Have our tickets and (hopefully) all our paperwork. Gotta pack the socks and knickers, and polar gear.... Got the camera prepared, and we're ready to go!
Wednesday, February 11, 2015
Friday, September 19, 2014
Friday 19th September - en route to Dubrovnik.
Sorry about the lack of information.......
Have had a glorious week on this cruise - the weather has been stunning - absolutely perfect, sunny every day, often a slight breeze, and beautiful calm, warm evenings......
Our fellow travellers are mostly Americans... Out of 36 people, there are two Canadians who speak to each other in French all the time, Heather & John are from Britain, and Arch and Annie from Oz.... So. the food supply caters for our American friends - SO much food at every meal, it's positively off-putting.... We have breakfast and lunch on board, and the usual continental breakfast, plus cooked is available. Okay.....
Lunch EVERY day is FOUR courses....... Omigod.......
Soup - substantial, various.....
Salad - queue for it - help yourself, and stuff as much as you can on your plate. At least that's what the Americans do, so by the time others (us) get there, there is nary a morsel left. So.... Heather and I decided yesterday that we would make a charge to be at the front of the queue when the first plate of salad was put on the table. Yee haa - it worked...... much to the chagrin of the others!!! Worked so well, we did it again today...... What a hoot!!!
Entree (I guess) Pasta of some sort, AND Risotto of some sort... Again help yourself!!!
Main Often a whole cooked fish with a dollop of mash of some sort...... haven't seen a green vegetable on our plate at all - although of course there are wonderful vegies in the markets everywhere.. Just like Germany........ Why don't they ever cook them for visitors??
Dessert - of some sort - cake or some other sweet tid bit.......
After day 2, when I thought I would die from overeating, I decided to resort to Salad and some pasta, OR salad and the main course (when it was NOT a whole fish)..... Good choice...
We have stopped for a swim most days, always in small sheltered coves; amazingly clear, azure blue water. Delightful....
We are always sailing along beside the most lovely little islands - very seriously denuded of trees - not sure what the real reason is, but some small scrubby plants seem to be re-establishing themselves.
Small towns dotted everywhere, very gravelly beaches, or NO beaches - people just clamber into the gorgeous water over enormous rocks! So nice to have our Aussie sandy beaches - we DO take them for granted I think.
With the exception of one night when the Captain's Wife came on board to entertain us with some Croatian Food and hilarious banter, we have gone on shore to eat every night. Food's not bad, and compared with Italy and Switzerland - VERY cheap......
Anyway, this is possibly all for now from me, busy day travelling tomorrow, and then two days in Orvieto before we go home....
We are out quite a long way from civilisation right at the moment, have no wifi, and have been unable to watch the Aussie Rules football preliminary final between North Melbourne and Sydney... Thank god as it turns out, because poor old Arch is waiting until we hit town tonight to watch a replay, totally unaware that North have been murdered....... Kirsten has been drip-feeding me with the bad news via text messages....
Okay, cheers for now, it's been an absolutely fabulous holiday, but now we're ready to go home to see our kids and grand-babies........
Sorry about the lack of information.......
Have had a glorious week on this cruise - the weather has been stunning - absolutely perfect, sunny every day, often a slight breeze, and beautiful calm, warm evenings......
Our fellow travellers are mostly Americans... Out of 36 people, there are two Canadians who speak to each other in French all the time, Heather & John are from Britain, and Arch and Annie from Oz.... So. the food supply caters for our American friends - SO much food at every meal, it's positively off-putting.... We have breakfast and lunch on board, and the usual continental breakfast, plus cooked is available. Okay.....
Lunch EVERY day is FOUR courses....... Omigod.......
Soup - substantial, various.....
Salad - queue for it - help yourself, and stuff as much as you can on your plate. At least that's what the Americans do, so by the time others (us) get there, there is nary a morsel left. So.... Heather and I decided yesterday that we would make a charge to be at the front of the queue when the first plate of salad was put on the table. Yee haa - it worked...... much to the chagrin of the others!!! Worked so well, we did it again today...... What a hoot!!!
Entree (I guess) Pasta of some sort, AND Risotto of some sort... Again help yourself!!!
Main Often a whole cooked fish with a dollop of mash of some sort...... haven't seen a green vegetable on our plate at all - although of course there are wonderful vegies in the markets everywhere.. Just like Germany........ Why don't they ever cook them for visitors??
Dessert - of some sort - cake or some other sweet tid bit.......
After day 2, when I thought I would die from overeating, I decided to resort to Salad and some pasta, OR salad and the main course (when it was NOT a whole fish)..... Good choice...
