Roma Bella

Well, we've been in Rome for 4 days now. The heat is stifling again, like everywhere else in Italy - sorry for going on about it for all of you in NZ shivering away. We wake up each morning and don't even need to look outside to know that it's going to be sunny and hot.

First day was the Palantine and Roman Forum. Had to try really hard to imagine what it might have been like back in the day since now it's mostly all rubble. The little things are what make it really interesting, like stumbling across cute little mosaics and Latin inscribed in marble. We also checked out Trajan's Column, hardly any tourists were looking at this, but Rebecca remembered it from studying Classics at high school. It's this huge marble column with amazingly detailed carvings spiraling up around it. Colosseum was next, we're now experts on Roman arenas since we've seen them in Nimes and Verona. Not as big as we expected, but you got more of a feel for its size on the inside. Managed to avoid all the gladiators trying to get tourists to have their photo taken with them outside the colosseum, most were too old to look like real gladiators anyway!

Next day we were a bit all over the place. Started off in this little church, visiting the capucian cemetary in the crypt of the church. It's the weirdest thing I've ever seen, made up of designs from the bones of 4000 monks. It sounds really odd but the effect is stunning, felt a bit faint though didn't like the thought of being around all those dead people. Carried on to the Spanish Steps. Still a lot of tourists milling around even though it was still a bit early. Decided it would be the perfect place to trip over myself which was very embarassing and I still have a couple of bruised knees for souvenirs. Hobbled over to the Trevi fountain - Rebecca didn't have much sympathy and wouldn't piggy back me, but felt better after we got some gelato.
We threw our coins in like all the tourists, beautiful fountain but a bit of a scrum to get close to it. Highlight of the day was the Pantheon. I didn't realise how beautiful it would be inside, we even had a choir sing for us which was nice.

Today we went to Vatican City. Huge queue to get into the Vatican Museums - this is where the Sistine Chapel is. Queue was fast moving though so we got in quickly. The mueseums leading up to the Sistine Chapel were really interesting, but obviously the real reason everyone was there was to see Michaelangelo's ceiling. Very surreal actually seeing it having read about it, our necks hurt from looking up at it so can't imagine how he did it. St Peter's Basilica was by far the best church we've seen so far. From outside you just don't realise how enormous it is. The artwork inside is incredible - definately one of my favourite places so far.

It's so hot!!

Writing this from Florence, where it must be in the low 30s at least! Anyway, leaving off from the last posting, we eventually left Marseille train station to arrive in beautiful, touristy Nice. Had problems getting there because they had some sort of transport strike, so only a few trains were leaving the station. Meant that we had to sit in the corrider in the bit where the carriages of the train join for most of the 2 1/2 hour trip to Nice. Not the most comfortable especially in the heat but we were definitely glad to arrive. Went for a swim in the Bay of Angels, beautiful clear blue water but a stoney beach, so nice so nice to walk across, I wasn't looking very graceful at all walking towards the sea! Some very relaxed people there who don't have any problems walking around with every thing hanging out. Checked out some of the old town, lovely little shops and there was a cute little market that we stopped at too.

Next day was a day trip to Monaco. An absolutely amazing place, haven't seen anything like it before. We watched the changing of the guards, very amusing and the guards were very good looking (mostly, a couple you'd wonder how the got the job!). Also went through the acquarium, amazing fish and coral. Another crazy American was a bit overexcited though and was amazed at everything and had to let the whole place know how cool she thought the whole thing was - we've seen a few strange tourists on this trip so far, that's for sure. Of course we had to have a look at the casino. Too scared to go in, and besides we probably weren't dressed well enough. Some very expensive cars parked out the front, amazing to see how much wealth there is out there.

Following day was a day trip to Cannes. Not as stunning as Monaco, but we caught a ferry out to this island where the man in the iron mask was imprisoned. The island wasn't as touristy as Cannes so we spent some time swimming and had most of the beach to ourselves.

