lax in updating this blog. Currently I am on a work trip, in my hotel room in Tarragona, Spain, Wi-Fi'd into their free internet. Just thought I'd give you a little update. Yes it's Saturday night, but it's still a bit cold here for the Catalonians to get too excited. In fact, most places are closed early.

To complete The New Zealand story, I spent a total 2 months downunder enjoying what was to be one of the best summers Christchurch has seen since I can remember. I arrived at end of November and left end of January, so Christmas was smack in the middle.
I stayed with my Dad while in NZ. We managed several trips out in the Jetboat, 4Wheel drive, and motorcycles. I caught up with many old mates from dancing, old-school, to just old... and a few new additions!

See pre-Christmas photos in New Zealand:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=81286&l=c2533&id=882525575

If you have me tagged in facebook you will already have seen my photos as I posted them, but for those who are not I will throw in links where appropriate. This site is also pathetic at doing photos, so I'm going to test the linking thing..

Christmas at Dad's place, Christchurch
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=81298&l=0c29e&id=882525575

I was fortunate to spend 10 days over New Year with Mum Val, her Husband John, my Brother Matt and Karina in Australia. Matt and Karina have been based in Brisbane for 3 years or so, but Mum and John had moved to Noosa about the time I moved to the UK. They bought into a Management Righs scheme in a Resort Hotel near the Noosa River. It was amazing to see all of you again in your new life surroundings!
Unfortunately the weather was rather wet and windy for almost the duration of my stay, but we made do, and got out when we could.

Photos from Brisbane and Noosa, Australia
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=81307&l=86140&id=882525575

Back in New Zealand after the brief Australian excursion I was again working on my tan. I can't say enough about the fantastic weather.. I thing my UK mates were getting rather tetchy with me at the time!
The work side of things went really well, including a visit from my Manager Steve from the UK, and also our US sales manager. Dad and I took Steve for a blast up the Waimakariri river in the jetboat which we all thoroughly enjoyed. Other activities illustrated in the photos below are a motorcycling trip to Akaroa, Ruapuna Speedway, the SounDay concert in Hagley park, work/friends/family group shots.

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=86786&l=6dff2&id=882525575

On the return trip I managed to meet up with Carmen Doran in Singapore, an engineer and dancing mate from years past. She now works and lives there. Her apartment is high in one of six(?) buildings horse-shoeing around an impressive garden and pools complex. Stay at Hotel Carmen if you can!
We lazed by the pool for a while, grabbed some dinner in town then headed for drinks and dancing. I thought I wouldn't last long with my jetlag kicking in at about 9pm, but Carmen saw the signs and uplifted the group, and led us into Clark Quay. I think it was somewhere around 4am that we made it back to the apartment?

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=90971&l=8b8b6&id=882525575

Well that pretty much ties up the two months away from the UK. I have been back 3 weeks, over the jetlag and finally seeing some improvement in the miserable UK winter. As I said, right now I'm in Tarragona. Tomorrow I will explore Barcelona, then it's work mode from Monday. More on all of that in the next exciting episode!

Cheers

New Zealand, First 4 weeks

2007-12-20T20:02:00.000-08:00

Yes, it has only been 6 months and already I’m back in New Zealand. Essentially I have been flown home for two months, to learn new skills pertaining to the latest instrument that Syft is producing. Nice timing really, as Christmas and New year they shut down, and I’ll be in Australia visiting family over the break. Can’t complain aye.
First weekend I was in the Clarence Reserve 4-wheel driving with my Dad. I have been to inspect my house, met up with a lot of mates old and new, and am really enjoying the long summer days. I hear the weather in the UK is miserable at the moment… My manager Steve is heading this way for a visit in January, and I don’t think he’ll want to go back.

Venice 17/18 November 07

2007-12-11T21:29:00.000-08:00

Only one weekend later I was in Venice with Kalman and Tess. We planned the trip to include a walking tour and boat tour. The former was well worth it, with our guide leading us into St. Paul’s Basilica and around the narrow streets. It was really interesting to learn about all the details in the architecture. A story could be told about every pillar and street no doubt.

The main reason Venice survives as an economy today is tourism. They charge through the nose for gondola tours but have plenty of delights for all on foot. There was a huge abundance of glassware and finely detailed masks for sale, also clothes, food and chocolate. It was a little chilly at this time of year but a fantastic experience.

Lake District with Zita 10/11 November 07

2007-12-10T21:00:00.000-08:00

Once again I must apologize for the shocking formatting on this blogger site… Anyway, onto the point of it all!
I met Zita about 3 years ago while I was traveling around Canada. We had not seen each other since then, when I went back to NZ, and her back to West London. We managed to meet at my flat in Warrington for a catch up trip to the Lake District. I love it up there, and with it being so far from Zita’s place it was worthwhile going. She was also able to visit her Grandfather’s grave and meet formerly estranged family in Kendal. We then headed up to Windermere to feed the ducks.

