28. September 2015 15:09 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments More childhood memories 28. September 2015 15:09 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments TweetHere are some more photos from my childhood in no particular order. The first ones from a New Years ShareHere are some more photos from my childhood in no particular order. The first ones from a New Years eve where we got a bit silly with the hats. These were taken at a New Years even in Kenya and before my brother got really sick, so probably around 1989/90.And here is Claus.And my mum.I was really good at shooting when I was a kid and won lots of championships. This photo is one of the few things I have from that time.This is Claus and I with our dog.Not sure which ones of these is Claus and which is me.This was taken just christmas day in the back yard of my grandma's (Mormor) house. We got the skis as a christmas present. All the fields behind her house belonged to my mothers brother Flemming.I think this may be my brother. For the first time I've noticed the photo in the background. It looks like this may be a photo of my mum with her two sisters and brother and what could be her dad Raimer in the middle.This would most likely be the new years eve where we were trapped by the snow 1978/79. We were supposed to have celebrated with the family but couldn't even get out of the house. Delicious with a glass of milk and a pie.We didn't have a lawn in the back yard. Instead we had pebbles...lots of fun shoveling them.This I think is a christmas eve dinner at my grandmas (mormor) place. My mum on the left and my uncle Flemming in the middle. Not sure who the person standing up in. It could be my grandmas brother. Possibly from around 1976/77I think it is my great grandpa (Raimer) in the middle row number two from the left. The title of the photo says that it is Christoffer (??) in the top left corner. Looking at the age of the boys this would have been taken in the 1920's.Claus dancing aeound the christmas tree and my mum and grandma (Bedstemor/Farmor).From left to Right. My grandma (On my dads side/Bedstemor/farmor), Knud Aage (My uncle/dads brother), My mum (in the foreground), My grandad (in the background), Irene (my auntie/dads sister), Grete and I assume the baby is Vinnie which means that it is likely that my mum was pregnant with Claus (born in July).This was taken at my grandparents place and after my brother got sick. He was really suffering at this point.This is one of the happiest family photos I have and the only one I have a print of.Going for a walk at Marielyst with Lott and Willy some of our german friends. Claus in the foreground and my dad on the right. I think you can just spot me in yellow pants in the background.I think this is at Lotte and Willy's summer house.Not sure if this is Claus or myself being babtised. It is my grand mother being god mother.This was taken outside our summer house in Marielyst.My brother number 2 from the top right on his school photo.Claus at daycare number 4 from the top left.Me at day care top left.
27. September 2015 18:09 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments My Mum as a young girl and with her siblings 27. September 2015 18:09 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments TweetHere is some more old photos of my mum. This time with here brother and sisters.This first one if prShareHere is some more old photos of my mum. This time with here brother and sisters.This first one if probably one of the oldest. You can tell that the photo was shot in black and white and that the negative was later coloured (badly). It would be my mum in the middle with her two sisters Eli (the oldest on the right) and Yrsa.This is my mum in the middle with what I assume is cousins.I think it is my grandmother (Karen) holding my mum.Here is the same as the first photo, but this time without the colour.My mum and her sisters playing in the courtyard of their farmMy mum with her older sisters.Eli, Yrsa, Sonja and Flemming Kragh.Having her photo taken as a little girl.Upset about having her photo taken?My mum with her younger brother Flemming.As a liitle girlMy mum in school.From left to right...Eli, Yrsa my mum (Sonja) and Flemming.As a young girls/woman...possibly from her Konfirmation.My mum as a girl scout (no 4 from the left).It is Flemming in the middle and my mum on the right.
27. September 2015 17:09 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Lucas Birthday 27. September 2015 17:09 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments TweetEarlier this month it was Lucas birthday.We didn't have a kids party for him, but we did celebrate wShareEarlier this month it was Lucas birthday.We didn't have a kids party for him, but we did celebrate with the family.We gave him a new bike for his birthday...he was stunned and didn't know what to think of it, but he loves riding it now.
27. September 2015 17:09 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Lego Exhibition 27. September 2015 17:09 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments TweetLast weekend there was a Lego exhibition in the city.We caught the train in to St James station and ShareLast weekend there was a Lego exhibition in the city.We caught the train in to St James station and walked from there.It was a fairly small exhibition with my favourite being the pirate ship with all the details of the lower decks.There was also some Ninjago and Star wars.And a lot of other pieces.
27. September 2015 17:09 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Walk to Lurline Bay 27. September 2015 17:09 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments TweetThis weekend we took the kids for a walk with some friends from Maroubra to Lurline Bay.It is a niceShare Perfect Moments Photography | A Rene Pallesen Journal Blog Portfolio Packages Contact About Home 21. August 2015 08:08 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Aiden Birthday 21. August 2015 08:08 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments TweetI realised that I hadn't posted anything from Aidens birthday.On the weekend we had a bowling birthdShareI realised that I hadn't posted anything from Aidens birthday.On the weekend we had a bowling birthday party with all the kids (and mum and dad) dressed up as super heroes.We also had a family dinner where we celebrated both his, Kayla's and Adams (his cousins) birthdays. 21. August 2015 07:08 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Morning of Frost 21. August 2015 07:08 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments TweetAlthough we have had a beautiful winter with lots of sunny days and mild daytime temperatures, we haShareAlthough we have had a beautiful winter with lots of sunny days and mild daytime temperatures, we have also had some cold mornings.One morning the car had frost on it and it was only 5 degrees outside (most winter mornings it is 8-10 degrees with 18-22 degree daytime temps). 21. August 2015 07:08 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Aiden graduating to Turtle 21. August 2015 07:08 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments TweetLast weekend Aiden graduated in his swim class from being a Crab to being a turtle.He's been in the ShareLast weekend Aiden graduated in his swim class from being a Crab to being a turtle.He's been in the swim class for a couple of years now and never graduated. He would swim fine with me, but would cry and be scared with the swim teacher.After our trip to Thailand in June he gained a lot of confidence and was very happy to swim by himself, but the swim teacher was too careful so he was unable to show what a good swimmer he really is. So, last weekend I asked the swim teacher to let him swim with the result that she by the end of the lesson graduated him and moved him to the next class.He was so proud (and so was his dad). 18. August 2015 16:08 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Coastal walk with the boys 18. August 2015 16:08 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments TweetIn the spirit of trying to keep the boys active Kim and I took them of a coastal walk from Coogee toShareIn the spirit of trying to keep the boys active Kim and I took them of a coastal walk from Coogee to Clovelly on a beautiful winters day.The water in the little bays were calm and clear.Half way we sat down and had a snack.Kim braved it with the aerial yoga.And the boys were being themselves...best mates.They loved being outside and they managed to walk the whole way (bribed by ice cream) even though Lucas on the last stretch was asking to be picked up. 18. August 2015 16:08 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Steam train day 18. August 2015 16:08 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments TweetThis Sunday we took the boys to Thirlmere trainworks. This is a large train museum with lots of old ShareThis Sunday we took the boys to Thirlmere trainworks. This is a large train museum with lots of old steam trains.Here we learned that steam trains in NSW were running up until 1973 which means that we were born in the era of steam trains...makes me feel really old.We went for a ride on one of the old steam trains (I think I was more excited than the kids).As usual Aiden and Lucas were monkeying around being best mates. This is a bus on rails.This is an instruction carriage used to teach how to operate the brakes on a steam train. 10. July 2015 09:07 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Phuket - Kims Birthday 10. July 2015 09:07 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments TweetOn the day we were flying out it was Kims birthday.I had arranged a cake for her in the morning ordeShareOn the day we were flying out it was Kims birthday.I had arranged a cake for her in the morning ordered through one of the local cafes a couple of days earlier.The hotel provided a fairly average cream and jam pile that no one ate. 9. July 2015 15:07 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Phuket - Kims Birthday show 9. July 2015 15:07 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments TweetTo celebrate Kims birthday she organised for the family to go and see a show called Siam Niramit.ThiShareTo celebrate Kims birthday she organised for the family to go and see a show called Siam Niramit.This show was about a 45 minutes drive from the hotel but transport was as usual included (as it is in pretty much all activities you organise).Unfortunately Kims dad couldn't join us as he had been severely dehydrated from not drinking enough water and wearing too many clothes in the heat.We were greeted at the show by actors in their beautiful costumes.We then proceeded into the venue where we had a large buffet style dinner. KC organised for the staff to come and sign birthday song for Kim.After dinner there were some pre-show activities such as kick boxing, tug of war with elephants as well as an elephant parade. More actors were dressed in their costumes.After this was the show. The staging and props were absolutely amazing. Everything was big, and very well made. They even had a small river flowing through the stage in which actors rowed their canoos and swam in. They also had a massive monsoon rainfall in one of the acts.The various acts despicted important historical chapters of the Thai history and mythology.The had fabled creatures and real elephants, water buffaloes as part of the acting. Actors went flying across the stage with more that 100 actors as part of the show.Below are some of the photos I could find to 'borrow' as I didn't take any photos during the show itself (not allowed). 8. July 2015 09:07 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Phuket - Muay Thai 8. July 2015 09:07 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments TweetOne evening I went to see Thai boxing. I asked the rest of the family if anyone wanted to join me, bShareOne evening I went to see Thai boxing or Muay Thai as it is called locally. I asked the rest of the family if anyone wanted to join me, but they all said no (it is the national sport of Thailand). I had been once before long time ago in Bangkok and wanted to experience it again.I decided to pay the bit extra and get a VIP seat right next to the ring and that was definitely worth the extra money.There were 8 fights that evening. The first fight was between two kids around 11 years old. Especially the kid in black shorts was very strong and was dominating the fight throughout.The second fight was between two older teenagers. Again the kid in black was dominating the match.The third fight was between to women, a Canadian and a Thai. The canadian girl looked very relaxed and was definitely ready to fight. The Thai girl had no chance against her and the match ended in knockout.Before each fight they go through this unique dance ritual.I was privileged to sit next to one of the judges who has happy to talk, so between each round I could ask him questions about the scoring system which is rather confusing.The 4th match was between a French and a Thai. The foreigners are really dominating this sport now and the Thai's were generally struggling.As with all the fights wit foreigners this fight also ended in a knockout.The 5th fight was back to two Thais fighting.One of the last fights was between a brazilian and a Thai. When walking into the ring you could tell that the brazil was very strong.He started by kicking the Thai in the chest and then punched him in the face.The fight lasted less than a minute before a knockout.The last fight was more in the heavyweight class, again between a brazilian and a Thai.This fight was full of power and again it ended up in knockout.After the fights I happened see the winners lining up out the back. I managed to get a photo with a couple of them....yeah, I look really convincing there.This evening was definitely one of my highlights from the trip and if we were going back then I would probably go again. The atmosphere is amazing and if the fighters are good then the experience is phenomenal. 6. July 2015 07:07 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Phuket - Island trip 6. July 2015 07:07 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments TweetOne morning Kim booked a trip out to some of the smaller islands of Phuket.The trip was in a large sShareOne morning Kim booked a trip out to some of the smaller islands of Phuket.The trip was in a large speed boat and initially the family didn't want to go because they were worried about getting seasick, but eventually they changed their minds.The boys loved the experience and were very proud wearing their life jackets.On the island we could feed the fish from the beach.And there was time to play in the water for the boys (and a bit of snorkeling for me).It is also good to see that they are still using their long tail boats for traditional fishing. 5. July 2015 12:07 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Phuket - Baby elephant 5. July 2015 12:07 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments TweetAfter visiting the big Buddha we stopped to feed a baby elephant.The kids were a little overwhelmed ShareAfter visiting the big Buddha we stopped to feed a baby elephant.The kids were a little overwhelmed by its trunk, but fun nevertheless. << Older posts Newer posts >> Newer posts12...222324252627282930...9394Older posts SearchInclude comments in search Newsletter Get notified when a new post is published. Enter your e-mail Please enter an e-mail address Please enter a valid e-mail Thank you Perfect Moments Photography | A Rene Pallesen Journal Blog Portfolio Packages Contact About Home 26. August 2018 16:08 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Camping - Wombeyan Caves 26. August 2018 16:08 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments TweetWe made another camping trip. This time to Wombeyan caves with one of Kims colleagues.It was just beShareWe made another camping trip. This time to Wombeyan caves with one of Kims colleagues.It was just before winter set in, so the nights were cold and it was nice sitting around the fire at night.There are a lot of limestone caves in the area that are worth visiting. We did this one which was self guided.I tried to teach the boys how to shoot with a bow - kept them busy for a while.We also rigged up a badminton net for both adults and kids to play.But mostly it was the fire that the boys had fun with.We also did a really long 8km walk - almost lost the track at one point. 26. August 2018 15:08 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments My dad's 75th birthday 26. August 2018 15:08 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments TweetThis year it was my dad's 75 birthday. I traveled back for the party.The party was at a little hotelShareThis year it was my dad's 75 birthday. I traveled back for the party.The party was at a little hotel (in danish called a 'Kro') at Soroe.While there I also got to see the new house they are living in. 26. August 2018 15:08 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Thailand - Ayutthaya 26. August 2018 15:08 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments TweetAyutthaya is the old capital of Thailand. It is a couple of hour north of Bangkok, and the easiest wShareAyutthaya is the old capital of Thailand. It is a couple of hour north of Bangkok, and the easiest way to get there (by far) is by Train (we learned this the hard way).The capital was only moved 250 years ago after it was ransacked by the Burmese, but now most of what used to be some extraordinary buildings are now mostly rubble.It is a large area with lots of temples, so it is worthwhile having plenty of time and not rush it. We just visited three of the main sites, and that was plenty with the kids around.Some of the highlights are the big lying down Buddha.People still use this as a place of worship.And apparently it is good luck if you can make a coin stick on the buddhas feed (without resorting to chewing gum).At one of the temples there is also the head of Buddha stuck in the roots of the tree.And as usual it is worthwhile keeping a look out for other moments involving people. 26. August 2018 15:08 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Thailand - Ayutthaya Train 26. August 2018 15:08 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments TweetWe took the train back to Bangkok after visiting Ayutthaya on 2nd class tickets.There is not much diShareWe took the train back to Bangkok after visiting Ayutthaya on 2nd class tickets.There is not much difference between the classes except extra bolstering on the seats. We however found a more open carriage where the kids could better play, draw and read books during the ride. There was also a bit more life here. I went for a couple of walks through the train and found a lot of interesting sights.The carriages were open between the carriages, so people used these areas to sit sown and get some fresh air or a smoke.There was also a section that was reserved for monks, where I got permission to take this shot.The mail/cargo carriage was more open with this man sitting keeping an eye on things.As we approached Bangkok the man from the little kitchen chased people away from a part of our carriage as this was his place to sleep. 26. August 2018 15:08 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Blue Mountains 26. August 2018 15:08 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments TweetThis winter we went to the Blue mountains with a group of friends. We hired a house at Leura and speShareThis winter we went to the Blue mountains with a group of friends. We hired a house at Leura and spend the days going for walks.This is from the Grans Canyon walk.And some from the other walks. 