JANUARY: I kicked off the year by fulfilling one of my long awaited “Bucket List” dreams – to see the New Year fireworks over Sydney Harbour, Australia! If you want to see what I saw, click HERE!
FEBRUARY: By now, I had moved on to New Zealand. This is the view from Mt. Paku, a twin-coned volcanic peak dominating the head of Tairua Harbour on the east coast of the Coromandel peninsula, New Zealand. See what I saw by clicking HERE.
MARCH: If you had been in my shoes, you would have been in Melbourne, Australia, sitting by the Yarra River. I was there for the opening race of the Formula One motor-racing season – well I am a petrol-head! Join me for a look around beautiful Melbourne, HERE.
APRIL: Time to head home to the white, mountain village of Cómpeta, east of Málaga. Behind the village you can see the highest mountain in this part of the world, Mount Maroma. Let me show you around the village, HERE.
MAY: My birthday treat was a few days away in Seville, the fourth largest city in Spain and capital of Andalucía. Seville is well known for religious festivals, flamenco, world-class tapas and sherry drinking, but did you know that the tomb of Christopher Columbus is inside Seville Cathedral? See the city for yourself, HERE.
JUNE: Whenever we have visitors come to stay, I always take them to the pretty, white village of Frigiliana. If you watch THIS VIDEO of the village, you can practice your Spanish, too!
JULY: Situated in Jaen province, Andalucía and crammed full of Renaissance architecture, the towns of Baeza and Úbeda celebrated the 10th anniversary of being granted UNESCO World Heritage status. The towns offered a special accommodation deal over a ten day period of only 10 euros per person each night. How could I resist?! To see what you missed, look HERE.
AUGUST: This is the month of the Málaga Fair – and OH BOY – the city sure knows how to party! In the above photo you can see the elegant pedestrianised shopping street of Calle Marqués de Larios transformed into a huge party venue, full of people dressed up, dancing and having fun! Watch the video and join in the fun HERE.
SEPTEMBER: A trip to the nearby town of Nerja happens every month, and it’s always a pleasure to stroll along the scenic promenade adorned with palm trees and exotic plants to the Balcón de Europa. Indeed, in a few days I will be seeing in the New Year 2014 in this very place. If you want to see more of Nerja, click HERE.
OCTOBER: Porto, the vineyards of the Douro Valley and Lisbon, Portugal were my destinations in October. Even though the weather was showery for most of the time, there were plenty of places to get out of the way and enjoy the cakes! Here you can see one of the iconic Lisbon trams. There’s an introduction to Portugal, HERE.
NOVEMBER: At the end of the month, I began a 16 day trip to the German Christmas markets (another Bucket List dream) as well as to Prague in the Czech Republic and Budapest, Hungary. First stop was Nuremberg for the Christkindlesmarkt, the oldest of the German Christmas markets. If you’d like a stroll around the market with me, click HERE.
DECEMBER: My final destination of the year allowed me to cross off my third Bucket List item this year – Neuschwanstein Castle in Bavaria, Germany. As the train from Munich got nearer to Fussen, snow began to appear – making for a picture-perfect scene. I couldn’t have wished for a more wonderful day! I hope you will join me HERE to learn more about the structure on which Walt Disney modelled his fairy-tale castle.
East of Málaga 