Tim and Sal's Global Odyssey

On home soil.....where to/what next?

2011-02-15T22:04:00.000-08:00

Although I’m still in the process of writing over 3 months worth of belated blog posts, I thought it might be good to post a current one about our return to Oz:

It was a strange feeling to be back in Australia when only the day before we were in northern Thailand, trying to process that our time overseas had come to an end. Which reminds me….there was no time to process anything in Bangkok, as we ran 1km to the boarding gate, listening to our names being called over the loud speaker. Funny thing is that I’ve secretly always wanted my name called at an airport (much to Tim’s disgust)….not that I really wanted to miss my plane as a result! Thankfully we made it to the gate just in the nick of time and as I slumped into my seat puffing and laughing at the movie scene that had just played out, Tim landed into his puffing and cursing me for my obsession with getting all our postcards sent before leaving Thailand. Yep, despite already being at the airport four hours before departure, this is what made us late, forcing us to run to board our plane. The most important point….we made it!

So after being away for just over 19 months, we set foot on Aussie soil 3 weeks ago in Sydney. We spent almost 24 hours in transit from Chiang Mai, Thailand and arrived bleary eyed and a little disoriented. At first it seemed like any other random airport, until we heard that distinct accent all around us and saw in big bold letters, the words ‘G’day, welcome home!’ It was a surreal and indescribable feeling that we experienced in that moment…..one that caused me to seriously well up. We were home and there was no going back….not right now at least.

We spent a week in Sydney with good friends and the plan to cope with being back was to check out Sydney and keep the travel bug at bay.....to become a tourist in our own country I guess. Since being away, it had become extremely apparent that we may have seen a lot of the world, but we were yet to experience many of the wonders on our home turf. Once we arrived though, we realised we just needed to stop and rest for a bit. We had jam packed so much into our last week in Thailand, we were exhausted! We couldn't avoid the fact that we were indeed back in Australia, but the thought of trying was slightly appealing. We were both feeling a bit numb and although it was great to see friends, in some ways we wanted to turn around and get back on that plane. Already, we were faced with the questions of 'where to/what next?' and we wanted to run a mile! Of course it is a completely logical inquiry, but all the clarity we could muster was 'we are taking one day at a time'. Life has been so good living with no plan but continuing to remain open to the opportunities that arise. A lot of people might say 'well you can't live like that forever', but maybe it is possible.....without being a complete bum of course! hehe! Have we been so conditioned to have our future worked out and if we haven't there must be something wrong?

After our time in Sydney, we flew to Darwin where we've been catching up with Tim's Dad. We've had a lot of time on our hands....in some ways too much and we've been feeling fidgety to say the least. It's the longest we've stopped anywhere since May last year so I guess that's to be expected. It's given us time though to contemplate what life might be like if we continued living without too much of a plan. If we set clear goals, would we be cutting ourselves off mentally from other possibilities? I read a post from another blog recently titled 'The best goal is no goal' and it really resonated with what Tim and I have been discussing. Click on the link to view the article. We're keen to hear your thoughts....do you think a fulfilling life can be lived without goals? You can add your comments below.

Now that this chapter is drawing to a close.....

2011-01-17T00:00:00.000-08:00

There are many blog entries that I am still to post to bring you up to date with our adventure....I got so behind while we were in Italy in October, battling with 'writer's block' and losing motivation to write, because all I wanted to be doing was experiencing every moment of being in such an incredible country!

Much has happened since we were in Italy and I will fill in those missing pieces later. Now that we are in Thailand though and this chapter of our lives is drawing to a close, I have had several people ask me how I'm feeling about returning home after such a long time away. It has been such a difficult thing to articulate, but I did try a couple of days ago, to write down some thoughts. These thoughts will ebb and flow as we continue to process our experience as well as work out our next steps in life. Hopefully, I have enough motivation to keep this blog going so we can continue to share them. Anyway, what I wrote a couple of days ago was:

How easy it is to see the world’s beauty when you’re lazing on the white sand of a Thai beach, wandering the cobblestone alleyways of Europe or standing at a cliff edge gazing out into the Grand Canyon. But the question that’s going through my head right now, is how do we continue to see the beauty that is all around us when we return home? How can we hold onto that sense of adventure, anticipation and appreciation for life, that has been with us since the day that we began this journey?

As our return home approaches extremely fast, I feel giddy with these and many other questions about our future. I sit here wondering if the change in us will simply evaporate as we return to home, to a familiar environment, to familiar people and to a society where life more often than not, revolves around work. The experiences we’ve had and the people we’ve met along the way have changed us deeply, more than I think we even realize at this point. We have discussed and dissected many ideas about where to/what next, but we are more uncertain about our future than we ever have been. Guess that's what happens when you get rid of everything that is familiar in your life! What we do know for sure, is we've been given a new freedom and we want to change the way we live according to what we’ve learned. Right now, we’re not exactly sure what that will look like, maybe that’s just where the ongoing adventure and anticipation lies. The best option for us with so much uncertainty, is one day at a time! :-)

Leaving Beautiful Italy

2010-11-13T05:22:00.000-08:00

Our last few days in Italy were spent delaying the inevitable. After 6 glorious weeks in this incredible country, we were definitely not ready to leave. If the weather was not significantly deteriorating (being November), we may have just found a way to stay. Italy made us swoon, but not only that…..it’s the number one country we had visited that made us feel completely at home and more relaxed than we had ever felt before. We loved the food (of course), the people, the landscape, the architecture, the character…..actually, it is pretty hard to think of anything about Italy that we didn’t fall in love with. Ok, so we had a little hiccup with our car being broken into, but thankfully we had nothing stolen and we were on our way to get that fixed. Besides, the glad wrap was doing a perfect job of performing a substitute window role.

Our last few days in the country were spent driving from Cinque Terre along the coast to France. We spent a night in Ravallo, where we sought ideas from locals about where we would be blown away by our last meal in Italy. The recommendation certainly didn’t disappoint and we gorged ourselves a little silly despite not having the appetite to match.

We also had the opportunity to wander around the stunning village of Portofino with its famous postcard layout of pastel houses in a row, lining the water’s edge. It was here that we saw the extent of the storm devastation along the coastline, with a huge amount of debris floating on the water and tired ducks that had obviously been injured trying to wade through it to get to dry land. I could tell they were looking for food and I was gutted to not have any bread or access to it with most stores being closed.

The atmosphere of the Italian coast was definitely dying down, with many stores and tourist oriented businesses closed for the season. We did enjoy the fact that there were very few tourists around, but we could also tell why…..it was really starting to get chilly now. As we drove across the Italian/French border the following day, I couldn’t help but shed a few tears because we were saying goodbye to probably the best time of our lives thus far. I suspect we will have an attachment to Italy for the remainder.

Portofino

Pastel Stacked Houses and the Slow Life in Cinque Terre

2010-11-12T21:10:00.000-08:00

Cinque Terre, translated as ‘Five Villages’ is up there with the most stunning stretch of coastline in the world I’m sure. It is mind baffling how these little villages of pastel houses have been built, piled on top of each other along the cliff face. No cars are allowed inside these villages because the houses are packed so tightly that there is only room for alleys and laneways. We wondered, not only how these houses were built like this, but how materials, furniture and items needed for every day living are transported and delivered locally. What we discovered, is that the locals here do life at a much slower pace and they seem to prefer it that way. We saw the odd piaggio (mini 3 wheeler ute), but other than that, it was men towing carts by foot and old fashioned baskets in arms. The locals in this part of the world are extremely active and appear to do so much more by hand than we could possibly imagine doing in our own technologically advanced society here in Australia. We watched fisherman as they finished up for the day, mooring their small boats and emptying their day’s catch from their nets into their big blue buckets. It was also fascinating to see two builders at work, one lowering rubble to the other down below from two or three levels above using a bucket and rope. Both guys were sweating profusely and it made me think about how good this work would be for their fitness. I wondered if we had lost so many opportunities for good health and fitness in our own culture, simply because of our use of machines and technology. Moreover, in a world that is forced to slow down simply because of the landscape, it really did seem to be a good thing – that maybe life could be somehow appreciated more. We have begun to openly question our own society where it seems that convenience, ‘efficiency’ and productivity are highly valued. In our endeavour to make life more convenient though, have we instead made it more complicated? Have we really freed up our time with all our technological advancements, or do we just fill our lives with more commitments and obligations? We have and are continuing to learn so much about simplicity from the Italian way of life.

The stunning village of Rio Maggiore

Fisherman in Rio Maggiore

Lover's Lane

2010-11-12T04:49:00.000-08:00

Just before we had arrived in Cinque Terre, a severe storm had battered the coastline and significant land slides resulted. No homes were lost that we know of, but part of the very famous walkway between the five villages had been severely damaged. The number one activity on our list while in the area was to do this beautiful walk and I was looking forward to challenging myself with the significant hike up and down the mountain sides. Despite missing out on the complete 5km walk, a small section of the path was still open, otherwise known as ‘Lover’s Lane’. The path sweeped around from the last village – Rio Maggiore, following closely to the cliff edge. Although the day had been quite gloomy, we arrived in time for the most spectacular sunset and we no longer felt like we had missed out on anything. I also discovered that I had not escaped the fitness challenge because there were enough stairs and steep slopes in all five of these villages to give anyone a run for their money.

Lover's Lane

The beautiful sunset

The Food Experience That Exceeded Them All

2010-11-11T20:34:00.000-08:00

Not only did we visit Parma, Modena and Bologna with a car enthusiast agenda, but also to savour the culinary pleasures that the Emilia-Romagna region is famous for. We were on the home turf of balsamic vinegar, parmesan cheese and prosciutto, knowing that we would be eating well, but not really grasping how well. The night we arrived in the region, we searched out the highest quality prosciutto (culatello) and at 92 Euros a kilo, it tasted beyond amazing – so soft to chew and gliding down the throat like a piece of butter. Four paper thin slices for 4 Euros did not last long, but the experience was worth every cent! We sampled 30 year old aged balsamic which was like no other balsamic that we had tasted and huge chunks of parmesan cheese that was almost too good to grate.

Although every mouthful of food that we consumed in Parma was incredible, we almost had to bow at the feet of the staff and owners of ‘Trattoria de Tribunale’. True to my form, I had researched the best place to eat while in Parma, but was hoping for something with a little extra pizzazz to do justice to Tim’s 30th birthday celebration. We stepped inside the door of this very rustic restaurant and immediately felt at home, with its warm atmosphere, stone walls, low ceilings and cured meats hanging on display. Guided to the perfect table, in full view of the chefs working their craft, we glanced at the menu and realized we didn’t have much chance at deciphering the very detailed Italian descriptions. Feeling slack, we requested a menu in English and were pleased to have one placed in front of us. The service was impeccable and we ordered several dishes based on our waiter’s recommendation. Whilst every dish was beyond wonderful, I will spare you from a description of each mouthful. What I do have to tell you though, is that if you want to eat pasta that exceeds your wildest dreams, you need to eat at Trattoria de Tribunale in Parma. Tim and I have decided that the only way to describe our experience that evening is ‘orgasmic’! Upon savouring every bite, we could utter no words, but muster only groans, ooooh’s and ahhhhh’s. We had very obviously died and gone to pasta heaven! Lol! The texture and flavour of this pasta had exceeded any other pasta we had eaten in Italy and we sat there trying to work out how it had been perfected. We knew that Italians pride themselves on using quality ingredients, but this was simply ridiculous! It was definitely one of the culinary highlights, not only of our trip, but of our lives!

Trattoria Del Tribunale

The orgasmic Culatello Tagliolini

The best proscuitto ever!

Ravioli to die for

Behind the wheel of a Ferrari

2010-11-10T04:19:00.000-08:00

Ever since deciding to travel, on the top of my ‘must do list’ was to visit all my favourite car and motorcycle factories in Europe! What can I say, I’m a big kid and I can’t help myself. I had all the big names lined up - Ducati, Ferrari, Lamborghini and Pagani. I knew Sal was pretty unimpressed about enduring several factories, but thankfully she happily tolerated it all considering it was my 30th birthday. As I enquired about appointments and bookings, I was disappointed to learn that the Ducati and Lamborghini factories were closed due to maintenance or refit. Nevertheless I was determined to at least see the museums. I also discovered that unless you own a Ferrari or are a legitimate buyer, you won’t even get a look within their factory. Unfortunately, being an owner of a matchbox Ferrari didn’t count.

It was the day before my birthday and Ducati was up first. As usual we ended up running late and managed to miss the English speaking tour by two minutes. My stress levels rose and in pure discouragement I hung my head and walked off, leaving Sal to wrap up the conversation about how unfair it was that we couldn’t participate in the tour 2 minutes after it began. As I walked back to the car feeling sorry for myself, I actually remembered that when I made the tour appointment I was told to be there early….. doh!

Dusting myself off we proceeded to the Ferrari museum. Outside stood many pretty Italian women convincing us to drive a supercar but I of course remained cool, calm and collected. Of course I wanted to drive one, but I wasn’t really sure what Sal thought about it….I decided to sit on it for a bit. Browsing the museum, impressed with what I saw, I realized how much I loved the Ferrari story. It didn’t take long to become convinced that I needed to take one for a spin and this was definitely a legitimate 30th birthday present. Approaching the ladies outside the museum I bartered a good price on the best car they had – the Ferrari 458 Italia!

The experience was un-fricking-believable! I could not believe how this car performed. I was in love. Even though I did manage to give it a good run I still needed to be a little conservative as I was driving it on a public road and it had a ‘measly’ pocket change of €10,000 ($14,000) excess if I crashed it.
The following day we went back to the Ducati museum, learning from the previous day’s experience and arriving on time. The tour was great, well informed and I was glad to hear it in English. Feeling happy that I got a second opportunity at Ducati and still elated from the Ferrari experience I was keen to get to the next factory. So off we rushed back to the car only to find broken glass and destroyed door locks! We completely freaked as all our valuables were in the car including our laptop with all our photos and hard drive back ups. It could have been a total disaster and we were pretty stupid to leave that stuff in the car. Lucky our security locks would not allow the doors to be opened and nothing had gone missing. A local bystander was kind enough to help by guiding us to the police station to report the incident. With broken Italian and a game of charades, I managed to get the message across that our car had been broken into. We patched up our window using some glad wrap, intending to get it fixed as soon as possible.

After the drama had settled, we were off to the Lamborghini factory. Upon arrival I was gutted again to find out that not only was the factory closed due to a refit, I could not even visit the museum because it was closed for a private function! I made the most of being at Lamborghini by buying a souvenir, grabbing a quick glance at the museum through the windows and snatching a few photos with their best models displayed in the shop.

I left extremely disappointed about how the whole ‘factory’ experience turned out over the previous couple of days and although not all was achieved, Sal helped to bring some perspective. I was reminded that I got to drive the latest Ferrari and there will be an opportunity to return to Italy again. It ain’t over and I’m not going to let the Italian motor industry beat me. In the end it was a great birthday and I have to be thankful for what I did experience.

Tim.

Last Train Out of Florence

2010-11-05T00:33:00.000-07:00

After yet another beautiful meal in the city of Florence, we decided to go for a stroll and headed toward Palazzo Vecchio. Knowing that our last train was just before midnight, we grabbed a quick Italian hot chocolate with the intention of making our way to the station soon after. The very talented busker strumming his guitar and singing all time classics in the Palazzo however, became an instant distraction. As we stood and listened, the crowd continued to grow, becoming more engaged and involved by the minute. It was the largest group of people we had ever seen surrounding a busker and this guy had me mesmerized. Every couple of minutes, Tim would interrupt my gaze to tell me we should go or we might miss our train. I dragged myself away as I continued to listen to the words of ‘Winds of Change’ by the Scorpions, echoing throughout the Palazzo.

Arriving at the train station, we discovered that the last train to our hotel (45 minutes away), had left over an hour before. Shit!! We searched the timetable to find the next train and saw that it wasn’t until 6am, with no other trains running to anywhere near we needed to be. In a state of flurry and of course taking it out on each other, we tried to find an information booth to speak to someone. All we could find was a Police Officer who thankfully was happy to help us problem solve. He informed us that our only option would be to get a taxi that might cost us in excess of 50-70 Euros. By this time, we had become irritated, to say the least, not wanting to accept we had to pay that much for transport, especially when we had been so diligent with our budgeting. Whilst trying to come to terms with the situation, we were still unconvinced there was no other way. I have no idea why we decided to return to the same Policeman, as if he was going to tell us anything different. Since we had spoken however, he did discover another way……hallelujah! The outcome: We caught a train at 1am to the closest station to our hotel and then paid a 30 Euro taxi fare from there. Not ideal, but a hell of a lot better than the original solution. Collapsing on our hotel bed, emotionally and physically exhausted after a long day, we were reminded again how travelling is often stressful and bloody hard work!

Learning the Art of Tuscan Cooking

2010-11-02T02:43:00.000-07:00

Much to the disgust of other seasoned travelers we met on the road, we chose to neglect several major attractions in Florence including the world famous Ufizzi Art Gallery, home to Michelangelo’s David. I guess it didn’t spark our interest as much as learning to cook in a Tuscan kitchen with a Tuscan chef.

