Thursday to Sunday Heathrow to Singapore

Our plane left Heathrow after a delay of about 45 minutes because they couldn't detach the boarding tunnel. Most passengers aboard were English and Irish Lions fans who were going to Melbourne for the rugby World Cup. It was an uneventful flight and because most people aboard headed for the transfer lounge it meant we had an easy exit into Singapore. Boy, what a shock, although it was 7 o'clock in the evening it was still warm and humid. Got to our hotel by taxi and fell into bed.
Friday morning didn't exist for us and when we got going we went looking for something to eat and finished up at McDonalds after an awful visit to the local food court. In the afternoon we got on the hop on hop,off bus and toured the city. The buildings here have to be seen to be believed, very modern and very different. Back to the hotel and we fell into the pool to cool off. Refreshed we walked along the riverfront for a beer and dinner. We are located at the Quayside and is a very lively place at night, but everybody is happy and it seems very safe.
Saturday morning, and our body clocks have still not got into gear, so after lunch we got on the river taxi and went to the Gardens by the Bay. These are relatively new and feature huge metal structures which are intended to look like trees. There are also two Glasshouses (Biomes) with international plants and flowers in them. It was as we were walking towards these that we met Jan and David who were walking in the opposite direction. One in a million chance of catching up with them. Anyway we organized to meet up for a drink and dinner later in the day.
The gardens are beautiful and the biomes are similar to The Eden Project, not as big but more controlled and featured plants from all over the world, including giant baobabs from Australia and Africa and old Olive trees from Europe. After a couple of hours there we got the Metro Train back to the hotel and into the pool again. Feeling refreshed we met Jan and David and went for a beer and dinner at the riverside.
Sunday and we headed for the Metro again to take us to the Botanical Gardens. These are well established and feature a collection of orchids in all colours, lots of walking here and the weather takes its toll on you.
Back to the Metro to take us to Raffles where we had a Singapore Sling each and threw our peanut shells on the floor as is the custom. They must make a killing here as the drinks were 30 Singapore dollars each, anyway it was one of those things you do.
On the train again to the hotel where refreshed ourselves in the pool, boy did we need the pool!
After dinner it was time to pack our bags for the final trip home. Up before sparrows tomorrow for the 7:45 flight SQ207 which is due to land in Melbourne at 5:05pm
It is now tomorrow (Monday) as the hotel didn't have free WiFi, we are at the airport waiting to board. Of course we were early, but the lack of people around makes it easy.

Wednesday 26th Heathrow

We left Angela's at 10:30 this morning after a very pleasant couple of days. Angela shepherded us up to the Motorway then we hit the M5 going up to the M4  for a two and a half hour drive to Windsor.
Decided we might as well have a look at the place seeing as we were going past it, however we didn't really have enough time to do it justice but at least we had a look. St George's chapel was lovely and the Private apartments were well preserved and presented. It's a noisy place with planes flying over it all the time.
Although we still had plenty of time, we decided we'd head for the car rental return which we got to after only one wrong turn. Car handed over and then it was into the shuttle to terminal three. People going everywhere of course and we are now sitting in the departure lounge waiting for the flight to be called, although we still have another three hours to wait.

Monday and Tuesday Cornwall to Somerset

Left Cambourne Monday morning and drove North west to have a look at Newquay. This is the surfing place for Cornwall and has sandy beaches. It wasn't really warm but people were getting on to the beach, many in wetsuits for a bit of surfing. Continuing along the coast road around Watergate Bay which has wide sandy beaches and could be a nice place to spend summer holidays.
Then it was on to Port Isaac (Doc Martin country). We had to park outside the town so it was a walk into town. It must be a mixed blessing for a town such as this to be involved in a TV show, it brings in the tourists who spend their money there, but some must regret the lack of privacy.
We then had a two and a half hour drive to Angela's house in Somerset so we hit the road again. Skirting around Bodmin Moor and Dartmoor, through Launceston, around Exeter and towards Taunton.
Angela is Janelle's cousin-in-law whom we have met before and she has made us very welcome. The cottage Angela lives in is in a beautiful spot down the end of a narrow lane with hedgerows right up to the edge of the road. The weather has turned bright and sunny which makes the area look all the more lovely.
Tuesday morning also dawned bright and clear, so after doing some laundry we headed off for a look around  West Somerset. First stop was the village of Dunster, where after a walk around town had lunch at the local pub, it being a traditional British pub with low beams and wooden panelling. Dunster Castle overlooks the village and this was a home of the Luttrell family since the 1400's and was handed to the National Trust in 1976 . This castle is different to many we have seen as it would be quite comfortable to live in and is well preserved. We then had a look at Minehead, Blue Anchor and Watchet which are on the coast of the Bristol Channel. The tide goes out a long way here and we could see Wales in the distance.
The it was back home to reorganize our cases ready for flying out tomorrow.
Singapore here we come.

Sunday 23rd The Cornish Coast

Today we did a circuit of western Cornwall, starting off with Falmouth which is a port township facing the English Channel and therefore a popular port for ship repairs. The inner port however, suffers from the rise and fall of the tides which vary hugely during the day, the small boats in the harbour were all grounded, waiting for the tide to come back in.
Then it was across country through Helston to Penzance. On the way we thought we would have a look at St Michaels Mount, but so did everybody else in England so we couldn't find anywhere to park so had to be satisfied with passing glimpses.
Penzance is a twin city of Bendigo, but we couldn't find any reference to the connection. They suffer from great variation in tides here too!
The coast road from here appeared more interesting than the main roads so we continued around through Mousehole (pron. Moozle). By this time the sun was shining and it was a beautiful sight. The road continued and became the typical narrow country road, with which we have now become used to.
The next stop was Lands End which is one of those things you have to do. There are the usual tourist traps leading up to the Point and we succumbed to having our photo taken in front of the sign post showing how far from home we are. Although the sun was out, so too was the wind, it played havoc with my hair (???). However, it was great to be there.
Continuing around the coast, we had a look at St Just. A bit further out, Glen said to pull into a side road so she could take a photo, I continued down that road and it became the narrowest we have been on, bushes brushing both sides of the car, thank goodness we didn't meet any other vehicles.
Further around the coast was St Ives and were lucky enough to get a carpark on the Esplanade so decided to have tea there. We like St Ives, it seems to have its own micro climate and is very pleasant. This time the tide was in and was different to see the harbour from the last time we were here.
Tomorrow we head northwest and will leave Cornwall for Somerset, and have enjoyed our time here. Like everything you could spend days exploring each town or village, but we have had a good overview of the area.


 

Saturday 22nd The Ancestral Trail

Saturday 22nd The Ancestral Trail
We are staying at Cambourne which is about 5 or 6 miles away from Redruth.
Redruth is the town from which both Glen's Great Grandparents and my Great Grandparents emigrated to Australia in the Mid 1800's.
Our first stop this morning was to the historical records place in Redruth to see if we could find an address where my relatives may have lived. We weren't able to find any more information than we already knew, despite the help of the very helpful staff there.
We already knew the address where Glen's Great Grandfather, Sampson George, lived so we went there to have a look. Taking photos of the place we got talking to the current owner and she invited us in for a cuppa which we accepted, and had a great chat with her and her partner. They seemed as  happy as we were to exchange information.
Had a Pasty in Redruth for lunch
We then headed down the Lizard peninsular to Mullion, where Richard Thomas, my Great Grandfather was born in 1841. I had the name of a farm where the family probably lived and when we found it got talking to the current farmer. Most of the buildings on the property were built around 1900  although there were older outbuildings which indicated there may have been other buildings there before then.The farmer knew of Thomases that had been in the area he couldn't provide any information, but was friendly.
We continued down to Mullion Cove which faces the English Channel and watched the sea breaking over the sea wall.
We continued down the peninsular to Lizard Point which is the most southerly part of the UK and we really felt the full force of the weather. The wind had been blowing all day but was especially strong there.
It was a very interesting day and one of the reasons for doing this trip. It was interesting to see the area that our ancestors left. Although it is beautiful country, rolling green hill, fields with hedgerow borders, sheep and cattle grazing. also saw a family of foxes on the distant hill when we were talking to the farmer. You could imagine that life was difficult for them and how brave they were to seek a new life in a new country.
Dinner tonight was in a local pub called Tyacks which is also a familiar name in Bendigo. We see place and shop names with which we are familiar in Bendigo due to their Cornish origin. Almost a feeling of old home - a bit weird really.

Friday 21st The Lost Gardens Of Halligan

We packed up this morning to head further west. The hotel we were staying at is part of a chain and we decided to book ahead to an hotel in Cambourne. Doing this means we don't have to worry about looking for somewhere to stay when we get there.
Just out of St Austell are the Lost Gardens of Heligan. This Estate was the home of the Tremayne family for over 400 years and contained extensive and productive gardens. During the middle part of the 1900's the gardens declined and became derelict. A severe storm in 1990 devastated the site and that led to new owners starting to recreate the "lost" gardens. This has been ongoing for 20 years and has been a huge undertaking but has recreated something spectacular. The area includes large vegetable gardens, flowers, fruit trees, rain forest, an Italian garden, lawns and so on. Well worth the visit and we spent several hours there.
Then it was about an hour's drive to Cambourne and we think we will go to St Ives for seafood tea. Wonder if we will meet a man with seven wives? - Al thinks one is more than enough to handle!!!
9:30pm
We did go to St Ives and enjoyed fish and chips for tea. The town is a fishing village with lots of boats in the harbour. However it is not a deep water port and all the little boats are left stranded when the tide goes out, really enjoyed the place.

