May 2007

Phil left me to read his blog but unfortunately the internet cut off without warning and he has lost his work. He won't be happy Jan!!
Thanks for all the messages you have been sending. Its great reading them and hearing news from home. It's good to know you are enjoying the read.
I now know why there is no rain in Australia. Since we have been in London we have had to put up with the rain. The first few days were intermittent but yesterday 13th it rained non stop. As to be expected by night it slowed down.
On Saturday we had a very busy day walking. We started by walking to the Portabello Markets at Nottinghill. We had heard of these markets but were a little disappointed. They were mainly for people who were looking for antiques. Lots of second hand silver, china, pictures, clothes and jewellery. At the end of the long street were the food markets. Not as good as what we saw in Versaille.
After walking up and down the street we headed for Royal Albert Hall. Could not get inside unless taking a tour and there was not one until later in the day.
Then we walked to Harrods walking through Kensington Gdns. The street we took had lots of Embassy Homes. At each end of the street there were gates with guards.
Harrods was very big, very easy to get lost and very expensive. We fell upon the statue of Dodi and Diana at the escalators going up to the 2nd floor. Not sure what Diana would think if she was alive!! We visited the cafe that sold nothing but chocolate. Highly recommended by Jen!
Next stop was to be Buckingham Palace but we had a forced stop at a cafe on the way due to a very heavy shower of rain. Once it cleared we made our way to Buckingham Palace and had a walk around. Phil thought it would be more imposing! Next stop was Covent Garden to have dinner at the restaurant that Cait works at. It is an upmarket burger place. We fell upon Covent Garden market and had a browse before stopping at a pub for a drink and to rest our weary feet. By this stage we had been on them for most of the day!! Then we had dinner and had a quick catch up with Cait as she was extremely busy. There was a 20mins waiting time to get a table but we were lucky as we didn't have to wait. After dinner we walked back to the hotel. Our feet were very tired at the end.
Hope you are all well.

Hi all,
Well I have the "power" again, so here goes.
We left Paris via the Metro (conveniently located across the road), and after changing to another line, arrived at the departure station without incident and plenty of time to spare.
We enjoyed some breathing time before boarding the "fast Eurail", arriving safely in London. We again estabished that we had to travel via the underground to Paddington, arriving without any grief at 4 pounds a ticket. Luckily Paddington station is one block from our hotel, great location, just a block from Hyde Park. Those Glen Osmond booking agents are really looking after us.
It was about 4 in the afternoon so we decided to walk down Oxford Street, taking in the shops and soaking up the atmosphere.
Later we enjoyed dinner at a local pub, San had some Rose' and I enjoyed a few Guiness. Earlier that day we had contacted Caitlin and arranged to meet next morning.
We suggested the proverbial Hop-on-hop-off bus, and Caitlin was really keen to come along. It is the longest tour that we have encountered, but it was very enjoyable.
We stopped off on the way for lunch at another pub, then joined the ride again.
I undertook the London Eye ride, which was fantastic, while the girls went looking in shops etc. Caitlin, left us at that time and we decided to walk back to our hotel, which was a long but enjoyable journey. (perhaps we may have taken a wrong turn here or there). It was great catching up with a familiar face , and Caitlin and San spent the majority of the time exchanging stories etc. She looked well and obviously is enjoying her time with many travelling plans in place for later this year. Later that evening we ate at a small Italian Restaurant in the street next to the hotel, but meal was very average and not overly enjoyable.
The weather held off on our bus trip but looked threatening most of the day, with a slight shower as the night approached.
Next day (10th..I think) we decided to visit The Tower of London and the Tower Bridge.
Magnificent to say the least, but I think all of your reading this have already been there. The jewels are certainly worth seeing. It rained most of the time, so it was a good choice to visit that day.
Later we walked the bridge, and then undertook the tour across the top and also the engine room below.
Once again we decided to walk back to St Paul's to catch the bus back to Paddington, but once again seemed to take the wrong street. No majors though we soon got back on track. (All my fault of course!!!).
We arrived back OK, then ate a local Indian Restaurant, which was very nice, except the waiter tried to "upsell on every opportunity" I think that I will give him a job.
Today we headed off to Windsor Castle. Luckily it was a short train ride from our station (Paddington). The sky was blue for a short period, but then normality set in with periods of slight showers.
The Castle was what I had been expecting in the other touristy castles, apart from the one in Saumur. Luckily the weather and being a Friday must have kept the crowds down, so minimal queueing and a most enjoyable day.
The visit gave a more realistic overview of the history dating right back, and the thing that we liked the most was the fact that the castle was still in use ( being lived in etc ).
Another great day, I will sign off as someone is waiting to use etc. The I-N is free here.

