Smoky but cheap internet cafe on Gabelsbergerstra§e (yes you read that right) in Salzburg, 5.05pm
Too much snow! Too much excitement! It's WONDERFUL!
When last we spoke I was whingeing about the Italian transportation system, but I can safely say that I've left that well and truly behind and am now into the super organized and disturbingly efficient neck of the woods - Switzerland and Austria.
My train trip from Rome to Zurich (especially after Milan) was spectacular. I'd been having such a lovely time in Borghese Park in Rome, wallowing in the sunshine on Wednesday, that to be trundling along through the Gotthard Tunnel and right up there in the Alpine goodness of still-very-snowy Switzerland was just crazy! When we got quite high up and there was snow alongside the train I was practically licking the windows I was so thrilled. And the lakes! The lakes in Switzerland are stunning! Was almost relieved to arrive in Zurich because I was worn out with all the widened eyes and accelerated heartbeat.
Zurich was as opposite to Naples as it is possible to be. I was in Naples on Tuesday and 48 hours later I was in Zurich. One is the filthiest and dodgiest city I've ever seen. The other was clean and tidy and pretty and civilized. It was quite a bit colder though and threatening rain all weekend.
My lovely friend Sharon came over from London for a long weekend with me, so Thurs was craziness at the station trying to work out which train went to the airport so that I could meet her. (Useful word for anyone needing an airport in a German-speaking country: flughafen. Clearly.) Met her, fond reunion after not seeing one another for a year and a half, followed by a lovely bowl of pasta (better than anything I had in Italy) and a bottle of vino.
On Friday we headed for Lucerne, to swan about on the lake. Wow! Stunning! (I'm so sorry, after two and a half months of wow factors I've run out of adjectives.) It was like being in a postcard, like, do places like that actually exist? Apparently! We took a boat over to Vitznau and spent three hours next to the lake, in the sun, eating lunch and Swiss chocolate, dozing, taking photos, listening to absolutely nothing. Superb.
Caught the boat across to Beckenreid, but it was getting later and colder by this stage so we only jumped off for 5 minutes for some photos, then back across the lake to Lucerne.
Saturday we visited the Rhine Falls, largest waterfalls in Europe. I should point out that Europe isn't known for its waterfalls and its largest are certainly not quite on par with Niagara or Iguazu or the ones in Africa I can never remember the name of. Unfortunately it was also raining and we also saw the falls from the train and thought they must be a preview of the Larger and More Spectacular falls. So the falls were very pretty and it was a nice little excursion, but not quite as out-of-this-world as we thought they might be.
Went for a little wander round the shops back in Zurich, had to decide between buying a lovely new handbag or spending a night in Hotel Fox in Copenhagen. I'm going for the hotel. And for dinner - FONDUE! Yes, we fondid in Switzerland! The place we went was recommended by my guide book and it was certainly authentic - from the dark wood, dim lighting and Ye Anciente Cooke who made our bubbling pot of cheese. I've never had the real deal fondue before and it's....boozy! We just had bread to dunk and it was so rich. Afterwards our waitress said when she does it at home, she does it with water not wine. Did we get that option?! Slept well that night though!
Sunday EVERYTHING was shut. An excellent day to check out the Banhofstra§e, one of the world's most expensive shopping streets. So window shopped our way down to the river and back, checking out a few churches along the way. Walked to the gardens, lolled about there, wandered through their hothouses. It was so quiet because everything was shut, very old school Sunday vibe. Put Sharon back on the train to the flughafen and then went and packed for my train trip today.
Again today - SNOW! Somewhere between Switzerland and Innsbruck it all looked like cookies 'n' cream ice cream, all white with black bits (trees, rocks, etc). Arrived in Salzburg just before 4pm and made my way to my hostel, salivating over the snow on the hill where the castle appears to be and all the filthy snow on the ground around cars, bins, rooves, etc. SNOW! My trip is so awesome - I've got all three of my favourite things: gin and tonics, Barcelona and snow!
Speaking of my favourite things....! Oh yes! I am in THAT town where THAT movie was filmed and I'm going on THAT tour! The hills certainly are alive with the sound of strangled out of tune music!
SNOW!
PS Top two places in Europe for coffee (in my opinion): Portugal and Switzerland.
Monday, March 30, 2009
Tuesday, March 24, 2009
I Am Going Already
Hostel laundry/internet cafe, Rome, 4.35pm.
Apparently Italy has had enough of me and is making life difficult in an effort to get rid of me sooner rather than later!
I decided yesterday to catch the bus from Napoli to Amalfi, then work my way back up the coast, stopping in Positano and Sorrento. Lovely. Caught the bus to Amalfi without drama, unless you count the super twisty cliff roads and the driver chatting to his mate with both hands off the wheel Italian-style. I stopped watching where we were going because it wasn't worth the panic-induced wrinkles.
The coast was absolutely gorgeous, Amalfi was pretty and lovely and the weather was perfect. However I am firstly - me, and secondly - a whinging Aussie. Therefore let's ignore the gorgeousness of it all and go back to how the Italian transport system hates me!
I missed the first bus that I planned to catch to Positano because I was in the wrong place. Hmmf. I'll have lunch in Amalfi then and gelati in Positano.
Back with plenty of time to spare to catch the bus, get on what I (and my two new Aussie friends Amy and Jerome) think is the right bus. Two teenage locals are trying to tell us that we have to walk somewhere to get to Positano. Riiiiiiight. On the bus then. It's PACKED with stinky Italian teenagers so we're standing up. The Amalfi Coast road is not the place to be standing up on a bus. Squee.
Then we stop. Somewhere. We still don't know where, but everybody got off and started walking, so we followed. Apparently there was a landslide in the tunnel so it's impassable. Knowing Italy it probably happened six years ago. So down we go into this stunning little cove and village and around the cliffs and then up again. By this stage the hill has thinned the crowd out and we're not sure where to go so my two new friends see a sign and decide that's the way to go. I KNOW, in the way that only a Marshall KNOWS that it's the wrong way. But I've only just met them and I don't want to be the pushy smug knowitall so I follow up ALLLLLLLL the stairs and hills. Eventually they realise we've gone the wrong way and we ask some locals who point us in the right direction. Walking down a little street we see the connecting bus - YAY. We look back down at where we are going and by the time we get to the bus - there is no bus. When is the next bus? Ummm an hour and a half away, we think.
