Villa Grabau

Posted on July 6, 2016 by kathy

Lucca is surrounded by magnificent historical residences of the 16^th century. On a perfect spring day, three of us ventured out to discover a couple of them. Villa Grabau was first built in Renaissance style in the late 16th century,

1.villa 2.villa

then renovated in the 19th century in a neo-classical style.

3.villa

Following a tour of the villa, owned by the Grabau family since 1868, we explored the 9 hectares of beautiful gardens. Starting with the formal Italian garden behind the villa,

4.Italian garden 5.Italian garden

the pond lilies enjoying the sunshine.

6.lily pond 7.lily pond

We meandered along mysterious paths

8.path 10.path

never knowing quite what we would find.

The 17^th century limonaia was fascinating.

12.limonaia

Over 100 lemon trees are moved inside, in their terracotta pots, to shelter in winter.

13.limonaia

There are many rare species in the park,

we didn’t expect to find giant bamboo in an Italian garden.

The ‘Box Hedge Theatre’ was enchanting.

27.box hedge theatre

A stage defined by box tree hedges set in a secluded position,

28.box hedge theatre 29.box hedge theatre

the theatre garden contains two marble lions and a bubbling fountain.

30.box hedge theatre

Having worked up an appetite, we had a delicious al fresco lunch at a small roadside Osteria, Bottega sulla Fraga.

32.osteria

The English translation of the menu was dubious

but the meals were superb.

After lunch, we made our way to Villa Reale but that will be another post.

Mountain Valley

Posted on July 1, 2016 by kathy

Mountain Valley is a secluded retreat in the Loongana Valley, we first discovered while on holiday here.

1.setting

50km inland from the coast of northwest Tasmania, this 61 hectare Private Nature Reserve nestles beneath the majestic Black Bluff.

2.Black Bluff

There are six eco-cabins to choose from, our favourite is Blue Wren.

The Leven River flows through the property

7.river 8.river

and many an hour has been spent idly waiting to spy the elusive platypus.

9.river 10.river 11.river 12.river 13.cliff

Across the bridge,

14.bridge

the path follows the river. Trout can be seen jumping in the shallows

15.river 16.river

and the native hens appear when you least expect them.

17.river

The path becomes narrow and we still search for that perplexing platypus.

18.river 19.river

Native creatures abound in this sanctuary – wallabies, possums, quolls, birds and of course, our gorgeous pademelons.

We watched Tasmanian Devils and quolls eating their evening meal on the verandah. Our host placed tasty morsels for them at dusk and they slowly came after dark as Michael sat motionless among them while I opted to watch through the window.

22.Devil

The guided walk to the glow worm grotto took us through serene grassland,

23.walk to cave

and we learned the beautiful foxglove is regarded as an environmental weed in Tasmania.

24.foxglove

There are many walks to take through fern glades

25.walk to cave

and rainforest

to discover hidden caves.

31.walk to cave

There is much more to explore at Mountain Valley, it is a wonderful experience and for those who are feeling energetic, there is the walk to the top of Black Bluff.

32.Black Bluff

I am looking forward to our next visit. http://mountainvalley.com.au

Trevigue Farm

Posted on June 29, 2016 by kathy

While travelling through Britain, we stayed at many wonderful B&Bs. Trevigue Farm was no exception.

1.Trevigue Farm

We navigated the narrow lanes of Cornwall, getting momentarily lost in Crackington Haven, to find this beautiful 16th century farmhouse.

2.Trevigue Farm 3.Trevigue Farm 4.Trevigue Farm 5.Trevigue Farm

Located high on the Cornish cliffs, this 200 acre farm is set around an ancient cobbled courtyard.

6.courtyard

We were welcomed into the gorgeous entrance hall

7.entrance hall

and shown to the sitting room

8.sitting room 9.sitting room

where we enjoyed a cup of tea and home baked treats.

10.sitting room

There was a snug alcove tucked around the corner.

11.alcove

We were then led up the stairs

12.stairs

to our bedroom.

13.bedroom

The room was magnificent with a huge French style bed, vaulted oak beamed ceiling

14.bedroom 15.bedroom

and a lovely outlook over the courtyard.

16.bedroom view

We strolled around the farm admiring the stunning views

17.view 18.view

and the contented animals.

21.cows

22.cows

The next morning we were treated to a marvellous cooked breakfast in the cosy dining room

23.dining room 24.dining room

before heading off for a day of discovery in Cornwall.

desert delights

Posted on June 25, 2016 by kathy

As we journeyed through the Northern Territory, we were randomly distracted from the vastness of the desert by some very interesting features along the way. Central Mount Stuart is a mountain peak, about 200km north of Alice Springs, named in honour of the Scottish explorer John McDouall Stuart who reached the area in April 1860. He determined a point approximately 4km south of the peak to be the centre of Australia.

1.Central Mt Stuart

Stuart originally named the peak Central Mount Sturt after former expedition leader Charles Sturt but the name was changed soon after Stuart’s return to Adelaide.

I was very excited to find a winery in the desert, although there was little evidence of vines.

‘Shatto Mango’ at Ti-Tree, 180km north of Alice Springs had some surprisingly palatable offerings.

We tasted a crisp Mango Magic, fortified Mango Moonshine liqueur and sparkling Mango Mist. We even bought a couple of bottles.

Not too far down the road, we stopped at Aileron roadhouse

to meet ‘Anmatjere Man’. The statue, based on a traditional man from the local Anmatjere tribe, is 17 metres tall and weighs 8 tonne.

10.Aileron

He took twelve months to build and was joined three years later, in 2008, by a wife and child.

11.Aileron

30km north of Alice Springs is the Tropic of Capricorn marker, a stylized globe of the world on top of a 6.5 metre slanted pole.

In 1987, the local Alice Springs radio station ran a competition for design sketches from the public. The winner was a part time announcer for ABC radio. A local artist was commissioned to carve the Capricorn Goats in either side of the cement base.

90km west of Alice Springs, we had a brief stop at Stuarts Well roadhouse.

17.Stuarts Well

The pub/ campground is also the site of a camel farm, set on 9 acres at the foot of the James Ranges.

Continuing westward, we discovered the Cannonball Run Monument.

22.Cannonball Run

The race, run in 1994, was 3200km along the Stuart Highway from Darwin to Alice Springs and return.

23.Cannonball Run

On 24^th May, a Ferrari F40 crashed into a checkpost killing the two Japanese occupants and two track officials. The cause of the accident was found to be excessive speed.

We lunched on the lawn under some magnificent gum trees at Curtin Springs, a cattle station 100km east of Ayers Rock. The station covers just over a million acres – that’s 100km long x 40km wide!

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA

Back on the road, we soon spied Mt Conner, at the border of Curtin Springs station, often mistaken for Uluru by excitable tourists.

29.Mt Conner

There are so many wonderful surprises in the Australian outback, many we would have missed without our fabulous friends to guide us.

Lugliano

Posted on June 18, 2016 by kathy

On a warm, sunny morning, while the boys were busy building guitars, I drove with two of the wives to a nearby village in Bagni di Lucca – Lugliano. Having learned how narrow the village streets can be, we opted to park at the church

1.chiesa di San Jacopo