Trip Of A Lifetime

Best Intentions

2006-12-08T21:21:00.000Z

I had all these intentions to come back to Australia, get myself organised in a day or two and then be back online updating the photos from China and making sure that nothing (and nobody) was neglected.

Unfortunately my intentions have so far not panned out as hoped. Each night at around midnight I wonder where my day went as I haven't achieved half of what I wanted despite having been busy all day! As a result I still don't have all of the China photos on CD and I do't know where the others are. I just ask for patience.

Now... what has been happening since we returned home on Monday? Well! We've caught up with our families on every possible occaision. Friends have visited, including one lovely friend who met us at the airport as he was flying out of Victoria. Babies have been in abundance and crawling on the living room floor. The suitcases have been unpacked (finally!) but the stuff in them is now on the bedroom floor while I try to find time to paint the wardrobe.

Today is set to be 37degrees celcius and I'm planning on staying inside. It's not nice out anyway because we are having major bushfires in Victoria and all of the sky is hazy and grey with it. Thankfully we are not in danger in our neighbourhood, but a lot of people are in a bad way. It doesn't help that we're also drought stricken. It going to be a crap weekend for a lot of people and hopefully Sunday's weather change comes early and brings rain.

Hope a lot of you are enjoying the cold and the snow!

Do I Smell Funny?

2006-11-29T08:06:00.000Z

Okay, so we only have 4 days left of our travels before touching back down at home in Melbourne and I have to ask the question... Do we smell funny? Think about it. We've been eating nothing but full on Chinese food for the past month and that stuff must be seeping out of our pores by now. I guess what I'm saying is, be prepared. Try not to recoil and if it's still with us after a few days feel free to say something so that we can take steps.

That said, maybe I'll talk a bit about China. It's so hard to describe the place without photos though, thatI'll talk about some experiences. The first is the changes. This place is in such a state of flux it's amazing. Half of Shanghai was built in the last 15 years and everywhere you go there is major building going on. I urge you to come here sooner rather than later. You won't regret it because it's so fascinating, but if you leave it more than 10 years I just don't think it'll be the same.

The other thing I wanted to talk about was the staring. I never expected that people would look at me with much more that a passing glance, but here in China (especially in the countryside) people really bore holes into you with their stares. Adie has been particularly popular with several girls asking to have their photo taken with him and a gaggle of them exclaiming "Wow! He's so good looking." Luckily he's not getting too big an ego.

What else? While here we've also seen something like 15 weddings. Everyone is getting married here and it's such a big deal with both traditional red dresses and western white ones. It's pretty easy to get married here though, you just need three copies of a photo of the two of you together. Take them to the local government office and fill out some paperwork, a couple of minutes later you're married and it's time to organise a big party.

That's all for now. The tv is too loud but we can't turn it down or off because then we'll have to call housekeeping to use the "special" button to turn it up again for us and there's a movie we want to watch. Stay well and we may see you in a couple of days.

Flying Air China

2006-11-19T09:08:00.000Z

We're currently in Kunming and are still unable to post photos. Sorry. We can continue to let you know what we're getting up to though.

We're still seeing heaps. Today it was the Stone Forest in the Yunan Province. This place is really beautiful with all of these magnificent grey rocks jutting out of the earth.

The food here is still Chinese for every lunch and dinner and for half of our breakfasts. Adie was having a little complain lsat night about wanting anything but Chinese, but I still like it. Last night we had the local dish of 'Over the Bridge Noodles'. We were given a plate of extremely thinly sliced meat, a plate of veg, a bowl of rice noodles and a piping hot (almost boiling!) bowl of soup. It was delicious... and I'm proud to say I'm eating everything with chopsticks!

We had our first internal flight from Chongqing to Kunming yesterday and it all went fine. Some of our group members were a little nervous having never heard of Sichuan Airlines, but it was like any other plane and any other flight. It's actually quite breezy to fly in a group. Someone else dealt with our luggage and we didn't need to be at the airport until 45 minutes before our flight, just enough time to go through security and then get on the plane... where we were stared at once again.

Tomorrow we fly again to Guilin. It's a longer flight, but I have my iPod to keep me company... they don't seat couples together, it's all done aphabetically by first name!

Will write again once we're in Shanghai. Keep looking after yourselves and I'll see you all soon!

Continuing Travels Without Photos

2006-11-16T09:13:00.000Z

I'll tell you now that it's unlikely that we'll be posting photos of China before we return home because no Internet cafe so far has allowed us to do it. We'll keep trying though.

We arrived in ChongQuin this afternoon after looking at the stone carvings in Dazu. Pretty amazing what people can do.

Before that we were in Chengdu looking at giant pandas (I was able to touch one and have my photo taken) and some stunnign parks and pagodas perched on top of mountains.

We are doing so much it's almost overwhelming but everything is just as good, if not better than what we did before... and we're only half way through! It's also exciting because every day that passes here in China means we're one day closer to home. Win-win!

China Experience

2006-11-10T03:12:00.000Z

Well, we've been here for about five days now. We have no photos as yet though because although we've been taking them like crazy, we've not had a chance to convert them onto cd so you need to be patient. Hopefully we can do it in China but if not we'll do it at home because we'll be home in less than a month!

We love China! Our guides are great and everything is so interesting. We just got off the 12 hour train from Beijing to Xian and we actually slept alright even though at times I felt a little like I was in a cocktail shaker. Having a shower was a definite priority though as there was only a washroom and you couldn't close the door on that so it was a matter of arriving at the hotel, eating breakfast and then coming to this Internet cafe... $1 for one hour.

We did a lot in Beijing. On day one we saw Tiananmen Square, with it's giant statues of their Olympic mascots and the larger than life picture of Mao. We wandered around the Forbidden City which was fascinating. I watched The Last Emporer before leaving England, so it was really easy for me to imagine the royal families wandering around these grounds. We also went to the Lama Temple where we learnt a bit about Buddhism and saw this hude statue of Buddha that was three stories high!

Our second day was taken up with The Great Wall. We went early to beat the tourists (hehehe) and it was the right decision because there were so many people there when we were coming down that you had to keep stopping to let them pass. Adie made it all the way to the top of the section we were at, I only went about a third of the way. The steps are uneven and blooody steep! It's an amazing place though. At the top Adie made friends with two Chinese guys who walked up in their suits!

Day three was at the summer palace... because everyone needs a holiday house! We saw beautiful gardens, bridges, water, buildings... and in the afternoon we went to the Silk Street Market where if you so much as look at someone's goods, they will shout after you and follow you for an eternity. It was an experience we enjoyed though. Others found it to be a bit too confronting. I don't really mind being called "sexy lady" though.

Yesterday was our final day in Beijing and we went to the Temple of Heaven. I just can't get over how ornate these building are! The culture here is so rich and the people live their lives in much the same way that they have for hundreds of years. We also visited an area of Beijing that is still set up with traditional houses surrunding shared courtyards. We were able to go into a house and look around, meet some pet crickets and a myna bird that kept on saying hello in Chinese. We also went to a kindergarten to meet some of the children.

Now we're in Xian where we will see the Terracotta Warriors, but not before we've eaten lunch. This is because they feed us and feed us and feed us! Everyone I spoke to told me that I would lose weight in China but so far I'm pretty sure that I'm putting it on! Admittedly I have not had a problem with the food and have happily tried everything put in front of me. There's no dairy, except at breakfast for coffee and very little bread but I'm loving the food! I'll have to be careful or I'll be coming home looking like the Happy Buddha!

Switzerland In Photographs

2006-11-03T10:13:00.000Z

As promised I tried to get the photos online and it looks as thought the computer and I are getting along this morning. Unfortunately there are no photos of Neuchatel because we took those on my camera and as yet I haven't transferred those to CD.

This first photo is of myself and Nutella somewhere near or in Interlaken (I could be very wrong about this location). We'd stopped by the side of the road to take photographs because this place was just beautiful with the lake surrounded by mountains.Another stop was quickly made here because there was a waterfall. We were lucky that there was water at all as recently there had been only a trickle coming down the mountain.This photo was taken after our visit to Trummelbach falls. It's a waterfall trapped inside a mountain and it's an amazing thing to see. Adie took some great photos but you'll have to wait until we're home to see them!Our main target for the day was to take the four cable cars up into the mountains to Schilthorn, a restaurant on one of the higher peaks. After the second cable car we found ourselves in Murren, a beautiful little town, where we stopped for lunch. Gosh these folks have a great view!After lunch with the sparrows, and one giant bird, we took the next two cable cars and found ourselves at Piz Gloria on Schilthorn. You can see the snow capped mountains behind us. Breath-taking. Nutella also gave me a crash course in how glaciers form so it was beautiful and informative. And perhaps I should also mention that it was cold.
Here I am standing on the mountain top with the restaurant behind me. The restaurant actually revolves, so after wandering around and trying not to fall off the mountain, we sent inside for a coffee and a spin.
Did you know that the cows in Switzerland still wear bells! They sound beautiful! This is Bessy, at least that's what I call her. She's a gorgeous cow that we met on our way down from the top of the mountain.
We only walked one section of the mountain and when we arrived at the bottom of it, we had to wait for our cable car. We sat at the tables of a backpackers next to the station. can you believe the view they have? They also have a hot tub that looked as thought it was designed for about 8, but we saw it fill with 12 American and Canadian tourists. They would have frozen their bits and pieces off when they came out of that water!

It was great fun in Switzerland and that was mostly thanks to having a fantastic guide. Thanks Nutella!

Wicked... Is!

2006-11-01T17:23:00.000Z

It just occured to me that I never posted about our trip to see 'Wicked' a musical based on the lives of the witches of Oz.

Adie and I decided to take his cousing for her birthday a couple of weeks ago. Tobe honest, I wasn't expecting it to be all that good. I'd heard a bad review from someone and it had stuck in my mind.

Well, I don't know what that person was talking about. I found this musical to be brilliant, and a lot of it had to do with the woman playing Elphaba, Idina Menzel. When they decided to bring her out from America to reprise this role they were doing the right thing. Man, can this woman sing! If you're curious and not likely to come to England any time soon, she apparently plays the role of Mimi in the film version of Rent. (But I could be wrong, and I'm sure someone will correct me if I am.)

I loved everything about this musical. The sets were inspired and filled with symbolism. The music was heavy and made you feel. The costumes were interesting and helped define all characters (including chorus). The singing (apart from maybe Adam Garcia who I thought was a little weak compared to the women, but maybe he had a cold). The storyline was witty and clever and had a message... if you were looking for one. The acting was passionate and heartfelt. Oh Fiyero! I could go on and on and on...

All three of us thoroughly enjoyed it. I was the only one of us to cry, but certainly not the only onein the audience. At least I was prepared with my little packet of tissues. The people behind us couldn't stop going on about how fabulous this show was. The people in front of us were uncultured and pointless. They came into the theatre with their hair dyed green and with their child dressed as a witch. I thought, now here are some real fans! Throughout the entire first act they rustled bags of lollies and the husband and wife, obviously too far from each other with their child sitting between them, sent text messages to each other during the performance! These people have no class and no respect for theatre! Thankfully they left during interval. I'm thinking that there was too much depth in the storyline for them to handle.

So, if you get the chance you must see Wicked. Riss and I will be going as soon as it comes to Melbourne (for it had better come to Melbourne!)... anyone else up for it?

A Spoonful Of Nutella

2006-11-01T16:57:00.000Z

We were lucky last week to do some final European travelling. I spent a few days with my Aunty Namesake in Germany, where we ate too much good food and talked more than I thought was humanly possible (especially with the amount of German I have).

Then I met up with Adie at Heathrow and we flew to Basel to meet a friend of ours who I will call Nutella (due to his insatiable love of the chocolatey stuff!

As was bound to happen at some point in our travels, my bag didn't manage to arrive in Basel with us. BA very kindly gave me some toiletries and a t-shirt (white, no doubt because I was wearing a black bra at the time). I think perhaps they should also consider including a pair of underpants as that is what I really wanted. Thankfully, after 36 hours my bag arrived. I wonder what it did with all that extra time? It could have bought me a souvenir!

Nutella is German but lives and works in Szitzerland, so we got a double deal. We spent our first day in Freiburg checking out the town and then went to Switzerland from there.