As someone who is a little crazy about food, if there was one thing I didn’t want to miss in Italy, it was learning to cook the Italian way. I was even willing to pay the extortionate fees that most cooking schools were asking. It was a score when I discovered classes at half price without any skimping on the quality and we immediately booked ourselves in. We began with a tour of the San Lorenzo food market where our chef teacher guided us through the market stalls, introducing us to the fresh produce and products on offer. The vibrancy and depth of the colours on show as well as products of all shapes and sizes were mesmerizing. It was foodie heaven, until we approached one merchant who proudly sold tripe of all kinds and the occasional cow face. Impressive albeit slightly disgusting. We learned that the Italians make use of almost every animal body part in their cooking and these were also on display. I bordered on the very edge of converting to a vegetarian when a little lamb with its eyelashes still in tact was gutted and beheaded right in front of us. Eeeeewwww!! I guess the meat could not get any fresher!! Apologies to everyone….especially vegetarians who are feeling squirmish after reading this!

Mmmm, tripe! Not!

Look at that colour! :-)

After purchasing the ingredients for our class, we returned to the kitchen to prepare our degustation menu of tomato and basil bruschetta, pasta with a roasted vegetable sauce, balsamic glazed meatballs and panacotta with fresh strawberry coulis. The chef meticulously demonstrated the preparation of every ingredient, incorporating a few little secrets and hints about creating authentic dishes. We learned to part cook pasta in boiling water and then complete the cooking in the sauce, adding extra water as it softens. This little trick helps the pasta to completely soak up the sauce, instead of sitting on top of the pasta. The result…..a totally different and authentic taste, one that I’ve wanted to create for a while. I will be remembering this one!

Roasted vegetable pasta....delish!

Bruschetta....there's a few secrets in making these good too ;-)

We worked in a group of four to prepare each dish and sitting down to savour our creations was divine! Not only was the food as good as anything we had eaten in Italy, it was even more satisfying to know that we had a hand in perfecting it. So impressed by our experience, all we wanted to do was book into every class that was on offer….realistically, we only had time for one, so we registered for the ‘fresh pasta making’ class.

Waking up super keen and wanting to get to our next class early, we decided to drive the car into Florence, which from where we were staying was about half an hour. What we weren’t prepared for was any kind of drama, especially since Tim was obviously confident about where he was going. Walking for about twenty minutes I began doubting we were in any vicinity to the cooking school, but upon reviewing the map again, Tim assured me we were not far away. By this time, the class had started, we were fifteen minutes late and I was irritated to say the least. After studying the map together again, what we realized was we had been walking in the completely opposite direction for about two kilometers!! Ok, now I was infuriated! We caused a big scene on the side of the road, classic Italian style, with my meltdown over the likelihood of missing the class and Tim with his meltdown over getting the directions completely wrong. Then, in true hero style, Tim’s problem solving hat went into overdrive and he managed to spot a taxi sitting on the street corner. We jumped in and in broken Italian we directed the driver to where we needed to go and waved our hands around to gesture ‘get us there fast’! Arriving half an hour late, a little hot and sweaty, we really hadn’t missed much and our chef happily took us aside to help us make our pasta dough. I couldn’t be annoyed at the situation anymore or at Tim, who couldn’t have been more sorry about stuffing up the directions. We are all human after all.

Although I don’t mind eating dried, packet pasta, there is really no comparison to freshly made pasta and it was a treat to learn the art of making it. To prepare a good freshly made pasta, it’s all about the tools and letting the dough rest before using it. A very useful device in the Italian kitchen is a pasta making machine which flattens the dough and can also cut it according to the type of pasta you want to make. Of course these processes can all be done with a rolling pin and a knife, but the pasta maker speeds up the process. With dough that ended up over a metre long, it was a lot of fun to keep it in tact, but we managed to succeed in making tagliatelle and spaghetti. It seemed that we had a knack for it and even Tim’s enthusiasm peaked with the use of a new gadget. With minimal use of the pasta maker, we also learned how to make ravioli filled with spinach and ricotta. Just as important as the pasta, were the sauces to go with it – ragu (Bolognese), butter and sage, and fresh tomato and basil. All so simple but so delicious!

Making pasta....like being back in kindy!

If there is one thing I would recommend everyone do whilst in Italy, especially if you enjoy food, it would be to participate in at least one cooking class. To experience first hand, the love, passion and zeal that Italians have for their cuisine was inspiring. I can’t wait to cook up an Italian storm at home, wherever that may be.

Surfing a Tuscan Couch

2010-10-29T04:28:00.000-07:00

The kindness of complete strangers was demonstrated yet again when Gabriele, a local Tuscan accepted us into him home for four nights through the Couch Surfing Project. His couch in this case, was a queen size bed in his upstairs attic with a private bathroom and overlooking the neighbouring vineyard. It is always a strange feeling venturing into the home of someone you’ve never met before knowing you will be staying for a few days. Amongst couch surfers though, there is a common understanding which facilitates an instant connection.

With our love for photography growing every day, it wasn’t long until we were completely engrossed in Gabriele’s plans to travel as a Photographic Journalist. He was working for Italy’s top news magazine and in just over a week he was embarking on a 12 month world tour, all expenses paid by the company. The purpose…..to search out unique couch surfing experiences and to produce a weekly article for the news magazine. He would spend 10 weeks at a time away, to surf other people’s couch, then return home for 2 weeks to host travelers. Inspired and a little bit jealous, we continued to inquire about his profession as he showed us some of his work and published photographic books. Creative portraits are his specialty and we were so impressed by his innovative ability to tell an individual’s story in a single photograph. We were a little taken a back when Gabriele asked our permission to include us in his project and requested that he take some portrait pics of us. What a privilege to be a part of this very exciting venture!

Over a home cooked meal with his adorable girlfriend Elisa, Gabriele continued to share about his photo journalism and his interest to uncover hidden issues through his work. We were struck by two particular stories, one about U.S. army women who during their service, became victims of rape. The other, documented the enormous amount of waste from the technological world that is sent to India where all circuit boards are stripped of their copper using acid. This acid is then dumped into the public waterways, the same ones that supply drinking and washing water to many villages. It was truly inspiring to see how creatively Gabriele is bringing these issues to light.

We were invited to Gabriele’s farewell party at a restaurant tucked away in the mountains with about thirty of his Tuscan friends. Like old mates, we were immediately welcomed with open arms despite most people’s limited English. Of course we made use of that universal language that can be spoken (or acted out) by all! After a lavish menu and quite a few drinks later, the limited English was mostly used to teach us some ‘inappropriate’ Italian words! The night rolled on with air guitar, makeshift band and dancing to the DJ in the restaurant’s back room. It was such a sweet night and we felt so honoured to be there when we had only just walked into Gabriele’s life a couple of days before.

The partay!

Who's the best air guitarist?

Those of us left at the end of the night - a very bad self portrait

What makes it even harder to leave a place on the road is when you have a connection with someone and you’ve had an unforgettable time in their company. Gabriele and Elisa had so much going on in their lives, but they chose to open up their home and make us a part of it. It really challenges me to think about that now…..about how willing I have been to open up my life to others in the midst of my busyness. I hope in the future we can be a generous with our time as these guys were with us.

Us with Gabriele & Elisa

Bella Tuscany

2010-10-28T18:37:00.000-07:00

As we drove from Rome into the long awaited region of Tuscany, we had to pick up our jaws from the dash as we looked out into the rolling hills, in awe of the array of colours and textures weaving into each other like a perfectly sewn patchwork quilt. I had a developed a very dreamy cliché image of Tuscany, gained mostly from films, but this view offered so much more than I had imagined. The Chianti vines showcased all shades of green, yellow and red in the mid-afternoon sun and the autumn leaves danced as they blew gently in the breeze. We approached our B and B where we were staying for the next few days and were so happy to find a classic Tuscan farmhouse perched overlooking the vines. Bliss!

We spent a fabulous week in the Tuscan countryside, much of this time spent driving through the hills, taking in our picturesque surroundings, admiring the locals harvesting their olives and of course savouring every mouthful of Tuscan culinary specialties. We stopped to explore several medieval villages perched high on the hilltops where we would often watch the sunset. We visited the wine regions of Chianti, Montapulciano and Montalcino, where we tasted the top varieties like Brunello and Nobile inside rustic little wine bars or cellars and discovered yet again our partiality to Italian wine. The best wine we tried however, was a Pinot Nero (noir) in a gorgeous husband and wife run restaurant in the heart of Montapulciano. The best feature of the service – we got to try about ten of their wines before we chose the one we wanted to drink. We never would have picked a Pinot Nero to be the best otherwise.

One of our favourite spots in the area was San Gimignano, a tiny walled village with the most gorgeous rolling cobblestone alleys, piazzas and panoramic vistas. It was here we found the best gelato in the world!! No, it’s not just in my opinion! This place has won many awards with this exact title and we could taste why!! Nothing that we had tried up until this point had come close to what we ate in San Gimignano….in fact, if anyone asks me the places not to miss in Tuscany, I would say this little village as number one, based on its gelati alone!! It could not be possible for any other icecream to taste as creamy and so full of REAL flavour as this did. But it wasn’t just the taste that impressed us….it was the creativity of the flavours too!! We ordered what we thought was raspberry and then learned the raspberry was accompanied by rosemary!! Sounds weird, but the unlikely combination completely blew us away! Soooo good! It was the only gelati shop where we felt no guilt whatsoever in going back for a second pot! The walnut and blue cheese flavour did look extremely tempting, but we decided to save that one for next time.

The weather wasn’t completely kind to us in Tuscany, but even the rain and cold couldn’t keep up away from experiencing as much as we could of this breathtaking region. We had been told by a local that we must try the Panini at an enoteca (wine bar) in Cortona and being the home of ‘Under the Tuscan Sun’ (film/book), we were keen. So we rugged up, pulled out our umbrella and braved the cold, but it didn’t take long before we needed to escape it. The amazing Panini was worth the trip on it’s own though – dough so light, fluffy and crispy all at the same time, with prosciutto and cheese, so simple and yet so yummy! I just can’t get over the way Italians can take such few ingredients and make them taste unbelievably good! Yes, I do enjoy getting myself tied up in knots over food!

Our most memorable experience in Tuscany though, surprisingly had nothing to do with food! It was the few days we spent with a local couchsurfer in his home in Castiglion Fiorentina. More about that in the next post.

Enchanting Trastevere

2010-10-27T23:49:00.000-07:00

Rome’s oldest preserved district – Trastevere, lured us to return almost every day with its captivating maze of cobblestone streets opening into piazzas and stark pastel colours contrasting the deep blue sky; bulging walls of old buildings, stripped plaster and faded paint work; creeping plants cascading from windows; items of clothing blowing in the breeze as they hung to dry; cars, scooters and pedestrians navigating the tiniest of spaces, dodging each other just before impact and of course did I mention the pistachio gelato!!? Time to take a breath now!

Captivated by the depth of character that oozed from Trastevere, we wandered around for what felt like hours, exploring every nick and cranny. It was obvious that compared to the rest of Rome, very few tourists frequent the area, a bonus for us because it enabled us to see what the locals get up to away from the crowds. One of the many beautiful scenes we witnessed was an older gentleman standing outside his front door, smoking a cigarette and watching the world go by. What was starkly different about this gentleman however, was the biggest, fattest cat that he had draped over his shoulders, snoozing away and perfectly balanced like it was a regularly performed activity (unfortunately didn't capture this on camera). We watched as people walked their dogs, stopping to chat with each other and others on their mobile phones, waving their hands in the air and almost dancing in the street as their conversation turned into a live drama for all to see. More moments when we had to remind ourselves that what was before our eyes was indeed real.

Rome: Love at first taste

2010-10-26T22:17:00.000-07:00

Although we had eaten some pretty good gelati along the Amalfi coast, we had no idea what we were in for when we tried pistachio gelato in Rome. Avocado green in colour with a texture as smooth as silk, permeated by real pistachios and perfectly balanced with both sweet and nutty flavours…. it was love at first taste! Which pretty much sums up how we feel about beautiful Rome!

Engage in a conversation with anyone about the highlights of their visit to Rome and you will almost definitely hear about the history, museums, ancient ruins and monuments, cathedrals, piazzas, fountains and other impressive architecture. We spent six nights in this incredible city and visited all of the major sights – the Colosseum, the Vatican, Saint Peter’s Cathedral, the Pantheon, the Roman Forum, the Trevi Fountain and the Spanish Steps. You only have to walk around Rome for a day to be swept away by its incredible preservation of history and intricate detail of its architecture. For us though, it wasn’t the history that completely stole our attention, it was the modern day atmosphere of this ancient city and ultimately the food! (Surprise!)

The Roman Forum

The Colosseum

One of the many beautiful streets of Rome

Rome for us, was the perfect place to just sit and watch the world go by. Unlike Paris, it has affordable coffee, wine and cuisine that rivals every other city in the world and we took full advantage of this. After we’d seen the major sights, we’d find a good café or wine bar, sit down with good glass of wine, a plate of antipasto and watch as people went about their day. I can excuse all our eating and drinking by saying that these times were really important because they gave us time to reflect and enjoy the beauty of Roma. Ok, ok, so we did a lot of eating….isn’t that what you do in Italy?? If you’ve had enough about me talking about food, then don’t read any further! ;-) Maybe this whole blog needs to be renamed to ‘A Foodie’s Global Odyssey’!

Piazza Navona

Campo Di Fiori

Watching the world go by

The tiny streets of Trastevere, one of our favourite spots, were lined with quirky shops, bars, cafes and restaurants, each with their own rustic design and we did our research about the best places to eat in the area. Our most divine experience of food in Trastevere and all of Rome however, was not found from our own research, but was recommended by a local man walking his dog. We stopped to ask him for directions to a particular restaurant and he went on to suggest that we consider Mel Gibson’s favourite place to dine when he is in Rome and also where the locals eat – Taverna Trilussa. It was here that we decided to celebrate our 7^th wedding anniversary and what an incredible culinary treat that was!! The entry area and restaurant itself, was graced with an artistic display of gastronomic delights including numerous different meats hanging from high above. I just knew this was going to be good and couldn’t contain my excitement as the waiter showed us to our table. The pasta, served in the pans they were cooked in, could not have tasted any more heavenly and although the following two courses were also amazing, the quantity of food was more than we could handle! Needless to say, we rolled out of there that night completely full to the brim! We walked a mile to the bus which gave us good opportunity to let the food go down and to contemplate just how much we love this country! We were certainly settling into the lifestyle of Italy and our own love for all things culinary meant we were fitting in just nicely.

Taverna Trilussi

Must Love Dogs

2010-10-20T00:24:00.000-07:00

Pompeii (new town) certainly didn’t come close to the beauty of the Amalfi Coast, nor could I possibly suggest that most places would! What we did find, was a place that appeared dirty, with crazy traffic and rubbish lying around in gutters. Most people visit here to see the ruins of Old Pompeii which was a town annihilated by a volcano (Vesuvius) in 79AD. As incredible as these ruins have been described, we just couldn’t get into it! We made a real effort, even purchasing the audio guides so we could learn about the history of this place, but we were left feeling flat and bored. I completely acknowledge that these ruins are indeed fascinating, but for us, we just couldn’t connect with the ancient history here and our fascination faded very quickly. Ok, so I think you get the picture….not one of our highlights.

What did get our attention though, was the several dogs we encountered roaming the ruins and the streets of new town Pompeii. Some were healthy and others had a limp or were looking unwell, but all of them stole our hearts! We discovered that all of them had made Pompeii their home, but none of them had official owners and you could visibly see the sadness in their eyes as they sought the attention of every passer by. One took a real liking to us and followed us for over a kilometer until we had to get into the car and leave it sitting on the kerb. Of course all I wanted to do was take this beautiful creature and give it a home, but the reality of what I was actually able to do left me feeling gutted! It was a reassuring discovery when we learned about Pompeii’s care program which provides food and veterinary care for these dogs who have made the streets of Pompeii their home. As we wandered around the new town, we saw water containers in front of businesses and we realized then, that these dogs were very much valued by the locals here. I still left there however, with the imprint of sad eyes in my head and wondering how much happier these dogs might be if they had a human companion or family to love them.

Can you ever have too much limoncello?

2010-10-19T15:15:00.000-07:00

The answer to this question is probably yes, despite the fact that upon my first sip I thought that would never be possible!! Limoncello is a traditional Italian lemon liqueur made using fresh lemon zest, water, sugar and 95% alcohol. The ingredients I’ve listed don’t really make this little gem sound very impressive, but it’s the Amalfi lemons that give it the ‘wow factor’. The lemons here are the yellowest of yellows and the size is more similar to a grapefruit or a melon than any lemon we’ve seen! One day we were served a piece of this lemon with our calamari starter and it was about 10-15cm long! As we squeezed it, not only juice exploded, but pieces of flesh also went flying. Ok, you get the picture of how good these lemons are. So this is why the limoncello was so incredible! I discovered quickly however, that this liqueur should be consumed in moderation because as yummy as it is, it does make you very drunk very quickly and with the amount of sugar it contains, feeling very ill is inevitable indeed! Now I’m back to drinking it in the traditional way…..one small glass after a meal.

