Just had the best steak and feel like a million dollars

Even though we are in Dresden, we just went to a beautiful riverside beer garden and had an amazing Argentinian steak, fries and great salad. We feel great. Every Aussie needs a meal like that every couple of weeks when travelling. Makes the world feel right.

After a couple of delightful days on the Romantic Road, we have revised our opinion of Germany somewhat. We had a very relaxing meander through Nordlingen, Dinkelsbuhl and Rothenberg en Tauber. We stayed at Rothenberg for a couple of nights and went in early in the morning before the tourist buses hit. Wandered around this beautiful mediaeval town for about five hours looking at the half timbered buildings, sitting in the churches, visiting museums, sitting on the square drinking beer, walking the walls, listening to the guy playing flute in the gardens. It was all very civilised. We went home then for a nanna nap and then went back in in the evening for another beer on the square to find that half the town were in there in costume as a rehearsal for their mediaeval festival on this weekend. What a treat to see everyone from the very young to the very old participating and wandering around the square. We were happy to sit for a couple of hours and watch.

From Rothenberg we revisited Nurenberg to see the Zeppelinfeld where Hitler held a lot of his rallies. This was closed when we were there before as there was a Rock Festival on last weekend. John and I had been to this place in 1982 so were interested to see what they had done to it. Last time they wouldn't even acknowledge it existed. This time it was very much on the itineraries but not much work had been done on it over all these years. We then drove back into the Czech Republic and stayed overnight at a little place called Loket. A delightful village not unlike Cesky Krumlov or Ein sur Sure.

Today we have had a big driving day from Loket to Colditz where the Allied officers were kept as pows and after a look around the Schloss and the Museum we drove to Dresden. We have just got back from a walk around the city and what an incredible place. After being flattened by what it considered uncalled for bombing during the war it has rebuilt its buildings and its infrastructure with lots of open space, wide roads and great use of green spaces. The old buildings that have been rebuilt are fascinating. We will spend more time here tomorrow.

We are both well. Enjoying ourselves immensely.

Prague and driving

Had a surprisingly wonderful time in Milan. What a city. We loved it. The duomo here is unsurpassed both inside and outside and one could spend hours there. When we went there was a big political rally building in the duomo square as Bellesconi's party had been defeated after 20 years in Milan and in Naples and they were partying. It was great to be around the area all afternoon to see the Italians having a good time. Bands were playing, people were dancing and all in all a feeling of relief and excitement. We met our friends from the boat, Sunny and Ron, for dinner in the evening and had a good night with them. The next morning we headed off for a viewing of the Last Supper. One of those times when you can't believe you are looking at the original - painted on the wall of a refectory. You have to book months in advance to get in to look at it but it is well worth it.

Flew to Prague and what a city that is. It is a very "wanderable" city. Something around every corner that makes your eyes pop. The architecture is delightful. those of you who have been there will understand what I mean. We loved our three days there. We wandered through the Old City and the New City, walked down Wencelas Square, watched the Astronomical Clock strike, drank and ate at beer gardens, went up to the Castle and St Vitus, walked along the river and generally relaxed and enjoyed ourselves immensely. We will be back in Prague for a few days at the end of our trip.

We picked up our little car and headed off for Karlstejn Castle. Google it - a fine example of a Czech castle. From there to Plzen where we had a tour of the brewery. Very interesting especially the underground cellar tunnels which is the only bit of the original brewery still operational. Here they give a glass of unfiltered Plzen beer. Very very tasty. From Plzen we headed down to Domazlice via Stribo. Both beautiful villages. We stayed in Domazlice and wondered why until we came into the town square and what magic. We sat and had a beer looking onto one of the most beautiful - not huge - squares of any town I have ever seen. Had a great meal here - two bowls of soup and two big pizzas and a big beer for $16. Great night.

The next morning we headed over to Klatovy and Sviho (village and castle) and had a relaxing time. Big drive then into Germany and to Regensburg where we had a look around and then up to Eichstatt. This was our worst day so far and one that makes you wonder why you travel. In hindsight it doesn't seem too bad but we couldn't find accommodation because it was a long weekend in Germany and everyone was travelling. Also prices jumped extraordinarily from the Czech Republic. We eventually did get a lovely room but instead of staying in the area we headed off the next morning to Nurnberg where we still are. John wanted to come back here - we had been here quickly in 1982 - as this town contains the square where Hitler held all his big rallies. He went out there yesterday while I rested up as I have a bad cold and cough but found it was closed because of a rock festival. We are off to the Romantic Road this morning where we will stay for a couple of days.

