Tag Archives: Holiday

A thank you

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MedsWe just want to say a huge thank you to the team at Eden Roc hotel for their help when Jean fell sick. Within 30 minutes of us contacting them and asking for a doctor one turned  up on our doorstep. Dr Buonocore you were fantastic.

Later that day we had a visit from Dominic, the head of the Casola family, asking after Jeans health and stressing that if there was anything we needed we were just to ask.

As a result, dinner that night were Eden Roc takeaways – not something that is usually available to anyone as far as we know.

Stunning Penne Carbonarra accompanied by crispy bread and some beers for the caregiver, all transported from the hotel on the handlebars of a Vespa to make sure it was still piping hot. As the young hotel concierge said – Carbonarra is always best hot – which it was.

Grazie mille Eden Roc.

A cure for jetlag

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This gallery contains 11 photos.

After 32 hours of travel, and a 12 hour time difference the perfect cure for jet lag was a dinner with friends, a decent sleep and, the following day, a walk through the English countryside. So that’s what we did … Continue reading →

We’re here – or there – depending on your point of view

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First Positano BlogGentle reader, please accept my apologies but it has been almost a week without a post. Put it down to jet lag or simply the frantic activity involved in doing very little, but rest assured a stream of posts will follow.

We arrived in Positano last night and are now resident at Villa Greta.

As I write this the temperature is a warm 29 degrees, the sun is shining and I can just glimpse the Galli Islands above the Bougainvillea covered railing running around the patio.

This afternoon is planned – a late lunch at Eden Roc and an afternoon by the pool.

Enough said.

 

Let’s talk Sicily

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Mt Etna erupting with Catania behind in 2001 - courtesy of photographer Carsten Peter

Mt Etna erupting with Catania behind in 2001 – courtesy of photographer Carsten Peter

What do you know about Sicily? Probably more than we do.

The furthest south we have ever been in Italy is the Amalfi Coast just south of Naples. But not this trip because this trip we are spending a week in Sicily – the island known for Mt Etna and the Cosa Nostra.

We fly into Catania which lies in the shadow of Mt Etna (which is still classified as an active volcano). From there we drive south for 2 hours to Noto where a villa and our friends Gill, Andre, Josh and Jordan are waiting.

We have a week to discover our corner of Sicily. What should we do? Where should we go? Make us an offer we can’t refuse.

 

One step closer to Italy

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Holiday ShoesOver the weekend we took the first steps towards Italy. Our suitcases came out of the cupboard and we started to think about packing. For me that involved a lot of T-shirts and shorts and not much else.

For Jean it began closer to the ground. Darling, you’re packing how many pairs of shoes?

 

Plans are afoot

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Positano from Villa Greta's roof terrace

Positano from Villa Greta’s roof terrace

Our Italian holiday is less than a month away and we are in the final planning stages. Rome, Tuscany and Sicily are all places we will visit but our base will be Positano.

Ahhh, Positano.

We have booked Villa Greta for a week in August to coincide with the Festival of Our Lady of the Assumption on August 14th and 15th, which is one of Positano’s most important festivals. To quote the Positano.com website:

The festival both honors the town’s protector and commemorates the ancient legend of how a ship carrying a Byzantine icon of the virgin Mary was beached in the bay of Positano. Not until the sailors gave the icon to the local inhabitants were they able to set sail once more.

On August 14th, the celebrations begin with the so-called “Alazata del Quadro” (“The Lifting of the Painting”) in front of the Church of Santa Maria Assunta.  In the evening, a spectacular procession of illuminated boats heads to the “Mamma e Figlio” rocks by the beach of Fornillo before returning to the Spiaggia Grande beach and the Cathedral.

On August 15th, the festivities continue late into the night and conclude with a magnificent firework display over the sea, which lights up much of the Amalfi Coast.

We will be watching from the terrazzo of Eden Roc hotel – one of the best vantage points in Positano.

The view across Siena

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Siena from the Torre del Mangia

Siena from the Torre del Mangia

For no reason, a photograph taken from the top of the Torre del Mangia in Siena looking towards the Duomo and the countryside beyond. The view, after climbing the tower’s 400 steps is absolutely wonderful.

This shot was taken 12 years ago and has survived a transfer from film to print to scanned image. The scan was state-of-the-art for 2002 (for that read low res, and full of noise) but, with a little Photoshopping, it can be brought back to life.

It always pays to look the other way

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Just north of Pienza in Tuscany is a stand of Cypress trees that have been photographed more often than most others. The reason is they seem to represent Tuscany to tourists and they are visible from the main road. In each season they summarise the beauty of the region.

It’s not unusual to see half a dozen cars stopped at the side of the road with the occupants out shooting the grove of trees.

Interestingly very few people turn around and look the other way to a view that, in my humble opinion, is even more Tuscan. Captured here in late Autumn.

That house in Nelson

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Every time I pass through Richmond I pass an old run down house sitting in the middle of a field. I always mean to stop and photograph the house but there has inevitably been a good reason not too.

Until recently.

On the drive back from Pelorus Sound, I stopped and risked life and limb crossing the main road to captured a shot.

A weekend away

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It’s been a few years since I’ve spent time in the Sounds. Or in this case Kaiuma Bay in Pelorus Sound. It was June’s 70th birthday and a family weekend away to celebrate. After flying from Wellington to Nelson we … Continue reading →

Thank you all for the good wishes

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Birthday CardsFebruary is birthday month at Kainui Road. Both Jean and I have had birthdays in the past week and we’d like to pass on a big thank you to everyone who sent their best wishes.

It was also a big birthday for Jean’s Mum and the family spent the weekend celebrating and relaxing on the shores of Pelorus Sound. But more of that in a future post.