Re-establishing contact....

...well howdy all.

I must first apologise for the lack of action lately on the ol' Clumsy blog. I've been slacking off. The thing is, I wanted to try to get up-to-date with my photos. The days just kept passing, and now I realise it ain't going to get done before the next big leg of the trip - Morocco, Spain and beyond. I've spent some time getting Estonia and Latvia done - mainly because there were so many photos that made me laugh, I wanted to share some of them! But the rest I think will have to wait.

However, you CAN see all our photos on my Yahoo! Photos page. They are grouped in sections, but they're not in order and are unlabelled. But you can certainly get an idea of what we've been up to!

Greg has been more diligent than I in terms of keeping his blog up-to-date. But I should give cursory mention to Debbie and Eoghann's Muir of Ord wedding, which went off without a hitch on Saturday 14 October. A great day all round - I particularly enjoyed the cailedh dance after dinner! The wedding was the day after my birthday as well - thanks to all the well-wishers! It was a quiet birthday, but very nice, as I received some lovely gifts and a yummy cake with pink icing (mmm, sugar).

We spent a few days back in Glasgow recovering, before meeting up with my Mum, Dad and brother Simon at Glasgow Prestwick airport, and jetting off to Paris for a few days. I had gone and left my bloody jacket at Debbie's (yup, I'm a bit of a nob), but luckily Paris wasn't too cold and only a teensy bit rainy, so my fleece was enough. Paris was lovely as always - and sad and commercial though it may seem, our trip to Disneyland Paris was a highlight. The picture above features me in a fetching Cheshire Cat hat. However the only souvenir I actually bought was a piddling fridge magnet. It just wasn't worth buying all that Disney crap that's made in China anyway and freely available for purchase at Disney stores in Australia!

We returned to Glasgow and after a brief overnight stop in Prestwick town, headed up to the Highlands once more to embark on our family boat cruise down the Caledonian Canal. My Uncle Ken and Aunt Edna met us there - we were a bit late despite the genius of the 'TomTom' - my Dad's new GPS device which he had tricked out with UK maps. He's a little too obsessed with the TomTom for my liking - I think he wants to write it into his will as the child he never had. I suppose it's more reliable than me! ;)

We had a great time on the boat - it was a 13-metre long cruiser, and we motored from Laggan on Loch Lochy, through Loch Oich, down the five locks at Fort Augustus and into Loch Ness, and up the river Ness to Inverness (yup, there's a whole lot of Ness going on). Sadly we didn't see any sign of the infamous 'monster' - Nessie was keeping her head down, no doubt due to the increasingly chilly weather! It was bloody cold, windy and choppy on Loch Ness the day we first crossed it - luckily it calmed down for our return trip. Mind you, seeing the beautiful autumn hues of trees shedding their leaves for winter was worth it. It makes you realise just why so many people in the northern hemisphere list autumn as their favourite season - the countryside is awash with every shade of brown, red, yellow, and orange imaginable!

We finished up on the boat on Thursday morning - and bid a farewell to my Mum, Dad and brother, all of whom are about to head home to Australia. Thanks for coming over guys - it was great fun to have a family trip, even if watching 'The Top Ten Celebrity Sex Tapes' on the boat was a bit trippy! (yes, I'm serious, they have programs like that over here).

It took us a while to get back to Glasgow from our bus stop at Invergarry near Laggan - we were early enough for the 10:23am bus but the bastard driver wouldn't let us on, because our tickets were listed for the 12:54pm. His bus was pratically empty and it was a windy chilly day, but he still wouldn't bend. As luck would have it, the hotel was being handed over to new owners that very day and the exiting owners wouldn't let us inside to keep warm. So we wrapped ourselves in a sarong and read magazines for three-and-a-half hours. Much appreciation to my Mum, who brought me over TWO pairs of gloves after I'd lost mine somewhere on the Vodkatrain. Greg and I were able to keep both our hands warm!

We've got a few days to kill before we head to Morocco, so tomorrow (actually, today!) we're heading to Brussels, the home of chocolate, beer, chocolate-flavoured beer, the EU, and TINTIN! TINTIN! Did you all hear that? Freaking TINTIN! My friend Alisha and her husband Mark visited Brussels earlier this year on their honeymoon so I KNOW the place is chockers with Tintin stuff. It's like my idea of heaven!