The Italian Secret to a Long Life

2010-10-18T08:56:00.000-07:00

On the Amalfi Coast, we had the privilege of staying with an Italian family and experience their amazing hospitality and love for life. With three generations living on one property, you could visibly see how important family is in the Italian culture. We were treated to Grandma’s home cooked dinners, including the best gnocchi and tiramisu we’ve tasted. We had a whole lot of fun trying to communicate when the family’s English was limited and so was our Italian. Thankfully, hand gestures are a perfectly acceptable form of communication in Italy and it’s amazing how much can be said if you get really creative!

Grandma's home made gnocchi...mmmm!

Just a few family members

We spent a significant amount of time with the Grandfather of the family – Luigi who seemed to take a liking to us. We were greeted by him in the morning and as a result, didn’t leave the house until after 11am each day. We returned in the evenings to find that he was almost looking for us. It was such a joy to be in his company and even though his English wasn’t brilliant, he gave it a good go and he had such a zest for life that drew us to spend time with him for hours. We were so impressed by the fact that he was trying really hard to learn English using his two phrasebooks and genuinely desired to communicate with us. With the help of Google translator, we managed several conversations and laughed until we cried. We even met some of Luigi’s extended family and discovered that Italian men are obviously very proud of their big round belly because they like to point it out to you, with a pat, a rub and a big cheesy grin! We managed to decipher that they wanted us to stay longer and if we did, they could help Tim out with growing his belly!

One discussion we had with Luigi really stuck with us – firstly, he told us he was 80 years old and we were so shocked he obviously thought we didn’t believe him because he pulled out his pensioners I.D card with his date of birth. Honestly, this guy looked barely older than 60 and it made us instantly curious about what has kept him young. He went on to explain that the secret to a long life involves 3 things…..number one – eat fresh organic produce with no artificial preservatives/pesticides, number two – allow 2-3 hours to sit and have your meals and number three – consume a small amount of red wine each day. Luigi took us to his ‘workshop’, otherwise known as the kitchen out the back and there we saw plump red tomatoes and curing prosciutto hanging from the ceiling. In one corner was his limoncello in the making – lemon peel soaking in large tubs of 95% alcohol. As we sampled Luigi’s home grown produce, we were inspired by the passion that so obviously went into the creation of delicious culinary delicacies.

Luigi

One of the things we love about the Italian culture is how much each meal is central to the day and these times are never rushed. Eating is such a relaxing and enjoyable task here and our digestion really thanked us for it. For someone who usually has gut problems, mine were almost non-existent during our time here, despite eating pasta almost every day. Interesting! Ok, so allowing 2-3 hours for meals might seem a bit unrealistic in our own culture, especially with scheduled working hours, but we can definitely learn from the Italians and maybe slow down a bit more. We might just add a few years to our lives.

Dance like no one's watching

2010-10-17T08:46:00.000-07:00

A lot of us have been conditioned from a very young age to be cautious, to be concerned about the opinions of others, to hide a large (or small) part of ourselves from the world in order to remain ‘safe’, to hold back and hold onto fear…..fear of the unknown, fear of failure, fear of embarrassment, fear of getting hurt, fear of something going wrong, fear of what other people might think. The trouble is, all of these fears are based on past experience or on worry of the future. All we really have is this moment, right now to choose how we want to live. I’m not saying that our choices now don’t affect the future, I’m talking about how much we hold back or refuse to let go and how many ‘moments’ we might miss along the way.

I started thinking a bit deeper about the issue of holding back the night Tim and I were walking along a dimly lit cobblestone alleyway in the gorgeous Italian sloping village of Ravello. We could hear music in the distance and as we drew closer, we realized it was Frank Sinatra. The scene could not have been more perfectly set for an old school film and I was swept into another world, with an instant urge to dance. I grabbed hold of Tim and we danced in the alleyway like we were Fred & Ginger…..mmm, maybe not.... at least it felt that way. We were living the moment, until a couple started walking toward us and Tim decided it was time to stop, even though there was plenty of room to walk around us. I tried to convince him to keep the moment going, but to no avail. I think I was just excited because I hadn’t felt so intensely free and uninhibited in quite a long time and I didn’t want to let go of that moment. All I wanted to do was keep dancing as if no one was watching.

After dissecting the issue with Tim, we both agree that we desire to live our lives like that…..to be spontaneous, to leap forward in the moment and not be held back by our inhibitions, to let them go and dance as if no one is watching. In the example I’ve just given, Tim was the one holding back, but I can tell you that it has very often been the other way around. It's time for a change.

Intoxicated by the Amalfi Coast

2010-10-16T12:14:00.000-07:00

The Amalfi Coast is made up of a number of utterly enchanting, almost fairytale villages that are set into the rugged coastline of Italy’s south-east. Although it was mid Autumn, we soaked in the suns rays as we meandered around the idyllic hillside villages and even when the rain came down, we surprisingly dealt with it better than usual! Even in the rain we were captivated and couldn’t get enough. The sights, sounds, tastes and scents of this dramatic coast are something to behold!

We spent most of our time exploring the coast in our car, stopping along the way, mostly for amazing photo opportunities. There were a lot of photos we didn’t take, simply because we were often on a hairpin bend and parking anywhere on the narrow coast road is next to impossible…those are the images locked in our memory. We were particularly mesmerized by the very famous small village of Positano with it’s pastel and white houses precariously nestled into the cliffside leading down to a picturesque cove of pebble beach. These photos will do more justice to a description than I ever could……

Beautiful Positano, by day and at sunset

Ravello was the second place that caught our attention and was more of a surprise because we had never heard of it before. It’s set back from the coast, but sits on probably one of the highest peaks in the whole area and allows for spectacular panoramic views. We spent more than a whole day discovering the nicks and crannies of this quaint village, which we were obviously fixated with and it provided amazing material for good photography. Ravello was our base for 4 nights, where we stayed with the most hospitable Italian family who made us feel like one of them. I can only do that experience justice in a whole separate post (see ‘The Italian Secret to a Long Life….stay tuned)

Pics of Ravello

We were excited to be back amongst a culture that values cuisine like no other! Although we devoured really good Italian dishes in a few places, we quickly developed a favourite (Villa Amore Albergo Ristorante), which we returned to several times. Hidden away in a cobblestone alley in Ravello, we were served by older Italian gentlemen wearing vests and bow ties. The menu was extremely good value with our delicious bottle of wine costing only 7 Euro. We felt so at home and ridiculously blessed as our waiter dished our meal from the pan right at our table, even completely deboning my fish so perfectly as I watched. Sitting on the terrace of this restaurant treated us to the best view we’ve ever had whilst eating. We stopped to think, that this experience was probably as authentic as it got. Ok, so I’ve become a bit fixated on eating again, but I guess you better get used to it, this is Italy after all!

The view from the Ristorante

Chicken Cacciatora....look how red those tomatoes are!!

The Amalfi Coast was one place I had completely built up in my mind and I think I even dreamed about being here a few times. I can honestly say this place definitely exceeded all of our expectations and must be experienced to be truly imagined! It is a storybook brought to life!

Nearly shit my pants!

2010-10-15T10:27:00.000-07:00

We arrived on the Amalfi Coast in the middle of a major thunderstorm, with the rain pelting our windscreen so hard we couldn’t see a thing, wipers were useless and eventually we were forced to pull over, or crash. The extremely narrow roads, the sheer cliff drop off on one side and sharing the road space with full size tourist coaches was not particularly helpful either! On an obviously fragile and dangerous route, we couldn’t believe the size of the vehicles that were allowed to drive on this road. As a passenger sitting in the middle of road in our right-hand drive car, it was not much fun to have oncoming cars, buses and trucks, taking up the whole road swerving to pass at the last minute like a game of chicken. Italian drivers lived up to their reputation and demonstrated no fear, only simple insanity. I do not have enough fingers on both hands to count how many times my heart was in my mouth. Thankfully, I escaped shitting my pants. A driving experience not for the faint hearted.

Not the best pic, but you get the idea

A makeshift bed

2010-10-14T02:53:00.000-07:00

Sad to leave the beauty of Croatia and it’s sunshine, but awaiting our return to Italy, we boarded the overnight ferry, preparing in our minds to set up our bed on a long bench seat in the bar. Our ideas of sprawling out and getting comfortable were very quickly crushed when we saw that the once bench seats had been divided into single seats using immovable boards. DOH!! It was pretty obvious that ‘Jarolijna Ferries’ was trying really hard to make sleeping in the bar area so difficult, so people would pay double the price for a dog box cabin. Of course we didn’t succumb to that…..instead, we created a makeshift sleeping quarters in a corner on the floor with our sleeping bags and pillows. In full view of bar staff and customers, laying on a carpeted concrete surface and using our eye masks to block the glaring light, it seemed like a perfectly acceptable place to sleep under the circumstances. We definitely drew some attention and we could tell as people passing said goodnight to us that they wish they’d done the same thing and saved the money. A win for us!

Unattached and Free to Dream

2010-10-13T07:56:00.000-07:00

It seemed that Nishta restaurant in Dubrovnik was the place to meet interesting fellow Aussies….we instantly connected with Wiam and Anthony from Sydney, who shared about the businesses they had bought and sold, all on a whim and without taking any decision too seriously. They had decided only 3 weeks before leaving Australia, to sell their business and go. Listening to the language they used, we initially thought they were being excessively flippant, but after talking to them for a while we discovered a much deeper attitude that reminded us to hold everything in our lives lightly. They spoke of being attached to nothing and making firm decisions based on calculated risk, going with your first instinct rather than agonizing over those decisions. We were inspired by their willingness to give anything a go and not be threatened at all by the possibility of failure….after all, if something doesn’t work out, it’s an opportunity to create change. We could see that their unattachment to ideas, to things, to a career, to anything, was what allowed them to be completely confident and free in their decisions. After all, if we are unattached to everything, how much are we really risking? The question is, how do we remain unattached in a consumer society that bombards us with wrong messages about what we need to be successful or to be worthy as a person…..like ‘we must own a house to have real security’, ‘we need a career to be successful’ or ‘we can’t possibly live without x’, just to scratch the surface. Maybe if we can be more aware of these messages, decide on an alternative and develop a new definition for success, we can be free to dream and live beyond the norm. Maybe I’ve oversimplified things and life is a little more complicated, but it’s something to think about. Would love to have your thoughts.

A Love for Photography

2010-10-13T07:49:00.000-07:00

It was at Nishta that we met Dan, from Perth, who ended up joining us for drinks at a very funky outdoor bar right on the edge of the cliff face on the outside of the city walls. We sat, overlooking the adriatic waters as the sun began to set and one of the many things we talked about was our common interest in photography. Of course it’s not difficult to find a traveler who is passionate about photography simply because it’s impossible not to be when your surroundings are screaming to be photographed. We hung out with Dan again the following morning when we visited ‘War Photo Limited’, a gallery showcasing images from modern wars around the world including Iraq, Yugoslavia & Africa. Here we not only saw the work of incredibly talented photographers, but the images themselves were deeply moving, shocking and confronting. One in particular, a soldier was diving for cover, dodging a bullet that the photographer managed to capture in mid flight and another of a man leaping for his life as he escaped a bomb blast. We couldn’t believe the intensely dangerous circumstances these photographers were willing to place themselves in to take such incredible pictures. It spoke to us of extreme dedication and selflessness to tell the real story of war.

The cliffside cafe

Dan

Mad About Figs

2010-10-12T07:32:00.000-07:00

We pretty much discovered figs the day after we entered Croatia and continued to eat them fresh throughout our time there. But, it was in Dubrovnik that we first tried them in the most delectable dessert! Figs soaked in Croatian sweet wine topped with cinnamon marscapone cream!! Mmmmm! The vegetarian restaurant where we ate this little gem became our saving grace for food in Croatia! The place was given the name ‘Nishta’, meaning ‘nothing’ because before opening, local Croats were struck with confusion and asked the question “If they are not going to serve meat, what will they serve, nothing?” Lets just say that vegetarian restaurants are pretty much unheard of in this country.

The food at Nishta was incredible and it rescued us from the indentical menus of southern Croatia and from overdosing on shrimp risotto. We ate at Nishta four times in the four days we were in Dubrovnik, sampling most items on the menu and savoured every last delicious mouthful of food originating from India, Morocco, Turkey, Mexico and Thailand.

Life is Full of Possibilities

2010-10-11T07:30:00.000-07:00

tWhen you travel, you discover a different realm of possibility….you see how other people live, what they value and the differences between another culture and your own. You are surrounded by sights, smells and tastes that not only are a feast for your senses, but they send your imagination running wild, far beyond what can be experienced when living in complete familiarity. Every day you experience something new, meet fascinating characters, engage in very interesting people-watching and try foods with colours, textures and flavours that blow your mind. Conversations with locals and travelers alike tend to be less about mundane topics and more about cultural differences, language, creativity, dreams and potential. Your mind is expanded, leaving you feeling extremely inspired and believing that much more is possible than what you had imagined before leaving your home soil. You realise there are so many more alternative ways to live your life and your options are limitless!

Island hopping, Croatian style

2010-10-10T13:13:00.000-07:00

A two hour ferry ride to the island of Vis felt a whole lot shorter after meeting an English couple (Andy & Catherine) who were on their honeymoon. Thankfully, they didn’t seem to be the reserved type and we instantly hit it off, leaving us feeling like old friends by the time we arrived on the island. We invited them to join us the following night for a meal at a local restaurant called ‘Roki’s’, which had been recommended to us. We ate ‘Peka’, a traditional Croatian dish made with meat, vegetables, herbs and slow cooked in a cast iron pot over hot coals. The food couldn’t have been more perfectly cooked, with the meat melting in our mouths like butter and the whole dish so full of flavour. The restaurant also makes and sells their own wine, using grapes grown only on the island of Vis. We drank their white Bugava and their red Plavac, both of wish were uniquely delicious and different to any other wine we have tasted. Our conversation with Andy & Catherine went beyond the superficial and we laughed until we cried. At the end of the night, we exchanged details and were immediately convinced we had made another two life-long friends.

Enjoying 'peka' with our new friends

Vis is an incredibly beautiful island, with a lack of ‘touristy’ developments, which is exactly what we loved about it. We were instantly captivated by the small fishing village of Komiza, at the east end of the island, with its pebble beaches, lined with 17^th and 18^th century homes and it’s crystal emerald green waters. We were astounded when we managed to discover a small apartment right on the foreshore, with the water almost lapping at our front door, all for about AU$40 a night! Travelling outside of peak season definitely increases your bargaining power! Tony and Senka, our warm and generous hosts, were the best we could have asked for. Despite the considerable language barrier, we made use of all communication tools, including hand gestures and the usual charades. Tony kindly offered us some of his ‘catch of the day’ for lunch, which we watched him prepare and cook the traditional way – whole fish over hot coals with garlic, olive oil and rosemary. We sat at the water’s edge, in front of our apartment savouring every mouthful and counting our blessings as we reflected on the generosity of this beautiful couple.

Our apartment is the one on the far right :-)

Komiza beach

Tony cooking us up the fish on the coals

Perfect lunch with the perfect view

The landscape and atmosphere of Vis created the perfect setting for ultimate relaxation. In 4 days, a basic routine was quickly developed….nothing more than rising without any alarm to wake us, meandering over to the local bar about 200 metres away, drinking coffee while gazing out to the Adriatic for at least an hour, going for a leisurely drive around the island, eating and drinking some more….I’m sure you get the picture. To mix things up a bit, we hiked down to a secluded and extremely picturesque cove called 'Stiniva', where the points of two cliff faces curve in toward each other, allowing water to flow through the canal in the centre. I was ever so slightly ecstatic because I had been dying to swim in the clear, aqua waters but up until this point, it was a bit too chilly to take the plunge. This day however seemed just right, but the moment I removed my shoes and begun walking toward the water, I quickly discovered how much I despise pebble beaches!! Sure, they look incredible and they allow for the clear water, but they are bloody painful!! A vigorous foot massage gone horribly wrong is an appropriate way to describe it! In the end, I did venture into the water….but with shoes on….which was just plain wrong!

Stiniva

Amazing sunset at Komiza, Vis

We left Vis extremely reluctantly, especially with hosts who almost begged us to stay, but there were other islands we really wanted to visit and it wouldn’t be long until the weather would be getting much cooler. We visited the islands of Korcula and Mlijet, spending 3 nights on each, with not much more to report other than a whole lot more relaxation. Torrential storms on Korcula gave us both the opportunity to finish some really good books (Sal – ‘One Day, by David Nicholls’ and Tim – ‘The Snowball: Warren Buffet and the Business of Life') and we enjoyed the down time as well as watching the lightning over the ocean from our front window. We discovered fig brandy, home made by our hosts, which was a little too delicious and it is probably just as well that we only bought one small bottle to take away. We also visited a local winery, where we tasted and bought two bottles of exceptional Croatian wine – grown, produced and sold only on the island. It was a pity we didn’t get to see Korcula under the sunshine because seeing and appreciating the beauty of a place is much harder through the rain.

