Home again, home again, jiggity jig...

Here we are, back home in a very wintry Christchurch. Our day in Hong Kong was very, very hot and pretty rushed, but it was great to be able to at least get a look at the city after expecting to miss it entirely. It was a very interesting city, busy and crowded on the streets, but very clean (aside from the air). Also, the paradox between the markets and street vendors in Kowloon against the big business skyscrapers of Hong Kong just across the harbour is fascinating. As we had limited time, the purser on our Air NZ flight had given us really good instructions on how to get around and a couple of 'must do' things. It was a foggy day (as many of them are as it is really humid), so we didn't use any time going to "the Peak", but visited a couple of market streets and did the walk along the harbourside to see the view that you see on postcards.

It sure is something to see but I haven't been able to post up any photos of Hong Kong as the camera download cable is still in transit. One of our bags didn't leave london with us so is still in transit. It is the one carrying ALL of our new shoes, so I was very pleased when we arrived in Auckland to find that they had located it (when we left Hong Kong it was just "missing"). The Air NZ baggage service guy has just rung to say it will be in Christchurch at about 9pm tonight.

We arrived home absolutely exhausted. Because of the cancelled flight from London, we skipped a 'night' so - excluding the limited amount of sleep on the plane - we had been awake (and in the same clothes, eeeewww!) for 41 hours. When we arrived home, I did a bit of unpacking and laundry while Brett had a bit of a snooze. I decided to 'just sit down for a moment' at about 5pm and the next thing I knew it was 11am this morning! Brett says he woke me up and took me to bed at about 8pm, but I don't remember it at all.

So this is a sign off from our big adventure. We would like to say a really big thanks to those of you who helped to make it the best holiday ever. To Alan and Paula, Gaynor and Harry, Simon and Narissa - we are particularly grateful to you for letting us stay with you along the way and for the time and effort you gave us. We don't think we could have stayed away so long if we had been in hotels all the way, talking only to tour guides, concierges and people we didn't know so spending time with you and staying in your homes was really fab. Thanks to Amelia and Mike for coming down to London from Oxford, it was so cool to see you too. Big thanks also to Alex, who stayed in our house meaning we didn't have to worry about it and also enabling Daniel to stay at home without being on his own.

It has been great to hear from lots of people that they have enjoyed following us around Europe. We have got zillions of photos and video footage, but I promise we will only share them with you if you express interest! We have certainly got the travel bug and are keen to start planning our next adventure. Bye for now but stay tuned!

Barb and Brett xx

Back on Plan

Hi mum and dad - we're back on schedule to see you in Auckland but haven't been able to get the cell phone working to call and let you know. Hopefully you'll read this and we'll see you at the same time.

Not Quite According to Plan...

Well kiddies, it seems I spoke a little soon. We are still in Heathrow. We did make it all the way onto the plane yesterday, but after waiting an hour for our departure slot an ''engineering issue" was discovered and the plane was grounded for repairs. I guess it was lucky we took so long on the runway or it may have been discovered inflight which may have been a bit more of a problem!

Any hoo, we have spent the night in a hotel by the airport (4 star, meaning that Brett did manage to get his longed for full English breakkie before we left) while the plane was being fixed and are scheduled to depart about 1pm today for Hong Kong. It means that we have lost our overnight in Hong Kong, but the Air NZ staff have been fabulous this morning to try to help us to get at least a few hours there today. They have checked an additional bag in for us - so I have offloaded all the heavy stuff I was carrying about - and have arranged for Hong Kong staff to meet us off this flight with boarding passes for our next flight. They will also intercept our checked in baggage and get it to the next flight. That means we will not have to check in in Hong Kong airport, but will be able to go into Hong Kong (with only Bretts carry on bag) and will have as much time as possible before we need to be back at the airport and straight to Departures. Well, thats the theory anyway.

Even if that plan doesn't come off, we have had such good luck so far with close calls that we are pretty relaxed about it all. It is disappointing to miss Hong Kong, but at least it is on the way home and not in the middle - which would potentially have caused real issues. I already have my Gucci, but Brett may miss out on his Rolex. Never mind, he has plenty of other goodies to keep him happy! And, of course, we are able to use the Koru Lounge here which means we are very comfortable and have free food and drinks etc.

So no Hong Kong photos today, but I have posted up the London photos that I didn't have time to post yesterday.

Farewell to London

Well folks, here we are at the end of Brett and Barb's Excellent Adventure! Just the one quick stop to go as we are now sitting in the Koru Club lounge at Heathrow. Of course we managed to pack another couple of day's worth of activity in today before we left, starting the day early at the Tower of London. Opening time is definitely the time to go, there were only about a dozen of us roaming around initially so we were able to get a really good look at things (such as the crown jewels) without having to queue at all. Tip for travellers - the Welcome Centre opposite the main gate sells tickets, so even if you don't make it before it opens like we did, try there first before standing in the ticket queues.

