LifePart2.com Retirement Travel Blog
Cost of Living in Merida, Mexico
Living in Merida, Mexico Shelley's Home in Merida, Mexico Merida is fast becoming one of the top destinations in Mexico’s Yucatan Peninsula. Visitors and ex-pats alike are flocking to Merida for its high quality of life and low cost of living. Merida is also becoming...
Cost of Living in Nairobi
Nairobi, Kenya - Photo CC by Nina R Kenya is a land of extremes: of safari and sea, the second-highest mountain in Africa and the longest rift on earth, of snowy peaks and tropical equatorial rainforests. Much like its geography, life in Kenya is equally diverse, rich...
Three Days in Ragusa, Sicily: A Guide
Ragusa Ibla Viewed from Ragusa Superiore After a relaxing two days in the Sicilian countryside, it was time to move on. Our lovely hosts at Kapuhala dropped us off at nearby Rosolini station for the just over an hour train journey to Ragusa, a UNESCO town, where we...
Ortigia Island and Siracusa, Sicily Guide
Cathedral of Syracuse in Ortigia Sicily Ever arrived in a place and immediately thought you could live there - that was the effect Ortigia had on Jonathan and me. The small island of Ortigia is the historic centre of Siracusa in Sicily. Slightly larger than one square...
Linguaglossa, the Circumetnea Train and Mount Etna
The Circumetnea Train Part One - Riposto to Linguaglossa The Circumetnea Train to Linguaglossa Jonathan and I love watching travel shows for inspiration for future trips. One such show featured a cute little train, the Circumetnea which went from Riposto through...
Why We Fell For Catania, Sicily
View of Catania From the Church of the Abbey of Saint Agatha We started our Sicilian adventure in Catania, Sicily’s second-largest city, after Palermo. It’s located on Sicily’s east coast facing the Ionian Sea and lies under the shadow of Mount Etna. Following the...
Visiting Taormina Sicily
Leaving Catania, Sicily On A Rainy Day After a fabulous three days exploring Catania, it was time to move on to our next spot on our Sicilian adventure - Taormina. We had heard mixed reports about the place: tourists loved it, while locals and ex-pats hated it,...
Kapuhala Farm Stay (Agriturismo) in Sicily
When our friends at Kapuhala in Sicily invited us to stay for a couple of nights at their new boutique heritage farm stay, we leapt at the opportunity. Jonathan and I had been busy exploring the major towns and cities along Sicily’s east coast - Catania, Siracusa and...
Fort St Angelo in the Three Cities of Malta
Fort Saint Angelo on a Stormy Day From Our Balcony From our balcony overlooking Malta’s Grand Harbour, we can see the island’s iconic Fort St Angelo that’s located at the end of the Birgu peninsular. But despite having lived in the Three Cities for a year, we had...
Ggantija Temple
Ġgantija Temples on Gozo, Malta Officially recognised by UNESCO as one of the oldest freestanding buildings in the world, the Ġgantija Neolithic temples, located just outside Xagħra in Gozo, are over 5,500 years old. Older than even the pyramids in Egypt and...
Ħal Saflieni Hypogeum
The Ħal Saflieni Hypogeum is a prehistoric burial site. It’s believed to date back to around 4000 BC, with more recent remains found dating to the Early Bronze Age (approx 1500BC). That’s older than the pyramids in Egypt and Stonehenge in England. We are talking...
Mdina, Malta
The charming walled city of Mdina, perched high on a hilltop, at the highest point of Malta was the island’s first capital city. Its history dates back more than 4000 years, so it’s considerably older than Valletta, the current capital. This gorgeous medieval town...
The Red Tower of Malta (Saint Agatha’s Tower)
Saint Agatha’s Tower aka The Red Tower The Red Tower of Malta The recently refurbished Saint Agatha’s Tower, more commonly referred to as the Red Tower and sometimes the Mellieha Tower is located in the north of Malta near the town of Mellieha. The tower is perched on...
Driving in Malta
Thinking Of Hiring A Car And Driving In Malta? We don’t own a car and love the freedom of not having to drive in Malta. No worries about insurance, fuel, car maintenance, parking and we are doing our little bit for the environment, plus it leaves us with more money...
Malta Cart Ruts (Misrah Ghar il-Kbir – Clapham Junction)
Cart Ruts in Malta The mysterious prehistoric cart ruts of Misrah Ghar il-Kbir (informally known as Clapham Junction, named after a busy train station in London) can be found in Siġġiewi, near the Dingli Cliffs in the south of Malta. What Are The Cart Ruts? The cart...
Should You Go To Popeye Village When You Visit Malta?
Popeye Village is a purpose-built movie set village for the Popeye film that has since been converted into a small attraction fun park. It is located at Anchor Bay Malta which is three kilometres (two miles) from Mellieha. It was originally built as a film set for the...
Maltese Maritime Quotes and Idioms
It’s another gloriously sunny day here in Senglea, our current hometown in the Three Cities by Malta’s Grand Harbour. The harbourside benches, where the Maltese gather to chat and soak up the sunshine, have been painted in bright colours. Recently, fun Maltese...
When Enough Is Enough
How Great It Feels To Know I Have Enough I am a 59-year-old American. I don't own a home. I don't own a car. The furniture that I sit upon and the bed that I sleep in is not my own. Most of the mementos that I accumulated over the years are gone. I have no...
Visiting Auschwitz – What You Need To Know Beforehand
A Brief History Of Auschwitz Auschwitz II - Birkenau Auschwitz, the largest of the Nazi concentration and death camps, opened in 1940. It began as a detention centre for political prisoners. However, the base soon evolved into a network of centres where Jewish people...
Wieliczka Salt Mine Near Krakow
The Entrance To The Wieliczka Salt Mine Being so close to Krakow, the Wieliczka Salt Mine, a.k.a the Krakow Salt Mine (probably because that’s easier to say and remember), makes for a great side trip from the city. It’s one of the world’s oldest salt mines -...
Jon & Sarah
It seemed almost inevitable that we, Jonathan and Sarah, would one day meet: two independent travellers from different corners of the globe, we shared a bond that many travellers experience, a mutual love of adventure and a belief that the planet is a better place when people leave their comfort zones and discover new lands and cultures. So, when our paths finally