We have stopped for a swim most days, always in small sheltered coves; amazingly clear, azure blue water. Delightful....
We are always sailing along beside the most lovely little islands - very seriously denuded of trees - not sure what the real reason is, but some small scrubby plants seem to be re-establishing themselves.
Small towns dotted everywhere, very gravelly beaches, or NO beaches - people just clamber into the gorgeous water over enormous rocks! So nice to have our Aussie sandy beaches - we DO take them for granted I think.
With the exception of one night when the Captain's Wife came on board to entertain us with some Croatian Food and hilarious banter, we have gone on shore to eat every night. Food's not bad, and compared with Italy and Switzerland - VERY cheap......
Anyway, this is possibly all for now from me, busy day travelling tomorrow, and then two days in Orvieto before we go home....
We are out quite a long way from civilisation right at the moment, have no wifi, and have been unable to watch the Aussie Rules football preliminary final between North Melbourne and Sydney... Thank god as it turns out, because poor old Arch is waiting until we hit town tonight to watch a replay, totally unaware that North have been murdered....... Kirsten has been drip-feeding me with the bad news via text messages....
Okay, cheers for now, it's been an absolutely fabulous holiday, but now we're ready to go home to see our kids and grand-babies........
Sunday, September 14, 2014
Friday September 12, Zadar.
What a lovely town, beautiful hotel, SO modern, so comfortable, so nice to be here in Croatia.
Zadar - old town - is a lovely place to behold, some very old buildings combined with many new ones, however all modern buildings built to blend in beautifully with the old.
Our hotel is in the middle of the "life" in the old town, which is where all the tourists gather. We couldn't get access to our room for a few hours, on account of our time of arrival was about 8am, and the check-out time is 12 noon!!! However, gorgeous young man assured us that he would hasten our check-in time as we informed him that we needed to be on-line to watch the Aussie Rules Final...... So, we left our luggage for a while, and proceeded to wander about this lovely town for a couple of hours - plus!!!
Returned at about 11am and after having a coffee in the lounge below, gained access to our room by about 11.15am. JUST IN TIME TO LOG INTO THE AFL SEMI-FINAL.....
Happy little vegemite Arch when North Melvbourne got up in the last 5 minutes to win!!! Just as well.. Our televised coverage seized up with about 60 seconds to go in the match, and we were unable to watch any more...... Anyway, happy days here in Zadar, so had to go out to late lunch/dinner to celebrate.....
So enjoyed our short stay in Zadar, and have enjoyed the hospitality of the Croatians to all of us tourists.
Joining our boat tomorrow for our cruise, so enjoying our last night in our most luxurious hotel room - absolutely everything you would hope to have in a room, we have....... and right in the middle of all the action.... PERFECT,,,,
What a lovely town, beautiful hotel, SO modern, so comfortable, so nice to be here in Croatia.
Zadar - old town - is a lovely place to behold, some very old buildings combined with many new ones, however all modern buildings built to blend in beautifully with the old.
Our hotel is in the middle of the "life" in the old town, which is where all the tourists gather. We couldn't get access to our room for a few hours, on account of our time of arrival was about 8am, and the check-out time is 12 noon!!! However, gorgeous young man assured us that he would hasten our check-in time as we informed him that we needed to be on-line to watch the Aussie Rules Final...... So, we left our luggage for a while, and proceeded to wander about this lovely town for a couple of hours - plus!!!
Returned at about 11am and after having a coffee in the lounge below, gained access to our room by about 11.15am. JUST IN TIME TO LOG INTO THE AFL SEMI-FINAL.....
Happy little vegemite Arch when North Melvbourne got up in the last 5 minutes to win!!! Just as well.. Our televised coverage seized up with about 60 seconds to go in the match, and we were unable to watch any more...... Anyway, happy days here in Zadar, so had to go out to late lunch/dinner to celebrate.....
So enjoyed our short stay in Zadar, and have enjoyed the hospitality of the Croatians to all of us tourists.
Joining our boat tomorrow for our cruise, so enjoying our last night in our most luxurious hotel room - absolutely everything you would hope to have in a room, we have....... and right in the middle of all the action.... PERFECT,,,,
Friday, September 12, 2014
Thursday SEPTEMBER 11, Bologna-Ancona
Glad that I've realised that it's September and not August..... Sorry 'bout that!!
High speed train whisked us across the countryside with only a couple of stops, to Ancona.
On the way, we did reach the coast, and for many kms, we sped along, right beside the ocean.