Next day we visited nearby Chester and found a great place for lunch.

London 3/4 November 07

2007-12-10T20:44:00.001-08:00

This was my first ever trip to London. I decided to drive down, mainly so I could tiki tour at my pace and I now have almost complete trust in my little sat-nav to land me where I want to be.
Along the way I stopped at Rugby, the place of my mother’s birth, and of course the game. I found the house where her family used to live and had a bit of a walk around town. This being the year of the Rugby World Cup, they had a plaque with all competing nations emblazoned on it. I found the statue of William Webb Ellis, and a floral tribute to the cup itself. Sadly where I sit is as close as a Kiwi will get to the holy grail!

The trip into London was mainly just a busy queue of traffic, but made it to my mate Kalman’s place no problem.
Later in the evening we went to the Dolphin Bar and met up with Janna and Harley. Fantastic to see you guys!

I met Kalman’s flatmates who, with him are living in a converted warehouse. (Thanks guys for having me there.) The weekend coincided with the November fireworks, and a party at a friend’s 3-storey narrow terrace flat. We trained to xxxx Park and watched several fireworks displays from a large rounded hill. Home to get changed, then we were off to the party. A few drinks, lots of music and a few happy hook-ups (you know who you are!). Being the crazy kiwi I managed to find a way up onto the roof through a hole in the ceiling. A few people followed and we spent a bit of the night stargazing and playing (very carefully) on the roof. Classic photo of Faye the cat!

During the days Kalman and I explored the touristy bits of London – The London Eye, Tower of London, all the buskers, and Thames Waterfront. Later on Sunday I met up with Greenie, an old mate who I had not seen for several years.

My Flat in Stockton Heath

2007-10-26T10:20:00.000-07:00

Here are a few pictures of my pad.

Lake District, Belgium visit

2007-10-24T09:48:00.000-07:00

The last month has been as busy as the last with trips away, people visiting and work events. I'm lucky to have good friends in my flatmates and I'm getting to know a few people now through the local dancing crowds. My boss Steve and his wife Karen are also great to spend work and social time with. It's always a treat to hear what family and friends are up to so I endeavour to do my bit and keep this blog up to date.

29,30 September, Lake District
The Lakes are about 2 hours north of Warrington, up above Blackpool in England's North-West. Monique (mate from Christchurch) and her friend Jack (also from NZ) came up for the weekend for a visit. We tripped up past Windermere to Keswick and back again in a day, so it was a fairly long day of exploring amongst beautiful lakes and hills. Lake Windermere reminded me of Wakatipu back home with its tour boats, nice old buildings and waterfront.

10-16 October, Belgium
The main purpose of this trip was for work. We have an instrument installed at a laboratory in Wavre, 30 mins south of Brussels in Belgium. I attended to do some upgrades, and also help out on preparations on a newer instrument for a demonstration at a conference in Brussels. Over the course of the week I and my colleague Paul from Syft NZ had chance to visit a few locations, try the local beers and chocolates...

First stop was Waterloo, North-west of Wavre. A huge hill and Lion monument stands on the site of Napolean's historical defeat.

Next stop Grand Place in central Brussels. The open centre is flanked on each side with stately decorated buildings. There were plenty of drinking spots and varieties of beer to try. Paul and I typically took turns as to who would drink or drive on any evening.

Shortly after, we visited the Atomium. It is a strucure built in the late 50s, consisting of large silver spheres joined by tubular stems you can walk through. Didn't go up in it as the queues were huge, but the view from the top overlooking Brussels would have been pretty neat. Quite an impressive structure for its age. It was originally built for the 1958 Expo of Brussels and replicates a giant crystal of iron.

On the Sunday we firstly visited the Nazi concentration camp of Breendonk, North of Brussels. Paul and I did the audio tour, listening of prisoners' experiences, general life, torture and death in the camp. It was a really creepy place so the smile on my face didn't last long. Most moving were the firing squad posts, gallows and torture room. The place was cold, dark and cramped with mass communal French toilets and showers, straw beds with triple bunks. Definitely not a nice place to be but the visit was very interesting.

Hoegaarden Brewery is out to the east of Brussels in the town of the same name. Resurrected after a fire by Interbrew (who also owns Stella Artois) the brewery makes an unusual white beer from wheat among others. Here we had lunch before taking a tour (thanks to our sat-nav) through rural countryside back to Wavre.