Bonjour again,
Well we have arrived in Paris and for once the hotel is just down the road from the station. We still caught a taxi because of the luggage-10euros. Taxis charge for carrying luggage!!
Paris is just as beautiful as I remember it. After settling in we decided to go for a stroll and before long we ended up at the Louvre. Phil was impressed with the size and he also got his first look at the Eiffel Tower. We then walked back and found a cafe to eat not far from the hotel.
Early in the evening received text messages wishing me happy birthday but on Paris time I was still 49 and staying that way! Woke to the fact that there was no more denials and I was now 50. I have to say I felt really good and why not. Not every day you get to turn 50 in Paris!!
We started the day by doing a hop on hop off tour so Phil could get a feel for the city. We then walked down The Champs Elysees and stopped off at Paul's Bakery for a baguette highly recommended by Jen. A little further on we stopped and people watched and of course celebrated with a champagne. Then we were off to climb the 286 steps of The Arc De Triomphe. The view was magnificent. We especially enjoyed watching the peak hour traffic manage the 12 roads that feed into the round about!
Next stop was the Eiffel Tower and I think for every other tourist in Paris. It was cold, rain was threatening and we had to wait about an hour to catch the lift from the second floor to the top. The view was not as good due to the overcast conditions but you could still see for miles! After another long wait to get from the top to the 2nd floor we decided to walk from the 2nd floor to the bottom. This some mighty feat coming from someone who is not too good with heights and while in the lift I don't look out. It was over 1000 steps and when we got to the bottom both of us had legs that felt a bit like jelly! Then we had to walk back to the hotel. We were forced to stop at a cafe not far from the Eiffel Tower due to a rather heavy shower of rain that managed to clear by the time we finished dinner. The walk was further than we thought but still enjoyable and allows you to walk off the very enjoyable meal.
On Saturday we continued with the hop on hop off tour. There are 4 different parts of Paris to see. It was not a particularly enjoyable day because rain threatened for most of the day and it was particularly cold. We had planned on going to Monet's Garden but not a lot of choice with train timetable and we had paid for hop on hop off so needed to do it. We visited the cathedral de Notre Dame. On the way home we walked to the Latin Quarter and found a lovely little french restaurant. The tables are so close you can't help meet people and we met a couple from America who had flown to Paris for 4 days to celebrate their 20th wedding anniversary.
On Sunday we had fun once again catching the metro to Station Saint Lazare. Only problem we came out onto a side street, could not find the main train station and asked a non English speaking French person where the train station was and he took us to another metro line streets away! After many tickets and lots of confusion we finally found our way to Varseille to see the chateau. On arrival to our great delight there was a wonderful local fresh produce market in the main street. We of course had to buy so we bought bread, cheese, salami and olives and made our way to the chateau. Outside under some trees we had a picnic. It was delightful and gave us plenty of energy to do the 3 plus hour audio tour around the chateau. At 5.30pm we had had enough, our feet were beginning to kill so we caught the train back to Lazare Station and then the metro to our hotel without any fuss!! Big mistake as we sat on the bed to catch the news of the election and yes we both had a bit of shut eye. We ate dinner at a cafe up the road, wary of a bit of unrest due to election but all quiet and no problem at all.
Today our target is to visit the Louvre and just relax and enjoy our last day in Paris!
Au revoir from us!

