updated: February 13, 2005

Each day has a summary, followed by links in yellow to the corresponding photos

February 13, 2005

Nov 2004 - Feb 2005 Photos
To make a very long story short, I moved back to the US, spending a month in NC for the holidays seeing family and friends, then drove back to Boulder, CO, where I'm settling back in with a new job, new truck, and new (to everyone else) dog.  Photos along the way included a 4 day trek across Hinchinbrook Island in tropical North Queensland, then there were going away festivities, followed by stateside photos of bluegrasss jamboree and some misc. photos of NC and CO.  Hopefully lots more photos to come as I revisit some of my favorite places in and around Colorado.

Oh and there's a new name and address for the web site, www.wanderaround.com.  Don't worry, wanderaround.com still works as well, and always will. 

November 7 , 2004

If you haven't noticed, I kinda stopped doing the news section, mainly because I put any news into the email update I send out when I update the web site.  Since I don't update the web page as much as I used to (lately only once every couple of months), the news section doesn't seem necessary.  So if you have any questions about what I'm doing, just email me...

February 15, 2004
December '03 - February '04 Photos

Here are some new photos of my time in Australia... I found a job at QFleet shortly after the last update, so I haven't been having many of the adventures that were so common in the last year and a half.  However life can't always be a vacation, and it's actually nice to finally be back to having an income and learning some new stuff.  Jules has adopted a pound puppy named Bella, so she is taking up a lot of our time... photos of Bella are included in this section.  I should be taking some trips around Australia soon, and I'm planning a snowboarding trip to NZ in the winter (summer in the northern hemisphere), so I'll be sure to have some photos from those excursioins.  In the meantime I'll try to capture all things uniquely ozzie as best I can. 

November 27, 2003
New Zealand Photos

Happy Turkey day everybody!  I celebrated by having a tuna and avocado sandwich, followed by a fat, juicy mango all to myself (one of my newly discovered fruits) before running off to a job interview.  This being my 3rd year outside of the country for Thanksgiving, I've gotten used to not having turkey on the last thursday in November, but that doesn't mean I don't miss it.

So for my latest installments of photos, I've got photos from my weeklong trip to New Zealand, which was required in order to get my visa.  Hey I don't make the rules, but I don't mind following them if it means going to New Zealand.  What a great country, which I never really knew much about, perhaps because my girlfriend is Australian; it's like an American talking about Canada: it just doesn't happen. The trip involoved spelunking into the caves of Waitomo,  going on a 2 day/3 night hike aruond the Ngauruhoe Volcano in the Tongariro National Park, and then concluding with a 2 day solo canoe trip down the Whanganui river.  It all went amazingly well, including transportation by thumb.  All of this was on the North Island, and the South Island is supposed to be even better, so I'm hoping to get back to NZ to see it all.  Until then you can see what I saw in the latest photos. Now... about that job....

November 2, 2003
Aug - Nov 2003 Oz Photos

Thailand Trip #2 Photos

In typical fashion it's been a while since I've updated the web page, but I try to focus on quality here people, not quantity here; it's better to have a few good photos than a whole lot of photos that are crap.  That being said, I give you my latest offering:  photos since I've been living here in Australia, along with photos from a side trip to Thailand I did with Mark Detsky, former roommate and aspiring writer, fresh from passing the bar exam in Colorado. 

As for a personal update, not much has changed since I arrived here 3 months ago.  I'm that much closer to obtaining my Permanent Residency visa here, which should hopefully arrive in the next week or two.  It's in the hands of the Immigration Dept. now, I can do no more.  We've also just bought a new car, which is very exciting, and gives me a way to get around much more easily.  Jules is working, so she's the sugarmomma for now, safe to say the IOU slips are starting to stack up.  But until then I'm just applying for jobs, riding my new mountain bike around, playing indoor soccer, and enjoying my last few weeks of not having a job (fingers crossed). 

