Niger 🇳🇪
Alficionado ♡ treasuring the good sides of life February 2024 Being intrigued by Africa since my first trip as young teenager with my mother in the 1970es, not everything left great memories from the trips during the last decade, private as well as professional ones. Especially West Africa did not live up to the expectations, […]
Bhutan 🇧🇹
Alficionado ♡ treasuring the good sides of life November 2023 This country has been on my bucket list literally for decades, and yet it ended up one of my last on the UN 193 list.But let’s give it away right now. This one raises to my Top 10 countries list. So where do I begin. […]
Catalonia Wine Trip 🇪🇸
Alficionado ♡ treasuring the good sides of life July, 2023 Long anticipated reunion After having finished the last block session of the Wine Academy Austria in Florence in April 2022 where we shared an apartment, we then promised to stay in contact in the future. Also we introduced a “wine fund” to whom we all […]
Kyrgyzstan 🇰🇬
Alficionado ♡ treasuring the good sides of life June 2023 Kyrgyzstan facts This relatively small country has been under influence from its neighbours since centuries, via culture and power. The Russians in the past while under the USSR, culturally from Mongolian tribes and recently by China. The countryside is quite different from its Western Stans […]
Tajikistan 🇹🇯
Alficionado ♡ treasuring the good sides of life June 2023 Tajikistan facts Squeezed in between by mountains and neighbours, Tajikistan is probably the Central Asian country which has more development ahead of itself than any other. The territory is divided by huge mountain ranges which make up for more than 80%. One can find huge […]
Uzbekistan 🇺🇿
Alficionado ♡ treasuring the good sides of life June 2023 Uzbekistan facts Apart from huge Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan is by far the biggest , most populated and divers Stan. Reaching from the (mostly disappeared) Aral Lake, the Karakum Desert down to the Afghani border and all the way East to the Fergana Valley, more than 35 […]
Turkmenistan 🇹🇲
Alficionado ♡ treasuring the good sides of life June 2023 Turkmenistan facts Just to get to this country requires some staying power. While it was never easy to visit before covid, it was then 3 years completely closed and under lock down, and even now requires an invitation letter and a hefty price for a […]
Antarctica 🇦🇶 & South Georgia 🇬🇧
Alficionado ♡ treasuring the good sides of life February 2005 and 2011 Trip to the South End A trip to this large continent is like no other. It takes time, patience and unfortunately not insignificant money to get there. But it’t worth while. Getting to Antarctica is through the tip of South America, which is […]
WSET Diploma Block Session 3 🇮🇹
Alficionado ♡ treasuring the good sides of life April, 2022 Session in Florence and wine day trips The last block session is being regarded as the icing on the cake for this program because it features great excursions even though classes in a hotel in central Florence remain nourishing. However it felt like being a […]
WSET Diploma Block Session 2 🇦🇹
Alficionado ♡ treasuring the good sides of life November, 2021 After the summer and our first exam in the Spring it was time for the next block session. It was again an intense week of studies and tasting training, 3 exams for those who wanted to take all three of them, and luckily a few […]
WSET Diploma Block Session 1 🇦🇹
Alficionado ♡ treasuring the good sides of life May, 2021 We were just coming out of the second corona measures when the seminar started. And the Austrians were still in partial lock-down but the seminar luckily was able to start. Our class of 20 is a cool international mixture of everything, notably female dominated and […]
ThermaHealth: Distribution of envionmentally friendly Spirulina🇬🇷
Albert R. Stutz, Owner & Partner, Vistamar January 28th, 2022 Establish distribution for Spirulina plant in Greece Spirulina is a microalga containing a large spectrum of nutrients rendering to support a healthy lifestyle. Mainly its antioxidants amongst vitamins and proteins make it a sought-after food additive for an increasing part of the health conscious population. In […]
