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22. August 2019 13:10
by Rene Pallesen
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Aiden - awards card

22. August 2019 13:10 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments

It is not often that Aiden gets an award for good work at school, but when he does, he is very proud.

10. August 2019 20:10
by Rene Pallesen
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Camping - Barrington Tops

10. August 2019 20:10 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments

Earlier in the year at Easter time we went camping up at Barrington Tops 5 hours drive north of Sydney.

It is a very tall mountain range with some excellent walks, rivers etc.

We had a great weekend with friends sitting around the fire roasting marshmellows, walking and canoeing.

23. July 2019 10:07
by Rene Pallesen
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Kyoto - Fushimi Inari Shrine

23. July 2019 10:07 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments

8. July 2019 12:07
by Rene Pallesen
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Karate - Boys getting their red belts

8. July 2019 12:07 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments

Fairly recently we started the boys on Karate.

We thought it would be a good activity for them to build strength, motor skills and discipline.

Especially Aiden is really enjoying it and putting in the hard work at home practicing. He has become stronger throughout the classes which is great. Before we started he had almost no core strength and now he is able to do sit-ups and pushups.

This weekend both Aiden and Lucas were pulled up for their first proper graduation from the white belts to the red belts and they both passed.

17. June 2019 20:06
by Rene Pallesen
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Bali - 2018

17. June 2019 20:06 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments

Photos from out trip to Bali with a couple of friends and kids.

2. April 2019 20:10
by Rene Pallesen
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Japan - Osaka aquarium

2. April 2019 20:10 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments

The Osaka aquarium is massive and very impressive. The centre piece is the massive tank in the middle with two large whale sharks and which is also full of other sharks such as hammerheads.

2. April 2019 20:10
by Rene Pallesen
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Japan - Dontonburi Osaka

2. April 2019 20:10 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments

Tontonburi is know as the chefs/kitchen area. Here you can buy everything needed for a japanese restaurant.

It is also full of actual restaurants and other oddities such as more exotic places. It has what is known as Osaka's best Ramen restaurant (the one with the long counter in the photos below) - and Yes, the Ramen was very good.

Here it is also possible to eat specialties such as the Puffa fish.

It was also one of the few places where I saw real Samurai swords for sale.

2. April 2019 20:10
by Rene Pallesen
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Japan - Osaka tower

2. April 2019 20:10 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments

Below the Osaka tower is a restaurant area with lots of yummi food.

The area was once a very modern part of Osaka, and worth a visit during the night.

2. April 2019 20:10
by Rene Pallesen
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Japan - Osaka Castle

2. April 2019 20:10 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments

Osaka castle is a beautiful multi story pagoda like castle inside these massive moats and ramparts with several layers of defense.

2. April 2019 18:10
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Japan - Toei Film Studio Osaka

2. April 2019 18:10 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments

In Osaka we went to the Toei Film Studio.

This is an area where they have filmed lots of traditional Japanese movies and where they have all the old houses and also some theaters.

It is also used as a bit of an entertainment and cultural area to teach the Japanese about their culture. Surprisingly we seemed to be the only foreign tourists there and it was definitely worth the visit even though we didn't understand a word of what they were saying.

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4. February 2018 22:02
by Rene Pallesen
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Pak Ou cave - Laos

4. February 2018 22:02 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments

A two hour boat ride north of Luang Prabang is the Pak Ou cave. Since we were traveling two families the best way to get there was to hire a slow boat just for us.

The flow boats are long narrow boats that are ideal for navigating the Mekong River. This part of the river is full of underwater rocks but the boats seem to navigate these treacherous waters with ease.

Having the boat for ourselves gave us more flexibility with regards to how long we wanted to spend at the cane and also meant that we have more room to move around.

The front of the boar is where the captain sits and steers the boat. After this there is a section for the passengers followed by a small pump toilet and then the living quarters for the captain and his family. Out the back there is a small kitchen for them to do the cooking.

The cave is upstream into an area full of limestone mountains.

The many boats moor at a long and wobbly floating bamboo bridge that takes you to the cave itself.

The cave itself is not big but it is full of small Buddhas that have been put there over hundreds of years. You can tell that this used to be an important place of worship.

Now however the place is so crowded with tourists (guilty here too) coming in on boats that it is hard to move around. I could not stop myself from taking this photo of Buddha holding up his hands to stop more boats arriving.

At the top of the hill the hill there is what I think is a more 'pleasant' cave. It is equally interesting and much less crowded because most tourists don's make it up the many steps to the top.

