Category: Holidays

I arrived in Dalaman airport and was greeted by the Solos rep. It was all a bit confusing because we were mixed in with the Solos sun group, however when I met Sarah we were both relieved that we had got on the right plane, and were with the right age group. We were taken by minibus to the Hotel, I spent most of the journey talking to Nigel who was in the sun group. At the hotel we were introduced to our Solos Guide for the week, We couldn’t pronounce (or remember) his name so we called him by his nickname “Awesome”. Awesome introduced us to the rest of the group. Including the Sarah that I had already met at the minibus there were four Sarah’s in the group which was confusing but this led to some interesting nick names developing during the week. I spent the rest of the afternoon having a few beers and getting to know everyone.

The first day of activities was a Jeep Safari day. It was a really good way to explore the ruins and sarcophagi of Tlos. There was lots of photo opportunities. We then headed over to a beautiful restaurant in Yaka Park full of fountains and waterfalls. We stopped there for a few drinks. The next stop was Saklikent (The Gorge). We were given the option to cross the gorge river using only a rope to stop us from being swept away by the water. Sarah Jeffrey and I jumped at the opportunity, I went first and apparently made it look easy, although I must admit I think I was lucky to not lose my footing as the water was very rapid. Sarah earned her nickname for the week “Zenna” as she crossed the gouge river like a warrior princess! After the gorge walk we had a really nice piece of trout for lunch. I usually don’t like small fish because of the bones, but this trout was barbecued so well, and the meat just slid off the bone. It was delicious. Some of us had signed up for a paddle down the river on rubber rings, so after lunch we got on the rings while the others took the Jeep down to the point where they catch us. Fortunately they did catch us otherwise we might have ended up in Egypt. The next stop was the mud baths, they were nothing fancy but we all got into the spirit of things and slapped some mud over ourselves, apparently making us look ten years younger. Finally on the way back the Jeep stopped off at a Petrol station which had a swimming pool, quite an unusual thing to find at a patrol station but it was nice to go for a dip before heading back to the hotel.

• Wednesday – Quad biking – Mese and BBQ chicken – Water slide – Turkish bath – Sunset Cruise

Our second activity was a half day of quad biking. We were picked up by bus and taken to the quad bike training course. We were given some simple safety instructions and shown how to use the quad bikes. Every driver had to then do a quick test around the training circuit. Not everyone on the trip was driving the quad bikes and I had Ke as a passenger on my bike. The quad bike course took us round some scenic village roads, then into the forest for some off road action, this was my favourite part as the terrain got progressively more challenging. Sarah Holton was really good at quad biking and so she earned the nickname “Dr Quad”. After we had finished the off road part of the course we rode the quad bikes down into the cove for some refreshing drinks by the bay. After we had ridden the bikes back to the start point we were taken off for lunch in a local restaurant. Lunch was a Meze and barbecue chicken. In the afternoon when we got back to the hotel we thought we would give the hotel water slide a go. It was actually quite fun although a little short, it was nice to just relax by the pool and dry off in the hot sun whilst having a few more beers. In the evening Awesome told us that we could all get a free Turkish bath at Sanctuary, so some of us that had previously turned down the idea decided to go. It was an unusual experience, but good, I felt very clean afterwards and smelled like Turkish soap. While I was there I also had a haircut, and a straight razor shave which was a new experience for me.

• Thursday – Canoeing – BBQ – Karaoke – Dancing on Bar
• Friday – Boat Trip – Sunbathing – Back flips – Fishing – Feeling ropey
• Saturday – Hiking – Chicken Baguettes – Blue lagoon – Bartering – Dinner still mooing.
• Sunday – Paragliding – Shopping

On sunday we went paragliding

• Sky Sports
• about half way through the flight the pilot asked me if I would like to take control
• Tricks!

• Monday – Traveling home

The start of this holiday was a little bit hectic, as half way down to my parents house Joey realised that her passport had expired. This meant we had to get up super early and drive into London to get her passport renewed. We only just made it to the airport in time for a really late check in.  The 18 hours flight gave us a chance to relax and reflect in relief.

