Orpheus, Roma, Italy

smaug Posted Jul 3, 2009, 2:45 am	Hi, my name is Orpheus and I am a little canary. As my renown (and so far more famous) namesake and predecessor I am a voyager (at least I am about to become one) and a singer. I love music and singing and I hope to sing along with all my hosts, even better if I can accompany them while they play an instrument and if it something traditional of where they live. I am so talented that I can sing on any kind of music Of course, I hope to come back home safe one day and not to follow the sad end of my illustrious namesake and predecessor... I have been told that to ease me into the travelling business I will be able to abuse of family hospitality and will hitch a ride to Europe soon  where I will visit France and Italy over the next couple of months. But after that I’ll be travelling on my own, can’t wait to find out who will be my first host
smaug Posted Jul 3, 2009, 4:00 am	Hi, Today was Canada day here and there was supposed to be celebrations everywhere, but unfortunately Smaug was working, so we were ready to spend the whole day at home  . There are quite a few TVs here, sammino is a resident TV, Sully Monster is visiting from Australia, Mr Bananas  and Purple Haze are from England and PinkyHH has just arrived from Germany  . Smaug eventually came back early in the afternoon and we went out for my first trip to Moraine Lake  . Most of the others have been here before and they told me that the lake was almost empty, well someone must have come here loaded with water buckets because it looks pretty full  . Too bad the best location for photos was closed due to works on the path, but we still managed to take some pictures.
smaug Posted Jul 8, 2009, 4:44 am	Hi, today was the opening day of the Calgary Stampede, that the organizers call “The Greatest Outdoor Show on Earth”  . Well, that might be an arguable statement, but it’s definitely something big. The core of the show are daily rodeos and chuckwagon races, so as you can guess the whole show has a strong western theme. To get in the atmosphere we decided to wear a cowboy hat before heading down to the Stampede Park...hmmm, finding a hat of the right size was a bit of problem so it was actually the hat that was wearing us Down at the park it was very crowded: fun fairs, markets, animal exhibitions were all packed with people, but eventually smaug found a “quiet” spot where we could take some group pictures overlooking the park. You can even see Calgary downtown  What a long day! And when we came back I jumped in a suitcase to start my journey, I am so excited  ! All the other TVs wished me god luck and sammino gave a lot of instructions to Sigfrido about my well being. I am actually very happy that Sigfrido will travel with me for a while
smaug Posted Jul 8, 2009, 4:57 am	Hi, today I have arrived in Vancouver, at University of BC to be accurate. First thing I did was checking out the view from our window, hmmm, a courtyard, nothing really remarkable...other than the fact that the window can desperately use some cleaning  So Sigfrido and myself decided to help ourselves with some maple syrup flavoured popcorns to recover from the trip  Hopefully I’ll start exploring the place soon
smaug Posted Jul 11, 2009, 7:42 pm	Hi, This week was a bit boring, no real chance to explore around  . So Sigfrido and myself decided to surf internet for a while. Then we studied Vancouver map, you never know, we might actually visit downtown  . There was no downtown visit in the end....but today we went to a panoramic point within the University of BC campus...you can even see the sea  Then we had to pack again, this time I’m off to New Jersey for  few days....wow, carry on bag, looks like we are going to travel a bit more comfortably this time
smaug Posted Jul 19, 2009, 2:53 am	Hi, Yesterday I arrived in Princeton, NJ, the second step of my slow approach to Europe. First thing we did was to get some food. Sigfrido and myself carefully examined the shopping  And then decided to have a snack based on cherries, hmmm, delicious  Later, as usual we took a look out of the window... ... but we left immediately to go doing the laundry  . Here we are checking out the washing machine... and then the dryers...they look a bit identical to me  . After that, of course, it was time for ironing and we thoroughly checked that no crease was left behind.
smaug Posted Jul 21, 2009, 4:35 am	Hi, Today I had my first tour around Princeton. First I took some pictures outside the Graduate College. Later Sigfrido and I stopped to rest in the shade of the trees next to the golf course... ...it was so nice  , but the players were not very good and we moved on before some stray ball hit us  So we went to the Princeton University campus and took some pictures in and around the main square. The tiger is the symbol of Princeton University and you can find it virtually anywhere around the campus...this one is big. Here we are resting a bit on a bench in the main square. Later in the day I attended my first concert at the University Chapel , but I was not allowed to take photos and they even forbade me from singing, canaries apparently are not allowed to join the choir  , outrageous!!
smaug Posted Jul 28, 2009, 6:04 am	Hello, here I am still in Princeton. Today I went visiting the Institute for Advanced Studies, were apparently a lot of big brains work  Neither me nor Sigfrido have a pass so we were smuggled through the main door in bag, but as soon as we reached our office we jumped out and explored it. Then it was time to do some work....can’t see anything with these glasses.. ...so hard  We soon got bored and decided to play with the blackboard. And back to work again... Enough work for the day. So we decided to go for a walk. Here we are exploring the housing complex where all the visitors to the institute are hosted...including the TVs  Then we went visiting Fuld Hall, the main historical core of the institute, where tea and coffee are served everyday at 3pm. Here we are at the main entrance. In the main room you can always end up drinking tea next to  Nobel Prize  ...not today though... Since no one was around I decided to have a look at the newspapers. Still no big brain coming to meet us, so we explored a few of the sculptures: here is Einstein, one of the first Members of the institute. And this is Flexner, first director of the institute...ehi, it’s just like being in a wax museum, bronze instead of wax and famous scientists instead of Hollywood and music stars  After exploring every corner of Fuld Hall we went back to Simonyi Hall, the School of Mathematics where our office is, but instead of going back to work we went to the terrace. From here you can see all the Halls of the institute. That black thing appearing in the grass in the last picture is actually a black board and apparently sometimes people use it to write  Then we stopped next to the terrace in the coffee room... ...and guess what? More scientists heads in here, this is Weil, another famous mathematician....looks like in this institute there’re more bronze heads than living ones
smaug Posted Jul 31, 2009, 3:52 am	Hi, today is my last day in Princeton, so Sigfrido and I decided to take a look downtown.  On the way we had another look at the Golf Course that we visited a few days ago. Then we went through a residential area where we played hide and seek between the plants... ...and on the way we passed behind the main University campus, this sign leads somewhere in there Eventually we reached Nassau Street, the centre of the town Before exploring more of it we rested a bit on bench. And here is Nassau Street. Then we visited Palmer Square where there a few big, big cats  A bit further down the road we reached Nassau Hall, the main building of Princeton University... ...where there are two tigers watching the main entrance....one accepted to take a photo with us  On the way back we went again through the University main campus and we explored it a bit... ...lovely parks and trees, but I didn’t meet any bird who wanted to sing with me  , so I found a place to practice by myself  Tomorrow I am eventually flying to Europe, I am so excited
smaug Posted Aug 2, 2009, 11:06 pm	Hi, today I’m flying to Europe  . First we checked that all the baggage was ready... And here we are on the train linking the railway station to Newark Airport.. You can see the planes  Next update from France
smaug Posted Aug 3, 2009, 12:03 am	Hello! I am in Europe, wow  ! This is the first picture I’ve taken here in Rouen. This tower is right out of the house....I’m not sure what’s the history behind it, but it doesn’t really look in good shape  . Today I was introduced to the local toys. Sigfrido warned me that coming out of the baggage I might have been greeted by a few  curious faces.....wow, just a few  , I kind of feel shy all of a sudden  . Well, getting to know them better will have to wait a bit, I’ve been told that tomorrow I am on the move again: not sure where I’m going but I have to jump in the travel bag....the life of a TV can be hard  .
smaug Posted Aug 10, 2009, 4:45 am	Hi, This week I went to Prague, but he first couple of days were a bit boring as we were stuck at the hotel  . First we check the window, only apartment blocks in sight... ...then the hallways and lifts... ...but, eventually, today I visited the castle  . The view over the city is fantastic  . I even attended a concert in St Vitus cathedral  , but when I asked if I could join the singing they told me that the programme was full and there was no time for my performance
smaug Posted Aug 11, 2009, 4:50 am	Hi, today was my last day in Prague and luckily I could play the tourist a bit  . Here I am at the main gate leading to Karluv Most (Charles Bridge). The bridge is higher than the surrounding roads and you can look down at shops close to the river... ...here are some more views from the bridge. Then we wandered the streets of the city centre Here we are on Staromestske namesti (the Old Town Square), looking at Tyn Cathedral... ...and this is the City Hall. Then we walked through the old Jewish quarter Tomorrow I’m back to France, hopefully this time for more than a couple of days
smaug Posted Aug 16, 2009, 4:06 am	Hi, today I  had eventually a chance to visit Rouen  . First Sigfrido and I explored a bit the streets of the old town. Here you can see the typical old buildings in central Rouen. That sort of pyramid in the background is a modern church dedicated to Jeanne d’Arc...who accidentally was burned as an heretic  (just a few years before being made saint  ) here in Rouen....so her name appears quite everywhere around the city This is a very famous big clock...it is mandatory spot for a photo. Unfortunately we took this pictures early in the morning when the streets were still in shadow while the top of the buildings were in the sun, so you can’t see very well the top of the clock tower  Here you can start seeing Rouen Cathedral in the background... ... I roamed a bit the alleys of the old town.. ...on the way I also checked out some shops... And here is the Cathedral, that apparently was the tallest building in the world between 1876 and 1880  Later I visited “my” office at the University of Rouen... ...but I didn’t feel like working so I spent the whole afternoon chatting with Sigfrido and looking at the park from the window
smaug Posted Aug 17, 2009, 4:59 am	Hi, today I’m flying to Italy, wow . First I said goodbye to all my friends here in Rouen as after Italy I will go straight to my next host. I was a bit sad to leave them, but they told me that they will check for my updates  . On the way to the airport we managed to take some pictures. Here we are on the RER train, the view was good, but the window was a bit scratched... ...eventually we arrived at our station. And here I am at Paris airport waiting to board the plane... ...and after boarding the plane  . When we arrived at Verona airport it was too crowded to take any decent photo, but as soon as we were in the car I jumped on the cockpit to look at the road. This is the motorway just out of Verona. We are still on the plains, but you can already see the Alps in the distance. This exit leads to the south side of Lake Garda, that I am told is a very famous lake. As we headed north the mountains raised around the valley.. ...but when we reached the outskirts of Trento the valley opened up a bit,  almost at my destination  Here we just left the motorway and are entering Trento. We crossed this big river called Adige A couple of people came out on the balcony to greet me, not exactly the kind of welcome that I was expecting for a singer as famous as I am  , there is no one around....maybe I am not famous enough yet  . On the way home we passed by this castle  And here we are about to arrive home, I can’t wait to explore the town  .
smaug Posted Aug 27, 2009, 8:51 pm	Hi, this week it’s been very hot here, so I was stuck at home most of the time, but by going out very early in the morning I managed to explore a bit the neighborhood  .  First I went to check the view from a church that is hanging halfway up a hill close to home. Here we are almost at the top of the stairs. And here we are looking at the valley from the top of the stairs…the church itself is not particularly interesting. I also went for a walk on a footpath on the banks of a small river nearby. The river comes out of a deep gorge just as it enters the town, so there is usually a nice cool breeze next to it  . Here we are looking South… …North… …East… …and eventually West. The valley is beautiful with high mountains on all sides, and the valley floor is full of vineyards and apple trees  . This week I also got to know some of the toys living here. When I was still in Canada sammino warned me that here in Italy I was going to meet a bigger version of himself…wow, that is big  ! And there are even some gigantic owls. At the beginning I was bit scared of getting too close to such a big eagle, but he is actually very nice and he even let me sit on his claws while we were chatting
smaug Posted Sep 2, 2009, 3:12 am	Hi, I can’t believe it! Last night I have been told that I am on the move again  . I am going on holiday in Greece, the home country of my namesake singer, wow  . Here I am at Verona airport waiting to board the plane... Checking the safety leaflet on the plane... ...and now it’s time to take off, Greece here I come
smaug Posted Sep 2, 2009, 3:52 am	Hi, I can’t believe I am actually in Greece  . We spent the first few days exploring the hotel... ...and checking out the beach. Of course, even a TV needs to relax sometimes, so we enjoyed a bit of sunbathing  But soon it was time to explore the island and Sigfrido and myself started planning where to go. Apparently the crescent shape of the island is due to a volcano that exploded in the middle of the bay (what now is the bay, but actually is a caldera) a few thousand years ago...I wonder if I should be concerned  Our first destination will be Fira, the main town on the island. Here I am on the bus. And I am exploring the town, the views are incredible  Later we went visiting the old harbour. We could have made our way down the cliff riding donkeys, but Sigfrido said that a moose riding a donkey could have been a bit awkward  so we took the cable-car. Almost down... This harbour is only for smaller vessels as the big ships make port at the new harbour a bit further down the coast. Such  great day  , but eventually it was time to get back to the hotel and have some rest.
smaug Posted Sep 3, 2009, 3:45 am	Hello! Last few days here in Greece for me, so I did a bit more exploration. Today we went to Oia, a small village in the north part of Santorini. Here I was wondering the streets.. Then we reached the edge of the cliff over the bay, wow  Of course we stopped to refill the tank...mmm, delicious  And then we took some more photos, I like those flowers. Over the last couple of days I managed to explore a bit more the hotel... ...and the beach. I was a bit concerned that there might have been an oil spill in front of it, but I have been told that sand here is naturally black  And eventually we had to pack and fly back to Italy
smaug Posted Sep 3, 2009, 4:14 am	Hi, Today I am leaving Italy to travel to my next host. I am going to Germany, I’m so excited to meet my  host, some other TVs and visiting a new country  . I said goodbye to Sigfrido and gave him a big hug. It was great to have such a good friend always with me over the last couple of months  . I'll miss him so much. Next update, Germany  !