Next day we left Nice, which was a bit of a shame 'cause they had an Ironman on the next day. Amazingly expensive bikes around and alot of guys with very smooth looking legs. How they managed to do an Ironman in that heat is mind-boggling. Instead, we left France and hit Italy. Funny crossing the border and suddenly everything is in Italian and not French. Genoa was our first stop. Only had a night there, so spent the late afternoon/early evening wandering around the old port and the older part of the city. Nice to see everything a bit later though when it's cooler and not so crowded. Downside was that I got my wallet stolen. Any other time my bag would have been filled with stuff, but since we were going out at night it was pretty empty so easy for the thief to find my wallet. Didn't feel a thing and the funny thing was we were walking back to our accomodation and there were other people around when it happened. Rebecca felt a tug on her bag, so he obviously got my wallet before having a go at her. Not a great welcome to Italy, but a bit of a hassle having to cancel my card and get a new one sent out. At least I had Rebecca with me, so it wasn't as stressful as it would have been if I had been on my own.

After that, we were pretty glad to be leaving Genoa and heading to Verona. Arrived to a 34 degree day, so the gelateria's were working over time. Gelato is awesome, I have one a day and the aim is to try every flavour before we leave Italy. So cheap too, it's the same price as it is to use public toilets in Venice! Anyway, Verona is very cool - another Roman ampitheatre, also followed the crowds to Juliet's house covered with graffiti and love notes, apparently the council aren't too happy about that part of it.
Gorgeous old part of the city and is always good to try to get off the main tourist streets and see some of the parts of the city where the locals live.

The last couple of days we've been in Venice. Like everyone says it is an extraordinary city, much bigger than what I imagined it to be. Our campsite was on the mainland so each day we took a vapretto (little ferry) across the bay to the city. St Marks square is astonishing. It's weird to have all these tiny little streets and then suddenly come across this enormous square. We spent quite a bit of time yesterday just sitting and watching the tourists - a lot of them try to pick up the poor pigeons which is quite funny. St Marks basillica is amazing, not as big inside as out but the colours and sculpture are pretty special. Also took a vapretto to Munaro an island which is famous for its glass making. Cute little place to check out.

Finally in Florence now, about to head in to town, we've found that its better to go out about 3 or 4pm and in the mornings rather than try to do to much in the heat.

Our first night in Florence we saw an awesome sunset from Piazza Michaelangelo, just up the road from where we were staying in a little tent in a camping ground set in an olive grove. The view over Florence is amazing, doesn't matter that we're not right in the middle of Florence at all.

Next day we spent most of it lining up in the intense sunshine waiting to go to the Uffizi and Galleria Accademia - where Michaelangelo's David is kept. Uffizi is so cool, wonderful paintings and well worth the wait. Even though everyone says it, David was so much bigger than what you imagine him to be, amazing that he was made with a single block of marble. Italians are clever though, you have to pay 10 euro to go to the Gallery to see him, hardly anything else in the Gallery is of much note.

In Rome right now, again really hot, but I might talk about that in the next post .....

Marseille

Arrived in Lyon to find there was a bit of a slog uphill to our hostel, but afterwards pleased to have saved 2 euro by not taking the furnicular up the hill. Spectacular views over the city from our dorm. I had a good nights sleep by thinking ahead and using my earplugs but Rebecca was grumpy the next morning having been kept awake all night by an American idol wannabe and his groupies outside our window. The earplugs the next night were not so effective, so we were both readty to smash up his guitar by the time he was attempting to sing "stairway to heaven".

Despite 2 sleepless nights, we still managed to explore the city, loved the old part of town with the cute little alleys and the beautiful huge park on the other side of the city. It was sweltering during the day but then we had massive thunderstorms each night, which unfortunately didn't seem to deter the American weirdo from sharing his 'talent' with the whole hostel.

Skipped over the border to Geneva, Switzerland which are hosting Euro 2008 (soccer tournament) and there was a game that night - Portugal vs Czech Republic, so there were loads of rowdy soccer fans around town. All the buildings were covered in flags from supporters. Geneva felt very similar to France, probably because they all speak French qnd it is so close to the French border. We could really tell it was a city for the well-to-do because there were lots of flash cars and either a lot of plastic surgery or the locals were naturally very good looking.

Lake Geneva is huge and the water is a beautiful clear blue, there is an enormous 42m jet of water that sprays skywards from the middle of the lake.
Our first morning we visited the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Museum, which has some really interesting exhibits on the origins qnd the work of the Red Cross. There was a temporary exhibit on the nuclear issue - showing the various nuclear disasters, nuclear power and nuclear weapons. Made me really grateful that NZ took a stand against nuclear after seeing some of the photos - pretty horrifying really. On our way there we also checked out the UN headquarters with their 2 lines of steel security gates. Weirdly, there's a huge chair opposite the UN with a broken leg (given the name "broken chair" - very original). Apparently supposed to symbolise mutilation caused by land mines - not something you would guess by looking at it though!! Like many of the French cities we've seen, Geneva also has a pretty old town with cobbled streets and lovely brightly coloured houses.

