Thur 28/11/2019 – Mon 02/12/2019

My first impressions as we cross the border from Germany to the Nederlands are that the land is very green, quite flat and that there is lots of farmland!

It was a rainy day for our drive from Koln in Germany and for the first 100 kilometres we stuck to the motorway. As we approached the border we exited for a slower drive to appreciate the local landscape.

The trees here show signs of winter with fewer leaves and as the land flattened out we start to see some of the dykes and canals this country is known for.

We see lots of windmills, the new tall, alien looking turbo kind and when I finally spot my first of the older kind, I’m not quick enough to get a photo.

We are staying in Almere, North of the city of Amsterdam and on the other side of the Amstel River. It is not far from the city as the crow flies but about 20 kilometres of freeway. We have three days to explore this amazing city.

Friday 29/11 – Amsterdam and Van Gogh Museum

After navigating one of the most extraordinary freeways (6 lanes each side plus ramps) and the tram system, it takes us about 45 minutes to enter the city. There are lots of roadworks around Central station but it’s obvious the tram system is highly efficient and before long we are at the Van Gogh Museum.

Van Gogh is my favourite of the old artists and it is an absolute pleasure to learn more of his life, writings, drawings and artwork.

This collection was started by his sister in law Jo shortly after his death in 1890 and cumulated in the opening of the gallery by his nephew; also Vincent in 1973.

Apparently Vincent painted himself repeatedly, often with different eye colouring as he experimented with colour and emotions in portraiture.

Vincent painted many pictures of peasants both in the field and at rest as he continued to explore human emotion which he believed peasants embodied to a higher degree due to their life of manual work and daily struggle to survive.

We finish the day with a stroll around the book market and the flower market which at this time of year is all bulbs.

Bicycles are widely used in Amsterdam and in the city centre there are hundreds.

Saturday – Sunday 30/11 – 1/12 Amsterdam

We spent the weekend exploring the city and on Sunday we took a canal tour of the lights, an annual art event that occurs at this time of year.

I like Amsterdam. It has a vibrancy like no other. It is widely known that is has a very liberal way of life with a thriving red light district and cannabis is legalised, sold and used everywhere. The city is also full of culture, with many museums and has lots of history too.

It took me a bit to get used to crossing the bike paths that flank the roads and don’t forget the trams too but I really enjoyed this city with it’s curious mix of old and new.

On Saturday we took a big walk loosely following a tour I found in the City Walks app starting from Central station. The walk took us through the red light district; where the madams display their wares behind glass doors and just around the corner is Oude Kerk, one of the oldest churches then on past Dam Square, the Royal Palace, Madame Tussaud’s and the Anne Frank museum to name a few. Everywhere we walk the scent of cannabis occasionally drifts by…

West Kerk (Church)

On Sunday we also visit Begijnhof. One of the oldest historic housing areas, situated at medieval level (a meter lower) than the older city centre. Originally a beguine, almost an enclave of holy women but not as strict as a convent.

One of the oldest wooden houses…

As the day starts to wane on Sunday we make our way to the canal where we board our Floating Amsterdam boat for our tour of the canals and the art light festival. Our tour guide tells us the light installations are representations of our changing climate. I’m not sure I understand all the messages in the art but the lights and the city by night are certainly a sight to see.

What an awesome weekend!

Monday 2/12 – Drive to Bruge, Belgum.

Sunrise at 8:30am today, the short days continue as we enter Winter in Europe!

We are driving into Belgum today with a short two day stop plan in Brugge. On the way we will detour to visit the windmills at Kinderdijk.

This is a group of 19 monumental windmills in the Alblasserwaard polder, in the province of South Holland, Netherlands listed by UNESCO.

Most of the mills are part of the village of Kinderdijk in the municipality of Molenwaard, and one mill, De Blokker, is part of the municipality of Alblasserdam. (Ref Wikipedia)

The day has been patchy with rain til now but as we park for a walk along the canals and windmills the clouds start to clear and the sun smiles at us. Sometimes it feels like the sun finds the Aussie travellers and shines just for us :-).

Two boys are fishing and it looks like a fine catch but it’s catch and release as moments later the trout is released to live another day.

The windmills date from the 1700’s and their old world charm reminds me of the tales of Hans Christian Andersen that I read as a child and evokes images of children skating on ice past the windmills.

So beautiful!

Now it’s onward to Brugge!

Mon 25/11/2019 – Thur 28/11/2019

Stay: AirBnB Rosrath

Temp: 1 – 6

We left the Rhine late on Monday, checking out at midday and the rest of the day was taken up with driving, shopping and settling into our next stay at Rosrath about 20 minutes outside of Koln.

Tuesday morning we were up and into Koln, the day was grey and chilly but the promise of Christmas markets beckoned, there are six good ones in Koln I have read and they just opened on the 22nd.

We drove in and parked just off Siegburger Straße under the Severinbruck Bundestrasse bridge for €4 per day.

We walked over the bridge and straight into the…

1st Market – the Harbour market, on the Rhine and in the grounds of the Chocolate Museum nearby which we hoping to get to later. The market had just open though so there were only a few stalls operating.

We bought some hot roasted chestnuts – Maroni; my first ever try and they were delicious. We also found a small cooking cod over flames which smelt amazing!

Continuing onward we walk along the Rhine heading to the Cathedral who’s imposing outline dominates the Koln skyline. As we walk we take in the architecture and structures that make up the city of Koln

We come to the 2nd market – Cathedral market but skip past to see the Cathedral.

It’s Gothic, dark and so big it’s difficult to capture close up. Inside is a vast space that is awe inspiring in it’s beauty and reverential and grand on a scale you can only imagine.

The Cathedral markets with approx. 150 stalls are also grand, bustling and busy. We ended up returning here later in the day just to take photos of the lights. So charming and whimsical, I’ll start with those.

The market stalls are filled with handmade products, Christmas decorations both glass and wooden, candles, jewellery, beanies and gloves and lots of food which is what Rob and I were most interested in, however I did manage to buy a few small gifts too!

The food was amazing, German potato pancakes, bratwurst and other sausage, waffles, strudel and Gluhwein of course! I’m hooked – Christmas in July at our place next year and I promise to make some!

Rob and I share the potato pancakes and bratwurst before moving on.

The 3rd Christmas market – Heinzelmannchen or Old Market has an ice rink a carousel and is just near the local Rathaus (town hall). So named for the little folk Heinzelmannchen of the Cologne legend that used to help with housework until some silly housewives tried to catch them, so they stopped as I recall from my childhood books!

The 4th market – Angels or Neumarkt is the original Christmas market.

A big day due to a second go round for night photos of the lights, we walked over 14 km!

Wednesday 27/11/19

Today we planned to visit the Chocolate Museum and the other two markets so another busy day.

The chocolate museum has several levels and provides information on the history, growth, cultivation and economic cycle of the cacao product and how chocolate has informed history and entered our culture. The museum also has a fully functional Lindt chocolate manufacturing plant so that you see all the steps in the process and you can even make you own special bar if chocolate. Plus they give you a few samples along the way. Yum!

The history is fascinating and we really enjoy it. There are a few school groups in too we could see the kids enjoying it too. Who wouldn’t enjoy a chocolate experience!

Next up we were off in search of the remaining two markets.

