Cambridge - England

The Place: Had an amazing day of sunshine and strolling in and around the college town of Cambridge.
She Said Yes!: Went punting along the river Cam which was really fun, and harder than it looks! The views from the river were the best we saw of Cambridge. It meanders under old bridges and between the different colleges of the university. We stopped for a few minutes in the punt at a quiet spot by the banks of Kings College Chapel where I surprised Liz by getting on one knee and proposing, to which she said Yes! Some other passers by saw what was happening and cheered for us from their boats.
We spent the rest of the day strolling around the beautiful old town, checking out some of the college campuses, having some quiet drinks while dangling our feet in the canal, and chilling in the shade of a tree by the river.

Anglesey - North Wales

The Place: Travelled to Anglesey - which is almost an island lying in the northern most part of Wales and popular as a ferry-link to Dublin - for the endurance life 10km trail run up and around Holyhead.

Some highlights: The run was tough but very scenic taking us around the cliffsides of the island, climbing up to the top of Holyhead mountain and then scrambling down to the finish line. It was a fun race and the steep hills made it tough.

We stayed in a sea side cottage with 9 people which made for a lot of fun when we got back from the race. On the morning after a party on the Saturday night (where a few of our neighbours joined us- friends of some of ours) we took to the freezing sea water and then ran back into the house for a sauna - 3 times. Very invigorating and actually seemed to help quite a bit with the sore muscles after the race. Definitely made me keen to continue the weekend races!

Edinburgh - Scotland

The Place: Spent the long weekend in the beautiful city of Edinburgh in a big group of 11, including Liz, old res friends, Tim, Trev and Nic, and girlfriends and Tim and Cristina and some of their friends.

Some features: Brought in 2011 at the Hogmanay street party followed by a day at the South Queensferry for the Loony Dook. Took a ghost tour that led into vaults under the old town. The tour included stories of murders, tortures, hangings, body snatchers and their ghosts who haunted the Royal Mile for years following. Some of the Ghosts that remain haunting the vaults are little Jake who sometimes takes tourists by the hand, and the Watcher who shows aggression to those passing by. It was a good tour to get a feeling of the history and stories that a city so old can tell.

Tried some haggis, tatties and neeps which I really enjoyed.

Spent a day walking around Hollyrood park and up to the top of Arthur's seat which overlooks the city. The views from there are spectacular, not only because of the rugged landscape but because you get a great view of Edinburgh castle which sits high above the city. Went for a whiskey tour on the Royal mile and learnt a bit about Scotch whiskey - sadly it was more talk less taste! Ate a delicious meal at the Stac Polly after meeting up with the rest of the 11, which led to a good night out. Spent our last day wondering (exhausted from the long weekend) up to the Castle and around the Royal mile passing the beautiful St Giles church, seeing the occasional Scotsman playing a bagpipe, popping into some of the many cashmere and kilt making shops, eating in the cafes watching people go by and soaking in whatever else our hangovers would let us before heading back to the airport that night.

The Loony Dook - Edinburgh

The Event: In South Queensferry on the outskirts of Edinburgh, participated in the Loony Dook which is a New Years day procession through the streets of the town ending in a plunge in the icy waters overlooked by the landmark Forth bridge. Loads of people dress up in crazy gear to take a dip. Needless to say it was freezing but we didnt anticipate how agonisingly cold our feet would get from walking on the iced cobblestones of the streets, only to be relieved by the numbness caused from taking a swim! Very fun though. (Ps That's Trev at the bottom raising his arms). By chance Liz and I are in this video on youtube - from 1:05 to 1:20 - see if you can spot us!

New Years Eve - Edinburgh

The Event: Travelled to Scotland with Liz and good friends for the famous Hogmanay street party in Edinburgh. In what is already an amazing city, the combination of the count down, fireworks and singing of Auld Lang Syne was a great way to bring in the New Year.

Christmas 2010 - London

The Place: Spent Christmas at home in London cozy and and warm indoors. We unwrapped presents, listened to Boney M Christmas carols, watched Christmas movies, and skyped family. Liz made a delicious chicken roast and I made us some gluhwein for later. Good times.

Berlin - Germany

The Place: Made a great weekend out of a work trip to attend the 17th International Energy Accounting Forum in Berlin with a work colleague and one of his friends.
Some features: Took a cycle round the city to see some of the sights including the Brandonberg Gate and Reichstag.
Spent a while walking through the vast and isolating holocaust memorial which is an area of 19000 square feet covered with 2711 concrete slabs. As you walk between the blocks which are knee and waist height on the outskirts you realise the ground slopes steadily downwards as you go further in, resulting in you ending up completely swallowed by the the surrounding concrete.
Wandered around the war museum at Checkpoint Charlie (the American checkpoint at the Berlin Wall) which was a fascinating museum showing many of the inventive ways in which the Germans would try to escape the East, history of the start and end of the Berlin Wall, as well as great pieces of art.
Had two great nights going out in some of the good spots in Berlin which included the 'Lucia' bar in Kreuzberg, some streets close to our hostel in Warschauer platz and the surrounding area of Lyschener-,Shliemann- and Dunkerstraße.
The Berliner Dom is an amazing domed church to see, and on the right, set behind it you can see the Berlin television tower (Fernsehturm) which is one of the popular icons of the city (apparently built by the East to impress the West during their separation).
Also saw the Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial Church which was bombed in 1943 but still stands. It was unfortunately under restoration so we could only see the top of it.
Enjoyed sipping gluhwein and eating currywurst while perusing the Christmas markets that light up the streets at night.

Noosa - Australia

The Place: On the sunshine coast about 2 hrs north of Brisbane, we spent a relaxing 4 days in Noosa.

Some features: We were pleasantly surprised on the first morning by someone calling out my name. It turned out to be Trent and Caryn dropping in for a visit. We spent the day with them visiting three of the beaches around the Noosa Heads and having a picnic on the bank of the laguna. Also took a walk through the National Park which follows the coastline for some good sunset watching where we saw a koala wedged peacefully in a fork of a tree, and watched dolphins out at sea.

Spent the next three days winding down completely, going for swims, beach and nature walks, reads on the beach and wondering through the town which felt like an excellent way to finish off our holiday. Spotted turtles off the cliffs of 'Hell's Point', rare black cockatoos, and another koala.