4. February 2018 16:03
by Rene Pallesen
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Lao Lau (rice whiskey) - Laos

4. February 2018 16:03 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments

The traditional Lao Lau is still being made. Just north of Luang Prabang on the river there is a little village on the river called Whiskey village whos main income is from the production of Lao Lau.

When I was there two decades ago this is what the locals were drinking (now they drink beer instead). I still remember the foul taste from the home brew that was distilled in large oil drums after having been fermented in large clay pots. Whenever I see it I always wonder if distilling strong alcohol right next to an open flame is the wisest of ideas!?!?

The process itself hasn't changed, but these days most of the whiskey is sold to tourists and I tastes a lot more pleasant that it did back then.

3. February 2018 15:03
by Rene Pallesen
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Food - Laos

3. February 2018 15:03 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments

The food in Laos is good. It is traditional cooking mostly still cooked over an open fire.

You see them start cooking the food well before sunrise in big pots.

The food itself is mostly a fusion of Thai and Vietnamese. It has all the noodle soups from Vietnam, but with the more street food and spice of Thailand. The picture below is a typical noodle soup with a traditional cube of coagulated blood.

We were eating a lot from small street type restaurants following the rule that is had to be popular with the locals. The logic behind this is that the locals would know what is good and would also be choosy regarding the quality of the food, so chances are that it would be fresh and not cause food poisoning (none of us or the kids had any issues on the trip).

There are some dubious food there, such as some of the meat BBQ where they sometimes have the meet cooked earlier on the side of the BBQ and then just re-heat it when you order it.

Also be careful with some of the food stalls where the food may have been sitting there for most of the day and often from the day before.

From a 'snack' perspective there are some personal favourites that I absolutely love such as the BBQ fried squid - the packet stuff is just not the same.

Also the Bamboo and coconut fried rice is delicious - they sell them at bus and train stations and especially the purple rice one is yummi!

The freshly made puffed breads over an open fire - they will use two rakes to flip them until they are done.

2. February 2018 00:02
by Rene Pallesen
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Temples - Laos

2. February 2018 00:02 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments

The temples in Luang Prabang are some of the most beautiful anywhere. Yes, Thailand has some amazing temples, but these are different. They are smaller, and more intricately decorated.

1. February 2018 23:02
by Rene Pallesen
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Luang Prabang - Laos

1. February 2018 23:02 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments

Luang Prabang is without a doubt the cultural highlight of Laos. The old part of the city is beautiful and there are good reasons why is has been heritage protected.

I believe it has the most beautiful temples of South East Asia - they are not the largest or even the oldest, but the amount of details that has been put into them is absolutely stunning.

In addition to this there are a lot of other very interesting things to see in and do in the city, which I will cover in later posts.

The city itself is situated between two rivers where one of them is the Mekong which is still fairly busy with slow boats and ferries (The chinese are building a large bridge across the river north of the city)

The section between the two rivers form the city itself which consist of four parallel streets each about a kilometer long.

Everything within the city itself can be covered on foot and in the evening the main streets are blocked for card and reserved for pedestrians.

The place is dominated by a big hill with a small temple and stuba on top. It is very popular with tourists to climb the hill around sunset. And there is a great view of the mountains from the top.

There are some things that have changed in the city since I was there the last time. The most noticeable is the amount of tourists and fine hotels - and here it is really the more wealthy middle aged Europeans you see. The main street of the old city is full of modern western European influenced restaurants, souvenir and antique stores.

Fortunately you don't have to travel further that to the parallel streets to fine more low key Laos places to eat.

Also, last time I visited, I stayed in a small guest house near the city centre called Tanoy Guest House. When I stayed here I became good friends with the family and the place was named after the oldest daughter who's name was Tanoy.

The place is still there and apart from a larger fence it looks pretty much unchanged.

29. January 2018 21:01
by Rene Pallesen
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The War - Laos

29. January 2018 21:01 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments

The 'secret' war in the 60's and 70's had a major impact on the country. A massive amount of bombs were dropped by mostly the Americans in mostly the Northern and Eastern part of the country. This was partly an internal civil war but also to stop the North Vietnamese using the country as a supply route.

To get an insight into this was I can highly recommend the books by Christoper Robbins called 'The Ravens' and 'Air America'.

The impact today is that un-exploded ordnance (mines, cluster bombs etc.) is covering large parts of the country and that every year lots of people including children gets injured or killed.

It is also very noticable, especially in the Hmong villages that there is no presence of old men. This is because most of these were killed either during the war where especially they took heavy casualties despite the American support or through 'education' camps after the war.

