Colisa Course

Happy New Year!!!

2010-01-04T01:15:00.010Z

HO HO!!!
Wishing you all (not sure if anyone is still reading this, but anyway...) a very happy New Year!!! We had a very busy end of year 2009 with renovations and a new job for Col as well as Emma getting quiet sick, but hopefully 2010, the year of the Tiger, woooohhooooo, will bring more peace and relaxed times.
Emma had to get a CAT scan under general as well as an EEG as she had what seemed to be a fit but so far all tests have come back clear and I am now wiser in knowing that babies have a tendency to have a fit when they have a high temperature. All the weird things about the human body you learn when you have a baby!
There is no doubt that Emma is keeping us on our toes and one can never be sure what the next day will bring. Other than this scare, which was more traumatising for us, than for Em, we are all really good and are loving the new home and I guess you could even say new life. Nothing beats watching your child grow up and gosh it happens sooooooo fast. Emma is taking her first attempts at walking and has already mastered to run with the walker. Next month she will be already 1!!! Not sure yet what we will do, but I think a house warming and birthday bash for Col and Emma is well in order.
We speant xmas with Col's parents in Tassie. We ate cherries off the tree and chased all the animals with Emma squealing in delight. Col's granny on his mothers side is now in a nursing home in Swansea, as she has been diagnosed with Alzheimers. So the 3 of us went on a road trip to Swansea to visit granny Florence, which was well worth the trip. Emma entertained half of the nursing home with ease and Florence finally met her great-grand-daughter. She has forgotten that we visited but it was nevertheless worth the trip to see her happy and giggly the 2 days that we were there.
Here plenty of pics. Enjoy!

Time with dad

Passed out in the highchair during lunch after a swim in the morning. Ha, ha... got ya!

Into shelves and everything she can get her hands on!

Trouble!

Passed out in the car.

Who does she look like? I say mini Col...

In hospital after the general

Emma smurf getting ready for the EEG

Wired for the EEG

This is the best time of the day!

In Tassie!

Eating cherries

Meeting the goats!

Going for a walk

Hmmmmm. More cherries

Granny Florence

In Swansea
Tasmania is incredibly beautiful. Here some scenic pics of Oyster Bay.

Slowly getting ready for xmas. Emma's mad hair...

Emma chewing an a rusk

First taste of chocolate

We like to walk

Halt!
Ready for that pose now...

Slowly getting there...

2010-01-04T00:27:00.002Z

We have spent the last 2 momths cleaning up the backyard, painting the living room, decorating Emma's room and renovating our upstairs bedroom. We are very happy and are getting into renovating. Here the most recent pictures...

View from the backyard

Bottom deck

Living room

Plastering upstairs, before hanging the wallpaper, painting and new carpet

Room complete!

The kitchen

The office!

Emma's room with some wallstickers

Emma's first kiss

2009-12-02T10:07:00.000Z

Emma's first kiss...

In the walker...

cheeky monkey

Some pics of the new neighbourhood

2009-11-10T09:43:00.001Z

Plan is that this will be me soon!

One of the many beautiful homes on Flinders Parade.

More Flinders Parade...

Col having a fish for whiting

Emma's first swim in the local pool

2009-11-06T08:50:00.000Z

The parents retreat!!!

2009-10-02T23:49:00.002+01:00

Here a couple of pics of the upstairs area and I think the best part of the house... I would be happy just to live up here! And maybe we will... just need to organise a bar fridge from somewhere.

Our own 'small' deck...

Ocean glimpses from the top deck

The master bedroom

First day at the new home

2009-10-02T23:46:00.003+01:00

We finally got the keys to our new home. Woooohooooo!!!! Here a couple of pics from our first day at Brighton.

Inside-Outside deck...

A backyard! yeeeeeehhhha!!! The plan is to get some choocks and maybe rescue a cat next year. Backyard is fully fenced in and all dog owners are more than welcome to bring their pooches along. Great area for you too, houndy!

Emma's first meal at the new home

Masterchef kitchen

Emma is laughing...

2009-09-15T10:50:00.002+01:00

Emma thinks its pretty funny to watch me jump up and down in front of her... We thought it was funny to watch her try to laugh for the first time... Here the footage!

Emma the chatterbox

2009-08-20T05:53:00.002+01:00

not sure why the quality turned out so crappy but you can listen to Emma chatting away...

2009-08-17T03:29:00.006+01:00

It's been a while since I updated our blog, so here a swineload of pictures from the last 2 months. Emma can sit now and has also discovered the jollyjumper. No crawling yet and I hope that she will take her time as our life is truly going to change, once this little terror will be mobile. Her eyesight has improved loads and I hardly notice her wobbly eyes anymore. Maybe I am just used to it now... sometimes one of her eyes keeps turning inwards, but again, I find that this is also definitvely improving. Guess she is as normal as can be, coming from us mutated parents. All in all life is great and you just cant beat the Queensland winter. The weather has been incredible and I dont know what I was thinking when unpacking my boots and coats. They are going straight back into the box!
Enjoy the pics (unfortunately not in chronological order but the pics where Emma is wearing a white t-shirt were taken yesterday).
Ciao for now!!!
xxx

Emma is growing up sooooo quick

2009-07-15T09:42:00.002+01:00

Hi all! Here the latest pics of Emma. She is growing up so quick and lost that baby look already. Her eyes are improving every day but in comparison to other kids that are her age she still has a very long way to go. But I am sure that she will get there eventually. Next appointment with the eye specialist is in 2 weeks and we are both counting down to that appointment to "see" if we are on the right track with our early intervention programm. Otherwise not too much to report... The one time that we decide to go out in the Valley for a few drinks, we manage to get the car towed. Ahhhhhhhhhh. Should have spent that money on a 24 hour babysitter and more espresso martinis.

Emma is practising rolling around her room. She is not sitting yet, but not too far off.

Hmmmmmmmm. Pumpkin puree....

Emma can hold her bottle now. Well, sort of...

Nothing like cuddles with dad!

Emma tasting her first foods...

2009-06-26T10:40:00.000+01:00

Emma on YouTube

2009-05-28T07:02:00.003+01:00

If you want to see Emma live, have a look at this little video on YouTube. The movement of her eyes from side to side is called Nystagmus. But we feel that it has already improved lots. The movement was at its peak when she was around 6 weeks. Being new parents and being totally clueless... we thought that was all normal. Enjoy and ciao for now.
xxx

Diagnosis: Oculocutaneous Albinism

2009-05-22T04:20:00.004+01:00

I am not sure what the word on the street is, so I think I better set the record straight and let you all know what's been happening in our lives in the last 4 weeks. Probably best if it comes directly from us, before mixed stories are being passed on... so here goes...
Col and I noticed that Em has been taking her time to focus at our faces and all sorts of toys/ mobiles etc that have been dangling in front of her. We did not think much of it until we also noticed that her eyes are constantly on the move and seem to rarely stand still. We decided to better get it checked out and unfortunately our fears came true when after a thorough eye examination the little missy, or may I say, our little family has been diagnosed to have a form of albinism. We are unsure yet, which type of Albinism Emma has. We are hopeful that she has a milder form, which means that her body is producing melanin, just in tiny amounts. Melanin production is obviously important for skin and hair but also for your vision, which we did not know... This means that Emma is missing the melanin pigment at the back of her eyes which results in significant problems with depth perception as well as light sensitivity. How minor or majorly impaired her vision will be, is at this point not clear. We will only be able to know the extent once Emma can actually explain to us what she can and cannot see. I have never been a patient person, so for me the wait is probably the hardest part.
What else does this diagnosis mean? It means that Col and I are both carriers of the albinism gene. In a couple of weeks we are going to see a genetics specialist who is going to shine the light on what type of albinism Emma ended up with and also where exactly it's coming from. Who's genes reign supreme, ha ha.
The first week after the diagnosis was very tough for Col and I but we have digested it and are totally ready for the challenge. In the animal kingdom, albinos are hugely thought after and perceived as very special, so why not see a human with albinism in the same way? We do!
Our love for Emma has grown immensly and we now get a very good idea what parenting is all about... We will do anything we can to help and support Emma and our family has become the most important thing in this world. Anything that has a price tag attached to it, in my eyes, has got no importance anymore.
Gosh I am getting quiet emotional writing all this. I need a drink ;o)
So here is to little Emma and may the force be with her!!!
Here some more pics of the gorgeous little girl.