Market number 5 – Rudolfplatz in the city has a “Village of St Nicholas” Everything you could want for Christmas is here! The reindeer above the entrance moves and sings and as Rob and I munched through a stick of meat we watched a little girl sway and clap along with him. Just gorgeous and the pork was good too.

Market number 6 – Stadtgarten (city garden). It took us a while to find so we took some pictures along our walk and it was dark and drizzly by the time we found it so we grabbed a hot drink and sat under shelter until the rain passed. We ended up chatting to a lady who spoke English because her husband was from Oxford which was nice!

As we walked back over the bridge tired after another big day, about 14 km’s again, I took a few last photos of the city. We really enjoyed our visit to Koln (Cologne), a city well worth a visit.

Next stop Netherlands and Amsterdam.

Thur 21/11/2019 – Mon 25/11/2019

Stay: AirBnB Kestert

Avg Temp: 1 – 4

A misty cold morning in Mannheim that promised a crispy clear day didn’t eventuate, although we did have a glimpse or two of blue skies on the drive up towards the Rhine region along the way after getting our new wheel fitted.

It’s not a long drive from Mannheim and as soon as we turn alongside the Rhine I see a castle and then another and another!

Our stay for the weekend was in Kestert but as it was only just after midday when we arrived we thought we would find somewhere in the town for a local German cuisine lunch.

This proved harder than we thought as every Restaurant including the tavern was closed until 5pm! We had expected this to some degree as a few people along our travels advised that the further we would get into winter a lot of restaurants would be closed, so we just back tracked to Loreley; about 7km’s and after a few attempts found a charming restaurant overlooking the Rhine called the Cafe Rheingold. I had a Schnitzel with a crisp glass of Riesling and Rob had Sausages and Potato with a local beer.

After lunch and picking up some groceries in Loreley we checked in. Our stay in Kestert was a in a cute little apartment above the main residence. It had up and down steps and quirky sloping floors and lovely 180 views of the Rhine.

Friday was a very cold windy day staying at 1 degree above zero so we stayed in admiring the view, watching all the traffic on the river and catching up on washing.

View from our windows…

Saturday dawned bright and clear at 1 degree with a promise of 4 degrees, blue skies and sunshine too, so we decided to do a drive to Koblenz and then up to Cochem to see the Mosel and then do a loop back to Kestert.

A beautiful drive, we saw amazing castles, swans, little markets and lots of Vineyards! The Rhine banks are peppered with gorgeous Bavarian villages, grand churches and of course all the castles.

Cochem on the Mosel River is a charming medieval town with Celtic origins and mentions as early as 886!

Cochem Castle is high and imposing with views spanning both reaches of the Mosel. We climbed up for a look but then decided to do the tour which was well worth it, especially with an English guide.

After the castle we walked down to Cochem village to look for a warm drink. Castles are always cold and even with the blue skies it’s still only 4 degrees!

Cochem is cute, a classical Bavarian village. We find a lovely warm Gluhwein to keep us going back to the car.

As we drive home, cross country from the Mosel to the Rhine we saw Swans by the river, not castles and had the soft sunset light over the countryside before a magical sunset reflected in the magnificent Rhine River.

A really lovely day!

The next day Sunday also dawned bright, cold and fine. We were expecting rain so got out of the house straight away for an early run!

Back home, after 4 km’s and breakfast it was still fine so we decided on a hill walk. Good choice as it stayed fine and we had a great day! We found that above the Rhine there are many paths and that you can walk all the way along, ducking down to the various villages to stay overnight so you could do a significant walk. Food for thought for another trip perhaps…

Mon 18/11/2019 – Thur 21/11/2019

Stay: AirBnB Hanhofen

Average Temp 4 – 8

Monday morning we had to deal with a flat tyre! An indicator had come on over the weekend but we hadn’t found any problem. Now we had found it… Rob tried to change it but the wheel wouldn’t come off so we rang the lease company for assistance which was included. A fellow arrived fairly efficiently but turns out it was more than the tyre, the rim was buckled!

The week before, when we left South Tyrol we had travelled some road that was storm damaged from all the recent rain and there were some big pot holes so we think that’s where the damage occurred.

So change of plan, we now have to get the whole wheel replaced. We decided to drive to Lindau as there is a dealer there and see if they can help.

On the way we spy this beautiful view of the Austrian Alps.

Up to 10 working days to order and get in a replacement wheel was the answer in Lindau so after some to-ing and fro-ing with Renault we decide to drive to a bigger centre to hopefully get it done quicker.

We decide on Mannheim which is on the way to Cologne, about half-way and as we had lost the morning there was only a few hours of daylight to drive in. I found accommodation on the way about 20minutes outside the city in Hanhoff and we arrived about 5pm. Along the way I took this pic of a German Autobahn and yes they drive very fast in the the far left lane!

Next morning we arrive at Renault early and they are very helpful but it takes some time as they basically have to reestablish the problem, talk to Renault, wait for them to come back etc but in the end the wheel is ordered and may be in by 2pm the next day, Wednesday. Not too bad!

We spend the next few hours doing a big walk, about 15 kilometres around Mannheim which was great fun!

Here’s what we found!

First up we head for the palace which is closed for renovations this year but still awesome from outside.

Then we cross the River Rhine and as we walk into Galleries a shopping centre looking for a warm drink we see a small Christmas market – our first one! They have a “Gluhwein” stand and of course we have to try one! Gluhwein is basically a sugar syrup with spice and OJ added and then reduced with red wine added to heat but not to a boil at the end (I made some later that week). The version we tried also had schnapps added so was very warming! Just the thing during a long cold walk.

As we walk we see many beautiful spaces in Mannheim. We cross the Rhine again and walk thru an industrial patch and come across this huge artwork, about 4 stories.

Later we pass through a green idyll in the heart of the city. Located around the water tower “Wasserturm” is one of the largest art nouveau complexes in Europe. Built to be one of the “most beautiful places in the world” it surprises you as it suddenly appears and yes it is very beautiful!

The Friedrichsplatz at the water tower “Wasserturm” would also be the perfect place to relax – if it wasn’t so cold out….

Statue of St Francis of Assisi by Martin Mayer

Tuesday we had a slow morning before going to the Technik Museum in Mannheim. The museum covers industrialisation in the Southern and Western regions of Germany. A great museum which would be even better if they included English in the information displays. Even so there where also lots of practical displays with English instructions so Rob and I had quite a bit of fun.

Finally got a call that they could fit our wheel the next day Thursday so we had to find a third night’s accommodation, this time we stayed in town close to the dealer.

Funny story about dinner. Rob and I had been eating in a lot so we thought we would try to find a typical German restaurant. Turns out there was a place around the corner from our stay – Gaststatte Odenwalder, reportedly the “best Schnitzel in town”.

So just before 7pm we head out – it’s freezing, the restaurant looks good, smells good and sounds busy, great! Great until we find they are packed, no tables.

No problem,we think we can wait a while so we go back to our place, wait another hour, really hungry now too, so once again we head to the restaurant… oh, no… still full.

The only other food nearby was Burger King…

That’s the way it goes sometimes.

Next day we get the new wheel fitted at 9am and we are off. Our next stop will be the Rhine region and then Cologne and the Christmas Markets.

Fri 14 – Mon 18 November 2019

Weiler-Simmerberg is a market town in the Swabian Lindau district.

It’s typical for a small town and it’s cold and dark when we arrive late Thursday afternoon so there are not a lot of people about.