Thanks to everyone who's been reading and/or leaving comments. It's always lovely to hear from those back home. I promise I'll try to be more entertaining in future!

Cheers, Natalie.

P.S. I discovered that the impro show in I sometimes played in at O'Malleys Irish pub in the Queen Street Mall is finishing up this Halloween Tuesday. I would urge anyone who has a free night to get along - the show normally starts at 8pm and it's free! I don't know if any of the Impro Mafia people know about my blog, but I certainly wish them all the best with their last show and getting a smashing new venue!

Pics! Estonia & Latvia

Double Bochenski trouble! We met up with my brother Simon in the Old Town of Tallinn, the gorgeous, World Heritage-listed capital of Estonia.






We visited this Estonian Navy submarine, called the 'Lembit' during a bike tour of Tallinn and surrounding suburbs. This was one of two built for the Estonian Navy in the 30s. One was destroyed during WWII; the 'Lembit' went on to be used by the Russians as a training sub.





I don't think you're ready for this jelly... Black, beautiful and with a big booty - meet Beyonce, our Volvo rental car who drove us in style from Tallinn to Riga.







Smacking the pony at Rakvere Castle - a restored castle which now hosts a historical amusement park of sorts.










A history of armour was just one of the delights on offer - with wearable props!











The hill opposite Rakvere Castle played host to this giant bull statue. This would be just one of many so-called 'comedy' shots we'd take on this road trip. Pulling my brother's head out of a bull's arse. Classy.






I love this self-portrait: taken at Narva, the Estonian border town which looks across the river to Russia (with opposing castles and all!). I think it sums the three of us up quite well. ;)










At Tartu, the second-biggest city in Estonia and known as a university town. The most memorable feature for me was the bollards, which close off various streets to cars. Each set was shaped differently - turtles, rocks, bird heads...and yes, giant clogs!







Greg and Simon musing over their next moves. This giant chess board was one of the fun features at the Hotel Waaide, in Elva, Estonia. This photo may have been slightly staged (but their expressions are brilliant, don't you think?)





Across the border and into Latvia! This is Cesis Castle, an interesting half-ruin, parts of which are in the process of being restored. Cesis has been a hotbed of Latvian patrotism for centuries.






We had to don hard hats and carry lanterns to explore less 'modern' parts of the castle!








Riga! The gorgeous Latvian capital. This was taken atop a spire on one of the many churches that litter the Old Town. Seriously, there were two within about 12 metres of one another.







Greg and the Freedom Monument. Soldiers stand watchfully beneath her, and march very slowly when it's time to change the guard!

Voulez vous et couchez something something?

Hi all,

I'm typing this in a Parisian net cafe where the keyboards are all upside down and roundabout, so I apologise now for the inevitable typing errors to follow!

We've been strolling around the City of Light since Wednesday, during which time we've scaled the Tour Eiffel, visited the Musee d'Orsay (fabulously mostly because it's a renovated train station), Notre Dame Cathedral and the Pantheon, walked the Champs Elysees from the Arc de Triomphe to the vPlace de la Concorde, had a fondue dinner and went to Disneyland! That was muchos fun. Tres bien, and all that.

Gotta run, as my net time is up, but will post again on return to Scotland, most likely after our cruise on the infamous Loch Ness!

Au revoir, Nathalie (French spelling).

Pics of St Pete's

The stately Winter Palace, home to the Hermitage, one of the four most important museums in the world (the others being the Louvre, and two other places I can't remember right now).






Greg took this shot of the Archangel Gabriel, which stands atop a column outside the Winter Palace. Just a great shot, and look at that beautiful blue sky!









Every nice girl loves a sailor, and St Petersburg has a big naval school. These guys were reasonably OK with having their picture taken, but I was wary of kissing the bloke on the cheek as Greg had requested!





Running through sprinklers at the Peterhof Gardens, Peter the Great's Versailles-like retreat about 40 minutes outside St Pete's. They tell the kids that certain rocks trigger the sprinklers, but really there's a guy in a small box hidden behind some shrubs who soaks whom he likes!








