European Vacation

- LONDON -

All of the planning in the world won't do you any good if the airlines can't provide timely service. To make a long, painful story short - we were scheduled to leave Tampa 5/9 at 4:45PM to arrive in London, England on 5/10 at 8:45AM. We didn't leave Tampa until 9:30PM, slept in Queens, NY and didn't arrive into London until 5/10 at 11:30PM. Needless to say, we became very flexible in adjusting our itinerary.

London is a very unique city. Fashion is very bold and plumbing very weak. Toilet operation was quite an adventure. The best advice I can provide, let the water pressure build up, then cross your fingers it all goes down. If that doesn't work, limit your fiber intake.

The Underground or TUBE is the subway system and is much easier to use than the bus. When you hear people talk about "Mind the Gap", they are referring to the large space between the subway train car and the platform. Don't miscalculate your step!

The side streets outside of the city were beautiful. Old architecture and well maintained flower gardens in the front yards. We saw the typical tourist sights: Westminster Abbey, Big Ben, Parliament, Buckingham Palace and the British Museum. We took in a show - CHICAGO. The theater was charming. Very narrow and tall - we purchased cheap seats in the nose bleed section. Good thing we weren't big people, because the seats are extremely close together. During intermission, an ice-cream snack is sold.

Overall, London is a safe city offering a culture rich in pageantry and tradition, yet pushes the limit on fashion. Travel in and around London is easy using the Tube. The only down fall is price - $1.00 US dollar is equivalent to .58 Pounds Sterling.

London Photos

- AMSTERDAM -

We took a KLM flight from London to Amsterdam for $60.00/person. The Chunnel from London to Brussels would have cost us $130.00/person plus a day on our Eurail pass.

Elise must have had a suspicious look in her eye and something big in her pocket because the security guards in the London City airport frisked her. She isn't sure about the look in her eye, but the only thing they found in her pockets were a Snickers bar, chap stick, chewing gum and a dirty tissue.

Amsterdam - get past the crowds and cheesy shops around Central Station - Dams Square and Amsterdam is a beautiful city. Charming canals lined by tall, narrow buildings with colorful window boxes. Bicycles everywhere!!! Which must account for the lean, healthy nature of the Dutch culture. Or is it because marijuana and prostitution are legalized here?

We toured Anne Frank's house which was a very somber experience. Westerkerk steeple offered a panoramic view of the city and Rijksmuseum allowed us to see some original Van Gough and Rembrandt pieces.

Quiz time - What's a Broodjes? (a)a breed of dog (b)something you get after you visit the Red Light District (c)a Hamburger with a fried egg on top. If you answered (b)I would suggest you not visit the Red Light District without proper protection. A Broodjes is a very tasty treat-Answer (c)- try it at home sometime.

We stayed at the Eben Haazer Hostel. This hostel offered Male and Female only dormitories - so we were separated for the evening. The room consisted of 30 bunk beds with a locker room style bathroom. In the morning we met in the cafeteria for breakfast to share our "lack of sleep stories". Elise had the women's snoring Olympics team around her. The Gold medallist was in the bunk above her and the Silver and Bronze medallists were in the bunks next to her. The men's dorm wasn't much better. How can so much noise come out of one's nose? Tim finally dug his earplugs out of his pack to salvage a few hours of attempted sleep.

This city is very pretty and offers a fair amount of history and culture. People are very friendly and you can easily walk the entire city in a day. Exchange rate is very good - $1.00 US dollar is equivalent to 1.90 Dutch Guilda.

Amsterdam Photos

- COCHEM -

We left Amsterdam and traveled along the Rhine River. The train offered good views of the castles along the river. We stopped in St. Goar, purchased a picnic lunch and ate along the Rhine River. Do you know that wine is cheaper than bottled water or soda pop? For the sake of being thrifty, our water bottles stayed filled with wine. St. Goar is a pretty town and is the location of the world's largest free-hanging coo-coo clock. We toured Burg Rheinfels which is a castle ruins.

Next on to Bacharach to visit Burg Stahleck which has been converted into a Youth Hostel. The accommodations were full, however we were able to eat dinner there. We met a wonderful Australian family- they claim to live down the street from the "Crocodile Hunter". Imagine having that dude as your neighbor -If you see him coming down your driveway, don't "muck" with him! We learned an interesting medical fact about Tasmanians - the scare on their shoulder is where they cut off their second head. We were informed that Tasmanians are equivalent to the American Red Neck, which as we know is a strange breed of it's own. We later enjoyed some local wine and beer with our new friends and played a universal game of Gin Rummy.