They keep telling us in this neck o' the woods, "the season's finished" and they must be right... For MANY kms along the coast, there were great clusters of many hundreds of beach umbrellas, most folded down, but all about 1 metre apart, and many with tables and seats around them.... others with sun lounges or beach chairs beside them. Very colourful, and very sad looking.... Not one person to be seen, and all I could think was "some poor buggers have to disassemble all this" and store it somewhere..... Towns along the way - large towns indeed, appeared to be almost totally devoid of residents - all the houses and hotels were shuttered up and alone!!! Sad little camping grounds with maybe one RV parked there, and apparently the managers all gone away too. Quite odd what happens in Europe once Summer is finished.......
As we were all embarking initially, there boarded an ENORMOUS man - must have weighed at least 250kgs, looked for all the world like a huge bag of jelly, he was so fat...... He sat on one side of a group of four seats, behind and to the side of us. No problems..... A woman and her husband then boarded and sat opposite him..... Still no problems, for a short while......
Then...... he started to snore. My god, it was unbelievable the noise he made, and nobody made to wake him up.... No matter whether the train slowed down or sped up, he kept up the snoring, and his opposite numbers (the woman and her husband) just slouched down in their seats, trying to concentrate on books.... with fellow passengers giving them pitying looks.......
Finally after more than an hour of this, the woman abandoned her seat and took refuge a few seats away, and unbelievably, he woke up at the next stop, and got off the train. He hadn't moved until then, how in the hell did he know he was at his destination?
Finally got off the train at Ancona, and had to wait for a bus to take us to the ticket 'place' for the next leg of the journey. More waiting for another bus, and then more waiting to board the boat for Zadar.
Quite a large ship actually, taking both cars and passengers. We had paid for dinner, so fronted up to the dining room to partake.... Yay..... Very sad meal, too ordinary to describe, and too bad to eat as well, but I reckon, all up there might have been 50 passengers on board, most either went without or brought their own food, and the whole ship was empty..... All the shops, entertainment, personnel, had gone..... Weird as......
Anyway we fell into bed at about 9.30pm, in our wonderful one up and one down bunk beds(!), and wished the next 9 hours away. Slept a bit and woke up to a seriously inedible breakfast......... and disembarkation in Zadar.....
Glad that I've realised that it's September and not August..... Sorry 'bout that!!
High speed train whisked us across the countryside with only a couple of stops, to Ancona.
On the way, we did reach the coast, and for many kms, we sped along, right beside the ocean.
They keep telling us in this neck o' the woods, "the season's finished" and they must be right... For MANY kms along the coast, there were great clusters of many hundreds of beach umbrellas, most folded down, but all about 1 metre apart, and many with tables and seats around them.... others with sun lounges or beach chairs beside them. Very colourful, and very sad looking.... Not one person to be seen, and all I could think was "some poor buggers have to disassemble all this" and store it somewhere..... Towns along the way - large towns indeed, appeared to be almost totally devoid of residents - all the houses and hotels were shuttered up and alone!!! Sad little camping grounds with maybe one RV parked there, and apparently the managers all gone away too. Quite odd what happens in Europe once Summer is finished.......
As we were all embarking initially, there boarded an ENORMOUS man - must have weighed at least 250kgs, looked for all the world like a huge bag of jelly, he was so fat...... He sat on one side of a group of four seats, behind and to the side of us. No problems..... A woman and her husband then boarded and sat opposite him..... Still no problems, for a short while......
Then...... he started to snore. My god, it was unbelievable the noise he made, and nobody made to wake him up.... No matter whether the train slowed down or sped up, he kept up the snoring, and his opposite numbers (the woman and her husband) just slouched down in their seats, trying to concentrate on books.... with fellow passengers giving them pitying looks.......
Finally after more than an hour of this, the woman abandoned her seat and took refuge a few seats away, and unbelievably, he woke up at the next stop, and got off the train. He hadn't moved until then, how in the hell did he know he was at his destination?
Finally got off the train at Ancona, and had to wait for a bus to take us to the ticket 'place' for the next leg of the journey. More waiting for another bus, and then more waiting to board the boat for Zadar.
Quite a large ship actually, taking both cars and passengers. We had paid for dinner, so fronted up to the dining room to partake.... Yay..... Very sad meal, too ordinary to describe, and too bad to eat as well, but I reckon, all up there might have been 50 passengers on board, most either went without or brought their own food, and the whole ship was empty..... All the shops, entertainment, personnel, had gone..... Weird as......
Anyway we fell into bed at about 9.30pm, in our wonderful one up and one down bunk beds(!), and wished the next 9 hours away. Slept a bit and woke up to a seriously inedible breakfast......... and disembarkation in Zadar.....