We are a bit disappointed in Germany and part of us wishes we were still in the Czech Republic. But we have booked up our accommodation so we have some definite bookings and destinations until we get to Berlin. Think it's all a bit sanitised for us!!!

Hope all is well at home.

Some photos of our travels

Prague skyline

Milan Duomo - the most beautiful we have ever seen

Sunday morning coffee at Positano - not a bad option

Our good friends on the Melody

Limassol Colessei - the castle not me

At the Dome of the Rock Jerusalem

Our local store in Malta is for sale - tempting!!!

Malta bus

Lizzie and I in cocktail paradise at Theoule

Verdon Gorge

Coffee in French village with the Jumelets

Driving through tunnel on Monte Carlo GP circuit

Village in Provence

Pont du Garde

Trabascon Castle in Provence

Lizzie shopping in Cannes

Assisi - monument to St Francis

Geraniums in Assisi - nearly as good as Helens

Assisi

John and his bestie - Trajan

Linguine with big prawns at Teatro de Pompeii

Good reason to go to Mass at Pantheon - no people!!!

Ferraris drive through Rome for beatification of John Paul II - now that's how I want to go out.

Piazza Navona - one of favourite Roman Places

Pasta and John at Trevi Fountain

Our first meal in Roma












Getting our feet nibbled by thousands of fish in KL

The cruise is over!!!

Well, the Melody berthed this morning back in Genoa after a great 11 days. Since we left Jerusalem where we had an incredible two days, we have had half day visits to Limassol (Cyprus), Heraklion (Crete) and Sorrento (Italy). These half day visits are way too short and very unsatisfying. In Limassol, we hired a cab with friends and went out to visit some of the sights (Citadel, the amphitheatre and Temple of Apollo) and then back to have a beer overlooking the sea. In Heraklion, John went to Knossos while I stayed with a group of friends and drank iced coffee at a local cafe and wandered around the town. It was Sunday when we were in Sorrento so we caught a local bus over to Positano (spectacular drive - possibly the most spectacular in the world) and had a coffee overlooking this wonderful city and then caught the bus back. Shame but that is all the time the cruise offered. We arrived back into Genoa this morning and caught the train back to Milano.

All in all, for us, the cruise was a great experience. There was certainly room for improvement with MSC. Not a lot of activities that we wanted to do and the ones we did want to do were not very good. The food was really good especially for us travelling. We were so lucky to have wonderful people at our table whom I am sure we will stay friends with now. Actually we are meeting Ron and Sunny for dinner in Milano tonight. We helped the other couple, Bruce and Marg, celebrate their 50th wedding anniversary on the 27th so that was special. This made the cruise for all of us - to have made such good friends. There were not many English speaking people on board so we tended to band together. Some "many time" cruisers were disappointed in the boat but we quite enjoyed it. John was one of the table tennis kings and won two caps for us.

We fly out to Prague tomorrow afternoon and will go for a walk around Milan this afternoon. We are booked to see the Last Supper tomorrow morning. We are looking forward to moving on now and begin the main part of our trip.

Oh Jerusalem!!!!

What a fine fine city!! We cruised into the port of Ashdod this morning and with friends of ours from the boat caught a cab into this amazing city. We are staying in here overnight as the boat does not leave Ashdod until 7 pm tomorrow (Wednesday) so we are like pigs in mud.

Spent this afternoon wandering around the Old City visiting the Holy Sepulchre (the site of Calvary and Jesus' tomb), wandering along the Via Dolorosa (visiting the stations of the cross) and ending up at the Western Wall. Sitting in the plaza here is a true multi cultural experience (even better than being in West End) as people of all different religions, cultures and races wander through. John and I both love Jerusalem and of course with both our backgrounds appreciate immensely the sacredness of this city. We are relishing the opportunity to be back.

The boat has been really enjoyable. We had a nostalgic day in Malta revisiting places we had been in 2005. The food is spectacular and even though we often have five courses the courses are reasonably small so you don't feel bloated at the end of the meal. It is an Italian boat so what else would you expect.

Hope all is well at home. Good to hear the wedding went well at the weekend.

