We left Sue and Patrick this morning and head to the hostel that we’re staying in for 3 nights to dump our bags and then tube it to Heathrow to pick Luke up. We found that we were running slightly late, and as we were coming into the airport Chris looked up and saw an airplane from the airline Luke was flying with coming in, we looked at our watches and noticed that it was the time it was meant to land, so this spurred us on to get there even faster. We made it to Lukes gate and waited with great excitement for him to walk through the doors, and half an hour or more later, he did so, hurray! We gave him huge big hugs and we all talked at once trying to fill each other in on everything that has happened in the past 4 months or so.

We made it back to the hostel and as Luke was pretty hungry we made our first agenda item: consuming of food. Chris and I went up and ordered, leaving Luke to relax on a couch and when we got back Luke leaned over and whispered “that’s Will Anderson” and sure enough, over Lukes shoulder sat Australian comedian Will Anderson. We contemplated going up and saying hi, but he was sitting by himself and busy on his computer, so we left him alone, but I know that he noticed the three of us because as I began to choke and cough loudly in a very unlady like fashion on a piece of my burger, he looked over and watched me, we had eye contact, so I claim that he now knows of my existence, albeit, it wasn’t a very pretty first impression for him.

We dumped our bags in a teeny tiny room that’s supposed to sleep 4 people but I think was more designed for 4 midgets, and head out. We know how badly you want to sleep when you first arrive in the UK, the jet lag can be a real pain, but we also know that the best way to beat it is to stay up until it’s bed time and then head off to the land of nod, so we dragged Luke off into the city and took him past Buckingham Palace, through St James Park, over to Big Ben and Westminster, over to Piccadilly and Trafalgar Square and then off to Hyde Park. I was very proud of Luke, for someone who hadn’t slept in 40 hours he did very well at keeping up, and keeping awake.

Hyde Park is amazingly huge and pretty! It was a lovely day, clear blue sky and hot with just a slight breeze flowing over you, just right. We lay in the park for a while taking in the activities around us, roller blading, soccer, rowing on the lake, picnics, boot camps, it was busy but chilled out, it was really nice to take it all in. There was a little café on the lake in Hyde Park so head here for a bite to eat before heading back to the hostel where we all fell asleep not long after putting our heads to the pillow

written by  Chris and Emily on August 3, 2009 from London, United Kingdom
from the travel blog: Europe 2009
Send a Compliment

---

comment on this...

It sounds sad, but the main event for today was WASHING. God we had a lot! It may sound even sadder, but I had a total sense of satisfaction seeing all the dirty laundry now washed and hanging in the breeze to dry!

It was just a lovely day catching up with Sue and Patrick and occasionally sticking our heads into Rachs’ room to see how she was and say ‘hi’ (she’s not feeling well today sadly.. could be Swine flu...here’s hoping it’s not!!)

We had a lovely Sunday Roast before Chris and Patrick took off to Sue and Patrick’s business to look at the computers and servers… something I know nothing about. They were gone for sometime, so in this time Sue and I relaxed chatting and eating some very very yummy chocolates, before Sue went up and offered some to Rach and, having a slight conscious, left some for the boys.

A very light dinner was had before we head back upstairs to pack and watch DVDs. A lovely lovely day!

written by  Chris and Emily on August 2, 2009 from Buntingford, United Kingdom
from the travel blog: Europe 2009
Send a Compliment

---

comment on this...

As we were leaving at about 3pm we didn’t really have much of a day to play with, so we just took a leisurely breakfast at a very nice little café close to the hostel. We relaxed with our hot drinks, our bread and croissants, our jams etc, just took it easy and then skyped home for a chat with the family. Before we knew it, it was time to get going and head back to the hostel to pick up the bags and head to the train station.

The Eurostar was quick and painless (as we expected) but we had to laugh and at the same time roll our eyes, as we left Paris with beautiful blue sky and a beating heat… and as we came into the UK were met with grey clouds and pouring rain. It is England after all. Digging about at the bottom of our bags we were able to find our rain jackets and after donning these made our way to the next train which would take us to Sue and Patrick’s. It was so nice to see these guys again; we’ve really missed our UK family! We spent a long time catching up and filling each other in with all the news and goings on over the past 7 weeks or so, it was just lovely to see them again! A lovely home made meal completed the lovely evening and soon after that it was into bed for everyone.

written by  Chris and Emily on August 1, 2009 from Buntingford, United Kingdom
from the travel blog: Europe 2009
Send a Compliment

---

comment on this...