Friday we did a walk up along the creek that flows through the town following a trail but had to turn back as it was barricaded. We later found out there had been a land slip due to recent heavy rain in the area.

Later we had the most spectacular sunset as we walked around town. Our last stop for the day was a visit to the local brew house where we sampled some German beer.

Sat 16/11/19 Meersburg and Lindau

Meersburg is a picturesque town in the southwestern German state of Baden-Württemberg and about 50km’s from Zurich in Switzerland.On the shore of Lake Constance (Bodensee), it’s surrounded by vineyards.

We visited Meersburg on the suggestion of our host in Weiler; Coralie, who said it is was a very pretty place with a Castle and several Museums. We got away late as it had been a very foggy misty morning but along the drive the day cleared to crisp sunshine and we got some great views of fall leaves, apple orchards and vines along the way.

Meersburg and Lake Konstance lived up to their promise of beauty with charming streets packed with Bavarian style buildings and the Castle overlooking the lake.

We walk around enjoying the streets, the lake and some interesting artwork but don’t visit the castle or museum’s as we also wish to visit Lindau.

On the way we see an airship!

Lindau

Lindau is a town also on Lake Constance (or Bodensee) in Bavaria, Germany, known for its old town on Lindau island. The harbor has a Bavarian Lion statue and a stone lighthouse with lake and mountain views.

On the harborfront Seepromenade, the 12th-century Mangturm is a former watchtower with a pointed, tiled roof.

Nearby restaurant-lined Maximilianstrasse, the Gothic Altes Rathaus (Old Town Hall) has a painted facade.

We reach the far side of the town and find a park with some very old trees, the fall colours blending with a small Japanese maple (I think) and also see a very fat little sparrow on the sidewalk who is not terribly shy at all, allowing me to get really close for her photo…

Circling back the town there are more charming streets filled with interesting shops including an antique toy store.

Today is Kat’s 21st Birthday!We hope she is enjoying celebrating the occasion with family and friends and send her all our love. Happy birthday darling! xxx

A lovely day out and on the way home we receive another spectator sunset.

Sunday 17/11/19 Sulzberger

The forecast was for snow overnight and today but we have woken to a very cold and overcast day. Rob has planned a drive to Sulzberger, a hike to Buchenegg Waterfalls and then a visit to the town of Immenstadt.

When we arrive at Sulzberger it is immersed in fog that started as we drove up so we won’t be able to walk there!

We push on for the falls and enjoy a very steep hike down through forest to the falls. I only go part way as we didn’t take poles and it’s very steep and slippery! Rob soldiers on though!

After our invigorating hike and back in the car we drive on through Immenstadt and also Lindenberg.

We have had an interesting few days in a typical German town. Next we are heading to Koln (Cologne) for the Christmas markets!!!

Thursday 14 Nov 2019

Today we drove from Italy, the province of South Tyrol to Weiler I’m Allgau in Germany passing through Austria.

Rob and I agree it was a postcard day, recent snow falls along with a crystal clear sky coupled with some of the prettiest mountains made for some stunning scenery. We both agreed it had been one of our nicest days driving yet.

Most of the photo’s are taken as we drove along but we still hope you enjoy these as much as we did.

Vandoies

Brennero outlet village – there’s a car under there!

Zirl

Mon 11/11 – Thur 14/11/19

Monday morning early we set out from Le Spezia for a long drive – 400 kilometres up to the South Tyrol region, our last stop in Italy. For the next four weeks we plan to tour Germany, up to the Netherlands and then down through France.

Rob had been checking the weather and had found it would be snowing in the Province of South Tyrol this week so we thought we would try to catch some real winters weather.

From La Spezia we head NE towards Parma and Mantova. Just outside Verona we leave the Autostrada so that we can drive up Lake Garda which runs for about 100 kilometres.

Mountains tower each side of the lake which has wind whipped waves on this cold rainy day. At Gargnano on the opposite shore we see a village on a cliff top and a bit further on there is another under the cliff at Campione.

At the end of the lake at Nago- Torbole a gorgeous village then morphs into a rural vista of tightly packed fields of grapevines and fruit trees.

Back on the Autostrada we pass Castellano – which has a Castle high on the hill above the town.

Snow is predicted from 6pm. We exit the Autostrada at Bressanone and arrive at the village of Vintl Weitenal, grab a few supplies and head up the mountain to our destination, villa Wohrerhof. As we leave the village around 5pm, it starts snowing. Wow!

I feel like a child with the wonder of it. Our host Agnes meets us, speaking German and we quickly bring in our gear, then we are both out trying to catch the snow on our tongues, laughing and giggling.

On Tuesday we wake up to a smattering of snow that turns to sleet by about 10am. We go for a drive further up the valley to the village of Pfunder where it is -2 degrees and snowing. We visit the local church, go for a very slippery walk and then play in the snow for a bit before relaxing in the local bar with a warm drink.

Back in Vintl it’s still wet and the snow has all but disappeared. We take a walk around Vandois, the village below our villa, it’s very cold and there is no one about except the Poste lady and very little traffic. Rob and I ponder that from now til April next year, people in snow areas mainly live inside.

Later in the day it starts snowing again and this time it snows all through the night going down to -7 degrees.

On Wednesday we wake up to a Winter wonderland.

Snow everywhere! Its very quiet and very beautiful. We go for a walk around the villa and up the mountain road beside us a short way.

Across the morning it keeps snowing and by 10:30am the wheels on the car are half buried. It’s supposed to stop snowing soon and we are hoping for a walk later…

At about 11:30am Agnes is outside shoveling snow. I kindly offer Rob’s help as my right hand is still not up to hard manual work although it is healing well. After snapping some pics and dodging snow thrown my way I start work on a snowman.

Rob and Agnes clear snow around the cars for about an hour and Agnes explains a tractor will clear the drive later.

It continues to snow for about another hour and stops around 1:00pm. We have had nearly 40cm of snow and Agnes tell us that this unusual for November but that it will be a clear tomorrow. Good to hear as we have to drive out then.

On the news today we hear that Venice has flooded and is under – 1.7metres of water and that other areas further down in Southern Italy have flooded also – so sad to hear. So challenging weather abounds.

Rob and I are also both very sad to hear about the devastating bush fires at home in Australia. Our thoughts and prayers go out to all those affected.

Robs walk – love this shot

I’m in love with this place and enjoying the photography immensely. A full moon on the 12th presents an opportunity to good to miss so I get up and take some shots at 2am from our balcony. It’s -6 degrees and I had read about a meteor shower due about now but no sign of it, just the lovely moonlight.

The next morning the sun is shining and it looks like a bonus day for our drive through Austria into Germany.

Next stop Fischen Germany.

Saturday 9 Nov – Sunday 10 Nov 2019

Our host Gianna has recommended visits to Portovenere and Lerici so we are keen to explore both.

Porto Venere is a village on the Ligurian coast of northwestern Italy. It’s known for Porto Venere Regional Natural Park, a protected area with trails and dive sites. The park encompasses Palmaria Island, dotted with beaches and caves. The Gothic-style Church of St. Peter sits atop a rocky headland. Nearby is the centuries-old Castello Doria, an imposing clifftop fortress with views of the Gulf of Poets.

So named as this region was popular with poets, Shelley drowned at Lerici, Byron swam between Porto Venere and Lerici. Before them, other poets, Dante and Petrarch lover the gulf also.

