Search for Sunshine

Ugh, so my record of failed New Year's resolutions stands...

2013 has been an interesting and busy year so far.  Both Kyle and I have started new jobs and we've learned that there are two key ingredients required for a successful trip:  sunshine and good food.  I hope you were sitting down for that one, because I bet it came as a total shock...  Suffice to say that in both cases, this year has not been as successful as last year, but then we always knew 2012 would be tough to beat.  It was, after all, the awesomeness.

Not that we haven't had our fair share of highlights.  Let's do a quick recap of things we've learned.

1.  Snow on the beach is crazy...  and there is a really good reason why Brighton is a summer destination... We popped down for the weekend for our anniversary in January, which coincided with a decent dumping of snow across the UK.  Well timed, Team Reid, well timed.  So we mostly stuck to inside activities - the Pavilion is gorgeous and looks fab lit up at night.

On the beach...  no, seriously.

After that, we hibernated, apart for a day trip out to Greenwich...

2.  They're not kidding about Venice sinking!
We saw for ourselves on Kyle's birthday over the Easter long weekend.  I think we covered pretty much the whole city on foot and it was pretty great wandering around and never having to watch out for cars or bikes.  We got a bit of surprise when we came out of a restaurant one night and the pavement was calf deep in water...

You can only really buy four things in Venice: glass, masks, bags and tat.  After a water logged trip out to Murano, the sun finally came out and then you can really start to understand why people love Venice.  Beautiful.

Sunshine and gelato - now we're talking!

3.  Belfast is a really friendly place (at the right time of year)
Another jaunt over a long weekend.  We learned a bit about the politics, saw where the Titanic was built and visited the Giant's Causeway to marvel at the natural rock formations (or construction prowess of the local giant, depending on who you believe).  It seemed to us to be a city really trying to pull it's socks up and put it's troubled past behind it, although the news lately would seem to suggest otherwise.

 

4.  Scotland and the South Island of NZ were separated at birth and Kyle is speedy!
Setting out from Inverness, we spent a week traveling past Loch Ness to the Isle of Skye, down the west coast of Scotland, through Glasgow, then on to Edinburgh via Stirling.

Scotland?

Or South Island?  You decide.

Someone, who will remain nameless, ran the Edinburgh Marathon in 3hr 28m.  Speedy Gonzales.

Before

After

  

















5.  It is freakin awesome to catch up with mates from home
That's not really a lesson, we knew that from seeing Sarah and Will last year, but it was so good it bears repeating.  We caught up with Jenn and Paul in Belfort at the end of May.  Never heard of it?  Never mind.  It's on the French side of the Franco-Swiss border.

Paul is a bit of a clever clogs.  Not content with "just" being an IronMan, he went and got himself selected for the National NZ Long-Distance Triathlon team...  competing in the world champs in good old Belfort.  How impressive is that!?!  We shot over for a quick weekend with Pip to see them, with our flags.

Finishing strong

Just like old times...

6. Getting older is still ok (for now)
After three trips in May, we needed a rest...  so there was nothing else until the end of July, when we soaked up uninterrupted sunshine (finally) and quaffed sangria in Majorca for five days.  Bliss.

For my birthday, Kyle took me to this A-MAZ-ING restaurant called Es Moli d'en Bou for a 12 course degustation dinner.  Can't believe we forgot the camera...  the food was as much art as anything else.  Absolutely incredible.  Not only that, it was very quiet in there.  There was no music and the wait staff spoke almost in a whisper, which made the diners speak more quietly too (even me), so the senses were more focused on the food.  Best meal we've had in a long time, it'll definitely stick in the memory.

So there you go.  Next weekend, we're off to take a bite out of the Big Apple and visit Obama with two of our fav peeps, Jayden and Caz.  Seriously, can not wait.

Peace out, yo.
M&K