Luckily we'd only just met so we all had plenty of stories to swap and the spot we got stuck waiting was BEAUTIFUL (no gelati though). We all agreed that if we had to wait for a bus for half our lifetimes, that was the place to do it. Of course it's Italy, so the bus turned up in two hours. On to Positano then.
Positano was very pretty too, but there appeared to be a lot more money around, flashier and shinier restaurants and lots of renovations happening. We had a quick coffee, grabbed some postcards, were back to wait for the bus in under an hour.
TWO HOURS LATER, the sun had gone down, it was really cold and there were about fifty people waiting for the bus. We were not impressed.
Unsurprisingly the bus turned up, every seat already filled, but with the prospect of no bus for another two hours - if ever - all fifty of us GOT ON. I think the favourite part of those at the back of the queue to get on was the COMPLETELY EMPTY bus that rocked up behind the packed one and refused to let anyone get on. I am not this person, I swear, but all the waiting and the cold and the needing to pee brought it out - I may have flipped the bird at the driver as he drove off in spacious, non-fatal emptiness.
I was one of the last to get on the bus and was literally in the back door space with my head in Jerome's armpit and hanging on for dear life around every bend and cliff edge with one twisted arm and cramping left foot. Jerome and I quickly became friends with the Canadians also sharing the door space and we all tried not to freak out when we could smell something burning. Probably the brakes.
It was around this point that I decided that that particular bus trip, getting on a bus with 99 other people on a twisting road in the evening, had gone straight into my top three Most Stupid and Dangerous Things Done While Travelling list. Never mind eating from street vendors in Thailand, don't get on a bus with 99 other people in Positano!
Luckily half the bus got off half way to Positano and we all got seats, which was actually more vomity than hanging on with one hand and my head in someone's armpit. When we finally arrived at the train station in Sorrento we hopped straight on a train and back to Naples.
And then TODAY. Got myself to the station with plenty of time for my train trip back to Rome. I have a Eurail pass, I could catch the slow train at 10.22 for free. Five minutes before the train was due to leave they put up on the screen which platform it was leaving from. 3PG. 3Pwhatnow?? I go madly dashing for where I think platform three is. Yeah it's not going from there and I now have ONE MINUTE to not just get on the train, but FIND it. At this point an old dude in a train jacket stopped me and asked where I was going. He grabbed my suitcase and took me downstairs (of course PG means DOWNSTAIRS IN THE BOWELS OF NAPOLI TRAIN HELL) only to discover that I'd missed it. He then dragged me back to the ticket office and went in and got me a seat on the 10.39 train.
The 10.39 train is the fast one, if I use my Eurail pass I can book a seat for €20. The girl only charged me €15 and the old guy took me to the right platform and made sure I knew what carriage and seat I was in. By this stage I knew that I'd have to tip him so I whipped out €5 and his response was 'No, ten.' BASTARD. Of course being the polite non-trouble maker that I am, I just squinted and flickered one eyelid before handing it over, shook his hand, said thank you and tried not to stare at the place where the other twenty of his teeth should have been. Seethed until I got on the train and then had to let it go. It's in the past, it's happened, no more help from toothy old dudes at stations!
On the plus side, got a nice train and fantastically quick trip to Rome and no hassles once I got here. Am currently getting more washing done - never mind paying toothless men for services rendered, my own filthiness is making me poor! Also on the plus side, made four new friends in Naples in with all the bus drama and am having lunch with Romeka, awesome American, tomorrow here in Rome. Yay for random strangers WITH teeth!
Apparently Italy has had enough of me and is making life difficult in an effort to get rid of me sooner rather than later!
I decided yesterday to catch the bus from Napoli to Amalfi, then work my way back up the coast, stopping in Positano and Sorrento. Lovely. Caught the bus to Amalfi without drama, unless you count the super twisty cliff roads and the driver chatting to his mate with both hands off the wheel Italian-style. I stopped watching where we were going because it wasn't worth the panic-induced wrinkles.
The coast was absolutely gorgeous, Amalfi was pretty and lovely and the weather was perfect. However I am firstly - me, and secondly - a whinging Aussie. Therefore let's ignore the gorgeousness of it all and go back to how the Italian transport system hates me!
I missed the first bus that I planned to catch to Positano because I was in the wrong place. Hmmf. I'll have lunch in Amalfi then and gelati in Positano.
Back with plenty of time to spare to catch the bus, get on what I (and my two new Aussie friends Amy and Jerome) think is the right bus. Two teenage locals are trying to tell us that we have to walk somewhere to get to Positano. Riiiiiiight. On the bus then. It's PACKED with stinky Italian teenagers so we're standing up. The Amalfi Coast road is not the place to be standing up on a bus. Squee.
Then we stop. Somewhere. We still don't know where, but everybody got off and started walking, so we followed. Apparently there was a landslide in the tunnel so it's impassable. Knowing Italy it probably happened six years ago. So down we go into this stunning little cove and village and around the cliffs and then up again. By this stage the hill has thinned the crowd out and we're not sure where to go so my two new friends see a sign and decide that's the way to go. I KNOW, in the way that only a Marshall KNOWS that it's the wrong way. But I've only just met them and I don't want to be the pushy smug knowitall so I follow up ALLLLLLLL the stairs and hills. Eventually they realise we've gone the wrong way and we ask some locals who point us in the right direction. Walking down a little street we see the connecting bus - YAY. We look back down at where we are going and by the time we get to the bus - there is no bus. When is the next bus? Ummm an hour and a half away, we think.
Luckily we'd only just met so we all had plenty of stories to swap and the spot we got stuck waiting was BEAUTIFUL (no gelati though). We all agreed that if we had to wait for a bus for half our lifetimes, that was the place to do it. Of course it's Italy, so the bus turned up in two hours. On to Positano then.
Positano was very pretty too, but there appeared to be a lot more money around, flashier and shinier restaurants and lots of renovations happening. We had a quick coffee, grabbed some postcards, were back to wait for the bus in under an hour.
TWO HOURS LATER, the sun had gone down, it was really cold and there were about fifty people waiting for the bus. We were not impressed.
Unsurprisingly the bus turned up, every seat already filled, but with the prospect of no bus for another two hours - if ever - all fifty of us GOT ON. I think the favourite part of those at the back of the queue to get on was the COMPLETELY EMPTY bus that rocked up behind the packed one and refused to let anyone get on. I am not this person, I swear, but all the waiting and the cold and the needing to pee brought it out - I may have flipped the bird at the driver as he drove off in spacious, non-fatal emptiness.
