Sunday, August 28, 2016

Dad's 70th in Fiji

To celebrate the birthday boy's milestone, Clan Griswold went to Malolo Island in Fiji for the week. I can't quite recall the last time we had all 14 of us together - it has certainly been a while. Snorkelling, diving, kayaking, eating, sleeping, reading, partying, reading, a surprisingly busy week for doing nothing.

A tough start to the trip.

 Tough night conditions.

 And even tougher daytime conditions.

 Just like Fiji water.

 Somehow roped into refereeing the brutal inter-island grudge match. After my island team lost, I find out the tourist boat has gone home and I have to take the players boat home learning Malolo Island is back in the comp after a year's suspension for a record number of yellow & red cards.

 We're quite happy with ourselves.

 Too lovely for a caption.

 Magic days.

And magic people.


Thursday, June 30, 2016

Sunday, June 26, 2016

Monday, April 25, 2016

ANZAC day 2016

After the completion of the New Zealand and Australian national anthems, I always have such a strong Pavlovian kick-off whistle blowing in my head.

Saturday, April 23, 2016

Hong Kong Masters Rowing Championship


I had mixed success in my recent trip to the Hong Kong Masters rowing regatta. I put in a gold medal effort with my four visits for Lord Stow's Portuguese egg tarts - a good effort but I left a little bit out there.  In rowing, we won our age group for the coxed four in the Hong Kong Royal Yacht Club head of the bay. The competition of "nobody else" pushed us hard yet we still managed to win.

In the masters' regatta we started at a strong pace in the coxless four, searching all over the course for a lane that suited us. Not finding one, we decided outside the course might suit us better however the concrete walls edging the river soon encouraged us back towards the course and an unrespectable fourth. Of four.




Monday, March 28, 2016

Borobudur

My first trip to Java and to some places that I love saying the names of - Yogyakarta & Borobudur. Despite being a fairly major Buddhist site - the world's largest Buddhist temple in fact - the town felt fairly untouched by mass tourism. It could be in fact that mass foreign tourism has not entirely overwhelmed Borobudur outside the immediate surrounds of the temple itself.

Our hotel was in a small village in the hills above Borobudur.  Sitting with books, watching the afternoon thunderstorms roll in and then the mists hide and expose Mt Merapi was a fantastic way to unwind from Amanda's ridiculous travel schedule and my enjoyable period at work.

Mt Merapi just visible behind the mists

Borobudur stupa

 Borobudur at around 5:00am

 Borobudur a little bit later

 And a bit later than that

 ......

 graffiti wall

 Green vine snake at the breakfast table


Thursday, March 17, 2016

Larry David's admirable attitude to spending time on the unimportant

Inappropriate

I will need to check if Zoli was inappropriate. I know Dad can be inappropriate. Amanda tells me I am often inappropriate - she is clearly getting confused with funny.

credit to Kali for the image

Sunday, March 13, 2016

Otters

I was very excited to see a family of otters resting on the jetty when heading out for a row today. I am not sure which species it was however the family of around 6-8 were fairly relaxed. In a number of trips around SEA I have been hoping to see otters and the last place I expected it was a man-made reservoir in a Singaporean industrial suburb.


Monday, March 7, 2016