Days 1 & 2 Day 3, Christmas The sound of falling rain woke me up a couple of times at night. So far, we were incredibly lucky with the weather. When we did Routeburn we only got sprinkled a little. Apart from that, the weather was pleasantly warm and dry. This area is one of […]
Milford track, New Zealand, Dec 2022 Read More »
Queenstown Day 1 The group for our other walk was again 40 people. Half of them were Americans, the other half Australians and New Zealanders plus one British. I expected to see a more diversified group. Apparently, other nationalities were not keen on traveling far. The bus went along the already familiar route with a
Milford track, New Zealand, Dec 2022 Read More »
Routeburn, Days 2 & 3 My friend Nina and I had no plans for the free day between two walks apart from going to an afternoon briefing at the Ultimate Hikes center. Nina suggested to try the luge. We paid for 5 rides and Nina watched them enviously while we waited in line for our
Queenstown, New Zealand, Dec 2022 Read More »
Routeburn, Day 1 Days 2 & 3 We got up at 7 a.m. and started our day by making our lunches. Everyone prepared sandwiches from the ingredients on the table: ham, cheeses, green salad, pickles, and vegetables, took an apple or an orange, and a small powerbar, filled a water bottle. We carried our lunches
Routeburn, New Zealand, Dec 2022 Read More »
Australia to New Zealand Routeburn, Day 1 Our group was 39 people plus 4 guides. The age varied from school children to senior adults over 70. The majority of the walkers were locals, either New Zealanders or Australians, and a few Americans. The bus left Queenstown and slowly wound its way along Lake Wakatipu and
Routeburn, New Zealand, Dec 2022 Read More »
As cold weather descended on Colorado, I faced my annually recurring problem – where to go to escape winter blues? The Southern Hemisphere was a good option, summer was just starting there. My records showed that the last time I was in Australia in 2008. Perhaps, I should revisit the country of my second citizenship.
Australia to New Zealand, Dec 2022 Read More »
The last stopover of this trip was a ski resort, Razlog. The city must be packed in winter with skiers. In August, it was a quiet place with few visitors. The city center is a nice place to take a walk. Razlog has a viewing platform on top of one the mountains. The hike to
Razlog, Bulgaria, August 2022 Read More »
Heraclea Sintica Shortly, I was at the mineral springs. The area was clean and unspoiled by human presence but all facilities were there – change rooms, showers, and toilets. This water does not contain sulfur and it does not smell. The list of what it does contain is long including rare-earth-elements, metals, and minerals. I
Rupite, Bulgaria, August 2022 Read More »
Macedonia – Petrich, Bulgaria There were three places in the vicinity of Petrich that I wanted to visit: the ancient city Heraclea Sintica, the other Vanga Museum and hot springs in Rupite. All three places are located within several kilometers from each other which makes it possible to see all of them the same day.
Heraclea Sintica, Bulgaria, August 2022 Read More »
Strumica, Macedonia I was up early and at 7 a.m., I was already outside with my backpack. I shut the door of the apartment leaving the key inside as it was agreed with the owner, Dragan. I heard nothing from him the night before and, running ahead of the story, I can tell that Dragan
Macedonia – Petrich, Bulgaria, August 2022 Read More »
