More from Blog This

Two more pics from my Picassa photos. One of the ancient church built in the area of the ancient Minoan settlement, & the other shows a typical Cretan lunch spot.

Blog This test

After 3 attempts at blogging direct from Picasa on my computer, it looks as if I might have cracked it! The photo was a random pick. It's of a lovely stone wall in an ancient Minoan settlement. The photo took a while to upload, & it won't link to a web album, but I wonder if it can be enlarged? Can it ever! Just click on it & see it in all its glory. Going to try for some more now.

Testing the new machine

Leigh decided that she would have to test drive her new machine today, even though this really was the "coldest day so far" this winter, otherwise Maurie would have probably sent it back. I risked frost-bite to take these pics, but I thought the occasion had to be recorded for posterity.

Test Link

Sam will be helping me fix this photo link today, & all you non-google account holders will be able to see the extra pics on my web page. Well it looks as if it's working folks. And my Flickr photos are available now as well.

Pics for Megan

Last night we went over to the neighbours' house for Leigh's 50th birthday dinner. As usual I ate too much good food & drank too much good wine, so I suffered a little today. Marg & Adrian joined us, after all they're virtually family, & we had a lovely evening. I was the official photographer, as both Maurie & Sam had left their cameras at school. So here are a couple photos for you Megan. Sam told me what to do to make the Picasa link work, so with a bit of luck you'll be able to go to my web album & see more from last night.

Extra Pics

More pics of Leigh for those of you who are unable to access my web albums.

More Birthday People

Yet more birthdays today. Leigh's big 50 & Tawhai's 17th. Happy birthday guys, & that's it for the June birthdays for this family, whew! Apparently we have to wait a week to see Leigh perform her party trick. Tawhai is having a good year at school, & will be playing rugby & volleyball in the area schools' tournament in Rotorua during the school hols. So hopefully we'll get to see him play.

Janine's Birthday

The night was wild & stormy, & Bunny had to take cover in a bus shelter when the thunderstorm struck, while he was biking home from Waikato Hospital the night Janine was born. And it's heading that way again by the sound of things out there. It's very windy & raining, & thunder is predicted. On top of that it's freezing cold. But it sounds as if Taupo has had it far worse. Maybe the birthday celebrations will have to wait until after the big exam tomorrow. Yesterday I caught up with Paul for the first time since getting back from Greece. It was good to see him looking well, but he'd had a sad morning sorting Kath's clothes with Vera. He has a monumental job ahead of him with all the packing up etc. He was keen to show me his new 'baby'. I thought I was going to see a new 4 legged addition to the family, but it turned out to be his fantastic new wagon. A lovely Mitsubishi Outlander, complete with leather bum-warmer seats. He took me for a short drive in it. Such luxury I could get used to. However, for now I just have to be content with our little car. It was a fabulous day & the beaches looked fabulous. This pic is of Janine enjoying Tirohanga Beach a few years ago. Summer will come again. Started adding pics to Flickr.

Phillip's Birthday

Been back home a week tomorrow, & I'm not enjoying the cold weather. Today is Phillip's 14th birthday. We phoned him this evening & he's had a good day fishing with one of his Taupo mates. Now it's hair colouring time. Been updating older blogs with pics for those having trouble viewing photos on my Picasa web album.

Dawn Chorus

Was hoping to have another long sleep in today, but woke early enough to hear the dawn chorus. The tuis & bellbirds were in full swing, & sounded so good, that I didn't mind the early wake up at all. Thanks to Maurie's tree planting programme some years ago, we now enjoy the bird song every day. The weather has been sunny & mild today, which put me in a good frame of mind for work tomorrow. I have been uploading pics, & I hope I can include a couple in this post. This pic is of one of the many alleyways in the fortified 'old town' of Naxos. Naxos marble is famous for its high quality marble, & the second pic shows one of the picturesque marble-paved lanes of the village of Apiranthos, the centre of the marble quarrying industry, a village with a strong Cretan influence. Many refugees from Crete settled here after escaping Turkish repression. Marble is so common here that the village is nicknamed 'Marmarino' (made of marble). Even the donkey tracks are paved in marble. The village is very pretty & because of its altitude is much cooler, is & a welcome relief from the heat of the coastal areas.

Cold & Wet Opotiki

Yesterday I arrived home from Greece to a wet & the coldest day of the season so far. Bit of a shock after the heat of Bangkok. I managed to stay awake until about 8.00pm, & didn't wake until midday today, so it was a good stretch of sleep. I downloaded my pics to Picasa last night, & hope to put a few on to my web album later. After hours of trying to remember how to blog pics, I've included a couple to remind me of warmer days on Naxos. More pics to come soon. Main task today is to find warm clothes for work on Wednesday.

Damp & Humid Athens

Arrived from Naxos yesterday to an overcast & hot Athens, & by the evening we were having thunderstorms. Today has been extremely humid, but I can handle it, even after the exhausting haul to the top floor. I always think it's worth it though when I see the view of the Acropolis from up there. Next stop is Bangkok, the humidity capital of the world. Tonight I've been window shopping along the great shopping street just up from my hotel, & now I can hear a fantastic concert taking place in Syntagma Square, so I'll check that out before heading back. Tomorrow I'll start the day with yoghurt & the sweet strawberries I bought for 1.50 euros today. I'm leaving Athens on Thursday & will be back home on Sunday 10th. Once I recover I'll be downloading my pics. Maybe this link will work?

Last Day in Naxos

Tomorrow I leave Naxos for Athens, which means that my holiday is almost over. Naxos is a beautiful island, & I hope to be able to return some day, but it is much nicer to discover a new destination with good company. Although I was able to upload a couple of pictures to my web album recently, I wasn't able to see which pictures they were, because I only had the jpeg numbers, & I see that I need to use Picasa to edit them first, as it doesn't happen otherwise. I have just transferred more pictures to disk, & I'll need to get another disk for the rest. However, don't worry as I won't be boring you all with my holiday pics. The weather here has been fantastic, just as it should be in the Greek Islands. I have taken a couple of trips to smaller villages in the countryside, & it's a great way to get the feel of a place. I saw cows grazing for the first time in Greece. More from Athens in a couple of days.