It's nice in Nice

Yesterday we got a sleep in – as in an actual sleep in. We didn't have anything official scheduled before 1pm so it was up to us when we got up. We prized ourselves out of bed at 8am and headed down to a pretty simple breakfast of coffee and croissants. Kimilla and I headed out together to explore the City of Nice – it’s nice in Nice.

It was really a good time of year to visit because the weather is still sunny and still warm but the summer crowds have gone (well and it was a Tuesday), so everything was pretty quiet. We went for a walk along the promenade down to the flower market (The Marche aux fleurs). From there we trailed back through the Older Town looking through some of knick-knack shops to the Massena Square and through some of the Newer town, where they had cafes, clothes shops and other things – Including a cute we pet shop complete with little dogs. It’s a good thing there is decent supply of little dogs, because Nice is known to be occupied largely by older widows of rich men, who had died under suspicious circumstances. Apparently the women deal with their grief by leathering their skin on the beach (topless!) occupied by their little dogs.

We stopped for a light baguette for lunch – making sure that we only got one’s made from the end pieces, as we had been warned that the middle sections may have been in Pierre’s armpit (bad joke but we laughed).

At 1pm we caught up with some of the group members and went for a tour around some of the other areas just outside of Nice. We started first by going up to an amazing little perched village at St Paul de Vance. The village there was originally built as a Roman battlement but now is mainly used by artists and other creative types. It was really interesting just to walk around the cobble stone paths and take photos. Interestingly, one of the cafés on the edge of the town was once frequented by many little known artists who were able to pay for the meals by donating a painting to the owner. The owner stored the paintings in the attic, which was later discovered by his grandchildren. The collection was found to contain priceless pieces by Picasso, Braque, Miró, Matisse, Leger, Calder, Chagall and many others, which now are used as decorations around the café. Unfortunately, we were told that you need to book an appointment several months in advance to actually get inside, so we didn’t get in to see it – but there’s an interesting piece of history for you.

From there we went for a drive around the Scenic Moyenne Corniche enjoying views of the most expensive properties in the world (literally on property recently sold for over 172 million euros). While we were there we stopped off at the Fragonard Perfumery for a demonstration of how they make their perfumes, soaps and other beauty products. It was pretty interesting and in my humble opinion rather similar to what I had seen going on in some of the breweries and distilleries that I have visited. It was also interesting to see a place in the process of making complicated and very manual products by hand.

From there John took us to an amazing family owned French Restaurant for dinner. So far this is the best food that we have all trip – in my opinion. All the courses were wonderful but in particular for the entrée we had a fish soup – which was kind of like a chowder but without the white sauce, rather it was served with croutons, a paprika and garlic mayonnaise and cheese. The deal was that you put the mayonnaise on the croutons and placed it in the empty bowl, then ladelled the soup on top before adding a sprinkling of cheese. If that constituted the entire meal I would have been happy, but we had two other courses after that and a sampling of the local wines.

Today we had a normal start and were on the road at about 7.45. Today was one of the bigger driving days as we had to go from Nice through to Lyon. We drove a fairly scenic route past Cannes (where they have the film festival) and stopped off for a few scenic hours in the small town of Avignon. Avignon borders the Rhône River and is interesting due to the medieval parts of the old town Centre. It used to be a papal city in the 1300’s – and the Popes created quite the abode aptly named “the Palace of Popes”.

We did a little exploring around the old town and took a small walk along part of the city wall up to the botanical gardens. It was a good chance to get out and stretch the legs and nice to be outside of the coach – as we have spent quite a bit of time on it over the last few weeks. For lunch we had some baguettes in a small café with some macaroons and a Café Latte.

We arrived in Lyon at about 5.30 and had a nice dinner included dinner at the hotel restaurant. Tomorrow will be our final bus travelling day on the Road to Paris.

Renaissance Statues, a Leaning Tower and a brief stop in Monaco

We arrived in Florence around 6pm on Saturday, where the weather was a little over cast. Our hotel was quite a ways from downtown so dinner was provided in the hotel. We had a collection of bread, pasta, potato and various other Italian carbohydrates spread over the course of an hour and by the time we finished eating it was time to go to bed.