By the time we arrived at the very untouched island of Mljet, we had no books to read and although the National Park was beautiful, we began feeling like we had done enough relaxation and boredom crept in. We amused ourselves with dodging big black beetles on the road, commentating (Tim) the activity of ants who were carrying away the various body parts of dead flies and hanging out with giant purple jelly fish and a beer drinking praying mantis. Yes….the product of having way too much time on your hands! Time for some more advanced brain stimulation!

One of the views of the Mljet coast

The beer drinking praying mantis....sweet!

Split: not just a port town

2010-09-30T01:41:00.000-07:00

We weren’t particularly sure why we were going to Split, other than to catch a ferry to some of the islands, but we had connected with a couch surfer (Paula) living locally and our three night stay turned out to be a treat! We stayed in the heart of the Old Town, otherwise known as the Diocletian’s Palace with its labyrinth of stone alleyways and courtyards, originating from ancient times. Although we arrived in the pouring rain, Paula was kind enough to show us to her friend’s apartment where we were staying and by the next day, we woke to hear the bustle of morning activity….local produce and fish markets, children playing as they headed off to school, friends laughing as they met for morning coffee and locals greeting each other as they passed by. We were instantly captivated by the atmosphere inside these enchanting ancient walls and spent much of our time in Split exploring within them, including the rooms built underground.

We heard live acoustic music, while sitting on the steps of a sunken courtyard surrounded by stone pillars and other masonry, displaying intricate detail and enough light shining in exactly the right places to set the romantic mood. We watched as an older couple began dancing on their own without a care in the world and as if noone was watching. This got us talking with Paula about the spontaneity of Croatian culture and how this was something we all loved about it. People here really know how to seize every moment and live completely to the full, seemingly without many cares….or at least they hide them well and exhibit their joy to greater measures. Paula shared the flip side to this moment to moment living which I guess is pretty obvious….apparently, people here are not very good at planning for or making decisions about the future, which is reflected not only in people’s every-day lives, but at the government level as well. Still, it made us reflect on the importance of joy, pleasure and spontaneity, which can only come from living in the moment. Maybe sometimes, it is ok to be a bit less concerned about the future, or at least to balance the scales a little more evenly.

We visited the open air market, where locals buy their fresh produce and were instantly in our element as we were surrounded by so much edible colour and texture. Almost every fruit and vegetable you can think of, lay on the tables exuding their freshness and proudly sold by local farmers. I have completely fallen in love with Croatian figs and knowing they were about to go out of season, I bought some from a beautiful old lady, who gladly handed over some additional freebies. In these moments, I imagined the joy it would bring me to venture out to the market like this every day to buy fresh, organic produce directly from local growers.

We ate out a few times, but began to realise that despite a myriad of ingredients available, restaurant menus were very similar in this part of Croatia and reading them wasn’t helping our choice of where or what to eat. Paula came to our rescue and recommended a tiny restaurant hidden away and run by a husband (waiter) & wife (cook) team where we ate authentic grilled chicken with mushroom sauce, a traditional beef dish marinated in wine, called Pasticada and for dessert, palacinke – traditional Croatian crepes. Mmmmm!

Paula gladly shared a whole heap of recommendations of where and what to include for the remainder of our time in Croatia. This included a must-visit to Vis Island, Croatia’s most remote of it’s 47 inhabited islands, with it’s preserved beauty and limited development. We decided to exclude the island of Hvar, with it’s mass development, high rises and ‘touristy’ feel and go to Vis instead.

The sunken courtyard where we listened to live music

The outside palace walls

Waterfront

Promenade

Buying figs at the market

Sea-tunes and Salutations

2010-09-28T08:01:00.000-07:00

We were only in Zadar, on the Croatian coast for one night, but it was enough to see two pretty unique sights. As we strolled along the waterfront, we saw and more importantly heard, the world’s only sea organ. It was designed by a local architect and is a series pipes and whistles, set into the steps which descend directly into the sea. To the naked eye, the organ looks like simple holes in the pavement, but as the water rushes underneath and air is pushed through these pipes, a random yet strangely beautiful tune can be heard. If you sit there for long enough, the ocean’s music almost sends you into a trance-like state as you listen to what reminds you of the sound of panpipes.

Not far away from the Sea Organ, was the Sun Salutation, a 22m circle cut into the pavement, filled with 300 multilayered glass plates that collect the suns energy during the day to produce a very trippy light show at night. We returned later to discover what looked like a dance floor plucked right out of ‘Saturday Night Fever’…..and of course we couldn’t help ourselves and out came the classic moves. Psychadelic moving patterns, infiltrated with changing colours kept us entertained for the good part of an hour.

According to Lonely Planet, Zadar is one of Croatia’s underrated cities and even after only one night, we can definitely agree. The seaside Old Town is no less beautiful than others we have seen, it has a busy port, which makes it a lively place to be and it also contains some very fascinating ruins. It is famous for the best morning market in Croatia and we were looking forward to visiting the following day, which turned out to be bucketing with rain and no sign of it letting up. Our best bet was to get on the road again.

Cascades & Communism

2010-09-26T10:54:00.000-07:00

The extraordinary natural beauty of Plitvice Lakes National Park is something to behold…..19.5 hectares of wooden hills with 16 emerald green lakes linked by spectacular cascades and waterfalls. We spent a day and a half exploring the park, wandering the wooden footbridges hovering centimeters above, or alongside the rushing water with no handrails or barriers. I was actually surprised by being undisturbed by this…maybe it was because the water looked so inviting, that falling in would have not been so bad. In fact, even though swimming is not allowed, I did at one point contemplate falling in on purpose. The water was so crystal clear, that you could see into its depths, the roots of the trees intertwined and covered in green moss, almost resembling some kind of wreck. We could vividly see hundreds of fish lingering happily along the waters edge, almost following our movements, maybe hoping we would throw them some food. All we wanted to do was throw them a hook, line and sinker, but knowing this was a protected area, we missed out on having those fish for dinner that night. We admired the changing colours and falling leaves that autumn brings as well as the variety of wildlife who had made the park their home. Although we didn’t see any lynx or bears that apparently live in the grounds, we did see frogs, stunning butterflies, birds and interesting species of insects. The most memorable wildlife moment was Tim capturing a photo of two dragonflies, an almost impossible endeavour with them zipping around so fast you can barely catch a glimpse. The fact they were mating meant they remained still for that little bit longer. Insect porn anyone? Lol

Just outside of the national park, we experienced the warm hospitality of a Croatian family, staying in their home for 2 nights. Although we had our own private room and bathroom, they opened up their family area to us where we cooked our own dinner and shared in rich conversation. Not everyone in the family could speak English, but we could tell we were so welcome by all, simply by their gestures. The man of the house, Nedjelko, could speak fluent English, however and invited us to share a glass of rakija, his own home-made plum brandy. Rakija is part of the staple diet here in Croatia and can be made using a variety of fruits or herbs, some sweeter than others. We have learned, that it is cultural for a Croat to welcome you in their home with a glass or two of rakija.

We listened intently, as Nedjelko opened up to us and shared his experience of living under communism and how life was different once the Yugoslav war had ended in 1989. Individual freedom came and provided opportunity for people to do as they wished, without government control, including the chance to obtain a passport and travel internationally in addition to owning your own business. At the end of the war, all Nedjelko owned was one small bag filled with bare necessities and the clothes he was wearing. Today, just over 20 years later, he has built for his family, a 3 storey guesthouse and has a devoted passion for tourism. At first, it was strange for us to hear how for many, the communist way provided a great deal of security and stability….people’s whole lives were organized by the government and many ‘responsibilities’ were also taken care of. The government found people jobs, organized annual holidays and paying tax was unheard of. According to Nedjelko, life was lived simply and happily by many people, but when communist rule ended, there was confusion over how to accept or deal with any responsibility. The very structured and controlling system was all that these people had ever known and living any differently was foreign. Up until this day, the older generations in the local area here still struggle with this new way of life and talk about how much better it would be to go back to when everything was organized for them. There is particular confusion around why paying an income tax is required and only in recent years has there been any support services in place for people to deal with the changes.

It was so interesting to hear Nedjelko talk about these issues and we were surprised to be confronted on our previous assumptions that life was hard and oppressive for everyone living under communism. Without pushing too many political buttons, or to announce that I’m signing up to a Communist Party, it was simply intriguing to hear another perspective. Nedjelko was obviously chuffed about how keen we were to hear his story that he kept going and going, to the point that we had to politely interrupt him as he stood beside our car to bid us farewell. We drove away feeling completely humbled that such a lovely man had opened his family home and life to us.

Our first glimpse of the lakes

One of the many footbridges

The view from a footbridge

You could see fish like this everywhere!!

One of the many waterfalls

The dragonflies....can you spot them? Don't look too close!

Homegrown Produce and Roadside Stalls

2010-09-26T10:43:00.000-07:00

Driving through Croatia with our Tom Tom, has often lead us to the more remote, rustic villages where the ‘tourist’ is pretty much non-existent. It is in these places that we have seen the culture so obviously on display. We have watched as older men cultivate their land with handheld tools, so diligently and little old ladies in their black head scarves selling their homegrown produce, cheeses, jams and olive oils at the roadside, seemingly in the middle of nowhere. We have learned, in both Italy and Croatia, that buying and selling produce locally is central to the lifestyle here and essential to the livelihood of local growers. We have been to several open-air markets and experienced the flurry of energy, the buzz, the tenacity and passion of the local merchants, willing to barter and bargain with their buyers. You can visibly see the freshness of the produce, so full of life and colour, with a screaming invitation to be eaten.

Up until the last 20 years, supermarkets were non-existent in this part of the world and all food was bought and sold in these open-air markets. It is with sadness that some locals speak about the effects of globalization and the influx of larger supermarkets into their communities. We feel sad too, that another, more commercial and capital driven culture is influencing this very important part of Mediterranean life. Lets hope, that the Italians and Croats can maintain what they do so very well and maybe increase their influence on the rest of the world that little bit more.

At the Adriatic water's edge

2010-09-23T01:39:00.000-07:00

The night we arrived in Croatia, it was still bucketing with rain and although we had hoped to camp by the water’s edge, it was obvious that this was a little ambitious. Instead, we managed to find a cheap room in a nice hotel in a place called Poreč. The following afternoon, the sun reappeared from behind the clouds and totally turned around our gloomy first impression of Croatia into exactly what we had hoped for….Mediterranean Bliss!

We ventured straight for the seaside and were in awe of the white stone buildings lining the shore as well as the gorgeous restaurant terraces perfectly positioned. The sky was definitely the bluest we had ever seen and as the sun shone on the crystal clear water, it glistened like a million stars, almost blinding us with its glare. We sat down at a table on the terrace feeling so blessed to be here and ordered our meal from a menu dominated by truffles. We remembered reading about this region being the homeland of the truffle delicacy and knowing how expensive they are in other places of the world, we were pleasantly surprised to order a truffle pasta for 10 Aussie bucks! Thankfully, truffles are not so expensive here in Istria where truffle hunters and special hunting dogs source them from deep inside the dark woods. We couldn’t get enough of truffles at first, but we discovered quickly, that a break from their very rich flavour is needed.

After lunch, we spent the afternoon strolling the sidewalk along the seafront and all we wanted to do was dive in. For the time being, we simply enjoyed the warmth of the sun’s rays and the tranquility of being by the ocean. We had our first glimpse of a pebble beach, hundreds of smooth stones piled on each other. Although not so comfortable under foot, it was such a novelty compared to the sandy beaches we are used to. Our first amazing day in Croatia was topped off by the most gorgeous sunset with a lighthouse in the foreground.

The following few days were much of the same – wining and dining at the water’s edge as well as wandering the shiny stone pavements in the coastal villages of Pula, Rovinj and Opatija…..yep, it all sounds pretty terrible. We found the perfect camping spot just outside Pula and set up our tent less than 10 metres from the shore. It was another surreal moment as we sat on the rocks in the evening, our gaze fixed on the water and the moon’s reflection. We talked about the obviously slower pace in which Croatians live and we decided we would observe more closely, with the expectation that we might just have something important to learn.

Istria is famous for its fresh seafood, caught locally and driving along the coast we ate it every day for about 5 days, because it was incredible! Chefs here tend to let the flavour of the fish speak for itself, mostly cooking it whole on the grill with olive oil and garlic. Delish! Experiencing the taste of these different types of fish, only caught in the Adriatic, has been a real treat.

There’s only so much wining and dining you can do, before it starts burning a serious hole in your pocket. We figured we were not spending any money on attractions, so we admittedly lived it up for a few days. On our way to Plitvice Lakes, we decided it was time to cook our own dinner.

Strolling along the seafront

A gorgeous scene in Rovinj

Venice....a wash out

2010-09-19T04:50:00.000-07:00

When we arrived in Venice, we were aware that heavy rain was forecast for most of our stay, but we remained optimistic…as you do when you have absolutely no control over weather conditions while travelling. Our first day in Venice was overcast, a little cool and breezy, but we were able to wander the beautiful streets of this very unique city and see pretty much everything we wanted to. San Marco Square was a beautiful sight to behold, despite being partly covered with scaffolding. The Basilica, being the centre point of the square, impressed us with its amazing mosaic art work flooring and the ceiling covered in gold mosaics, carefully placed to create religious images and visual stories. As we meandered the alleyways of Venice and alongside the canals, we gazed upon the houses on stilts hovering on the water. How fascinating it was to see the locals pull up in their boats to their front door. We wondered about how such a city could be built and suspended above water for so long. It’s not so difficult to see however, that many buildings are struggling to stay put, with obvious leans in the structures, peeling plaster and solid stone opening up into significant crevices. These flaws may be disturbing or worrying for the local, but for the travelers eye, they simply add to the character of this enchanting city. We watched in awe of the very fancy gondolas, skillfully steered by the Italian man. We inquired about the price for a 40 minute ride and decided we would leave it until the following day. Again, we were hopeful, but this did turn out to be a wrong decision.

Apparently, Venice is known for heavy rain and thunderstorms that often lead to flooding. We were there for 2 nights and after the first night, this place definitely lived up to its name, providing extremely wet conditions in which our umbrella did not perform too well. Thankfully, our tent did a little better and apart from a slight leak, we managed to wake in the morning without any soggy feelings. That of course, changed the moment we exited the tent and discovered we could almost swim in the puddles surrounding our home away from home. To give you a picture of how hard it rained the night before….the only thing we could see fit to do before going to bed, was to watch something we had downloaded on our laptop, but with the volume set at it’s maximum, we still struggled to hear the sound over the rain drops pounding our tent. It pretty much rained like this for the whole night and into the morning. We had planned to stay at least 3 nights in Venice, but we knew the weather was going to prevent us from doing anything significant, including a gondola ride. It is not an uncommon dream for a lady planning to visit Venice, to want the romantic sunset ride on a gondola and for me this was no different. Although hopeful, the bucketing rain meant this dream was not going to become reality…at least this time round. We would have had to stay in Venice at least another 2 nights to have any possibility of sunshine, so we decided to cut our losses and move onto our next destination – Croatia. Despite our disappointment, we were thankful we were able to see Venice for at least one day.

San Marco Square & Basilica

One of the many beautiful canals

At least I captured a gondola in a pic...and I can still dream! :-)

Italy....fits like a glove.

2010-09-17T10:45:00.000-07:00

Our first stop in Italy was Lake Como….this was not a place included in our original plan, but as we’re discovering, bit by bit, that plan is being turned upside down. I think we read about the lake in a guidebook somewhere and received some extra encouragement from fellow travelers, to visit there. We arrived after dark and so couldn’t really tell how beautiful it was until the morning. We pitched our tent alongside the lake at a very quaint campsite in a village called Dongo. In the morning, we woke to glorious sunshine and couldn’t wait to get out and enjoy it. We drove to the neighbouring village of Menaggio and wandered the streets, admiring the array of textures and colours that surrounded us. We carefully chose the restaurant for our first official meal in Italy and were drawn to a place which was obviously packed with locals….always a good sign. As we sat there savouring our homemade pasta, we were reminded of the simplicity yet outstanding quality of Italian food.

Lunch was followed by an afternoon of village hopping via ferry including a visit to the famous Bellagio where George Clooney lives. We weren’t that fussed about missing out on a sighting, but we definitely overheard some other ladies who were keen on hunting him down! Walking up and down the pebblestone stairwells of Bellagio and along the water’s edge was a treat in itself. It still felt so surreal that we were in Italy and surrounded by such beautiful homes, different shades of colour, just like the ones from all those Italian films. I imagined myself on the balcony, the old wooden shutters flung wide, gazing out over the ocean, onto the horizon. Oh how I could live here!! Tim thinks so too! There’s something about this place that makes you feel so at ease, like you really have no care in the world. And when a feeling like that arises, you never want to let it go. After tantalizing our taste buds at a local wine bar and indulging in some lemon gelato, we caught the ferry across to another Village called Varenna where we proceeded to engage in very similar activities that were such hard work….not!