We took the train to Moselkern to tour Burg Eltz. This was a beautifully furnished castle on the mountainside - one of the few castles not located on the water. On the walk back to the train we saw a young boy carrying a kite and some wilted lilacs. He spoke to us in German and Elise responded that we spoke little German. He shrugged his shoulders, smiled and handed her the wilted flowers.

Cochem - this town was geared more towards tourism, however it did offer a pretty castle, Burg Reichsburg. Situated along the river, we hiked through the vineyard to reach the castle. This castle was also furnished and you could really get close to the artifacts. Back in town the train station was hosting a small festival. There was a local band playing American tunes - were heard Gloria Gaynor's "I will Survive" and an Elvis medley sung in English with a heavy German accent.

Cochem Photos

- FUSSEN -

The train ride from Augsburg to Fussen was a treat. It was a small local train run (called a milk train) full of school children. Instead of a school bus, it was a school train. Elise had some fun and attempted to communicate in German with some 5th and 7th graders. They corrected her grammar often and spoke English very fluently. The train passed through fields of yellow Hops and the Alps started to come into view.

We rented bicycles in Fussen to help us get around. We rode through lush meadows filled with cows wearing big, loud bells. We made it to Hohenschwangau and Neuschwanstein Castles. Both can be toured, however not all of the rooms are furnished or open to the public. Tim treated Elise to a romantic boat ride on the Alpsee. He rented a pretty wooden row boat and had a picnic lunch on the lake surrounded by the Alps and incredible castles. Germany was a very friendly, clean country to visit. $1.00 US dollar is equivalent to 1.75 Deutschmark.

Fussen Photos

- MILAN -

We leave Fussen for Munich where we pick up our first night train to Milan, Italy. We booked a Cochette, which is a very small sleeping car - set up to sleep six people. To imagine the size - picture a couch that just seats 3 people. Place another couch 3 feet opposite it and that is the size of the room. Now put 3 tier bunk beds on each side and set the temperature in the room to 89 degrees and what you have is a Cochette.

We stepped into the sleeper car and the thing smelled like a cattle car. We walked down the hall and expected to see a few heifers in the room. We found our sleeping quarters. At $12.00/person all we got was a top bunk in a sweaty sauna. The place reeked of body odor and the heat just continued to make us all ripe. We barely got any sleep - between the heat, the smell and the frequent starts and stops of the train - we were miserable. In the AM we changed our clothing and brushed our teeth in the Water Closet - and "closet " was about the size of it.

Quiz time - When you use the toilet on the train - where does "IT" go? (a) in a holding tank (b)pumped back into the Cochette (c) right on the tracks. If you answered (b) - We almost would have agreed with you, however the correct answer is (c). So if you have to "go" while the train is parked in the station, the polite thing to do is wait until you leave the station. Just a bit of etiquette from "ask Ms. Manners".

Now the stage is set - we are very tired, very dirty and in a country we can't speak the language. We attempt to get to the Alfa Romeo car factory outside of Milan to tour the museum. After getting ripped off by the subway ticket agent, we get outside of Milan to catch a bus to the factory. We attempt to explain to the bus driver where we want to go and he indicates he will tell us when to get off. Nice guy - " right..." He tells us to exit, follow the road to the highway and the factory is about 2 kilometers down the road. The rain is now pouring down and we are standing on a small road in the middle of nowhere. We walk for awhile and wind up in some small community courtyard with chickens running around. We backtrack and head for the highway - we see the factory, about 2 miles down the road. We are walking along the highway, with road construction, in the pouring rain . Add to that - the Europeans take a lunch break from 12:00-2:00 and the museum will be closed. It is now 11:15. We walk very quickly and finally make it - only to notice a bus stop in front of the museum. The bastard bus driver could have dropped us off here! It is now 11:50 and we plead with the security guard to let us in. Once inside, we have the museum to ourselves. They don't even kick us out during their lunch break.

We decide to leave the museum to catch a train to Venice. We wait outside in the pouring rain for the bus. When it arrives we show the driver our ticket - he motions no and shoos us off the bus. Confused, we attempt to find a factory worker who speaks English. We learned that we purchased a one way bus ticket and the nearest newsstand to purchase another ticket is 3 miles down the road. We plead to the security guard to call us a taxi. $30.00 on the cab ride, we make it back to the train station and head for Venice.

So just how do you say, "You ripped me off you bastard" in Italian? We'll be sure to learn it before we go back.

Milan Photo

- VENICE -

Dirty, tired and a bit defeated we arrive in Venice. What a relief, this city is beautiful. Ancient buildings with window boxes full of flowers; canals lined with gondolas and boats. We treat ourselves to a nice meal and walk along the narrow streets. We come across an old church where a concert is being held - the voices are incredibly beautiful and echo along the cobble stone street.