Next up was Grenoble (back in France now). Spent a while getting into the heart of the city after we mistakenly got off at the wrong station - their bus system seems to be efficient though and we got to see some of the outlying suburbs so it wasn't all bad. But, that sidetript didn't give us long to check out the city, but we did have an interesting experience with a homeless drunk guy who wanted to have a chat. Fact that we pretended not to understand him (which wasn't far from the truth) didn't seem to put him off. Highlight of Grenoble had to be the trip up to the old fort overlooking the city. You go up in these alien-like pods which are very cool - Rebecca was a little bit overexcited though. Following our whistle stop in Grenoble (I'm going back later to check out the Tour de France), we headed to Nimes. Lots of Roman ruins in the central city, outside of that it's a bit industrial and uninteresting.
There was a Radiohead concert on while we were there so unfortunately the Roman arena was still set up for that, so a bit difficult to get an idea of how it would have looked 2000 years ago.

Finally, we're in Marseille in the south of France. Biggest city next to Paris but has an amazing mix of people big West African population as well so doesn't feel as French as the other cities we've been to. Yesterday we took a boat out to Ile d'If, an island whose castle was the setting for the Count of Monte Christo. Cool little island and nice to be away from lots of tourists. Also took this cute little mini road train up to Notre Dame de la Garde, a huge byzantine basillica overlooking the city. The church was stunning, but the crazy driver of this little train meant that the trip up the hill was actually more exciting.


Off to Nice in an hour to soak up some more sun, it's tough.

Tours

Our third day in Paris began bright and early ticking off the rest of the sights we wanted to do on our museum pass. The Eiffel tower was first on the list to beat all the other tourists. Felt proud of ourselves as we strode past the long line of portly American tourists waiting for the lifts, as we made our way to the much shorter (and cheaper) queue for the stairs. This let us climb to the second level, with plenty of rest stops which kept Rebecca happy!. Since we had our cameras handy we used the opportunity to practice using the zoom feature on members of the local constabulory.

Onjce we checked out our awesome pics we carried on to the Arc de Triomphe, much bigger in person qnd the views from the top looking down to the Champs Elysees were awesome. The Arc is situated in the middle of the busiest roundabout in Paris - no rules apply, and heaps of near misses, the French certainly make use of their horns. The final stop for the day was Musee d'Orsay, stopped on the way for the third time by a gypsy who had miraculously found a cheap looking gold ring and asked if it was ours. Still can't figure out that scam, but we have ignored them each time, which seems to do the trick. Musee d'Orsay definately worth the trip, had some very famous artwork, but without the same crowds as the Louvre.

On Wednesday we took the train out to EuroDisney. Felt a bit silly without any kids in tow, but soon got over that. The queues were pretty short, helped that we could run faster than the little nippers with their short legs. There were lots of fun rides like the Hollywood Tower where you fell a few storeys in a hotel lift (much scarier than it sounds). Rebecca made me do the stupid teacups ride, so she didn't get to pick any more after that.

Next day got up at 5am to catch the early train to Pontorson/Mont St Michel. Ended up having to wait four hours in the village because the Mont St Michel stopped running between 11am and 3pm. Our accommodation was only about 1km from the Mont, so we only had to walk about 100m to see it. Mont St Michel is an amazing island in the middle of farmland, which has an abbey begun in the 8th century perched precariously on the top with little medieval shops and museums crammed around the base. Has a population of 42 (includes a few monks) but with tourists it gets really crowded. We were a bit late to explore the Mont the first day, but walked over to see an absolutely stunning sunset that night. The buildings are all lit up at night so it was really pretty special.

Next morning we took a guided tour around the abbey with an amusing French guide, then explored the rest of the island, trying to stay as far away from the busloads of tourists as we could!

We've spent a few Tours in now, leaving for Lyon today. Tours is the biggest city in the Loire Valley. Our first morning here we walked through parts of the old town, medieval half-timbered houses but only a small section remains as the rest was heavily bombed during WWII. In the afternoon we hopped on a minibus to take in some of the chateaux. Visited Chenonceau, which is a fairytale castle built over a river, and Chambord an enormous chateau with 440 rooms, no halls and only one kitchen. The tour guide said it was designed by a man - figures!