26. August 2018 14:08 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Thailand - Floating market 26. August 2018 14:08 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments TweetThe floating market is 2 hours drive south of Bangkok. We made a bargain with a taxi driver to driveShareThe floating market is 2 hours drive south of Bangkok. We made a bargain with a taxi driver to drive us all there in a minivan. In the process he tried to take us to the wrong place 5 kilometers from the market and tried to rip us off by saying we should pay an exorbitant amount to take a boat from there - Kim and I had been there before and remembered that it was possible to drive there. With the assistance from Kim's colleague, the driver was put in his place and took us to the right location, so we still came out ahead and it turned out to be a nice day trip.The market is very much for tourists these days, but they still have the original boats selling food, although the market itself is all souvernirs.It is however interesting to observe the other tourists and I managed to capture a couple of good moments. 26. August 2018 14:08 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Bangkok 26. August 2018 14:08 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments TweetAfter Laos we went back to Bangkok.Bangkok is much the same, however it feels a lot cleaner with regShareAfter Laos we went back to Bangkok.Bangkok is much the same, however it feels a lot cleaner with regards to smoke from all the bikes, but the traffic itself is horrendous. The tuk-tuks are still there, but they try to charge exorbitant prices, so it was far cheaper and more convenient to get a taxi.As usual there are still lots of interesting choices for food, such as braised pigs head.Or Scorpions (which are mostly sold to tourists)When it comes to shopping, Kim was in shoe shop heaven.The boys however was in their own upside down ice cream heaven.The nightlife is also much the same, with the more relaxes and romantic atmosphere along the river.As opposed to the more thrashy massage parlour atmosphere just around the corner from our hotel.While we were there it was childrens week, much to the joy of the boys.This also gave me some unique photo opportunities such as the Thai version of Wonder woman.Evening were spend having nice dinners with friends, Kim's colleagues and by ourselves.This photo was my all I packed for the entire trip (only thing missing is my camera and the two lenses I brought along). Everything fitted into a small carry-on backpack. 11. March 2018 22:03 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Monks - Laos 11. March 2018 22:03 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments TweetReligion is an integral part of Laos society where the majority are Budhists.ShareReligion is an integral part of Laos society where the majority are Budhists.The monks dressed in orange and red ropes are still visible everywhere and it is largely seen as becoming a novice (junior monk) is seen as an opportunity to get an education and support your family if you come from a poor rural area. The high influx of tourists, especially to Luang Prabang is therefore a bit of a win-win situation for everyone. The tourists support the temples in the area by paying their admission fees to visit and on both my trips I have found that the monks are keen to have a conversation as it is a way of practicing their language skills.In Luang Prabang the monks walk in procession every morning to collect rice from worshipper along the roads. Before sunrise there are hundreds of monks walking the streets in every direction. There is an equal horde of tourists trying to take photos of these monks and equally tourists handing out (sometimes dubious) rice to them.There are posters around the city encouraging being there and seeing the monks as well as providing some guidelines such as keeping a certain distance, not using flash photography and if you hand out rice then where to get it from. Most of it common sense really, so it was sad to see how some would be blocking the paths and sticking their camera phones with flashes into the monks faces.Sacha and I went there a couple of mornings, but because of the time of the year everything was dark and because the monks move quite fast through the streets it was a challenge getting good shots.One afternoon we walked past a temple and a group of monks were in progress of cutting down a large tree and afterwards trimming off the branches. They were going to use some of the tree trunk for traditional drums and the rest for ornamental purposes inside the temple.In the late afternoons you would hear them chanting in the small rooms of meditations, chanting and prayer. These are often smaller places of worship and not part of the main temples which are used for more ceremonial purposes.One evening I heard such chanting and went to investigate and found these monks. Definitely one of my favourite moments in Luang Prabang.A common assumption and misconception is that the monks live by an ancient code with a simple life, so it is quite interesting to see that even they have adopted modern technology with smart phones and cameras. 11. February 2018 22:03 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Locals transport - Laos 11. February 2018 22:03 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments TweetThe locals are still relying on motorbikes to get around. They are far cheaper and more convenient iShareThe locals are still relying on motorbikes to get around. They are far cheaper and more convenient in the towns. It is even possible to fit an entire family onto a single motorbike. Younger kids and high schoolers ride their push bikes for transport.Although Aiden and the other kids definitely preferred the motor bikes.Nothing too flash for weddings - a normal new car will suffice. If you notice the sign on the door, then I am not sure if the bride was expecting to come home to 'Meat & Sausage'.There are also some vintage cars around which have survived since colonial times - like this 1952 Citroen. 10. February 2018 07:03 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Bowling - Laos 10. February 2018 07:03 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments TweetOn the last day in Luang Prabang we went to the local ten pin bowling alley.We had heard and read thShareOn the last day in Luang Prabang we went to the local ten pin bowling alley.We had heard and read that this is the place where things are happening in Laos. When we got there the place was totally deserted apart from a few staff members. We did play bowling and it is a bit surreal to play by ourselves in this fairly modern centre in Laos.They didn't have any support rails for the kids, but Aiden especially did really well and the kids managed to beat Kim on points. << Older posts Newer posts >> Newer posts12...101112131415161718...9394Older posts SearchInclude comments in search Newsletter Get notified when a new post is published. Enter your e-mail Please enter an e-mail address Please enter a valid e-mail Thank you Perfect Moments Photography | A Rene Pallesen Journal Blog Portfolio Packages Contact About Home 19. February 2014 06:37 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Serenpidity canyon 19. February 2014 06:37 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments Tweetserenpidity canyonShareLast year I received a gift voucher through work and decided to use it for a canyoning trip in the blue mountains before it expired.one of the companies were doing intermediate canyons and it happens that the canyon they were doing this Sunday was the serendipity canyon at mount Wilson. We (two guides and 6 other clients) parked at mount Wilson fire station and headed down the trail 30 minutes downhill. After a quick briefing about the canyon and a change to wetsuits we absailed into the canyon itself.There were lots of yabbies...really big ones everywhere.It was a fun canyon with a couple of a absails and lots of jumps into water pools and swim-throughs. It was raining a lot the day before so there was a lot of water in the canyon and the water was relatively warm.Once we were out of the canyon we had some lunch and headed back to the car a 45 minute uphill walk later. We returned back to Katoomba at around 3pm in thick fog. After a quick turnaround I headed back towards sydney as a snail pace until I was below the clouds where visibility improved. I made it back just in time for having dinner with the family.A lot of the canyons in the mountains are still closed due to the bushfire a couple of months ago. 10. February 2014 12:13 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Baking bread - Sourdough 10. February 2014 12:13 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments Tweetbaking bread sourdoughShareFor the past 9 days is has been a small project of mine to try and bake an authentic sourdough bread.By sourdough I mean by using the old techniques of not adding yeast and let the bread ferment using the natural yeast from the air.As such it is not a lot of work, but there is a lot of waiting time and there are a lot of places that things can go wrong.I finally managed to bake an actual bread last night and brought it for the family to taste.They liked it and asked if I could bake them some more. Fortunately I still had some ferment left over for an additional two breads...photo above is one of them.Although it was interesting to do, I think it will take a while before I attempt it again...the whole process is just too long. 6. February 2014 04:26 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Emmas Babtism 6. February 2014 04:26 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments Tweetemmas babtismShareEmma was baptised this weekend at the local church. Fastest ever...the priest was speed reading! 6. February 2014 04:24 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Chinese New Year 2014 6. February 2014 04:24 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments Tweetchinese new year 2014ShareThe other day it was Chinese new year. It is now the year of the horse.Again it was celebrated with vegan food and money was put on Aidens rocking horse for good luck. 6. February 2014 04:19 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Aiden pedalling his tricycle 6. February 2014 04:19 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments Tweetaiden pedalling his tricycleShareAiden has finally learned how to ride his little tricycle (the one his grandma gave him just before she passed away) by using the pedals.He is very proud...hopefully he is able to soon using his new skills on the bike he got for christmas.Even Lucas was proud and gave Aiden the victory jump. 6. February 2014 04:02 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Baking bread - Walnut and Fig bread 6. February 2014 04:02 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments Tweetbaking bread walnut and fig breadShareAt the moment I am going through a phase where I Loooveee baking bread.There is something really satisfying about working with something that is so diverse and alive. And there is nothing like eating a freshly baked bread with a nice crust.So far I have found a couple of recipes I really like...one of them is this walnut and fig bread.On the weekend I made it for the family dinner and they wanted the recipe. - 400g white flour into a bowl- Add 100g of wholemeal flour- Add 10g of sea salt flakes- Add 5g of dry yeast into the bowl- Add 335ml of water - Mix it all together using your hand- Kneed it by stretching it out on a table and then roll it up...do this 3-6 times- flatten the bread to a thickness of about 15mm and then place walnuts and chopped figs on top. Roll up the bread with the walnuts and figs inside.- Stretch the bread another couple of time and roll it up until the walnuts and figs are mixed into the bread.- Put the bread in a bowl and cover it with glad wrap (or better yet, just leave it on the table and cover it with the bowl) for one hour...knock back the bread every 20 minutes (3 times in total).- Leave the bread for another one hour (without knocking it back). After 30 minutes (30 minutes prior to baking) start preheating the oven with a baking/pizza stone at 250 degrees. Also put a small metal tray in the oven (for the ice cubes)- Add a bit of semolina (or flour) to the baking stone and to the top of the bread to avoid it sticking.- Place the bread on the baking stone and make a couple of cuts to the top of the dough.- Add 3-4 ice cubes to the metal tray- Close the oven and turn down the temperature to 200 degrees immediately.- Bake for 30 minutes and remove from the oven. 23. January 2014 12:39 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Hunter Valley Gardens light show. 23. January 2014 12:39 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments Tweethunter valley gardens light showShareEvery year hunter valley garden put up a light show where they decorate part of the garden in christmas lights. They leave this open until end of January, so this year we headed up there to have a look....enjoy. 23. January 2014 12:28 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Hunter Valley Trip with family 23. January 2014 12:28 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments Tweethunter valley trip with familyShareLast weekend we made an overnight trip to the Hunter Valley a couple of hours drive north of Sydney.The main reason was to see the lights in the Hunter Valley Garden (see separate post), but also to go and taste some wine and generally have a good time.Pretty soon after we arrived the girls were distracted by the chocolate and cheese places. We did however go to a couple of places for wine tasting.We also had some really nice food up there. I was especially impressed by a really nice gnocchi salad I had....it was yummi.Outside it was really hot...like 39 degrees in the shade. There were a couple of horses relaxing under a couple of trees.We decided an alternative approach of checking into our hotel and jump in the pool to cool off. In the evening we went to the light show and on the following day we just did a number of wineries before heading back to Sydney. 17. January 2014 12:11 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Ten Pin Bowling 17. January 2014 12:11 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments Tweetten pin bowlingShareOn the weekend we did some ten pin bowling with the family.Kim had managed to secure some cheap tickets so it was great to play against the family.We had one lane for the kids (with rails) and one lane for the adults. I had a bad start and was behind much of the game, but my luck eventually caught up and I started playing a good game. Afterwards we had a bit of a play in the games arcadeAiden was absolutely terrified of the big scary bear (I can see why).The kids also tried to figure out what this machine was for:I love some of the old 50's style decor. 17. January 2014 12:08 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Water Play 17. January 2014 12:08 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments Tweetwater playShareIt is summer and Lucas and Aiden is enjoying a bit of water play in the back yard on warm days. << Older posts Newer posts >> Newer posts12...343536373839404142...9394Older posts SearchInclude comments in search Newsletter Get notified when a new post is published. Enter your e-mail Please enter an e-mail address Please enter a valid e-mail Thank you Perfect Moments Photography | A Rene Pallesen Journal Blog Portfolio Packages Contact About Home 6. June 2012 02:28 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Passing of Venus 6. June 2012 02:28 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments Tweetpassing of venusShareToday is a very unique day in that the planet Venus passed over the disc of the Sun. The next such passing wont happen for another 105 years.And it is even more interesting since we recently returned from Tahiti where Captain Cook observed the last passing several hundred years ago.Here in sydney it was a very cloudy day, but I did manage to snap a couple of photos using a very powerful lens covered with dark filters. It is a planet Venus at the 7 o'clock on the sun in the photo. 5. June 2012 07:50 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Camera returned for warranty 5. June 2012 07:50 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments Tweetcamera returned for warrantyShareBummer...I had to return the camera yesterday. It was driving me mad with back focusing...not what you would expect from a $3000 camera. Hopefully they will be able to fix the issue, but unfortunately they are saying that there is a 21 day turnaround. The focus was 5cm off which is critical especially then taking portraits.I did however manage to take a couple of photos that were ok and a bit of video with it on Sunday inside a very dark ten-pin bowling place (it was Kayla's birthday party) with all kinds of weird lighting. I was shooting at insanely high iso (12800) and I must say that I general I was pretty impressed. Especially impressed with how fast I could shoot with lots of kids running around. They are totally usable for my blog and online posting although I wouldn't enlarge them. There was a lot of noise at these high ISO's, but most of it could be managed to a certain degree in Lightroom.Later I was shooting with KC's camera at the lunch table...there was more light and I was strugling with taking photos using natural light. 31. May 2012 07:59 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments New camera - Nikon D800 31. May 2012 07:59 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments Tweetnew camera d800ShareToday I picked up my new camera. It is the new Nikon D800 and is currently one of the most sought after cameras on the market.I have been wanting to get a full frame camera for some time now and this was the one for me to get...the reviews are excellent. I pre-ordered it shortly after is was announced and has been waiting for over three months for it to arrive...but it is finally here.It will be a steep learning curve to get used to all the new features of the camera and it will be a sad goodbye to my almost 10 year old D50 entry level camera.I am now moving from 5 auto focus points to 51...from 6 Megapixels to 36 megapixels...max 1600 ISO to 25600 ISO...no bells and whistles to having features such as Video, Timelapse, HDR, face detection, live view, aparture preview...and the list goes on... The D50 has served me well, but it is definitely time to move on as the technology has advanced so much. Not sure what I do with the old camera...but I will most likely end up selling it. 14. May 2012 06:55 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Mothers day with Autumn colours in Mt Wilson 14. May 2012 06:55 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments Tweetmothers day with autumn colours in mt wilsonShare It is Autumn here in Sydney and today the forecast was for 19 degrees and sunny...the first cool'ish day here. In the morning we went with Kims family to the cemetry to visit Kims mum. After this we were planning to head up to the Blue Mountains to Mt Wilson to visit some of the private gardens to take photos of the Autumn colours and get some new family photos of Kim, Aiden and I. When we arrived it was really windy and only 7 degrees (later it dropped to 5 degrees). We had dressed for the cold, but Dylan who had joined us on the spur of the moment was a bit underdressed and cold so he borrowed a spare jumper I had with me. We immediately found a pile of leaves and they started having fun throwing them up in the air. We decided to visit the Yengo Sculpture garden and the owner came to greet us, tell us about the garden and charge for the entry. The garden was very nice and the colours were awesome. There were lots of sculptures hidden around the garden. Dylan got a bit upset because we had to scold him for running around (this was a private garden so deserved a bit of respect), throwing pebbles, thrashing my camera gear and keeping to run into the frame of the photo I was trying to take. I had also been trying to get a bit interested in what he is seeing around him to learn more things and asking him if he was interested in some of the lookouts to experience one of the most beautiful places in Australia, as well as look at the things in antique shops etc., but he was totally dis-interested..."you can drag the horse to the water, but you can force it to drink". After the garden Aiden was really tired and cold and we were getting hungry, so we decided to head back and stop along the way for lunch. It was good timing as it started to rain a little. I decided to drive on the great western highway as there were more options for food and I though it would be quicker getting back...turned out everyone else had the same idea so it was at a crawl. 