Last time I went to Laos I went to Plains of Jars which was one of the most heavily bombed areas and the debris was everywhere. We weren't going there on this trip, but to give the family and friends an insight into the history and the dangers to present people we visited the COPE organisation in Vientiane.

Here is Aiden in front of an unexploded (disarmed) clusterbomb. Looks just like a ball and tempting for kids to play with.

These were dropped from canisters on aircraft with several hundred in each load. It is estimated that 1/3 of these didn't explode on impact.

This map shows the areas most effected.

If you look for the bombs they you see them everywhere - mostly disarmed and used as fence posts.

There is also remains of anti aircraft guns such as this one in Luang Prabang. The barrel had been removed but everything else still worked on it and they could turn it by rotating the handles, much to the amusement of the kids. During the war kids only a little older than our kids would have been fighting at the front lines.

18. January 2018 19:01
by Rene Pallesen
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Ally J Wilkinson

18. January 2018 19:01 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments

Model: Ally J Wilkinson

16. January 2018 21:03
by Rene Pallesen
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People - Laos

16. January 2018 21:03 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments

One thing that I love taking photos of on my travels are People.

A lot of the photos of the people of my travels are in the other posts, but here is a selection that didn't really fit into the other stories.

This is an old woman sitting doing preparing food or doing her handicraft outside her house while observing the street life.

Someone was shooting a wedding, I used the opportunity to snap a photo of my own.

A woman bathing in the Mekong

A girl posing for her boyfriend on top of the hill at Luang Prabang

A woman walking down the street

Another woman doing handicraft outside her shop

12. January 2018 00:02
by Rene Pallesen
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Fishing - Laos

12. January 2018 00:02 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments

The fishing along the rivers in Laos are still very traditional.

It is the circular throw out nets, fish traps and people foraging along the river banks to collect river seaweed and snails for eating.

In most places they still use dugout canoes for the fishing.

In the various town you see people sitting repairing their fishing nets.

Kim told us that when she was a little girl she used to help the family repair the fishing nets, but that she's forgotten how to do it.

One of the delicacies in Loang Prabang is the local riverweed. We saw multiple people collecting it and also sitting cleaning it.

11. January 2018 19:01
by Rene Pallesen
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Vang Vieng - Kids highlights

11. January 2018 19:01 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments

Some of the other highlights for the kids in Vang Vieng was the gym at our hotel. The local guys used it to train for kick boxing and the kids felt inspired.

Also, one evening we spotted someone launching wishing lanterns. We asked where they came from and through a lot of pointing we found a local shop keeper selling them.

We bought one and launched it an the kids loved the experience.

Also, one of the trees at the hotel had two little monkeys staying there most of the day. The kids loved standing there shouting profanities at them.

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14. November 2004 02:02
by Rene Pallesen
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Nile Cruise

14. November 2004 02:02 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments

14. November 2004 01:59
by Rene Pallesen
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An Egyptian Perfumery

14. November 2004 01:59 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments

14. November 2004 01:58
by Rene Pallesen
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The Unfinished Obelisk

14. November 2004 01:58 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments

14. November 2004 01:54
by Rene Pallesen
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Memphis - the Ancient Capital of Egypt

14. November 2004 01:54 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments

14. November 2004 01:52
by Rene Pallesen
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Kom Ombo's Temple - Dedicated to Horus & Sobek, the Crocodile God

14. November 2004 01:52 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments

14. November 2004 01:51
by Rene Pallesen
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Valley of the Kings

14. November 2004 01:51 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments

14. November 2004 01:49
by Rene Pallesen
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Karnak - "the Most Perfect of Places" - Part 4

14. November 2004 01:49 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments

14. November 2004 01:49
by Rene Pallesen
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Karnak - "the Most Perfect of Places" - Part 3

14. November 2004 01:49 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments

14. November 2004 01:47
by Rene Pallesen
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Karnak - "the Most Perfect of Places" - Part 2

14. November 2004 01:47 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments

14. November 2004 01:45
by Rene Pallesen
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Temple of Horus - the Most Complete of Its Kind Part 4

14. November 2004 01:45 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments

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21. August 2012 12:03
by Rene Pallesen
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The Entrance 2012

21. August 2012 12:03 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments

This weekend we went with the family up to the Entrance 150km North of Sydney.

We stayed at a small resort in the middle of The Entrance close to the water and restaurants.

When we arrived on the Friday night it was really windy and cold...I had left behind my jacket in Sydney rushing out the door but fortunately I had enough jumpers to still stay warm.