After the tower we took a trip down the Thames and then a walking tour around Greenwich. I have found the place I would love to live if we lived in London. Literally just across the river, but like a whole different world! Henry VIII had his palace there and it was where Sir Walter Ralegh took off his cloak to save Queen Elizabeth from muddying her feet. Way cool history and beautiful public buildings and parks.

Being in Greenwich also allowed us - on the very day that we will be crossing the dateline again - to stand on the Meridian Line. Me to the west and Brett to the east, it seemed a very appropriate thing to do today. Of course it is at the same place that Greenwich Mean Time is defined, so we were able to set Bretts watch to exactly 1:00pm GMT as we watched the time ball drop. Unfortunately, we will have to reset it when we land tomorrow, but at least for today we know it is in perfect time.

Of course, more sad goodbyes today. It has been terrific spending time with Simon and Narissa and Simon has been a fantastic tour guide. Wait til you see what he had prepared for us Wassa, our spreadsheets don't even come close!

The good news is that our bags were accepted with no excess baggage charge - partly due to the fact that we were relying on them not weighing my (fashionably enormous) handbag, which now feels like it contains the foundation stones of a small building! Might even mean that we will have some space for some shopping in Hong Kong after all :-)

See you all soon, even those we are sadly leaving behind - we'll be back!!

Walkabout in London

Today was the ideal way to end the UK leg of our trip - Amelia, Mike, Simon and ourselves have had a great time sight seeing, shopping and eating (guided by Simon who's very kindly taken a few days off work to show us around).

We started with a walk through the Tower Bridge and were lucky enough to be there when it was scheduled to open for a large sailing barge (so we got to see it in action). Next was a quick walk through the Tate art gallery (and I really mean quick) - the type of exhibition where bricks are stacked in a heap and called 'art' didn't do much for any of us. Oh well, at least we had a look.

After this, we felt that we'd earned a beer so stopped off at one of the many English pubs for a pint and then it was on past the London Eye and the Globe theatre to Westminster Abbey. Unfortunately we didn't go on a tour but it's certainly very impressive just looking at it from the outside (anyway, we need to leave something for when we come back next time)!

Of course, there was some shopping to be done as well so we made a final dash through the stores before stopping off in another English pub (they seem to be everywhere) for a traditional pub meal in Covent Garden with Narissa (Simon's partner who has unfortunately had to keep working while we swan around London with Simon). Even though we've been to a couple of pubs today , I've been very good - I learned my lesson from Barcelona so it was just one beer for me (whether the lesson sticks will remain to be seen).

Tomorrow we're scheduled to go on a cruise down the river and then fly out to Hong Kong for the final leg of our trip. It's been fantastic to catch up with friends over this last week as we had become a bit tired of talking to just guides, concierges and waiters. Not only have we seen and some experienced amazing things, we've been able to spend time with friends who've made us feel at home. Today we could have been in a New Zealand pub as all but one of us were Kiwis.

We're looking forward to being home and catching up with everyone and boring you silly with our travel stories - prepare yourself, the slide shows are coming!

London

Wow, London! Again, we have been so amazed to be looking at things in real life that we have been seeing in pictures for years. In London, there is more recognition flashes than anywhere we have been as so many English things are part of things we know. For example, our first underground ride took us to Liverpool St station and we walked down Pall Mall tonight on our way back from the theatre. Actually, I think we have seen signs, at least, for pretty much every stop in the Monopoly board.

Thankfully Simon met us off the train from Darlington yesterday as, once again, we managed to coincide our arrival with peak hour (big note to self for our next trip!). We left our bags at his workplace and then met Narissa for dinner before heading off to the Westend for a show that they had managed to get cheap last minute tickets for. The show was called Avenue Q and it was a scream - if you ever get the chance to see it, make sure you do. It is billed as "Sesame Street for grown-ups", but really it is impossible to describe. Very, very clever and very, very funny.

Today we started off with a walking tour of London Called "Secret London". It was a fascinating wander through streets and alleys to gardens and plaza's that you would have no idea existed unless somebody took you there. The tour finished outside a cool old English pub called the Black Friars and - given that it was another gorgeous day and we had earned a rest - we stopped for a pint.

Refreshed, it was then on to our next stop - the museums. Because we only had half a day, we picked two from the many that are in close proximity to each other and decided to visit the Natural History museum first. What an amazing place! No show of seeing anywhere near all of it in less than a week, but we loved the dinosaur exhibit. Also, it was absolutely gobsmacking to see the mammal hall and get an understanding of the actual size of a blue whale. I mean, you know it is big, but when you see it in context with a very large elephant you comprehend that it is ENORMOUS! We decided to move on so that we had a bit of time to see another museum (they are all free), and chose the Science museum. We would love to go back to this too and I would love to see the motorcycle exhibition that is coming up. Ah well, maybe next time.

There was just enough time before we met Narissa for dinner for a wander through some of Harrods. What do you know, it happens to be their sale week! Unfortunately, even on sale,
Harrods doesn't really fit into our budget; but it was really cool to have a look through. The food hall is amazing and the Diana memorial a bit creepy - particularly given the very strange woman who latched on to me a bit while we were down there.

