The Travelling Wombat

Keeping The Wombat entertained

2011-08-21T09:36:00.003+01:00

What does The Wombat do when he's stuck in an airport with ages to wait?

He has a beer.

And then he samples his companion's margarita...

Hopefully he wasn't too drunk to be allowed on to the flight!

Taking The Wombat to the ballgame

2011-08-05T20:00:00.005+01:00

While in Seattle, The Wombat went to watch a baseball game at the Safeco field - the Seattle Mariners v the Oakland A's.

He cheered on both teams pretty indiscriminately (after all, what does a Wombat know about baseball?) The Mariners won, anyway!

Edited: I got the away team wrong (originally put the LA Angels). Well, I did say The Wombat knows nothing about baseball...

The Wombat does Seattle

2011-08-03T14:46:00.006+01:00

The Wombat was supposed to be visiting the scenic parts of Seattle. However, all the caffeine he consumed at a genuine Seattle Starbucks addled his little brain a bit.

Which meant that the highlights of his visit included the Giant Shoe Museum at Pike Place Market...

He also found this interesting book at the market.

Eventually, the caffeine wore off, and he fell soundly asleep on this very tasteful bedspread in his hotel.

The Wombat in disguise?

2011-07-25T11:43:00.003+01:00

The Wombat likes parties. He especially likes fancy dress parties. And he thinks he looks rather dashing with a moustache. Opinions?

How the mighty have... shrunk?

2011-07-07T14:38:00.000+01:00

Scientists in Australia have identified the skeleton of a three-tonne wombat the size of a 4x4, which lived two million years ago (see the BBC story).

What with only being 14cm from nose to tail-tag, The Wombat has gone into temporary hiding out of sheer envy.

A quick visit to Switzerland

2011-06-19T20:52:00.001+01:00

The Wombat didn't spend much time in Switzerland, but he did get a chance to admire the famous fountain in Lake Geneva.

Arty in the archive

2011-05-01T20:42:00.000+01:00

Since The Wombat hasn't been anywhere much for a long time, we thought we'd share this artistic shot of him from his New Orleans trip.

Castles in Connemara

2011-04-11T18:52:00.002+01:00

The Wombat had a quick trip to watch some friends run the Connemarathon. Before heading home, he went to see Aughnanure Castle.

Here he is in a tree. It was indeed an ancient yew tree.

Stone walls and the grass is green...

2011-04-10T19:30:00.000+01:00

Here's to the Saw Doctors and the N17! The Wombat, on his way down to Connemara.

Happy New Year again!

2011-01-01T16:05:00.001Z

It's 2011 already! And although The Wombat maybe didn't travel as much in 2010 as in 2009, he still managed to get to Washington DC, New Orleans, France, Spain, and several places in England and Ireland.

Hopefully he'll get around a bit more in 2011...

Wasted away in Margaritaville

2010-11-19T21:20:00.000Z

The Wombat freely admits that he's not very familiar with Jimmy Buffett and his music. But one of his most famous songs is called 'Margaritaville', and that's led to a US-wide chain of bar-restaurants.

Even if it's a bit gimmicky... they do make damn fine margaritas!

This shot was taken after The Wombat had finished his margarita. He definitely needed to just lie down for a while.

Flavours of New Orleans

2010-11-16T19:38:00.000Z

Food is such an important part of New Orleans culture, and The Wombat wanted to try everything! He gorged on jambalaya, shrimp etoufee, and especially gumbo... Here he is at the Gumbo Shop restaurant.

New Orleans is famous for its cocktails as well as its Cajun and Creole food. The Sazerac was invented in New Orleans, and another popular cocktail is the Hurricane, which was invented at Pat O'Brien's Irish pub. The Wombat liked Hurricanes.

One of the MUST-DO things for visitors to New Orleans is to have coffee and beignets at Café Du Monde. The coffee's made with chicory, and the beignets are fresh-made doughnuts covered in powdered sugar.

The Wombat really enjoyed his beignet.

Louisiana yard-dogs and more

2010-11-15T20:10:00.001Z

With the swamps of Louisiana right outside New Orleans, The Wombat definitely wanted to go in a swamp boat to see the alligators.

He went with Dr. Wagner's Honey Island swamp tour, and saw El Whoppo the 15-foot alligator... although El Whoppo was being shy and didn't want to come over for his marshmallows. (Probably just as well, since The Wombat would have made a very small mouthful for him.)

