Travel 2016 – Ekenas, Raseborg Castle, Turku, Day 7

Day 7, Monday 11th July Moose count = 0, even on a plate It was time to leave Helsinki, checking out of the hotel Klaus K after one more of their excellent breakfasts. The bread alone was worth getting up for and the other offerings such as smoked vendace were also excellent! We did a…

Travel 2016 – Helsinki, Day 5

Day 5, Saturday 9th July Moose count = 1 moose fillet, 0 live moose Saturday saw a somewhat early start as we were booked on a walking tour with Happy Guide Helsinki and they were kicking off at 10:00am at the Vanha Kauppahalli. We arrived with 20 minutes to spare and so wandered into the…

Travel 2016 – Helsinki, Day 4

Day 4, Friday 8th July – Helsinki Moose = 1 bronze moose, 1 stuffed moose, 0 live moose The ferry disembarcation was quick and efficient and after a drive into the city that had us wondering where everyone was, we were in Helsinki and parking up by the hotel within 30 minutes, a fact much…

Travel 2015 – Bruges, Brussels, Travel, Day 4

Tuesday, 15th December 2015 – Bruges A travel day but with added Belgium! We had checked the timetables carefully to ensure we didn’t face a rerun of Saturday’s ridiculously slow journey from Brussels to Bruges. We checked out of the Medici and loaded our shopping and luggage into the taxi that the receptionist organised for…

Travel 2015 – Bruges, Day 3

Monday, December 14th 2016 – Bruges Monday was “how many museums can you pack into one day” as we endeavoured to see as much as possible and coincidentally also get as much value for money as we could out of the Bruges City Card. We were woken early anyway as we’d left the window open…

Travel 2015 – Bruges, Day 2

Sunday, December 13th 2015 – Bruges So it was up and at ’em pretty promptly on Sunday morning as we wanted to see as much as possible. It was a ridiculously mild morning so after breakfast in the somewhat disappointing breakfast room (which felt more like an institutional cafeteria than a dining room in what…

Travel 2015 – London, Bruges, Day 1

Saturday, 12th December 2015 – London, Bruges This trip came about because we’d fancied a “Christmas Markets” type weekend away in the run up to Christmas and as I was hunting for something that appealed a deal came up for a Eurostar and hotel package at a price that was too good to walk away…

Travel 2009 – Faro, Tavira, Days 6 and 7

Wednesday, 16th/Thursday, 17th September 2009 – Faro, Tavira, Days 6 and 7 By Wednesday we were becoming very relaxed indeed. Again we breakfasted late and had to fend off the friendly cat. He became even more of a pest as we wandered around the hotel gardens, which are a major part of the attraction of…

Travel 2009 – Portimao, Silves, Faro, Estoi, Day 5

Monday, 14th September 2009 – Portimao, Silves, Faro, Day 5 Monday morning we were in no hurry at all to do anything or go anywhere, apart from needing to check out of the Globo by noon. We had a leisurely breakfast, packed slowly and were ready to go by 11. Bills paid and car packed…