Thursday 20th Eden Project

We are staying at St Austell which is just a few miles from The Eden Project,  this was one of our objectives in coming here so that's where we headed. The weather was cloudy and a bit cool.
This area has been a clay mining district and a disused clay pit about 60 metres deep was acquired with the purpose of showing what could be done by recycling the site into something of use and for education. The site consists of two large biomes, or glasshouses which are constructed with a steel frame in mainly hexagonal shapes filled in with plastic pillows.
One biome is used to recreate a warm dry atmosphere and displays plants from Mediterranean and African climates while the larger one is tropical rain forests. Both are filled with plants and displays which make the whole thing interesting.
Outside the biomes the gardens are also beautiful displaying a large range of plants. The project is very much into ecological measures and educate without appearing to do so.
We spent several hours there and when we left it was starting to rain. They use buses to get you to and from the carpark. As the weather by this time was less than delightful we decided we would just go for a drive to Megavissey, a coastal village just down the road. Parking is not possible in these villages and you either park out of the village or just drive through it. We decided to have a look at the docks which would be very picturesque in the sunshine, but in the rain, with grey skies, grey sea and grey roads beside the docks it all looks pretty much the same. With no railings beside the seafront it is a bit creepy when you just have to keep going until there is a place to turn around. We survived that bit of driving much to the bewilderment of a local who just stood in the doorway shaking his head at us. (Stupid damn tourists)
Back to the hotel for tea and in for the night.

Wednesday 19th Coastal Villages and Country Lanes

Today dawned fine and clear so we headed off to explore the local area. First up was Charlestown Port where there is a fully rigged sailing ship, set in a picturesque area made all the more attractive by the sunny day. This area was owned and developed by the Rashleigh family centuries ago. Lunch was a pasty. They are not described as anything other than just a pasty.
We then headed towards Polkerris which consists of a privately owned hotel on the beach front, after negotiating the narrow roads, parking was impossible and involved reversing and juggling of cars to get back. It is really beautiful countryside and seaside. We had to laugh as we were going along these roads when we had to drive behind a farmer who was moving his cows back for milking, patience is a virtue here.
Then it was on to Fowey which is perched on the side of a hill overlooking St Austell Bay. By this time we were getting used to narrow roads. We could see Polruan on the other side of the bay and to get there involved another ferry ride. We had a ferry yesterday at Dartmouth. When we got off the ferry, we thought we would be right there in the town but it involved a few miles of county roads before we got there. Again beautiful views over the coast and hinterland.
Returning to St Austall we stopped at a white clay factory and display centre, but as it was late in the afternoon we weren't able to see any of the workings, so it was back home for tea.

Tuesday 18th Devon to Cornwall

Left the hotel in a light fog which added to the mystery of Dartmoor. A little way along the road we stopped to watch some wild ponies and one of them decided to check us out too. Stuck his head in the car window to see what we were doing.
Then headed towards the coast to Torquay. Nothing like Torquay on our surf coast but very busy and very touristy. It has a large Ferris wheel which we couldn't see the top of because of the fog. The fog eventually lifted and we continued on along the coast road. It is summer here but you wouldn't know it. The locals are perplexed, they say it is the worst season for 50 years. Trust us, we take 500 year floods to Europe and the worst summer in 50 years in England. The Met. Office was having a special meeting of its boffins today to try and work out what is going on with the weather.  Nevertheless we are making the most of it and enjoying ourselves.
Continued along the coast to Dartmouth, which is, obviously on the mouth of the river Dart. Here we stopped at Dartmouth Castle (yes we voluntarily went to another bloody castle). This was quite interesting as it guarded the entrance to the bay. They used to string a chain across the bay in order to keep undesirables out and when the ships floundered on the chain, they were bombarded with cannon fire from the castle tower. An impressive array of cannons were on display here. You have to pay for parking everywhere, here. Had to play the dumb Aussie tourist to a parking inspector because we didn't buy a ticket to park.
We then thought we had better head to our next overnight stop so plugged St Austell into TomTom and I think TomTom said to himself, "I know a short cut to the motorway". Well, I thought the roads yesterday were narrow, this was just a one lane road with hedgerows right up to the side of the cars, with only short spaces where you can manage to squeeze past oncoming vehicles. Cars are bad enough, but it's worse when a truck comes along.
Along the motorway, we side skirted Plymouth, over the River Tamar and into Cornwall.
Got to our hotel for the night and had tea and an early night. We are staying here for three nights, will do the Eden Project tomorrow, probably, then we will go to Redruth for three nights.

Monday 17th Dartmoor

Monday 17th
Well our expectations have been exceeded.
In 2010 when we did a tour of Great Britain, on our last night we drove out from Plymouth to an hotel in Dartmoor for our farewell dinner. It was such a magical evening we decided that if ever we came back we would stay the night at the same hotel, well, we are at that hotel tonight and it has capped off a beautiful day driving through the south coast of England.
We left Christchurch late in the morning after a casual start to the day. It was nice not to have to be on the go and to be able to take our time along the way.
Leaving Christchurch, the towns just merged into each other, Christchurch, Bournemouth, Poole, they just seemed to go on and on. Then we hit some country roads, following the coastline westward.
We stopped for a break at Portland which is an island out from Weymouth, it would be a very popular resort at the height of the summer season, and was the site for testing of the bouncing bombs made famous by The Dam Busters.
These roads were smaller and drove through quaint villages with thatched cottages, along roads edged by hedge rows and covered by trees that arched over the road, just like as though you were driving through a green tunnel, just beautiful. There seemed to be another village every few miles along the road. Some of the houses are built right on the edge of the road.
There were some motorways along the way which covered a few miles in order to move us along and then we turned off towards Dartmoor. Well, the roads narrowed and we drove between hedgerows and trees and kept a careful watch on oncoming traffic.
We arrived at the Two Bridges Hotel at about 5:30 and had time to relax and wander around, taking photos. Although the road we drove in was through forest, following on from the hotel, was traditional moorland country which, although beautiful during warmer months would be bleak in the winter. We haven' t heard the Baskerville Hounds as yet, but who knows! It is raining now which adds to the atmosphere.
Dinner was a classy affair with lovely food. The hotel is historic and shows its history with photos in the restaurant and reception, it seems popular with hikers and cyclists doing their thing across the moor.
Tomorrow we go into Cornwall where we are booked in for three days at St Austell.

Saturday 15th and Sunday 16th

A couple of quiet days, so there's not a lot to talk about.
Saturday morning, Ken and Sue drove us to the outskirts of London. They showed us where they (and Margaret) grew up. It was interesting to see a neighborhood and hear the stories associated with it. Also had a look at Epsom racecourse, where we could drive right up to the rails on the racetrack.
Lunch was at a garden centre, where we could see that most of the plants are what we grow at home.
Dinner that night was at a nice local pub.
Sunday, we hit the road after lunch and headed for the coast, driving through the New Forest, part of the way was on a motorway which carries a lot of traffic and banked up where there had been an accident. We drove into Winchester but couldn't get a carpark so didn't hang around to have a look at the cathedral.
We are staying tonight at Christchurch which is between Bournemouth and Southampton. Went to the pub next door where I had haddock and chips with mushy peas (how British is that!)
Tomorrow we continue heading westward to Dartmoor.

Friday 14th The Villages of Surrey

This morning we headed to the village of Guildford, being near where we are staying. The village has a history going back 1000 years and has buildings that are historical and constructed in a variety of styles.
Guildford is on the river Wey which is used by narrow boat travelers and there is a lock on the river in town. While we were inspecting the lock a narrow boat went through. To do this is a manual process requiring someone from the boat to get off the boat and open the gates while another on board maneuvers the craft through the lock, very interesting to watch.
Then Ken and Sue took us for a drive through the local Surrey countryside. It is a beautiful area and we went through villages that are real picture postcard stuff, narrow roads, green hills, dense forests, just magic. It is just how we imagined the English countryside would be. As well the sky had cleared and it was a lovely sunny afternoon.
Continuing on we went up Box Hill which has a zigzag road to the top,and was the location for cycle races during the Olympics. There was a wonderful view from the top over the countryside to the village of Albury. So many place names here are familiar.
Ken and Sue have asked us to stay another day which we are going to do and move on on Sunday.
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Thursday 13th Dover to Guildford

Left our friendly hostess at 9:30 and went to the docks where the ferries come in from France. Had a look around there and could see the white cliffs reasonably well. The weather was cloudy and windy. Did I say windy? It was so windy we nearly got blown back to France!
We had intended to do a cliff top walk but decided it was too windy for that, cold too!
Instead we headed up to see Dover Castle. This is quite interesting as it is entirely intact. Hasn't been destroyed during any wars or set fire to. Apparently Hitler gave instructions not to bomb the place as he thought it might be nice for him to reside in after he won the war!
The castle was quite well set up to show how the old Kings lived, pretty spartan really. It was built by Henry II in 1180.
However, the most interesting part was the Secret Wartime Tunnels. These are are a series of tunnels dug into the chalk cliffs, originally during the Napoleonic wars and extended and modified during the Second World War. It was from these tunnels that the evacuation of troops from Dunkirk was masterminded. A well produced sound and light show described how troops were evacuated from Dunkirk in 1940.
After this it was so cold and windy we couldn't do any more so we hit the road to Guildford. This was an hour and a half trip along the motor ways. We are staying with Ken and Sue whom we have met before and are friends of Dan and Margaret's (Janelle's in-laws)After a cup of coffee we went for a drive to a nearby village of Godalming, a very picturesque place.

