Rachels Travel Adventures

Ireland - June - 10 days

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

We took the ferry from Cainryan to Larne (near Belfast) on Tuesday 1st June. We had 10 days in Ireland and we planned to drive the entire loop. The first few days were driving down the east side where we visited Bru na Boinne, a 5000 year old neolithic passage tomb which we got to go inside and it was fascinating. Easily the oldest thing I will ever see in my life. We also visited a few national park regions enjoying the scenery and visited an ancient monastery in the most spectacular setting.

We decided to stop in Cork for a hostel, we needed showers and to get some washing done. Our aim is to stay in 1 hostel a week on average to keep sane. Unfortunately this hostel was enough to drive us insane. Tiniest room ever with the hard as rock beds, extortionist prices for washing and just a real shabby place. Cork wasn't much better. A depressing city, we were happy to leave the next day.

But of course being in Cork meant we were near the Blarney castle which was a lot better than I expected. We got there as it opened at 9 and were one of the first people up the top of the tower to kiss the Blarney Stone. No queues, best way to do it. But I actually loved it for everything else. The castle grounds are extensive and have some great nooks and crannies to explore and under the castle was a network of old cave passage ways and some of them were open for you to explore. It was great fun.

We spent most of our time in the south east in the peninsulas. Easily the most beautiful part of Ireland. White sand beaches, soaring cliffs and windy roads it was spectacular. The ring of kerry is the most touristic but the skellig peninsula on the end of the ring of kerry was even more beautiful and we had the luck of staying a night at Finnians Bay, our car overlooked the bay and we had the best hotel room you could possibly ask for!

Waking up to the view in the morning was unbelievable. We also drove the Dingle Peninsula which was also gorgeous. Dingle was a cute town and we found the best cafe there where I had fresh fish and chips and we liked it so much we went back the next day for a full Irish breakfast.

And we found a great beach to sleep in the cliffs above with stunning views again but this time we went for a swim. It was freezing but well worth it.

The weather in Ireland was stunning. We couldn't have asked for better. It was sunny most of the time and really warm. We were so lucky. After the south east peninsulas we drove up to see the Cliffs of Moher (disappointing, way over touristed and ridiculously charged) and for a drive around the Burren, a landscape of rock formations and limestone mountains including ancient tombs, forts and cairns. Beautiful.

We then drove north past Galway and into the Connemara, Wow! The Connemara is a gorgeous part of the country, lush green and so many lakes. Every 5 minutes I would be saying - wow look at that. Stunning.

We then drove pretty much straight up to the north west and to Donegal Bay. We stopped at Bundoran, a small surf town, to stay in a hostel because the town sounded like our kind of place. We were right. It was so relaxed and chilled out. The people were awesome, we were one of the few people staying at the hostel mid week (the weekend before had been a big event or something so it was unusually quiet).

The hostel staff were so friendly and the town was so laid back we would have been happy to stay forever. I went to the movies that night, we chilled out at the beach, it was great. The hostel was rock themed with each room dedicated to a different band (we were in the White Stripes room) and big lounges full of comfy couches with walls covered in music posters. Such a cool atmosphere.

We did a detour to the Slieve League cliffs which were gorgeous and I think better than the Cliffs of Moher, mainly because you could actually walk over them without big barriers and concrete everywhere. Plus we got to see them on a nice day so that probably helps too ;)

We were out of days so we drove back into Northern Ireland and across to Giants Causeway which I had visited before but I really wanted Nick to see and then it was a ferry back over to Scotland again. I was really sad leaving Ireland. I absolutely loved it there, the scenery is gorgeous, it's really laid back, the people we met were so friendly, we had sun and beaches (even went for a swim! Pretty cold but still). I definitely plan to go back again one day, Nick and I were even saying we could see ourselves living there for a short time. Really want to go back.

Lake District - May 2010 - 4 days

2010-07-30T14:38:00.000-07:00

We left London Friday morning at some nutty hour and met up with Roz and Josh to drive north to the Lake District. On the way we stopped at Goldthorpe, a town in central England (near Nottingham). Being my namesake town I had always wanted to visit and was pleased I had the chance on the way up. Bit of a dinky wee town really, not much there at all but it was cool to see my name everywhere!

We spent 3 nights in the Lake District, easily the most beautiful place in England. It was stunning. Our campsite was right next to a river surrounded by hills, it was stunning. Lots of campfires, roasted marshmellows and ... a hobnob biscuit?! Yes Josh seemed to like to try anything roasted over the fire :) We did drive around the district to check out the lakes and Keswick (the nearest town) and they were so beautiful.

After saying goodbye to Roz and Josh who headed back to London we drove on up to Hadrians wall, the old Roman wall that was erected as a separation between England and the raiding Scots in the north. We only had about an hour walking along one very small part of it, I would love to walk the entire thing one day but we didn't have that much time.

Spent the first night in the car that night. Was a bit more cramped then I had expected so it was an interesting nights sleep but I've slowly gotten more and more used to it and I can sleep really well in there now. It's quite cosy.

I'm leaving on a jet plane..... no wait it's a Volvo!

2010-05-26T23:37:00.000-07:00

So we are leaving London in less than 24 hours. Having a lot of mixed feelings about it; excited, nervous, happy, sad, stressed... you know the usual for me :)

First stop will be the Lake District in England. Will update my blog and put up photos as often as possible. But to start with lets reminisce about London and the things I will miss.

Things I will miss about London

Sunday picnics drinking cider/wine in the park
English pubs
West End Musicals anytime I like! - Seen Les Miserables, Wicked, Lion King, Oliver, Chicago, Sister Act.
Book Club
Koppaberg Pear/Mixed Fruits Cider
Hare and Tortoise noodle house - best local takeaways I have ever had.
Chinatown - mmm crispy duck
My colleagues and boss (yep not many can say that!) I'm still trying to convince them to come visit in NZ
Soap & Glory beauty products - the body butter and hand cream is the yummiest smelling stuff eva!
Jammy Dodgers (like shrewsberries biscuits but which one is better?!) with tea (yep London converted me to a tea drinker!)
Gok Wan (love his tv shows!)
Ben Sherman clothing
Brick Lane (best curry ever)
Markets - Portobello, Camden, Borough, Spitafields...
Cheap eats - £1 easter eggs and .27p canned backed beans
TV on demand
Scones with jam and clotted cream! mmm clotted cream
Public transport 24/7 (even if it is night buses)
Riverside walks along the Thames
Carnaby Street for shopping
London in the snow
Cheap books - £1.50 charity shop books, £4 amazon new release books
Amazon - how will I live without you?!
Oliver Bonas (shopping)
Putney! what a cool little suburb

BYE LONDON!!!!! I'LL MISS YOU

London, April May 2010

2010-05-04T09:54:00.000-07:00

There is one benefit to not being able to travel in order to save enough money for our road trip. And that's being able to do all the things in London I want to do before I go home.

Sat 3 April - Putney Boat Race

A group of us watched the Oxford vs Cambridge boat race on the Thames. The race started at Putney bridge and we got a great spot to watch it. I remember seeing them race in Hamilton so it's something I've always wanted to come down and see, I mean we live in Putney! But each previous year I've been away when the race was on. It was all over pretty quick but we got to watch the end on the big screen. It was a fun day out.

Sun 4 April - Stratford Upon Avon

Well not in London but it was a great day trip from London and our first road trip in the car. Our flatties Joe and Claire came with us. It's about 2 hours out to Stratford but it's mostly motorways so bit of a boring drive. We had a yummy lunch at a riverside pub and tried to enjoy the small amount of sunshine but it was still pretty cold, not summer yet!

We had a walk around the lock and all the canal boats selling various things. We checked out a market on the high street and saw Shakespeare's birthplace. We also had an afternoon walk along the river to the church where he's buried. It's a really cute town.

Sat 10 April - Portobello Markets

Went to the Portobello markets with a couple of the girls. Famous around the world and Nottinghill is pretty famous too. Gorgeous area with cute little houses in pastel multi-colours. So different to standard London housing. The market was packed, it's all down one street so can be hard to manoeuvre around all the people. Some really interesting things from bird cages to telescopes. Not your usual kind of market. We also stopped off at Hummingbird bakery for a Red Velvet cupcake, heaven!

Sun 11 April - Westminster Abbey

Jodi and I went to a Sunday service at Westmister Abbey. It was a Sung Eucharist service which was similar to a communion service except the choir is there and they sing the responses. The Abbey is beautiful and it was amazing to see it on a Sunday as they close it from tourists so it was a wonderful experience to see it the way it's meant to be seen.

Sat 17 April - Camden Markets

We actually ended up at camden markets two weekends in a row we loved them so much. Very different to any other kind of markets, they're huge for one, with so many different types of stalls. Plus because they're so big you can find little pockets of areas where there are not that many people, making it a bit more manageable than other markets in London.

On the first weekend we met Roz & Josh in Regents Park and after chilling in the sun walked around the back of London Zoo. The zoo looks like a childrens zoo, not very big so don't think we'll be going there. We took the canal path to Camden, a beautiful way to see a different side to London. We also spent awhile watching the Camden lock and all the boats coming and going, great to see it in action.

On the second weekend we went to the markets with our flatmates and also went for a walk up Primrose Hill for the views over London. We also bought a bean bag sofa (without the beans in it) to take back to NZ. It's awesome!

Wed 5 May - Macbeth @ Shakespeare's Globe Theatre

I organised a group of us to see a play at Shakespeare's Globe. I have always wanted to go there and see an actual play rather than just do a tour and luckily the season started up again just in time. Roz, Josh, Arn, Cherise and I met up at the theatre before hand and then found our seats on the second floor at the back. The theatre is amazing because it is in the traditional round style so you have 3 stories with 3 rows of wooden pews and then down the bottom in front of the stage is standing area only. It all looked quite cool and we were lucky to get the back row as we had back rests, it isn't the most comfortable of theatres for a 3 hour play.

The play was amazing, I've never seen Macbeth but I was really impressed with what they did. The play itself was pretty gruesome. There was a lot of blood and murder and suicide and they weren't gentle about it, there was blood everywhere! Guys on stage with massive gash wounds and blood all over them, it was quite disturbing.

But they incorporated the audience really well. The front of the standing audience had this black sheet with holes which you poke your head through, I'm not entirely sure why but it was quite effective, all these disembodied heads and then within them they had areas where the witches and sometimes bloodied bodies would come out of too. Plus they used the audience a lot in the play, which made it a lot of fun. I have to admit and say I didn't understand a lot of the actual words (but then who does?!) but I followed the plot and had a great night. Would definitely recommend to everyone!

Sun 9 May - Hampton Court Palace

Nick and I took the train out for a day trip to Hampton Court Palace where King Henry VIII used to live. We were greeted by actors in period costume pretending it was King Henry VIII's wedding day. There were events all day, it was really well done and a bit of fun. We even got to dress up too with these material overcoats things.

We did a tour through the palace apartments (boring) and the kitchens (interesting) and the gardens (spectacular and beautiful). We also explored the hedge maze out in the gardens, a lot of fun. My favourite was all the tulips in the most beautiful colours. They were everywhere.

They had a wine fountain in the courtyard which was just like a normal fountain except that in the afternoon the water is replaced with wine. Apparently it was around in the time of King Henry too. An awesome idea, I want one!

Our feet were very sore by the end of the day so we rested them at the pub with a drink and roast dinner. Yum!

Stockholm, Sweden, Tues 26 Jan - Fri 29 Jan 2010

2010-05-01T11:21:00.000-07:00

We finally got home from Venice at about 3 in the morning and then I was up again at 8am and off to a different airport for a flight to Stockholm. Had a 3 day sales conference at my work's main office.

It was snowing and freezing in Stockholm but it was great to see the city in winter. I was in conference all day and then it was networking and drinks at night so not much exploring but one of the days we went out into the Stockholm Archipelago and that was definitely worth an entry in the blog.

The Stockholm Archipelago is a series of approx 24,000 islands/islets which are absolutely stunning and they are made even more stunning by being covered in ice and snow. Up at 4:30am to get on a bus out to catch a ferry. It was amazing to take the ferry through the archipelago in the middle of winter. We had to crash through so much ice and the atmosphere was so peaceful as the sun was coming up.

I'm not a big fan of boats and I didn't have any tablets on me but I decided I'd rather fight the cold then feel sick so I spent most of my time on the back deck. No-one else was really game, I don't blame them, it was like -15deg or something crazy like that.

After our day at the conference we were allowed to relax in the indoor or outdoor spa. Now all conference I had been told about this activity that the Swedes do in the winter which is ice swimming. And we all had to take part. Now at first it sounded like a bit of a laugh and something a bit different, then I actually got to the island and felt the temperatures and started to realise/think that they may be having us on. I thought this even more when I realised that all this 'ice swimming' business would have to take place in pitch darkness since the sun went down at like 3pm.

So there I was walking out to the outdoor spa in my bathrobe and slippers, walking over snow up to my ankles, and I got into the hot spa happy in the knowledge that they were pulling my leg. Well yes it turns out they weren't! The Swedes are actually crazy enough to jump into ice covered water in the middle of the night! And guess what... I was crazy enough to do it too!!

Yep that's right, one of the guys from Sweden cracked the ice down at the foot of a set of stairs in the harbour and one by one they started to jump into it! I was quite happy sitting in my hot spa, watching these crazy fools jump into who knows what crazy temperature water. And yet somehow the fever and excitement of it all got the better of me. I mean how many times in my life would I have the opportunity to do something like this?!

So after psyching up the courage and convincing one of the guys they had to be right there next to me just in case (... well you never know what might happen) I jump out of the spa run along the ice and snow in bare feet (pain pain pain!!! my feet would not stop stinging), I then climbed down the ladder and jumped into the water up to my chin. My feet then connected with the ladder under the water and I managed to pull myself back out again (thankfully since the ladder was actually covered in ice and rather slippery). I ran back along the ice and snow (more pain, more pain!) before jumping into the hot spa covered in a million prickles of pain on my skin and saying more swear words in one time than I think I have ever in my life!

But I did it! And I was the first girl to go in, and the first one from the London office so I felt pretty proud of myself. A lot of the boys went in more than once but once was enough for me. It was quite funny because after a few beers in the spa (& sauna, there was a sauna there too) the games started, including 'lock the poor sod who just jumped in the ice out from the sauna' and 'throw open the sauna door and throw snow over all the nice warm people' and my personal favourite 'tackle a fellow colleague to the ground and cover them in snow'. The last one always resulting in nice big red welts on the unfortunate victim. Sometimes I'm very happy I'm a girl.

I only have one regret and that's not getting any photos. But unfortunately when its like -15 deg outside and every single surface is covered in ice and snow there isn't really anywhere to put your camera. To give you an idea, I put my robe and slippers down and when I picked them up again after the spa they were covered in ice. My hair was like that too, hard little icicles all over my head.

I did manage to go back and take a photo of where we jumped in which I have shared with you and a pic of the outdoor spa & sauna after everyone had left. I also unfortunately hit my legs (quite hard) against the ladder when I jumped in and I ended up with two massive bruises on my shins which turned a nice shade of blackey purple the next day. I didn't even notice I had done it because my whole body was numb. Well I have to say it was an adventure.

The rest of the night was filled with drinking, dancing and shenanigans. Gotta love it.

Venice, Italy, Sun 24 Jan 2010

2010-05-01T10:51:00.000-07:00

First thing we did in the morning was a Gondola ride. Ridiculous money but I had always wanted to so wasn't passing up the opportunity. Nick and I picked a beautiful red adorned Gondola and curled up under a blanket together. It was early morning and we were the only ones out in some of the canals. So gorgeous and so romantic. I don't know why people think Paris is the most romantic city, my vote is for Venice!

We spent the rest of the day walking the streets of Venice, we walked a lot that weekend! We visited a lot of mask shops and I ended up buying a small red one (even though I was convinced I wasn't going to).

We saw the Rialto bridge covered in market stalls. A bit too touristy and tacky in that area for me. Much preferred the back streets. Dinner was at our local again. More delicious pasta concoctions, but the real reason we came back twice? Their Lemon vodka sorbet. The best dessert I have ever tasted in my life! It was served in a champagne glass and was smooth enough to drink and wow how delicious it was!!

We had one more day on Monday exploring the streets of Venice and I swear I think we walked the entire island! It was a long long long journey back to London but it was so worth it. Venice was an amazing city, one of my favourites ever. I'm so glad we went during the low season.

Venice, Italy, Sat 23 Jan 2010

2010-05-01T10:27:00.000-07:00

Today was all about exploring the city. Actually that's what most of the weekend was about! But today we walked towards San Marco square, walking over accademia bridge, wondering through tiny alleyways and marveling at all the mask shops.

San Marco was surprisingly quiet but sadly there was a lot of work going on so the tower was closed and both the tower and the church was covered in scaffolding. I guess there is a downside to visiting in the off season. But it was still a beautiful place and my favourite part of the square was the pink lights. They were very cool.

We were incredibly lucky and had a stunning day on Saturday. It was still cold but not a cloud in the sky. The Bridge of Sighs was a disappointment as more restoration work was going on and they covered all the scaffolding with what looked like advertising. Oh well these things happen.

The waterfront was wonderful to walk along and we got a bit over-zealous with the stalls and bought a few paintings. Oh well we had lots of fun!

In the afternoon we walked along the waterfront on our hotel side of the island and stopped off for gelato. Haha only me, freezing day, wearing gloves and I'm eating ice cream! Well you can't go to Italy and not have gelato! We came across some guys launching a boat which was fascinating to watch because they were using a crane type thing to do it.

We came to the end of the island and it has a point designed to feel like the bow of a ship and it definitely did. The views back over San Marco and to the church on the other side were fantastic too. There was a huge dome church around the corner which we explored before walking through the arty district (lots of art museums and very expensive galleries) back to our hotel.