Switzerland was just gorgeous. Autumn has come late as so we were lucky enough to see all of the colours... and eventually you will be able to also (when the computer is willing to play ball and actually load the freakin' photos!!!).

We drove around Interlaken (I think) on our way to Schiltorn, a restuarant on top of a 3000 metre mountain top used in the 007 film 'On Her Majesty's Secret Service'... or something like that. We had to take four cable cars up to the top and the views were breath-taking. We could see the Eiger and Jungfrau whenever the clouds cleared.

I wish that the photos had worked. :( I'll try again tomorrow. There seems to be more trouble with the computer in the evening than during the day so it may work better then.

So What'[s Been Happening Lately?

2006-10-19T11:13:00.000Z

The short answer to that is... not all that much. Adie is working back at his old job. They asked him to apply for a full time position for the next twelve months and he was totally chuffed, but he decided that he already missed family and friends too much to be away for another whole year.

I've been a bit of a lady of leisure and I'm starting to feel a bit guilty about that. There's not much work for me so I often find myself at home doing things like reading, watching movies and the cooking channel or answering emails. I find it strange that now that I suddenly find that I have the time to do the simple things, I feel bad about it and like I'm wasting time. I would rather have this free time at home though where there are a million and one things to do!

Actually, I think it's also because we've been doing so much over the past ten months or so that I actually got quite used to getting out there and doing things instead of sitting around watching dvds and reading. That and everyone else in this house has things to do.

Tomorrow night we're going to see 'Wicked'. That should be quite good. I have to pick up our Chinese visas in the morning. After spending three hours in a queue to pick them up, I hope I don't have to relive that experience tomorrow! Then I'll have an afternoon in London. I might finally make it to the Tate Modern, a place I've been meaning to visit for about eight months!

On Monday I'm flying off to Germany for a couple of days, then flying back into Heathrow where I'll meet up with Adie and we'll both fly to Switzerland for the weekend to see a friend. Once we're back from that trip, we'll only have another five days in England before we leave for China. I really cannot get over how quickly times flies.

Well, I'd better be off. I recieved two letter today from fabulous friends back home and I must reply immediately... it's great to have a purpose!

We Eat Ham And Jam And SPAMALOT!

2006-10-11T10:54:00.000Z

Yesterday, after standing in a cue for three hours to apply for my Chinese visa, I went to see Monty Python's Spamalot. What a funny show!

Despite having crap seats (because I'm a tightarse who doesn't like to spend more than £20 on my theatre tickets) I thoroughly enjoyed this show and even found myself singing along to the encore.

If you like Monty Python and you get the chance to see this musical... go! I was doubly happy because the lead performer was Tim Curry. Man, was I excited when he walked onstage. I almost bounced out of my chair, over the balcony railing and four stories down into his lap.

This show had everything... singing, dancing, comedy, frenchmen, fish. It was better than I expected and I'm so glad I decided to go.

Our Time In The Balkans

2006-10-08T12:24:00.000Z

I suspect that there is either a picture that won't work or a photo of Adie chatting up a statue in one of our hotels at the beginning of this post but I can't be sure because it won't load properly so I'll leave it to chance.

We had a great time in the Balkans, especially in Croatia (but I suspect that was because we spent more time there than in the other two countries.) I'm so glad that we decided to book this trip. We started in Slovenia where we had one brief afternoon to ourselves before setting off on tour the next day. We decided to go for a wander and ended up in Park Tivoli, a huge a gorgeous park filled with statues, tree-lined promenades, grassy fields and so many people taking advantage of the good weather. The next two photos were taken in this park.

Our first day of touring took us into the Postojna Caves of Slovenia. These are naturally formed caves filled with stalactites and stalagmites all stuggling to join after years of inching towards each other. Unfortunately we weren't allowed to take photos, and those that Adie took before we read the sign didn't work particularly well, because this place was stunning. You feel so overwhelmed as you walk through the different chambers. What nature can do is just amazing. Here's Adie standing waiting to go in... I'm sure there's some symbolism here, if only I could put my finger on it. From Slovenia we headed straight to the sunny coastlines of Croatia. Our first stop was Split, where we saw ancient Roman ruins. Man, those Romans knew how to get around! In this photo I'm standing in front of (and on top of) the Sea Organ, a manmade structure that uses the waves and wind to create music. It's incredible to hear... although apparently the locals aren't too thrilled, expecially when the weather turns stormy! Who can say 'howling banshee'? From Split we went to Dubrovnik, where we were shown around by a guide who frequently steered off the topic. It didn't bother Adie, he doesn't really listen anyway when there's a photo to be taken. Dubrovnik, like many places in this part of the world, shows signs of struggle. They have worked hard to piece everything back together again to get us tourists in and eagerly looking around. This photo is of me standing inside one of the old monasteries that contains a courtyard garden in the centre dedicated to St Francis. It's a beautiful and peaceful place.

And this is a shot of Adie at the top of the city wall looking out over the town and the water. There are thousands of little islands off the coast of Croatia, how brilliant would it be to sail around them!

After Dubrovnik we travelled into Bosnia where we stopped in two places, Mostar and Sarajevo. Both of us felt a real sense of loss for the people of this country. The land itself is so green and lush and just stunning, but everywhere we drove there were houses in ruin, houses with the scars of war all over them and signs telling us to keep out because the area had not yet been cleared of landmines. Can you believe that these people still have to contend with something like 24 000 landmines scattered around the countryside?

Mostar, with it's famous bridge, was a beautiful little town doing it's best to try and make money off tourism. There were even two young men standing on the bridge in their speedos collecting money, when they had enough moulah they jumped off the bridge and hopefully into the little patch of deeper water. I couldn't bring myself to stay and watch.
Then it was on to Sarajevo, where they are still trying to build everything back up again. This is Adie in the market square of the Old Town. It was great fun here and the people were incredibly helpful and friendly. Actually, you could really see the Turkish influence in the markets of Bosnia. The only thing missing was the pushy salemanship and apple tea. Once finished in Sarajevo, we went back into Croatia to go to the Plitvice National Park. Man this park is beautiful. It's set up around naturally formed waterfalls that cascade into lakes. It's some form of waterfall that grows a couple of centimetres each year. Adie was in heaven and then hell. Heaven because there was so much to photograph. Hell because he had a limited number of shots left. (This was my fault really becuase I was in charge of packing while Adie went to work and I forgot to pack the camera. This resulted in our buying the cheapest camera we could find duty free at the airport.It also meant that he only had one memory card and not three. Whoops! But at least now I get a camera!)

Our last two stops were Zagreb (Croatia's capital) and Ljubljana (Slovenia's capital). Below is a photo of me in Zagreb's old town. Both cities are the types of places you can just wander around for hours, getting lost and enjoying it. Of course we didn't have anywhere near enough time in either.

Finally Finished The French Photos... What Fantastic Alliteration!

2006-10-08T09:34:00.001Z

Yay! I've finally cracked it and with a little patience and a lot of tlc, the computer and I came to the agreement that I could put more than one photo on at a time. Brilliant.

So here are Adie and I at Chambord, another of the chateaux that we saw on our day of chateaux sight-seeing. This place is huge, and again has pretty waterways but it's set on so many acres of land that you couldn't possibly walk in off the street deciding to have a quick sneaky peek. You'd have to drive in. It would've been nice if we'd had more time here, but we did get to see a little bat as we ate lunch so I was happy... even if the bat was not.Now, this is Mont Saint Michel. The day was a little gloomy but it didn't detract from this amazing place built seemingly in the middle of a lake. When we arrived, the tides were in and the coach carpark was under water. As we wandered around, we were able to watch as the tides rapidly went out and uncovered the carpark and quite a bit of land. You wouldn't want to be stranded when it decided to come in.The next morning the sun was shining for a quick stop in Honfleur, a gorgeous little fishing village where the ducks were bullies and I met a dog called Snoopy and her excitable owner.After a trip to Normandy we made it back to Paris. Adie fell in love with the Eiffel Tower and I think he took enough photos to show his obsession. It is pretty dramatic though I must say... as is the police/army presence around the structure, but I guess that's the world we live in these days.
We also made the obligatory trip to Versaille. Most of it was under reconstruction or being cleaned or something but it didn't take away from the enormity of this structure. No wonder they had a revolution with the money that must have gone in to creating this place while the greater population starved.
We spent 6 hours in the Louvre and saw maybe one quarter of it. It is just such a monster of a complex. You look at the map and you think no problem, I can get around this place, but after one or two rooms you soon realise that this is an impossible task. We started on the top level looking at the paintings and I'm really glad we did because it meant that I had the energy to look at the things that I really liked. It was also much less crowded up there. The 'Mona Lisa' level was busy! We spent much less time here because the crowds were a bit opressive and made it difficult to get close to the art. I'm glad we didn't go on a busy day... I shudder to think what it might be like. (I hate to admit it, but it was also pretty cool to see the pyramid and inverted pyramid that I'd heard about in a certain best selling novel.)
As interesting as the Louvre was, I prefered the works in the Musee D'Orsay. This is me in the main hall. There was just so much fantastic art here and almost all of it to my taste. They also have a fantastic section dedicated to Art Nouveau. Stunning!
Our last day in Paris was spent wandering along the Champs Elysee and just soaking up the atmosphere. Paris really does have a special feeling about it that's just so peaceful and yet exciting at the same time. Here I am at the banks of the Seine. I'm so glad we went.
So, my verdict on France is that everyone should experience it if given the opportunity. Should we ever get the chance to go back though, I'd like to hire a car and just drive around stopping wherever looked interesting. We had such a good introduction in the two weeks that I think this would definitely be a possibility.

More France... Frame By Frame

2006-10-08T09:34:00.000Z

I'm not sure what's going on in the mechanical mind of this computer, but it's not letting me do what I want to do. I may need to post one photo at a time. Joy! (I hope you noted the sarcasm there.) I guess that's better than no photos at all hey.

So, this is moi in Chenonceau. Pretty. We spent a day in the chateau district and this was the first place we visitied. It's just lovely, with a river running under it and tapestries so old you fear to breathe on them in case they crumble to dust. Adie had a ball taking photos here... I lost him at one point for about half an hour as he went in search of the perfect shot.

Hello Out There And A Big Congratulations

2006-10-06T10:17:00.000Z

Now, I don't normally talk about my friends on here, but I'm making two exceptions today.

Exception #1
CONGRATULATIONS!!! Two very dear friends of mine have just become parents and now have another little boy in the house. (The first being dad, in case you missed my subtlety, although I have to say that by "little boy" I of course mean youthful and young at heart.) I can't wait to meet the new member of this family!

Exception #2
There was a fantastic Canadian couple that Adie and I met on our travels in France. I would love for them to get in touch with me as I have packed their details in the bottom of a box that at best will meet up with me again just before Christmas and at worst will journey via South Africa to Australia and eventually make it home for Easter. So, if you read this, please send us an email or post a comment.

With excpetions done I shall now exit, stage left.

House-keeping

2006-10-06T10:07:00.000Z

Firstly, to those of you who like it when I post weekly (or more frequently even), I'm sorry for the recent absence. I do have reasons though.

Reason #1
Adie and I spent a week wandering around Slovenia, Croatia and Bosnia and had some trouble finding and Internet cafe in our limited spare time.

Reason #2
In less than one month we leave the UK for a month in China before coming home and as a result we have boxes to pack and send, visas to apply for and last minute loose ends to tie up.

Reason #3
I suffered from what would have to be the worst case of gastro I have ever had. I was actually vomitting. Now, for most people this may seem reasonable, but I don't do vomit. The last time I did was 10 years ago... once. And before that I think I was 10. Any memories from when I was a baby have obviously been buried so deep I can no longer retrieve them without hypnosis. This all resulted in my not really wanting to do much more than sleep in the bathtub.

Now, I will post the photos we took on our most recent trip as soon as possible, but please understand that this takes far more time than typing (up to 10 minutes per photo) and I still have to check the boxes thoroughly so that Australian customes don't decide to delve in and serch for things to seize.

So, until then. Happy trails and don't do anything I wouldn't do.