We were staying close to the bridge across the Entrance and underneath the bridge there were some nice lines that I quickly rushed out to capture before sunset.

Next day we spend around the local area looking at the market, playground etc.

In the afternoon there was pelican feeding which definitely was worth seeing.

One of the birds had a fish hook stuck in its neck and the feeders quickly caught it to try and pull it out.

They also have this insanely long jetty going into the lake. I wanted to do a sunset photo but the conditions weren't great...no spectacular clouds and the water was full of seaweed that had been blown in with the wind.

21. August 2012 10:14
by Rene Pallesen
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Norah Head Lighthouse and Milky Way 2012

21. August 2012 10:14 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments

During the day at the Entrance we made a quick trip up to Norah Head light house to scope it out.

Later that evening I headed up there in the dark to take some star photos.

The conditions were perfect with the Milky way clearly visible and I good some great shots. Here is one pretty much straight out of the camera that requires just a little more processing.

As I walked from the gate to the lighthouse (about 700 metres in pitch darkness) with my torch all hell broke loose suddenly when I rounded a corner.

I heard people scrambling in all directions through the bushes falling over branches. I used my torch to have a look and saw these 6-7 kids running away...obviously they were sitting there smoking weed and got a freight.

Later in the evening they walked past me as I was taking photos and one of them said 'Man, you gave us a freight...we thought you were a cop'!

15. August 2012 03:13
by Rene Pallesen
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Cherry Blossom Season

15. August 2012 03:13 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments

The Cherry Blossom season is about to start here in Sydney (does that mean spring is here) and the first flowers are out. Yesterday I brought my camera along when picking up Aiden from daycare and managed to take a couple of photo along the way.

I may try and take some more photos over the next week or so. Kim mentioned that she would like to hang one of the photos on the wall.

We are in the process of doing some large prints...I have already ordered the first one which is a glass print which should arrive next month.

8. August 2012 10:12
by Rene Pallesen
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Love the new camera

8. August 2012 10:12 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments

I love the new camera...it performed abosolutely amazing on the weekend when I did a photoshoot with the family. The 36 Megapixels mean that every detail such as pores in the skin, hairs etc. is visible and sharp.

This photo below shows one of the photos of Chong and Emma zoomed in at 100 percent..the small photo on the left shows the original photo.

8. August 2012 08:37
by Rene Pallesen
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Emma

8. August 2012 08:37 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments

A couple of months ago Chong and KC had a new addition to their family.

Last week they asked me if I'd take some photos for them. It was a good chance for me to have a play with the new camera as well as some light setups.

Emma was very good and only had one 'accident'.

It was also a good practice session for when our next addition arrives in a couple of months.

I love the new camera, the details are absolutely amazing in the studio and the autofocus is accurate now after I had it fixed by Nikon.

31. July 2012 10:06
by Rene Pallesen
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Satellite Tracking Facility

31. July 2012 10:06 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments

Yesterday I went to a work conference where at the end of the day they offered us to do some site visits.

I was fortunate enough to visit the satellite tracking facility in the Northern part of Sydney. The company I work for owns a number of satellites (at a cost of around $400 million each) and they will be launching their 10th satellite later this year...the 'O10'.

This photo is from the control room where they look after all the locations, transponders and media broadcasts from the satellites.

It was interesting to be able to see the raw/unedited broadcasts from areas such as the London Olympics, the conflict in Syria etc.

The actual electronics was equally impressive.

I even found the box that currently is receiving all the media broadcasts from the 2012 London Olympics.

This is the Satelite Dish controller...On the display you can see the current position of the dish (and from that you could probably calculate the location of the actual satellite).

Outside was the array of dishes.

Most of the satellites are being launched from French Guyana by the European space agency.

30. July 2012 07:34
by Rene Pallesen
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Big Birthday

30. July 2012 07:34 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments

A couple of days ago it was my birthday...I wish it was my 27th...but it wasn't!

Kim took me out for dinner on the day itself to a nice place at Circular Quay...very nice, but absolutely freezing and windy in there.

Day after we went out for dinner with the family to a Japanese restaurant and they ordered a shameful amount of food!

After the dinner we went back to our place for cake.

15. July 2012 12:26
by Rene Pallesen
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Thomas Trains and Warragamba Dam

15. July 2012 12:26 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments

Aiden is a big fan of the Thomas Trains, so a few weeks ago when Kim saw some vouchers for the Train Shed she bought some tickets.