He got to see alligators close up at the Audubon Aquarium, and then meet a much safer one at the Insectarium.

At the Insectarium, he also saw lots of bugs, including this VW love-bug...

And he got up close and personal with some more (static) nature at the Audubon Zoo.

He never did find out what a Louisiana yard-dog is though.

Sightseeing in New Orleans

2010-11-14T19:30:00.001Z

There's so much to see and do in New Orleans, that these are just a few photos from The Wombat's trip!

First off, here he is at the entrance to the French Market. (It's actually daylight; there was something wrong with the exposure, ooops.)

Here he's admiring the St Louis Cathedral from across Jackson Square.

He did get to go on an evening dinner cruise on the steamboat Natchez! (He was a bit wobbly getting off, after drinking too many Hurricanes.)

He also had more than a few drinks up and down Bourbon Street, and brought home the Mardi Gras beads to prove it!

The Wombat in Spain

2010-10-22T14:16:00.001+01:00

The Wombat had such a nice relaxing holiday in northern Spain that he forgot to have more photos taken... This one is from a town called Potes, in Cantabria.

Pirates in County Donegal?

2010-09-26T22:15:00.000+01:00

On a recent visit to Bundoran in County Donegal, The Wombat was amazed to see that there are apparently still pirates roaming the northwest shores!

Watery Ireland

2010-09-26T16:59:00.000+01:00

The Wombat likes to look at water as long as there's no risk of falling in. So he was happy enough to pay a visit to Glencar Lough and its nearby waterfall as long as he could admire them from afar (or at least from behind a safety rail).

The Wombat visits Chatsworth House

2010-08-19T19:11:00.002+01:00

No visit to Derbyshire is complete without going to see Chatsworth House! Here's The Wombat getting in the way of a decent picture of it.

And here he is, trying to admire his own reflection in a piece of garden sculpture.

A spot of bird-watching

2010-06-25T20:02:00.000+01:00

The Wombat visited the very famous Slimbridge nature reserve, and saw lots of birds; these rather pale flamingos were his favourites.

He wasn't quite so keen on the visting duck at his caravan site though... He wasn't sure whether she wanted to eat him or sit on him!

An eyeful of the Eiffel

2010-06-12T20:10:00.001+01:00

Even though he was just passing through Paris, The Wombat couldn't miss the chance to take a look at the Eiffel Tower. Alas, he didn't have time to go up it though.

June 2010

Anchored down in Provence

2010-06-10T19:00:00.000+01:00

The Wombat took a trip down to Provence - this photo was taken of him larking about on the harbour front in Cassis.

Cherry blossom in Washington DC

2010-03-31T16:40:00.000+01:00

Every year in March and April, the National Cherry Blossom Festival takes place in Washington DC.

So of course, The Wombat had to join in!

Natural History in Washington DC

2010-03-31T11:30:00.001+01:00

As well as visiting the nation's monuments, The Wombat visited the Smithsonian Museum of Natural History.

He stopped first in the rotunda to imagine the power of a charging elephant! Luckily, this one wasn't going anywhere.

An Irish elk was a comfortingly familiar sight... "Fancy meeting you here!"

But after that, it all got scary again. First, The Wombat was menaced by a giant ground sloth.

Then a bobcat appeared to attack...

The Wombat naturally has a fear of dingoes!

And even the horse's ancestor, Hyracotherium, can look scary from the wrong angle.

But finally, The Wombat found some safety by returning to the pouch. Even if it wasn't quite the right species.

Presidents old and new in Washington DC

2010-03-30T14:25:00.002+01:00

The Wombat made his first trip to Washington D.C.! On arrival on the Mall, he stopped to admire the Washington Monument in the distance.

After a detour to the Natural History Museum (more about that in another post), he got to look at the Washington Monument from another angle.

Next was a visit to the Lincoln memorial...

Including a chance to get up close and personal with Abe himself!

The Wombat was convinced that the Washington Memorial had shrunk! But it was patiently explained to him that it was "just far away".

After looking at the monuments to dead presidents, it was time to try and catch a glimpse of a live one... Here he is at the White House (looking the wrong way).

Happy New Year from the Travelling Wombat

2010-01-01T22:22:00.001Z

During 2009, The Wombat visited all parts of the UK (England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland), the Republic of Ireland, Italy, Austria, Belgium, China, and several places in the USA.

Where will 2010 take him?

Hopefully further than this morning's sorry scene, after The Wombat's New Year's Eve celebrations...