The last official night of our 'Vodkatrain' tour. Our irrepressible quintet is celebrating at 'Manep', Russian for 'The Chateau', a gorgeous restaurant cum jazz lounge. Karen, Phil and Andrew are in front - miss you guys still!

Pics! Moscow

It may be dreary, but Red Square is still impressive! You can see the ice-cream cone spirals of St Basil's in the background.








Outside the Armoury Chamber in the Kremlin. The Armoury contains wonderfully opulent items from the bygone age of Tsarist Russia. Including Catherine the Great's wedding dress (she had a TEENY waist!) and coronation gown (slightly bigger waist by then).





Is it a palace, or great presidential estate? No, it is in fact, the Moscow Metro. All the stations are amazingly grand and beautiful. You would think they had been built before Communist times; but no, they were actually built mostly by the Communists, to emphasise how great they were, and to show the people how rich the USSR was (despite the fact those self-same Russians were taking the Metro to get in the bread queues).



Hello, boys! Natalie finds a male strip club. I wonder how long it will be before heavy vodka abuse turns those six packs into kegs?








I loved this guy. Standing in full military gear, singing very somberly, despite the whole day being a party to celebrate Moscow's 800th birthday.







A bit of Cossack dancing out back of Red Square, during Moscow's 800th birthday celebrations. There was a massive fireworks display and everything. Muchos fun.

Wedding countdown

Hey all,

Just letting you know it will be a few days before I post again - we're heading up to Inverness today ahead of Debbie and Eoghann's wedding on Saturday.

Unfortunately I have been struck down with the sorest of sore throats I have ever experienced - I've been downing cold & flu tablets and sucking Strepsils but nothing seems to help. I wince every time I swallow. Funnily, it's the right side of my throat only, and my right ear is also sore. I know the whole ear, nose and throat area is connected - if there are any doctors reading, a diagnosis would be great!!

Cheers for now, Natalie.

For your information...

...just letting everyone know that I've turned on 'Word Verification' on my comments page. For those not blogger-savvy, this means when you post a comment, you will be shown a nonsense word, and asked to enter it in a box. This helps stop spammers spam-commenting me with offers of gifts cards etc etc. ;)

Don't let this minor setback put you off commenting though - I really love reading what people have to say about the photos and the trip itself!

More photos coming.... Nat.

Back to the pics! Lake Baikal, Russia

It's really quite a stupendously huge lake, you know. It contains 26% of the world's fresh water supplies, and could supply the entire world with fresh water for 40 years should we run out tomorrow. If I look a bit pained in this photo, it's because I had developed an enormous blister on my left heel, and for some reason was light-headed and puffed after walking up the hill.



Greg on the 'Unfair Woman' rock (a charming mistranslation of 'Unfaithful Woman' rock by our rather buff Russian guide, Kostya). Naughty wives would be put out on this tiny rocky outcrop (located where the lake meets the Angara River), and if they survived overnight, they were allowed back home (if they died...oh well). The second man is Sergei, who kindly brought down his little tinny so we could brave the wind and waves and get out on the lake!

From left: Phil, Greg and Kostya actually swimming in Lake Baikal. Keep in mind the sun was shining and it was around 3pm - the temperature was still only about 8 to 10 degrees (I think you get the idea from the look on Greg's face!). Yes, dear readers, I chickened out. ;)




The Saturday we were in Lake Baikal was officially Lake Baikal's annual festival day. There was a stage, with singing and dancing and a lot of blokes in outrageously big military hats. I managed to get this security guard to pose with me. I love the fact he was standing there all seriousness - but holding a giant blue balloon.







Toga! This is what happens when five bored Aussies and one Pom who's easily influenced get stuck on a train for far too long. The small dark-haired girl in the front is Jasmin, a Brissie girl travelling on a separate tour but who was more than happy to hang out with us. And the guy in the red vinyl tracksuit is Dmitri, a Russian solider on leave who was more than happy to feed us vodka.

A brief news flash....

....because something terribly wonderful is about to start on BBC 1.

Yes, I'm slightly obsessed with all things Robin Hood. Got a problem with that?