Chris and I lined up for 10 minutes or so and said goodbye as he went in, saying we’d meet up across the street in an hour, and then I was alone in Paris. It felt kind of refreshing and nice. I now had only my bad French and self to rely on (well, lets be fair, I couldn’t really rely on my French to get me anything but some strange looks and laughter…) While I wandered about the city area looking at the little stores and being tempted to buy little items I don’t really need, but for the sake of the fact that they were on sale, did so, Chris walked beneath me looking at totally decomposed dead people.

We met an hour later where Chris said that he’d had a really good time and that it had been really interesting and that I should have come as it wasn’t that bad (yeah, right) He mentioned that these bodies had been placed down in the catacombs (old mine shafts) when the cemeteries became to full. That a group of people had been hired to stack the bones etc, and had become ‘creative’ and had then begun to make patterns and shapes with the bone parts, for instance, there is a love heart made out of a bunch of skulls. Charming. He also mentioned that there are some sick (very sick if you ask me) people out there, who, like to climb down into the catacombs, take drugs and then have sex on the bones… eeeeewwwwwww! Anyhow, I’m sure he mentioned many other interesting facts and stories to me but I sort of shut off after hearing that, sort of put me off but at the same time it was the only thing I could think of, really really disgusting. I then happily showed Chris my purchases from the morning where he rolled his eyes and informed me that I buy the oddest things, and now, as I look back on it, he’s right, I don’t really need a teeny tiny miniature ashtray, but still, it was only a Euro… I’m a girl I’m MEANT to buy nonsense items and spend money, right?

We then found a little food market where we brought some bread, dips and chicken and made our way to the Luxemburg gardens where we had a little picnic and spent hours just lying about under the trees and relaxing, it was really lovely. Feeling slightly more revived and ready to face the crowds once more we head off in the direction of the “Shakespeare and Co” bookshop. This is an English bookshop which is famous for the fact that all the people working there are writers who live upstairs of this business and for the fact that they have many authors coming in and doing readings of their work throughout the week. It was a very busy little bookshop and a little bit of a paradise for me, I could have looked at all the books, but, on time restriction was only able to spend half an hour looking through the stacks of books for a gem or two.

It was getting later now and we decided that tonight was the night. We were going to go and see the Eiffel Tower at night tonight. We arrived as the sun was beginning to lower itself and lay back on the grass waiting for darkness to descend and we weren’t disappointed. At 9pm the golden flood lights came on and it was just gorgeous. The whole area was flashing as many many tourists took happy snaps, and then, at 10pm the little twinkle lights came on and the whole area erupted into cheers and applause and then, all the French people there broke out in a song ending in cheers, it was a lovely moment and with the twinkle lights it was just breath taking gorgeous. We spent some time admiring this but decided that we’d leave when the twinkle lights went off (half an hour or so they last for) so, after this we head back to the hostel where we once more fell into bed exhausted but happy.

written by  Chris and Emily on July 31, 2009 from Paris, France
from the travel blog: Europe 2009
Send a Compliment

---

comment on this...

There are many nice and interesting paintings here (as you’d expect being the Louvre and all) but my fave was a painting of “Noah’s Ark” but unfortunately I can’t remember the artist of this piece. I just found it really interesting and beautiful with all the work that went into it.

We spent 6 hours wandering about the Louvre, looking at paintings, sculptures, relics, pottery, Egyptian bits and bobs, and down into the basement where you’re able to see the old fort walls of what use to be the old Louvre. It was lovely, but admittedly exhausting!

We had a small break before moving onto the Pompadour Centre. This is a modern art building, built with all the escalators etc on the outside, it’s not particularly attractive but it’s modern art and in some ways that says it all huh? We sat outside it for a little while just taking in the look of it all (it looks like a building from a Mario Party world, it has all these different colored tubes etc and you half expect Yoshi or Princess to pop out) It doesn’t cost to go into the main area of this centre, so we decided to go in. Once in, you’re limited to looking at about 3 stores (the others are on another level and you have to pay to get up there) So we had a quick look at a book shop and then a modern art shop full of rather nifty and entertaining appliances, we could have brought a few items from there… had we had a few grand with us… A quick ice cream and we then made our way to Sac re cur.