Sunday Morning we got up bright and early and were shipped into the downtown area where Sam and I went with some of the group for an explore through the Galleria dell'Accademia. There we were taken for a bit of a tour through the various art periods leading up to the Renaissance. Our guide showed us through some paintings by Brunelleschi and then stepped us through some incomplete sculptures of Michelangelo's. She gave us a bit of an understanding of how Michelangelo worked and a bit of an insight into his temperament and personality. We then moved on to the high point of the gallery which was Michaelangelos' David (The real one). It was really impressive and our guide took us around all four sides of the sculpture and discussed different aspects of how it was sculpted and why it was significant to Florence's history. A little like the Sistine Chapel we were not allowed to take photo's - so we won't be putting any here, not of the original at least.

From the Accademia we caught up with the rest of our tour group and were given a walking tour around some of the other areas of the downtown, which included the Basilica di Santa Maria del Fiore, the Battistero di San Giovann, the Piazza della Signoria and the Basilica of Santa Croce (which is famously the burial site of Michelangelo, Galileo and Machiavelli amoungst others).

 Basilica di Santa Maria del Fiore

The Original Fake Statue of David at the Piazza della Signoria.

The crowds at at the Piazza della Signoria.

After our walking tour finished we did a quick tour through one of the local leather factories - which was really just an excuse to get us in the store (which was rather expensive - but hey it's Italian Leather, what do you expect). It was interesting enough but Sam and I left the group pretty quickly to go do our own thing. First we made mandatory stop to get a coffee - the coffee here is fantastic, its completely blown the whole Tim Horton's thing out of our system. From the cafe we went and checked out the local markets - it was awesome with loads of cheap knocks, tacky souvenirs and haggling stall owners. We spent a couple of hours looking around and even bought a few small things.

The markets - my favorite place

From the market we headed down to the Arno River to take some pictures of the Ponte Vecchio, before heading back to meet the group and catch the bus back to the hotel for a while.

The Ponte Vecchio

Us at the Ponte Vecchio

In the evening some of us from the group headed out to the Tuscan hills for a quick tour of a Winery/Olive Oil Factory. We ran a little late due to a car accident in one of the tunnels and so we didn't get to see quite as much of the area as we would have liked. However, it was interesting to learn a little about how they make the products and that government regulate what is produced in the area. The best thing about the tour was that it included dinner and a rather generous sampling of their various wines and oils.

At the Tuscan Dinner 

All to soon however, we were back on the road again. This morning we hit the road west for a little town called Pisa, which is famous for their poor engineering skills. It was really interesting to see this iconic bell tower. Unfortunately, the weather was really bad and we didn't hang around for too long. We have been pretty lucky with the weather actually, given that its autumn this is the first place that we really got wet. 

Sam thinks this is a genuinely awful and cheesy photo but I kinda like it.

From Pisa we headed North around the cost for the better part of the rest of the day. We had a quick lunch stop just inside the Italian border before heading into France, but not for long... After being in France for an hour and a half or so we drove into the Principality of Monaco. John gave us a quick guided tour as we drove in and headed to the area around the Prince's Palace. We spent an hour or so hobnobbing with the rich and famous and generally enjoying this meticulously groomed area. It really is a small place with the highest population density in the world with population of over 37,000 people living in a space that is less than 2.02 km2. From Monaco, we headed back into France. We will be staying here in Nice for the next two nights.

Saint Nicholas Cathedral

Looking East

Looking out from beside the Princes Palace

Heading South to Sorrento & Pompeii

We wrote this two days ago but due to lack of internet availability we haven’t posted it till now…

Yesterday we continued south to the Bay of Napals. We left Rome at the regular time – seriously no rest on this trip (I’m sure your hearts are all bleeding for us) and hit the autostrada for a few hours till we started hitting the coastal areas.