The Caribbean 🇰🇳🇦🇬🇩🇲🇱🇨🇹🇹
Alficionado ♡ treasuring the good sides of life January 25th, 2023 My ultimate tour through the Caribbean This might be the last Caribbean tour for a while. After visiting a good number during the TransAmerica2021 trip together with friends, this time I am back as a solo traveller exploring the islands I have not seen […]
El Salvador 🇸🇻
Alficionado ♡ treasuring the good sides of life January 22th, 2023 At home I got a few astonishing looks when letting people know that I am going to visit El Salvador. I really enjoyed it’s neighbor Nicaragua not too long ago and I really liked it. So I was not surprised and my hope was […]
Hawaii 🇺🇸
Alficionado ♡ treasuring the good sides of life January 12th, 2023 The Islands of unexpected diversity & beauty Hawaii was not on top of my list initially when finding a place to get away from my least favorable months of the year here in Switzerland which is “dark” November. As Asia was not really “open” […]
Cabo Verde 🇨🇻
Alficionado ♡ treasuring the good sides of life March 6th, 2022 Even though it has only been a mere 5 months since we came back from the Caribbean and Central America last October during our transamerica2021 expedition it feels good to be on tour again. For me however it is different this time. I will […]
San Diego 🇺🇸
Alficionado ♡ treasuring the good sides of life January 21th, 2022 Like in another post one could say why San Diego again! Well there is never enough SD for me. It’s my second home since having lived there in the 90ies and gone back more or less every year. It was the first time after […]
Mollis 🇨🇭
Alficionado ♡ treasuring the good sides of life Transamerica 2021 HOMEBASE / STOP 13 October 17, 2021 Pico, Azores – Mollis, Switzerland Flight distance: 1810 nmHours in the air: 4:30 Mollis – home home A nice and temperate morning greeted us at Pocinhobay. The sun was just coming up when we walked on the empty […]
Pico, Azores 🇵🇹
Alficionado ♡ treasuring the good sides of life Transamerica 2021 STOP 12 October 14, 2021 Liberia, Costa Rica – Bermuda Flight distance: 2036 nm (Fuel stop in Turks and Caicos)Hours in the air: 4:48 October 15, 2021 STOP 13 Bermuda – Pico, Azores Flight distance: 1880 nmHours in the air: 4:54 Azores – a word […]
Nicaragua 🇳🇮
Alficionado ♡ treasuring the good sides of life Transamerica 2021 STOP 11 October 12, 2021 Peninsula Papagayo – Granada, Nicaragua – Peninsula Papagayo Flight distance: 0 nmHours in the air: 0.00 👉 Side trip by car Nicaragua – volcanos and colonial history After it was clear that Venezuela became a no-go we obviously got some […]
Liberia, Costa Rica 🇨🇷
Alficionado ♡ treasuring the good sides of life Transamerica 2021 STOP 11 October 10, 2021 Panama City, Panama – Liberia, Costa Rica Flight distance: 398 nmHours in the air: 1:12 Liberia & the Peninsula Papagayo, Costa Rica – the land of plentiful A good hour and we landed in Liberia, in the western part of Costa […]
Panama City, Panama 🇵🇦
Alficionado ♡ treasuring the good sides of life Transamerica 2021 STOP 10 October 8, 2021 Oranjestad, Aruba – Panama City, Panama Flight distance: 621 nm Hours in the air: 1:48 Panama – the country with so many faces We are leaving the islands of the Caribbean for now, heading to Central America. Approach to Panama City […]
Oranjestad, Aruba 🇦🇼🇳🇱
Alficionado ♡ treasuring the good sides of life Transamerica 2021 STOP 9 October 7, 2021 Willemstad, Curacao – Oranjestad, Aruba Flight distance: 65 nmHours in the air: 0:30 Oranjestad, Aruba – the federated cultures of The Netherlands, the USA and the Caribbean Handling leaving Curacao was a dream again and happened to be topped off […]
Willemstad, Curacao 🇨🇼🇳🇱
Alficionado ♡ treasuring the good sides of life Transamerica 2021 STOP 8 October 5, 2021 Kralendijk, Bonaire – Willemstad, Curacao Flight distance: 79 nmHours in the air: 0.24 Where pleasure meets biz in the Caribbean So I have to start with a nice episode back on Bonaire. Since I am responsible for ground operations and for […]
Kralendijk, Bonaire 🇧🇶🇳🇱