RikeH Posted Sep 3, 2009, 7:07 pm	Hi Dad! I am in Germany now – the trip from Italy was very fast. First Dicker Kumpel gave me a warm welcome. He is living here with RikeH and loves to meet new ToyVoyagers. Then he introduced me to the other TVs. They are Nippy, Pinkz and Murph. I think we will have a nice time together, although some of the others are here for a long time – and maybe will move to the next host soon. After talking to them, I explored the home of RikeH and Dicker Kumpel. Look, I found many yellow birds – but they are not ToyVoyagers at the moment. Then I went into the garden. There is a place to bath. Some funny birds... … beautiful flowers… ... and another friendly bird. I am sure that I will like it here. Greetings Orpheus
RikeH Posted Sep 5, 2009, 4:06 pm	Hi Dad! Today we had a nice evening. We visited a friend and played games. First we played a funny game with animals in the Zoo. After it we ate delicious ice-cream – it was yummy! The second game was about the Stock Exchange and shares. We had a nice evening – I love playing games. Love Orpheus
RikeH Posted Sep 12, 2009, 3:17 pm	Hello Dad! Today we went to Hamburg, because RikeH wanted to show us the Alster – a nice lake in the middle of the town. Here you can see a photo of me and one of the group in front of the Alster. There were some nice geese. Some views from the other side: This is the townhall. Hamburg is a very beautiful town! The Hummel is a typical for Hamburg – we made some funny photos on two different Hummel-Men. Greetings Orpheus
RikeH Posted Sep 12, 2009, 3:19 pm	Hi Dad, Today we played in the garden. We made a race – only Dicker Kumpel enjoyed the sun. After it we relaxed in beautiful trees. I really loved them. It was time to say good-bye for Nippy and Pinkz. They get a big hug! Dicker Kumpel, RikeH and I will go on a nice holiday soon. I hope that we can do some updates – but if not, be sure that we have a good time. And we will update, when we come back. Yours Orpheus
RikeH Posted Sep 14, 2009, 6:54 pm	Hello from Slovenia. Yesterday  we started our trip. We had a delicious meal and something nice to drink for our trip to Slovenia. Today we reached Slovenia and made a nice walk through the Vintgar Gorge. It was wonderful with many green trees and the nice river. Back home we were so tired and went to bed. Yours Orpheus
RikeH Posted Sep 14, 2009, 6:57 pm	Hello Dad! This day we walked around the nice lake Bled. There is a nice church... … a beautiful castle... ...and a small island in the lake. We had a nice time there. Yours Orpheus
RikeH Posted Sep 16, 2009, 5:09 pm	Hello Dad. We drove over the Vrsic Pass today. It is the highest mountain pass in Slovenia (1611m) and it has 48 hairpin bends. On the way to the pass, we saw a nice little russian church. I hope that you can see me on the photo... Then we saw some funny sheep on the street – maybe they wanted to see the pass, too. Or they are a kind of sheep travellers. Who knows... Here I am on the highest pass... ...and that was our view! In the evening we tasted a delicious glass of Slovenian Wine. Hugs Orpheus
RikeH Posted Sep 16, 2009, 5:13 pm	Hello Dad! In the morning we had rain, so we played as nice game called Carcassone. Later the weather went better and we walked the Kobarid historical trail. We started next to the Italian Charnel House with the Church of St, Anton. We had a nice view. Then we saw the Soca Gorge, which has the great color of blue-green. We walked across the wooden, hanging bridge over the Soca River. The best of the path was the Slap Kozjak, a beautiful waterfall in a cave-like area. The trail was a little tricky in some parts. We had to walk across narrow stone bridges without handrails and climb some slippery rock slabs, but it is well worth the effort. What a great day! Yours Orpheus
RikeH Posted Sep 18, 2009, 8:01 pm	Hello Dad, Yesterday we didn't take many photos, but we visited a nice stalactite cave. It was great, but we were not allowed to take photos there. So I had only two photos yesterday – the first was made on the same place as the day before – but look, we had much nicer weather! In the evening we explored the garden of our first hotel in Croatia – and I met a friendly turtle. Today we started the day with sunshine again. This is the Marina in Pulan on KRK. Krk is a funny name for an island, I think. We visited the village Vrbnik – with a nice old town. You see me in front of the church – and with a great view over the water. Then we went to another village called Baska – the beach is 1.8 km long! Then I played on a modern ship! Back home I enjoyed the view from our room. I think, that Europe is really beautiful, Dad! yours Orpheus
RikeH Posted Sep 23, 2009, 8:03 pm	Hello Dad, Yesterday we visited the town Krk on the Krk Island – and saw this nice old castle. On the time square was a funny clock on the tower – it showed 24 hours instead of the normal 12 hours, Maybe you can see it on the photo? On our way to the next Highligt – the Plitvicka Jezera (Lakes) we stopped at the roadside and took these two beautiful photos. Today we visited the  Plitvicka Lakes. There are many lakes and falls. Here you can see me in front of one nice fall. It was far away – but beautiful. There was a beautiful little river inside the forest. A wonderful wide waterful – with a nice green pool in front of it. I would have loved to take a bath in it, but I was not allowed to do it. This is the highest waterfall in Croatia – 78 m! At the end we had a great view over the Park. It was a wonderful day in the national park! Yours Orpheus
RikeH Posted Sep 23, 2009, 8:07 pm	Hi Dad! We went into another Nationalpark – the Paklenica National Park. There are many people climbing up the walls – really strange... We had great views of the mountains. Fortunately we didn't walked too much. We are lazy ToyVoyagers. RikeH told me, that we will make a  boat trip tomorrow – that should be fun! yours Orpheus
RikeH Posted Sep 25, 2009, 2:28 pm	Hello Dad, Today we made a nice boat trip to the Kornati Islands. Kornati is an archipelago of 125 islets and reefs. We started in Zadar and had nice views around. We stopped on a nice island and had a view over the Bay and some wonderful Cliffs. Back home we relaxed on the balcony and saw a colorful sunset. We are great friends now – and we are happy to travel together for some more days! Yours Orpheus
RikeH Posted Sep 25, 2009, 2:31 pm	Hi Dad, when we started today – we saw, that there are Kiwis growing here in Croatia – this is funny! We went into another great National Park, called KRKA National Park. We walked over nice paths and saw many waterfalls, they are not as high as the others a few days ago – but very wide. First we planned out tour. Here you can see two of the waterfalls. Here we are both in front of one of the nicest views! Later that day, we visited a nice old town, called Trogir. In the 3rd century BC it was founded by Greek colonists as Tragurion. That is really old. Here you see me on the nicest square in the little city. At the seaside was a nice promenade – with palm trees – they are so beautiful! It was a great day – with nature and culture. Hugs Orpheus
RikeH Posted Sep 28, 2009, 9:54 am	Hello Dad, yesterday we went to the Hvar Island with a ferry. You can see me on the ferry – in the afternoon we visited an old city called Stari Grad. Today we visited another really nice city on the Hvar Island – called Hvar. There are many old buildings, a port – and a castle on the hill. We found this interesting plant – the aloe vera. It was big enough to sit on it. We really loved this island, although it was so hot on it – about 29 degrees Celsius. Yours Orpheus
RikeH Posted Sep 28, 2009, 10:00 am	Hello Dad. Greetings from Montenegro! We visited the monastir Ostrog in the mountains today – it is very famous in Montenegro. There were many people on this day – we had a traffic jam on our way back into the Valley. This was the new part : And this was the old one – built in the mountain. On our way to Budva we saw another famous place in Montenegro – the Sveti Stephan. In our appartement we sang Happy Birthday for Murph and gave him a big hug. After it we ate a lot of Chips and had a great evening. Love Orpheus
RikeH Posted Oct 3, 2009, 7:37 pm	Hello Dad, we spent the day in Budva again – and visited the Old Town. In the Port we saw two great Yachts. Back home we relaxed on the balcony and tried some freeclimbing. Later we played on the ventilator. It was like a big fast roundabout. In the evening we worked on the laptop to update our travel logs. Yours Orpheus
RikeH Posted Oct 3, 2009, 9:22 pm	Hello Dad We visited another nice old town in Montenegro today. It is called Kotor – the old town was built between the 12th and 14th century. This is old. Here I was in front of the big church. These are the big walls around the city. In the Harbour were two cruise ships – you can see me in front of the smaller one – it was beautiful! Tomorrow we will leave Montenegro and go back to Croatia Hugs Orpheus
RikeH Posted Oct 4, 2009, 11:20 am	Hello Dad, Now we were in Dubrovnik. Another nice old town – but this time – it is really big and has a wall all around the old city centre. And we walked all the way on the wall. It was a long walk – but it was worth it. First we saw it from far away – it looked great! Then we began our walk on the big walls.This is the most important street. A view of the old port. And two other views from the wall. Yours Orpheus
RikeH Posted Oct 4, 2009, 7:21 pm	Hi Dad, We made a long trip with a ferry today – and tonight. We started in Dubrovnik and arrived in Rijeka – for the people who know the map of Croatia... This is the Ferry called Marko Polo: This is a view of the beautiful coast of Croatia. We stopped in the lovely town of Korcula. In the evenings I relaxed with a good old and cold Beer. I love boat trips! Hugs Orpheus
RikeH Posted Oct 12, 2009, 9:41 am	Hi Dad, Yesterday we were in Pula – a very nice city – with great monuments. First you see me in front of a great Gate – isn’t it nice? People laughed about RikeH - - taking photos of us in front of us. Do you understand this? Then we saw the arena (colloseum). It is really big! And we visited the Temple of Roma and Augustus. Today we are on our way to Slovenia again. Before boarding our car, we found this great mushroom. We stopped in this small town – but I forgot the name – we saw so many old nice towns… On the way we had this great view! Love Orpheus
RikeH Posted Oct 12, 2009, 9:50 am	Hi Dad, We started our way back in a car train from Trieste in Italy. We had some time to explore this nice city – first we made 3 photos on a big place. This canal is called Canale Grande – but is was not really big. Well, this is all for our nice holiday here. I really hope, that you like the photos, Dad. Love Orpheus
RikeH Posted Oct 12, 2009, 10:31 am	Hi Dad, Today a new TV arrived. He is called Mystery and he is a nice guy. He is from Canada, too!!! We gave him a warm welome! He brought some Sweets– and shared them with us. Murph is the Voyager of the week and really proud. We are all happy and ate his cake with him ! What a great day! Orpheus
RikeH Posted Oct 12, 2009, 7:30 pm	Hi Dad! One of my missions is it to sing with my hosts. Today we had the time to sing together. First I sang with RikeH’s birds. They were a little shy at the beginning, but then we had a lot of fun! Then RikeH teached me some nice German songs. The first one is one for Dicker Kumpel, because it is about bunnies. Then we had two nice songs about birds – the first one I sang with Rike – the last one we all sang together. What a great day! yours Orpheus
RikeH Posted Oct 12, 2009, 7:31 pm	Hi Dad, Today it is time to leave Germany. First I said Good-Bye to Dicker Kumpel. We had so much fun together on our trip. I will really miss him! Then I got a big hug by the Others. I really hope, that I will find another nice host – and that I will update soon, Dad. And before I forget it : Happy Birthday Dad – I love you! Greetings Orpheus
twennifer Posted Oct 15, 2009, 4:09 pm	Hello Dad!  I have arrived safely in Scotland and it's quite the party here, there are 3 toyvoyagers here right now and I think we can become good friends now. I was greeted at the door by Emil and Moxy Ugly Doll, Then Jennifer took us to the kitchen to make some cookies as a 'welcome to Scotland' celebration for me!  First, Emil, Moxy & I helped our host, Jennifer to make the mixture... The cookies were baked in the oven, Aaaand then it was my favourite part, the testing!  Yum, they were good cookies! I will update more later but this was just to let you know I'd arrived! Orpheus xxx
smaug Posted Sep 13, 2010, 3:02 am	It’s been 10 months since I arrived here, and the evil witch twennifer has kept me prisoner ever since ignoring my mentor requests to let me free . But today, when my jailor and torturer was distracted I saw a hole in the ground and run in it as fast as I could. It’s probably a place for moles rather than canaries , but desperate times call for desperate measures. I wonder where I will end up. What’s this smell? Haggis ! Better hurry up, I am not far enough yet.
smaug Posted Sep 13, 2010, 3:43 am	Hi! I am not sure where I ended up. It’s always pitch dark and there’s lot of nice people around...it’s just they keep telling me we are all dead down here , while I know that I am just lost. I even met my illustrious and (so far) more famous namesake , but he was too busy crying about Eurydice to pay any attention to me . Eventually today I was summoned to what appeared to be the main entrance: they told me that I was being bailed out . I just had to follow a noise of flapping wings until I saw daylight. It was a long walk but eventually I came out of a hole and saw my friend sammino there with one of smaug’s owls . For some reason as he saw me he behaved quite strangely for a few seconds: first he checked himself as if looking for fleas, then the first thing he said was “nice tan!”, as if I had been to the beach rather than prisoner in a scottish dungeon . But then he gave a me a big hug and welcomed me back . He introduced me to Dean, a nice horse visiting from the US. As I was feeling a bit cold I looked around to see where I was. Mountains almost everywhere. No wonder it’s freezing cold. mmm, it seems my tag's gone: I thought that maybe I should go looking for it, but sammino told me that twennifer probably threw it away . Can’t wait to be back home .
smaug Posted Sep 17, 2010, 6:06 am	Hi, Today Dean and sammino helped me catching up with what I missed in almost a year in prison. Apparently I have been even nominated for a Golden Bear , but strangely not for best singer . But the day flew by and it was soon time to say goobye: I am going to travel on the WTVT . sammino gave me a big hug and wished me good luck...and for some reason also added that I should better stay away from mirrors . See you soon .
miapearl Posted Oct 3, 2010, 10:18 pm	Hello Dad, I have arrived safe and sound in Wales, just as dotdog was leaving. Bye Bye dotdog. mira, Dusel, Charlie B. and alfie langer welcomed me.
miapearl Posted Oct 5, 2010, 8:55 pm	Hi Dad, Today, we had a GeoCaching day, in and around the Snowdonian village of Llanberis. First off, was a walk around Coed Doctor, a community woodland. The first cache was easy to find. The second was easy to find but hard to get to - my host's son was put on to my host's husband's shoulders to retrieve the cache. And the third cache here was near the lake. My host's son is filling in the log. The next cache was high up in the hills. The cache is in the Snowdon View series. Snowdon is visible in this picture.
miapearl Posted Oct 5, 2010, 9:56 pm	Hi Dad, Today, we have come to Barclodiad-Y-Gawres, a Neolithic chambered cairn. It was a public grave for the local farming community. It is situated on the Anglesey coast. Afterwards, we went for a stroll. Can I stop for a snack please? This caterpillar filled me up.
miapearl Posted Oct 15, 2010, 12:44 pm	Hi Dad, Today, we have come back to Anglesey, to Din Lligwy. There is a Neolithic burial chamber constructed before 3000 B.C. Also, there is a Roman-British settlement of stone buildings, and the ruins of a medieval chapel. The chapel was built in the 12th century with some rebuilding in the 14th century and an extension in the 16th century. Can you see me on the wall? There was a bell. We have come to the settlement. The site was excavated in the early 20th century, finding various things from the 3rd and 4th century including animal bones with some made into tools and even a musical instrument. There were a few buildings in this settlement I wonder what this building would have been used for.. I'm perched on a wall. My host took this photo from outside the "building". A closer look at us. This is the burial chamber, constructed before 3000 B.C., and was excavated in the early 20th century after the settlement. The capstone weighs 25 tons. It is a big slab! My host's son was able to go underneath the capstone.
miapearl Posted Oct 19, 2010, 8:15 pm	Hi Dad, Today, we have come to the historic town of Harlech where a castle stands atop a hill. The view, had the weather and sky been nicer, would have been superb. This is one of the towers. When the castle was built, the sea was a lot closer. The information board informs us that the castle was built between 1283 and 1289. The main section.. We climbed up onto the walls and walked around. Long way down! Somewhere over there in the murk, is Criccieth. There is castle on top of a hill. On a clear day, it can be seen. Shame the hills/mountains of Snowdonia aren't very visible. There is an exhibition in the main section. Looks impressive on top of the hill. Can't have been easy to build. What the main section would look like...
miapearl Posted Nov 3, 2010, 8:13 pm	Hello Dad. Today, we've come to Trefnignath burial chamber near Holyhead. This monument was erected in the Neolithic Age. There it is. It is near the A55. We could walk into the chamber. That is Anglesey Aluminium, which is on the other side of the A55.
miapearl Posted Nov 9, 2010, 11:55 am	After visiting the burial chamber, we went to look at the Hut Circles on Holyhead Mountain. The remains of these round-houses were excavated in 1860s and 1970s. They date from the Iron Age to post Roman times. My host's camera was broken so she used the camera in her mobile phone and listed the help of her husband!
miapearl Posted Nov 14, 2010, 6:45 pm	We are going on a summer (OK, it isn't summer) holiday.. To get there, we are going through Scotland.
miapearl Posted Nov 14, 2010, 7:32 pm	Hello Dad We are staying in a caravan. After unpacking the car, we went for a spin. First off, towards Lindisfarne (Holy Island) but encountered a bit of difficulty. Lindisfarne is a tidal island and the tide had covered the causeway. We'll just have to come back another day, when the road is not underwater.
miapearl Posted Nov 14, 2010, 8:14 pm	Before going shopping for food, we went into Berwick Upon Tweed. You should be able to see 3 different bridges, The Royal Border Bridge, The Royal Tweed Bridge and The Old Bridge (or Berwick Bridge). The nearest bridge is the oldest bridge of the three. This version of the bridge dates back to the early 17th century and is 355 metres long and 5 metres wide. It is made from sandstone locally sourced. The middle bridge was built in the 1920s and once carried the A1 road. The bridge in the distance is the Royal Border Bridge which carries the railway over the River Tweed. It was designed by the engineer, Robert Stephenson (son of George Stephenson). Berwick is a walled town. Here we all are relaxing on a bench.
miapearl Posted Nov 19, 2010, 2:33 pm	Hi Dad, Today, we have time only for a brief visit to Lindisfarne before going further south along the coast. This time, the causeway was relatively clear of water but the weather was a bit wet and windy. This is Lindisfarne Castle.
miapearl Posted Nov 19, 2010, 4:43 pm	After visiting Lindisfarne, we came to the little coastal village of Bamburgh. Atop a hill and overlooking the sea sits a mighty castle We decided to go and visit inside this castle. The castle has cannons. Can you see one of the Farne islands? My host visited there last year, maybe we can all go this year. The castle is home to a museum about one of its former owners, the Victorian industrialist and engineer, William George Armstrong (Lord Armstrong). Armstrong worked in aviation. This is a Junkers Jumo 211 F. Rolls Royce Merlin 23 A. Next, we went into the State Rooms, a nice picture and clock. Bronze model of the castle, and in the background a portrait of Henry VIII. A closer look at this King. What time is it? Do I need to plume my feathers? Swords
miapearl Posted Nov 23, 2010, 1:10 pm	After visiting the castle, we drove further down the coast to Seahouses. This was where my host caught a boat last year to take her out to the Farne Islands. This was not going to happen today! Look at those waves. I hope the lifeboat, called the Grace Darling, was not needed to go out in this weather. Grace Darling was a heroine of the 19th century - her father was a lighthouse keeper on one of the Farne Islands when disaster struck. She rowed out to rescue people from a sinking/wrecked boat in dreadful weather.