Nap time...

Emma with her 7 month old cousin, Hamish. They are nearly the same size. Go Em!

Showing off her knickers and having a little vom. Thats our girl!

Emma with her great grand! Also called GG...

The New Kids in the Woods

2009-05-22T03:28:00.006+01:00

Big congrats to the Woods for producing 2 super gorgeous babies. I must admit that we are especially excited about the female addition to the crew to balance out the boy/ girl ratio, ha ha.
I can def see some similarities between the little cousins around the eyes. Anyhow, massive congratulations!!!! We are very happy for you... xxx

Danah with little Morgan. I believe Morgy he was only 2 weeks then...

Morgan Kingsford Wood

Asia Emily Wood. Love the mushroom singlet... he he

The proud, new dads... What a difference 3 months make!

Emma - 3 months

2009-05-01T23:59:00.001+01:00

Ane, who studies photography took some great shots of little Em last week. Here are the ones I love the most... And a huge thank you, Ane!!!

Emma at 2 months

2009-04-02T09:26:00.002+01:00

The little worm with the big belly is now already 2 months! Emma is becoming a lot more alert now and a lot more fun to hang out with. There is no doubt that she loves her food and she is filling out with no problems. She has nearly doubled her weight since birth and you can def notice it when carrying her around for longer stints in the babybjoern.
Big congratulations go to Danah and Ash who had their baby boy, Morgan. Next on the line is Baby Wood, who is due to come out and play with us any day now.

Who's Your Daddy...?

2009-03-17T11:23:00.000Z

Amber with Emma.

Col at 2 months and his sister Wendy in the background. Can you spot any similarities?

The first milestone... Emma is 6 weeks today!

2009-03-17T09:54:00.002Z

Emma is 6 weeks today! And time is just flying by...
The little worm has nearly doubled in size and is getting pretty good at running the show in this household already. Routine sounds easier said than done at the moment!!! But we are slowly, slowly getting there.
We went on our first family holiday last weekend ans stayed at 'The Rocks Resort' in Currumbin, which was great. The weather is beautiful here at the moment and we had the best views over the Currumbin beach. Emma is starting to be more alert and is starting to focus better with her eyes (no cross-eyed action anymore!). This morning we nearly got a smile (not the windy ones) out of her and she started to make some gaga noises, which melts your heart especially when you had a screaming match the day before. I guess the biggest lesson we learned so far is that just when you think you have worked things out, you are sure to go back to square one the following day.
Here some pics of the last 2 weeks and Happy St Paddies day to you all!!!!!!!!!

The royal greeting...

Emmas favourite book. This book has been fantastic as it gives me at least 20 min of 'free' time every day, entertaining the worm.

Nothing is more beautiful than your sleeping baby! Unfortunately it never lasts too long...

Sue and Steve visited us in Currumbin and Sue worked her magic on little Em. She was very unsetelled but Sue knew how to get that hurricane out of her, no worries!

2009-02-17T08:50:00.000Z

Here couple more pics of Emma at 2 weeks...

Emma - 03.02.2009

2009-02-08T06:26:00.005Z

Here some pics of Emma's entrance into the world. She was born at the Mater hospital by c-section on the 3rd of Feb at 14:26 weighing in at 3.2 kgs. Big congrats to Ash, who was nearly spot on with his bet (girl, 04.02, 3.3kg), followed closely by Beasty. The bottle of Veuve is on ice and waiting for you!
We are all well and enjoying being back home, after a not so restful stay at the hospital.
Big thank you to you all for your best wishes, help, advice and support! Emma is the best thing that ever happened to us and the love and joy she is bringing us every day cannot be put into words.
Here some pics of the big day...

Spinal block is working. Not long and we are going to have a baby!!!! ahhhhhhh...

Emma stayed in the breech position in my womb and came out bum first. That's my girl!

After clearing the airways of some mucus, Emma is taking her first breath.

And straight onto the docking station...

Day 3 at the hospital. Emma has jaundice and is starting to look yellow. This should go away in a couple of weeks.
A happy baby!

Happy New Year!!!!

2009-01-11T04:00:00.003Z

Happy New Year everybody. Here is what we got up to in December...

Mango Daiquiris on the deck with Aram, Kylie and Chanty.

In Southbank after checking out the new Gallery of Modern Art (GoMA).

Ellie pregnant no more! Big congratulations to Ellie & Andrew... Very much looking forward to meeting little David soon.

3kgs of Queensland prawns for the xmas spread.Ready for the bbq...
Santa's little helper.

Welcoming little nephew & godson Hamish to Australia.

Only 4 weeks to go until baby Mcilroy is due... Stay tuned for the next post. Ahhhhhhhhh!!!!!

Moved in...

2008-12-13T22:34:00.004Z

We are slowly getting settled again in Brisbane. It is taking a little longer than we thought and we still havent started on the nursery yet but luckily we still have time on our side. Our new place is great and has a fantastic view over the city and the Paddington hills. Most nights we watch a storm building up and moving through the city. We still need to sort a kitchen table and outside furniture and the nursery stuff. We got a new family car (2nd hand Subaru Foreseter) yesterday so this should make shopping for furniture a lot easier as our primary car has been Col's Alfa, which just fits a chair or something similar in size.

We are now also sorted with Internet & landline again. I will send an email around with the new contact details... but we are definitively back on skype msn.

Wishing you all fantastic silly season. I will keep you posted with the gatherings over here.

Lots of love,

Col and Isa

Can you see my xmas tree in the background?

Above: Sue, Sally & Jo in Mullumbimby at the Spa. This is the Currumbin creek that runs through the EcoVillage.

The 30-week belly.
The pregnant girls at Ellie's babyshower.

Kate, Ellie, Shagga and Sally at the Powerhouse.

Back in Oz

2008-11-21T08:43:00.004Z

It took us a while to get over the jetlag but apart from that, we sailed back into life down under very smoothly. We are still based in the Currumbin Valley with Tyler and Sally and absolutley loving it down here. The house looks amazing and stays nice & cool while it is only 10min to the Currumbin beach. Yesterday we got hit very hard by a hail storm but compared to the damage it has caused in Brisbane, we got off very lightly and actually enjoyed watching the storm brewing up. So far we nearly had a storm every night, which is great news as the dams are filling up (60-90%) and the water tanks are overflowing. Unfortunately our time here as housemates is coming to and an end and beginning of December we will be moving back to our old stomping grounds in Paddington/ Rosalie (Brisbane). Check our new flat out online if you have time... Guess the best feature is the huge deck, which overlooks Paddington and the city.

Our soon to be living room...

At Sally & Tyler's. The inside outside deck.

Currumbin Beach.

The growing bump at 6 1/2 months...

Good Bye London!!!!!!!