Wednesday 12th Dover

We are now in Dover and guess what happened when we got here? It rained! I think the gods of the weather are trying to tell us something.
There was a taxi booked to pick us up at the hotel in Paris at 8am and he arrived 10 minutes early. We were ready, just finishing breakfast, so off to Gare Du Nord station. They advise you to be there 30 minutes early for the Eurostar, but we were two hours early, and we really needed most of that time to go through customs, passport control etc. and to have a cup of coffee. The train left promptly at 10:13 and we arrived at Ashford in Kent at local time 11:07. (One hour time difference) We were in the tunnel only for about 20 minutes so it was hardly noticeable.
Picked up the car, a nice VW Passat wagon, plugged in the TomTom and headed down the motorway to Dover. Decided we would have a look at the white cliffs, but we couldn't see them because by this time the fog had rolled in and it started to rain. I had to buy a new rain jacket because I had left the old one behind somewhere.
It's nice to hear English spoken and not having to worry whether we should be saying Grazia or Merci or whatever.
Then decided we had better find somewhere to stay the night so went to the info centre and they put us on to this B & B which is nice, owner seems the friendly sort. She told us where to go for tea so we walked down to a rustic place on the Marina called Cullen's Yard, an old ship builder's place by the looks of it. Had a pleasant time chatting to the locals and enjoyed a steak and chips. The locals can't believe the weather, it should be warm and sunny, but it isn't.
By the time we had finished, the rain had stopped so it was a pleasant walk home.
Haven't got Wi Fi here so will post it when I can.

Tuesday 11th Giverny and Versailles

Bonjour.
Picked up at the hotel at 8:15 for the day's adventure in a mini bus. There were eight passengers, four Americans, two Kiwi ladies and we two. Driving out of Paris at this time of day was rush hour but we seemed to make steady progress. I can't work a lot of the roads out, you seem to have to go past where you want to turn off and turn around and go back to the corner on the opposite side of the road.
Anyway about an hours drive in the country we came to the village of Giverny, a pretty spot where Monet's house and garden is situated. The weather was cloudy with a little drizzle at times but it didn't stop us from enjoying the garden. The roses are in bloom as well as irises, peonies, pansies, lupins, water lilies, rhododendrons, violas plus plenty of others. It was a picture and well worth the visit. Everybody was queuing up to have their photo taken on the Japanese bridge. The house was interesting too, considering that old Claude lived there with his wife, mistress and eight kids, some of them his. Giverny is a pretty village with narrow roads and the locals all have to keep their gardens up to scratch or face a fine .
Through our travels in Europe we have seen Flanders Poppies growing in the fields, they are considered weeds in many places, but Monet painted them many times. There was a field next to the Monet Museum where the poppies were growing wild and they looked beautiful.
We then drove through the countryside and other quaint villages to our lunch stop which was at a village called Fourges. There is a mill there with an operating water wheel namely Moulin et Fourges.
Lunch was nice and we enjoyed the company of our fellow travelers.
Then it was on to Versailles. Have you ever been swamped by other people so much you don't get to enjoy the place? This is what happened to us here. The queue to get into the castle was enormous and everybody was surging through the building, we just got carried along. It is of course heavily ornate with frescoed ceilings, marble etc. etc. we were just over it altogether. The gardens are very manicured but we didn't  really have a lot of time to wander too far.
Anyway it was back to Paris and tea and get organized for shifting.
We are on the Eurostar at 10:13 tomorrow morning and pick up a car at Ashford in Kent.
I don't know what the availability of WiFi will be like in the next two weeks so will have to take the opportunity to update the blog when I can.
Au revoir.

Monday 10th Paris.

After a leisurely breakfast of croissants and coffee we headed for the bus stop. Had to wait a while for the bus to arrive so chatted to some English people as well as a family from Texas. The Americans all think their throats have been cut because they had to fly for a whole eight hours to get to Europe. They can't believe it takes us 26 hours and more to get here.
We went to the Louvre and decided to battle the queues, which as it turned out were not as bad as we had expected. Thousands of people there and we got to see the Mona Lisa. Everybody had told me the painting was small so we were surprised to see the actual size. Had a good look at it and then wandered around some of the other exhibits. You would probably need a week to see the whole museum, but we saw what we wanted and were really happy to do that, having spent a few hours there. Met John and ? whom we met on the cruise. ( We've had a mental block here, can't recall her name although we knew it this morning). They had got separated from each other and were each starting to panic. We were able to get them together and they were happy.
After that we walked up to the Opera House and had a good look at that. It is in the Baroque style which is heavily ornamented, with marble, frescoes and mosaics everywhere.
Then it was on the bus to Notre Dame where we queued again to have a look inside. A huge Gothic building with stained glass windows. There was a full orchestra, including the pipe organ, and choir rehearsing there which would have been wonderful to hear if it weren't for those damn tourists, they are everywhere! Trying to be quiet and not succeeding.
By this time our little legs had been worn down to the ankles so it was decided to get the bus back home and find a place for tea. Our hotel is just a few steps from a junction with Boulevard du Montparnasse which is a very lively area so we did some more side-walk sitting and eating along with a nice Bordeaux. It's really lovely sitting with a glass of red, watching the locals wandering past with their little dogs on a lead and carrying their baguettes for dinner. Lots of bikes here too and cars going everywhere. You couldn't call the Parisiennes over weight, they all look slim and terrific, probably have a cigarette instead of a meal, I think.
Tomorrow we go to Giverny and Versailles, so that will be a nice day.

Sunday 9th Paris

Last night certainly was a night out on the town. We were picked up at the hotel at 5:40 by a French guy with a mini bus. The whole night had been booked as a package and we thought we would be part of a group. Well, the group was just us. The guy drove us to The Tower where he gave us fast access tickets up to the restaurant. It was a beautiful meal with a great view. Chatted with two young couples who were doing the same thing as us. It seems to be the thing to do, dinner, cruise and Moulin Rouge. After dinner we walked to the dock and had a cruise up and down the river to see the lights. The Tower looks wonderful with its sparkling lights on the hour for five minutes.
After the cruise our guy was waiting for us and  drove to Montmartre for the show with lots of hand waving and horn blaring along the way. The tickets were ready so we don't have to join the really long queue.
The show was marvelous, lovely girls in spectacular costumes, mostly anyway, interspersed with other acts. The show finished at 1:30 and our man was waiting for us again to take us home. There would have been hundreds of people at the show and we had great seats, thoroughly enjoyed it.
Today (Sunday) we had a sleep,in and a late start. Out of our window we watched the butcher over the road, he must have a booming business because he had a queue out the door all morning, also sold BBQ chooks which were cooked in a portable oven on the footpath. Eventually got on the hop on hop off bus and spent the afternoon driving around Paris. The weather got colder and had some light rain so we were glad to get back to the hotel. Anyway it was a good way to get an overview of the city. Went around the corner to a cafe for dinner where we sat on the footpath under awnings and gas heaters. Unfortunately the mood was spoiled by the smokers.

Amsterdam to Paris

FRIDAY 5th
There were different activities that were options for today. We opted to do a canal boat cruise which was very interesting and got a bit of a look around the city. Driving into town via the scenic route we stopped at a traditional windmill which is someone's residence. The people living there hid inside until all the buses had gone. After that it was dicing with death as we dodged among all the bicycles to walk around the city. One of our ladies was knocked over. It is a very busy place with a lot of young people around. It is a university city and it has a relaxed lifestyle, where you can indulge in a few different guilty pleasures (?).
After lunch we went to the flower market. the tulips are finished of course, but you could buy all sorts of bulbs and plants there. we were let loose on our own for an hour or so, before returning to the hotel.
The farewell dinner (another one) was held at the hotel and it was quite emotional for Cheri as not only did she have to organize us, she was dealing with the fact that her country was in a state of crisis and her home town was cut off by a landslide. One of the local guides we had used in one of the cities lost her home altogether, so we are not so badly off after all. Although she is a Scot by birth, Cheri has lived in Austria for 20 years.
Although this is the finish for us of our trip with APT there are many others continuing on to do the Paris extension with them. They are booked on the same train as we are on Saturday morning.

SATURDAY 6th
Well it was up at sparrow's this morning for the buses to take us to the station to catch the 10:19 train.
The station would have been really easy to get to had we disembarked from the ship, but by bus it was a different story. All stations seem to be in a state of renovation and we had to lug our cases across roads and roadworks, but we got there. Found our platform and boarded (first class of course!!). The train took off on time and it was a three hour trip across Holland, Belgium and France, really beautiful countryside and all of it cultivated in some way. Lunch was included so we didn't go hungry.
Arriving in Paris we got a taxi to the hotel, which is a small boutique hotel in the Latin Quarter. By the time we put our bags in the room there was not enough room for us, which says two things , the room is  really small and our luggage has increased in size.
We are out on the town tonight, with a sightseeing tour, dinner at the Eiffel Tower, a cruise on the Seine and visit Moulin Rouge. I think a sleep in might be the first order of tomorrow

Tuesday 4th

Have just realized there wasn't an entry for Tuesday. I think I did one but perhaps it wasn't saved.
Anyway, we went for a drive to Wurzburg, and as noted in the previous day's blog, the glass blowing guy did a roaring trade.
There is a partially ruined castle at the top of the hill in this town and we walked up there where we had a drink before going down again. There was an American Army base situated here after the war and the buildings for the base are situated around the hill overlooking the old town, it looks bit of an eyesore really. Russian Germans were relocated to these buildings when the iron curtain fell. Unfortunately this was not a success as they are considered neither Russian or German and are ostracized and do not mix with people from the town. It is becoming a ghetto.
This town, like many others, has a Jewish history and the tales the guides tell are quite harrowing. One family was the only ones not to relocate early on and they paid the ultimate price. There are brass plaques set into the cobblestones to commemorate them.
This town also has a leaning tower, and has records on the side of buildings showing the height of previous floods, just as well we weren't there then.
Back to,the ship for our last night on board and farewell to the crew. Spent some time organising our cases. We were booked in to the special restaurant at the stern , where they put on a multi course meal with all the service you could want.

