Guten Abend! October 29, 2007

Hello from Switzerland. We are in our hotel in Zurich after a LONG day of sitting on the train, then trying to figure out another new language, another new currency, and another new public transportation system. The people here have been very helpful though, from the woman in the train station to the man at the tram stop. Unlike some other countries…France…hrmhrm.

We aren’t really sure what we’re going to do here in Zurich yet. We might just get the tram downtown tomorrow and take it real easy, then get the train up to Lucern Wednesday or Thursday, depending on how we’re feeling. All the traveling/walking/exploring has taken its toll, and I’m ready to sleep for about a week!

The scenery was really quite beautiful on the train today, especially once we got in to Switzerland. It was just as you would imagine – HUGE mountains with valleys filled with Swiss chalets and waterfalls and churches and cable car lifts to get up to the houses up the mountains. I can’t believe how many houses and little towns there are half way up and at the top of some of the mountains.

We spent our last day in Italy yesterday walking back to the Colosseum and taking some more pictures. One thing we noticed a lot of in Italy was stray dogs. Each one broke my heart! I told Mike when we live in Italy, we’ll have to be in the Tuscan countryside because every day I will be bringing home a stray! Then are beggars who sit on the sidewalks that have dogs and puppies, and one woman came up to us in Roma train station with one hand out while the other held her baby!!! I have to admit, I wanted to grab one of the puppies and run away with it, it was so adorable.

I have posted some pictures of Pompeii on http://arohawezner.myphotoalbum.com. Wegot the train down on Saturday and walked around the ancient ruins. Pompeii is a city that was destroyed by the volcanic eruption of Mt. Vesuvius in 79 AD. Its believed around 2000 people were killed as they had no time to get out. An excavation in the 1400s discovered the city which is really quite amazing and dates back thousands of years. The stuff that has been excavated and preserved is awe inspiring. We met a couple from New Mexico on the train on the way back to Roma. They have retired to NM and he is into astronomy photography. They are now living the life and traveling the world!

This will probably be my last blog from the road. When I get back to Atlanta I’ll post a blog about some of the best, worst, and most unique parts of the trip.

The Vatican October 26, 2007

We got up somewhat early this morning after not sleeping very well, and headed on the pilgrimage to the Vatican…along with about 8 million other people on the metro station. The weather was less than perfect this morning, but it turned out to be a really nice day.

When we got to the Vatican, there was a long line along the city wall, so we kept walking and found ourselves in St. Peter’s Square, where there was an even longer line. In all of these tourist spots people come up to you in English and ask if you’re interested in an English speaking tour, starting in 10 minutes, skip the lines! We’ve resisted them in the past and been fine, but thought today might be worth it. The tour cost 13 euro for the Vatican Museum entrance plus 25 euro for the tour guide and included the museum and St. Peter’s Basilica. But hey, we got to skip the line, right? Uhhh, no. After about 20 minutes of standing in the museum line with the guide, we decided we were bailing on the tour. Thankfully they didn’t make you pay up front!

We went to get in line for St. Peter’s Basilica, and somehow ended up jumping half the line! A security guard had held the other half of the line at a barricade, and we didn’t know. I mean, we kind of suspected, but others jumped in, so we did too! We ended up saving about an hour and a half, as well as the 50 euro we would have spent on the tour.

After checking out St. Peter’s, which is really quite an awesome church if you’re into that kind of thing, we went and ate some lunch. We figured we’d try the line for the museum again. We weren’t really interested in the museum, but that’s the only way to get into the Sistine Chapel. We practically walked right up to the front door and got straight in! And it only cost us 13 euro each. We thought that was great…until we got in to the museum.

I don’t know what it is about sightseeing and holding a camera that turns a person into a complete moron. People were walking and videoing the FLOOR, the walls, the ceilings. I don’t think they actually looked at anything except through their view finder. And they certainly didn’t pay attention to where they were going. By the time we actually got to the Sistine Chapel, I kind of felt like I was a cow being herded in for slaughter. It was hot, cramped, people were all over the place. There were TOURS all over the place, similar to the one we would have been on if we’d stuck it out…it was quite awful. And there’s only one way in, and one way out, so you’re all pushed in the same direction, through the entire museum, until you get to the chapel. By that point, I didn’t much care who painted it, how long ago, or what it symbolized, I just wanted out!

From there we walked over to Castel St. Angelo, which I wish we had done first, because I think that would have been more interesting, for me at least.