miapearl Posted Nov 23, 2010, 5:03 pm	My host took me to another castle today. It is the largest in Northumbria, built in the 14th century but was damaged in the War of the Roses. It fell into decay and wasn't restored.
miapearl Posted Nov 23, 2010, 5:07 pm	Today, we spent a little time in Alnwick. There is a big gardens here and castle. However, time was short and we wouldn't have had enough time to fully appreciate the gardens or castle. We did walk around the outside of the castle. This is the Lion Bridge. Another entrance to the castle. There are statues all around the walls and there were gargoyles too. We did have time to visit a small museum. Northumbrian Bagpipes! Another noise/music making instrument. Upstairs, there was an art exhibition. This is a nice painting, those berries look tasty. I can sing this but my host has a terrible "singing" voice! Outside, there was a statue to Harry Hotspur. He was a fighter, and fought against the Scots and the French. He led a rebellion against Henry IV and was forming an alliance with Owain Glyndwr but died on the battlefield in Shrewsbury.
miapearl Posted Nov 27, 2010, 9:27 pm	Today, we have come to yet another castle, this time it is a ruined one. They have cannons and a portcullis gate. Inside another castle entrance is a museum about the Battle of Flodden Field which happened a few miles away in 1513. The castle was captured by King James IV of Scotland shortly before the Battle of Flodden Field. This is one of the castle towers with the gatehouse in the background. We were on the other side of that portcullis earlier. The curtain wall linked all 4 towers of the castle, but only this section remains. That's the tower with the portcullis.
miapearl Posted Dec 3, 2010, 9:25 pm	We've come to Flodden Field itself. Here's the memorial.
miapearl Posted Dec 3, 2010, 9:29 pm	Today, we stayed in the caravan park. We were counting some of the money we had left! These are Scottish banknotes!
miapearl Posted Dec 10, 2010, 2:42 pm	Today, my host and her mother have taken us to Berwick-upon-Tweed. We walked around the walls. It'll be our last day before we head home. The painter Lowry visited Berwick-upon-Tweed a lot and painted many scenes here. There is a trail we could follow visiting sites he painted. There is a GeoCache near this information board. It started to rain so we headed to a cafe for lunch.
miapearl Posted Dec 10, 2010, 2:58 pm	We are going home. It is sad to leave the caravan but we must go home. However, we can go via Hadrian's Wall, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The wall stretches across England. This section we are visiting is called Heddon-on-the-Wall.
miapearl Posted Dec 10, 2010, 3:14 pm	We stop off at another spot along Hadrian's Wall. This section is Blackcarts Turret.
miapearl Posted Dec 10, 2010, 3:25 pm	Next, we stop at a third section along Hadrian's Wall. This time it is Housesteads Roman fort built in about 124AD. There it is, up the hill.
miapearl Posted Dec 10, 2010, 3:26 pm	The fourth and final stop we did on Hadrian's Wall is Steel Rigg. The sun was fading but these rocks look impressive.
miapearl Posted Dec 10, 2010, 5:15 pm	We have a new friend to play with Hello Monkez
miapearl Posted Dec 10, 2010, 5:33 pm	Hi Dad, We are having a look at Christmas decorations. Quack, or are they geese?
miapearl Posted Jan 6, 2011, 11:45 am	Hello! It has been snowing so we've come out to walk in it. The road is under the snow somewhere! The mountains look pretty. I don't like the look of those clouds. Weee! Can I go sledging again?
miapearl Posted Jan 6, 2011, 6:06 pm	Hello! A number of houses on my host's estate have been adorned with Christmas lights. Here are some of them.
miapearl Posted Jan 6, 2011, 6:31 pm	We are spending Christmas with my host's mum. We have a tree. Can you find me under the tree?
miapearl Posted Jan 6, 2011, 6:53 pm	Hello! Have you played Pictureka? We are about to. Who'll be the first to spot the racket (one on the card) to a picture on the boards? There is only one. Can you see it? This should be easy. The dice roll is 2. I think I will attempt to find 2 wheels.
miapearl Posted Jan 17, 2011, 11:02 am	We are on our way back from my host's mum's to Wales, but the journey is long so we stopped off at Matlock Bath. We were just in time to visit Temple Mine before it shut for the day. Our guide had some rocks to show us from the mine. Temple Mine was opened to mine lead ore, and was re-opened to mine fluorspar.
miapearl Posted Jan 17, 2011, 11:03 am	We are having a party using the leftover Christmas cake my host made. Some of us are going away next week for pastures new, including me. Goodbye Charlie B., mira, Gaspode, alfie langer, Squizzle, Topple  and monkez.
miapearl Posted Jan 17, 2011, 11:19 am	Woo hoo, I am so excited that I am travelling again. I'm going to pastures new. Goodbye Mia, thank you for hosting me
becka_kate Posted Feb 6, 2011, 1:20 am	Lucky me, I arrived in Australia just in time to celebrate Australia Day with my new hosts. Australia Day  is the official national day of Australia. Celebrated annually on 26 January, the date commemorates the arrival of the First Fleet at Sydney Cove in 1788 and the settlement (invasion) of Australia as British colony. We bravely made our way into the city for the day. I say bravely because it was an extremely hot day, there were huge crowds and we had a small child in tow as well. Our first stop was in Hyde Park, which had been tranformed into "Australia's Biggest Backyard" for the day, complete with sporting activities, trampolines and Hills-Hoist Clotheslines. On the way we passed the Anzac War Memorial, which was built following the First World War, the first time Australians had fought as a part of an Australian army, rather than the British army. You may have heard on the news recently that parts of Australia have been devasted by floods lately? We left a message of support on the Hills-Hoist "Message Tree" Before taking in the fun at the Archibald Fountain, which was full of children (and some adults!) trying to cool off. From Hyde Park you get quite good views of Sydney Tower too. And, I also got to see St Mary's Cathedral - Australia's largest Catholic Church. We spent a little time sitting under the trees, watching some entertainment, eating iceblocks and trying to cool off a little before tiring of the crowds and jumping on a vintage bus to head down to the harbour (normally my hosts would walk, but the idea of a vintage bus sounded like fun!)
TaisAfinskaia maria.forletters@gmail.com Posted May 21, 2011, 7:54 pm	Hello Marco! I finally arrived at Maria`s place and we had a wonderful walk in Kolomenskoye park: Quote: Kolomenskoye  is a former royal estate situated several miles to the south-east of Moscow city-centre, on the ancient road leading to the town of Kolomna (hence the name). The scenic area which overlooks the steep banks of the Moskva River became a part of Moscow in the 1960s. The most attractive part of park is apple trees which now are in blossom!
TaisAfinskaia maria.forletters@gmail.com Posted Jul 1, 2011, 7:11 pm	Hello Marco! Today I with my friend from ETVT KalinHH made a bicycle walk! First we were in park and then went to the forest! It was fun!
hanachan Posted Jul 25, 2011, 11:38 am	Hi Marco, I'm in Japan now. It's a beautiful day though the weather report says that the large typhoon is coming. They say it will be stormy next week  Let's enjoy this weekend! Orpheus
hanachan Posted Jul 26, 2011, 12:29 pm	Hi Marco, This bridge is Seto Ohashi, the Great Seto Bridge, over the Seto Inland Sea. It has 4 lanes express roadway (upper) and 2 rail lines (lower). Japan has 4 main islands. Hokkaido, Honshu, Kyushu and here Shikoku, the smallest one of them. This bridge is one of the three routes connecting Honshu and Shikoku islands. Matane, (Japanese often says instead of 'Bye') Orpheus Great Seto Bridge - Wikipedia
hanachan Posted Sep 27, 2011, 3:43 pm	Hi Marco, When you see these photos, I would be at home with you. Sorry, I forgot the last updates. There are 3 large Chinatowns in Japan, in Yokohama, in Nagasaki and here in Kobe. Nankinmachi looks very colorful. Coloring red is very cute. Coconut juice with black tapioca was good taste hugs, Orpheus Quote: History Nankinmachi's origins date back to 1868, when Kobe's port was opened to foreigners, including Chinese immigrants from Canton, Fukien, and Samgong (Guangzhou, Fujian, Sanjiang). The newcomers settled in the western end of Kobe's foreign district, which soon became the focal point for subsequent Chinese migrants. During that time, the Chinese people were referred to as "people from Nanking" by the Japanese, hence the name "Nankinmachi"(Nanking Town). By the early 1920s, Nankinmachi was a vibrant area bustling with businesses, restaurants, and homes. That all changed, however, during the next two decades when many Chinese returned to China in response to Japan's expansion of Northeastern China, the Second Sino-Japanese War, and World War II. Destroyed during the allied bombings of Kobe, Nankinmachi was re-built after the war by the remaining Chinese community that stayed behind. In 1995, it was severely damaged during the horrific Great Hanshin Earthquake which killed nearly 6,000 people. It was quickly re-built, and once again thrives as the center of Chinese culture and activity throughout the Kansai region. There are currently 10,000 people residing in Kobe's Chinatown. (wikipedia)
smaug Posted Oct 22, 2011, 4:44 am	Hi, I arrived back home ! Today I felt some strange activity around my envelope . As soon as I came out I found two TVs looking at me: my old friend sammino ...whose hair(feather)line seems to be paying a heavier toll to the passing time at every single one of my visits here at home ...and Sofia a nice hover-fly from Finland. Not sure why, but looking at her I suddenly felt a bit hungry , but sammino quickly whispered to me that bug guests are not for lunch . So I just showed them the lovely present that my last host gave me and started telling them about my trips...which makes me think that I shoul probably compose a song about them . Thanks again to all my hosts on the WTVT !
smaug Posted Oct 22, 2011, 4:54 am	Hi, Today it was like being in the arrival lounge at the airport , as smaug showed up with two parcels, both likely to carry a new guest here in Calgary . And yes, new guests they were : Quentin Ducky from the UK and Jujube from the USA. They showed to us the lovely cards that their last hosts gave to them and then we started chatting and telling stories about our TV life .
smaug Posted Oct 26, 2011, 4:37 am	Hi, Today I had my first visit to the mountains since coming back. Not that I was very keen to go (freezing mountains are no place for a decent canary ), but sammino insisted . So off we went. As we left the car we were followed by light sleet. And the first glimpse of our surrounding wasn’t encouraging: dark clouds... ...and snow at high elevations. Well, not even that high, the whole upper part of Nakiska ski area seemed already ready for the winter season . From a bit further up we saw Barrier Lake in the distance and even what looked to be some sunrays . While in the direction that we wanted to take things were less encouraging. Eventually we reached the top of the valley, from where we could see the surrounding mountains... ....and the ridge that we just followed. sammino suggested that we should have tried to reach that peak behind me , but luckily smaug disagreed and said he didn’t want to be on that face if the weather turned ugly, so we just headed back home .
smaug Posted Nov 17, 2011, 3:36 am	Hi, smaug suddenly disappeared and left us alone for almost two weeks (something that, as sammino explained to us, happens sort of frequently ). What was very disappointing is that he didn’t leave us very well supplied . Anyway, by somehow rationing the chocolate , we made it. And when today he eventually reappeared, he even had a surprise for us: a parcel, maybe holding inside a new friend . And, yes, it was a new guest: Cherry Lola , a nice Zebra from the US. And she brought to us a lovely card and some delicious sweets ....which got all the attention of our starving stomachs .
smaug Posted Nov 19, 2011, 4:06 am	Hi, Guess what? Today smaug showed up with another TV-suspicious parcel. Of course we all gathered to see who was going to come out of it. It was Cassiopeia, a nice turtle from Germany . She is one of the most experienced TV ever, so we didn’t really give her the chance to rest and we pinned her down all night to hear everything about her travelling .
smaug Posted Nov 21, 2011, 3:51 am	Hi, It sure looked like being at the airport arrival lounge here this week . For the third time smaug came back with a parcel holding a new guest inside . This time it was Sweetsy, a nice gingerbread man from Germany ! And he brought over some great gifts for us: a lovely “self-themed” card and some delicious German Christmas sweets ...which, of course, fuelled a long night of chatting .
smaug Posted Nov 22, 2011, 3:20 am	Hi, Temperatures were in the freaking minus twenties over the week end , but sammino explained that it was a great chance for us to get acclimatised to the proper Canadian winter weather and he convinced smaug to take us for a short walk in the foothills . At least the sun was shining . The trail was covered in snow, but just a couple of cm. We stopped at this sign to check where we were: luckily we were not lost . Eventually we reached the highest spot of our walk, where we had a great view of the mountains around us . At this point we stopped to recover and sammino made appear a cup of boiling tea along with a well deserved bar of chocolate ....the best part of the day .
smaug Posted Nov 24, 2011, 3:54 am	Hi, Today I said goodbye to all my friends here in Calgary and got ready to travel to Germany . Before I jumped in my envelope sammino gave me a big hug and wished me a safe journey . See you soon !