Ciao
John and Deb

We're cruisin, Susan

We boarded the MSC Melody in Genoa yesterday and are now cruising towards Valetta in Malta and having a ball. The ship is not a big one and mainly Europeans aboard but we are into it!!! We have a great cabin, midships on an upper deck. We boarded about midday yesterday to find a beautiful buffet lunch awaiting us and then spent time exploring our options. Had a five course meal last night, only small portions I am pleased to report.

Today John has been to the gym, I have been to an aerobics class, we have had a first class brekky, got books out from the library, John won the table tennis tournament, had a spa near the pool, went to a movie, relaxed in the deck chairs and will need to get ready soon for a gala dinner. God knows what we are going to wear cause it's supposed to be flash. Now we couldn't do flash real well even if we had all our clothes here let alone drag flash out of a backpack.

But for one who was quite cynical I am really enjoying it. A nice relaxed feeling about the boat. Hope all is well at home. Thanks everyone for your emails.

Cote d'Azur

We are now in Genoa spending the night before going on our cruise tomorrow after spending a wonderful week in Theoule on the Cote d'Azur in southern France. Theoule is about 20 kms west of Cannes and from the villa we stayed in we could stand on the terrace and watch the lights twinkling around the whole bay ending in Cannes where the Film Festival was being held. This unfortunately had the effect of making the traffic pretty unbearable but we still spent a lovely morning wandering around and trying to spot some stars. Liz and I really enjoyed the shopping and although we didn't see anyone of note the atmosphere was good. John and I had the day out in western Provence and visited Avignon, Pont du Garde and Orange before doing a spectacular drive through magnificent valleys lined by rocky mountains back to Theoule. We clocked up about 750 kms this day but it was really worthwhile and put us back in the French countryside which we love.

Had another day in the town of Grasse where they were having a Rose Festival. Oooohhh, the roses!!!!! They were magnificent and maybe makes me realise Queensland maybe hasn't got the idyllic weather in which to grow roses. They were selling everything made out of rose petals or rose extract. It was just a real pleasure to be there. We had a walk around the town and the Cathedral was probably the best Romanesque church John had seen - even more splendid because of the huge vases of roses inside - the Rubens paintings didn't detract from it either.

A visit to Monaco on a beautiful clear day was really exciting for me because we drove the Grand Prix circuit which is being set up for the Grand Prix in two weeks time. Thought of and missed my boy and wished he was there instead of in Afghanistan. We walked up to the Palace and wandered around the old city. Monte Carlo's location is amazing set against the azure sea with the mountains in the background. The boats in the harbour are something to behold. Kayaks with a sail just wouldn't cut it here, Helen!!!!! John tried to talk his way on to a few but I don't think it was the first time they were asked and basically told him to go away in no uncertain terms.

On our last day we went for a drive out to the Verdon Gorge. What an amazing place this was. It is billed as the second largest in the world next to the Grand Canyon and the vistas were spectacular. Wish we had had time to have a canoe down the river through the gorge. Maybe next time.

We have drunk a lot of bottles of wine, ate our way through pate, terrine, fish and potato dip, cheeses, many croissants and loaves of bread, drank wonderful coffee, had two traumatic games of Scrabble and all in all had a wonderful week with good friends. One to remember!!!!

Tomorrow we go on our cruise and are stopping at Malta, Jerusalem (2 days now as they cut out Port Said - we are thrilled), Greece, Cyprus, Crete and Sorrento. Looking forward to it however it will be tinged with sadness as we are missing our niece's wedding on Saturday and we would dearly love to be there.

Goodbye Rome Hello France

Had a wonderful day in Assisi. What a glorious town set on the side of a hill overlooking a beautiful valley in Umbria. We walked nearly every street and the little hill town never disappointed. It seemed so Italian sitting on the square having a glass of wine and eating pizza in the town of St Francis. The bascilica to St Francis is amazing and dominates the small town. It actually has a upper church and a lower church (where St Francis is entombed in a simple and appropriate site). Caught the train back to Rome and went to a wonderful little restaurant for Pizza. An extremely good day. On our last day in Rome we did another big walk going to the Ara Pacis (Augustus tomb) via the Spanish steps, had one last coffee at our favourite outside the Pantheon, sat at the Trevi fountain in the sunshine and then on the plane for Nice to meet our friends, Liz and Ron Jumelet. We actually did that effortlessly and were soon ensconced in our accommodation overlooking the French Riviera including Cannes and Antibes. The lights at night are amazing. We have driven down to St Tropez and had time in Cannes where the film festival is on. John and Ron were basically told yesterday the festival is not for the general public and they didn't care if the public went to see movies. Pity. We looked for David and Margaret but to no avail. We have eaten like kings and drank like fishes for the last couple of days. Today John and I have headed off for western Provence to see the sights of Avignon, Pont du Gard and Orange. It's nice to be in the French countryside again rather than the glitzy Cote d'Azur.