12. May 2012 07:56 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments An Officer and a Gentleman 12. May 2012 07:56 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments Tweetan officer and a gentlemanShareToday Kim and I went to the Lyrics Theatre to see the 'An Officer and Gentleman' musical.It was a remake of the 1982 movie, but on the stage.It was ok but nothing special. The acting and singing was great, but the screenplay itself as well as the music/lyrics could have been more original and the stage setup was pretty basic. 7. May 2012 05:45 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Halfway there - Baby brother for Aiden 7. May 2012 05:45 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments Tweethalfway thereShareKim is pregnant again and we are now halfway there and on Monday we went for the halfway scans (due late September).Everything is on track and looking good so far (5 fingers and toes etc.). For the first time we were able to tell the gender of the baby and it turns out that we are expecting a little brother to Aiden.This means that Aiden very soon will have someone to play with here at home. 25. April 2012 03:07 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Kurnell walk 25. April 2012 03:07 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments Tweetkurnell walkShareToday was Anzac day. We decided to use the day to explore some of the local area in the National Park on the other side of Botany bay near Kurnell.It was very windy (Aiden wasn't happy with the wind). The walk along the coast is easy an quite scenic. There is even a small lighthouse about a kilometer down the track and the rocks have cook textures. 22. April 2012 07:40 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Symbio Wildlife Park 22. April 2012 07:40 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments Tweetsymbio wildlife parkShareToday we went to the Symbio Wildlife park together with some of our friends. They don't have a lot of animals in the park, but the ones they have a pretty cool and it is a good spot to get some nice animal photos (It was especially nice to see that they had polished the glass surrounding some animals). It was also really cool to have Aiden and Sammi feed some of the more friendly animals. 22. April 2012 05:44 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Luke and Alexsandra's wedding 22. April 2012 05:44 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments Tweetluke and alexandra s weddingShareToday Luke and Alexsandra was married. She is from Serbia so the wedding itself was a beautiful traditional Serbian Orthodox wedding in a small church in Alexandria. The church was very darkly lit and I was shooting using natural light trying to be as discreet as possible using my old Nikon D50 camera (still waiting for the new D800) but by some miracle I was able to capture the above photos (by setting it to my max 1600 ISO and underexpose 2 stops and then push and noise reduce in post...would have loved to have one more stop). Luke has some Scotish ancestry so ourside the church there was a guy playing the bag pipe. Afterwards the reception was in Drumoyne with about 250 guests invited. Lots of very loud Serbian music and traditional Serbian line dancing (Not sure what the correct name is). 16. April 2012 07:40 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Easter show and EQ 16. April 2012 07:40 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments Tweeteaster show and eqShareSynday we took Dylan to the Easter show at Fox Studios. We had bought him a 5 hour pass as a reward for an assignment we gave him.Dylan tried a number of rides, but I think his favourite was a dodge'm'cars.While Dylan was queueing up we had a look around at the other entertainment. << Older posts Newer posts >> Newer posts12...515253545556575859...9394Older posts SearchInclude comments in search Newsletter Get notified when a new post is published. Enter your e-mail Please enter an e-mail address Please enter a valid e-mail Thank you Perfect Moments Photography | A Rene Pallesen Journal Blog Portfolio Packages Contact About Home 16. August 2013 07:54 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Harbour walk with friends 16. August 2013 07:54 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments Tweetharbour walk with friendsShareLast weekend I went for a walk along the harbour with a couple of friends and Aiden (in my backpack).It was a beautiful winters day being sunny and 25 degrees.We started out at Waverton and walked almost across to Greenwich. It wasn't a long walk but very pleasant (especially since I also had Aiden to carry). 5. August 2013 09:17 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Aiden and Lucas at the Beach 5. August 2013 09:17 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments Tweetaiden and lucas at the beachShareThe other day we went to Maroubra beach to let the boys play in the sand and also to try and get some photos of them together. It is currently winter here in Sydney which sometimes provides this beautiful cool light.Lucas and Aiden are now really good at playing together...Lucas is doing his best to copy everything that Aiden does and at the same time tried to keep up, whic is difficult when you cant walk yet....And Aiden is good at sharing his toys and make sure that Lucas has something to play with. 5. August 2013 09:13 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Test Portrait shot 5. August 2013 09:13 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments Tweettest portrait shotShareThe other day I did a couple of test portrait shots...I wanted a portrait that was a bit more moody than usual.It is not easy getting the low key lighting right...much easier to do high key where you can pretty much blast the subject with light.I haven't had the time to experiment further to accomplish what I wanted...but here is what I did get after 10-15 minutes experimenting. 31. July 2013 06:53 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Clever boy 31. July 2013 06:53 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments Tweetclever boyShareYesterday Kim caught Lucas grabbing her car keys and the trying to use the keys to unlock the front door...with a bit of practice and some extra height me might succeed one day.I think he just wanted to take the big red car outside for a spin... 30. July 2013 08:36 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Family picnic at the beach 30. July 2013 08:36 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments Tweetfamily picnic at the beachShareOn the weekend we went to the beach for a little family picnic...ham and cheese sandwiches.we also wanted to get some photos of Lucas and Aiden playing together in the sand.We especially wanted to get one of them sitting together look at the waves. Normally Aiden is terrified of the waves, but because Lucas was there we were able to get him to sit still.It wasn't the best light in the middle of a sunny day but I love the cool winter light this time of the year. It is hard to describe...but the light has a less warm feel the during the summertime.Aiden and Lucas are now best of mates and having a lot of fun. Once Lucas learns to walk they will be big trouble and we will constantly have to chase after them. Aiden can sometimes get a bit rough, but Lucas is a tough little bundle of muscles and loves copying him. 30. July 2013 07:08 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Climbing on my birthday 30. July 2013 07:08 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments Tweetclimbing on my birthdayShareOn my birthday this year I went climbing at Barrenjoey with some friends. It was the first time for over a year that I have done any climbing...let alone outdoors, but fortunately it was all top ropes.Barrenjoey is one of the most beautiful spots in Sydney.I am totally out of shape but still managed to get through the climbs we set up.We were supposed to have had a dinner the night before but most people were busy so we decided to cancel the dinner and the let me go climbing instead. I was supposed to have been taking Aiden with me (Barrenjoey is relatively safe for kids), but he was still a bit unwell from his hospital visit. I think I will start looking for a good climbing helmet for him so that we have it for next time.I had a great day out with friends and it was great to get back on the rock. 27. July 2013 05:02 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments A bit of a scare 27. July 2013 05:02 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments Tweeta bit of a scareShareLast night we had a bit of a scare when we suddenly had to rush Aiden to the hospital in an ambulance... He was over at grandads place most of the day playing and when he came back we noticed that he had a bit of a temperature and didn't want to eat, but otherwise ok and playful. We decided to give him a quick shower before giving him some panadol and then bedtime.In the shower he was playing as usual with water and his plastic cups when I left him to get dressed. When I came back a few minutes later to turn off the water and get him dressed I could tell that he was not his normal self and was shaking a bit. Thinking that he was cold I quickly took him out to get him dressed but could then tell that he was pretty bad...I couldn't get in contact with him and his breathing was irregular and shallow.I quickly called Kim and had her call an ambulance. While we were waiting he started having some muscle spasms and started throwing up. Fortunately we are close to the ambulance station so they arrived pretty quickly and took myself and Aiden to the children's hospital which is also close by.At the hospital he started responding again and the doctors there think that a spike in his fever caused it. They kept him there for most of the evening until his temperature had dropped and they were sure he was well hydrated which was around midnight.Good that all turned out ok...Aiden has been pretty happy today even though he hasn't eaten much and slept much of the day. 22. July 2013 06:53 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Lucas 10 Months Photo 22. July 2013 06:53 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments Tweetlucas 10 months photoShareThis weekend we went to the local park to get a photo of Lucas for his 'First Year' album.We wanted to get some photos of him on the swing.But we also managed to snap a couple with Aiden... 21. July 2013 07:51 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Aiden playing soccer 21. July 2013 07:51 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments Tweetaiden playing soccerShareAiden has started playing soccer (not real soccer, but they do get to kick a ball).He is very proud that he has real soccer shirts and shorts.We started taking him to assist him with his development. We are starting to see some progress but he is still a bit behind his age group. 21. July 2013 07:48 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Lego Turtle 21. July 2013 07:48 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments Tweetlego turtleShareAiden and I often sit and build Lego together (Sometimes Lucas also joins us, but he is better at taking it apart).One day we build this Lego turtle worthy of a photo...Aiden had great fun pushing it along the ground. << Older posts Newer posts >> Newer posts12...404142434445464748...9394Older posts SearchInclude comments in search Newsletter Get notified when a new post is published. Enter your e-mail Please enter an e-mail address Please enter a valid e-mail Thank you Perfect Moments Photography | A Rene Pallesen Journal Blog Portfolio Packages Contact About Home 2. May 2013 08:17 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Vanuatu - Captured by the tribes 2. May 2013 08:17 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments Tweetvanuatu captured by the tribesShareThey finally caught us and wanted to put us in the big pot......but we told them that we are too skinny and that some of the fat tourists would taste better and be able to feed the village for months, so they let us go (whew...)! 2. May 2013 08:16 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Vanuatu Tribes 2. May 2013 08:16 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments Tweetvanuatu tribesShareWhile in Vanuatu we went on a couple of tours to get some insight into the old tribal culture.We did one evening tour with food, song and dance and then a couple of days later we did another one during the daytime with a bit more insight into the tribal life.On the evening trip they would be jumping out at us in the middle of the bush.Afterwards they entertained us with song and dance.During the day tour explained the significance of things such as their tribal drawings.How they would use bark for making clothing and other items.How they would preserve banana for several months....and the wild pigs they would hunt.And they would also explain how cannibalism used to work in their society.As well as other traditions.I took a whole bunch of portraits of the people in the village.There were also a bunch of kids around. 2. May 2013 08:15 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Aiden playing with the local kids 2. May 2013 08:15 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments Tweetaiden playing with the local kidsShareOn one of the trips to a local village Aiden started playing with the local kids. It was great that he had some fun as it is pretty hard for someone his age to sit still for long periods of time.The local kids were great at helping him around and holding the dog so he could pat it. 2. May 2013 08:13 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Vanuatu - Fireshow 2. May 2013 08:13 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments Tweetvanuatu fireshowShareOne evening we went to see a fire show...This turned out to be probably the best fireshow we have ever seen...spectacular.Fortunately I brought my tripod along so I could capture the following amazing pictures.The whole show was about 30 minutes with 6-10 performers and finished with group dancing where all the local kids also participated. 2. May 2013 08:11 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Vanuatu - Kids 2. May 2013 08:11 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments Tweetvanuatu kidsShareObviously I took a large amount of family photos in Vanuatu.Here are some of them....and...all this holiday can be very exhausting... 2. May 2013 08:10 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Vanuatu - Kims Dad 2. May 2013 08:10 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments Tweetvanuatu kims dadShareKims Dad joined us in Vanuatu. It was great to have him along and quite funny at times. When we were out and about he wanted his photo taken with people we met. And he was brave enough to try the local Kava...I didn't tell him how they make it.And it was great to have him there to help with the kids. 2. May 2013 08:10 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Vanuatu - The market in Port Vila 2. May 2013 08:10 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments Tweetvanuatu the market in port vilaShareOn one of the days we made a day trip into Port Vila city centre. Here was the big market with is open 24 hours per day.The market is full of fresh produce of all sorts depending on the seasons.There is even some live produce available such as chicken and crabs.Because the market is always open, people live and sleep between the stalls with their families.It is also the place that people go to during lunch to buy food to eat.There was a whole row of women sitting their waving their arms to keep the flies away from the food.Also, I don't understand why the western world is spending so much effort and resources on finding cures to diseases such as cancer, diabeter, high blood pressure, arthritis, obesity, athma etc. since they here in Vanuatu already has one magical cure that takes care of them all. It was cheap and easily available at the market and it doesn't matter how much you buy, the price is always the same.They were also selling improvised charcoal stoves bringing back memories of Kenya where everything was cooked on a Jiko's.While we were outside the market discussing where to go next this woman and her little girl walked past. The little girl let go of he mums hand and walked over to Aiden (who was sitting in his pram) and gave him a BIG kiss...Aiden is such a chick magnet. 2. May 2013 08:09 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Vanuatu - Waterfalls 2. May 2013 08:09 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments Tweetvanuatu waterfallsShare Perfect Moments Photography | A Rene Pallesen Journal Blog Portfolio Packages Contact About Home 17. August 2009 10:29 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Lago di Como 17. August 2009 10:29 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments Tweetlago di comoShare After the Riviera we drove up to Lago di Como (Lake Como). This was the only place on the trip where we hadn't organised accomodation prior to us arriving. When we arrived we initially used the TomTom to find us a B&B, but it kept taking us up into the hills on all these narrow streets with blind corners. We therefore instead decided to drive up along the shore of the lake and just check out whatever hotels we came past. We ended up finding a place for a reasonable price in Argegno. It was right on the lake next to the passenger ferry and our room was facing the lake....perfect! For dinner we drove to Menaggio a bit further up the lake. Parking was impossible because there was another festival happening so I ended up doing another illegal parking (If you are in Italy you do like the Italians). Next morning we went down to the ferry and bought a day ticket for the central part of the ticket. This enabled us to take the ferry and hop on and off whenever we felt like it. This meant that we we easily could get to other places on the lake such as Bellagio and Varenna. It also meant that we were able to look at the expensive villas from the lakeside. On the way back in the afternoon we stopped at Tremezzo at one of the large villas that was open to the public. The villa was surrounded by a beautiful garden. In the evening we were tired (and I was finally developing some sort of a sun tan evident from the sandal stripes on my feet). 