Madrid - August 2011

We both didn't have many expectations about Madrid - we ended up loving the Spanish capital, it is definitely one of the most underrated cities.

We arrived Sunday evening and decided to go out for some tapas and drinks at several bars and a local market before going out to see some live music. We found a local bar that had a blues band performing. We also decided to head out to a club that was supposed to be massive, but it turned out to be closed.

On our first full day in Madrid we went on a walking tour and learned a lot about the city's geography and history. We then went to the Reina Sophia museum where we saw some notable works by Pablo Picasso, including the amazing Gurnica, and Salvador Dali. That evening we went for dinner to the restaurant called El Sobrino de Botin. This restaurant is famous for two main reasons. Firstly it claims to be the world's oldest restaurant (which it proves with its certificate from the Guinness book of world records) and secondly, the American novelist Ernest Hemingway counted this as one of his favorite haunts. We since learnt that the guy pretty much drank everywhere in the city anyway, buy it was still very cool.

On our last day in Madrid (and Europe) we went to the city's main park (Parc de Retiro) and spent the day lying in the sun playing guitar and relaxing. We had a 5am check in for our flight to new York, so we decided not to sleep for the night so as to sleep well on the flight. To pass the time until then we went and saw Midnight in Paris for the second time on the trip! After some famous churros and packing our bags we were off to the airport. It was really sad actually to say goodbye to Europe despite the obvious excitement for new York!

Location:Madrid, Spain

Valencia - August 2011

Our time in Valencia was brief, but we had a chance to relax on it's beautiful long beach and to also see a bit of the old town area.

We arrived around midday on Friday and went to the beach for the afternoon. We hired lounge chairs and a big umbrella so we were able to endure the 40 degree heat.

That evening we went for dinner to the best paella restaurant in town. As Valencia is the birthplace of this traditional Spanish dish (that is similar to risotto), we ordered the Valencian special that contains chicken, rabbit and beans. It was absolutely delicious!

The following day we hired bikes in the morning and rode to the Art and Science building area of Valencia. These are amazing modern buildings that were designed by a world renowned Spanish architect. For the afternoon we went off to the beach again. The beach this time though looked completely different as there were many more people, and the ocean itself Was no longer flat but quite choppy with lots of waves. We then walked around the old town, admirif it's old buildings and cool street art, before finding some dinner (more paella!).






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Location:Valencia, Spain

Barcelona - August 2011

We had a week in Barcelona, which went by so quickly!

We arrived on Friday night (19 August) and began our evening with a drink and some tapas in the old town area. The tapas included Patatas Bravas (potato chips with a spicy tomato cream sauce- delicious!) and olives. Afterwards we met up with Laura Noonan and her cousin Anne for more tapas and sangria, who had arrived in Barcelona the previous day. The tapas this time consisted of a few of more of the traditional dishes, such as Pa amb tomaquet (bread with tomato), a plate of different types of hams and cheeses, nachos with guacamole (a bit of Mexican influence!), and calamari. It was so nice to catch up and to talk about our travel experiences since Prague.

On Saturday we met up with the girls again on a bike tour of the city. We had a great guide who showed us some of Barcelona's most significant landmarks, including the Old Town and the Barcelona Cathedral, some work of Barcelona's most famous and loved architect, Gaudi, such as La Sagrada Familia (see photo below), the city park and the main beach, where we stopped for a late lunch and sangria.

In the afternoon we went back to the beach with Laura and Anne. It was packed with people and unfortunately wasn't as nice as the beaches in Nice. While it was a sand beach it is actually man-made, and the sand is imported from Egypt. This meant that it was quite dusty and the water wasn't as clear or pleasant to swim in. That evening we had more sangria and tapas at several bars around the town.

On Sunday Luke and I went to to Picasso Museum, which we really enjoyed. We then had some paella for lunch before meeting up with the girls again at Barcelona's weekly bull fight. Bull fighting has actually been banned in this region but they say that they are finishing up this season. Apparently this happened 8 years ago also so who knows of it'll actually finish. I knew what to expect so I wasn't that disturbed by it (although I do not condone it), but it was a cultural experience that I was glad to have. I agree with Luke that it doesn't seem to have that much longer in it anyway as the crowd was minimal and consisted mainly of tourists.