Alficionado ♡ treasuring the good sides of life Transamerica 2021 STOP 7 October 4, 2021 Georgetown, Guyana – Kralendijk, Bonaire Flight distance: 744 nmHours in the air: 2:24 Kralendijk, Bonaire – one of the three islands of the Caribbean Netherlands Venezuela really does not like us! When flying the approved flight plan to Bonaire we were […]
Georgetown, Guyana 🇬🇾
Alficionado ♡ treasuring the good sides of life Transamerica 2021 STOP 6 October 3, 2021 Canouan, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines – Georgetown, Guyana Flight distance: 485 nmHours in the air: 1:21 Africa and India combined in South America “I will never go back here”, said 9 years ago. Now what might be the reason […]
Canouan, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 🇻🇨
Alficionado ♡ treasuring the good sides of life Transamerica 2021 STOP 5 October 1, 2021 The Valley, Anguilla – Canouan, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines. Flight distance: 345 nm Hours in the air: 1:06 The most pristine beaches in the Caribbean Getting out of Anguilla was a swift affair, let alone that we had to […]
The Valley, Anguilla, BOT 🇬🇧🇦🇮
Alficionado ♡ treasuring the good sides of life Transamerica 2021 STOP 4 September 30, 2021 Charlotte Amalie, US Virgin Islands – The Valley, Anguilla, British overseas territory Flight distance: 252 nm (Pick up stop in BVI) Hours in the air: 0:30 The Valley, Anguilla Today’s formalities in the US Virgin Islands were swift and easy […]
Charlotte Amalie, St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands 🇺🇸
Alficionado ♡ treasuring the good sides of life Transamerica 2021 STOP 3 September 29, 2021 Scrub Island, BVI- Charlotte Amalie, US Virgin Islands Flight distance: 60 nmHours in the air: 0:24 The US in The Caribbean! A short hub over and we were in St. Thomas, at the airport that is. What followed was a fine […]
Scrub Island, BVI 🇬🇧🇻🇬
Alficionado ♡ treasuring the good sides of life Transamerica 2021 STOP 2 September 28, 2021 Saint Pierre, Saint Pierre and Miquelon – Scrub Island, BVI Flight distance: 2577 nm (Fuel stop in Bermuda)Hours in the air: 3:06 / 2:30 First dive into the Virgin Islands Another hectic morning awaited us. We needed fresh Covid tests which […]
Saint Pierre and Miquelon 🇫🇷🇵🇲
Alficionado ♡ treasuring the good sides of life Transamerica 2021 STOP 1 September 26, 2021 Mollis, Switzerland – Saint Pierre, Saint Pierre and Miquelon Flight distance: 3248 nm (Fuel stop in Keflavik, Iceland)Hours in the air: 3:48 / 4:12 An odd French place in Northern America The “oldest Glarner”, a common, sometimes strong wind greeted us at […]
Provence 🇫🇷
Alficionado ♡ treasuring the good sides of life June 20, 2021 The Provence has been on my travel list for many years but in pre-corona times was on the lower end as more exotic destinations lured. This year it was an easy choice as besides the landscape and lifestyle together with those famous lavender fields […]
Libya 🇱🇾
Alficionado ♡ treasuring the good sides of life June 20, 2021 Not the most obvious destination, yet with lot’s of positive surprises. Just getting there and into the country was a challenge by its own. Official tourism is still not happening so we had to rely on help from a tour operator with experience for […]
Gold tailings in Crixas, Goias, Brazil 🇧🇷
Albert R. Stutz, Owner & Partner, Vistamar June 18th, 2018 Responsible mining can result in ecological clean-up Running and advancing a project in emerging markets mean dedication and showing ownership. It is absolutely imperative to not only show face on site but interact with the local staff over important decisions as well as the impact […]
Born global: online B2B marketplace startup
Albert R. Stutz, Owner & Partner, Vistamar June 18th, 2018 Jumpstarting an entire new business and company Equippo was formed by two Swiss entrepreneurs representing the two main biz skills required to build the platform. In-depth experience and knowledge of the construction equipment market and online-market it-experience. However they were lacking expertise, tools and best […]
AFEX-Lonrho: Turnaround Management in Sub-saharan Africa