17. August 2009 10:28 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Italian Riviera & Cinque Terre 17. August 2009 10:28 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments Tweetitalian rivieraShare After Pisa we headed to the Italian Riviera, also called the Flower Riviera. I asked Kim to find us a nice spot along the coast for lunch and she picked Lido di Camaiore. When I was a kid I went to the italian riviera quite a lot with my parents. My mum and dad met eachother here in a town called Diano Marina, both working for the same travel company as travel companies. We used to stay in caravan parks along the coast and I don't remember the place being very busy (but I may remember wrong). When we arrived to Camaiore we were met by beaches full of hotels (whom had each closed of an area of the beach for themselves), umbrellas and people boiling in the sun and tanning oil. After lunch I decided to drive along the coast to our hotel in Sestri Levante...this turned out to be a mistake. After 30 kilometers full endless beaches covered in umbrellas, of dodging pedestrians and cyclists, traffic lights and people parking to go for a swim I decided I'd had enough and headed for the motorway. This part of the riviera is really not very nice and I was looking forward to go somewhere with a bit more charm. Sestri Levante was the only place we could find accomodation. The hotel was up in the hills far away from the coast line, it was expensive and absolutely nothing special compared to all the other places we were staying during our trip. In the evening we drove to a town called Rapallo for dinner. The city had closed off the roads around the water because of a festival, so it was really nice to sit at the water eating seafood and watch people. After dinner we went for a walk along the water down to the area where the festival was taking place. We were sitting there for a while listening to the music and enjoying a perfect evening. When we came back to the car to drive home it turned out that we'd received a parking ticket (20 Euros). We were parking in a valid parking space and I thought we were outside the hours wheer we had to pay....but obviously not. I'd done lots of illigal parking elsewhere on the trip so didn't feel too bad about it. Next day it was time to explore Cinque Terre. This is a national park along the costline with 5 small villages accessible only from the ocean (There is a trainline now). We drove to the only one of the villages that can be accessed by car Monterosso and parking right next to the village area. From here we walked down to the water. It turned out that the trains weren't running between the villages so the only access was by boat or walk. We didn't have time to walk so bought a day ticket for the boat. While on the boat we did a bit of planning and decided to go to the furtherst village Riomaggiore first and from here walk to the next village Manarola. From here we would take the boat to Vernazza and then back to Monterosso. Cinque Terre is a beautiful part of the Italian riviera, and although there is a lot of tourists there it doesn't feel overcrowded such as many other places. When we vere having lunch along the beached the previous day I was dreading that Cinque Terre would be as crowded as that. In the evening we decided to drive to Portofino for dinner. We arrived there (along all these small narrow streets) around 7pm. Although Portofine if a nice place it doesn't beat the villages at Cinque Terre in beauty. The place is expensive in all respects and there isn't a lot of shops and restaurants, it is mainly fashion and expensive jewellery being sold there. Obviously catering for the Euripean rich who dock here in their expensive million dollar boats. We therefore decided to go back to the centre of Sestri Levante and have dinner here. 17. August 2009 10:27 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Pisa - A revisit three decades later 17. August 2009 10:27 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments TweetpisaShare When I was a child I spend a lot of summers with my parents in Italy. They used to work in the Northern part of Italy as travel guides and as a result we generally headed that way during the summer time with our caravan or with a tent. When I was a baby my parent took me to Pisa (I have to trust them I an don't remember) and also up into the leaning tower. Kim and I was planning to drive from Tuscany to the Italien Riviera and I asked Kim if it was ok to make a short stop at Pisa for me to have a look at the tower some 3X years later. Our Tom-Tom navigated us by the backway into the city and within a short timefra we were at the tower. We had a look for a parking spot and literally found a spot less than 100 metres from the tower (so far pretty fortunate with the parking). It was really cool to have a look at the tower. They have started allowing people to enter the tower again, but when we got there they next timeslot was 6pm in the evening (8 hours later) so we instead took some photos and bought some T shirts for Kims family. Of cause we had to take the classic photos of trying to straighten the tower. And a couple of nice ones And then there was the silly ones And then some photos from the beautiful architecture of the tower and the church next to it. 17. August 2009 10:26 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Tuscany 17. August 2009 10:26 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments TweettuscanyShareWhile Kim and I was in San Gemignano in Tuscany we spent a day just driving around in the beautiful landscape. Even though we just missed the harvest it was still really beautiful. It is full of all these rolling hills, Vineyards, Sunflower fields and old Italian houses. Driving was fun and I could easily have spent longer time just driving around there exploring small villages etc. I would love to go back there during spring when all the flowers are out and the fields have been planted. 17. August 2009 10:25 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Siena and one expensive dinner 17. August 2009 10:25 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments Tweetsiena and one expensive dinnerShareOn the first day in Tuscany we decided to drive into Siena and have a look around.Our first impression was that parking was going to be a problem. There was some large tourist carparks on the outside of the city walls changing an exorbant amount of money per hour. We were planning to have dinner in the city and was planning to be there for most of the day and eventually we found a spot in a parking area that didn't have any meters. There was some italian scribling underneath the sign and we hoped that it didn't say "Reserved for residents and permit holders".Anyway, eventually we made it inside the city walls and was met by 8 storeys of escalators from the walls to the innner city (You wouldn't want those fat Americans loosing any weight while on holiday).We went around to some of the tourist attractions and there was unbeliveable queues everywhere. We started queuing up to get into the large tower at the main square and for 30 minuted the queue didn't move. Eventually we gave up and couldn't be bothered.Instead we decided to wander around the city looking at the old buildings and at shops which is really nice.Siena is known for the annual horse race in the center of the city. It was amazing to look at the area and suddenly realise why the horses often go flying into the barriers when they get around the corners of the race course. The details of the houses is incredible. Everything is decorated. A metal spike is not just a skike any longer, but a instead formed into a dragon, a snake or a swan.In the evening we were going for dinner at an italian restaurant called 'Cane e Gato' (Kat and Dog). It was recommended to Kim by one of her colleagues who had also warned us that it was a bit on the pricey side.At the place we were staying I found a book about Tuscany where it said that the degustation was 50 Euros (Appx $95 AUD). When we arrived we were given no menu's or any price list. The girl (Who turned out to be the daughter of the owner, who himself was in the kitchen with his wife) showed us our table.We were told what was the degustation menu consisted of and got started. The food was quite nice...all ingredients that were in season from the surrounding country side. The pastas were home made and everything was very delicious.At the end Kim and I was discussing what the damage was...a bit of a surprise when we were presented with a bill of 175 Euros ($320 AUD). This was a bit more than we expected.Fortunately we didn't have a parking ticket when we got back to the car (This would have been the icing on the cake).Another late night finishing dinner after midnight and then 45 minutes drive back to San Gimignano. 17. August 2009 10:21 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Manhatten of the Medievil - San Gemignano 17. August 2009 10:21 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments Tweetsan gemignanoShareAfter Verona we drove to Tuscany to a small medievil town called San Gimignano. It is a very small town where in the medievil days they were competing who could build the most 'high-rises'. This means that today the town is full of all these tall towers (There used to be a lot more back in those days).The town is full of tourists during the daytime and at night the town is again taken over by the locals including the werewolves from the surrounding area.We were staying inside the old city walls, so for the most part we were safe except for the odd werewolf. They also have the world champion in Gelato...normally I don't belive marketing gimmick like this, but I must admit that the gelato was very nice.At night time once the tourists were gone it was an amazing place. The towers are rising into the night sky and I had a lot of fun taking photos of the towers just using the ambient light. 17. August 2009 10:18 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Verona and the Opera - Italy 17. August 2009 10:18 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments Tweetverona and the operaShareWe arrived to Milan in Italy from Copenhagen in the evening. The first thing we did after landing was to pick up our rental car which was a small Fiat Panda (Never, ever rent a large car in Italy...some streets only accomodate snall cars) and then drive to our Hotel. The Tom-Tom nagigator software on my mobile phone turned out to be exceptionally useful on our trip to find our way around. The next morning we drove towards Verona and at lunchtime we had a look at our map and noticed that we'd drive right past Lago di Gardia (Lake Garda). I asked Kim to plan a diversion somewhere for a lakeside lunch. She chose Sirmione which is a long peninsula on the southern side of the lake. I used to stay at Lake Garda with my parents when I was a kid. The water is bright blue and it is a beautiful place. We then continued to Verona early afternoon and found our bed and breakfast which is about a kilometer from the city centre. The road up there was very narrow and anything wider than the Panda would not have been able to get through. As soon as we had gotten settled we walked down into the city centre. We had opera tickets for Aida in the old coloseum in Verona in the evening, but had to first pick up the tickets. The tickets were quite pricey so we had chosen to get ticket on the upper stairs with almost everyone else. It meant that it was a bit less confortable and that we would have to enter early to get a good seat. But it also meant that we were sitting up higher which is better for taking photos. The performance was amazing. There was approximately 500 actors on stage (and 4 horses) and ther used about a quarter of the coloseum as the stage. It was a beautiful and warm night with a brightly lit full moon. The performance finished around 1am at night and from there we walked to one of the squares of Verona and had some coffee (Places were still open). The next morning we did a bit more exploration around Verona. Kim wanted to see the romantic balcony of Romeo and Juliet (Or Donald and Daffy Duck as I called them as they are just as real as the imaginary Romeo and Juliet) Since we were there we also had to rub the right breast of the Juliet statue there for good luck. In Daffy's house they also has a lot of interesting art work. Verona is an interesting city. They have a whale bone suspended from one of the gates...apparently the legend says that it will fall down upon the first 'Just' man who passes under it (and kills him??). Unfortunately (or fortunately) it didn't fall on neither Kim or I. The city is full of old buildings with interesting architecture 17. August 2009 10:13 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Rosenborg - Denmark 17. August 2009 10:13 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments Tweetcopenhagen denmarkShareOn the last day in Denmark our flight wasn't leaving from Copenhagen to Milan until early evening, we therefore decided to head into the capital a bit earlier in the day and spend a couple of hours sightseeing with my parents. We went to a place called Rosenborg (Rose Castle) which is where the Danish royals keep their crown jewels. It is also the place where they train the soldiers that protect the royals. Some of the jewels are absolutely stunning. There is lots of ivory, old weapons, saddles, gold etc. everything coverved with diamonds, perls, emeralds, rubys and other jewels. My mum and dad was waiting outside (half asleep) while we were inside looking at all the awsomeness. 17. August 2009 10:12 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Knuthenborg Zoo - Denmark 17. August 2009 10:12 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments Tweetknuthenborg zooShare While we were in Denmark we went to the local zoo called Knuthenborg. It was created by the owner of one of the big farms who had a vision to create one of Europes larges open air zoos. What is so special about this particular zoo is that you drive around amongst the animals and in certain areas are allowed to leave the car and interact with the animals. The first place we went was the monkey area. Here we were able to walk around some of the Lemurs (Half monkeys) from Madagascar. Driving around we also saw a number of other animals such as the asian water buffalo (which loves mud), zebras, Zobel Antelopes, Goats Kim even found a horse her own size We had a bit of fun with the camels. I don't know what they were thinking but they kept eating my hair and I think one of them was in love with me. They also have some more exotic animals there such as tigers and rhinos (The wouldn't allow us to get out of our car to pet these). 17. August 2009 10:11 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Medieval Centre in Denmark 17. August 2009 10:11 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments Tweetmidieval centreShare Not far from where my parent live there is an open air museum displaying how people lived in the medieval time which in Denmark was the late 14th century. For Kim and I it felt like we suddenly were a princess and a knight from that time. Besides from houses, ships and other buildings the place also displays various handicraft, weaponry and how people battles in those times. They have working Trebuchets there to throw massive stones (or dead animals and burning tar) accurately for distances of more than several hundred metres. Every day they show people how they work and hurl massive stones into the water. We tried some of the weapons. I used to be fairly alright with a bow and arrow when I was a kid. I tried the bow and arrow here and it was a total disaster. Obviously Kim went straigh for the shoes and the furs (I am not a fur person myself): They also had a knights tournament on while we were there. Two knights would fight using their lances which would shatter on the impact against the shields. << Older posts Newer posts >> Newer posts12...686970717273747576...9394Older posts SearchInclude comments in search Newsletter Get notified when a new post is published. Enter your e-mail Please enter an e-mail address Please enter a valid e-mail Thank you
21. August 2015 08:08 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Aiden Birthday 21. August 2015 08:08 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments TweetI realised that I hadn't posted anything from Aidens birthday.On the weekend we had a bowling birthdShareI realised that I hadn't posted anything from Aidens birthday.On the weekend we had a bowling birthday party with all the kids (and mum and dad) dressed up as super heroes.We also had a family dinner where we celebrated both his, Kayla's and Adams (his cousins) birthdays.
21. August 2015 07:08 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Morning of Frost 21. August 2015 07:08 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments TweetAlthough we have had a beautiful winter with lots of sunny days and mild daytime temperatures, we haShareAlthough we have had a beautiful winter with lots of sunny days and mild daytime temperatures, we have also had some cold mornings.One morning the car had frost on it and it was only 5 degrees outside (most winter mornings it is 8-10 degrees with 18-22 degree daytime temps).
21. August 2015 07:08 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Aiden graduating to Turtle 21. August 2015 07:08 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments TweetLast weekend Aiden graduated in his swim class from being a Crab to being a turtle.He's been in the ShareLast weekend Aiden graduated in his swim class from being a Crab to being a turtle.He's been in the swim class for a couple of years now and never graduated. He would swim fine with me, but would cry and be scared with the swim teacher.After our trip to Thailand in June he gained a lot of confidence and was very happy to swim by himself, but the swim teacher was too careful so he was unable to show what a good swimmer he really is. So, last weekend I asked the swim teacher to let him swim with the result that she by the end of the lesson graduated him and moved him to the next class.He was so proud (and so was his dad).
18. August 2015 16:08 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Coastal walk with the boys 18. August 2015 16:08 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments TweetIn the spirit of trying to keep the boys active Kim and I took them of a coastal walk from Coogee toShareIn the spirit of trying to keep the boys active Kim and I took them of a coastal walk from Coogee to Clovelly on a beautiful winters day.The water in the little bays were calm and clear.Half way we sat down and had a snack.Kim braved it with the aerial yoga.And the boys were being themselves...best mates.They loved being outside and they managed to walk the whole way (bribed by ice cream) even though Lucas on the last stretch was asking to be picked up.
18. August 2015 16:08 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Steam train day 18. August 2015 16:08 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments TweetThis Sunday we took the boys to Thirlmere trainworks. This is a large train museum with lots of old ShareThis Sunday we took the boys to Thirlmere trainworks. This is a large train museum with lots of old steam trains.Here we learned that steam trains in NSW were running up until 1973 which means that we were born in the era of steam trains...makes me feel really old.We went for a ride on one of the old steam trains (I think I was more excited than the kids).As usual Aiden and Lucas were monkeying around being best mates. This is a bus on rails.This is an instruction carriage used to teach how to operate the brakes on a steam train.
10. July 2015 09:07 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Phuket - Kims Birthday 10. July 2015 09:07 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments TweetOn the day we were flying out it was Kims birthday.I had arranged a cake for her in the morning ordeShareOn the day we were flying out it was Kims birthday.I had arranged a cake for her in the morning ordered through one of the local cafes a couple of days earlier.The hotel provided a fairly average cream and jam pile that no one ate.