Tomorrow we’re going to get on a train and head down to Naples and Pompeii for the day. Not sure how that will go, but the weather is supposed to be great there tomorrow afternoon. Last night was a bit rainy, but that’s the worst its been all trip so we can’t complain too much!

We’re at day 17 of our trip, and I think I’m about to hit the wall. The whole Vatican Museum today kind of did me in. On the metro on the way back towards the hotel, I saw some kind of study abroad ad on the little TV in there, it said “In Australia”… that is where I am definitely ready to be. Not long now…

Pisa and Roma October 24, 2007

Yesterday morning we packed our bags and headed off to the Academia to see David. He is really quite a sight to see…much bigger than either of us expected, incredibly detailed, and just amazing. Someone said after seeing him, there’s not much point in seeing any other sculptures, and they are probably right. Definitely glad we got there early though.

We then went to the train station and jumped on a train from Florence to Pisa so we could see the leaning tower. Much less impressive than anything we’ve seen and highly over rated. But hey, we’ve been there now!

From Pisa we got on a 3 hour train ride to Roma. Some of the scenery was absolutely gorgeous as the sun started to set over the water. We didn’t pay as much attention as we usually would have, because we were in a 6-seater cabin with 2 Aussie blokes from Melbourne and I think we chatted the whole way (and annoyed the other 2 guys in the cabin in the process). Darryl and Greg had gone up to Pisa for the whole day from Rome just to see the tower and were even less impressed than we were.

When we got to Roma, the guys got a map from their hotel across the street from the station and gave us a guided tour to our hotel, where we arranged to meet up for drinks a little later. After dinner, we found them and figured just a couple of drinks and we’d go back to the hotel. About 3 hours and way too many drinks later, we managed to find our way back to the hotel.

Today we walked around Rome and it is incredible. From our hotel which is near the train station, we headed to the Colosseum, then wound our way around the Forum and the Palatino. From there we walked to Isola, then on to Piazza Navona and to the Pantheon. The Pantheon is not much to look at from outside, but is pretty incredible on the inside. From there we walked to Piazza Venezia which is just massive,  then we walked to the Trevi Fountain which was just crowded. Now you should pull up a map of Rome and see how much walking that is. My feet haven’t hurt this much all trip!

We are now near our hotel and ready to go download the 200-odd pictures we took today. Not sure when we’ll get them up on the photo site though, as our hotel doesn’t have wi-fi and we didn’t bring a flash drive.

I am continuing to love Italy. I think one day it would be nice to come live here for a while. Must look for Italian classes when we get to Australia.

Florence & Bags October 21, 2007

I LOVE Florence…and my leather handbag I got at the markets today. Hopefully when I look at it closely later it doesn’t say ‘Made in China’. There were streets and streets of markets – they are awesome!!

Oh, but I was supposed to start this post with “We’ve only been in Europe 2 weeks and already Mike wants a manpurse!!!!!” He said “Maybe a Prada or Louis would be alright.” Hahahahhahahha.

We just booked our hotel in Rome. We are staying within 2 miles of the Spanish Steps and Trevi Fountain. We have 6 nights, and paid a little more than we had planned, but after our recent hostel experiences and staying so far out of Paris, I now believe it is totally worth it and will work an extra year of my life if it means being in a hotel! Mum – I don’t know how you ever did the hosteling thing!!

Have I mentioned yet that I really like Italy???? Back to the markets we go.

Buon Giorno October 20, 2007

Hello from Florence, Italy!

We made it out of Paris this morning on the 8:04 am train bound for Milan. From Milan we connected to Florence where we have arrived and checked in to a real hotel (our own room, own bathroom, towels, breakfast, wifi, etc). After 5 nights in hostels I could no longer take the smell and snores. I’m not kidding. Last night in Paris we were in a 6 person dorm room and the other 4 people were no shows at 2:30 am when I woke up thinking it was 7 already. At 4:30 am two of them came waltzing in, wreaking of alcohol and promptly passed out into a deep, drunken sleep. Then the snoring began. I don’t think you can even call it snoring, as I have NEVER heard anything like this. After an hour of having my iPod on super loud I decided to just get up and get Mike up (he was already awake, I’m telling you, this snoring was unbelievable). So we took showers, packed, and headed for Gare de Lyon (train) and managed to get tickets all the way to Florence. A great feat after 2 days of strikes and limited service.

Yesterday was pretty much a complete waste, with the exception of getting some laundry done. We got to Gare de Lyon to see if we could get tickets out of Paris, and they told us the best bet was to come back tomorrow (today) and get tickets. By the time we had walked to the train, got to GDL, got back to the hostel, the whole day was a wash (no pun intended).