2008-11-04T13:41:00.006Z

Here a couple of pictures of last night's good bye gathering. Bear made sure to send us of with a massive fireworks display of 61 rockets that received a standing ovation from our neighbours!This was great as we more kind of expected the cops to be called... the video of the fireworks display will be aired on the fix soon!
Sooooooo, our journey here is coming to an end and in just a couple of hours we will be airborn for Singapore, also known as Sin-city. Well that is if Col will be let on the plane with his clean-look passport that got accidently washed yesterday! After a moment of panic, Col had the brilliant idea to iron page by page, which hopefully did the trick. I think I would have just chucked the passport on the heater while hoping for the best. Nothing like a bit of last minute excitement. Apart from that, the packing went smoothly and I just cant believe that in less than 24 hours we will be hit with some hot humid air in the face. Southern Hemisphere, here we come!

Good bye Landor Rd!!!! See you all very soon...

Col ironing his passport... I remember a similar inicdent before Splendour in the Grass!

El Carnival! 61 rockets, lighting up the Clapham sky.

And the group mong! Byeeeeeeee!!!!!

Baby Hamish

2008-10-17T16:48:00.004+01:00

I am in love with Col's nephew, little Hamish, who is now one week old. Have a look at these gorgeous pictures. How tiny is that little foot!!! Oh i think i am getting clucky... is that possible???

And of course we can't forget about his sexy sister Sarah... Work that pumpkin, baby!

Good Bye Ireland!

2008-10-17T15:36:00.003+01:00

Back to beginning, where the madness & travels began...

Col and I went to Dublin for a long weekend, beginning of October, to visit Kylie, Aram and the good old and dearly loved Long Hall pub, which pours undoubtebly one of the best Guinnesses in Dublin. We were very lucky with the weather and enjoyed a fantastic weekend with Kylie & Aram, who now live in Howth, a gorgeous, old Irish fishing village, only 30min out of Dublin on the DART. We spent the whole weekend eating the best food from Irish steak to the best seafood I had in a very long time. So a big thank you to Kylie and Aram who have spoilt us rotten that weekend and showed us this beautiful part of Ireland! Howth is also the home to lots of seals who love to put a show on when presented with some old Mackrel. I had never seen seals in their natural habitat before, so that was something very special. Other highlights included a visit to the Long Hall for a pint or two of Guinness and a beautiful walk around the Howth cliffs. The views were just stunning and would be perfect for an Irish Butter commercial or something similar promoting Ireland's lush nature.

Here some pics from the Long Hall...

More babies...

2008-09-26T17:44:00.003+01:00

Big congratulations to Col's sister ,Wendy, who gave birth to little baby Hamish yesterday. All went well and Hamish touched ground in Houston hospital wihout any complications weighing in at 2.7kg. Hopefully we get to visit in just a couple of weeks and Hamish will be on his best behaviour...

Wendy & Hamish
Sarah & Hamish

20-week scan

2008-09-25T13:09:00.003+01:00

We finally had the soooo anticipated 20-week scan yesterday. The baby has now all its organs, brain, bones etc well formed and can now relax and just concentrate on putting some more weight on until birth (hmmm... not too much please!). We looked very intensly to find out the baby's sex because Col and I really wanted to know wether to speak to a girl or boy in there but the little one decided not to show its bits. It kept its legs firmly crossed with the umbilical nicely squeezed in between. Guess this could be a very good indication in itself, but who knows... The main thing is that the bub is healthy and judging by its kicks that I am now receiving esp in the mornings and evenings it is having a ball in there.
Other big news are that Col and I have both resigned from our jobs and are now in the process of planning our trip back to Oz. At the moment we are thinking to head back in mid-November but no flights have been booked yet as we are contemplating to fly via Houston (Texas) to visit Col's sister Wendy who is in labour as I am writing this.
Will keep you posted on the developments...

Here the last update...

2008-09-23T12:28:00.005+01:00

I promise I won't bore you for much longer with these tables... cause this is it! We cant take any more bets as we will hopefully find out the baby's sex tomorrow at the 20-week scan. Fingers crossed that the baby is well and we might head back to Oz soon.

Lots of love to you all,

Isa xxx

Belly update

2008-09-18T16:21:00.000+01:00

Here my belly at 19 weeks. Most people tell me that I am still tiny but I am being offered seats in the tube, which must mean that I am not that tiny anymore after all.... People over here fight for their seat in the tube!
Today I had my first meeting with an obstetrician and I could listen to the Baby's heart beat for the first time which was very exciting. I could have easily listened for an hour. All was good and it looks like there is really a little something in that belly. I must say that it still seems very surreal to me and I am looking forward to feeling the movements of the baby soon to really believe that it is all happening.
Next week we will go for the 20 week scan. I will keep you posted and hopefully get an other good ultrasound picture.

Familie Ponx

2008-09-02T14:58:00.006+01:00

Here some pictures that my brother emailed me of his last holiday to France to visit my granny in Britanny. Faris, the latest edition to the Pongs clan is now already 6 months old and has grown loads. I love the pics, cause little Faris looks very similar to what my brother and I looked like when we were babies. My nickname was Miss Piggy then. I think Sweet Lips & Breeza are great improvements, ha ha! We are flying to Hamburg for a long weekend in October to visit the clan and I am already counting down…
The first pic is of my gran ‘Mamie’ & ‘Ponx’, my brother… if you haven’t guessed already.
Baby Faris.
Mamie, Faris, Oskar & Klara
Mum Ranja, Klari & little Faris in the background.

Sicily, August 2008

2008-08-29T19:35:00.027+01:00

Col and I treated ourselves to 5 days in Sicily over the past bank holiday. We had an amazing time. Sicily is a beautiful place with very friendly locals, amazing beaches/ scenery and tons of history/ sightseeing. Sicily, being very close to Northern Africa has lots of Arabic influences mixed in with Greek & even Austrian influences. The food, wine, olive oil, gelati etc is to die for and my little passenger was in a constant food coma and therefore very well behaved...
Here some of the pictures we took... Enjoy!

Day 1. We landed in Palermo... yeeeaaahhhhh. The hotel we stayed in was in the old town of Palermo which meant that we could access all the great sights easily by foot. The hotel itself was spectacular and even though with an air of decay was very grand and just typical for all those sleeping beauties in Sicily.

The beautiful ceiling in the hotel reception.

The view into the courtyard from our room.

The cathedral in Palermo...

Sicilian taxi!

Sicilians are big on swordfish. I like how they make use of the sword... Fish & chips anyonne?

Our second stop was Mondello, which is basically Palermo's local beach. The beach was beautiful and the water very clear and more importantly warm. After this shitty weather in London it really was heaven!

Again we were very lucky with our accommodation. This time we stayed in a small but very modern B & B right on the water with a fantastic roof terrace. This is the view from the terrace...

Sunset drinks in Mondello. Beam me back!

The baby belly at 17 weeks. Slowly getting there...

You can buy anything from coconut to jewellery on the beach but this was by far the best idea. A Thai massage on the beach for only €5!

Next stop was Selinunte on the Souther coast of Sicily. This temple was buily for Aphrodite the goddess of love, approx. 500 BC.

Next stop Syracuse. This is the main plaza in Syracuse. Very quiet at lunch time but buzzing as soon as the sun goes down. Great place for gelati too!

The greek theatre in Syracuse.
Our hotel room in the 'Palazzo del Sale' , which Bob & Judy Wood recommeded to us, was again heaven. Borgus... please pass on a masisve thank you onto your parents. This photo doesnt do it justice but we felt like king & queen for 2 nights. Check out the website...