HoBi Posted Dec 2, 2011, 8:01 pm	Hello Dad, today I arrived in Germany Snakey, Stoker and Murph opened my envelope and I were able to climb out of my envelope. I showed my gift and the beautiful postcard. HoBi said thank you! Tomorrow we will make a trip to the Harz mountains. Hopefully the weater will be nice – and we can make wonderful photos. Many greetings Orpheus
HoBi Posted Dec 7, 2011, 6:51 pm	Hello Dad, today I show you our Advent Calender. Yes – it is right – we have our own calender for TVs. Murph found the number one – what will be in there? So many sweets. I searched the number 3 and I found it. I found a chocolate bear. Then we all searched for the number 4. Stoker found it. What a wonderful  Advent Calender. Many greetings Orpheus
HoBi Posted Dec 19, 2011, 7:57 pm	Hello Dad, yesterday I was allowed to open a gift out of our Advent Calendar. Today we went into the forest with Murph. We searched mushrooms. First we found a lilac mushroom.   Murph told us that it was eatable. This mushroom was a wood blewit. We loved this too. It is called hair ice. Unfortunately these mushrooms were frozen. Oyster mushroom, really yummy! This big mushroom is eatable, too. It is a trooping funnel mushroom. Sadly it was too big for our basket. There were many of these mushrooms. We searched for these mushrooms, but they were too small. Their name is velvet foot. We found bigger ones. We cut them and put them into our basket. Then we went home with our full basket. At home we said goodbye to Snakey. Snakey will travel to his next host. Have a safe trip. What a wonderful day in the forest. Greetings Orpheus
HoBi Posted Dec 21, 2011, 9:08 pm	Hi Dad, Have a look, what Bine and Holgi brought home from their shopping trip. Do you know it? It is a  „root of rutabaga“!  We want to cook it today.  First we had to cut it into small pieces. It was ready in the pot. Then we put meat and potatoes into the pot – and it had to cook for a long time. Murph mashed it. I cut the sausages for the stew. At Bine’s home it is called „Schlunse“ It was delicious! Many greetings Orpheus
HoBi Posted Dec 23, 2011, 5:15 pm	Hello Dad, Today we made a trip to Seesen. First we saw this funny sign. I wanted a photo. Can you see me? This house was so beautiful! Next to the sights in Seesen there are always windows to sit in. Here you can see the museum. We went to a playground. What a great seesaw! Next to the playground there was a lake with a lot of ducks. We talked with the ducks. This statue shows Wilhelm Busch, a German poet. He wrote the story of Max and Moritz. Do you know the story and the boys? And another window. You can see the Sehusa-Castle. Then we drove some more kilometers and – look, what we found. It looks like Canada. I will go on holidays with my friends now – we won’t have internet there – but I will tell you more, when I am back. Merry Christmas to you! Orpheus
HoBi Posted Jan 1, 2012, 1:37 pm	Orpheus, Hann.Münden, 24.12.11 Hello Dad, When we arrived, we saw that we had a Christmas tree in our holiday flat. How excitiing. We received a big parcel for Christmas. It was from Hummel, RikeH and Dicker Kumpel. What will be in it? We had a look. A present for me! A beautiful candle. Thanks a lot Dicker Kumpel and RikeH! We found another nice thing in the Parcel. It was a big candleholder for Bine and Holgi. We decorated it for Christmas. It was wonderful! We received a lot of sweets. Thanks Hummel! What a great Christmas Eve. Many greetings Orpheus
HoBi Posted Jan 1, 2012, 2:32 pm	Hello Dad, today we visited Hann.Münden. There was a wonderful town hall. This was the Weserstein. This is the place where the Rivers Werra and Fulda meet to form the River Weser. A wonderful bridge over the Fulda. Hann.Münden has a lot of beautiful half-timbered houses. I really loved the old town gate. We took a photo of the Castle from this nice bridge. I really loved this old Town. Love Orpheus
HoBi Posted Jan 2, 2012, 8:46 pm	Hello Dad, Today we went to Kassel. There were wonderful orchids in the greenhouse. We made a rest at this small fountain. Then we walked through the wonderful palace garden. An old aqueduct. I didn’t know, what this pyramid is for. The bridge of devils. Look at this wonderful palace! Stoker loved it – he wanted to live in it. This would be a wonderful home for him, but unfortunately Bine had not enough money to buy it. Many Greetings Orpheus
HoBi Posted Jan 5, 2012, 8:12 pm	Hello Dad, Today we wanted to visit the Sababurg.  Unfortunately it was closed. We decided to go to the jungle Sababurg. At the beginning we found this cabin. Let’s go. There were many wonderful tree-mushrooms. Which roundtrip should we choose? The trees were very old. We continued our walk. What a pity, we had no basket with us, because we found theses oyster mushrooms. In this jungle all trees will stay at their places, when they fall – no ranger will come and tidy up. What a wonderful forest! Many greetings Orpheus
HoBi Posted Jan 5, 2012, 8:22 pm	Hello Dad, Today we were in a baroque town . There was a ‘Invalidenhaus’. It was built for injured people during the World Wars. At this little Tower you can see the water-levels of the River Weser. We all wanted a photo with this friendly man. Here was something interesting – a saline. You stand next to the saline and breeze the healthy air. Murph and Stoker told me that the salines in Bad Salzdetfurth are much better. Maybe Murph will show them to me. Our last photo in Bad Karlshafen – it is the town hall. At home we had to say good-bye to Stoker. He takes part in the German RR.  Have a safe trip and a lot of fun – Stoker! Many greetings Orpheus
HoBi Posted Jan 9, 2012, 6:23 pm	Hello Dad, Today a new guest arrived. Murph and I opened the envelope. It is Spencer – he is travelling on the German RR like Stoker. Spencer showed us his gifts! The weather was horrible. But we decided to make a trip to Lamspringe. There is an old abbey. At the entrance to the abbey garden we found this interesting thing. In the past criminals had this ring around there neck and they were in the  pillory In the park was this old mill. They made the meal for the abbey there. Unfortunately the water wheel didn’t move, because it is winter now. They had a big playground in the park. Spencer and I wanted to play on the seesaw, but Spencer was too heavy. Here starts the Lamme. It is a little river that flows through Bad Salzdetfurth . We saw three lakes – this was the biggest. Until soon Love Orpheus
HoBi Posted Jan 14, 2012, 5:30 pm	Hi Dad, Today I made a sightseeing-trip through the hometown of Murph. Here you can see the emblem of the town. Bad Salzdetfurth is an old mining city. And there are many machines out of this time all over the city. On this sign you can learn a lot about the salt production. This is an old mine head tower. Wheels likes these ones were inside the towers. There are many beautiful houses in the city. There are two salines in the spa gardens. We saw a small one in Bad Karlshafen some days ago. These salines are much bigger and older. In the Past people used them for producing salt. The salines are not working in the winter time. In one of the salines I found this. Beautiful – isn’t it? This bumbling stone is really funny. You sit in it and then you bumble. It tingles in the belly! Next to the bumbling stone is a colorful house for doves. On the way back I saw this beautiful house. Bad Salzdetfurth is a nice small town! Love Orpheus
HoBi Posted Jan 20, 2012, 12:07 pm	Hello Dad, Today we walked along the ‘Laves-Kulturpfad’ – a path of culture. The path started at the Derneburger Castle. It is really big. At a small river we saw this old weir. It belongs to an old mill. We walked over the Laves-Bridge and crossed the Nette – a small river in Lower Saxony. Murph wanted to show me many rare birds. But unfortunately the Pond was empty – there were no birds. Look – this house is in the water. There was a distillery in the next village.  The distillery produces the ‘Astenbecker Weizenkorn‘. Maybe I can try it in the next days? Then we made a rest next to a big fishpond. These small fisherman houses were beautiful! Then we found a strange thing. It was a pyramid in the middle of the forest. It is the grave of the first owner of the Castle. There are still coffins inside the mausoleum. But it was too dark for a photo. The last thing we found in the forest was an old Greek temple. It was used as a teahouse in the Past. Then we went back home – to our cosy warm chair. Love    Orpheus
HoBi Posted Jan 24, 2012, 7:25 pm	Hello Dad, today Murph and I showed Spencer the lovely town Seesen. Although we have been some time ago, we found many new windows. The cellar of the town hall They restore the St. Andreas-church at the moment. We found new photos of Max und Moritz. I love these guys. This old gate belongs to the ‚Koch’schen Hof’. Look – they were so colorful! This is the old middle-class house. Have a look at the trousers of Moritz! At the end of our trip we saw the town hall of Seesen. Many greetings Orpheus
HoBi Posted Feb 2, 2012, 5:55 pm	Hi Dad, Today it was Spencer’s last day with us.. The weather was horrible. It was cold and foggy. But we wanted to go outside. Can you see how cold it was? I am sure that this pavilion will be beautiful in the summer time. There were many wonderful scrubs. You know that Bad Salzdetfurth is an old mining town. The miners used these baskets to get the salt out of the mine. On this sign we read how they did it. This is the Lamme – a small river that flows through Bad Salzdetfurth. Can you remember it? I saw the spring in Lamspringe. Bad Salzdetfurth has a street of planets. All over the town there are all planets in the right dimension and distance to the sun. Here I sat under the sun. Later we found the Earth. At home it was time to say goodbye to Spencer. He will travel to his next host on the GermanRR. Have fun! Many greetings Orpheus
HoBi Posted Feb 7, 2012, 7:45 pm	Hi Dad, Today a new guest from the German RR arrived in Bad Salzdetfurth. Murph and I opened his envelope and SunnyHH jumped out of it. He showed his gifts for Hobi. I told SunnyHH that I have already visited RikeH, his Mum. We had so much to talk about. Murph decided to have a party! He mixed cocktails for us. It was so interesting! Ready – look – the cocktail looked like the German Flag. We talked and drank…. …and talked and drank…. Oops, maybe we drank too much.  But the cocktail was yummy! Many greetings Orpheus
HoBi Posted Feb 8, 2012, 8:00 pm	Hi Dad, Today it was very cold and windy. But the sun was shining, so we made a trip to Alfeld. Here you can see the town hall. There was a big sculpture on the market place. At the market place a little river started its way down the street. The little river started at this fountain. There is a funny bookcase in Alfeld. You can put your own book into it and take another one with you. I loved this house – it was the old grammar school. There were so many carvings! This statue stood in front of the school, but I didn’t know, who it was. This is the old bell from the church of Alfeld. Some years ago the church got a new bell. The last thing we saw was the planet-house. Unfortunately you cannot see it that good, but the carvings show all planets. Then we all wanted to go home – it was so cold outside. Many greetings Orpheus
HoBi Posted Feb 12, 2012, 4:42 pm	Hello Dad, Today we wanted to drive to Wohldenberg to make a nice walk there. On our way we stopped at this very old tree. The tree is awesome, isn’t it? Our next stop was Sottrom. We wanted to have a photo with this funny guy. Here comes another photo – and yes, we were on the photo. Can you find three ToyVoyagers? There were many funny characters on this gate. At the Wohldenberg Murph showed me a rare mushroom. And we walked along this beautiful rock. It must be wonderful in summer here. On the top I had a wonderful view to the Harz Mountains. There was a look-out – but it is closed during the winter time. The last place for today was the Abbey Wohldenberg. It was a wonderful trip, although it was very cold for us! Love Orpheus
HoBi Posted Feb 21, 2012, 10:10 am	Hi Dad, Today we made an excursion to Hildesheim. We started our walk next to the old Bernwardsmauer. Next to the wall there is a statue of an Indian Godhood. Can you see what she had next to her feet? Hildesheim has a lot of big churches. Here you can see the Godehardikirche. The „Kehrwiederturm“  is the last existing tower of the town fortification. We went into the town center through this gate. We found this sign – it reminds of the old horse market in Hildesheim This guy is funny – but a little spooky. It is the “Huckup”. The Huckup is a kobold, who jumps onto the back of a thief to remember him that he is not allowed to steal something. The marketplace of Hildesheim is very famous. First of all I show you the town hall. There was another beautiful house: the Wedekindhaus On the right side you see the Knochenhaueramtshaus, on the left side is the the Bäckeramtshaus. I had to show you the next house – it is called Zuckerhut! I could live in this Zuckerhut. The last thing I found was this fountain. It is in front of a church. I cannot remember the words of this man. Hildesheim is a beautiful town. We wanted to make more photos, but the weather was too bad. Many greetings Orpheus
HoBi Posted Feb 28, 2012, 7:17 pm	Hello Dad, today we went to the  Wildgatter in Hildesheim. At the entrance I found this beautiful wooden sculpture. The first animals I saw were red deer and goats. I absolutely wanted to have a photo with this funny guy. There were many nice wooden characters. But there were living animals, too. Unfortunately theses mushrooms were not for the pan. Before we went home, I visited the information centre of the Wildgatter and learnt a lot about the animals in Germany. Love Orpheus
HoBi Posted Feb 29, 2012, 6:57 pm	Hi Dad, Today Murph wanted to show us mushrooms.  Yes Dad, it is the Truth - Murph finds mushrooms in the wintertime. First we went to his famous mushrooms in this time.  Weren’t they beautiful?  They are called scarlet elf cup and they are very rare in Germany. Oops – we had a problem. Where should we go – the whole path was icy! Fortunately Murph knew another way. So we went ot our next mushroom. It was very small! Can you see the small point in Front of my beak? It was the hairy black cup. We were happy to find flowers – maybe the spring is coming now? I am sure that most people know the next mushroom.  You certainly ate it in a Chinese Restaurant. It is called jelly ear or Mu-Err. The last mushroom is rare in Germany again – it is the spring hazelcup. I didn’t know that you can see so many mushrooms in the wintertime. At home we had to say goodbye to SunnyHH. He travels to his next host on the German RR. I wish you a lot of fun – SunnyHH! Love Orpheus
HoBi Posted Mar 7, 2012, 6:58 pm	Hallo Dad, A new guest from the German RR arrived today. Murph and I helped him out of his envelope. It was Bärndt, a small bear. We showed Bärndt Bad Salzdetfurth.  First we went to our famous place – it was so much fun sitting in the Summstein. I found wonderful flowers. Murph told me that it will be very colorful here soon! I am looking forward to it. There are many old machines from the mining time. Bärndt walked around and looked at all the interesting things. Murph and I decided to relax in the sun and talk. The last place was the train station of Bad Salzdetfurth. I have no idea why it is called Kulturbahnhof. Many greetings Orpheus
HoBi Posted Mar 14, 2012, 7:05 pm	Hi Dad, Today we went into the forest and searched bear’s garlic. On our way we saw the holy spring. The water here should help against illnesses. People found 5000 years old sacrificial offerings next to the „ Appenteichquellen“. Today people sacrifice things on the small altar next to the springs. Don’t worry, Dad! I wasn’t sacrificed. Here you can see another photo of the spring. Next to it, there were many old trees in the forest. On our way to the ear’s garlic we found these beautiful flowers. They were spring snowflakes. The bear’s garlic was too small for collecting. Maybe we can try it the next time we will be here? Then we climbed up a mountain. This is the ruin of the Winzenburg. In the Past donkeys carried water from the spring to the top of the mountain, because the people in the Castle needed it. The poor donkeys – the way was really steep. Many greetings Orpheus
HoBi Posted Mar 18, 2012, 8:26 pm	Hi Dad, Today Murph and I wanted to show the Laves-Path to Bärndt. On our way to Derneburg we saw an old wind wheel.  It belonged to a mill in the Past. We had to stop at this gate and make photos. It was so beautiful. Can you see me on the anchor? This is the postbox of the Park. There was a Treasure map. I would love to search a treasure. This octupus was very funny! We continued our way to the Lavespath in Derneburg. There was the Castle of Derneburg.  It was really gigantic. I found another flower of the spring for you : the commun butterbur. Can you remember this lake? The last time we were here, it was empty.  But today it was full of water – but there were no birds again. What is the right way to the Mausoleum? I had a look at the map. There it was. Today Murph and I were brave – and we went to the entrance. It was a little spooky! There was cold air coming out of the Mausoleum and we saw the coffins in it. We saw another castle on our way back home, but unfortunately  we were not allowed to went closer to it.  The Castle Söder is in private hands. It was a nice day. Love Orpheus
HoBi Posted Mar 20, 2012, 6:44 pm	Hello Dad, Today was my last day with my good friend Murph. IN the morning we went into the forest and searched mushrooms and flowers. The spring is coming! There were many blooming flowers in the forest. These small flowers didn’t bloom last week – they are kidneyworts. Daphne mezereum is a wonderful shrub, but very poisonous. These mushrooms are eatable. We didn’t find the English names – but the Latin name is Gyromitra ancilis. You know the next flower, I think. It helps with cough: it is a Coltsfoot. These small mushrooms grow on the cones of the spruce. So their name is  sprucecone caps and they are eatable, too. The last thing that Murph showed me was the early purple orchis. Unfortunately it didn’t bloom now. And I have to travel on – what a pity! Dad, maybe you will allow me to visit Murph in April next year? I would love to see wild orchis. At home we had a look at all our adventures,we experienced so many things together. We even went on holiday! We searched mushrooms together. And there were some adventures. In the evening we had a farewell-party. I were allowed to decide what we drink. Guess what color I chose? We talked for a long time. But then it was time to say goodbye to Murph and I had to climb into my envelope. Dad –am I allowed to visit Murph again? He was such a good friend for me –and I will miss him. But this is the life as a TV. Many greetings Orpheus
smaug Posted Apr 10, 2012, 4:56 am	Hi, I am back in France ! After a few days stuck in a (very uncomfortable ) mailbox, today I felt some activity around my envelope. As I came out I found my old friend Sigfrido helping me out of my travelling quarters . For some reason he gave me a strange look , but then he gave me a big hug and welcomed me back in Rouen . I showed him the lovely postcard and delicious sweets that my last host gave me..thank you so much HoBi ! Later I met the gang of residents here. I am not sure why the reintroduced themselves as if we had never met before . I pointed out that it was still me and first they looked a bit puzzled, then they all said: “nice tan!”. I am sure I have heard this comment before . To reacquaint myself with the place I had a look out of the window: the decrepit tower is still there ...I guess I’ll find back my bearings around here very soon .
smaug Posted Apr 12, 2012, 2:33 am	Hi, This week Sigfrido had to attend a conference in Paris so I went with him . It was fairly boring for a few days as I could never go out and the view from our room wasn’t very exciting . But today, after a hearty breakfast ... ...we had the chance to walk a bit around the city. Our first stop was the Jardin du Luxembourg from where we could see the Montparnasse Tower... ...and even La Tour Eiffel half hidden between the trees. Later we walked around the Latin Quarter. We stopped a bit to play in this park... ...and refreshed ourselves at this fountain. As we kept walking we reached Notre Dame Cathedral . We walked a bit along La Seine... ...towards the back of the cathedral from where we could see the spire and the rampant arches. Later we found all these love-padlocks tied on this bridge ...a fashion imported from Rome I believe. As we kept walking we reached one of the entrances of the Ecole Polytechnique. We went on wandering around... ...until it was time to stop and fill the tank . Our last stop of the day was the back of the Pantheon. After that it was time for us to go picking up our baggage and heading back to Rouen .
smaug Posted Apr 24, 2012, 2:49 am	Hi, Having been a few days out of town, today we had to take care of the laundry and Sigfrido and I were assigned the task of carrying the detergents ....but I have a feeling that in the travelling arrangements I somehow got the short end of the stick . Later we had to load the washer... ...and fold back the clean clothes. Back home the working day wasn’t over . We had to take care of our dinner and opted to make a real Italian polenta. Sigfrido explained me that you can only prepare polenta in a special copper pot . Stirring it was hard work... ...but eventually we were ready to enjoy our meal . And we even had some small chocolate eggs leftover from yesterday for dessert .