We pretty much knew we would instantly fall in love with this country and everything it has to offer. The food is amazing….since arriving here, the smells of garlic, cheese and other culinary delights literally waft from restaurants and homes, surprisingly from significant distances away. We were on the ferry, at least 100 metres from the shore and our salivary glands kicked into gear, all due to the smell of garlic in the air. So it’s pretty obvious that we like authentic Italian food….just a little bit. There are other reasons we find this country so alluring, like the incredible fruit driven, smooth wine, which is really no surprise. The afternoon siesta, although a bit inconvenient for shopping, is such a great idea and I think working full time might just be a bit more tolerable if it incorporated an afternoon nap. The people here really know how to live life at a slower pace, which is very likely much better for your health than what we’re used to. I also have to give a plug for Tim who is a bit keen on Italian cars and motorbikes….we were planning to visit the Lamborghini or Ferrari factories in Modena, but for various reasons, we have no access to any tours. He is nonetheless impressed with Italy for producing top quality motor machines. Even though Tim may never own an Italian car (don’t tell him I told you), at least he can drive like an Italian….completely erratic and aggressive….or maybe a more positive slant is ‘assertive’. I am actually glad that he’s behind the wheel in this country….Italian drivers seem to be a little crazy. They appear to enjoy tailgating and travelling at least 20km over the speed limit as well as beeping you from behind if you decide you would like to obey the law. Parking is also an interesting activity….if there are no spaces, why not create them!? Blocking other cars doesn’t seem to bother anyone else! We have found though, that people are very polite and apologetic when they realize you can’t get out of the car park because of them and they quickly rectify the situation. I am speaking of course in general terms and purely for the purpose of amusement.

While I have just described Tim’s fettish for Italian motor vehicles, I have discovered that my growing fettish is for the Italian man, or maybe it’s just the two brothers who were running the campsite in Lake Como. I can’t help it if they were just too cute…..or maybe dreamy is the better word! Lol. You don’t have to worry though, I am completely satisfied with my own dreamy man and therefore won’t be taking this fettish any further.

In describing the many delights in Italy, we can probably say that we will be spending as much time here as possible, simply because everything about this culture resonates with us and we seem to fit in so well. All we need to do now, is grasp the beautiful and mesmerizing dialect….maybe words that go beyond decriptions of food.

Lake Como

A Bellagio Alleyway

Varenna

Keeping the romance alive :P

Mmmm, the Italian man

A guest post....through the eyes of Sal

2010-09-14T14:33:00.000-07:00

We met Tom in Gryon, Switzerland at Chalet Martin - the gorgeous hostel we stayed in for 4 nights. Such a genuine dude from California and we hit it off instantly....so much so, we ended up making room for him in our car to give him a hitch to Italy. I happened to tell him I was a bit behind in our blog writing and jokingly said "can you write me a blog post Tom?" And so he did! And it's a good one! Thanks Tom! :-)

Here it is:

Friday night we crashed landed in the eclectic mountain town of Gyron. Our Tom-Tom didn't fail us, but it was no match for the unexpected road construction, luckily Tim remembered how to use a map and guided us to our hostel, Chalet-Martin. The warmth of the hostel matched warm tones of the interior oak, and the people follow suit. Its more communally orientated than most places; instead of the awkward, "I needed that pot..." while cooking, you'll get, "Please join our meal!" Don't exactly expect free meals, should you visit, but you'll probably get a free beer upon arrival. The first night, standing from the deck we peered into the darkness catches the jagged silhouettes that hover above the valley floor like crag guardians. The stars were speckled above us, but illuminations from the valley town below were a spectacles of themselves as they attempted to mimic the milky way. We knew we had arrived in another glorious location, and the smiling faces of fellow travelers confirmed it.

Gyron is a small, french speaking, Swiss paradise, surrounded by an arena of rocky splendor and lush green decor. It is no doubt a tourism-fueled location, but the residents seem to have accepted it, respect it, and be-friend the idea. It is still one of the few places where hitch-hiking is safe, and actually received!

Every night we delighted in some delectable foods, and even more palatable company. After filling your day with our various activities, the pinnacle physically and emotionally being the peak we hiked to one afternoon, you were able to lay the sweet caramel topping of community at night. There were a number of ping-pong matches that took place, some fire side chatting, and we even watched a favorite Aussie classic, "The Castle." There were many surrounding activities promoted for the mild to extreme adrenaline fiends, but we remained in our meek interests, and reveled in our own amiable character. We no doubt picked an excellent spot to soak up enticing views, but we remained unenticed but nothing but each other and company. Time managed to pull off a few ping-pong games, humbling winning and loosing, and I managed to again try my cooking and gift of sharing.

We had a few glitches with the car's brakes, but its not too much to worry about since it is budgeted for. On our journey we managed to pick up some lively cargo (we are giving our new found friend Tom a ride to Milan) and continue to share the good glory of God with our new neighbor. Overall, the Chalet Martin was a wonderful landing pad and launching point for our next destination, LAKE COMO!!!!

Chalet Martin (hostel)

The view from the deck

fun and games in the kitchen

Saying goodbye to Tom in Italy

Discovering what you're made of

2010-09-13T14:20:00.000-07:00

Today we hiked to the peak of a mountain in the Swiss Alps. It was so steep, that each step was like climbing a set of stairs and we did that for about 45 minutes. It was the most grueling walk I have done since before my hip surgery, maybe for a few years actually. We were hiking up to the top, picnic in hand, to sit and eat alongside the huge wooden cross placed on the peak. About 50 metres from the top, I was utterly exhausted and I began to doubt if I had any strength left to make it there. Tim was tired as well, but obviously not struggling as much as I was. I stopped for a few moments and thought about how it was probably more of a mental barrier that I needed to push through, rather than a physical one. I was completely capable of getting to the top, but whether I believed that would probably be the determining factor. Sure, I was experiencing some pain in my muscles and soreness in my hip, but all of that was only because I hadn’t put myself under any strain in a while. Looking up at the cross as my final destination, I considered the journey Jesus took to calvary and how much pain he would have been in….and yet he still carried his cross. His physical stamina would have been stretched beyond comprehension, but it was probably His mental stamina that caused him to keep going.

I haven’t really liked hiking all that much in the past, especially slopes, and I have discovered that it’s because the activity is way too uncomfortable and challenging. I would rather admire the view from a more easily accessible place…like the deck of our hostel in the alps. What I have realized though, is that sometimes being in ‘uncomfortable’ situations brings out the worst in you and this is not necessarily a bad thing. For it raises your awareness and brings you to a crossroad where there is a decision to be made…. ‘will I move forward and push through this mental barrier, or will I turn back in avoidance?’ It is at these crossroads where we have the opportunity to discover what we’re truly made of.

Thankfully, I decided to push through that day and when I made it to the peak, the exhilaration was indescribable. The 360 degree view was spectacular and we sat down by the cross to enjoy our picnic lunch. We couldn’t help but give thanks to God for everything He has brought us through and especially for my health because 12 months ago, a hike like this was inconceivable. As we gazed out to the horizon, we were feeling pretty satisfied with ourselves indeed.

Arriving in the dark

2010-09-12T03:35:00.000-07:00

Getting to our hostel nestled in the Swiss Alps in a small village called Gryon definitely made us appreciate the daylight. Tom Tom doesn’t usually let us down, but unfortunately this handy gadget didn’t prepare us for a slight predicament.

Coming from southern Germany, the drive was long and we didn’t particularly know what to expect when arriving in Gryon. A couple we met in Cesky Krumlov had told us if we didn’t go anywhere else in Europe, we definitely had to come here and enjoy the homely chalet hostel as well as the exceptional views of the Swiss Alps. Winding our way up the hill with very little street light, we managed to make out nothing but vines on the side of the road. There was wine here!! Yeeew! We definitely knew we were going to love the place now! After travelling at least 20 minutes up the hill, our excitement quickly turned into that sinking feeling as we pulled up in front of a complete roadblock 5 minutes from the hostel. If we had of kept on driving, we would have ended up in a great big hole. It was 9:30pm and we were ready for bed after a long day, but Tom Tom was not helping. It was another reminder of the reliability of technology…or lack of. This is where Tom Tom AND a map definitely comes in handy. It was the map that got us to the hostel that night….just.

We discovered that the hostel has no carpark, so finding it at the end of a long walkway up the hill was slightly stressful to say the least. I think we managed to refrain from completely chewing each other’s heads off, which was positive. It was a relief when we finally walked through the door of the hostel….only to find out that there was no record of any booking we had made online. We glanced at each other with a roll of the eyes. Thankfully, there was space for us and our lost souls had found a home.

Moral of the story….arriving at your destination in the day time is definitely easier, especially if you’re accounting for any type of hiccup, including road blocks! However, the view that was revealed from the front windows and deck in the morning made arriving in the dark with all the headaches so worth it. The amazing alpine scene was all the more striking because it was the very first time we were seeing it. The hostel is nestled high into the alps, overlooking the vast mountainous landscape, a panoramic picture that made me never want to look away. Thankfully I wouldn’t have to for the next 4 days.

The morning view

Germany's best kept secret

2010-09-12T03:17:00.000-07:00

Is definitely the wine! Ok, so it may not be a secret for some Europeans, but good German wine is unheard of in Australia, which is definitely a pity. In the last couple of days, we stayed in a small village called Heinsheim in southern Germany especially for the Audi R8 factory tour. What was an added bonus, was the food and wine we tried here – at a restaurant which had been recommended by a local guy, Tim had steak served traditionally, with caramelized onions and a special dark sauce (no idea what was in it, but it tasted so good!). I ate delicately spiced white fish cooked so perfectly it literally melted in my mouth. The thing to utterly rave about though, was the wine that we tried. Firstly, we could not believe that ¼ litre glasses were all under 3 Euro and so we tried 2 whites, a red and a rose. Every single sip of all four wines was different, but equally delicious. The two reislings were fragrant, fruity, smooth and refreshing with a flavour different to what we’ve tried before. The red was full bodied and so easy to drink while the rose was what surprised us the most….shocked us actually. On the nose, it smelled exactly like a really strong blue cheese. Although we really like most blue cheeses, a wine that smelled like it was so strange it was almost off putting at first. The moment it slid onto our palate however, was when the shock hit. WOW!!! I wouldn’t say it was an outstanding wine, but it was completely drinkable and so interesting that it made you want to keep drinking it for that fact alone. We were stoked to find out that we could buy the wine by the bottle at an absolute bargain, so we walked away with the red and a reisling.

Before this road trip, we tried a German Riesling in the UK through our jobs with Laithwaites as well as a Gwertztraminer (German grape) when we were in California. The quality and amazing taste of German wine has never really hit home until now. I think we may just be announcing this secret to the world.

The Audi R8 Experience

2010-09-11T04:29:00.000-07:00

Being the car fanatic that I am, one item on my ‘must do’ list was to visit a car factory or two as well as a motorcycle factory. Lamborghini was number one on my list and before we left Oz, I was gutted to find out they were closing the factory for a refit. Yep I even lost sleep over it. So after getting over my boyish dream of visiting the Lamborghini factory, I went to work, trying to find an alternative. Next on the list was Ferrari and sure enough they had a tour available and the best feature…it’s free! The worst part….you have to be a Ferrari owner to even get a look in. Doh! Not sure a matchbox Ferarri would count. Running out of options I decided to look into the Audi R8 or Porsche tour. Looking over forums and websites, it was obviously near impossible to get one with Audi and Porsche were not commencing tours until after the 6^th of September. Appreciating the Audi R8 more and being one of top 3 cars I would love to own, I decided to send out an email via the Audi website and see what my chances might bring. As it turned out, my persistence paid off and what I thought was impossible, was not so impossible after all! A top bloke by the name of Stewart emailed me back, telling me it will cost me €150 for a tour and he went about organising a date for us. Now I know many of you might be thinking €150 is a lot of money just to go see a car being built and yes I do agree that it was a little on the extortionate side but after learning about Lamborghini and Ferrari I was determined to see this car being built and not many people get this opportunity.

The day finally came for us on Sept 10 and when arriving to the factory, the place was as big as the village of Neckarsulm itself. First impressions when walking into Audi Forum were – wow! After a short scan of the 3 story showroom we were met by Peter, the director of the tours team who went on to give us a personalised tour – I felt veeeeery special. We hopped onto an empty bus and drove around to the R8 body shop. On the bus we were about to get the camera out to take a self-portrait but were quickly interrupted by Peter as no photos were allowed within the premises. Disappointed but not surprised.

Walking through the factory doors, the first thing you notice is the place is absolutely immaculate! A place for everything and everything in its place. Guys and girls (yes there was one) were cranking away welding the front, middle and rear sections of the framework ready for a final weld to make it one complete chassis. What makes this car really impressive was that the whole body is 100% aluminium – not the easiest material to work with. Equally as impressive is that the 80% of the R8 is built by hand….hence the high price tag.

All I can say is that it was one of the greatest things I enjoyed taking the time to see. Everything from the body construction, the engine being systematically placed into the car and even getting to hold a set of ceramic brakes was like all my Christmas’s coming at once! I was definitely like a kid in a candy store. We even got to take away some small component souvenirs. Unfortunately no test drives were allowed but after seeing how much effort and detail Audi put into building the R8, they had me sold! I would love to own one. A far stretch at the moment but you never know, we’ll have to wait and see. I think I may have succeeded in converting Sal at least. We spent the last few moments soaking up what we had just seen, looking at all the cars from years past and present and we concluded the tour with a gastronomic experience in their very fine restaurant.

Tim.

Dreams don't cost anything

Polished aluminium body, no paint and no clear coat. Not for sale.

Stelvio Mountain Pass

2010-09-09T04:16:00.000-07:00

Top Gear being the best TV program ever produced has had a serious influence on me. Watching it for a while, has made me more of a Car/Motorcycle fanatic than I originally was. Jeremy Clarkson once declared this piece of road as one of best driving experiences ever! (that’s until he discovered something better in Romania). Knowing I was going to be close to the area I was determined I was going to give it a crack albeit tackling it in a diesel Astra! Sure enough it was fantastic! Starting from the bottom (as you do), we zig-zagged our way to the top (about 50km), with brilliant views to complement the drive! Absolutely great experience that I must highly recommend you do despite what you ride in. I will do this again but hopefully in a ride that’s a little more decent.

Tim.

On top of the world

2010-09-08T04:08:00.001-07:00

After Austria, we visited Interlaken, Switzerland and were keen to venture high into the mountains. Because of my hip, I haven’t been quite ready for hiking at a strenuous level, so we opted for the number one cable car ride in Switzerland instead, to the top of Shilthorn at 10,000ft (3km above sea level). The revolving restaurant on the peak called Piz Gloria, was made famous by the filming of scenes from ‘007, Her Majesty’s Secret Service’. We however, were mainly interested in the food (as usual).

The half an hour ride to the top was an expensive 91.80 Swiss Francs, equivalent to about 100 Aussie bucks each. We haven’t spent that much money on anything since we started the trip, but we figured this experience was probably worth it. While we were looking at the website, we noticed something about a 007 buffet breakfast. It was a little bit strange to discover that for only 92 Swiss Francs, you could buy a combined ticket and have the brekky included as well!! Sweet!

The morning came and we, along with a couple of other people thought we were going to get our romantic ride all the way to the top. As we were contemplating the serenity of it all, along comes a tourist bus to ruin our idealistic image. We were now reduced to a sardine, jammed into a very confined space….there were at least 40 people wedged in and trying to find the best spot for photos on the way up. We figured that getting any decent pic from the cable car was pretty much out of the question. So, despite being a little bit peeved that we had paid so much, we accepted the fact and waited until we got to the top.

Any ounce of angst quickly disappeared with the 360 degree panoramic view at the peak, towering above every other mountain. We got stuck into our breakfast, accompanied by some bubbly like it was the first one we’d had in a while. The revolving restaurant with floor to ceiling glass windows enabled us to savour the view as well as the food.

After breakfast, we ventured outside to get a good look. I feel like I am constantly describing how beautiful things are, while not really doing the description justice. All I can say is the rugged edges of the peaks capped with ice made you want to stare at them for hours just to take in the wonder of it all. We decided to get away from the crowd and take a hike part way down the mountain, out onto another peak. The path was a little hairy at times, with long drop offs either side. I had a bit of a panic at one point and needed to stop to get my head together. Tim, being the more daring one, tried raising his voice in a very firm manner, to tell me to keep walking, that I was fine. All I needed was a few moments to mentally prepare….after all, I just thought we were taking the cable car up and back. So in the end, I faced my apprehension head on and walked out onto the peak. I stood there, feeling so free, like I could step off the edge and fly away, free as a bird. The hike up and back took us about 45 minutes and was extremely steep. I was so stoked that my hip coped with the difficulty of the slopes and I might just think about conquering some more.

Sal.

Camping Royalty

2010-09-07T01:51:00.000-07:00

Camping in Innsbruck for 2 nights was like staying in a 5 star hotel, but sleeping in a tent outside. Yeh, I realize that sounds like an oxymoron, but the facilities at this campsite almost made us feel like royalty…apart from having to do our own dishes of course. Seriously though…a brand spankin’ new building with automatic doors to toilets, personal basins inside shower cubicles, a bench to sit on while in the shower, hairdryers with huge mirrors and chairs and a plasma screen to tell you the weather forecast. Sleeping outside was not a problem, especially when we were greeted by views of the Austrian Alps tipped with snow as we peered from our tent in the morning. Who needs a balcony in a 5-star hotel when you can eat, sleep and play right in the middle of the view. As far as we were concerned, we were royalty! Well…almost.