We walk around the harbour admiring the pretty town and the views across the bay to Lerici before heading up to explore St. Peters.

Apparently Lord (and poet) Byron was a keen swimmer and he swam from Porto Venere to Lerici often! We estimated this to be about 10km’s so a pretty sound effort!

After St. Peter’s we headed up the hill to view the church of San Lorenzo and Castello Doria.

After another lovely day exploring we head home and later that night we get thunderstorms and lots of rain.

The next day as we are about to leave I spy this street art near our building. Could this be a Banksy style version of Klimt’s kiss perhaps?

Today we drive in the opposite direction from Portovenere to Lerici.

Lerici is a town and comune in the province of La Spezia in Liguria, part of the Italian Riviera. It is situated on the coast of the Gulf of La Spezia, 8 kilometres southeast of La Spezia. It is known as the place where the poet Percy Bysshe Shelley drowned.

After we leave Lerici Rob decided to drive to the end of the point. Ponta Bianca. The road quickly becomes very high, winding with lots of signs saying don’t go off the edge! The drop off is very steep and at times the only barrier is olive trees! Very hairy drive indeed!

Ponta Bianca

La Spezia is a great spot to visit. It has so many interesting places very close by including the Cinque Terre and Italian Riviera and is also ideal and not far from quite a few other places like Pisa and Florence. I loved this location.

Tomorrow we head North to our last stop in Italy before touring on towards Germany, to the province of South Tryol. We think there may be snow too so it’s an exciting prospect!

Wednesday 6 Nov 2019

We woke to a thunderstorm in Florence and a lot of rain.

After a slow start I took one more photo of our amazing view from villa “On Top of the World” and then we set off for Le Spezia, our next destination, which is near the more familiar Cinque Terre.

Beautiful Firenze

Rob had planned the route so that we could visit Pisa on the way and see “Le Torre de Pisa”

Only about an hour from Florence, we had lots of rain on the way and once we arrived and parked it was apparent from the swollen and fast flowing Arno River, that Pisa had received a lot of rain the last few days.

The famous Tower of Pisa!

Of course we had to do the corny photo too! Mine turned out best. 🙂

The Tower of Pisa is actually the bell tower of the Cathedral and along with the Duomo and the Camposata comprise the area that make up the field of miracles as it is so called.

The Cathedral is dedicated to Santa Maria Assunta.

It really is an extraordinary sight, even for the beautiful Architecture but the tower has quite a lean to it.

Even more apparent when you get up close is how much it’s leaning! My next shot tries to show this but you may have to zoom in. On the left side of the pano shot there are one and a half blocks, on the right side, four and a half! Each block is about 50cm high so by my reckoning that’s 1.5 metres variation!

Walking back to the car we pass through Piazza Vittorio Emmanuel II which has a state of The first King of Italy, Vittorio Emmanuel, and another lovely arty sculpture.

Vittorio Emmanuel

Back in the car and heading to Le Spezia which is on the Coast we have storms chasing the mountains on our left all the way.

The next photo shows a mountain that is shaped like a caldera and as we got closer the sun broke through and a beautiful rainbow appeared.

We arrived Le Spezia around 5pm and after meeting our host Gianna and settling into our apartment for the next five days, the rain had cleared and we were able to have a walk through town. It’s a lovely place and we can’t wait to explore Le Spezia further and visit/hike Cinque Terre.

Sat 2 – Tue 5 Nov 2019

We arrived Firenze later than expected from Siena due to a breakdown on the motorway, it’s a long weekend in Italy, All Saints day Friday the 1st being a public holiday.

We were only a kilometre or so behind the accident which looked like two smaller cars had side swiped each other on a bend but who knows, the traffic quickly banked up and we were delayed about an hour. The days are shorter now too as they switched the clocks back an hour at the end of October so it’s dark around 5pm.

After settling in at Villa La Sosta we headed down the hill to Piazza Della Liberta for a “Florentine” at Perseus Ristorante as recommended by our host.

The restaurant was crazy busy, probably due to the long weekend and we had to wait a short while, even with arriving just after the restaurant opened at 7pm. But it was worth it!!!

pop on

Chianti and Salad

Rob and I share a “Florentine” for two; which at home would be a two inch thick T-bone, aged and then cooked and seasoned to perfection.

It was delicious to say the least and the whole experience was lots of fun, in a very busy and typically Italian restaurant.

We finished the meal with biscuits and wine and then headed home. The walk back up the hill in a fine misty rain was okay too.

Sunday was a free gallery day in Firenze and as we had planned to visit the Uffizi Galleria, we thought that this was good; at first, until we found you couldn’t reserve tickets on line for this day. You had to line up on the day!

Nevertheless we headed out for the day after a lively breakfast shared at the villa with other guests from Argentina and Italy.

This time we caught the bus down to Piazza San Marco and then walked to see the Duomo and Santa Maria Del Fiori. So beautiful, it’s hard to describe. Florence is known for it’s art and beauty and for its statues of course!

The square was busy as had been the streets since we left San Marco. The line at the Academy Galleria had been long as we passed by, snaking around the corner.

As we walked on to the Uffizi I wondered how long that line would be, the day was fine so far but rain was expected later so we thought we would walk on and up to Piazza Michelangelo before tackling the line at the Uffizi.

The lines for the Uffizi were both very long, one for tickets (door 3) and door one to get in so we decided to continue on.

A walk across Ponte Vecchio was a treat. The “river of gold” shops are well known and the jewellery extremely beautiful and very expensive.

Once over the bridge we headed up towards Scala passing a house used by Galileo as an observatory and on to the gardens at San Niccolò.

The views across Florence are stunning and there is free parking for 1 hour if you drive up and a couple of cafe’s for a coffee if you walk up like we did.

A shower of rain swept across the city so we dove into a small cafe and had a quick espresso at the bar. We then caught a beautiful rainbow.

We head back down through San Niccolò taking a slightly different route this time over Ponte ale Grazie.

As we cross the bridge it starts to get windy and before long it’s raining in earnest, thunder, lightning, the whole shabang so we dive into the nearest bar and while away an hour watching a female soccer game while drinking a beer and sharing a burger.

It’s about 3pm by now and the lines to get into the Uffizi is as long as ever. We check in at the information desk and are disappointed to hear the allocation for tickets for the day has gone, even with the gallery open for another 4 hours.

One of the good things about travelling as Rob and I are is flexibility, so we decided to extend our stay in Florence for two days as the Uffizi us closed Monday’s, leaving Florence Wednesday rather than Monday. That decided, we spent the next hour enjoying the sights before grabbing some Chinese and heading back to our villa.

Monday 4/11

Rob had found us an amazing apartment for the next two days so we spent Monday as a down day; visiting Fiesole, (original Roman settlement around 283BC) and perhaps Florences oldest and most wealthy city, and moving apartments.

Tuesday 5/11

Today we have tickets for Uffizi and Pitti Palace and it’s off to the Uffizi we go.

The building itself is 16th century and it houses vast collections of Renaissance art, Masterpieces and sculptures. A must see if you visit Firenze!

We both took way too many photos but here’s just a few that we both enjoyed seeing. I’m sure you will recognise a few.

The time got away from us at the Uffizi, we spent 5 hours and could have stayed longer we enjoyed it so much.