I was one of the last to get on the bus and was literally in the back door space with my head in Jerome's armpit and hanging on for dear life around every bend and cliff edge with one twisted arm and cramping left foot. Jerome and I quickly became friends with the Canadians also sharing the door space and we all tried not to freak out when we could smell something burning. Probably the brakes.
It was around this point that I decided that that particular bus trip, getting on a bus with 99 other people on a twisting road in the evening, had gone straight into my top three Most Stupid and Dangerous Things Done While Travelling list. Never mind eating from street vendors in Thailand, don't get on a bus with 99 other people in Positano!
Luckily half the bus got off half way to Positano and we all got seats, which was actually more vomity than hanging on with one hand and my head in someone's armpit. When we finally arrived at the train station in Sorrento we hopped straight on a train and back to Naples.
And then TODAY. Got myself to the station with plenty of time for my train trip back to Rome. I have a Eurail pass, I could catch the slow train at 10.22 for free. Five minutes before the train was due to leave they put up on the screen which platform it was leaving from. 3PG. 3Pwhatnow?? I go madly dashing for where I think platform three is. Yeah it's not going from there and I now have ONE MINUTE to not just get on the train, but FIND it. At this point an old dude in a train jacket stopped me and asked where I was going. He grabbed my suitcase and took me downstairs (of course PG means DOWNSTAIRS IN THE BOWELS OF NAPOLI TRAIN HELL) only to discover that I'd missed it. He then dragged me back to the ticket office and went in and got me a seat on the 10.39 train.
The 10.39 train is the fast one, if I use my Eurail pass I can book a seat for €20. The girl only charged me €15 and the old guy took me to the right platform and made sure I knew what carriage and seat I was in. By this stage I knew that I'd have to tip him so I whipped out €5 and his response was 'No, ten.' BASTARD. Of course being the polite non-trouble maker that I am, I just squinted and flickered one eyelid before handing it over, shook his hand, said thank you and tried not to stare at the place where the other twenty of his teeth should have been. Seethed until I got on the train and then had to let it go. It's in the past, it's happened, no more help from toothy old dudes at stations!
On the plus side, got a nice train and fantastically quick trip to Rome and no hassles once I got here. Am currently getting more washing done - never mind paying toothless men for services rendered, my own filthiness is making me poor! Also on the plus side, made four new friends in Naples in with all the bus drama and am having lunch with Romeka, awesome American, tomorrow here in Rome. Yay for random strangers WITH teeth!
Sunday, March 22, 2009
I Am A Contikian - Part 2
And I'm back!
After Nice it was on to Italy! Amedeo, our guide, was Italian so he was beyond excited to get to his part of the world. We spent the day training it from one village of the Cinque Terre to the next, visiting three in total. Oh yeah, this was my Half Way Day, exactly half way through my trip, and Monterosa, our first Cinque Terre stop, came up trumps with The Perfect Lunch.
My three closest friends Dana, Carl, Meredith and I managed to leave the rest of the group behind and stopped for lunch at a little restaurant on the beachfront road. So we sat there, staring at the Mediterranean, in the sunshine, practically getting run over by cars, eating pizzas and bruschetta and unable to have a conversation that didn't turn into 'God this is amazing, could it get any better than this?'. Superb.
Our other two stops in the Cinque Terre were also beautiful, especially because we were all a bit tired and enjoyed just sprawling in the sun, watching people's washing flapping in the breeze and trying to work out if the tourist department organises fishermen to come sailing in once an hour so the tourists can take photos.
We stayed in Pisa that night so the next morning we headed straight for the Leaning Tower. It was pretty funny, such a familiar building and we walked around a corner and there it was and all we could say was 'Oh!'. Spent an hour trying to get the photos right!
And then YAY! Florence! Before I got to Florence I probably wouldn't have described it like that, but it's now right up there with Seville for me. It's just a bit dirty and completely lacking in trees or greenery of any kind in the main part of town, but there are the most gorgeous buildings and piazzas and the Duomo and Cathedral - WOW! I'd never really heard about them or seen pictures so to walk out of a narrow street and have that immense white, green and red marble building in front of you is fairly incredible. I went to the Accademia that afternoon to see Michaelangelo's 'David', and again it was walk around a corner and 'OH!'. It's big, really big, I had no idea. Carl, Dana, Meredith and I visited a few more places, got gelatis, soaked up the fabulousness of it all before we had to head off to the hotel.
The next day we had a leather factory visit, plus a walking tour of the city, which was really great, some seriously cool statue action. Then we headed for the epic Duomo climb. We decided to do that first and work up an appetite for lunch, rather than lunch first and a heavy climb afterwards. We're so smart. It was a tough climb, but completely worth it. Spectacular views, so many photos! Back down to street level for lunch, then we went to the Boboli Gardens to enjoy some green action. Technically I paid $20AUD to get into the gardens - CRAZY!RIPOFF! - but we had such a good time that I think it was totally worth it. We essentially made our way through the gardens taking photos of each of us imitating the statues. Very mature.
That night we had a traditional Tuscan meal up in the 'iyyys' around Florence. By this stage we had started to shamelessly imitate Amedeo's accent so 'hills' became 'iyyys'. He also had a wonderful way of using 'eventually' and 'opportunities' all the time, and everything was a 'joy for the eyes/nose/palate', or it was 'an essperience' or it was 'just WOW!'. We loved it.
So dinner up in the iyyys was great, I think we got served sliced roasted pork at 80%of our meals, but this was by far the best of all the sliced pig products we got! And instead of dessert we got fantastic biscotti to dunk in dessert wine - hello!
And the next day (are you getting the crazy Contiki pace? I barely had enough time to shower and dry my hair each day) we stopped in San Gimignano on the way to Rome. It's the most well-preserved medieval village in all Europe with 11 towers that were initially about showing off who had the most money. We climbed the only open one and got the full on perfect 'Under The Tuscan Sky' type view. I took lots of photos and I do expect you all to HATE ME. Then we visited the cathedral which was covered in frescoes, very impressive and useful to see before visiting the Sistine Chapel. Of course because we're a bit immature, Jesus on the cross on the back wall in his lovely crisp Calvin Klein's did give us a round of the sniggers. Who knew CK was so vintage??
Being the foodies that we are, we then spotted a gelateria which won the world title in 07/08 and 08/09 so we were in there like a shot. And damn, that was some good gelati! I had cherry and coconut and it is by far the best that I have ever tasted. Tuscan sunshine, rustic village, world's best gelati, I'm done!