This morning we went out there with the whole family to go riding on the trains. Aiden was very excited...to the point where he didn't want to get off the train.

The kids had 5 rides each and they also had lunch and scones provided for us.

Aiden had to check out anything that remotely looked like a train (looks like he is taking a wee here).

It was also a good day to try out the new camera (just came back after 5 weeks in the repair shop for recalibration). Kim was using it most of the day and said she loves it compared to my old camera.

On the way in I had seen a signpost towards the Warragamba Dam. This is where 80-90 percent of Sydneys drinking water supply comes from.

8. July 2012 10:57
by Rene Pallesen
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Duck feeding at Centenial Park

8. July 2012 10:57 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments

This morning it was a beautiful winter day here in Sydney and we decided therefore to go duck feeding in Centenial Park with Aiden and Dylan (I was supposed to have been doing a course, but it was cancelled).

Aiden eventually figured out that it was fun to tear off small pieces of bread and throw it in the water for the ducks and swans to eat.

I showed him how to hand feed the big swans with a flat hand, but he still didn't like them much...and even less so when one of them stole his bread after sneaking in from behind.

Stupid Swan!!!!

But eventually the swan apologised and he was happy to feed the smaller birds.

Also the pond is full of fat eels (and on one occation I have seen turtles there). Some of them would surface to try and steal the bread from the ducks.

10. June 2012 09:37
by Rene Pallesen
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Emily's birthday party

10. June 2012 09:37 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments

Yesterday we went to Emily's birthday party in Centennial park. We were there on time at 10.30 on a very cold morning (it had been 7 degrees overnight) but there was no-one else there...the host and the birthday child turned up two hours later (I cannot stand people who consistently have no respect for other people time).

We had brought Aiden tri-cycle that he got as a birthday present from his grandma last year.

We also spend some time exploring the forest next to the playground.

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11. November 2022 17:12
by Rene Pallesen
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Germany

11. November 2022 17:12 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments

While visiting my dad we made a daytrip to Burg in Germany. It is a short ferry ride.

10. November 2022 17:12
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Denmark - Ailu

10. November 2022 17:12 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments

The boys joined a naming ceremony of my dads boat. It is named 'AILU' after AIden and LUcas.

9. November 2022 17:12
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Denmark - Cemetry

9. November 2022 17:12 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments

We went past the Cemetry to where my Brother and Mum (Aiden and Lucas' Uncle and Grandmother) is burried.

While there we also say all the other ancestors on my Mum's side of the family back to Aiden and Lucas' Great-Great-Great-Great Grandmother and Grandfather.

8. November 2022 17:12
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Denmark - Tivoli

8. November 2022 17:12 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments

One day in Denmark we went to Tivoli to see the christmas show.

Lucas got a ride pass so that he could jump on whatever ride he wanted, and Aiden was happy cheering.

We also saw the 'real' santa (Julemanden) and went past the Lego store.

7. November 2022 17:12
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Denmark - Snow

7. November 2022 17:12 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments

While in Denmark it was snowing for a couple of days. The boys love playing with it.

7. November 2022 17:12
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Denmark - Little Mermaid and Queen

7. November 2022 17:12 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments

On the first day after arriving we went past the little mermaid from HC Andersens story and also past the residence of the queen, Prince Frederik and Princess Mary.

7. November 2022 17:12
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Denmark - Dads 80th birthday

7. November 2022 17:12 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments

This year it was my dad's 80th Birthday. I took the boys back to Denmark to celebrate with him. Aiden has been once before when he was 1yo, and it was Lucas' first time.

This lady used to be my dads babysitter when he was just born (she is 92yo)

30. October 2022 16:12
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Soccer 2022

30. October 2022 16:12 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments

Both Aiden and Lucas were playing soccer again this winter.

Especially Lucas is starting to get pretty good when he gets 'hungry' to take the ball.

30. July 2022 17:12
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Skiing Thredbo 2022

30. July 2022 17:12 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments

This year we took the boys skiing for the first time. They had been practicing their roller blades at home to get used to the motion, so it was a bit easier to get them started on the snow. It was the first time for the boys to see real snow.

We went with another family and stayed at Thredbo.

It also happened to be on my fiftieth.

13. July 2022 15:07
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Karate in Brisbane

13. July 2022 15:07 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments

In mid July the instructors of the Sydney dojo planned to visit the Brisbane dojo. They encouraged me to come along as I will be up for the next big grading soon and it would be a great introduction to some of the best instructors and karateka's in the country.

I also found the official lineage of our style listed on one of the boards.