Thursday, September 11, 2014
Monday 8th August - Wednesday 10th August - Verona/Venice/Bologna
The Opera was amazing. Very exciting to be there, in the middle of the ancient Verona Arena, witnessing Aida. There was a cast of thousands - well - dozens... Vast array of personnel - sizes, ages, and roles, including a dozen or so kids...
Sadly there was not the luxury of having the words being sung appearing in a thread over the stage, so we were a bit lost as to the meaning of the theatre...
When the THIRD interval came, just before mid-night, Arch and I (somewhat guiltily) fled..... Philistines.... I know. I'm sure we missed the best bit - i.e. The Finale...... Tough.
Arrived in Venice by late morning.....
Once off the train we bravely boarded an overcrowded Vaporetto to a stop nearby our hotel - dragging suitcases - stepping on people - up and over more stairs.......
God, what to say - Venice is still Venice......
Still just a swirling maelstrom of tourists, tourists, tourists.....
Did have a wander late afternoon/evening when many of the mob had departed, but really, it's still the same strange place.
Did go on a trip to Murano, to have a wee look at the making of the lovely Murano glassware.
Bought something........ Arthur had a panic attack... He's okay now!
Our room was VERY comfortable, very small, and insanely over-furnished with scarlet velvet drapes - on the window and over the bed!!! A small circular dining table and 2 chairs - totally unrequired - finished off the over-furnishing of the room. We had to tip-toe around the room. Comfy bed and bathroom though...
And our room was on the same floor as a very pleasant roof-top bar - lovely way to end a tough day...
Huge storm came through at about 3am and rain and wind quite amazing...... We had the bathroom windows - two on different walls - open to dry some washing (of course) and the bathroom flooded.... Yikes...... The staff would've wondered what had happened in there!!!!
Anyway, back on another fast train to Bologna, arrived about mid-day again. Good, comfy train, and travelling First Class, with a reserved seat, takes a lot of stress about getting on the train, although on this one, fairly full, EVERYBODY had enormous suitcases, and there was nowhere to store them. There was some overhead storage shelves, and thankfully one Aussie man-mountain on board who had the strength (and willingness) to lift many suitcases up there. Would not have been able to move down the aisles without his efforts...
Got to our hotel in Bologna a bit early, our rooms weren't ready, however they kindly invited us to sit in the lovely little garden, beside the breakfast room, and have a coffee and croissant.
We witnessed a gorgeous bit of local theatre from down there.......
This small garden was situated right below a wall of a 3-storey apartment block. Mama on Floor 2 had a tablecloth (or something.....) hanging over the window sill, when Mama on Floor 3 decided that shaking a large tablecloth out HER window would be a good thing to do. I happened to be watching and said to Arch, "pity about the stuff on the lower level"... 20 seconds later the shouting and banging on floors started between the two Mamas. God, it was wonderful..... More frantic shaking of cloths out the windows ensued for about 5 minutes. Finally peace was restored..... Isn't communal living something else, particularly amongst Latins who are not afraid to "let it rip" verbally.
Bologna is a truly lovely town, it has about 50kms of wonderful, intact colonnades all over the city, and it gives the impression of being a pretty successful part of the country. Big name fashion house shops abound, and it seems to us that the vast majority of folk here are actually locals, not tourists, at least not foreign tourists. Much better feel than Venice.... definitely never going there again!
We climbed FOUR HUNDRED AND NINETY EIGHT wooden steps up the ancient Asinelli Tower, the tallest tower in Italy, Surprisingly we were okay, but VERY hot and sticky... Great views of lots of red roofs and the hills a few kms out of town, Bologna is actually a very low city, no monstrous buildings at all. Quite proud of ourselves that we did it!
Sat for about 3 hours at a cafe in a busy thoroughfare last evening, just people-watching. It was wonderful, and you really do see everything. Many young kids here - it's a very busy University Town, and students from all over the world come here to study, so they added to the tapestry of life passing in front of us. There are so many dogs of all shapes and sizes, it's amazing, and they really do go everywhere; in handbaskets, in the baskets on bicycles, perched on top of the hoods of baby strollers, sitting on laps of people in wheelchairs.... even occasionally walking!!!
Have never seen so many smokers...... Old and young, men and women..... Bad and stinking!
Another storm last night, again torrential rain, which lasted for a few hours. Fine this morning (Thursday), and a bit overcast. We have the day to fill today, before boarding a train this afternoon to go over to Ancona on the east coast of Italy, from where we board a ferry this evening to take us to Zadar in Croatia. We have one night there, and then board our Cruise 'ship' - 38 passengers - yay!!! Our friends from the UK, Heather and John Jordan are joining us for the cruise, and it will be wonderful to catch up with them for more than 48 hours!!!