Albert R. Stutz, Owner & Partner, Vistamar June 18th, 2019 Turnaround management in adverse environment Chartered to an adverse region (Kenya and South Sudan) with the goal to bring more light into a money loosing company in ‚Remote Facility Management‘. The goal was to gain a comprehensive understanding what the strategic options for the future […]
Tanzania 🇹🇿
Alficionado ♡ treasuring the good sides of life February 3rd, 2021 The land of beauty and tranquility Our journey took us along the famous northern circuit starting in Arusha. We first headed towards Lake Manyara and Taragire N.P. Followed by the Ndutu Area in the southwestern part of the Serengeti before entering the National Park. […]
Egypt 🇪🇬
Alficionado ♡ treasuring the good sides of life January 7th, 2021 The joy was immense to finish a tough travel year with a jewel. A ‘Jewel of the Nile’ one could say. Luxor And it turned out to be one. Starting with staying at the fabulous Winter Palace (an iconic building from the Belle-Epoque Era) […]
Venice – Italy 🇮🇹
Alficionado ♡ treasuring the good sides of life December 27th, 2020 I have not been back to Venice for two decades. Knowing that with over 11 Mio. visitors per year it would be a crowded place to be, not my preference. Once Corona hit and with it the lockdown I saw an opportunity to experience […]
Göschener Alp, Uri – Swiss Mountains 🫕
Alficionado ♡ treasuring the good sides of life December 27th, 2020 2020, which will go down as Covid year, made me stay in Switzerland for a good while. Luckily we have fantastic landscapes in the Swiss mountains. The photos in this order were shot at: Bürchen, Valais Robiei, Val Bavona, Ticino Göschnereralp, Uri Malcantone, Ticino […]
Crete – Greece 🇬🇷
Alficionado ♡ treasuring the good sides of life December 13th, 2020 While Crete has been on my list for a very long time, other attractions further away seemed more in focus. But since this year everything is different and Greece had a very efficient way of testing people randomly on arrival, it was an easy […]
Tuscany 🇮🇹
Alficionado ♡ treasuring the good sides of life November 13th, 2020 One could say why Italy again! Well for starters we are still in Covid-19 times which makes flying not the most desirable way to travel, plus wine and Tuscany make up for a great combination 🍷🇮🇹. First stop was the heart of Chianti, Greve […]
Eritrea 🇪🇷
Alficionado ♡ treasuring the good sides of life March 15, 2020 It was quite a change entering Eritrea after having just left Yemen. Life is basic here as well, but the streets are clean and everything is working. The capital Asmara shows a beautiful snap from the bell Epoque, dotted with vintage art deco buildings. Been […]
Yemen 🇮🇶
Alficionado ✨ treasuring the good sides of life March 3rd, 2020 A journey to Yemen is not the usual and everyday leisure trip. We were able to enter the country through it’s Northern border from Oman. This part is seeing daily life without civil war since it’s being supported and protected by the UAE which […]
Trieste 🇮🇹 & Croatia 🇵🇾
Alficionado ♡ treasuring the good sides of life January 21st, 2020 Trieste, the gateway to Slovenia and Croatia. Its location at the crossroads of Latin, Slavic, and Germanic cultures, belonging to the Habsburg Monarchy from 1382 until 1918 being its most important seaport. This history can be seen at every step and the mix of […]
Northern Norway 🇳🇴
Alficionado ♡ treasuring the good sides of life October 22th, 2019 Expectations were high but have been passed by a mile! Great countryside, easy roads and motorists made getting around a real pleasure. We camped every 2nd night wild somewhere we just ended up and it turned out nice every time. Last but not least […]
Off the beaten track in Nevada & California – USA 🇺🇸
Alficionado ♡ treasuring the good sides of life October 3rd, 2019 Scenes from an adventure through the jewels of the Mojave Desert. Starting from Beatty NV, navigating Titus Canyon road to the Badlands of the Death Valley. Then on to Mojave with its jet plane parking field. Driving the Cima Road through deserted Mojave National […]
Ibiza 🇪🇸
Alficionado ♡ treasuring the good sides of life March 8th, 2019 Just enjoying.
