Tag Archives: Travel

Diary of a Slow Traveller – You miss one train…

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St Emilion

I was reading one of my favourite travel blogs, Picnic at The Cathedral and WOB’s hilarious reflections on missing a bus in Poland  and was immediately reminded of missing a train in Bordeaux on Bastille weekend and the repercussions of missing that one train!

Some years age my favourite person and I were traveling through Europe with our youngest daughter, who was about fifteen at the time.

We had arranged a train trip from Bordeaux to Taormina. Yes I  know, this involves going across the water and trains don’t normally travel over water, but in Italy they sort of do! They barge the carriages from the mainland across to Messina and then you continue your journey. We thought it sounded like fun.

St Emilion

Back to the story. We were staying in St Emilion and needed to drive back to Bordeaux railway station to drop the car off and then board the train to Paris, travel across Paris to catch another train to Amalfi where we’d planned a couple of days sightseeing before re-boarding the train to travel onto Taormina. As I write this it now seems so obvious it wasn’t going to be straight forward but I didn’t expect it to turn sour even before we boarded our train in Bordeaux.

After a delightful Saturday morning in St Emilion, we allowed ourselves what we considered to be a more than ample time (two and half hours) to get to the Bordeaux train station. I allowed this time because the previous year I’d been in Bordeaux for work and seen how busy the traffic was.

So all packed and seemingly with plenty of time, we loaded the address into the GPS and set off for the station. Continue reading →

Two Years of “What’s Next”

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It is now two years since I commenced “What’s Next”. I am no longer the man in the suit peering over the fence to see what’s there. I am living, and dare I say loving “What’s Next”!!!

Source: http://innovationpov.com/evolution-of-concept-stimuli/

I am well into my PhD, with my Supervisors telling me I am on track. There is still an enormous amount to do, however it does seem to be coming together. I have completed my Major Review, a year one milestone. I have written more than 20,000 words, some of which might even make it into my thesis!

We have enjoyed a significant stay in Italy, a cornerstone of my planning for “What’s Next”. We have also had a short trip to the USA, courtesy of a paper built on my Honours research and are now planning another trip.

My bike riding has been consistent, but I am not riding as often as I’d like. I read Jim’s Fit Recovery Blog  and realise how much more I could be doing, buy hey, I am out on the bike!!!

I have continued with my blog. Continue reading →

Diary of a Slow Traveller – San Gimignano – a mix of old and kitsch

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image

During our sojourn to Italy we took a day trip tof the medieval walled town o San Gimignano. Getting there from Florence is pretty straight forward even if you are not driving.

We’d read the guidebooks and spoken to others, so we knew that we were going to see some amazing sights mixed with shop after shop eagerly seeking to get the tourist dollar. The sites outweigh the endless tourist traps. It is a spectacular place a town set on a hill that dominates its surrounds. It was also just as my imaginings of Tuscany  had been probably  most likely because so many of the photographs of Tuscany in guide books and brochures are from San Gimignano.

The  bus drops you at the gates or if you drive you have a choice of two cents parks which conveniently have signs saying how many parks are available in each.  It felt very Disneyland as we walked through the gates and into Yesterdayland. Just as with Disneyland it is quite special. Continue reading →

The Diary of a Slow Traveller: Close to Home – Second Valley, South Australia

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Second Valley

Second Valley

I was reading the wonderful blog Windows into History  on the  joy of slow travel, a subject upon which I have often blogged.  It is a reflection of travel close to home in 1900 by Richard Le Galliene, albeit in his case he is referring to the UK. A 100 plus years on when travel to pretty much anywhere in the world is true, Le Galliene’s words still ring true.

For us , unlike last Christmas in the delightful Sirucusa, Sicily we were home for this Christmas. Christmas in Australia is synonymous with Sun and the Beach with Boxing Day seeing a trek down South for many South Australians including us.

Second Valley

Second Valley

Second Valley - the cove

Second Valley – the cove

We are lucky enough to have a beach house about 90 minutes drive from a Adelaide at the idyllic Second Valley.   South Australia, while locally more recently famous for its statewide  blackout in September, is also getting recognition as a destination with Adelaide identified as the place to discover in 2017 and our wonderful Second Valley beach one of the near city highlights. Continue reading →

Time Pressure – The Clock is Ticking

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Old Town Hall & Astrological Clock - Prague

Old Town Hall & Astrological Clock – Prague

Since leaving my life as a professional I seem to have had time but not at the moment.

In the last couple of weeks I have felt the pressure of the clock. For the first time since I embarked on “What’s Next”, I have felt the constant pressure of the ticking of the clock.

I am about to hit my first progress report for my PhD with a half written proposal. It seemed such a long way off when I started this journey in early March. Then there is preparing papers to present at two conferences  in California in early August. The deadline for these is just days away.

Our short trip to California for these conferences looms large. We leave in 7 days. I feel far from the relaxed self that The Diary of a Slow Traveler has portrayed. Our recent travels have given us the opportunity to luxuriate in our travel plans, selecting accommodation and places to visit. Not this time! Bookings through a travel agent and all the restrictions that come with that. Time constraints necessitating just 2 weeks away and then being tied to conference locations which not unpleasant are far from what I’d describe as the life of a Slow Traveler.

Perhaps the most interesting has been the realization that in recent weeks I haven’t had time for my blog. Each time I have thought about a post, I’ve had the clock ticking in the background and the ever present feeling that I don’t have time for this. So annoying!

I feel quite guilty grabbing the 15 minutes to write this post – tick, tick, tick

 

Big Ben - London

Big Ben – London