Nan

Dodge I love the pics of the harbour, it's such a beautiful harbour isn't it. I wondered if that was the cruise ship that left a few nights ago later than normal, because my cousin left on a Pacific cruise and the ship was late leaving. She got a fantastic pic looking back at the Harbour Bridge and it was around that time of night. Thanks for putting the pics up for us to see, it's been years since I was in Sydney (where I grew up) and great to see them.

I was told once by an agent who did a lot of bookings for our resort, that they had a complaint from travellers who said the cruise ship in the photo on the holiday brochure was not in the view from their bungalow and they therefore requested a refund. There are so many ways that travellers try to get their holiday money refunded or get free upgrades, meals etc. I think I've heard most of them and I think there are some who book a holiday through a travel agency with the intent to find some reason to ask for a refund or a free holiday somewhere else lol

My husband and I were in the hospitality industry for many years, we managed an island resort in the Pacific and later ran a large motel in coastal Australia. I was sent this by a friend who knew I would understand and I had to share. This is a list from Thomas Cook Holidays listing some of their clientele’s genuine complaints. 1. "I think it should be explained in the brochure that the local store in Indian villages does not sell proper biscuits like custard creams or ginger nuts." 2. "It's lazy of the local shopkeepers to close in the afternoons. I often needed to buy things during 'siesta' time -- this should be banned." 3. "On my holiday to Goa in India , I was disgusted to find that almost every restaurant served curry. I don't like spicy food at all." 4. "We booked an excursion to a water park but no-one told us we had to bring our swimming costumes and towels." 7. "The beach was too sandy." 8. "We found the sand was not like the sand in the brochure. Your brochure shows the sand as yellow but it was white." 10. "Topless sunbathing on the beach should be banned. The holiday was ruined as my husband spent all day looking at other women." 12. "No-one told us there would be fish in the sea. The children were startled." 13. "There was no egg-slicer in the apartment." 14. "We went on holiday to Spain and had a problem with the taxi drivers as they were all Spanish." 15. "The roads were uneven.." 16. "It took us nine hours to fly home from Jamaica to England . It took the Americans only three hours to get home." 17. "I compared the size of our one-bedroom apartment to our friends' three-bedroom apartment and ours was significantly smaller." 18. "The brochure stated: 'No hairdressers at the accommodation'. We're trainee hairdressers -- will we be OK staying there?" 19. "There are too many Spanish people. The receptionist speaks Spanish. The food is Spanish. Too many foreigners now live abroad." 20. "We had to queue outside with no air-conditioning." 21. "It is your duty as a tour operator to advise us of noisy or unruly guests before we travel." 22. "I was bitten by a mosquito. No-one said they could bite." 23. "My fiancé and I booked a twin-bedded room but we were placed in a double-bedded room. We now hold you responsible for the fact that I find myself pregnant. This would not have happened if you had put us in the room that we booked."

This is my own recipe, it's very quick to cook, simple and quite tasty so I thought I'd share: Chicken breasts or boned chicken thighs (chicken thigh is darker in colour but has more flavour) Onion Garlic Kechap Manis (a sweet Indonesian soy sauce - available in all supermarkets) Cut the chicken into medium size pieces and cook in a non-stick pan with a little olive oil - then remove Add sliced onion and garlic and when the onion is translucent return the chicken to the pan Cook until the chicken is slightly browned Add Kechap Manis sauce - quantity depends on how much chicken you have, so enough to coat the chicken is needed Stir all ingredients together and simmer until chicken is cooked. Serve with a nice mixed salad and crusty warm bread - you can also serve on a bed of boiled rice. I have added a pic of a bottle of kechap manis for those who are wondering. There are several brands available and this is the one I use.

LOL

That looks really nice engines, I guess those who walk their dogs will have to go out on the road to pass your house

That's really interesting Henry, thanks !!

A preacher said, "Anyone with 'special needs' who wants to be prayed over, please come to the front by the altar." With that, a Glasgow man got in line, and when it was his turn, the Preacher asked, ... "Jimmy, what do you want me to pray about for you?" Jimmy replied, "Preacher, I need you to pray for help with my hearing." The preacher put one finger of one hand in Jim’s ear, placed his other hand on top of Jim’s head, and then prayed and prayed and prayed. He prayed to the 'Almighty' for Jimmy, and the whole congregation joined in with great enthusiasm. After a few minutes, the preacher removed his hands, stood back and asked, "Well Jimmy, how is your hearing now?" Jimmy answered, "I don't know. It ain't 'til next Tuesday!"

Ohhh, I guess I didn't check the link closely enough, thanks Livvy - and I recommend anyone who likes a good read should check out the blog the stories are really excellent.

The 26th of January is Australia Day. It's a day similar to the American 4th of July, when we celebrate being Australians. A friend of mine (and fellow chatter in one of our rooms) who is also a fantastic blogger, made a video to express how she feels about Australia Day, and I thought I would share it with all my friends in other countries. If you would like to read Livvy's blogs, you will find the link at the end of the video.

LOL good one !

LOL what a good idea

Well written and thought provoking, I hope millions of people read his words.

Happy Birthday Hawk! Hope you have a fantastic day !

Such sad news - R.I.P Spike, you were a much loved member of our koach.com family.

Happy Birthday Overdose - it's belated but hope you enjoyed the day

Happy belated birthday Devenox - hope you had a great day

ROFL !!!!!

LOL

LOL love it, that cat is chillin !!! love his facial expressions

Seems we all use Facebook these days --

Happy Birthday Alicia - hope you have a lovely fun day !

Happy Birthday Sky - hope you have a good day

This cat seems to be tempting fate lol

Happy Birthday err0r - have a great day !!!