St Kilda

Visiting St. Kilda, a coastal suburb of Melbourne, to witness the dusk return of the infamous Fairy Penquin. With a beautiful beach and boardwalk, St. Kilda is a busy weekend destination for locals and visitors.

Hanging Down Under

Kay and I arrive in Melbourne four days before the tour group which will take us through Australia, New Zealand and Fiji over 26 days. It's a great start for us as we try catch as much as we can of Melbourne and surrounding sights. Melbourne reminds Kay of San Francisco and New York, but with more elbow room. I'm just surprised by its great multicultural urban life which incorporates cycling, endless choice of food options, and the friendless of the locals. It's a great city, second largest in Australia, and we loved it. Here's some pictures. Unfortunately, wifi has been slow so not sure I can keep posting.

Caribbean Cruise to Begin 2016

To begin the new year of 2016, Kay and I went on a Caribbean Cruise with her brother and his new wife, which departed out of San Juan, Puerto Rico, an island in the Greater Antilles of the Caribbean Sea and a commonwealth of the U.S. since 1952, the year of my birth. I've always heard about the Caribbean, so why not give it a go. Plus, it's a good way to get to know my brother in law's wife. This was our second time on a Celebrity Cruises; this ship being the Summit with 2,448 other passengers and a crew of about 1,000.

Our cruise made six ports of call; Barbados, St. Luca, Antigua, St. Maarten, and St. Thomas before returning to San Juan, where we stayed an additional night before departing for home. For the most part, Kay and I just wandered the port towns trying to get a sense of the place and local life. Like many areas throughout the world, tourism is the major industry for these islands. San Juan offered a special treat upon our return with a weekend street festival, the Fiestas de la Calle San Sebastián, which packed the streets of old town with colorful crowds and lively activities. Below are a few favorites and the rest of the pictures can be found on Google Photos.

Cruising the Med

Good thing there isn't any weight scales on our cruise ship, the Celebrity Constellation, as I'm sure I've gained a few pounds over 12 days of unbridled dining and drinking after boarding in Istanbul. Now, I'm not a real drinker so anytime I have more than two drinks, or any any, in a day is huge. But what a great way to continue our travels after 2 weeks in northern Italy and 5 days plus in Istanbul. In all, on our own and with the cruise ship, we visited 20 cities in appropriately one month, traveling by planes, trains, subways, trams, ferries, taxis, buses, cable cars, feet, and a 91,000 ton 965 feet luxury ship. It was truly a whirlwind trip for us. From remote villages and cities built along rocky coastlines and mountain lakes to old walled cities and major hubs of humanities such as Milan, Istanbul and Athens, we loved seeing and experiencing all of these places, however short or long the duration of our stay. It's difficult to single out a top highlight during the cruise since all the 'ports of call' had something unique and memorable to offer beyond the ubiquitous souvenir shops. Here's some favorite pictures from the cruise where we visited Chania (Crete), Katakolon, Corfu, Dubrovnik, Split, Athens, Santorini (Ia and Thira), and Kusadasi (Ephesus). Although I enjoyed visiting all these places, two cities that I would like to revisit should the opportunity arise, are Dubrovnik (because it's visually stunning with its old city walls plus our visit was interrupted by rain) and Athens (because of its size there's so much more to explore beyond its ruins).


Chania, Island of Crete in Greece above and below


Corfu, Greece below











Dubrovnik, Croatia below


Split, Croatia below











Athens, Greece below


The Parthenon


Acropolis Museum


In front of the Parliament in Athens


A cruiser by BMW


Exploring Santorini, Greece below














Descending the mule trail in Thira


Visiting Ephesus ruins





Feral cats are a common sight


Good eats in Kusadasi


Kusadasi