UK Life Update

2007-09-23T04:42:00.001-07:00

Just looking back on the last few weeks I realize I’ve been up to plenty of mischief, so here’s the summary -

- Farmer Plil’s Festival
- Steve’s Budapest Stag do, and wedding in Manchester
- Trip to Conwy and Llandudno
- 30th Birthday weekend celebrations
- Catch up with Pete, Gin and Marianna in Belper
- Meeting more family in Derby
- Matlock Bath and Heights of Abraham cable car.

Farmer Phil’s festival

To be honest I didn’t know what to expect. A decade ago the festival started with a band, Hollywood Tease, invited to play at cousin Nick’s 21st birthday. This time, at the 10th year anniversary they returned (for the 10th time) to play alongside an impressive collection of local bands. The final act was a fantastic performance by the Blues Brothers tribute band, complete with a Cortina entrance and all those classic songs. My good mate Kalman came up for the weekend and we had a blast. I helped out with odd jobs on the stage setup, then worked the bar for periods between drinks, jumping around in the crowd and exploring the stalls. Phil, Karen, family and the crew did a great job so may it continue for many years.

Working at the Bar

Phil's Chieftain Tank

The Blues Brothers Tribute Band

Kalman, Daniel and a scared girl

Recovery Day

Budapest Stag do

I jumped at the opportunity to visit the capital of Hungary, which is split by the Danube river into Buda and Pest. The occasion was the second stag do for my manager Steve, who was married the following weekend in Manchester. Eight guys were on the trip, and the object was basically to explore as many pubs and clubs as possible, shoot a few guns and have a look at the geography. Our first evening started brilliantly with our lovely guide Szusza. Frankly, we wouldn’t have dared go into some of the places she took us, but beyond the inconspicuous doorways and lazy bouncers lay some real gems. On bar was at the top of an old department store. A long graffiti covered stairway led to a sunny open roof space with lots of people and cheap drinks.

The second day we visited a shooting alley. In typical Budapest style the doorway said nothing and was hidden away behind old slummy buildings. It led to a cold underground bunker where you could let off a cannon and nobody outside would hear. Clearly remnants of Soviet rule, as was the brick-shaped ex-Russian army dude with the guns. Zees ez de Luger, de Glock 9mm semi auto, Magnum 9mm and ze pump action shotgun. Zair ez ze target. BOOM... Despite scary appearances everything was well controlled and we had a great time popping live rounds, learning a new appreciation of the power of such weapons.
On our second evening we were able to navigate ourselves surprisingly, around all the bars we had previously visited and found a few more. This is a brilliant place for nightlife and is highly recommended.

River Danube Nightscape

The final morning we spent looking around the city and waterfront, admiring all the beautiful people as much as the awesome architecture, which seemed to be everywhere. The weather was pleasantly warm the whole time we were there. It's a great place to visit.

Gellert Statues

Road Trip to Conwy and Llandudno

Llandudno was the place my grandparents went for their honeymoon, and also for family holidays. I headed out there one Sunday with flatmate Melinda and her friend Chris. We stopped first at Conwy castle. This is the first real castle I had ever seen, so I was just like a child, running up each of the turrets to explore. Onto Llandudno we drove around Gogarth Peninsula and up to the top for a look. Very chilly weather. They had a cable train which went for a seemly pointlessly short distance up the final part of the incline. Remember, we’re not talking mountains here in the UK!

30th Birthday weekend celebrations

The main event was a blast around the local go-kart track, but I was most looking forward to seeing old NZ mates Kalman, Tobias and Sarah. Thanks a lot guys for making it a great weekend! Saturday afternoon we all tripped up to Blackpool to see what all the fuss is about. The seaside town is built on family amusements and Blackpool rock. Plenty of lights, rides, themed shops and skill-testers, the ultimate prizes being larger-than-life Crazy Frogs and Spongebobs. Lots of BB guns for sale too...
Had a great party in the evening – thanks Claire for coming up from Shrewsbury. We had a great night out on Stockton Heath and Warrington town.

Catch up with Pete, Gin and Marianna in Belper

Had not seen these guys for months. Even though Marianna lives in Belper now, she is pretty busy now with life and new business http://www.embersmerino.com/, and I hadn’t caught up with her. Pete and Gin had just returned from a Contiki tour of Europe and Ireland, so we managed to meet up for dinner at the local pub before they headed off to Norway. Great to see you all!

Meeting more family in Derby

My second cousin Judy is a fantastic host and organizer of family dos, and just as good at making chocolate cake, scones and strawberry jam. On this occasion she arranged to bring together more family at John and Dorothy’s place. I met their other son and the twins Brenda and Sue. I even had a few presents to open.

All these people are cousins, so it was a real family occasion to celebrate my 30th at my home away from home.

Matlock Bath and Heights of Abraham cable car.