And last but not least the makets in Syracuse... again we found oursleves in paradise!

So folks, this is it for now. Not a bad trip for 5 days, hey!? Next trip on the cards is to Dublin... Stay tuned!

xox

Introducing Baby McIlroy...

2008-08-13T20:04:00.003+01:00

I think you all know by now that I am pregnant!!!
I am in the 14th week and below is the picture of the first scan, which was taken 2 weeks ago. For those who cant recognise anything on this picture... the baby is lying on its back with its legs in the air and sucking its thumb. Or maybe holding a mircophone?! We are not too sure...
Due date for this little one (and please stay little!) is the:
8th of Feb 2009

We dont know the sex of the baby yet but are going to find out next month at the 20-week scan.
So place your bets on sex, delivery date & weight now... (if you have no Blogger ID, just click on 'leave comment' & 'anonymous' and write your name into the comments box, then click on 'publish')

Col's bet:
Girl, 13th of Feb, 3.8kg

I feel it is:
Boy, 10th of Feb, 3.4kg

DIRTY 30

2008-08-09T15:42:00.011+01:00

Here some pics of my dirty 30 celebrations in Mullumbimby. A massive, massive thank you to Sue & Steve for being as always the best hosts on this planet. Also a big thank you to everyone who made this day & night so special... & a massive thank you to Padma for the beautiful birthday cake! Hmmmm... very yummy indeed ;o)

Also... please pass on to Brooke that her blanket is being used every day since my birthday. Summer in London is pretty much non-existent and the blanket is honestly coming out every night!

I had an absolute ball and looking back at the pictures I think I can say that everyone else did as well!

Borgus Erectus, Borgus Erectus! What can I say... keep it up!

Steve, the birthday girl & dirty Shagga..

The famous Sue hug. I want one too!

It's boogie time...

Ahhhh... the pictures make me home sick!!! Good times... good times...

Nothing beats a session in the middle of the rainforest with your best friends and a bottle of good champagne! Who is hiding the bottle?!

Back Online Part 2

2008-08-01T19:14:00.001+01:00

Where did I get up to in the previous post... Sally & Tyler's wedding!!!!

Unfortunately I dont have any pics of the actual ceremony, which was abslutely "so do" amazing, however, I made sure to document the after party back at the rainforest cabin mutatus.

Again, the pictures pretty much speak for themselves...

Dress theme of the wedding was 'panache'. Here a prime example what panache is all about!

Dr Brains making sure that Borgus didnt drop his balls in all this excitement. I am pretty sure he needed them later on... Could you find them Brainsy?

Bride & bridesmaid. Not sure how i managed to shrink... or maybe I am just trying to get the spanking paddle into position...

Here we have the best man fulfilling his role & making sure that the guests are entertained and looked after. Esp VIP guest Mick Jagger...

More panache & some serious talking, or not. Amazing what a couple of suits can do. he he...

OOOooohhhhhhh - It's getting late!

Finally Back Online

2008-07-11T19:21:00.000+01:00

Well its been a while since the last post. Unfortunatley my bag inculding laptop, ipod etc got stolen which resulted in us being out of action on the blogging and skype front for quiet some time. But all is good now... most of our files were backed up on the external harddrive - thank feck - and most of our music and photos were saved which made the blow less painful. So for all of you who dont back up onto an external drive... go and do it!!!! It is too painful to lose half your memories...

So whats been happening since the last post??? I guess highlights in those last months were our house warming party, our trip to Brittany to visit my granny, Tyler's visit, our trip to Oz for Sally & Tylers wedding, Sallys 40th bday, my 30th in Mullum and our short trip to Sardinia last weekend.

So here first of all a picture from the house warming - with a traditional bbq in the middle of winter!

This is in Brittany, around the corner from where my granny lives. This was during our Easter Break. We jumped on the Eurostar to Paris and from Paris with the TGV to Vannes. We ate loads of fish, seafood, cheese, saucisson... and drank loads of wine & champagne. In only 3 days we managed to pile on some serious weight but well worth it...

My gran lives right on the beach. This is the beach at her doorstep. My brother and i spent most of our school summer holidays here.
Mamie, Michele (my mum's sister who lives in Amsterdam) and me. The 3 generations...

The next pictures were taken when Borgus came and stayed with us on his Cruise trip to Londonia. A damm fine reason to celebrate!!! Woody joined us that weekend tooa and came up from Kent.And the good old selftimer picture...
After Tyler's visit it was our turn to jet off again and this time direction Hamburg to see the newest edition to the Pongs-clan. Little Faris was born in March and is my brother's third child. He's got Oskar and Klara with their mum Anna. He now is in a new relationship with Ranja and they have together little Faris. Faris is a Syrian name and is pronounced 'Far-is'.
Below, Oskar & Faris.
This Klara with her new brother...

And uncle Col with Klara...

In May we finally headed Down Under to see our closest friends, Sally & Tyler, getting married. OOOHHHH yeeeeaaaahhhh!!! After a 24 hour flight to BrisVegas, Col and I went straight into the hens and bucks night and survived sort of unharmed... With the bucks and hens over... the big countdown was on and the first mutants started to arrive and gather at the famous Hazlewood St. First special guest was Manta Ray Jane who brought with her some left over boils from her recent trip to Columbia. I think the picture speaks for itself!
Next to arrive were Ash and a visit from DJ Pooch.

The Backyard!

2008-02-15T23:12:00.000Z

Sorry, this picture is a little dark. I took this photo at nighttime but you get the idea. Will take more pics at our next bbq!

Maroon bedroom

2008-02-15T23:10:00.000Z

This is our bedroom with walk-in robe and maroon feature walls. Go Queensland. I think the marron and white walls is what sold the place for Col!

The bathroom.

2008-02-15T23:07:00.000Z

Our brand spanking new bathroom. How exciting...
The maisonette is split-level, so this is upstairs.

Looking towards kitchen from living room...

2008-02-15T23:06:00.000Z

An other angle of the living room. Kitchen to the right...

Look from the kitchen ...

2008-02-15T23:03:00.001Z

This is the view from our kitchen towards the living area/ backdoor to garden. Our couch hasnt arrived yet, so the living area is still looking very empty. Can you believe we have marble kitchen & floors?!

Our New Home - Landor Rd

2008-02-15T22:59:00.000Z

We finally moved out of our bedsit last weekend into this 2 bedroom maisonette in Landor Rd - Clapham Nth. Funnily enough this is the exact same street Sally used to live on. Hazlewood St, Landor Rd, what street will we share next? Block next door still for sale?

The Pongs Family In Paris...

2008-02-03T21:32:00.000Z

90210 - Beverly Albania

2008-02-03T21:28:00.000Z

It's Not NZ! Albanian Countryside...

2008-02-03T21:25:00.000Z

Beardestrian Crossing In Albania

2008-02-03T21:18:00.000Z

Hiding From The Rain In Albania

2008-02-03T21:14:00.000Z

Albanian Power...?

2008-02-03T21:04:00.000Z

Let The Footy Begin!

2008-02-03T21:02:00.000Z

2007-11-30T11:16:00.000Z

Finaly finishing off the croatian report, seems such a long time ago already. Things are still kicking along in old Blighty and bracing ourselves for the long dark winter. Hope you enjoy the snaps. Besides having a art for conflict the old croats seem to have embraced the art of the spray can. This piece was in Zagreb near the bus station. Not bad eh?

A nice little shop in Pula dedicated to? Yep they sure know how to work the customers there.

Out on the bay,doing nothing in particular just going with the flow..