9. July 2015 15:07 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Phuket - Kims Birthday show 9. July 2015 15:07 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments TweetTo celebrate Kims birthday she organised for the family to go and see a show called Siam Niramit.ThiShareTo celebrate Kims birthday she organised for the family to go and see a show called Siam Niramit.This show was about a 45 minutes drive from the hotel but transport was as usual included (as it is in pretty much all activities you organise).Unfortunately Kims dad couldn't join us as he had been severely dehydrated from not drinking enough water and wearing too many clothes in the heat.We were greeted at the show by actors in their beautiful costumes.We then proceeded into the venue where we had a large buffet style dinner. KC organised for the staff to come and sign birthday song for Kim.After dinner there were some pre-show activities such as kick boxing, tug of war with elephants as well as an elephant parade. More actors were dressed in their costumes.After this was the show. The staging and props were absolutely amazing. Everything was big, and very well made. They even had a small river flowing through the stage in which actors rowed their canoos and swam in. They also had a massive monsoon rainfall in one of the acts.The various acts despicted important historical chapters of the Thai history and mythology.The had fabled creatures and real elephants, water buffaloes as part of the acting. Actors went flying across the stage with more that 100 actors as part of the show.Below are some of the photos I could find to 'borrow' as I didn't take any photos during the show itself (not allowed).
8. July 2015 09:07 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Phuket - Muay Thai 8. July 2015 09:07 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments TweetOne evening I went to see Thai boxing. I asked the rest of the family if anyone wanted to join me, bShareOne evening I went to see Thai boxing or Muay Thai as it is called locally. I asked the rest of the family if anyone wanted to join me, but they all said no (it is the national sport of Thailand). I had been once before long time ago in Bangkok and wanted to experience it again.I decided to pay the bit extra and get a VIP seat right next to the ring and that was definitely worth the extra money.There were 8 fights that evening. The first fight was between two kids around 11 years old. Especially the kid in black shorts was very strong and was dominating the fight throughout.The second fight was between two older teenagers. Again the kid in black was dominating the match.The third fight was between to women, a Canadian and a Thai. The canadian girl looked very relaxed and was definitely ready to fight. The Thai girl had no chance against her and the match ended in knockout.Before each fight they go through this unique dance ritual.I was privileged to sit next to one of the judges who has happy to talk, so between each round I could ask him questions about the scoring system which is rather confusing.The 4th match was between a French and a Thai. The foreigners are really dominating this sport now and the Thai's were generally struggling.As with all the fights wit foreigners this fight also ended in a knockout.The 5th fight was back to two Thais fighting.One of the last fights was between a brazilian and a Thai. When walking into the ring you could tell that the brazil was very strong.He started by kicking the Thai in the chest and then punched him in the face.The fight lasted less than a minute before a knockout.The last fight was more in the heavyweight class, again between a brazilian and a Thai.This fight was full of power and again it ended up in knockout.After the fights I happened see the winners lining up out the back. I managed to get a photo with a couple of them....yeah, I look really convincing there.This evening was definitely one of my highlights from the trip and if we were going back then I would probably go again. The atmosphere is amazing and if the fighters are good then the experience is phenomenal.
6. July 2015 07:07 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Phuket - Island trip 6. July 2015 07:07 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments TweetOne morning Kim booked a trip out to some of the smaller islands of Phuket.The trip was in a large sShareOne morning Kim booked a trip out to some of the smaller islands of Phuket.The trip was in a large speed boat and initially the family didn't want to go because they were worried about getting seasick, but eventually they changed their minds.The boys loved the experience and were very proud wearing their life jackets.On the island we could feed the fish from the beach.And there was time to play in the water for the boys (and a bit of snorkeling for me).It is also good to see that they are still using their long tail boats for traditional fishing.
5. July 2015 12:07 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Phuket - Baby elephant 5. July 2015 12:07 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments TweetAfter visiting the big Buddha we stopped to feed a baby elephant.The kids were a little overwhelmed ShareAfter visiting the big Buddha we stopped to feed a baby elephant.The kids were a little overwhelmed by its trunk, but fun nevertheless.
26. August 2018 16:08 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Camping - Wombeyan Caves 26. August 2018 16:08 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments TweetWe made another camping trip. This time to Wombeyan caves with one of Kims colleagues.It was just beShareWe made another camping trip. This time to Wombeyan caves with one of Kims colleagues.It was just before winter set in, so the nights were cold and it was nice sitting around the fire at night.There are a lot of limestone caves in the area that are worth visiting. We did this one which was self guided.I tried to teach the boys how to shoot with a bow - kept them busy for a while.We also rigged up a badminton net for both adults and kids to play.But mostly it was the fire that the boys had fun with.We also did a really long 8km walk - almost lost the track at one point.
26. August 2018 15:08 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments My dad's 75th birthday 26. August 2018 15:08 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments TweetThis year it was my dad's 75 birthday. I traveled back for the party.The party was at a little hotelShareThis year it was my dad's 75 birthday. I traveled back for the party.The party was at a little hotel (in danish called a 'Kro') at Soroe.While there I also got to see the new house they are living in.
26. August 2018 15:08 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Thailand - Ayutthaya 26. August 2018 15:08 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments TweetAyutthaya is the old capital of Thailand. It is a couple of hour north of Bangkok, and the easiest wShareAyutthaya is the old capital of Thailand. It is a couple of hour north of Bangkok, and the easiest way to get there (by far) is by Train (we learned this the hard way).The capital was only moved 250 years ago after it was ransacked by the Burmese, but now most of what used to be some extraordinary buildings are now mostly rubble.It is a large area with lots of temples, so it is worthwhile having plenty of time and not rush it. We just visited three of the main sites, and that was plenty with the kids around.Some of the highlights are the big lying down Buddha.People still use this as a place of worship.And apparently it is good luck if you can make a coin stick on the buddhas feed (without resorting to chewing gum).At one of the temples there is also the head of Buddha stuck in the roots of the tree.And as usual it is worthwhile keeping a look out for other moments involving people.
26. August 2018 15:08 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Thailand - Ayutthaya Train 26. August 2018 15:08 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments TweetWe took the train back to Bangkok after visiting Ayutthaya on 2nd class tickets.There is not much diShareWe took the train back to Bangkok after visiting Ayutthaya on 2nd class tickets.There is not much difference between the classes except extra bolstering on the seats. We however found a more open carriage where the kids could better play, draw and read books during the ride. There was also a bit more life here. I went for a couple of walks through the train and found a lot of interesting sights.The carriages were open between the carriages, so people used these areas to sit sown and get some fresh air or a smoke.There was also a section that was reserved for monks, where I got permission to take this shot.The mail/cargo carriage was more open with this man sitting keeping an eye on things.As we approached Bangkok the man from the little kitchen chased people away from a part of our carriage as this was his place to sleep.
26. August 2018 15:08 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Blue Mountains 26. August 2018 15:08 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments TweetThis winter we went to the Blue mountains with a group of friends. We hired a house at Leura and speShareThis winter we went to the Blue mountains with a group of friends. We hired a house at Leura and spend the days going for walks.This is from the Grans Canyon walk.And some from the other walks.
26. August 2018 14:08 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Thailand - Floating market 26. August 2018 14:08 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments TweetThe floating market is 2 hours drive south of Bangkok. We made a bargain with a taxi driver to driveShareThe floating market is 2 hours drive south of Bangkok. We made a bargain with a taxi driver to drive us all there in a minivan. In the process he tried to take us to the wrong place 5 kilometers from the market and tried to rip us off by saying we should pay an exorbitant amount to take a boat from there - Kim and I had been there before and remembered that it was possible to drive there. With the assistance from Kim's colleague, the driver was put in his place and took us to the right location, so we still came out ahead and it turned out to be a nice day trip.The market is very much for tourists these days, but they still have the original boats selling food, although the market itself is all souvernirs.It is however interesting to observe the other tourists and I managed to capture a couple of good moments.
26. August 2018 14:08 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Bangkok 26. August 2018 14:08 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments TweetAfter Laos we went back to Bangkok.Bangkok is much the same, however it feels a lot cleaner with regShareAfter Laos we went back to Bangkok.Bangkok is much the same, however it feels a lot cleaner with regards to smoke from all the bikes, but the traffic itself is horrendous. The tuk-tuks are still there, but they try to charge exorbitant prices, so it was far cheaper and more convenient to get a taxi.As usual there are still lots of interesting choices for food, such as braised pigs head.Or Scorpions (which are mostly sold to tourists)When it comes to shopping, Kim was in shoe shop heaven.The boys however was in their own upside down ice cream heaven.The nightlife is also much the same, with the more relaxes and romantic atmosphere along the river.As opposed to the more thrashy massage parlour atmosphere just around the corner from our hotel.While we were there it was childrens week, much to the joy of the boys.This also gave me some unique photo opportunities such as the Thai version of Wonder woman.Evening were spend having nice dinners with friends, Kim's colleagues and by ourselves.This photo was my all I packed for the entire trip (only thing missing is my camera and the two lenses I brought along). Everything fitted into a small carry-on backpack.
11. March 2018 22:03 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Monks - Laos 11. March 2018 22:03 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments TweetReligion is an integral part of Laos society where the majority are Budhists.ShareReligion is an integral part of Laos society where the majority are Budhists.The monks dressed in orange and red ropes are still visible everywhere and it is largely seen as becoming a novice (junior monk) is seen as an opportunity to get an education and support your family if you come from a poor rural area. The high influx of tourists, especially to Luang Prabang is therefore a bit of a win-win situation for everyone. The tourists support the temples in the area by paying their admission fees to visit and on both my trips I have found that the monks are keen to have a conversation as it is a way of practicing their language skills.In Luang Prabang the monks walk in procession every morning to collect rice from worshipper along the roads. Before sunrise there are hundreds of monks walking the streets in every direction. There is an equal horde of tourists trying to take photos of these monks and equally tourists handing out (sometimes dubious) rice to them.There are posters around the city encouraging being there and seeing the monks as well as providing some guidelines such as keeping a certain distance, not using flash photography and if you hand out rice then where to get it from. Most of it common sense really, so it was sad to see how some would be blocking the paths and sticking their camera phones with flashes into the monks faces.Sacha and I went there a couple of mornings, but because of the time of the year everything was dark and because the monks move quite fast through the streets it was a challenge getting good shots.One afternoon we walked past a temple and a group of monks were in progress of cutting down a large tree and afterwards trimming off the branches. They were going to use some of the tree trunk for traditional drums and the rest for ornamental purposes inside the temple.In the late afternoons you would hear them chanting in the small rooms of meditations, chanting and prayer. These are often smaller places of worship and not part of the main temples which are used for more ceremonial purposes.One evening I heard such chanting and went to investigate and found these monks. Definitely one of my favourite moments in Luang Prabang.A common assumption and misconception is that the monks live by an ancient code with a simple life, so it is quite interesting to see that even they have adopted modern technology with smart phones and cameras.
11. February 2018 22:03 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Locals transport - Laos 11. February 2018 22:03 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments TweetThe locals are still relying on motorbikes to get around. They are far cheaper and more convenient iShareThe locals are still relying on motorbikes to get around. They are far cheaper and more convenient in the towns. It is even possible to fit an entire family onto a single motorbike. Younger kids and high schoolers ride their push bikes for transport.Although Aiden and the other kids definitely preferred the motor bikes.Nothing too flash for weddings - a normal new car will suffice. If you notice the sign on the door, then I am not sure if the bride was expecting to come home to 'Meat & Sausage'.There are also some vintage cars around which have survived since colonial times - like this 1952 Citroen.
10. February 2018 07:03 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Bowling - Laos 10. February 2018 07:03 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments TweetOn the last day in Luang Prabang we went to the local ten pin bowling alley.We had heard and read thShareOn the last day in Luang Prabang we went to the local ten pin bowling alley.We had heard and read that this is the place where things are happening in Laos. When we got there the place was totally deserted apart from a few staff members. We did play bowling and it is a bit surreal to play by ourselves in this fairly modern centre in Laos.They didn't have any support rails for the kids, but Aiden especially did really well and the kids managed to beat Kim on points.
19. February 2014 06:37 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Serenpidity canyon 19. February 2014 06:37 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments Tweetserenpidity canyonShareLast year I received a gift voucher through work and decided to use it for a canyoning trip in the blue mountains before it expired.one of the companies were doing intermediate canyons and it happens that the canyon they were doing this Sunday was the serendipity canyon at mount Wilson. We (two guides and 6 other clients) parked at mount Wilson fire station and headed down the trail 30 minutes downhill. After a quick briefing about the canyon and a change to wetsuits we absailed into the canyon itself.There were lots of yabbies...really big ones everywhere.It was a fun canyon with a couple of a absails and lots of jumps into water pools and swim-throughs. It was raining a lot the day before so there was a lot of water in the canyon and the water was relatively warm.Once we were out of the canyon we had some lunch and headed back to the car a 45 minute uphill walk later. We returned back to Katoomba at around 3pm in thick fog. After a quick turnaround I headed back towards sydney as a snail pace until I was below the clouds where visibility improved. I made it back just in time for having dinner with the family.A lot of the canyons in the mountains are still closed due to the bushfire a couple of months ago.
10. February 2014 12:13 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Baking bread - Sourdough 10. February 2014 12:13 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments Tweetbaking bread sourdoughShareFor the past 9 days is has been a small project of mine to try and bake an authentic sourdough bread.By sourdough I mean by using the old techniques of not adding yeast and let the bread ferment using the natural yeast from the air.As such it is not a lot of work, but there is a lot of waiting time and there are a lot of places that things can go wrong.I finally managed to bake an actual bread last night and brought it for the family to taste.They liked it and asked if I could bake them some more. Fortunately I still had some ferment left over for an additional two breads...photo above is one of them.Although it was interesting to do, I think it will take a while before I attempt it again...the whole process is just too long.
6. February 2014 04:26 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Emmas Babtism 6. February 2014 04:26 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments Tweetemmas babtismShareEmma was baptised this weekend at the local church. Fastest ever...the priest was speed reading!
6. February 2014 04:24 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Chinese New Year 2014 6. February 2014 04:24 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments Tweetchinese new year 2014ShareThe other day it was Chinese new year. It is now the year of the horse.Again it was celebrated with vegan food and money was put on Aidens rocking horse for good luck.
6. February 2014 04:19 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Aiden pedalling his tricycle 6. February 2014 04:19 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments Tweetaiden pedalling his tricycleShareAiden has finally learned how to ride his little tricycle (the one his grandma gave him just before she passed away) by using the pedals.He is very proud...hopefully he is able to soon using his new skills on the bike he got for christmas.Even Lucas was proud and gave Aiden the victory jump.
6. February 2014 04:02 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Baking bread - Walnut and Fig bread 6. February 2014 04:02 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments Tweetbaking bread walnut and fig breadShareAt the moment I am going through a phase where I Loooveee baking bread.There is something really satisfying about working with something that is so diverse and alive. And there is nothing like eating a freshly baked bread with a nice crust.So far I have found a couple of recipes I really like...one of them is this walnut and fig bread.On the weekend I made it for the family dinner and they wanted the recipe. - 400g white flour into a bowl- Add 100g of wholemeal flour- Add 10g of sea salt flakes- Add 5g of dry yeast into the bowl- Add 335ml of water - Mix it all together using your hand- Kneed it by stretching it out on a table and then roll it up...do this 3-6 times- flatten the bread to a thickness of about 15mm and then place walnuts and chopped figs on top. Roll up the bread with the walnuts and figs inside.- Stretch the bread another couple of time and roll it up until the walnuts and figs are mixed into the bread.- Put the bread in a bowl and cover it with glad wrap (or better yet, just leave it on the table and cover it with the bowl) for one hour...knock back the bread every 20 minutes (3 times in total).- Leave the bread for another one hour (without knocking it back). After 30 minutes (30 minutes prior to baking) start preheating the oven with a baking/pizza stone at 250 degrees. Also put a small metal tray in the oven (for the ice cubes)- Add a bit of semolina (or flour) to the baking stone and to the top of the bread to avoid it sticking.- Place the bread on the baking stone and make a couple of cuts to the top of the dough.- Add 3-4 ice cubes to the metal tray- Close the oven and turn down the temperature to 200 degrees immediately.- Bake for 30 minutes and remove from the oven.