Dinner was at a very posh restaurant and we were probably a little underdressed after wandering around London all day in our shorts and tee-shirts but we can do that sort of thing, we're tourists. Then it was onto a musical at the Westend called Wicked - again, really impressive (the whole thing was so well done, I think it may have spoiled us for going to see productions at the Court Theatre).

Lastly was a walk past Buckingham Palace - apparently the queen is in residence at the moment so we waved and called out but I don't think she heard. Anyway, it's off for some more walking today with Amelia and Mike - you never know, we may find some more shops!

London Bound

Well, we're literally on the downhill leg of our journey now - today we're leaving Darlington and taking the train down to London. Last stop before we head on back to the southern hemisphere.
Yesterday we had a lovely lazy recovery day at Gaynor and Harry's finishing in a barbeque before watching Spain beat Germany in the Euro Cup final. As we had been in Barcelona when Spain had won the semi-final, we could imagine exactly what would be happening over there when they won the final.

Earlier in the day, Barb had convinced Harry that she should test drive his new truck - apparently he had bought it only about a week ago but Barb smiled sweetly, blinked quite a bit and managed to wrangle a drive around the block. According to Harry, he was clenching a fair amount when they first started off but Barb did a fine job and the truck was returned unscathed. After coming back, Barb literally jumped from the cab and danced around on the road she was so pleased. Harry went to lie down for a bit.

The last thing to report is an exciting new game called Trampoline Dodgeball that I've invented with Zach and Riley (check the pictures out for some impressive gangley arms and legs flinging everywhere action).

Anyway, it's disappointing that we've got to leave Darlington but we're looking forward to catching up with friends in London before we stop over in Hong Kong. Bye from Darlington and we'll see you soon.

Barcelona

Ola from Barcelona! Yes, my multi-lingual skills really have improved to quite an advanced level don't you think? Anyway, it's really good to be in Spain with Harry and Gaynor after the little incident getting back to Darlington (more details on that particular travel story a little later). With a few trashy magazines from the airport terminal we were set for the flight into Barcelona. However,the cheap flights actually turned out to take us to an obscure airport sixty miles from Barcelona meaning that what we saved in flight cost we spent in taxi fare! Oh well, it could be worse.

First night here we managed to find a local Tapas restaurant where we could watch the football semi-final between Spain and Russia - luckily Spain won the game convincingly so we had a very good night - it was quite something to be walking through the Las Ramblas streets in amongst so many celebrating football fans. In fact, I had too much of a good night and have been paying for it dearly today - I've been telling everyone that it must have been something I ate but I suspect it has something more to do with the Tequila. Barb on the other hand has been feeling quite healthy so I'm rather jealous.

Luckily, today has been slow - after a late breakfast, we took a walk through some of the shopping areas (where Barb found some more shoes) and then on to have a look at the Gaudi cathedral that has been in construction since 1882 - and by the way, still has another eighty odd years to go. Actually, odd is quite an appropriate word for the La Sagrada Familia. As you can see from the photos we've posted up, the architecture is bizarre to say the least. However, it's such a large building already, you can't help but be impressed.

Finally, we made it back to the hotel, changed, had a few drinks by the pool (mine was lemonade) and caught a taxi down to the port for traditional Spanish Paella by the waterfront for dinner. All in all, a very good time in Barcelona - tomorrow we fly back to Darlington for some relaxation (and detox) before the next leg of the trip - onto London. Apparently Spain are playing Germany for the football final on Sunday so we're planning a BBQ if the weather's good.

So, adios until the next post...........I'm off to get some more asprin.

Back To Darlington

Well, just when we thought it couldn't get any hotter, it did. Yesterday was 40 degrees in Rome and we just melted. Literally dripping all day - eeewww. Luckily, all around Rome there are public aqua duct springs which have artisan water running constantly. It is delicious - like Christchurch water - and icy cold. All you need to do is buy a bottle of water in the morning and then refill it all day from the public taps. We figured out that we refilled about a dozen times a day so were drinking 4 litres or so while we were out and about. The interesting thing is that we didn't need to use a loo all day so were obviously using or sweating all of that fluid!

In the morning, we dropped our laundry at the local laundrette service (they do it for you) and used the 2 hours before it was ready to visit the Spanish Steps and Trevi Fountain. The fountain was gorgeous and huge! It makes you gasp when you first see it as it is in a piazza that is really quite small, so you just suddenly turn a corner and there it is almost taking up the whole space (the rest of the space is taken up by people). The other thing that makes it lovely is that, because it is in such a small clearing, the air is cooled by the water and there must be a fair amount of water hanging in the air. So not only is is fantastic to look at, it feels really refreshing to be standing in front of it. Besides the Sistine Chapel, I think that it is my favourite beautiful thing in Rome.