Some Quick Picks From France

2006-09-22T11:25:00.000Z

Have to catch a lift into town, so this will have to be brief. There will be more photos of France at some point... could be anywhere from today to a week from now. I just don't know.
The first two photos are from our first little town in France called Beune. A lovely place where I was able to eat my first brie baguette and my first pastry!I think this is Lyon, but I'm not 100%. Anyone else know?
The next two photos are in Avignon. Another beautiful little town. The River Rhone is behind us.
This is Monte Carlo. I didn't realise we would go to the Principality of Monaco. Another place for Adie to add to his list. This place was kinda weird though. We did love the gardens but avoided the casinos.Finally we have photos of Nice. This is a stunning resort town filled with pebbled beaches and little shops that you get lost in. The first photo shows Adie in amongst some of those shops I mentioned and the second photo is at the beach (obviously). The water was nice, but we had warmer along the way.

Well, I have to scram. Will write again soon.

Why Don't More People Travel With Helen Wong?

2006-09-20T13:35:00.000Z

Unfortunately we've just recieved an email to let us know that the tour we'd booked November (a month through China) has been cancelled due to lack of numbers. Can't be helped I guess but what a pain in the butt!

Our travel agent has been great and is trying to find us a place on an alternative tour that fits our current dates. We'll have to make a decision before we head off next week so that we can definitely get onto a tour and so we're not stuck trying to get around China on our own.

I guess this means we're with Wendy Wu rather than Helen Wong!

The History And Variety Of Turkiye

2006-09-20T12:47:00.000Z

There was no end to the amazing places we were able to see while in Turkey. Here you can see Adie at the 'Cotton Castles' which are naturally formed due to the minerals in the water in the area. There were so many people here it was just nuts. Most of them were running around in little more than a bikini or speedos. Adie and I chose to leave our clothing on.One of the best days of sight seeing for me was the day we went to Ephesus. But before going to the site, we went to the Virgin Mary's House. Here is Adie standing in front of it under the shade of a lovely tree. There was suposedly a mystical spring here that can grant wishes, but I drank some and nothing happened. maybe it's a belief thing.And now to Ephesus. Here I am in the small amphitheatre at the top of the town. You see, the great thing about Ephesus is that it is a town very much like Pompei, the difference is that this place wasn't covered in a volcano.Here is Adie with a spectacular view of the main amphitheatre that we had just walked around and then left. It is just amazing what people were capable of building using none of the technology that we have today... and to see how much of it is still standing! Brilliant.
Here we are in front of the library. This place is something else. There are inscriptions inside it and the two story facade is stunning. As you walk over to it you can see between the large slabs beneath your feet and you soon realise that there are storage rooms (like cellars) directly beneath you. The other thing to consider is that these may be tunnels leading to the brothels so that men could say "See you later dear, I'm going to the library to do some serious pondering" and then bugger off to those women of the night. Cheeky!
Me and my hat at the end of one of the two main streets of Ephesus. They are in the process of working on a huge section of houses down the end of this street that will be fascinating to look at. I'll give it at least 10 years though because (a) there's still so much more of the world to see and (b) I wouldn't want it to still be unfinished.
Now here's me standing in a hole at the Asclepion (place of healing). There is a small natural spring at my feet... can you see it? The amphitheatre behind me was used to show comedies to help ensure that patients had both a healthy mind and healthy body.
Our next site was the Acropolis at Bergama. Again the structures here that have withstood the test of time are quite stunning. While the pillars are reconstructed, it's still amazing to have as much of the original as they do so that they can put it all back together again. And just check out the view from the top of this hill! Stunning!
Now we did make it to Troy, where there is the lame Trojan Horse. The excavations there are pretty good though, not that I've included any photos here. They have recently discovered a mudbrick house there that they are in the process of excavating. Very interesting. We also were able to see the Trojan Horse that was used in the film Troy with Brad PItt (sadly no Brad though). A local council bought it for US$20 000 and stuck in on the foreshore. I think it looks pretty impressive and it's much better thatn the children's play equipment on the actual site.

The last photo from Turkey is of Adie at Anzac Cove. This was a pretty moving place and we learnt a lot while here about the fighting going on and the relationships that developed between the anzacs and the turks. We also had a man whose dad was fighting here and for him it was a very profound experience.

So, that's our Turkey experience in a nutshell. I'll do France sometime this week and then we're off again for a week to check out Bosnia, Croatia and Slovenia. Then I guess I'll post about those too.

It's Istanbul but was Constantinople

2006-09-19T12:26:00.000Z

It's about time I hear our parents sigh! Adie and I really loved Turkey. There is just so much to see and it's all varied and interesting. We also loved the people, especially the restaurant owner who shouted us dessert.

So, I'm starting with Istanbul. Here you can see Adie in front of Hagia Sophia, the christian church, that is across the road from the Blue Mosque. Unfortuantely you can't see the amazing structure that is the Blue Mosque, but rest assured because we have many photos of that also.

This somewhat blurry picture os of me and some huge marble urn inside Hagia Sophia. I included it because although it's blurry (or perhaps because it's blurry) I think I look pretty good in it... don't you agree?After we'd spent some time in the heart of all that religion, we went to Topkapi Palace. This place is from the times of the sultans and it is crazy in it's wealth and grandeur. We are standing out the back of the place in this photo with it's view of the Bosphorus. A little brezzy, but stunning!
This is another section behind some of the rooms that display various riches that came from the Sultan's treasury. Don't you think Adie could model for Target?
On our final day in Istanbul we went to the Grand Bazaar, nice and early in the morning so that the crowd weren't too bad. It's a spectacular place, but you rally have to be prepared for the charming Turks and their desire to sell you something thatcould be somewhat dubious in terms of it's quality... kinda like the watch I bought that has since stopped moving. It does still make a ticking sound though.
Now it's time for washing to be put out in the sunshine and for me to call the Chinese Embassy. If I get that done quickly, I will do another entry or two.

Gaudi Oranges?

2006-09-02T17:12:00.000Z

While wandering around Spain on our own for a week, we came to the realisation that we really enjoy going on tours in countries that we've never visited before. We just had no-one to go to when we wanted to ask questions... about buildings, culture, where the nearest supermarket was. I guess we've been a bit spoiled.

We both thought that Barcelona was a beautiful city filled with gorgeous buildings. You could wander around the streets and really allow your imagination to transport you to another time. (It was the smelliest city we've been to though, and that did interrupt the happy thoughts on occaision.)

We decided to take the hop-on hop-off bus for two days around the city and it was great because we got some of the information we wanted while having the chance to se all of the important sights. Adie mainly wanted to see Gaudi's work so those were the stops we made most frequently. His work is so unique and quite beautiful, although I guess that's a matter of opinion. Here you can see me lounging near some of the beautifully mosaicked seats at the top of the Park Guell.
The city of Barcelona seems to be consistently busy after about 11am. Before then I think everyone sleeps. It's vibrant and exciting, especially around the Ramblas. We didn't really venture out much at night though, contenting ourselves with day trips. (We'd just heard too many bad stories about tourists getting themselves into strife or losing their wallets after dark.) We did manage an early dinner at the Hard Rock Cafe, so Adie was happy with that.

To be honest I can't remember the name of the museum located behind Adie in this photo below. Not that it made a difference to us as everything seemed to either be closed (it was a Monday) or under restoration and therefore covered in scaffolding.

Once we were done in Barcelona, we took the train to Valencia for some R & R on the beachfront. Our hotel was quite literally on the boardwalk you can see in the photo below and we did some serious sunbathing here. At night the place was lit up and there was a market running on one section so we had a lot of fun wandering around looking at the things people were trying to sell. One night there was a group of guys playing beach volleyball with soccer rules... no hands! They were so much fun to watch. I found myself cheering them along.
If we were to go back to Spain I think it would be as part of a tour. There's one we've seen that also does Portugal and Morocco that looks brilliant. Maybe in a couple of years.

Turkiye

2006-08-26T13:36:00.000Z

We've been ın Turkey now for about one week and we love ıt. Cappadocia is a place lıke no other and once again Adıe has been forced to take hundreds of photographs. None of which I'll be able to post for at least another week so please be patient.

We've taken our shoes off (and I've covered my head) in several mosques and we've also been ın churches. I saw the Whirling Dervıshjes perfrom their extraordinary ceremony and we've braved the Grand Bazaar. Rıght now we're in a resort in Antalya. It has it's own water park. Fun! We still have places lıke Ephesus, Troy and the cotton castles to see.

Yesterday we went to a carpet place to drınk the tea and watch how they weave the carpets. Totally fascinating. The women that do this work are amazing. Adie and I of course fell in love wıth so many of the beautıful carpets we wanted to buy the all to furnish our house. But the prices! I guess thatyou are paying for upwards of three months labour and all natural materıals. Now brace yourself (family ın particular)... we bought one! It's not that bıg that we can't get it home and we absolutely love it. We're not telling you what ıt cost though. You can guess thatwhen we get home.

At Long Last... The Remaınıng Photos From Greece

2006-08-26T12:49:00.000Z

The first photos are of Rhodes. We spent a day there and went on a tour of Lındos. Before going to Lındos though, we spent some time in the old walled city. We leant soem fascinating things about the history here but had a fast talkıng guide who made it difficult for us to keep up. Here i am on the avenue of the knights as this is a place where the knights of St John lived for some time.Next we made the long walk up to the ruins at Lindos. It wouldn't have been such a long walk if there weren't so many tourists in at the time. I think this is one of those places that is better in winter. All of the people and the heat was worth ıt though. The colours in the water are unbeatable! In the photos below they are stunning, but still nothing lıke the reality. The nextisland we visited was Santorini. Here we are having just clımbed to the highest part of the volcanıc islands that are forming in the caldera. It was stinling hot and the ground was made up of small rocks thatkept wanting to give way as you climbed, but it was worth it. You could feel the heat coming from the cetre of the earth and see all of the many dıfferent colours and foramtıons created by the lava flow. Stunning. From the climb we sailed around the corner to thıs spot pictured below where we could swim ın the thermally heated waters. There is a lot of iron in this area so the water is red and my bathers are ever so slightly altered, but whatan experience. I couldn,t believe thatthere were people in the group who decided to stay sitting in the sun on the boat.
Finally, after our climb and swim, we headed to the mainland and took a bus up to the town. (Thankfully no more climbing!) We didn't get to spend much time here but we did get to see the sunset as we waited for the cable car. Adie took some fantastic shots and you must check them out when we come home.I've said it before,and yes I will say it again, Greece is fantastic and we can't wait to get back there!

Missing

2006-08-18T15:11:00.000Z

There has been a lot going on at home lately that we´ve not been there for and I just wanted to put in a little post tolet you all know that we´re thinking of everyone constantly and sending all of the warm fuzzies that we can.

Love to everyone (who knows us and that we like, of course... oh what the hell... to anyone that wants it really)!!!

Update

2006-08-18T15:06:00.000Z

Wanted to go back and give more details about the Greek photos I posted, but this computer won´t let me see the photos meaning I will be describing something I can´t see. Could be interesting I guess, but I´ll give it a miss.

We´re in Barcelona at the moment and we´re leaving here for Turkey tomorrow. We´re both very excited about that! We have heaps of photos to put on here when we get the chance. We still have to bore you with Santorini and what we took here in Spain.

We´re having a good time, if a slightly tiring one, and wish it could last forever. As it´s impossible for life to work out that way, we are instead making sure that we make the most of every opportunity we´re getting.

May not be able to post again for a couple of weeks. Not sure of the Internet situation in Turkey. Will be able to play catch up then though I would think.

More Grecian Photos

2006-08-13T11:36:00.000Z

Can´t say much. Intenet time running out rapidly. Will put headings on photos so you know where we are, then when I have more time I will come back and put in more info and let you all kow that it´s been updated and you can come back if you wish. OK.

The next two photos are at Mystra... a bloody big climb!This is us at Sparta.
We had a lovely dinner in Delphi with a gorgeous view that´s little difficult to see.
Still in Dephi for the next two. Up at the Oracle.
Meteora.

Mykonos.Love ya. Miss ya.

We´re In Love With Greece

2006-08-13T10:26:00.001Z

We loved Greece! From the incredible history that can be seen through ancient temples to the beaches that leave you feeling refreshed after a day of climbing in 40 degree heat. From the fantastic cuisine that i drenched in olive oil to the amazingly friendly people who will help in any way they can. You must find time to go to Greece!