23. January 2014 12:39 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Hunter Valley Gardens light show. 23. January 2014 12:39 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments Tweethunter valley gardens light showShareEvery year hunter valley garden put up a light show where they decorate part of the garden in christmas lights. They leave this open until end of January, so this year we headed up there to have a look....enjoy.
23. January 2014 12:28 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Hunter Valley Trip with family 23. January 2014 12:28 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments Tweethunter valley trip with familyShareLast weekend we made an overnight trip to the Hunter Valley a couple of hours drive north of Sydney.The main reason was to see the lights in the Hunter Valley Garden (see separate post), but also to go and taste some wine and generally have a good time.Pretty soon after we arrived the girls were distracted by the chocolate and cheese places. We did however go to a couple of places for wine tasting.We also had some really nice food up there. I was especially impressed by a really nice gnocchi salad I had....it was yummi.Outside it was really hot...like 39 degrees in the shade. There were a couple of horses relaxing under a couple of trees.We decided an alternative approach of checking into our hotel and jump in the pool to cool off. In the evening we went to the light show and on the following day we just did a number of wineries before heading back to Sydney.
17. January 2014 12:11 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Ten Pin Bowling 17. January 2014 12:11 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments Tweetten pin bowlingShareOn the weekend we did some ten pin bowling with the family.Kim had managed to secure some cheap tickets so it was great to play against the family.We had one lane for the kids (with rails) and one lane for the adults. I had a bad start and was behind much of the game, but my luck eventually caught up and I started playing a good game. Afterwards we had a bit of a play in the games arcadeAiden was absolutely terrified of the big scary bear (I can see why).The kids also tried to figure out what this machine was for:I love some of the old 50's style decor.
17. January 2014 12:08 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Water Play 17. January 2014 12:08 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments Tweetwater playShareIt is summer and Lucas and Aiden is enjoying a bit of water play in the back yard on warm days.
6. June 2012 02:28 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Passing of Venus 6. June 2012 02:28 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments Tweetpassing of venusShareToday is a very unique day in that the planet Venus passed over the disc of the Sun. The next such passing wont happen for another 105 years.And it is even more interesting since we recently returned from Tahiti where Captain Cook observed the last passing several hundred years ago.Here in sydney it was a very cloudy day, but I did manage to snap a couple of photos using a very powerful lens covered with dark filters. It is a planet Venus at the 7 o'clock on the sun in the photo.
5. June 2012 07:50 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Camera returned for warranty 5. June 2012 07:50 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments Tweetcamera returned for warrantyShareBummer...I had to return the camera yesterday. It was driving me mad with back focusing...not what you would expect from a $3000 camera. Hopefully they will be able to fix the issue, but unfortunately they are saying that there is a 21 day turnaround. The focus was 5cm off which is critical especially then taking portraits.I did however manage to take a couple of photos that were ok and a bit of video with it on Sunday inside a very dark ten-pin bowling place (it was Kayla's birthday party) with all kinds of weird lighting. I was shooting at insanely high iso (12800) and I must say that I general I was pretty impressed. Especially impressed with how fast I could shoot with lots of kids running around. They are totally usable for my blog and online posting although I wouldn't enlarge them. There was a lot of noise at these high ISO's, but most of it could be managed to a certain degree in Lightroom.Later I was shooting with KC's camera at the lunch table...there was more light and I was strugling with taking photos using natural light.
31. May 2012 07:59 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments New camera - Nikon D800 31. May 2012 07:59 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments Tweetnew camera d800ShareToday I picked up my new camera. It is the new Nikon D800 and is currently one of the most sought after cameras on the market.I have been wanting to get a full frame camera for some time now and this was the one for me to get...the reviews are excellent. I pre-ordered it shortly after is was announced and has been waiting for over three months for it to arrive...but it is finally here.It will be a steep learning curve to get used to all the new features of the camera and it will be a sad goodbye to my almost 10 year old D50 entry level camera.I am now moving from 5 auto focus points to 51...from 6 Megapixels to 36 megapixels...max 1600 ISO to 25600 ISO...no bells and whistles to having features such as Video, Timelapse, HDR, face detection, live view, aparture preview...and the list goes on... The D50 has served me well, but it is definitely time to move on as the technology has advanced so much. Not sure what I do with the old camera...but I will most likely end up selling it.
14. May 2012 06:55 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Mothers day with Autumn colours in Mt Wilson 14. May 2012 06:55 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments Tweetmothers day with autumn colours in mt wilsonShare It is Autumn here in Sydney and today the forecast was for 19 degrees and sunny...the first cool'ish day here. In the morning we went with Kims family to the cemetry to visit Kims mum. After this we were planning to head up to the Blue Mountains to Mt Wilson to visit some of the private gardens to take photos of the Autumn colours and get some new family photos of Kim, Aiden and I. When we arrived it was really windy and only 7 degrees (later it dropped to 5 degrees). We had dressed for the cold, but Dylan who had joined us on the spur of the moment was a bit underdressed and cold so he borrowed a spare jumper I had with me. We immediately found a pile of leaves and they started having fun throwing them up in the air. We decided to visit the Yengo Sculpture garden and the owner came to greet us, tell us about the garden and charge for the entry. The garden was very nice and the colours were awesome. There were lots of sculptures hidden around the garden. Dylan got a bit upset because we had to scold him for running around (this was a private garden so deserved a bit of respect), throwing pebbles, thrashing my camera gear and keeping to run into the frame of the photo I was trying to take. I had also been trying to get a bit interested in what he is seeing around him to learn more things and asking him if he was interested in some of the lookouts to experience one of the most beautiful places in Australia, as well as look at the things in antique shops etc., but he was totally dis-interested..."you can drag the horse to the water, but you can force it to drink". After the garden Aiden was really tired and cold and we were getting hungry, so we decided to head back and stop along the way for lunch. It was good timing as it started to rain a little. I decided to drive on the great western highway as there were more options for food and I though it would be quicker getting back...turned out everyone else had the same idea so it was at a crawl.
12. May 2012 07:56 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments An Officer and a Gentleman 12. May 2012 07:56 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments Tweetan officer and a gentlemanShareToday Kim and I went to the Lyrics Theatre to see the 'An Officer and Gentleman' musical.It was a remake of the 1982 movie, but on the stage.It was ok but nothing special. The acting and singing was great, but the screenplay itself as well as the music/lyrics could have been more original and the stage setup was pretty basic.
7. May 2012 05:45 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Halfway there - Baby brother for Aiden 7. May 2012 05:45 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments Tweethalfway thereShareKim is pregnant again and we are now halfway there and on Monday we went for the halfway scans (due late September).Everything is on track and looking good so far (5 fingers and toes etc.). For the first time we were able to tell the gender of the baby and it turns out that we are expecting a little brother to Aiden.This means that Aiden very soon will have someone to play with here at home.
25. April 2012 03:07 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Kurnell walk 25. April 2012 03:07 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments Tweetkurnell walkShareToday was Anzac day. We decided to use the day to explore some of the local area in the National Park on the other side of Botany bay near Kurnell.It was very windy (Aiden wasn't happy with the wind). The walk along the coast is easy an quite scenic. There is even a small lighthouse about a kilometer down the track and the rocks have cook textures.
22. April 2012 07:40 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Symbio Wildlife Park 22. April 2012 07:40 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments Tweetsymbio wildlife parkShareToday we went to the Symbio Wildlife park together with some of our friends. They don't have a lot of animals in the park, but the ones they have a pretty cool and it is a good spot to get some nice animal photos (It was especially nice to see that they had polished the glass surrounding some animals). It was also really cool to have Aiden and Sammi feed some of the more friendly animals.
22. April 2012 05:44 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Luke and Alexsandra's wedding 22. April 2012 05:44 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments Tweetluke and alexandra s weddingShareToday Luke and Alexsandra was married. She is from Serbia so the wedding itself was a beautiful traditional Serbian Orthodox wedding in a small church in Alexandria. The church was very darkly lit and I was shooting using natural light trying to be as discreet as possible using my old Nikon D50 camera (still waiting for the new D800) but by some miracle I was able to capture the above photos (by setting it to my max 1600 ISO and underexpose 2 stops and then push and noise reduce in post...would have loved to have one more stop). Luke has some Scotish ancestry so ourside the church there was a guy playing the bag pipe. Afterwards the reception was in Drumoyne with about 250 guests invited. Lots of very loud Serbian music and traditional Serbian line dancing (Not sure what the correct name is).
16. April 2012 07:40 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Easter show and EQ 16. April 2012 07:40 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments Tweeteaster show and eqShareSynday we took Dylan to the Easter show at Fox Studios. We had bought him a 5 hour pass as a reward for an assignment we gave him.Dylan tried a number of rides, but I think his favourite was a dodge'm'cars.While Dylan was queueing up we had a look around at the other entertainment.
16. August 2013 07:54 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Harbour walk with friends 16. August 2013 07:54 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments Tweetharbour walk with friendsShareLast weekend I went for a walk along the harbour with a couple of friends and Aiden (in my backpack).It was a beautiful winters day being sunny and 25 degrees.We started out at Waverton and walked almost across to Greenwich. It wasn't a long walk but very pleasant (especially since I also had Aiden to carry).
5. August 2013 09:17 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Aiden and Lucas at the Beach 5. August 2013 09:17 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments Tweetaiden and lucas at the beachShareThe other day we went to Maroubra beach to let the boys play in the sand and also to try and get some photos of them together. It is currently winter here in Sydney which sometimes provides this beautiful cool light.Lucas and Aiden are now really good at playing together...Lucas is doing his best to copy everything that Aiden does and at the same time tried to keep up, whic is difficult when you cant walk yet....And Aiden is good at sharing his toys and make sure that Lucas has something to play with.
5. August 2013 09:13 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Test Portrait shot 5. August 2013 09:13 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments Tweettest portrait shotShareThe other day I did a couple of test portrait shots...I wanted a portrait that was a bit more moody than usual.It is not easy getting the low key lighting right...much easier to do high key where you can pretty much blast the subject with light.I haven't had the time to experiment further to accomplish what I wanted...but here is what I did get after 10-15 minutes experimenting.
31. July 2013 06:53 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Clever boy 31. July 2013 06:53 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments Tweetclever boyShareYesterday Kim caught Lucas grabbing her car keys and the trying to use the keys to unlock the front door...with a bit of practice and some extra height me might succeed one day.I think he just wanted to take the big red car outside for a spin...
30. July 2013 08:36 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Family picnic at the beach 30. July 2013 08:36 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments Tweetfamily picnic at the beachShareOn the weekend we went to the beach for a little family picnic...ham and cheese sandwiches.we also wanted to get some photos of Lucas and Aiden playing together in the sand.We especially wanted to get one of them sitting together look at the waves. Normally Aiden is terrified of the waves, but because Lucas was there we were able to get him to sit still.It wasn't the best light in the middle of a sunny day but I love the cool winter light this time of the year. It is hard to describe...but the light has a less warm feel the during the summertime.Aiden and Lucas are now best of mates and having a lot of fun. Once Lucas learns to walk they will be big trouble and we will constantly have to chase after them. Aiden can sometimes get a bit rough, but Lucas is a tough little bundle of muscles and loves copying him.
30. July 2013 07:08 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Climbing on my birthday 30. July 2013 07:08 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments Tweetclimbing on my birthdayShareOn my birthday this year I went climbing at Barrenjoey with some friends. It was the first time for over a year that I have done any climbing...let alone outdoors, but fortunately it was all top ropes.Barrenjoey is one of the most beautiful spots in Sydney.I am totally out of shape but still managed to get through the climbs we set up.We were supposed to have had a dinner the night before but most people were busy so we decided to cancel the dinner and the let me go climbing instead. I was supposed to have been taking Aiden with me (Barrenjoey is relatively safe for kids), but he was still a bit unwell from his hospital visit. I think I will start looking for a good climbing helmet for him so that we have it for next time.I had a great day out with friends and it was great to get back on the rock.
27. July 2013 05:02 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments A bit of a scare 27. July 2013 05:02 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments Tweeta bit of a scareShareLast night we had a bit of a scare when we suddenly had to rush Aiden to the hospital in an ambulance... He was over at grandads place most of the day playing and when he came back we noticed that he had a bit of a temperature and didn't want to eat, but otherwise ok and playful. We decided to give him a quick shower before giving him some panadol and then bedtime.In the shower he was playing as usual with water and his plastic cups when I left him to get dressed. When I came back a few minutes later to turn off the water and get him dressed I could tell that he was not his normal self and was shaking a bit. Thinking that he was cold I quickly took him out to get him dressed but could then tell that he was pretty bad...I couldn't get in contact with him and his breathing was irregular and shallow.I quickly called Kim and had her call an ambulance. While we were waiting he started having some muscle spasms and started throwing up. Fortunately we are close to the ambulance station so they arrived pretty quickly and took myself and Aiden to the children's hospital which is also close by.At the hospital he started responding again and the doctors there think that a spike in his fever caused it. They kept him there for most of the evening until his temperature had dropped and they were sure he was well hydrated which was around midnight.Good that all turned out ok...Aiden has been pretty happy today even though he hasn't eaten much and slept much of the day.
22. July 2013 06:53 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Lucas 10 Months Photo 22. July 2013 06:53 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments Tweetlucas 10 months photoShareThis weekend we went to the local park to get a photo of Lucas for his 'First Year' album.We wanted to get some photos of him on the swing.But we also managed to snap a couple with Aiden...
21. July 2013 07:51 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Aiden playing soccer 21. July 2013 07:51 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments Tweetaiden playing soccerShareAiden has started playing soccer (not real soccer, but they do get to kick a ball).He is very proud that he has real soccer shirts and shorts.We started taking him to assist him with his development. We are starting to see some progress but he is still a bit behind his age group.
21. July 2013 07:48 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Lego Turtle 21. July 2013 07:48 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments Tweetlego turtleShareAiden and I often sit and build Lego together (Sometimes Lucas also joins us, but he is better at taking it apart).One day we build this Lego turtle worthy of a photo...Aiden had great fun pushing it along the ground.
2. May 2013 08:17 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Vanuatu - Captured by the tribes 2. May 2013 08:17 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments Tweetvanuatu captured by the tribesShareThey finally caught us and wanted to put us in the big pot......but we told them that we are too skinny and that some of the fat tourists would taste better and be able to feed the village for months, so they let us go (whew...)!
