For this weeks photo challenge āExperimentalā, i thought iād go back a year and a half when Sarah & i were being “Experimental” with the iPhone Panorama mode. I thought iād try and look calm in the start of the shotā¦.Then run around the back of Sarah to wave in the end of the shot! I managed it eventually, lol. š Ā
Classical Greece Tour: Day 1 šš· Dubrovnik, Croatia
Wow, Wow, Wowā¦..Sarah & i have had a fantastic time away celebrating our 10th Wedding Anniversary in Croatia, Greece & Montenegro!
ANDā¦.. We’ve made it back in one piece to share all of our unforgettable memories and adventures with you all. š Ā
Taxi,Train & The Thomson Planeā¦..
As the taxi was booked for 3:30am, we thought it would be a good idea not to go to sleep as it makes us more tired if we only sleep for an hour or 2 (we were wrong, lol).
There was a little scare as Sarah felt funny, so she did a blood test in the taxi and found it was going low. āOh no, not alreadyā i thought as Sarah was already sorting it out with a few dextrose. Sarah felt better as we arrived at the airport and with a small struggle to find the suitcase check-in desk, we were finally sorted and heading for the airport assistance.
The assistance took us through security which all went well, until Sarah showed them her insulin pumpā¦..Then (as they think itās a detonator) they told Sarah to take of her shoes etc. and carefully and slowly scanned her whole body for explosives.
Following the guide to our seats in the departure lounge, Sarah & i were looking forwards to a nice bacon roll and coffee. Her work colleague had told her to try this as weād not had anything to eat since yesterday afternoon… we were ready for it! BUT the airport assistance were too efficient this time and before we had time to figure out the direction of the bacon, the guide took us on the āFun Trainā and straight onto the plane! šĀ
The Airplaneā¦..
As i sat down after being expertly guided to my seat, i said āWait a minuteāā¦.. I was feeling underneath the window at the up & down dimmer switches whilst stretching my legs out testing the large leg room. āThis isnāt an Airbus A320! Itās the 787 Dreamliner. Wow i didnāt think it was going to be this monster for a two and a half hour flightā Sarah said āWow, youāre still getting excited about flyingā¦. you must really love itā I said āOh Yeah!ā. Ā
Time for a snackā¦..
Since we couldnāt have our fantastic bacon roll at the airport, we decided to share some chunky potatoe wedges on the plane. Sarah simply couldnāt eat them (and i even struggled)ā¦. they tasted (and were as dry as) a sun dried bath sponge! š¦
Welcome to Dubrovnik airportā¦..
The airport assistance at Dubrovnik were fantastic and before we knew it, we were on a coach arriving at the dock ready to board the Thomson Spirit. We’d only been on the Thomson Dream which is bigger, so we were excited to explore this different ship.
We were fast-tracked again through all of the check-in procedures and were soon dropping our bags off in our cabin ready to go and explore! š Ā
⬠View of Dubrovnik bay from the Thomson Spirit ā¬
We managed to weave our way through the decks and up to the top which was lovely and quiet to take a look around, take some photos and soak in the view and the hot sun.
We were surrounded by a sea of blue, sky of blue, deck of blue and Sarahās new āHokusai” dress …of blue. š Ā Ā
⬠Sarah wearing her new āHokusaiā dress! ⬠ Ā
⬠My lovely Wife Sarah ā¬Ā
⬠Yay, weāve made it, now letās chill and enjoy the view ⬠ Ā
⬠Our beautiful view of Dubrovnik from the top deck ā¬Ā
Swapping sides for a moment, Sarah was taking photos of a unusual bridge she liked, i was also pretending i could see it, lol.Ā
⬠Me looking at the bridge and surrounding town ⬠Ā
One more pic of my lovely Wife Sarah!Ā
⬠My lovely Wife Sarah and her beautiful dress ā¬
Now the moment youāve all been waiting forā¦..
If youāve travelled with us on our other tours click here to view, you will remember Sarahās sublime Panoramasā¦ā¦Well sheās back with one (of many) to share with you. š Ā Ā
⬠Sarahās breathtaking Panorama of Dubrovnik bay ā¬
Coffee, Life Jackets & Dinnerā¦..
After enjoying ourselves on the top deck, we looked around for a place to have a nice coffee. We knew this ship had no “Coffee Port” like on the Thomson Dream, so when we found “Raffles Bar” and ordered a Cappuccino (for me) and an Americano, we were even more excited as the coffee was well-nice and strong!
The assistance was fantastic again and the life jacket drill went really smoothly, i think weāre finally getting the hang of this. lolĀ
We found the āCompass Roseā waiter service restaurant which was very similar to the āOrionā restaurant on the Thomson Dream, we said we didnāt mind sharing a table with others as we always need an unsuspecting guest to read the menu for us, which is always a laugh for all involved and itās a great conversation starter! šĀ
After a fantastic four course meal, it was time to take one last tour around the ship to see if weād remembered where anything was before retiring to our cabin after a very long day!
Thank youā¦..
I would just like to say a huge thank you(to you the reader and fellow traveller) for staying with us to the end of this day!
Oh did i mention itās our 10th Wedding Anniversary” tomorrow!!
Please visit our other tours HERE
RNIB Supporter Receptions
Yesterday Sarah & I attended anĀ RNIB supporter Reception at the Ageas Bowl in Hedge End. (image above taken using the panorama option on my iPhone 4s)
As part of Sarah’s work as a legacy marketing officer at RNIB andĀ editor of Outlook Magazine, she gets the chance to attend some of RNIB’sĀ supporter receptions, held all across the UK at some amazing locations.Ā She interviews people, finds case studies and learns more about theĀ ever changing new technologies and services that RNIB provides to helpĀ transform the lives of blind and partially sighted people and offer themĀ a brighter future to look forwards to. On a personal level we also likeĀ to speak with the people to inspire them and more importantly, for me,Ā break their misconceptions of what a blind person should look and actĀ like. (as a blind photographer I often inspire a range of questionsĀ which I am happy to answer)
One of my memorable moments was when John walked to the front and said:
Today and everyday Ā in the Uk alone 100 people will be told by specialists that they will lose or have lost their sight and there is nothing that can be done. Yet 80% of those 100 people could have avoided it, see Spot The Signs
The reception ended with this moving video.
It was a great day and we always learn so much, meet some lovely people and leave feeling well informed on all of the amazing services and work that go on behind the scenes to help blind and partially sighted people have a brighter future!
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