smaug Posted May 13, 2012, 7:50 pm	Hi, Today we came back home from another trip , alas, a photo-less one . As we had been away for a while there were not many supplies at home, but Sigfrido managed to find some frozen microwavable food. Not really nouvelle cuisine, but good enough . And then Sigfrido and the other residents made me a surprise : not only they remembered that today is my birthday,  but they even prearranged a TV size cake . The portions were not exactly generous, but there was enough for everybody .
smaug Posted Jun 30, 2012, 10:36 am	Hi, Today Sigfrido had to be in Paris early in the morning for work, so we spent the night in an hotel . The view from the window wasn’t very nice... ...so we checked our route and went out. We passed by the church of Saint Sulpice ... And roamed a bit the streets of the Latin Quarter. I even got a glimpse of the Pantheon in the distance. But, eventually it was time to get to work, hard work . As the printer was a bit slow... ...we decided to check out the window. It turned out that we had a top floor office with a wonderful wiew ... ...and perfect for sunbathing . Later on we got hungry and ate some baguette , making a bit of a mess. Hopefully no one will notice .
smaug Posted Jun 30, 2012, 10:52 am	Hi, Today we were in Paris again , but, since we didn’t need to be there too early, we took a train from Rouen in the morning. Once in Paris I managed to take a few photos. I saw Notre Dame in the distance ,... ...walked around the Latin Quarter... ...and stopped by the College De France, apparently a very important school . I fancied going inside to take a look, but the gate was closed and the gentleman in the courtyard ignored me completely , how rude . To avoid getting in trouble at the office , today we opted for filling our tanks before getting to work. The rest of the day was long and boring, but on the way home I managed to take a final shot with the Pantheon in the sunset .
smaug Posted Jun 30, 2012, 11:30 am	Hi, Yesterday we were in Paris again, mostly busy at work, but this morning I had a chance for another City tour before heading to the train station. I walked a bit around the Jardin du Luxembourg ... ...where I found this lovely fountain... ...while this lion allowed us to take a picture with him . Later we looked at some shops. It seems there was a completion for who was selling the weirdest stuff . Moving on we walked a bit along the river... ...until we reached the Louvre... ...where we stopped to rest and enjoy the sun . On the way back to the train station I thought we should have stopped for a refreshing pint ... ...but Sigfrido pointed out that we were late, so I took another couple of photos passing by the Val the Grace hospital before diving underground into the RER.
smaug Posted Jul 9, 2012, 3:32 am	Hi, Today it was time to travel again . I passed through Paris Gare du Nord station... ...and fell asleep on my way to the airport . And when I woke up I was in Italy with my friend sammino and all his guests !
smaug Posted Jul 9, 2012, 3:38 am	Hi, Today we had a very important football match to watch: the Euro Cup semi-final between Germany and Italy . An artist like me doesn’t really care much about sport, but sammino told me that today I was an Italian supporter...and a crazy one too . By the time the teams came on the pitch, there were easily identifiable German and Italian camps in front of the TV, and emotions were running high. As Italy swept Germany away we were very happy... ...and sammino went a bit wild on the celebrations .
smaug Posted Jul 9, 2012, 3:58 am	Hi, After just a few days, Sigfrido and I said goodbye to all our friends here and started travelling again . Before I jumped in my travelling quarters sammino gave me a big hug and wished me a safe trip . Off we go again !
smaug Posted Aug 7, 2012, 3:23 am	Hi, After saying goodbye, we went to the train station and headed for Roma . They view from the train was nice... ...but we must have forgotten about the travelling supplies as we spent all the trip without food . So when we arrived at destination we quickly checked how was the view from the window... ...and then went straight to the kitchen.  After wandering around... ...we eventually found something edible . A lovey bowl of salad... ...and some delicious fruit . Now, that feels better .
smaug Posted Aug 7, 2012, 3:38 am	Hi, Today I  managed to take a little stroll around the city.  First I stopped at the philharmonic house and thought that maybe I could have gone inside to practise my singing , but unfortunately, the door was closed . So I kept walking around until I reached Porta del Popolo... ...and from here Piazza del Popolo . Here I admired the twin churches... ...and the Egyptian obelisk .
smaug Posted Aug 7, 2012, 3:47 am	Hi, Today it was time to leave and go back to France. Luckily, this time we planned in advance for potential food shortage during the trip by heaving a rich breakfast . Once at the airport we explored a bit around. The food court looked interesting... ...very interesting . And the tables were quite strange too. Of, course, we couldn’t just look at the food without trying something . With a full belly we eventually reached our gate and got ready to travel home .
smaug Posted Aug 7, 2012, 4:13 am	Hi, That was a short stop here in France. Just arrived and already in another airport ready to leave again . As it was the first time at Orly for both Sigfrido and myself we explored a bit around. Later we checked the time of our flight. There was still plenty of time so we looked a bit at the planes... ...and refilled the tank . Eventually we boarded the plane and got the wonderful surprise of being given a free tablet to enjoy the in-flight entertainment . As it turned out, the tablet wasn’t really free and the flight attendants came back to grab it before landing . Luckily we have eaten all the food so they couldn’t steal that back . Eventually we landed in a place that I know well, Newark airport ! It looked like I was going back to the location of my very first trip, so both at the station and on the train I was so excited that I couldn’t stop looking out of the window .
smaug Posted Aug 20, 2012, 3:53 am	Hi, Today I wanted to have immediately a walk around Princeton, so I got a hearty breakfast ... ...and got out. I passed by the IAS... ...and headed towards downtown. On the way I saw some familiar old building ... ...and went around the golf course. I kind of remembered that the balls can fly erratically around here, so I kept a safe distance . I passed by more nice buildings,... ...but my daily goal was to reach Nassau Hall and visit an old friend of mine . One of the tigers guarding the main entrance ! At frst she didn’t recognize me and said I have changed since we last met, but after that she was very nice and we spent the afternoon chatting ...although it seemed to me that she kept throwing inquisitive glances at Sigfrido as if she wasn’t convinced about who I was .
smaug Posted Sep 4, 2012, 3:02 am	Hi, I have been here just a few days and I am already working . Today it was laundry day. First we checked the instructions... ...and selected the program. Then we had to wait, so we explore a bit around. We stopped playing at the kids corner... ...and checked out the “library” . Moving on we noticed that someone had posted socks on the notice board ... ...so we decided to just wait in a quiet corner until the washer was done.
smaug Posted Sep 4, 2012, 3:36 am	Hi, Today I walked a bit around Princeton . I stopped by the university shop,... ...roamed around,... ..., checked what movies were on,... ...and took a look if there were interesting notices. Then I just checked some side roads. It seems parking is very expensive , but luckily I wasn’t driving . Back home we prepared something to eat . As getting the cherry tomatoes out of the box seemed a bit too long and complicated... ...I decided to speed up things and caused a bit of a mess . Sigfrido was not impressed... ...and pushed me away telling me to try cutting the cheese without causing any more disasters . While the meal was cooking with did a bit of ironing... ...until our dinner was eventually ready. Not really good looking, but it tasted good .
smaug Posted Sep 4, 2012, 4:14 am	Hi, Today I went to work with Sigfrido and visited the institute.  First we went to the library where I was keen to look at the atlas ,... ...but Sigfrido was more interested in horribly boring books . Later we relaxed a bit in the reading room where we checked out the news. Today I also met Einstein (who was very pleased to meet me again )... ...and other famous scientists. Later we went enjoying the view from the terrace... ...and engaged in a chess game, a real battle of minds...and, of course, I was the best . Eventually it was time to do some actual work, so we grabbed a coffee... And went back to our office.
smaug Posted Sep 4, 2012, 4:36 am	Hi, Today it was my last day in Princeton, so I went for a nice walk in the trees . Later in the day it was time to head to the airport. The train system seemed simple enough to navigate ... ...and the view was nice . At the airport I explored a bit the terminal... ...until it was time to go to my gate. Europe I’m coming back !
smaug Posted Sep 10, 2012, 3:58 am	Hi, I’m back in France ! Today, to recover from the jet-lag, I went for a walk around Rouen.  First I visited the cathedral. Later I passed by this lovely garden... ...and admired Rouen’s typical old houses. I wondered if buying some souvenir ... ...and eventually headed home... ...where, after so much walking, we had a well deserved meal .
smaug Posted Sep 10, 2012, 4:19 am	Hi, I’m on the move again . On the way to the airport I passed by the Opera in Paris. I explained to Sigfrido that one day I will sing in there , but not today . At the airport I found the way to the gate... ...and got a quick bite... ...before boarding. Time to take off . The view wasn’t super exciting, so we spent most of the time enjoying the in-flight snacks... ...until it was time to land in Italy . There a was still a bit of a drive to reach our destination... ...but, eventually, we got there !
smaug Posted Sep 10, 2012, 4:30 am	Hi, Today it was very hot but I wanted to explore a bit around, so I roamed randomly the streets... ...until I found these nice bell tower ... ...and church. I wanted to explore further, but Sigfrido told me that we had to pack already for our next trip , so we quickly went back home.
smaug Posted Sep 17, 2012, 1:24 am	Hi, As Sigfrido had anticipated, today we were again on the move . After a long drive (the traffic was really bad)... ...we reached Selva di Valgardena . The view from the balcony was great and there were beautiful flowers too . Looks like it’s going to be a wonderful holiday .
smaug Posted Sep 17, 2012, 1:52 am	Hi, Today I went for a walk around the dolomites . We followed a nice trail... ...with a lovely view . On the way we found a lot of mushrooms and, since with my last host in Germany I became a bit of an expert ,  I gave Sigfrido some lesson about them. As we walked we met a lot of nice “wildlife” : some goats,... ...a donkey,... ... and some nice horses . As I was getting hungry I asked these friendly cows for some tip of where to find good food... ...and they pointed at that hut down there. There we had a delicious slice of apfelstrudel . As we were feeling energetic we practiced a bit of climbing....where I found out that being a bird was definitely an advantage . What a view !.
smaug Posted Sep 17, 2012, 2:26 am	Hi, Today we took a nice walk to Santa Cristina . As it was very hot we stopped at every fountain to refresh ourselves...Sigfrido was very thirsty and occasionally lost his composure . On the way we passed by some Christmas decoration (maybe a  bit early for that )... ...and by some information point . Eventually we stopped to recharge the batteries . On the way back we noticed that Noah was getting all the animals on board of his ark . The weather seemed OK, but to avoid surprises we decided to jump on board too .
smaug Posted Sep 19, 2012, 3:59 am	Hi, Today we went for another nice hike around Selva . Sigfrido showed to me the intinerary on the map,... ...then we checked to have our tickets for the gondola and off we went . From the top we had a great view in all directions . Apparently there are a lot of mountain bike trails around here . But luckily there are also food serving establishments . After eating we stretched our legs and enjoyed more of the view... ...until we found the directions for another place that seemed worth to be checked out . And it was worth indeed: the beer was great... ...and we could watch paragliders from the terrace. Eventually it was time to head back and we enjoyed another run in the gondola...dinner here we come !
smaug Posted Oct 10, 2012, 4:43 am	Hi, Today we went for another nice hike. First we walked along a narrow valley covered by a forest and with only the occasional view of the surrounding peaks. But slowly the view improved . On the way we found some lovely flowers . As we gained elevation we got out of the trees... ...and saw our destination, that narrow pass at the top of the valley. From there the view was gorgeous . On the way down we refreshed ourselves with some cake, but we were so hungry that by the time we got the camera ready, the plate was already empty . With a full belly we enjoyed a bit more of the view... ...before jumping on the gondola to go back to Selva .
smaug Posted Oct 10, 2012, 4:53 am	Hi, Today we are leaving Selva, but not without a final short walk. Of course, walking consumes sugars , so we had to stop to refill the tank : we got a lovely bruschetta... ...and some delicious dessert . Eventually it was time to jump in the car and head back home... ...and luckily the traffic wasn’t too bad, so we reached Trento rather quickly .
smaug Posted Oct 11, 2012, 3:56 am	Hi, Today Sigfrido told me that there was an exhibition about knights inside a castle here in town . So we went to check it out. The castle is very impressive from the ouside ... ...and it was definitely the right one . As we entered the exhibition we saw many impressive armours . It looks that there was a tiny exhibition about stoves too...maybe unrelated to the knights’ one ... ...but soon we were surrounded again by shiny armours. Later we explored around the castle, where we found some lovely frescoes ... ...and also had a lovely view over the valley .
smaug Posted Oct 11, 2012, 5:50 am	Hi, This morning Sigfrido told me that we were going for another little holiday, Venezia this time . So we jumped in the car and went. As we arrived we got on the bus, that here is actually a boat ,.. ...with a nice view along the canals. Eventually we got off the “bus” and enjoyed the view over the Canal Grande . Later we checked out some of the shops... ...maybe a few months too early to get ready for carnival . As it was really hot we stopped to get some ice cream . Later we reached Piazza San Marco... ...with the beautiful Basilica ... ...and the bell tower. From here we walked a bit along the shore... ...where we found more carnival masks. On one of the side canals it was rush hour traffic for gondolas . The inside looked really comfy,... ...but, rather than jumping on board, we decided to refresh ourselves with another snack to make the wait for dinner easier.
smaug Posted Oct 12, 2012, 5:11 am	Hi, Early this morning, after a nice breakfast ,... ...we took a look at the Canal Grande while it was still quiet . Later this nice gentleman indicated us the way to a part of town usually ignored by tourists . There we found some quiet and very relaxing spots... ...and even a service centre for gondolas . Eventually it was time to go back to the car and drive home, but what a great trip !
smaug Posted Oct 12, 2012, 5:25 am	Hi, Today I went for a short walk in the historic centre of Trento . I was getting distracted by some nice shop ... ...but somehow I reached the central square where I admired the cathedral and the wonderful fountain . While on the opposite side there were houses covered with beautiful frescoes .
smaug Posted Oct 15, 2012, 4:18 am	Hi, Today I went to the airport to go on another trip . Sigfrido was being very secretive , but eventually he admitted that I was going to fulfil one of my dreams and visit Canary Island ! I was so excited that I spent all the time on the plane reading everything I found about our destination .
smaug Posted Oct 31, 2012, 4:18 am	Hi, I can’t believe it, I am actually in the Canary Islands ! This morning I immediately wanted to check the view out of my window . Later I planned the day with Sigfrido... and we explored a bit around... ...before going visiting a national park in a volcanic area of the island. The view was incredible . And we even joined a dromedary caravan !
smaug Posted Nov 4, 2012, 4:42 am	Hi, Today we were a bit lazy , so after checking the weather in the morning... ...we decided to roam a bit on the coast near our hotel. Then we reached the beach ... ...and decided to climb down to it... ...and play in the sand . But after so much action we were a bit tired , so we spent the rest of the day working on our tans .
smaug Posted Nov 4, 2012, 10:47 pm	Hi, Today it was eventually time to leave Canary Islands, so Sigfrido and I just wandered near the hotel... ...and said goodbye to that lovely beach . I wanted to chat a bit with this nice dove , but she was a little shy...being a worldwide famous singer sometimes has this effect on others . Later we stopped at the bar for a drink . There were so many options that we couldn’t really decide what we wanted ... ...and before we had picked our choice it was time to leave. So I took a final look from the balcony,... ...grabbed the baggage... ...and headed to the airport .
smaug Posted Nov 5, 2012, 1:47 am	Hi, Today Sigfrido and I were again on the move and, after a rather uneventful day of travelling , we found ourselves on train where, guess what, my friend Krystal was ready to welcome us to France. Of course, we decided to celebrate being all together again after such a long time , so we went out for dinner and spent the whole night eating foie gras and talking about our adventures .
smaug Posted Nov 12, 2012, 4:42 am	Hi, Today we all went for a day trip to Paris . Our first stop in town was Place Vendome, with the Vendome column. Around there we found some strange shops like this one selling robots . Eventually we reached La Seine... ...where we decided to rest a bit in the sun . Later we reached Place Saint-Sulpice with the famous fountain. In summer it must be a great spot to rest, but today it was a bit too cold for a dip . As we were wandering around, we stumbled on some very interesting shops ... ...that reminded us that it was time to stop for a bite. So we promptly found an appropriate food serving establishment and spent the afternoon testing new dishes .
smaug Posted Nov 16, 2012, 4:41 am	Hi, Today we said goodbye to my friend Krystal who is ready to travel to her next host . Before she left we checked that she was comfortable in her travelling quarters and wished her a safe trip .
smaug Posted Dec 16, 2012, 7:16 pm	Hi, Today we welcomed Landroval back in France. He’s going to spend the holidays with Sigfrido and me . As he came out from his travelling quarters we gave him a big hug . Later we sat with all the gang here and listened about his recent travels .