2. May 2013 08:16 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Vanuatu Tribes 2. May 2013 08:16 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments Tweetvanuatu tribesShareWhile in Vanuatu we went on a couple of tours to get some insight into the old tribal culture.We did one evening tour with food, song and dance and then a couple of days later we did another one during the daytime with a bit more insight into the tribal life.On the evening trip they would be jumping out at us in the middle of the bush.Afterwards they entertained us with song and dance.During the day tour explained the significance of things such as their tribal drawings.How they would use bark for making clothing and other items.How they would preserve banana for several months....and the wild pigs they would hunt.And they would also explain how cannibalism used to work in their society.As well as other traditions.I took a whole bunch of portraits of the people in the village.There were also a bunch of kids around.
2. May 2013 08:15 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Aiden playing with the local kids 2. May 2013 08:15 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments Tweetaiden playing with the local kidsShareOn one of the trips to a local village Aiden started playing with the local kids. It was great that he had some fun as it is pretty hard for someone his age to sit still for long periods of time.The local kids were great at helping him around and holding the dog so he could pat it.
2. May 2013 08:13 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Vanuatu - Fireshow 2. May 2013 08:13 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments Tweetvanuatu fireshowShareOne evening we went to see a fire show...This turned out to be probably the best fireshow we have ever seen...spectacular.Fortunately I brought my tripod along so I could capture the following amazing pictures.The whole show was about 30 minutes with 6-10 performers and finished with group dancing where all the local kids also participated.
2. May 2013 08:11 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Vanuatu - Kids 2. May 2013 08:11 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments Tweetvanuatu kidsShareObviously I took a large amount of family photos in Vanuatu.Here are some of them....and...all this holiday can be very exhausting...
2. May 2013 08:10 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Vanuatu - Kims Dad 2. May 2013 08:10 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments Tweetvanuatu kims dadShareKims Dad joined us in Vanuatu. It was great to have him along and quite funny at times. When we were out and about he wanted his photo taken with people we met. And he was brave enough to try the local Kava...I didn't tell him how they make it.And it was great to have him there to help with the kids.
2. May 2013 08:10 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Vanuatu - The market in Port Vila 2. May 2013 08:10 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments Tweetvanuatu the market in port vilaShareOn one of the days we made a day trip into Port Vila city centre. Here was the big market with is open 24 hours per day.The market is full of fresh produce of all sorts depending on the seasons.There is even some live produce available such as chicken and crabs.Because the market is always open, people live and sleep between the stalls with their families.It is also the place that people go to during lunch to buy food to eat.There was a whole row of women sitting their waving their arms to keep the flies away from the food.Also, I don't understand why the western world is spending so much effort and resources on finding cures to diseases such as cancer, diabeter, high blood pressure, arthritis, obesity, athma etc. since they here in Vanuatu already has one magical cure that takes care of them all. It was cheap and easily available at the market and it doesn't matter how much you buy, the price is always the same.They were also selling improvised charcoal stoves bringing back memories of Kenya where everything was cooked on a Jiko's.While we were outside the market discussing where to go next this woman and her little girl walked past. The little girl let go of he mums hand and walked over to Aiden (who was sitting in his pram) and gave him a BIG kiss...Aiden is such a chick magnet.
2. May 2013 08:09 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Vanuatu - Waterfalls 2. May 2013 08:09 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments Tweetvanuatu waterfallsShare Perfect Moments Photography | A Rene Pallesen Journal Blog Portfolio Packages Contact About Home 17. August 2009 10:29 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Lago di Como 17. August 2009 10:29 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments Tweetlago di comoShare After the Riviera we drove up to Lago di Como (Lake Como). This was the only place on the trip where we hadn't organised accomodation prior to us arriving. When we arrived we initially used the TomTom to find us a B&B, but it kept taking us up into the hills on all these narrow streets with blind corners. We therefore instead decided to drive up along the shore of the lake and just check out whatever hotels we came past. We ended up finding a place for a reasonable price in Argegno. It was right on the lake next to the passenger ferry and our room was facing the lake....perfect! For dinner we drove to Menaggio a bit further up the lake. Parking was impossible because there was another festival happening so I ended up doing another illegal parking (If you are in Italy you do like the Italians). Next morning we went down to the ferry and bought a day ticket for the central part of the ticket. This enabled us to take the ferry and hop on and off whenever we felt like it. This meant that we we easily could get to other places on the lake such as Bellagio and Varenna. It also meant that we were able to look at the expensive villas from the lakeside. On the way back in the afternoon we stopped at Tremezzo at one of the large villas that was open to the public. The villa was surrounded by a beautiful garden. In the evening we were tired (and I was finally developing some sort of a sun tan evident from the sandal stripes on my feet). 17. August 2009 10:28 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Italian Riviera & Cinque Terre 17. August 2009 10:28 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments Tweetitalian rivieraShare After Pisa we headed to the Italian Riviera, also called the Flower Riviera. I asked Kim to find us a nice spot along the coast for lunch and she picked Lido di Camaiore. When I was a kid I went to the italian riviera quite a lot with my parents. My mum and dad met eachother here in a town called Diano Marina, both working for the same travel company as travel companies. We used to stay in caravan parks along the coast and I don't remember the place being very busy (but I may remember wrong). When we arrived to Camaiore we were met by beaches full of hotels (whom had each closed of an area of the beach for themselves), umbrellas and people boiling in the sun and tanning oil. After lunch I decided to drive along the coast to our hotel in Sestri Levante...this turned out to be a mistake. After 30 kilometers full endless beaches covered in umbrellas, of dodging pedestrians and cyclists, traffic lights and people parking to go for a swim I decided I'd had enough and headed for the motorway. This part of the riviera is really not very nice and I was looking forward to go somewhere with a bit more charm. Sestri Levante was the only place we could find accomodation. The hotel was up in the hills far away from the coast line, it was expensive and absolutely nothing special compared to all the other places we were staying during our trip. In the evening we drove to a town called Rapallo for dinner. The city had closed off the roads around the water because of a festival, so it was really nice to sit at the water eating seafood and watch people. After dinner we went for a walk along the water down to the area where the festival was taking place. We were sitting there for a while listening to the music and enjoying a perfect evening. When we came back to the car to drive home it turned out that we'd received a parking ticket (20 Euros). We were parking in a valid parking space and I thought we were outside the hours wheer we had to pay....but obviously not. I'd done lots of illigal parking elsewhere on the trip so didn't feel too bad about it. Next day it was time to explore Cinque Terre. This is a national park along the costline with 5 small villages accessible only from the ocean (There is a trainline now). We drove to the only one of the villages that can be accessed by car Monterosso and parking right next to the village area. From here we walked down to the water. It turned out that the trains weren't running between the villages so the only access was by boat or walk. We didn't have time to walk so bought a day ticket for the boat. While on the boat we did a bit of planning and decided to go to the furtherst village Riomaggiore first and from here walk to the next village Manarola. From here we would take the boat to Vernazza and then back to Monterosso. Cinque Terre is a beautiful part of the Italian riviera, and although there is a lot of tourists there it doesn't feel overcrowded such as many other places. When we vere having lunch along the beached the previous day I was dreading that Cinque Terre would be as crowded as that. In the evening we decided to drive to Portofino for dinner. We arrived there (along all these small narrow streets) around 7pm. Although Portofine if a nice place it doesn't beat the villages at Cinque Terre in beauty. The place is expensive in all respects and there isn't a lot of shops and restaurants, it is mainly fashion and expensive jewellery being sold there. Obviously catering for the Euripean rich who dock here in their expensive million dollar boats. We therefore decided to go back to the centre of Sestri Levante and have dinner here. 17. August 2009 10:27 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Pisa - A revisit three decades later 17. August 2009 10:27 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments TweetpisaShare When I was a child I spend a lot of summers with my parents in Italy. They used to work in the Northern part of Italy as travel guides and as a result we generally headed that way during the summer time with our caravan or with a tent. When I was a baby my parent took me to Pisa (I have to trust them I an don't remember) and also up into the leaning tower. Kim and I was planning to drive from Tuscany to the Italien Riviera and I asked Kim if it was ok to make a short stop at Pisa for me to have a look at the tower some 3X years later. Our Tom-Tom navigated us by the backway into the city and within a short timefra we were at the tower. We had a look for a parking spot and literally found a spot less than 100 metres from the tower (so far pretty fortunate with the parking). It was really cool to have a look at the tower. They have started allowing people to enter the tower again, but when we got there they next timeslot was 6pm in the evening (8 hours later) so we instead took some photos and bought some T shirts for Kims family. Of cause we had to take the classic photos of trying to straighten the tower. And a couple of nice ones And then there was the silly ones And then some photos from the beautiful architecture of the tower and the church next to it. 17. August 2009 10:26 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Tuscany 17. August 2009 10:26 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments TweettuscanyShareWhile Kim and I was in San Gemignano in Tuscany we spent a day just driving around in the beautiful landscape. Even though we just missed the harvest it was still really beautiful. It is full of all these rolling hills, Vineyards, Sunflower fields and old Italian houses. Driving was fun and I could easily have spent longer time just driving around there exploring small villages etc. I would love to go back there during spring when all the flowers are out and the fields have been planted. 17. August 2009 10:25 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Siena and one expensive dinner 17. August 2009 10:25 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments Tweetsiena and one expensive dinnerShareOn the first day in Tuscany we decided to drive into Siena and have a look around.Our first impression was that parking was going to be a problem. There was some large tourist carparks on the outside of the city walls changing an exorbant amount of money per hour. We were planning to have dinner in the city and was planning to be there for most of the day and eventually we found a spot in a parking area that didn't have any meters. There was some italian scribling underneath the sign and we hoped that it didn't say "Reserved for residents and permit holders".Anyway, eventually we made it inside the city walls and was met by 8 storeys of escalators from the walls to the innner city (You wouldn't want those fat Americans loosing any weight while on holiday).We went around to some of the tourist attractions and there was unbeliveable queues everywhere. We started queuing up to get into the large tower at the main square and for 30 minuted the queue didn't move. Eventually we gave up and couldn't be bothered.Instead we decided to wander around the city looking at the old buildings and at shops which is really nice.Siena is known for the annual horse race in the center of the city. It was amazing to look at the area and suddenly realise why the horses often go flying into the barriers when they get around the corners of the race course. The details of the houses is incredible. Everything is decorated. A metal spike is not just a skike any longer, but a instead formed into a dragon, a snake or a swan.In the evening we were going for dinner at an italian restaurant called 'Cane e Gato' (Kat and Dog). It was recommended to Kim by one of her colleagues who had also warned us that it was a bit on the pricey side.At the place we were staying I found a book about Tuscany where it said that the degustation was 50 Euros (Appx $95 AUD). When we arrived we were given no menu's or any price list. The girl (Who turned out to be the daughter of the owner, who himself was in the kitchen with his wife) showed us our table.We were told what was the degustation menu consisted of and got started. The food was quite nice...all ingredients that were in season from the surrounding country side. The pastas were home made and everything was very delicious.At the end Kim and I was discussing what the damage was...a bit of a surprise when we were presented with a bill of 175 Euros ($320 AUD). This was a bit more than we expected.Fortunately we didn't have a parking ticket when we got back to the car (This would have been the icing on the cake).Another late night finishing dinner after midnight and then 45 minutes drive back to San Gimignano. 17. August 2009 10:21 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Manhatten of the Medievil - San Gemignano 17. August 2009 10:21 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments Tweetsan gemignanoShareAfter Verona we drove to Tuscany to a small medievil town called San Gimignano. It is a very small town where in the medievil days they were competing who could build the most 'high-rises'. This means that today the town is full of all these tall towers (There used to be a lot more back in those days).The town is full of tourists during the daytime and at night the town is again taken over by the locals including the werewolves from the surrounding area.We were staying inside the old city walls, so for the most part we were safe except for the odd werewolf. They also have the world champion in Gelato...normally I don't belive marketing gimmick like this, but I must admit that the gelato was very nice.At night time once the tourists were gone it was an amazing place. The towers are rising into the night sky and I had a lot of fun taking photos of the towers just using the ambient light. 17. August 2009 10:18 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Verona and the Opera - Italy 17. August 2009 10:18 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments Tweetverona and the operaShareWe arrived to Milan in Italy from Copenhagen in the evening. The first thing we did after landing was to pick up our rental car which was a small Fiat Panda (Never, ever rent a large car in Italy...some streets only accomodate snall cars) and then drive to our Hotel. The Tom-Tom nagigator software on my mobile phone turned out to be exceptionally useful on our trip to find our way around. The next morning we drove towards Verona and at lunchtime we had a look at our map and noticed that we'd drive right past Lago di Gardia (Lake Garda). I asked Kim to plan a diversion somewhere for a lakeside lunch. She chose Sirmione which is a long peninsula on the southern side of the lake. I used to stay at Lake Garda with my parents when I was a kid. The water is bright blue and it is a beautiful place. We then continued to Verona early afternoon and found our bed and breakfast which is about a kilometer from the city centre. The road up there was very narrow and anything wider than the Panda would not have been able to get through. As soon as we had gotten settled we walked down into the city centre. We had opera tickets for Aida in the old coloseum in Verona in the evening, but had to first pick up the tickets. The tickets were quite pricey so we had chosen to get ticket on the upper stairs with almost everyone else. It meant that it was a bit less confortable and that we would have to enter early to get a good seat. But it also meant that we were sitting up higher which is better for taking photos. The performance was amazing. There was approximately 500 actors on stage (and 4 horses) and ther used about a quarter of the coloseum as the stage. It was a beautiful and warm night with a brightly lit full moon. The performance finished around 1am at night and from there we walked to one of the squares of Verona and had some coffee (Places were still open). The next morning we did a bit more exploration around Verona. Kim wanted to see the romantic balcony of Romeo and Juliet (Or Donald and Daffy Duck as I called them as they are just as real as the imaginary Romeo and Juliet) Since we were there we also had to rub the right breast of the Juliet statue there for good luck. In Daffy's house they also has a lot of interesting art work. Verona is an interesting city. They have a whale bone suspended from one of the gates...apparently the legend says that it will fall down upon the first 'Just' man who passes under it (and kills him??). Unfortunately (or fortunately) it didn't fall on neither Kim or I. The city is full of old buildings with interesting architecture 17. August 2009 10:13 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Rosenborg - Denmark 17. August 2009 10:13 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments Tweetcopenhagen denmarkShareOn the last day in Denmark our flight wasn't leaving from Copenhagen to Milan until early evening, we therefore decided to head into the capital a bit earlier in the day and spend a couple of hours sightseeing with my parents. We went to a place called Rosenborg (Rose Castle) which is where the Danish royals keep their crown jewels. It is also the place where they train the soldiers that protect the royals. Some of the jewels are absolutely stunning. There is lots of ivory, old weapons, saddles, gold etc. everything coverved with diamonds, perls, emeralds, rubys and other jewels. My mum and dad was waiting outside (half asleep) while we were inside looking at all the awsomeness. 17. August 2009 10:12 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Knuthenborg Zoo - Denmark 17. August 2009 10:12 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments Tweetknuthenborg zooShare While we were in Denmark we went to the local zoo called Knuthenborg. It was created by the owner of one of the big farms who had a vision to create one of Europes larges open air zoos. What is so special about this particular zoo is that you drive around amongst the animals and in certain areas are allowed to leave the car and interact with the animals. The first place we went was the monkey area. Here we were able to walk around some of the Lemurs (Half monkeys) from Madagascar. Driving around we also saw a number of other animals such as the asian water buffalo (which loves mud), zebras, Zobel Antelopes, Goats Kim even found a horse her own size We had a bit of fun with the camels. I don't know what they were thinking but they kept eating my hair and I think one of them was in love with me. They also have some more exotic animals there such as tigers and rhinos (The wouldn't allow us to get out of our car to pet these). 17. August 2009 10:11 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Medieval Centre in Denmark 17. August 2009 10:11 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments Tweetmidieval centreShare Not far from where my parent live there is an open air museum displaying how people lived in the medieval time which in Denmark was the late 14th century. For Kim and I it felt like we suddenly were a princess and a knight from that time. Besides from houses, ships and other buildings the place also displays various handicraft, weaponry and how people battles in those times. They have working Trebuchets there to throw massive stones (or dead animals and burning tar) accurately for distances of more than several hundred metres. Every day they show people how they work and hurl massive stones into the water. We tried some of the weapons. I used to be fairly alright with a bow and arrow when I was a kid. I tried the bow and arrow here and it was a total disaster. Obviously Kim went straigh for the shoes and the furs (I am not a fur person myself): They also had a knights tournament on while we were there. Two knights would fight using their lances which would shatter on the impact against the shields. << Older posts Newer posts >> Newer posts12...686970717273747576...9394Older posts SearchInclude comments in search Newsletter Get notified when a new post is published. Enter your e-mail Please enter an e-mail address Please enter a valid e-mail Thank you
17. August 2009 10:29 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Lago di Como 17. August 2009 10:29 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments Tweetlago di comoShare After the Riviera we drove up to Lago di Como (Lake Como). This was the only place on the trip where we hadn't organised accomodation prior to us arriving. When we arrived we initially used the TomTom to find us a B&B, but it kept taking us up into the hills on all these narrow streets with blind corners. We therefore instead decided to drive up along the shore of the lake and just check out whatever hotels we came past. We ended up finding a place for a reasonable price in Argegno. It was right on the lake next to the passenger ferry and our room was facing the lake....perfect! For dinner we drove to Menaggio a bit further up the lake. Parking was impossible because there was another festival happening so I ended up doing another illegal parking (If you are in Italy you do like the Italians). Next morning we went down to the ferry and bought a day ticket for the central part of the ticket. This enabled us to take the ferry and hop on and off whenever we felt like it. This meant that we we easily could get to other places on the lake such as Bellagio and Varenna. It also meant that we were able to look at the expensive villas from the lakeside. On the way back in the afternoon we stopped at Tremezzo at one of the large villas that was open to the public. The villa was surrounded by a beautiful garden. In the evening we were tired (and I was finally developing some sort of a sun tan evident from the sandal stripes on my feet).