Very pleasant T-shirt wearing weather......
Going to pack now, to move on once more... Be back later.....
The Opera was amazing. Very exciting to be there, in the middle of the ancient Verona Arena, witnessing Aida. There was a cast of thousands - well - dozens... Vast array of personnel - sizes, ages, and roles, including a dozen or so kids...
Sadly there was not the luxury of having the words being sung appearing in a thread over the stage, so we were a bit lost as to the meaning of the theatre...
When the THIRD interval came, just before mid-night, Arch and I (somewhat guiltily) fled..... Philistines.... I know. I'm sure we missed the best bit - i.e. The Finale...... Tough.
Arrived in Venice by late morning.....
Once off the train we bravely boarded an overcrowded Vaporetto to a stop nearby our hotel - dragging suitcases - stepping on people - up and over more stairs.......
God, what to say - Venice is still Venice......
Still just a swirling maelstrom of tourists, tourists, tourists.....
Did have a wander late afternoon/evening when many of the mob had departed, but really, it's still the same strange place.
Did go on a trip to Murano, to have a wee look at the making of the lovely Murano glassware.
Bought something........ Arthur had a panic attack... He's okay now!
Our room was VERY comfortable, very small, and insanely over-furnished with scarlet velvet drapes - on the window and over the bed!!! A small circular dining table and 2 chairs - totally unrequired - finished off the over-furnishing of the room. We had to tip-toe around the room. Comfy bed and bathroom though...
And our room was on the same floor as a very pleasant roof-top bar - lovely way to end a tough day...
Huge storm came through at about 3am and rain and wind quite amazing...... We had the bathroom windows - two on different walls - open to dry some washing (of course) and the bathroom flooded.... Yikes...... The staff would've wondered what had happened in there!!!!
Anyway, back on another fast train to Bologna, arrived about mid-day again. Good, comfy train, and travelling First Class, with a reserved seat, takes a lot of stress about getting on the train, although on this one, fairly full, EVERYBODY had enormous suitcases, and there was nowhere to store them. There was some overhead storage shelves, and thankfully one Aussie man-mountain on board who had the strength (and willingness) to lift many suitcases up there. Would not have been able to move down the aisles without his efforts...
Got to our hotel in Bologna a bit early, our rooms weren't ready, however they kindly invited us to sit in the lovely little garden, beside the breakfast room, and have a coffee and croissant.
We witnessed a gorgeous bit of local theatre from down there.......
This small garden was situated right below a wall of a 3-storey apartment block. Mama on Floor 2 had a tablecloth (or something.....) hanging over the window sill, when Mama on Floor 3 decided that shaking a large tablecloth out HER window would be a good thing to do. I happened to be watching and said to Arch, "pity about the stuff on the lower level"... 20 seconds later the shouting and banging on floors started between the two Mamas. God, it was wonderful..... More frantic shaking of cloths out the windows ensued for about 5 minutes. Finally peace was restored..... Isn't communal living something else, particularly amongst Latins who are not afraid to "let it rip" verbally.
Bologna is a truly lovely town, it has about 50kms of wonderful, intact colonnades all over the city, and it gives the impression of being a pretty successful part of the country. Big name fashion house shops abound, and it seems to us that the vast majority of folk here are actually locals, not tourists, at least not foreign tourists. Much better feel than Venice.... definitely never going there again!
We climbed FOUR HUNDRED AND NINETY EIGHT wooden steps up the ancient Asinelli Tower, the tallest tower in Italy, Surprisingly we were okay, but VERY hot and sticky... Great views of lots of red roofs and the hills a few kms out of town, Bologna is actually a very low city, no monstrous buildings at all. Quite proud of ourselves that we did it!
Sat for about 3 hours at a cafe in a busy thoroughfare last evening, just people-watching. It was wonderful, and you really do see everything. Many young kids here - it's a very busy University Town, and students from all over the world come here to study, so they added to the tapestry of life passing in front of us. There are so many dogs of all shapes and sizes, it's amazing, and they really do go everywhere; in handbaskets, in the baskets on bicycles, perched on top of the hoods of baby strollers, sitting on laps of people in wheelchairs.... even occasionally walking!!!
Have never seen so many smokers...... Old and young, men and women..... Bad and stinking!
