Have you met Ralph?

We had to leave our beautiful little dog at home in Australia while we were in China and were planning on taking her to England with us, but most airlines have banned snub nosed dogs from long haul flights. Bear that in mind if you have plans to migrate with a dog or cat with a snub nose, including Shih Tzu, Boxers and Pugs.Terrible news, girls were upset but there was no way around it so our dog was left with friends and the girls were promised a rescue dog...with a long nose, on arrival in the UK.

We arrived, had a family meeting and set criteria for our rescue dog. Must be small to middle size, older dog, non shedding, everyone must agree on chosen dog. We then spent hours trawling the numerous dogs' homes locally. They were filled to the brim with crazy puppies and big dogs but none that matched our criteria. My husband instructed my eldest daughter to look online and find a dog called Ralph...thinking she would never find a dog called Ralph...and she did! So off we went to the New Forest to meet Ralph, a five hour round trip.

Ralph didn't fit any of the criteria apart from having a long nose...and he was...a dog. A four month old Border Collie cross. There was much pleading and begging to adopt Ralph on the long drive home...and that was just from my husband. We threw the 'dog choosing criteria' out the window and went to pick him up the following week, on my eldest daughter's birthday! That was three years ago and Ralph is a very much loved member of our family. He is such a character and has been on many adventures with us. We are in the process of getting him to Australia when we return home in January 2016. So glad you picked us Ralphy!

Ralph loves catching bubbles!

He just loves playing in our forest!

He has good sea legs

Loves playing tourist dog.

Enjoyed his trip on a gondola in Venice

Is a 'little' spoiled!

Loves a bone to chew on

Usually has a ball in his mouth, though it can be hard to choose!

Ralph is so clever he sneaks onto the family computer when we aren't looking and

has his own blog..check him out at The Life and Times of Ralph

Travel Contrasts Beach or Culture, you can have both!

We all have those family discussions at holiday planning time, where to go, what to see! 

Do we sit by the pool or beach with a cocktail in hand or to we put on the 

walking shoes and immerse ourselves in some culture and history?

Swim or museum? Tour or tapas? Sand or cobblestones?

My little family found the perfect travel destination that caters for all.

Beach and culture. Lazy days and history lessons.

Contrasting holidays rolled into one.

We went to Dubrovnik!

A UNESCO World Heritage Site

Described by George Bernard Shaw as "The Pearl of the Adriatic" and 

"Those who seek paradise on Earth should come to Dubrovnik", 

It is a beautiful city that will have something for everyone.

The guides that lead the walking tours of the city wall, provide a wealth of interesting history, 

from as far back as the 7th Century to the recent shelling by the Serbs in 1991/92 

which lasted for seven long months.

The cable car ride to the top of Mount Srdj shows spectacular views of the city below.

The Homeland War museum on Mount Srdj, in the fort built between 1806 -1812 

and defended by the locals in the homeland war is well worth a visit. 

To learn of the very recent history and how Dubrovnik has moved onwards and upwards is inspiring.

The fort is also a pretty nice spot to watch the sun set over the city!

The European Wall of China, built between Ston and Mali Ston to protect the salt pans 

that are still working to this day, a historic walk with fabulous views. 

Best to wake teenagers for an early start...

it gets pretty hot up there at midday, trust me...I know!

After walking the Walls of Ston, refresh with a swim in Mali Ston, crystal clear waters,  

then indulge in the freshest, most delicious oysters on the planet at a local restaurant!

In and around Dubrovnik there are bays to walk, boats to hire, views to gaze at, 

clear water to swim in, fabulous food to eat and pretty impressive local wines to drink.

The sun set is spectacular, whether you have had a day full of history and culture, 

or a day on the beach sipping a pina colada...or even a bit of both!

Photo a Day in July - the month comes to an end, ten days of travel and memories!

I was encouraged to start this blog when we were living in China, but with the hassles of
dodgy internet and working with VPN's at the time I never did.
Who would have thought that years later, I would be thwarted with dodgy internet in Germany!
We have had internet issues since we moved into our Frankfurt home
seventeen months ago, losing connection for weeks on end...
not good for blogging and certainly not good for a household of expats including two teenagers!
Fingers crossed the problem has now been found and solved.
I can get back on track and share our adventures of our last few months as expats
before our move back home to Australia in January 2016.

The prompt of the day is in red, the photo and description is my take on the day.
Ten days of memories old and new!

21

Multifaceted

The multifaceted, iconic Pearl Tower in Shanghai!

22

Vision

The flowers at Keukenhof, The Netherlands were a vision!

23

Family

My family by Chinese Horoscope...we have a Pig, a Horse (me) a Tiger...

and a very special year of 2000 Golden Dragon!

24

Re imagine Ageing

I would like to re imagine my Mum's ageing, have her around to see her grand daughters 

flourish and grow. Mum missed her first grandchild, my daughter by two days.

25

Shoes

Hand making and embroidering traditional Miao Minority shoes in Guizhou, China.

26

Composition

My composition of my ferry, the Chaannel and Dover last Saturday, on our way to England.

27

In good hands

The Prague Castle is in good hands with the guards protecting it.

28

Why

Why can't I live in Croatia and eat fresh oysters all day???

29

Piece of cake 

This Black Forest Cake in the Black Forest was a great piece of cake!

30

Night

Loved the atmosphere of the Wiesbaden Christmas Markets at night.