We started in Athens in the Hotel Coral at Flisvos, which I´m mentioning because it was a lovely hotel with brilliant staff. The hotel is right across from the beach and at night Adie and I would wander over to swim the warm waters of the Aegean. Make sure that you remind us to show you our sunset photos from the exact location of our nightly swims.

On our second day we took a day cruise to three of the islands near the mainland: Paros, Hydra and Aegina. We didn´t have much time in Paros so all we really achieved was a climb to the top of a hill to check out the view. Not bad hey?
On the way down there were locals selling all sorts of things that nobody really needs. To risk falling down the steps I sat on them to check out the bargains. We managed not to succumb to the Greek Mythology playing cards in the end.Our favourite of the three islands was definitely Hydra. We wandered off through the streets, up and up to the highest point we could manage and then just let the world pass us by. It was siesta time so there weren´t many people about and all of the tourists were down near the port buying coffees and souvenirs so it was peaceful and lovely. The next two photos are Adie in one of the shop filled streets and tme at some point on our walk up through the residential area.The last island that we visited was Aegina. They have the most amazing pistachio nuts here that the locals all seem to grow. We found this beach (well, more like a rock that gave access to the water) where Adie had a little paddle to cool his toes.Visiting the islands was brilliant and well worth it. It really got us excited about the four dy cruise we´d be going on later as well.

Following the one day cruise we started our mailand tour of Greece. Of course we went to explore Athens first. Here we are at the Olympic stadium in Athens where the marathon finishes (or something like that). It is not the original, that´s in Olympia.From there we went to the foot of the Acropolis to see the Theatre of Dionysus (god of wine and fun stuff). It was pretty exciting for me to be in the birthplace of theatre as we know it and I did enjoy seeing all of the amphitheatres that were on our tour.After staring at the bottom, we unfortunately had to climb to the top! Did I mention that it´s hot in Greece? Totally worth it though. Here´s Adie and the view.It turns out that they need to constantly work on these old buildings so that they will be around for generations to come. Maybe it means that the photo isn´t quite perfect, but we´re glad that these places are being looked after. Check us out at the Parthenon! (Geez I hope I´ve got my buildings around the right way... tell me if I´m stupid please!)After leavig Athens, we headed through Corinth, over the Corinth Canal (which mightily imresssed Adie I might add) and to Epidaurus to see the amazing and huge amphitheatre there with it´s amazing acoustics. It is still in use during the summer season, but it only shows classic works: Aristophanes, Shakespeare. So much more to come. Sorry about the quantity of pics all in one go, but we have to use the opportunitise that present themselves. Today´s opportunity is a cheap Internet cafe with a fast connection!

Travelling Over The Countryside

2006-07-29T09:40:00.000Z

Right now Adie and I are sitting in Athens feeling rather warm... although I must admit that the weather throughout the UK was stunning and we had no cold or wet weather at all.

We started our four days of Uk travel with Cambridge, the university town. Some really interesting history and gorgeous buildings. Here we are on one of the many shopping streets.

Our next stop was York where we visited the Shambles and saw a lot more old and interesting architecture. We were are so able to wander around on the old city wall. This is a portion of the city wall that Adie thought was fun. Actually it had these turretty things at various intervals along the wall and they really helped to consider how the people defended themselves back when it was a necessary thing to do. On the other side of this rock it says England. They really do only unite for the Olympic Games! Otherwise they see themselves as being totally separate and have a strong rivalry.
We were able to go on a really interesting tour of Edinburgh Castle with a funny Scotsman who made many jokes about Mel Gibson being the man responsible for a huge increase in tourism. This is a canon that was given to a King at some point as a wedding gift... now why didn't we think of that when we were putting together our registry!? We spent a very relaxing day in the Lake District, so relaxing in fact that while in Grasmere we forgot to take a photo of ourselves. You can get an idea of the general surrounds from this picture though.
After Grasmere we went to Lake Windermere for a boat cruise. Here you can see me leaning against the railing while listening to the park ranger tell us some random fact about some floating island in the middle of the lake. After the boat we took a steam train... would the fun never end?! It was smellier than I thought it would be and made me think of Puffing Billy... which in turn meant that I did not really pay all that much attention to the scenery. Oh well, consider that 10 minutes of my life not utilised to it's full potential.
The last town we visited on our tour was Stratford-Upon-Avon. While totally swarming with tourists, it really was a pretty place to visit, and yes, we did visit Shakepeare's birthplace. We spent most of our time down at the river feeding the birds and watching the longboats. I think Adie and I may be looking into hiring one of those if we ever come back and making a trip from Stratford to Bath or vise versa. I think that would be lovely. Anyone else interested?Now, although we've made it to Greece, I'll not be posting about it yet as all we've really managed to do it sit on the beach watching the sunset and finding this Internet cafe. The sunset was spectacular though. Ahhh, life's tough.

Join Us In The Baltics

2006-07-27T18:42:00.000Z

I am happy to say that I can finally put up the rest of our photos from the Baltics. The last time I only got a few on before the computer cracked the sads and wouldn't play nice anymore.

So what are the photos of? Well this is Tallin, the capital city of Estonia. It has one of the most beautiful, interesting and potentially confusing Old Towns that we've seen so far. After spending most of the day on the bus Adie dragged me kicking and screaming on a walk into the Old Town because he wanted to take photos at sunset. I was tired and sick of walking, but I pouted and followed. It soon turned to smiles as I saw that it was worth it. The next day we were able to get a photo from the same lookout thanks to a friendly photographer on our tour. I tell you it was bloddy crowded and we stood there for about ten minutes waiting to get a shot without other people in it. AS it was we still had to settle for someone's arm!
This one was taken in a town called Tartu. There were lots of lush, green parks and a quaint little town square. The square has this waterfall in it of two people kissing under an umbrella. I can't fully remember what it's meant to symbolise, but two older ladies on our tour thought that her skirt was too short.
Now we're in Latvia, in the town of Cessis. Cessis is a lovely little medieval town with portions of the castle and wall still standing. In front of the castle is a park with this beautiful lake in the middle of it. Closer the the castle walls is...
... an amphitheatre! Which is used to hold traditional dancing and singing competitions in the area.
Here we are in Lithuania at Trakai Castle. This is an area that is covered in many lakes and on one of the islands someone built a castle in medieval times. We were able to go over to the island and wander around looking at artifacts and marvelling at the architecture. When we were done we paid some guy some money to borrow one of his silly-looking, dophin-shaped paddle boats and we paddled around the islands. It was so peaceful out there on the water. Some people were even swimming and made me jealous that I didn't have any bathers with me.
So here, in the last picture for this post, you can see Adie in Vilnius. It was a nice and subdued place, but in all honesty we preferred the other two capitals of Riga and Tallinn.
Should you get the chance to go to these places, do consider it. They are cheaper than a lot of places in Europe and have a really interesting history to tell and share. Their food is hearty and they want tourism. Apparently most people don't come to these parts of the world until they've been everywhere else. It's a shame really.

Did You Know That Baltic Women Are Gorgeous?

2006-07-23T13:21:00.000Z

Adie and I have recently returned from our week in the Baltics. We really enjoyed ourselves there. Our faves were Tallinn and Riga, but really everything we saw and experienced was great. Especially the relaxed atmosphere in these countries. It's left us feeling quite refreshed after finishing the school year a week ago.

To explain the title... it's the truth. Everywhere you looked the young women were absolutely gorgeous. I don't know how they do it... great genes I guess.

Here I am at the Hill of Crosses in Lithuania. A really freaky place where people leave crosses of all sizes and descriptions to commemorate those who fell while fighting for freedom or just those that they have personally lost. The place was huge and I can imagine that at night it would be too eerie.
Here is Adie being caught a little off guard in the restaurant where we had lunch in Kaunas. It was a fantastic munch too. You can interpret the photo as you wish. Perhaps he's praying before his meal. Maybe he's about to do one of his world famous dance routines. Only I know the truth!Once we arrived in Vilnius, we went on a tour of the city. Some of the churches and old buildings were like nothing we've seen before. This is Adie standing in Cathedral Square. There was some poor bugger here weeding between the pavement stones. Everytime we came back to this central point over the course of the day, he was still at it... spraying away.Here I am standing in font of St. Catherine's Church in Vilnius. The gothic architecture was really intricate... and I never thought that I would be talking about architecture here.

Lithuania

2006-07-17T15:39:00.000Z

We have spent the past two days in Lithuania, and thanks to free Internet in our hotel room I'm able to post much earlier than anticpated. No photos yet though... sorry.

At first we weren't sure about Lithuania, but I think that's because we spent too much time in Kaunas. Don't get me wrong though, Kaunas is a beautiful town filled with an interesting history, I just don't think we needed to be there for two hours followed by a guided tour of what we had managed to see already.

From Kaunas we came to Vilnius, which is where we are at the moment. We really like Vilnius. It's interesting, there are a huge amount of parklands scattered throughout the city, everyone seems very relaxed and it's quite cheap.

We've seen a lot of churches and castles, but thankfully they have been quite different to what we've already seen in other countries. The medieval castle we saw today at Trakai was stunning and we even found time for a paddle boat around one of the many lakes. One of the churches we checked out today was covered in white stucco statues and I have never seen anything quite like it.

The weather is sensational. There is a constant warmth from the sun and a cool breeze that comes just when you need it. We've both got a little colour, but we're being careful not to burn. The last thing we want is to be miserable because we're burnt to a crisp.

We are eating like kings at the moment because food here is really resonably priced and of an excellent quality. Today I had the biggest pork chop you can imagine with fried potatoes, beetroot and cabbage. I just couldn't finish it. Yesterday I had a stuffed aubergine (eggplant). It had two types of mushroom, onions and grated carrot with grilled cheese on top. It also came with the most amazing (yet potent) garlic sauce. Again, I just couldn't finish it. I won't be complaining about bland food or portion size while over here.

Tomorow we head on to Estonia where hopefully everything will be as calm and beautiful as we've found the Baltics to be so far.

We're All Going On A Summer Holiday

2006-07-14T14:15:00.000Z

Adie and I are about to leave for two whole months of travelling and we can't wait. We leave tomorrow morning and don't get back to London until half way through September.

It means that the blog posts may come a little more infrequently as we try to find the time to post stories and photos but, as we've always managed in the past, I'm sure we'll manage again.

In case you're interested, here are our destinations in the order we get to them: Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia, Scotland, Wales, Greece, Spain, Turkey, France, Croatia, Bosnia and Slovenia.

After that we'll stay in London for a little while and maybe work for a week. We're looking at trying to find the time to also go to Switzerland and for me to visit Germany one more time before we leave for China in November.

It's so exciting! So little to do, so much time... strike that, reverse it!

Blood Brothers

2006-07-14T14:06:00.000Z

I hadn't realised that I never came back to tell you all how our night out for our anniversary went, so I thought I'd quickly do that now.

We had a reasonable dinner in Covent Garden, without bread because they wanted to charge some ridiculous price for it, and then went to see Blood Brothers.

I've not heard very much about this musical, but I do know a little bit because it's on the UK GCSE curriculum and the year 11s were studying it at Shene when I was there. I was certainly intrigued by it and expected to enjoy the show. Unlike a lot of musicals we've seen recently, this one is a drama and not a comedy.

Do to it being a show that is studied by high school students, there were a lot of them around and after the noise they created at We Will Rock You, we were a little nervous about this lot. But they were all very well behaved and didn't interrupt the performance at all.

The show itself was quite good. I thought that the music was a little simplistic at times but the acting was superb and it had me in tears soon into the second act.

I can certainly see why it's ended up on the curriculum. It looks at some fantastic themes and, while it is somewhat complex, it's very upfront in its delivery of those themes so that it could be used as an excellent teaching tool when trying ot get students to understand how theatrical elements can be manipulated to influence the audience. I'll be looking out for it at home... maybe I'll take a class to see it if it makes it back to Australia one day.

Fool For Love

2006-07-13T13:41:00.000Z

Last night I went to see Juliette Lewis in Fool For Love. My last London theatre in at least three months I'd say.

It was a Sam Shepard play and, although it started off a little rocky, I really enjoyed it.