That night we found a recommended pizzeria. It took awhile to get a seat but well worth it. Delicious food, more great wine. No english menus so we knew were were in a local place. It was perfect. We had a great time walking around the canals and tiny Venice streets in the moonlight too.

Venice, Italy, Fri 22 Jan 2010

2010-05-01T09:27:00.000-07:00

Arriving in Venice is quite indescribable. It is one of the most beautiful cities I have ever been. I was apprehensive about visiting Venice as I had heard such mixed things about it but we had the fortunate luck of going during winter on a weekend where the skies were a piercing blue meaning we got the best of both worlds; nice weather (albeit a little cold) and the quiet winter streets enabling us to see Venice the way it should be, amongst all the locals and with only a scattering of tourists.

We were really lucky, I had managed to get a flight deal, £24 and Nick and I were on our way to Venice. Unfortunately it did mean we had to fly ryan air, my most hated airline and a very very long journey to get where we need to go but hey you get what you pay for right? So after 2.5 hours getting to Stanstead airport and then another 1 hour bus at the other end to Venice we finally made it.

Venice can be a bit daunting the first time you arrive, the little streets, canals and multitude of bridges can confuse even the most seasoned traveler. So we decided to take the Vaporetto water ferry as our accommodation was just round the corner from one of the major stops (Accademia). The water ferry is ridiculously overpriced and it was the really long way around but it was a great introduction to Venice.

The ride along the Grand Canal was stunning. Venice, a city on water, is absolutely fascinating. You can't help but be enchanted by everyone doing their day to day tasks on boats - house movers, traders, policeman, cranes - you name it and it was on a boat! And the buildings right on the Grand Canal waterfront were beautiful. It really was a magical place.

Our hotel reception was down some tiny little side alley but they took us around the corner to a different entrance for our room. Our room was up on the 1st floor and overlooked a canal. It was perfectly romantic! That night we decided to have dinner at the little restaurant right next to our hotel. The food was delicious and the wine even better. By the end of our Venice weekend I became an expert at ordering half a litre carafe of red wine in Italian. We ate and drank our way through Venice! The best way to experience an Italian city.

Hamburg, Germany 3rd - 6th Jan 10 (no make that 7th!)

2010-04-24T04:46:00.000-07:00

Train to Hamburg on the 3rd. Love trains in Germany. Their website is so easy to use to get times/bookings etc and they do awesome ticket deals. We used the weekender ticket (up to 5 people for 37euros) it's a bargain even with 2! Our hostel in Hamburg was very fancy, more hotel style with ensuite and an awesome shower!! So happy to have some 'luxury' accommodation after all the hostels/shared bathrooms.

We got a 3 day Hamburg card which covered all our transport and discounts on some attractions, well worth it. On the 4th we took the S-bahn into the city center and got out next to the Alster Lake. Hamburg is a fascinating city, it's a port city and it's main center lies between a river inlet and a lake so everything is based around the water. I imagine it's a great place to go in summer, there was less to do when it was covered in snow but still a cool place.

The lake was covered in massive chunks of ice and the boat tours were still running so we decided to come back for the next one (they only ran 2 a day at this time of year). While waiting we went and had a look at the Rathaus (old town hall) then jumped back on the S-bahn down to the wharf (Lundungsbrucken - i love German place names!).

The views were awesome over the River Elbe to the port and fishing docks. With lots of tour boats coming and going there was a lot of activity. It's quite funny, the port is a huge tourist attraction in Hamburg, the tour boats take them around the port talking about the history and how all the things work. Coming from Tauranga of course it just reminded us of home :)

Back to the lake we grabbed some Currywurst (yum!) before jumping on the boat for our tour. The main reason we wanted to do one was so we could crash through all the ice - so much fun - I think it would have been quite boring otherwise :) The ice was fun though, the boat would crash through it and big chunks would come off skidding over the other blocks of ice.

We saw birds on the ice trying to peck it to I assume get little bugs stuck in it. And the ducks plodding along the ice was so cute. The trip was only an hour so it was over pretty quick but it was definitely the highlight of the day.

In the afternoon we walked around the shopping mall - gorgeous lights still all strung up from Christmas (Germans know how to do Christmas!), like 5 stories and funny mens shop called 'Wormland' - foreign names are a laugh sometimes. We also walked along their fancy shopping street, mainly to check out their christmas lights.

That night we went to an Italian place near the hostel that they recommended. Being a Monday night in winter we were the only ones there which was quite cool because we had the entire attention of the chief and waitress. The food was good and they practically gave us the wine for free (score!). The menu was only in Italian and German so it was fun trying to decipher it. Somehow Nick got a pizza with egg and peas on it though so we didn't do too well! hahaha

Every day in Hamburg got colder, it went from -5 to -8 to -10 deg cel. It was bitterly cold and it stung our faces whenever we ventured outside. On the 5th we explored HafenCity, the little harbour suburb amongst the Elbe river. I don't know if the land is man made, it does look a little like it with lots of canals and channels of the river running through it but it was a cool place.

We found some restored boats moored there. Really interesting ones from the 1800s and there was even an old fireboat. It was fascinating reading all about them and when they had been used.

We went and explored the Elbe tunnel, a passenger and single lane car tunnel that joins Landunsbrucken to the harbour/shipyards on the other side of the river. It's pretty cool because there are elevators that take the cars down and then its a slow crawl across to the other side. It was built in 1911 and is 24 m below the surface. It was fun to ride one of the huge elevators (which of course were originally built for carriages) and we walked to the other side (not much there) and back again.

At the end of the day we stopped off on the way home in Reeperbahn, Hamburg's famous red light district. Actually there seemed to be more bars than strip clubs so it just seemed like a party area of the city. The lights were all going so it was fun to explore that part of Hamburg.

We were supposed to go home on the 6th but we found out that London had been hit with snow again and the airports were closed and all flights cancelled (uh-oh!). We still didn't have confirmation on what was happening with our flight so we decided to go and do our morning site-seeing and worry about it later.

We went to St Michaels church, a beautiful baroque style church which was amazing on the inside. A mix of white and gold leaf it was so over the top it was amazing. I really loved it, not like any other church I've ever seen. We also climbed up the tower for the views. It was a really hard climb up in all our winter gear but we made it and the views were awesome. Hamburg is really pretty all covered in snow. But man was it freezing up there. No protection from the wind at all and -10deg. The wind was like needles on the face.

We decided to go back to the hostel after that to keep an eye on our flight and at about 2pm we got the confirmation it was cancelled. We were stuck in Hamburg another night. So lucky we found out at the hostel. So we re-organised for another nights stay at the hostel (had to switch rooms but luckily they had a room). We managed to get booked into a flight the next day but the airline only had 1 flight a day so we had to wait another 24 hours for the next one.

On the last day we spent our time at the hostel, me keeping an eye on work emails and watching movies and just keeping out of the freezing cold. We did eventually get home that night but the funny thing was when we landed in London there was less snow than in Hamburg! haha The English can't deal with snow.

Berlin, Germany, New Years Day and after...

2010-04-24T04:25:00.000-07:00

Naturally we didn't surface on new years day until the afternoon. We went back into the town center so I could see Brandenburg Tor in daylight. It was still surrounded in tents and stages so hard to get a good view of it but it was cool to try and match it with what it would have looked like with the wall.

Also in the square where the Tor is is Hotel Adlon. It's a pretty famous Hotel with scores of celebrities staying there and it survived the bombings of world war II. Most recently it's famous for where Michael Jackson hung his baby out of a window.

We walked over to the Reichstag, a very famous building where an arson fire here led to Hitlers fight against communists and a lot of important events occurred here. You can go up into the dome but the queue was insane so we didn't attempt it.

We explored the area a bit more then walked the Unter den linden, one of the two major streets in Berlin (the other was Freidrichstrasse which we also walked). We found a 'car forum' which had all these cars including a Bugatti Beyron (the fastest street car apparently according to Nick - he was quite excited) and a couple of restored 60s VW beetle vans which I really liked. I could definitely see myself in one of those. So styly.

We also found a bit of the real Berlin Wall (see pic) with the original graffiti from when it was pulled down.

There were a lot of beautiful buildings in Berlin, I don't know what they all are but the city is a great one to just wondering around in looking at all the architecture. It had snowed a lot too so it was fun to play in the snow :)

We came across the Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe (or the Holocaust Memorial) which is a series of over 2000 uneven granite blocks. Apparently there has been a lot of controversy around it but I thought it was a stunningly beautiful tribute. It was a very calming experience walking through the monument covered in snow. I personally found it one of the most beautiful spots in Berlin.

We had to move accommodation on the 2nd because I'd booked new years a bit late so everything was a bit disjointed. We stayed in a hostel in a suburb called Freidrichstein on the eastern side of the river. It was a really cool area full of bars and restaurants and chilled out people. A really neat area of Berlin to stay in.

On the 2nd we headed into Alexanderplatz to see the TV tower. We had been waiting for 3 days for the sky to clear so we could go up but with no luck. The constant grey mist never budged. So we gave the tower a miss and walked across the park and over to Museum Island.

The buildings were beautiful, the best being the Dom (church). All the museums cost and their themes were a bit boring for us so we just admired the architecture. We found a little market with lots of artwork which I had real trouble not buying and we tried the Reichstag again but this time it was shut due to the weather so we missed out on that again.

We found a really nice restaurant back in Freidrichstain for dinner, it was an arabian place. The food was awesome, mixed meat grill, chicken charwarma, hummus, eggplant, tzatki. yum yum yum!

Berlin, Germany, 30th & New Years Eve Dec 09

2010-04-24T03:58:00.000-07:00

We took a train from Prague to Berlin on the 30th. All pretty easy really but not so much once we got to the other side. Berlin has one of the most confusing public transport systems. They have an S-Bahn and a U-Bahn and region trains and more lines than London so it took awhile to get our bearings. It didn't help that the main train station had the worst information when it came to the underground, it took us forever to find the platform we needed.

The Pension (B&B - but without the breakfast this time) we were staying at was cosy and close to a U-Bahn stop which was handy. We found a Vietnamese place up the road making traditional Vietnamese dishes. So delicious!!! I really love their springrolls.

On News Years Eve we visited the East Side Gallery, a small remaining part of the Berlin Wall where artists have painted murals. There actually isn't much of the wall left but they have placed a line of cobblestones and plaques along the entire length of where the wall used to be. The murals were cool, lots of interesting and political depictions.

Berlin was covered in snow so it was fun trying to negotiate our way around all that. It even snowed quite a bit that day. I love playing in the snow but when you're trying to get around it can be a bit of a hassle, especially when it's the mushy kind that soaks into all your clothes and shoes and you're constantly cold.

After the wall we went to Checkpoint Charlie, one of three checkpoints that allowed allies to move between West & East Germany. I was expecting some touristy overdone crap but it actually turned out quite good as they had an open air style museum with rows of photos and information along the road which was fascinating. I spent a long time reading up about the history of the wall and the checkpoint. It was freezing though so after standing out in the cold for an hour reading all the info we found ourselves a coffee shop to thaw out in.

We had a big night ahead of us so we chilled back at the Pension but of course stopped off on the way to grab some whisky for the night (hopefully to keep us warm) and also grabbed some Curry Wurst, an essential Berlin takeaway. Curry Wurst is spicy sausage covered in curry powder and sauce. Often served with a side of fries & mayo. Tasty as!! Om nom nom nom!

So yes we spent a few hours back at the Pension drinking whiskey to help us battle the snow and cold because man we were going to need it! The weather was terrible, it was constantly snowing and it was the sleety, slushing, freezing kind of snow. But we were still determined to make it to Brandenburg gate for NY.

It took awhile to get to the long street that led up to Brandenburg Tor (gate) where the party was. Traipsing through the snow covered park was fun though. There was a lot going on in the street, beer tents, gluwein, food, market stalls, a ferris wheel, massive balloons, all sorts of things.

We walked along until we got stuck in the crowds and couldn't get much closer to the stage (which was actually quite far away, there were millions of people! I think they estimate about 5 million attend!). The whiskey did help against the cold but it wore off pretty quick and standing still was tough. The music was a laugh, a mix between David Hasselhof style old crooners to a group of 80s style fluorescent dressed punk rappers (actually I found their songs really addictive and quite fun - check out a video here of the NY concert) But I couldn't understand a word of anything they were singing.

The countdown was fun trying to count backwards in German. Then the fireworks started. There were a lot of them all set to music, so pretty. A few people were even setting off fireworks in the crowd which considering how closely packed we all were was pretty damn dangerous actually and a little scary when it came near us.

We didn't stay much longer after the fireworks finished, I was so cold and my feet were soaked. In fact no-one really stayed around, there was a mass exodus to the underground.

Unfortunately that turned the underground stations into a mosh pit! we got caught in one such crush because they were periodically closing the station for safety reasons which was quite effective but meant a huge crush leading in and we had to walk down stairs where I was so jammed I could barely walk of my own accord, I had to go when everyone else did and the stairs were icy and I was petrified I was going to fall over. But I made it and survived. Unfortunately the ride home wasn't so pleasant as the carriage stunk of urine and some drunk chick threw up next to me and got some on my shoe! Not happy! Definitely a new years to remember though!

Krakow & Auschwitz, Poland, 28-29 Dec 09

2010-04-24T03:41:00.000-07:00

In the morning we had a stroll around the Krakow castle. It's a great castle up on the hill with views over the city. The cathedral was breathtaking inside and definitely the best part of the castle.

It was absolutely freezing in Krakow and we really hadn't wrapped up enough so we headed back to the hostel but Nick decided he needed another rest day so i headed out again solo.

I took in the market square and the church there. The centre hall was all scaffolded up and the christmas markets were just shutting down so it was all quite quiet but it was really nice just walking around the streets. Krakow isn't as pretty as Prague but I still enjoyed it.

I walked the green belt, a park pathway surrounding the city and had a walk through the jewish quarter. Quite a fascinating town.

On the next day we left Krakow and drove to Auschwitz in Oschweicim. We only just made it in time for a guided tour which I'm so glad we did because it was fascinating.

We spent 2 hours walking through Auschwitz and learning its history and the conditions in which people had to live there. We saw many photos and belongings of people and I learnt a lot.

The prison cells were horrible, they had standing cells where 3-4 men were jammed into a tiny space with no windows and a starvation cell. There was also the death wall behind the prison block where prisoners died by shooting squad. At Auschwitz we were also taken to see one of the only remaining gas chambers. It was awful to think what happened in there.

I didn't realise that there are two very distinct camps. Auschwitz and then Aushwitz-Berkenau a few kms away.

The pictures most people are familiar with are mainly from the second except for the famous "Arbeit macht frei" sign which is at the first camp. The second camp was built during the war and is where they kept most of the Jews. The first camp was mainly for prisoners of war such as Soviet prisoners, political prisoners and medical experimentation.

A bus took us to Auschwitz-Berkenau. The entrance is very familiar with the railway track leading directly into the camp so they could easily unload thousands of people within the camp walls. It was a huge complex, much bigger than I expected but a lot of it had been destroyed when the Germans were ordered to evacuate the camp. They burnt and demolished anything they could.

The wooden barracks where the men lived were horse stables transported from other regions, the women's barracks were on the other side and made of concrete. The conditions are hard to imagine. We saw the ruins of the gas chambers where millions were executed. It was definitely a sobering experience. I am really glad we had the opportunity to visit.

We drove all the way back to Prague in the afternoon and the trip was a lot quicker than expected so we got the Merc dropped off and found our new hostel, a cosy place in a quieter area of Prague. It had a cellar bar which was the best place to chill for the night and I finally tried Becherovka, a Czech spirit which I think is a bit of a cross between anaseid and cinnamon. Took a bit of getting used to.

Cesky Kromlov, Czech Republic, Sun 27 Dec 09

2010-04-24T03:30:00.000-07:00

We had hired a car for a 3 day excursion into Poland. So we were up early to leave our wonderful apartment behind and find the Hilton hotel for our car pickup. What a mission! Google maps had no idea where it was but we got there eventually.

Once there we found our little Peugeot 306 hatchback had already gone so instead they gave us a Mercedes C class, black, fast and oh so stylish! Awesome! It was definitely the trip of upgrades.

It was an interesting drive, not only having to get used to driving on the right side of the road but also getting used to a left hand manual drive car. Everything is backwards!

We were actually on our way to Krakow but decided to stop at Cesky Kromlov for a couple hours on the way because we heard it was well worth a visit. And they were definitely right.

A beautiful medieval town with a large castle up on a hill overlooking an old town surrounded by a canal. The place was so cute and like stepping back in time. It was the perfect spot to chill for awhile, have lunch and take lots of gorgeous photos.

Since it was winter not a lot was open but that was actually fantastic because it was really quiet and we didn't have to battle other tourists.

Leaving Cesky Kromlov it was my time to drive. Scary! It took me ages to get used to the gears on the other side and I really didn't like driving in town but I was fine once we were out on the motorway. It was quite fun too because the speedlimit on the motorways is 130km/h & in our awesome Mercedes it was a very comfortable drive. The motorways was also good because we didn't have to deal with quite so many scary crazy driver incidents. Turns out czech drivers are a little crazy, we had our fair share of close calls with overtaking cars and blind corners.

It was a late arrival in Krakow, Poland so we focused on finding the hostel and a spot to park up the car for the next couple of days.

Prague, Czech Republic, Christmas & Boxing Day

2010-04-18T14:24:00.000-07:00

Sadly Nick wasn't feeling well at all. What is with us getting sick on Christmas Day on this side of the world? So Nick decided he was going to stay in bed and sleep but didn't want me bored so said I should go out with Roz and Josh. I felt bad leaving him on Christmas Day but figured he needed some peace and quiet to get some rest.