Richard Armitage as Sir Guy of Gisborne....drool...think I might be going for the bad guys in this one...

And to think I arrived in the UK just in the nick of time...

Pics again! Mongolia

All aboard the Mongolian Express - 30 hours from Beijing to Ulan Baator.








Changing the bogies at the Chinese/Mongolian border. The crossing took 5.5 hours. I was already over pot noodles by then.







A mountainside greeting for incoming travellers - celebrating 800 years since a young scrappy warrior named Temujin united all the Mongol peoples. Further military victories ensured he won the famous title of 'Universal Ruler', or 'Chenghis Khaan'.









Victory! Andrew and I made it through the mixed grill platter at the Great Mongolian Restaurant. It was SO good to eat something other than noodles. Phil, our other Sydney bloke, finished a mixed grill on his own.








Greg surveying Ulan Baator. It's a long city, with nomadic ger tents still scattered throughout. It is the world's coldest capital city, getting down to -40 degrees in winter (obviously this day was balmy). Ulan Baator is also home to the craziest car parking I've ever seen.




Me and my trusty steed Stewie. Mongolian nomads don't name their horses, so I gave mine the moniker of my favourite animated evil baby. Greg named his 'Brian'. Both horses liked to pass wind loudly and frequently.





Traditional Mongolian wrestling, on display as part of a local show featuring archery, horse-riding, singing and dancing as well.







Outside our ger tent. From the left: Phil, Greg, Tsetsgee (our fab Mongolian guide), Gunbat (our driver and local medicine man), Karen, me and Andrew.

More pics! Beijing

Rainbows over Tiannamen Square. You can see Greg filming in the foreground.







Monuments outside Mao's tomb. Showing the brave journey forward of the Chinese people and the CCP. Or something.










In the Temple of Heaven. This main temple is commonly used on advertisements and posters spruiking anything from phone companies to the upcoming Olympic Games.









Greg outside the Forbidden City, now known as the 'Palace Musuem' (the irony of calling somewhere 50, 000 people visit per day 'Forbidden' not lost even on the Chinese). You can see Chairman Mao's friendly face smiling down mid-shot.





Michael, the charming university student who happily relieved us of 160RMB (about $30) to calligraphy our names and the word for 'Good Luck' onto a scroll. As Greg maintains, it was the nicest fleecing we've ever experienced.









The White Pagoda, inside the massive Beihai Park. It's on a hill and therefore one of the highest points in Beijing. You can see the Pagoda pretty much everywhere. Well, if it's not too polluted, that is.









The f***ing Great Wall of China. Look at the bastard. Now decide if you'd like to clamber up and down that for 5 hours in the sun.







That wall is a f***ing a**-hole.











Greg at the end. Can you believe it? The end of the walking bit!!! After this we got to go down the flying fox, then take a wee small boat to the Simitai complex of shops & cafes etc. The flying fox was cool - 30 seconds off my aching feet!

Pics! Hong Kong

At last! We have free and unfettered access to the internet, courtesy of Debbie and Eoghann, Greg's sister and soon-to-be brother-in-law. We're in the process of downloading then uploading the photos to my Yahoo! Photos account. You can access them here; but be warned, they're out-of-order and unlabelled. So I'll put up a few over coming days to give a brief taste of our adventures so far.

The view from my Uncle Jan's apartment - 20 stories up at Parkview, a mammoth residential estate in 'country' Hong Kong.









Me outside the Foreign Correspondents Club in Hong Kong. Still about the closest I've got to doing anything related to journalism. They had a wire service in the lobby! Eee!









An old fashioned downtown HK street market; selling fresh fruit & veg, live fish & seafood, and any kind of meat you could imagine (including feet, ears & noses).







Enjoying the humidity on Cheung Chau, one of the many islands that surround Hong Kong Island and Kowloon and the New Territories (the mainland). Note the grey skies. That's pollution, swept down from industrial southern China by a typhoon.





Greg and I posing with my ever-so-grown-up cousin Natasha outside the Royal Hong Kong Yacht Club (they voted to keep the 'Royal' even after HK was returned to China in 1997). The yacht club was modern, but retained a certain feel of colonial supremacy. Well, I felt posh going there at the very least. ;)