smaug Posted Dec 24, 2012, 1:28 pm	Hi, Today Sigfrido told us that we were going to prepare some sweets . Mixing everything was hard work... ...but, eventually, everything was ready for the oven. The final result looked really yummy but, shockingly, Sigfrido told us that the sweets were actually presents and we were not allowed to eat them yet . Hopefully, whoever we are giving them to will be kind enough to share .
smaug Posted Dec 24, 2012, 2:07 pm	Hi, I’m on the move again . Early in the morning we travelled to the airport where I explored a bit the main hall... ... and the duty free shops. Later we decided to wait for our flight relaxing at the gate...although Landroval seemed interested in other things . Eventually we jumped on board and the view from the window wasn’t really exciting... ...so we spent most of time munching a snack and reading magazines.
smaug Posted Dec 24, 2012, 2:25 pm	Hi, I arrived in Italy ! Here in Trento we found my friends sammino and Pepita waiting for us with their current guests, Shooga, Chino and Tatanka . Sigfrido timely pulled out the sweets that we prepared yesterday , so we spent the evening chatting and, mostly, eating .
smaug Posted Dec 24, 2012, 3:02 pm	Hi, Today we went for a short hike on a mountain just next to Trento . After trudging along a narrow and shadowed trail we reached a nice ridge from where we had a great view of the valley both north... ...and south. Some passage along the trail looks a bit scary , but fun too . Eventually we reached the top, from where the view to north opened up a bit more. And we could see the whole Trento just below us .
smaug Posted Jan 14, 2013, 2:08 am	Hi, Tonight there was a lot of action going on under the Christmas tree, but our attention was mostly focused on how to open the pandoro . It was a bit of work ... ...but we eventually managed to get our well deserved slice . Merry Christmas !!
smaug Posted Jan 14, 2013, 2:26 am	Hi, Today we went for a short walk on the side of the valley next to town . The path was a bit steep so we occasionally stopped to get some rest. Eventually, just before the sun started setting, we reached a nice spot from where we could see the mountains to the north... ...and east of town .
smaug Posted Jan 14, 2013, 3:01 am	Hi, Today, in the wee hour of the morning sammino waked us all up and said it was time for travelling again. I will spend some more time here with my friends Sigfrido and Pepita so we said goodbye and wished a safe journey to all the others . Before they left sammino gave me a big hug and recommended me to take care during my future trips . Eventually it was time for them to leave and sammino showed up with what was supposed to be the bus to the airport . It seemed a bit undersized , but somehow they all managed to fit on it, so we waved goodbye and promptly went back to sleep .
smaug Posted Jan 28, 2013, 4:16 am	Hi, Happy New Year! Today, as we were waiting for lunch we watched a concert on TV. Eventually it was time to eat and we got a typical New Year’s Day meal: Zampone and lentils, delicious ! After that we got an apple pie for the dessert . Later I offered to perform for my friends, but Sigfrido insisted that I should only sing on a stage commensurate to my artistic status , so we watched another concert on TV, from Venice this time.
smaug Posted Feb 4, 2013, 4:47 am	Hi, Today is the last day in Italy for Sigfrido and Pepita so we all went to a nice viewpoint near our house to let them enjoy e final look at the valley. And the view was indeed great in all directions .
smaug Posted Feb 5, 2013, 3:58 am	Hi, Today Pepita and Sigfrido are travelling to France , so we all jumped on a train to reach the airport... ...and for most of the trip we were next to the river. Eventually we reached the airport where, because of the fog, most planes were grounded , so we spent the whole morning waiting . To kill the time we explored a bit around. Eventually the planes were able to take off again , so it was time for my friends to leave. Before they went to the gate I gave them a big hug and wished them a wonderful journey .
smaug Posted Apr 18, 2013, 5:34 am	Hi, After resting for a few weeks...weeks that I spent practicing my singing (even I have to keep training to make sure I don’t lose my edge  )....I am travelling again, and travelling to my favourite destination, Canary Islands ! When I arrived I explored a bit around. I found a nice pool ... ...that deserved a closer look. I even thought of getting a dip, but I’ll have time for that. So I kept checking out the hotel... ...and even ventured for a tour around it. On the way I found this mill... ...and stopped chatting with the nice mule operating it (he was a fan , of course). Later I went back to the hotel where I basked in the sun while wondering what to visit in the next few days.
smaug Posted Apr 25, 2013, 4:43 am	Hi, Today I went exploring the seashore . I had to follow a rocky and winding path... ...but, eventually, I reached the ocean . The beach was so wide , and seemed to go on forever. I decided to play a bit in the sand and build a sand castle, but, on second thought,  I’m a famous singer, not a building contractor, so I just strolled around and enjoyed the sun . On the way I even saw a sail in the distance . Later, when I was wondering if I got lost, I jumped over a rock and saw the hotel. So I headed back wondering if the bar was already serving some lively drink .
smaug Posted Apr 28, 2013, 5:14 am	Hi, Today it’s time to leave, so I prepared my luggage and took a final look from the balcony. Later I paid a quick visit to the beach... ...and found an area of the hotel I missed before. There were strange things... ...some goats... ...and even a windmill . Eventually I decided that it was time to spend some quality time at the bar , where I chatted with these nice parrots... ...and helped myself with a few pints . When it was almost time to catch the bus to the airport I went waiting next to this lovely lantern and enjoyed the warm evening breeze .
smaug Posted Apr 28, 2013, 10:41 pm	Hi, My friends Pepita and Sgfrido have come back to Italy visiting , so today we went out all together for a short walk around the house. It was snowing heavily, which as great for playing . We stopped at this nice viewpoint looking at the trees and rooftops covered in white . As it happens, the snow was very wet, so back home it took some time before we got warm and dry .... ...but after that we had some lovely refreshments waiting for us .
smaug Posted Apr 28, 2013, 10:56 pm	Hi, Today it was time to travel to France , so, very early in the morning we were at Verona Airport. Luckily the bar was already open so we could enjoy both ice-creams and warm croissant for breakfast . Later we spent some time looking at the planes until it was time to board. After taking off we had a great view of the Italian plains ... ...and of the alps, covered in snow, of course .
smaug Posted May 6, 2013, 3:24 am	Happy Easter! Today it was a very cooking and eating filled holiday . For breakfast we had freshly baked cookies . Later we started baking a cake. It was hard work... ...but, eventually, we had some oddly shaped mixture ready to go in the oven. While waiting for the cake to be ready, we kept working and prepared some paws-made pasta. With a bit of pesto sauce it was ready, luckily , very soon. As there were no news of the cake, we decided to have temporary dessert with some chocolate bells...delicious .
smaug Posted May 13, 2013, 3:51 am	Hi, Today we spent the day in Paris ! First thing coming out of the metro, we stopped in the garden of the Rodin museum, where we looked at some nice sculptures . But, luckily, immediately after that we stopped for lunch . We spent time watching out of the window... ...until food eventually arrived . To help our digestion we got coffee and soon we were ready to be on the move again. In the distance we saw the Tour Eiffel and decided to take a closer look. It’s so big ! Leaving the tower we crossed La Seine... ...and headed for the Trocadéro. From there we took a last look at the tower . As we walked on, we saw another landmark in the distance... ...and decided to take a closer look at the Arc de Triomphe. Since we were there, we looked down the Champs Élysées... ..and at some interesting shop . Later we walked back to the station, took a photo at the Église Saint-Augustin... ...and then run for the train  .
smaug Posted May 19, 2013, 9:52 pm	Hi, Today we said goodbye and wished a safe journey to my friend Pepita who is travelling to Germany .
smaug Posted Jun 10, 2013, 3:17 am	Hi, Today I’m on the move again . Sigfrido took me to Paris airport where we had a quick lunch... ...in a strategic position from where we could keep an eye on the boarding gate. Later in the evening resting at the hotel at our destination, we enjoyed another meal . Sigfrido still didn’t want to tell me where we were, but the delicious fresh truffles gave me some ideas on the matter .
smaug Posted Jun 10, 2013, 3:32 am	Hi, Well, as it happens I am in Switzerland ! Today we took the tramway... ...and reached the main station. From there I just enjoyed walking around... ...and found a lot of yummy shops . Later we reached a nice viewpoint where we could rest while enjoying nice views over the city ... ...until it started raining cats and dogs forcing us to run for cover .
smaug Posted Jun 23, 2013, 10:11 pm	Hi, After leaving Switzerland Sigfrido brought me back to Trento for a short visit . I met, as always, the “twin brother” of my friend sammino,... ...had a quick walk around home... ...and packed once more almost right away ... ...to get ready to drive to the train station.
smaug Posted Jul 1, 2013, 4:22 am	Hi, After a long trip on the train we arrived in Roma . Since we were a bit too tired to go sightseeing, Sigfrido took me to a lovely restaurant where we could quench our thirst... ...and eat a delicious pizza .
smaug Posted Jul 1, 2013, 4:53 am	Hi, After a few days stuck at home, today we eventually went a bit around . First I stopped at Piazza del Popolo. The obelisk was very impressive . Later I visited the Vatican Museums. Just past the entrance there was a lovely garden. In there I met this strange fellow and asked for directions... ...but he wasn’t really useful , so I resorted to use an old fashion map. Moving into the museum I saw some interesting sculputures. Since the queue to move forward was very slow, I read some of the information panels. Eventually I reached a room full of enormous and beautiful maps . But if the maps were great, the ceiling was even more impressive . Later I entered Raffaello’s rooms were every single corner was covered by wonderful frescoes. It was very crowded, but being a bird has advantages, so I was most of the time above the heads of the other visitors . On the way out I passed by some beautiful planetariums... ...and saw from up high the garden I came in from . After such a cultural day, it was time to appease some more mundane needs , so we went to a restaurant where we enjoyed some lovely starters... ...and a wonderful serving of pasta .
smaug Posted Jul 1, 2013, 5:08 am	Hi, Today I visited the Pantheon, which is very impressive both outside... ...and inside . Later I wandered the streets... ...and met some funny guys . After a bit we decided to stop for lunch and got a lovely salad . After eating we visited Piazza Navona... ...but, since it was really hot, instead of spending the afternoon sightseeing, we found a nice bar and passed the time enjoying light snacks and sipping cold drinks ... ...until it was time to go for proper dinner .
smaug Posted Jul 1, 2013, 5:20 am	Hi, Today it was eventually time to leave Roma, so we jumped on a train and headed for the airport . Once there, we walked around the terminal,... ... until we found a more convenient way to get around . Bye bye Italy . On the plane I enjoyed a lovely view ... ...until I was distracted by some interesting snacks .
smaug Posted Aug 28, 2013, 5:00 am	Hi, As it happens, I almost moved from one plane to another one right away , so just a few days after returning to France I was back in Paris Airport . Of course, Sigfrido and I explored a bit around. We particularly liked this part of the terminal. Later we checked if we were already supposed to board... ...but, since there was still plenty of time, we decided to use it to boost our sugar levels .
smaug Posted Aug 28, 2013, 5:22 am	Hi, After a few days I felt rested enough to accompany Sigfrido to work . The day looked nice, so off we went. Once at the office we enjoyed a second breakfast ... ...and I tried, without much success, to call my friend sammino . Suddenly Sigfrido said that security was coming for an inspection and, since we didn’t have exactly clearance to be there, we had to find a hiding spot . I actually thought he was a legitimate worker, but I left that argument for later and made sure we didn’t hide without the cookies . Once the excitement was over, we sat on the window to enjoy the view . I tried to get some more info about this lack of clearance, but Sigfrido turned very cagey and said there was nothing more to be worried about .
smaug Posted Sep 1, 2013, 2:01 am	Hi, Today I went to work again with Sigfrido. Luckily he provided some nice breakfast right away to boost our brains . Later we wanted to visit the seminar rooms, but food was not allowed inside, so we just moved on . We decided to go upstairs... ...and relax in one of the recreation rooms. We played chess,... ...chatted with the local scientists,... ...enjoyed the view from the window... ...and checked out the provisions of the kitchen . The afternoon was laundry time. While the clothes were getting washed we played around a bit... ...and checked some of the available books. Some were in strange languages . Eventually I ended up enjoying the “very exciting” view from the window until it was time to go home.
smaug Posted Sep 2, 2013, 5:05 am	Hi, Today we went for a nice walk to town . The walk actually started with quick change as the road we wanted to take turned out to be closed . Somehow we still managed to get around and reach the golf course. Moving on we reached the Univeristy,... ...where we stopped to chat with this fearsome tiger ... ...and also rested a bit. We kept walking around town... ...until we reached the train station. Here we checked the train schedule,... ...the ticket machines... ...and this funny little house . As we were not going to travel today, we eventually headed back home where we enjoyed a well-deserved cake .
smaug Posted Sep 2, 2013, 11:10 pm	Hi, Today it was time to travel back to Europe, but before leaving I had an important task . Going out for a walk I wandered around a bit... ...before heading for town. On the way I met this friendly tiger . Eventually I reached Nassau Hall... ...where I found a great friend of mine . She was very excited to see my again and wanted to listen everything about my most recent travelling . We ended up chatting for hours, until it was time for Sigfrido and myself to run home, grab the bags and go back to the train station. The train trip was actually quite boring as it was pouring down and we couldn’t see a thing out of the window .
smaug Posted Sep 2, 2013, 11:31 pm	Hi, It seems these days I spend my time travelling (of course, I am a toyvoyager ), so today I was again wandering around Paris airport. I surfed a bit the net... ... and checked the newspapers... ...until it was time to go to the gate . I bet one of those is our plane .
smaug Posted Sep 2, 2013, 11:45 pm	Hi, I’m back in Italy ! It is very hot here so I’m spending most of the time resting , but today I went with Sigfrido for a short walk downtown. On the way we met some funny animals... ...and took advantage of every bit of shadow . We kept enjoying the old part of town for a bit , until it was time to head back home.
smaug Posted Sep 3, 2013, 4:41 am	Hi, Today Sigfrido and I visited Verona . First we passed by this impressive old fort. Later we met a funny fellow guarding this old gate . He didn’t seem very belligerent and let us through without any issue . Moving on we reached Piazza delle Erbe, where we admired the beautiful buildings... ...and tower . At this point we decided to stop for refreshments . With a full belly we felt like walking a bit along this posh street ... ...until we reached Piazza Bra, where the Arena, the famous Roman amphitheatre, is . The rest of the square was quite impressive too. Eventually it was time to leave, so we took a photo with this other big gate... ...and headed back to the train station.
smaug Posted Sep 7, 2013, 5:41 am	Hi, Today we went for a short trip to Venezia . Getting there wasn’t actually easy, as we had to navigate through heavy traffic ... ...but eventually we found ourselves on the bridge connecting the city to the land . As we settled, we checked the view from our room’s window...not that exciting . This window was much better . When it was time to go out, we noticed that it was time for lunch too, so we got a little energy boost . At last we headed out and we soon saw a very famous bridge called Ponte dei Sospiri. Walking on... ....we found some very interesting shops... ...and reached the seashore... ...from where we could admire the church of San Giorgio Maggiore . It’s amazing how quickly time goes by when walking in a crowded city, so before we even knew it, dinner time was upon us . We found a nice restaurant with a good selection of wines ... ...and we ate many delicious courses .
smaug Posted Sep 8, 2013, 12:54 am	Hi, Today we wandered around town. First we stopped in Piazza San Marco ... ...and admired the Basilica . Later we reached a spot with a nice view over Canal Grande. Soon it was time to stop for refreshment . After the well-deserved rest we moved on and explored many nice corners of the city. I even met a relative of my friends sammino and Landroval . And after a long walk, it was dinner time again !
smaug Posted Sep 8, 2013, 5:46 am	Hi, Today I visited some of the islands in the lagoon . First we stopped in Murano, famous for the glassmaking . We didn’t visit any workshop, but just quickly admired some of the buildings. Later we visited Burano, that has a beautifully colourful  “skyline” . Our last stop was Torcello, the oldest settlement in the lagoon.  Here we visited the old Basilica... ...and rested a bit. On the way back to the harbour we passed by one of the most famous and expensive restaurants in Venice. Since it seemed a perfect timing for having lunch I told Sigfrido to get ready to flash the cash and headed to the front door. For some reason he didn’t like the idea and dragged my back to the boat instead . In the evening we were back in Venezia, where we checked some shops... ...before eventually getting another delicious dinner .