Gibraltar 🇬🇮
Alficionado ♡ treasuring the good sides of life Transafrica 2018 STOP 22 June 1, 2018 Ad-Dakhla – Gibraltar Flight distance: 953 nmHours in the air: 3.36 Rock Monkies Dakhla airport was empty when we arrived and despite a missing handler we were able to leave on time. Favourite winds brought us to Gibraltar, but we […]
Western Sahara ♰
Alficionado ♡ treasuring the good sides of life Transafrica 2018 STOP 21 May 31, 2018 Atâr – Ad-Dakhla Flight distance: 273 nmHours in the air: 1.30 Kite Surfing Heaven Our last day in Mauritania started with an early rise. Our tour continued into the mountainous region of the Sahara with tricky roads bringing us to […]
Mauritania 🇲🇷
Alficionado ♡ treasuring the good sides of life Transafrica 2018 STOP 20 May 28, 2018 Dakar – Atâr Flight distance: 439 nmHours in the air: 0.36 The vast grandness of the Sahara When deciding to go to he Sahara, we wanted it done the most direct way, which meant flying straight into the desert town […]
Senegal 🇸🇳
Alficionado ♡ treasuring the good sides of life Transafrica 2018 STOP 19 May 27, 2018 Banjul – Dakar Flight distance: 142 nmHours in the air: 0.36 French Riviera African Style We got up to a cool morning in Banjul, just barely 20 degrees, apparently less than in Switzerland and a clear sign that we are […]
The Gambia 🇬🇲
Alficionado ♡ treasuring the good sides of life Transafrica 2018 STOP 18 May 25, 2018 Bissau – Banjul Flight distance: 120 nmHours in the air: 0.30 Visiting family Well, I was way to nice yesterday when I praised the locals in Bissau. Again, lot’s of people seem to be involved with our flight and just […]
Guinea-Bissau 🇬🇼
Alficionado ♡ treasuring the good sides of life Transafrica 2018 STOP 17 May 24, 2018 Conakry – Bissau Flight distance: 198 nmHours in the air: 1.00 Colonial atmosphere Another short flight today which seemed to bring more of the same. Yet it turned out quite different. It started with the “welcome committee” at the airport […]
Guinea 🇵🇬
Alficionado ♡ treasuring the good sides of life Transafrica 2018 STOP 16 May 23, 2018 Freetown – Conakry Flight distance: 77 nmHours in the air: 0.24 Land of rivers With only 24 minutes duration, our hop today was probably the shortest of all. One might think it’s not worth it, think Africa again, it would […]
Sierra Leone 🇸🇱
Alficionado ♡ treasuring the good sides of life Transafrica 2018 STOP 15 May 21, 2018 Monrovia – Freetown Flight distance: 242 nmHours in the air: 0.36 The land of everything There was significant traffic getting out of Monrovia on the way to the airport which was 35 miles to the south. That and an unprepared […]
Liberia 🇱🇷
Alficionado ♡ treasuring the good sides of life Transafrica 2018 STOP 14 May 20, 2018 Abidjan – Monrovia Flight distance: 404 nmHours in the air: 1.40 The “Land of the Free” After having mostly moved towards west the last few days and with going into our fourth trip week we now are already heading slowly […]
Ivory Coast 🇨🇮
Alficionado ♡ treasuring the good sides of life Transafrica 2018 STOP 13 May 18, 2018 Accra – Abidjan Flight distance: 241 nmHours in the air: 1.15 France African Style What a name for a country which generated expectations – needless to say that they were not met. While the level of infrastructure might be higher […]
Ghana 🇬🇭
Alficionado ♡ treasuring the good sides of life Transafrica 2018 STOP 12 May 16, 2018 Lomé – Accra Flight distance: 106 nmHours in the air: 0.36 The Gold Coast of West Africa Having reached West Africa means short flights from now on until flying back to Europe. This one took us over the Gold Coast […]
Togo 🇹🇬
Alficionado ♡ treasuring the good sides of life Transafrica 2018 STOP 11 May 14, 2018 Lagos – Lomé Flight distance: 141 nmHours in the air: 0.36 Melting Cultures African Style Lagos would not let us go this easy. First endless 30 minutes for like 3 kilometers to the nearby airport and then the handler was […]
Nigeria 🇳🇬