Roz, Josh and I met up in the old town and watched the astronomical clock chime, a very cool clock that also shows the moon phases and other stuff, plus a little skeleton pulls the bell when it chimes ever hour. Very cute.

We had lunch at Pivovrsky Dum restaurant which was on the other side of Prague but well worth it. I had a yummy venison stew with potato croquettes and cider. It was by far the best meal I had in Prague. So delicious!

In the afternoon we visited the Jewish cemetery and synagogues (interesting but not much to them) and walked over the St George Bridge (again!). Roz showed me the Pis statue, of two naked men peeing into a fountain with their hips moving and supposedly spelling out things. Weird.

I then took them to the markets so they could try Tredlink (oh so yum!) and see the Christmas lights. I spent the afternoon back at the apartment with Nick and then we all managed to get out for dinner at the official Pivorsky Dum brewery. The boys loved the beer and the food was delicious.

Wasn't a big night since Nick wasn't well but Roz & Josh gave us Backpackers, a very cool card game, for a present and we all spent the night playing that in the apartment. Quite a lot of fun, and that game causes some firey arguments!

On Boxing Day we did nothing! hehe it was fabulous! In fact I don't think we even left the apartment. Nick slept most of the day trying to battle his cold so I slept in, drank lots of perculated coffee (awesome coffee at the apartment), read and watched movies all day. The best way to spend Boxing day. But dammit I can't beat nick at Backpackers, he's just too good. I haven't won a single game against him yet!

Prague, Czech Republic, Christmas Eve

2010-04-18T14:08:00.000-07:00

We moved accommodation on Christmas Eve and were staying at Miss Sophies Hostel. The booking had been quite eventful. Firstly when I had booked it I screwed up the dates and booked for November. So of course when we never showed up we got charged and then I had to rebook everything. I mean seriously how do I screw up the dates of Christmas?! Only me.

So anyway we check into the hostel and it turns out we were given an upgrade from a private room to one of their apartments. Score! And when we saw it I almost jumped for joy. It was huge with a king comfy bed, flash bathroom and a whole separate room with dining & kitchen. Double score! What a perfect place to spend Christmas.

Nick wasn't well so we had spent the rest of the day in the apartment (I mean who wouldn't!) but we did head out for dinner and ended up across the road at a mexican place. We had been eating a lot of Czech food (which basically consists of meat and potatoes but oh I do love goulash!). Sounds strange but virtually everything in Prague is closed on Christmas Eve because they have their big dinner on the Eve. The food was average but they had 2 for 1 cocktails so we made the most of that. Nick ordered a molotov cocktail which was redbull, vodka and absinth! Man they were lethal.

Then it was back to the apartment for the million skype calls home :) I think in the end I called Mum, Dad/Janine etc, Nana/Lyn/Stacey, Nicks mum, David/Kirsty etc and even Hannah in Canada. Pretty good! By the time we got thru all that Roz and Josh had arrived so we caught up with them and worked out our plans for Christmas Day.

Prague, Czech Republic, Sun 20th Dec & Days leading up to Christmas

2010-04-18T12:45:00.000-07:00

We decided to spend this years Christmas and NY in Prague (Czech Republic), Poland and Berlin. Enjoying yet another white Christmas. Well we may not have had all the snow but we definitely had the cold! It was -15 deg C when we landed in Prague and apparently one of the coldest winters they had had in Prague in years. Fantastic!

We ended up staying in two different places in Prague, a cheap as chips apartment for 4 days and then a much nicer place over Christmas. Turned out we were lucky that we switched places because our first apartment had no hot water! Not pleasant in freezing temperatures that's for sure.

I have to admit is was really nice having a bit longer in one place so we could actually relax and have a bit of a holiday rather than being on the go the entire time. On our first full day we visited the Castle. The castle is beautiful, up on a hill overlooking one of the most beautiful cities I've ever seen. It is very obvious why it's called the city of spires. It was such a gorgeous day too, we were so lucky to get perfect views over the city.

There were guards everywhere and although they looked frozen I couldn't help but want to throw a snowball at them and see if they'd crack a smile. I thought better of that tho. The castle is quiet different to ones in England. It is centered around the Cathedral with a maze of other buildings, courtyards and lanes. Very cool. The cathedral was gorgeous, apparently Baroque style, I didn't really know what that is but it's incredibly

opulent.

We had a nice walk through the Mala Strana district stopping off for some Gluwein and a Christmas specialty - Tredlenik, a bread rolled in sugar, cinammon, almond & fire roasted. So declicious! I ate a

lot over the week!

We walked over the Charles bridge, the famous one in Prague. Cool statues yes but the tourists, street sellers and construction really killed any beauty it might have had. The late afternoon was spent in the old town at the Christmas markets. With the trees and the stalls all lit up it was beautiful (it gets dark at 4pm).

Wondering the markets was the perfect way to end a day. The smells were amazing, T

redlenik, crepes, Gluwein, grog, some crazy pizza croissant things, caramel waffles, chestnuts, sweets, seriously a foodies heaven! One of the best parts was watching them make it all. Tredlenik is fascinating to watch as they roll it out on skewers and fire roast it. Really cool.

On the second day we walked up the big hill near the castle. It's a garden area with lots of paths and tracks to the top. There is also a funicular railway (basically a cable car) but we decided to walk. It was wonderful all covered in snow and there were great views back over Prague. The climb wasn't easy, it was pretty steep in parts and being dressed up like Eskimos didn't help. At the top was an Eiffel tower like replica which we climbed for the best views over the whole city.

On the third day we took the train out to Kutna Hora to see the Sedlec Ossuary (or the bone church). I was amazing. A church full of human bones made into chandeliers, wall hangings, a coat of arms and pyramid piles. The history of it all was fascinating.

The big chandelier had to be the most impressive, using every bone in the human body and surrounded by scull candelabras which marked the entrance to the crypt. I liked the coat of arms too with a human head with its eye being picked out by a bird. Nick was most impressed by the warrior skulls in a glass case showing various head wounds. I think about 40,000 humans' bones had been used. An amazing experience.

We walked into the Kutna Hora town (which is actually quite far away) and had lunch in the old town. Kutna Hora only really had one other good attraction - it's beautiful cathedral, unfortunately it was closed by the time we got there. The outside was pretty though and it was up on a hill so had nice views back over the town.

Prague is an amazing place to spend the lead up to Christmas. With all of the Christmas markets, lights everywhere and of course the snow it was a magical place to spend Christmas.

A big tradition in the Czech Republic is to have Carp at Christmas so everywhere you go in Prague you'll find Carp sellers on the street and you look at all the fish in their big tubs, pick the one you want, then they take them out, donk them on the head and either give to you whole or fillet for you on the spot. Apparently a lot of people also buy the Carp alive and have it in their bath tub for a couple of days before killing it fresh to eat on Christmas Eve. Quite fascinating.

Rome, Italy, Tues 01 Dec 09

2009-12-18T08:17:00.000-08:00

Our last day in Rome. We had seen most of the big sites so we mainly spent our time exploring more of the city. We went back to the fountain Plaza again after dropping the apartment keys off so Nick and I could enjoy an Italian coffee.

While we sat and chilled Christy & Will had a look around the church which didn't turn out to be a great idea because Will had an allergic reaction to the lavender incense they were burning. He was ok, just had to get out of there really quick.

We walked down to the Vittorio Emanuele II monument which is a huge building and one that can be seen from almost anywhere in Rome. Funnily enough apparently the Italians don't like it, not sure why they've just got something against it and they and call it the 'wedding cake' or something. I think they have a few other nicknames for it.

It's also quite new which may be another reason it doesn't have a fond following, and when I say new I mean the late 1800s which is very new for Rome. It now contains the tomb of the unknown soldier and as such the entire building is a sacred monument so you can't sit anywhere on it and they're very strict about that. There is one guy just telling people off if they sit down and then there are a couple of guards stationed just to look after the tomb. Looked like a pretty boring job.

We had lunch at a nice Italian restaurant and found Rome's expensive shopping street (think Dior, Versace and every other designer name you can think of). We also saw the 'Spanish Steps' which lead up to another church and has a boat shaped fountain at the base, quiet pretty and a great spot to chill out.

We then walked up to the Piazza del Popolo and admired the big obelisk and fountains there. The obelisk is Egyptian and from sometime before BC even though it didn't actually look that old. The sun had come out so the Piazza was actually a really nice spot to chill out in.

Off to the side of the Piazza was some stairs to go up a hill to a platform which would look back over the Piazza and more of the city too. So we decided to head up there for the views. There were heaps of dodgy people around trying to scam tourists but the views up the top were nice and we could see as far as the Vatican.

We kept on walking and eventually reached the Tiber River so walked down to that (the river is a lot lower than the streets) and had a walk along the river. It's not the prettiest river but we got some nice views of the bridges.

We eventually reached the most famous bridge, the one that approaches Castel Sant'Angelo and we came back up from the river bed to walk along it. The bridge was beautiful with angel statues along it, made even better with the dusk setting. Castel Sant'Angelo (which is joined to the Vatican along a passage) has been a few things over the years including a fortress and castle. It was late so we didn't go in but was nice to see from the outside.

While we were on the bridge we spotted this crazy mass in the sky and it turned out to be hundreds maybe even thousands of sparrows flying around in various directions causing the most amazing patterns. It was beautiful to watch, I couldn't believe there were so many birds in one place. I'm not sure what would cause them to act like that. It's not something I've seen before.

That was our last stop as it got late and we had to make our way back to the airport and sadly finish up our trip in Rome, one of the most amazing cities I've been to. I wonder if I'll ever have the opportunity to come back.

Rome, Italy, Mon 30 Nov 09

2009-12-18T08:03:00.000-08:00

Today we spent at the Colosseum and Roman Forum. The Colosseum turned out to be pretty close to our apartment so it was an easy walk down to it. We grabbed our tickets at the Palatine (cheeky trick to skip the queues at the Colosseum) and went to the Colosseum. An incredible place with so much history and amazing stories. It's incredible that there is still so much left and it's actually in quite a good preserved state.

After visiting the Colosseum we went back to the Palatine to do a walking tour of it and the Roman Forum. We got some audio guides too so we could learn some more about the place. It's the oldest part of Rome and is where Roman civilization was born. The Palatine hill is where the legend of Romulus & Remus (Roman Gods) being found and suckled by a she-wolf took place. The Forum is at the base of the hill and is where the ancient Palaces, Roman Parliament and Temples were.

You have to have a pretty good imagination at the Roman Forum ruins. Even with the audio guides it was quite tough to work out where everything had been. The guide would say something like, and see over to your left the remains of three columns.. that is where a large temple was housing this, this, and this.. and that sort of thing. But it was really interesting. Unfortunately it wasn't fantastic weather and we got rained out a bit.

Up the hill there were great views back over Rome and to the Colosseum. I think all the history of it fascinated me a bit more than the others, they seemed to get bored a bit quicker, or maybe it was the rain, either way they were really nice to stick it out so I could see it all. It really wasn't the nicest of days to be traipsing through old ruins but we got there in the end. But we ended off the day warming up in McDs so that was a good way to thaw out.

Since it's quite hard to make ruins interesting in a blog I have way more pictures than writing so I'll put the rest below :)

Rome, Italy, Sun 29 Nov 09

2009-12-18T07:20:00.000-08:00

A way too early start this morning! We were going to the Vatican museums and were told queues are insane so we were up before 7am. The museums are usually closed Sundays except the last Sunday of the month when they open for free. We were a little worried about how packed it would be on a free day but figured since it was winter it was worth the risk.

We got in the line about 8:30 and the queue was already down the road and around the corner! And it grew longer every minute. It was a very cold morning too which didn't make it any easier. My legs felt like icicles. It got pretty boring standing in the queue too so we had to make up something to keep us entertained. Nick and Will decided the best way was to try and scale the wall to get into the Vatican... as you can see they didn't have much luck ;)

Thankfully once the doors opened at 9:30 the queue moved pretty quickly as people didn't need to pay, even then it still took about half an hour, I don't know what it must be like on normal weekdays.

First we stopped at a terrace with views of St Peters, it was a great place to stop and get some photos, we finally got our first group shot there with all of us. The terrace also looked over some of the Vatican gardens, not sure if they're ever actually used, but they were pretty.

After hanging on the terrace we then checked out the Pinacoteca art gallery which houses famous artwork from Raphael, Leonardo da Vinci, Caravaggio and Perugino (and many others, their paintings were just highlighted in my guide book - I don't really know a lot about famous paintings).

My favourite was Raphael's Transfiguration painting It is quite famous and it was his last. I had never really known of Raphael's paintings (of course I knew who he was but couldn't have picked his paintings out) but after my trip to the Vatican I found I really liked his work.

After that we wondered through some of the other exhibitions and got ourselves thoroughly lost :) There were lots of Egyptian, Greek and Roman artifacts along with various sculpture rooms. In the Egyptian section there was even an uncovered mummy which I found quite gross.

As we made our way closer to the Sistine Chapel the path became practically one way with so many people that all you could do was follow the crowds. It was hard with so many people as I was trying to read my guide book to match up artwork and murals (frescoes) without bumping or tripping over people and it wasn't easy. Some of the artwork in the rooms was beautiful. I really liked the Raphael rooms and his most famous fresco 'The School of Athens' was amazing. There is a picture of it a couple of photos below, it has lots of famous people in it, even a self portrait of Raphael and Michelangelo is in there too. It was fun using my guide book to spot them all.

After the Stanze di Raffaello we made our way into the Sistine Chapel. It was packed inside as you can imagine but the artwork was incredible. You can't take any photos inside as it is a place of worship.

My favourite fresco was The Last Judgment by Michelangelo on the end altar wall. It was amazing, so intricate. You can stare at it forever and find new stories being told. The ceiling frescoes were beautiful too, depicting various stories of the Bible and I had fun trying to work them all out. But your neck gets sore after awhile staring up. It was a breathtaking chapel.

Leaving the chapel it was a very long walk back to the beginning and my feet were so sore! We did a lot of walking in Rome. Once we left the museums we walked back around to Piazza San Pietro, the big open square in front of St Peters Basilica. It was a beautiful space with columns surrounding the square and a pillar in the center. There are two spots in the square where you can stand and the three rows of columns perfectly line up, that was pretty cool.

Another queue to get into the Basilica (security checks) but we were soon admiring one of the most beautiful churches in the world. I saw the Pieta, a statue by Michelangelo, depicting Mary holding Jesus after he was crucified and it's one of the most beautiful pieces of art I've ever seen. The rest of the Church is just as beautiful, with it's huge dome and magnificent artwork.

The high altar is incredible and there is a statue of St Peter whose foot was worn off from pilgrims kissing and touching it over the centuries (it's no longer accessible). We even caught a church service in one of the side chapels. The congregation walked through the church singing hymns before settling in the chapel near where we were standing. We stayed and watched for a little while but it was all in Italian so we didn't stay for the whole thing.

Christy and Will left to walk up the dome but I wasn't feeling well at all (I knew I was coming down with a cold - sore throat, achy body) and knew I wouldn't make it up all those steps so we went down to the crypt and saw the tombs of all the popes including Pope John Paul II who had a special area where people could pray and pay their respects.

We chilled out in the square for awhile before making our way back to the apartment for an afternoon nap. I definitely had a cold,my damn immune deficient body, I've been sick almost every trip we've had this year. Not fun! So we had a pretty quiet night really, sent the boys out to get us takeaways :)

Rome, Italy, Sat 28 Nov 09

2009-12-17T04:31:00.000-08:00

We had a few days in Rome so decided having a look around and getting our bearings on the first day was the best idea. Christy suggested we do a hop-on hop-off bus tour. We did the full loop and got to see lots of places (beautiful plazas, gorgeous buildings etc) and get our bearings of Rome.

Of course we drove passed the Colosseum and the Roman Forum. We also drove passed the Vittorio Emanuele Monument (see last day entry) and a mini Colosseum. We went up to the Vatican and saw St Peters Basilica and drove the edge of the Vatican.

We saw Castel Sant'Angelo and Piazza del Popolo (again see last day entry) and a few other things on the way. We knew we needed entire days for the Vatican and the Colosseum so we had booked in full days to see those sights and we wanted to focus on smaller things today.

After one loop on the bus we jumped off near the Piazza Navona, one of the main Piazza's (squares) in town. We stopped at a small restaurant on a side lane as we were starving and enjoyed some pizza and pasta (our staple diet for the next few days!). We then explored Piazza Navona's beautiful fountains and building facades. It was very busy too as there was a small market on.

We moved on to the Pantheon. Wow! What an amazing place. Built in the greek style it has been many things over the years including a temple and a church and is home to the tombs of Raphael and a couple of Italian Kings. The interior is a large circular rotunda which rises up to a dome with an oculus (a hole in the dome basically). So in fact there are holes in the floor and a slight decline so that the water will run away when it rains.

The oculus was used for ventilation and light and provides a sun dial effect within the building. I also found out that the height of the oculus is exactly the diameter of the interior circle. Pretty amazing stuff. The Kings tombs were guarded but Raphael's seemed to be the most popular. But ultimately it was the beauty of the place that caught my attention. The interior is simply stunning.

From the Pantheon we walked up to Trevi Fountain and man was it packed. You could barely move. I can't imagine what it must be like in summer. Trevi Fountain is Rome's most famous fountain and you can see why. It is beautiful, set in a surprisingly small square on the facade of a building. I think it does suffer a little from it's own fame, it was hard to really appreciate it with so many people around.