The royal campsite

No Kangaroos in Austria

2010-09-06T15:06:00.000-07:00

It seems the Austrians are very passionate about making sure everyone is clear that there are no kangaroos in their country. You can imagine the scenario of some ignorant tourist, arriving in Austria, all excited about seeing one and being quickly informed that kangaroos actually live in Australia. We almost bought one of the many t-shirts that stated - ‘There are no kangaroos in Austria’ just in case we might get confused about where we are.

We were in Austria for 4 nights, shared between Salzburg and Innsbruck. After leaving Cesky Krumlov, anywhere that we went was bound to be underwhelming, which is how we felt as we walked around Salzburg on the first night. A pretty place, sure, but it just didn’t have the character of Cesky….it was obvious that we really needed to let go! Trying to find dinner was ‘fun’, especially since the prices of everything had soared. We had been enjoying incredibly cheap food and drink in the more affordable European countries for the past couple of weeks and it’s amazing how quickly you can forget just how expensive western Europe can be. After eating the worst sushi ever (full of bones and ‘fishy’) and wandering around Salzburg a bit more, we decided that we weren’t really that fussed about spending the following day there.

We returned to our hostel, which was an interesting place in itself….it felt and looked like a hospital or an aged care facility. High ceilings in the entry, straight lines, white walls & tiles and spotlessly clean without any character or colour. Definitely nothing like the hostels that we know. We were told by the guy on reception that the building was used for student accommodation, but we were left wondering if the names still labeled on the wall outside our room door were those of students….Dora & Marlene?? Hmmm. We definitely can’t complain since it was super clean! The guy was also really helpful and recommended for us to check out the lakes area about an hour from Salzburg. As it turned out, we were extremely thankful for the tip.

The Salzkammergut lakes region of Austria is incredibly stunning and with unobstructed sunlight, the water glistened and the stillness of the air created the most beautiful vivid reflections of the surrounding mountains. We caught an old paddle-boat ferry from Saint Gilgen to the nearby village of Saint Wolfgang and we had lunch on the shore where we tasted fish caught fresh from the lake as well as traditional apple strudel. Delish! We ended the day in another small village on the lake close by called Hallstatt, which has the reputation of being the most beautiful place in Austria….and we can definitely see why. Gorgeous chalet-style houses literally look like they are built on top of each other down the side of a mountain, until they reach the shore line of the lake. The air couldn’t have been more still and the mountainous backdrop to the crystal clear water was nothing short of magnificent. It is views like these that make you feel like you need to pinch yourself because they don’t seem real….it’s like a really big picture on the wall and all you want to do is reach out and touch it. We walked the shore, then sat and watched in silence for a considerable amount of time until the sun went down.

We were not disappointed at all that we didn’t get to see much of Salzburg or anything related to the Sound of Music. We felt like we had been so spoiled by nature and if anyone asked us about where to visit in Austria, we would definitely say the Salzkammergut Lakes.

Ferry ride on the lake

The view from our lunch table

Hallstatt

The lake at twilight

The lure of Cesky Krumlov....something in the water?

2010-09-02T15:30:00.000-07:00

For many people who visit here, it is apparently very difficult to leave and for us this was no exception. We learned from a few locals that this is how a lot of people wind up staying and making Cesky Krumlov their home. It is equally as magical as Prague, but the much smaller, riverside town, made us feel as if we were experiencing a piece of heaven from the moment we arrived. The sun was shining, which casted shadows through the cobblestone alleyways and the river reflected the beauty of the surroundings. Although we didn’t ‘do’ a whole lot while we were there, this incredible place made space for our minds to slow down and have a much-needed rest. The 2 days that we had planned to stay turned into 6, simply because of the indescribable, seemingly gravitational pull of Cesky Krumlov. Something in the water? Possibly. The water from the tap did taste exceptionally good!

Or maybe it’s the hospitality and friendliness of the people who live here. We stayed in a hostel, which is by far the best we have experienced. It’s a cosy, small house, that really feels like a home. It oozes character, with wooden beams, creatively built furniture and rustic features. We hung out with the Kiwi Managers – Sarah & Kate as well as a couple of other Aussies who had almost made Cesky Krumlov their home as well. These girls made us feel so welcome and treated us practically like family, including giving us a hard time when we finally had to leave. We do have to give them credit for their persuasion skills to make us stay longer than planned…even though not a lot of persuasion was actually needed! They invited us to a couple of local activities – a ‘potluck’ dinner, where a few people gathered, bringing food to share. We also went along to a weekly launch of ‘The Stolen Gallery’, a ‘non-legal’ public space that a group of artists have taken over to display local works. Each week, the display is changed at midnight, where people gather to celebrate with wine and music. We felt privileged to be involved in these activities with local people and for a little while, it felt like we had morphed into a local too!

One of our best days, when it was 10 degrees outside and pouring with rain, we spent the day in our trackies and it couldn’t have been a better time for pancakes. We cooked pancakes for everyone staying in the hostel and a whole bag of flour, litre of milk and carton of eggs later we decided to give it the title of ‘pancake marathon’. Needless to say, we became pretty popular after that! It felt so good to be ‘at home’, cooking in my trackies….especially on a cold wintery day, seeing the raindrops hit the window and feeling cosy all at the same time.

Another special series of moments was when we hired a scooter for a few hours and rode around town. I can honestly say that I have not seen Tim this excited in such a long time....I don't think he could have smiled any harder. It was such a joy to see him so happy and I realised for a moment that maybe I could actually consider being ok with him owning another motor bike as he's always dreamed.

After extending our stay by several days, we finally made a decision to leave Cesky Krumlov, but we had no idea how difficult it would be. We had not felt so at home and at ease in a very long time. It somehow seemed like we were saying goodbye to a long lost friend, brother or sister. We had planned to leave first thing in the morning, but it actually took us longer than anticipated to bid our farewell. We made a solid effort to delay the inevitable by browsing the gorgeous, quirky gift shops and spending our last lunch at our favourite vegetarian restaurant – Laibon. We had such connection with the owner – David (who makes the best Chai latte ever!!) and we had our last of many, deep, philosophical discussions. It wasn’t until 4pm in the afternoon that we managed to haul ourselves out of there. With tears in my eyes and Tim’s arms wrapped around me, we got into the car and headed for Salzburg.

Unfortunately the beauty of this place can never be truly captured through a lens

Pausing to reflect

2010-09-02T14:29:00.000-07:00

Cesky Krumlov was one of those places that prompts and inspires reflection, simply because it’s serenity allows you to escape the noise of every-day thought and make room for the bigger picture. We found a riverside spot at a local vegetarian restaurant that we felt a continual draw to return to and it was here we conversed about our return home – the possibilities, how we will deal with ‘normal’ life again and how we might do things differently. We are both so aware that travel changes you and we talked about the possibility of wanting different things when we do return, how we might deal with that. We agreed on a few things in our conversation….we want to live generously, to engage in life-long learning and to support each other in achieving our aspirations. Who knows what these aspirations might be once this travel stint is over, but we are both committed to grow together and make room for each other’s desires.

In the end, you can’t really prepare for resuming ‘normal life’ again, all you can do is take one day at a time. Right now we still have at least 3 months left of travel and we want to make the most of every moment without being too concerned with our return. Anything beyond this adventure will take care of itself in due time.

My love-hate relationship with our blog

2010-08-27T14:10:00.000-07:00

I decided to write a blog quite a while before we began this adventure because I wanted to keep a record of our journey, not only to share with you, but also for ourselves, to keep and read for years to come. It’s something that I’m still fully committed to doing, but being on the road full time has made me realize just how time consuming it is which often makes it feel like a burden. I often draw blanks while writing because all I want to be doing is living the experience, not writing about it. The other part of me loves writing and realizes that reflecting is as important as the experience itself.

I have been reading other travel blogs recently and reassessing my own style, wondering if I really need to cover in detail each place that we visited. Instead, maybe just the highlights, important moments, learning and reflection would suffice. The plan is to develop my writing, maybe using less words and summarizing more, while still giving you enough detail to continue living this journey with us. In a nutshell, you may find the blog has a different feel as I navigate through the labyrinth of travel writing styles. It would be great to hear what you think, particularly of the latest few posts that are a little bit shorter. What style do you prefer? What have you enjoyed reading so far? What elements about any blog make you want to read them? Share your thoughts in a ‘comment’. You may also be wondering why you haven’t heard much from Tim….well, he keeps saying that I am much better at blogging. Please know though, that he does contribute to the content of almost every post, but I will keep chipping away at him and maybe eventually he will write a few more. You should definitely get a post from him after our personal guided tour of the Audi R8 Factory in a couple of week’s time.

The drain of city hopping

2010-08-27T10:38:00.001-07:00

Winding down in the beautiful, quaint, Czech village of Cesky Krumlov is exactly what we have needed after visiting 5 capital cities in less than 4 weeks. It has allowed us to stop and have a good think about where we are at both physically and emotionally and where to next….the plan was Vienna in Austria, but our enthusiasm for discovering another city has faded. Sure, each city we have visited has had its own character and interesting features, but the pace is pretty much all the same. Not only do the cities tend to be extremely crowded, especially in peak season, but they tend to crowd your mind as well and leave little space for rest. We are ready to slow down a bit, to visit places that are not so demanding on the senses and provide more space for relaxation and reflection. Places where we can appreciate our natural surroundings rather than just the beauty of buildings or manmade monuments. It is easy to fall into the trap of visiting the ‘popular’ places, the ones that pop up first on a Google search, but you really have to ask yourself ‘Why do I want to visit this place?’ and ‘What is it about here that I am actually interested in seeing/experiencing?’ We now completely understand why some people say that while touring through Europe, they grew weary of Churches, Museums & monuments. We haven’t seen that many and we already are! Of course we are not going to rule out cities completely and we do plan to visit Munich in the next week or so, but it is definitely time to turn down the pace a few notches.

In the last few days, we have decided to include Croatia in this road trip after hearing from a fellow traveler about how easy it is to get around by car and being reminded how much more you can see with access to four wheels. Hopefully, we will be there by the middle-end September….but for now, we are looking forward to spending a few days in the Austrian and Swiss Alps where we will be lapping up the view.

Meandering the alleyways of Prague

2010-08-26T10:58:00.000-07:00

It’s not difficult to be completely swept away by this incredibly stunning city, definitely our favourite so far. The pics below really say it all. During our time here, we made a decision to walk everywhere rather than use public transport, simply because we didn’t want to miss anything from the landscape, albeit manmade. Our meandering led us to the classic sights of Charles Bridge, Prague Castle and Old Town Square. The unsurprising highlights for us though, were savoring Czech wine while overlooking the city and trying some very unusually flavoured traditional food, in the company of our couch surfer hosts. We welcomed some long awaited sunshine, which made our time here that much better.

Appreciating our freedom

2010-08-26T10:34:00.000-07:00

Prague is definitely the most stunning city that we have ever seen, such a medieval feast for the eyes and being there is like wandering through a fairytale land. Behind the veil of beauty though, is a city (and country) with scars. There are the obvious wounds of war and the hardship war creates, but what we learned, was that up until only 20 years ago, the people lived under a ruthless communist rule. After our visit to the Communist Museum, we really grasped for the first time how oppressive this political ideology is and just how much it robs people of their freedom, of identity, of personal expression and achieving their personal dreams. On top of all that we learned and had seen in the last few weeks in relation to war, Governments and people’s suffering, we felt so deeply appreciative for the freedom that we as Australians have enjoyed for generations. The challenge for us, especially when we return home, is to use our freedom wisely, with great intention and to guard ourselves from one of freedom’s major enemies – apathy.

Krakow Underdone

2010-08-25T03:01:00.000-07:00

Although there have been a few places that have been difficult to leave, our time in Krakow left us feeling a little disappointed because several things prevented us from getting the most out of our time there. The rain and cold weather had been following us all the way from the UK and although our bodies were fighting, the dreaded cold set in for both of us which left us feeling pretty miserable. We were also unimpressed with the campsite’s showers which tricked us into being warm, but after getting in, went cold within a few seconds. Despite wanting to curl up in our tent in our trackies, we soldiered on and caught the bus into town on our first day. We had planned to be there for the free walking tour, which we missed because of a ridiculous traffic jam and therefore stuck on the bus. We did learn, that traffic jams are common in Krakow, even in the middle of the day….we decided to drive to Auschwitz to spend an afternoon, but after sitting in traffic for half an hour we realized that there was no way we were going to get to the other side and have enough time to do Auschwitz justice. So, after a heated discussion, we made an executive decision to reschedule Auschwitz for our final day in Krakow. The dilemma being that we had to sacrifice the free walking tour and miss out again. You might be asking what’s so important about the walking tour? Well, we have found that these tours provide a great overview of a place and particularly it’s history. Without the history or at least some background information, a walk of the city is reduced to looking at some ‘nice’ buildings and monuments. We were pretty frustrated to say the least but had to remind ourselves that the main reason we came here was to visit Auschwitz, so anything on top of that would be a bonus. Thankfully, our final day brought the sunshine we had been waiting for which always has a nice effect on anyone’s mood.

In a nutshell, we left Krakow wanting more, but knowing that we needed to keep moving. Despite experiencing some frustration, our time in there definitely wasn’t a waste. One major highlight for us was meeting some Polish couch surfers (Chris & Ewa) in the city, who ended up inviting us back to their home where we ate home made carrot soup and traditional Hungarian/Polish goulash. The veggie drought was finally broken and our bodies were extremely thankful! An absolutely lovely couple who we wish we could have spent more time with, but we appreciated again, the connections that ‘couch surfing’ facilitates.

Chris & Ewa

We did have the chance to wander the beautiful streets and Main Square of the city as well as the Jewish quarter where you could visibly see the damage and scars from war. It was here that we managed to stumble across the free walking tour group who were in their final half an hour. They happened to be on their way to the ‘Schindler’ factory and we decided to join them after spending quite a bit of time prior, trying to find it ourselves. We were surprised to find a renovated building, which didn’t look much like a factory at all, but we learned it was now a museum. The fact that it was closed meant we were unable to venture in. Following the tour, we had the opportunity to taste a traditional dish – polish dumplings…..very tasty.

Polish dumplings

Scaffolding.....a common sight throughout Europe ;-)

The beautiful streets of Krakow

Although we felt we hadn’t used our time very wisely, we knew that the limitations we experienced in Krakow were mostly out of our control. Shit happens while travelling and we have to accept that this will almost always have an impact on our plans. We have decided to remind ourselves to appreciate the things we did have the opportunity to see/do instead of giving our attention to what we missed out on. Maybe then we will learn to respond more appropriately when shit does happen.

New page added

2010-08-24T09:44:00.000-07:00

2010 Travel Dates...check them out under 'extra info' in the navigation bar.

Surviving Auschwitz

2010-08-21T09:48:00.000-07:00

I’m sitting here, trying to find the words to describe our visit to Auschwitz and I’m struggling. Maybe it’s because I’m still processing the experience and still can’t get my head around what I actually saw. Maybe there are no words that suffice the suffering and extermination of so many innocent people. The night before, I couldn’t sleep because the images I had already seen were flashing through my mind. I had heard from a couple of people that visiting Auschwitz is one of the hardest things they’ve ever had to do and from others that ‘you will never be the same’. I guess I was mentally preparing, which was obviously futile because you can never really prepare for something like this.

To give you a very incomprehensive background… Auschwitz, located in Oswiecim outside of Krakow, Poland, has become a major symbol of the Holocaust. Approximately 1.1 million completely innocent people were systematically murdered in the gas chambers of this camp, 90% of them Jews. Most people arriving by train never actually entered the camp, but just crossed it on their way to the gas chambers after being selected for extermination based on their inability to work. The minority, chosen for slave labour became registered prisoners with shaved heads in striped uniforms. They were stripped of everything, including their personal identities, which were replaced with a numbered tattoo on their arm or chest. They lived in the most inhumane conditions and worked a minimum of 11 hours per day and consuming the smallest of food rations. Many people died of starvation, exhaustion or disease from poor living conditions. High electric barbed wire fences surrounding the camp were guarded by SS soldiers armed with machine guns or rifles. Prisoners were beaten or shot dead for the most trivial behaviours such as looking at an SS guard the wrong way or refusing to work due to exhaustion. A regular ‘selection’ process was also conducted to send any ‘unproductive’ prisoners to the gas chambers and to also make way for new comers.

On the day of our visit, the sky was clear and the sun shone brightly, which did feel a bit strange considering the ‘darkness’ and evil of this place. We walked through the arched entrance which read ‘Arbeit Macht Frei’, meaning ‘work makes you free’. My stomach churned thinking about the irony of those words and how the people entering these gates were deceived into thinking they were in transit, which was obviously not the case. The grounds didn’t look much unlike a high security prison, but the difference was that most of these prisoners were ordinary civilians like you and me, people with good professions and high moral values. To think that whole families were tortured and murdered in this place was just mind-boggling.