Next stop, final stop, ROME! We arrived at about 4.30pm and sprinted out of the bus and Amedeo, in his home city, whizzed us through some of the biggest and best sights, Spanish Steps, Trevi Fountain, Pantheon, Piazza Navona, Santa Maria del Popolo and a few extra interesting bits along the way. My new favourite thing is crossing the road in Italy too, I'm desperate to do it the Amedeo way though, with The Hand. March out into oncoming traffi and hold out one hand in an imperious stop sign and keep going. Love it. Walk like you mean it is my current motto.
Anyway Rome, threw coins in the Trevi the Roman way, stood in awe under the hole in the dome of the Pantheon as evening fell, pastapastapasta for dinner. Unsurprisingly, I slept extremely well that night!
Next day was a guided tour of the Forum and Colosseum - oh no wait, you need to hear the FUN part where 45 Contikians tried to get on the Roman Metro at peak hour, including a train switch. Amedeo told us to use our elbows or whatever was necessary - squee! Ended up with half the group on one train and the rest on the next train, followed by a power walk ON THE ROAD to meet our guide because we were running late. Still not sure how this was easier than us all getting on our pink bus, but never mind!
Colosseum and Forum were okay, I was actually a little bit underwhelmed by them, maybe because they're familiar and what you expect to see in Rome, felt a bit like I was ticking a box on a list. Moving on to the Vatican City then. Now that WAS impressive! Amedeo wasn't allowed in with us, but he told us what to see so I led on and we managed to see almost everything he told us to. And in his words, it was just WOW! We actually went underneath St Peter's Basilica to see the tombs of the Popes and the exit from that led you directly up into the middle of St Peter's and man, what an entry! If you've been there you'll know how huge and magnificent it all is.
We had our farewell dinner that night, then we all went to a couple of bars, but it was almost impossible to get a drink and when they then cost me $16AUD, it wasn't worth it, so we did what had become our routine and a bunch of us hung out in my hotel room. Said our farewells because my closest friends were going home the next morning and the next day I said goodbye to Reiko and then, once again, it was Team Nicola!
Amedeo had scribbled all over my map of Rome so I went and visited a bunch of spectacular churches, walked EVERYWHERE, had some quiet time in Borghese Park, before heading back to the hotel for a nap, shortly followed by ten and a half hours of blissful and uninterrupted sleep! Think I need a post-Contiki holiday!
And now, I'm in Naples, scummy dirty Naples. Went to Pompeii yesterday, better than Rome and ran into another Contikian, today I went to a couple of churches in Naples without getting mugged and tomorrow I'm going down to the town of Amalfi and then back along the gorgeous Amalfi coast. Today is Sunday and I've essentially spent the day Sunday-style, am about to have a cup of tea and whack a DVD on.
Thanks for your attention, I know this was HUGE, I seriously left so much out! Like the vomit, everyone's favourite! Next blog will be sooner and smaller...
After Nice it was on to Italy! Amedeo, our guide, was Italian so he was beyond excited to get to his part of the world. We spent the day training it from one village of the Cinque Terre to the next, visiting three in total. Oh yeah, this was my Half Way Day, exactly half way through my trip, and Monterosa, our first Cinque Terre stop, came up trumps with The Perfect Lunch.
My three closest friends Dana, Carl, Meredith and I managed to leave the rest of the group behind and stopped for lunch at a little restaurant on the beachfront road. So we sat there, staring at the Mediterranean, in the sunshine, practically getting run over by cars, eating pizzas and bruschetta and unable to have a conversation that didn't turn into 'God this is amazing, could it get any better than this?'. Superb.
Our other two stops in the Cinque Terre were also beautiful, especially because we were all a bit tired and enjoyed just sprawling in the sun, watching people's washing flapping in the breeze and trying to work out if the tourist department organises fishermen to come sailing in once an hour so the tourists can take photos.
We stayed in Pisa that night so the next morning we headed straight for the Leaning Tower. It was pretty funny, such a familiar building and we walked around a corner and there it was and all we could say was 'Oh!'. Spent an hour trying to get the photos right!
And then YAY! Florence! Before I got to Florence I probably wouldn't have described it like that, but it's now right up there with Seville for me. It's just a bit dirty and completely lacking in trees or greenery of any kind in the main part of town, but there are the most gorgeous buildings and piazzas and the Duomo and Cathedral - WOW! I'd never really heard about them or seen pictures so to walk out of a narrow street and have that immense white, green and red marble building in front of you is fairly incredible. I went to the Accademia that afternoon to see Michaelangelo's 'David', and again it was walk around a corner and 'OH!'. It's big, really big, I had no idea. Carl, Dana, Meredith and I visited a few more places, got gelatis, soaked up the fabulousness of it all before we had to head off to the hotel.
The next day we had a leather factory visit, plus a walking tour of the city, which was really great, some seriously cool statue action. Then we headed for the epic Duomo climb. We decided to do that first and work up an appetite for lunch, rather than lunch first and a heavy climb afterwards. We're so smart. It was a tough climb, but completely worth it. Spectacular views, so many photos! Back down to street level for lunch, then we went to the Boboli Gardens to enjoy some green action. Technically I paid $20AUD to get into the gardens - CRAZY!RIPOFF! - but we had such a good time that I think it was totally worth it. We essentially made our way through the gardens taking photos of each of us imitating the statues. Very mature.
That night we had a traditional Tuscan meal up in the 'iyyys' around Florence. By this stage we had started to shamelessly imitate Amedeo's accent so 'hills' became 'iyyys'. He also had a wonderful way of using 'eventually' and 'opportunities' all the time, and everything was a 'joy for the eyes/nose/palate', or it was 'an essperience' or it was 'just WOW!'. We loved it.
So dinner up in the iyyys was great, I think we got served sliced roasted pork at 80%of our meals, but this was by far the best of all the sliced pig products we got! And instead of dessert we got fantastic biscotti to dunk in dessert wine - hello!
And the next day (are you getting the crazy Contiki pace? I barely had enough time to shower and dry my hair each day) we stopped in San Gimignano on the way to Rome. It's the most well-preserved medieval village in all Europe with 11 towers that were initially about showing off who had the most money. We climbed the only open one and got the full on perfect 'Under The Tuscan Sky' type view. I took lots of photos and I do expect you all to HATE ME. Then we visited the cathedral which was covered in frescoes, very impressive and useful to see before visiting the Sistine Chapel. Of course because we're a bit immature, Jesus on the cross on the back wall in his lovely crisp Calvin Klein's did give us a round of the sniggers. Who knew CK was so vintage??