Then it was back to the hotel to pack and check out, but we left our bags there for the afternoon and went to the Colosseum then back through Palentine Hill and the Forum. We had a guide through the Colosseum so it was fascinating (and mostly horrible) hearing about how it all worked. They have reconstructed a little of the floor and seating at one end so that you can get a bit of an idea of how it would have looked. The photo that I have posted has this section in it.
We then decided to go early to the airport to go back to Darlington, so we could check in and then just chill out and have a beer and something to eat in the air conditioned airport. So began 3 hours of stress with our only real nightmare travel story so far. I will tell you all about it when we get home, suffice to say that we didn't know that there were 2 airports in Rome until we were at the wrong one...

Anyway, clearly there was a happy ending as here we are in Darlington in Gaynor and Harry's kitchen having breakfast before repacking and off to Barcelona about midday. Catch you from there!

Second Rome

Today in Rome it was thirty seven degrees - I remember getting into spa pools that hot!
Clearly it was too hot to be sightseeing so we took the opportunity to visit some nicely air conditioned shops using the 'hop-on-hop-off' tour bus as a double whammy sightseeing/shopping chauffeur service.

After one circuit sitting on top of the double-decker bus, we decided that gelato was called for so stopped off for a small snack Italian style (not much substance but very very tasty - especially in this heat). After some rejuvenation, we got back on board and located the main area for designer shops - while not intending to buy anything (the Euro exchange is pretty scary, to say nothing of how much they actually charge for this stuff!), we decided to do some window shopping and also spend some time wandering around inside air-conditioned shops filled with beautiful things. However, in the second shop that we decided to walk into, we found that we had fluked walking into a 'closing down for relocation' sale. They don't have any advertising banners or sign writing to advertise sales (that would be too naff in this precinct) so it literally was a fluke. The whole experience was pretty cool actually. When we walked in, they closed the door to offer exclusive, personal service. They offered me a seat (it was a menswear shop), then shared exclusive chocolate biscuits while 'getting to know us'. We had seen a pair of shoes in the window which were pretty gorgeous and Brett wanted to try them on. So, the saleslady took him in hand and really did her best to work from the feet up to fit him for a whole new outfit. Meanwhile, I was having a wonderful conversation on world affairs and such with the store manager. We had such a lovely chat for the thirty odd minutes it took for Brett to emerge from the sales pitch (with not only the shoes but also a pair of pants - still, I was
really impressed that he was able to withstand to that degree!) that Max (the manager) has
asked that we send him a postcard from NZ when we get home. He collects caps and postcards
and apparently found me charming - I should point out that he was in his 60's, so Brett isn't too worried. In fact, Brett was pretty chuffed when we got back to the hotel, unpacked our shopping and found that Max had slipped in a free silk tie without mentioning it. We really have found people everywhere to be very friendly and charming, with only the odd exception - odd being the key word, but we'll keep those stories for later.

While we're on the subject of fashion, I forgot to mention the Swiss Guards who guard the
Vatican. They are the soldiers who guard the pope and apparently they are the most highly
trained soldiers in the world. Given that they could probably kill you with an elastic
band, it is not a good idea to laugh at their uniform. However, this is still the original
design of Michelangelo and I think we have found the one thing he wasn't good at - clothing
design!

Tomorrow, regardless of the weather, we will visit the three places that remain on our list;
the Spanish Steps, Trevi Fountain and inside the Colosseum. After that, we head back to
Gaynor and Harry's overnight and then off to Barcelona with them. Italy has been amazing -
especially Rome - we'll definitely have to come back and travel around some more. One of
the really interesting things is the way the old seems to blend with the new. I have put a
picture up of an example of a modern house being built up against an ancient wall. I guess
they figure that if the wall has stood for a couple of thousand years, it will make a pretty
solid foundation wall for your house!

We probably won't post anything tomorrow as we will be in transit, but we'll touch base
again when we are in Barcelona. Ciao again!

Rome

Yesterday before leaving Venice, we did a boat trip out to the islands of Murano, Burano and Torcello. Murano was a bit of a blatant tourist stop with only a visit to a glass factory for a quick demo and then off to their shop. Didn't buy anything though as, although there were many amazing pieces, the prices were outlandish. Burano on the other hand was lovely, much less commercialised. We watched a wee old lady making lace by needle point - you would have been fascinated mum - and then wandered around the island taking photos of their multicolured houses.

On to Torcello, which has the original Venician basilica on it, but by that time we were soooo hot that we only wanted to loll in the shade of the church veranda. Even the Venetian street vendors were complaining about the heat, so we know that it was REALLY hot. On to Rome where it has been so hot today that the pavements are melting! However, we have had some mind blowing history discoveries today, so have been distracted from the heat. This morning we had a tour of the Vatican City and saw the Sistine Chapel. It was so awesome to see the real thing and hear the stories behind it. Photos just don't do it justice at all - it is A.MAZ.ING! We were so impressed with the tour company that we took our Vatican City tour with, that we booked their afternoon walking tour of Ancient Rome. Maybe because of the heat, we were the only ones on it, so had a personal guided tour for the afternoon. Among many things, we have seen where Julius Caesar was stabbed and where Marc Anthony made his "Friends, Romans, countrymen lend me your ears..."speech; we have been in the dungeon where St Peter awaited his execution and we have touched - yes, TOUCHED! - Michel Angelo's "The Christ" sculpture. We finished the day in a terrific (and cheap) restaurant recommended by our tour guide with our heads spinning with what we had seen and where we had been. If anybody is coming to Rome, we have a fantastic tour company to recommend. Tomorrow it is supposed to be hot again, so we will probably hop on an open top bus and get driven around for a bit rather than walk again. We hope to visit the colosseum and some more amazing old stuff, will let you know what we find!It feels like we have been away for a month already, we have seen and done so much.