Our commission beast for the day. The Dragons head. Spent most of the day cruising the bay and chasing off donkeys, or as they call them adriatic taxis. Got the feeling some wierd stuff has occured on this boat.

Once we chased off the locals it was time to chill on the beach and throw some rocks at the birds.

Ooops wrong bird. But as you can see the water was tops except for the entrance which was all rocks and tough on the feet. Recommend that you take a pair of tevas or dive booties if you having a day on the bay.

You just can't shake the locals always hunting for a smoke or a stray can of beer.Tried to bribe this fella with some money and food but he just made some wierd noises and tried to eat the camera. Stupid ass.

Ha well once the mule took off we broke out the beer but the camera was still having problems thanks to donkey dribble.

Once we left Pula a nice windy 2 hour bus ride took us to Rjeka so we could jump ship and get down to Split so we could then attack the island of Havar and their famous cocktails. This is the ferrry we overnighted on for the first part of the journey.

Yep get to split and the italian swailors were there in full force. Nice boat though but would'nt put any money on that one to come up tops in any modern day skirmish.

Arrival in Havar and some serious super boats already there cueing up for the cocktails.

Ha struck gold lucky the thirsty millionairs can't handle their drink to well. So we settled in for the afternoon and slowly tanked up.

Say no more if you go to Havar hit the Cocktail bars and all you troubles will be gone. Except for the camera focus one.

And you don't even have to talk to the opposite sex if your on the prowl for they set up places like this to do all the talking for you..

View from our casa watchin the gypsies getting chased out of town.

Just would'nt be the beach if there was'nt a dog drinking the salt water. Ummm.

Nice thirsty sunset.

Day three adventure day. Hired some scooters to have a nice plesent ride around Hvar. Only it turned out like the Dakar challenge as the short cruise turned into a 7 hour slog thanks to some miss read map and mileage info. No names mentioned.

Yep sure is a big island and when we got to where we thought we were going{which was infact 20 km behind us} the old scooters were nearly out of juice and no a petrol station to be seen.

Luckily a nice old fella in a fishing boat gave us enough fuel to make our way back to civilisation.

Sorry bout that Izz.

Yep after a day like that time to hit the bottle. Check out the size of that cocktail. Not to mention the straws.

A few of the Hvar ferals.There was quite a tribe of them hanging out at the minskip searching for any tasty discards. Cool cats they would do anything for a feed.

Back in Split and a bit of ancient action. Think that the romans were responsible for this assembly of rubble.

Picked up a svenirnica while I was there. Good price.

Main Square in Zagreb. Old..

Market action Zagreb. Famous for their lace work.

Some more art near the bus stop .. well worth checking out.

Not bad eh??

The cathedral in Zagreb. All in all we both had a great time where ever we went and totaly recommend that a holiday down in croatia can be nothing but fun. People were great and the food and drink aok. Starting to really feel the flood gates of tourism opening so get in while you can. So hopefuly in the near future I can post up on another option for adriatic travel on my recenntly returned trip to Albania.

Hope you like it Ciao for now. CT.

Sunny Croatia

2007-10-03T14:20:00.000+01:00

The 8th of september brought the day we were both hanging for Croatia day. Also the day we replaced our stolen camera to tick one more thing off the replacment list. We flew into the north of Croatia, Pula Istria to be precicise, to be greeted by some impressive Roman rubble left behind from some orgy gone wrong 2000 years ago. Apparently you could have a toga party of 23000 people in the amphitheatre seen here in the distance. Smelly.

But since then like most of Europe hords of various tribes have left there mark here including the Venetian, Ottoman pirates, the happy Hapsburgs and the archaetectual communist Tito and co.

One thing that probably hasn't changed thou is the bright blue clear water, endless squeed and fish and the where have you been sunshine.

We're Back At Long Last

2007-10-01T15:02:00.001+01:00

Hi there fello bloggers. We have finaly got our act together,well sort of. After the adventures of the last six months we are now back in the same houshold in good old london town. The Irish adventure is over and already feels like a million miles away. To help the time pass we set off on our first post Ireland trip to Croatia. Awesome place and for those not yet to visit it's a place not to miss. More details to follow. But first a update on current standings. Isa has taken over as the bread winner while i settel into my new role as blog editor. Scary stuff. London is starting to show it's true colours with grey rainy skys and fast dropping temperatures greating us more regulary. Just about the end of picnic weather but luckily the weekends come around quickly and have plenty of indoor action to keep us entertained. Loving the month of september with all the final football action and glad to see the cats smash port for a bit of take that from the lions faithful. Not much interested in the league once the broncos bowed out but getting geared up for the final month of the world cup. Wallabies in with a chance and up to settel a score with blighty on saturday.{taking all bets} and Isa is getting geared up for the french onslaught to be dished out to the all blicks this weekend. Quite exciting realy.

To keep myself busy while I'm on the dole am going over to texas in 2 weeks to see my sis,niece and mum and maybe pick up a ten gallon hat and six shooter. And in the early part of november bear and myself are off to the sandy shores of albania.No doubt there will be some material on that front to post.

But all in all we're both excited and looking foreward to what the future brings on this side of the solar system. Sorry again that we have been off the air for so long but we have finaly got ourselves a new camera and are ready to go. So here goes...........

We are still alive..

2007-06-16T20:17:00.000+01:00

Hey troopers!
I know I have not posted in a wwhile... Have been robbed of my camera and had nothing exciting to post. I mean of course I did but I did not have the photographic evidence to support it. When you have not blogged for a while you dont know where to start. Well, let me think. The first thing that comes to mind is that London is a place of madness. I pay you a hundrder quid if you manage to get bored in London! Anyway, here my quick summary:
Male and Anna came to visit me from Hamburg for my birthday which was great. We went to the 80's rollerdisco and had a ball. I spent a fortune at the Spitalfield markets on clothes and food before hitting Brick Lane for an authentic Indian Curry.
After that weekend, Mel and Tyler came for a flying visit, while Col was in town as well. We all ventured to Dj Tiesto at the Alexandra Palace. There, we encoutered the longest line up ever (2hours for VIP tickets). By the time we got in we were frozen half dead and Tiesto unfortunatley did not live up to his expectations in the slightest. I am still contemplating to send that man a letter of complaint.
Josie, can you help us out here? I need compensation!
Couple of weekends after that, Shazzy, Mark,Mel, Mez, Bear, Nat, Will, Paul and myself took off for a trip to Riga. This holiday was that bizarre that I probably will never go back there but on the other hand will never forget that trip in my life even if I end up with Alzheimers. For more details... check Bear's blog.
Since Riga, not too much has been happening as we are all saving our energy for July which entails the arrival of Sally, Borg, Bluey, Hound and Shagga.
The countdown is on and we are all very excited. Big event planned for July is Global Gathering. Check out the line up at http://www.globalgathering.co.uk.
I still havent got Internet at home and Col is moving into a friend's place in Thurles until his contract is over in August, so please dont think anything bad if you have not heard from us in a while.
Lots of love to you all!
cheers,
isa

My landing in London...