17. August 2009 10:28 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Italian Riviera & Cinque Terre 17. August 2009 10:28 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments Tweetitalian rivieraShare After Pisa we headed to the Italian Riviera, also called the Flower Riviera. I asked Kim to find us a nice spot along the coast for lunch and she picked Lido di Camaiore. When I was a kid I went to the italian riviera quite a lot with my parents. My mum and dad met eachother here in a town called Diano Marina, both working for the same travel company as travel companies. We used to stay in caravan parks along the coast and I don't remember the place being very busy (but I may remember wrong). When we arrived to Camaiore we were met by beaches full of hotels (whom had each closed of an area of the beach for themselves), umbrellas and people boiling in the sun and tanning oil. After lunch I decided to drive along the coast to our hotel in Sestri Levante...this turned out to be a mistake. After 30 kilometers full endless beaches covered in umbrellas, of dodging pedestrians and cyclists, traffic lights and people parking to go for a swim I decided I'd had enough and headed for the motorway. This part of the riviera is really not very nice and I was looking forward to go somewhere with a bit more charm. Sestri Levante was the only place we could find accomodation. The hotel was up in the hills far away from the coast line, it was expensive and absolutely nothing special compared to all the other places we were staying during our trip. In the evening we drove to a town called Rapallo for dinner. The city had closed off the roads around the water because of a festival, so it was really nice to sit at the water eating seafood and watch people. After dinner we went for a walk along the water down to the area where the festival was taking place. We were sitting there for a while listening to the music and enjoying a perfect evening. When we came back to the car to drive home it turned out that we'd received a parking ticket (20 Euros). We were parking in a valid parking space and I thought we were outside the hours wheer we had to pay....but obviously not. I'd done lots of illigal parking elsewhere on the trip so didn't feel too bad about it. Next day it was time to explore Cinque Terre. This is a national park along the costline with 5 small villages accessible only from the ocean (There is a trainline now). We drove to the only one of the villages that can be accessed by car Monterosso and parking right next to the village area. From here we walked down to the water. It turned out that the trains weren't running between the villages so the only access was by boat or walk. We didn't have time to walk so bought a day ticket for the boat. While on the boat we did a bit of planning and decided to go to the furtherst village Riomaggiore first and from here walk to the next village Manarola. From here we would take the boat to Vernazza and then back to Monterosso. Cinque Terre is a beautiful part of the Italian riviera, and although there is a lot of tourists there it doesn't feel overcrowded such as many other places. When we vere having lunch along the beached the previous day I was dreading that Cinque Terre would be as crowded as that. In the evening we decided to drive to Portofino for dinner. We arrived there (along all these small narrow streets) around 7pm. Although Portofine if a nice place it doesn't beat the villages at Cinque Terre in beauty. The place is expensive in all respects and there isn't a lot of shops and restaurants, it is mainly fashion and expensive jewellery being sold there. Obviously catering for the Euripean rich who dock here in their expensive million dollar boats. We therefore decided to go back to the centre of Sestri Levante and have dinner here.
17. August 2009 10:27 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Pisa - A revisit three decades later 17. August 2009 10:27 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments TweetpisaShare When I was a child I spend a lot of summers with my parents in Italy. They used to work in the Northern part of Italy as travel guides and as a result we generally headed that way during the summer time with our caravan or with a tent. When I was a baby my parent took me to Pisa (I have to trust them I an don't remember) and also up into the leaning tower. Kim and I was planning to drive from Tuscany to the Italien Riviera and I asked Kim if it was ok to make a short stop at Pisa for me to have a look at the tower some 3X years later. Our Tom-Tom navigated us by the backway into the city and within a short timefra we were at the tower. We had a look for a parking spot and literally found a spot less than 100 metres from the tower (so far pretty fortunate with the parking). It was really cool to have a look at the tower. They have started allowing people to enter the tower again, but when we got there they next timeslot was 6pm in the evening (8 hours later) so we instead took some photos and bought some T shirts for Kims family. Of cause we had to take the classic photos of trying to straighten the tower. And a couple of nice ones And then there was the silly ones And then some photos from the beautiful architecture of the tower and the church next to it.
17. August 2009 10:26 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Tuscany 17. August 2009 10:26 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments TweettuscanyShareWhile Kim and I was in San Gemignano in Tuscany we spent a day just driving around in the beautiful landscape. Even though we just missed the harvest it was still really beautiful. It is full of all these rolling hills, Vineyards, Sunflower fields and old Italian houses. Driving was fun and I could easily have spent longer time just driving around there exploring small villages etc. I would love to go back there during spring when all the flowers are out and the fields have been planted.
17. August 2009 10:25 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Siena and one expensive dinner 17. August 2009 10:25 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments Tweetsiena and one expensive dinnerShareOn the first day in Tuscany we decided to drive into Siena and have a look around.Our first impression was that parking was going to be a problem. There was some large tourist carparks on the outside of the city walls changing an exorbant amount of money per hour. We were planning to have dinner in the city and was planning to be there for most of the day and eventually we found a spot in a parking area that didn't have any meters. There was some italian scribling underneath the sign and we hoped that it didn't say "Reserved for residents and permit holders".Anyway, eventually we made it inside the city walls and was met by 8 storeys of escalators from the walls to the innner city (You wouldn't want those fat Americans loosing any weight while on holiday).We went around to some of the tourist attractions and there was unbeliveable queues everywhere. We started queuing up to get into the large tower at the main square and for 30 minuted the queue didn't move. Eventually we gave up and couldn't be bothered.Instead we decided to wander around the city looking at the old buildings and at shops which is really nice.Siena is known for the annual horse race in the center of the city. It was amazing to look at the area and suddenly realise why the horses often go flying into the barriers when they get around the corners of the race course. The details of the houses is incredible. Everything is decorated. A metal spike is not just a skike any longer, but a instead formed into a dragon, a snake or a swan.In the evening we were going for dinner at an italian restaurant called 'Cane e Gato' (Kat and Dog). It was recommended to Kim by one of her colleagues who had also warned us that it was a bit on the pricey side.At the place we were staying I found a book about Tuscany where it said that the degustation was 50 Euros (Appx $95 AUD). When we arrived we were given no menu's or any price list. The girl (Who turned out to be the daughter of the owner, who himself was in the kitchen with his wife) showed us our table.We were told what was the degustation menu consisted of and got started. The food was quite nice...all ingredients that were in season from the surrounding country side. The pastas were home made and everything was very delicious.At the end Kim and I was discussing what the damage was...a bit of a surprise when we were presented with a bill of 175 Euros ($320 AUD). This was a bit more than we expected.Fortunately we didn't have a parking ticket when we got back to the car (This would have been the icing on the cake).Another late night finishing dinner after midnight and then 45 minutes drive back to San Gimignano.
17. August 2009 10:21 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Manhatten of the Medievil - San Gemignano 17. August 2009 10:21 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments Tweetsan gemignanoShareAfter Verona we drove to Tuscany to a small medievil town called San Gimignano. It is a very small town where in the medievil days they were competing who could build the most 'high-rises'. This means that today the town is full of all these tall towers (There used to be a lot more back in those days).The town is full of tourists during the daytime and at night the town is again taken over by the locals including the werewolves from the surrounding area.We were staying inside the old city walls, so for the most part we were safe except for the odd werewolf. They also have the world champion in Gelato...normally I don't belive marketing gimmick like this, but I must admit that the gelato was very nice.At night time once the tourists were gone it was an amazing place. The towers are rising into the night sky and I had a lot of fun taking photos of the towers just using the ambient light.
17. August 2009 10:18 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Verona and the Opera - Italy 17. August 2009 10:18 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments Tweetverona and the operaShareWe arrived to Milan in Italy from Copenhagen in the evening. The first thing we did after landing was to pick up our rental car which was a small Fiat Panda (Never, ever rent a large car in Italy...some streets only accomodate snall cars) and then drive to our Hotel. The Tom-Tom nagigator software on my mobile phone turned out to be exceptionally useful on our trip to find our way around. The next morning we drove towards Verona and at lunchtime we had a look at our map and noticed that we'd drive right past Lago di Gardia (Lake Garda). I asked Kim to plan a diversion somewhere for a lakeside lunch. She chose Sirmione which is a long peninsula on the southern side of the lake. I used to stay at Lake Garda with my parents when I was a kid. The water is bright blue and it is a beautiful place. We then continued to Verona early afternoon and found our bed and breakfast which is about a kilometer from the city centre. The road up there was very narrow and anything wider than the Panda would not have been able to get through. As soon as we had gotten settled we walked down into the city centre. We had opera tickets for Aida in the old coloseum in Verona in the evening, but had to first pick up the tickets. The tickets were quite pricey so we had chosen to get ticket on the upper stairs with almost everyone else. It meant that it was a bit less confortable and that we would have to enter early to get a good seat. But it also meant that we were sitting up higher which is better for taking photos. The performance was amazing. There was approximately 500 actors on stage (and 4 horses) and ther used about a quarter of the coloseum as the stage. It was a beautiful and warm night with a brightly lit full moon. The performance finished around 1am at night and from there we walked to one of the squares of Verona and had some coffee (Places were still open). The next morning we did a bit more exploration around Verona. Kim wanted to see the romantic balcony of Romeo and Juliet (Or Donald and Daffy Duck as I called them as they are just as real as the imaginary Romeo and Juliet) Since we were there we also had to rub the right breast of the Juliet statue there for good luck. In Daffy's house they also has a lot of interesting art work. Verona is an interesting city. They have a whale bone suspended from one of the gates...apparently the legend says that it will fall down upon the first 'Just' man who passes under it (and kills him??). Unfortunately (or fortunately) it didn't fall on neither Kim or I. The city is full of old buildings with interesting architecture
17. August 2009 10:13 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Rosenborg - Denmark 17. August 2009 10:13 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments Tweetcopenhagen denmarkShareOn the last day in Denmark our flight wasn't leaving from Copenhagen to Milan until early evening, we therefore decided to head into the capital a bit earlier in the day and spend a couple of hours sightseeing with my parents. We went to a place called Rosenborg (Rose Castle) which is where the Danish royals keep their crown jewels. It is also the place where they train the soldiers that protect the royals. Some of the jewels are absolutely stunning. There is lots of ivory, old weapons, saddles, gold etc. everything coverved with diamonds, perls, emeralds, rubys and other jewels. My mum and dad was waiting outside (half asleep) while we were inside looking at all the awsomeness.
17. August 2009 10:12 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Knuthenborg Zoo - Denmark 17. August 2009 10:12 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments Tweetknuthenborg zooShare While we were in Denmark we went to the local zoo called Knuthenborg. It was created by the owner of one of the big farms who had a vision to create one of Europes larges open air zoos. What is so special about this particular zoo is that you drive around amongst the animals and in certain areas are allowed to leave the car and interact with the animals. The first place we went was the monkey area. Here we were able to walk around some of the Lemurs (Half monkeys) from Madagascar. Driving around we also saw a number of other animals such as the asian water buffalo (which loves mud), zebras, Zobel Antelopes, Goats Kim even found a horse her own size We had a bit of fun with the camels. I don't know what they were thinking but they kept eating my hair and I think one of them was in love with me. They also have some more exotic animals there such as tigers and rhinos (The wouldn't allow us to get out of our car to pet these).
17. August 2009 10:11 by Rene Pallesen 0 Comments Medieval Centre in Denmark 17. August 2009 10:11 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments Tweetmidieval centreShare Not far from where my parent live there is an open air museum displaying how people lived in the medieval time which in Denmark was the late 14th century. For Kim and I it felt like we suddenly were a princess and a knight from that time. Besides from houses, ships and other buildings the place also displays various handicraft, weaponry and how people battles in those times. They have working Trebuchets there to throw massive stones (or dead animals and burning tar) accurately for distances of more than several hundred metres. Every day they show people how they work and hurl massive stones into the water. We tried some of the weapons. I used to be fairly alright with a bow and arrow when I was a kid. I tried the bow and arrow here and it was a total disaster. Obviously Kim went straigh for the shoes and the furs (I am not a fur person myself): They also had a knights tournament on while we were there. Two knights would fight using their lances which would shatter on the impact against the shields.