Being the foodies that we are, we then spotted a gelateria which won the world title in 07/08 and 08/09 so we were in there like a shot. And damn, that was some good gelati! I had cherry and coconut and it is by far the best that I have ever tasted. Tuscan sunshine, rustic village, world's best gelati, I'm done!
Next stop, final stop, ROME! We arrived at about 4.30pm and sprinted out of the bus and Amedeo, in his home city, whizzed us through some of the biggest and best sights, Spanish Steps, Trevi Fountain, Pantheon, Piazza Navona, Santa Maria del Popolo and a few extra interesting bits along the way. My new favourite thing is crossing the road in Italy too, I'm desperate to do it the Amedeo way though, with The Hand. March out into oncoming traffi and hold out one hand in an imperious stop sign and keep going. Love it. Walk like you mean it is my current motto.
Anyway Rome, threw coins in the Trevi the Roman way, stood in awe under the hole in the dome of the Pantheon as evening fell, pastapastapasta for dinner. Unsurprisingly, I slept extremely well that night!
Next day was a guided tour of the Forum and Colosseum - oh no wait, you need to hear the FUN part where 45 Contikians tried to get on the Roman Metro at peak hour, including a train switch. Amedeo told us to use our elbows or whatever was necessary - squee! Ended up with half the group on one train and the rest on the next train, followed by a power walk ON THE ROAD to meet our guide because we were running late. Still not sure how this was easier than us all getting on our pink bus, but never mind!
Colosseum and Forum were okay, I was actually a little bit underwhelmed by them, maybe because they're familiar and what you expect to see in Rome, felt a bit like I was ticking a box on a list. Moving on to the Vatican City then. Now that WAS impressive! Amedeo wasn't allowed in with us, but he told us what to see so I led on and we managed to see almost everything he told us to. And in his words, it was just WOW! We actually went underneath St Peter's Basilica to see the tombs of the Popes and the exit from that led you directly up into the middle of St Peter's and man, what an entry! If you've been there you'll know how huge and magnificent it all is.
We had our farewell dinner that night, then we all went to a couple of bars, but it was almost impossible to get a drink and when they then cost me $16AUD, it wasn't worth it, so we did what had become our routine and a bunch of us hung out in my hotel room. Said our farewells because my closest friends were going home the next morning and the next day I said goodbye to Reiko and then, once again, it was Team Nicola!
Amedeo had scribbled all over my map of Rome so I went and visited a bunch of spectacular churches, walked EVERYWHERE, had some quiet time in Borghese Park, before heading back to the hotel for a nap, shortly followed by ten and a half hours of blissful and uninterrupted sleep! Think I need a post-Contiki holiday!
And now, I'm in Naples, scummy dirty Naples. Went to Pompeii yesterday, better than Rome and ran into another Contikian, today I went to a couple of churches in Naples without getting mugged and tomorrow I'm going down to the town of Amalfi and then back along the gorgeous Amalfi coast. Today is Sunday and I've essentially spent the day Sunday-style, am about to have a cup of tea and whack a DVD on.
Thanks for your attention, I know this was HUGE, I seriously left so much out! Like the vomit, everyone's favourite! Next blog will be sooner and smaller...
I Am A Contikian - Part One
Hostel of the Sun, Naples, 2.29pm
I think the prospect of writing this blog has been scaring me, hence delaying it even more. I am here now though and I will do my best to condense a very full two weeks into bite sized pieces. Just to set the scene though, I am currently in Naples, home of the Margherita pizza and crime! This place is a ghetto slum hole and unlike anything I've seen before. I have never been quite as paranoid as I am whenever I have to go to the train station here, which unfortunately has been multiple times. My hostel is super though and has bucketloads of DVDs so idling away the late afternoons/evenings in front of the box is fine.
Due to Contiki Funtimes, I haven't had a chance to tell you all about one of the best experiences of my trip. I got to hang around in the Tuileries in Paris outside the Christian Dior tent leading up to the start of his fashion show! I had a subscription to Vogue for YEARS and still consider Paris to be the most fashionable city in the world and spent a considerable amount of time traipsing its most chic streets, soaking up the Louboutin-laden atmosphere. So to hang around in my filthy sneakers and ski jacket and watch the Beautiful People in the most amazing shoes I have ever seen in my life, was pretty awesome! I also got to see the Bond girl from 'Casino Royale' doing some press action.
After Paris (love it!), I headed back to Madrid to join my Contiki tour. I got to share a room for two weeks with Reiko, Japanese girl, who was fun and had lived in Adelaide for a year in high school. (Yes it's possible to live in Adelaide and still be a fun person.) I missed the initial meeting and dinner, which everyone told me was a good thing and they wished they'd missed them too. So the first time I really got to meet people was the second morning when we all headed to the Royal Palace for a guided tour. Pretty mixed group, pre-dominantly Canadian, they actually beat the Aussies for once. Also a couple of Yanks, Singaporeans, Japanese and one lonely Pom. Did I say lonely? I meant lovely! (He owes me beer in London.)
We had a free afternoon in Madrid so I whacked in another art gallery before heading for the famed Parque del Buen Retiro. It's where all of Madrid goes on Sunday afternoon and now, from first hand experience, I can tell you that's true! The parque was just beautiful, spring flowers just starting to perk up, it was a warm day with no chilly breeze and the vibe was so relaxed and happy. The first time I went to Madrid I enjoyed it, but didn't 'get it'. After four hours lying in the sun under cherry blossoms, reading, dozing and listening to music and getting a tiny sunburn, I 'got it'!
Then we moved on to Barcelona! YAY! Barcelona has now become one of my Things That Just Make Me Happy (the other two being snow and gin and tonics). While everybody else tried to madly cram in all the best bits in one day, I very happily advised them all (smug knowitall) then walked into town, did some shopping, visited the inside of Casa Batllo, went to La Boqueria for ten kilos of fruit, relaxed in the sun in Parc de la Ciutadella (where ANTM filmed an ad) and generally enjoyed myself.
We battled on to France the next day, arriving in Avignon for a late afternoon walking tour. Most of my fellow Contikians will only remember the super-dodgy vibe of Avignon because everybody kept staring at us when we were walking around. However there were about 45 of us rampaging down the streets to try and get into a cathedral before it closed, I would've have given us grotty looks too! Plus, I've now seen True Dodgy in Naples, and Avignon was a picnic in comparison!