Another storm last night, again torrential rain, which lasted for a few hours. Fine this morning (Thursday), and a bit overcast. We have the day to fill today, before boarding a train this afternoon to go over to Ancona on the east coast of Italy, from where we board a ferry this evening to take us to Zadar in Croatia. We have one night there, and then board our Cruise 'ship' - 38 passengers - yay!!! Our friends from the UK, Heather and John Jordan are joining us for the cruise, and it will be wonderful to catch up with them for more than 48 hours!!!
Very pleasant T-shirt wearing weather......
Going to pack now, to move on once more... Be back later.....
Sunday, September 7, 2014
Friday 5th to Sunday 7th - Verona
Uneventful train trip - again stopping in Milan for an hour or so,.
Needed to visit the loo (God knows why we didn't do it on the train!), and, as the public loos wanted to charge, we went on the hunt. Turned up at McDonald's - who knew!!!! Not only was it sparkling clean, it was free! Have decided that if for some reason I must come to Italy to live, I'm going to buy the McDonald's franchise in the Milan Railway Station!!!! Licence to print money methinks...
The train from Stresa to Milan and Milan to Verona were the only trains we've been on which were pretty much packed. Also a very fast train, so rather than going nutty trying to look out the window at trees flashing by, I read a book. Certainly helps to pass the time.
Convinced Arch that dragging suitcases along cobbled streets was NOT the way to go, so we hopped a taxi. Great hotel, VERY close to all the action. Very comfortable room - modern, sparkling bathroom, with a SHOWER..... (and a separate enormous spa bath). Absolutely no view from our room - neighbouring windows and balconies only - but bright and sunny room.
Once again we've walked our legs off - although this time with a bit more time spent in our air-conditioned room - very humid in Verona.. and we're wearing out a bit!
Food is good and bad - as usual. The worst meal was when we were lazy and literally walked next door.... Bad as........ and very nasty, watered down wine...
Cannot believe how many Europeans smoke - and it's allowed - encouraged - at all restaurants.... Sitting outside, which everyone is at this time of year, it's impossible not to be covered in cigarette smoke - and as the table staff brush past, they smell as though they've just been outside for a fag too!
The ruins continue to fascinate, and I had absolutely NO preconceived ideas about Verona, so it's been a learning experience. Hearing very few English speaking tourists - most seem to be European and there are bus loads of Japanese and Chinese tourists walking around following a "red" or "blue" flag, or umbrella... Hey, I've been one of those - in Japan!!!!
Our hotel is about 5 minutes walk away from the famous "balcony" on which the totally fictitious Romeo & Juliet supposedly had a tryst.... Wall to wall tourists, walls of love messages, and the usual padlocks mark the spot... All part of the fun I guess.
Did manage, through a subscription, to gain access to live football, and watched the Essendon/North Melbourne match. All good, except with about 2 minutes to go, the screen went black. Could NOT regain access to the match, but all ended happily for Arthur.... Then he promptly went to sleep - totally stressed out!!
Then, this morning, we watched the first quarter of the Richmond/Port Adelaide game.... What a shocker..... We were so appalled that we went off to have breakfast at 1/4 time (here), and when we returned the misery was all over - or maybe just continuing for some......
Will leave this for now, come back tomorrow. We're off to the Opera tonight - Aida, performed outdoors in the amazing Verona Arena....... Then early-ish train to Venice......
.
Uneventful train trip - again stopping in Milan for an hour or so,.
Needed to visit the loo (God knows why we didn't do it on the train!), and, as the public loos wanted to charge, we went on the hunt. Turned up at McDonald's - who knew!!!! Not only was it sparkling clean, it was free! Have decided that if for some reason I must come to Italy to live, I'm going to buy the McDonald's franchise in the Milan Railway Station!!!! Licence to print money methinks...
The train from Stresa to Milan and Milan to Verona were the only trains we've been on which were pretty much packed. Also a very fast train, so rather than going nutty trying to look out the window at trees flashing by, I read a book. Certainly helps to pass the time.
Convinced Arch that dragging suitcases along cobbled streets was NOT the way to go, so we hopped a taxi. Great hotel, VERY close to all the action. Very comfortable room - modern, sparkling bathroom, with a SHOWER..... (and a separate enormous spa bath). Absolutely no view from our room - neighbouring windows and balconies only - but bright and sunny room.
Once again we've walked our legs off - although this time with a bit more time spent in our air-conditioned room - very humid in Verona.. and we're wearing out a bit!
Food is good and bad - as usual. The worst meal was when we were lazy and literally walked next door.... Bad as........ and very nasty, watered down wine...
Cannot believe how many Europeans smoke - and it's allowed - encouraged - at all restaurants.... Sitting outside, which everyone is at this time of year, it's impossible not to be covered in cigarette smoke - and as the table staff brush past, they smell as though they've just been outside for a fag too!