Sac re cur is an impressive place to visit to say the least, but it would be easy for one to be put off visiting just by the sheer steepness of the hill that you have to climb to get there! And as if the steepness isn’t bad enough once you get to the gates you’re met by, and I kid you not, 30 men all standing in a group trying to sell you crappy souvenirs and trying to grab your wrists and then make you a bracelet that you can then not get off and you have to pay for… We folded our arms against us and shoved through this crowd saying “No” to all the men that pushed themselves into our face, I felt sorry for the unsuspecting young tourists I saw having these bracelets made onto their wrists, but it was a case for every man for themselves! As we were pushing through this throng of incredibly annoying, incredibly pushy, incredibly rude men I kept repeating over and over again “NO” If I didn’t want a souvenir from the first 25 men why would I change my mind on the 26th? Anyhow, by the end I’d had enough and just yelled “NO” at one young man who tried to push himself in my direction. He became angry then and yelled “NO” at me and then “HOW DO YOU LIKE IT?” To which I gave him a dirty look and moved on. They can’t expect to be that rude to someone and then get crabby when that person becomes annoyed/rude back, its total harassment!

Anyway, that aside, it was quite a pleasant day, even the walk up the STEEP hillside wasn’t soooooo bad in the end. We got to the top and were able to see for miles! It was a lovely view of the city from here, you could see everything, and it was really relaxing to sit up here and just take in the city and relax in your own little corner. Very nice! We were getting pretty tired by now, so we made tracks home but as we did so made a detour to the Moulin Rouge which is a 10 minute walk away, it was tiny, but great to see it after seeing it in films and having heard of it, we were now really buggered so we head back to the hostel where we crashed out and fell asleep pretty quickly!

written by  Chris and Emily on July 30, 2009 from Paris, France
from the travel blog: Europe 2009
Send a Compliment

---

comment on this...

As I went to brush my teeth and get dressed I walked out and came across the horrible lady from yesterday who stood in the passage way taking up the entire room as if to say “you can’t pass here” I waited and waited.. Until I finally just shoved past her. This woman has no understanding of manners or train etiquette! Our cabin just felt too small for 6 people so Chris and I went and got ‘breakfast’ in the food carriage who could only offer pear or grapefruit juice for your breakfast options. Not so impressed. We killed time here, desperate not to go back to our dodgy little carriage but eventually needing to get our passports back made our way back to the carriage where we asked a passing conductor for our passports to be returned, it was almost as if he slapped his forehead as he said “oh, of course! Will go get them now” and then disappeared for a further half an hour… We then got into Paris one hour late and we leapt off thankful to finally be in Paris and off the train from hell!!

We made our way to the hostel only to find that they have a ‘lock out’ from 11am until 4pm. This was ridiculous! Chris and I had been in the same sweaty clothes for over 24 hours now and were sweaty, tired and in desperate need of a shower (we smelt, I mean really, we smelt!) The lady on reception said that we could ‘dump’ our bags in the baggage room that was the size of a small pantry and then go do something. So, we put our bags in ‘storage’ and went to have breakfast. When we saw the price of a cup of coffee we very quickly decided that we weren’t actually hungry and instead just sipped very slowly our 4 Euro drinks… its incredible how much they can charge for simple things like coffee or water for that matter!

We took a small walk around the area discovering what is near by, found a bakery and brought a large baguette to share for breakfast/lunch. After this we stumbled into a near by cinema where we asked in very broken English if they were showing any English movies and then settled on watching “Public Enemies” that the older woman on the counter assured us (in way of charades) was in English. After this it was almost 4pm so we dragged ourselves to the hostel where we checked in and SHOWERED!!! Oooh, it was glorious! No longer did we smell, no longer were we wearing hideously sweaty, dirty clothes… it was so great!