After the bull fight we farewelled both Laura and Anne who were leaving Barcelona the following day. We then went to a flamenco show, followed by more tapas and sangria. The show was amazing; the band and the dancers were exceptional.



On Monday we took a day trip to a seaside town south of Barcelona to enjoy a real beach! This was beautiful and so relaxing. We even spoiled ourselves and hired out a couple of lounges and a big umbrella for the day!

On Tuesday we walked around the Old Town and looked in a few shops, inclduing a couple pf record stores, before going to the cinema to see the Woody Allen film 'Midnight in Paris', which we had been hoping to see since our time in Paris. We loved it, particularly how a lot of the themes and characters had become significant on our trip so far. Afterwards, we walked further afield to the Plaza de España and the palace that is situated high upon one of Barcelona's hills, so we were able to enjoy some great views of the city.

We went on a Gaudi walking tour on Wednesday that covered a few of his most notable buildings, including Sagrada Familia. This building is actually still incomplete and is predicted to take another 30 years of work. In the afternoon we took the metro to Park Guell, a park that Gaudi was involved in making into a housing estate, although it never kicked off.


















In the evening we went to the area of Barcelona called Sants, which is where a summer festival/street party was taking place all week. Each street in the area had been decorated according to a theme, such as 'Under the Sea' or The Beatles. We had a ball watching musicians play in the street, from a jamming session of Spanish folk songs, to a big drum band, and even to a Spanish Blues band!









On Thursday, our last full day in Barcelona we visited the Barcelona Cathedral and did some last minute shopping and sight seeing throughout the old town. That evening we went to see a live music performance in the Catalonian musical theatre, which is a magnificent and beautiful building. Afterwards, we went for a delicious tapas dinner.

Nice - August 2011

A very relaxing couple of days in Nice!

Firstly, the drive into Nice along the French Riveria was absolutely amazing. We passed through Monaco also, which was really interesting to see.






We spent both days at the beach swimming in the Mediterranean sea! On Wednesday we went to one of the main beaches of Nice and on Thursday we travelled by bus to a beautiful little secluded beach close to Monaco. Both beaches were so nice to swim in (water temperature was much much warmer than that of the Warrnambool beach!) and even though there were lots of people around (with dark tans making us look even whiter-skinned than we are!) it was still very relaxing.






The hostel we stayed at was great (it was converted from an old convent) and as it was perched right on one of Nice's surrounding hills, we had an amazing view from our room's balcony.



* More photos to come soon..

Location:Nice, France

Florence - August 2011

On our way to Florence we stopped in the Tuscan town of Orvieto for a couple of hours. The town was a significant trading point between Rome and Florence in the past. It's quite amazing as it sits right up on the top of a hill. Our bus couldn't even take us up to it; instead we all took a tram to the top to walk around the town.



We spent our first day in Florence (Sunday) wandering the streets, visiting famous landmarks and enjoying its culinary offerings. Whilst I had hoped to visit Florence's well-known renaissance art museum, we weren't up for waiting in it's massive line. This was mostly due to the fact that both of us had caught colds and were not feeling all that great! Instead we were able to see much more of the city itslelf, including the Florence cathedral Basilica di Santa Maria del Fiore, the city's main plazas, including that which holds the fake 'David' statue (the real one made by Michelangelo can be found in one of Florence's museums), the bridge that Hitler made a personal request to preserve during WWII, the palace, Michelangelo's plaza, which is situated high up on a hill so we had a great view of the city, and much more!






On day two in Florence, Monday, we went on a winery tour of the Chianti region of Tuscany. Our first stop was in the town of Girdi di Chianti, which is the main centre of this region. the town is well-known for its interesting butchery, cheese and wine shop, and also a massive wine store where you could taste over 100 different types of wines.

Our next stop was lunch and wine tasting at a historic Italian family's villa. This family were once considered noblemen of Italy and have been involved in wine making for over five generations. Lunch consisted of salami, prosciutto, bread and pasta. The house itself was amazing with family portraits and animal heads featured on the walls, and the outdoor gardens and swimming pool.






Our last stop for the day was another winery that specializes in Grappa, an Italian spirit that is made with the skin of grapes. I didn't particularly like this but it was an experience to taste. All in all it was a good day and a great way to see the scenic Tuscan countryside.

That evening after dinner I tasted the best gelati ever - a waffle cone with the flavours of pistachio, hazelnut, and cinnamon - delicious!

Location:Florence, Italy

Rome - August 2011

Two very big days in Rome! We arrived Wednesday evening after a scenic bus ride from Venice. We both loved looking out at the beautiful mountainous countryside of Italy.




We began our day on Thursday with a visit to the Vatican. This consisted of lining up for just under an hour to enter the Vatican museum, which includes the Sistine Chapel. Even though the museum was so busy, we were still able to admire the artwork of Raphael and Michelangelo, amongst others. The room of maps, was particularly appealing to me. We also went to St Peter's Basilica, the largest Catholic church in the world.

In the afternoon we went on a walking tour of Rome. Our guide was an American guy named Tad who studied Roman History in university and has been living in Rome for over five years. The walk took us to Circo Maximo (the place where chariot racing took place during ancient Roman times), the site of some other ancient ruins that is now considered a cat sanctuary, the Pantheon (ancient Roman building dedicated to all gods; now used as a Catholic church), and passed by the Palatine Hill, the Roman forum and of course the Colosseum. We also stopped for a delicious gelati! Tad was a very interesting guide and tried to make the tour appealing to us, Generation Y. This included lots of references to Facebook and pop culture of the 90s and 00s. But he sure did know his stuff on Ancient Rome.










On Friday we went back to Palatine Hill, the Roman Forum and the Colosseum to explore them further. This took us until almost 4pm when we went back to our hotel to give our feet a rest for a couple of hours. And in +30 degree heat we were pretty exhausted!












In the evening we decided to venture out for a long night walk of the city. This included visits to the Trevi fountain, the Spanish steps (we timed it perfectly to arrive here just as the sun was setting), Umberto Bridge, Piazza Navona, Campo de Fiori, Sisto Bridge, the district of Tastevere, and again the cat sanctuary and the Pantheon. This was the best way to see the city- alive and vibrant.

Location:Rome, Italy

Venice - August 2011

We arrived in Venice Sunday afternoon to some warm weather, but as soon as we settled into our cabin at the camping ground it started to pour rain, with thunderstorms! Luckily it didn't last too long.

For the evening we enjoyed some delicious pizza at the campsite's restaurant, and also a cafe latte, which was probably one of the best I've ever tasted (even though it was served in a plastic cup!).

Monday morning we were up bright and early, and on the bus to Venice by 830am. Our plan for the day was just to walk through the streets of the town, nothing more. We didn't even take a map! Just like Prague, every street you went down could be pictured on a postcard. It is just beautiful. It's hard to believe that that in 50-100 years time, it's predicted that this town may cease to exist due to the decay in its buildings and rising sea levels.










Inevitably, we did get lost, and ended up at the Venice docks, but we soon found our way back to the main part of town.

For dinner we went to a fancy Italian restaurant on one of canals, which was really nice!



On Tuesday we went back into Venice and wandered the streets again, and ended up lost, again. But on the up side, we enjoyed some more Italian coffee and more Italian gelato! The day started off rainy and cool, but by 1pm, it was hot and sunny like the previous day. So we went back to our accommodation for a late afternoon swim in the pool.

Location:Venice, Italy

Vienna - August 2011

We arrived in Vienna to lovely, sunny weather Wednesday afternoon.

That evening we went on a walking tour to familiarise ourselves with the city and to learn a bit about its history. We visited many old and significant buildings, including the Palace once home to the Austro-Hungarian royal family, and beautiful gardens. The tour ended with a Viennese meal of pork snitzel and apple strudel. We opted for the half litre of beer, turning down the 1 litre that seemed standard!