2007-03-29T13:15:00.000+01:00

I arrived in London on St Patrick’s day and stayed all this time in Chalk Farm with Bear, Mary, Nat and Will. Thanks so much guys for having me!!!! My new nest can be found in between 2 couches on the blowup ‘ReadyBed’. I’ve got broadband, Sky TV and always great entertainment – what more could I ask for! I must admit that it took me a couple of days to adjust to my new found home. Having to say goodbye to Col was very traumatising and I started to doubt my decision to come over on my own (Col’s contract in Ireland finishes in August). The first night my blowup bed completely deflated meaning that I slept straight on the kitchen floor. The second night I ended up with a roommate who missed the last tube home and ended up trying to steal my duvet. After the attack on my duvet I stayed on guard and missed out on one more night of deep sleep. That following day I had my first interview with my recruitment agency and I was that dazed and confused from the previous 2 nights that I sat for an hour – killing time before the interview - in a gay café without even noticing. Only when I started reading one of the many free hardcore gay magazines the penny dropped. I looked around and every wall was covered with gay art and I was the only female in the place. The coffee tastes crap and it was the most expensive cup of coffee I ever had in my life. I think they discriminated against me! Not too sure what cream they added to this cup. Sorry am getting a bit carried away here.
Apart from being on the job hunt I spent my first week getting used to the tube and checking out flats. Man have I seen some dives but being persistent paid off cause on the 6th of April I will get the key to our new home in Mornington Crescent. It’s a mix between a studio and a posher bedsit if that makes any sense. I have a kitchenette and shower cubicle in the room but can also use the communal kitchens or bathrooms. There is also a big communal patio and backyard for the summer bbq’s. The place is a 30 second walk from the tube station (Northern Line), 5 minute walk to Camden Markets and Regents Park. If the other parties in the house are not complete nutcases I would say that I scored! I will post some photos soon.
I went out to see Lisa Lashes play at Turnmills last Friday night. Chantelle and I made it onto the party people website, so check out the link: http://worldwide.tilllate.com/EN/picpage.php?gid=946443&uid=0&fid=25004161&tim_uid=0&tim_orgid=0&mode=none
It was a great night. We danced all night and throughout the night I bumped into the duvet thief & his girlfriend and met a handful of Aussie and Kiwi couples who all live in London. We definitely dominated the dance floor, all just in time for Lisa Lashes. The following day Chantelle and I cured our hangover at a very old & traditional pub called ‘Gun’ by the Thames River overlooking the Millenium Dome. On Sunday I managed to fit plenty of culture into the day, beginning with the Spitalfield markets, followed by a boys choir in St Paul’s cathedral, Tate Modern, Westminster, Buckingham Palace and St James park. The weather is starting to warm up over here and the parks already look absolutely amazing. Bring on summer! Penciled into next month's calendar are Paul Oakenfold, Crazy P and DJ Tiesto. Yeeaaahhhhhhhh! Borg, don't forget to pack your party hat.

Skiing in Serfaus

2007-03-13T16:39:00.000Z

The Alps. This is looking towards Germany I think.

Skiing uphill. I think I am better on the board. Let me blame my instructor...

Here he is! Taking his new role very seriously.

Col and I on the slopes.

The horse sniffed out Hounddog. Hound did you recognise us? You were growling...

In between two of the three skiable mountains. Fiss on the left and Serfaus to the right. We stayed in Serfaus.

Oskar spotted this crashed light weight plane from the Gondola. Not too sure what the story is there. Maybe we should have checked if the passengers were still inside...

The horse taking a few turns on the slopes.

Hamburg

2007-03-13T15:18:00.000Z

We spent a couple of days in Hamburg before hitting the road with my brother and nephew towards the Alps. We had fantastic spring weather and spent most of the time outside catching up with family and friends. One night we caught up with my old flatmate, Male, for a few drinks. We decided to check out all the pubs that used to be our locals when we lived together. The third pub we went to is famous in the area for its cocktails and we downed plenty of very yummy Caipirinhas and Cosmos before heading to our last destination, called the Familieneck, where I used to work behind the bar. At the Familieneck we realised that we had just walked out of the previous cocktail bar without paying the bill. Initially we felt guilty but after a few more drinks we thought it was quiet funny that we got all these cocktails for free. The joy did not last long as Col then realized that he had forgotten his backpack there. To make matters worse, there was no way to just leave the backpack behind cause it contained two brand new snow goggles that were given to us as a present by my borther’s new girlfriend. We had to go back! Oooohhh how embarrassing!!!! Male and I were too scared to go back to the cocktail bar and face the waitress so Col headed back on his own and left us chickens at the Familieneck with a couple of Portuguese guys that we had just met. Few minutes later, Col returned, realizing that he had no idea where he was and what direction we came from. In the end the cocktail bar was already shut and Col returned the next evening. The backpack was still there with a fat bill attached to it. Justice prevailed in the end! I won’t forget this night for a while…

By the Elbe River with the Hamburg harbour in the background.

Male and one of the Portuguese guys we met that night.

At the cocktail bar...

On the picture above I am standing next to Anna, my sister in-law. Mum of Klara and Oskar.

This is Klara. She is 4 now. Her face is all scratched up because she fell out of the passenger car while the car was in motion. The responsible driver was my brother...

This is Oskar. He is 8 and came skiing with us. We trained him well...

Dublin and the Wicklow Mountains

2007-02-21T16:53:00.000Z

Col had a long weekend, last weekend, which we wanted to kick off quietly at the local pub for a few pints. As you can guess, a couple of pints turned into loads of pints and before we knew it we were hopping from pub to pub with a growing crew and ended up inviting ourselves to a local birthday party. Still not too sure how we ended up there but we seemed welcome and it was def. a very funny experience including Elvis tunes and Karaoke.

The following day, Col and I headed off to Dublin (listening to Pure Pacha in the little hire car- thank you Mark & Rusty!). It was a beautiful sunny day and the Guinness Brewery was calling us. Funnily enough the Guinness at the brewery was the worst one we ever tasted, but the view from the top of the brewery was superb and worth the wait and the shitty brew.

On Sunday we caught up with Kylie, Aram and Andy at Glandalough in the Wicklow Mountains. We had a pub meal at the 'Meeting of the Waters' and then spent the night in Wicklow itself which is on the East Coast below Dublin.

Next week we are off to Hamburg to spend a couple of days with my family before driving from there down to Austria (Serfaus-Fiss-Ladis) to go skiing with my brother and nephew. Stay tuned for the next pics from the slopes. Let's hope we will have some snow! Ciao for now. xox

Bear and Mary's visit to the Emerald Isle

2007-02-01T15:30:00.000Z

Col and I celebrated Australia day at the Woolshed in Dublin listening to Triple J, eating pies and Twisties and drinking Aussie beers. After a couple of flat tasting brews the good old Irish pub was calling and we met up with Kylie and Aram for a couple of pints before heading out to the airport to pick Bear, Mary, Nat and Will up. Halfway through our first drink with Kylie and Aram, Mary called us to pass on the sad news that Nat and Will were at the airport in London, yet, without a passport and were therefore denied to board their plane. The news came as a shock as we were very excited to see those crazy kiwis again and this time without the death of a hamster. We managed to change our car hire from a 7 seater to a normal sedan and off we took, with Bear and Mary in tow towards Thurles. In hindsight we were very lucky that we exchanged the 7 seater for a shorter vehicle. Car Hire Ireland would otherwise be missing the back half of their people mover car now. I will explain shortly...
Around midnight (Friday) we finally made it back to Thurles. We decided to stay in and ended up spending half the night on Skype speaking to Shazzy, Jo and Mark in India, Burger and Si at the Sunshine coast and Sally and Borgus in Paddington. What a fantastic technology! In an other 10 years we will have 3d images beamed into our living rooms instead of the life video feed on the computer screen. We all had a blast and are looking forward to the next skypemathon!
Saturday we went for drive to Kilkenny where we had a look at the castle and it's art gallery and tasted many Kilkenny's and Guinnesses. Mary walked into a butcher and asked for juicy Irish pork blood sausage (the Irish call this black pudding). The butcher did not know how to take that one, meanwhile, Col and Bear are looking through the shopfront window and nearly die laughing. Mary ended up with a big piece of bloody Irish sausage which we fried up for breakky the next morning. This is meant to be an Irish delicacy but we have not found one Irish person yet that actually eats this stuff. Must be an other Blarney Stone tourist rip-off thing.
After plenty of laughs we decided to head back to Thurles (the Hurling capital of Ireland - www.thurles.ie). We made it back to the car park and realised that the parking ticket went missing. After 5 minutes of searching, Col suggested to tail an other car through the gates. Mary agreed with Col, while Bear and I were unsure but did not interfere with the plan. I am still unsure how Col managed to get through this gate without crashing into the car ahead of us and without the gate splitting the car's roof into half all I remember is everyone holding their breaths while slightly ducking down. The relief was immense and I think from that point onwards we knew the night to come was ours.
We made it to 2 pubs that night, Larry's and Morrissey's. Larry's is our local and you can be assured to find some talkative Irishmen in there. It did not take longer than 5 minutes and Mary and I were circled in by some mad Irishmen. We could not understand half of what they were saying. All I can re-piece is that one guy offered to take us around Ireland in his van to show us the real Ireland with the real Irish pubs. Thanks but no thanks.
From Larry's we ventured to Morrissey's, which was our last stop. Around midnight we headed back to our little place to start skypemathon number two with India. During the course of the night our place filled up with Irish lads that we had never met before. We were more than happy to welcome everyone in and we can now proudly say that we are down with the locals. Time to move on! Enjoy the pics...