We were so buggered after all this but made the effort of dragging ourselves up and out for a cheap dinner of Crepes that we noticed was mentioned in our trusty “Lonely Planet” guidebook. The crepes were huge and delicious, so it was worth the fact that we had had to hurl ourselves up a steepish hill for them. We then very slowly strolled the surrounding streets of the Latin Quarter and came across both the pythanon and then the Luxembourg gardens, both of which were lovely. We sat in the gardens for a time relaxing and taking in the sites and sounds that were happening around us before then dragging ourselves back to the hostel for a well deserved, much needed good nights sleep!!

written by  Chris and Emily on July 29, 2009 from Paris, France
from the travel blog: Europe 2009
Send a Compliment

---

comment on this...

Once inside we took a good look around all the pieces of art and and sculptures that made up the gallery. There were many famous artists’ shown here, Michalangelo, Da Vinci for example, and these works were impressive to look at yes, but it was the smaller ‘unknown’ names and pieces of work that impressed me the most. For example there was one pencil sketch of Jesus with a group of people, it was innocent and to me, just beautiful, it really was, however critics had popped their opinion under the work saying that this picture was not necessarily considered a work of art as it was in pencil and then trying to second guess who all these people with Jesus were. This really upset me for a moment or two, to me the picture was just depicting Jesus with every day man, the underdogs etc, but these critics had gone into much detail stating that person 1 must be Peter, person 2 must be John etc etc, they even had the gall to say that person 3 was Mary Magdaline dressed up as a man so that she could ‘hang out’ with Jesus… really? I think art critics over analize things personally. As I said, this was my favourite piece as it just seemed so innocent and natural and as if the artist had just picked up a pencil one day and begun to just doodle away… he (or she) was probably at some very boring meeting from back in the day (the importance of barting for sheep or something you know? Or how many goats can you get for one camel, that sort of crap) and was bored of it all…

Chris’ favourite piece was the painting of “Venus” This was an impressive piece I must admit. A lot of detail had gone into it and it was very beautiful with its gold edging etc. We spent a lot of time at this, staring at it and appreciating it… we even got a sneaky photo or two (we were later caught when snapping another piece of work)

We spent hours in here, just strolling around, taking things in, relaxing and being impressed, but by 11am our feet were sore, and, as we’d missed breakfast were just a little hungry by now, so we abandoned the gallery and head to our favourite Florence café, the same one we’d visited last night. The food and drink was as good as we’d remembered and the staff just as friendly, we had a quick bite to eat before heading off in the direction of ‘the statue of David’

Lines here in Florence are very long, they snake out doors, around buildings and down streets… we were shocked at the size of this quoue, but couldn’t help ut feel just a little smug… we walked up to the security man and showed him our time reservation ticket and… he opened the gate for us and in we went. Yes, we had been bright and decided to get our hostel to ring ahead and book us a reservation for this gallery, you then get told a time to arrive and a code to give, then, you just walk in. It was fantastic, no waiting in the hot sun, sweating, dehydrating, getting sunburnt… nope, just a code and time and in we go… felt a bit like “Bond”

I have to say, we were both surprised by the size of this gallery, it was tiny really! There are a coupe of rooms with various statues, another room where a very good and impressive photography exhibition was taking place and then you walk into the main hall where you are greeted by a gianormous naked David with a sling shot slung over his back. The work that went into this statue is mind blowing, the detail, the perfection of it all… it’s amazing! Michelangelo really out did him self with this one!! Well… apart for the sisten chapel that is… We sat and looked at this work for a long time for two reasons really, A) it was bloody impressive and B) our feet were bloody sore and we were tired. All around us were other tourists equally as impressed and in awe, just taking in this mammoth statue, one girl near us was busy sketching away, her work was very good too.

It was now getting much later in the afternoon and we were once more thirsty and a bit puckish, so we made our way out and sat in a little park where, after consuming our rolls, fed crumbs to the birds. They’re game little birds here, hopping right up to you and taking crumbs from your palm. Chris was able to feed one and we had to laugh as the bit of bread it was trying to take was almost as large as itself,but it wasn’t going to give up and as Chris held out this crumb the little birds wings were going crazy trying to take off, it was rather cute really!

We wandered about for a time, taking in last minute things, looking at little stalls and markets before making our way back to the hotel and picking up our packs to head to the train for our over night to Paris.

written by  Chris and Emily on July 28, 2009 from Florence, Italy
from the travel blog: Europe 2009
Send a Compliment

---

comment on this...