The entrance to Auschwitz I

Inside the grounds, Auschwitz I

Our guide led us into several blocks where we saw heartbreaking images of horror, of human faces with such sadness and fear rampant in their eyes. Tears filled mine when we walked into the room displaying images of children suffering from starvation and clothes of tiny babies who had been murdered in the gas chambers. In the following room, we saw hundreds of suitcases piled to the ceiling, each displaying the name, date of birth and address of the owner. We learned that families were told to record these details on the suitcases so they could be easily returned after their relocation – one of the many deceptions used to ensure the people never knew their fate. Also displayed were 45,000+ pairs of shoes including an area dedicated to children’s shoes and 2 tonnes of human hair. I wish we had more time to spend in these rooms to reflect on the items and their owners, instead of being rushed off by our tour guide. All I could focus on was the innocence of the people and the human potential that was so brutally stolen. Although viewing these items was disturbing, we felt a bit detached as well and I think the magnitude of it all definitely needed that extra time. We were also surrounded by herds of other tourists and often had to shuffle through the crowd just to get any glimpse of the images which probably detracted from the impact.

The suitcases

The 45,000+ shoes

2 Tonnes of human hair

It was an eerie feeling to walk into the only gas chamber left standing, knowing thousands of people met their death in that very room. We were utterly horrified to learn that the gas caused death by suffocation and took about 20 minutes. The bodies, including every opening, were then searched for anything valuable, which was then extracted. Simply nauseating. What was hard to accept was how any human being could carry out these atrocious tasks on another human being. It was the epitome of evil.

The only gas chamber still standing

One of the crematoriums

Over the years, the camp was expanded, with over 40 subcamps. We also visited the second major camp - Auschwitz Birkenau, the one depicted in most of the Holocast films including Schindler’s List. A huge 400 acre field with train tracks lining the centre, through the famous brick arch. Here we saw the appalling conditions in which the prisoners lived….bunk beds lining the horse stables with concrete floors where up to 10 people slept and where some often died from suffocation. The toilet block featured holes in concrete where prisoners were only allowed to enter twice per day and were beaten while in the process if they didn’t hurry. It was here that we heard about the prisoner’s courage and determination to survive, to support each other and to smuggle in necessary items to stay alive. We saw some art work painted by a survivor which depicted some men returning from a days work and some were carrying others. A very powerful image of the endurance of the human spirit. Our guide recommended a book with a title that inspired me instantly…it’s called ‘Hope is the Last to Die’, one woman’s personal journey of surviving the camp and how she maintained her belief in human goodness. One that I would definitely like to read.

Auschwitz II, Birkenau

One of the 'horse stables' where the prisoner's slept, Aushwitz Birkenau

For our final part of the tour, we walked in the footsteps of the victims from the time they disembarked from the train and were selected for extermination, to the moment they stood waiting in front of the gas chambers. All I could do was be silent and try to imagine what these people may have felt, most of who had no idea they were walking to their deaths. As we stood in front of the remains of the gas chambers (they had been demolished by the SS as the war was ending in an attempt to hid the evidence), I felt completely numb, emotionless even, which is extremely unlike me! I suspect, that it may have just been my brain’s way of coping with something so achingly painful and this whole experience will take a while to process.I will conclude this post with a series of questions asked by someone on our tour which instigated a very confronting response from the guide… “Didn’t anyone know this was happening and what about the smell coming from the camp? Why didn’t anyone do anything?” The response: “Suffering continues in our world and people still get caught up in their own lives with their small problems”. A slap in the face and very well said! Something to think about.

Scratching the Surface of History in Berlin (Aug 11-17)

2010-08-18T14:01:00.000-07:00

We really weren’t prepared for what we would see, read and hear while visiting Berlin. We didn’t know a huge amount about the city and had not spent any time doing prior research about what we wanted to see or do. Sure we knew it was the capital of Germany, so of course we would be surrounded by quite a lot of history which we had touched on in school. At first, we were not that enthusiastic about visiting a lot of the monuments, or seeing any architecture, particularly because we had been slack and not done any reading about these places, so what would be the point? It would just be like seeing another monument or another building and we didn’t feel like we had the time to spend reading while we were there. Yep, that’s right, we can ashamedly say we (or mostly I) did not have a very good initial attitude. Well I can tell you that our attitude changed very quickly when we found out about the free 'Berlin Essentials' walking tour and decided to go. While this tour gave us a great overview, we also decided to do the ‘Third Reich’ tour the following day as well for some more detail. These were the very first guided tours we have done and we discovered that for people like us who haven't done much prior reading, they are a brilliant way of getting to know a place in a short space of time.

Both tours went for about 3 hours and we visited some of the major sights during that time and heard a general history of Berlin, the world wars, the Cold War and particularly the rise and fall of the Nazis. As we walked through the city, we saw:

The Reichstag (German Parliament building);
The Brandenburg Gate, in which anyone coming to Berlin in the early years were required to enter through;
A site where a remaining section of the Berlin Wall still stands and is also home to ‘Checkpoint Charlie’, the Soviet border crossing dividing East and West Berlin during 1961-1989 when the wall fell;
The memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe (Holocaust Memorial);
The site of Hitler’s bunker where he also committed suicide. The site has purposely been left bare with no form of any memorial for obvious reasons;
The last remaining Nazi building, which was once home to the Nazi Aviation Ministry. It is an extremely intimidating building with solid lines and granite materials used to stand the test of time;
The book burning memorial, which commemorates the 1933 event where the Nazis burnt over 25,000 ‘un-German’ books and
The Jewish Quarter including a major Synagogue and cemetery.

The Reichstag

The Brandenburg Gate

The last standing Nazi building

Very powerful artistic images - Eastside Gallery

Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe (Holocaust Memorial)

In the following few days, we returned to some of these sites to spend more time reading and reflecting. We also visited the Jewish Museum and the longest remaining part of the Berlin Wall which is home to the famous ‘East Side Gallery’, a collection of art works reflecting on the events throughout war history in Berlin. Also worthy of note was the ‘Topography of Terror’, a collection of images and descriptions in chronological order of ‘The Third Reich’, or the period of the Nazis reign.

While I am definitely not a history writer and will therefore spare you from any lame historical descriptions of the places we visited (I’ll leave you to google them and read for yourself), I can tell you about the impact they had on us and how our interest in learning more about modern history has changed…..there is something different about visiting a place and being told the story then and there, rather than reading it from some history book in school. Maybe what we had learned as a teenager seemed abstract and more like a story, while being here and seeing where it all took place brought it to life and made it real.

The human devastation, hardship, torture and murder perpetrated by the Nazis was what disturbed us the most. We saw images and read stories, not only of the murdered Jews, but also gypsies, homosexuals and any other ‘outcast’ who was deemed ‘unfit for work’. We were shocked to learn that over 70,000 people who were mentally ill or physically/mentally disabled were also murdered in gas chambers. The Nazis labelled them ‘useless eaters’ or ‘life unworthy of life’ and justified their murder as ‘euthanasia’, using the propaganda of ‘putting them out of their misery’. The evil of what took place not only in Germany, but across Europe as the Nazis gained power, is literally sickening. I have never experienced instant nausea bordering on the urge to vomit until being exposed to these images and stories in the place where they occurred.

The experience was personalised for us when we visited the Jewish Museum and went inside what has been named the ‘Holocaust Tower’. We were there just before closing time and entered an iron door unaccompanied. We were instantly surrounded by four concrete walls at least 5 storeys high and in complete darkness besides a small ray of light strategically shining high in one corner. The iron door slammed shut behind us and sounded as if it was being latched which echoed off the walls. I instantly went into a panic inside and scrambled for the door to make sure it was still open. It was the feeling of fear and suffocation of those walls that made me want to get out of that nauseating enclosure immediately. Despite wanting to get out of there right away, we decided to stay and allow those feelings to be, without the need to escape them. Maybe that afternoon, we caught the tiniest glimpse of what it was like to experience the terror of living under the Nazi regime. It was a powerful exhibition to say the least.

Before Berlin, our biggest aim for travel was to experience food, wine and culture through meeting local people. Where we have previously been a bit uninterested with learning about some historical events, visiting museums or viewing pieces of architecture, we realise now that all of these are key pieces of the puzzle if we truly want to discover a culture. Sure, some of what we see and read may not always arouse our interest, but our experiences in Berlin have made us more open to learning and to appreciate the importance of history a little more.

Leaving Berlin after 6 days was difficult because we literally felt like we had only scratched the surface and there was so much more to discover. Unfortunately, the weather wasn't very kind to us and rained every day we were in Berlin which made squeezing things in a little difficult. It would have taken us another two weeks (at least) to visit the museums and other sights we were interested in, but we knew we had to move on, especially knowing there will be many more places we will have to tear ourselves away from. In particular, we were disappointed to have not visited the Sachsenhausen Concentration Camp, which was the first ‘model’ camp the Nazi’s implemented. We were mindful however that we were on our way to Krakow in Poland to visit the Auschwitz concentration camp, so we let it slide. All in all, we were thankful for what we had the opportunity to see and learn.

The Language Predicament

2010-08-18T02:21:00.000-07:00

As we crossed the border into Germany about a week ago we realised we had not even glanced at the phrase book to learn any German. Thankfully Tim knew very basic words, but all I could do was count to 10 (thanks to my four sisters who I listened to practise their German while growing up)! Hmm, I don't think that skill was going to help me much. It was after 7pm as we drove through this tiny little village and we were hungry. We thought we were going to remain that way as we saw most shops closed, until we approached a sign that read ‘Schnitzel’. Sweet! We could understand that one! So in the middle of this tiny town that we didn’t even know the name of, we stopped into this restaurant. We sat in the car for about 5 minutes studying our phrasebook and realising just how difficult German is to pronounce. In that moment, we had a good laugh about how this dining experience was going to turn out.

Sure enough, as we walked in, we asked the bartender if he spoke English and we got a shake of the head accompanied by something spoken in German. We were a little bit flawed by some people sitting at a nearby table who began laughing out loud at what we had asked…or so we thought. We resorted to asking for a table using two fingers and pointing….success! Sitting down and looking at the menu, we became very aware that ordering just a schnitzel was not going to be that easy when there were at least 10 different types with very detailed descriptions, in German of course. We noticed that our phrasebook didn’t even list words like ‘chicken’, ‘beef’, ‘fish’ etc. which was slightly unhelpful. ‘Ok, maybe we could try asking the waiter which items on the menu were chicken’. As we were struggling in our communication with the waiter, we suddenly heard the words “Can I help you?” from a neighbouring table. Thank God! “Yes please!” A young guy (Henry) who just happened to speak very good English came to our rescue. With a menu a mile long and to refrain from having him interpret the whole thing, we had him point to whatever was chicken as well as the schnitzel he recommended and we ordered those. Although quite greasy, the meal turned out to be quite good.

I’m sure many of you are extremely familiar with the language predicament and have a few amusing stories of your own to share. Feel free to post them as a comment. At the restaurant, Henry told us a couple of stories from when he lived in Oz for 6 months….one where he went into a phone store and asked the girl behind the counter for a ‘handy’, which is what mobile phones are often called in Germany. He was quickly informed that asking any girl for a ‘handy’ is probably inappropriate. Hehe. This morning, Tim went to the shop and tried to ask for some pegs and had to resort to the action of pegging the clothes he was wearing to a clothes line. Ah well, at least we’ll be experts at charades when we get home!

In all seriousness though, it can be quite intimidating to try and communicate with someone when they don’t speak a word of English and you can’t string one sentence together in their language. We have just arrived in Poland and the language here is not latin based which means none of their words or pronunciations even come close to any form of English. The basic word of ‘thank you’ which is very much needed when you are travelling, is ‘dziekuje’. Go on, give it a go! At the very least it will make you laugh! We have felt utterly stupid having to use our body and hand actions to try and describe what we want, but I guess it’s all a part of the travel adventure and something we will get used to.

The reason we were in remote Germany….we decided to visit a good friend on the northern coast in a place called Cuxhaven. We met Martina almost a couple of years ago when she surfed our couch in Adelaide and being not so far away, we thought it would be good to pay her a visit. We stayed for 2 nights and had a great time catching up over a home cooked meal (which was extremely satisfying to say the least) and reminiscing over Martina’s photos from Oz. Although we didn’t see much of the town itself, we were so glad to be able to have some down time in a homely environment. Thanks Martina!

Amsterdam....where the forbidden is flaunted (Aug 5-8)

2010-08-10T04:41:00.000-07:00

We arrived at our campsite early in the afternoon and saw that the queue at reception was coming out the door with people wanting to secure their spot for the night. As we approached the end of the line, we instantly hit a wall of marijuana smoke. We wandered around the campsite and wondered if we would actually get high, simply from the second hand smoking! The campground was packed, with hundreds of tents bunched together, some with less than a meter in between. Thankfully, we did manage to get a little more space than that, although only enough for our two small deck chairs and table. We were pretty impressed with the facilities, particularly the free wifi and very cool bar/café. We set up camp and made our way via tram into the city…

The sea of tents

We managed to pick up a very cheap, yet delicious dinner. We saw what seemed to be quite a popular Falafel place (Maoz) on the street corner and knowing Amsterdam was famous for the best falafel outside of Turkey, we ventured in. WOW!! We honestly didn’t know falafel could taste this good…and for the price of 5 Euros including as much salad as you like, even better!

We wandered around the city to just get a feel for the place and stumbled onto New Market which was a bustling square with bars and coffee shops lining the perimeter. We noticed one bar was serving a particular Belgian beer called La Chouffe which was recommended to us by Nathan and Barbara when we were in Brussels. We went in to discover what they were raving about and yes it did live up to our expectations, and then some! It was quite a sweet beer, but not too sweet….it suited our taste buds just right. A couple of glasses and a few amusing happy snaps later, we noticed an outdoor cinema screen which started showing what looked like a short film. Thinking this was quite a nice touch to the evening whilst enjoying a beer, we were a little bit shocked to see that the opening of the film was a lesbian sex scene! Hmmmm….obviously this was an extremely liberal place if these type of images were being shown in the middle of a major square in the centre of town!

Of course we did what every other curious tourist does when they are in Amsterdam…we had a stroll around the Red light District, where prostitutes parade themselves in shop windows awaiting their next customer. While the average person probably finds this touristic activity amusing, I wasn’t feeling so great about it. Without starting a moral debate, lets just say I wasn’t so keen on seeing these women on exhibit, half naked, like animals at a zoo. Despite prostitution being a legitimate profession in Amsterdam, what we saw seemed undignifying….especially when so many of the women looked really sad. On the contrary, I’m sure Tim wasn’t so opposed to seeing the exhibits before us! Haha!

One thing to do in Amsterdam on the top of our list was a visit to the Heineken Brewery. We initially thought the 15 Euro per person for a self guided tour was quite pricey, but our minds were very quickly changed as we saw how much effort, creativity and money was put into making the experience interactive and informative. The tour gave some history of the brewery, an opportunity to learn about how the beer is made as well as to participate in actually brewing some beer and tasting the product at different stages. The brewery even has a simulator called the ‘brew you ride’ which takes you through the ‘beer making’ journey as if you are the raw product. A little bit corny, but well done nonetheless. By the time you get to taste the beer at the end of the tour, it seemed like even if the beer tasted bad, we wouldn’t notice because the work of psychology and marketing had been done so well. For us, the beer uses slightly too much hops which makes it quite bitter, but we did enjoy it, simply because it was a part of the whole experience.

Brewer Tim

Our tasting

On our last full day in Amsterdam, it seemed the heavy rain was not going to let up….normally we would brave the weather, if it wasn’t so severe, but we were not in the mood for venturing out. Instead, we decided to hang out at the campsite café and catch up on some online ‘maintenance’. We ended up chatting to a German couple (Sandra & Hamoud) who were staying in a tent not far from us and having a few good laughs about Aussie and German stereotypes. Thankfully, the rain did ease into the evening, so we decided to head into town and met Sandra & Hamoud for drinks.

Amsterdam itself is a very beautiful city, especially because of the many canals that flow through it. Although we had planned to take a romantic ride along one of these canals, unfortunately the forces of nature made it not so appealing. Looks like we will have to wait until our Venice gondola ride.

Two of the many beautiful canals

Commuting via Bicycle in Amsterdam is cultural and we were impressed by the number of people of all ages riding them. It was pretty obvious that bikes have right of way over cars and even pedestrians, but we did see some sticky situations where these rules did not work so well. Especially with some confusion over which is the walking path and which is the bike path. Needless to say, I almost got cleaned up a few times! We were planning on hiring bikes at least for one day, simply because we were in Amsterdam and we wanted to experience what the locals do. After seeing how the locals ride however, we thought it would be safer to stay on the walking path! And…the cheaper option was surprisingly public transport.

So you may be wondering about the ‘coffee shops’……there were many more of them than we expected. Did we go into one? The answer to that is ‘YES’. Did we sample any of their offerings? That one will remain a mystery. Thankfully, it’s not assumed that when walking into a coffee shop, you automatically want to buy the main item on the menu. What was funny though, was the coffee shop cat who seemed to be completely stoned….or maybe just exhibiting normal cat behaviour and tired of all the tourists, who knows. We did meet a guy here who casually smoked a joint at the bar. We had a good chat and he recommended an Italian restaurant off the tourist trail which turned out to have the best Italian tapas we have ever eaten. When you see this photo, you’ll wish you got to try it too!