After a snack and a cup of tea we headed on to the Pitti Palace.

The Pitti palace dates back to the mid 15th century, was home to the de Medici family for over 100 years and it has several import museums as well as the Boboli gardens.

We visited the Palantine museum and it too was amazing, over 500 artworks including masterpieces and we were able to join a free private tour of the kitchens.

Again we took way to many pictures… the interiors and ceiling frescoes impressive enough and then there was the art. Here’s a few.

An absolutely fabulous day! We pick up supplies for dinner and head back to our amazing apartment with its view to enjoy our last night in Florence.

We are of to Le Spezia (Cinque Terre) tomorrow via Pisa.

If you had a bet on the Melbourne cup today I hope you backed a winner and Happy Birthday to my nephew Kenny. xx

Sat 2 – Tue 5 Nov 2019

We arrived Firenze later than expected from Siena due to a breakdown on the motorway, it’s a long weekend in Italy, All Saints day Friday the 1st being a public holiday.

We were only a kilometre or so behind the accident which looked like two smaller cars had side swiped each other on a bend but who knows, the traffic quickly banked up and we were delayed about an hour. The days are shorter now too as they switched the clocks back an hour at the end of October so it’s dark around 5pm.

After settling in at Villa La Sosta we headed down the hill to Piazza Della Liberta for a “Florentine” at Perseus Ristorante as recommended by our host.

The restaurant was crazy busy, probably due to the long weekend and we had to wait a short while, even with arriving just after the restaurant opened at 7pm. But it was worth it!!!

Chianti and Salad

Rob and I share a “Florentine” for two; which at home would be a two inch thick T-bone, aged and then cooked and seasoned to perfection.

It was delicious to say the least and the whole experience was lots of fun, in a very busy and typically Italian restaurant.

We finished the meal with biscuits and wine and then headed home. The walk back up the hill in a fine misty rain was okay too.

Sunday was a free gallery day in Firenze and as we had planned to visit the Uffizi Galleria, we thought that this was good; at first, until we found you couldn’t reserve tickets on line for this day. You had to line up on the day!

Nevertheless we headed out for the day after a lively breakfast shared at the villa with other guests from Argentina and Italy.

This time we caught the bus down to Piazza San Marco and then walked to see the Duomo and Santa Maria Del Fiori. So beautiful, it’s hard to describe. Florence is known for it’s art and beauty and for its statues of course!

The square was busy as had been the streets since we left San Marco. The line at the Academy Galleria had been long as we passed by, snaking around the corner.

As we walked on to the Uffizi I wondered how long that line would be, the day was fine so far but rain was expected later so we thought we would walk on and up to Piazza Michelangelo before tackling the line at the Uffizi.

The lines for the Uffizi were both very long, one for tickets (door 3) and door one to get in so we decided to continue on.

A walk across Ponte Vecchio was a treat. The “river of gold” shops are well known and the jewellery extremely beautiful and very expensive.

Once over the bridge we headed up towards Scala passing a house used by Galileo as an observatory and on to the gardens at San Niccolò.

The views across Florence are stunning and there is free parking for 1 hour if you drive up and a couple of cafe’s for a coffee if you walk up like we did.

A shower of rain swept across the city so we dove into a small cafe and had a quick espresso at the bar. We then caught a beautiful rainbow.

We head back down through San Niccolò taking a slightly different route this time over Ponte ale Grazie.

As we cross the bridge it starts to get windy and before long it’s raining in earnest, thunder, lightning, the whole shabang so we dive into the nearest bar and while away an hour watching a female soccer game while drinking a beer and sharing a burger.

It’s about 3pm by now and the lines to get into the Uffizi is as long as ever. We check in at the information desk and are disappointed to hear the allocation for tickets for the day has gone, even with the gallery open for another 4 hours.

One of the good things about travelling as Rob and I are is flexibility, so we decided to extend our stay in Florence for two days as the Uffizi us closed Monday’s, leaving Florence Wednesday rather than Monday. That decided, we spent the next hour enjoying the sights before grabbing some Chinese and heading back to our villa.

Monday 4/11

Rob had found us an amazing apartment for the next two days so we spent Monday as a down day; visiting Fiesole, (original Roman settlement around 283BC) and perhaps Florences oldest and most wealthy city, and moving apartments.

Tuesday 5/11

Today we have tickets for Uffizi and Pitti Palace and it’s off to the Uffizi we go.

The building itself is 16th century and it houses vast collections of Renaissance art, Masterpieces and sculptures. A must see if you visit Firenze!

We both took way too many photos but here’s just a few that we both enjoyed seeing. I’m sure you will recognise a few.

The time got away from us at the Uffizi, we spent 5 hours and could have stayed longer we enjoyed it so much.

After a snack and a cup of tea we headed on to the Pitti Palace.

The Pitti palace dates back to the mid 15th century, was home to the de Medici family for over 100 years and it has several import museums as well as the Boboli gardens.

We visited the Palantine museum and it too was amazing, over 500 artworks including masterpieces and we were able to join a free private tour of the kitchens.

Again we took way to many pictures… the interiors and ceiling frescoes impressive enough and then there was the art. Here’s a few.

An absolutely fabulous day! We pick up supplies for dinner and head back to our amazing apartment with its view to enjoy our last night in Florence.

We are of to Le Spezia (Cinque Terre) tomorrow via Pisa.

If you had a bet on the Melbourne cup today I hope you backed a winner and Happy Birthday to my nephew Kenny. xx

Wednesday 4th September. Happy Birthday my beautiful daughter Carly! Thinking of you lots today. Love you so much.

Wow! If I wasn’t already in love with Croatia, I certainly am now. The drive from Plitvice Lakes to Dubrovnik was amazing and Dubrovnik, well, I’ll get to that later!

The topography of this country continues to surprise me. I can see why Brad Pitt recently described Croatia as “the most beautiful country on the planet”! We left Plitvice about 10am and for the first hour the drive was very green and hilly.

As we pass through Lovinac the terrain changes, less green and more stone and then we see this amazing range pop up in front of us around Lovinac.

The road takes us towards and then left and then through the Stone Mountain – the area known as Velebit! There are lots of tunnels in Croatia as there is so much limestone. The view and the change to landscape on the other side is more like a desert, dry and lots of stone. We end up back near the Coast at Jasenice.

The road turns slightly away from the coast to the left and we are now heading towards Zadar. The dry landscape continues and we pass through tunnels that have been built to allow wolves and bears to pass over above!

The highways here are amazing by the way. Very well done. Lots of Gabion (rock basket) walls on the high passes and lots of tunnels too.

As we sweep through Vrgorac the landscape gives way to soaring mountains and then a beautiful green valley that we seem to drive all the way around, swinging left before heading right… and we are back on the coast again..

We pass through Ploce and their are many colourful market stands, produce from the valley I think. Some even have little water fountains keeping the produce cool.

The drive along the coast is known as the Croatian Riviera. The road hugs the cliff tops as it winds along and the beautiful coastline opens up before us.

I found out the next day that this super yacht; the Elysian (I think) belongs to the owner of one of the big English football teams. Nice way to travel I must say!

We arrive Dubrovnik about 4pm, locate our B&B in Babin Kuk and immediately head out for a walk. Our host has supplied a map that takes us around the headland with some local tips for bars and restaurants, we catch the sunset and then find dinner. Great day and an excellent bottle of wine that we enjoyed with dinner.

