29 September - Venice, Italy

Another perfect day in Venice. After a leisurely breakfast we strolled through the local streets for a bit more shopping and to buy some nice crusty bread for lunch back at the apartment. After lunch, it was time to once again join the great tourist throng for another look the area around the Rialto Bridge.

As we walked along the banks of the Grand Canal we noticed a cluster of Paparazzi hanging around with still and video cameras trained on the other side. According to some passers by they were waiting for the appearance of George Clooney who was married here yesterday,

The Grand Canal was beautiful as ever and very busy. It's like watching a watery freeway.

Eventually it was time to head home for the cocktail hour but not before pulling into an excellent patisseria for some goodies for dessert. The pastry shops here are outstanding and the quality of the ice creams is unbelievable. It would be very difficult not to get fat here. So now the plan is for an evening stroll and dinner, coffee and goodies at home and then repacking for the trip tomorrow which involves making our way by water bus to the Santa Lucia station, where we catch a short train ride to Mestre to pick up our hire car for out trip to Tuscany and Amalfi.

28 September - Venice, Italy

Woke this morning to our second day in beautiful Venice. We decided to walk to St Mark's Square which is not far as the crow flies but involves navigating dozens of little streets and crossing many canals. It takes ages to make any progress because every few meters you need to stop to take photos.

 

On our way to St Mark's we passed the Rialto Bridge, probably one of the most famous structures in the world, so, lots more photos.

By now the place was getting quite crowded. There are some incredible shops and markets around the bridge which draw all the tourists. Then finally after lots of little streets we suddenly emerged into St Mark's Square surrounded by many buildings we are all familiar with from books and films.

It is quite an overwhelming experience to suddenly stand in front of scenes you've 'known' all your life but not actually seen. Once again the good weather has persisted, and after a leisurely stroll home we bought fresh bread, cheese and ham on the way home and had a great lunch at our 'apartment'.

27 September - Arriverderci Roma -Venice, Italy

Woke up this morning and ready to travel to Tiburtina Station to catch the very fast train to Venice. Our driver got us there with nearly an hour to spare. This train is really an experience. At one stage the speedo was reading 290 km/hr and it hardly felt as if you were moving. By 1 pm we had arrived at Santa Lucia station in Venice and it was time to catch a Vaporetto (Waterbus) to the place we were to meet our contact for our apartment. Eventually got all that sorted and by 2:30 we were installed in our two bedroom apartment which is very modern and absolutely beautiful. Even an outdoor area to enjoy a drink and a cigar. This is the view from our front door.

Went for a quick walk to do some beer and grocery shopping and to explore our environment.

Nearly time to go and choose one of the many great looking restaurants around here, including one serving Indian - no kidding!

26 November - Rome, Italy

Our hotel here in Rome will be the source of a few laughs over the next few years as we recall our time here. It is located in the Palazzo Espozisione and has been fitted with the smallest lift we have ever seen. Officially rated at 4 persons, three is a bit of a squeeze - when you try for four it will go sometimes but not other times. Today was our third day in Rome and a fine day. Breakfast was at the local coffee shop next door and then we decided to walk to the Pantheon. The Pantheon today houses a Catholic basilica in the oldest building still in use in Rome. It is 2000 years old and consists of a rectangular columned section at the front with a domed circular building at the rear. The dome is actually larger than the dome at St Peters, and has a hole at the apex which is open to the weather. The  Pantheon is also famous as the burial place of two Italian kings, and also of the artist Rafael.

Walking between the famous sites in Rome requires you to navigate along many narrow and winding streets which are endlessly fascinating and filled with souvenir shops and restaurants. The streets are all cobblestoned and filled with pedestrians and motor scooters.

Rome is bisected by the river Tiber (Tevere in Italian) crossed at various points by bridges. We walked down to the river at one point to take look.

All these little streets are the network which connects many large squares or piazzas. One of the most spectacular is Piazza Navone which features many important buildings, restaurants and a couple of large fountains.

Tomorrow we are due to catch the very fast train to Venice, so after a quick pizza tonight it will be time to repack the bags again and to get an early night.

25 September - Rome, Italy

Our second day in Roma. We travelled to the Vatican City by taxi this morning. Rosa and I booked in for the Vatican Museum Tour which included access to the Sistine Chapel and St Peter's Basilica. The guided tour entitled us to jump all the queues which by the time we arrived at 09:00 were already 500m long.
Our guide was Sara, who spoke excellent English, and quickly conveyed her knowledge of the subject and her passion for it to our group of about 15 people.

The Vatican Museum is a huge complex which houses the art collected by various popes over the last 2000 years and is truly astonishing. To properly view all the exhibit and understand it would probably take years, but Sara expertly guided us through the highlights.

After a couple of hours of viewing the most amazing sculptures, paintings and tapestries we were finally allowed into the Sistine Chapel, which features the famous ceiling painted by the then 30 year old Michelangelo. No photography is allowed inside the chapel - it would be impractical with all the people there - so I've borrowed a photo here.

The overall effect of entering this incredible place is truly overwhelming. One can only imagine the effort it took to paint this incredible work of art in only 4 years. The final phase of our tour was to visit the St Peter's Basilica, and the first thing that struck me was the sheer size of the building which is just over 180 m long.

The dome of the Basilica, also designed by Michelangelo is also incredibly beautiful.

Priceless works by Michelangelo abound including this beautiful statue of Mary holding a dead Jesus after the crucifixion.

Finally after three full hours it was time to catch up with Sandra and John. By then it had started to drizzle a bit (the first significant rain on our holiday) and to go back to the hotel for lunch and to plan the afternoon activities. After a great lunch of pannini and cafe late at a nearby restaurant, it was time to head out for an inside look at the Colloseum. The rain had eased to a few occasional drops and the walk from our hotel was only 20 minutes or so. Once again, to stand inside a structure which was built more than 2000 years ago is truly amazing. Today, it is possible to walk around two levels of the Colloseum which provides a great opportunity to imagine the activities which took place here during the height of the Roman Empire.

What a day. We staggered back to our hotel late this afternoon for Heinekens and Spumante and a much needed rest. We found a fabulous Trattoria for dinner last night and we are that impressed we're heading back again tonight.

24 September - Rome

Our Alitalia flight to Rome this morning departed Istanbul at 06:15 which mean the alarm clock went off at 02:45. Just as well we got an early night last night last night. After a two hour flight we landed in Rome, and we also wound the clock back one hour which meant is was only 7:30 am. The ride from the airport to our hotel was nearly an hour due to some horrendous traffic even at that time of day. The check in at the Espozione Hotel was a pleasant surprise. When the checkin staff realised we had been up half the night they gave us one room straight away and the second one only a half hour later. That meant that we were ready to hit the tourist trail by mid morning to see what we could see.

Our first stop was the Trevi fountain, which unfortunately is under renovation. We have seen this famous landmark in many photos, brochures and movies of course but we were not prepared for the sheer size of it. The central statue must be the height of a four story building. A pity about the renovations but it gave us a pretty unique view of the Fontana di Trevi.
From here we wandered off to find the Colloseum and en route found many other famous landmarks including the excavations of the Forum Romana.

Next stop the Colloseum, another short walk away.

By mid afternoon we were getting a bit weary - not surprising given the early start, so back to the hotel for a bit of a rest and a beer and some bubbly. Tonight we'll try our luck at one of the many pizza and pasta places we spotted along the way. Tomorrow we expect to visit the Vatican including the Sistine Chapel and St Peter's Basilica.

22 September - Istanbul, Turkey

Istanbul is one of the most amazing places I have ever experienced. It is a large, bustling city at the crossroad between Asia and Europe and absolutely bursting with a myriad of cultures. Despite being thousands of years old, and certainly preserving many of the antique aspects of the city, the overall impression is of a modern, and busy metropolis. The place is clean, the inhabitants look well dressed and everywhere you look there is a variety of stores and restaurants offering ... well everything you can imagine. The range and quality of food and goods is just staggering. The other impressive aspect of Istanbul is it's location. It is located on what must be one of the most protected harbours in the world. From the Mediterranean you first pass through the Dardanelles into the Sea of Marmara. Istanbul is located right at the northern end of the Sea of Marmara and at the beginning of a 32 km natural straight called the Bosphorous. The Bosphorous Strait connects the Sea of Marmara to the Black Sea.
The variety and size of ships which navigate the Bosphorous includes large freighters and pleasure craft and today we even saw a Russian submarine pass through here. For the Russian navy the only access to the Medirranean is through the Bosphorous.

We started today with a 90 minute cruise along the Bosphorous. As you travel up this waterway it is lined with palaces, 1000 year old forts, cafes and restaurants and the homes and mansions of the rich and famous - simply stunning.

Our guide Denise, tried very hard to explain all the features we were cruising past, but we were a bit too preoccupied taking pictures and it was also hard to hear her above the rumble of the engine.

After the Bosphorous cruise our bus delivered us back to Sultanahmet, the suburb we are staying in where we once again visited our favourite coffee/pastry shop. This time we were allocated a table on the fifth floor (the roof of the building) which was accessed by the smallest elevator we've ever seen - 2 persons max. One benefit of this was a great view of the Blue Mosque .

Having restored our energy supplies with pastries it was time to visit Topkapi Palace. This huge palace was the home of several of the Ottoman emperors and is now a fantastic museum providing insights into the lifestyles of the Ottoman rulers.

We seemed to walk for miles to take in all the exhibits and eventually had to admit defeat and head for 'home'.

After cocktails and little naps we were ready to step out once again to one of the local restaurants here for dinner. In our area the restaurants, which are mostly open air are wall to wall and the smells are delicious. Back in the hotel now and time to go to bed soon. Tomorrow has been set aside for some shopping in the Grand Bazaar and the local markets.