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18. March 2014 12:03
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Aiden pedalling his bike

18. March 2014 12:03 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments

The other day Aiden figured out how to pedal his big bike (with support wheels).

He was very proud and keen to get out riding.

18. March 2014 12:03
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Playing at the park

18. March 2014 12:03 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments

The other day we went to the park to play with the kids.

I brought the camera along to take a few shots of Lucas on the swing.

He was so tired that he almost fell asleep on the swing.

I also managed to get a couple of great photos of Aiden.

20. February 2014 12:13
by Rene Pallesen
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Super hero

20. February 2014 12:13 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments

The other day Aiden came back from daycare with face paint around his eyes proudly saying that he was a super hero.

19. February 2014 06:37
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Serenpidity canyon

19. February 2014 06:37 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments

Last 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
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Baking bread - Sourdough

10. February 2014 12:13 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments

For 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
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Emmas Babtism

6. February 2014 04:26 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments

Emma was baptised this weekend at the local church. Fastest ever...the priest was speed reading!

6. February 2014 04:24
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Chinese New Year 2014

6. February 2014 04:24 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments

The 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
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Aiden pedalling his tricycle

6. February 2014 04:19 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments

Aiden 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
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Baking bread - Walnut and Fig bread

6. February 2014 04:02 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments

At 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
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Hunter Valley Gardens light show.

23. January 2014 12:39 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments

Every 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.

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21. December 2020 13:03
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School award

21. December 2020 13:03 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments

It is not often gets an award from school, so he is super proud when he gets a little encouragement.

16. September 2020 16:05
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Pool and Beach Photoshoot

16. September 2020 16:05 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments

At Boracay I did another shoot with some beautiful models. It was a fun shoot on the beautiful beach and at the hotel pool.

26. July 2020 10:07
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Gold Coast 2020

26. July 2020 10:07 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments

Early in the year we made an extended weekend trip to the Gold Coast in Queensland. Main attraction here was for the boys to visit Movieworld and Seaworld.

19. July 2020 13:07
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Indoor boudoir with Kateriina

19. July 2020 13:07 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments

These photo are from a workshop I did with Kateriina as a model.

It was mainly studio with fixed (hot) lights instead of strobes which I am more used to.

Advantage of the fixed lights in a workshop setting is that it is easier to see what the light is like before taking the photo as well as having multiple photographers shooting at the same time.

21. June 2020 17:03
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Aidens 10th Birthday

21. June 2020 17:03 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments

Aidens birthday was during the covid lock down.

Fortunately we were still allowed to have a couple of his school friends over for a little celebration (his school was still open anyhow).

We decided to have it in the garden with a fire pit with roasted marshmellows, sparklers followed by cake.

5. March 2020 20:03
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Shooting - 800m range

5. March 2020 20:03 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments

Recently I had the chance to visit the shooting range at Malabar headland with a group of friends.

I used to do a lot of shooting in my younger days, so I was curious to see if I still had it in me.

On this day we were shooting on the 800 meter range (which is a very long distance) with 7.62 NATO rounds.

The distance means that you cannot see where you hit, so they have an electronic readout next to the shooter. The two circles in the middle are about 25cm in diameter at the far end.

Below is the group of shots from my round.

This photo gives a better idea of the distance we were shooting at (It was also a very windy day)

Apparently I shot the best round of the day including the regulars...

Conclusion is that, yes, still got it and I may pick it up as a regular activity some time in the future.

20. October 2019 19:10
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Boracay Phillipines

20. October 2019 19:10 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments

With Kim having a few weeks gap between jobs and badly needing a break she wanted to go somewhere relaxing and where the water and weather would be warm.

After a bit of research we settled on a week to the Phillipines to an island called Boracay.

This is a small island with the most beautiful beach we have seen anywhere outside of Bora Bora (interesting that both have the name 'Bora').

The boys (and adults) managed to get a mighty sunburn already on the first day.

The island also has the most amazing sunsets at the beach.

Also lots of activity on the beach in the evenings whereas during the day is is mostly empty.

We stayed in a large resort built around a golf course. It had seven swimming pools and we spend a lot of time here relaxing with the boys and sipping cocktails.

It was really nice in the evenings to sit in a bar listening to cruisy music. Most of the restaurants and bars would have live entertainers on in the evenings.

One day we went on a snorkeling trip around the island. The boys are well accustomed to snorkeling now and love it. Unfortunately I didn't bring an underwater housing on the trip, but I can say that the coral reef looks to be in a good shape although a lot of the larger schools of fish and large predatory fish seems to be scarce.