We are off to Dubrovnik old town tomorrow. I’ve been looking forward to this since hearing about my friend Alison’s trip last year!

24 August – 30 August

Summer is drawing to an end so the regional festivals are all but over. This week we have Rovinj nights to look forward to and a visit to Pazin.

Pazin

Jules Verne inspired by the travel writings of Charles Yriarte included Pazin as a location in his book Voyages Extraordinaries, Mathias Sandorf and some say it was also inspiration for Journey to the centre of the earth!

Pazin Castle features in the book as does the Abyss. Pazin, located in central Istria is built on top of two underground rivers that join to create a siphon with a large valley adjacent to the town.

It’s unique characteristics today ensure it is a popular tourist attraction which includes an annual event in celebration of Jules Verne and other writers and a zip line criss crossing the valley.

If you zoom on some of the wider shots you will see the amazing zip line that traverses the valley in two directions. As we walked around there were many shouts of “Yahoo” and I was almost tempted to have a go! One of the instructors; I think, even went across upside down!

Rovinj Nights

Across the last weekend in August, Rovinj celebrates summer with Rovinj Nights with free musical performances for its visitors. There was also mention of grilled sardines so we were keen to go.

The first night Friday was so much fun!

We had a simple meal of Sardines for Rob as you may have guessed and grilled Calamari for me and salad to share. Just watching the two older gents grilling the sardines was such a treat and they smelt divine!

We shared our table on the wharf with a couple from Germany, Matthias and Annette, and had a lovely conversation with them including lots of suggestions for our time their in October and even an invitation to visit!

After dinner we went our separate ways and Rob and I enjoyed one of the bands, dancing the whole set!

The next night was a repeat performance only this time there were even more people and lots of band performances including a Marching band and fireworks at about 10pm.

Thank you Rovinj, we have had a lovely time celebrating the end of Summer 2019!

17 – 23 August

On Saturday 17 August, Lucia came down from Trieste. Rob and I had planned to visit Galizana for the Festa Od Puzi (Snail festival), so we invited Lucia to go with us.

Lucia accepted but as it turned out is not a fan of snails for eating…

The snails were served with polenta and cooked in a tomato/beef broth. Large and chewy they were very different to the snails you would receive in a good French restaurant. Not exactly to my taste, a little to earthy perhaps but they were ok. Lucia to her credit had a taste but declined her portion which Rob and I then shared so lots of Puzi!.

The rest of the evening was very enjoyable with two bands and the three of us enjoyed the music and the dancing.

Walking back to the car through beautiful Galizana.

On the weekend of 18/19 August Bale under the stars occurred, including an annual night time bike race – The giro de Bale and assorted music events too.

The bike race was enjoyed by about 50 contestants and the racecourse included some of the main streets through town and the small valley (Valle) that the town is built around and gets its name from.

I found out recently that these valleys; some as small as 5 metres wide some as large as 500 metres, occur all over Istria due to the mix of cast and limestone that make up the landscape and also lots of underground rivers. Apparently over time soil drops away and these unique valleys are formed.

The next night there was a lovely classical concert in the Piazza with two excellent female vocalists accompanied by very good strings and keyboard too.

During the week we had more beach days…

Not sure if I have mentioned these little trains before? Most towns we visit have them and they are really cute and so much fun. In Bale, this one does regular trips through the centre of town, out to Il Mare (the sea) and back, about 6km’s there and back..

This week I also gained access to a small oven so I whipped up a lasagne. I think the pan is as old as I am but it still works wonderfully well!

On 22nd August we drive (as Italians would say) to the Eastern side of Istria, about 30kms as the crow flies and about 55 to drive. Our destination today is Labin and then Rabac.

Driving is slower due to most roads being quite windy and there are many small villages dotted the countryside. We are both enjoying this slower pace, I must say.

The landscape in Croatia is rugged with mostly dense medium height foliage and some trees in the interior. On the coast and in the mountains you see taller trees and sometimes forests of taller trees but mostly it has this very lush compact foliage which is everywhere. I imagine settlement in days gone by would have been very tough in this landscape.

We visit Labin first up, a gorgeous town high in the mountains overlooking Rabac.

This is a stunning part of Croatia and well worth a visit.

After a walk around Labin we hope back in the car to go find a sculpture park on an Estate nearby that I have read about.

The sculpture park turns out to be huge and we have to drive through it as it’s so big!

The sculptures are all large and very “contemporary”. Not quite what we were expecting but interesting nevertheless.

Back in the car and on to Rabac. The drive down to the bay is steep and winding and the valley at the bottom is lush. There is a cute little town; Rasa I think, tucked into the the last pass just above Rabac that looks like it has a mining site.

Rabac, also known as the “Pearl of Kravner Bay” is stunningly beautiful and very busy. Apparently the town, formerly a fishing village, now hosts up to 11,000 visitors a day during summer and this is quite evident as it takes us quite a while to find a car park. Leaving the car we stroll towards town and then find a shortcut, about 200 steps down to the seaside, then find a cute little Konoba (Restaurant) Lino for lunch.

If you zoom on this photo you can just see the Labin church tower on the left side, on top of the mountain.

After lunch we roam the mariner for a while before heading back to Bale. What a great day out exploring we had.

Friday 23 August we have another productive day at the beach and by now we have tans worthy of my childhood summer days 🙂 before we head to Sv Petar u Sumi (St Peters in the forest) for a Sausage festival.

The sausage festival had a sausage stuffing competition and Rob and I considered registering for a moment. I’m glad we didn’t in the end as this region is very reknowned for its sausages (think Salamis). I think we would have been laughed at!

We had a great night though enjoying local dishes and salami, traditional music and a very good rose!

Another great week in Istria Croatia.

Thinking of my lovely mum today. Gone from this world but forever in my heart.

Love to all xx

6 Aug – 16 Aug

Lots of beach days and we both have quite a tan even though we spend most of the time at the beach under the shade. The beach at Cologne has clear water and is lovely to swim in, so each visit I swim across the bay and back for exercise and with goggles explore the seabed for large Adriatic clams and sea cucumbers that live about 6 metres down and often follow amazingly large schools of iridescent fish as they swim above the rocks.

Out of the water I have taken to to the art of constructing piles of balancing rocks. It takes patience and I see lots of little crabs too as I hunt for the next perfect rock. The other day as I lay on some of the big rocks drying I felt something tickling my belly, when I sat up a crab quickly scuttled away and out of sight! I’m not sure who got more of a start!

Amongst our many beaches days Rob and I continue to explore Istria. It feels like a big beach holiday but when I look through our photo journey we are still packing in quite a bit of exploring.

On 8 August we visited Medulin near Pula and specifically the remains of a Roman villa. The archeogical park was fascinating with the ruins of quite an expansive Roman villa on the waters edge of two thirds of the park. With fantastic views across the bay and back towards Pula it is obvious the the original owner was someone of wealth and influence in the area.

On 11 August we visited Fazana again for another Sardine festival. This one turned out to be a competition for the best filleting!

No gourmet sardines as part of the fiesta so we went and found dinner at a restaurant that looked good and Rob found Grilled Sardine heaven!