St Mary's church/ cemetry in Thurles. This Anglo-Norman church was built in the 12th century and dedicated to Mary. Go Mary!

It did not take long until the Irish madness struck Bear. Sign of an excellent weekend...

This chuck is called Ginger. He is very famous in Ireland as he is the two time champion in heavyweight fighting. After his fights he enjoys a quiet Guinness with his proud owner.

Kilkenny's skyline.

Mezbear and Col in front of the Kilkenny castle.

The Kilkenny castle.

The Kilkenny castle.

In the art gallery of the castle.

Bear's first Guinness in Ireland.

Our first Kilkenny pints that day. For some strange Irish reason, Kilkenny beer can only be purchased in Kilkenny of the tap. Real shame cause it's a very nice drop.

Australia Day!

2007-01-26T11:36:00.000Z

Happy Australia day to you all! Hope you are having a great weekend. We are heading to Dublin today for a few ales at the Down Under Bar at Stephen's Green before picking up Bear, Mary, Nat and Will from the airport. We will drive back to Thurles tonight and hopefully manage to have a bbq tomorrow. The fridge is filled with XXXX and plenty of rum and maybe there is more... Stay tuned for a mutant report of this weekend. Cheers to you all! Breeza xoxo

X-mas and New Years

2007-01-22T16:38:00.000Z

We were very lucky to have our very special guest Sardine staying with us over the festive season. Again, the only pics I can find are from our celebrations. We celebrated x-mas with a whole bunch of Aussies and a 40 year old turkey here in Thurles. The turkey was actually a 40 Euro turkey but through drunken mumbling the word spread that the turkey was 40 years old. Strangely not too many of us felt very hungry on x-mas day! We celebrated New Years with a dinner at a restaurant in Dublin followed by a few more drinks at Kylie and Aram's place. We undertook a couple of day trips in between x-mas and New Years to Galway, Kilkenny, Dublin and Glendalough in the Wicklow Mountains (http://www.visitwicklow.ie). Glendalough I thought has been the most spectacular area in Ireland that I have visited so far. We had gail force winds the day we drove up to the Wicklow Mountains and the drive was at times very scary but once we arrived at our destination the weather temporarily cleared up for us and we went for a walk along the old celtic ruins and cemetery.It was that rainy and windy on the way up the mountains that I actually thought we were in the eye of the storm when we walked along the ruins which added to the already very eerie feeling up there. Sardine took loads of pictures. I will post some as soon as I get some sent. Until then check out the above website to get an idea...

Sardine and Breeza.

Darryn playing with the horse mask looking like a smurf.

Richie & Dave.

Col, Darryn, Harold, Sardine & I.

The scream.

Wen, Col, Marty and Leah. Marty and Col are also known as the twins with the ten year gap, sort of... Marty is Col's shift boss.

Sardine & Harold.

Husband & wife.

Aram, Kylie, Col (nice face!), Sardine & I.

How to drink an Espresso Martini through a straw...

Kylie & Col.

Strictly no Dumping

2007-01-15T19:08:00.000Z

Farewell 2006!!!!!!!

2006-12-21T11:48:00.000Z

Col's birthday. This is Pat testing the German helmet.

House party!

Ttyler's b-day. The 36th me think!

My encounter with Cat Seteve'ns.

Jamesy hugging a rock. As you do in Mullum!

One of our last nights at Sally & Tyler's.

Burger and Si's wedding. Love this shot...

No time for signing...

The Lisheen mine crew. The man with that incredible mo is the boss of course. Just like in the animal kingdom...

This one is for you Sally! The good ol' Lidl uniform.

The Kiwi crew!

Darryn, our first cork victim.

Harold, victim number two. Revenge attack by Darryn!

London - Take 2

2006-12-13T22:41:00.000Z

We arrived in London one day after Bear, Mary, Will, Nat (more crazy Kiwis) and Hammi (Nat's hamster that is now in hamster heaven - RIP little fella) moved into their new 2 bedroom home in Chalk Farm. The place is fantastic and we were all very excited to 'warm' the new home up. We spent the first night at the local pub which is 30 seconds from Mezbear's doorstep. Great pub with pool table and live bands. We were the last once to leave and retreated back to number 15 Newbury Mews for more chats and some food. Nat and Will joined us that night in our ramblings who are a fantastic addition to the crew. Col and I retreated to our bed under the kitchen table before the sun came up to get some rest. The following day Bear and Col went for some boy's time to the Walkabout to watch a footy game. We girls decided on lunch and shopping in Camden, which is only a couple of minutes away from Chalk Farm. We weren't too lucky shopping-wise but had a great time catching up and enjoyed a cloudless day over London. We all met again in the evening to get ready for a big night out. The four of us and Chantelle headed off to a massive house party in an old theatre building. The location was mind blowing, once we realised that the Foyer was not the only dance floor in the building! We had even considered to go back to Chalk Farm, as we simply could not understand what the attraction about this tiny and strangely layed-out dance party was. We had a big laugh once we discovered the actual party rooms... We danced all night and headed back for our private after party at Bear and Mary's new home. Once we got home we noticed that little Hammi was shivering uncontrollably. Nat and Will were still out partying so we decided to keep an eye on little Hammi. We took him out of the cage and Chantelle gave him a little cuddle. He seemed to have settled then and we decided to put him back in the cage. I took Hammi of Chantelle's shoulder, which he did not like at all and reacted by biting me in my finger. Two minutes later, back in the cage, Hammi was playing what we thought was 'dead man - or better dead Hammi'. A further minute passed and we all began to realise that Hammi was not playing. Col and Bear came to the rescue and tried to resuscitate the little fella. Hammi took his last breath in Col's hands and left us for good. This was a very traumatising moment, because we had to pass the sad news onto Nat and Will. Nat and Will came home shortly after and took the news very well. We all stayed up and carried on together in memory of Hammi. At one point we even considered to pay our last respects to little Hammi just like Hunter S Thompson's. Bear had bought some very impressive fireworks of which the piece de resistance contained over 500 hundred shots. We dismissed the idea after long discussions but ended the night in firing the fireworks. What a weekend!