Wednesday 5th and Thursday 6th

Thursday 6th 4:30pm
We are now on the road to Amsterdam, having crossed over the border into Holland. The traffic on the Autobahn is very heavy, multiple lanes both ways and lots of vehicles. Have been on the road since 2:30 and expect to get to our hotel about 6pm. There are three buses traveling together and we have just had a pit stop. Can you imagine about one hundred people pouring out of the buses into the servo for the toilets. Chaos. The guide wanted us back in the bus in 15 minutes. Fat chance! - 70+ ladies with only 2 cubicles.
Lunch stop today was in Cologne (Koln to the locals) where we walked around the old town and inspected the cathedral which is a massive building in the Gothic style. Like a lot of the old sandstone buildings it has absorbed pollution and is black, but has beautiful stained glass windows including a more modern and controversial one. Lunch consisted of German fare where they brought out trays of mashed potatoes, sauerkraut, sausages and pork knuckles. Sadly much of it went back untouched, too much to eat. Plenty of beer too!
Last night we stayed at a beautiful town Bad NeauenAhr. This is a spa town. Like Daylesford and Hepburn Springs people go there to take the waters, it is larger and grander than the Victorian towns but has lovely gardens and was nice to be out of large cities. The hotel didn't have free WiFi so didn't do the blog yesterday, will post this entry tonight.
On the way yesterday we stopped at Koblenz, frankly that was a waste of time mind you we were feeling 'a bit over it all' as we had finally left the ship in the morning and knew there was now no chance of seeing the river as we had hoped. We should not complain we have been well cared for and seen all our options plus extras via the bus trips.
Like many other towns Koblenz and Cologne were 90% destroyed during the war. Amazingly the cathedral in Cologne had hardly any damage at all.
Cologne is on the Rhine, and like the Danube and Main rivers, it is spreading out along the banks.
The Coach travel has been taking its toll on the travelers, there are coughs and sneezes all the time and people are generally tired.
Thursday 9pm
Have arrived in Amsterdam and have now been fed and watered. We are staying at the Radisson at the airport. Cheri tried to get accommodation closer to the centre of town, but its a bit difficult to fit in 150 people on two days notice. The weather is still sunny and its quite pleasant out.
Tomorrow we do a cruise on the canals and have a look around Amsterdam.

Monday 3rd

Monday 3rd
Well our cruise is finishing. We have been docked here in Wurzburg since Sunday and this ship is not going anywhere until Tuesday or Wednesday next week. The river is still rising and all the rivers are closed to shipping. The floods have been a disaster throughout Germany, Austria, Czech Republic, all areas we have been in.
We have not been stopped from doing things, however, as we have been bussed around. Yesterday. In the morning, we had a look around Wurzburg and into the Prince Bishops palace. Another grand and opulent building. After a light lunch on the ship(after the previous day's effort we decided against the roast that was available in the restaurants) we headed to Rothenberg. Glen and I stayed there in 2010 so it was familiar to us, left some euros behind in the Christmas shop. This is getting into wood carving territory and saw a beautifully carved altar piece at the cathedral.
Rothenberg was 30% destroyed in WW2 but was quickly rebuilt in the old style with the help of donations from overseas, America and Japan in particular. Wurzburg, on the other hand was 90% destroyed and was rebuilt in the sixties in the typical plain style of the time.
The drive back from Rothenberg was interesting, lots of wind turbines and solar panels, both on the roofs of buildings and huge solar parks in the paddocks. Apparently they rely heavily on Nuclear powered electricity generators which will be phased out by 2020 so there will be lots more wind and solar generation.
Our usual information session before dinner gave us the news that we will have to leave the ship on Wednesday and head for a hotel somewhere in the country. On Thursday we will head for Amsterdam. It is dissapointing that we are missing out on so much of the rivers, but we are being looked after and still seeing lots of land based things.
After dinner we had a glassblowing demonstration by a guy from Wertheim who was not only good at what he does but was entertaining as well. We are going to Wertheim on Tuesday and he has a shop there, coincidence do you think?

Sunday 2nd June Bamburg

Awoke this morning to see some sunshine, only a little bit of sun but at least it wasn't raining.we are still docked at Wurzberg and will be here for the next day or so and then it will depend on the state of the river as to what we do.
We are now on the Main River, having skipped the Main - Danube canal,which joins the two rivers, when we drove here yesterday.
There was another ship docked beside us last night and those people disembarked and were sent off in busses to be split up in three different hotels in Salzberg. Apparently there are 2500 people on the river who have been put off ships into busses and hotels, so at this stage we are still the lucky ones.
There has been flooding in Passau, and Vienna where we have been. There has also been serious flooding in Dresden and 4 or 5 deaths due to the water.
We headed off this morning to Bamburg, which is another UNESCO listed town, and this town is a little different in that it had little damage during the war, although there was one bridge that had to be partly rebuilt due to Allied bombing. We wandered around this town and headed to a restaurant for an included lunch. Pork knuckles, sauerkraut, flour dumplings, which were preceded by potato soup and all washed down with beer.  I hate to think how much weight we have put on! A brewery in this town makes a dark beer that smells and tastes like smoked bacon and we got a free sample to take away.
Leaving Bamberg, we drove to Kitzingen for a wine tasting session of local Franconian wines. Franconia is a part of Bavaria and the locals are very proud of their region and I think they wish they were not under Bavarian control. Bavaria is one of the states of Germany. It was a lovely drive to this town through farming areas, it is so green. There is a lot of water lying about so there is still plenty to find its way into the river system.
After dinner on the ship, tonight, we were entertained by a German lady who sang in different languages, songs of different European countries, ending up with I still call Australia home

Saturday 1st June Nuremburg

Saturday 1st Nuremberg.
Early start today as we had to have our bags out at 6 am ready for the transfer to MS Amaverde in Wurzberg.
We have been fortunate in that we have been able to swap ships, which are identical, even though they are a long way apart. Apparently many ships are stranded, so I presume passengers either stay there or get bussed around and stay at hotels.
We headed off at 7:30 which was half an hour late as the bus driver couldn't find his way into the port.
 Four and a half hours later we reached Nuremberg and walked to the Old Town Square where we had lunch, Bratwurst and sauerkraut washed down with beer. Coincidentally it was the same place Glen and I had lunch when we did the tour of Germany in 2010. While there we met the people who were doing the reverse transfer from Amaverde.
Having been fed and watered a local guide took us on a bus tour of the city and then to Zeppelin Field where Hitler had the annual Nazi Party rallies. Also saw the Congress building that Hitler wanted built in order to hold one meeting of the rally each year. This was to be greater than the Colosseum in Rome and grander, but was never finished. We then saw the courthouse complex where the Nuremberg trials were held. The guide was a German American who was knowledgeable ,informative and passionate about his city.
Then it was on to the bus for a 90 minute drive to our new home, where hopefully, our bags will be in our cabins waiting for us.
10:00 pm
Well we arrived and settled in, talk about Deja Vu all over again, this ship is identical to Amabella down to the fixtures and fittings, so it seems we have never moved.
We are docked in a commercial port, which is the safest place to be and hopefully will be here until Monday, the river is still rising though, so anything could happen.
Having the day out to Bamburg and Kitzingen tomorrow.
Just going with the flow - no pun intended!

Friday 31st The River Danube

Last night the ship left Passau to sail to Deggendorf, however, in the morning  we found we were going back, the captain had turned the ship around about 4:30  am.  Getting back to Passau,  the river  had risen  two metres overnight and was continuing to  rise.
After breakfast  it was on to the buses for the excursion to Regensburg,  the roads were dry along the way so we thought we were in for a good day , but get out of the bus and it started to drench rain, so umbrellas and coats were again the order of the day. Walking tour of the town was followed by some free time for shopping, (note for Heather, no money was spent)
Two hour drive back to the ship and we were no sooner aboard when we moved off. Captain was told the ship couldn't stay there as the port was about to be closed to shipping, and water expected to rise by another 3 meters so we would be above the .mooring point over night so we backtracked again! Back to Linz in Austria . River is still rising but the locals don't seem concerned, apparently it happens often, one guide pointed out the houses along the river and said their basements will be flooded within a couple of days. The port in Linz is the winter port where they leave the ships over winter. Vienna is also closed to shipping, so at least we got past there.
Before dinner our cruise director, Cheri, gave us the good (?) news that it will be a five hour drive to Nuremberg tomorrow where we will do our planned excursion after a lunch of local sausages and sauerkraut. Then it will be another two hour drive to Wurzberg (because cant stop at Nuremburg)where we will join the MS Amaverde. This is our sister ship and identical so all passengers from both ships will swap over and go to same room numbers that they were in before. Ie we were room 208 on Amabella and go to room 208 on the Amaverde. The crews stay on their ship just the passengers swap

Thursday 30th The hills are alive with the sound of............

