Author Archives: Stefan Lomas

It was a nervy start in planning the trip. We couldn’t decide where to go, but a Mauritian friend of Rach’s had convinced us to spend some time on his island, so I threw caution to the wind and booked a couple of one-way tickets on a direct BA flight. As there are only twoContinue reading “Mauritius”

“It’s been a while, nearly two months since I posted an update. Rach has been busy with team meetings, so we spent the first couple of weeks in September at my brother’s, which is close to her office. This gave me the opportunity to catch up with Steve, Paul, and Barry a few times atContinue reading “Friends & Family”

We’ve been quite busy visiting friends almost every week since our return about five weeks ago. Time has really flown by, and we recently had the chance to head into the city to celebrate Rachel Gill’s birthday along with Keith at a fantastic rooftop restaurant with a view over St. Paul’s. Catching up with friendsContinue reading “Getting together for a long weekend in Staffordshire”

Our journey back from Palermo was surprisingly smooth, which was a perfect way to conclude our time there. We spent the weekend with my parents before heading over to my brother’s house. After getting haircuts and catching up with friends, it was time to embark on a trip that Seb had organized, one of theContinue reading “Back to the UK for a “dads & lads” weekend”

It has been quite warm here in Palermo, with temperatures reaching the mid to high 30s every day. While the heat can make wandering around the city during the day a bit uncomfortable, it hasn’t dampened our spirits. Palermo is a great little city with so much to see and explore. One of the uniqueContinue reading “Mondello, Cefalu and the old town”

I read somewhere that Sicily is the most invaded country in history due to its strategic importance. However, this rich history of invasions has created a fascinating tapestry of architecture and culture, especially in Palermo, the regional capital. Italy has the most UNESCO sites in the world, and Palermo boasts quite a few of them.Continue reading “The incredible San Giuseppe dei Teatini & Palatine Chapel”

We’ve enjoyed our stay in the south, and even though there wasn’t much to do locally without hopping into the car, the beach was perfect for an early morning swim. A bit further up the coastline, we also discovered Zuma Beach, where we could have lunch and watch the kite surfers, which was highly entertaining,Continue reading “Heading North to Palermo”

We’ve driven past the volcano several times on our travels around Sicily, and each time we’ve seen smoke wafting from one of the vents. It’s a stratovolcano, essentially composed of many layers, and is considered one of the world’s most active volcanoes. Just a few days before our arrival, it was finishing a near month-longContinue reading “Mt Etna”

I guess it shouldn’t come as a surprise, but both of us have a deep love for history, especially ancient relics. So after driving for just over 2 hours, we found ourselves in the hilly terrain of the beautiful southwestern district of Agrigento. The Valley of the Temples, despite its name, is actually situated highContinue reading “The Valley of the Temples”

The swimming remains great, and as Rach only has a few short weeks, we’ve been on a quest to explore as much of the bottom half of Sicily as we can. One of our stops was Syracuse, which incidentally is the birthplace of Archimedes and dates back to at least the 7th century BC. WeContinue reading “Syracuse and a bridge to Ortigia”