Basque Country; Biarritz & Bilbao

The Basque Country of the western Pyrenees spans the border between France and Spain along the Atlantic coast. The French side of this multicultural region is known as Northern Basque Country whereas the Spanish side is known simply as Basque Country. The Basque region has developed its own language called 'Euskara', however French and Spainish are more commonly spoken in their respective countries these days. So there's a quick geography / history lesson for you.

Anyway our first stop in Basque Country was Biarritz, France which is 38km north of the Spanish border. We were delayed leaving Nice due to a refueling strike which was a pain, however all wasn't as bad as it seemed as we were able to catch some of Germany-Argentina game (well Stu did anyway) as well as do a bit of wifi surfing to find out how to get to the hotel once we arrived. At first it seemed that we had no choice but to take a 30 euro taxi, but a review on trusty Tripadvisor came to the rescue and advised that the STAB buses (yes terrible acronym I know) runs "Le Bus Des Plages" which for 1.20 euro would drop us off right outside of our hotel - bargain!

After checking into the hotel and scoring what would be the first of two upgrades in Basque Country (LUCKYYYYY!!), we decided to head down into town for a late dinner and stroll along the beach. Walking down via the cliff walks and later the beach promenades, we were truly able to appreciate the beautiful scenery that we had heard so much about in our planning. For those of your who haven't already seen the photos on Facebook - you must check them out (although they don't quite do the views justice)!

Sitting at the beach after dinner was quite a treat as we were able to watch the surfers catching the last of the days waves as dusk settled in. Quite the change to the calm waters of Nice, Biarritz receives the full brunt of the Atlantic ocean which batters the coastline with giant wave after giant wave. As a result the town has become quite the surfing mecca, bringing surfers from all over the globe - even hosting international surfing competitions! In fact we just missed the Roxy Pro which was being held the weekend after we left! Doh! Anyway as darkness fell the temperature (and our eyelids) started to drop - so it was time to head off to bed!

The following morning we decided we would explore the coastline further by following the mapped tourist walk which happened to start just outside our hotel (that's handy); first stop the beautiful white lighthouse which Stu decided we were going to climb for a better view. 250 steps later we were at the top and were taking in the breathtaking 360 degree view of the rugged coastline and the immensely powerful sea. There was a nice breeze too which was greatly appreciated after the 250 step climb - he he! From here we followed the cliff walk back through the town via Miramar, Grand Beach and Point Atalaye, past the old port which was being battered by waves (how anyone drives there boat in there I have no idea) and out to the amazing Rocher de la Vierge (via the rusty bridge) and finally ended up at Basque Coast beach which was the final stop on our walk. You can see all of these spots in our Facebook photos.

Our next stop in Basque Country was Bilbao, Spain, home of the famous Guggenheim museum designed by Frank Gehry (one of my favourite architects!!). After a 3 hr bus ride through the beautiful countryside of Southern France and Northern Spain, we arrived at Bilbao's Termibus just in time to catch the eco-tram along the turfed tracks to the Guggenheim and our hotel, Hotel Miro. Arriving at the hotel tired and sweaty from dragging our suitcases up the grand Guggenheim staircase, we were surprised yet again with another upgrade to a "Guggenheim View Room" (which I had secretly wanted all along - YAY) and also found out that the Hotel had a complimentary self service bar downstairs for the guests to use! Bagless and our thirsts quenched we headed out towards the Guggenheim for a closer look and to check out the exhibits by Anish Kapoor, Richard Serra, Robert Rauschenberg (as well as the permenant collection also held in the museum). We were able to sneak a few photos in of the interior of the building as well as Richard Serra's "The Matter of Time" before being told "Ola... no pictures"! Ah well! My obsession with the building not quite quashed, we walked around its perimeter and across the neighbouring bridge (also very impressive) for a better look. It's amazing how different the building looks from every angle and in the different lights of day. This is the reason that we have such a HUGE collection of photos (most which are on Facebook) - if you're into you're architecture they're all definitely worth a look-see!

The following day we decided to explore the city further (with another stop at the Guggenheim - sorry I couldn't help myself), walking along the river towards the old town which we had heard was a must see. Unfortunately when we got there not much appeared to be happening, that was until we heard a humongous *BANG*! Realising that it was 12 o'clock and not a terrorist attack, we headed towards the shots to find men dressed in traditional clothes, firing small rockets into the air all the while being accompanied by a 3 piece band! To this day we're not sure what it was for or if this was a daily occurrence, but it was quite amusing to watch! Once the rockets had stopped we headed back over the bridge and into the newer, greener part of town and back out to the river for a walk to the maritime museum. Unfortunately for Stu the museum was shut so we had to make do with the boats moored in the dry dock outside. Stu's disappointment was short-lived as he soon found out about a funicular (cable car) which climbed the hill behind Bilbao center to a viewing platform above. So Maritime Museum forgotten, we headed up there for a look and to take some photos. The view did not disappoint and again you can see all the shots on Facebook.

The following morning (ridiculously early) we were back on the bus headed back to Biarritz to pick up our hire car and start our 4.5 hour drive north. Next stop Coral and Billy's beautiful "Moulin Du Goth", Creysse - i'm so excited!!

To check out our photos of Basque Country CLICK HERE FOR BIARRITZ and CLICK HERE FOR BILBAO.

Ooo das NICE!

Now that we finally have wifi again you are going to be flooded with blog installments - hope your little eyes are ready for all the reading!

Today I'm going to start with Nice, our first stop and home base for a fantastic week on the beautiful Cote D'Azur!

After an epic day on the tarmac and rails (11hrs in total) we finally arrived in beautiful Nice! Both Stu and I were desperate to go for a swim after the miles and miles of tempting azur water that passed us by, however that would have to wait as we had to check into our apartment and meet the oldies and Danny!

It was so lovely to see my grandparents again (and you too Dan!) - I could see their beaming smiles from across the carpark! Once we were all settled into our shoe box (read: studio apartment) it was time to hit the town and few glasses of red wine and dinner (moules frite).

A short stroll from the apartment was the Promenade D'Anglaise which stretches down the entire beach front from the airport to the old port! There is always something to do and see on the Promenade so it was a daily fixture (as you will see in our photos). The beach in Nice is pebbly but the sea is a calm, azur blue - so a swim (or dip of the toes) is a must!

Our first day together we decided to explore Nice further on an open top bus. These tours are always a great way to explore a city if you only have a short time as they point out the main sights (it's also good for the oldies who don't walk far). Starting from the Promenade we cruised past the old port (best place for food) and up into the hills for a spectacular view over the city. From here we cruised back down into town, past the Matiz museum, Massina Square and the Russian church. Once we were off the bus we sought shelter from the blistering heat in a local cafe for some milkshakes and to watch England get smashed by the Germans in the World Cup (very sad).

Day 2 we headed to Monaco and Monte Carlo on the train (only 20 mins south) and again decided on an open top bus tour. We walked around the marina (past row after row of luxury super yachts) to the closest stop. 30 minutes later we were still waiting as every bus that drove past was full - something had to be going on! Ah a cruise ship had jus docked in town that's why! So we headed off to try our luck at another stop (pre cruise terminal) - success! After a lap of Monaco and Monte Carlo along the famous race track - we hopped off the bus to check out the Royal Family's Car Museum! This was a real treat for the boys as there were over 100 cars ranging from the Ford Model T, to the Ferrari Daytona and even the latest Mercedes concept car! From here we headed to the famous Monte Carlo Casino for a flit on the pokies (no winnings I'm afraid)! The casino really lived up to it's reputation with super cars lining it's forcourt - they were even filming a new film called "Monte Carlo" at the adjacent Hotel De Paris! Very flash! With two hours to spare before the train we headed up to the Exotic Gardens to check out the view over Monaco! By the time we got up there we decided to pass on the gardens - settling on a photo of Danny next to a cardboard cutout of the gardens (we named it Jewish Exotic Garden) and a tasty beverage in the terrace cafe! Perfect end to the day!