I am missing family and friends a bit in our quiet moments, but am still waking up excited about what we are doing each day. It has been great to get your comments to kind of keep in touch with home.

Thanks a lot x x x

Dinner in Venice

We've just come back from dinner in Saint Marco Piazza and thought we'd get a post up before we head off to Rome tomorrow. Like the rest of the trip, Venice has been amazing - we had managed to get our bearings well enough by taking the walking tour yesterday, so we just wandered today and explored some of the markets. Barb's head cold has really set in as well,so we've been taking it easy to try and shake it. However, now that we've had to take afternoon rests, I think I may become a bit of a fan anyway!

Late this afternoon, we had our gondola ride and - maybe because everyone had told us it would be crap, setting our expectations really low - we really enjoyed that too. The gondolier in a gondola ahead of us was singing Italian songs. It was cliched, but excellent none the less.Our evening in San Marco Piazza has been fabulous (and ludicrously expensive). One thing that we have had to get our head around is that a euro buys what a dollar buys - essentially doubling the price of everything even before you start paying premium prices for some of the tourist experiences. However, even knowing it would cost an arm and a leg, we couldn't leave Venice without having an evening meal in the Piazza, with a live mini-orchestra playing as the sun went down. La dolce vita!

By the way, we had meant to make some phone calls while we were here but unfortunately have left the charger in Darlington. As soon as we get the phone back online we'll call to gloat!

Paris to Venice

For the final day in Paris, I managed to convince Barb that we should go up the Eiffel Tower for a look- the signs advised that the top may be crowded so the second level was as high as we went. However, even at this level, the views were amazing. As expected, you have to wait a bit to get through the queues but it's certainly worth it when you get through.
Next was a look inside the Madeleine church that we'd seen on the bus trip a couple of days earlier. Again, the scale of everything is so incredibly large it's hard to illustrate with the photos. It's easy to see why these buildings have taken hundreds of years to complete.
On the way back to the hotel, we stopped at two designer super stores - Printemps and Galleries Lafayette - both take a couple of blocks each and are six stories high. The one that is really impressive - aside from what it sells - is the Gallerie Lafayette. You'll see from the photo that it looks nothing like we would expect a department store to look. Barb found a very Parisian raincoat and I convinced her to treat herself. Lucky she did, because it started to rain while we were heading back to the hotel to collect the bags and also as we had made our way to the station to catch the train to Venice - handy AND very stylish!
The trip to Venice was comfortable - I wasn't expecting to get much sleep on the train but we've both managed to get a good nights rest. We had a three course meal in the dining car last night and we were served breakfast in our compartment this morning - I think we could get quite used to travelling first class! Unfortunately, that was the only part of the whole trip that we're not travelling cattle class. Oh well, we enjoyed it while it lasted.
So it's au revoir to Paris and buon giorno to Venice. We have had a very, very hot day today walking around Venice. The walking tour that we did gave us a really interesting glimpse into the history and idealism of the origins of Venice. In NZ, we think of ostentatious wealth as a big house and fancy car. In old Europe it means a palace and statues of yourself in public squares!
Unfortunately, Barb's head cold has reappeared, but after a lie down this afternoon in our (thankfully) air conditioned room she was good to go again and we headed off to a cafe just off San Marco piazza for dinner. Really lovely but, even in these smaller cafes, really expensive.
We have a day wandering Venice tomorrow and will post some Venice photos tomorrow evening.
Ciao!

Paris Day Two

We've ended the second day in Paris really satisfied but with sore feet - even though we boarded a bus tour that travels past most of the main tourist spots, there was still quite a bit of walking needed to get around. However, we're happy that we've been able to see as much as possible before we have to leave for Venice. Unfortunately, there were more camera problems (battery not charging properly again) but we managed to find a disposable camera so some of the pictures won't be available until we get back and have a chance to develop them.

The day started with a walk through the Notre Dame - this looks impressive from a distance but was absolutely amazing when we got the chance to explore it inside (the scale of it is incredible - no wonder it took 200 years to build). I don't think the photos will do it justice but we clicked away like mad anyway.

When we were on the river cruise the night before, Barb spotted the place she thought was the picture that she used to make the art in the lounge. As it was close to Notre Dame, we decided to check it out and - sure enough, there it was - the pont du Bourbon (aptly named it seems).

Back on the bus, the traffic in Paris probably rates as a tourist attraction itself - unfortunately we only got a few photos but it's like nothing we've ever seen before. I'm not sure how there aren't more accidents, but somehow it seems to work.