14 August – Umag

Rob’s cousin Sylvia and her husband Andre and daughter Ilaria were holidaying in Umag so we travelled up to spend the day with them. We had lovely time with them enjoying the delights of Umag which included a train ride from Stella Maris; an amazing, sprawling holiday water park on the coast, into Umag and back, a swim and energetic game of Frisbee with Ilaria and a very relaxing dinner before returning to Bale.

Ilaria is learning English at school and as I am learning Italian we had interesting conversations about grammar, Italian articles and gender in language. A very smart, well mannered and lovely young lady, it was a delight to spend time with her.

July 23 – Aug 5

Croatia is an amazing country with a turbulent history. It has a population of approx. 4.5 million and receives around 4 million visitors a year. Tourism is obviously a big part of the economy, contributing around 15% to the GDP.

In summer, it is easy to see why it is so popular with both UK and European visitors with it’s beautiful Coast and safe waters to swim in

It has been very hot the last two weeks so we alternate days at La Mare (the Sea), relaxing in the shade of the trees on the waters edge at Cologne about 6km from Bale, and swimming in the turquoise water, with days exploring local surrounds.

I’m reminded of those long hot summer holidays when I was a child doing nothing much more than reading and swimming and relaxing. We are both sleeping more and napping also, probably due to the extra sun.

Just in case your wondering, to combat all this laziness, Rob and I have started an early morning run session and we also walk around Bale village most days doing daily messages or just for the sake of it.

Summer in Istria is also festival time. On Saturday 27 July we went to the cow festival at Kanfanar, about 6km from Bale. The festival has an annual pretty cow parade of 20 odd beasts of burden and it was amazing! The cows were huge, most taller than me at the shoulder with big horns but also quite docile and yes very pretty and happy to be petted to.

My favourite was number 8, so we named him Otto (Italian for 8) and I gave him a few comforting scratches to keep him calm before and during the judging! Not sure I can take any actual credit but he won!!!

After the cow judging we enjoyed the delights of the festival with local dishes of Chevacipci and Bratwurst Sausage and Kapuzi (Sauerkraut) before bolting for the car as a storm came across.

Last week we drove back to Trieste in Italy for a few days.

While we were there we took the opportunity to catch up with Rob’s other Aunt, Maria and cousins Oriella and Sylvia and their families.

Lucia, Rob’s Aunt Irene’s daughter is lovely and was very kind and took us on a drive to see the sights of Trieste by night. A beautiful city with the largest piazza in Europe and the only one with a seafront, we had a lovely time and as Lucia said, the city looks very different at night. Thanks Lucia!

One of the many official. Buildings in the piazza.

While in Trieste Rob and I visited Miramare on July 30, an area of the coast about 20km from Trieste City that has been preserved with a Castle and parklands built by Austrian Archduke Ferdinand Maximilian and his wife in the 19th Century.

The next day we drove to Sistiana Bay a popular swimming destination about 25km from Trieste passing through Prosecco on the way.

Last Saturday we visited Fazana for the sardine festival. Bale was having a festival the same day but in the evening so we thought we would attend both!

Fazana is about 15km from Bale and the pretty village is right on the shore and opposite Brijun (Briony) island which was a favourite of Tito’s in his day!

We hung around as long as we could but this was as close to the Sardines as we got! Rob was very disappointed to miss out on a freshly grilled one!

Back in Bale we checked out the Jazz and then the local concert.

These guys, Klapa Rispet are Croatia’s version of our backstreet boys. Hugely popular and everyone was singing along. The second act was a another popular band Jasmin that came on at 12:30am! We walked home around then. The lead singer reminded me of Sir Cliff Richard, another ageing rocker.

On Monday we visited Pula which was a popular holiday destination of Caesar! So much so that he built his own Colosseum and Roman Theatre there. Pula has quite a few historical sites including a Roman arch and mosaics all dated BC! The colosseum is well preserved and in better condition than the one in Rome! The history of Croatia continues to amaze me.

Rob and I arrived Bale Friday 12th July and have settled somewhat into the village life with a busy week of socialising and beach activities…

I am surrounded by people speaking Italian, some Croatian and various dialects too. Shopkeepers speak Croatian and many tourists also speak German and French. At home it is all Italian so I am in a constant Italian lesson. Rob’s Zia (Aunty) Irene has the patience of a Saint and is determined to correct and educate me. “Capisco” is the most common expression (do you understand?).

Although holiday season with many tourists about, the little village of Bale remains charming.

Called the Stone City by Casanova when he visited in 1743 – 47 and fell in love with Bale, the original Castello (Cadtle) still exists with the newer village surrounding it. By newer i should say this is also hundreds of years old.

Dating back to the 800’s with Venetian influence in the architecture it is easy to see the attraction.

Last week we spent quite a lot of time at La Mare (Beach/Sea). Mon Perrin a 4 star “glamping” establishment has two areas, San Polo and Cologne. I like the beaches here as there is no sand but la rocche is a little difficult on soft feet :). The water is lovely and clear and just the right temperature after laying in the warm sunshine for a while.

We visited local Rovinj last Monday (Lunedi). About 3 times the size of Bale it was bustling with “touristi”. Roberto and I walked around the original Castello – similar to Bale in this way and the via’s were full of small markets. I brought la Sac and was pleased that it was all made from recycled material.

Roberto’s cousin Gabrielle and wife Claudia are also vacationing in Bale this week with their Bellissimo daughter Kiara. Both Rob and I are captivated by her, she is a truly delightful “bambina”. Claudia’s papa Vittorio and partner Louisa visited on Tuesday and we went to a local Macedonian restaurant called Lav where we had mixed Mezze grill and salads.

Vittorio speaks a little English and we talked of a shared passion for cooking so he promised to cook an Italian specialty for us the next day “Perdoci” spaghetti with mussels. There was also a surprise at the end of the meal with traditional Italian and Croatian music performed by a friend of Gabrielle’s and Vittorio. Bravo gentleman, what a splendid evening.

Last Friday Gabrielle bought a huge amount of Peschi (fish) caught that morning from the Lemska canal behind Rovinj.

Rob and I collected seawater and Irene cleaned the fish. Cooked on a BBQ and served with Aglio (Garlic) and Prezzemeteo (parsley) and Olio (olive oil) it was delicious!

Rob is excited that the Lions are doing so well, winning again on Saturday. My team the Swans quite the opposite this year unfortunately.

Today Monday we are back in Rovinj exploring the Park Suma Zlatni Rt which is opposite Rovinj proper and the marina.

Currently sitting in a cafe, this is the view. Hard work I know but someone has to do it. 🙂

Not sure if my photos are all loading in each post? If you can’t see them could you please let me know with a comment. GRAZIE!

Big shout out to my sister Kay for her hip surgery tomorrow! Thinking of you with lots of love, hoping it goes really well. Love Maryann and Rob.

Thursday 11th July 2019 – Friday 12th July 2019

Rob had planned our drive from Paris to Bale across three days. Day two would see us move from France across Switzerland and into Italy around Como which is North of Milano.

We set out from Ribeauville about 8:45am and headed for Colmar where we joined the Motorway and then onto Basel where we crossed the Swiss Border. We had to stop here to purchase a vignette (pass) which is required for Swiss highways travel.

Almost immediately across the border we could see Alpine ranges in the distance on both sides. If you zoom on the photo of Rob driving you will see the snow caps. Also most of my photos today are taken while moving so apologies in advance for the quality. 🙂

We travelled towards and past Luzern and then onto St Gotthards pass. There are lots of tunnels on this route, the longest being the Gotthard at 17km’s. The scenery was amazing and I took way too many photos!!!