We also did a day trip to the main island where we went through one of the local caves.

The cave was full of little bats and also had other creatures that were attracted to the bats and insects such as a snake and spiders I've never seen before.

We even spotted a large hermit crab (size of a hand).

We also went to a local river where there was waterfalls and also rafts for the boys to have a play with.

The food in general was pretty good although we only tried a couple of local dishes (Phillipines is not famous for its food). Especially some of the seafood was really nice.

The way we got around the island was on these small tricycles. There are two types, the old ones pulled by a small moterbike and then the new ones which are all electric. The government wants to have all the old ones off the roads by 2024 which is very sensible both environmentally and economically as even the locals say that they make more money on the new ones.

The main road however is horrendous. In late 2018 the island was closed for 6 months to any visitors due to them sorting out a lot of issues with the sewage system. This means that they have dug up the entire road to install large pipes along with a road widening. A lot of this was still ongoing with the main road being full of holes, but given that it is such a small place it was alright to still get around.

10. October 2019 20:10
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Karate

10. October 2019 20:10 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments

This year the boys started doing Karate.

It was something that I've always wanted do do with them, so we looked around for a place where initially they could join some kids classes and then along the way I'd join as well.

Initially they got their red and white stripe belts (automatically)

And then later they went up for grading to get their Red belts.

They love training with some of the equipment that we have at home for it.

Late in the year I joined as well once the sensei established some adult classes and I have now after 20 years (I did a bit of karate back in 1998) finally received my Red belt.

Even Kim has taken a couple of classes - maybe she will even grade on of these days.

1. October 2019 20:10
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Aiden Holy Communion

1. October 2019 20:10 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments

Aiden as part of his school had to do his holy communion.

He looked very handsome in his little suit.

10. September 2019 21:10
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Canoeing with family at Royal national Park

10. September 2019 21:10 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments

One weekend we went to the Royal National Park (half an hour south) to go canoeing with the Family.

It was a fun day out and fortunately we can still fit the boys into a single canoe unlike Chong who had to get a rowing boat for his family - they are a lot harder work.

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14. November 2004 01:00
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Bedstemor's 85th Birthday Fest

14. November 2004 01:00 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments

19. March 2004 12:55
by Rene Pallesen
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Egypt 2004

19. March 2004 12:55 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments

This year it was my Grandmothers 85th Birthday. As per the tradition the whole family went on a trip overseas, this time to Egypt.

It was my first time to Egypt so it was a different experience. I can recommend that you take a read of the Travel Journal by clicking here!

Click here to see more photos from: Egypt 2004/Slideshow/Travel Journal

19. March 2004 12:48
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Canada 2004

19. March 2004 12:48 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments

2004 was the year I started working for Captaris. One of the first things I did was to visit our office in Calgary to learn about our workflow product.

My visit coincided with the Calgary Stampede, so lots of cowboys in town, indians and rodeos. I also too a bus ride up through the Canadian rockies through Banff, Lake Louise and up to the Columbian Ice Fields.

Click here to see more photos from: Canada 2004/Slideshow

19. March 2004 12:24
by Rene Pallesen
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Anti War Demonstrations 2004

19. March 2004 12:24 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments

In 2004 Australia was being drawn into the war in Iraq. A lot of Australians were opposed to the war, but the politicians wouldn't listen.

On a nice sunny day several hundred thousand people gathered around Hyde park in the middle of the city to demonstrate and express their opinions against Australia entering into the war.

I was of the belief that the war was a mistake in the first place and was totally unjustified, so I was decided to join the demonstrations and at the same time see if I could take a few photos.

Click here to see more photos from: The 2004 Anti War demonstrations/Slideshow

27. March 2003 10:56
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Mia is born

27. March 2003 10:56 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments

Andy and Tink had their first baby...a little (and very hairy) girl names Mia.

This was also one of those periods where I was checking out what it would be like to have a beard.

27. March 2003 10:50
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Granddad passes away

27. March 2003 10:50 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments

My grandad passed away in 2003.

He was getting old and was getting tired of living so he decided to end it.

27. March 2003 10:47
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Botany Bay

27. March 2003 10:47 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments

With EDI I went on a field trip to visit one of the big containerships in Botany Bay.

It was facinating to see the size of those ships.

27. March 2003 10:38
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Thailand 2003

27. March 2003 10:38 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments

I celebrated Christmas and New Year with my parents in Thailand.