Hi, its the old fella's turn.
When we arrived in Paris on our way to the Valley, once again another challenge arrived when we became aware that out train to Tours departed from a different station. Rather than have an hour and a half for a coffee etc, we had to catch two different Metro lines to get to Mountparnasse station. We arrived with 5 minutes to spare!!!!! ( This is becoming a daily event). We travelled for about an hour then caught a 5 minute trf train to Tours, waited about an hour then travelled for a further 50 mins to Saumur. We arrived at the station with no-one to collect us. Yes I received some grief. After a few minutes Michaela appeared with a sign and we were off. The accom was about 20k's from Saumur in the valley. Michaela and Sue had elected for a sea change, and decided to start a b&b, accom with wine tours. Michaela ran her own software company in the UK and Sue was in the Wine Industry. La Grande Maison, was a beautiful old small winery, surrounded by a stone wall, with a number of small buildings that had been converted into accom etc. We settled in then went for a walk through the vineyards to a small village, with dogs barking and chickens making the only noise.
That evening we were joined by another couple from London staying for about 5 days, in a special dinner accompanied by local wines. Experience was wonderful, except for the first course of baked egg in a cheese sauce, which took a while to get over!!!
The next morning we cycled into another larger village, visited the church which is linked to the Notre Dame in other regions. We then bought bread, cheese and wine and cycled back for lunch. Later in the afternoon Michaela & Sue were heading into Saumur, so offered us the opportunity to visit the shops and Castle for about 90 mins.It was the first REAL castle that we had seen with moat, bridge etc. Village was full of shops, of course. That evening we walked back to the village (approx 2 km's) for dinner at the only restaurant. George and Sal joined us, and we enjoyed another beautiful local meal. Luckily they had a car, as when we left to go home, there were no street lights, moon or stars to guide us if we had to walk.
Unfortunately we had to leave the next day, so had a lazy start, had a tour of the cellars:caves which we did not know existed at La Grande Maison, then onto the station heading for 5 days in Paris.
Au Revoir for now.

Bonjour,
My patience is being tested today on a French keyboard. I have typed this 5 times as keep losing it because I am pressing the wrong key!! Slow learner.
We spent the afternoon doing a hop on hop off tour and really enjoyed this one. We got to go up the hill and have a great view of Nice. We were also taken into the residential area and saw some great villas! After the tour we went for a walk down the promenade and could not get over the beach. It is not until you come away that you really appreciate what we take for granted in Australia. People were sunbaking on what we thought was a cool day. They were lying on rocks and pebbles! The beach was crowded. We ate in the busy part and had an enjoyable meal.
The next day we were up early to catch a train to Monaco. We had to be back by 2pm as our train was leaving for Marseille at 3.50pm.
Monaco is very pretty. They have a new train station and it is very elaborate. We walked to the palace and as only we could, we walked the long way. We saw the changing of the guards and did an audio tour of the palace. As to be expected it was very beautiful. We had lunch outside the palace taking in the beautiful view of the harbour. We also did a train tour of the city. We did not get to visit inside the casino as was on the other side and to walk would have made us late for the train.
Walking back to the train once again we saw more of Monaco than planned. It is very hilly and we kept going up and couldn't find a road to take us down. We new we were close, it didn't help that the railway station from the outside doesn't look like a railway station!
A big problem when we arrived because we found out their was a rail strike and our train to Nice had being cancelled and the next one was not due until 4.00pm. Quick thinking got us on a bus that arrived at the good old bus station an hour before our train left but then we had the task of getting a taxi. No easy feat in Nice! We got to the train station 5 mins before our train left.
We arrived in Marseille and caught a taxi to the hotel. Thanks to the girls we were not staying around the train station. Marseille reminded us of Naples. We ate at a great little French restaurant a short walk from the hotel and really enjoyed the atmosphere. french music playing in the background and lots of fun ordering as the menu was all in French! We left Marseille early the next day for the Loire Valley. Interesting our taxi to the hotel was 20euro and 10euro from the hotel to the station!!