It was essentially about two people who are bound together but who just can't seem to stay together. All set in a motel room in the middle of the Mojave Desert.

It was full of passion and energy and I think it was well cast. I do have to admit that I've enjoyed watching Juliette Lewis perform for as long as I can remember and it was a real thrill to see her live on stage.

I think I'll miss that about London. The way that actors that I've been watching all of my life keep turning up on the stage. You just don't get that in Melbourne.

Stonehenge And Bath

2006-07-13T13:06:00.000Z

Last weekend we took a day trip to Stonehenge and Bath. Both locations were really quite beautiful and we had a good day.

Stonehenge is a strange place. When we got there it was quite grey and gloomy, but by the time we'd walked half way around the clouds had cleared and we had blue skies. Either way it was astounding to think that humans 5000 years ago managed to move these stones!

I will admit that it was a little smaller that I expected, but it was not less magical. I almost felt the urge to rip of my clothes and perform some sort of heathen dance, but there were just too many people around.

After visiting Stonehenge we went on the the city of Bath, so called for the Original Roman Bath that is now a sort of museum in the town.

The Baths were fascinating. You could still see the gasses bubble up to the surface of the water and a lot of the original architecture is still intact, including the drainage sytem for all excess water. With what remains, you could actually quite easily visualise the men of the time using these pools.

Most of our remaining time in Bath was spent eating lunch and checking out shops. We saw one shop that Adie's mum would love as it was filled to bursting with dolls houses.

It turned out to be a really nice and relaxing day. Plus we got a chance to see a part of England that we've never been to. I'd always wanted to see Stonehenge and now that I have I'll have to find somewhere else to check out.

An Eye On London

2006-07-13T12:55:00.000Z

A little while ago Adie and I took a 'flight' on the London Eye. The tickets were a gift that we've been holding onto since October last year, but we wanted to make sure that the weather would be right for viewing.

And what a view! We could see out to Wembly Stadium, which was good because it helped us to locate our house. Obviously, I mean our house here in London and not the one back in Australia.

The Eye itself is massive. You don't actually realise just how huge it is until you get to the top. It was also quite peaceful. There is no noise, only the chatter of the people in the capsule with you.

Thanks again to the wonderful people who gave us this gift! (You know who you are!) I recommend this to anyone visiting London. Just to get your bearings.

Can You Believe It's Been Three Years Already!!!

2006-07-05T15:54:00.000Z

Today is Adie and my 3rd wedding anniversary. Can you believe it? I obvioulsy can't because the last time someone asked me how long we've been married I told them just 2 years. We must still have sparks!

Anyway, unlike Chip and Dale who seem to always be in some exciting country for birthdays and anniversaries, we are making the most of London tonight with a nice dinner and then a trip to the theatre. We've decided to go and see Blood Brothers, which is exciting because I know very little about it.

I'll let you know how it was at a later date. For now... I must find some mascara!

Happy Borthday To Me!

2006-06-29T15:53:00.000Z

Well it was my birthday yesterday and I'd like to say a special thank you to all of those fabulous people who sent me a text or card. It's nice to hear from people on your birthday.

It was actually quite a strange experience to be in another country for your birthday. It was also strange to be working on my birthday as I usually have it during school holidays. This was expecially odd when the students I'm teaching for this week only decided to bring me in cards and chocolate. I say don't look a gift horse in the mouth... even one that never shuts up.

Seriously though, I'm so used to surrounding myself with the people I love on my birthday that it was a bizarre reality to not have everyone within easy reach. Admittedly, I did spent the whole week leading up to my birthday on a huge high. It was just the morning of my birthday itself that things felt weird. I shook it off though when I allowed myself to remember some of the more memorable events from past birthdays. (Pajama parties, the potato salad series etc)

After the day at work I was lucky enough to come home to a beautiful stir fry cooked by Chip and Dale which was followed by a chocolate cake with strawberries! Yummo! Adie has been looking after me all week and letting me behav like an absolute spoilt brat. Lovely!

This lack of a party though must change and with my turning 30 next year it's going to have to be a big one. I think Adie might have mentioned that I've started compliling lists and ideas. Hehehe. I can't wait!

We Were Rocked!!!

2006-06-26T13:37:00.000Z

Lucky me was sent some money for my birthday by my mother and father in law. To make sure that the money was put to good use, Adie and I bought tickets to go and see We Will Rock You.

We had such a good night. It's always nice when you know the words. The story was a little bit weak, but the singing and music were perfect. We even sang along towards the end there.

It was also really nice to understand all of the references to alt hings English through first hand experience rather than just laughing because everyone else was. We got the joke... unlike the silly teenagers sitting in front of us who I think were on a school trip.

So, thanks to my wonderful family back home for the fabulous pressie!!

Oh My, David!!!

2006-06-26T13:08:00.000Z

Now I'm not one to really bother with leather and gold jewellery... and the bit about the leather hasn't changed. I have to admit though, since visiting Florence I want a gold necklace! I even know the one I want. It's diamond white, yellow and pink gold and it's simply stunning. It's not flashy, just a chain, but I want it! I guess I'd have to get a second job though because even though it's just a chain... it was really expensive!

Florence itself didn't really excite us all that much. Part of it could have been the weather, but a lot of it was also because of the queues and the emphasis on shopping. If we had've had time we would've gone to see more art, but the queues were ridiculous! Luckily we did go to the Academia, so we saw David. Man, he's impressive and I honestly could've looked for hours, especially at his arms. Wow!

Below are some photos we took on the River Arno and at Ponte Vecchio. Ponte Vecchio itself is pretty astounding, but it's all jewellery shops so by the time you admire the archetecture there's nothing else to do but shop... which for most seemed like more than enough!

This last shot is of Adie and I at dinner. The restaurant was up some thin, steep hill that had us all hoping to make it alive. It was worth it though for the amazing food and the spectacular views we were treated to as we munched on all of the traditional flavours.

Random Photos Of Italy

2006-06-26T13:05:00.000Z

How stunning is this coastline! No wonder people flock here. I certainly don't blame them.

Can you believe this photo that Adie took at the leaning tower of Pisa!?! It just doesn't look real. The canals of Venice are just stunning. We were lucky enough to take a gondola ride through them!
The crazy queues at Vatican City. It went to the end of the street and then around the corner!

No Indecent Thoughts Now

2006-06-26T12:47:00.000Z

I didn't know quite what to Expect from Vatican City. I knew that there would be a lot of religious art (duh) but apart from that I had never really though about it.

It turns out that it is quite a beautiful place. We wandered through the museum and the Sistine Chapel before going to St Peter's Basilica.

As we wandered through checking out bits and pieces there were a few things we noticed. The first was that it seems that if it would stay still it would get painted! Everything is frescoed. There's also some fantastic examples of tromp l'oeil that you would swear were 3D. (Look it up if you don't know what it is!)
The shot below is of us between the Sistine Chapel and St Peter's Basilica. We were lucky not to have to queue for as long as some people. There were huge cues all over the place! As it was we were lucky to only have to wait 90 minutes to get into Vatican City int he first place. As we stood waiting, the line behind us just grew and grew and went around the corner and out of sight.

This is a slightly blurry shot of me inside the basilica. One of the things you have to remember to do in the buildings here is to look down. All of the floors are as ornately decorated as the walls and ceilings.That's the Basilica behind us. All of the chairs get set up so that hundreds of extra people can attend services. It's just huge and swarming with people. There are no pictures of the Sistine Chapel, which is looking bright and glorious since it's cleaning, because you're not allowed to take any. Apparently the Japanese own the rights to it because they not only came up with the velum used to clean the ceiling but they also paid for the 12 years worth of cleaning.

Fair enough then.

When In Rome...

2006-06-26T12:31:00.000Z

Rome is such an interesting city. There are so many examples of history that it's almost overwhelming! Everywhere you turn there's another building from thousands of years ago.

One of my highlights was definitely getting the chance to see and to wander around in the Coloseum. While there is only half of the outer wall remaining, it is still an incredibly impressive sight. You have a preconcieved notion of what to expect before you get there but nothing can prepare you for the size or the detail you find. Inside you can still see each level. The cages underneath, the arena and the seating areas. Having this much still intact really gives you a good sense of what life actually may have been like in these times. I have to say though, that I'm glad entertainment is a little more comfortable these days! One other must see in Rome is the Trevi Fountain. Can everyone say 'tourist attraction'? I have never seen so many people crowded into such a small space just to look at fountain! Admittedly, it is impressive. It's also been recently cleaned so it's all white a gleaming but does everyone have to visit at the same time!?!I focused on a more important asspect of Italy while we were here and indulged in my first of many gelato. OMG it was heaven! (That's probably why I proceeded to eat one each day that I was there!)Rome was fascinating and beautiful, but a little too crowded for my tastes. You want to already know what you want to see and go and see it early, then siesta through the afternoon before going out at night. Like the Italians!

Patron Saint Of Animals

2006-06-23T15:40:00.000Z

Assisi would have to be one of our favourite sopts in Italy. It's the final resting place of St Francis of Assisi and it has to be one of the most peaceful places that I've had the pleasure of visiting.

One bad thing about Assisi is that it's a hilltop town. That means that everything is on hills. I think I burned off about a quarter of my bum in this town alone! Luckily the delcious Italian food ha brought it all back. (Bugger!)

I had to sit down and rest for a quick moment!

This fabulous picture was taken from the balcony of our hotel room. Behind Adie is the courtyard and Basilica of the Franciscan monks. To Adie's right, we had views of rolling green hills and farmhouses. All simply stunning. I would recommend it.

I will do more over the weekend now that I've found a place that works. (Yes, there are still more photos of Italy!)

The Amalfi Coast & Positano

2006-06-23T15:32:00.000Z

After leaving Sorrento, we took a drive along the Amalfi Coast and into the city od Positano. Man this place is insane. It is quite literally built onto sheer cliff face and has to be seen to be believed! We scooted on down into town but definitely burnt some calories walking back out.

Again... what stunning views!

This is some woman's balcony. She was selling pottery of all different types and I just had to get a shot of the view she had from her shop!
A definite place to visit if you get the chance.

Sorrento And The Breathtaking Island Of Capri

2006-06-23T15:11:00.000Z

Can you believe it? I finally found somewhere to put my photos online!

This would have to be one of the most beautiful places that Adie and I have visited. The photos just can't do it justice. The water was crystal clear and in the most stunning shades of green and blue.The island of Carpi has two towns. the first (Capri) you get to but ferry. Then if you want to go to the other (Anacapri) you have to take a car or bus along some of the scariest roads I have ever been on. They barely fit traffic in one direction much less both directions and parts of the road are built on incredibly sheer cliffs. It was one of those drives where you just don't look down.Once you get to Anacapri, you can then take a lovely chairlift ride up to the very summit of the island to check out the views. The great thing about the chairlift was that occaisionally your feet would bruch the vegetation below and you could see into people's gardens, some of which were decorated for us with shells and all sorts of kitchy bits and pieces. I preferred the vegie gardens but who am I to judge?Once up there the views, as a said earlier... breathtaking!Once we finished in Anacapri and had braved the ride back to Capri town, we were able to take the funicular down to the wharf to head back Sorrento. Now I was excited by this because I'd wanted to travel in one of these ever since I saw idiots run up the side of one in The Amazing Race. Now don't get me wrong, it wasn't all that thrilling, but it was something different.
Try it if you get the chance.

Anyone For A Gondola Ride?

2006-06-17T03:25:00.000Z

So here's about half of the photos I want to show of Venice. The computer still isn't quite playing ball. That last photo was taken in some swish cafe in the main square (names elude me right now). He came up behind me and started playing into my ear so had to play up to it. People who don't really know me giggle when I'm me. Odd.

While we expected to find Venice interesting, I don't think that we realised just how enchanting a place it really is. All of those waterways and old buildings really give it a charm that you won't find anywhere else.

I was also happy to see that just because Carnivale was over for the year didn't mean that there were no masks to been seen and bought. All shops were about either masks or Venetian glass or both. It would be easy to spend thousands here if you had it.

Teaching Small Children

2006-06-16T14:28:00.000Z

As some of you may already know, I have chosen to teach primary level children for the next few weeks in London because the secondary aged ones were doing my head (and vocal chords) in!