smaug Posted Sep 9, 2013, 1:59 am	Hi, Today was my last day in Venezia, and possibly it was the most important day of the trip as I went visiting one of the most famous opera houses in Italy: the Teatro La Fenice . True to its name, the building was turned to ashes by fires and rebuilt several times . I decided that a worldwide celebrity like me should enter from the artist’s entrance ... ...but Sigfrido convinced me that I should make a grand entrance from the front door ...that turned out to be locked . Disappointingly it seems they have not included any show of mine in the schedule...yet . As there was no much point in standing around a closed theatre for long, we moved on and walked around... ...until we found a nice wine bar . Hopefully Sigfrido won’t be as stingy as he was yesterday in Torcello and I won’t have to pay the bill with a couple of autographs .
smaug Posted Sep 9, 2013, 2:06 am	Hi, After the wonderful trip to Venezia, I’m back in Trento . Today I went for a short walk in town and admired some wonderful frescoed buildings... ...and the cathedral . Eventually I stopped sightseeing and turned my attention to other priorities, primarily finding some sweets for my next trip .
smaug Posted Sep 19, 2013, 5:48 am	Hi, After a few days in Trento I suddenly was travelling again and in the blink of an eye I found myself in the eternal city . Today I went for a quick tour. First I explored the area around Piazza Venezia . Later I just wandered around,... ...checked some shops,... ...and enjoyed some refreshments . This place was also a food shop with a lot of interesting provisions . With a full belly we decided to go visiting the National Etruscan Museum at Villa Giulia. Unbelievably so, but ungulates and birds were not allowed in the collection rooms , so we had to just enjoy a tour of the gardens .
smaug Posted Sep 22, 2013, 5:44 am	Hi, Today we visited a bit more of town. First we passed by Marco Aurelio's Column . Later we jumped on the underground and went checking out one of the most important church in Roma: San Paolo fuori le mura . On the way back we walked a bit along the river... ...until it was time to eat something. So we stopped round the corner from home and got a delicious pizza .
smaug Posted Sep 22, 2013, 6:33 am	Hi, Today it was eventually time to leave Roma and make our way to the airport. Once there we checked the map of the terminal... ...and explored a bit the area . We read a bit,... ...enjoyed some very big photos of the city ,... ...and, eventually, headed to our gate .
smaug Posted Dec 24, 2013, 3:21 pm	Hi, Guess what? I came back to Italy for a short visit . Not that it was very exciting as Sigfrido was mostly busy at work so I didn’t have the chance to wander around until our very last day in the city. Anyway, this morning we got a good sugar boost,... ...we quickly checked the weather and we were ready to go. The first thing we found was a very distracting shop . Later we came by this elephant-sized bathtub ...although Sigfrido insisted it is just a fountain as there are no elephants in Rome taking baths on the streets . Moving on we followed this nice tree-lined street... ...and these stairs... ...until we reached a lovely viewpoint . There was even a small nice pool. Later we were getting tired and hungry, so we stopped for bite ... ...before heading to the train station.
smaug Posted Dec 24, 2013, 4:35 pm	Hi, Today Sigfrido and I went for a day trip to Paris . Coming out of the train station we first explored a bit the Printemps department store... ...where we admired the Christmas decorations ... ...and got a light snack . But the main objective of the day was visiting the Opera and so fulfil one of my missions . After getting in I explored the main foyer . I checked this map to see how to get to the stage... ...but I found only closed doors . Even the Phantom of the Opera was not receiving visitors . Signfrido explained that probably some artists were rehearsing for a show and didn’t want to be disturbed, not even by such a famous singer as me . I went checking the shows' schedule but I dind’t see anything that could compare to one of my exhibitions . Since access to the stage was shockingly denied to me , I decided to explore a bit more of the grandiose halls... ...where I found some scene costumes on display. Moving on I reached the balcony. As I came without notice, there were only a few hard core fans greeting me from the square . Eventually it was time to leave and, before going home, Sigfrido had the wonderful idea to cap this great day with an even grater meal .
smaug Posted Dec 28, 2013, 2:24 pm	Hi, Over the last few weeks Sigfrido was very busy, so I was getting a bit bored, but today he told me to get ready to travel, and in a few hours I was in Italy . Here not only I found my friend sammino and his guests Shakespeare and Tatanka welcoming me , but it turned out that Landroval, Krystal and Pepita are home too ! I guess there will be a lot of chatting and storytelling in the next few days .
smaug Posted Dec 28, 2013, 2:48 pm	Merry Christmas ! Here in Trento we celebrate Christmas on Christmas Eve, so this evening there was a lot of fumbling with presents under the tree. Taking advantage of the fact that everybody was distracted, we decided to help ourselves with the Pandoro ahead of everybody else . Getting it out was hard work. But eventually we managed to access it and ... ...cut a delicious slice just for us !
smaug Posted Jan 12, 2014, 7:43 pm	Hi, After a few very relaxing days, mostly due to endless rain , today it was time to said goodbye to sammino and his guests who are going back to Canada, while Sigfrido myself and Pepita will hang around a bit longer . As this was the first time that we were all together with sammino and we don’t know when that will happen again, we gave ourselves a big hug and wished each other more great and safe adventures .
smaug Posted Jan 12, 2014, 8:11 pm	Hi, This morning, a bit too early morning as far as I am concerned , we accompanied our friends to the airport, where we explored a bit around ... ...and had a final round of farewells before they went through the security checks .
smaug Posted Jan 20, 2014, 2:50 am	Hi, After leaving our friends at the airport, we went for a quick visit of the centre of Verona. Our first stop was around the church of Sant'Anastasia . Then we followed some nice narrow streets... ...until we reached the shore of the river Adige. Here we found this nice old bridge called Ponte della Pietra . We kept wandering... ...until we passed by the bishop’s Palace,... ...the Cathedral... ...and Dante’s monument. At this point we all agreed that is was time for a snack . Before leaving we passed by the Arena ... ...and even saw a big Christmas Star .
smaug Posted Feb 3, 2014, 12:53 am	Hi, Happy New Year ! Actually the year didn’t really start with a blast as it was snowing this morning . So we decided to wait for lunch time watching a concert from La Fenice theatre in Venice . Eventually food was on the table and we had a typical new year’s day meal: zampone and lentils ! To end the meal we enjoyed juicy pomegranate seeds .
smaug Posted Feb 3, 2014, 1:40 am	Hi, Today it was time for us to leave Italy. At the airport we found a tree with lots of unopened Christmas presents under it . Apparently we were not authorised to open them so we decided to buy ourselves some presents and tried to get some money out of the cash machine ...with no success whatsoever . So we had to just wait patiently until it was time to jump on the plane. Luckily, after the takeoff, the view over the Italian lakes and Alps for gorgeous . Eventually the clouds covered everything so we spent the rest of the flight chatting and munching snacks .
smaug Posted Feb 17, 2014, 3:39 am	Hi, Today we went for a short trip to Paris . We spent the time on the train planning the day... ...until we reached the outskirts of Paris. As we came out of the underground we passed by the Pantheon. The dome was covered by scaffolding so it looked a bit weird . These penguins were selling very nice chocolate ... ...and reminded us about how hungry we were. So we decided to stop for breakfast, which we wiped off the plates before the camera could show up . With a full belly we walked a bit along Boulevard St-Michel... ...passing in front of La Sorbonne... ...and eventually reaching Place Saint Michel. Moving on we crossed and walked a bit along La Seine ... ...until we were on the side of Notre Dame Cathedral . Our feet were starting to ache a bit , but we kept walking towards the Latin Quarter... ...where we reached Place de la Contrescarpe. Soon we had to head back under the ground surface, so that was it for our visit .
smaug Posted Mar 10, 2014, 2:39 am	Hi, Sigfrido will soon be moving so today we helped him cleaning up a bit his office. We emptied the cabinets,... ...sorted through the papers on the desk,... ...and filled boxes with papers and all the stuff he needed to take away. Before leaving we took a final look out of the window ... ...and, of course, I left my autograph on the whiteboard .
smaug Posted Mar 31, 2014, 2:05 am	Hi, Today we first took a look at what will be our temporary home. The view from the window looked very nice ... ...and we found a working phone. We decided to call sammino and tell him that we were doing fine . As it happens it was smaug who picked up the phone, yelled something about being the middle of the night and rather abruptly hung up .
smaug Posted Mar 31, 2014, 2:23 am	Hi, These days we keep going back and forth between Germany and France, so today we found ourselves for a few hours in Paris . We explored a bit around the Opera... ...and found some very interesting shops . But it was soon time to go get the bus to the station. To cheer ourselves up we grabbed a lovely hot chocolate . But, on second thought we decided that we needed even more cheering up , so we grabbed a box of delicious macarons .
smaug Posted Apr 6, 2014, 5:32 am	Hi, Today we were on the move again . Early in the morning we took the train to the airport and enjoyed a lovely view in the Rhein Valley. As we reached the airport we were a bit surprised to see that some planes were actually flying indoor . As we were feeling hungry we thought of having a fancy breakfast based on caviar ... ...but we also found another interesting food outlet... ...and settled for something sweet and rich in calories .
smaug Posted Apr 6, 2014, 5:55 am	Hi, We are in the US ! Too bad it’s darn cold . But the weather forecast is promising for the next few days, so I guess we’ll stay nice and warm indoor until then .
smaug Posted Apr 7, 2014, 3:39 am	Hi, Today we went to work with Sigfrido . He usually has to smuggle us in past security , but this time we have an official pass just for us . Since we were not much in the mood for working, Sigfrido tried to distract us with coffee and cookies ... ...so that he could work in peace . But it didn’t work for long, so we started messing around the mail room. In another room we met a bear giving very strange advice for a research institute ,... ...found some lovely snacks ,... ...and stopped playing a bit. At that point we started feeling hungry again, so we sanitized our hands and decided that we were ready for more cookies . But Sigfrido told us that we were putting on too much weight and that there were not going to be any more cookies for us today .
smaug Posted Apr 7, 2014, 3:59 am	Hi, Today we went for a walk downtown and headed straight for Nassau Hall . The tigers guarding the main door have been our great friends for a long time and are always keen to hear all the news about our travels , so, as usual, today we spent a few hours chatting with them . Eventually it was time to leave, so we wandered a bit the streets of downtown... ...before eventually go home.
smaug Posted Apr 21, 2014, 1:57 am	Hi, Time flies when you are having fun, so today it was already time to head back to Europe and we found ourselves at Newark Airport. Luckily the diet was over and we were allowed to store some calories before jumping on the plane .
smaug Posted Apr 21, 2014, 2:52 am	Hi, It seems we spend a lot of time travelling these days, so today we were back again into a train station . The trip was probably interesting, but we are easily distracted and didn’t really pay much attention at what was outside of the window . So we ended up in Paris, where we noticed that it was going to be some time before our next train was going to leave. This gave us some time to explore Gare Saint-Lazare inside... ...out . We even managed to quickly grab another snack .
smaug Posted May 5, 2014, 3:30 am	Hi, Today we were very busy packing the last few things. We had to check that all the shelves and cupboards were empty... ...and sort out books... ...and other boxes. After too many hours of work we were bored , so we decided to take a final look at the town. We passed by the Cathedral... ...and the church of Saint-Maclou. We also stopped at the aître Saint-Maclou. A bit of a grim place if you know its history , but also so nice and quiet . Eventually we went back home to finish working, got a snack ,... ...said goodbye to the tower just out of the window ... ...and run to the station.
smaug Posted May 5, 2014, 4:04 am	Hi, Rather than spending the whole night travelling , we stopped in a nice hotel in Paris . Luckily we are just across the street from the station, so missing the train should not be a huge risk tomorrow .
smaug Posted May 19, 2014, 11:20 pm	Hi, Great news ! We were reunited with the boxes that we left in Rouen . Of course, we were supposed to unpack them, but we decided to first take a look out of the window (nice view )... ...and also helped ourselves with some lovely chocolate truffles ... ...so we quickly forgot about the boxes .
smaug Posted May 19, 2014, 11:38 pm	Hi, Today we said goodbye to my friend Pepita who is going on holiday . We checked that her baggage was ready... ...and wished her a safe journey .
smaug Posted Jan 5, 2015, 2:31 am	Hi, Today Sigfrido told me that we are travelling to England . We left home very early to catch the train, but luckily we found time for some breakfast in one of the stations we stopped at . Later we jumped on the Eurostar and I had time to read a bit while we travelled under the Channel. I wondered if a star like me should own a flat with view over the Thames for when I visit London. Later I checked London’s map, but Sigfrido told me that we were just passing through the City in haste,... ...so my first glimpse of England was just the view from the train window .
smaug Posted Jan 5, 2015, 2:44 am	Hi, We are stying at the University of Warwick, which, of course, is in Coventry . Anyway, we are very busy so I only had the chance to take a very few pictures from our window and going to work.
smaug Posted Jan 6, 2015, 2:32 am	Hi, It’s already time to go home so this morning Sigfrido and I had a light breakfast ... ...and found some time to fill a feedback form... ...before heading to the railway station. After a short ride we arrived at London Euston. I wanted to jump on a double-decker bus ,... ...but Sigfrido insisted that we only had a short way to walk . I was at least hoping to get a pint, but this pub was closed . So we walked along Euston Road,... ...passed by the British Library,... ...and eventually reached St Pancras station... ...where we indulged in a little second breakfast ... ...before jumping on the train to head back to the continent .
smaug Posted Jan 11, 2015, 10:22 pm	Hi, one way or another, before I even managed to realize that we were at home, I was again on the move , in Munich this time. This morning I explored a bit the breakfast room . There were some strange things that did not seem to be very much breakfast-related in the room . Later we went out, checked this info kiosk... ...and went for a quick walk in town . This lion didn't seem very friendly , obviously he's not a fan . Eventually it was time to go back to the hotel, grab our stuff... ...and go to the station where we had a snack while waiting for the train.
smaug Posted Jan 19, 2015, 2:37 am	Hi, These days I keep jumping from one place to another . Today I woke up back in Rouen . It seemed to be a lovely day... ...so we decided to go for a walk. We walked by a few nice familiar places... ...and shops . Eventually it was time to leave, so we run past the cathedral,... ...grabbed some food ... ...and jumped on the train. Later on, while we were waiting for another train, Sigfrido insisted that we had to work a bit... ...but I soon managed to distract him with another little snack .
smaug Posted Jan 19, 2015, 3:34 am	Hi, This morning I left home early as I had to be on time for an important Rendezvous . Yes, my friends sammino, Landroval and Krystal stopped for a few hours at Frankfurt airport with their guests, so Sigfrido and I grabbed the chance to go meet them . Of course, there was a lot of chatting involved . Before they got going with their trip, sammino gave me a big goodbye hug .
smaug Posted Feb 3, 2015, 4:24 am	Hi, Today Sigfrido and I had another meeting at the airport . We checked the schedule... ...and off we went on the train. As it happens sammino and his guest had another long stopover in Frankfurt, so we went to spend some time with them at the airport . Luckily it was a lovely day, so we could stay outside chatting in the sun . Before going back through security, sammino gave me a big a hug and wished me safe travelling .
smaug Posted Mar 2, 2015, 12:36 am	Hi, this week my friend Pepita came visiting us . We re-introduced her to some of the local residents ... ...and helped her checking the view from the window. Later we just spent the afternoon chatting among the bigger folk living here .
smaug Posted Mar 2, 2015, 12:47 am	Hi, today we were back on the move as we are going all together on holiday . At the airport we spent some time looking at the planes... ...before finding something even more interesting to do . Later we arrived in Italy where we will spend a couple of days, and just enjoyed the view from the car on the way home .
smaug Posted Mar 9, 2015, 2:06 am	Hi, as it happens we didn't really have time to take any photo in Italy , since we were soon back on the move... ...and back at the airport . During the flight we had some nice views,... ...and, more importantly, a very nice meal . Can't wait to find out where are we going .
smaug Posted Mar 9, 2015, 2:18 am	Hi, we are in Canary island . Today we checked the view from our room balcony... ...before exploring the beach . They have some very "spiky" gardens around here . Later in the room we started planning excursions for the next few days .
smaug Posted Mar 16, 2015, 1:53 am	Hi, today we went again down to the beach, but, as it happens, it was high tide time . So we thought it was a good idea to get a little snack ... ...and relax on the room balcony while waiting for the tide to recede . Eventually enough time had passed and we could go spending the afternoon walking on the lower part of the beach . Of course, by dinner time we were, again, very hungry .