Woke up on Sunday to a warm sunny Summer's day. We decided to make the most of it by hiring bikes to cycle to another chateau, Villandry. I was really happy to be back on a bike, since I've been missing mine, but Rebecca was a bit sore by the time we got home, but had an awesome day. 42km return through countryside scattered with poppies and old farmhouses just like you would imagine the Loire to be. The French clearly love biking and there are loads of dedicated biking trails through the region. Our track was really easy to navigate, following the Cher river directly to Villandry. Villandry was the best castle of the three, stunning formal gardens with really cool designs - heavy use of multicoloured lettuces which was actually quite effective.

Bonjour Paris

On moving on from Dublin we took a bus for the couple of hours it took to cross the border to Northern Ireland. We had a few days in Belfast, very different from Dublin, but not so hectic. We went on a black cab tour which is quite a popular touristy thing to do. We had a very cool Irish driver who took us around the Protestant and Catholic parts of town, showing us the murals and the peace wall.

It was really interesting, especially since neither Rebecca nor I knew a lot about the troubles. The gates to the wall are still closed every night and there is a different feel between the two sides. Just spent the rest of our time in Belfast checking out the place, there was an international food fair in the grounds of City Hall which only takes place every couple of years. So obviously we had to sample some of what was on offer!

Next stop was Glasgow, Scotland. We arrived on a surprisingly warm sunny evening which gave us a perhaps false idea of the place. Luckily the next day was overcast, more like the Scotland we had imagined. Our accomodation was on the posh side of town, right next to the Kelvingrove museum.
It's probably my favourite museum so far, very unusual layout with a spitfire hung above a stuffed elephant in the main entrance, very cool to look at. Still not having our fill of museums we tried something a bit different, the Science Museum. Having not gone past School Cert science this was an odd choice, but all the exhibits were interactive and very fun. Seemed to be the oldest ones there without any kids, so sometimes we had to elbow a few out of the way. Most of them were too little to understand the science behind the displays anyway.

We journeyed on down to Edinburgh to catch up with Mark and Sylvia, who let us stay with them. Unfortunately it only about 10° when we got there and a bit misty and drizzly. Not the best afternoon for Sylia to show us the sites, since most of them were obscured! Took in the Royal Mile, a very touristy street between Edinburgh Castle and the Palace of Holyroodhouse (very nice fudge shop on that street too). Spent the afternoon at the Palace, it's where the Queen spends her summer holidays, unfortunately it's not summery enough for her yet so we couldn't pop in for tea. Next day I nearly made it to Arthur's Seat looking out over Edinburgh. I say nearly because we'd already made a reservation to go do a tour of the underground streets of the Royal Mile (very popular and we couldn't go the day before). We ended up missing it anyway because of a 'misunderstanding' between Rebecca and myself. Instead we used the rest of the day to look around Edinburgh Castle. Lots of history and has awesome views over Edinburgh. Highlight of Edinburgh was quite possibly the haggis and tatties which Mark and Sylvia cooked for us on our last night. Definitely not as bad as what I thought and as long as I didn't think about what was in it, it was actually quite tasty.

We were getting way too comfortable in the UK, so we've finally made it to Paris. Amazing city, so far everything I thought it would be. Lovely warm weather, a bit rainy today though. I've had to pull out my school french, which is pretty basic to say the least. Managing fine, and the French people we've encountered so far have been v friendly. Our accomodation is great, but is in the lowmarket sex district of Paris (it actually says that in our lonely planet guide!!). The prostitutes that we see though are mostly pushing 60, and are wearing the most horrible pvc outfits, it's quite funny!!

Done lots in Paris already, first day was Notre Dame, St Chapelle and Conciergie (where Marie Antoinette was imprisoned before she got the chop). Yesterday we spent the entire day in Versailles. Extremely extravegant both inside and out. The grounds are extraordinary especially when all the fountains go off. Today was a museum day - the Louvre (very busy with noisy Americans) and Centre Pompidou - where apparently blow up chairs are a work of art, fantastic!

If I have one gripe, it's that French keyboards are different which is driving me insane 'cause the keys are all in different places. So, before I throw this at someone I'm going to stop typing :-)