............ Rain.
Awake this morning to grey skies, and left the ship to vist Sound of Music country. First stop was Mondsee, which is a beautiful town in upper Austria. This town is on lake Mondsee and is a popular resort town for Austrians. The local church was the setting for the wedding scene in the Sound Of Music and we couldn't see into it for a short time as there was a service going on. Today was a public holiday for Corpus Christie day, an important day in their religious calendar. We watched the locals emerge from the service, many of the girls were wearing Dirndls and the blokes in their Lederhosen, everybody was dressed up and they were carrying a piece of a Laurel branch which they will place in their homes for the next twelve months.
The church itself was beautiful and not overly ostentatious like a lot of them.
By this time it had started to rain and it didn't letup for the rest of the day.
Then it was on to Salzberg. We started a walking tour with a guide but eventually called that off as it was no fun wandering around in the rain. Our umbrellas finally gave up and we retired them. A pair of new ones cost all of 11 Euros for two. Looking for shelter, the first two cafes were chockers and the next was Maccas, at least it was dry and warm.
There was a classic sports car rally in one of the squares with Etype Jags, BMW's, Porsches, MGB's, Bentleys. More than you would ever see in Australia.
Their local church is also one of the most beautiful of all we have seen (and that's saying something).
Then it was thankfully back to the bus which took us to Passau in Germany to meet up with the ship which had travelled there during the day.
Now for the news.
It's been raining, hasn't it?, We are on a major river, aren't we?. Rivers flood don't they?
We were called into the lounge before dinner to be told by the Captain and the Cruise Director that we will have to make major changes to our cruise. Instead of going to Regensberg tomorrow, MS Amabella will only go as far as Deggendorf  where we will travel by coach to Regensberg for the planned activity and then on Saturday we will leave Amabella and drive on to Nuremberg where we will board the sister ship MS Amaverde. This ship is doing the reverse trip to us and those passengers will swap on to Amabella. It is hoped that we will then be able to continue on the Amaverde through to Amsterdam, it is possible, however, that we may have to use coaches on land for part of the journey. Hopefully that won't happen. Apparently the section of the river we are going to avoid will be at its highest and we won't be able to get under the bridges.
They are talking about the possibility of 100 year flood levels in Austria. Trust us to be here hey?
The captain and the cruise director have the safety of the passengers as their first priority and we will do whatever they think best.

Wednesday 29 th Durnstein to Melk

Woke today to grey skies and low cloud, but as it happened, the weather improved during the day until mid to late afternoon.
Sailed into Durnstein about 7:30am and after breakfast headed into town. It is a lovely place, although it only has 500 residents, it is a city. Built on the side of a hill, it is a tourist Mecca because there were five boats moored there. We were in the middle of three that were triple parked. That is called rafting where the passengers in the outside ship have to walk through the other two to get to the dock.
It is a wine growing region of Austria and the vines are all terraced into the side of the hills along the river. They grow a variety called Gruner Veltliner, a white wine, and also Riesling.
The guide took us through the city and pointed out the shops where we could spend our money(!!), we bought some souvenirs ,  then went to a wine tasting session, at 11:00am if you please. We tasted the above two wines and a Zweigelt (red). Then it was back to the ship for lunch.
The ship set off for Melk which is 35 kilometers away, some of the travelers elected to ride bikes instead of staying on board, they took about the same time to get to Melk as we did, they travelled along the old tow-paths beside the river, it would be a nice option if you were fit enough.
Those of us on board enjoyed cruising up the river watching the scenery. there are villages dotted all along the river and some of them still had their Maypoles up after their Mayday celebrations, the maypoles have a pine tree stuck to the top of the pole. Th e sun was out by this time and was quite warm. We were served Kaiserspritz to drink and onion tart to eat as we cruised and we sat on the top deck in the sunshine.
Arriving at Melk we were herded into buses and drove the short distance to Melk Abbey. This was an important Benedictine Abbey, but only a few monks are there now, it does house a primary school and It has a very impressive library and a matching grand room. The church is also impressive to say the least (abc!).
By this time the wind was blowing a gale and we headed back to the ship. We were entertained for an hour by a string trio who were very good. The ship set sail about 7:45 as we were having dinner and shortly after went through another lock. We will sail overnight to Linz, then we will have our excursion to Salzburg.

Sunday 26th Sailing

Sailing down (up) the river on a Sunday afternoon.
An easy day today. The scheduled land excursion this morning was the tour we did on Friday so we opted out and had a quiet morning on board.
We were having a light lunch when the ship set sail (is that the correct terminology?). You would hardly now the craft was moving it is so smooth and it moves along at a sedate pace, about 20 km per hour. A bit of rain along the way and it is quite cold, so there is no sitting out on the sun deck.
We are heading for Vienna where we will arrive at 1:30 pm tomorrow, sailing all night. We go through the first of the locks about 1:30 am, there are a total of  68 to go through in the 1811 Klms to Amsterdam.
We are having dinner in the "special" restaurant tonight, only caters for 25 people, so will see what that is like.
Not much to talk about today so will sign off.
Cheerio.

Tuesday 28th How the Habsbergs lived.

There were a few options to choose to choose from today so Glen and I had elected to go to Schonbrun Palace, that's the place that Andre Rieu uses as a backdrop for his concerts. This was the Summer Palace of the Habsberg family which ruled much of Europe and particularly Austria for over 500 years ending in 1918. It was probably built in the country way back when, but now it is just part of Vienna.
They didn't hold back when they built and decorated their palaces , extremely elaborate, and as our guide said this morning, if it looks like gold, it really is, the rooms just glow with gold. We saw their winter palace in Vienna yesterday.
There is a lot of information given out when on these excursions and I have a lot of trouble taking it all in. The stories of Emperor Franz Jozef and his wife Empress Sisi (Elizabeth) are fascinating.
We are sitting in the lounge watching the blue Danube flowing by at the moment.
Technology is another mystery that we keep having to find reasons as to why things go wrong or won't work but we eventually seem to find ways around it  - sometimes this has taken days so this can explain intermittent communications.
It is now evening and a few hours since I typed the previous paragraphs.  Since then, Glen and I went for a walk along the river and across the bridge nearby, returning we found that a few travelers were in the top deck pool, which is a hot spa pool, so we joined them, but was it hot,I called it the lobster pot, but it was nice for a little while. The weather , today has been fine and improved as the day went on, it was nice to see the sun which has been absent for a few days.
The group is settling in and are quite friendly. There was one man who was traveling alone who had to go home yesterday, he had some health problems and probably shouldn't have come in the first place.
Tonight we sail at 11:30 so we will go to sleep in Vienna and wake up in Durnstein, what a way to travel, everybody  does the work for you, it's lovely.

Monday 27th VERY COLD VIENNA

Had been sailing all night and woke to heavy grey skies and a biting wind that felt like it was coming off the North Sea. Heard later that it was snowing in Germany, not surprised!
During the morning we had the chance to visit the wheelhouse where the captain showed how he steered the ship and the electronics used on board. Disappointingly, they don't have a big steering wheel, just a small joy stick.
Arrived in Vienna about 1:30 and set off for an orientation tour of the city including the obligatory church! St Stephan's . Had a look at where they keep the beautiful white lippanzer horses which perform, as well as the Winter Palace of the Habsburgs. This was followed by coffee and sacher torte, a rich chocolate cake that has to be eaten with whipped cream because there are not enough calories in the cake (ha ha, you believe me don't you?). It was so cold though, no one was in the mood for wandering very far. Then it was back to the ship for tea, by which time the weather had settled a little, as we went out again to a concert performance. Mozart and the Strausses were performed and it was brilliant. Of course  the concert concluded with the Blue Danube Waltz and the Radeztski March.

Saturday 25th MS Amabella

We checked out of Hotel Zara at 10 o'clock and walked a couple of blocks to the dock. The ship was still completing the previous cruise from Amsterdam and although we couldn't check in we were able to leave our bags there.
On the previous day's tour of the city we were given a complimentary ticket for a boat ride up and down a short stretch of the Danube, so we did this. It was very informative and a good view of the landmarks was had.
Being the Ikey Thomas's that we are we went back to the boat where they had put on soup and sandwiches for lunch for those waiting to both disembark and to board. So we stayed there until we could check into our cabin around three o'clock. Chatted to a few people doing the same thing.
We got into the cabin and unpacked our cases (yaaaay!). It will be great not having to live out of the suitcases for a couple of weeks. Our cabin has a small deck where we can sit outside  as well as a little glassed sitting area when the weather is not so good, so we have good views on the port side. then we did an exploration tour of the ship, it's not all that big so it didn't take long. there was another ship doubleparked beside us for a few hours and you could see right into the cabins on the other ship (have to be careful when getting dressed!) We gathered in the lounge for the welcome speech by the cruise director and the captain. There are 157people on board, mostly Aussies, one Chinese and two South Africans and all our age group (grey nomads).
Then it was dinner time, four courses and coffee. After dinner the ship set off for a short cruise to see the lights of Budapest, and it is just beautiful. Especially the Parliament building which is a huge place built right on the river, then back to dock for the night.