 As we hit the bay of Naples, we steadily climbed around some windy cliffs which looked down on some of the most expensive (and somewhat average looking) beaches in Italy. I say average looking but I guess the concept of paying to sit on a beach seems a bit outrageous to me, especially when it’s a stony one – but I guess the Italians (and apparently the Germans) see it differently and at 25 euro a day they are welcome too.

Anyway, despite what I thought of the beaches the area really was quite stunning. Old buildings and hotels say on the cliff side and there funny we olive groves creeping between them. Many of the owners don’t even pick the olives, rather the spread nets out underneath them. That way when they fall from the tree the bounce down the nets to a pocket at the bottom of the hill.

We got into Sorrento at about mid-day and had the afternoon to spend looking around the little village most of which stretched along a single street going in both directions from a Square in the middle. Parallel to the main street was a little alcove full of little shops selling gelato, leather belts, ceramics and other souvenirish things. The area is quite famous for its large lemons, which grow to the size of grapefruits and are used in a spirit called limoncello – which apparently was mixed with their other local liquor call grappa and used as fuel for the original moon landing… I joke but boy that stuff was strong. We had a nice time exploring the streets and finding little court yards that looked out over the coastal cliffs.  That evening we had a nice dinner back at the hotel with pasta, free fish and salad accompanied by some local wines.

Today was an interesting day to say the least. Overnight our coach has been struck by a viral stomach bug, so a few people were looking rather green today – everyone is being very cautious with hand washing as it really looks nasty and we are driving considerable distances most days, so not fun. It’s a bit of a shame really because this morning we did one of the tour highlights, we visited Pompeii. This once bustling (and rather sleezy) Roman city was established in 7BC and then buried in 25ft of volcanic debris from  Mount Vesuvius in 79AD. Excavation started there around the 1800’s and continues today. I’m not ashamed to say that I was rather interested in the place after watching a Pink Floyd concert that they played in the amphitheater there in 1972.

The tour was pretty good, the guide wasn't the best and his English was a little hard to understand but we got to see some really amazing stuff including the remains of a Roman bathhouse which contained plaster molds of bodies that had been preserved over the last 2000 years. I say the bodies had been preserved but they weren't, the volcanic rock covered the bodies and solidified quickly enough that when they eventually decayed a cavity was left in the shape of a body. In the mounds you could very clearly see the shape of the clothes that they were wearing. 

In the red light district they took us through a few ancient brothels where they had excavated preserved artwork on the walls which detailed the various services that were provided in the establishment. The city also had remnants of ancient graffiti which helps local historians understand what went on there. 

All roads lead to Rome

So yesterday was really just a travel day. The trip from Venice to Rome was scenic as you would expect with yellow houses and vineyards. However, it was a rather long travel day. We were on the road by 8am and including a lunch stop and a couple of bathroom breaks it took us till 4pm to get to the great city where all roads once lead. So truth be told I really don't have much to say about the day. We went back to our hotel had a margarita pizza for dinner and called it a day.

Today, however made up for everything yesterday lacked.  We were out of the hotel by 7.30 on a direct route to the worlds smallest country - the Vatican City. Our tour providers had made group bookings for us months in advance so we avoided the 3-4 hour wait and went straight inside and through security to the Vatican Museum. The museum was very interesting and our local tour guide (Cynthia) talked us through some of the older and more important pieces from four of the galleries which included statues, maps, tapestries and some very interesting ceiling paintings.

The Map Gallery of in the Vatican Museum

At the end of the four galleries we reached what most of us were really there to see, the Sistine Chapel. The rules were very strict and well policed - there was to be silence and no photos. In fact we witnessed someone attempt to take a photo of the ceiling and they were promptly accosted by a guard made to delete the photo before being escorted from the building. Anyway, the room was truly impressive, I would hate to think how sore Michelangelo's neck must have been for the four years that it took him to paint it. I know that many people say this but I didn't really think about it today but the creation picture of God and Adam is significantly smaller than you would imagine - it really is just a segment of a much much bigger piece. The wall showing the Final Judgement is also very impressive - Interestingly it contains Michelangelo's only self-portrait in the flayed skin of St Bartholomew, supposedly the whole experience of dealing with the Pope had left this sculptor (not painter) feeling skinned alive.  Naturally, due to my explanation above regarding photos.