After grabbing some lunch we climbed to the top of the Arc De Triomphe for a magnificent view of Paris and then back on board the bus to get to the Louvre. Even though we spent over five hours there, we only got to see one and a half wings - everyone told us that we wouldn't be able to see much because of the size but it really is incredible when you experience it for yourself - absolutely astounding. The other amazing thing is that you can get so close to the pieces -sculptures from ancient Rome that you can get as close to as you like (so long as you don't actually touch them).

Finally, we had dinner at a cafe on the garden walk that runs between the Louvre and Concorde square. As with most of the French people we've met, the waiter was really friendly and looked after us well. We'll tell you the stories of the other, less polite people we met when we get back.

Anyway, we're off to have breakfast at the Eiffel Tower and to Venice today so we'll have to leave what we haven't had the chance to see yet until the next trip.

Au Revoir!

Paris

Ooh la la, je t'áime Paris! Cést tres, tres, tres magnifique!

We arrived in Paris on Monday in the early evening after managing to hit the metro - bags and all - in peak traffic. It's just like you see on TV, with people squeezing in beyond the point that you think it is possible to sqeeze any more in. Instead of changing lines (which we were supposed to do twice to get to our hotel), we decided to get a taxi. It was very cool, driving through the little streets. It seems so far that I have enough French knowledge to get by, I understand a lot more than I speak of course, but my accent must be pretty good because when I respond to people or ask questions they seem to think I parle Francais.

Our hotel room is on the sixth (top) floor in a little side street in Montmartre and feels a little like a garret room - although very comfortable - so it does feel really French. The first evening we just wandered the streets from our hotel and had dinner at a local French cafe. The side streets look very much as you imagine they do and there are ancient churches and sculptures as surprises when you turn corners. We have posted a photo of a typical street.

Yesterday we overslept - Paris is an hour ahead of England so that didn't help. Eventually we got out and away at about 11am, so on discovery that the Louvre and another couple of big attractions were closed on Tuesdays we decided to make it our shopping day. We hopped on the metro - which really is as easy as they say, once you get the hang of figuring out which side of the station you need to be on - and went out to La Vallee, which is an outlet village for designer labels. Shopping heaven! Although the really big names are still really expensive - e.g Christian Lacroix marked down to EUR1700.00, nothing in Armani under EUR500.00 etc - we got some bargains. Brett got a kick-ass Kenzo suit for EUR300.00 so he is a happy man already. He also got a casual suit jacket on a deal where you buy one and get another for EUR1.00 - so we got one for you Dan :-) I got a gorgeous Anne Fontaine jacket and was amused to watch the saleswoman wrap it a la Rowan Atkinson in Love Actually (flower, perfume and petals).

We then hot footed (well, hot trained) it back to the hotel to drop everything off and metro over to the Fat Tyre Bike Company by the Eiffel Tower for a night bicycle tour through Paris. A perfect summer evening, cycling through the streets and around some of its incredible landmarks such as Notre Dame and the Louvre. Paris has an interesting concept called the bus taxi and bicycle lane - the most vulnerable of vehicles sharing a lane with the most dangerous (i.e. 'take your life into your own hands' lane). The tour culminated in a boat cruise down the Seine, drinking wine, a perfect end to our first day in Paris. Home on the metro about 1am and set the alarm to ensure that we don't sleep any more of our Paris time away.

Today we are going to do the Hop On Hop Off sightseeing stuff and visit some of the places we saw last night. Au revoir for now.

Whitby

Dossed around yesterday morning as it was raining (English summer) and then walked into Darlington for lunch at an English tearooms. Very nice food. After a leisurely lunch, Gaynor walked home to be in time to meet the kids and Brett and I went for a wander around the Darlington shops. However, all the self-denial while saving for a holiday doesn't seem to have worn off yet, I didn't buy anything except a GBP1.50 hairclip! Brett, however, had a big splurge and bought a GBP4.00 pair of jeans!
Last night friends of Gaynor and Harry's came over for a BBQ - which turned into a buffet due to the weather - and then we solved many more world issues over a few gins. BIG sleep in this morning, actually ALL morning.
We all then piled into Gaynor and Harry's cars and went to Whitby. Whitby is about an hour away and is a British sea-side town. It's two major claims to fame are that it is the port that James Cook set off in the Endeavour from and that Bram Stoker lived there. There is an amazing Abbey ruin on top of the cliff that seems to me might very well have been his inspiration for writing Dracula. We had fish and chips with mushy peas and curry sauce on the pier and felt like we were inside an English TV program - saw people crammed on the beach with their trousers rolled up, paddling even though it was freezing, saw a fortune teller on the pier, donkey rides, the whole works!
The ancient street that leads up to the Abbey is one of the steepest cobbled streets in England, a great way to walk off the fish and chips :-) and amazing to see headstones in the graveyard that date back to the 12th century.

Darlington

Since Barb hadn't seen much of Amsterdam on the first day, we decided to catch a tram back into town in the morning and speed through a combination jog-eat-and-become-cultured tour before flying back to Heathrow. First up was a quick trip through the Rijkmuseum to view the Rembrandt collection. Although pressed for time, we couldn't help staying for longer than planned - the paintings are so impressive, it wasn't something we could rush too much. I think I'd be happy to come back to Amsterdam just to see this again - really amazing.