• Santos
• Fishing
• Monkeys
• Orchids
• Delfinópolis (Minas Gerais)
• Waterfalls
• VW Beetle

I just got back from a Holiday in Portugal with Joey. We had a wonderful time in the sun being really lazy and enjoying swimming and sun bathing. On the first day it was really foggy which was weird but also quite nice since we didn’t get the fully impact of the sun while we acclimatised. The first real day of our holiday we spent on Priaia de Caveiero (Caveiero Beach), It was a small beach which meant it was quite quiet. The next day we went to the Slide and Splash Water Park.
Boat Trip
Praia de Paradiso (Paradise Beach)
Praia de Cranerios (Cranerios Beach)

I went to Amsterdam last weekend with Joey, Trish and Chris. The flight over from Bradford-Leeds Airport was fairly quick and painless, however we did have trouble finding our Hotel which apparently had moved (it was a Boat Hotel)

The first night we were there we met these two English girls from Weston-Super Mare, they were quite drunk and really funny. We were supposed to all meet up in the Facebook Friends of the Amstel Botel Group, but haven’t heard from them since. The next morning we were all feeling a little hung over, Trish was feeling a bit “sea sick”, so Chris, Joey and I all went into Amsterdam city centre, to have a few early morning beers. When Trish met up with us later we all had a snack of Manneken Pis before going to a famous museum close by. We spend the rest of the day shopping, drinking and treating ourself to a really nice meal.

The second day we went to the Amestedam Taussauds waxworks museum, it was really busy but really fun to see such lifelike models. We spent the rest of the day shopping exploring and drinking.

Our Holiday started with a Journey by Train to London, followed by a bus Journey to my parents House in Bishops Waltham. We stayed the night there before making our way back to Heathrow. The flight took 18 hours which is no surprise considering its is 5889 miles from england to Brazil. After another 5 hour bus journey we finally arrived at Trish and Joey’s Mums house in Sao Jose do Rio Preto.

Our first day in Brazil was quite relaxed, Joey and Trish went off to be pampered, while Chris Alex and Myself got acquainted with Luis over a few beers at the local Bar. The next day we went to for a walk around the lake while Joey and Trish were at the hairdressers.

Our first day trip was to a place called Olympia where we spent the day at a water park, it was really fun, and the sun was gloriously warm. I really liked that there was a pool with a drinks bar in it.

After spending the next few days relaxing and shopping in Sao Jose do Rio Preto, we head of to Sales to spend some time in a country lodge. We spend one afternoon horse riding, I had a go on the horse and cart. We also played some volleyball, and went for a few trips down the river on the kayaks.

• Sao Paulo
• Santos
• Sao Paulo shopping
• Rio de Janerio
• Pão de Açúcar (Sugar Loaf Mountain)
• Cristo Redentor (Christ the Redeemer)
• Sunburn
• Food

One of the best meals we had in Rio was at a sushi restaurant. We ordered a ‘sushi boat’ to share. It was so delicious that we ordered another one. Greedy but worth it 😉

6th

I recently went on holiday to the Lake District with my girlfriend Johanna, Our Australian friends Micheal and Melissa, Johanna’s sister Trish and her boyfriend Chris. We arrived in Backbarrow on Thursday afternoon unpacked, settled in, and had a really nice steak dinner that Mike cooked for us. On Friday we went for a boat trip on Lake Windermere. The boat took us from Lakeside to Browness. We walked around Browness village before having lunch in a local pub. We caught the boat back to Lakeside in the afternoon, and visited an aquarium in Lakeside. On Saturday we had to get up really early as we had booked an assault course activity day in Grizedale, it was quite an exhilarating experience. On Sunday, we packed our bags and said goodbye to the cottage in Backbarrow, and headed towards Ingleton. In Ingleton we went for a 5 mile Waterfall Trail walk, It was really nice to get some fresh air and strech our legs.

This is the trip around california I went on with my parents.