We spent the time in the Northern Part of Thailand in the Golden Triangle around Chiang Mai and Chiang Rai.

We rented a car for a couple of days and got to see a lot including all the hill tribes that still to this day live in this part of Thailand.

Click here to see more photos from: Thailand/Slideshow

27. March 2003 10:29
by Rene Pallesen
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Kenneths Wedding

27. March 2003 10:29 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments

In 2003 Kenneth got married to Anica. I was asked to be the best man by Kenneth.

The wedding took place at a homestead in Sofala three hours drive west of Sydney.

It was a wonderful weekend surrounded by wonderful people.

Click here to see more photos from: Kenneths Wedding/Slideshow

22. March 2003 12:56
by Rene Pallesen
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Old Contents

22. March 2003 12:56 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments

Contents . . .

My photo collection is vast. Many of them are in my albums, others scanned as images here. I have tried to include the best of the best, and will keep doing so. Feel free to explore any of the links - it make take some time to peruse them all...

( We recommend viewing of the photos through MS Explorer )

blue line

AUSTRALIA - HOME

Cockatoos at Home	Narrabeen Beach	New car	My Jobs

MY FAMILY

Grandmother's 85th	Grandmother's 80th	Donkey Day Out	My Brother Claus	My Father

2001

New Zealand (Mt Cook)	South-East Asia

2000

Chilli Festival	Ecochallenge Borneo (Sabah)	Sydney Olympics

1999

Thailand (Bangkok)	Laos	Morocco

1998

Port Macquarie	Pete's Bite	New Zealand (Sth Island)	Denmark

Created: 11 Aug 2001 Last Updated: 21-jan-05

Perfect Moments Photography | A Rene Pallesen Journal

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26. December 2020 16:12
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Christmas Photo 2020

26. December 2020 16:12 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments

Keeping with tradition we did another family photoshoot this year.

This time we wanted to try something a bit more ambitious with a boxed setup where the individual boxes tell a bit more of a story.

I couldn't find an existing box that was big enough to fit me as well as the boys together, so I had to build one myself. I decided on the dimensions 90x90cm (as this was one of the dimensions that I could buy and also transport). I then had to cut it, paint it and nail it together. I had to do all this inside the house as the box is too big to fit through a door.

26. December 2020 14:03
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New bikes

26. December 2020 14:03 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments

For Christmas the boys got new bikes from us and my dad (bedstefar).

The old were getting too small, so needed something bigger....

22. December 2020 01:03
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Bowling

22. December 2020 01:03 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments

One day we went playing bowling...I had a dream round where I played my best game ever (including a turkey - three strikes in a row).

22. December 2020 01:03
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Boys Soccer

22. December 2020 01:03 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments

This year both the boys played soccer for the first time.

They made some good friends while playing and did pretty good considering it was the first time.

Lucas' team won the competition in his age group. Aiden made a great effort considering he is a head shorter than all the other boys in his age group.

22. December 2020 01:03
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Kims dads 90th

22. December 2020 01:03 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments

Kims dad celebrated his 90th(we think) Birthday this year.

He is mostly bedridden these days, but we managed to get him downstairs to celebrate on this day.

22. December 2020 01:03
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Painting - date night

22. December 2020 01:03 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments

One evening we were invited on a double date with one of Kims friends.

The theme was painting and we were to make an abstract painting of eachother.

Next day the boys tried to draw their versions.

22. December 2020 00:03
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Various kids activities

22. December 2020 00:03 by Rene Pallesen | 0 Comments

Strange year indeed, and other than a few things, it is remarkably the same.

The kids have still done a lot of activities and here are some of them.

Aiden hanging out with his friend Jake at the beach.

Mini golf with Sammi.

Doing puzzles at home.

Aiden had patience to do one of the simpler ones.

Me trying to teach them how to use photoshop...not a bad result for a first try.

Painting the old way.

One of Aidens favourite drawings. It got soaked by accident and he was absolutely devastated. I managed to rescue it somewhat and take this photo.

He went through a phase where he was obsessed with the Titanic.

He was also into Harry Potter and made a drawing of the sorting hat.

I took Aiden out for a run and he did 4.5km without a break...very proud.

Ice skating with friends

Backyard tennis

Ice cream

Karate - Lucas got to wear a black belt after doing a 3 minute plank.

Their Kumite (sparring) gear.

Aiden reading a bit. Reading is really difficult for him. He can read all the words and sentences perfectly, but it is hard for him to comprehend the stories he reads (almost like he is unable to visualise and imagine the story as he reads it.).