Next was a waffle to go, off to the Van Gogh gallery and some more gazing at famous art (again, quite surreal looking at pictures we've only seen in art history books) and the 'Dutch Super Speed' tour was nearly finished. After a quick bit of window shopping, it was back onto the tram to get home in time for driving out to the airport. Yes, more time in an airport - we've seen a lot of gates and terminals so far but it's worth it (Amsterdam has been absolutely brilliant and we've got Paris, Rome and Venice to go yet). We've been pretty lucky also - no security problems or getting on the wrong plane so far (fingers crossed for the rest of the trip).

Anyway, after getting back to Heathrow we caught a connecting flight to Durham to meet up with Gaynor, Harry, Zac and Riley. Once settled in, we then sampled some of the local brewing (gin, vodka and five bottels of wine to be more accurate). Needless to say, this next morning was a little quiet. To aid recovery, we hopped on the train and took a trip to York. York is a very old walled town with amazing history dating back to William the Conqueror and a fabulous cathedral. Of course, with Gaynor as a tour guide we got a bit of shopping in as well and Barb managed to find a very swanky pair of shoes to bring home and show off.

Tomorrow we'll probably stick a little closer to home with a wander around Darlington and we're having a barbie tomorrow night with some friends of Gaynor and Harry coming over - we'll have to restock the wine rack first of course. We are hoping for good weather at the weekend for a trip to the English seaside so that I can roll my trousers up and put a knotted hankie on my head in traditional local garb.

Thanks for those of you who have posted comments, it's great to hear from you.

Amsterdam

Here we are at day four - fifteen hours of flying later (sharing a flight with Johnny Rotten and Gary Numan), we're in Amsterdam and we've managed to get lost straight away. Navigating the airport transfers at Heathrow seemed to be easy and nobody asked for any sort of information when we flew into Schipol (no declaration, customs officer or anything) but we came unstuck when it came to the very complex task of catching a bus. We nearly left a bag sitting on the footpath and then ended up at the complete opposite end of Amsterdam than where were supposed to be. If it wasn't for Barb launching out of the bus as it was driving away and then jumping on again with the bag at the last second, we'd be travelling a lot lighter (in fact, the laptop that we're using to post this was in that bag). Oh well, at least we got a good look around as we were driven all around the city; and it was actually rather pleasant after a long flight to be sitting at the bus terminal in the evening sun waiting to be collected by Alan.

Barb has had to work the first day here so I've been off exploring Amsterdam. Paula set me off with excellent directions to the red light district and the hoochie cafes so I've had a rather busy time today! Wanted to buy a souveneir but found the choice limited to windmills and clogs or prostitute and weed merchandising so decided I had enough of that already. So, off to a canal tour, Anne Frank's house and Rijksmuseum. Asterdam is a lovely city, everyone seems to travel by bike so not a lot of traffic noise and the weather is really good. After a great day of not getting lost, I found my way back to within 200 metres of Paula and Alan's place and then stuffed it up. Kevin and Rick were here for dinner, so Rick came and found me and dubbed me back on his Wellnomics fleet vehicle (bike). Yes, they did all take the mickey.

Tomorrow Barb won't be working and we have a half day before we need to head for the airport (on the right bus) so we are going to take a trip through the Van Gogh Museum. Will tell you all about it tomorrow.

Day 2

Well, it has been a long day, but a goodie. We started off with a great brekkie across the road from the hotel and then picked up for our Big Day Out by a very funny Mexican named Juan. Juan took us to a 'landport' - like an airport for coaches. We then hopped on to another coach, driven by another funny Mexican, to head to downtown L.A. We had expected it to be very bustly, but apprently most of the parking is underground and with gyms and shops etc inside the buidlings, people don't really have to venture onto the street! It was quite bizarre!
After we had a drive around and checked out some of the buildings that have been used for movies - the driver was a mine of movie trivia! - we headed off to Universal Studios for the better part of the day. It was great. Our driver had told us the best order to do things in so that we wouldn't have to queue for long, quite a nice bonus! The fire really didn't impact on what you did there, it just cut a section out of the studio lot tour. The best ride was the Mummy ride. Barb went on it on her own first, but then managed to convince Brett that it was not a horrible scary roller coaster and went back through again with him - and yes, he was pleased he went on as it was very cool. The best show - even though the movie was tedious - was Waterworld. Heaps of stunts and pyrotechnics - a special effects plane actually crashed into the pool in front of us! After several hours at Universal, it was back on the bus - next stop Hollywood. Unlike downtown L.A., Hollywood was bustling. Street performers and people everywhere! Checked out the stars on the Walk of Fame (don't know what Donald Trump did to get one - maybe just paid for it) and the hand and foot prints outside the Chinese Theatre. Went into a shop that had 30,000 pairs of shoes and didn't buy any - can't fill the suitcase too early :-)
Back on the bus and off for a cruise down Sunset Strip and then down Rodeo Drive, which is apparently the second most expensive shopping street in the US (after 5th Avenue in New York). Didn't see any movie stars, but plenty of posh cars and beautiful boutiques. We then drove through Beverly Hills and back to the hotel.
Our technology frustrations have continued, not only is the phone not working, but the camera ran out of battery before we even arrived at Universal Studios, sigh... So it was back to the disposable camera for the day, we'll have to wait and see what comes out. Once the battery has recharged, we might have something interesting from today to upload for you from the early shots anyway.
Off to Amsterdam tomorrow - via London, hopefully the phone will work and we will be in-communicado again.