31

Filter

Love the pop of red from my London phone box after a filter was added.

It was a grey London day last Monday.

Photo a Day - July Week 3 - Lazy days of Summer and a little history lesson!

July is whizzing by at an astonishing rate, though life is more relaxed, no alarms to wake to. 

Lazy days of Summer, walks in the forest and hanging out with my girls, adventures on 

the horizon. Out last summer in Europe, we have much to fit in!

The prompt of the day is in red, the photo and description is my take on the prompt!

13

Ink

The Chinese use a "chop" with red ink for legal documents instead of a signature. 

They are typically made of stone. We have one each and sign letters and postcards with them.

14

Sticky Situation

Ralph often finds himself in this sticky situation. He puts his ball down...and it rolls under the gate where he can't reach it. He has developed a special yip which alerts me to the situation 

and I go to rescue his ball.

Another of Ralph's "sticky" situations!

15

Begins with "T"

Just had to be my Trees I visit every day. Just love my forest!

16

Distorted

A distorted part of my garden!

The original photo

 17

Brick

Germany has some gorgeous brickwork, also many bricked up windows like the UK. 

In the UK during the 18th century a "Window Tax" was charged, based on the number of windows in the residence. Many people bricked up windows to avoid paying the tax, though they lost the fresh air and light with the windows bricked up. The people said that they were robbed of their daylight due to the tax and it is where the term "Daylight Robbery" comes from.

18

Good Sport

Ralph is always a good sport at helping me out with photo a day prompts. 

This was for "Something beginning with R"

Ralph, Rose, Red ball and collar!

19

Cute

These two children, dressed in traditional Miao Minority costume, 

holding hands at their "Sister Festival" were so cute!

Photo a Day in July - Week 2. A week of castles, culture and a bit of fresh air!

We had a week filled with castles, forest walks and cool fresh air after last week's heatwave. 

Lots of beautiful blue skies to enjoy. Nice to get out and about!

Though a Shanghai Napper did sneak in!

The prompt of the day is in red, the photo and description is my take on the prompt!

Enjoy my week.

6

Rule of Thirds

Another day...another castle. This is Marksburg Castle we found yesterday on 

our drive along the Rhine River.

 7

Vanishing Point

Ralph, the dog and I vanish around this point nearly every day!

 8

Bedtime

Any time is bedtime when you have an empty tricycle after a hard day's work!

 9

Alphaphotography

My week in ...Germany!

From our front gate to our forest, Heidelberg Castle and Eltz Castle.

10

Just another day

Just another castle discovered. Seems to be my week of castles, 

we have found one at every corner it seems!

This is Biebrich Palace in Wiesbaden, built in 1702.

11

Technology

Our home is filled with technology, my husband builds computers and writes apps as a hobby.

The only thing this old motherboard is good for now it to be a photography model...

but alas ...he will not throw it out!

 12

Layers

Frankfurt has many layers. Financial centre of Europe. Commerce, culture, education, tourism.

This is the fountain of justice, first built in 1543 and the buildings of Romerberg, rebuilt after the war,

layered with Stolperstein I found nearby. A layer of Frankfurt and Europe never to be forgotten.

Photo a Day in July - Week 1. Goodbye June, Hello July..why on earth is 2015 going so fast???

Where oh where is the time going, how can it possibly be July already?

Frankfurt has had a hot week...even this little family of Aussies has been feeling the heat, 

40C yesterday! Most of the of the week was spent finding ways to cool down.

We spent today escaping our sauna of a house, in our air conditioned car on a road trip to 

see a little bit more of beautiful Germany and discovered a spectacular castle.

Enjoy my week.

The prompt of the day is in red, the photo and description is my take on the prompt!

I'm off to have a nice cold G&T, 7.30pm and still 38C!

29

Let's go

Let's go and jump on the next plane departing, wherever it is going and head off on a 

mystery adventure! Have always wanted to do that...one day!

30

Thankful

Thankful for so many things. Thankful that although today is the last day that my husband works in Germany, he has a six month contract to keep us here and allow us to land gently back home in Australia instead of a mad upheaval...and to see a bit more of Europe too. 

So thankful for my forest, my daily walks clear my mind and cleanse my soul.

Taken April 2015, the last of my archive month of June!

1

Wonder in the world

So many wonders in our world, so much beauty, so much adversity overcome to make the world a better place. I wonder at the Romerplatz in Frankfurt, mostly destroyed in WW2, 

rebuilt and reinvigorated, now home to many festival and visited by people from all over the world. 

Setting up for a festival now, had to be creative to get a shot with no scaffolding!

2

Adventurous

Ralph is quite adventurous in our forest, though today was a little warm for our Irish dog... 

so he was more adventurous in the cool stream as long as someone was willing to throw his ball.

3

Leadership

These little cygnets rely on the leadership of their parents to guide and teach them.

Love that swans mate for life.

Nearly joined them for a swim on a hot and humid day in Frankfurt.

4

A reflection of me

I asked my husband and girls to pick a few items from around the house that reflect

who I am, this is what they came up with...and a few others that wouldn't fit.

They are all reflections of me!

5

Begins with "W"

Wald is forest in German, we visited this gorgeous Wald/Forest today in Wierschem in the Moselle valley...and nestled in the forest was this gorgeous castle...the Burg Eltz...

has been in the same family for 33 generations