From Nice to Venice

We left the French Riveira last night and arrived sweet as in a rather foggy but rain free Venice this morning. We had our first train journey in style last night, using one of the 'couchettes' in a four bed private room. It set us back 35 euros each (NZ$70) but there was no choice on this particular journey. We got way more sleep though than the previous grouling long haul trips on a regular seat with lack of leg space.

Our final day in Nice was bliss. We spent most of the day at the beach in Villefranche, a small fishing village 10 minutes away by bus. We hadn't taken our togs so improvised in our clothes or half there of! The water was just too inviting!

We really enjoyed our stay in Nice. We spent the last couple of days with a Canadian girl we met from the hostel and had some good times!

Activities in our seven night stay included a day trip to Monaco, Villefranche (twice), St Raphael and St Tropez (even if it did take us five hours to get there, some three and a half hours longer than expected! But still worth it).

We're running out of time but will throw some more photos online when we get the chance for cheaper internet, possibly in Rome.

Arrivederci!

Dale & Sheryl

Photos from Nice...


(Some rather expensive sweets from the market, but they look so cute, and even better with the view from our room. And a shot from our day trip to Monaco)


(Sheryl at Villefranche, and the three of us with the 'Cocktail du Jour' from the Blue Whales Jazz Bar!)

(The jet set town of St Tropez, and a late afternoon shot of Nice from the Castle Hill)

Forty days and forty (one) nights

It's Sunday afternoon here and we're into our third full day in Nice, on the French Riviera. We've just been through the famous fresh flower market in Vieux Nice (old town) which was packed with vendors selling all sorts of fresh produce. It all smelt so good, apart from the damn fish stands of course!

We've been taking it pretty easy here so far although the average weather hasn't helped. I still haven't got my voice back - maybe I should stop drinking wine every night but it would've been a crime not to drink a French pinot noir with Phillipe's (the hostel's chef) pepper steak 'plat du jour' last night! I was certainly in my element. Mmm pepps!

The hostel is really cool - even better than we expected. We've booked for a full week there. The staff are all really lovely and have given us a triple room for the price of a double with awesome views. We are 20 minutes north of the city centre at the top of a steep hill but public transport is good enough that it's worth it.

We're planning on doing day trips to places along the Cote D'Azur over the next few days so hopefully the weather turns better.

More photos from Barcelona...


(The Nou Camp stadium, Barcelona)


(Sweet dodgy cable car action - there were 16 others standing in there with us!)


(The 1992 Olympic Stadium, and a view from inside the Sagrada Familia)


(Us at the Poble Espanyol for the flamenco show, and a shot from the show)

Photos from Nice...


(Our view from the hostel at night, and Dale by the beach)


(At the flower market)

Au revoir for now...

Sheryl & Dale

Nice tomorrow, Flamenco tonight

We´re into our final full day in Barcelona now. We leave for Nice tomorrow morning and get there, via a change of trains in Montpellier, in the early evening. The hostel we´re booked for in Nice, Villa St Exupery, sounds great and they even offer a pick up shuttle service from the train station.

On Sunday we wandered around the city centre mainly in the search of a new pair of jandals for me, with no success. Apparently it´s out of season so they don´t sell them. Hey, it´s over 25 degrees and that means it´s season for me! We did however have lunch at the Hard Rock Cafe (my first experience there, the lame one in Auckland shut down) and checked out the madness on Las Ramblas which was full of street artists and performers.

That evening we watched Barcelona beat Seville 3-1 at the impressive Nou Camp stadium, much to the delight of some 85,000 home fans. Árguably the world´s greatest player at the moment (definately one of the ugliest), Ronaldinho, was on show and didn´t disappoint with two goals. The crowd definately weren´t as rowdy as the Madrid mob. Lots of polite clapping - a bit like watching theatre I thought. Still, great to be there.

Earlier that day we had moved to another hostel about 20 minutes walk away from the Gothic Point Hostel. The Sant Jordi Hostel is much smaller and a bit cosier. The Brazilian lad who seems to be in charge most of the time is a party animal. He works all day, and then parties every night with the hostel crew until the wee hours!

On Monday we walked down to the waterfront and caught the cable car over to Mt.Montjuic which is home to the 1992 Olympic Stadium, several museums and some great panoramic views of the city. We go back there tonight for a flamenco show held in a unique Spanish village, Poble Espanyol, dedicated to a flamenco legend.

Yesterday we finally visited the Sagrada Familia (the Sacred Family) temple which was quite impressive and offered great views from inside the towers. In the afternoon we went to the Picasso Museum downtown. It was more of his earlier work in his days from growing up in Barcelona but there was still some of his randomness on show.

Bye for now.
Dale & Sheryl

Photos from Porto & Barcelona

Just a quick update with some photos. We're having a night in tonight after three late nights out in Barcelona and no recovery from our long journey from Porto!

Photos from Porto...


(Dale with a goosberry infused beer, and me beside the Douro River)


(The lively Ribiera district by night, and a view from up the Torre dos Clerigos)


(Port tasting fun in the Port Wine lodges)

Photos from Barcelona (so far)...


(A view from the Parc Guell, a Gaudi creation not completed, and a round of Mojito cocktails!)


(By the beach, and what's this, 42 below here in Catalonia!)