The ruins continue to fascinate, and I had absolutely NO preconceived ideas about Verona, so it's been a learning experience. Hearing very few English speaking tourists - most seem to be European and there are bus loads of Japanese and Chinese tourists walking around following a "red" or "blue" flag, or umbrella... Hey, I've been one of those - in Japan!!!!
Our hotel is about 5 minutes walk away from the famous "balcony" on which the totally fictitious Romeo & Juliet supposedly had a tryst.... Wall to wall tourists, walls of love messages, and the usual padlocks mark the spot... All part of the fun I guess.
Did manage, through a subscription, to gain access to live football, and watched the Essendon/North Melbourne match. All good, except with about 2 minutes to go, the screen went black. Could NOT regain access to the match, but all ended happily for Arthur.... Then he promptly went to sleep - totally stressed out!!
Then, this morning, we watched the first quarter of the Richmond/Port Adelaide game.... What a shocker..... We were so appalled that we went off to have breakfast at 1/4 time (here), and when we returned the misery was all over - or maybe just continuing for some......
Will leave this for now, come back tomorrow. We're off to the Opera tonight - Aida, performed outdoors in the amazing Verona Arena....... Then early-ish train to Venice......
.
Friday, September 5, 2014
Wednesday 3rd - Thursday 4th August, Stresa, Italy.
We've walked almost the entire lengh of Stresa, over the last couple of days, including climbing the streets to the hills above the coastline, to see what makes this town tick!
We've been totally shocked to see how many HUGE properties have gone totally to wrack and ruin, through neglect. Not at all sure what can have led to this situation, but there are what were very large, houses on vast acreage, which are just mouldering away, roofs caved in and neglected gardens overtaking the property.. The land alone, in prime positions would be worth millions, so we can't understand someone isn't interested enough to do "something".... We called into an estate agent whose office is situated in one of these buildings, and asked what's going on? He didn't attempt an explanation, but told us we could have the three adjoining, waterfront properties for 100,000,000 Euros. I checked my bank account on the spot, but couldn't come up with the money - sadly!!! Although god knows what you would do with it anyway.
There seems to be a bit of a dearth of wildlife here in Stresa - pretty much the only 'animals' we have seen are pigeons, sparrows, the odd duck and a few Seagulls. You really notice how noisy and 'present' our Aussie birds are, when there are none!! Of course there are domestic cats, and small dogs are everywhere.....
The exception to this was a visit to the gardens of another vast estate nearby, which has been turned into a "Zoo"... Sounded pleasant enough - free ranging sheep, goats, deer and a donkey or two.. We hiked up the hill, and finally came upon the first fenced area which housed these animals. Kinda okay so far...... apart from one lactating Nanny Goat, whose kid seemed to have gone missing, and who was standing, frozen to the spot, on a bridge, with the most enormous distended udder and teats I have ever seen, obviously in great discomfort!!! Then we wandered off to the enclosures of the more exotic animals - OMIGOD..... It was like revisiting the Melbourne Zoo of the 1960s - pacing animals, walking back and forth within wire cages, bare dirt, hardly a 'house' for them to snooze in. There was one enormous Eagle of some sort which was almost comatose on its big perch..... There was plenty more to see apparently, and families with kids kept streaming in, but it was too much for me to bear, so we had to leave.....
Bad... Very bad....
I did (of course) stop to tell the woman in the ticket booth what I thought of the situation, and she nodded - bewildered. Arthur was by this time, hiding out in the street, totally embarrassed....
We've been highly amused by the fact that almost every shop in town closes in the middle of the day - and not for one hour, but often for three hours!!! Even the supermarket closes - for hours....WTF???
Can you imagine walking down Bourke Road in the middle of the day to see ...... no-one?????
Wonder how Woollies would feel about taking a good portion of the middle of the day off - to do what we wonder? Do they go home? Sleep out the back? Count the money they DON'T have in the till?
You would think, that with the economy down the toilet anyway, they would make every waking minute a winner, and rope in as many tourists as possible - Winter is just around the corner!!!
We ran into an English couple (from the midlands) in a bar last evening, quite amusing, and they are the sort of people who go to the same places year after year, because it's comfortable. They're here for three weeks... and have been here before.... THREE WEEKS??? Not sure I would commit to three weeks in Stresa.
Anyway, after again running into them in a restaurant after we thought we'd parted ways, we also had dinner with them - promising to catch them up for a drink tonight.... Really hoping they've forgotten.......
They did - apparently!!!!