Day 3 we picked up a hire car and headed east towards St Tropez and Cannes. St Tropez is 130km and a million traffic jams away from Nice. Who'd have though such a popular place would only have one road in and out. When we finally arrived in St Tropez we opted for a drink at a local beach bar to check out the scenery. The beach here is completely different to Nice - while it has golden sand the sea is darker in colour - strange considering were not that far away. Anyway we continued our journey to the port and were again greeted by huge super yachts - they seem like quite the staple in the Med. The port is very quaint and very Italian looking (and rammed full of tourists - explains the traffic jam). We wandered around the port past the local artists and ice cream stands and climbed the sea wall for a better view. From here we headed back towards Nice via Cannes. I must admit we were a little disappointed with Cannes - while the beach is sandy like St Tropez the city is dirty and has a tacky 60s vibe about it. Not as glitzy and glamourous as you'd imagine. Either way it was still nice to see and obviously still as popular as ever.

Day 4 we were back in the car for a trip into the hinterland. My grandparents came to the Cote D'Azur 51 years ago on their honeymoon and had fond memories of a quaint artsy medieval town called St Paul de Vence. While it wasn't located on out map - Vence and St Paul were (2 seperate medieval towns). We first headed to Vence which turned out not to be the town we were looking for but was so pretty that we explored it's walled town anyway. From here we headed to St Paul via Col de Vence a craggy peak 950m above sea level with breath-taking views to the ocean. We finally reached St Paul, a hilltop walled town that hurrah is also known as St Paul de Vence. According to my grandparents the town hadn't changed much in 50 years (only the style of art) - the same restaurant they dined in was even still there over looking the local vineyard! Amazing! This town is definately a must see!

Day 5 and we were down to 4 after Danny headed back to work in London. Now car and driverless we decided to take the train to Grasse - a town famous for it's perfumeries. On our arrival we headed to Fragonard, the most famous of all perfumeries in the area and took their free tour. It was fascinating to learn how scents are extracted and perfumes created. Apparently becoming "a nose" (scent creator) is quite difficult and there are only a few "noses" in the world today (most in Grasse). We of course couldn't leave empty handed and each purchased a memento before further exploring the city. After checking out the small streets, local church and view point it was soon time to head back to Nice and to get the grandparents off to Rome.

Day 6 - the day of rest, sun, sea and sand. With everone gone and a jam packed week behind us, Stu and I settled for some English magazines and a day lazing on the sun loungers of the Opera Plague beach club. We finally got to swim in the azur waters of the French Rivera!

Location:Nice, Cote D'Azur

Bellagio on Lake Como

After hours.....and hours on trains, on foot and even on a hydrofoil, we had left the hustle bustle, beggars and gypsies of Venice behind us and we had arrived in the lakeside village of Bellagio, located on the shores of Lake Como. The lake is shapes like a giant Y, and Bellagio sits on the peninsular that separates the two different “arms” of the lake, so the views from there in all directions are amazing!

After arriving pretty late in the afternoon on our first day, we checked into our hotel, checked out the amazing view from our window over the lake and up to the mountains, and then went for a bit of an explore around town, and sat down our hotels restaurant for what would be one of the best meals so far on our travels. It was funny because we were sitting at The Suisse Hotel, in Italy, eating French food, so I guess the EU is working!

There was something not quite right about this town, and we could not quite put our fingers on it! The following morning i had a revelation as to what it was about Bellagio that was a bit odd..... rangas..... everywhere.... daywalkers, nightwalkers, and even one unfortunate looking nightwalker that we saw down at the port who from the smell of him had wet himself..... not a pretty smell, and we never again saw him out in the daylight.

On the second day, we realised that if we were to get to Nice the following day we had to leave Bellagio on the 6am bus, catch a train from Como to Milan, and then another from Ventamiglia to Monaco, and then another into Nice, which was a full day of travelling, meaning we only had one day left to explore this amazing little villiage!

Team captain Natasha discovered a couple of walking tours, which guided us through the old streets of the town, and then over the peninsular through a few of the other communities which make up the area of Bellagio! The area is full of gigantic villas that for hundreds of years have been the holiday escapes for the rich and famous of Italy, at present, George Clooney, the guy that owns Guinness beer, and Richard Branson (among others) both have a villa located on the shores!

“Bellagio is a small community of about 26 communities, with 3000 residents, and one Australian – my wife” quoted our boat skipper as we took off from the shore to go and check out a few of the villages on the other side of the lake. He was a local who married an Australian woman and he was not short of jokes, some of them were nearly as funny as some of my jokes! When asked where he got the boat from, he convinced an American tourist that he got the boats from IKEA, much to our entertainment, however the Americans just didn’t get the joke, and must have now returned to America searching for IKEA the great boat builder! After a tour around the lake, we arrived at Villa Balbianello, which has been the set of many movies in its day, the most recent of which was the 007 movie, Casino Royale, in which this place plays host to Bond towards the end of the movie. This amazing Villa plays host to millions and millions of dollars worth of ancient art and was left to the Italian Heritage Trust by a wealthy explorer called Guido Monzano, who lived there until he died in the late 80’s. There is a room in the house which is set up as a memorial to his travels with gear he used to get to the summit of Everest, and the North Pole. He was also a bit of a freak, leaving many crazy demands to do with the maintenance of the property, including only cutting the entire garden using hand tools (to stop the noise of powertools), and also that twice a year the crushed white rock, which makes up all of the pathways and roads on the property, is to be raked up and washed so it remains white. These are probably a few of the reasons he died alone with millions of dollars and no wife or kids to leave the estate to!

On our return to the shores of Bellagio, we grabbed a quick French dinner...... at the Suisse Hotel.... in Italy, and called it a day, knowing we had to get up at 5 the next morning to make the 6am bus, and knowing the lack of organisation in the Italian public transport system, hoping that all of the busses and trains would line up and we would make it to Nice the following day!

Check out our Bellagio photos at http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=445667&id=664955104&l=59ada72d9e or CLICK HERE

Venice; The Floating City

Hello and welcome to the next instalment of ChickenStew’s Travel Recipes from Around the World. As some of you may know we’ve spent the past few days exploring Italy’s floating (or sinking) city; Venice. Regardless of the floating/sinking argument, Venice is and will always be beautiful as you imagine it to be. Stepping out of the train station we were greeted with a bustling waterfront. There were ferries, gondolas, water taxis, delivery barges and even canoes vying for a spot on the Grand Canal. It was very weird not to see streams of scooters, cars and bicycles roaring through as we had seen throughout so many of our Italian stops. Map in hand, we boarded a ferry bound for the famous Rialto Bridge and our hotel. Quickly glancing at the map in between my tourist gawks of the beautiful Grand Canal I decided that we had to climb over the Rialto Bridge to reach out hotel. Turns out I was wrong and after wandering aimlessly for a few minutes, we worked out that I had been reading the map back to front - durr. I would make a rubbish Scout. So we (well Stu) heaved our heavy suitcases back over the Rialto Bridge and in the right direction of our hotel. Turning down a tiny street we started hearing cheers and groans coming from a tiny pub. Turns out we have just stumbled right into the middle of the Italia-New Zealand game. Deciding then and there that we had to return to this pub to catch the end of the game (it’s always fun watching the Italian supporters) we hurriedly checked into the hotel and were back at the pub within minutes of the second half. Stu decided that this would be the one and only time he would support New Zealand in a sporting match (Stu: unless they ever play England!). Once the game was over we headed towards St Marks Square (San Marco) along the tiny back streets and over the canals. Arriving at the square we found it to be completely flooded – now where do we go? Oh well only one thing to do – take off our shoes, roll up our jeans and get wet. We splashed out way though the square towards the Doges Palace and towards higher ground. What fun – was just like being a child again! Anyway when we reaching the waterfront and strolling down towards the parks, we were amazed to see how many gondolas and cruise ships were in the lagoon. They were everywhere. We found a small restaurant for dinner and were surprised to be serenaded by not only the restaurant owner but one of the waitresses as well. How very Venice.

