I’ve been using Windows Vista since Friday, and I’ve been very pleased with it. It looks beautiful, it’s fast and it’s been very stable (knock, knock), but the new User Account Control security measures are ridiculous. What UAC does is ask you if it is okay to do something, basically every time you want to open a window or perform an action. This means that you get bombarded with pop-up windows that ask you if you want to Cancel or Allow the action, even for things that you just clicked on yourself. What’s especially annoying is that the pop-up window disables your entire desktop and has a black background, so your screen is constantly flashing to black. I switched the feature off after one day of frustration, but now Windows keeps telling me that my system is not secure, which I suppose it isn’t anymore. More »

In January 2007 we traveled to The Gambia on a 9-day package tour that included flight, transfers and accomodation. We hired a guide to take us on a 5-day upriver birdwatching trip along with three hard-core Finnish birders. We did not travel independently outside of the resort area, and many of these tips are meant for those who will visit The Gambia in a similar fashion. More »

We went to The Gambia for 11 days earlier this month, and saw about 150 birds, 134 of which we managed to photograph. They have now all been added to our online lifelist. More »

Kingfishers in the Netherlands are doing exceptionally well due to the recent mild winters. In the Dutch language they are called ijsvogels, which means ice birds. Despite that name, the birds do not fare well in cold winters. More »

From 5 to 15 January 2007 we were in The Gambia where we did a five-day birdwatching safari upriver to Georgetown and saw 177 different species of birds. I have just published a new travel photo album with 51 photos of this trip. More »

Many countries have a euphemism for common traveller’s gastrointestinal disorders, like diarrhea, abdominal cramps, nausea and bloating. For instance, in India they say Delhi Belly, and in Egypt they use the phrase Pharaoh’s Revenge. Here is a list of international terms. More »

In the past couple of days, 43 baby seals have been brought to the seal shelter Zeehondencreche in Pieterburen, a town in the north of the Netherlands. The babies lost their mothers and were washed ashore during rough seas. More »

Scubadorables are cute and colorful reef fish of the kind you will find around coral reefs when you go scuba diving. On www.scubadorable.com you will find Butterflyfish, Angelfish, Damselfish and many other popular fish from around the world, which have all been cutified closely matching the original shape and colors. They are available on t-shirts, mugs, bags, hats and more! More »

It is now one minute into 2007 — Happy New Year everyone! Earlier tonight I completed our 2006 yearbook. We traveled to many great places in 2006: we saw tigers in India, dived in the Keys, canoed in Brittany and had tapas in Madrid. I’m looking forward to a great 2007. More »

Just in time, here’s my Best & Worst of 2006. More »