There are many aspects to teaching the little children that make it preferable to secondary over here. Firstly, they have a little less attitude. They also still hold a certain fear/respect/wonder for adults, so they tend to listen to you more readily. They are also more willing to laugh.

There is a down side however. Grade 4 children are loud. The boys do silly things, like karate chop coloured pencils. The girls gravitate towards you and they stand around desperate to do jobs for you even if all you want is for them to go away so you can have two minutes piece and your playlunch. (Hehehe... playlunch!) They also touch you. Not in any kind of wrong way... I don't feel violated, but constantly. They lean on you like a lazy greyhound you're trying to take for a walk. They touch your watch or your stuff because they're fascinated by it. All perfectly normal and healthy, but my goodness I really hate it.

Earlier I meantioned playlunch. They don't do it here. The kids do have a break where they go outside and burn energy and sweat and then come back into the classroom all hyper. It happens at about 11am and goes for maybe 15 minutes. But they don't get to eat until lunchtime which can fall at any time between 12 and 1pm. Bizarre. I don't know how they function. Actually, they don't really function that wellafter about 10am. Either because they're wilting or because they just loaded up on sugar and crisps. Hmmm. Odd.

More Photo Apologies

2006-06-16T14:25:00.000Z

One of these beautiful and magical days I will walk into a clean Internet cafe in London that allows me to quickly put photos on my blog without half of them not working or it taking so much time that I can read an entire newspaper while I wait.

Please be patient with me as I continue to search for this elusive beast. Hopefully tomorrow I will have more luck!

This Place Isn't Ruined!

2006-06-11T09:42:00.000Z

One of the highlights of our trip was to have the chance to wander around the remains of the city of Pompei. I had some idea about what happened and how the city was preserved, but until I actually walked into the first building and then down the main street I don't think I really understood.

Part of the wonder of Pompei is that there is an actual account of the events all written down by a young man who was in the Bay of Naples at the time. That we are able to, in 2006, look at an almost perfectly preserved city from Italian history is just amazing. You learn so much by just walking around here. And you realise how advanced some of these cultures were.

This is one of the shops of main street. I wonder what Adie might like to buy? Thankfully the red light district was closed for maintenance!

Here is Adie on the main street. The stepping stones you see behind him were to aid people's passage across the street as the streets would often contain things you'd rather not step in. They are spaced apart do that the chariots could still use the street. We also saw how they white marble that would reflect the light to help people navigate at night. Pretty impressive!
I tried to put more photos on, but the Internet hates me today. I'll have to come back another day because I still have so much more to share about our 10 days in Italy!

Go Create Some Moments!

2006-06-08T10:01:00.000Z

As some of you already know, my grandmother on my dad's side passed away recently. She was a strong woman who managed to make her 100th birthday and then some. I am glad that my dad was able to be there with her when she passed and I am aslo glad that now that he has finished dealing with her affairs, that he is coming to London to visit.

It's tough when someone passes away, but I've learned that it's important to remember the moments that they contributed to your life that made you think, laugh, smile and feel.

I may not post any more of the Italian antics for about a week or so as I spend some time creating moments with my family here in London.

Is The Tower Leaning Or Have We Just Had Too Much Chianti?

2006-06-08T09:40:00.000Z

On the day we went to Pisa, we also did a winery tour... so you just never know.

The weather in Pisa was stunning and after the grey day in Venice it was nice to go out and get some sunshine. The place itself is a tourist trap if ever I saw one. People were everywhere and there were stalls selling Tower of Pisa everything! Lamps, boxer shorts, mugs, bottles of olive oil... the list is endless. There were also a lot of people selling things that we had some difficulty linking to the Leaning Tower, or in fact to Italy. Toy soldiers, carved wooden elephants and drums?

The place itself is lovely once you suspend reality and try to imagine it without all the people. That the building is still there is just plain funny, but you almost need to see it to truly understand the lean. It blows me away to think that when they were working on it a couple of years ago they actually corrected it by something like 10 inches!

How nice of Adie to help the locals keep it up! (Sorry, had to do that one sideways!

As I mentioned earlier, we headed for a wine tasting in Lucca after seeing the famous tower. There we found out that there is a major rivalry between the people in Pisa and those in Lucca... and they get mean about it!

We were able to wander through the vineyard and check out the olive grove before going into the old cantina to taste 5 of the wines, some drink that is used for Holy Communion and grappa. The wines were really nice and left you feeling quite relaxed and happy. As we tried them all we also ate fresh salami and olives, sundried tomato and peccorino cheese with fresh honey. Bread dipped in fresh olive oil and aged balsamic. (I bought a bottle of the 5 year old balsamic and i hope I can manage not to open it before I get home!)

For 'dessert' we had almond biscotti dipped in the holy wine, which was very sweet. I quite liked that actually, but the wine itself wasn't palatable wihtout the biscuits.

We finished everything off with the grappa. OMG that stuff is vile. I can't believe that there were people taking shots of it. I wet my lips with it and thought my eyes were going to pop out of my head. Yuck.

This photo would have been taken somewhere between wine number 5 and the grappa. It was a really enjoyable afternoon.

Quick Italian Update

2006-06-01T10:28:00.000Z

Right now Adie and I are sitting in an Internet cafe in Florence so that we can quickly check email etcetera.

Rest assured that Adie has taken approximately 350 photos already and we still have Sorrento and Capri to go! This means that once we get back to the UK and put all of the photos on disk we will be able to get them on here for you to look at.

We have seen so many beautiful and amazing things here in Italy so far. It really is a stunning country. The weather was fantastic all through Rome and Assisi. I've even started developing the slightest of tans. In Venice it started to rain a little, but it was only a little and the place I think would be magic even in a blizzard!

The weather here in Florence is perfect tourist weather. Not so hot we're sweating but warm enough that we feel comfortable. We haven't had much chance to see anything obvious yet because we got a little caught up with all of the shiny gold and smelly leather. We are going to the Duomo, the Academia (to check out David's butt) and the Ponte Vecchio once we leave this dingy room.

Other highlights that i will no doubt go into more detail about later are the amazing foods and wines that we've sampled, including Grappa. (Not so much amazing as holy cow!) Driving through the Tuscan hills. Travelling via gondola through the "street" of Venice. Watching the sunset over the St Francis Basilica as seen from our balcony. And the list goes on...

Trust us when we say that this place is somewhere that everyone needs to visit at least once in their lives.

UK Big Brother

2006-05-26T08:54:00.000Z

This is really just a post for those people who are interested in TV and Big Brother comparisons. If you're not interested... don't read further.

For those of you who are interested I have to say that what we're getting over here is much more interesting than what we're dished out over in Oz. The people in the house are more interesting and in the first 8 days someone has had a nervous breakdown and left and another has been removed from the house for having a way of communicating with her family on the outside.

On top of that we have three couples forming, two of which have already snogged. One quite frequently of a night time and the other just a little (I think she feels a bit uncomfortable).

The guy with tourettes is everyone's favourite, as he should be. He is the most open-minded, sensitive and decent person in there. Not one bad word about anyone and he always sees the positive side to those around him.

Two people still don't have their suitcases, which is made even more hilarious when one of them is a young guy who came into the house dressed as a lifesaver and as a result only has a pair of red shorts to call his own.

If you're interested in seeing the contestants or reading up on Big Brother UK, check out my links to the right. I think you'll find it's worth it!

Eurovision Heaven!!!

2006-05-24T15:26:00.000Z

As you must surely know, the 51st Annual Eurovision Song Contest occured last Saturday night... and what a fantastic event it was. For those of you who were silly enough to miss it, I'm here to share the highlights. Alternatively, you could check out the official Eurovision website at http://www.eurovision.tv/english/index.htm

There was the usual mix of interesting fashion, lyrics and commentary thatI justcan't get enough of. I'll start with the winners though, because they've earned it.

2006 saw Finland's Lordi win with their surefire hard rock hit 'Hard Rock Hallelujah'. Now this band were favourites going into the cometition, despite their not quite being what you'd expect from Eurovision. (See picture below.) For all of their costumes and makeup though I thought they were a little tame. If you're going to dress up like a devil why not act up a bit to show that you really mean it. Ahh well. I laughed and laughed when I realised that they'd won.

Other highlights included the German entry that were oh so country. I guess they were trying to appeal to all of the European voters who are Texas expats. (The song was really ordinary too!)

There was also the Lithuanian entry that must have been feeling quite confident with their song 'We Are The Winners... of Eurovision'. I actually thoroughly enjoyed it and can't get it out of my head. Very funny!

Of course I must make mention of the UK entry... Daz Sampson and his song 'Teenage Life'. This middle aged man strutted around on stage with a bunch of young girls dressed in school uniforms singing about the difficulties of being a teen in today's world. Oh please! Still bloody funny though!

And finally my favourite entrant of the night... Spain's Las Ketchup with 'Bloody Mary'. These girls danced around on cheap office chairs (badly) and sang lyrics like "duty free, duty free, duty free... un bloddy mary pour favour". I really need to get a recording because it was truly spectacular in a really tragic way!

I can't wait for nextyear!!!

UK TV

2006-05-20T10:53:00.000Z

I thoroughly enjoy UK TV... and justas well too when I have to pay for the priveledge of using it!

This week is particularly exciting. I had been feeling a little glum ever since I found out that I would be missing Big Brother. That all changed when I realised that the UK version was starting up this week, and boy do they know how to pick housemates! I'll be sure to give a better description in the coming days but for know just know that they've got two totally different and openly camp gay men, a gold-digger, a plastic surgery junkie, a woman who doesn't believe that people need friends and a bunch of other people who love themselves far too much. Things are already tense after only 24 hours!

The other television highlight occurs tonight! Yes, it's Eurovision time and I have to say... I'm jumping out of my skin with the anticipation. I've seen the UK entrant (I actually voted for the sad old man going through a middle aged crisis) and if he's the general idication of whatwe're in for I am going to be wetting myself with laughter all night. (Adie has told me I'm not allowed to vote, but I most certainly will if I feel the need!)

So, tomorrow I will get back to you with all of the vital info about the housemates... I should also mention the young man with tourettes that they've plonked in there and the fact that the public can find themselves in the house by finding a "golden ticket" hiding in their kitkat a la Willy Wonka... and whether or not Eurovision is all I've dreamed of.

Back to the TV guide!

Life Is A Rollercoaster

2006-05-17T10:11:00.000Z

Since the end of last year we have been to America, Canada, Ireland, Belgium, Germany, Poland, Hungary, the Czech Republic and Austria (not to mention several interesting places in England). We have plans to do all that and more again in the near future, but at the moment we're stuck working in London. Something that isn't so much interesting as it is annoying.

While we understand the need to work so that we can earn pounds to fund all of this travel, at times like this where we are stuck in the middle of a six week stint of zoo-keeping it's tough to not feel antsy and want to be out there in the middle of it all.

So we find ourselves going from incredibly excited about travel, to depressed about work, to longingly thinking of home, and back to being excited about travel.

We did have a fantastic weekend just passed though. We went to visit family and were thoroughly spoilt... whether they think that or not. We had a barbeque! How fabulous. We also had a Sunday roast complete with Yorkshire puddings which, despite the cook's apologies, I thought were perfect. We also went for a nice walk in the mud to see the fields of bluebells that grow naturally throughout this beautiful wood. Yes, it was dirty, but quite spectacular to see.

I think Adie and I realise how lucky we are to have family here in England. Thanks go to them all for letting us have a peaceful and comfortable weekend.

Happy Mothers Day

2006-05-17T10:02:00.000Z

Why do different countries have to celebrate Mother's Day at different times of the year? It does make it a little more complicated when trying to find the appropriate card.

Anyway... Happy Mother's Day Mum. We hope that you had a fantastic time and that you we were looked after on this day.

A Change Is As Good As A Holiday

2006-05-11T10:22:00.000Z

I've tried really hard not to whinge too much about work on this blog because really, who wants to read my complaints. But, I have to admit this post is about work. Changes are afoot.

Adie has been doing day to day supply for a couple of weeks and although most days have been okay, he's ecstatic to be going back to Transport for London, a job he thoroughly enjoys.

I am still at the same school and, although some classes are on the improve, I'm still not enjoying myself. So I have decided to not return after Italy. My experiences instead will be without responsibilities and they will be varied. So, instead of the same kids frustrating me each week, it will be a new group!