smaug Posted Mar 16, 2015, 2:08 am	Hi, today we went visiting the southern tip of the island . The landscape looks a bit barren and desolated to say the least ... ...although there were a few people on the beach. Apparently this is a natural park,... ...so we followed the trail a bit longer until we reached the sea . Later, back at the hotel, we found some lovely origami shaped towels ... ...that kept us distracted until, at last, it was time to go eating .
smaug Posted Mar 19, 2015, 2:54 am	Hi, today it was time to leave. Of course, travelling requires energies, so we started the day with a hearty breakfast . Later we spent some time in the hotel lobby... ...but, since things were taking longer than we expected, we checked again the menu... ...and indulged ourselves with a second breakfast . At last it was indeed time to leave: bye bye Canary Island .
smaug Posted Mar 23, 2015, 12:35 am	Hi, since we are back in Italy for a few days, today we went for a walk in Trento . At first we roamed the streets... ...until we needed to rest a bit . Later we found some lovely big flower pots . Apparently there must be some nice exhibition in town, maybe another day. Eventually we reached the town main square, Piazza Duomo. Here we took a look at the lovely old buildings surrounding the square... ...and at the Torre Civica and Fountain of Neptune . Of course, before walking home we found appropriate to stop for some refreshments .
smaug Posted Mar 23, 2015, 1:07 am	Hi, somehow without even being able to take some photos back home, we found ourselves on the other side of the pond in the States .  Today the weather looked great... ...so we decided to accompany Sigfrido to work. Of course, working was very boring , so we first chitchatted a bit at the window... ...and then went exploring the building. We found some very old fashioned equipment ... ...and even some games. At last we found the kitchen where we helped ourselves with some coffee . On the way back we stopped in the reading room to check the magazines... ...and said hello to Einstein . Back in Sigfrido's office we found some lovely cookies that worked just great with the coffee .
smaug Posted Mar 23, 2015, 1:28 am	Hi, today we went for walk in town. On the way we passed through the university campus with some nice old buildings . Here we met this tiger, who, as always, completely ignored us . In town we found some interesting shops... and even an Einstein museum. Later we had the most impostant stop of the day: every time we are in Princeton we come greeting the tigers guarding the entrance of Nassau Hall and they are always very happy to see us and want to know what we have been up to . On the way back we passed by some more nice buildings. Luckily, back at work we found cookies waiting for us .
smaug Posted Apr 5, 2015, 11:05 pm	Hi, today it was time to leave Princeton, so we headed to the station to catch the train to the airport. Luckily, considering how long the flight is, Sigfrido suggested that we grabbed some food before boarding .
smaug Posted Apr 5, 2015, 11:16 pm	Hi, in our restless travelling today we thought we were going to Italy, and found ourselves enjoying a stopover in Amsterdam instead . There were really strange people in the airport ... ...but we managed to jump on one of the carts and went for a wild ride .
smaug Posted Apr 6, 2015, 12:16 am	Hi, we actually made it to Italy . Since we had big plans for the day we decided to get a good start in the kitchen . Later we went out and started wandering about . Luckily our friends sammino, Landroval and Krystal were not with us, or it might have been hard to prevent them from looting certain shops . Moving on we passed by some of the most famous landmarks . Piazza di Spagna and the Barcaccia fountain,... ...Piazza Colonna with the Column of Marcus Aurelius,... ...the Pantheon,... ...Piazza Navona,... ...Castel Sant'Angelo,... ...and eventually we  reached Piazza San Pietro. By the time we arrived back home we were really tired, but we found the strength to grab a take away pizza ... ...which turned out to be delicious . We even had dessert .
smaug Posted Apr 7, 2015, 2:51 am	Hi, Today it was time to go back home , so we headed to the airport. Since we were quite early and there was plenty of time before boarding... ...we decided to try some local delicacy . Later we had another stopover in Amsterdam, but this time we had enough time for a quick visit downtown .  First we wandered around the canals... ...before stopping at the Dam . All this walking made us hungry . With a full belly , we explored a bit more the network of canals... ...until it was time to go back to the airport.
smaug Posted Apr 7, 2015, 3:06 am	Hi, it has been very quiet here recently, but yesterday Sigfrido told us that he had to be a couple of days in Bielefeld and asked if we wanted to come along. Of course we were very excited at the idea of visiting a city that does not exist , so we happily agreed.  From the hotel window the place looked real enough... ...and even the hotel info seemed to support that . Nevertheless we never really left the hotel, so we will never know if the place really exists or if we were under some sort of spell .
smaug Posted Apr 11, 2015, 10:28 pm	Hi, today we travelled to Italy to celebrate Christmas and we found there our friends sammino, Landroval and Krystal with their guests ready to welcome us . Of, course, with so many TVs in one room, lot of chatting followed .
smaug Posted Apr 11, 2015, 10:37 pm	Merry Christmas ! Tonight, as usual we celebrated Christmas eve . Of course, as soon as the big people moved away from the table to deal with presents, we took control of proceedings in the dessert area .
smaug Posted Apr 11, 2015, 11:06 pm	Hi, today we spent the day travelling around the German motorways . It's not exactly exciting to just look out of the windshield for over 10 hours, but I guess it beats sitting at home doing nothing . And tomorrow it sounds like it's going to be the same on the way back .
smaug Posted Apr 11, 2015, 11:49 pm	Hi, today we said goodbye to our friends who are travelling back to Canada . Pepita, Sigfrido and I will stay in Europe, so before leaving sammino gave me a big hug and wished me safe travels .
smaug Posted Apr 12, 2015, 12:06 am	Happy New Year ! this morning we celebrated watching a concert on TV . It goes without saying that the concert could have greatly used a lead singer of my calibre . Later we continued celebrating by having a proper new year's lunch based on zampone .
smaug Posted Apr 18, 2015, 4:12 am	Hi, We came over for a short visit to Berlin ! Today we decided to just take a stroll. After a bit we reached Museum Island . But since we were not really in the mood to spend the afternoon in a gallery, we opted instead for some more enjoyable form of entertainment .
smaug Posted Apr 18, 2015, 4:36 am	Hi, today we decided to go around using the underground ... ...and came out at Potsdamer Platz. A bit later we reached the Brandenburg Gate . After that, once again, our exploration was somehow derailed by a lengthy meal .
smaug Posted Apr 22, 2015, 4:47 am	Hi, today is our last day in Berlin, so we got a quick breakfast using whatever the room provided ,... ...checked the weather,... ...and headed outside .  We soon came out of the underground... ...and decided to just wander around the city. On the way we met some strange people . Eventually it was time to go back to the hotel, grab our luggage and say goodbye to Pepita, who will go back on holiday to Italy .
smaug Posted Apr 22, 2015, 5:01 am	Hi, It is time to travel again , so this morning we went to the airport, stored some extra sugars for the trip ... ...and jumped on our plane .
smaug Posted Apr 26, 2015, 12:40 am	Hi, Many hours and a few thousand miles later , we found ourselves back at home where my friends sammino, Landroval, Krystal and their guests welcomed us to Calgary. Of course, they were very impressed with the gift that we carried with us .
smaug Posted Apr 26, 2015, 1:22 am	Hi, the weather is not that good these days, so it's been a bit boring recently . So today we decided that we were going spice up things by checking out Calgary's nightlife . For whatever reason smaug was not inclined to let us go out by ourselves , so we ended up organizing a little chess tournament. It was a real battle of minds...and, of course, I was the best . After the tournament, instead of giving out prizes, sammino used a box to give us a lesson about Canadian wildlife . As it turned out, it was a box full of chocolate, so the day definitely finished on a high .
smaug Posted Apr 26, 2015, 2:01 am	Hi, today we took a short walk in Calgary . Well, we just passed through a nice glass-covered mall ... ...and spent some time relaxing in these lovely indoor gardens . Later this evening it was time to say goodbye to my friends here in Calgary as Sigfrido and I are moving on to another destination in North America . Before I left for the airport sammino gave me a big hug and wished me a safe journey .
smaug Posted Apr 26, 2015, 2:08 am	Hi, as it happens we came back to New Jersey , where the weather looks very Canadian . All we can do these days is going to Sigfrido's office... ...and stare out of the window at the white frozen world outside .
smaug Posted May 18, 2015, 2:58 am	Hi, today, at last , we had a sunny day, so we went down to town . As we passed through the golf course... ...and the university, there was a common theme: snow everywhere . Downtown wasn't much different. Back at work, we went to the roof terrace to take a look around. But I was getting a bit tired of snow and cold, so we found something to warm ourselves up . Later I tried to find out exactly where am I ... ...and checked the walls' decor. At last we closed the day with our usual chess game. As always, of course, I was the best .
smaug Posted May 18, 2015, 10:54 pm	Hi, the sunny break did not last long ... ...so we are spending most time inside. Today, for instance, we went chatting a bit with Einstein ,... ...relaxed in a nice armchair,... ...and eventually spent the afternoon in the reading room . Such a tiring day .
smaug Posted May 18, 2015, 11:07 pm	Hi, I have feeling we will never see the sun again since every morning we look out the window and find new fresh snow . Anyway, today it was our last chance to go downtown, so we braced ourselves and faced the artic environment , since we have a very important task to complete . We have to go meeting the tigers guarding Nassau Hall . As usual they were very friendly and happy to see us , although I noticed that they were a bit grumpier than usual . I guess I'd be grumpy too if I had been pelted with snow for weeks . When we eventually made it back home, we unleashed all the available supplies trying to warm up a bit .
smaug Posted May 18, 2015, 11:19 pm	Hi, it is time to leave and go back to Europe . This morning we took a final look out of the window where we saw, of course, snow . But the sun started coming out too, just when we are leaving . Later we grabbed our baggage... ...and went to the airport, where we topped up our energies before the long flight .
smaug Posted May 19, 2015, 2:27 am	Hi, today I met my friend Pepita in the Italian Capital . First we stopped in Piazza Navona... ...and then we roamed the streets randomly... until we started getting hungry and stopped to fill the tank . Later we went to the River Tevere,... ...passed by Castel Sant'Angelo... ...and headed towards Piazza San Pietro . As it was getting late, we started feeling hungry again , so we found a lovely place where we could get dinner . After the meal it was time to say goodbye to Pepita, so we gave her a big hug and wished her safe travelling .
smaug Posted Jun 1, 2015, 3:44 am	Happy Easter! We do not have a proper big chocolate egg , but a lot of small ones, which is not too bad , although it took a bit of effort to reach them. The first attempt on setting portions did not seem adequate to our appetite ... ...so we revised a bit the number of eggs allocated to each of us . With a full belly, it seemed a good idea to spend the rest of the morning chatting and enjoying the view from the window .
smaug Posted Jun 1, 2015, 3:51 am	Hi, today we are on the move again , so we went early morning to Düsseldorf Airport. There were some strange animals lurking in the lobby ... ...so we decided to speedily find our gate and get ready to take off .
smaug Posted Jun 1, 2015, 4:05 am	Hi, we spent a few days in the lovely French city of Lyon which I thoroughly explored...from the hotel window . As it happens, all we could explore was our room where we found some strange piece of furniture . So we soon found ourselves back to the airport where appaerently it is very easy to catch connecting flights...not really our problem today . It is even easier to find some good hot drink . With our sugar levels back to normal we got ready for boarding... ...and for our next snack .
smaug Posted Jun 8, 2015, 3:13 am	Hi, life is hectic these days , so today, after a pretty long trip, I found myself in Israel . The view from the hotel window is not really exceptional... ...although I can actually see the sea, that's promising . The feature that really jumps to the eye is that solar panels seem to be fairly popular around here . Hopefully I'll be able to explore more around in the next few days when I am rested .
smaug Posted Jun 8, 2015, 4:01 am	Hi, after a good night sleep today we thought of starting the day with a hearty breakfast . Since the room did not seem to be equipped with appropriate food supplies... ...we decided to check out the room service menu . However we realised that reading the menu in Hebrew was going to be a challenge . Luckily we found an English version too. As it happens we were told that it was too late for breakfast , so we had to go out with an empty stomach . To cheer ourselves up, we decided to go toward the sea and found ourselves in a lovely park . There were some strange sculptures around. Moving on, we eventually reached the shore, which was lovely , although a bit windy. Eventually it was time to go back to the hotel,and luckily we managed to grab a muffin on the way
smaug Posted Jun 14, 2015, 3:01 am	Hi, today is our last day in Tel Aviv, so we quickly went down to the historical port... ...and explore the pier . Later we hurried back through the busy streets as we needed to reach the hotel, grab our bags and start travelling to our next destination .
smaug Posted Jun 14, 2015, 3:34 am	Hi, yesterday, after a long drive we went straight to bed and when we woke up this morning we had lovely view from the window . Since it was pretty early we decided to go back to bed and woke up a few hours later . The bed was really comfy, so it was hard to leave it ... ...but we found the strength to explore the room... ...and were attracted by the balcony. It looked like someone was digging out the beach ...making a heck of a racket (probably the reason why we woke up )... ...but the view over the Dead Sea was great . We decided that sitting in the sun and relaxing could be a great idea...and so we fell asleep again .
smaug Posted Jun 14, 2015, 10:54 pm	Hi, we must have slept a long time , since when we woke up it was time to leave and in the blink of an eye we were back in Germany were I had to get ready to travel to my next host . Before I left Sigfrido gave a me a big hug and wished me a safe journey . He asked if I wanted to travel by mail, but I pointed out that, if my friend Landroval keeps flying back and forth between Europe and North America, I can sure manage to fly a few kilometers down the Rhine (I hope ) so I went to the window, waved him goodbye and took off .
smaug Posted Feb 12, 2018, 2:45 am	Hi, I took some time to find my way along the Rheine…canaries are not renowned for their navigation skills …I eventually arrived at a familiar window, which was conveniently open . Inside I found my friends Krystal and Sigfrido, who where a bit surprised to see me . But they soon found something appropriate to celebrate my arrival .
smaug Posted Mar 5, 2018, 12:44 am	Hi, This week we are in Paris for a short trip and today we managed to go out for a walk . Of course, first of all we checked on the map where to go. Then we got moving and passed by the Pantheon… …and later we reached Notre-Dame . As our time was limited, we wandered a bit longer along the river banks… …before heading back to the hotel.
smaug Posted Mar 18, 2018, 3:11 am	Hi, This week we are in the black forest for a conference and today we managed to get out for a short walk. The weather was terrible and it soon started raining so we cut our walk short . Hopefully it will be better tomorrow.
smaug Posted Mar 18, 2018, 3:23 am	Hi, Well, if anything it got worse , I doubt we’ll be going around anywhere today. It looks like back home in Canada, they could call this the white forest .
smaug Posted Apr 8, 2018, 11:54 pm	Hi, Today we found a parcel for us in the mail . We immediately started working to open it… …and guess what, our friend Pepita jumped out of it . And she brought some very interesting things with her, so we spent the rest of the day eating chocolate and listening stories about her last trip .
smaug Posted Apr 9, 2018, 12:23 am	Hi, Today we arrived in Italy where we met sammino, Landroval and their guests who will spend Christmas with us .
smaug Posted Apr 9, 2018, 12:31 am	Merry Christmas !
smaug Posted Apr 29, 2018, 2:51 am	Hi, Today I said goodbye to sammino, his guests and all smaug’s TVs as they are travelling back to Canada, while Sigfrido and I will stay in Europe . As always, before leaving sammino gave me a big hug and wished me safe traveling .
smaug Posted May 14, 2018, 2:21 am	Hi, Happy New Year! Today we started the day watching a New Year’s Day concert on TV . The music was very good, but they clearly missed a solo singer as good as myself . Later it was time for a proper New Year’s Day meal .
smaug Posted May 14, 2018, 2:24 am	Hi, Time to go back to Germany . Today Sigfrido and I packed our suitcase and off we went .
smaug Posted May 28, 2018, 2:38 am	Hi, This week we came for a short visit to Paris . I always love to come here, even if this time we disappointedly skipped visiting the Opera . Today we walked a bit around… …and found a shop that my friend sammino would love to visit . Later we reached the river, that was very high . Back at the hotel we checked if our food purchases were adequate … …and allowed ourselves a small sugar boost .
smaug Posted May 28, 2018, 2:40 am	Happy Easter !
smaug Posted Jun 1, 2018, 3:32 am	Hi, Sigfrido and I came to Roma this week for a short work trip …fairly boring stuff , but today we managed to go out for a walk . First we reached Piazza del Popolo… …before heading to Piazza di Spagna. The steps were quite packed with people ... …so we decided to move on and go taking a look at the Pantheon. Later, after so much walking, we eventually were able to feast on a well deserved meal .

Back