Welcome to my page!

This is where I share some of my personal observations and opinions of some of the places we visit. I only have a couple of things written so far. This is a new page on our site and I'm presently working on some new articles.

Also, farther down the page, you can see some of my photos from our travels.

Currently, for your reading pleasure, I present to you:

Driving in Greece

Your Greek Restroom Experience...a "Hole" New Adventure

Please keep an eye out for new stuff as I post it.

Darren's Photo Gallery

Bonaire

This is a cactus fence on Bonaire. (Ouch!!!)
It seemed to be pretty common on the island. You would think that, being in the Caribbean, it would be tropical. But, due to it's location off of the coast of Venezuela, it's actually a desert island.

Captain Don (left) and Frank Fennell (right).

Captain Don established the first dive resort on Bonaire, Captain Don's Habitat, and had all of the reefs around the island made into a marine sanctuary. Click on this link to go to Captain Don's Habitat

Frank Fennell is a well-known underwater photographer and Captain Don's good friend.

This is a photo of me, taken by Frank Fennell, demonstrating one of his underwater camera outfits. His company, Epoque USA, sells "Rugged & Durable Underwater Photo and Video Equipment at Affordable Prices" - quote from Epoque USA website. Click on this link to go to Epoque USA,

Greece

On our last trip to Greece, I kept noticing all of the American fast-food franchises popping up around Athens. I decided to start taking pictures of these for another article. Here are a couple of them.

You can decide for yourself if this is a good thing or a not-so-good thing...

I was strolling around the Plaka (the old section of Athens at the base of the Acropolis) taking pictures of various things, and I snapped a shot of this girl walking down the street. I don't know who she is, but I do know she's HOT!!!

Octopus, anyone? A fresh catch hanging on the line at a taverna in Plomari on Lesvos. If you've never eaten octopus, it's really quite good, depending on how it's prepared (of course). I particularly like the grilled octopus, as opposed to the cold octopus in a red sauce.

Around the table left to right: George (Helen's cousin Dimitra's son), Helen's cousin Illias, his wife Julia, Helen and her cousin Dimitra. We all got together for some pizza at Dimitra's restaurant, Martano Pizza in Mytilene. I swear, they make some of the best pizza I've ever had.

It kinda looks like the Scooby van, but it's actually the Lesvos Scuba van. I took this after a day of diving off of Petra. George Filios (not pictured here), the owner of Lesvos Scuba is a great guy with a fantastic staff. You can find more info about Lesvos Scuba on our partners page or visit their web site at http://www.lesvoscuba.gr/.

This is the Poseidon Taverna in Molyvos. A really nice place to sit and relax on their patio and enjoy some good food, while doing some people watching or just enjoying the scenery. The owners are very friendly and may even come have an ouzo with you!

Helen and I, along with her cousin Illias (pictured here) and his wife Julia, took a side trip to this little, hard to find, farm that produces all organic products. It's called the Mylelia and has a 305 year old water-wheel driven flour mill. The flour they make from the wheat they grow is used to make pasta and other baked goods. They also have their own olive press, pictured here with Illias, that they use to produce their own olive oil. They have a little shop on site from which they sell their products. It's quite an amazing place. Their products are starting to show up in high-end gift baskets. Some of the import items we buy come from here. If you would like to see their website, click on this link Mylelia. It's all in Greek, of course, but you can still look at some of their pictures.

Around Home

I was in San Francisco a few weeks ago and shot these photos of the Blue Angels practicing for Fleet Week. They were very impressive.

Here they were flying over Pier 39.

This is a definite "right place at the right time" shot. Four of the Blue Angels, sideways in diamond formation, right in between Coit Tower and the Transamerica Pyramid. I think the Flag in the lower right adds another patriotic element.

The Blue Angels, low and in diamond formation, with the Golden Gate Bridge in the background. The people on that boat were getting quite a show!

Helen and I had some friends from Belgium, Leo and Denise, stay with us for a few weeks on their first trip to America. We took them all over Northern California and showed them the sights! Here is a picture of Leo driving a speedboat we rented on Lake Tahoe.

Cozumel

This is the view Helen and I had from our room at the Palace Resort. Those cruise ships are huge!

A view of the resort with everybody chillin' in and around the pool.

A little game of catch with a football in the pool...

and some volleyball.

A couple of the girls that work at the Palace Resort, showing me some "gang-sign".

Some of the guests taking part in a "towel folding" class at the Palace. I don't think the one in front is really a girl...

Here's Helen with a parrot on her head, holding an iguana.

If you're in Cozumel, you really need to visit this place. It's Bob Marley's Reggae Beach Bar. It's really a cool place right on the beach on the southern tip of the island. It was wiped out in hurricane Wilma in 2005, but has been totally rebuilt and looks like it's been there for 20 years! I won't say anymore because I don't want to spoil it for you...

Inside of the Bob Marley gift shop across the street from the bar, Helen left our mark...

In the Cozumel airport, while we were waiting for our departing flight, I saw this crab walking back and forth along the doorway like it wanted to come in. It kept us (or at least me) entertained while we waited for the plane.

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