I feel so much better knowing that this job is going to end soon and that I'll be able to try out some other schools. (Especially considering that one of these special young children justthought it would be appropriate to squirt water at me during my last lesson. It's amazing how much more difficult it is to stay cool, clam and collected when your skirt is cold, damp and clinging. Not one of my lovelies fortunately.)

Oma

2006-05-02T11:48:00.000Z

Just one last post today. When we were in Munich we were lucky enough to see my Oma, who is turning 100 in a few days time. I wanted to put her on her with me. I also have a lovely one of Oma, my dad and myself but dad will need to give me permission before I put his face on my blog.
Happy Birthday Oma!

Finally All Of The Photos From Our Trip

2006-05-02T11:16:00.000Z

One place we visited and just weren't prepared for was Vienna. Had we done even justa little bit of research I think we would have found a thousand things to do but as we hadn't taken the time to do any we felt a little lost. This was the one place where we were lefton our own before the orientation tour so we just wandered around the city a little aimlessly trying to work out what some of the buildings or statues might be. After we'd done the tour we realised that, among other things, we really would've loved to have seen the Lipizzaner horses as they trained but because we didn't know about them we ran out of time in the end.

This first photo is of the gardens that are situated out the back of Schonbrunn Palace. Even though they weren't yet in full bloom, they were really tremendous to look at. Adie has always wanted a water feature in our backyard... I hope he didn't get any ideas here! After Vienna we made our way to Prague, one of the busiest tourist destinations in Europe. It's easy to see why. It is absolutely stunning! Unfortunately you do have to be really careful of pickpockets here though, especially in the old town square because of the sheer numbers of people bustling around. One lady on our tour had a change purse taken and a similar thing happened on Chip and Dale's tour of Prague. They have a very famous bridge here called the Charles Bridge and it started with one of the original towers from the old city wall. Quite impressive. On the bridge are thirty stautues of various figures. The one I'm touching below is supposed to bring you good luck... that's why it's gold underneath, everyone keeps having a rub.This is a photo along the river looking towards the Charles Birdge. It was so breathtaking we just had to stop. This place must be so beautiful through summer.This is a shot of Adie standing on something tall looking out over a city of some description. I have no idea where or when. I'd say he proabably knows. (I have a funny feeling it actually may be near a small church at the top of the smalleststreetyou can possibly imagine at the artists szentedre in Budapest, but I could be extremely misguided.In each country we visited there was the opportunity to go to a cultural dinner. At each one of these they would perform traditional dances and songs and they would also get people up to get involved. Adie usually ended up dancing with them because it was obvious that the wine was helping him to relax! This was at the gypsy dinner and Adie was expected to dance around some bottles while blindfolded and then had to drink a big glass of wine when he'd finished. At least it wasn't schnapps!Between Prague and Munich, we stopped in Rothenburg on the Romantic Road. This is a beautiful little town set out on a hill showing some stunning views and offering some delightful food. (Remind me not to use the word 'delightful' again.) This photo is of us eating our lunch. Adie had some sausages (when in Rome...) and I had the most amazing asparagus soup! And, it was warm enough for us to eat outside! Also at Rothenburg, in the town square, they had a family making fresh apple juice with this odd looking old apple press. I had to give it a try. It didn't taste great, but I drank it all anyway. They wash the glasses in a bucket of soapy water as you hand them back so they can refill and pass on to the next person. I probably shouldn't think about that too much.Here's another one of those lovely photos wehre I honestly have no clue about where we were. This time I don't even think I can guess! Adie... what do you think?
Justpastthe restaurant wehre we ate amazing asparagus soup, there is a park and at the end of the park you can look over the a little stream and village and just feel totally relaxed and at ease. This is a view of that place. I wish we had've had a little picnic and some wine because it really was the perfect location for hangin out on a warm afternoon.

And here we both are on the other side of the park. Ahhh. Lovely. One last place thatwe visited was Munich but we didn't take many photos there because it was Good Friday and nothing but the Hofbrauhaus was open. Any photos that we did take have not been put onto CD so I can't put them here. I hope that you've enjoyed our little trip and I can't wait to go to Italy. Only four weeks to go!!!

Never Travel To 6 Countries In 2 Weeks

2006-05-02T08:17:00.000Z

As much as we enjoyed seeing all the amazing things we did over the two week break, it is really difficult to now separate them all. I do keep a written journal and we pick up booklets and other information along the way, but it's really difficult to separate. Every place we visited had a big bridge, old churches, and old town square and a palace. My brain is drained! I'm hoping thatby the time I get home I'll be able to sit down with it all, do some cross referencing and it'll all become clear.

Now, on to the photos.

The first two are actually of the Salt Mines in Poland. They were both taken in the main cathedral down there. Although this first one is a bit blurry in the background, be aware thateverything in this place was made of salt. We have a whole series of photos of the statues and carvings down there. Most of which really clearly show how intricate this work is.
Hopefully this hsot gives a better impression of the sheer size of this one room. Adie was on the grand staircase leading down into the cathedral to take the photo. Absolutely everything is salt. The floor, statues, candle sticks, the chandelier... all of it. I guess the only things that weren't are the people and the wires holding the light in place. It was pretty impressive.
I love this shot. Please don't ask me to tell you where I was exactly because I'd have to look it up in all of my notes and I just don't have the energy for that! I do know thatit's Budapest though. The view is over the river and on to the Parliament building, which really is a stunning piece of architecture. Adie and I could have stayed up here for days, but we had to keep moving.There was this big bridge in Budapest, again the name eludes me, and Adie insisted we climb over it even though that meant dodging traffic as we tried to get to the pedestrian walkway. It was very much worth it though because the views were stunning. I thought this a better picture than the views though.Do you know I don't know if this is Poland or Budapest! Hopefully Adie will have a look at it and be able to work it out for me. Please post the answer for me baby! It must have been sunny thought because he's squinting. That makes me think it's probably Budapest... but I could be wrong.I'd better go now. I have to teach a lesson in 5 minutes. I'll try to finish putting our holiday snaps up before the week is over.

Photos!! Photos!! Photos!!

2006-05-01T12:27:00.000Z

I decided to just put the photos on the blog rather than trying to write too much about each place because, to be honest, I can't remember all the details in the moments I find myself able to write. A picture apparently tells a thousand words, so it's now up to you to design a story around what little I offer you in terms of words and the silly amount of pictures that go with them!

Whenm in Poland, we went to a Polish dinner where the entertainment thought it would be fun to get people up and dancing. I was volunteered!

One of the places we visited while in Poland was the Wielicza (spelt wrong I'm sure) Salt Mines. Adie couldn't resist tasting the walls. Maybe he's deficient in something?While down there, Adie was also put through his paces to see if he could've cut it as a worker back inthe "good old days". I think he's more suited to modern life.One of the places that I really enjoyed was Krakow. Here I am posing in front of one of the many streets that come of the main square.After Poland, we went to Budapest. Again we really loved this place. The next two photos are of a square that houses the two main museums and several amazing statues that commemorate Hungary's heroes. Our guide here was great because he really gave us a lot of imformation. This first photo makes us paught because no matter what we did, this guy with the violin would not go away. We were worried in the end that he may expect payment, but he just seemed to want to be in our photo.This is a better shot of the heroes of Hungary... and also quite a nice one of me! If you quadruple the number of people you can see in this photo with me, then you might get an idea of how busy this place gets. We went quite early, but as we were getting ready to leave there were bus loads all arriving.From the heroes square, we were on towards the palace district. On the way we had to stop to take a photo of Adie and the view...and me and a random, but cute, statue.
The area around the royal palace was amazing with all of these different areas. One of the things they have here is a catherdral that seems to have been built on by everyone that ever occupied the residence and every one of them preferred a different style. Here we are posing in front of it.
There are so many more photos... some still of Budapest... and also the other places we visitied but the computer I'm working on has a mind of it's own and I'm ready to kick it as a result. So, please be content with this for now and I'll get back to the photos whenever I next can.

Adie's Birthday!!!

2006-04-27T09:19:00.000Z

It's Adie's birthday today. He is now the same age as me.

Even though he is not at home for this day, he's scored big time on the present stakes and was totally chuffed to find out that members of his family have organised a trial plane flight for him to finally get the chance to fly a plane. (Something he's wanted to do for as long as I've known him.) Thanks mum, dad, surfer, hippy-chic, gorgeous girl and bump!
As well as the fab pressie, he also was treated to a phone call from home... even though this meant that his family had to wake up really early so that they caught him last night. He was so hoping that they would call. As soon as I walked in the door he was telling me that they had called Robocop and that maybe they would call him as well. Kudos to the people back home.

My pressie kinda pales by comparison. I'm taking him bowling. But what was my alternative? A trip to Italy? Hehehe.

Thanks also to all of those fabulous friends who sent cards to wish Adie well. He has displayed them proudly on our little table. I'm not sure what we're going to eat at tonight, but we'll work something out. Hopefully I can get home early enough to cook the risotto before Chip and Dale arrive. I think I can manage it.

So happy birthday Adie.

Religion & Death

2006-04-23T11:49:00.000Z

Our journey from Warsaw to Krakow was a busy one. Firstly we stopped at Jasna Gora for a morning at the church and monastery that house the Black Madonna, a religious icon of great importance to the Catholic world.

While I'm not a religious person, I have to admit that this was an interesting place to visit. (Even though the nun showing us around was barely audible and slightly strange.) I was surprised a the sheer number of people visiting on a Friday morning, although it was one week before Easter and many people come to this place on a pilgramage.

Our tour showed us around various places within the grounds. The painting of the Black Madonna is itself in the Chapel, but there is a replica outside so that people can take photos and really have the chance to look at it. I have to say that it is a very beautiful painting.

The original painting is "dressed", whihch means that they put a sort of facade in front of it so that only the two faces are showing. The "dressing" is usually gold, silver and bejewelled. They change it for special occaisions.

Our group was able to file through a mass and crane our necks awkwardly to have a look a the real painting. Part of me wishes that they hadn't allowed this because the chapel was packed tight with people who were quite obviously involved in their worship and as they were this ugly group of tourists with cameras slung around their necks start ploughing through the middle of them. It just felt rude.

After we'd seen enough, Adie and I broke off from the group in search of lunch before we had to get back on the bus. Unfortunately with it being Friday there was no meat. There were also hundreds of people lined up to buy the chips and vegie burgers that were on offer. The only line moving quickly was the one selling ice-cream... so we had ice-cream for lunch.

From Jasna Gora we drove to Auschwitz. Our first stop was at Birkenau, a site about 3 kilometres away from the main camp. Thi splace has been changed very little from the original while the main camp has been set up to educate people about what happened.

I knew that I would be emotional here, and I was right. I didn't wander around Birkenau, I just stood near the train tracks. It was quite surreal. Unfortunately there were some people who stood in the on the train tracks and smiled big cheesy grins as their friends took photos. Bad taste as far as I'm concerned.

At Auschwitz we had a guided tour that took us into several barracks, some punishment cells and the crematorium. There were many confronting things to see and difficult stories to lear, but I'm glad I went.

It would seem to me that the more aware we are of the atrocities of the past, the better able we are to prevent them from happening again.

Warsawa, Poland

2006-04-22T11:10:00.000Z

I really enjoyed Poland. I learned so much about the history and the people that I was fascinated the entire time we were there.

Before actually hitting Warsaw, we stopped in Poznan for lunch. This was where we saw the first of many aminated clocks. The Poznan clock featured two goats who very slowly butted their heads together.

In Poznan, like a lot of Poland, all buildings were levelled in WW2. It is actually very rare to find buildings that are very old. Everything still looks old though, because the people have rebuilt everything in it's original style. While it's a little bit disappointing to know that everything around you is relatively new, it's amazing to think about the work that's gone into getting everything back to how it was.

Now, back to Warsaw. One of the nicest aspects of this city is all of the greenery. There are a lot of parks and they tend to be big and beautiful with fountains (that aren't on in winter), flowers (that don't bloom in winter) and statues (the same all year round I suspect). Although this may sound like I'm complaining, I'm not. We loved spending time in the parks of Poland and some of my favourite memories are of slowly walking through one of them back to the hotel.