Christy and Will headed back to the apartment and Nick and I kept wondering around the little streets just soaking up Rome. We got back on the bus and jumped off at the roundabout we had seen on the first day. It was early evening but the Church was still open so we went inside and had a look around. It was called Santa Maria degli Angeli and although not one of the most famous churches in Rome I still found it beautiful and much more peaceful which made it very nice. I also got some great photos of the fountain all lit up.

We went out for dinner that night at a small restaurant down the end of the road. We happened to spot it the night before, and we were lucky because it was a blink and you'll miss it type place because it was down in the lower ground level.

When we got there it was full of locals and we weren't sure we would get a table but it was a good sign that we had come to a good place. The food was yummy although sadly Rome's pasta isn't as good as Milan's. I think the problem is in Rome its an entree so serving sizes are very small and it's rare to find one with meat in it (even a little bit of bacon or chorizo) so it doesn't quite hit the spot. But the pizzas were good.

Rome, Italy, Fri 27 Nov 09

2009-12-17T04:23:00.000-08:00

Off to Rome for four days! What could be more exciting that that?! I think Rome has always been on my top list of cities to visit. So much history! We went with Christy and Will (our flatmates) and it was great having company for one of our trips.

We got in quite late but the train in from the airport was easy, finding the apartment office not so, but Will had a pretty good sense of direction. We got there in the end, got the keys to our apartment and headed for the metro. On the way we passed a beautiful church which looked out onto a fountain and another building which circled around the center roundabout. It was all lit up and looked beautiful.

So we were staying in an apartment and it was pretty cool. Rome apartments seem to have a similar setup, where there is a door on the street that takes you into a central courtyard which are surrounded by apartment blocks and then there are entrances to each apartment off that. We were on the first floor of one of those blocks. The door off the street was a bit of a laugh too as it was huge but then with a miniature door cut out of it for just people to walk through. Quite cool. Staying in an apartment was fun because you felt like you were living in Rome but the shower was probably typical of Europe and had two settings - boiling or freezing - and the Italians kept us up at night (or woke us early in the morning) talking really loudly and for ages in the echo courtyard so I had to resort to ear plugs but I still really enjoyed staying there.

Kew Gardens, London, One Sunday in November

2009-12-17T04:16:00.000-08:00

I had always wanted to visit the Kew Gardens and one sunny Sunday in early Nov I decided it was the perfect opportunity to see the gardens before Autumn was over. The gardens are huge (about 300 acres) and contain both field and tree filled areas as well as conservatories and green houses. The gardens contain something like the largest collection of different plants in the world, and I can believe that.

The gardens are beautiful and a great place to spend a Sunday. We visited the conservatories with their amazing exotic plants and freakishly tall ferns. We saw the water lily house with an indoor pond and the most beautifully coloured water lilies.

We took a tree top walk amongst the golden trees (not as great as I had hoped, pretty short and the views were quite limited) but after it was fun to play in all the fallen leaves from the trees.

The most amazing thing was all the colours! Golds, yellows, browns, reds and even slight shades of pinks were displayed in the various trees around the gardens. It was beautiful.

Another greenhouse contained all sorts of great looking cacti, every type of carnivorous plant you can imagine and a beautiful room full of orchids. They had all sorts of other cool things as well but there was just too much to take it all in. It's an amazing place, and a great way to spend a sunny Autumn Sunday.

Lots of photos so some more below.

Cardiff, Wales, Wed 28 - Fri 30 Oct 09

2009-12-17T04:06:00.000-08:00

I was in Wales for work, training the South Wales Police ICT Team. The are based in Bridgend but had suggested that I would be better off staying in Cardiff (about a 20 min train ride away). I arrived in Cardiff (or Caerdydd in Welsh - pronounced the same way dd in Welsh is pronounced as an f - Welsh is a very strange language) very late on Wednesday night as I had book club with the girls and didn't want to miss it (there's nothing better than a glass of wine with the girls!).

It was actually the second time I'd been to Cardiff, but the first I was only there for 3 hours during the day for work and saw very little of it. My hotel was really nice. It was the Radisson Blu, right near the train station and it had quite large rooms. It was great fun going to the Police headquarters. They treated me really well and at lunch time took me to their small in-house museum and gave me a couple of souvenirs and even fingerprinted me! I have my fingerprint on my key ring now.

Of course I was working so not much else to say about my couple of days in Bridgend but I did spend Thursday night in Cardiff. To be honest I actually spent most of my time shopping (it was late night) and walking around the city because most things (castle etc) were closed. Cardiff is a pretty cool city, a little rough around the edges in places but good for a night or two.

On Friday after work I came back to Cardiff to grab my bag from the hotel and decided to have a walk around the stadium since it was still light enough. The path takes you along between the river and the stadium which is nice. Along the side of the stadium they have a row of all the rugby nations. Each country is represented by a flag and a mosaic on the ground which shows images that are representative of that country. Of course I found the one for NZ, we had lots of cool things from the silver fern to sheep and the kiwi.

The path then takes you onto the main road where the castle is so had a walk along there (closed again so didn't go in) before walking back through some small shopping alleyways and arcades that hadn't been open the night before.

And I tried a Welsh cake which is sortof like a cross between a scone and a donut. Quite tasty actually. It was a very quick visit to Cardiff but I enjoyed it.

Around Reykjavik, Iceland, Sun 18 - Mon 19 Oct 09

2009-12-13T07:56:00.000-08:00

Thanks to my workmate Bevan we had the fantastic advice of hiring a car to see the Grand Circle. Turned out to be the right way to go as it was much cheaper than a tour and we could go at our own pace, plus it was definitely a highlight of our trip. The Grand Circle refers to three main sights near Reykjavik; Geysir, Gulfoss & Pingvellir National Park.

The rental place picked us up from the hotel to take us to their offices and within a short time we had our little run around hatchback and we were on our way. Nick had the drivers seat and was responsible for getting us out of the city in one piece (first time driving on the right side of the road with the gear stick etc in reverse). He didn't have any problems though and with the SatNav it was easy to find our way.

We took the long way around to Gulfoss in order to see some of the scenery. Iceland is a beautiful country, with it's volcanic rocks, treeless hills, and snow capped mountains. It is incredibly barren and yet breathtakingly beautiful. As I've said before the countryside is like nothing I've ever seen before. And Iceland is so empty! We saw barely in other cars, few people and only the odd house scattered here or there, almost hidden in the ground. It was amazing to have that much quiet.

On the way we came across the crater of a volcano that had erupted a long time ago. The scenery around the cater was spectacular and made for a great rest spot on our road trip. We also got some great photos around there.

First stop on our Grand Circle road trip was Gulfoss. Gulfoss is a very large and beautiful waterfall. There was so much water pounding over the falls and lots of mist to soak us. I loved how close we could get to it. We could climb up on the rocks right next to the falls and they had stairs up the cliff to get a higher view too. Absolutely beautiful.

It was pretty cold in the wind and spray from the waterfall. Sadly Cherise had started to feel ill and headed back to the car with a bad cough, so after we found out there was a cafe up the top of the stairs Nick drove us around to the top so Cherise could get some hot tea into her. We ended up having lunch there - lamb soup again and it was the yummiest thing we ate all weekend! And they had free refills. Bonus! We stayed there for ages, enjoying the views and thawing out. We then jumped back in the car for part II of the trip.

Geysir turned out to be just round the corner (in fact we drove straight past it and never noticed!). Geysir is the site of one of the worlds tallest and oldest geysers (in fact that's how they got their name!) but it hasn't erupted in years. Nearby is another geyser called Strokkur which erupts about every 10mins so that's what most people go to see now. It's still pretty tall, taller than NZ ones. It was fun to watch, it would bubble away and almost pulsate and then the water would rise into a bubble dome right before it exploded. We were there for ages watching it erupt.

They allowed us to get really close to it and in fact lots of kids would stand down wind of it and get completely soaked for a bit of fun. There was also quite a bit of other activity around too with bubbling mud and water, a 'little geysir' and a large pool of incredibly blue water which was so clear you could look down and see an underwater cave!

We left Geysir and headed for our third and final stop on our road trip; Pingvellir National Park. To get there we ended up on this back road which was full of pot holes. It's the bumpiest drive I've been on since Vietnam! Nick had the tough job of trying to navigate them. The scenery was beautiful though with a large mountain in the background.

Pingvellir National Park is the site of Iceland's first parliament and is an important location in Iceland history as things have been happening there for hundreds of years. Parliament was first established there in 930!

Surprisingly there's not much there. Even though they hold events there every year and it has huge historical significance they have reserved it's natural state with only a walkway, and a few plaques detailing it's history. There was also a church and a couple of small houses nearby too. Besides that it was all natural, it was amazing to see it like that.

It's a beautiful spot, shaded by a sheer rock cliff, with a river running through it which after a small waterfall breaks into lots of small inlets that eventually run into Icelands largest lake. Plus it has lots of grass verges and natural elevation platforms. You could definitely see why it had been selected all those years ago.

When people used to come to Pingvellir every year (some just for social reasons and to sell their goods) they would build temporary structures out of mud and rock, just big enough for one person to lie down in but kept them sheltered. Some of them you can still see. It was incredible.

By the time we got back into Reykjavik it was late, dark, we were all a bit cold and Cherise was not well at all. We let her sleep for a bit before we attempted dinner. We decided to go and find the 'best fish and chips' in Reykjavik but unfortunately the restaurant was over the other side of town. Lucky for us we still had the car! So handy :) So we drove across town, parking was interesting and we did end up going the wrong way on some one way roads but all part of the adventure. The fish was tasty but the chips were just chopped up potatoes. Nick and Cherise ordered what they thought was unbattered but they ended up with some weird green fish soup thing. It looked a bit like seaweed.

Our last day in Iceland and I was actually pretty sad to be going home. I really enjoyed our trip. My throat had started to play up by midday and by that night it was obvious I had caught Cherise's bug too.

So we had a pretty relaxed day. We copied the rest of Iceland's inhabitants and slept in late than did some more shopping around town. We had lunch in a cafe on the main street and basically just took it easy.

I really hope I have a chance to come back to Iceland one day. It's an amazing place.

Because Iceland is such a beautiful place I couldn't fit all the photos I love in one place so the rest of them are below in order of what we did :) Enjoy

Reykjavik, Iceland, Fri 16 - Sat 17 Oct 09

2009-12-13T07:41:00.001-08:00

Nick and I spent a long weekend in Iceland with my friends Cherise and Leighton for Cherise's birthday We got in pretty late on the Fri night thanks to the time difference. Our dinky little 2 star accommodation was small with a shrunken bathroom and plain breakfast but a very handy location (although it turns out Reykjavik is pretty small so that's not hard).

And it's quiet! Finally a place in Europe which didn't feel claustrophobic. Not that I think you can class Iceland as Europe? Who knows but I was loving it! Of course it was bitterly cold but hey you've really got to expect that in a country called Iceland!

We spent the morning window shopping because it turns out there's not much else to do in the town (besides drinking) and even the shops don't open till 11am. So it seemed to be a place that slept a lot (my kind of town!). Lots of wool shops and outdoorsy places so not bad as far as shopping went.

We had coffee in the best cofee shop in Reykjavik (that's all they sold!), tried on funny wollen hats and even cuddled up to a polar bear (not a real one). Lots and lots of tourist shops around so you could try on all sorts of fun things. We had a blast in the morning just goofing around.

Our package deal meant that we had the afternoon in the Blue Lagoon, Iceland's famous outdoor thermal spa. The bus ride out there was amazing through the lava fields. Iceland is like a whole different world. Words can't describe it, the closest I can say is it really was like we were driving through the moon or Mordor or an alien planet or something. Either way it was like nothing I'd ever seen before. Sorry no photos as I didn't take my camera since we'd be swimming (these photos I got off Cherise). But photos taken through the window of a moving bus really wouldn't do it justice anyway.

The Blue Lagoon was incredible. It's thermal pools in the middle of these amazing lava fields and it's misty and hot and eerie and very very cool! The changing rooms were an experience in themselves as in Iceland it is customary to shower naked before and after thermal spas in communal showers. Luckily this places is touristy enough that they don't enforce it. I was worried about how to get from the changing rooms into the pools without freezing but luckily Cherise and I spotted an indoor section of the hot pool which lead outside through a door. Very good idea!

The lagoon has this mud stuff (silica mud mask) which I think comes from the ground of the spas but is added to and put in boxes around the lagoon. You are supposed to smear it over your face and body to cleanse the skin. People looked hilarious wearing it.

We had landed in Reykjavik during a music festival weekend and there was a DJ in one end of the lagoon playing dance music and lots of people dancing around in the water with their fluorescent sticks. A laugh watching them!

It was very easy to relax away the hours in the spa. I think we were there for about 4-5 hours. Some areas were so steamed up you could barely see your hand in front of you and there weren't actually that many people, so it wasn't hard to find quiet spots. Some areas of the pools were much hotter than others and I had contests with myself to see how long I could stay in the really hot parts.

We caught the bus back into town and the swimming had made us hungry so we found an Italian place in our budget (Iceland is expensive). Sad to say I tried very little Icelandic food but then I wasn't going to ever eat whale or puffin anyway so no biggie. I did however try their local fish (yum) and icelandic lamb soup (double yum!). We practically lived on the lamb soup. So good.

Stockholm, Sweden, Sat 26 - Sun 27 Sept 09

2009-12-13T06:21:00.000-08:00

My second time coming to Stockholm for work but the last time we stayed out of Stockholm center so decided I wanted to see a bit more of the city this time. I had two days here for work on a Mon and Tues but decided to head over on the Saturday.

By the time I flew in and got to the hostel it was mid afternoon so just enough time to head out and see some of the old town (Gamla Stan). I remembered some of it from my first visit when I had a quick hour or two walk in the old town before catching a flight home. This time around I had longer to spend walking through all the old lanes and exploring different areas.

The guards were at the Palace again but the streets were quieter this time around (and colder!). Lots of cute cobblestone streets and old buildings, it's really beautiful wondering around Stockholm. But then the sun went down and holy crap I was FROZEN. So hightailed it back to the hostel and rugged up before heading back out for some dinner. I forgot how awkward it is to find a place to eat on your own. I'm glad I don't have to travel solo too much anymore.

On Sunday I was starting to think the city had it in for me. The metro stations I needed were always closed, the attractions I tried either didn't exist anymore or weren't on and walking through the city was killing my feet. But then I think I just realised hardly anyone visits Stockholm outside of the peak summer so all the tourist stuff shuts down.

I dropped my bags at the hotel work had booked (much nice than the hostel and my room was pink & purple! Awesome) and then stopped for breaky around the corner at this really nice little cafe. Even without an English menu I managed to order something tasty. It was a little weird because with every brunch order you also got this little basket with orange juice, yogurt with berries (yum), mini pancake (double yum) and coleslaw (yes coleslaw! weird). Very interesting.

Stockholm is made up of several islands which makes travel around interesting as it's a combination of walking, metro, trams and ferries. I jumped on the metro from Vasastaden where the hotel was and rode down to the southern island, Södermalm. Had a wonder around the shops and walked up to an area where you get views over the city.

Then jumped on the metro again to go to the very west of the island to find a market called Street. Took ages to get there and turned out it didn't exist anymore, bugger. So I headed into the harbour area near Östermalm to see if any boats were doing tours (the dates in the guide book said 'summer only' so it was hard to tell). No luck on any city boat tours and the 4 hour ones into the archipelago were only running once a day and it had already left that morning. Not having a lot of luck this trip.

So instead I jumped on a tram and road up to Djurgården, an island that housed the Skansen open aired museum (which I saw last time I was in Stockholm), the theme park (closed), museums and a national park. I spent the rest of the afternoon chilling in the park and walking through it's woods.

I found a nice little glasshouse area with a type of market (selling food and plants) with lots of picnic people around which made for a wonderful chill out area. Quite a few beautiful houses on the island too which I saw on my walks, although I'm not sure they were homes as they were huge but not sure what else they could be.

As the day came to a close I took the ferry from Djurgården back to the south island again just so I could say I had been on the water and for the nice views over Stockholm, then back to the hotel for a much needed rest before meeting up with Bevan & Chris (my workmates) in the early evening. We then went and saw one of the Stockholm office guys (Mats) for dinner at this yummy czech restaurant.

We also went out Monday night to a steak house and to play pool (along with a few drinks of course). Was great fun hanging out with various EPiServer peops.

Bruges, Belgium, Sat 19 - Sun 20 Sept 09

2009-11-17T07:40:00.000-08:00

We took a local train to Bruges (or Brugge) and our first impressions were of walking through a pretty little park next to a canal on a beautiful sunny day. A great start!

We weren't quite sure about our accommodation because we got to what we thought was the address and there was no sign on the door or anything. So we knocked on the door (whose could have been anybodys!) but luckily enough we were in the right place. The B&B owner ushered us into her home and proceeded to seat us and take us through all the admin.

She was a funny thing, very little english with a mix of French and Italian and even the odd Spanish word thrown in there too. But with a bit of work we managed to understand each other. She took us through everywhere we should go, where we should eat and drink and what to see. She meant well of course but to be honest it was quite overwhelming. Staying there was kinda like staying with a distant great aunt you've never met, lovely and talkative but you still can't help feeling a little ackward and out of place.

Armed with a map and a list of instructions we headed into Brugge in search of some lunch. We stopped at a road-side (well more of a lane really) cafe where I enjoyed a Belgium waffle with fresh strawberries and icecream! Delicious! Their waffles are so sweet and flavoursome.

With full stomachs we explored Brugge. The Markt (yes I spelt that correctly) was the main square full of cafes, the Belfry Tower and the Town Hall. Along a small street was another square called The Burg. No, wait, The Burg had the Town Hall and a pretty white renaissance style building too. There was also the church where the Holy Blood is (the Basilica of the Holy Blood) which is said to be a drop of Christ's blood.

