Author Archives: dipidydoo
Wonderful Whistler
Day two in Vancouver saw Ilze and I embark on a guided tour of Squamish and Whistler. The tour bus did not call at the Auberge so we waited for it at the very Swanky Fairmont Hotel which allowed Ilze to swan in the foyer in front of the posh shops. She preferred Gucci bags, […]
Vienna O Challenge (cont)
We arrived early to Kurpark Oberlaa, the venue for the last VOC race. We chatted to some of the large Israeli contingent, who were amazed that we’d travelled from Australia, to orienteer in Vienna. We didn’t know what to expect in terms of complexity today, but as you can see from the maps below, this […]
What Lies Above
Back before there was orienteering or cycling, there were horses. They were my life and my passion from childhood, and they kept me bankrupt but happy from my teens until my early 30s. A beautiful horse still makes my heart flutter. Consequently I returned to the Spanish Riding School today. Last time I watched Morning […]
Vienna Orienteering Challenge
After farewelling Ljubljana, we took a 6 hour bus ride across northern Slovakia and southern Austria, mentally switching to German as we crossed our umpteenth border. We duly checked in to our final apartment, visited the local supermarkets, washed a ton of grotty clothes, and tried to rest up before Race 1 of the Vienna […]
The tomorrow that almost never came
Ilze and I now hold the Dandenong Ranges Orienteering Clubs record (admittedly with jackets in the hold baggage) for the longest Thursday the 29th of August ever endured. It began conventionally enough, sleeping through till about 6.30am and then up for a final pack and a quick breakfast before we drove to Melbourne Airport. Leaving […]
Slow Bus to Lake Bled
No sign of rain today, so we took the bus to Lake Bled. Slovenia may have many Austrian influences, but bus “queues” are very definitely Italian, and it was something of a free for all to get on board. If you try to get on the wrong bus, the driver just shakes his head with […]
Here Be Dragons
Our last night in Trieste was not pleasant. The wind got up. As usual we had all the windows open, trying to catch the cooler night air. The doors all started slamming, sounding like gunshots. Ian had to prop them open with whatever came to hand – saucepans, trail shoes, etc. In the end we had […]
A long time coming.
Ilze and I have not been able to add to DIPIDY’s overseas adventures since we returned from Iceland in 2019. We had planned for an adventure up North America’s inside passage in 2020 on Hurtigrutens then brand new expidition ship, the Roald Amundsen. But covid happened and the ship got stuck returning from an Antarctic […]
Bella Trieste
We’ve adopted the eminently sensible Mediterranean habit of siesta, followed by pre-dinner passegiata (evening stroll). Last night we passegiata’d to the Molo Audace, or pier, to see the sunset, and the lights of the Piazza. Most of Trieste was doing the same; the outdoor cafes were buzzing. We retreated to eat our chicken schnitzel (gluten […]
Castle By The Sea
Wanting to minimise any physical exertion, I booked a ticket for a hop on hop off bus tour. The first thing I learned was that my clever rhyming heading from the previous post was incorrect. The locals pronounce it Triest-ay (as if there was an accent on the final “e”). After a nice circuit of […]
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