Alficionado ♡ treasuring the good sides of life Transafrica 2018 STOP 10 May 13, 2018 N’Djamena – Lagos Flight distance: 784 nmHours in the air: 3.30 Africas giant We woke up to clearer weather and took the ride to the airport as a last opportunity for some sightseeing stops before we got swiftly in the […]
Chad 🇹🇩
Alficionado ♡ treasuring the good sides of life Transafrica 2018 STOP 9 May 12, 2018 Bangui – N’Djamena Flight distance: 540 nmHours in the air: 2.40 From green forests to the Sahel We left Bangui during rainy conditions which made urban street life look even rougher. So we flew a couple of hours north from […]
Central African Republic (CAR) 🇨🇫
Alficionado ♡ treasuring the good sides of life Transafrica 2018 STOP 8 May 11, 2018 Brazzaville – Bangui Flight distance: 594 nmHours in the air: 2.30 Genuine and rough Africa For starters, we (our plane) got inspected for the first time. Little did the inspector know that Tom is one as well! So it turned […]
Congo 🇨🇬
Alficionado ♡ treasuring the good sides of life Transafrica 2018 STOP 7 May 10, 2018 Kigali – Brazzaville Flight distance: 937 nmHours in the air: 4.05 Congo – two nations apart Leaving Kigali was swift and easy, the culprit from Monday wisely decided not to show up anymore, probably better for him. Our flight was […]
Rwanda 🇷🇼
Alficionado ♡ treasuring the good sides of life Transafrica 2018 STOP 6 May 8, 2018 Bujumbura – Kigali Flight distance: 96 nmHours in the air: 0.55 The Switzerland of Africa We did regret a bit the ultra short stay in Bujumbura getting up Monday morning, yet little did we know what was to come. To […]
Burundi 🇧🇮
Alficionado ♡ treasuring the good sides of life Transafrica 2018 STOP 5 May 6, 2018 Hargeisa – Addis Ababa – Bujumbura Flight distance: 1439 nmHours in the air: 6.15 Cool and clean nation in Central Africa Like almost anywhere on this planet we were reminded again of regional animosities. So the Kenyans don’t have it […]
Somaliland
Alficionado ♡ treasuring the good sides of life Transafrica 2018 STOP 4 May 4, 2018 Djibouti – Hargeisa Flight distance: 134 nmHours in the air: 0.47 Refreshing glimpse of new nation in the making What a nice and warm welcome to this new nation. Everybody is very curious and friendly, no hassling at all even […]
Djibouti 🇩🇯
Alficionado ♡ treasuring the good sides of life Transafrica 2018 STOP 3 May 2, 2018 Tel Aviv – Cairo – Djibouti Flight distance: 1917 nmHours in the air: 8.00 Relaxing in Djibouti after Eritrean refusal We were in good spirits and within perfect timing as a result of professional handling in Tel Aviv. Then the […]
Israel 🇮🇱 / Palestine 🇵🇸
Alficionado ♡ treasuring the good sides of life Transafrica 2018 STOP 2 April 30, 2018 Baku – Tel Aviv Flight distance: 1085 nmHours in the air: 4.55 Vibrant city Tel Aviv and the Holy Land An uneventful flight, yet with some detour around Syria brought us into Ben Gurion Airport, and with that definitely hot […]
Malta 🇲🇹, Lampedusa 🇮🇹 and Tunis 🇹🇳
Alficionado ♡ treasuring the good sides of life Balkans, Black & Mediterranean Sea 2017 STOP 5-7 July 6, 2017 The leg to Malta was a bit longer and therefore we arrived a bit later than usual. Lunch at the seaport underneath Valletta was followed by a wonderful afternoon in the old part of the ancient […]
Tirana – Albania 🇦🇱
Alficionado ♡ treasuring the good sides of life Balkans, Black & Mediterranean Sea 2017 STOP 4 July 6, 2017 Albania greeted us with fine views of nicely shaped mountains and turquoise beaches. The city of Tirana itself comes across as pretty much unassuming. Even our tour guide said there is nothing to see, when asked. […]
Sozopol – Bulgaria 🇧🇬
Alficionado ♡ treasuring the good sides of life Balkans, Black & Mediterranean Sea 2017 STOP 3 July 6, 2017 The outlook for the weekend looked promising and it turned out that way. After landing in Burgas, Bulgaria we transferred to Sozopol, one of Bulgarias premier black sea resorts. We found a nice place to stay […]