Glorious days in Rome

We have just had three beautiful days in Rome. What a wonderful city and even though this is our third visit here, we still marvel at the sights and delight in the food. Had an incredible day on Sunday. Started off at Trajan's Market, a new museum that John particularly wanted to see. had a good look around with some particularly good vistas towards the Piazza Venezia. When we left we could hear engines revving and were in the middle of a drive through Rome of about 50 Ferraris to honour the beatification of John Paul II. Absolutely amazing and wished Paddy could have been there to point out all the finer details of these racy red roadsters.

From there we went over to the Pantheon where we attended Mass. Was particularly good as they had cleared the usually crowded church so we got a good look at it minus people. Had a coffee at the Tezza D'Oro, best coffee shop in Rome and then wandered to the Piazza Navona and onto the Teatro de Pompeii, a restaurant built over the site where Julius Caesar was assassinated. John has wanted to go here for years and we had a leisurely lunch of linguine with big prawns (lobster), nice bottle of wine and scrumptious desserts. Needed a walk so wandered along the Tiber across to Trastevere and soaked up the Roman "air". We'd been walking at this stage for about 7 hours so I opted for home while John went to the Forum, Trajan's Column and the Capitaline Hill area to soak up the history.

Today we have spent in the magnificent Vatican Museum revisiting some of the old favourites and seeing some of their new displays. How can you ever tire of the Sistine Chapel, the Raphael rooms, the Greek pottery, the Map room. Stunners all of them. Also revisited St Peters and saw the tomb of the recently beatified John Paul II. Walked from there to the Castel d'Angelo and then headed home. Great great day.

Tomorrow we are going to go up to Assisi so we are looking forward to that. We have got great digs at the Beehive. Very comfortable and can prepare some of our own meals. Loving it.

Nothing like a perfect spring day in Roma!!

After a relaxing couple of days in Kuala Lumpur, we endured the harrowing trip to London, overnight at Stansted airport hotel and then a two hour trip to Rome, to realise why we travel. What a glorious day it has been. The sun is shining, the weather is warm, we have walked to our favourite places, sat admiring the Pantheon for quite a while, had pizza for lunch, a coffee, and now are ensconced in our accommodation. John is heading out to buy some coke to we can crack one of our rums we bought and we will sit on our balcony in the afternoon sun and tell each other why we love Rome!!! So all is well and we are looking forward to a few days here before heading off to Provence to meet Liz and Ron.

AAAGGHHH!!!! Tomorrow it's over.

The photos in order are
Lanie and her prince at the Fantasyland Castle in Disneyland
Sitting in comfy chairs in the Tuilleries Gardens in Paris looking up to the Arc de Triomphe
First crepe in Paris
John and I at Sacre Couer
Lanie and I at the Moulin Rouge

Hope you all feel sorry for us. Tomorrow will end our 5 weeks in France. We have been busily eating and drinking all the things we feel we might miss when we return home. Had the best French nougat today - it was superb.

Yesterday Lanie and I had a shopping day. It was wonderful and we did buy a few things that needed to be bought. We had a lovely time shopping in Paris. Not every day a mother and daughter get to do that. It was special. John and Ben went to the Army Musuem. Lanie and I were disappointed we couldn't go but forced ourselves away. We all aimed to be home by 3 to watch the French Open and we were ready to sing Advance Australia Fair from the balcony. Maybe that's why Sam Stosur lost. John headed off the the Maritime Museum as well in the afternoon and Ben and Lanie went to see Sex and the City at night. Now that's true love, Ben!!!

Today John and I went to Pere Lachaise Cemetry. Funny the things you do when you are travelling hey. Wouldn't dream of going to a cemetry at home but here we saw the graves of Heloise and Abelard, Chopin, Edith Piaf and Oscar Wilde. Interesting. Oscar Wilde's grave has lipstick kisses all over it and messages written on it. From there we met Lanie and Ben at Sacre Coeur for a beautiful view over Paris and a walk down Mont Matre to the Moulin Rouge. As it had rained pretty heavily in the morning the artists and buskers were not out but it was still a pleasant time. We then went out to the Flea Market at St Ouen, one of the biggest in Europe. Was very interesting wandering around and we picked up a few souvenirs. Met Lanie and Ben for a walk from Notre Dame to the Place des Vosges and Place de Bastille and then home.