We were served by a waitress in a restaurant a couple of evenings ago, and she was very,very dark skinned. Not a problem, except it looked SO wrong.....Couldn't stop looking at her - her features were so NOT consistent with a dark skinned individual, and her skin looked so dry and weird it could have been coated in ash!!! All the while puzzling about this, she returned to take our order and lifted her head!!!!! Omigod.... there were two white as white streaks across her throat region, which it occurred to me had obviously escaped the tanning process!!! God knows how much she had spent in the process of turning white skin into black, but I was so tempted to tell her they had been banned in Australia due to their serious health risks.....
What was she thinking???
Anyway, we had an early very light dinner and returned to our lovely hotel to have a few drinks on the terrace, and watch the sun go down. Lovely Stresa - farewell....
We've walked almost the entire lengh of Stresa, over the last couple of days, including climbing the streets to the hills above the coastline, to see what makes this town tick!
We've been totally shocked to see how many HUGE properties have gone totally to wrack and ruin, through neglect. Not at all sure what can have led to this situation, but there are what were very large, houses on vast acreage, which are just mouldering away, roofs caved in and neglected gardens overtaking the property.. The land alone, in prime positions would be worth millions, so we can't understand someone isn't interested enough to do "something".... We called into an estate agent whose office is situated in one of these buildings, and asked what's going on? He didn't attempt an explanation, but told us we could have the three adjoining, waterfront properties for 100,000,000 Euros. I checked my bank account on the spot, but couldn't come up with the money - sadly!!! Although god knows what you would do with it anyway.
There seems to be a bit of a dearth of wildlife here in Stresa - pretty much the only 'animals' we have seen are pigeons, sparrows, the odd duck and a few Seagulls. You really notice how noisy and 'present' our Aussie birds are, when there are none!! Of course there are domestic cats, and small dogs are everywhere.....
The exception to this was a visit to the gardens of another vast estate nearby, which has been turned into a "Zoo"... Sounded pleasant enough - free ranging sheep, goats, deer and a donkey or two.. We hiked up the hill, and finally came upon the first fenced area which housed these animals. Kinda okay so far...... apart from one lactating Nanny Goat, whose kid seemed to have gone missing, and who was standing, frozen to the spot, on a bridge, with the most enormous distended udder and teats I have ever seen, obviously in great discomfort!!! Then we wandered off to the enclosures of the more exotic animals - OMIGOD..... It was like revisiting the Melbourne Zoo of the 1960s - pacing animals, walking back and forth within wire cages, bare dirt, hardly a 'house' for them to snooze in. There was one enormous Eagle of some sort which was almost comatose on its big perch..... There was plenty more to see apparently, and families with kids kept streaming in, but it was too much for me to bear, so we had to leave.....
Bad... Very bad....
I did (of course) stop to tell the woman in the ticket booth what I thought of the situation, and she nodded - bewildered. Arthur was by this time, hiding out in the street, totally embarrassed....
We've been highly amused by the fact that almost every shop in town closes in the middle of the day - and not for one hour, but often for three hours!!! Even the supermarket closes - for hours....WTF???
Can you imagine walking down Bourke Road in the middle of the day to see ...... no-one?????
Wonder how Woollies would feel about taking a good portion of the middle of the day off - to do what we wonder? Do they go home? Sleep out the back? Count the money they DON'T have in the till?
You would think, that with the economy down the toilet anyway, they would make every waking minute a winner, and rope in as many tourists as possible - Winter is just around the corner!!!
We ran into an English couple (from the midlands) in a bar last evening, quite amusing, and they are the sort of people who go to the same places year after year, because it's comfortable. They're here for three weeks... and have been here before.... THREE WEEKS??? Not sure I would commit to three weeks in Stresa.
Anyway, after again running into them in a restaurant after we thought we'd parted ways, we also had dinner with them - promising to catch them up for a drink tonight.... Really hoping they've forgotten.......
They did - apparently!!!!
We were served by a waitress in a restaurant a couple of evenings ago, and she was very,very dark skinned. Not a problem, except it looked SO wrong.....Couldn't stop looking at her - her features were so NOT consistent with a dark skinned individual, and her skin looked so dry and weird it could have been coated in ash!!! All the while puzzling about this, she returned to take our order and lifted her head!!!!! Omigod.... there were two white as white streaks across her throat region, which it occurred to me had obviously escaped the tanning process!!! God knows how much she had spent in the process of turning white skin into black, but I was so tempted to tell her they had been banned in Australia due to their serious health risks.....
What was she thinking???
Anyway, we had an early very light dinner and returned to our lovely hotel to have a few drinks on the terrace, and watch the sun go down. Lovely Stresa - farewell....
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