Sarajevo – Bosnia 🇧🇦
Alficionado ♡ treasuring the good sides of life Balkans, Black & Mediterranean Sea 2017 STOP 2 July 6, 2017 The city greeted us in typical summer conditions. Old town is filled with tourists mainly from Arabic countries and, as we were told, home-comers of the larger Bosnian diaspora community. The air is filled with smoke […]
Belgrade – Serbia 🇷🇸
Alficionado ♡ treasuring the good sides of life Balkans, Black & Mediterranean Sea 2017 STOP 1 July 6, 2017 Just in time ahead of the end of a longer summer weather period in Switzerland we took off for Belgrade. The city where the river Sava joins the Danube is today a sprawling capital of Serbia. […]
Bangkok – Thailand 🇹🇭
Alficionado ♡ treasuring the good sides of life Transpacific 2016 STOP 20 July 6, 2016 Flight distance: 426 nmHours in the air: 1.05 Well, all great things have to come to an end eventually. In this case it meant flying our beloved “Töffli” (i.e. The Plane Pilatus PC-12NG) to Bangkok where it will be taken […]
Siem Reap – Cambodia 🇰🇭
Alficionado ♡ treasuring the good sides of life Transpacific 2016 STOP 19 July 4, 2016 Flight distance: 287 nmHours in the air: 1.00 The last day in Cambodia meant getting up really early to see the wonders of Angkor Wat and then later the last flight on to the final destination Bangkok. Facts & figures With […]
Phnom Penh – Cambodia 🇰🇭
Alficionado ♡ treasuring the good sides of life Transpacific 2016 STOP 18 July 2, 2016 Flight distance: 1389 nmHours in the air: 3.25 The problem with the fuel had been fixed the night before which meant that we made it in time to Cambodia. Here we meet the rest of the Frey family and headed […]
Brunei 🇧🇳
Alficionado ♡ treasuring the good sides of life Transpacific 2016 STOP 17 July 1, 2016 Flight distance: 2296 nmHours in the air: 5.20 Today was the longest single leg of the entire trip crossing the Philippines over to Borneo and finally Brunei. Not only was the weather lousy (hot and humid) but for some reason […]
Palau 🇵🇼
Alficionado ♡ treasuring the good sides of life Transpacific 2016 STOP 16 June 30, 2016 Flight distance: 1482 nmHours in the air: 3.10 After some difficulties with airspace control we made it to Palau before lunch. We had a fantastic view over the island during our approach. Everything here looks neat and it seems that […]
Guam 🇬🇺
Alficionado ♡ treasuring the good sides of life Transpacific 2016 STOP 15 June 28, 2016 Flight distance: 296 nmHours in the air: 0.50 lI was a short ride over to Guam. Now being on US Territory handling was very professional and fast so we were at our hotel already before lunch.Besides being home to Andersen […]
Northern Mariana Islands 🇲🇵
Alficionado ♡ treasuring the good sides of life Transpacific 2016 STOP 14 June 24, 2016 Flight distance: 2074 nmHours in the air: 3.40 Sometimes small details make a huge difference. We had great uncertainty whether we could move on from Pohnpei due to a fueling problem. Turns out they came up with a fix overnight […]
Pohnpei Islands (FSM) 🇫🇲
Alficionado ♡ treasuring the good sides of life Transpacific 2016 STOP 13 June 23, 2016 Flight distance: 1574 nmHours in the air: 3.20 Leaving the Marshalls was easy (even though we left a day early) and favorable winds brought us to Pohnpei in just over three hours. What seemed to be an easy handling process […]
Marshall Islands 🇲🇭
Alficionado ♡ treasuring the good sides of life Transpacific 2016 STOP 12 June 22, 2016 Flight distance: 1028 nmHours in the air: 2.45 For the first time we were greeted by not so nice weather, in the morning that is. We decided to rent a car (some would call it a wreck) and drive up […]
Nauru 🇳🇷
Alficionado ♡ treasuring the good sides of life Transpacific 2016 STOP 11 June 21, 2016 Flight distance: 420 nmHours in the air: 2.10 A short hop and flying time of under two hours brought us to the tiny island and nation of Nauru. The entire landmass is just over 20 square-kilometer and one can comfortable […]
