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Fuerteventura, eastern Canaries

Wednesday, December 28th, 2005

8 Dec – 10 Dec, 2005

Before writing about individual expeniences, we should point out in advance, that we had received mixed messages about the Canary Islands. While some seasoned travellers told us to avoid them and were horrified we were going (yes, Luregn, you in particular 😉 ), others told us to research thoroughly and choose our islands carefully, thus avoiding the commercialism and tourist build up to some degree. I don’t think it is possible to avoid the resorts, package tourists, theme parks, and other assosciated consequences entirely, but we hope that we do well.

Fuerteventura. An eastern island of the Canaries. Desolate and bare, but by no means unattractive. We stayed in the town of Puerto Del Rosario, and day tripped with a hire car. Some nice views and landscapes, some nice beaches (although a little cold and not really beach weather). A few beautiful old windmills dotting the interior. Lots of goats, both live and in our lunch. Excellent cheese (goats cheese, of course). However, Fuerteventura was really just a stepping stone, before going on to Lanzarote. Hence, our short whip around of a couple of days.

Windmill, Fuerteventura

Fuerteventura

Independent traveller impressions, 1, after Fuerteventura: Well, the resorts along the eastern coast are ugly and boxy. We avoided them, at ground level, but had to “admire” them from the air as the final airport approach was along the coast. Particularly set against the stark and arid landscape that is Fuerteventura – almost treeless, giving no vegetation for the boxes to hide amongst. Puerto Del Rosario, though, gets the independent thumbs up (although not so many sights). Getting a car and getting about was easy. No bus groups encountered, only lots of other people doing it themselves in hire cars.

Berlin

Thursday, November 24th, 2005

20 Nov – 24 Nov, 2005

What an amazing city Berlin is. Third time here, and we could still entertain ourselves so easily, with dozens of things left for another time. Some were new sites, some were things we have not got around to in previous visits, and some were things that we could not help but see again.

Highlight sites for this time round: controversial, yet amazingly powerful, recently opened Holocaust Memorial; fantastic exhibition at the Guggenheim; the glass addition atop the revamped Reichstag; Russian war memorial at Treptower park; the Berlin Wall Documentation Centre.

We stayed with Sonja, a friend we met in Argentina. And we also managed to catch up with Sharon, a friend from church from Melbourne, currently in her third year living in Berlin.

Holocaust Memorial, Berlin
Holocaust Memorial

Reichstag, Berlin
Reichstag

Beer and coffee with Sharon
Coffee and familiar looking beer, with Sharon

Turjikistan tea house, Berlin
At the Turjikistan Tea House, with Sonja

Mitfahring to Landau

Saturday, November 12th, 2005
11 Nov - 12 Nov, 2005 Back with Sebb, the guy from the surprise party back near the start of the month. This time, in his home in a prison in Landau, near Karlsruhe. Well, not a current prison, ... [Continue reading this entry]

Fondue has rules?!

Thursday, November 10th, 2005
5 Nov - 10 Nov, 2005 Do you know that fondue has rules? They are very secret, and are only revealed to new fonduers as they break the rules. Penalties can be quite steep - dropping your bread in ... [Continue reading this entry]

If you are reading this, and you know where Gundelfingen is, then you must be Hermann or Andrea.

Saturday, November 5th, 2005
1 Nov - 5 Nov, 2005 Our tri-annual reunion with the Ruchtis. 1996 in Ecuador. 1999 in Germany. 2002 in Croatia. 2005 in Germany. Time to plan for 2008... Across the door of our room for the ... [Continue reading this entry]

The best place was the wurst place…

Tuesday, November 1st, 2005
29 Oct - 1 Nov, 2005 Does the fog ever lift in Ingolstadt? Don't think we saw the sun, here. Each day, though, we managed to travel with Falk and Regina, met in Myanmar, to places where the rays ... [Continue reading this entry]

Czech it out now

Friday, October 28th, 2005
27 Oct - 28 Oct, 2005 Another deja vu situation, as we took an identical photo to one that we have at home from 1995. A shot of Cesky Krumlov through an arched window in the castle. Cesky Krumlov[Continue reading this entry]

Czech, please!

Thursday, October 27th, 2005
24 Oct - 27 Oct, 2005 Sometimes you meet those people who you cannot but help go out of your way to see again. We only met Ludek very briefly in Venezuela, but his invitation could not be turned down. ... [Continue reading this entry]

“SURPRISE!!!”

Monday, October 24th, 2005
21 Oct - 24 Oct, 2005 Walhalla With Tina and Sebb, Walhalla "SURPRISE!!!" Well, Tina and Sebb knew we were coming. But little did Sebb know about the conspiracy. Don't you love being "in the know" for ... [Continue reading this entry]

Last stop in the Balkans, leaving via Zagreb

Friday, October 21st, 2005
19 Oct - 21 Oct, 2005 Zagreb, and a couple of excursions to see fairytale castles and covered wooden bridges. Long amounts of time spent waiting at the roadside for infrequent buses - feels like we are back in South ... [Continue reading this entry]