October 3, 2003 Moving On Photos
Well it may seem like it's been a long while since I've updated this page, but it's not true.  My last update just got deleted some how.  It couldn't have been my mistake.... get me Bill Gates. 

So as most of you already know, I'm now in Australia, after leaving San Sebastian and then travelling through Thailand.  It was a beauty of a trip; a bit strange that it's over, although since I'm in Australia it doesn't feel like it's over (unlike Jules, who will start work on Monday).  I'll be here for a year or so, at which I purposely haven't planned anything.  Play it by ear, see how it goes kinda thing.  First thing is to get that evasive work visa (hopefully in a few weeks), and then get back to work so that I can pay off these last months of leisurely limbo.  I'm going to try to squeeze as many trips in Australia as I can, we'll see how it goes.

I also have a new camera arriving on Monday, a brand new Canon S45 (a newer version of my long lost S30).  This coincidentally coincides with another trip to Thailand starting Tuesday the 7th and ending on the 15th.  Yes I'm broke, yes I'm going back to Thailand.  One of my best friends Mark is there, and thanks to him we'll be meeting up in Chiang Mai to explore the northern parts of Thailand, which I never got to see last time.  Think jungle trekking, elephant rides, hill tribes, perhaps some river rafting and even some mountain biking.  How could I pass that up? So expect some new photos from that in a couple of weeks.

In other news, I'm a uncle to Leah Kimberly Ridge, born yesterday October 2, weighing a healthy 8 lbs. 3 oz.  Congratulations Matt and Kim!

July 4, 2003 June 2003 Photos
Step back folks, June was a good photo-taking month, so I've got heaps of new photos from all over, including here in San Sebastian, Italy, and the Pyrenees mountains.  We did 8 days in Italy, including crashing Mike and Tiffany's honeymoon for several days, then came back to quickly regroup before heading out to hike in the Pyrenees mountains for a few days with some friends from Bilbao.  The weather has been great so the camera has been clicking... And be on the lookout in August for photos from San Fermin (aka Running of the Bulls) as well as two weeks in Thailand, all of that should happen this month.

June 6, 2003 Colorado Trip Photos
Two days ago I got back from a 10 day nonstop Colorado afterburner trip, including a 2 day wedding in the mountains, another 2 nights camping, 1 day mountain biking, and 3 day/2 night trip rafting down the Arkansas River. I didn't get much time to see everybody in Boulder (and I only had time to eat 3 Illegal Pete's burritos), but that's how it goes I guess.  It was great to be back in Colorado and jump right back on the bandwagon of doing every activity possible before blasting off back to Spain.  Congrats to Mike and Tiff on their marriage, hope to see you in Italy soon!

PS: For all those who think my trip is something, it pales in comparison to my friend Arne's 8 month motorcycle voyage from Colorado down to the southern tip of Argentina and back.  A feat that Ferdinand and Isabella would have been proud of. He just got back, check out his photos and stories.

5/21/03 May 2003 Photos
I've added more photos of the last 2 months that we've been living in San Sebastian.  Photos include shots from backpacking in the Basque mountains, as well as trips to Bilbao, Galicia, and Zarautz.
As a quick update of our trip, we plan on staying in San Sebastian until after the Running of the Bulls in nearby Pamplona (mid-July), and then heading to Thailand for 2 weeks before arriving (finally!) in Australia. I still haven't received my work visa for Australia yet, but I'll be expecting it around August.
5/12/03 My Best Photos
I added a page that shows some of the best of my photos I've taken over the last 3 years, many of which I never have put online before for some reason.
3/15/03 Sábado - Continuing our saga in San Sebastian, where things are still working out well for Jules and I. We plan on being here until July or August, when hopefully the Australian government decides that I'm a good boy and that I can start working there. Until then, we're hanging out here, and enjoying all that the Basque Country (this region of Spain) has to offer. Below are some of the highlights over the last few months: