Christmas 2006

We spent Christmas in Kolding with the family. This year we held Christmas at Anne Mette and Michael's new house.

Here are some clips from Christmas Eve... This is the typical Danish Christmas with a big dinner on Christmas Eve. After dinner candles are lit on the tree and then we dance around the tree singing Christmas carols. Sometimes there is a surprise visit from a jolly, old man and only then do we get into the presents.

Merry Christmas!

Love Aaron and Rikke.

Link to our Web Photo Album

The absence of posts on the blog of late is in part due to the amount of time and energy we have been putting into the house renovations.

You can see pictures of this on http://picasaweb.google.com/aaron.marc.saunders

I hope to be back to blogging soon but until then the web albums is quicker an easier...

Enjoy!

Aaron

Lauren's 21st Birthday Bash

The theme of the party was "L" in honour of the birthday girl. Rikke was a Licorice all-sort while Braden somehow misunderstood that the theme was "Freddie Mercury: The Musical".


Lauren came as a Leopard. Loco could have come as himself but knew that he looked better in stockings - Ladyboy!


Lillie came out of retirement. Another member of the 'tache club.


Stick that in your family album...




Lucifer.



Happy birthday, Lauren!

Aaron on Danish TV

It was a bit over a year ago now that Rikke and I left the sun and sea for the milder climes of the North.

The language has, of course, been one of the biggest challenges for me but this is at any rate going in the right direction. We speak Danish almost all the time now (unless I am getting annoyed about something).

I appeared recently in a news article on Danish Regional TV where we spoke about water analyse methods we are developing at work.

Note: you have to click forward about a third of the way through the news article.

It was a bit unplanned as I was just supposed to stand there in a labcoat and look like I know what I talking about. Then he turned the camera on me and started asking questions...

LK comes to DK

On Monday my sister, Lauren, arrived in Aarhus on holiday from her new home in London.


The first thing we did was hit the shopping strip in Aarhus. The girls are in their element...


This is more my style. Tuborg Beer in the sun!


We then headed up to Skagen at the Northern tip of DK. The houses in Skagen are painted in the traditional local colours of yellow and red.


The entire North of Denmark is and big sand dune and this church (the "sand-buried church") fell victim to the moving sand in the 1700's.


The Northern-most tip of DK the "Grenen" or branch. To the left is the Skagerak Strait to Norway and to the right is the Kattegat Strait to Sweden.


Lauren and I found some boxer shorts that brought on a spontaneous show of patriotism.


As the sun sets over the North Sea we say goodbye to Skagen and head for home.

Next stop: The island of Fanø on the west coast.

A Day at the Races

Nelson looks out over Trafalger Square. If there is something that I have in common with the Spanish Armada it is that every time I see Lord Nelson the trip is going to be a massacre.


Typically at the hands of this man... This time the venue was Ascot Races.


Her Majesty was in attenance... along with some miscellanous fat English guys.


With the official procession completed the sun came out and the jackets were off.


The boys for B-ball were true to form and parting hard.


Loco and Bomb both postponed finding true love by again being lucky on the GGs.


Up 300%? Sell, sell!!


We hit the pub on Sunday to see England play Ecaudor.


Braden pondering... either the fate of Ecaudoring football junior development following the loss or why it is that the Brit's give a shit about Posh and Beck's love life.


I am never staying here again. The jaccuzi was too warm and the caviar too cold!


Hyde Park put its best foot forward in the summer sun.


Another good trip to London Town... and as I trade in the bright lights of the big city for the simpler pleasures of down-to-earth Aarhus, I (and my liver) thank god that I only come for the weekend!

See you soon Lauren!

Summer in the Garden

Regular readers of this blog will remember this photo angle from the first week we spent in the house. Things outside have changed a bit since then...















The rhododendron bushes are the splash of colour that we see out the window each morning.
















We have to be grateful to the old couple that lived in the house before us. They had lived here since the house was built in 1937 and the garden is full of flowering plants. These ones are called peasants roses by the Danes.















Here we have the disposable grill in action. Honestly, I am ashamed. Please do not think that I have forsaken my heritage... we just have not got around to investing in a BBQ that is fit to be owned by an Aussie.
















That BBQ is really nothing to smile about...

Go the Socceroos!

Big match today as the Aussies take on Croatia.

We know football (soccer...) is the international game and of course our star players all play in European leagues. I thought that this was a classic though:

Croatia have three players with an Australian background. Joe Didulica and Josip Simunic were both born in Australia whilst Anthony Seric is a graduate of the Australian Institute of Sport (along with Simunic).