The day after the above family bash, I strolled around Matlock Bath in search of a chocolate shop Judy had mentioned. That was quickly forgotten for the awe of all the motorcycles parked up along the parade. A couple were pulling wheelies and stoppies to the crowd’s appeal. I forgot my day’s chores and took the cable car up the Heights of Abraham to get a bit of a view. After all, it was a beautiful Sunday and winter is fast approaching.

Humble Beginnings

2007-09-19T09:20:00.000-07:00

The time has come to create a blog! The "UK Travel" phase of my life began back at the end of May and I have sent a couple of mass emails since then. I'll now send links to this blog to keep you informed.

To start off, I've pasted in my previous mail below....

Hi All, there's a bit of an essay here, so sit back and relax. Get a cuppa tea even...

I have been here in the UK 9 weeks now and I'm having an amazing time. I have just ended a weekend in Shropshire celebrating the wedding of my 2 nd Cousin Kate. She is the first of my generation to be married. Her husband John Hardman is an amazing musician with several musically talented friends. The wedding and reception on Friday was followed by drinking, relaxing and jamming sessions on Saturday. I was thrilled to be part of it, and the weather played its part too by putting on some of the best summer weather we have had all year. Only three or four weeks earlier I met Kate at another 2 nd cousin Hannah's birthday. In the weeks since, I met Kate's brother's Nick and Christopher, also their parents Vin and Linda. Linda is Farmer Phil's sister. Confused? The easiest way to explain is that Kate's grandfather and my grandfather were brothers.
The wedding was set at Ratlinghope church, a small remote setting with a lot of family history. Outside the church are Harold and Hilda (Harding)'s gravestone. Vin and Linda were also married here. The whole family has been amazingly welcoming, as has John's family. I feel right at home!

On a similar family line, next week is "Farmer Phil's Festival" Now 10 years old there is quite an impressive line-up of bands. Phil has created the ideal setting with a rotating stage a-la-milking-carousel and different zones catering for all the party-goers. The whole county seems to know about it, as wherever Phil goes the nod of respect or fist-filling pint is given. Really looking forward to that, and will send photos soon.

Things are going well at work. About a month ago I traveled to Rotterdam (Netherlands), Brussels and Wavre (Belgium). Though it was a fleeting visit I was traveling around by train and car so had a chance to look around. I saw a few traditional windmills and buildings but generally I wasn't particularly impressed by it. I guess I'm used to natural landmarks like mountains and hills. Some areas I was traveling through in the Netherlands are 10 metres below sea level. Pumping stations with huge visible augers keep the ground dry – the whole country would otherwise fill with water. Frightening really! On the more interesting side (for an engineer:) I had a glimpse of the impressive dyke, lock and sea protection system they have.

The work I am doing changes on a daily basis, which I am enjoying. New prospects and continuing work means plenty of communication with "Mother ship" in NZ, our distributors in Europe, and UK contacts. A couple of weeks ago three people came over from NZ along with representatives from our three distributors in Europe for the launch of our new Voice200 instrument. Prospects in Germany may mean a trip for me later in the year.
The 3-person team in the office here gets on really well. Nicola (sales and office support) and I took manager Steve to the local pub for lunch last week for his birthday, and even had a cake for him. He is getting married shortly – his stag do was in the weekend just gone, but I missed it due to Kate's wedding. Gladly, his brother the best man has planned two, the second being in Budapest in a couple of weeks. Will be going on that one!

I have otherwise not been too far on my own. With the NZ guys were here jumped into the rental car and visited Rhyl on the North coast of Wales. A nice seaside town but unfortunately tainted by several run-down buildings and old-style amusements.. The kind with huge scary looking clown's faces made of flaking fiberglass. Weather wasn't great but we all had a bit of fun on the 2-pence coin slider cascade machines. Will travel a bit further next time and see the real Welsh country.
Last weekend I visited Chester, about a half hour from here. This is (I think) the only surviving completely fortified town in GB. Huge ancient walls surround the centre of the town. I walked the circuit and found lots of points of interest. Just outside the walls is a staircase lock which I must have spent half an hour watching. Several long-boats were making their way up the locks, their crews each operating the valves and gates with varying success. Water flooding over the gates and onto downstream boats wasn't a good look, but certainly entertaining.

Last weekend I moved into a new flat with a couple of others, Melinda and Sarah. They are both working, have been in the place for over a year and we are all getting on great. The house has 5 rooms so we are using the others to store extra things. I intend to be here for some time, so put these details in your contacts:

24 Farrell Road
Stockton Heath
Warrington WA46LR
UK
0044 1925 499 607

Mobile 0044 786 779 0564

Having a party on the 1st of September for my 30th birthday and housewarming.. so plenty going on here in the next while! This is a short week for me as on Friday Phil's festival begins. I'm picking up my mate Kalman from the train in Shrewsbury and we are going to have a blast.
By the way, several more photos have and will be posted on facebook. Look me up! http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=882525575