Fresh water diving

underwater

We had a trip to Germany close to Aachen to have a couple of dives in the Blausteinsee. This lake is overcrowded with American crayfish which grow to a phenomenal size. The place was quite empty as on August 15 the germans have to work and we do have a national bank holiday. Upon entry you come quickly across the masters of the lake

crayfish

The lake contains some wrecks of different origins as bikes, X-mas trees, boats, ovens, etc. The visibility is good with an average of 4-6 m and it is quite clear, no need for a lamp. But on the other hand if you go deeper than 12 m it gets f***ing cold. The temperature is around 7°C at 24 m .
sunplayBut in the shallow you can see the sun burst through the surface into the wood. And temperature reaises to a comfortably 17°C. This is an ideal place for beginners and more experienced divers alike. A  good place to go diving while waiting for the days to pass and making the waiting for the real holidays in Indonesia tolerable.

Photo of the Day – July 20

Photo of the day

The golden rock, Burma

We should have been taking this photo at dusk, a nice sunset shot!
But let me starting at the beginning. We arrived at the guesthouse at around 3 pm.  From there no way to go up to the Golden Rock by car. We went to tje “bus” stop and waited for the truck to fill up with passengers as it only leaves when completely full. The following 2 hours we got to know everybody on the truck…
We finally arrived on top at 7.30 pm. Hundreds of people walked around, prayed,lightened candles . The atmosphere was wonderful, peaceful…
This Golden rock is a huge stone on the edge of a mountain. A single hair from Buddha keeps the rock in place. Equilibrum!

At 9.30 pm after a meal in one of the eateries we started our walk back to town . As no more trucks run at night we walked back to the village. 16 km under a full moon in the middle of nowhere in Burma !
Wee finally arrived at the guesthouse at 2 am . Tired indeed but happy about the misssed sunset!

Photo of the Day – July 6

Photo of the day

A frozen world

What means travelling to you? Escape? Discovery? Exotism? Farniente? Adventure?
I think there are as many different meanings of travel than people who travel. For me it can be all of the above.
And then there are these magnetic places. Nothing to do with latitudes, but with your very own soul. Places which catch you and will never leave you. They fullfill you with memories for years, very often for your whole life. You never know beforehand when you put your feet into such a place but from the moment you do, I’ll know for sure! What best descibes this feeling is a kind of harmony and peace which fills up your heart ,your body and your brain.
One of these precious places to me is Antartica. We were lucky to catch a cruise to the Antartic peninsula more than 2 years ago. To me it seems like yesterday and I live with the certainty that I will be back there, at least once, for sure…