Day 2 we awoke to grey skies and occasional showers (not again!) so we decided that the day would be best spent exploring the streets and checking out the local museums. All in all we had another Lord of the Rings day (see Stu’s blog “How far did you walk today from 0 to Lord of the Rings”). We headed over the Academia Bridge towards the Peggy Guggenheim Museum (highly recommended by Jen as a must do in Venice). The museum was amazing and definitely worth the visit. I got an audio guide (a must do) which explained how the museum used to be Peggy’s home and how she came about to collect so many famous pieces. It also went on to describe many of the pieces within the museum – fascinating stories. One funny story which I have to share was that of the statue sitting proudly on Grand Canal terrace. The statue is of a naked figure sitting upright (in more ways than one) on top of a horse, worshipping the skies. According the audio guide, the sculptor made the figures “member” removable for when discretion was required. Peggy soon had the member welded on when people started stealing it. As such the “member” now stands proud, welded in place for all to see. From the Guggenheim museum we headed around the point (and the statue of the boy with his frog) towards to cruise terminal to check out the boats in port. From here we again got lost in the tiny streets until we found our way back to St Marks Square (flooded again) and the looming Queen Victoria parked alongside the boardwalk. Unfortunately we didn’t get to splash our way through the square this time as the fun police (Stu) didn’t want to get his feet wet. Finding another way around the flooded square we headed for a closer look of the Queen Victoria before grabbing dinner and heading back to the hotel and calling it a night.

Day 3 we awoke to bright blue sunny skies – hurrah! Deciding that today would be best spent cruising the waterways and lagoons of Venice, we purchased a 12 hour ferry pass and boarded Ferry (Line 1) for a cruise down the Grand Canal towards the island of Lido (and the beach). Arriving at Lido we strolled down the main street towards the beach. Lido is very much like Noosa in many ways, the pavements are wide and lined with trees, alfresco cafes and gelatarias. The way of life seems a lot slower here – it’s nice. Reaching the beach we kicked off our havianas and headed past the little beach huts and umbrellas to dip our toes in the ocean. From Lido we boarded another ferry back to the main island so that we could take another to the island of Murano – famous the world over for its glass. Whilst we managed to score amazing seats at the front of the boat, poor Stu was unlucky enough to sit down wind from an Eastern European gentleman who had the worst case of BO we had ever encountered. Poor Stu didn’t get to enjoy the scenery at all, having to look back at Lido Island the entire trip to the main island. Luckily we were spared the company of our new friends on the second ferry and were able to kick back and enjoy the passing scenery as we circumnavigated the main island enroute to Murano. Stu would like me to add here that we passed the cemetery island where rumour has it the Venetians are just dying to get to. Ha ha ha... hmmm. While we were in Murano we strolled the main street checking out all of the amazing glass wares and were even lucky enough to watch a glass blowing demonstration – very cool. From Murano we headed back to St Marks Square to enjoy the live music streaming from the restaurants within the square. I even managed to con a local pigeon to fly onto my arm for a photo op. Stu thinks that this pigeon will come back to get me when I least expect it. I hope not, then again I heard that being pooed on is considered a sign of good luck? Still gross.

Day 4, another bright sunny day in the floating city. Having seen most of Venice over the past two day, we decided to once again get lost in the small maze of streets that is the city and see what we could find. Heading over the Rialto Bridge we wandered through the local markets; stand after stand of colourful, fresh fruit and veg. There was also a fish market where we saw two huge whole tunas as well as numerous different kinds of shellfish. Stu recognised a langoustine (shrimp like crustacean with claws) whose shell he had battled during one dinner in Prague. From here we kept walking (more Lord of the Rings) until it was time to settle down to watch England vs. Slovenia with a huge cocktail at Hard Rock Cafe. One yummy pina colada down, we soon realised that they were only showing the USA vs. Algeria and hurried to our local to watch the game. While at the pub we met a lovely Australian couple from Melbourne who had been in Italy for the past 7 weeks. Getting onto the topic of Italian shoes and then somehow on to Oliver Footwear, we soon discovered that this couple owned Aquila and knew Stu’s old boss. Small world huh? They also introduced us to an Australian drink called “Black and Tan” (must be a Melbournian thing because we had never heard of it) – ½ lager, ½ Guinness. Sounds disgusting but it was actually quite nice. Anyway a few hours later, England and the US had both gotten through to the next stage and after a quick dinner, we were back in the pub to watch Australia thrash Serbia. Turned out to be quite the football afternoon.

Well that was how we spent our time in Venice. As I write this blog we are now sitting on a Eurostar City train bound for Milan where we have to catch our next train to Lake Como and the beautiful lakeside town of Bellagio. Only two more days in Italy before we hit France. Ok time for me to sign off and enjoy the passing scenery. Ciao for now.

To view photos of Venice CLICK HERE or visit http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=445619&id=664955104&l=7fb8f00d9a

Hmmm Florentine Steak!

Hello Tasha here with another installment of our blog; this time about Florence. As I am writing this Stu is desperately searching the local TV channels for the Australia-Ghana game. Hold on he's hijacking the computer for a TV guide... be right back...

.. Ok it appears that the Italian free to air channels only show the last game of each day - no fun! Guess Stu will have to settle for the live online updates for now. Fingers crossed Australia has better luck this game!

Anyway back to the blog. So today is the last day of our 3 day stint in Florence and what a fantastic time we've had - this place is amazing! I think the best way to describe Florence would be "a quaint Tuscan town with the pulse of Rome". Not sure if that makes sense but what i'm trying to say is that Florence is ancient and modern all at the same time. As Stu mentioned in our last blog, our hotel is right on the Arno river near the famous Ponte Vecchio so we've got a great base camp to explore from.

We arrived by bus around lunch time on Thursday and were greeted with grey storms clouds - oh no! Having a vague idea where the bus dropped us, we headed in the direction of the river dragging out luggage behind us along the small cobbled pavements (and prayed that the rain would hold out). About 5 blocks and 4 dead arms later, we arrived at our hotel and checked in. Dumping our bags we headed straight out towards the Ponte Vecchio when it starts to rain.. hard! Ducking into a cafe for a sandwich the heavens open will full force; rain, hail, thunder and lightening! Lets say we ate pretty slow! Once the weather had died down we headed back out into the streets (umbrella's at the ready) to check out the famous jewellers of the Ponte Vecchio! Amazing stuff there girls...

From there we headed towards the Duomo to climb Brunelleschi's famous dome (al a Kevin McCloud's Grand Tour). As we pay the entrance fee we see a sign "450+ steps to the top" - argh! Heading up the steps everything seemed ok... until we got to the tiny, claustrophobic stone spiral staircase! We kept climbing and climbing the tiny windowless staircase (ok there were the occasional windows but nowhere near enough for my claustrophobic liking) until we reached the platform into interior dome. As we walked through the door we were hit with a beautiful fresco painting on the dome ceiling (see facebook shots). The walkway covered 180 degrees of the dome, giving us a great view of the art work in all it's glory. We were then back into a tiny corridor to continue our climb to the top - and what a climb it was. Up and up we went between the inner and outer domes for what felt like forever until we finally reach the top. What a view - definitely worth the 8 euro and mental anguish (for me anyway). Just now to survive the narrow corridors and stairwells on the way down.... (which we did). Actually I have to add here that on the way down we were almost died... not by falling, not by a claustrophobic panic attack but by a tourist who decided that the windowless, narrow stairwell would be a good time to drop a fart. Lucky there were no children around, it smell so bad that I think it could have killed a small child. Lets just say this fart was so bad it would have turned Stu into an Ambipure air-freshener by comparison! But enough about farts... arriving at the bottom (no pun intended) it was soon dinner time and we decided to hunt out the infamous Florentine Streak! After some google research of the local restaurants we settled on Acqua il 2 and were not disappointed! You must all research the receipe for Balsamic Steak and make it right away... AMAZING! A perfect end to a perfect afternoon in Florence!

