Having two wonderful weeks in London has been absolutely fabulous!

We had a day here prior to our Europe tour, following which we came back for our focussed two week stay.

In that two weeks we have covered some incredible sights … from monuments to houses, from castles to museums, from gardens to towers, from churches to dungeons.

Hampton Court Palace Gardens

Hampton Court Palace Gardens

Hampton Court Palace Gardens

Hampton Court Palace Gardens

Hampton Court Palace Gardens

Hampton Court Palace Gardens

Hampton Court Palace

Hampton Court Palace

Kensington Palace

Windsor Palace

Windsor Palace

Windsor Palace Chapel Royal

Windsor Palace

Tower of London

Tower of London

Tower of London

Buckingham Palace

Buckingham Palace

London has certainly kept us busy, and on our toes! Alertness is needed for tube travel, for city walking, for reading menus, for reading maps.

We have been stimulated by all that there is to do and see here. The history is mind-boggling, the architectural treats are amazing, and the people are friendly, quirky and fun. Continue reading LONDON →

Our first glimpse of the French Riviera as we crossed the border from Italy was very pretty. The rain had stopped, there was a little sunshine, and we had great hopes for a change in the weather. However, the rain returned and there was quite a downpour driving into Nice.

We were very thankful that the rain cleared for our evening visit to Monte Carlo, to have a little look around and share in a meal. We saw the Cathedral where Grace Kelly married Prince Ranier, and the road where she lost her life, we saw the Royal Palace, and a statue of the benevolent Grimaldi, the prince who used to dress up as a pauper and roam the streets incognito to find out what his people were thinking and saying. This tiny principality of Monte Carlo is only 2km square, but is one of the most expensive places to live. Real estate prices are exorbitant; Lamborghinis, Ferraris and Bentleys are everywhere; luxurious yachts fill the marina. Needless to say we didn’t exactly feel the right fit for this place. The casinos are the main attraction and the lineup of cars out the front convinced us of the wealth in this place. Continue reading FRANCE →

Venice | Assisi | Rome | Florence | Montecatini | Pisa

The journey from Austria to Italy took us through more beautiful terrain as we drove from the mountains on to the plains. Anticipating Venice, after hearing about it for years, did not prepare me for the reality. Crossing the low bridge as we approached the Venice lagoon, it was an incredible sight to see the shallow water which just seemed to gradually emanate from the mainland. The only access to the Venetian islands is by boat, so we boarded our water bus. The Queen Elizabeth cruise ship was docked as well, which we quietly greeted and smiled, as we did when we saw it in the Port of Piraeus in Greece. The sky was a little hazy so our views were not as great as they could have been, but it was quite surreal to pass the iconic landmarks so often photographed.

The uniqueness of this ancient city is unparalleled, and our walk around was breathtaking at every corner. We did the obligatory gondola ride from which you could see that ‘ordinary’ life, of a sort, with washing hanging out from the windows above the canals. We walked past glass-blowing shops, clothes shops and leather shops, as well as hardware stores, kitchenware shops and hairdressers. ‘Ordinary’ life it is, and ordinary life it isn’t.

Continue reading ITALY →

Belgium | Switzerland | Austria

After two nights and one absolutely supreme day in London with perfect Autumn weather, we began another tour, this one definitely to be a whirlwind time. With mostly one night stops, this tour is only a taster for us rather than thorough.

We drove from London to Dover to catch the ferry across the Channel to Calais. It was a coolish day with a bit of wind, but the journey was quite comfortable. We left the white cliffs of Dover and arrived to similar looking cliffs in France. But France was fleeting as we boarded another bus and were whisked across the countryside, quickly getting to the border with Belgium. Belgium was a founding member of the European Union and Brussels is where the EU has its parliament. Continue reading BRUSSELS | LUCERNE | INNSBRUCK →

PRAGUE

The Czech Republic came into existence in 1993 when it and Slovakia parted company from the previous Czechoslovakia. Prague, the capital, is a very old and beautiful city on the Vltava River, gracefully inhabited by magnificent white swans.

Similar to Budapest, one side of the river is flat and the other side is hilly, with the castle precinct on the top. The famous Charles Bridge is stunning with its towers on each end and 30 statues along the sides. It is now purely a pedestrian bridge, with various musicians along the way, portrait painters, jewellery sellers and beggars.  As we walked the city we saw the Jewish ghetto with the old Staranova Synagogue. From this area 80,000 Jews perished in the holocaust. The narrow cobble-stoned streets wound their way through medieval houses, shops and halls, all at interesting angles which at times block the pedestrian view of one from the other. The small square in front of the Town Hall is surrounded by so many other grand buildings including a church.

Continue reading PRAGUE | MUNICH | ROMANTIC ROAD →

Leaving Krakow in the pouring rain we drove through very scenic country as the weather fined up to be a beautiful day. Ascending the Tatra Mountains we encountered magnificent steep hillsides rising from the road with impressive pine trees and fast flowing streams beside the road. We passed a castle used in the Dracula movie as well as pretty Polish villages.

Crossing the border into Slovakia we soon reached our lunch destination, Donovaly, a ski resort which in the coming weeks will look vastly different to what we saw. There was a slight chill in the air as we wandered round, but it was very refreshing. We also managed to find a very reasonably priced latte! Continue reading BUDAPEST | VIENNA →

We crossed the border over the Oder River into Poland, and had to change some euros into the local currency Polish Zloty. Poland, although part of the EU, is yet to convert to Euro currency as the economy is not strong enough.

With Roman Catholicism solidly entrenched here, the Polish people have a distinctive identity, character and determined nature. There are churches on every corner.

The north of the country is very flat, and we crossed lots of agricultural land. Our lunch stop was in the beautiful town of Poznan, which was former capital of this northern section of Poland from 935-1038. This picturesque city has an old town within a newer centre. We wandered around and saw lovely cafes, beautiful terraced houses all painted differently, with flowering garden boxes on the windows. We went inside a pink painted church and found that a service was underway. We quickly picked up that we had walked in when a Bible reading was happening, followed by a sung introduction to the Gospel reading. Couldn’t understand a thing … and yet we could. We chose not to stay for the sermon, but then continued our beautiful walk through both the new and the old, including a coffee and cheesecake at a local cafe.

After a long drive we arrived into Warsaw about 6pm, and settled into our very central hotel.

Continue reading POLAND – Warsaw | Jasna Gora | Auschwitz | Krakow →

We flew into Frankfurt from Athens after a wonderful time in Greece, but very much looking forward to having a long held dream to visit Germany fulfilled. Having studied High School German I have had a fascination, not only with the language, but also with the geography, the culture and the people. My late older brother, Malcolm, also studied German at school, but unlike me, became fluent as he lived and worked in Germany for several years. My nephew, Mark, has also married a beautiful German lady, so I have felt various connections over the years. Our decision to stay in Wiesbaden came about basically because the accommodation prices in Frankfurt were very inflated due to an Automechanika Fair being held on the exact dates we were in the area. Wiesbaden, being about 30 km from Frankfurt seemed a viable alternative. And then we found out that my niece-in-law was actually born in Wiesbaden!

Continue reading GERMANY →