The next morning we got to stop in Aix-en-Provence for a couple of hours, would've like a whole day. It was gorgeous, so French, markets and squares and fountains and cafes. I meandered through the markets with two other girls, then we stopped for a coffee and to soak up the atmosphere, before I bought four macaroons, two chocolate and two almond. I will never eat another macaroon again, unless they're from that same stand in the Aix market. They were OUTSTANDING.
That afternoon we arrived in Nice - filthy! It should have been a sparkling sunny city by the sea, but no, rubbish on the streets and graffiti are way more appealing. Not to mention the pebble beach! PAH! I scoffed. We had a brief amount of time to doll ourselves up before we headed to Monaco for dinner with the Prince. Well, down the road anyway. We stopped to take photos of the views along the Cote d'Azur and at a perfumerie. This is where I need to be honest and say that the Cote d'Azur never held much appeal for me, I'm not a flashy beach person and I haven't got significant supplies of wealth to show off, I'll stick to Paris with the galleries and crepes. But WOW! WOW! Beautiful! Amazing! Stunning! Our tour guide, Amedeo, kept saying to us 'Guys, this is my dream, my DREAM!' and I have to say I could totally see myself on a yacht in the Mediterranean!
Dinner in Monaco was fun, it was an optional so we all paid extra if we wanted to do it and therefore wine was included in the price. So you can just imagine the volume going up and 40 of us falling out into the quiet, moneyed streets of Monaco and trailing back to our pink bus! Next stop was the Monte Carlo Casino. I am not a casino person and felt no desire to pay to get into somewhere that then expected you to spend even more while you were in there. Instead I wandered around the absolutely perfect gardens and fountains, feeling spectacularly safe since my every move and word was no doubt being recorded. I managed to find an empty Coke can on a fence and took a photo because it was the ONLY thing out of place. I'm surprised I wasn't thrown out of the country and my camera confiscated, quite frankly!
Our next day was a free one in Nice, so Dana, the original New Yorker who puts my cynicism to shame, and I did a few things in Nice then went to Cannes on the train for lunch. Cannes is beautiful too, they have a permanent red carpet, more boats than you can poke a stick at and the designer fashions to go with it. Again, me and my filthy sneakers felt like we were lowering the tone.
Now this night in Nice wasn't particularly memorable except that I did one thing which was fairly out of character and I feel like you all need to know the truth. I danced on a table at a bar. I feel so much better now that I've got that off my chest! Honestly, it got to a point of the night when it was get on the tables or get out and by far the easier option was to just get up there and shake it. So I did. Quite fun. Heh!
Am splitting this in two because it's a bit excessive for even my consumption....
I think the prospect of writing this blog has been scaring me, hence delaying it even more. I am here now though and I will do my best to condense a very full two weeks into bite sized pieces. Just to set the scene though, I am currently in Naples, home of the Margherita pizza and crime! This place is a ghetto slum hole and unlike anything I've seen before. I have never been quite as paranoid as I am whenever I have to go to the train station here, which unfortunately has been multiple times. My hostel is super though and has bucketloads of DVDs so idling away the late afternoons/evenings in front of the box is fine.
Due to Contiki Funtimes, I haven't had a chance to tell you all about one of the best experiences of my trip. I got to hang around in the Tuileries in Paris outside the Christian Dior tent leading up to the start of his fashion show! I had a subscription to Vogue for YEARS and still consider Paris to be the most fashionable city in the world and spent a considerable amount of time traipsing its most chic streets, soaking up the Louboutin-laden atmosphere. So to hang around in my filthy sneakers and ski jacket and watch the Beautiful People in the most amazing shoes I have ever seen in my life, was pretty awesome! I also got to see the Bond girl from 'Casino Royale' doing some press action.
After Paris (love it!), I headed back to Madrid to join my Contiki tour. I got to share a room for two weeks with Reiko, Japanese girl, who was fun and had lived in Adelaide for a year in high school. (Yes it's possible to live in Adelaide and still be a fun person.) I missed the initial meeting and dinner, which everyone told me was a good thing and they wished they'd missed them too. So the first time I really got to meet people was the second morning when we all headed to the Royal Palace for a guided tour. Pretty mixed group, pre-dominantly Canadian, they actually beat the Aussies for once. Also a couple of Yanks, Singaporeans, Japanese and one lonely Pom. Did I say lonely? I meant lovely! (He owes me beer in London.)
We had a free afternoon in Madrid so I whacked in another art gallery before heading for the famed Parque del Buen Retiro. It's where all of Madrid goes on Sunday afternoon and now, from first hand experience, I can tell you that's true! The parque was just beautiful, spring flowers just starting to perk up, it was a warm day with no chilly breeze and the vibe was so relaxed and happy. The first time I went to Madrid I enjoyed it, but didn't 'get it'. After four hours lying in the sun under cherry blossoms, reading, dozing and listening to music and getting a tiny sunburn, I 'got it'!
Then we moved on to Barcelona! YAY! Barcelona has now become one of my Things That Just Make Me Happy (the other two being snow and gin and tonics). While everybody else tried to madly cram in all the best bits in one day, I very happily advised them all (smug knowitall) then walked into town, did some shopping, visited the inside of Casa Batllo, went to La Boqueria for ten kilos of fruit, relaxed in the sun in Parc de la Ciutadella (where ANTM filmed an ad) and generally enjoyed myself.
We battled on to France the next day, arriving in Avignon for a late afternoon walking tour. Most of my fellow Contikians will only remember the super-dodgy vibe of Avignon because everybody kept staring at us when we were walking around. However there were about 45 of us rampaging down the streets to try and get into a cathedral before it closed, I would've have given us grotty looks too! Plus, I've now seen True Dodgy in Naples, and Avignon was a picnic in comparison!
The next morning we got to stop in Aix-en-Provence for a couple of hours, would've like a whole day. It was gorgeous, so French, markets and squares and fountains and cafes. I meandered through the markets with two other girls, then we stopped for a coffee and to soak up the atmosphere, before I bought four macaroons, two chocolate and two almond. I will never eat another macaroon again, unless they're from that same stand in the Aix market. They were OUTSTANDING.
