Sicilian siesta

Sicily turned out to be full of good food,
sunshine and mountains.
There was also a totally different pace of life
with everything stopping for several hours
in the middle of the day.
Saturday saw us arriving in this little
mountain village right in the middle of the
day. The streets were deserted, pretty,
as you can see but deserted nonetheless.
After a walk to enjoy the view and take
some photos we were hungrily returning
to the car to push on in search of food
elsewhere when we found an open bar
which made us tasty sandwiches to go
with our bright green apple juice.

Tea for two?

This must be the biggest sharing pudding platter I have
ever been presented with! There were four of us but
imagine if you had ordered it between two of you!
In the interests of wholeheartedly abandonning any
attempts at healthy eating I had preceded this with
fish & chips- good job we walked up that steep hill
the day before.

Torquay Travels

After our trip to the USA we had one weekend
at home and then it was time to head off again
this time west to Torquay to visit K.
Saturday was unexpectedly mild with Torquay
living up to its reputation as the English Riviera
so we headed to the beach via this slightly unusual
form of transport. We walked back up the
extremely steep hill realising why most people opt
for return tickets!

Sunset

One last glorious sunset as our trip came to an end. This one
in Tucson, Arizona in the Saguarro National Park.
After this we turned back north towards Phoenix, Kingman
and eventually Vegas and our flight home.

Back to winter weather and indoor pursuits as we wait for
Spring to reach the UK.

Colour

What colour do you think of when you hear the word desert?

Not purple and green - I'm willing to bet yet these are often
the colours of desert plants, contrasting beautifully with
the dusty backdrop in which they grow.

Could be a good colour scheme for a new look lounge maybe?
Pictures here if it works out.

Shape

Huge Fred Flintstone style rocks are another
feature of Joshua Tree. Many walks come with
the warning "some scrambling required" - no
warnings about squeezing through small spaces
though!

Texture

Leaving Death Valley we headed south to Joshua Tree
National Park where we saw amazing plants growing
in the High Desert conditions there.
These Cholla cactus look almost furry in the picture
but signs warn you not to touch as they are in fact
covered in spiky spines which detach from the plant
and attach to anything that touches them.
Apparently they are not easy to remove!

Freedom!

Oh the bliss of the first chance of the year to discard the
cosy socks and the furry boots and feel the sand between
your bare toes!
Firmly back in the world of socks & boots now we are home
but it was fun while it lasted and we are heading to Sicily for
a few days soon to visit A so maybe there will be another
outing for my toes.

Red sky at night Shepherd's delight

Sunset in the desert throws up a whole set of different
colours to those we see at home.
This shot reminds me of the phrase "sky-blue-pink"
There were quite a few people gathered on the sand dunes
to watch the sun go down but hardly anyone waited to see
the sky slowly change through shades of pink and red
before yielding to darkness.
Sunset is a time for patience as the best colours invariably
come after the sun has dipped below the horizon.

Monday Morning Blues

The pool at Furnace Creek in Death Valley
is fed by warm springs making it warm
all the year round.
This was the last day of January, the
sun was shining (77degrees) the pool was
warm (and quiet) it felt as far removed
from a typical UK Monday morning as it's
possible to be.
Bliss!

Sunrise over salt flats

One of the highlight of being in the desert is, as
I have said before watching the sunrise and the
sunset.
Not being a morning person, getting up earlier
than I would on a work day while on holiday
seems at first a complete non-starter.
However, on a winter holiday there are
compensations: One: sunrise is later
Two: there are less people around so the
whole experience of watching the sunrise
and the landscape transform is even more
magical. Three: The reward of a cooked
breakfast on your return is even more
appealing!

Fading fast

Sunset as we walked down from Natural Bridge.
One of the best things at Death Valley is the
sunset and the sunrise, it is definitely worth
making sure you are in good spots to enjoy
these while in the Park.
Clouds had blown over on this afternoon so
the sunset was over quickly - still beautiful
though lokks more like a painting than a
photo in some ways.
Gives me a sense of calm just looking back
at the photos. Beautiful.

First Impressions

First impressions are always important creating
a sense of expectancy sometimes good sometimes
not so good.
This is the Dante's view near the entrance to
Death Valley National Park. The white on the ground
is not water or snow but salt!
From Dante's view you can walk along the ridge
formed by the mountain peaks - about 5,000 feet
up I think with stunning views however long or short
your walk.
This view gives a sense of how vast and empty this
particular National Park is and conjures up for me
that feeling of anticipation at the start of a road trip.
Definitely a great first impression.

Snowy Scotland

This was the view from our hire car window
on Saturday morning. N. had to borrow a
shovel from the Travelodge and dig us out
of the car park - didn't look as if we would
be going further than the nearby breakfast
cafe.
However having lived in the south of England
for the last twenty years we had forgotten the
efficiency of the Scots when it comes to snow.
Roads had all been cleared and we were able to
drive North with no problems and some picture
postcard scenery to admire.

Sunshine in Savannah

Savannah was our last stop before returning to Atlanta to fly home- just in time before the volcanic ash cloud temporarily closed the skies.

Savannah is criss-crossed with leafy squares like this one each one surrounded by beautiful old houses making for a delightful walk around the city.

The magic lives on

The southernmost point of our trip was Orlando which of course meant a trip to The Magic Kingdom first visited many years ago when our (now grown up) children were small.

Still magic!

We arrived in time for lunch and managed to fit in thirteen rides, two parades, a firework display & dinner with this as our view :)

Ochlockonee

Ochlockonee

Ochlockonee River Nature Trail stunning walk through the woods and along the river bank - literally no one else was walking this beautiful trail - so quiet that when we got back to our lonely car in the carpark the deer grazing there simply looked up unconcerned and then continued grazing.

Perfect Pensacola

Beaches don't come much better than this! Pensacola was the first stop on our recent trip round the North of Florida and what a treat after the seemingly endless cold days of this winter to wake up and have this beach right outside your window. BLISS!

Perfect for evening walks, shell collecting and mornings lazing in the sun.