Big day and our feet are hurting!! We all love Paris and have had a wonderful time here. The French people have been helpful and courteous and it is a very easy comfortable country to live in. We have not found it that expensive but we have eaten mainly from the supermarket and have had the advantage of having the apartment where we can cook and wash etc.

Love it, love it, love it!!!!!

Look forward to seeing everyone. We get home on Wednesday morning after spending two nights on the plane. Thank you for your emails and interest. Au revoir.

I'm just a kid again, doing what I did again

These photos in order

Fontainebleu

John and Ben drinking multiple beers in big big glasses

Lanie at Disneyland

Outside Disneyland Paris

... like going on the ROLLERCOASTER!!!! Today we had a wonderful day at Disneyland Paris. This was one thing Lanie really wanted to do and we all hummed and ha-ed a bit but we all ended up having a wonderful time. Within the first 10 minutes we were plummeting around the Indiana Jones - Temple of Peril - on a rollercoaster. it was terrifying. They tell me it even went upside down. My eyes were shut so tight I didn't really know much except that we were moving very very quickly and that it came to an end!!!

The sun was shining and it has got quite hot. We had a really good look around and did most of the rides we wanted. The Paris Disneyland is a really good park about 40 kms north east of Paris. We go everywhere on the trains. It was only 17 euro for a weekly pass for the trains and the buses. Great value. Lanie had a wonderful day and has got a new design for her first house - the Fantasyland castle. We got some beautiful photos of our princess in a castle.

Yesterday we went separate ways - Lan and Ben went to Versailles and had a very full day exploring the chateau and the gardens and John, Alana B and I went to Fontainebleu Chateau - majestic like Versailles but not so many people. It also was a mindblower with its extravagance and its gardens. It also houses one of the oldest tennis courts in Europe which is still used for international tournaments. We got back to Paris and went to a couple more memorials and then had time out at the movies where we saw Robin Hood.

So all in all a productive couple of days. We are conscious that the end is now near. We will miss all the great things France has to offer and to which we have become very accustomed. Love it here - no wonder so many people choose it as a holiday destination.

Shopping with my girl in Paris tomorrow - hope our feet can stand up to the challenge. Think so!!!

Gay Paree!! You gotta love it.

These photos are in order:

Lanie and Ben canoeing and talking to the animals

Us after being submerged coming through the weir

Looking over the Camembert Valley

Lanie and Ben feeding the fish and chooks

John at our favourite picnic place - Menil Glaise

After a delightful final day in Normandy when we revisited a couple of our favourites - Camembert and Menil Glaise - with Ben and Lanie, we packed up and I mean packed up, the mighty Twingo and got on the road for Paris. It is about a three hour drive and we made good time. I tell you - the Parisiens are crazy drivers - and we couldn't wait to get rid of our car. We nearly had about 100 accidents looking for our apartment but we finally found our piece of Paris.

It is a very French big apartment at the top of six flights of steps. It is wonderful and we are very very comfortable on the Boulevard de la Villette. We spent the afternoon relaxing here and then headed out to see the Eiffel Tower. As usual most of the major monuments are covered in scaffolding - pity but still pretty spectacular. We had a lovely stroll by the Seine and under the bridges.

Today we went out to Roland Garros to see if we could get a day pass for the tennis but no such luck. Pity but it is not to be. The stadium is in a very green and leafy area and it was worth a walk around. We then headed back to the Ile de la Cite and walked from Saint Chapelle to the Arc de Triomphe via the Louvre, Tuilleries Gardens, Place de la Concorde and Champs Elysees. It truly is a fantastic city which awaits us to explore.

We have our friend, also Alana, coming over from London tomorrow and then we have a few days planned. One at Disneyland, one at Versailles/Fontainbleu, one shopping (of course), and we will fit everything else cultural and historical in as well. It will be relaxed having a week here and I know we will enjoy it.

Lanie has just cooked dinner and is calling. We have a couple of bottles of wine to finish off. Think we really splurged tonight - the wine was 1.3o euro. Someone has to do it!!