That afternoon we arrived in Nice - filthy! It should have been a sparkling sunny city by the sea, but no, rubbish on the streets and graffiti are way more appealing. Not to mention the pebble beach! PAH! I scoffed. We had a brief amount of time to doll ourselves up before we headed to Monaco for dinner with the Prince. Well, down the road anyway. We stopped to take photos of the views along the Cote d'Azur and at a perfumerie. This is where I need to be honest and say that the Cote d'Azur never held much appeal for me, I'm not a flashy beach person and I haven't got significant supplies of wealth to show off, I'll stick to Paris with the galleries and crepes. But WOW! WOW! Beautiful! Amazing! Stunning! Our tour guide, Amedeo, kept saying to us 'Guys, this is my dream, my DREAM!' and I have to say I could totally see myself on a yacht in the Mediterranean!
Dinner in Monaco was fun, it was an optional so we all paid extra if we wanted to do it and therefore wine was included in the price. So you can just imagine the volume going up and 40 of us falling out into the quiet, moneyed streets of Monaco and trailing back to our pink bus! Next stop was the Monte Carlo Casino. I am not a casino person and felt no desire to pay to get into somewhere that then expected you to spend even more while you were in there. Instead I wandered around the absolutely perfect gardens and fountains, feeling spectacularly safe since my every move and word was no doubt being recorded. I managed to find an empty Coke can on a fence and took a photo because it was the ONLY thing out of place. I'm surprised I wasn't thrown out of the country and my camera confiscated, quite frankly!
Our next day was a free one in Nice, so Dana, the original New Yorker who puts my cynicism to shame, and I did a few things in Nice then went to Cannes on the train for lunch. Cannes is beautiful too, they have a permanent red carpet, more boats than you can poke a stick at and the designer fashions to go with it. Again, me and my filthy sneakers felt like we were lowering the tone.
Now this night in Nice wasn't particularly memorable except that I did one thing which was fairly out of character and I feel like you all need to know the truth. I danced on a table at a bar. I feel so much better now that I've got that off my chest! Honestly, it got to a point of the night when it was get on the tables or get out and by far the easier option was to just get up there and shake it. So I did. Quite fun. Heh!
Am splitting this in two because it's a bit excessive for even my consumption....
Wednesday, March 4, 2009
I Am Knackered
8.45pm, hostel internet cafe, Paris.
I am. So tired. Cannot. Stand up. Any longer. If Paris wasn't so damn fine, I'd kind of want to curl up and die right now.
Took me until last night to really warm to Paris. It is, obviously, amazing, but wasn't really feeling the vibe, the love, the atmosphere. Did some galleries today though, met a few of my own personal celebrities (Very Famous and Important Paintings), wandered the Rich People Areas and ate a hot dog with mustard wrapped in a crepe while wandering along the Seine, and suddenly Paris all made sense!
Monday was ticking things off the tourist list, Arc de Triomphe, Eiffel Tower, Musee d'Orsay (but closed), baguette for lunch, Notre Dame, the Conciergerie (Marie Antoinette was held there before they lopped her head off), wandering the St Germain area. Was an exhausting day, but I did walk everywhere and saw some wonderful things. Actually prefer the Eiffel Tower from the ground or elsewhere in the city, going up in it was actually just annoying, PEOPLE.
Tuesday I headed out of the city to visit Versailles, which was truly magnificent. Absolutely ginormous, opulent, packed full of people getting photos of the bed where one of the queens gave birth to 19 children - in public to prove they were really hers. Somebody ask me again why I'm never having children. (Ignoring the fact that I'm not a French queen.) The Hall of Mirrors was pretty cool and the Dauphin's apartments downstairs were great, less crowded and some great furniture, incl the royal bidet! The gardens were huuuuuuge, think they're probably a bit nicer in spring or summer when they're a bit greener and there are a few flowers, but there's nothing wrong with eating lunch by a small lake with a chariot and some horses rising out of it!
Back in Paris in the afternoon, I wandered round the St Michel area, splurged on some CDs that I won't be able to listen to for over two months, then had an hour of quiet time at the hostel before heading out for an evening walking tour of Montmartre.
Small group of us wandered the chilly streets for two hours and got to see places where van Gogh and Picasso lived and hung out, the Sacre Coeur, a statue of St Denis who apparently picked up his head and wandered around preaching after they chopped it off, the Moulin Rouge, plus - best bit - three of the places where they filmed 'Amelie'. The cafe, the grocer's and the park - SO COOL! If I have time (HA!) I'd love to go back for a coffee at the Cafe des 2 Moulins, they even have the gnome sitting on the bar!
And today was Double Gallery Day. Ambitious, I know, visiting galleries is harder work than shopping, back breaking work. I started (in the rain, squee) at Place Bastille, before wandering through the Marais area (rich people), through the Place des Vosges and past Victor Hugo's apartment, and eventually worming my way out to the Pompidou Centre. Seriously cool, industrial looking monstrosity of a building, but housing some Serious Works of Art.
To keep this within lunch break reading times, I won't go into all of them, but I think the highlight of the modern art works was Marcel Duchamp's 'Urinal' and 'Bicycle Wheel'. I wrote essays in exams on these pieces and seeing them in real life made them even more ridiculous and delightfully funny. These kinds of things are like celebrities for me and I will admit, there was a moment when I realised it was THE 'Urinal' when I couldn't decide whether to laugh or hyperventilate in excitement.
So many great things at the Pompidou, but I will move on to my crepey hot dog that I had for lunch while strolling along the Seine, past the Louvre (saving that till Friday) and across the river to the Musee d'Orsay. So many people have mentioned what an amazing gallery this is and they totally undersold it. If they'd told me exactly which art works were in this gallery, I would've been breaking down the door as soon as I arrived in Paris. The d'Orsay has The Paintings That Created Modern Art, that gave birth to Impressionism and everything that came after. Serious shit, in other words!
Of course, I was absolutely exhausted, but somehow you forget how much your back hurts when you're standing in front of a room full of amazing Pointillist paintings, van Gogh's, a haystack by Monet, Gaugin's tropical pieces. Better, I was having a sit down and trying to work out if there was anything on the final floor that I wanted to see when I suddenly realised in my haze that a painting was giving me the eye through a gap in a gallery wall. Oh yes, that would be Edouard Manet's 'Olympia'. This painting and one other Manet are The Paintings, as far as I'm concerned. They started everything. And one of them was seriously glaring at me and saying 'Get up you lazy thing, you haven't seen the best stuff yet'. And I really hadn't.
Round the corner were more Monet's and Renoir's and OH MY GOD! 'Le Dejeuner Sur L'Herbe'!!!! Manet's 'Luncheon on the Grass'. So that and 'Olympia' and you have my entire line up of celebrity paintings almost entirely in one building! CRAZY. Stood there gaping like a ten year old meeting Harry Potter, before moving on to gape at 'Olympia' properly. Incredible. One of the most incredible days, painting-wise.