The train ride from Paris to Milan was awesome. Amazing mountains and scenery, hard to believe some of the houses we saw half way up HUGE mountains. At the border station in Modane (? I think), 2 men were escorted off our train. That was really the only excitement of the day, and that’s just how I like it. When we changed trains we were seated with 3 women from Chicago on a “girls trip”. My mother would be jealous – they are headed for a Tuscan villa for a week!! They left the husbands at home and came to Paris and Tuscany. It was great to just be able to talk to other English-speaking people!

So we are now staying at “Hotel Corona” in Florence and we are here for 3 nights. We just had Pizza and Wine at a REAL Italian restaurant…as in a restaurant in Italy. Not Scalinis or Olive Garden!!! They have house wine ON TAP!!! We can’t explain it, but Mike and I both already feel more comfortable here in Italy than we did in Paris. I don’t know if it’s because it seems there’s more English spoken here, or if it’s because there is no strike (!) or if it’s because of the things you hear about Parisians….but I think we are going to have a great 10 days here in Italy.

Our current tentative plan is to stay here until the 23rd. The morning of the 23rd we’ll get the train to Pisa, see the leaning tower, and then get on a train bound for Rome. There’s a train that leaves at 5 pm that would be ideal…it gets in to Rome at 8 pm and goes down the coast. I imagine sunset over the coast would be beautiful! Then we’ll head to Zurich around the 29th and spend a couple of days in Zurich and do a day trip to Lucern before heading back to the States on November 2nd.

We know this is a great experience for us but we sure do miss some luxuries from home. Hope you’re all doing well. Love to you all!

Change of Plans. Again. October 19, 2007

We couldn’t get to Gare de Lyon today without being squished in a bus with hunreds of other people. So we came back to the hostel we’ve been at for the last 2 nights and booked 2 beds for tonight in a dorm style room. The strike is supposedly 30% over and transportation is expected to be “back to normal” by this evening. Keep your fingers crossed.

We cancelled our hotel in Bern and now are trying to get an overnight train to Rome tomorrow. We’ll probably end up spending a week in Rome then head to Zurich and maybe try to get and earlier flight home to Atlanta.

I have a new respect for people who pick up and move to a country where they don’t know the language. It is hard enough without this strike making things harder. The next time I think about going to another country, I am going to take a class on the language there. My last observation is that French people have 3 hands…one to shift gears, one to steer and one to keep on the horn…crazy!!

The Strike Continues October 18, 2007

Well this is not great. The strike that was supposed to last 24 hours is continuing. So we are stuck in Paris and hotel space is limited because of the Rugby and also because of the strike…lots of people are stuck in Paris. All that aside, we had a good day today traversing all over the city. Eiffel tower, Notre Dame, Arc de Triomphe…we took a double-decker open bus tour that went all over the place. We managed to get a train in but got caught coming home and had to grab a taxi. It was the first time we really used the French laungage. At the hostel I said, “Ici bien, si vous plait” and he said, “Ici bien?” and I said “Oui, merci.” I was proud of myself. But now I’m out of internet time.

Welcome to Paris…Unbelievable! October 17, 2007

This morning we woke up early and headed for Waterloo station. Forgetting the whole fact that the Eurostar would take us on an international trip and there might be security, we got there with about 40 minutes to spare. Through security, we were lucky Mike wasn’t arrested! He had his Smith and Wesson knife in his bag (yes,the same one he tried to take to show the Queen). After about 20 minutes of them emptying all his bags and then having to repack said bags, we got on the train with about 10 minutes to spare.

When we arrived in Gare du Nord in Paris, we must have looked very lost, because a “local” (we assume) asked if we needed help. We showed him where we needed to go on a map, and he pointed us in the direction of the metro platform we needed. Only, we didn’t have tickets yet. So he walked us to a ticket machine, punched in what we wanted, or so we thought, and the payment screen came up at EUR 32.60 or something. He then went to walk away, but must have noticed that Mike’s credit card hadn’t worked. SO he put his card in the machine, we gave him cash, and he gave us the tickets out of the machine. French people are so helpful, no?

NO!!!! He took our tickets, I’m sure of it, and gave us 2 tickets that were old! We couldn’t get in through the ticket taker. We went back to find a ticket counter, feeling that we’d been scammed and we only just arrived in France! We saw the guy, standing in a line for more tickets, so we told him the tickets he gave us didn’t work. He walked us to the gate, put HIS ticket in twice, and told us to go through. So we did, but on the platform realized that something wasn’t right. Our tickets still didn’t work and we were supposed to use these for 2 days (more on that later!).