Day 2... the day had finally arrived that I had been so looking forward to since Rome... our outing to THE MALL! Eeeeeee (that's my excitement)! We headed back to the bus terminal we were dropped yesterday and bought two tickets to Leccio! Next bus 30 mins... YAY! Boarding the bus I noticed that we weren't the only tourists there... in fact the whole bus was FULL of tourists (mostly women and the occasional stylish male), all with credit cards at the ready! After a quick dash down the Autostrade (read: highway) we had arrived and my shopping adventure began... and continued for the next 6 hours (with a detour to D&G thanks to a local taxi driver). All I can say is thank you Stu for all your patience and for carrying my bags around. Let's just say it wasn't really Stu's scene. He did like the meat platter we got for lunch though so all was not lost right Stu!? Before I knew it (and for what felt like hours to Stu) we were back on the bus to Florence and were planning our evening; aperitivo at the hotel, blog/photo update and dinner / watch the England match. Unfortunately we were not so lucky with our dinner this night (nor was England with their performance) - back to Acqua il 2 tomorrow night me thinks?

Day 3... today was booked in to explore Florence a little more (and to give my credit card a rest). Unfortunately the weather was not on our side and our umbrellas we out for another day on the town. We started our exploration on the otherside of the river, searching for Brunelleschi's less famous mini dome (as seen on Kevin McCloud's Grand Tour). Having no idea where it was we kept walking until we stumbled on S. Spirito, an unassuming church which turned out to hold many amazing art works under the dome designed by Mr. Brunelleschi himself (well he designed the whole church). Lucky find. From here we headed back across the Ponte Vecchio in search of the San Lorenzo food market and hopefully a cheap lunch. One hour and one crappy stylized map later we still hadn't found the market and popped into what we though was a small pizza joint for refuge and a cheap lunch. What a fantastic place this turned out to be! Not only was it not "a small pizza joint" (it was a really cool artsy restaurant) the food was both cheap AND amazing! Best pizza / pasta yet! Tummies full, we headed back out into the rain to check out some more sights; S. Maria Novella church, San Lorenzo food market (we found it), the outdoor markets and finally the Santa Croce, final resting place for many greats; Michaelangelo and Galileo included. The tombs in this church were so beautiful - you can see all the pictures in the facebook link below. Michaelangelo's tomb was the most impressive however as his was made of Porphyry! This is the super expensive marble that we learnt about in the Vatican! A great monument to a great artist and sculptor! Well I guess that's all for now.... we're off to Venice tomorrow! Can't wait! Until next time..... ARRIVDERCI!!

To view our photos CLICK HERE or go to http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=442575&id=664955104&l=dd390e1059

How far did you walk today on a scale of 1 - Lord Of The Rings?

Hello crew.... Stuart here again... and as i write this i am in Florence, in our hotel, overlooking the Arno River, and into my second bottle of Red.....re-hydrating....

Well, Siena is one of the most beautiful cities in Tuscany, and we spent a couple of days dodging the rain and trying to see the sights of this place!!! On day one we walked around the Piazza del Campo, saw the tower (unfortunately couldn't go up it as it was raining), went to the Duomo and did a lap of the old city walls which were built many hundred of years ago to keep the rabbits out (very successfully!!)

According to legend, Siena was founded by Senius, son of Remus, who was in turn the brother of Romulus, after whom Rome was named. Statues and other artwork depicting a she-wolf suckling the young twins Romulus and Remus can be seen all over the city of Siena. Other etymologies derive the name from the Etruscan family name "Saina", the Roman family name of the "Saenii," or the Latin word "senex" ("old") or the derived form "seneo", "to be old".

Sorry - a bit of a lapse back into my old University writing days.... (i love cut and paste)

One place of interest which we visited (and were not allowed to photograph) was the Basillica of San Domenico, this church has on display the head of Saint Catherine of Siena....... and her thumb!!!

I think the best description i can offer for our time in Siena is for everyone to simply to look at the photos on Facebook as they tell the story of our Siena adventures far better than i can!! You can view them by CLICKING HERE or at http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=442094&id=664955104&l=165a6a1acd

Sausage Fest and a train to Grosseto!

Hello loyal followers, it is Stuart here again for the end of Rome's blog, the Grosetto blog, and the Siena / San Gimignano blogs..... so the quality of spelling and grama will decline, and the humor will increase again!!!!!

Ok - The Last Supper..... for our last night in Rome, Cousin Nicole and her Italian husband thought we should not leave Rome until we have had a traditional Roman dinner (big difference between Roman food, and Italian food!!) so after an hour blast along the Roman roads at warp speed with Paulo Schumacher we arrived somewhere else in Rome and got the restaurant. After being seated, we had a starter of some form of sparkling red wine at a rate of litres per minute, and 3245345 types of salami, chingali, prosciutto, cheese and roast piggy.... that was followed by a main that consisted of 23525436534 types of the above mentioned meats, a few more tonnes of cheese and a few hundred more litres of booze........ Was a great night out experiencing how the Romans would have feasted a couple of thousand years ago, when Rome was in its "hey-day"!!!

The following morning (with surprisingly operational brains) we farewelled the St. Ange family and jumped on a train north to Grosseto............while on the train at the station we saw one of gods greatest creations....... the gypsy.... taking her pants down and taking a slash on the platform...... in clear view of probably 200 people on the train, and another few hundred on the platform, but it is Italy, so anything goes!!!!!

Zac met us at the train station, and after quickly checking in to the Hotel Bastiani in Grosetto, we were off to the beach for a quick swim... it was blowing a gale and not very pleasant, however i braved a dip in the Med (only because the swim was an easier option than lining up for the toilet...............)

After my "swim" we hit the road for the 15kn journey back to Grosetto............ 2 hours later when we arrived we got changed and were heading up to The Wall for dinner, a few beers, and to watch the Aussie Soccer team get smashed by "zee germans" Fantastic Pizza, Fantastic Beer, Fantastic atmosphere, terrible result for Australian Soccer!!!! We met our new little friend Martina (6 year old Italian girl with very limited English skills) who after the game managed to tell us "don't worry about your country losing, you have lots of friends around you at this table" arghhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh

Next morning it was off to Siena with Zac to check into our ac com, then back to Grosetto to watch the Italian game!!! 1-1 the Italians were not happy........ but i guess on a nett level, it is 4 goals better than the Aussie team did.... we got a lift back to Siena after the game with Lorenzo and his lovely finance........Lorenzo was the most sensible Italian driver we had been in a car with yet, still a speed deamon by the Fun Policed Aussie standards, but relatively sensible by Italian standards !!!!!!!

Internet - Oh how we've missed you!

Finally we have an internet connection! Unfortunately it's only in the lounge of our hotel in Florence but that's OK we'll make do! We haven't had time to write our blog yet (maybe tonight) but just wanted to let you know that we have uploaded some photos from Grosseto, Siena and San Gimignano to Facebook today. For some reason we could only upload a few so we'll finish the rest later. To check them out CLICK HERE or go to http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=442094&id=664955104&l=165a6a1acd

When in Rome....

Pronto & ciao from Roma!

Today is our 5th day in Rome and what a fantastic 4 days we have had so far! As we have done and seen so much since we have been here (and so that we don't bore you with too much detail), we have decided to put our experiences into point form..... so here goes;

• Flying from Prague to Rome on Smart Wings - after our overweight luggage charge with Transavia from Amsterdam, Stu and I decided to wear as much heavy clothing as possible to try and reduce our load. Leaving the hotel I was wearing jeans, boots, a singlet, cardigan and two jackets (must have looked like the michelin man) and Stu was wearing jeans, a tshirt and two jumpers! This was all well and good until we walked out into the 25 degree heat of Prague! Thankfully the cab (not a dodgy one this time) was air conditioned! Anyway we got to the airport to check in and they didn't even weigh our hand luggage - can you believe it? Time to strip off and repack! I love Smartwings already! Anyway after purchasing some Slivovice (local plum liqueur) we were soon on our way and flying over the snow capped mountains of the Alps!

• Arriving at the airport we were met by my lovely Aunty Babette and were soon whisked away to her beautiful family home in the town of Infernetto, south-west of Rome. The drive to the house was interesting; it appears that the Italians have no road rules what so ever. You really have to have your wits about you to drive here. As my Aunty said, she can only drive here because she has driven in Seychelles! Not only are the drivers bad, so are the roads; there are pot holes everywhere! We would later find out that these road conditions will make for a interesting bus ride to the metro station each day! Anyway thanks to Babette's skilled driving we made it to her house in one piece and were soon enjoying a glass of wine in the sun, while Uncle Perin cooked some kebabs on the BBQ! We were soon joined by the entire family for an Italian BBQ dinner and finally got to meet Nikki's husband Paolo and their beautiful baby Amelie (plus all of the dogs - Mocha the baby Pug, Coco the Pomeranian from Oz and Luna the Italian speaking Lab). All in all a lovely first day in Rome.