We saw the horse drawn carts in the Markt and explored the beautiful churches, cobbled streets, canals, pretty gardens, old medieval bridges and antique markets. Brugge is an incredibly beautiful town. We also visited a lot of neat shops, Brugge is big on it's lace and chocolate!

We walked down the shopping district and came to a modern square next to the Concert Hall - a modern new architecture building. My feet were exhausted so we chilled there on seats next to a cool fountain for ages.

We had booked in for dinner at a restaurant near the Markt recommended to us by Maria, our B&B host. We were early so we chilled in the Markt watching the world (and horses) go by and enjoyed the beautiful atmosphere as the sun went down. Bruges really is something else at night, with the horse drawn carts, cobble lanes and old street lanterns it was like something straight out of a fairytale. Absolutely breathtaking.

Dinner was at a bar called Bier Brasserie Cambrinus. It was a great place with a cool atmosphere and a 400 strong beer selection. Seriously the beer menu was like a book! Check out the photo a little bit further down. Yep that is in fact the beer list! Crazy aye?!

Nick convinced me to be brave and I ordered a fruit beer, not easy since the fruit beer section of the book alone was about 6 pages! But I finally settled on a strawberry one. It was actually really good and I finished the whole thing! Only second time in my life I've finished a beer. Nick says it doesn't count since fruit beer "isn't really beer" but I still feel proud :)

The menu was weird so we took a gamble, ordering something a bit different. Nick went for a dish that we couldn't pronounce but contained beef so was reasonably safe. I went for a Rabbit dish. Nick's turned out to be a Beef Casserole and mine a Rabbit Casserole. Both stewed in beer enhanced gravy with greens, apple sauce and a side of frites (of course, this is Belgium!).

The meals were delicious, the meat soft and fall-apart yummy. Nick was happy because the chunks of beef were huge and more like chunks of steak. Rabbit tastes great, although a little tricky with the small bones. Just wish Nick hadn't kept making bunny jokes :( But the food really was outstanding. Staying at the strange B&B was worth it just for the restaurant recommendation.

I went on to order a rasberry beer (one of the most delicious drinks ever) and memorised the name (Timmermans Lambic Rasberry beer) so I hopefully can find it again and then after that a peach beer. I've never drunk so much beer in my life!

After dinner we took a stroll through the town which is absolutely magical at night. I would definitely recommend Bruges to everyone.

Sunday morning was interesting thanks to our accommodation choice. There wasn't a proper shower, only a bath with a hand held shower head attached to the tap, very tricky trying to work that one out. I think it's quite a common set up in Europe since a lot of old houses only have baths but it made for a weird start to the day. We shared breakfast with a young spanish couple who were very nice, and Maria kept trying to feed us up.

After we left the B&B we walked to one of the canal bout tour launch piers where we took a cruise around the Bruges canals in a little boat. A great way to see Brugge and it's pretty bridges and canal-side houses.

After that we queued for ages to get up the Bellfry Tower and sadly it cost a lot of money to go up a tower which had very restricted views because of a raised ledge and wire meshing. So definitely not worth it. We also stopped into the Basilica of the Holy Blood church but they had a service on (of course, it was Sunday) so saw some of the chapel but didn't see the actual holy blood relic.

Maria wasn't going to be home in the afternoon so she had given us keys to her house to go back and pick up our bags (very kind!) and we finished up our trip with a lie in the sun in the park while we waited for our train to take us back to Brussels and then on to London again.

I really had a wonderful time in Belgium. It's famous for it's beer, fries, waffles, mussels and tin-tin (a lot of food you'll noticed) and I indulged in it all (except the mussels - ick) and had a great weekend!

Brussels, Belgium, Fri 18 - Sat 19 Sept 09

2009-11-17T07:06:00.000-08:00

Travelling by Eurostar makes life so much less stressful! Quick check-in times, minimal security check holdups and a guaranteed good seat. Love it.

Arriving in Brussels and unfortunately my first impressions weren't great. May have been the area we were in but the place seemed dirty, depressing and full of dodgy drunk people. To be honest it reminded me of some places in France.

Thankfully our accommodation made up for it with what turned out to be a nice 2* hotel who had upgraded us to a room with our own bathroom, yay! (we usually book shared bathroom rooms). It was very late at night so we stepped out to get some food (from some dodgy fast food place - not much open at midnight). Thankfully the bar next door saved us with some good cheap drinks.

Finally with content stomachs, we walked to the main centre, the Grand Place, where we saw the main town square all lit up in lights. Very beautiful and finally an area of Brussels I could love. The town hall was simply gorgeous. We picked a bar and found an outdoor seat to enjoy a drink and the view. Nick ordered a beer that came in a mini yard glass, it was very cool.

Saturday was always going to be a long day as we had Brussels to explore in the morning and then we were off to Bruges for the afternoon. Brussels is much nicer in the day time, but there still wasn't much in our area so we headed back towards the main town. There were lots of choc shops (yum!) and I enjoyed some morning chocolates. Ultimately Belgium is all about the food and drink. Good beer, yummy chocolates, waffles and fries. Yum yum!

At the Grand Place we found a small festival thing going on in the square with puppets, waffels, beer and a band with traditional dancers, and some crazy people dressed up as gollywogs (that was kinda weird). I tried an apple beer at the beer tent (yes I was drinking beer!) and Nick had an elephant beer (I'm sure it was called something else but it had a pink elephant on it). I managed half of the apple beer which wasn't bad for me. Nick took photos of me to prove I was drinking beer :)

We noticed little statues of this cherub boy peeing and they were everywhere in souvenir shops etc so we figured he must be popular and famous in Brussels for some reason so we set off to find him. He was called the Mannequin Pis and is a little statue down the road from the Grand Place of a boy peeing into a fountain. Now why this is famous I still don't know as he was a bit uneventful and even worse they'd dressed him up in what looked like a little sailor costume, but I'm sure there is a good story behind it.

We decided to follow one of the walks on our map called the comic strip walk. Brussels is famous for it's comics like TinTin and the walk highlights graffiti comic art on the street and shops dedicated to comics, tin-tin and art. It was quite neat walking round and spotting random art on the walls and buildings around the city and we did see some pretty cool art stores. The walk was huge though so we only did one section of it, as we had to get on a train to Bruges.

Saturday was such a long day I'm going to right up the Bruges part in another post :)

Edinburgh, Scotland, Sun 30 - Mon 31 Aug 09

2009-11-17T06:51:00.000-08:00

Big sleep-in in the morning, still feeling like crap. Definitely had a full blown cold... damn! But I was determined to climb Arthur's Seat, I wasn't going to let a cold stop me from climbing one of the few hills I have come across in the last few months. So after a good sleep and a big breakfast we headed for the mountain at about midday. When I say mountain it really is just a big hill. According to Wikipedia it's about 20 meters higher than the Mount. So yeah not too tough of a climb but enough to get the heart pumping.

Arthur's seat is actually in the middle of the city too so it only took us about 15mins to walk to Holyrood Park at the base of it from our hostel. It doesn't have much vegetation like the Mount and it's front is dominated by the Salisbury Crags, a row of steep rock cliffs about half the height again of Arthur's Seat with tracks running along both the top and below the rock cliff.

It was mainly steps all the way to the top and then the odd bit of rock climbing before reaching the summit. The views were beautiful looking across Edinburgh. Sadly we couldn't stay up there very long as the wind was freezing. We made our way down another path where we found some blackberry bushes, yum! We had a lot of fun sourcing juicy blackberries and Nick even did the hard part of climbing up the bank amongst all the prickles to get the best ones.

We then walked the trail along the front of the Salisbury Crags which was a nice stroll to finish off our climb. I had a lot of fun, definitely miss my hiking.

We walked back up past Holyrood Palace which is the Queen's residence in Scotland (decided not to pay to go in) and wondered back up The Royal Mile, stopping for a late lunch along the way.

We decided we should see at least one festival show while we were here so we found ourselves a free comedy stand up at a local pub as part of the Fringe. I have to admit, it's harder than it seems to find a show to go to. There is almost too much choice, and it's difficult to wade through all of the listings just looking for one good show to go to. The standup was ok, not high quality but good enough for a bit of fun. The pub was really cool though with 4 stories down underground and lots of hidden rooms and dark spaces.

Monday was a pretty laxed day as I was feeling the worst I had over the whole weekend. We found a pub to chill in for a few hours and keep out of the cold. I didn't have the energy to do anymore sightseeing so we ended up taking an earlier train home so I could get back to my own bed. Unfortunately the train was delayed and packed!

By some miracle we both got seats even though the whole train was reserved, we managed to pick one of the few seats where the people didn't show up. Luck was on my side that day. I couldn't have handled a 5 hour journey standing up with a headache.

Besides getting sick I had a lot of fun in Edinburgh. It's a beautiful city with gorgeous buildings and a nice atmosphere. It's just a pity about the weather :)

Edinburgh, Scotland, Fri 28 - Sat 29 Aug 09

2009-11-16T08:26:00.000-08:00

I'm a bit behind my blog! Whoops :) Oh well better try and catch up. We took the train up for the long weekend to Edinburgh. I decided we'd go by train because even though it's a bit longer I thought it would be less hassle, haha yeah right. The train network in the UK needs a serious overhaul. No seat allocation even though we paid a silly amount for the tickets, delayed and overcrowded trains. I think the UK could take some advice from the French, their train system was awesome.

So anyway, August is the Edinburgh Festival and the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. A month long event of theatre shows, plays, dance performances, comedy shows etc. They also have the Military Tatoo on and lots of street performers and the like. We spent Friday night wondering around this madness, checking out the main street (The Royal Mile) watching the street performances and dodging the pamphlet pushers (there were a lot of them!). We had dinner in a nice japanese restaurant and did our best to stay warm in the freezing Scotland weather. Seriously, considering it was the height of summer, I could not believe how cold it was! I ended up getting sick thanks to the freezing wind. Only in the UK can you get a cold during summer! :)

We went and saw Edinburgh Castle on the Saturday. We had to queue for ages to get in so we ended up spending most of the day there. Edinburgh Castle is up on a hill at the top of the Royal Mile and the wind picks up off the Forth of Firth and blows a freezing gale across the castle grounds. The castle was fun, lots to see. We timed it really well and caught a free tour from the castle gates. It was great to hear some of the stories about the place.

At 1pm they fire a big canon from the castle grounds which was a lot of fun to watch. It gave me a huge fright when it went off even though I was expecting it! We had a look through the old Prison rooms which have been re-created so you can see what it would have been like to be a Prisoner of War there. We also saw the Crown Jewels (not as impressive as the British ones at Windsor). There was the Palace Quarters where Queen Mary of Scots was born and another room had a large memorial to the thousands of soldiers killed in WW1 and other battles. And of course we spent a bit of time just admiring the view across all of Edinburgh.

In the late afternoon we went on a mission to find a building we had seen from the castle. It was very old and black with age, in fact it was more of a monument really. We found it next to the gardens near the train station and tried to chill there in the sun but it was too damn cold in the wind so we kept moving.

We walked along Princes St, the main shopping area and kept going till we reached Carlton Hill. On the way we found an old graveyard full of beautiful tombs and monuments from the 18th century. Once we got to Carlton Hill we walked up to the summit to enjoy the view over to Arthur's seat (Edinburgh's mini mountain) and the Old Town of Edinburgh, including the view back over the castle. Man how I had missed hills! London is way too flat. I love the challenge hills bring to walks and the views always make it worthwhile.

Carlton Hill had a nice collection of monuments on top too. One was this collection of huge pillars that Nick managed to climb up on (I was too short and couldn't make it up). We chilled up on the hill for ages and found a nice spot near the edge to enjoy the views.

We'd had a pretty full on day so we headed back to the hostel. Unfortunately within half an hour of being back and relaxing at the hostel I started feeling terrible. My throat was dry & sore, I had a hazy headache and my body was aching. I knew for sure I had caught a cold. I couldn't believe how fast in happened. Damn this weather! I had absolutely no energy to leave the hostel so gave up on the idea of a night out whiskey tasting and instead got Vietnamese takeout (they had Pho, which is the tastiest dish ever and perfect for killing all sorts of nasty bugs - lots of garlic and chilli!).

Bath, England, Sun 16 August 09

2009-09-14T13:18:00.000-07:00

We headed to Bath for a Sunday day trip. We got there about midday and after a quick bite to eat at a local cafe, we spent most of the afternoon at Bath's main attraction, the Roman Baths.

The Roman Baths were much more detailed than I expected. I thought it was just going to be a couple of old baths but it turned out to be a large excavated complex with models of what the full baths and temple would have looked like, museum artifacts and excavated rooms. It was really interesting. We spent a good couple of hours there just exploring and learning all the history. It was really well done. You could really imagine what it would have been like in Roman time.

The rest of the afternoon we spent exploring Bath's cute streets, buildings and bridges. It's a cute town. There was this semi circle row of houses next to a park that was a great place to chill out and we enjoyed a nice stroll along the river and a look at the Bath weir.

And of course no visit to a small British town would be complete without ending the day at one of the local pubs :)

Amsterdam, Netherlands, Fri 17 - Sun 19 July 09

2009-08-27T08:42:00.000-07:00

Oh Amsterdam, ... well what else can I say except that it was a very eventful and party filled weekend! We were here for Nick's birthday, 8 of us ready to party.

Things Amsterdam taught me?

It will take 3 days to recover from a weekend in Amsterdam!
What happens in Amsterdam, stays in Amsterdam ;)

It was a fun city, we really had a great time. So the run down on who came; Nick and myself of course, my friends from Wellington Cherise and Tracey with their boyfriends Leighton and James, and my friend from working in Auckland Sam and his girlfriend Louise. So 8 in total.

We were staying in two apartments (4 per apartment) in what turned out to be the center of one of the bar districts (yepee!). I had booked it over the internet and didn't really know what to expect but we got really lucky.

They were 1 bedroom apartments so one couple had the room with another in the lounge and full kitchen facilities and big couches and tvs, great for hanging out. We were also literally right in the heart of it all. Although we were on the other side of town from the train station and the red light district we found ourselves in an area called Leidesplein which was the bar/clubbing area of Amsterdam. Perfect! Our apartment was just off the main street and was above a Thai restaurant. In fact people were hanging outside our apartment till 4/5am in the morning. Good thing I had bought air plugs!

We had to pick up the keys for the apartment from a hostel in a different part of town and when we were looking for it we walked up and down the street a couple of times before we spotted the door.. behind a thai restaurant menu! Felt weird walking up next to the outdoor tables with all our bags and unlocking our apartment door.

We had arrived late but luckily we were on a street full of restaurants and we found an italian one who would stay open to feed us even though it was midnight. Once the whole gang had arrived we headed into Leidesplein square and spent the rest of the night at the bars there.

On Saturday morning after a breakie of ham, cheese & fresh bread (yay go Sam our provider of tasty breakfast) we all headed for the Sex Museum for a bit of a laugh. All sorts of weird crazies there. We then split up with half heading off to the Rembrandt museum and the other half heading for Anne Franks house. Sadly neither had much luck as Anne Franks had a line a mile long so we gave up on it and the museum apparently only had print copies so wasn't worth it either.

So instead we went for a day time wonder of the red light district and found a nice pub for lunch where I tried Bitterballen (a classic dutch snack of crumbed meatballs with mustard). Weird texture, less meat and more gooey gravy but tasty. I also really really enjoyed the dutch frites with mayo we had at various times over the weekend. Seriously yum! The dutch know how to make good chips!

We had a big party night Saturday night. A great celebration for Nicks birthday. Of course we were feeling a bit worse for wear on the Sunday so we had a morning sleepin (go the 1pm apartment checkout time!). Again the group split up for the afternoon as Cherise, Leighton, Tracey & James had an earlier flight. So we went with Sam & Louise on a boat canal tour which was a cool way to see Amsterdam although the rocking made me a little queasy and put Louise to sleep! Some really cool houses along the canal fronts.

After that we hired some bikes and biked around Jaaden, an old pretty area of Amsterdam full of cute shops and cafes and then just biked around all the canals till it was time to head back to the airport. It was great fun, cycling is one of the best ways to see Amsterdam.

Milan, Italy, Sat 27 - Sun 28 June 09

2009-08-27T08:21:00.000-07:00

What Milan taught me:

Milan is for art lovers and rich shoppers, there isn't too much else to do if you don't fall into one of those categories.
The food is fabulous!
Gelato is one of the tastiest things in the world, especially on a hot day.
Italian's like to drive ridiculously fast, even on crowded city streets. They also don't pay attention to red traffic lights or pedestrian crossings.
Italian's have a relaxed approach to service.
Mosquitoes love Milan.
Milan has one of the highest ratios of Smart Cars I've ever seen.

It was a late night in on the Friday and with limited maps it was a bit of a mission to find our hotel. Needless to say we took a wrong turn a few times. When we did finally find our way there we encountered our first introduction to Italian service. We queued to check in for about 20mins. It was 1 in the morning!

We took in the Cathedral in the morning before the sun got too hot and the crowds too dense. The Cathedral is stunning, tall intricate spires with a gold madonna topping the highest and a beautiful white marble exterior. The interior was beautiful too with unique statues and colourful stained glass windows.

We took the stairs up to the roof where you can walk all along the top, a very unique experience for a Cathedral. The sun was packing a punch by mid day so we took shelter in a shady section of the roof.

The rest of the early afternoon was spent walking through the town and up to the Palace where there are lots of museums and art galleries. We stopped for Gelato and to dangle our feet in the fountain, a much needed cooling off in a stuffy city. I had selected two separate types of gelato, mine was strawberry and mango. Nick had a melon, lemon & kiwifruit three type selection. They were seriously the yummiest icecream ever!