We did rise in time for the breakfast buffet once more where Chris and I pillerged goodies for tonights train trip, before going back to the hotel room to shower and pack.

We checked out just after 12 and took a taxi into the centre of Imola where we found a nice little café and sat down for a quiet drink and chat. It was very nice to be able to relax here and just sit in the shade for some time, as again, it was bloody hot!

After an hour or so we thought that we’d really better make an effort to move, so heaving our bags onto our backs and Lidija pulling hers behind her, we made our way back to the little local spot that made padinas, they were just as yummy as they were the first time we had them! We sat here for a little while before once more heaving bags and trekking to the train station. Mari had pointed out her place of work over the weekend, and it just happens to be right next door to the train station, so we made a quick stop in here to say good bye once more. It was nice to be able to see Mari once more and surprise her at work, though, we must have looked a site, sweaty, puffed and dragging bags with us.

We only had a small wait really for the train, for this we sat in the shade and had a cool drink before the local train came along and took us to Bologna where we were to catch our next trains, Lidija to her home country and Chris and I onto Florence for the night. It wasn’t long at all before our train came along and it was time to say goodbye to Lidija. It was another sad goodbye with big hugs and promises to keep in touch (as if we wouldn’t! We’ve been writing for 14 years, why stop now!)

Chris and I jumped onto our train and in 2 hours were stepping off in Florence. What a beautiful city this one is! We hurriedly made our way to our hostel, which was only a 2 minute walk from the station, had a shower and a little rest before heading out to see the sights of Florence.

It is beautiful!! We walked around until we came across the Dome, and it is AMAZING! So stunning and gorgeous! We spent a long time staring up at these buildings and taking many photos, you just wanted to look forever, but eventually our tummies grumbled and it was time to move on and find something to nibble on. We found a lovely, friendly little café run by some of the nicest men in all of Florence. They were incredibly friendly and even gave us a free dessert, which meant we liked them even more! 

We moved on once more and came across an open air statue ‘museum’ All the statues that are here are replicas of the real thing, the most famous being the statue of David. We took many photos here before once more moving on and coming across the River …It was very pretty here and was swarming with tourists! We spent just a little time here before heading back to the hostel for a good nights sleep.

written by  Chris and Emily on July 27, 2009 from Imola, Italy
from the travel blog: Europe 2009
Send a Compliment

---

comment on this...

Mattia and Mari then drove us to a nearby town where we visited the medieval castle. It was huge, and, unlike most castles we’ve come across, still in tact and rather glorious to be inside. This castle had so many rooms, and they all had a lovely view of the surrounding country side, you couldn’t help but think of how amazing and glorious it must have been back in the day! The only problem with this castle that I saw was the fact that there were many tourture and ‘murder’ holes dotted around the place. I can’t help but think that the royals who occupied this castle were both more than just a little ‘sick’.

Just outside the bedroom to the royals there was a round circle in the floor, when you looked down this you could see that there were many large razors sticking out of the walls. Prisoners use to be pushed down this hole, which would cut them up terribly on their way down, and then be left to bleed to death in pain (if they hadn’t already died that is) at the bottom of the shaft. To have it, basically in your bedroom, is just a little off putting. The royal bedroom also had a window that looked out right onto the execution grounds, so they didn’t have to leave their room to go and witness the prisoners death. They also had a large prison down stairs that had dates carved into the stone going back to 1667, and last but not least, there was also a large hole in the ground that prisoners would be pushed down (minus the razors) they’d fall perhaps 40 feet, and if the fall didn’t kill you, you were left to starve to death there in pain. There was no way in or out for that matter, other than down this hole. It was very very sadistic.

The views from the very top of the castle, in the look out, were fantastic. It was so lovely to be able to see out over the country side. We were told that there was a ‘tale’ that there was an underground tunnel that lead from the castle all the way to Imola, which was at least 30 kms away, but as Mattia said, it was just a legend… there has been no real proof of this.

After the castle we made our way to a lovely little restaurant that Mari and Mattia use to frequent regulary. The restaurant was closed, but as they knew the owner we were welcomed to eat, and boy was the food ever good!!! I know that we said we enjoyed last nights meal, but todays meal was just devine! I can see why Mari and Mattia went here so often! Apparently this restaurant is also frequented by famous racing drivers, just not today.