So we went and purchased two 2-day metro passes. EUR 56-something later, we were on our way to find our hostel outside of the city. We found the hostel, and it seems an ok place so far. I’ve heard Aussie accents, so it must be good!!

Now, in case you haven’t heard, there is a transportation strike here in France tomorrow. So the 2-day metro passes we bought are no good. The strike is SUPPOSED to only be 24 hours, but could be extended to the weekend. I don’t see that happening, what with the world cup rugby finals, etc. Surely the government would like to avoid that. Keep your fingers crossed! Not sure what we’ll do tomorrow, or if we’ll get out of Paris and to Bern on Friday as planned.

Welcome to Paris.

Last Night In London October 16, 2007

Last night in the hotel was a bit of a nightmare. At 1:15 am some hooligans were outside the hostel, throwing and smashing bottles and everything they could get their hands on it seemed. I think that had me awake for about an hour. Then it seemed like it happened again around 3. I also realized, this morning, that I don’t miss my college dorm communal showers!! Must get flip flops if we are planning on using more of those showers. I don’t think hosteling is for me. But it’s so cheap, it’s hard not to do it.

In any case, we got up this morning and headed in to London. It was a bit of a cold and rainy day, but you expect that from England/London I guess! But the rain wasn’t going to keep us from seeing Trafalgar Square, Big Ben, Parliament, Wesminster Abbey, Buckingham Palace, riding the London Eye (by which time it was actually quite nice out) and going to Harrods. It was a pretty packed day and we’re both a bit exhausted.

It seems that our Paris trip is not really supposed to be. First, there’s the rugby league world cup, so we couldn’t find rooms for Friday & Saturday nights. Then it turns out there’s a STRIKE on the 18th on the railway so the overnight trains to Rome on the 19th were all booked solid. We managed to sort it all out though. We will be in Paris for 2 nights then Bern, Switzerland for 2 nights. We actually plan to just relax in Bern…sleep in, laze about, etc. before heading off to Rome.

We have to be at Waterloo station, about a 30 minute tube ride from here, for a 10:40 am Eurostar to Paris. With our Eurail pass it was $100 per person, without it, it would have been $300 per person!! How’s that for saving $400? We never would have known that, but my smart, smart husband said, “There’s Waterloo station, let’s go check out Eurostar tickets for tomorrow.” Since we hadn’t yet bought our Eurail passes, we had to get back on the tube and go to Picadilly to the only place in the entire UK where you can buy them. Thankfully we were able to buy our Eurail tickets there, too.

In non-travel/Europe related news, the freakin’ Thrashers have started the season 0-5. Thank God I’ve been too busy to think about them!

Londy Londy Londy! October 15, 2007

We left our lovely friends and hosts, Marie-Louise and Paul today, and arrived in London after a few hours of wandering around Oxford. Quite a cool town and I’m wishing I’d have thought at some point in my education to go to school there! Mike said maybe we can encourage our kids to go there, but that would mean we’d have to move there too, of course!

We got the train from Oxford to London, which arrived at Paddington Station. From there, we had to figure out which line to get to go to Kings Cross St. Pancras station. After walking around Mike figured out we needed the “pink” line. That train took us to Kings Cross which was CROWDED as it was 4:30 already, so I’m sure many people were on their way home from work. It was a bit of a nightmare actually, and we ended up getting on a train going the right way, but had to get off at the first stop and change again to go north west instead of north east. No biggie, but lugging my backpack around the strain stations was starting to wear on me and I was getting cranky. Most of all, I was just thinking about how much I can’t wait to get to Australia.

Thankfully our hostel was just 50 meters up the road from Hendon Central station. We are staying in a room that has 13 beds in it and when we left, we occupied #s 7 & 8. No one else was in the room though. We decided to go grab a bite to eat and head in to the city. We decided Tower Bridge station was a good one to get off at, because we couldn’t remember where anything else was. After wandering around the river for a couple of hours and walking across The Bridge, we headed back here to the hostel where we realized a couple of people were already asleep in our room.

I’m not sure I’m going to like this 13-bed hostel room thing, but it’s only for 2 nights and it was really cheap. I just checked hostels in Paris and none of them have availability for the 17-21st, and I’m not sure we’ll get a hotel, either, as the world cup of Rugby is on this weekend, I think.

Tomorrow it’s in to London we go for a FULL day of sightseeing. I think we’ll be using the tube a lot after all the walking we did today!