We attempted the park behind the palace but the heat and an abundance of mosquitoes made us abandon the idea and we decided to chill out in our air conditioned hotel room instead.

We had dinner in a small Italian restaurant in the shopping district. A bottle of Italian red wine, fettucine and pizza turned out to be one of the nicest meals out I'd had in ages. Italy does food miles beyond your local London fare.

Sunday was pretty relaxed since we'd pretty much seen everything already (yes there really was that little to do in Milan). We didn't venture out till the afternoon which turned out to be good because nothing opened till the afternoon anyway, and in fact many things didn't open at all.

We did some window shopping in the golden quad (think Versace, YSL, Gucci, Prada, Dior etc etc). But by the late afternoon the sun was beating down again and even worse than the day before so we treated ourselves to Gelato's for a second day in row and spent the new few hours people watching with our feet cooling off in the fountain.

Copenhagen, Zealand, Denmark, Sat 20 - Sun 21 June 09

2009-07-12T08:52:00.000-07:00

Things I learned about Copenhagen:

You can walk the city easily but with so much to see your feet will be killer by the end of the day so hire a bike (something I wish we'd learned BEFORE the weekend!)
Copenhagen is the most bike friendly city I've ever visited with cycle dedicated lanes and it's so trustworthy people don't bother to lock their bikes either.
The water taxis have a very limited timetable, not so great when you want to use them as a mode of transport :)
Everyone speaks English but trying to pronounce Dutch is a fun pastime.
Food is delicious, so many great cafes and eateries.
It's a party city so walking through the streets in the morning is peacefully quiet.
Copenhagen is very green with it's windfarms, recycling bins everywhere, bikes and even a drink cup recylcing programme at the theme park.
You can't find a sign with Zealand on it, no matter how hard you look.

We saw so much in Copenhagen, it's a beautiful city. It had never been on my list of places to go but a cheap airfare came up so we took the opportunity and I'm so glad we did. Copenhagen was one of my favourite places yet!

We walked a lot of Copenhagen. There were so many beautiful buildings and places to see. On Saturday we also took a canal guided tour which was a fun way to see the city. It kept bucketing with rain so we'd have to take cover under the little canal boat roof. The best part was going under the low tiny bridges where the boat could only just fit. We had planned to use the water buses to get around but it turned out their schedules were annoying so we just walked everywhere.

We strolled down Nyhavn, the famous quay full of picturesque houses, wooden boats and water front cafes. Beautifully colourful and made for great photos. We walked around Stotsholmen, an island filled with parliament buildings, museums and a gigantic library where we sheltered from the rain. One side of the library is called The Black Diamond, called this because at sunset the water reflects off the black glass of the building and makes it sparkle.

We walked through the Amalienborg Palace where the royal family live and caught the end of the changing of the guard. There is a gorgeous fountain there with views over the river and the opera house in one direction, and the spectacular marble church the other.

We kept walking along to Kastellet (a military fortress) where we passed a beautiful fountain of the Goddess Gefion showing a legend on how the island Zealand came to be.. and damn still no Zealand plaque. I so wanted some proof I'd been to the old Zealand :) And then we carried on to the Little Mermaid, the famous Copenhagen statue depicting the Little Mermaid from the fairytale written by Hans Christian Andersen.

We spent Saturday night at the Tivoli Gardens, Copenhagen's adventure park. We had so much fun. There was so much to do there. They had amusement park rides, we went on the Himmelskibet, the world's tallest carousel at 80 m. It was pretty scary. I'd like to say we had beautiful views of Copenhagen but you couldn't see much when you're spinning around.

We watched some of a Pantomime show which was kinda weird and there were lots of pretty gardens and lights to look at. On the main outdoor stage they had a jazz band and a team of professional dancers who entertained us for a few hours. It was great music and the dancers were fun to watch while enjoying a tasty cider. It was such a great night.

On Sunday we walked up the Round Tower, an old observatory built in 1642, it had great views over Copenhagen and a really fun spiral walkway. We wondered through the beautifully manicured lawns of the Kings Gardens and admired the Rosenborg Slot (castle), and it turned out to be a pleasant place to rest our weary feet. We then headed back to the Marble Church for a peak inside (it had been closed on the Saturday for a wedding).

Our last stop was Christianshavn, an island full of canals, cafes, boats and pretty houses. We had the tastiest home made pizza for lunch sitting on the side of the canal.

Christiania is also on the island. An 'alternative lifestyle' community it made for some interesting people watching. No photos were allowed in there though. Something a bit different.

We spent the last of the afternoon simply sitting by the canal enjoying the sun. It was bliss. Would love to head back to Copenhagen.

Los Angeles, Fri 22 May - Sun 25 May 09

2009-05-27T13:56:00.000-07:00

We spent a couple of days in LA on the way back over the London and I found it quite different to what I had been expecting. Hollywood certainly isn't glamorous by any sense of the word but is a lot of fun. The weather was incredible and there are so many crazy people there. LA is also one of the only cities I've been to where the main downtown is one of the least interesting places in the city.

Flying in we realised how huge LA really is and how it is flat like a pancake! There are a couple of hills out the back but otherwise it is a completely flat, very wide, grid like system. Unfortunately we also found out that LA has the most dreadful public transportation system (it could rival Auckland!). The metro is frequent enough but limited in it's destinations so it was pretty much buses for us. Sadly the buses are a lot more infrequent (sometimes only 1 an hour), you have to change often, finding a timetable is impossible and stop information once your on the bus is virtual non-existent. Getting from our hostel back from the beach took close to 2 hours. The one good thing is it was very cheap!

We spent most of our time in LA exploring the town and the famous areas. It was memorial day weekend so everything was packed which meant we decided against any of the adventure parks. We did spend a whole day down at the beaches including Venice beach and Santa Monica beach (although technically it's just one really long beach). Venice beach is fantastic for people watching. There are some crazy cats around that area. We watched the beefed up muscle men in the outdoor gym and wondered the market stalls selling everything from permanent tattoos to a 2 headed turtle.

We walked from Venice beach along the bike track up to Santa Monica. There was every type of bike you could imagine including apehangers (bikes with huge handlebars) and tricycle bikes. It was too cold to swim but I enjoyed just laxing on the beach for the day. The beach is really wide which means it feels like nobody is there, it could have been a quiet day though too.

Santa Monica beach has a pier full of stalls and fairground rides. It also has a great shopping district that we checked out. We found this delicious frozen yoghurt shop called PinkBerry where you can choose your flavour and toppings. I had a pomegranate frozen yoghurt covered in fresh strawberries, blueberries and chocolate chips. Yummy!

Of course we checked out the Hollywood walk of fame and the Chinese Theatre with the hand/foot prints of the stars. There were a lot of people dressed up in costumes on Hollywood Boulevard. We also went down into Beverley Hills and checked out Rodeo Drive with every designer label you can imagine. The car spotting was incredible too from Ferraris to Porsches there was a lot of money in that area. We had a wonder through the Beverley Hills neighborhood to check out all the fancy houses too.

As something a bit different we went to the Famers Market which has been around since the 1930s and has lots of food stalls and wondered through the Grove, a nice shopping area next door to the Farmers Market. We also went to the La Brea Tar Pits, which are a collection of pits where tar has seeped up from the earth over thousands of years and created a kind of tar 'quick sand'. Of course back in the days when the animals were roaming around they were death traps, so the tar pits hold a large collection of fossils. One of the pits has excavated over 50,000 fossils alone. All a bit science geeky I know but I found it fascinating.

The hostel we stayed in was really cool with a bar (cheap drinks, yay!) and lots of events like comedy night which was a lot of fun thanks to the 5 local comedians who came and performed. We could even see the hollywood sign from our room. We went on a walking tour with the hostel up into Runyon Canyon Park, a dog park up in the Hollywood Hills.

The climb up is pretty tough but its worth it with the views over LA and the Hollywood sign. It's also a good location for celeb spotting cause a lot of them take their dogs up there to walk and exercise. I saw the actress who played Jean Grey on Xmen but no-one else over our couple of day in LA.

We had a lot of fun in LA, more than I expected to.

Update

2009-05-27T13:55:00.001-07:00

Well after nearly 3 months of waiting and waiting my visa finally came through and I'm back in London. It's nice to be back into the swing of things, it was pretty stressful being in hiatus like that. Of course it was wonderful seeing family and friends but I'm excited to be back in London to get my adventure back on track!

Waitangi Day Pub Crawl, Sat 7 Feb 08

2009-02-19T10:54:00.000-08:00

What can I say... a day of drinking, walking, catching up with friends, and well more drinking! The pub crawl started at 10:30am and went through to about 5. Nick and I armed ourselves with a bottle of whiskey in our backpack and we were set!

There were some great costumes including kiwis, robots from Flight of the Conchords (and the guys themselves), Eagle vs Shark, Gorillas, 4 Square attendants, sheep, buzzy bees, NZ police and the Mongrel Mob. All sorts! A fun day!

London Snow, Mon 2 Feb 09

2009-02-19T09:07:00.000-08:00

London experienced one of it's largest snowfalls in years! It started Sunday night and Nick, my flatmates and I made the most of the fresh snowfall by having a large snowfight out the front of our house and even got our landlord's son Daniel in on the act.

In the morning we were completely snowed in, the entire London bus network was down along with most of the trains and tubes too so no-one was going to work. Nick and I headed out for a long walk early while the snow was still fresh (it was a lot of slush by the end of the day). We ended up down at the river which was beautiful in the snow.

While at the river I heard a siren and waited to see the fire engine or ambulance that was making it... the next thing I know a fire engine boat flys up the river.... definitely one of the stranger things I've seen.

I loved the snow, wish it would snow more in London! Makes winter a little bit bearable.

Köln, Germany, New Years 09

2009-02-19T09:04:00.000-08:00

The rest of our visit in Köln was rather quiet. New Years day was spent recovering from New Years Eve and we flew out the day after. All in all Germany was a fantastic holiday and not a bad way to spend Christmas :)

Köln, Germany, New Years Eve 08

2009-02-18T11:09:00.000-08:00

Arriving in Köln we were greeted by the magnificent Dom Cathedral, a large beautiful structure right next to the train station. However after arriving at our hotel we found ourselves so happy to have top notch accommodation we spent the rest of the afternoon there! After a few bottles of wine scored from the next door gas station we headed out to watch the fireworks.

I certainly wasn't expecting what I saw. I was expecting a formal fireworks display over the river, what we got was thousands of people lining the river and bridges letting off individual fireworks. The effect was incredible. And the fireworks weren't just those crappy ones you get in NZ but the big sky rockets and double happy fireworks.

It was carnage, fireworks going off all around and people everywhere. I'd never seen or heard anything like it before in my life. It was so much fun.

Some of the big crackers were thrown into the railway tracks on the bridge and they made a hefty bang that made me jump every time. Nick and I had so much fun that night. Sorry we didn't get any photos of the fireworks, I have some videos though but bit tricky to upload to the blog.

The mess left behind was crazy, fireworks shells everywhere!

Rothenburg Ob Der Tauber, Germany, Tues 30 Dec 08

2009-02-06T06:54:00.001-08:00

The Pension at Rothenburg was so warm and cosy I really struggled to get out of bed. Germans are sort of weird in that they sleep with separate duvet covers on double beds, but they all have nice big soft feather pillows and duvets so it's not all bad! With a hearty breaky it was one of the best places we'd stayed on our trip. I really wanted to stay another night but we had to be in Köln for new years eve and it was simply impossible for us to get from Rothenburg to Köln in one day so we had to keep moving north.

We did get to spend the day exploring the town but it was far more packed with tourists during the day. All the shops had signs in German, English and Japanese and there were American and Japanese tourists everywhere! It seems the Neuschwanstein Castle and Rothenburg are THE things to do in Germany. But it's still a beautiful town and that medieval feel is still there.

We climbed the tower in the Rathaus for a cool view of the city (but I think the climb up the rickety steps was the most fun) and did a little shopping in the Christmas stores. Nick found an awesome sword and knife shop which he spent most of his time in.

We walked most of the city including down to the outer wall garden that looks out over the valley, it's surprising to see the town is actually perched on a flat hill. We also saw the Church that has an archway so the road can go through it (it was built like that!) and the famous medieval houses that frequent all the paintings and pictures of Rothenburg, one of the most common ones was just down from our Pension Gasthaus.

I said a sad goodbye to Rothenburg in the afternoon, I would have loved to have stayed but we needed to be closer to Köln so we boarded a train to Würzburg at the very top of the Romantic Road.

Würzburg is actually a very cool city with a gorgeous (and huge) palace with beautiful gardens that contained frozen fountains! The town also had lots of beautiful churches and many other cool architecture buildings. I really enjoyed wondering through the city so I was pretty happy we had stopped there.

Romantic Road, Germany, Mon 29 Dec 08

2009-02-06T06:29:00.000-08:00

Today was always going to be an interesting day. We were attempting to navigate half of the romantic road in one day on public transportation in the winter! Not a small feat. I had been forwarned that public transportation was tricky along the romantic road and we knew we were being a bit adventurous in our plans. We wanted to get from Augsburg to Rothenburg ob der Tauber with at least a stop in Dinkelsbühl (which someone had recommended to us on the trip).

We left Augsburg early and took the train to Nördlingen (we changed at Danausworth but only saw the station there). We had an hour walk around Nördlingen which was a nice little walled town before boarding the bus for Dinkelsbühl. There were only 2 buses that day so it was important we caught it. The local buses are very slow and stop in every single little town on the way but it's actually quite a good way to see the real Germany.

Dinkelsbühl was awesome, a tiny little town surrounded by an ancient wall (and a frozen river!) with the cutest German houses and churches and townhall (Rathaus). It was like walking straight into a medieval city. I'm really pleased we made the effort to see it, there are far fewer tourists than the more popular Rothenburg and everyone was so nice, I even had a guy stop and ask if I needed help because he knew the information centre was closed. So friendly! At Dinkelsbühl we also visited the 3D museum which is a collection of crazy 3D illusions and holigrams and even a hommage to the good old viewmaster! A very wacky place and definitely something a bit different.

In the afternoon we left Dinkelsbühl to attempt our most complicated route of the day; multiple buses to get to Rothenburg for the night. We started out ok, waiting at the Dinkelsbühl bus station talking to some old German guy who didn't speak any English but who was determined to have a conversation with me. I managed to convey where we were from, where we were going and agreed with him that it was indeed cold. Beyond that I'm not sure of anything he said.

On the first bus the driver spoke some English and we told him the stop we wanted and another women on the bus was going there too and was going to let us know and then the old guy piped up and started to chatting to the driver in German about us and I'm pretty sure it went something like "these crazy kiwis are trying to get to Rothenburg and I don't think they know what they're doing".. or something along those lines because once we got to our stop (in Mooseweise, Feuchtwangen - yes really that is what is was called and you pronounce it moose-vise fuct-wang-in, well kinda with a german accent), anyway so once we got there the driver jumps out and says he is sure there is no direct bus to Rothenburg from there and he goes and talks to this van driver. Anyway long story short he tells us (remember this is all in very broken english) that the van will take us to another town where we can get a bus to Rothenburg. We were a little apprehensive especially since the driver looked like that stoner boss off That 70s Show, but there was another girl in what essentially looked like a taxi van and everyone in Germany had been so nice so far we figured it'd be alright.

We jumped in and ended up in some dinky little place in the middle of nowhere. He points us to a bus stop and leaves us there! I was just about to start freaking out about being in a tiny town in the middle of rural Germany with no idea where we were and no-one around to help when a bus pulls up with Rothenburg on the front. Yay! hehe It really turned out to be an adventurous day.

We arrived at Rothenburg ob der Tauber (full name I'll just call it Rothenburg) early evening and we walked into the old town to find our accommodation, a cosy four storey Pension with comfy beds and an old granny who didn't seem happy about us ringing the bell so late.

Rothenburg is gorgeous, especially at night. Christmas lights galore, gorgeous buildings, old stone walls, cobblestone higgeldy streets and lit up shop windows with the most incredible array of Christmas things. It really was a Christmas paradise. We found a small restaurant serving traditional Bavarian food, I had noodles stuffed with meatloaf and served with egg and potato salad. It was delicious. We spent the rest of the night wondering through the town. There weren't too many others out because it was freezing which really enhanced our night walk.

We got to see the Rathaus clock show which depicts a drinking contest between a Catholic Colonel and the Protestant Mayor over the fate of the town. The Mayor drinking 1 1/2 litres of beer in one go is said to have saved the town from destruction. A cool story though the clock show was a little boring.. the window opens, the mayor drinks, the colonel watches and the window closes... all to the chime of a clock.

Castles, Füssen, Germany, Sun 28 Dec 08

2009-02-04T07:11:00.000-08:00

After a good breaky of salami, cheese and bread at our Pension (that seems to be a typical Bavarian breaky) we jumped on the bus to visit the famous Ludwig castles; Neuschwanstein and Hohenschwangau. They were just out of Füssen in a smaller village. Even early in the morning and mid winter it was busy!

We left the lazies at the bottom of the hill waiting for the horse and cart or bus and started the 45min walk up the hill. It really wasn't that bad and with the snow covered forest it was beautiful surroundings. The castle was quite impressive but not as "pretty" as I had hoped. And I had an idea in my head that it would be white for some reason, but it was grey like a lot of castles. Maybe I'd seen too many disney land castle pictures.

We climbed up the back hill to get a better view of the castles, the valley and the Hohenschwangau village. The views were spectacular, it really is a magical place, made all the better with snow. It's just destroyed by all the people! We walked up to Mariesbücke (Mary's bridge) which had great views over Neuschwanstein (sadly with scaffolding) but there were so many people there it really took away from the experience. We trekked further up the hill and found a cool quiet view but we soon lost that too so we slowly made our way back down the hill using snow covered back trails.