We were told - you can't get lost in Venice, it's an island. The next evening we wanted to return to the same restaurant and guess what - we got lost. But what a place to get lost! The bridges, canals, gondolas, old buildings, and old cultures - this is a wonderful city.

Venice Photos

- ROME -

Sitting in the Venice train station, we prepare for another night train sleeping in a Cochette. (Please review the Milan section if you are not familiar with what a Cochette is.) We thought possibly we had a bad experience with the Cochette to Milan so we tried it once more for our trip to Rome. We thought we would be smart and request a bottom bunk which would have to be cooler that the top bunk.

Wrong! Once again - we were looking for "Bessy" because the sleeper car stank! We find our car and it was already filled with 4 other people. The car is at least 90 degrees. We change into shorts and hit our bunks. The sweat is pouring off of us. Our bunk is smaller on the bottom - the seat back is leaning in at a 40 degree angle. We are miserable! Thank god for the man with the small bladder sleeping above Tim. He leaves the sleeper car a few times in the night and we shove our faces by the open door to get some cool air. People don't like the doors open and unlocked for security reasons.

We arrive in Rome- once again, dirty, tired, hungry and it's raining again. Our room is a dump and the people in the city are very cold and we fear we will be run over by scooters and motorcycles. We take in the sites - The Tevi Fountain, Forum, Coliseum, Spanish Steps, the Pathenon and St. Peters. Ancient Rome is very interesting and is intertwined with modern day Rome. It is also very intimidating.

We had our laundry done across from our hotel room - please see the story of the Italian Laundry Nazi in the Dirty Laundry section of our web page.

Rome Photo

- CINQUE TERRA -

After the craziness of Milan and Rome, Cinque Terra was heaven. Cinque Terra is part of the Italian Rivera and is made up of 5 small mountain villages: Rio Maggiore, Manarola, Corniglia, Vernazza and Monterosso. Each village can be reached only by train, ferry or hiking.

It's hard not to fall in love with their quaint, slow pace of life. The day of an elder consists of sitting on a park bench and gossiping. We found that there is so much to gossip about because the buildings are extremely close together and you can her everything your neighbor is doing.

One day we hiked for 6.5 hours from Monterosso to Rio Maggiore. This was filled with fantastic scenery along the vineyards and rocky coast line. We passed many other hikers - of all ages and sizes. The terrain was not for the faint of heart but the rewards were worth every step. We treated ourselves to a fantastic dinner in Corniglia and dreamed about what life would be like to live in these small villages. This area is not for those who want fancy glitz and lots of action- it is meant to be savored and experienced slowly - just like a fine wine.

Italy would be easier to visit if you could speak the language. Venice and Cinque Terra offered us a wonderful experience. $1.00 US dollar is equivalent to 1706.00 Lire

Cinque Terra Photos

- NICE -

Nice is situated along the French Rivera in between Monte Carlo and Cannes. Nice does offer fancy glitz and lots of action, along with topless beaches. The beaches there are very pretty, however very difficult to walk on. The beach is not sand but rather large pebbles. We attempted to walk barefoot and quickly realized - THAT HURTS!

Dogs in France go everywhere with their owners - subway, grocery stores and even inside restaurants. The city does not have any parks or lawns to walk the dogs, so there is quite a bit of dookie on the sidewalks. That explains the pressure washers at 5:00AM that woke us up. They clean Muffy's dookie off the sidewalks every morning. Now there is a job to write home about.

Nice has some very expense shopping on quaint little side streets. Women are made up and dressed to the letter. It is the place for show and to be seen.

Nice Photo

- PARIS -

Paris is an incredible city. Very much like London, the subway system or METRO was very easy to use. The Eiffel Tower is so impressive and massive. Take the time to climb the 2 levels open to the public. You will be rewarded with a beautiful view of the city. Families and tourists picnic and party all day on the lawn in front of the Eiffel Tower. The city is very clean and safe. We visited the Arc de Triomphe and spent 20 minutes watching people navigate the traffic circle. 12 major roads feed into this circle, which does not contain any lane markings. It's a free for all, however, everyone seems to understand the rules, and for the most part is free of chaos. That is why we watched from the outside of the circle. We also toured Notre Dame and in general spent a lot of time just roaming around the city.

We took a day trip to Versailles to visit the palace. This was impressive - the gardens were too numerous to visit them all. The man-made lake took over an hour to walk around. The palace contains the hall of mirrors which was exciting to walk through and imagine being a guest here during that time.

Paris is indeed a wonderful city and offers as much or as little as you want to partake in. Take time to find secluded parks and escape the other tourists - enjoy France at its best. $1.00 US dollar is equivalent to 6.00 Francs.

Paris Photos