In the heart of Catalonia

We arrived safely to Barcelona on Wednesday afternoon after a near 24 hour journey from Porto. Funny really because on our final day in Porto we crossed the Douro River and visited a host of the port wine lodges for tours and, more importantly, tastings. By 3pm we were sipping on a couple of 20yr old Grahams Tawny´s when we realised we were really leaving it a tad late to get on the bus for 4pm. A rushed taxi journey to the station, via the hotel for our bags, saw us make it on time. From there we went back south to Lisbon and then hopped on a painfully slow night-train to Madrid. The following morning we jumped on a connecting train to Barcelona. We´re certainly not a fan of the long distance travel but with our pre-purchased Eurail Pass that entire journey cost us a mere 6 euros each.

Porto was a very beautiful city and we enjoyed our three nights there. If we had stayed longer I think we´d have liked to head the 120km or so down the Douro to visit the heart of the port making industry. As it was we did a cheap touristy boat trip under the six bridges that cross the river. Well, the sign said six but we swear we only did five!

On Monday we went up the Torre dos Clerigos, a church tower, which is the tallest tower in Portugal. 225 steep steps later we were treated to a mint view of the city.

Our only lowlight of the three night stay was the accommodation. We ended up complaining when it came to paying the bill and basically refused to pay the full amount. After booking a double bedroom for three nights online we were forced to stay in a twin room (two single beds) for two of those three nights. That room also didn´t have the balcony and great view, or satellite tv, that they boast on their website. This is on top of the fact that their bar isn´t open for use and the games room is a table...that you can play cards on. Also, on our third night the tv didn´t work at all. Riiight.

So anyway we got 10% knocked off but not before having to argue with a manager who clearly hadn´t heard of a little phrase called ´Customer Service´. He made two great calls. Firstly he suggested if we had travelled all the way to Portugal perhaps we shouldn´t be spending our time watching tv. Secondly, he suggested I learn some Portuguese. The cheek! The moral of the story is don´t ever stay at the Grand Hotel de Paris.

But on a more positive note Barcelona is an excellent city. Our sight seeing has been restricted to seeing Parc Guell at this stage, a public park created but not completed by Antonio Gaudi. There are tourists heaving everywhere so it was too busy to see anything else. As one banner hanging from a room said "If it´s Tourist Season, why can´t we shoot them?".

We´ve booked for seven nights in Barcelona at this stage but may extend that if we need more time. There´s plenty to see and do both during the day and night. We also bought tickets today for Sunday´s La Liga match between Barcelona and Seville, should be good.

No facility for photos at the moment I´m afraid. We´ll whip some online if we get a chance.

Dale & Sheryl

From Lisboa to Lagos...and beyond!

Since our last post we've covered a fair bit of Portuguese land. We spent three more nights in the Lisbon Poets Hostel but unfortunately spent most of the time trying to recover from our flu. The hostel itself was quite nice but we got the rough end of the stick in being given the worst room in the place, a tiny four bed dorm with a window the size of a box facing a building behind. Oh well, can´t win ´em all.

During that time we still tried to get out and do as much as we could. This included a day trip to Belem, a small town 6km´s west of Lisbon´s waterfront. Highlights included trying the tasty local pasteis de nata - a Portuguese custard tart!

We also took the 45 minute train journey out to Sintra, a world heritage site. This was probably one of the most beautiful places we've been to so far. We took the 3km hike up a mountain to the Castelo dos Mouros (a castle) which had absolutely breathtaking views of the town and beyond.

Another day trip on the train the following day was to Cascais which is another small beach town along the coast. We walked 2km eastwards to Boca do Inferno ("Hell´s Mouth") where the waves crash into the eroded coastline.

After 8 nights in Lisboa we departed for a brief two night stay in Lagos (in the Algarve southern region of Portugal). While a little touristy this place had real charm and we loved it. We just wished we hadn´t already planned further down the track or we would have extended our stay. We also scored big time on accommodation, at Casa Amarela (highly recommended) paying just 17.50euros each for what was basically our own apartment 5 minutes walk from the beach.

We explored the 16 or so bays along the coast and even took a daring exploration down a cliff to find our our own secluded bay. Well, there was one nudist local but that was fine! We walked right along to the lighthouse and then paid 10euros each for an awesome boat trip back to Lagos. I should point out this boat was just a ´tinny´ with an outboard motor but the old Portuguese man driving the thing was pretty skilled and took us through the smallest gaps in the grottos.

On our second night we returned to the apartment to find an Aussie couple staying next door. We shared a couple of bottles of wine before heading out to a Wine & Tapas bar (we actually had white wine & brandy Sangria instead of wine) and it was really nice. During the night we also enjoyed a round of Caipirinhas using a special local recipe (I asked, it was cinnamon).

Later, at 3am, we went home for a few hours sleep before our all day coach journey up to Porto via Lisboa. Today is our first full day in Porto. Initial impressions are good and the Douro River looks inviting for a boat trip over a tipple of Port!

Our three nights here will be spent at the Grande Hotel de Paris - a two star hotel with the best breakfast we´ve on tour! The room is ok but the view is best not mentioned. Our next port of call is Barcelona for a week or so. I must also mention how cheap travel is within Portugal. From Lagos to Porto was a two coach journey from 9am til 5.30pm and it cost only 20euros each. Likewise our day trip train journeys from Lisbon were costing us a little over 3euros return.


(The view from Belem...and those tasty tarts in a six pack!)


(This little fella at Lisboa zoo was real hungry! And Sheryl with the pink flamingos)


(Sintra at ground level...and from a bit higher)


(Me from the Castelo...& Sheryl from the Palacio de Pena, Sintra)


(Boca do Inferno and Cascais town)


(Lagos...Sheryl was loving being near the beach again!)


(More shots of Lagos from our coastline walk)


(This was the crazy cliff we clambered down and a sneak peak of our ´private´ bay, and our night out in Lagos)

Adeus for now!
Dale & Sheryl