From the Sistine Chapel we were taken through a back exit (because tour groups are special) straight through to St Peters Basilica. So jury is in, Kimilla and I still prefer the Sagrada Familia in Barcelona but this one ranks a rather close second. The size and status of this Cathedral pretty iconic and the tiled artwork on the wall is nothing short of amazing. We had a good look around (while keeping hawk eyes out for pick pockets) exploring the different statues and catholic things that I really don't have a very good idea about. We got as close as we could to the place where you can see the entrance to St Peters grave site (well supposedly). It was good fun but the sheer volume of people got a little overwhelming.

After we had all had a good explore around the Church we went outside to St Peter's Square to look at the Obelisk, while we were there Cynthia showed us where the Pope makes his various address and where the smoke rises from when they go through the process of appointing a new pope. From what I've head of this Pope Frances guy, I kinda like him. Our tour guide explained that he is very much a people person, shunning many of the physical aspects that give him status. I guess an example of this is the fact that he refuses to wear red shoes and doesn't live in the Pope's apartment - rather he lives somewhere a little more humble surrounded by everyday people, much to the disdain of his security staff.

Anyway, moving on. We stopped for a quick but very pricey lunch (I wont dwell on my 5 euro half of a sandwich) before heading on to the Colosseum. Again we got to skip the lines due to our clever preparation of our tour guides and to nearly an hour to explore and take photos of this remarkable piece of Roman history. 

In this case the Colosseum, which tragically is only a skeleton of what it once must have been, looks very much like you see in the pictures. It was just cool to be there though, I imagined Russel Crow standing out in the middle slaughtering men in masks while dodging wild animals and felt very masculine. 

Kimilla did her thing and took some great photos, which given the angle of the sun was a bit interesting. We even managed to elbow the crowd's away enough to get some shots of ourselves with the stands in the background - which is more impressive than it sounds.

After the Colosseum, Kimilla and I ditched the group to go do some exploring on our own. Despite being a very large city and once the center of an Empire, the actual ruins and interesting monuments are in rather close proximity. So we spent the afternoon walking around taking photos and enjoying being there. From the Colosseum we walked passed the Roman Forum, up to the  Altare della Patria (unaffectionately known here as the Wedding Cake).

looking down on the area where the Roman Forum is.

The Wedding Cake!!!

From there we headed North to the Pantheon, to check out the dome which predates St Peter's by around 500 years. I don't know how they engineered it all them years ago - it even has an "eye" in the top which lets the rain in and drains to remove the excess water from the inside. We didn't stay there too long as it was very full of people.

Outside the Pantheon

Inside the Pantheon

Scenic sites in Rome after leaving the Pantheon

We finished up our little self guided tour at the Trevi Fountain. Despite being the busiest place we had been all day Kimilla managed to elbow her way in and get some good photos.

From there we made our way back to the Hotel and collapsed in a heap on the floor. Tomorrow we leave Rome and head off for more adventures!!!

Getting lost in Venice

Our evening in Innsbruck was fun. The dinner was excellent and Sam enjoyed a nice glass of Austrian wheat beer with his meal. We had a slightly early wake up call than normal but breakfast was also really good so it made up for it. Then it was on the road, we had a very scenic drive through the Austrian part of the Alps before descending into the South Tyrol/Alto Adige area. This area was part of Austria until after World War I when it was designated part of Italy. From the Alps we drove through the Dolomite Ranges, where were absolutely stunning with acres of vineyards and castles.

Our first stop of any significance was in Verona. We jumped off the bus and John took us for a quick orientation walk around the medieval wall and the Verona Amphitheatre. He also took us down and showed us Juliet’s Balcony made famous by Shakespeare’s play. It is rumored that if you rub the statue of Juliet in just the right way you will be given good luck in your love life, you will notice in the photo that several parts of the statue are significantly more polished than others. We stopped off for the first Italian meal of what will be nearly a week’s worth – I had a delicious pizza with eggplant, zucchini and yellow pepper, while Sam had a creamy tuna pasta. I think we will start filling out our pants a bit more over the next week. 