• Sunday - a day of rest (much needed after the full on tour of London, Amsterdam, Berlin and Prague). Waking up nearing lunch time we stumbled downstairs to meet the family basking in the hot Italian sun - perfect. Once we were suitably cooked we headed to the local supermarket to buy the ingredients for Babette's infamous Amartriciana and bruscetta! Yum! Once we were all stuffed the family went for a very Italian Sunday siesta while Stuart and I decided to walk to the beach at Ostia Antica. Hoping to dip our toes into the Mediterranean we soon discovered that the beach is covered in beach clubs, each with an entrance fee of 10 euro! Seeming as we had cash on us we headed back to the house, our feet still dusty and dry! My Uncle then took us to an art show/dinner at the home of one of his EFAD work colleagues! The paintings were amazing and very beautiful, depicted scenes from Africa and the Middle East! Sangria in hand we were introduced to a melting pot of people; French, Italian, Arabic and then there were the three American gospel singers! These guys did a few tunes accapella and blew everyone away. Not only were these ladies a complete hoot, we later found out that they were quite famous and had just returned from Oslo from singing at the Eurovision Song Contest! Amazing who you meet along the way.

• Monday - we were finally ready to brave the Italian public transport system and head into the city. After some directions from my cousins we learnt that we had to hop on the 070 bus to EUR Fermi (metro station) and then catch the metro into the city - easy enough right? Well the trick was that you couldn't pay for the bus trip on the bus nor anywhere other that in the city so we had to ride the bus without a ticket to the metro and hope you don't get caught! Argh! Lucky for us there were no inspectors on the way in and we were soon able to buy our week passes without drama. Anyway we finally made it to the Colosseum where our tour of the city began. Joining a tour group we bypassed the queues and were soon inside, marveling at its sheer size and history. It would have been amazing to see the Colosseum in its former glory but the ruin was just as breathtaking. Apparently the Vatican "recycled" a lot of the white marble that used to coat the current structure and used it to build St Peter's Basillica. From the Colosseum the tour moved on to Palentine Hill and the ruins of the Forum. After signing up for the Vatican tour the following morning, Stu and I continued our sight seeing with a visit to the Trevi Fountain, the Pantheon and Piazza Narvona.

• Tuesday - after our experience coming home on the bus during rush hour, we decided to leave home at 7:30am to ensure we got to our meeting point for the Vatican Tour in time. In Australia taking the bus during peak hour wouldn't be such a concern however in Rome there are no bus lanes so the bus gets stuck in traffic like everyone else. Anyway it was lucky that we left at 7:30am because we only just made it to the meeting point at 9:30am. Arriving at the meeting point and seeing the line for the Vatican Museum snake around the block made us realise that our tour reservation was worth it's weight in gold. We again bypassed the line and were soon inside learning all about the history of the Vatican and the art collections inside. There were so many pieces from the great painters of the Renaissance era; namely Raphael, Da Vinci and Michelangelo. Truly amazing to see these famous paintings and sculptures in the flesh. Check out our photos for a sneak peak into the Musei Vaticani. Our tour guide Jonathan was amazing and as we snaked our way though the museum he pointed out all of Michelangelo's inspirations for his most famous piece of work; the roof of the Sistine Chapel. Before we knew it 3 hours had flown by and it was time to say goodbye to our tour group, or so we thought... Jonathan then invited Stuart and I, along with our new friend Tania for lunch at a local cafe. What a fantastic afternoon that turned out to be! Bumping into another 2 from our group, we all sat together eating pasta, drinking wine and chatting. Before we knew it 2 hours had flown by and after a quick limoncello, impromtu "Happy Birthday" and portion of "fragolino" (strawberries) we swapped business cards and said our goodbyes. We will definitely be in touch with these guys! From here Stu and I strolled along the Tiber to walk off our lunch, seeing the Castel di Angelo and the many beautiful bridges that cross the river. After some random wandering we found ourselves at the Spanish Steps and the start of an amazing street of designer shops! I was in LOVE!

• I now hand over the reigns to Stu for the last chapter in our Roman blog so far..... Hi all relaxing morning, then we went into town to catch up with Zac for dinner and a few drinks. On our way to meet Zac, we were planning to get to the "Bone Church" which is the church from some weird sect of Christianity who believes that the body must remain within the church after death, so there are basically a few rooms of bodies in varying states of decay, and then finally when all the meat, hair and juicy bits are gone, the bones are used to make all sorts of trendy interior decorations, i am considering joining this Church, as i will save my family having to pay for a burial or cremation. I think my skeleton would look awesome as a plasma tv stand, or maybe it could be used to build some modern art installation? Anyway we arrived at the church at 6.01pm, one minute after closing time, so we will have to make a return trip to this place! We then went to Termini station to meet with Zac, and from there jumped in a taxi to the Jew Ghetto for some traditional Roman Jewish food, which was very nice, there were brains and tongue on the menu, but we opted for the more conservative Osso Bucco and Amatriciana.... and a few bottles of red! We then went in search of a taxi to start the trip home, a couple of buses later and two nearly burst bladders and we had made it!

• To view photos from Rome CLICK HERE or follow the link http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=437377&id=664955104&l=5c77b51a8b

Czech It Out!

Time for our blog from Prague...

As you can imagine our expectations for Prague were at an all time low after the taxi scam incident when we arrived. Arriving at the hotel we were left quite deflated and after checking in we headed straight for the hotel restaurant for a quick bite to eat before bed. We woke up the following morning still slightly unenthusiastic about Prague, however stepping into the streets of Old Town, we were soon blown away by the beautiful and amazing city that Prague really is! The taxi drama aside, we would definitely recommend Prague as a must for anyone planning a Eurotrip of their own!

As some of you may have seen from my Facebook, Stu and I decided to start our Prague experience with the Sandman's free walking tour of Prague. Arriving at the Old Town Square far too early for the tour, we wandered around, ogling at the amazing period architecture and gothic towers of the square. Before we knew it 11am was soon upon us and we headed off with our guide Colin (the Scot) for a 3 hour walking tour of the city. We started the tour with the history behind Old Town Square and the Tyn Church, St Nicolas Church and the Astrological Clock within it. Moving into New Town (which is really not that new at all) we learnt about Wenceslas Square and the Communist regime. During this segment we leant about the sad demise of Jan Palach, a 21 year old man who set himself alight at the square to protest Communism - very sad story. He now has a plaque at the top of the square under the National Museum in memory of all those who lost their lives to Communism. From here we moved onto the Jewish Quarter where we again heard sad stories of the many Czech Jews who lost their lives in WW2. There is a synagogue which displays the paintings of some hundred Czech Jewish children who were imprisoned and soon died in the many concentration camps. This is the only record that they ever existed. Very sad. To liven the solum mood, Colin our guide started to tell us about the Travi (a Russian plastic car), Franz Kafka (kookie writer), the legend of Jewish Gollum (no not the Gollum from Lord of the Rings) and the history of 'defenestration' (an interesting art of throwing people from windows in protest)! Before we new it our 3 hours were up and our next tour was about to begin; the Prague Castle tour.

Our new guide at the helm (Brisith Emma), a few of us headed across the Vltava River and into the Mala Strana. After once again hearing a brief history of the Czech Republic and how it came to be, we headed into the Secret Garden of the Senate; a traquil escape from the bustling city streets just outside the walls. There were a few quirky items located in the grounds which I have to mention, namely the giant man made grotto, the huge owls and the white peacock (see photo link below). From here we boarded a tram up to the Loretanske Monistery (famous for the beer the monks brew "St Norbert's Beer"), took in the scenery from a few elevated sites and then headed to the Prague Castle. Now before the tour started, I though the Prague Castle was the gothic building dominating the hills of the Mala Strana - I was wrong! Turns out the Castle is a sprawling compound that encapsulates numerous architectural styles, from the numerous rulers who resided there. You really must have a look while you are in Prague! You can see a few shots of the Castle by following the photo link below.