We stopped for lunch at a rest stop at Piotta. The above photo looks back towards Piotta and the amazing Alpine mountains.

We passed through Switzerland to Italy around 4pm crossing the border at Chiasso near Como. Rob’s plan had been to drive around the spit and Lake Como stopping at Lecco. Good thing we hadn’t booked accommodation as we were thrust into very chaotic Italian traffic and the route to Lecco became very narrow. We took a wrong turn which wound up and around a steep mountainside with nowhere to turn around. It took 11km’s before we found a place to turn back. We returned to Como and found another route out of Como and accommodation.

It was like a movie where the Westerner is completely overwhelmed by the Italian traffic, people were whizzing past in their cars and it felt like a collision was imminent the whole time. Rob kept his cool though and we made it through safely. 🙂

We were only stuck in the crazy traffic around Como for about an hour and we found accommodation at nearby Albaville, arriving around 5:45.

Enrico our host, referred us up the road to a local pizzeria and ristorante “Elvis ” near the local supermercato!

I took this photo as I know this word well from an Italian lesson on grocery shopping and it’s my very first visit to one!

After a long days driving, over 400km’s, it was nice to sit back and relax over a glass of vino Rosso which comes chilled in a carafe with a choice of “House” or nothing else. It was Moulto Bene however and ideal to celebrate our first Italian meal together in Italy.

Rob was hungry so ordered Antipasto hot and cold plus a Seafood risotto for secondi! The antipasto ended up being three plates plus we received a complimentary pizza bread. I ordered Linguini Vorgola (seafood) and that was huge too so all up way too much food but it was all deliciosa!

Friday 12th July

We woke early to a beautiful morning – view from the flat’s balcony below. After a typical italian breakfast of cafe, biscottis, fruit and yoghurt we said arrivederci to Enrico and we’re back on the road by 7:40am.

Some days are great for photos, some aren’t. This was one that wasn’t with a cloudy heat haze hanging low on the horizon most of the day.

I couldn’t resist trying to get a photo of the Dolomites though. This is how they look on a clear day, courtesy of Google.

The very tips of the mountains slipped in and out of view for about 50 km’s. This my photo taken from Podere Pustot at 1:00pm when we had to stop for roadwork. The dark blue areas that look like clouds are actually the tops of several mountains!

We passed from Italy into Slovenia and then about 30 minutes later we crossed the Border into Croatia and before long, around 4pm we arrived at Bale. We will be staying here for the next couple of months, on and off as we continue to travel Croatia.

Wednesday – 11 July 2019.

We left Chateau Thierry early as we had a big day of driving ahead. Rob had booked us in at Ribeauville for the night and as fortune would have it the Tour de France would be going through Frapelle and Ribesuville; both on our way today, so we just had to get to Frapelle, the first spot to see it, 382 kilometres away before 1;30pm!

As we drove I was able to catch those wheat fields I mentioned in my last post and a bullet train, though not quick enough to snap the front aha!

We arrived at Frappell with 20 minutes to spare and with just a few minutes walk to the road closure. We even had a brief chat to a local that knew a smattering of English.

When they came through they were so close and so fast! It was all over in a few seconds.

Awesome! Great planning Rob.

We then jumped back in the car and headed for beautiful Ribeauville. Near Strasbourg, this picturesque town has many charming medieval houses and is surrounded by the ruins of three castles.

Our BnB on Rue de Chateau was just off the Grand Rue (main Street) and very charming it was.

At the top of the street and above the BnB on the nearby Rue de Temple the church bells rang on the hour which was really charming.

The town was like a postcard at every turn. This picture shows St. Ulrich castle high on the hill in the background.

Rob and I checked in, had a quick lunch of banquet, salad and terrine, stowed our gear and then headed out to catch the next leg of the Tour.

Once again it was an invigorating experience so I bought Rob a T Shirt as a souvenir and we headed back to the flat so that he could watch the end of the days race.

Meanwhile I headed back out to torment the local shopkeepers with my dreadful French! I had a wonderful hour wandering the shops and exploring the town. I only bought one thing – a lovely Tisane for Rob’s Sia (Aunty) Irena and all of the shops attendants were very kind to me.

Later in the evening we went out for dinner, again we opted for local specialties. This time – snails to share, charcuterie for Rob – 5 meats with Sauerkraut and a flambeau (bit like pizza) for me but we shared both.

After dinner we had a last walk around beautiful Riveauville which also has some rather amazing crane nests, complete with Cranes! One of which was a top this house.

And another had it’s own spire, no birds in this one thoughand we also saw a second one just like this which was also empty.

Beautiful Pinot noir vineyards embrace the village which has a long history of winemaking.

I couldn’t have asked for more from my first day in France. A real beauty, and on the way back up the Grand Rue we spied some very cute Mud Swallows.

Tuesday 9th July

Rob and I left the UK today after 9.5 weeks travelling through England, Scotland and a short trip to Ireland all of which was amazing.

With a few stays of 4-5 days we were moving around a lot, cramming in as much as possible each day. Due to this and poor or no internet in the remoter regions my blog has suffered so my apologies and I will catch up on all the missing posts! Promise!

Today we flew to Framce, after a small delay, landing at Charles de Gaulle airport around 3:30pm which with the hour difference became 4:30pm.

Shortly thereafter we collected our Renoit Darcia Duster to be known as “dusty”.

Dusty will be our car for the next six months and is brand new.

I’m so proud of Rob for tackling the driving, new car, steering wheel on the left, gear stick on the right and driving on the other side of the road today and what a great job he did too. That is the right side, not to be confused with the wrong side… 🙂

We are driving to Croatia,so this visit to France is fleeting as we drive through over the next few days.

Nevertheless the French countryside is enchanting with fields of wheat and corn in this area heading West from Paris. Some harvested, some fully grown and about to be. Some parts remind me of home; the colours and the blue skies on this warm sunny day of 23 degrees are like country NSW in Summer.

No photos though as I’m busy navigating with the Sat Nav so Rob can fully concentrate on driving.

We arrive at Chateau Thierry about 7:30 in the evening and what a pretty French Village it is.

We find our BnB for the night Studio Royale L’abbe, drop our bags and head into town for dinner. Rob has found a “beer hall” that does Tapas and we find a fairly traditional French evening ripaste which was amazing!

Immediately I am overwhelmed by the French language but smile and nod, say Bounsour and Tres Bon Merci at the conclusion of our meal and I feel I have gotten away with it. I must admit I miss the friendly banter and enquiry we received during our UK time a little though but hey, that’s what travel is all about isn’t it, new experiences.

The host is very keen to start teaching us French at the til, which was very kind and rather hilarious too.

After dinner we visit the marchet and I marvel at all the French groceries.

On the way home we visit the banquette vending machine!!! Grant, you never mentioned those!!! Two Euro later I am two baguettes to the wind, one for breakfast, one for lunch tomorrow.

I couldn’t resist though and had to have a small piece when we got home, with French butter of course. OMG! So good!!!

The walk home includes a peak at Chateau Thierry and a walk through the streets…

Our plan for tomorrow is to catch the start of the Tour de France at Saint Die Des-Vosges and then again at Ribeauville.

Let’s see how we go with that.

Bonsoir xx