Juliet and her shiny boob

The Market in Verona

From Verona we traveled another hour and a half or so to the infamous Venice – the city of Canals. The bus dropped us off at a water taxi which took us for a tour down the Grand Canal which is the main waterway through the city to St Mark’s Square. We had a quick half an hour to briefly look around before got climbed aboard some iconic gondola’s and were serenaded under the bridges and between the buildings in some of the smaller canals. It was really fun and rather beautiful in a rustic sort of way as the city is quite run down and many buildings appear abandoned or at the least in dire need of repair.

The Venice Canal's by Gondola

... Just to make you all jealous

... When the moon hits your eye...

That evening we were served dinner back at our hotel. It was a three course meal complete with lasagna, salad and a main of pork and potatoes. The courses were nicely spaced out and filled in our evening so straight after dinner we went up to bed.

This morning we woke up at 3.30 - but I that was due to an error with the hotel wake-up call, so we got to sleep for a few more hours until 6.30. We got up and had breakfast which was a bit of an effort since we had dinner just before we went to bed. However, Italian breakfasts are known for being a bit smaller (why would I need-a big-a breakfast when-a mama make-a de big-a lunch). From there we were taken by bus to a water taxi which carried us to a glass blowing gallery on the Giudecca Island(s) for a demonstration of Venetian Glass blowing. The demonstration was very impressive as the artist created within a matter of minutes a carafe and a small horse. We spent about an hour at the very large gallery looking at the different chandeliers, masks, drinking vessels and figurines.

From there it was back to the St Mark's Square for a short walking tour from John which gave us a bit of an orientation of the area. By this time it was around 11.30 and we had some free time to explore the canals and streets with there many shops and monuments. It is a very touristy area with an average of 60,000 people visiting the area per day. The businesses certainly use this to there advantage too as there are limited spaces to sit and rest your feet or go to the bathroom. A simple bathroom stop when you can find one will cost you around €1.50 and if you wish to sit down in a cafe or restaurant it has the potential to double your bill. We were told that the main cafes in St Mark's Square will charge you €9 for a simple cup of tea. So after a quite takeaway cappuccino (which only cost €2.00 and was the best we've had since leaving New Zealand) we had a bit of a rest sitting on the steps of one of the nearby monuments.   

On another note - I didn't realize how prone Venice was to flooding. I mean its a man-made city built on sand and naturally you expect that they can't get flood insurance but it floods on average 60 times per year. That is to the point where the locals choose not to occupy the ground floor of any of their residential buildings and that they have these picnic table-like stands which they lay out at high tides in areas where the Square floods. Funny enough the drains used for getting rid of the water after a high tides are usually the culprits for bringing the water in and flooding the area in the first place. Never mind though, we have been informed that the Dutch are giving the Italians a bit of a hand in making some alterations to the harbor which should reduce this.

Anyway, after our short rest we got in line to see the stunning St Mark's Basilica. The cathedral is simply stunning and only second to Barcelona's Sagrada Familia (well based on what we have seen on our trip - although St Peter's Basilica is coming up in the next few days so there may be some shuffling). Anyway, the photo really doesn't do justice to the stunning gold tiles and paintings. We couldn't begin to understand the amount of work and risk that went into creating these magnificent mosaics at such heights.

Inside St Marks Basilica

After we looked through the Church, we said goodbye to mum who went of to do a lagoon cruise excursion around the Burano Island with the rest of the group and we continued exploring. To be honest, after that point the day really escaped on us and I have no idea what we spent the following four hours doing. We just got lost (not literally Sam is very good at navigating) through the Canals and streets taking photos, drinking coffee and just exploring this really magical city. We had so much fun taking pictures and they probably say it better than I can write it.

Looking out over a main Canal

One side of  The Procuratie

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