Then I decided to walk to the Opera Garnier, accidentally took the circuitous route when I got distracted at the Place Concorde and along the Rue du Faubourg Saint-Honore. This is where the fashion aspect of Paris comes out, this street is where Hermes and Chanel hang out, and all their gorgeous friends. In my daggy attire I managed to restrain myself from entering any of these hallowed establishments, although Christian Louboutin really tested me!
Took such a long and lost way to the Opera Garnier that I actually got there five minutes after it closed - bugger! So instead of doing the Champagne houses tomorrow, will have a slower day, hopefully less walking and a sleep in, but will go back and visit inside the Opera Garnier - supposed to be gorgeous.
In summary, I think you could say that I've warmed to Paris! Don't think you could ever come here to relax though, this city really takes it out of you, although it certainly puts back with all the crepes, waffles, macaroons, pains au chocolat....never enough time for all of it!
I am. So tired. Cannot. Stand up. Any longer. If Paris wasn't so damn fine, I'd kind of want to curl up and die right now.
Took me until last night to really warm to Paris. It is, obviously, amazing, but wasn't really feeling the vibe, the love, the atmosphere. Did some galleries today though, met a few of my own personal celebrities (Very Famous and Important Paintings), wandered the Rich People Areas and ate a hot dog with mustard wrapped in a crepe while wandering along the Seine, and suddenly Paris all made sense!
Monday was ticking things off the tourist list, Arc de Triomphe, Eiffel Tower, Musee d'Orsay (but closed), baguette for lunch, Notre Dame, the Conciergerie (Marie Antoinette was held there before they lopped her head off), wandering the St Germain area. Was an exhausting day, but I did walk everywhere and saw some wonderful things. Actually prefer the Eiffel Tower from the ground or elsewhere in the city, going up in it was actually just annoying, PEOPLE.
Tuesday I headed out of the city to visit Versailles, which was truly magnificent. Absolutely ginormous, opulent, packed full of people getting photos of the bed where one of the queens gave birth to 19 children - in public to prove they were really hers. Somebody ask me again why I'm never having children. (Ignoring the fact that I'm not a French queen.) The Hall of Mirrors was pretty cool and the Dauphin's apartments downstairs were great, less crowded and some great furniture, incl the royal bidet! The gardens were huuuuuuge, think they're probably a bit nicer in spring or summer when they're a bit greener and there are a few flowers, but there's nothing wrong with eating lunch by a small lake with a chariot and some horses rising out of it!
Back in Paris in the afternoon, I wandered round the St Michel area, splurged on some CDs that I won't be able to listen to for over two months, then had an hour of quiet time at the hostel before heading out for an evening walking tour of Montmartre.
Small group of us wandered the chilly streets for two hours and got to see places where van Gogh and Picasso lived and hung out, the Sacre Coeur, a statue of St Denis who apparently picked up his head and wandered around preaching after they chopped it off, the Moulin Rouge, plus - best bit - three of the places where they filmed 'Amelie'. The cafe, the grocer's and the park - SO COOL! If I have time (HA!) I'd love to go back for a coffee at the Cafe des 2 Moulins, they even have the gnome sitting on the bar!
And today was Double Gallery Day. Ambitious, I know, visiting galleries is harder work than shopping, back breaking work. I started (in the rain, squee) at Place Bastille, before wandering through the Marais area (rich people), through the Place des Vosges and past Victor Hugo's apartment, and eventually worming my way out to the Pompidou Centre. Seriously cool, industrial looking monstrosity of a building, but housing some Serious Works of Art.
To keep this within lunch break reading times, I won't go into all of them, but I think the highlight of the modern art works was Marcel Duchamp's 'Urinal' and 'Bicycle Wheel'. I wrote essays in exams on these pieces and seeing them in real life made them even more ridiculous and delightfully funny. These kinds of things are like celebrities for me and I will admit, there was a moment when I realised it was THE 'Urinal' when I couldn't decide whether to laugh or hyperventilate in excitement.
So many great things at the Pompidou, but I will move on to my crepey hot dog that I had for lunch while strolling along the Seine, past the Louvre (saving that till Friday) and across the river to the Musee d'Orsay. So many people have mentioned what an amazing gallery this is and they totally undersold it. If they'd told me exactly which art works were in this gallery, I would've been breaking down the door as soon as I arrived in Paris. The d'Orsay has The Paintings That Created Modern Art, that gave birth to Impressionism and everything that came after. Serious shit, in other words!
Of course, I was absolutely exhausted, but somehow you forget how much your back hurts when you're standing in front of a room full of amazing Pointillist paintings, van Gogh's, a haystack by Monet, Gaugin's tropical pieces. Better, I was having a sit down and trying to work out if there was anything on the final floor that I wanted to see when I suddenly realised in my haze that a painting was giving me the eye through a gap in a gallery wall. Oh yes, that would be Edouard Manet's 'Olympia'. This painting and one other Manet are The Paintings, as far as I'm concerned. They started everything. And one of them was seriously glaring at me and saying 'Get up you lazy thing, you haven't seen the best stuff yet'. And I really hadn't.
Round the corner were more Monet's and Renoir's and OH MY GOD! 'Le Dejeuner Sur L'Herbe'!!!! Manet's 'Luncheon on the Grass'. So that and 'Olympia' and you have my entire line up of celebrity paintings almost entirely in one building! CRAZY. Stood there gaping like a ten year old meeting Harry Potter, before moving on to gape at 'Olympia' properly. Incredible. One of the most incredible days, painting-wise.
Then I decided to walk to the Opera Garnier, accidentally took the circuitous route when I got distracted at the Place Concorde and along the Rue du Faubourg Saint-Honore. This is where the fashion aspect of Paris comes out, this street is where Hermes and Chanel hang out, and all their gorgeous friends. In my daggy attire I managed to restrain myself from entering any of these hallowed establishments, although Christian Louboutin really tested me!
Took such a long and lost way to the Opera Garnier that I actually got there five minutes after it closed - bugger! So instead of doing the Champagne houses tomorrow, will have a slower day, hopefully less walking and a sleep in, but will go back and visit inside the Opera Garnier - supposed to be gorgeous.
In summary, I think you could say that I've warmed to Paris! Don't think you could ever come here to relax though, this city really takes it out of you, although it certainly puts back with all the crepes, waffles, macaroons, pains au chocolat....never enough time for all of it!
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