Kiribati 🇰🇮
Alficionado ♡ treasuring the good sides of life Transpacific 2016 STOP 10 June 19, 2016 Flight distance: 1343 nmHours in the air: 3.20 Flying almost another 3 hours straight north (equivalent to Rome – London) we reached another wonderful lagoon. However, Kiribati has about ten times as many people and this is visible on ever […]
Tuvalu 🇹🇻
Alficionado ♡ treasuring the good sides of life Transpacific 2016 STOP 9 June 18, 2016 Flight distance: 1176 nmHours in the air: 3.10 After some heavy downpours over night we were lucky to get out of Apia in good weather. A good two hours of flying time later we were approaching Tuvalu, our first classic […]
Samoa 🇼🇸
Alficionado ♡ treasuring the good sides of life Transpacific 2016 STOP 8 June 17, 2016 Flight distance: 963 nmHours in the air: 2.25 What a difference two hours of flying over the ocean make! Everything here is nice & neat, clean, organised and in good shape. The people are a joy and our hotel finally […]
Tonga 🇹🇴
Alficionado ♡ treasuring the good sides of life Transpacific 2016 STOP 7 June 16, 2016 Flight distance: 972 nmHours in the air: 2.20 Leaving the Yasawas in Fiji was easy but had its potholes since managing to get on the seaplane entirely dry was a challenge. Nadi handling was just a joy again and off […]
Fiji 🇫🇯
Alficionado ♡ treasuring the good sides of life Transpacific 2016 STOP 6 June 13, 2016 Flight distance: 1361 nmHours in the air: 3.10 Getting up early did not help today since we had to deal with moody and incompetent handling agents. So we left slightly delayed but got compensated with a warm welcome in Nadi. […]
New Caledonia 🇳🇨
Alficionado ♡ treasuring the good sides of life Transpacific 2016 STOP 5 June 12, 2016 Flight distance: 611 nmHours in the air: 1.50 It was only a short hop over to New Caledonia, so we arrived around lunch time. Everything here looks just like in Southern France, a bit touristy but well organized which is […]
Vanuata 🇻🇺
Alficionado ♡ treasuring the good sides of life Transpacific 2016 STOP 4 June 10, 2016 Flight distance: 1352 nmHours in the air: 3.30 Good timing was with us when we left for the short “ride” over to Vanuatu. This subtropical island has a different groove with an interesting mixture of French/English culture and language. A […]
Papua New Guinea 🇵🇬
Alficionado ♡ treasuring the good sides of life Transpacific 2016 STOP 3 June 8, 2016 Flight distance: 3009 nmHours in the air: 7.05 Another early rise since we had a long flying day ahead of us in order to reach Port Moresby in Papua New Guinea (PNG). Irvan (who had been sent from Jakarta to […]
Solomon Islands 🇸🇧
Alficionado ♡ treasuring the good sides of life Transpacific 2016 STOP 2 June 8, 2016 Flight distance: 1445 nmHours in the air: 4.05 Handling for the first time was painful at Port Moresby which just complemented to our overall impression but we were airborne just about 15 minutes later than scheduled. We are still mostly […]
Timor-Leste (East Timor) 🇹🇱
Alficionado ♡ treasuring the good sides of life Transpacific 2016 STOP 1 June 4, 2016 Flight distance: 2714 nm Hours in the air: 6.35 Due to long flying time to our next destination we rose to an early start. At Singapore’s Seletar Airport handling was very friendly and straight forward. Just before 9am we took […]
Singapore 🇸🇬
Alficionado ♡ treasuring the good sides of life Transpacific 2016 STARTJune 3, 2016 Singapore Airlines got us in style and on time down to East Asia. As expected it is hot and humid, but that’s something we will have to get used to. Getting out of the airport and the hotel was very swift and […]
Antarctic Peninsula 🇦🇶
Alficionado ♡ treasuring the good sides of life March 8th 2017 Journey on board a small vessel suited for the Antarctic waters. The trip included one of the first possibilities to camp overnight on Antarctic soil while not being part of state sponsored program.