Nat, me and Mary, Friday night before heading to the local.

Mary and Will, Friday night.

Before and after shots of the party crew on Saturday night.

RIP little fella!

This is Will, passed out on Saturday night. He did not quiet make it onto his bed but seemed very happy to sleep in this praying position.

Halloween & The Crazy Kiwis

2006-12-13T22:00:00.000Z

Here some pics from Halloween...
Col and I met some fantastic Kiwis who unfortunately stayed in Thurles for only a couple of weeks. We celebrated some wild times together to say the least and miss these guys dearly over here. Nonetheless we know that our paths will cross again soon. Kristy, Stacey (who I actually named Mindy 2 - guess which one Stacey is), Mayela (from Pueblo in Mexico) and Jarrah... this post is to YOU!!!
We went to a bar/ club nearby called Morrisseys who put on a Halloween party. None of us dressed up as we were a little unorganised but as you can see, at the end of the night I had a complete witches outfit. I "found" the individual costume pieces alongside spiders, rats and bats throughout the night. Most of it were the interior decorations of the pub. Fantastic night as we got locked into Morrisseys and kept celebrating all night with the staff. The 5 minute walk home took half an hour as we kept falling over each other, ending up in a big human pile on the sidewalk. Hope you' ll enjoy the pics!

At the bar...

Locked in!

On the way home.

Pile up...

Cork - The Blarney Castle

2006-10-22T20:34:00.000+01:00

We went for a day trip to Cork with my friend Male to visit The Blarney Castle. This is the oldest castle in Ireland and a must-do as tells you every Irish travel guide.

And this is why... On top of the castle you will find the magic Blarney stone, which, when kissed will give you the 'gift of the gab'. Of course you cant just stand upright and kiss the stone. Some Irish drunk came up with the idea that you have to get down on your back, bend over backwards (of course!) over a 50m metre drop, while being held by your legs and kiss this salty and bacteria loaden stone. And we all did it! Just magic...

This is the view from the top of the castle.

Col found loads of shrooms. More magic...

Back home in Thurles. The girls after a bottle of Bacardi, ready to go out!

Our New Home

2006-10-22T19:52:00.000+01:00

Here some pics from our appartment to give you some idea where our day to day life takes place. This is the view from our kitchen window. You can see the Thurles cathedral in the background.This is our living area/ guest room. I am sitting in that right hand corner right now. It's my little office...

And the kitchen...

Some more London pics

2006-10-07T12:02:00.000+01:00

First night in London. And an other mong... The other pictures below are all from our night in Notting Hill. Fantastic costumes, food and music. My favourite costume is of course the last one.

Go the Broncos!

2006-10-07T11:38:00.000+01:00

Col and I watched the semi final at a very cool retro pub called 'Glasheens'. The pub fell into fashion again as it still has it's original interior from the 60s. We also met 'Glasheens' best customer, Patrick, who lives in the same house as us. Very sweet, funny and mostly drunken old Irish fella.

We took these picks after the Broncos won. As you can see, Col was a very, very, very happy chap that day!

Pussy Wagon

2006-10-07T11:02:00.000+01:00

I had to take a photo of this beast on wheels cause this is Oskar's (my nephew) dream car and he already started saving for it.

I think the next Snoop Pongs is born!

Note the 'Pussy Wagon' sticker...

The Beer is Blessed!

2006-09-30T13:11:00.000+01:00

I don't even remember taking this photo but there is no doubt that the beer here is blessed!

En Route to Kilkenny!

2006-09-30T12:57:00.000+01:00

This crazy Hurling fan painted his whole house in the colours of his team!

A typical shop front in Kilkenny...

The Old Rock of Cashel

2006-09-30T12:49:00.000+01:00

Cashel is 20 minutes drive from Thurles and is home to one of Ireland's many old castles. Very lucky with the weather! The view was just stunning.

Thurles

2006-09-30T12:44:00.000+01:00

This is the main street in Thurles. Will post more pics soon.

Dublin

2006-09-30T12:40:00.000+01:00

Beer testing and bar hopping with Kylie and Col in Dublin. Sore head the next day...

Dresden

2006-09-30T12:33:00.000+01:00

Dresden suffered the worst ardement in WW II and has now been rebuilt to it's glory after the reunification of Germany. Most of the money used to rebuild Dresden's famous architecture came from public donations.

Dresden - Elbe

2006-09-30T12:30:00.000+01:00

The bird watcher...

And the camper...

Definitely one of the most entertaining boat rides I have been on for a long time. Not too sure what Mamie (my granny) thought about these Germans!

Dresden

2006-09-30T12:23:00.000+01:00

On the Elbe to see Dresden castle with my dad, Ulla and my gran.

Tipperary News

2006-09-30T12:11:00.000+01:00

Yesterday was finally break through day! We have now a landline and from next Tuesday we will have broadband! Very exciting stuff as I am struggling a little through this weekend with a flu, no TV and Col being on nights. Good thing though that Col is on nights as we will be able to watch the Broncos roar! Beware of some dirty phone calls coming your way!

Here finally some photos from the trip so far... This was our first night in London with Bear and Mary at the Salisbury Pub. Fantastic night! I think Col was trying to do the mong...

It's a long way to Tipperary

2006-09-16T13:26:00.000+01:00

I finally made it to my new home town 'Thurles'. After a grand time in Hamburg with plenty of sessions in beer gardens and great weather I arrived in Dublin last Monday (September, 11!). I was a little upset arriving in pouring rain after I had left Hamburg in a sweat at 30 degrees and blue skies. I then got onto the wrong bus (the one going to Belfast), as I struggled to understand what people were actually telling me. Luckily I noticed before departure that I was in the wrong bus. I quickly got out and battled my way, still in pouring rain, to the Dublin AirCoach and landed a seat next to a very friendly lady who lived her whole life in Dublin. We chatted away and she said to me "If you don't mind a drink, you will love Ireland" And from that moment onwards I felt a whole lot better!
I spent the following 2 nights with my friend Kylie (we worked together at Flight Centre). Kylie showed me around Dublin and we got to see 2000 year old 'bog men' that were found in bogs and are so well preserved that you can still see their beards, fingernails and other interesting flaps of skin... From there we went to the oldest church in Dublin, where you are allowed to climb down into the crypts. In those crypts lay 1000 year old coffins that had fallen apart and still contained the , now mummified, bodies. Absolutely amazing stuff. We were even allowed to rub one of the mummy’s hands. I chickened out but Kylie went for it. Go Aussie go! After the crypts it was time to meet Col and to check out a few Irish pubs. I tried my first Guinness and it went down like water. I always thought I did not like Guinness... i am in trouble now. I guess you can all imagine how the evening/ night went on.
Our heads were hurting the next day and it is true that your poo goes black. I say no more! That Wednesday Col and I said good bye to Kylie and headed to Thurles (pronounced: Tur-less). Thurles is approx 80 minutes by train from Dublin.
Thurles positively surprised me and is a very pretty picturesque and busy town. Even the weather seems to be alright here. Thurles has 36 pubs, to start with the important facts, 3 night clubs, a cinema, 2 gyms and even a brand new arts complex with a very modern library. This is where I am right now. Col and I are still staying in the hotel but are moving into our new 1 bedroom apartment tomorrow. Soon we should have Broadband - watch out you skypers! - and a home phone etc. The apartment is pretty small but has new heating and a fairly new kitchen, which is all we need for now.
I will post some phots and more info about our contact details as soon as we are online again.
So folks, that's all for now. Wish you were here!
Breeza

P.S.: Here you don't have to watch for dog , you have to watch for spew. Crazy!