Australia have seven players of Croatian background in their squad - Mark Viduka, Zeljko Kalac, Ante Covic, Tony Popovic, Josip Skoko, Jason Culina and Marco Bresciano.

source: http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/world_cup_2006/4853428.stm

Flying south for the... summer!

We drove south along the coast down to Lagos in the Algarve.



The coast along the Algarve is a bit 12 apostles-like.



Normally the sea is calm and there are boat trips through the grottoes. Not today... as boats and I generally do not go well together, the boat trip was swapped for a walk.


From Algarve we drove north up through the Portuguese countryside. Eucalyptus trees were introduced originally by the pulp plantations but now are taking over and are considered a pest. With the temperature above thirty and the sweet smell of eucalyptus in the air, Rikke and I just felt homesick. :-)


A Portuguese ute.


The small towns were an Iberian archetype. Looks like everyone here has gone home for a kip...




Stork nests are everywhere and they have rows of these specially made stands for them. The birds look great as they wheel around gliding high over the countryside.



The town of Evora has historical buildings dating as far back as Roman BC.


Rikke took these lovely photos as I was not able to leave the hotel room :-(
Ironic considering I dragged Rikke away from the beach and drove 3 hours to get here...

Note the great boganvillia on the fence. Another source of tear-jerking Brisbane-home sickness around every corner.


I am committed to coming back and buying a Beetle. We saw so many in good condition. A one-way ticket and a Beetle tour home. What a trip!



What a great tour to Portugal. We had an awesome time and will definitely be back. If the strong draw card of our local connections was not enough we just can't get enough of sun, sand and eucalyptus.

On the board... in style!

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/world_cup_2006/5061232.stm

I have been attempting to defend the Australian participation in the World Cup for the last couple of weeks to the football crazy Danes (who themselves did not qualify ;-)

"You do realise that you are not allowed to carry the ball that you have to kick it, right?" etc. Hmmm. Funny.

3-1 over Japan... I can't imagine that I will have to do too much more explaining!

Out and about in Lisbon

Welcome to Lisbon, Portugal. The view from the Castello de São Jorge (Castle of Saint George; my translation ;-) up on the hill was awesome. Worth the climb. Hmm... actually we caught the bus.


The city was virtually flattened in 1755 by an earthquake and the resulting fires caused many to flee to the Tagus river (on the left). You can be sure that the Portuguese did not have to have the word tsunami defined for them in 2004; the tsunami from the 1755 earthquake washed away a few thousand people from the banks of the river, all of whom had already been having a really bad day.


The streets in and around Lisbon are often small and cobbled. Very cosy.

That is until you meet a crazy bugger in a Fiat at high speed. To describe the Portuguese as "bloody crazy" behind the wheel would carry a certain Aussie nonchalance that it does not warrant!


You don't have to look to far to see the trappings of a few hundred years of colonial dominance. This understated little piece is on the main square by the river surrounded by the old royal palaces.


The beautiful old monastery at Belém.


Port is not just a drink in Portugal. I mean they named the country after it right...? We tried many lovely drops. My advice: Why not remember the year before Australia was federated by pulling the top out of a bottle from 1900. A good year... For you, my friend, only €1350 (~A$3000).


Paulo and Ana Paula took the day off to host a tour out of Lisbon to the nearby town of Sintra and down along the coast. We knew that we shared a mutual interest in phosphorus-removing bacteria but we also found that we shared a passion for cake and espresso.


http://www.portugaltravelguide.com/images/ib/1024/lisboa04.jpg
Sintra has the highest elevation in this region, and is located between Lisbon and the Atlantic. It has an old castle on the top of a hill, which has a 360 deg. view and had been the home of the Kings and Queens of Portugal through the ages.


There is a lot of Moorish influence in Sintra - it is a real convergence of styles.


The most Westerly point of mainland Europe. The coastline was an mix of stark cliffs and sandy beaches... Awesome.


Paulo then took us to an oceanarium at the 1998 Lisbon Expo site. Despite her protests, we did not let Rikke go diving in the tank... but as usual she got up close and personal with the fish!


The Portuguese eat on average 50 kg of fish each per year and a great proportion if that is cod! It is the national dish. We went to a special cod restaurant and each of us ordered a different cod dish from the dozen choices. You can be sure that you cannot hear a nasal, "will that be crumbed or battered, love?" here! Paulo's son, Thomas, also came along and displayed his excellent English.

A giant obrigado to the Lemos family for tourist guide duties above and beyond the call of duty.

In the next installment we go south to Algarve and the beach...