2014: the year that was

As 2014 drew to a close, I couldn’t help but look back at my year through the lens of my camera to see the memories I’d captured. It was my ‘gap year’, a year of travel and exploration and adventure, a year when I made so many amazing memories and visited some truly incredible places, and a year of renewing old friendships and discovering many wonderful new friends. Here is just a small selection of my magical moments from 2014.

24 March Westhaven and harbour bridge, Auckland, New Zealand

The Waitemata harbour this morning was as flat as a millpond, not a wave, not even a ripple to be seen, unless it was caused by man and his transportation. It was the perfect morning for a long walk around the harbour’s edge … so that’s what I did.

28 May Hauraki Gulf from Mt Victoria, Auckland, New Zealand

It was a magnificent winter’s day today so I took a ferry ride across the harbour to Devonport and walked up one of the two volcanic cones there, Mt Victoria. From the top I took this shot of the other cone, North Head, and looking down towards the islands of the magnificent Hauraki Gulf.

19 June Coronation of King Felipe in Madrid, Spain

By sheer coincidence, I witnessed a moment in Spanish history today as Felipe succeeded his father Juan Carlos as king. I joined the large crowds at the Royal Palace, waiting under the hot Spanish sun for their visit sight of their new leader. It was actually quite moving to be amongst so many patriotic, flag-waving and cheering Spaniards. Viva Felipe!

27 June Camel safari into the Sahara, Morocco

Bob Marley was my camel, and a placid, laid-back beast he was too, luckily, as this was my first-ever camel ride. We rode for an hour into the Western Sahara desert for our overnight camp under the stars. I can’t say I’ll be racing to ride another camel – some of my unmentionable parts are hurting – but it was an incredible once-in-a-lifetime experience.

17 July Little Moreton Hall, In England’s Cheshire

Built in stages between 1504 and 1610, Little Moreton Hall is an amazing moated half-timbered manor house. The Moretons, wealthy landowners, built the house as a symbol of their prosperity – and it certainly is impressive. What I loved most though was how wonky everything was – though now strengthened with an invisible steel support structure, the Long Gallery that runs along the top front range of the building is particularly uneven. The whole place seems to have been lifted straight out of a fairy tale!

8 August Exploring Devon’s Dartmoor

An 8 mile walk today, back to the glorious rolling green hills of Dartmoor, but this time to an ancient part of the moor, Ugborough, where there are Bronze Age hut circles dating from 2000BC, a 2-kilometre-long row of stone boundary markers dating from c.1700 BC, a Neolithic barrow, and several prehistoric stone burial mounds. The Dartmoor ponies and sheep, the magnificent view from the top of Western Beacon, and the good company were an added bonus!

12 August Beachy Head lighthouse, East Susse

I took so many photos today that it’s been exceedingly difficult to pick just one to share – others will follow when I finally get to blogging about this. I’ve settled on this image of the lighthouse (constructed in 1902) below the chalk cliffs at Beachy Head because the small size of the people walking along the hills on this part of the South Downs Way gives a good idea of the grandeur and enormity of the landscape and, hopefully, also an idea of the danger presented by coastal erosion. You wouldn’t want to get too close to those cliff edges!

24 August Hanging out with Masaai warriors in Tanzania

After visiting their school and meeting the village chief yesterday afternoon, today we spent a full day with the Masaai and stayed the night in a boma in the their village. A goat was slaughtered and eaten, the men and women danced for us, we watched the goats coming home from their daily grazing and the cattle going out again the next day. The Masaai are very special people and we were privileged to be welcomed into their homes.

24 September Auckland’s museum in the springtime

As I walked up the grass in front of Auckland Museum today, I found this glorious sight in front of me. These are Cape daisies (Arctotheca calendula) and are considered a weed by most people as they ‘spoil’ the look of a lawn. Personally, I think they’re wonderfully bright and cheerful, and they’re certainly putting on a lovely show at the museum right now.

29 October Super trees in Singapore

By jings, it’s hot here in Singapore – almost too hot for strolling around the magnificent Gardens by the Bay but it had to be done. With the incredible artificial Super Trees and the two conservatories, Flower Dome and Cloud Forest, as well as all the lovely outdoor gardens and sculptures, it is a botanical paradise. My favourite was the Cloud Forest, especially the breathtakingly high walkways – not for the vertigo-challenged!

8 December A country lane in Pickmere, Cheshire

We had a high of just 4 degrees again today and the odd spot of hail but I needed some photos to finish off my latest blog so braved the cold for a 4-mile walk. It was exhilarating and I do find the country lanes here in Cheshire very lovely … when it isn’t hailing!

13 December Deer at Tatton Park in Cheshire

We had a hard frost overnight so I was out walking again today, this time at Tatton Park Estate at nearby Knutsford. It was really chilly but when you’re well rugged up it’s such a delight to be out in the fresh air. It was perfect for frost photos, and the estate has some beautiful old trees and large expanses of water. They also farm fallow and red deer so walkers share the rolling fields with these beasties and you can get relatively close to them. Magnificent creatures!