Friday 24th Budapest

We were picked up at our hotel for a sightseeing tour of the city this morning, which was interesting in itself as the roads at the front and back of the hotel are being remade, as are many of the streets around. They are also building an underground carpark nearby, which has been ongoing for a long time much to the dismay of the locals. On this tour we met some people who were on the train from Prague and are also staying at this hotel, Americans of course, haven't met many Aussies yet.
The tour took us around the city and stopped at Heroes square then over the river to the Buda side where the royal castle is situated on top of the hill. This castle and its surrounding buildings were ruined during the Second World War and have been totally rebuilt. Including the beautiful Mattthias church, it brings home to us the effects that war has on any community on either side of the conflict.
When the tour finished we walked along the river and to our pleasure the MS Amabella was docked, just sitting there waiting for us to board tomorrow. The dock is just a couple of blocks from the hotel so it is in easy walking distance.
Back to the hotel for a rest and then we ventured out again and walked over the Elizabeth Bridge and along Vaci street which is a street adjacent to where we are. This is a shopping/tourist trap street but a lively one. The people promoting their eating places just about drag you in to their establishment, but we are really cool and ignore the ones we don't want. We did eat there and continued wandering after dinner.  Some of those flogging their eating places are ladies dressed in national costumes and are very colorful.
The currency here is Forints and one Aust. Dollar is worth about 220 Forints, so the price tags are huge and is a bit of a shock when you pay 500 Forints for two icecreams.
I thought the traffic was bad last night when we arrived, but I don't think it makes any difference what time of the day or week, it's still very hectic. The cars are larger here than they were in Italy.
No rain today but it was overcast most of the time. The locals say this is the worst Spring they have had for 35 years and can't wait for some warm weather as they have had a long cold winter. One of the lakes we went past today freezes in winter and is used for ice skating....too cold for us.
An interesting day for us and the start tomorrow of a new chapter in our trip.

Thursday 23rd Prague to Budapest

Long day today but although we haven't had much physical activity we are both more tired than if we walked 100 miles.
Caught the train at Prague which is an interesting station, although there is this impressive, if neglected huge building, all the action happens underground. The train left on time and travelled out of Czech Republic, through Slovakia and into Hungary. Each border we went through, our tickets had to be presented again and new train crew worked for the section of their country. The locomotive was changed twice also. It was nice watching the countryside go by, especially from the restaurant car when we had lunch. I don't know if there was a problem with the locos  or not but we were a hour late getting into Budapest.
A taxi took us through peak hour traffic to the Hotel Zara which is on the Pest side just up from the river, so it will be nice and handy when we board the boat. Had tea at the hotel and are now ready for bed. Will have a look around town tomorrow.

Wednesday 22nd Prague Castle

Today we did a tour of the inside of the Castle. What a huge complex. We only saw a small part of it but it goes on forever. One of the largest , if not the largest castles in Europe. The castle building surrounds St Vitas Cathedral which is huge in itself. The cathedral has beautiful stained glass windows.
We were picked up at the hotel and drove to the castle with our guide for the day. I think her name must have been Mrs Grumpy, couldn't crack a smile if she tried. She seemed to know her stuff but had no personality and didn't speak very loudly. This can be a problem for some people who don't hear very well you know! She was so different to the lady we had for the previous two days. Needless to say Grumpy didn't get a tip.
Anyway the tour ended at the Charles Bridge and we walked back to the hotel. The Maximillian Hotel is in a very good spot within walking distance of  both the main square and the Revolution Square, which seem to be the two main centers, so Anne has done a good job with her hotel selections. If you are missing your pets at home, while you stay here they will put a goldfish in your room for you to talk to.
Dinner was next on the agenda and we had Goulash with dumplings and steamed cabbage.
It was raining on and off during the day so our umbrellas were out a bit and as they have just about packed it in we might have to invest in new ones
Tomorrow we catch the train to Budapest at 9.35, seven hour trip.
Na shiedanou from Praha. ..........Al says this means goodbye

Cesky Krumlov Tuesday 21st

A bus again picked us up at the hotel at 8 45 this morning, this time we stayed on this vehicle and was much better than yesterday.
It was a three hour drive to Cesky Krumlov through the Bohemian countryside, very scenic as it is very green and lots of Canola in flower at the moment, they still call It Rape, or something like that.
Cesky Krumlov is a UNESCO listed town which has been preserved for centuries, many of the buildings are decorated with Frescoes or Graffito, which is a process where geometric patterns are etched into the rendered surface, very dramatic. There are lots of tourist shops, including jewellers, which Glen liked, selling Garnets in all sorts of settings.
The controls UNESCO set on buildings are horrendous, as they can't do anything without a lot of rigmarole and alterations and maintenance are very expensive.
Our guide for the day was Camilla who was the same one we had yesterday and when I told her I had a Trdelnik yesterday with jam, she was horrified as she thinks they should not be eaten like that, as they were food poor people would have and they couldn't afford to fill them with the likes of jam. Well that's how they were offered to us!
We had lunch provided here and after that continued up the hill to the Castle (yes ABC!) This is also built on top of the hill, but I thought it was a gloomy place, impractical to live in and would think it cold in winter, there are huge gardens with trimmed hedges and lawns. The paths and stairs, both in the building and grounds,  can be quite steep going up the hill.
Krumlov is quite a pretty place and worth the visit,. Cesky refers to the fact that it is in the Bohemian area.
One piece of information that will interest many is that Czechs think eating Carp is a treat and is usually eaten at Christmas. The fish is taken from the muddy water and kept in fresh water for two weeks before eating to remove the muddy taste.
Arrived back in Prague at 7:30 and walked back to the hotel after a long but interesting day.

Praha. Monday 20th

A bus picked us up at the hotel for an orientation tour of Prague. The bus we were transferred to was a small one but full, so it was packed. Hard to take photos through the windows but at least they showed us around the town and we eventually ended up at the Prague Castle. This is a huge building built on top of the hill overlooking the city. Within the castle grounds is built St Vitus cathedral, you know, he with the nervous twitch. You would though wouldn't you if you had boiling oil thrown over you after being thrown to the lions that didn't eat you. Vicious lot these old timers!
Following this we went to the city square and watched the astronomical clock chime the hour, then wandered down to the Charles Bridge. This was the first bridge built over the Vltava river and is a popular spot where tourists gather to have their portraits painted or caricatured. Wandering through the town we bought a Trdelnik to eat. This is unleavened bread wrapped around a wooden roll and cooked over a flame. It is then slipped off the wooden roll and rolled in sugar and crushed nuts, we also had jam spread inside, it was delicious. More about that tomorrow!
Walked further exploring the narrow streets and buildings, including shops.
Eventually it was time for tea so we went to the local brew house. The locals eat here as well, it is good food and relatively cheap, beer's good too. Neither of us have drunk much beer of late but we enjoy the local Pilsener.

Sunday 19th Milan to Prague

The rain has cleared by this morning so it was a fine day for moving. Repacking our cases was a bit of a job as we had to reduce the weight in the main cases a bit for the flight. We walked back to Centrale Station to catch the airport shuttle bus after enquiring about the cost of a taxi. 100 Euros by taxi to Malpensa airport, so the decision was an easy one. The flight only took an hour and ten minutes so we hardly got the seats warmed. We did, however, get a taxi into our hotel as that was the easiest option, a nice Skoda sedan.
The Maximilian hotel is in the old part of Prague and the buildings around it are lovely. We only went for a short walk to find a place for tea and settled on a local restaurant which served local meals at reasonable prices, it is a bit of a shock to get a bill for 490 karunas which is about $27.
Anyway not much else happened today as you seem to spend most of the day getting ready for traveling and waiting around for planes.

Saturday 18th Milan

Saturday 18th Milan
This morning was an easy one, sleeping late and having a late breakfast, what a pleasant change.
However, we eventually took ourselves off to the Metro station and went to the area where the Castle is. This was the home of old kings of Milan and is a huge affair. It now comprises museums.
By lunch time our conscience kicked in and we had an orange each.
Then it was time to board the tour bus to take us around town. First stop was to La Scala Opera House. It is not a very impressive building from the outside and inside we were able to see into the theatre from some of the boxes. They were preparing for a premiere of an opera tonight and only the stage was lit, but it looked very impressive. The theatre has its own museum with paintings and busts of Toscanini, Verdi and many others.
Then it was into the main Piazza after walking through "The Galleria". To call it a shopping centre is a bit of an understatement. Buildings housing Prada and the like, the four walkways are covered in glass ceilings. From here we went into the Duomo, we had seen this yesterday from the outside, which is impressive, but inside is a huge space constructed entirely of marble and has the largest stained glass windows I have ever seen.
The final stop was to Santa Maria Della Grazie Basilica to view DaVinci's Last Supper. To get to this you have to go through two air locks and only 25 people at are a time can go in and only for 15 minutes, just enough time for our guide to explain the symbolism of the painting. Because of the way DaVinci painted it, it is very fragile but it was interesting to see.
It had started raining during the tour and by this time we had our umbrellas well and truly wet.
Then it was back by Metro to the local station and walked home after having tea.
Tomorrow we fly to Prague so it's Arrivedirci Italia.

Food Glorious Food

Have just re- read the blogs from the beginning and it looks like we do nothing but eat and drink. Well that's not entirely true, really it isn't. But seriously we have enjoyed the food here, mostly it is simple food but flavorsome. The chianti is nice too! It doesn't contain the preservatives our wines have so is not headache inducing.
One other thing we have been doing is walking. Glen is walking every where, it's a real credit to her.
That's all folks.