As you can imagine after 6 hours of straight walking and learning (in the cold rain I might add), we were soon tired and hungry. On the way back to the hotel we stopped at "El Toro Negro" in Old Town Square for a seafood paella and some local brew before crashing out.

Opening the curtains the next morning we were greeted with blue skies and bright sunshine - perfect! We decided that we would spend the day taking in a bit more of a few of the stops from yesterdays walking tour. We first climbed one of the towers in the Old Town Square for some panoramic shots of the city and then headed across the famous Charles Bridge (as seen in Vin Diesel's action movie XXX) and up to the leafy green park on the Mala Strana hinterland. All in all a lovely relaxing day in the sun and the perfect conclusion to an amazing time in Prague. This has to be one of our favourite stops so far.

To CZECH out our photos CLICK HERE or got to http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=435101&id=664955104&l=f43027cc8a

WARNING: TAXI SCAM!

Just a quick warning to all you travellers planning a visit to Prague; beware of the scamming taxi drivers prowling the airport, train station and any tourist spots. We have just discovered (the hard way) that taxi's are unregulated in Prague and that most taxi drivers will charge over ten times the real cost of the correct taxi fare.

Arriving at the train station in the pouring rain, Stu and I opted against walking to the hotel as we had planned (1.5km away) and headed to the nearest signed taxi rank. Watching a few taxis pull away we waiting until the next taxi pulled in. The taxi looked fine to me, it was signed, had a taxi light on the roof but my suspicions arose when the taxi driver advised that as it was peak hour the standard city fare was 980 czk (about 40 euro) - extremely steep. Stu and I were both shocked at the price but we could see no other option being in a strange city. Plus the taxi driver had already loaded our bags into the trunk. He chatted away to us the entire trip and seemed nice enough but my gut feeling still screamed "dodgy" (that and the fact that the meter was not turned on).

Anyway soon enough we were at the hotel (which is lovely by the way) and upon checking in asked the receptionist how much a taxi would usually be. The look she gave us confirmed that taxi scams were a serious problem in Prague. She said the average fare is about 200 czk but that it can vary depending on the driver. She said that booking a taxi through the hotel or using a shuttle would be the best option for our forthcoming trip to the airport. I have since found out that there are only a handful companies that can be trusted to run their meters correctly;

AAA Radiotaxi - tel. 140 14 or 222 333 222, www.aaa-taxi.cz

City Taxi - tel. 257 257 257, www.citytaxi.cz

Let's hope this is the only problem we run into in this beautiful city. Lesson learnt.

Railways & Rollaways

As I am writing this we are sitting on the EC177 train bound for Prague. Luckily for us Stu and I have scored the only 2 window seats in our compartment of 6 so we can gaze out and watch Germany slip by.

We have quite the melting pot of passengers in out little 6 seater compartment; one older German lady, two middle aged Asian ladies, an Aussie man in shorts (Stu) and myself.

Oh and I can't forget our two massive hard Samsonite cases that stand out like sore thumbs! What a nightmare! It is apparent that these cross country trains were not designed with the long haul traveller in mind! Thankfully one seat in our compartment is empty until Prague so my red suitcase is sitting comfortably in Seat 16 with Stus out in the corridor. For anyone planning on travelling Europe by rail I would recommend a small backpack and nothing else! Like I said - nightmare!

Anyway that drama aside (well at least for the next 5 hours) we can now kick back and let the scenery drift by. What a beautiful countryside Germany has. Such a contrast to the cold concrete jungle that was Berlin!

Prague here we come...

PART 2: Dresden - Praha

Hello again. Were now 3 hours into our trip and Stu and I find ourselves alone in our cabin after all our room mayes left us at Dresden - no more awkward silence - perfect!

The countryside is becoming even more beautiful the further south we head. Looking out the window I can see green rolling hills, quaint German homes with exposed wooden beams and a fast flowing river - stunning! This is what I imagined Germany to look like! Let's hope Prague is as pretty!

Location:EC177 from Berlin to Praha

Berlin - Achtung Baby!!!

Hello loyal followers - Co-writer Stuart here for todays episode......

Ok, after a short flight in from Amsterdam (and 40 Euros in excess baggage!!) we came down into Tegal International Airport, Berlin.

First impressions were that it was freezing and a pretty miserable concrete jungle, however after a couple of days adventuring through its streets we discovered a pretty cool city!

What we did in the couple of days in Berlin......

Day One - 12 Degrees, Intermittent Rain, Windy

• Arrived around five in the arvo
• Got settled into our apartment (which turned out to be just across the street from where Mr Hitler came to an end!)
• Went for a quick dinner at a little Italian restaurant downstairs from our apartment
• Called it a day with an early night to recover from a few big days in Amsterdam!!

Day Two - 12 Degrees, Intermittent Rain and a freezing wind!

• An early start, and off for a five minute walk around the corner to Checkpoint Charlie, where the old American Guardhouse still remains as a constant reminder of the past. We then spent an hour or so walking through the Checkpoint Charlie Museum, which had all sorts of stories of escape over the wall with varying degrees of success!
• After the museum it was still cold and miserable weather so we boarded a local bus tour, where we managed to score the front seats on the top level!! We spent the next couple of hours in heated, waterproof comfort seeing the sights around Berlin - all of them i think!
  
• Everything on the tour bus seemed to be either something to do with the War, or something to do with the Wall, without either - i think Berlin may struggle to attract the tourists that it does!
• We jumped off the bus in the main shopping district to grab a bite to eat, and as we were in Berlin, thought it only right that we sample one of the local Currywurst Sausages - mmmmmmmmmm. Not too sure how many of them i could eat before vomiting, however the one i had was great!
• We then ventured down to the Brandenburg Gate, the Jewish Memorial and then on to the old undercover SS headquarters located across the road from our place.
• And again - with it being too cold to venture too far outside - it was down to the Italian restaurant downstairs where we thought we were being stalked!!!! Firstly - we had "German Jen" come and sit at a table right behind us (see Facebook for photographic evidence). After we composed ourselves following our meeting with "German Jen" we noticed a cool dog who was barking at everyone from under his owners table. I could not see him, however Tash described him as looking like Whisky, but a bigger version - this got a little bit more funny when the dog (who was a local, well known to the restaurant staff) was called out from under the table, and his name was actually Whisky!!!!
• So there we were, in an Italian restaurant in Berlin, dining with "German Jen" and "German (reincarnated) Whisky"!!
• Off to bed again with our fingers crossed for some sun on our final full day in Germany!

Day Three - about -123412 degrees, bloody windy and a bit of rain..... come on Global Warming!

• We started our day in a lineup to get into the German Parliament House, which has a great big glass viewing dome on the top of it - which would have had great views over the German capital, however after standing in the line for about an hour, and not seeing much movement we decided to make a dash for the warm and dry shopping centre only about a fifteen minute walk away. There are probably people frozen to death, still waiting in that line at the Parliament House!
• After a quick defrost in the shops, we were off to the Berlin Zoo, quite possibly the only toursit attraction in the city that has nothing to do with either the war or the wall! The zoo was fantastic, the rain held off for a couple of hours, there were no people there, and we were able to get so close to all of the animals that it was a pretty amazing experience, and 13 Euro well spent!! Check out the link to photos to see the snaps of the Elephants, Monkeys, Bears, Polar Bears, Lions, Tigers, Penguins, Seals and Hippos - one of which we saw do a massive explosive poo, and immediately after, another of the Hippos surfaced from under the water and made what could only be described as a really loud laughing noise!!! It seems that humans are not the only animals to find poo and farts funny!!
• After the zoo, it was still freezing cold (and i was wearing shorts) so i was roped into seeing the new Sex and the City movie, i heard Tasha's suggestion as "do you want to go and sit in a warm dry comfy chair for a couple of hours?" so after the movie it was back out into the cold. (a nice escape from that movie!)
• Dinner again at the Italian - no German Jen, No German Whisky :(
• Off to Prague tomorrow!

For photos visit http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=433284&id=664955104&l=210eb6f5c2

Dutch Courage. Dutch Oven.