Madrid and the crowning of King Felipe VI

And so the adventure begins …

It’s a long long way from Auckland to Madrid, from my apartment door in Auckland to the hotel door in Madrid about 34 hours, and I wasn’t very well for much of the trip so, suffice to say, I was very glad to collapse in my comfortable room, have a hot shower and order room service for dinner, then sleep away the jet lag.

I chose well when I picked Hotel Europa from the many reviewed on TripAdvisor. It’s in the pedestrian-only street Calle Carmen, in the oldest part of Madrid, very close to Puerta del sol, the exact centre of the old city and the zero kilometre point for all Spanish roads. My room was modern and well equipped, with excellent double-glazed French doors leading out to a tiny balcony, overlooking the hotel’s street-side restaurant immediately below and with views along the surrounding streets. That double glazing was absolutely essential and very effective at stopping the noise of life outside, which continued into the wee hours.

I chose the hotel for its location, about half way between the Royal Palace in one direction and the Prado in the other, and my plan was to spend a day exploring in each direction. By sheer coincidence, 19 June, the day after I arrived, was a historical day for Spain, the coronation of King Felipe VI following the abdication of his father Juan Carlos. I only discovered this watching CNN news that morning and didn’t realise what celebrations had been planned so set off in the vague direction of the palace but following a walking trail of the various historical and notable buildings on the way.

And what amazing buildings they were! Every which way I turned my head, there was impressive sculptural decoration, intricately carved doors with shiny brass door knockers, gilded details glistening in the sunlight, ancient brick patterns and fascinating old shop-fronts and signs, balconies overflowing with the ubiquitous flowering geranium and, for the coronation, adorned with patriotic banners of red and yellow.

I soon got sidetracked down intriguing alleyways and seductive side streets but I think I did manage to see all the buildings on the list, including the Church of San Gines (dating from medieval days but rebuilt in the 17th and 19th centuries following destructive fires); the Monasterio de las Descalzas Reales (the 16th-century home of the barefoot Carmelites); the Royal Monastery of the Incarnation; and the Senate House, which houses the upper chamber of the Spanish Parliament.

At first, I couldn’t get near the Royal Palace, as each street leading in that direction was barricaded and swarming with police but, eventually, I followed the same direction as the increasing throngs of people to the one entrance point, where bags and bodies were being scanned. Declared safe, I was allowed in and found a great possie right in front of the palace, where the friendly locals assured me I would soon see the arrival of the king.

That word ‘soon’ was a little optimistic and we all quickly became very hot, both from the sun and the increasing volumes of people jostling for position. But, after the arrival of various local and international dignitaries in cars and buses, the parading back and forth of regiments of soldiers, both on foot and on horseback, King Felipe VI and Queen Letizia arrived in an open-topped limousine, to the huge cheers and enthusiastic applause of his patriotic subjects – and the clicking of a million cameras! Another 20 minutes or so passed, while the troops paraded off before the king and queen appeared on the palace balcony. I shouted ‘Viva Felipe!’ along with all the rest and found it quite moving to experience this special moment in Spain’s history.

I headed back to the hotel and enjoyed a delicious lunch and rehydrating drinks at a sidewalk table, then escaped the heat of early afternoon by retreating to my room for a couple of hours. When I re-emerged late afternoon, I set off for more exploration, first to the Plaza Mayor, the main square which dates from the reign of King Philip III (1598-1621). It’s huge, surrounded on all four sides by four-storey buildings with arcaded shops below and umbrella-covered cafes out front, entered by a series of nine massive gateways. I strolled around, being entertained by various types of street performer, but found it stiflingly hot in the confined space, large though it was.

So, I headed out again, past a cluster of fascinating old buildings: the site of the cloistered convent of the Hieronymite nuns, Las Jeronimas del Corpus Christi; the Lujanes Tower, the city’s oldest civil building; and Cisnero’s House and the Casa de la Villa, bridged high up by a narrow passage. And then it was on to La Almudena, the enormous Catholic cathedral, where I spent perhaps 30 minutes, enjoying the cool and the peaceful atmosphere, craning my neck to admire and photograph the impossibly high vaulted ceilings. This is a relatively new building, only consecrated in 1993 by Pop John Paul II, so its neo-Gothic interior is almost surprisingly modern, with richly coloured paintings and statues by contemporary artists.

The cathedral sits adjacent to the Royal Palace so that was my final port of call for the day. With the barricades gone, I could get closer to the fences, gates and doorways for better images. Constructed between 1738 and 1755, it is the largest palace in Europe with 135,000 square metres of floor space and 3418 rooms. Though public entry is usually allowed, it was closed for that day’s ceremonies and, anyway, I was again hot and thirsty and tired – time to find a café and a beer and reflect on this amazing first day of my holiday!