Friday 17th Rome to Milan

Friday 17th Rome to Milan
11:00am
Currently sitting on a EuroRail train on the way to Milan doing up to 300 km per hour. I tell you what, the Italians could teach VLine and Southern Cross station a thing or two. The trains run pretty much on time, have leather reclining seats with tables between the facing seats. The trains are electric, very smooth riding and fast! Double line all the way.
It has been a bit of an adventure just getting this far. A taxi took us from the hotel to Termini station in morning peak hour traffic, I will never complain about the traffic on Marong Road again!  A horn is a necessary inclusion for any motor vehicle here. Most cars are of the very small variety, like Smart Cars and most carry war wounds, no wonder!
We then had to find where the platforms were for a start. Asked a couple of people who should have known, but they weren't in the mood to be helpful. Not like the "nice" guy who showed us where to go and then demanded ten Euro for his trouble. We live and learn.
I haven't had a chance to update the blog for a while as we have had three long days added to which the hotel in Rome didn't have free WiFi. Each day has been typed up and will cut and paste when I get the chance.
7:30 pm
We got into Milan at 1 o'clock and after finding our way out of the station we walked to the Mediolanum Hotel only three blocks away, we did decide that we have packed far too much as they are heavy dragging them along the way.
After settling in we headed to Corso Buenos Aires the main shopping strip, not content with that we continued finding more shops, all fashion stuff but at good prices, shoes for less than half what we would pay at home, but we didn't succumb. Continuing walking we found the Duomo (Cathedral) and the main Piazza, by which time we decided we would get transport back, so caught the Metro train, with the help of a nice American lady, when you know what happens It all seems pretty easy but can be confusing to strangers. Back at Corso BA we did some more footpath sitting and Pizza eating for dinner, watching all the beautiful,people strolling by. It's fashionable to go walking with your little dog. They also smoke in Italy, cigars too! Which can be a bit off putting.
Tomorrow we plan on having an easy morning and in the Arvo have a tour of the city booked which includes seeing The Last Supper.
We have now got free WiFi so will be able to put these on the blog. Happy reading!

Thursday 16th Return to Rome

Can't believe it's Thursday already, It's two weeks since we left home and the time has just flown. Italy has been wonderful. To be able to see the things we have heard about all our lives is amazing. The Colosseum, the statue of David, Leaning Tower of Pisa and The Vatican have all existed for hundreds of years, we as Australians find it difficult to comprehend.
Today, we left Sorrento at 8 am and shortly made a stop at a marquetry factory where they make beautiful pieces of furniture and artworks out of inlaid wood. Again, there were a few Euros left behind.
Hitting the road again after a brief coffee stop at an Autogrill it was on to the Commonwealth War Cemetery at Cassino. Beautifully kept, it honors those commonwealth soldiers and airmen who lost their lives in Italy during the Second World War. We left a Rose on an Australian's grave.
Returning to Rome we saw a different part of the city, being more modern with larger buildings and wider roads.
Before we got to the hotel we visited The Catacombs where 150,000 Christians were buried in old Roman times. It was a bit creepy to wander around the underground tunnels to view the spaces where bodies had been placed. Only 2,000 burials remain untouched, many having been looted over the years.
For our farewell dinner we all went to "Papa Rex" (Pope and King) restaurant where once again we enjoyed beautiful food and entertainment. A Tenor and Soprano serenaded us and there was more communal singing. Volare can get a bit raucous after a couple of chiantis. Everybody had a good time and was a fitting finale to the tour.  

Wednesday 15th Isle of Capri

We didn't have to be on the go until 8 am this morning, that's as much of a sleep in as we get.
The ferry took us from Sorrento to the island and boarded another boat which cruised around part of the island to view the White Grotto and other rock formations. returning to the port we rode the funicular railway from the port area up to the town of Capri where a refreshing citrus drink awaited us, non-alcoholic this time. The local guide took us to local gardens of Augustus.
 This town is built on the side of a hill and of course the streets are cobblestones so you need to watch your step.
Lunch was at a local cafe and instead of taking the funicular down we went in the local taxis, which are generally Fiats which can seat six and are open topped but  with a sunshade over it, quite unique.
Returning to Sorrento we were soon on the go again, this time to the Amalfi Coast and Positano. The coastal road is quite dramatic and I am glad I wasn't driving. Our coach was too large to negotiate the roads in Positano so we went in two smaller buses. Even these were quite large for the roads and we were caught up in an interesting road block when a town bus was going up the hill, we were going down and cars and scooters (Vespas and the like) were trying to go in all directions but nobody was going anywhere. Then an ambulance, with lights flashing and sirens blaring tried to get through. A local copper was directing traffic and eventually it was sorted after much maneuvering. Our bus backed into a big rock, we were in the back seat. Apparently this sort of thing goes on all the time.
Positano is even more hilly than we had experienced before and the paths quite steep. Tourists everywhere. We had a look at the beach which was grey stones and gravel, not very appealing. Back along the coastal road to our hotel for an included dinner in their restaurant. This overlooks the bay, more good food and wine. Bed finally called about 9 pm so it was another long day.

Tuesday 14th Assisi to Sorrento

Tuesday 14th Assisi to Sorrento
An early start today as it is a big traveling day, so it's on the coach by 7:30, which means out of bed at 5am.
The morning was spent driving through the Appenines and lunch was at an Autogrill.
Arriving at Pompeii about 2pm, Daniele had decided to do this visit today instead of tomorrow as there was a possibility of a strike by workers on Thursday, good decision as the weather was perfect. We have had warm and sunny weather for the last few days.
Pompeii is another amazing place and quite chilling when you see the plaster casts of bodies who were trapped by the ash. We could also see the tracks in the stone worn by carts being pushed or pulled along the roads. Also interesting was the "red light district" where pictures on the walls depicted the services offered by the ladies.
Apparently lava didn't reach Pompeii but the falling ash and pumice stone did the damage, collapsing roofs on people sheltering inside.
We only saw a small portion of the township as it covers a large area.
This is where Allan decided to try the local drink, Limoncello, expecting a nice refreshing fruit drink, it was anything but a soft drink. There are lots of lemons grown here, even huge ones that have a lot of pith.
Continuing on we made our way to our hotel in Sorrento. The hotel is in the old pedestrian area of the town and we had to leave the coach about half a kilometer from the hotel, but it was in a beautiful position overlooking the bay of Naples with Vesuvius dominating the landscape. Our room was at the front, so we had a good view.
Many of the group went out for dinner at a family restaurant high in the hills above Sorrento where we had good food, wine, live music, singing and dancing. Everybody had a  really good time. Fortunately the bus and the driver have to be out of action by a relatively early time or the party may have gone on till all hours.

Pilgrim's Way Monday 13th

An early start this morning, leaving the hotel in Venice at 7:30 am. This was necessary as you can't take buses into the city, so we got on a motor launch to take us to the port area where the coach was waiting, already loaded with our cases. This process must add extraordinary costs to all products as everything has to be double handled like this to get to shops and businesses.
Heading south we passed Bologna and our lunch stop is Ravenna.
Outside of Ravenna is a Basilica, built 1500 years ago, which has beautiful. mosaics inside, particularly around the apse. The mosaics comprise tiny pieces of glass  and it took years to complete. Lunch was a yummy lasagna.
Continuing on our way, the road on which we travelled went through farming and orchard country. The fields are only relatively small, each only a few acres, if that, and they may have wheat in one and peach trees in the next and vegetables in the next one. Further on we drove through the Appenines which has to be some of the most beautiful countryside you could imagine, green grass, mountains, small rivers (the Tiber starts here) and attractive farmlets.
We eventually arrived at Assisi. This town is built high on a hill and looks very impressive and awe-inspiring as you approach it. The coaches aren't allowed to enter the town so after checking into our hotel we were driven to a parking area and walked into Assisi. This is, of course, the home of St Francis and also of St. Clare who was a contemporary of Francis and founded the Poor Clare's Order.
The church which honors Clare is beautiful but the Basilica which was built over the crypt which holds St Francis' body is even more so. We viewed the crypt and the magnificent frescoes in the church which were painted mostly by Giotto.
There was a severe earthquake in 1997 which damaged some of the building and one of the aftershocks killed four people when part of the church's interior fell on them.
These buildings and the artworks which decorate them have to be seen to be believed and are to be admired.
There are 500 residents of Assisi and they are allowed to drive their cars in the steep narrow roads, much to the annoyance of our local guide, nobody else can take vehicles in.
Returning to the hotel we had an included dinner with enjoyable company at table

Wonderful Venice

An early start this morning to explore. First up it was a boat ride to Murano Glass, to watch a glass blowing demonstration and the staff's attempts to get us to buy. Some of our group did, however and there was probably a bit of money invested into some glass pieces. Coming back from that we went on a walking tour of "Hidden Venice". Only about half of the group did this tour but it was interesting to see the back streets and canals. Following that we went to St Marks Square where we had a coffee and an icecream.
Glen and I queued to go up the bell tower which was well worth the wait as it gives a great view of Venice. There was a pageant in town today as the locals were celebrating their relationship with the sea. The crowds were large but this seems to be the norm for tourist towns we have discovered. There were also four cruise liners in port so that helped swell the numbers too!
Gondola rides were next on the agenda as we all trooped to,the departure point and Gondala'd around the canals, very interesting.
Then it was onto a motor launch to cross the Lagoon to Burano. The houses here are all painted bright colors and they specialises in lace products, they also have a leaning tower, as the foundations are unstable due to the water levels.
Here we had an early seafood dinner, risotto with prawns, spaghetti with clams, sea bass, fruit and biscotti and coffee. What did I say about our weight? It was all very delicious though. Then it was back to the hotel for an early night to catch up on washing, blogs etc. tomorrow we leave and head for Assisi.
TTFN

Through Verona to Venezia

The morning was bright and clear as we drove out of Baveno and on to the Autostrada heading east. We skirted Milan but we will be back ther e after this tour ends. Brief views of the Alps showed snow capped peaks. Many industries are located along the autostrada even apparently outside any built up communities.
Our first main stop was Verona, the legendary home of Juliet and Romeo. We viewed the balcony which has been attributed to Shakespeare's story, this place attracts thousands of tourists, many women going up to the balcony to pretend they are Juliet. When we got that out of the way we went in search of food in the town square.
Verona boasts a building much like the colosseum in Rome only smaller but still in use, unfortunately the queues to enter we're too long and time was too short for us to have a good look at it.
The local football team (soccer) were playing away that day and they had a large screen set up in the square where the fans gathered to watch and encourage their team. Apparently the Verona fans are banned from attending matches in person as they have been behaving badly, this must affect the teams income from matches as they would miss out on attendance fees.
Leaving fair Verona it was on to Venice.
Arriving late in the afternoon we settled into our hotel, which is on the grand canal and our room is on the side overlooking a piazza, from our balcony we have a view of the grand canal.Glen and I along with another couple from Newcastle went to an adjacent restaurant for dinner where we both had a Calzone. Glen and I expected this to be an ordinary pizza, but it was folded over and looked like a large Cornish pastie, it was delicious. You know that weight we both lost before we came away, well..........
After dinner we hopped on to water taxis and headed along the grand canal to St Marks square. This is a main meeting place for Venice and you may have seen pictures of it when it floods. Insight provided us with a drink and we both had yummy hot chocolate, that is real chocolate, thick and syrupy. Sitting there the crowds were serenaded by a couple of quartets providing a very pleasant ambience. Then it was back to the hotel for the night.