By the time we got to the bottom the area was packed! Down in the town there were people everywhere and massive queues for the horses and bus (use your legs people!). We knew it was time to get outta there. And it was only midday! I am so happy we went there so early.

Back in Füssen we were starving but there was nothing open. Not even a tiny bakery, it seems they take their Sundays seriously here. We resorted to chocolate bars from the gas station. hehe

Prior to arriving in Germany we hadn't really worked out what we were doing between Füssen and getting to Cologne for New Years. We had quite a few days so we figured it'd be fine... unfortunately I sort of misjudged how far away Cologne actually was so we soon realised we were running out of time to get ourselves back up the country. So we decided to skip the south half of the Romantic Road and head straight to Augsburg from Füssen, stay a night there and then head off first thing in the morning to make sure we would manage to spend some time in the small villages in the north half of the Romantic Road.

Boarding our train to Augsburg in Füssen I realised Nick was missing his backpack... with my passport and wallet in it! Crap! He had left it on the floor of the train station! Double crap! He bolted back to the station, I don't know if I've ever seen anyone run so quickly. I was freaking because a train load of people had just gotten off that very train and walked through the very small station and would have easily spotted the bag. Luckily for us the Germans are a very honest people (or at least the ones at that train station on that day were) and the bag was still there! Meanwhile I was standing in the train door in the hope that if they couldn't close the door the train wouldn't be able to leave and I wouldn't be stranded on a train with no tickets, no money, no passport, no phone and no Nick! It was either that or try to lug two extremely heavy bags off the train on my own, not something I think I was physically capable of doing at that point.

Oh well another very close call and Nick was back on the train with all our belongings accounted for. I think someone is definitely looking out for us on this trip! In Augsburg we found our hostel on the otherside of town and also found ourselves debating with the owner on the price we'd booked it for.. not an easy task in another language. By this stage I was getting better at deciphering German and could even pick up odd things but I'm sure this guy was making it more difficult for us by pretending his English was worse than it was. We managed to settle on a price and we practically passed out we were so tired. We really didn't see anything of Augsburg but it really didn't look very interesting, sleep was much more important at that stage!

Füssen, Germany, Sat 27 Dec 2008

2009-02-04T06:38:00.000-08:00

I was very sad to be leaving our winter paradise. We had one last play in the snow before catching the train back into Garmisch-Partenkirchen. I also experienced another stroke of luck this morning, the receptionist hadn't given my credit card back (and I hadn't noticed) and she managed to catch me just before I boarded the train to give it back. It seems our trip was going to be filled with lost items and leaving things behind (there was yet more to come) but karma seemed to want us having a happy trip, maybe it was making up for us being sick...

We were trying to work out the best way to get from Garmisch to Füssen. Even though they're quite close together the mountains make it a little tricky and there are no direct trains and only a very slow irregular bus. Through the online train timetable we had found a faster indirect route on trains, we double checked things at the tourist office against the bus and it was indeed faster but we were actually going through Austria! We would have one stop in Austria before heading back into Germany for Füssen. Sounded fun to us so we decided to go for it.

Unfortunately things didn't quite go our way and the train was cancelled at the last minute (thankfully there was an announcement in German over the speaker... pity we didn't speak German... took us about 10mins to work it out!) Now you have to understand this put us in a tricky situation, there were only 2 buses going to Fussen, and 1 was now leaving in 5 minutes! The other was another 7 hours away! We were in trouble so we tried to divide and conquer, Nick headed for the bus stop to try and get tickets, I headed to the train reception to try and get refunds, big queue, no time.. I sprinted to the bus and made it just as they were about to drive off... with Nick on it and not me! Phew!

Turned out the bus ride was great with gorgeous scenery through the alps and all the small German villages. And I mean all. The bus stops in every single little town and village along the road. It was a slow but pleasant trip. We did have to change buses at one point and while we were waiting for the next one I saw a large tractor heading down the road with snow chains! Never seen anything like that before, it was a strange sight.

When we arrived in Füssen I was happy to see there was still snow everywhere (yay!) and it was still freezing (not so yay!). In fact I'm sure it felt colder in Füssen then it did in Hammersbach. It was certainly hovering around the -10deg mark. We found our B&B guesthouse (called a Pension in Germany) just out of town.

Füssen is a beautiful quaint little place with a large town hall up on a hill overlooking the icy blue river and next to a snow covered park. The houses and buildings are so different with gorgeous colours and paintings/murals on the walls, wooden window balconies and outside shutters with flower boxes. Füssen is right next to the most famous castle in Germany and yet most people overlook it because they come down from Munich for the day. I am so glad we decided to stay a night there, it was one of the most beautiful towns we had visited and because all the tourists didn't stay it was quiet and full of only locals at night which was fantastic!

Zugsptize, Germany, Boxing Day 08

2009-02-04T03:29:00.001-08:00

We woke up to a complete white dumping outside! Yay. I love snow. No matter how tired I felt I was determined to go snowboarding today as it was our last chance so we set the alarm early, had breaky, bought our mountain tickets and... missed the train... damn. So we had to wait nearly an hour for the next one, we didn't realise they went so infrequently, our timing so far must have been impeccable. Oh well, a good chance to have another walk around Hammersbach now it was completely covered in snow.

Rather than take the train the entire way we got out at Eibsee and took the cable car to the summit. We had seen the cable car the day before from the peak and it looked damn scary (see pic below)! It goes straight up the mountain at some incredible incline and swings dangerously close to the mountain rocks, but hey we were game for anything. The ride was scary but the views were incredible, we even spotted the Eibsee lake which we hadn't managed to see from the summit. The cable car is rather bumpy and rocky, gets buffeted by the wind and you do get very close to the cliff so it's not for the faint-hearted but definitely a great experience. The cable car goes all the way to the summit platform so we had to take the mini cable car back down to the ski slope and hire our snowboards.

This was Nicks first time on a snowboard and he was a crazy natural. He got up and just went. No falling over or un-steadiness. It was just freaky. The first trail we picked was the beginner one up the T-Bar. T-Bars are not easy for snowboarders, they're a bit tricky and damn tiresome too! The easy trail was fun, a wide open slope that reminded me of the Auckland Silverdale snow dome where I had learnt to snowboard. We did that a few times then headed for the Intermediate trails.

These were harder work with much steeper slopes that really put my calves to the test. There was one really fun bit that was like a concave so you go really fast down so you can get up the other side. We found ourselves off trail at one point and we landed right into the deep powder. Deep powder is a bit of a problem on a snowboard, you hit the powder and you bail.. hard! At least the landing is fun. I managed to face plant it a couple of times! And when you do bail you end up in knee deep powder which can take forever to climb out of. At one point I looked over and Nick had bailed and all I could see was his upper body. The powder was so deep he was covered up to his waist! Crazy fun. I also found a great little run with mini jumps that was fun too.

After the intermediate runs we were knackered so we had a rest and went back to the beginners run to round off the day. The slope was good but the T-Bar was a killer so we didn't last long.

We said our last goodbyes to the mountain as the sun went down. It had been a much colder day and we were frozen. The train ride home warmed us a little but we were really hanging out for a spa so back at the hotel we grabbed our vouchers for the "wellness oasis" slipped on our togs and headed down for a spa. Um.. yeah... not a spa. Turns out it was a German sauna full of old naked people. Very weird. You walk past a bar to get to it (seems Germans like to have a drink after they get naked and sweaty) and then theres this big room where everyone chills out in towels, then off that are sauna and steam rooms which they hang out in naked. Too strange. We left and headed for the swimming pool instead followed by a hot shower It was the best we could do.

My First White Christmas, Zugspitze, Germany, Christmas Day 08

2009-02-04T02:47:00.000-08:00

We woke up to snowfall outside. The best thing to see on Christmas morning!

I was still feeling ill and weak even after a late sleep in and tasty breakfast so we decided to fore-go the snowboarding and simply head up the mountain for the views and snow.

The Zugspitze cogwheel train goes all the way up to the top of the Zugspitze mountain, Germany's highest. It was built in the 1930s and includes 4km of track staight through the mountain. It was quite impressive really. And it goes directly up to the ski fields at the top, you get out of the train and you're at the top of the ski lifts!

We came out of the ski building and found ourselves surrounded by snow. And not just any snow, beautiful soft powder snow! I'd never felt snow this soft before! The first thing we did was go and jump in it. We found a hill off track and walked up it, feet sinking into the powder up to our calves! Nick rolled down the hill a few times, we had massive snowball fights, basically we played in the snow like kids for ages!

After a little while we took the cable car up to the peak. A very short trip up to a weather station building perched on the peak with a balcony to admire the scenery. At the top we enjoyed the spectacular views of the mountain range. We were far above the cloud line and it was one of the most beautiful views I've ever seen. But it was freezing! About -14deg cel! And that doesn't count the wind chill. The wind blown icicles on the railings were awesome and we spotted the gold cross which marks the highest point in Germany.

Unfortunately somehow Nick had managed to lose his day pass which includes access to the mountain and the railway transport home. We were in trouble, another one was going to cost close to £40 (thats over $100nz) so we were a little frantic. We managed to convince the guy to let us back down on the cable car so we could at least look for it before we had to buy another one but we knew our chances were slim. So back at the ski area we headed for the snow hill in search of his card. We thought we'd never find it, it could have easily been buried in a foot of snow, but by some freakish stroke of luck I spotted it poking up out of the snow after about 15mins of searching. Nick pretty much rugby tackled me when I shouted to him that I'd found it hehe.

We spent the rest of the afternoon just playing, making a snowman, having snow fights, climbing up snow hills, rolling down snow hills, building snow huts, watching the tabagonors, skiiers and snowboarders and just generally having a fantastic time. We took the last train home at 4:30, it was getting dark and very cold by then and it was a very slow trip home.

After making use of the swimming pool again we sat down for dinner with the same German couple who were at our table the night before. This time though we tried to make conversation, a little tricky since their English was minimal, our german non-existant, so communication became a fun game.

We did manage to find out they were retired and he used to drive a train and she did something with insurance (the cherades played out by the guy showing cars crashing was quite fun) and that they visit Garmisch every couple of years. They learnt we were from NZ, living in London and that I worked with computers and there was no way we could communicate what Nick did. I think in the end they thought he was an electrician of sorts. We also found out she'd been out shooting that day (a common pastime it seems) and had won a bottle of bubbly which they happily shared with us. Germans are very friendly.

It was the most unique Christmas day I've ever had and my first White Christmas. I had a fantastic time!

Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Germany, Christmas Eve 08

2009-02-04T02:31:00.000-08:00

I was extremely ill Christmas eve morning which did not make for a good trip into Garmisch. I was a wreck and my head felt like mush, and with Nick still getting through the tail end of his cold we were a sorry pair. I hadn't slept most of the night but managed to zonk on the train which really helped perk me up a bit.

Once we arrived in Garmisch-Partenkirchen, a ski town in the south of Bavaria amongst the Alps, we decided to go directly to the hotel which is out of the town and at the base of the mountains. We boarded the little local Zugspitze cogwheel train and found ourselves in Hammersbach which was covered in snow! It was beautiful, all white and powdery. We checked in and found our room overlooked a little grass patio (complete with icy snow). We quicly left the room and explored our little slice of paradise.

Hammersbach is a tiny little village with our hotel, a few farm houses and a tiny church. We climbed the bank that rose at the back of the hotel and had our first of many snow ball fights and then followed a track up along the river for a little while, playing with massive chunks of ice and we spotted deer prints. Hammersbach is the base of a very popular gorge trek but it was closed at that time of year of course. We followed the road down through Hammersbach and walked across a large field, practically falling straigh through the softest powder I've ever seen. The scenery was breathtaking and then the fog rolled in, making the whole place strangely eerie. I was pretty tired by this point so I had a sit on a park bench while Nick went on further exploration - not quite realising the bench was covered in ice, making it an extremely cold place to sit!

Back at the hotel we had a little rest before heading out for some free Gluwein and the Bavarian Christmas "party" we had been promised... hmmm.... that was well.... interesting. Picture a room full of over 60s sitting at tables drinking tea listening to German Christmas stories and folk songs. Nick and I lasted about 15mins before we bailed. What a laugh. It didn't take us long to realise we were the only young people in the entire hotel and one of only a few who spoke English. This was going to be interesting. So after bailing from the party we headed for the hotel swimming pool which had huge massage fountains and crazy big water jets that made you feel like you were sitting in a whirlpool. Very strange. And there was gym equipment.. in the pool! So you could do aqua muscle toning or something. Germans are kinda weird.

Breakfast and dinners were included in our hotel package so we sat down for a large buffet style dinner with lots of local food to try. The staff were a bit iffy, some were friendly but some were quite grumpy, especially our waitress whose face would have fallen off if she'd cracked a smile I reckon.

After a quick call home to wish everyone a Merry Christmas I crashed for like 12 hours. First time I've ever been sick over Christmas before. There are some definite downsides to a White Christmas... luckily the snow made up for it!

Munich (München), Germany, Tues 23 Dec 08

2009-01-24T05:06:00.000-08:00

Neither of us were feeling too flash today so had a bit of quiet one. We took the train down to Munich and were staying in a hostel called The Wombat. A pretty cool place with friendly staff and a great bar.

We checked out the Christmas markets by night (since we missed them in Nuremberg), rode a tram, tried mini bratwurst in a bun, drank Gluwein, ate Pomme Frites and enjoyed the pretty Christmas lights.

In the centre square is the most beautiful gothic town hall. It was incredible. Munich is a cool city, I hope we get back there again. But sadly we weren't up for a big night in Munich so headed back to the hostel, Nick had a few drinks in the bar and I pretty much fell asleep in the bar! hehe

Nuremberg (Nürnberg), Germany, Mon 22 Dec 08

2009-01-24T04:39:00.000-08:00

The start of our two week adventure in Germany! Unfortunately Nick had managed to catch a cold off his workmate the day before we left, and by the second day in Germany I was crook too! Not a good start to our trip.

Nürnberg was great, we scored a great deal in a 4 star hotel which was as cheap as some hostels we stayed at so we made the most of it with big sleep ins! We spent the afternoon exploring the town and it's Christmas markets. Nürnberg is a lot smaller than I expected. The Christmas markets were great, much better than the ones in London with an array of different sights and smells; bratwurst, Glühwein (hot mulled wine), chocolate crepes, roasted nuts and millions of Christmas decorations. The stands were beautiful.

We also went for a walk up the hill to the Castle for great views back over the town and found the gothic fountain in the city square which has a gold ring in it's fence which will give you luck if you turn it.

Randomly we bumped into my old workmate Robin and his wife Grace who were even staying in the same hotel as us. Small world!

In the afternoon we took a bus out to the Documentation Museum at the Nazi Party Rally Grounds. It had tonnes of information about Nazi Germany, the Nuremberg trials and the old Party Rally Grounds. It was really interesting.

We headed back into town to see the Christmas markets by night but we had misjudged it and they shut really early... whoops!

Dublin, Ireland, Fri 12 - Sun 14 Dec 08

2008-12-20T09:32:00.000-08:00

A weekend in Dublin visiting my old workmate Sam and his girlfriend Louise meant a weekend of drinking! That is pretty much the most popular thing to do in Dublin, and they do it well! Although it aint cheap for a night out in Dublin. One of the most expensive cities I've visited so far!

Friday night we started at a cuban bar complete with cigars and tasty Irish Whiskey (which was to become my staple diet for the weekened... the whiskey, not the cigars). We also sampled some local Irish grub on the way home... Supermacs... very much like mcdonalds! haha gotta try the local takeaways.

Saturday we started our day at the Old Jameson distillery which they live right next door to! Lucky for some. Louise had to go Christmas shopping so Sam, Nick and I headed for the distillery. It's not a working one, more museum style but the tour was kinda fun and at the end we were amongst those chosen for a special tasting. Along with the standard Jameson drink you get at the end of the tour we also got to compare a shot of Irish (Jamesons), Scotch (Johnny Walker) and American (JDs) Whiskey. Can't think of many things more fun than that!

Sam took us on a walking tour in the afternoon. He knew a lot about Dublin so made a great guide. We saw lots of pretty buildings and churches. Christ Church was the best and the bells were going at the time we past which was beautiful to hear. I have to admit I was quite surprised, I wasn't expecting Dublin to be so pretty.

We also checked out the local Christmas markets and met back up with Louise, quite similar to the setup of markets in London, lots of cool stalls to wonder through.

That night we headed into Temple Bar (the famous drinking district of Ireland) and started our pub crawl. We started at The Temple Bar with some fantastic Irish music. We followed on with more cosy pubs, more whiskey and more great music. It was a fantastic night.

The last one we visited was the oldest pub in Dublin. It had graffitied dollar bills all over the walls which made the place look very unique. I ended the night with a tasty Baileys coffee to keep me warm for the walk home (it was rather chilly in Dublin). I loved that when you order a coffee in Dublin, they automatically assume you want alcohol in it!

Sunday we had to say goodbye to our hosts as they had family commitments and we did our own thing. We started at Dublin's temporary Christmas ice rink since we'd enjoyed it so much as Hyde Park. Sadly this one wasn't so great with terribly uncomfortable skates and not very good equipment.

After that we spent the afternoon at the Guiness Brewery. Not what I was expecting, it's a self guided tour through 5 floors of information about Guiness and the Brewery. I found it quite boring but I'm glad we went. At the end you get to pour your own Guiness which I found lots of fun. I tried mine but quickly gave it up to Nick. I'll stick with the Whiskey thanks!

It was great spending the weekend with friends, least of all for the comfy air bed and cooked breaky but mainly for the fun company and great local knowledge. If you're reading this, thanks guys!