The 'stoned' cat

Mmmm, Italian tapas

In drawing to a close, our time in Amsterdam was a mixed experience. The city has a strange atmosphere, where some usually ‘forbidden’ activities are not only allowed, but seem to be flaunted. There’s a feeling of ‘darkness’ about the place, but a sense of beauty at the same time and probably a lot more treasure lying below the tourist drawcards. We would have liked to stay a little bit longer to discover more of these gems, but once again, time is of the essence and we must move on. We are settling into camping mode very nicely and thoroughly enjoying being out in the elements, even if they are not always ideal. It is a nice feeling to retreat to a campsite in a beautiful setting after being in the hustle and bustle of a city. Hopefully we can keep maintain this attitude with the potentially 80+ days of camping ahead of us.

Brussels....changing weather, changing mood (Aug 3-5)

2010-08-08T01:15:00.000-07:00

Having just left the stunning, quaint village of Bruges, we weren’t that ecstatic to be arriving into another city, this time it was Brussels. We were however looking forward to meeting our couch surfing hosts – Nathan and Barbara. We felt so at home in their beautiful, traditionally Belgian apartment and we got along really well, exchanging stories about our travels and culture. They shared their plans for 12 months travel through Asia and South America starting in September and we were inspired again to get the most out of our own adventure. Thankfully, they gave us some tips as to what to see and do in Brussels because we had not done a whole lot of prior research ourselves for our visit here.

Nathan & Barbara

The first morning we rose early with Nathan & Barbara, which was a little shock to the system considering we had been living the slack life and getting up around 9am most days! The weather was pretty bad, bringing us no less than a drizzle all day which meant that wandering the streets wasn’t that much fun. Of course it is really all in the attitude and this is something I definitely need to work on. According to Tim, I am like a werewolf….except my ferocious side comes out when it rains and when the sun is shining I am a completely different person….a little more tolerable to say the least. Thankfully I am married to a very patient man, but when it’s gloomy outside, even I know how to push him to the limit! It was a good opportunity for me to take a good hard look at myself.

We meandered the city for a couple hours (with our umbrella) first seeing the Market Square and a few other attractions close by, including the ‘pissing boy’ and ‘pissing girl’ (urinating statues). According to the Lonely Planet, these are apparently the most popular attractions for visiting tourists which was a good laugh in itself.

Market Square

To get out of the rain, we visited the Palace, which as to be expected, was grand and very beautiful. One room was particularly impressive with the entire ceiling covered with 1.4 million Jewel Beetles! We did wonder though, if this poor insect species is now extinct due to the crazy King’s decoration obsession!

Of course we tried more beer and visited one bar that had over 2000 different types on offer. Hmmmm, if ever being indecisive was a problem, now was the time. We avoided the decision and went with the bartender’s pick instead, which turned out to be a good one the first time. The second one – ‘Forestinne’ had a picture of a fairy on the front and interestingly enough, the beer did remind us of fairies and gold dust…a very strange floral taste that we couldn’t work out if we liked or not. We could acknowledge the brew was creative, nonetheless.

We visited ‘Castillion’, the last local brewery that brews traditional ‘lambic’ beer which is made using naturally occurring yeast with no added sugar. The final product is a beer that’s sour and slightly bitter in taste. Although the beer itself was definitely an acquired taste, it was really interesting to tour the brewery and learn about how it’s made. It was also fascinating to learn that this particular type of beer is brewed for no less than 3 years in wooden barrels.

We tasted the best fries in Belgium at ‘Maison Antoine’ and can honestly say they were actually the best fries we have ever eaten. It is commonly known around here that classic ‘French Fries’ are better in Belgium than anywhere else in the world and knowing we were trying the best in Belgium was a good indication we were in for a treat. The Belgians cook their fries twice under very specific temperatures and allowing them to cool after the first cooking period. This apparently, is what makes the outside extra crispy, while the inside is still really soft and fluffy. And they came with an amazing selection of sauces! Delish!

THE fries

Wrapping up our visit to Brussels, we got an early night, knowing we would need to get up early with Barbara & Nathan who were planning to leave for a few days away in Switzerland. Although Brussels wasn’t overly exciting, spending time with these guys was what made our visit memorable. Another friend made in another part of the world. Before leaving Brussels, we paid a quick visit to the ‘Atomium’, a monument which mimics the structure of an actual atom and was built in 1958 for the Brussels World Fair (Expo ’58). We took some quick pics on our way to our next stop – Amsterdam.

The Atomium

Our European Road Trip Begins (Aug 1-3)

2010-08-03T08:10:00.000-07:00

Here we are sitting in the common room of a little campsite in Bruges, Belgium listening to a fellow camper sing and play the piano…..and she’s brilliant! What a treat! Bruges is our first stop on our 3-month long journey around Europe. The last couple of weeks we have spent in the UK, house hopping and dossing with friends. We’ve searched out and packed our little Astra full of camping gear and now we’re on the road.

We caught the ferry across the English Channel on Sunday with our car, disembarking and following every other passenger out of the terminal. 5 minutes down the road we suddenly realised we hadn’t passed through any security and noone had viewed or stamped our passports at either end!! Will this be a time where following the crowd will get us into trouble?? Only time will tell, but right now no one knows how long we’ve been in Europe, so I guess we’re exempted from the 90 day rule under the Schengen Zone agreement! Sweet!! Unless of course we are deported on the grounds of bypassing security. Fingers crossed we don’t come unto close contact with any authorities!

On our way to Bruges, we stopped at the biggest Commonwealth War Cemetery in the world called Tyne Cot which has over 11,800 WWI soldiers buried there. It was a deeply moving and sobering experience as we reflected on the fact that most of those who died were around our age or younger and many who were Australian. We thought about the devastation, for Mothers, for Fathers, for siblings, for whole families and for their communities across different parts of the world where the Commonwealth is represented. We also reflected on the courageous spirit these soldiers would have possessed and in the face of their fear they laid down their lives. Some of the graves were for unidentifiable soldiers and their headstones read ‘Known Unto God’…..what a beautiful way of remembering and acknowledging even those whose names were unknown. Lest we forget.

Tyne Cot Cemetery

We’ve spent 2 nights here in stunning Bruges. It’s such a quaint, romantic little town full of old buildings, canals and cobblestone streets. In Europe, it is known as the ‘Venice of the North’ and we can definitely see why. We absolutely loved just strolling along the streets and alleyways admiring the unique and quirky surroundings. The town is even more stunning at night when the canals and streets glow with strategically placed lights. On the first night at dusk, we saw swans floating down one of the canals and it was such a surreal and romantic moment. Just beautiful! The centre of town is the Market Square where the streets open up to a huge cobblestone courtyard with traditional restaurants and beautiful buildings on the perimeter.

Market Square

One of the picturesque canals

And the FOOD!! OMG the FOOD!! So good! In one day, we ate Mussels & Fries (Belgium’s traditional dish), we tried Belgian chocolate, authentic waffles and Belgian beer. Firstly, the mussels surprised us….both Tim and I haven’t like mussels previously, but one of our aims on this trip is to challenge our taste buds so we gave them a go and went with our waitress’s recommendation. Our mussels were stewed in a creamy vegetable sauce, were so tasty and very more-ish. We visited a few chocolate shops which not only displayed a feast for the belly, but a feast for the eyes. Simply a work of art. The chocolate we tasted was a mixed bag as far as our liking goes….we could tell that it was extremely good quality, but a little on the sickly side for our taste. We did prefer the darker chocolate and specifically the truffles which were filled with fluffy, mousse-like chocolate. Mmmmm. The waffles were nothing like we’ve ever tasted before!! Crispy on the outside and light and fluffy on the inside. We decided to eat them as the Belgian’s would and have them sprinkled only with icing sugar rather than the whole hog of chocolate, strawberries etc. Well actually the truth was, we knew that after everything else we had eaten we would really want to throw up if we had more chocolate and all the trimmings. The beer we have tried is incredible to say the least and even I agree when I’m not a beer drinker. Lets say that if I can get my hands on more Belgian beer in Australia, I might just become one! Lol. The 2 or 3 that we tried were so smooth, with a mild sweetness on the finish. Not the beer that I know!

Mmmmm, Belgian beer!

Last night, our final night in Bruges, we had our very first ride together on a horse-drawn carriage through the cobblestone streets and alongside the canals. It was a romantic way to finish off our evening. Well, we did think that was a nice ending until we checked the bus times and realised we’d missed the last one for the day by over an hour. Ooops!! So the only means of transport was our feet (unless of course we wanted to pay a ridiculous amount for a taxi) so we gritted our teeth and started moving despite how exhausted we already were from walking all day. An hour later we arrived back at the campsite ready for a big night sleep….which ended up being interrupted by very noisy campers!! Honestly, who yells across a full campsite at 4 in the morning!! Grrrr! We have now accepted that these are the things that we may just need to suck up while camping in Europe in the peak season.

Our horse drawn carriage

Today was our first experience of packing up the camping gear while on the road. Prior to leaving from the UK we decided to test all the gear just to make sure we knew what we were doing and everything was functional. We discovered that we didn’t really know what we were doing because we forced our ‘pop up’ tent into the bag (with great difficulty) completely the wrong way almost destroying it before we even started. During this time we were both a little headstrong, to say the least and were reminded how camping does test our relationship.

Cooking brekkie

As we packed up the tent this morning, we found that the thing was falling apart already! So out came the sewing kit to do some quick repairs on some really dodgy stitching. Having learned how to pack the tent away correctly and being mindful of letting the stress of packing up go, we actually managed to fulfil the task seamlessly without chewing each other’s heads off! Maybe positive teamwork is not out of our reach after all and maybe we might get through this road trip with our marriage still in tact.

Today we are off to Brussels, Belgium’s capital to stay with some couch surfers who have kindly accepted our request.

French Kissing in Paris (July 13-17)

2010-08-03T07:28:00.000-07:00

So now we’ve got your attention….just before leaving for our 7 weeks in the USA, some good friends – Pete & Alli asked us if we wanted to join them in Paris for Bastille Day on July 14 (French Independence Day). We hesitated initially, knowing that we would have just got back from the USA only a few days before, but we thought what the heck!! How good would it be to be reunited with friends who played a big part in the inspiration for us to leave Australia and do what we’re doing. We met Pete and Alli through couch surfing when we hosted them in Adelaide in 2008. They were only meant to stay for 2 nights, but ended up staying for 2 weeks because we had that instant connection and had so much fun hanging out together. So much so, that they returned for another 2 weeks stay a couple of months later. They had been travelling together for a solid 4 years and Pete for 8 years prior to that. With so many inspiring stories to tell and in hearing about our plans, they encouraged us to think about extending our 3 month whirlwind tour of the world to at least a year. At the time, we had considered it, but not given it much thought…..I was avoiding the idea simply because of my own fear, but Tim was keen. So we were left with some serious thinking and planning to do after our discussions with Pete & Alli. The rest is history!

So, back to Paris….we flew from London Luton airport and it was our first experience with Easy Jet as well as our first flight delay due to a maintenance issue. We hoped we would get out of our whole trip being unscathed by delays, but I guess that’s just wishful thinking! Thankfully, we weren’t meeting Pete & Alli until the next morning, so there wasn’t any need to be there in a hurry.

We arrived late to our little dingy hotel not far from the Eiffel Tower….we quickly discovered that you don’t get a whole lot for your money in Paris! But the place was clean and that’s what mattered. It was a bit of a joke that we couldn’t sit on the toilet properly without resting our legs on the Bo day…….GOOGLE lol! Our room also featured a hairdryer that looked like a vacuum cleaner and a chain hanging on the wall by the bedside that seemed to serve no purpose at all….or at least none of us could work out. The best we could come up with was we could use it to pull ourselves out of bed. Hehe.

We went out for a walk to get a bite to eat and stock up on bottled water ….whoever thought that finding bottled water would be such a challenging task!! No convenience stores open within a few kilometres! The ironic thing is that we ended up buying it from MacDonald’s! LOL! The price of 5 Euros for 2 x 500ml bottles was the not-so-funny part. Of course, after visiting Macca’s which we thought was our last option, we just happened to stumble across a convenience store 200m down the road and bought 1.5 litres for 1 Euro! Shit! Yes you can have a chuckle at our expense….all over buying water.

We were stoked to see Pete and Alli the next morning when they arrived. Unfortunately the weather wasn’t that kind to us and decided to bring us rain for Bastille Day. Having only one day (or so we thought) with the 4 of us together we headed out and braved the rain which was only spitting at the time. We wandered the streets of Paris for a while, past the Eiffel Tower and the site where Princess Diana was killed. Then, almost suddenly, the heavens opened and bucketed down a whole lot of water!! And I mean A LOT!! We just happened to be in an area where there was no shelter within a few hundred metres and the only option we had was to stand huddled against a tree with our one small umbrella between all of us. Tim stood under the neighbouring tree with his waterproof jacket gazing across at us with a concerned look on his face. After 15 minutes of being pounded with torrential rain, none of us stayed dry and the streets were flooding. The rain was pouring so hard that our umbrella was acting like a gutter, guiding the water straight down our backs and backs of our legs. As we looked around, we could see people caught without waterproof gear and those who were giving up on their umbrellas as well. Some people were walking in shin deep water in their nice clothes they had dressed in ready to celebrate Bastille Day. We decided to go back to the hotel to get out of our wet clothes and hope for the weather to clear.

Thankfully the weather did get better in the early evening, so much so that no one would have ever known how bad it was during the day. In the evening, we navigated through the crowds to find a great spot right in front of the Eiffel Tower for the Bastille Day fireworks. They were amazing….the best fireworks we have ever seen and were noticeably much better than those we’d seen recently in New York for the US Independence Day. The creativity and colours were exceptional, including even love hearts in the display. This was the moment we engaged in a little French kissing! Hehe! Yes, it was romantic! What made it even better was the lights on the Eiffel Tower were out and from where we were, the tower was a silhouette in front of the fireworks. Stunning.

Bastille Day Fireworks

Us with Pete & Alli

The Eiffel Tower at Sunset

We had planned to spend the following day saying goodbye to Pete & Alli who were heading to Versailles and then having a good look around Paris, especially since the weather was being kind. Our plans were thwarted by Pete & Alli without too much objection from us and we accompanied them to Versailles for the day. Despite running out of time to visit the inside of the very famous Versailles Palace, we weren’t too disappointed about lazing on the lawn in the Palace gardens drinking wine and eating French cheeses for pretty much the whole afternoon. Yes it is a very, very hard life!

The Versailles Palace Gardens

The hard life

A very hilarious statue giving the finger in the Palace gardens

It was a sad occasion saying goodbye to Pete & Alli again, not knowing when the would be the next time we would see them and that at some point we would be returning to Oz. We did say that maybe they could meet up with us somewhere on our European road trip…they were keen! Sweet! Maybe we will see each other in Rome next time?

On our final day in Paris, we felt like we hadn’t really seen or done a lot of what you do when it’s your first time in the French capital, but we weren’t too phased because we had spent time with very good friends. We did however cram a lot into that last day and got ourselves into a right state of exhaustion.

The day didn’t start out too well….without sharing too much gory detail, basically Tim and I had probably one of the biggest arguments we’ve ever had, exacerbated by the fact that we were in a foreign country. Although we did resolve the issue and a strategy for similar situations in the future, we both felt distant for a couple of days. When you say things in the heat of the moment, no matter how many times you say sorry or find a resolution, you can’t take those words back and words can wound. Thankfully, we have a very solid friendship, but it really made us realise that we can’t take that fact for granted and we need to protect what we have. It’s not always easy when you’re with the same person every day while travelling and there will always be times when you’ve had enough of the other person but these moments are reminders to be patient and selfless.

Although the day was slightly tarnished we decided to push on and continue with what we’d planned to see. The places we visited that day were:

Notre Dame Cathedral - stunning and intricate piece of architecture

Notre Dame Cathedral

The Arc Du Triomphe where we witnessed some crazy drivers on the craziest roundabout in the world. The place where you have to give way to drivers coming onto the round about as you’re driving around it. We witnessed so many near-misses in a 5 minute period. Wish we thought of capturing this on video.

The Louvre, although we decided against going in simply because we knew we would likely to be bored and viewing the Mona Lisa alongside a crowd of others didn’t seem that appealing. Sorry if we’ve offended anyone! We did enjoy the outside of the building and sitting by the fountains.

Eiffel Tower – we avoided the long lines and got tickets just before close at midnight. Unfortunately this was not the most brilliant decision because we got to the ticket booth and were told the top level closes at 10pm. The second level still treated us with a beautiful view over Paris and we were not disappointed.

We decided to walk back to our hotel from the Eiffel Tower which turned out to be more of a trek than expected……about 1km down the road we realised we were going in the completely opposite direction to the hotel. For once, I was actually right when it came to directions….I had told Tim back at the Tower that we were going the wrong way and was quickly corrected “have you done a 180 in your head??” Hmmm, I guess I had! NOT! It was about an hour’s walk back to the hotel and we arrived at 2am. We had been walking/standing since 10am the morning before (with a couple of short breaks to eat) and could not believe how much we’d crammed in (keeping in mind that we haven’t included every detail in this post). We had a much-needed sleep in before heading to the airport the next day for our flight back to the UK.