The next morning we went walking again, as much as I hate to admit it, we took in the sights featured on a movie called 'Before Sunrise'. Above all it was just a good way to see some off the beaten track parts of the city that the films characters walked through. A cafe, a river bank, the most amazing record store, a church with the most powerful pipe organ and some lovely cobbled streets.













After a rest we went for dinner at the famous Nachmarkt then saw a film from 1948 that is set and filmed in Vienna called 'The Third Man'. It was brilliant, set during the allied occupation and gave us ideas for some more spots to take in on Friday!




Friday morning we went to an old cemetery a bit out of town where people like Beethoven and other composers and artists are buried.

We also visited the enormous cathedral in the centre of Vienna and an amusement park with a giant ferris wheel featured in the movie 'The Third Man'.








To make the most of the perfect weather we finished the day with a picnic dinner in the park near our accommodation, reading and playing guitar with the beautiful old university building in our sights. Once again as has been common in Europe, the bees put a stop to this and we headed back for an early night. Sad to say goodbye to another of our favourite cities.

Location:Vienna, Austria

Berlin - July 2011

Luke and I had a wonderful time in Berlin. Similar to Paris, we planned to have just over a week to explore this historic city. While it rained non-stop the last couple of days, it definitely didn't stop us from doing that.

We arrived here on the night of Friday 22 July. On our first Saturday we went on a four hour walking tour of Berlin's main sites, including it's museum island (where Adolf Hitler gave a lot of his most famous speeches), the site of Berlin's War Memorial, the site of the burning of the books in 1933, Checkpoint Charlie (one of the main cross points used during the time of the wall), a part of the wall that still remains, the site of Hitler's bunker (now an apartment building's car park), the Holocaust Memorial and Brandenburg Gate. It was so great to learn all about different aspects of the city and it's history, especially during the first day of our stay so we could decide what other sites we wanted to see. The Germans have a great way of recognizing their past through abstract symbolic art. An example being a room visible through glass under the site of the burning of the books, with empty book shelves, enough space for every Jewish book that was destroyed.



On Sunday and Monday we had a quiet couple of days and mainly just walked around the city's streets to lots of different districts, and also did a bit of shopping.



On Tuesday we went back to the Holocaust Memorial to it's information center/museum section that's underneath the memorial. This provided personal accounts from people who experienced the holocaust, those who lost loved ones and those who died themselves in concentration camps. Stories were very horrific but so important to be heard. We also went to the Berliner Dome, which is one of the most extravagant protestant cathedrals in the world.



On Wednesday we went to the East Side Gallery, the longest part of the wall that still remains and which has been covered in paintings since 1990. Mostly representations of what the wall and its falling down meant to society. In the afternoon we took the train to a large town a couple of hours of Berlin called Magdeburg where Luke had arranged a gig through a guy he met in Melbourne. It went really really well. They were such an appreciative audience, each applause during songs lasted forever! It was also great to meet some local German people and to hear their stories. That's probably been the best part of our time here. We learnt so much about how young German people now view the division between east/west Germany and how what is in the past still impacts on their lives.

When we arrived back in Berlin on Thursday we went to the Topographies of Terror, a free exhibition on WWII mostly centered on Berlin (before, during and after). Like the Holocaust Museum we learned a lot about personal experiences of this time.

Yesterday we visited the New Museum of Berlin, where there are many artifacts from the Stone, Bronze and Iron ages, as well as from ancient Egypt and Sudan, and the fabled city of Troy.

On Saturday, our last full day in Berlin, we went to the Tiergarten, a large park in central Berlin that once was a hunting ground for the King of Prussia. Unfortunately it continued to rain so we walked to the House of the Republic (Germany's Parliament House), which features a dome overlooking the room in which parliament sits. This signifies the fact that the public will always be watching them to ensure that they are making the right decisions, another example of great German symbolism.

Location:Berlin, Germany