I quickly played with OpenAI’s new Text-To-Speech model to check if it’s an alternative to Google’s API. And wow! English is fantastic and even German is not bad. Just some syllables in German have a weird English accent. But even then, it’s still good. But sadly, it’s also a bit costly. Let’s wait a few months until it gets cheaper and better, and you can enjoy my blog’s “Read aloud” feature even more. 😉

The last week was really rainy, so I didn’t leave the flat much. And now walking at sunset time, everything looks so pretty.

Almost a full yearly cycle since my first post. The leaves are starting to get colorful again. 🍂

Fun fact: Since I started tracking my train journeys in mid-May, I’ve already spent almost 7 whole days on trains. 🚄

I acquired a new, fancy domain for a new side project. A site with tips on how to save money on purchases is something I would like to start. The search for a CMS reminds me of why I built GoBlog: all available options are not optimal. But GoBlog also isn’t optimal for this project for various reasons, as it shouldn’t be a typical personal blog. And now I have this really cool domain and question my plans. 😅

The field near my second home… Walking here reminds me of when I walked here a year and a half ago, debating whether to accept the new job offer. It feels like an eternity ago. But it was a good decision!

The angle of the sun wasn’t perfect for this photo, but it turned out to be an unexpected highlight during our hike around Thurso today.

Is this the Hogwarts Express? 🚂🧙

At least we had the perfect weather at that moment (every five minutes it changed between sun and rain) and also a perfect place for a nice view of the Jacobite Steam Train passing the Glenfinnan Viaduct.

With a backpack full of stuff for two weeks, we managed to walk 11km on the West Highland Way in 2:35h. I feel it in my legs, but the views and the experience are worth it.

London is on a whole different scale when it comes to size. It has roughly the same population as Berlin, Hamburg, Munich, Cologne, and Frankfurt combined, and those cities are already quite large. 🤯

I can’t quite recall it being this enormous when I visited briefly during a language learning trip some years ago.

From The Shard, everything appears so tiny, it almost gives the impression of being fake.