On our second day in Amsterdam we decided to avoid the tourist traps of Amsterdam and experience some of the real Holland!

Hopping in Conners car we headed out to Utrecth for a wander around the historic town! Like a mini Amsterdam (without the tourists), Utrecht is a maze of canals and tiny cobbled streets filled with bicycles and colourful tulip vendors.

After a canal side lunch we decided the next stop of our tour would be the seaside town of Zandervoort - home of Hollands only beach!

Heading down the road a large old windmill caught my eye and we had to stop for a photo (one cliche photo op off my list) - now to find a field of tulips an my list would be complete (i would later find our Tulip season had just finished - sigh)!

Arriving seaside we were met with a chilling wind, brown sea and a deserted beach! A little disappointing my Gold Coast standards! That said people were about and the seaside vendors were out in force selling the local favourite herring rolls!

Back to Amsterdam that afternoon we decided to venture out into the city for our last dinner and to bravely wander around the red light district after dark! What an eye opener that place is! Window after window scantily clad women (and sometimes men) flaunted their wares - trying to coax the men (and their wallets) off the streets and into their booths! But like us it seemed that most tourists (the bucks parties aside) were only out for an after dinner sticky beak!

Location:Utrecht & Amsterdam

Free Fanta Friday

Hello from Amsterdam!

Well our first day in Amsterdam is just winding down and we're having a quiet one at Steven & Imogen's Apartment waiting for our Thai take-away to arrive. It's the perfect evening to a day on the go.

This morning we headed out, map in hand, and wandered the quiet residential streets heading towards tourist town - Nieumarkt. To get to Nieumarkt we strolled through the leafy Vondel Park which is surrounded by canals, bridges and beautiful canal frontage homes. Unlike our previous strolls though Hyde Park last week, a walk through Vondel Park requires you to be alert (but not alarmed) as a million bikes come screaming past you at all angles. The bikes here are crazy - there are your regular bikes, then ones with baskets, then ones with benches for kids, then 3 person bikes and even a huge 10 person tour bike! What the? I have never seen so many bikes in my life! It also seems as is the older the bike, the cooler you are. Plus you don't need to wear a helmet! Not even on the scooters! It's crazy! Plus I heard tonight that you need a licence to golf! There is a theory and a practical exam!

Anywho arriving at the end of Vondel Park we found ourselves right in the center and after a quick breakfast we hopped on a 75min canal boat cruise around Nieumarkt. For anyone coming to Amsterdam this is a must to familiarise yourself with the city and what a beautiful city it is. The buildings are all crooked, the house boats modern and the bridges low and covered in bikes. We basically spent the day walking all over the city - down tiny little streets, across canals and up to the top of the science museum (NEMO). Saw lots of weird things; massive clog, penis shaped diamond (who would buy that?) and a pub called "The Cock Ring". We also past many coffeeshops which given the smell and smoke wafting out of them wasn't so much about coffee!

During the day we sampled some of the Netherland's finest cuisine - hot chips with mayo and ketchup, poftjes (mini pancakes), bitterballen and kaasstegls (cheese sticks). We also got a free Fanta on our travels as it was "Free Fanta Friday" - okay!? Oh and Stu is now sampling famous local beers - Grolsch and Heinneken! Thank god were doing so much walking is all I can say!

Didn't see any windmills or fields of tulips today (other than in the souvenier shops).... maybe tomorrow!

For photos visit: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=432017&id=664955104&l=08596d1ba7

Four Corners

Hello from the rather posh Raddison Edwardian Hampshire smack bang in the middle of Leicester Square (DAS NICE). We decided to move somewhere a bit more central for our last night in London as we're off to see Grease (take 2) tonight. Looking outside our window I can see people busily setting up for the premier of 'Sex and the City 2' at the Odeon Cinema next door. How I wish we were still in London tomorrow night to see the stars strut the red carpet - but alas tonight is our last night in London as tomorrow we're off to Amsterdam!

Since our last blog post we've had another fantastic two days in London - kicking off with a full English breakfast yesterday morning! Yum! Once the bacon, sausage, eggs, beans and toast had digested we headed off on another mammoth walk around the city. Our first stop was the Bevis Marks Synagogue to research a bit of Stu's family history. Apparently his great, great, great, great, great grandfather David Nieto founded this synagogue in 1701- the first in Britain! Walking into the synagogue, Stu was horrified to find out we had to each pay 4 pounds to enter (he's definitely a Jew at heart). He was then asked to cover his head with a skull cap. Me being the silly blonde that I am thought that this also applied to me and reaching for a skull cap I was quickly shut down by the Jewish doorman - "This is not for women"! Oops! Anyway we went inside for a quick looksee - feeling that little bit more cultured than we we arrived!

From the Synagogue we headed south to Tower Bridge where the true nerd in me came out in full force - what a fantastic structure! A million photographs later, we finally reaching the other side of the bridge and decided that a soft serve ice-cream was in order (with flake i might add). Ice cream in hand we meandered along the river towards London Bridge, where we crossed the river and headed to Covent Garden for lunch with Bianca - hand model and stylist to the stars!

Later that night we boarded the central line for a claustrophobic ride to Snaresbrook to visit Jon & Katie for dinner at their place. Usually the tube is quite a pleasant ride, however we made the mistake of travelling during peak hour and now understand how sardines must feel. Each stop was the same - one person off, three or four on! Nightmare! I did actually catch a bad case of the giggles watching Stu's patience wain with each passing stop! ha ha! Anyway we finally arrived at Snaresbrook and thanked god for the fresh (chilly) air while we waiting to Jon! This traumatic experience aside we had a fantastic night with Jon and Katie (amazing dinner - thanks guys!). I should also note that their cat Theodor had an uncanny likeness to Meetu - could they be related?

In comparison to yesterday, today was quite a lazy day really. We wondered around exploring our new digs (Leicester Sq, Piccadilly and Regent St). Stu also finally won the 'suitable footwear' argument which we've been having since we left Australia and we both invested in a pair of sensible, less than fashionable walking shoes for Europe {Stu: I told you so.......}. We then caught up for a seafood lunch with Siobhan, Cathi and Tim - mussels in white wine and garlic! Yum!

We're now off to see Grease (take 2)...... bye for now xxx

For photos visit: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=429550&id=664955104&l=96331900b0

Feeling Hot, Hot, Hot!

Today in London the mercury soared to 30 degrees! Who would have thought it would ever get that hot here? So being the cautious, sun safe person that I am, I decided that the safest possible refuge for Stu and I to escape the blistering heat would be a trip to Harrods, Selfridges, Zara (my new favourite shop - like Witchery) and any other shop along Oxford, Regent and Bond Street...

After a few hours pounding the pavements in our new Havaianas*, we wearily headed back to the hotel via the Natural History Museum. What a cool place that is - we could have spent hours in there just wandering round, looking at never ending exhibits -unfortunately our sore, blistered feet had other plans.. so we detoured to the main attractions - the huge skeletons of various dinosaurs and marine mammals.

*For those of you wondering why we bought Havaianas in London, the shoes we set off in had given us such blisters by 10am that we could take no more - only a pair of comfy thongs (flip flops) could save us now! I also had discover yesterday that Havaianas had brought out a moccasin which I desperately wanted to try on! They're the best things every - like wearing slippers in public! Funny thing about this shopping adventure was that I kept having to stop Stu asking for thongs as this is alway met with a horrified gaze! Ha ha...

As the day drew to a close Danny decided it was time to hit up Brick Lane for a Indian dinner! After playing two neighbouring restaurant touters off against each other (is that what you call them - restaurant touters?) we settled on a restaurant called Cinnamon! The deal clincher - 25% discount, free drinks and free poppadums! The food was amazing - definitely chose a winner there Dan - it was almost as good as Punjabi Palace.... ALMOST!

Lazy Afternoon in Camden Town

Hello everyone!

Just a quick blog tonight as i'm really tired (been a huge day)! It's almost 10pm and we have just returned from a lovely long day out in Camden Town.

The day started quite lazily which is always nice on a Sunday. After a few Skype chats to family back home, we headed out into the sun bound from Camden Town (via the local french bakery for breakfast of course - yum).