Day 1

Well, we've arrived safetly in LA after a twelve hour flight with no problems (except lack of sleep). Even with a few wines and some ear plugs, the airplane seat doesn't quite cut the mustard for getting a good rest. Oh well, first lesson learned - obviously more wine is required next time! After getting through airport security - which wasn't nearly as bad as we expected - the shuttle driver dropped us off at the hotel. Lesson two - if travelling to LA, don't book a hotel right next the the freeway (although the noise is not too bad, it's certainly a lot different from what we get in Christchurch). Maybe the wine trick will work for us in the hotel as well as in the plane.
Although we hadn't planned to visit Disneyland, it's right next door to where we are staying so we've spent the afternoon wandering through and having a look - a good way to get some blood circulating through the legs after sitting for so long. I've included some pictures with this post but there are only a few since we got got there quite late (as the light was getting low) and some of the pictures haven't come out too well.
One last thing - the cell phone we bought across doesn't seemto want to work (no service). We'll try again when we're in London and hopefully we can call / text from there.
Anyway, off to Universal Studios tomorrow for a tour so we'll let you know how that turns out.

Murphy strikes again!

Yes, wouldn't you know it, with one week to go I was slammed with a nasty head cold. Brett was despatched with urgency to the health food shop and I have been taking all recommended remedies - echinacea, olive leaf, zinc, vitamin C, colloidal silver, potentiated bee stuff. Something must have done the job coz I am feeling much better although still a little claggy. The problem will be that next time I won't know what to take that actually helped, but no time to be practical about it with only 2 sleeps to go!
I have been working evenings so only found out today about the fire at Universal Studios - we are due to be there on Saturday. According to google, they are still running tours, so I guess it will just be a little different to what we had expected. Will let you know.
Any hoo, we are all packed, just 2 wee jobs left to do tomorrow morning and then off we go. Next post should be from LA - Oooh how exciting!!

8 sleeps to go...

Tickets have all been picked up today - nothing else to do but finish up all the jobs that have to be done before we go...

And so it begins...

Well not quite - still 10 sleeps to go, but after booking our trip 12 months ago and not buying ANY shoes since then, we are about to embark on our first big OE.
Tony Scott texted me today and asked if we were going to post blogs so that you can all follow our progress around Europe (ooh how exciting!!), and I thought "what a good idea!"
So here you are - our official travel-blog.

Itinerary

June 6 Depart Christchurch 4:30pm
June 6 Depart Auckland 7:15pm
June 6 Arrive Los Angeles 12:30pm - staying @ Howard Johnson Plaza Anaheim
June 6 Evening @ Disneyland

June 7 Hollywood & Universal Studios all day tour

June 8 Depart Los Angeles 4:30pm

June 9 Arrive Heathrow 11:00am
June 9 Depart Heathrow 1:15pm
June 9 Arrive Amsterdam 3:30pm - staying with Alan & Paula

June 11 Depart Amsterdam 3:15pm
June 11 Arrive Durham 6:05pm - staying with Gaynor & Harry

June 16 Depart Durham 1:30pm
June 16 Arrive Paris 4:10pm - staying @Best Western Aida Opera

June 17 Hop-on-hop-off sightseeing tour day pass

June 18 Paris by Night bicycle tour

June 19 Overnight train to Venice 6:55pm

June 20 Arrive Venice 9:40am - staying @ Commercio & Pellegrino
June 20 Afternoon walking tour

June 21 Gondola ride

June 22 Half day boat tour to Murano, Burano & Torcello
June 22 Train to Rome 4:00pm
June 22 Arrive Rome 8:00pm - staying @ Astoria Garden

June 23 Vatican City tour

June 25 Depart Rome 8:50pm
June 25 Arrive Durham 10:55pm

June 26 Depart Durham with Gaynor & Harry
June 26 Arrive Barcelona

June 28 Depart Barcelona
June 28 Arrive Durham

June 30 Train to London 2:30pm
June 30 Arrive London 5:30pm - staying with Simon & Nerissa

July 1 Westend show

July 2 Amelia & Mike joining us in London for the day

July 3 Depart Heathrow 9:05pm

July 4 Arrive Hong king - staying @ the Holiday Inn Golden Mile

July 5 Depart Hong Kong 6:10pm

July 6 Arrive Auckland 8:45am
July 6 Depart Auckland 12:00pm
July 6 Arrive Christchurch 1:20pm