Hyde Park Winter Wonderland, London, Sun 7 Nov 08

2008-12-20T09:07:00.000-08:00

Winter Wonderland is a big Christmas theme park in Hyde Park in London. We went there one Sunday because I really wanted to go ice skating outdoors (it's on my list of must do's while I was over here) and they had an outdoor rink. We had a booking for night (it's really busy so you have to book a session) but decided to head earlier during the day because we knew there'd be a fair bit to do.

It was so packed, all the stalls and rides were along one very narrow lane so it was like a mosh pit of families. So to get away from the crowds for a little while we hired a boat and went out for a row on the Serpentine lake. No one else was out there at first so it was really peaceful.

The coolest thing was that the corner of the lake was frozen on top and we got to row through it! It was so much fun smashing the top of the lake with the oars and picking up big chunks of ice (though that didn't last long as my hands started to freeze over).

Back at Winter Wonderland we enjoyed some Bratwurst hotdogs at the German markets and tasty dutch pancakes covered in chocolate (thanks to the recommendation of my friend Arn).

But the best part of the day was the ice skating. It was best at night with all the beautiful Christmas lights. We got there really early so were at the front of the queue and were let out on to the ice first. Our first lap on the rink was on untouched ice. Very cool. I was a bit unsteady at first but I soon got the hang of it. There were far too many people to go really fast but it was still heaps of fun. Nick managed to fall over and took out a women with him! It was hilarious. I fell over once too but only because Nick was trying to shove ice down my back so I don't think that counts!

Leeds Castle, Kent, England, Sat 22 Nov 08

2008-12-19T10:55:00.001-08:00

Wow Leeds Castle was awesome. I'd read about it in the Lonely Planet so we decided to head out for a day trip. Funnily enough the castle isn't very interesting, it's everything else on the grounds that is. We took a coach down from London (a couple hours) and it was a freezing cold day! Even with the sun out. We were all rugged up but it was hard to get out of the bitterly cold wind.

Leeds castle is set on beautiful large grounds with plenty of gardens, duck ponds and lakes. The castle itself is picturesque and situated on a small island surrounded by a man made lake.

We spent most of the day outside wondering the grounds, our noses freezing in the near zero degree temperatures. The castle had a hedge maze which was so much fun getting lost in. It was a decent size one with a concrete lookout in the center. Nick and I had a race to the middle... Nick won :(

Once at the lookout we found a grotto which drops down under the maze giving another exit out. It was filled with crystals, coloured lights and carvings of birds and faces. It was really for the kids but I found it awesome. Lots of fun.

The maze was on the outskirts of the castle grounds near the Falconry. Leeds castle houses a number of owls, hawks, falcons and vultures. It was my favourite part of the castle! The owls were beautiful. We were fortunate to see a couple of the vultures be flown as part of a group course and we talked at length with the flyers/falconers who were working with some of the birds.

Later in the afternoon we had come back to the Falconry to watch the bird flying display but they had to cancel it due to the high wind. So they just bought out a couple of the birds and I was able to pat the large owl which was amazing, it was so soft. I'm so glad we got a chance to see them. They really were simply beautiful birds.

We did go into the castle but it actually wasn't very interesting as it had been lived in for many generations and the inside simply looked like a stately home and I'm not into antiques and the like enough to find it interesting.

I'm so glad we went out there though, it was a great day out. Apparently the Falconry do day courses where you can fly some of the birds. I'm so keen to do that. What an amazing experience that would be.

Tower of London, London, Sat 15 Nov 08

2008-12-19T10:30:00.000-08:00

Nick and I spent the day at the Tower of London. We didn't actually give ourselves much time and the there is so much to do!

We had a guided tour by a Yeoman Warder (a guy who looks after the place and dresses in funny clothes). He had some great stories about the prisoners and executions that took place there.

We saw where Ann Boleyn was beheaded and buried and the prison towers where various people were incarcerated and the carvings they etched into the walls.

The crown jewels were incredibly beautiful and we saw one of the largest diamonds in the world. The vault doors were massive! And There was an armoury building full of guns and swords and armour. Plus there were massive ravens that chill out in the grounds, they are there because apparently if the ravens leave, the Tower of London will fall. So there will always be ravens kept there.

After it closed we took a walk along the water front and Tower Bridge which is so pretty at night when it's all lit up.

Geneva, Switzerland, Sun 9 - Tues 11 Nov 2008

2008-11-24T08:32:00.000-08:00

Through a stroke of luck I was put forward to help out with a pitch that landed me in Geneva, Switzerland (my workmate who'd been working on the account had to be in Japan for karate champs). To be perfectly honest I didn't really know anything about Switzerland and didn't have time to do much research so I didn't know what to expect.

I was up at 5am Sunday morning to get to the airport on the other side of London and spent a fair chunk of the night doing preparation work with our partner (the jobs not always glamorous). However Reema (my workmate) and I did manage to head into town to have a walk around the lake front. Geneva was completely dead on Sunday,they seem to strictly adhere to Sunday rest day here, absolutely nothing was open and barely anyone was around. I have to admit, it was rather pleasant.

First impressions of Geneva, weren't the greatest, there didn't seem to be a lot there and it wasn't the prettiest of towns, even though it was on the side of a (very large) lake. That was until we found the old town, beautiful cobble street area with a small village feel. Much better and where Reema and I ended up spending most of our time (especially to eat with it's gorgeous cafes). Geneva is very French. It is right on the border with France so everyone speaks French, all the cafes sell French food (croissants, pastries and beef tartare!) and of course the attitude is very French too (and I don't mean that in a bad way, I kinda like the French attitude).

There was a beautiful church in the old town, an impressive town hall and lots of gorgeous buildings. Monday we were working all day so we headed into the old town at night for dinner. It was even more beautiful at night, with lots of pretty lighting and a quiet laid back feel. We had dinner at a restaurant specialising in meat (mostly raw, I didn't know you could have raw beef in so many ways) and I had a beautiful duck dish. Geneva had beautiful food, we didn't have one bad meal.

On our last day we weren't flying out till the afternoon so we took the opportunity to see Geneva in all it's day bustling glory. Finally the crowds were out, the shops open and the whole city was alive. Funnily enough I preferred it when it was eerily quiet :) We stopped in at a chocolate shop and I've got to say the smells were incredible. I bought some bars to take back home with me (and for the office) and then bought some single handmade ones just for me. They were delicious. Geneva has some of the best chocolate I've ever tasted!

We headed down to the lake front where we marvelled at the large fountain - a 200km/hr water shoot that reaches 140m in the air! It is stationed in the water at the end of a pier so you can walk down and depending on the wind direction get wet. Of course I headed down, it was like being a kid again running through the sprinklers. So much fun.

The rest of the time we simply spent wondering the streets and admiring Geneva. I was so lucky to have a chance to see this city but I've got to say the food (and mostly the chocolate) was my favourite part ;)

Brighton, UK, Sun 2 Nov 08

2008-11-24T08:04:00.000-08:00

This was my second trip to Brighton and Nicks first. We took a stroll along the beach and the carnival pier. I still love this town. Even in winter it is absolutely beautiful. It was a much warmer day than our day in Rye which helped.

We actually spent most of the day shopping, after Rye I realised I was very lacking in the warm clothes department so I bought lots of merino wool and thermal gear! Nick found some awesome waterproof boots for snowy days in London. We found a great pub for lunch with comfy leather couches to chill on, needless to say we stayed there longer than expected.

The best part of the day was chilling on the beach as the sun went down. The red horizon was gorgeous and it was awesome to see the carnival lights which I missed last time because I'd left before it got dark. I imagine it'll be beautiful along the waterfront once all the Christmas lights go up.

Rye, England, Sat 01 Nov 08

2008-11-24T07:46:00.001-08:00

We decided on an England day trip weekend and Saturday (1st - I'm behind in posts again!) we had picked Rye, a tiny little English medieval town on the Southern coast. Rye is famous for its picturesque cobble streets and quaint houses. Unfortunately the weather wasn't cooperating and it pissed with rain and was freezing! Silly me managed to forget my umbrella so I got absolutely soaked.

We wondered the streets of Rye (which didn't take too long, it's a really small place!) and checked out the old church with its clock tower. The clock pendulum hung inside the church and created an eerie tick tock.

We visited the tiny prison castle museum where we sat in the prison cells, tried on medieval helmets, got very confused why there were fake wooden sheep on the top floor and had a big old chat to the museum guy.

The most famous street in Rye is called Mermaid Street and is full of cute English houses along a small cobble lane with pretty vine covered facades and a couple of old fashioned pubs.

By mid afternoon we were drenched, cold and hungry (well I was, Nick seemed immune) so we took shelter in a local pub and enjoyed some much needed warmth and wine. We found a great possie on a window bay bench and spent quite awhile thawing out and watching the rain outside. A pretty little English town to spend a day.

Update

2008-10-29T12:44:00.000-07:00

Nick has also created a blog, this one just for photos. Some will be the same as here but many more, and since I'm pretty slack with loading all my photos onto my photo site some of you may like checking it out.
http://iwashere2008.blogspot.com/

Barcelona, Spain, Sat 11 Oct 08

2008-10-27T11:59:00.000-07:00

We had an afternoon flight out and with our airport being an hour out of Barcelona we only had the morning. We wondered around our hostel's area for a little while and although there wasn't too much to see we did find a crazy little kids park with wacky trees, plants and play areas.

We walked on to a large inner city park which had beautiful fountains and ponds and made for a great walk. Just outside we spotted a gropu led by some musical drummers & dancers. They were awesome, they had a great beat and were so energetic. We watched them for ages. We left the park and spotted Barcelona's Arc de Triomph which was a beautiful peach colour.

We finally made our way to the bus station to catch the bus back out to the Girona airport where we had a rather annoying time. Our plane was delayed by 2 hours, we had multiple gate changes (causing many annoying walks through the airport) and we got stuck on a stairwell in limbo for 45 mins! They had sent us passed the boarding gates but the door to the tarmac wasn't open so we were stuck on a stairwell. We couldn't go anywhere because they'd already taken our tickets. So weird and frustrating. Not a pleasant journey back at all.

Barcelona, Spain, Fri 10 Oct 08

2008-10-27T11:47:00.001-07:00

In the morning we went to Parc Guell, a park up on a hill on the opposite side of Barcelona from the beach, designed by Gaudi. To get there we had to make our way up a very steep street. It was so steep they had escalators in the toughest parts. An escalator in the middle of a street is a weird site.

Once up in the park we found a lookout post. It was a stone mound with crosses on the top. It had fantastic views over Barcelona. Nick and I sat up there for ages. Walking down into the main entrance of the park (we'd come from the side) we saw the famous ginger bread houses that flanked the main gate. They looked crazy with their white mallowpuff roof and lollipop chimney.

We wondered around the front terrace which had incredibly beautiful mosaic detailing and huge columns. At the front stairs there was a mosaic lizard which is one of Barcelona's famous symbols, trying to navigate the people taking photos was the interesting part.

The architecture in the park is like nothing you've seen before. In fact it's like no park I've ever seen. Nick thinks Gaudi was a little nuts, I'm inclined to agree, either way he had one incredible imagination. The park had so many different areas to explore we could have spent hours there but we were getting hungry so we headed out in source of sustenance.

We found a little cafe and sat down to a fantastic spanish meal. Nick had paella for the first time and thought it was tasty! We were stoked to find such a good place for lunch. After our feed, we took the Metro down to the waterfront and walked down to the beach. Being such a beautiful day it was the perfect afternoon to spend lying in the sun.

The sand was pretty gritty/dusty but not bad for a city beach, if you can get past the hawkers selling massages and sunglasses. We walked the length of the beach and found the other end a lot quieter so chilled there for the rest of the afternoon. I loved being at the beach again. On our way back we stopped at a beach side cafe for coffee (I told you I'm addicted to Spanish coffee) and some more paella before heading back to the hostel.

We spent the rest of the night on the hostel terrace chatting to random people and enjoying the cheap hostel drinks. You could buy a very large Sangria or Beer for about 3 euros. Unfortunately the Sangria was rather potent which made for an interesting night!

Barcelona, Spain, Thurs 09 Oct 08

2008-10-27T11:23:00.001-07:00

We misheard the reception guy last night and managed to miss breakfast. So we found a little cafe for a much needed coffee and some food. Great coffee in Spain! We were heading to La Sagrada Familia for our first visit, the church that has been under construction for over 100 years. It was started by Barcelona's famous architect Gaudi in the late 1800s and was never finished. Now they're building it to his exact specs (so it's taking awhile).

I have to admit I was impressed. It was one of the most unique buildings I have ever seen. The outside has three major facades which are all very different from each other. I liked the Passion with it's bold sculptures. Out of the facades are cone towers, there will be 12 in total to represent the Apostles. There is symbolism and stories everywhere in the building and carvings and statues. You could spend hours trying to interpret it all.

The inside was just as beautiful. A lot of work was going on in the center clove where they were finishing the ceiling high pillars and stonework. The pillars are designed to look like trees which branch at the top and the stonework on the ceiling is carved to look like flowers and trees to feel like a forest canopy. Very beautiful. It was really interesting to watch the workers too, they must get so frustrated with all the people watching them but I guess they'd get used to it eventually.

There were two elevators up to the towers on each side, we picked the one with the smallest line. They were a bit cheeky and charged another 2.50 for the 30sec ride up. But I'm glad we did it because once up there you were let out into a maze of stairs circling through the towers. We had so much fun wondering around, finding new paths to take. You sometimes popped out onto ledges where you could look down onto the crowd and get mega vertigo because they jut out so far it's really freaky when looking down.

Coming down we ended up on an insane circular stairwell. It was designed so you could look down the centre and see all the way to the bottom (which is a long way!) and to me it seemed like the stairs were designed to look like a sea shell.

Down in the crypt they had all the miniture models and original drawings of the church so you could see what it was eventually going to look like. The church is going to be incredible when finished.

After leaving we took the Metro down to La Rambla, the main centre of Barcelona. We got out at Place Catalunya which was a large square at the top of La Rambla and was full of pigeons! Nick pretended to feed them so he could try and catch one but they were too smart for him... :)

We walked down the length of La Rambla to the pier, it's a very wide pedestrian street but it was packed. So many people, mainly tourists, wondering up and down it. Even on a Thursday it was hard to manoeuver through everyone. There were lots of street performers, including a very strange guy sitting on a toilet, I kid you not!

La Rambla was littered with stalls selling souvenirs, art and sadly animals (birds, rabbits etc). We found out later they just close the stall up like a box with the animals inside for the night, it just didn't seem right. We also found a cool fresh food market down a side alley which had the most fantastic selection of fresh fruits and seafood.

At the bottom you reach the wharf which is quite a fancy upmarket area with lots of walkways and restaurants. We were pretty hungry so we made the mistake of stopping into a tapas bar for a drink and nibbles. A jug of sangria, a selection of meats (think salami), some olive oil bread and 35euro later we were feeling pretty ripped off. We learned our lesson on that one.

It was starting to get pretty chilly with the wind off the water so we left the wharf and headed into the old Gothic Quarter. Wow what a cool area. Tiny narrow streets, wicked spanish style terraces and lots of tiny cafes and shops. We had a lot of fun wondering around the streets and just exploring. It was like a maze and at each junction we'd just pick an alleyway that looked interesting. Somehow we managed to come out where we started, we'd gone in a full circle and no idea how it happened.

We found a small bar off La Rambla for some more Sangria (I was loving the stuff!) and beer. It had a great view over La Rambla so made for fantastic people watching. We spent a lot of the night there, had dinner in the old quarter before heading back to the hostel for a night cap on the hostel terrace.

Barcelona, Spain, Wed 08 Oct 08

2008-10-27T11:16:00.000-07:00

Through a fantastic deal we managed to get cheap flights to Barcelona for a few days, only downside was we were flying out of Luton and into Girona. Bit of a mission really, all up it took us 7 hours in transit. Here's a bit of a rundown on that evening so you can try and get a feel for the pain we went through;

leave house, walk to train station, train into london, change to underground to cross london, change to train to head out north to Luton, bus link from train to airport, nice long wait at airport, two hour flight to Barcelona, 1 hour bus from airport to city, metro from bus station, walk to hostel.

So... walk, train, tube, train, bus, plane, bus, metro, walk... what a mission!

As you can imagine we simply crashed that night so not much to talk about sorry, except that our hostel was a cool tall skinny building and we were up on the tenth floor. Made for some good views.

And very close to our hostel was a tall office building (sorry no idea what it was called) but it was lit up really pretty at night. This was a photo from our hostel window! It's not as pretty during the day.

New Forest, England, Sun 05 Oct 08

2008-10-27T11:05:00.000-07:00

After a pleasant sleep in and a huge cooked breakie we said goodbye to our pub and drove down into the New Forest.

It was a beautiful area, lots of orange thanks to Autumn and animals everywhere! Ponies, donkeys, cows and pigs all dotting the landscape (and deer too apparently but we didn't spot any). Many of them hang out on the road so you have to be careful driving through. It's an incredible area and really unique.

We stopped at a little carpark and wondered through the park, coming very close to a few ponies and finding some cool gnarly trees. It had been raining all morning so there was water everywhere and small running streams where they wouldn't normally be, but the weather added to the beauty of the area.

We also stopped further into the forest at a camping ground (which was no longer in use because of the season) because I had spotted some huge pigs from the road. There were quite a few people around who used the area for hikes and biking and we went for a long walk around too. I loved the pigs, they were so big and cute.

We drove all the way through to the south and a town called Lymington where we had English cream tea (tea with scones, jam & clotted cream - yum!) for afternoon tea, before driving back through the forest on our way back to London. It was such a great day and I would love to head back again for a camping trip.