While we were not due to meet Danny and Annie until 12pm, we figured we'd head over early and check out all of the wares before the huge Sunday crowds hit. For those of you who have not been to Camden Markets you must go! Now there are a few markets dotted down the length of the road but I would suggest you bypass them all for Camden Lock Markets - they're FANTASTIC! Here you will find antiques, handmade jewellery and clothes, music, vintage clothes, furniture and Stu's favourite 'world food'!

As you can imagine it didn't take me long to find (and purchase) numerous items as well strolled around! One item I didn't purchase (but really, really wanted to) was a 1950's Louis Vuitton soft suitcase that I found amongst the vintage luggage in the Camden Stables section of the markets! It was fantastic and in immaculate condition! I was in LOVE! Anyway Stu was able to drag me away and it was soon time to meet Danny and Annie for lunch in the 'world food' section of the market. All settling on the aromatic sizzling chicken fajitas, we relocated to a neighbouring canal so that we could soak up the sun and watch the long boats cruise by.

Soon enough the sun became too hot for us all (surprising I know) so we quickly moved on to our next destination, Edinboro Castle, where we were due to catch up with a few old friends and cool off with our favourite summer poison; Pimms (me), cider (Danny), G&T (Annie) or beer (Stu)...

.... 8 hours later, the sun was starting to set so we decided that it was best we all head home for the night (this was 8:30pm)! What a fantastic afternoon..... what a trip down memory lane....

A "Trip" to the ER!

Ok before you start panicking - no Stu and I have not injured ourselves *touch wood*

I am referring to the events that unfolded last night at the Piccadilly Theatre, 15 minutes before Siobhan was just to hit the stage as "Sandra Dee" in Grease .......and hit the stage she did :(

After grabbing a quick (garlicy) chinese over in Chinatown, we all hurried back to the theatre to get our seats when disaster struck - Liam received a text that Siobhan had collected her ankle running off the stage after the matinée and was being rushed to the ER! Oh no!

Heading around to the stage door we see poor Siobhan hobbling out of her dressing room, wincing with pain at every step. Stu and Liam, being the gentlemen that they are (sometimes), decided it was best to carry Siobhan to the waiting black cab.

After waving Siobhan goodbye we decided to cash in our tickets and hit the pub to drown our sorrows. Being summer time it was still light at 830pm so we decided on some alfresco drinks at a pub near Carnaby Street - PIMMS time! Now alfresco drinking in Australia means you sit within a licensed area, close to the pub door and usually marked out with black and yellow hazard tape - not here - to Stu's amazement pub patrons were sprawled out all over the cobbled street surrounding the pub, drinks in hand, lapping up the warm English night. As Liam would say "BRILLIANT"!

Moving on we headed to "Sketch", the trendiest and weirdest restaurant/bar I have seen. This place looked like it should have been in Tate Modern not a restaurant/bar off of Regent Street! Heading through the ultra trendy restaurant, complete with its streaming video installations, we walked through a tiny door into the egg-shaped cocktail bar. It was like walking into a scene from Alice in Wonderland (Tim Burton's editing) - from the tiny arched doorway the room exploded into a huge space complete with sunken bar.

"We'll have a spiced pear daiquiri, a lollipop cocktail and 2 champagne beers thanks".... and at 13 pounds a cocktail (that's like $25) we slowly sipped our cocktails and soaked up the atmosphere - we were only going to drink one. Suffice to say the cocktails were fantastic and we have a great first night in London!

UPDATE: Siobhan is out of ER and thank god nothing is broken. She just has to rest up and will be back on her feet in no time.

UPDATE 2: BA strikes are back on.... luckily our flight to Amsterdam was one of the chosen few not cancelled! Phew...

Yodelayeeee

Good morning... er afternoon... er evening!? My brain is so confused! After over 24 hours without sleep, stu and I have just had a well earned rest and have awoken to the purple haze of our premium Yotel pod! Amazing how much better you feel after a shower and some good shut eye!


Off to check into our proper hotel now then on explore sunny London! Yeah that's right it's sunny - amazing! Not a volcano cloud in sight! He he!

Seeing the lovely Miss Siobhan Dillon tonight in Grease - can't wait!! Oh and Stu wants to speak to Liam as to what "golfing" options are avaliable in the UK!

2 down, 1 to go

Well it's been about 18 hours since our last post from Gate 78 at Brisbane Airport and were now many miles away in Abu Dhabi!

While the flights have both been long the overall journey hasn't been too bad! We did have a screaming baby sitting in front of us the whole way which is every travellers worst nightmare but alas the annoyance soon turned to amusement when the baby did a threesy (explosive poo) all over its mum! I still chuckle at the thought!

Well two more hours to kill here and then another flight to go before we arrive in Old Blighty! Hopefully will catch a few zzz's on this flight! If not bring on 4hrs at Yotel Heathrow!

Location:Abu Dhabi Airport

Going, going, gone!

At the airport and all checked in (no upgrade - boo!) we board in 30 minutes! Goodbye Australia! Let the adventure begin....




PS) Good news - the BA strike was called off and the volcano is blowing away from Heathrow! Looks like we'll make it after all!

Location:Gate 78 - Brisbane Airport

Sad Goodbyes & Trains

Well it's finally the 20th of May and after months of planning were finally off to Europe! Can't believe it!

After some very sad goodbyes this morning (better not talk too much about it or ill start blubbing again) we are now standing at Coomera Train Station (much to the dislike of Stu) waiting on the air train! This will be the first train on many over the next few months so Stu will have to get used to it! He also needs to learn to drive his matching luggage! Ha ha!

- Posted from my iPhone

Location:Gold Coast

BA Cabin Crew "Strike" Again (Excuse the Pun)

Have just woken up to hear the news that Unite (the trade union for British Airways) has announced further cabin crew strikes grounding many BA flights from 18th May 2010- 5th June 2010! While we're not flying into London on a BA codeshare (phew!) we are flying BA to Amsterdam on the 27th May smack-bang in the middle of the strike! Argh! The question now is... do we wait to see what happens or do we take the chance and rebook ourselves on another airline?

Early Morning Arrival? YOTEL!

UPDATE: We have just booked a premium pod at Heathrow's Yotel. What's a Yotel you ask? Well check it out for yourself at www.yotel.com! As we're arriving in the wee hours of Friday morning we have decided to spend a few hours in a Yotel Pod to freshen up and catch some Zzzs before heading into the big smoke! This will also give us the chance to avoid rush hour on the tube! Smart thinking Batman!!!

You want me to fit a wardrobe into a suitcase? Impossible!

Ok well maybe not impossible.... but as far as I was concerned it got pretty close to being so!

In case you're wondering what on Earth I am babbling on about; Stuart decided that this week we were to sort out our ENTIRE wardrobe so that we could work out what was coming with us and what was to be sent straight to Guernsey! Doesn't sound too complicated a task does it? Well it was (for me anyway... not so much for Stu)! All I can say is where a magical Mary Poppins bag when you need one?

Anyway after much blood, sweat and tears I am now happy to report that all the sorting has now been done and that a portion of our wardrobe is sailing it's way to the Channel Islands as we speak! Let's hope it makes it there..

TO BE CONTINUED....

Decisions, Decisions...

What an amazing and expansive world we live in! Just look at it!!! So many places to go, so many things to see, so many cultures to experience... where ever will we find the time?

When it comes to travel and exploration how many times have you found yourself saying "How great would it be if..." or "One day we're going to..." or "you know i'd love to see..."? Stuart and I know it all too well..

Well this year is going to be different - Stuart and I have decided that 2010 is going to be our year of European travel and adventure! We have scrimped and saved, handed in our letters of resignation (very scary!) and will leaving the sunny shores of Australia bound for London on 20th May 2010!

We have created this blog for 2 reasons really; 1, so our family and friends can keep track of us as we traverse Europe and 2; so that we can share our travel experiences (or "Travel Recipes" as we like to call them)! We are no travel writers that's for sure, but we do hope that you enjoy our tales! Who knows.. maybe they will awaken the dormant adventurer in you all!

Welcome to "ChickenStew's Travel Recipes from around the World"!