After this very yummy, very nice meal, we went back to the hotel once more for a small nap and shower. The weather was once more incredibly warm and tiring. After this, we met back at the hotel where we also got to meet Mari and Mattias 2 year old son Marco, who is, can I just say, adorable. Like all two year olds his favourite word at the moment is “NO!” and he appeared to be shy when first meeting us, but soon warmed to us, smiling shyly and running around us. There was a funny moment when Chris and I walked along Mattia and Marco through the town, we asked Mattia “Would you like more children? Any brothers or sisters for Marco?” Marco looked at us and very defiantly said “NO!” Which made us giggle. We walked around the city of Imola, taking in its old buildings and square, it was quiet being a Sunday night, but it was nice to be able to walk the streets in a relaxed fashion.

You would not believe me when I say this, but tonight we actually had trouble finding a pizzeria in Italy. I know, it sounds like a bad joke or something, but it’s true! The first one we were going to go to was very very busy, which meant that we had to go to plan B, but this pizzeria was closed, which meant plan C… this restuarnt looked busy, but we gave it a shot and to our delight (and stomachs happiness) it was open! Hoorah! The meal was once more, delicious. Italians certainly do know how to make a great pizza! It was here that Lidija, Chris and I presented Mari with a little present for her upcoming birthday. It was so nice that we were able to meet her just before this special occasion!

It was sad to have to say good bye to Mari and her beautiful family tonight. The last 48 hours have been so lovely and happy, and we can’t thank them enough for all their kindness and hospitality, they’ve so welcoming and accommodating. We took last minute photos and said our goodbyes and then reluctantly went our separate ways. We are sure we’ll meet again though!

written by  Chris and Emily on July 26, 2009 from Imola, Italy
from the travel blog: Europe 2009
Send a Compliment

---

comment on this...

Mari, Lidija and I have been writing to one another since the age of about 15 and have continued to write to one another to this very day (though, more by email now though admittedly) and as Chris and I were in Europe it was decided that we would all travel to Maris home town of Imola in Italy and meet up for a weekend. It was a very exciting day to say the least!

Chris, despite only seeing one or two pictures of them in the past, was the first to spot Lidija and Mari, who were waiting patiently for us at the train station. It was like meeting up with your family members you haven’t seen for a while. We knew each other, despite never having “met” per say, before. It was easy to fall into conversation with these two gorgeous ladies and I have to say that I was just over come with joy that we had FINALLY met up!

Mari’s husband Mattia was waiting patiently (bless him) in the car for us, and it was also so lovely to finally meet him after all Mari has told us! We drove to the hotel we were staying in where we dropped our bags off and then made our way to a local little eatery for an Imolian speciality called “padina” This are thick crepe like bases that then have ham, cheese, lettuce.. what ever you like added to them and are placed on a hotplate to melt, then folded in half and presented to you. They are very yummy to say the least!

The F1 track was the next stop of the day. It was the F1 that helped to put Imola on the map. Up until 3 years ago Formula 1 would take place in Imola on a yearly basis, where we’re told, tourists would just flood in in droves to see the event and the town would be buzzing. However, now, thanks to money and business, the F1 takes place in other parts of Europe meaning that there is now a redundant race track taking up a lot of Imola. It appears that where ever you go in Imola you are not far from a part of the track! It is now used for bicycle races and sometimes concerts (with the likes of Robbie Williams and Bon Jovi playing there! Two of my fave artists!)

We then took a stroll through a park which is home to a large statue in memory of a F1 driver
Arton Senna who sadly, died on the track some time ago. The statue is amazing and is very artistic, a lovely tribute to him.

The weather was so warm today, we were all literally melting away. Lidija, Chris and I popped back to the hotel for a bit of a rest and a chance to clean up before all meeting up again and going to dinner.

In true Italian style we went to a really lovely pizzeria for dinner, where we sampled some of the best pizza and pasta we’ve eaten to date! It was so yummy, you just wanted more to appear on your plate! It was a lovely dinner with lovely friends, and after this we head back to the hotel where we fell into a very deep sleep!

written by  Chris and Emily on July 25, 2009 from Imola, Italy
from the travel blog: Europe 2009
Send a Compliment

---

comment on this...