Lakes in the rain. Friday 10th

Bongiorno.
We woke today to grey skies and rain which continued for much of the day. Leaving Baveno we skirted around Lake Maggiore which would be beautiful on a fine day. Crossing into Switzerland the coach headed to Lugano where we bought chocolate (yum!). Lugano is on the shores of Lake Lugano which is also a beautiful spot and a popular place to live and to visit. Our Tour Director, Daniele, although Italian, lives in Lugano, where he says it suits him and his work.
It was then on to Como which specializes in silk products. By this time the rain had cleared and the sun was out so we boarded a launch to view Lake Como. The lake is surrounded by exclusive villas of the rich and famous, very expensive real estate.
Then it was back to our hotel at Baveno and to a local eatery, the Upside Down Restaurant, for dinner.
The hotel was beautiful, being on the lake, with wonderful views and fitted out luxuriously. It is owned by a family which owns six hotels in the area, this one and another are linked by an underground tunnel which is lined with art works.
Arriverdirci

Lake Maggiore Thursday 10th

Today was a traveling day. We haven't had time to update the blog for a couple of days as the days have been full on.Up at 5:45 am and going through to 10pm. Today we left Florence at 8:00 am and headed West to Pisa. The building is just amazing, to think that it leans 12feet off perpendicular is astounding. Everybody was taking photos of others trying to "push" the building upright, we did too! While we were there, there was a Lamborghini Rally. Must have been over 200 cars driving around the town showing off. Also amazing are the street vendors trying to flog their wares, I don't know how they make a living, there are so many of them selling mostly the same sort of tourist things.
Leaving Pisa it was North West along the Ligurian Coast. This road consists of tunnels and viaducts, the landscape is all hills and valleys, there is no other way but to build bridges or tunnels, must have cost a fortune. Lunch was had at a roadside Autogrill, similar to our roadhouses but much better. The food is quite good and not Maccas or the like.
Passing by Genoa, we headed north and finished up at Baveno on Lake Maggiore. The hotel is very nice and after we settled in we were off again for a cruise on the lake to Isola Bella, which is a palace built on  an island in the lake. It was built by the Borromeo family, centuries ago. It is very ornate and has a lovely garden. Back to the hotel where we had dinner. The weather was fine today, warm at times and cloudy but not wet.
We are enjoying the food, did I say we like Chianti? Did I say we like Gelato? The pasta and Pizzas are very good too!

Traveling in Tuscany Tuesday 8th

The coach was rolling at 8 am sharp as we headed out of Rome. Heading north our first stop was at Siena. We had a brief stop for the driver to purchase a permit to enter the town. You have to get permits to enter towns - a form of tax.
Siena is beautiful town with narrow streets, cobblestones and a large piazza. It is also home to Monte del Paschi Di Siena, the oldest bank in the world, the name which is well known to staff of Bendigo Bank.
The piazza hosts a horse race twice a year which draws huge crowds and must be tortuous for the horses as it is a tight circuit with sharp turns.
The church of St Catherine who is the patron saint of Europe and Sienna. After she died her body was dismembered and pieces are in different places. Her head and 1 finger is in Sienna and the main body is in Rome.
We then headed for Florence (Firenze) where we were taken to the Piazza and to a Gold shop and a Leather shop. Some of the group enjoyed (??) a Spritz which is a local concoction guaranteed to stand you on your head. Dinner was at our hotel.

The Eternal City Monday 5th

An early start this morning, 7:30 on the coach headed for The Vatican. An advantage of being in a tour group is not having to queue at these places. The queues are horrendous. A local guide took us through the Vatican Museum which holds things of incredible age and would be impossible to place a value on it. We only saw a small,part of the amazing collections.
Then it was into the Sistine Chapel which has to be seen to be described, despite the crowds of people there was no noise. Amazing to think we were standing in a place of such history. Then it was into St Peter's Basilica, which is again awe-inspiring.
More history then, onto The Colosseum. To think these places were built so many years ago and to try and imagine what went on there is staggering.
U
Back to the hotel, then, and Glen and I took a taxi to an Apple store to see what I was doing wrong with the iPad as we had not been able to connect to the Internet. Problem now sorted and hope to keep up to date with the blog. We then went on a walking tour with the group into the old area of Rome. We had thought at one stage not to do this as we had spent some time there before joining the tour, but were glad we did as we had our local guide who took as to places we hadn't seen before and explained things as we went. Dinner was again at Piazza Navone. Back to the hotel to fall into bed.    

Roman Holiday Sunday

Sunday was moving day, so it was into a taxi and shift to the Hotel Kolbe in Rome. This Hotel is adjacent to Circus Maximus and our window looks out on to the ruins on Palatine Hill.

After settling in, it was time to break out the umbrella s and rain jackets. We headed down the street to a farmers market where we sampled their wares on the cheap. Then to the Santa Maria Church to test our honesty in the Mouth of the Truth, we must be truthful people because we didn't get our hands cut off. Then walking along the Tiber river and up to the civic area which gives a good view over the area around the Colosseum. 

Back "home" then and got ready for dinner where we met our fellow travelers. Mainly Americans with one couple from NZ, one couple from Canada and five couples from Australia, they seem to be a good bunch

Although it rained today it didn't really stop jus from getting out and about, the previous two days were warm and sunny.

Roman Holiday Saturday 4th

Breakfast was had this morning on the Hotel Terrace overlooking Trevi Fountain. Early morning is the best time to see popular spots in Rome as the crowds are light then. As time goes by the crowds grow until there are thousands of people gathering around.
After breakfast we walked to the bus stop for the hop-on hop-off bus. Along the way we side tracked to Quattro Fontana, an intersection where there is a fountain on the corner of each building on the intersection. There are no skyscrapers in Rome but the buildings are solid four or five storeys, a lot of them with elaborate decorations on the facades.
We stayed on the bus for the full circuit around the city and returned to the hotel for lunch. After lunch we got back on the bus again and went to Circus Maximus and the Castel Sant Angelo. We walked along the river and headed for Piazza Navona where we enjoyed a drink. While we were sitting there a procession of people wound its way slowly through the Piazza. They were celebrating the life of a medieval Saint. The people were in period costume with trumpets blaring and drums beating. People following were carrying banners, flags and flowers, very impressive.
Heading our way "home" we went to the Pantheon. Tea was al fresco in the street near the hotel with all the thousands of other tourists walking past.

Roma Friday 3rd

Well here we are at last. After twelve months of planning and organizing we have made it to Rome in one piece.
We flew out of Melbourne at 3:45 on Thursday with Jan and David after Andrew Holland drove us all to the airport.  Glen and I said goodbye to Jan and David at Singapore along with Fiona and Kylie who coincidentally were on that same flight too!
Rome welcomed us at 7:45 am  after a 24 hour trip from Melbourne, we got to our hotel by 9:30, too early to check in so we went walking. The Trevi Fountain is just by our hotel which is a small boutique hotel, it's  lovely and in a very good position on a narrow cobblestoned street.  We threw our coin into the fountain, so we will return to Rome. That's a given anyway as we return here after our tour of Italy. The Spanish Steps are also nearby so we went there too. I reckoned it was about lunchtime as we went by a nice pizzeria, so we sat out in the Piazza with our pizzas and chianti...very decadent, but hey- when in Rome..........
After lunch we checked in to the Hotel and had a rest, sorted our bags and went walking again. Yes Glen is walking with no after affects, great news!. As we had our fill with pizzas and eating on the plane it was decided that fruit would be the order of the day for tea.
Tomorrow we will do the hop-on, hop-off bus around the city so will see what the day brings.

INTRODUCTION

A very brief introduction to our Europe / UK trip.
 We are leaving Melbourne on 2nd May, heading for Rome. After three days there we join a tour of Italy for 12 days, returning to Rome. We then get the train to Milan for two nights and then fly to Prague for 4 nights.
After Prague we get the train to Budapest where we have two days before boarding the APT ship "Amabella" to cruise the rivers for 15 days to Amsterdam.
The day we leave the ship in Amsterdam we train to Paris for four nights. Then its on the Eurostar to UK. We get off the train at Ashford in Kent and pick up a hire car to drive along the South Coast to Cornwall and return to Heathrow. On the way home we will stay in Singapore for four nights before arriving back in Melbourne on 1st July

Hello everybody,

This is the first post on our very first ever Blog.  Keep your fingers crossed and if all goes well it will received regular updates during our trip to Europe this year.