The parks were all so tranquil. We want to go back to Lazienkowski Park in summer one day because they haul in a piano and hold open air Chopin concerts as the audience sit amongst the rose bushes filling all of their senses with sounds, sights and smells.

There are a lot of monuments and places of interest in Warsaw. Far too many to list. One place that we spent a lot of time in was the Old Town (all European cities seem to have an Old Town). It tends to be a whole lot of old buildings surrounding a square that has been preserved to shop a slice of life gone by.

One night in Warsaw we went to a Chopin concert. We entered this huge park that contained several palaces. (Apparently the Royal family all wanted to live nea each other but in their own home.) In one of those buildings we sat on expensive chairs, surrounded by gold leafed everything as this amazing pianist gave a one hour performane of some of Chopin's music. Never have I seen fingers move so quickly and with such precision.
Warsaw was lovely. We were there for a good amount of time and we were able to see heaps. There is still so much more to write about, I hope that you have patience as I slowly get around to writing about it all.

An Assortment Of Fruity Flavours

2006-04-22T11:08:00.000Z

In European McDonalds, you can get many exciting variations on the humble apple pie. It all depends on the country you happen to be in.

Our favourite was by far the raspberry pie, but we also saw strawberry and mixed berry. Mmmmm.

Family

2006-04-20T11:10:00.000Z

Just taking a short break from writing about our travels while I wait patiently for the photos to be transferred onto CD. In the meantime I thought I'd write about a couple of wonderful events in the life on Noshie and Adie in the past two weeks.

We've been fortunate enough to catch up with family! First it was with my Dad in Munich where he was looking after his mum, my Oma. She is amazing woman who is just days away from her 100th birthday! Gosh I come from good stock. Her neighbour picked us up from our hotel and we were able to spend a few hours with Dad and Oma.

The visit was nice. Dad made coffee and Oma climbed out of bed to sit in the lounge with us. It's what she wanted to do and she did it on her own. At 99! (I may go on about that a little because I am so blown away by her.) Adie obviously couldn't understand her because of his not speaking German, but I couldn't understand her either because she has such a thick Bavarian dialect. Dad was happy to translate though.

She was really happy to see us and I'm so glad that we had the chance to see her. She such a strong and determined woman. It's a little sad to see her not feeling very well, but at her age you can't expect anyone to be dancing a jig without a care in the world.

Seeing her also meant that we got to see my Dad, which was fantastic. You don't really notice how much support you get from family until you leave them for awhile. I guess that's true of a lot of things. He's looking good and, considering the reason for his early departure for Germany, he was in good spirits. Love ya Dad.

As well as catching up with my dad, we also caught up with Adie's brother (we'll call him... there are so many possibly names... CSI) and his girlfriend (The Winner). They came over last night and crammed into our little flat for dinner.

It was really nice to catch up with them. They look happy and healthy and seem to be having a really good time on their holiday. (Soon they head for America.) We chatted about things at home, family and all that we've been doing. Robocop had also brought Adie a nice present from Ireland and a package from home for his birthday. (April 27th) He'd beed told via phone not to open his birthday envelope until his actual birthday, so instead we opened the other envelope. It was fabulous, with photos and paintings for us to hang on the wall. Perhaps luckily, I read the accompanying letter out loud and was able to edit the first paragraph that I think eluded to what Adie's pressie might be.

We are sooo sorry if we misinterpreted and were not meant to open anything until Adie birthday, but rest asured that Adie has not read anything he should not have and that his curiosity is still totally piqued. Everyday I hear, "I wonder what it could be? Maybe it's this... or that? Whatdo you think Noshie?"

Anyway, it's been lovely to have a slice of home after four months overseas. Anyone else who'd like to visit, we'll cook a lovely dinner for you as an incentive. :)

Deutchland #1

2006-04-17T12:18:00.000Z

Our holiday started in Germany with an overnight stay with Tante Namesake before we headed for Frankfurt to meet our tour. Tante is doing well and it was really good to catch up with her. A little difficult for Adie because he speaks no German and she speaks no English, but I was fine sitting in the middle. I'm hoping to get back there in September/October when we're not in such a rush.

We met up with our tour group the next day and that was odd... sitting in a room full of strangers hoping that you wouldn't find any of them too offensive. It turned out that we weer really lucky with our group. Everyone was friendly, punctual and no-one was particularly over-bearing, and with a group of 41 that's not bad. There were people from Australia, New Zealand, America, Canada, South Africa and one lady from Japan.

Nothing really happened in Frankfurt except a quick breakfast before getting on the bus to Berlin. We stopped at Eisenach, which used to be an old border crossing in to East Germany. They have kept all of the original guard towers and buildings and have converted them into a pertrol station with public toilets and a restaurant. Eisenach has a reputation as being one of the worst places to cross over and we could still see how people would feel intimidated here.

Our next stop was for lunch in the town of Weimar. This is also where we started our sausage tour of Europe. Here it was the Thurlinger bratwurst and we had two from different shops. Both were delicious! Weimar is a pretty little town with cobbled streets and lots of statues. We went into the Stadtkirche and saw an original bell from the 1500s. Here's a photo of us in the town square.

After a few more hours of driving we landed in Berlin. After freshening up we headed out to dinner in a traditional Berlin restaurant. The food was fabulous. Three courses including a main of, you guessed it, sausages... with sauerkraut. I was in heaven.

After dinner we went on a tour of the city and were able to stop at places like Checkpoint Charlie and the Brandenburg Gate, all it up to look spectacular in the dark. They have ripped most of the wall down and only small sections remain as a reminder and, let's face it, as a tourist attraction. In it's place they've put a line of bricks into the road so that you can still see where it was. It's subtle, but effective.

Once we'd checked everything out, we headed back to the hotel. The following day we had a lot of free time so we got a real feel for the place. We both really liked Berlin. We had the chance to see a piece of the wall that still stands, but it's all behind a chainlink fence. I guess too many people were chipping off souvenirs.

Berlin has this major street called Kurfurstendam Strasse... or something like that... that goes on for a couple of kilometres and has a lot of shops. Adie bought shoes, as you do when travelling in Europe, and we wandered up and down this street checking everything out. There were decorated bears everywhere and lots of statues, monuments and churches. We also took a train ride to Grunewald Station to see the memorial they have there for all of the Jewish people who were sent from that particular station to various camps. It was quite eerie being there. It's still a part of the regular train station, although it's tracks are no longer used, and the numbers of people that were moved out from here is staggering at times.
Berlin was a fascinating and beautiful place that I would recommend to all travellers. The history just grips you and there is so much to see. More than we could manage in a mere 24 hours! I have to run now but remind me to tell you about the controversy that surrounded one of the memorials they built in the city.

Happy Easter!!!

2006-04-17T12:10:00.000Z

Just a quickie to wish you all a happy easter and to let you know that we are back in London. I'll be writing up our two weeks worth of adventures over the next week so stay tuned.

Hope you all had some good quality chocolate to help celebrate this time of year!

Tour Of Eastern Europe

2006-04-08T10:06:00.000Z

We have been travelling on our tour for one week now and we are really enjoying ourselves. Right now I am sitting in a small Internet cafe in Krakow near the Old Town Square... and it's totally surreal. I only have a few minutes because we have to catch a bus to the Wieliczka Salt Mines, which are supposed to be incredible! I will of course find time when I get back to the UK to flesh out all that we've been up to, including photos, but until then here's a quick overview:

Monchengladbach. We visited Tante Namesake and she is the same as always. She fed us too much and then talked the entire time we were there. Fascinating for me, not so interesting for Adie, who doesn't understand any German! We hopr to get back there in around September/October.
Frankfurt. This is where we net up with our tour. The guide is nice, organised and thorough. Brilliant! Apart from two children, we are the youngest on the tour, but it's not been a problem. If anything it's worked out well because a few of the people with us are really experienced and knowledgable and have helped our understanding of the places we're seeing.
Berlin. We loved Berlin! Not just because of how cheap the really good quality chocolate was. Seeing the wall, Checkpoint Charlie, the Brandenburg Gate... all of these places are just so interesting. Lots more on that to come.
Warsaw. Here we were introduced to Polish history. How glad am I that we've never had to live under communist rule. These people really have lived through some horrible times, but they are strong and able to rebuild their lives.
Black Madonna. Those of you who know me, know that I'm not a religious type (and that certainly hasn't changed) but this place was astounding. It's such a holy place and people from all over the world come here on pilgramages, so the place was swarming with people of all ages. We saw the painting and I admit, it's gorgeous. Adie bought a prayer card for his dad and asked one of the priests to bless it... so that'll be on it's way home soon.
Auschwitz and Birkenau. I don't really want to talk about these places right now, but I will say one thing. There is a quote at the entrance to one of the building that states "The one who does not remember history is bound to live through it again". It is important for people to visit this place.
Krakow. It's where we are now. We went to the old Jewish quarter this morning, and also to the Royal Palace. It's so huge!

Will try to write more before we get home. Otherwise it could be another week.

Brussels In Pictures

2006-03-30T12:13:00.000Z

Okay, here are some of the photos from Brussels. This first one doesn't have either of us in it, but it's a good one of Grand Place.
Here's me in front of a couple fo really decent chocolate shops. Neuhaus is one of my faves and sells some of the most amazing chocolate creations you'll ever come across. Godiva is also very nice, and it's where Adie had his white chocolate dipped strawberry!
You can see the vat of melted chocolate in the window! It's justwaiting for me to dive in. (Except I'm a traditionalist and am not a big fan of white choc.)
Here's my Adie posing with Manneken-Pis. Quite a few people have said that they expected him to be bigger. Me too I guess because I almost walked right past him!
A better view of the boldlittle tyke. Look at his face! He really is a cheeky little devil.Here's Adie posing with the Atomium. Should we find ourselves in Brussels again sometime, I think I'll make my way up there. This time we had to make a move to the next sight.
Sorry this one's sideways. I don't have the software to change it and can't work out if I can it on the blog so just tilt your head to the left and voila! It's the cathedral in the background.And finally... the fondue! All that ice cream, fruit and chocolate brownie. Yummo! We even managed to eat it all by ourselves!
Remember, I may not be online for the nexttwo weeks if Internet access is scarce or expensive. But don't worry, I will be back.

The Countdown Is On

2006-03-29T15:04:00.000Z

Well, it's been on for a couple of days now. Term break is almost here! That means no classes for two weeks, travelling again and a chance to see some family while doing so.

School for me is going okay. I've found out that I'll be welcome back next term on the same timetable so at least I know what to expect. Adie, on the other hand, isn't quite sure what next term will hold for him. The job at the Transport Museum has ended and, while there may be the occaisional day of work when they are overwhelmed, he's had to hand back the laptop and puffa jacket.

There's no worry that there will be work, but Adie likes to know things in advance. (Fair enough, so do I!) He's going to keep his ear to the ground about any jobs that seem interesting but until then he's happy that there will be day to day supply.

Friday will be a short day here at school. Adie always finishes early though so it's not special for him. As soon as the last assembly finishes I'm running for the train home to pick up my bags and get to the airport. We fly out at some ridiculously early hour on Saturday morning so we're staying at a hotel near Stansted. Hotels are good because the matresses aren't lumpy and they often have a bath!

From there we fly to Germany to see my Tante Namesake before starting our tour in Frankfurt. I'm excited about going back t Germany now that I'm old enough to appreciate it. At some point we'll also be catching up with my dad in Munich so that we can... well, catch up... and hopefully see my 99 year old Oma.

Not sure if we'll be able to get onto the Internet during the tour, so I may not post for a couple of weeks. If this happens do not panic, fret or mault. I'll be back with ridiculously large posts when I'm in London again.

Aussies Are All Sports Mad!

2006-03-25T11:15:00.000Z

Well, the Commonwealth Games are coming to an end and Adie and I have been forced to watch them on television, even though we are both Melbourne born and bred. Actually, to be honest, I would have done this anyway. Adie may well have braved the crowds but I am a happy observer from the couch.

It's been quite a unique experience to be able to watch your home town from another country. Every night, for an hour and a half, we've sat in front of our little tv to watch the highlights as presented by the British. We expected the worst but didn't have to because Melbourne came off as a beautiful city with so much to offer.

There was some sledging by the English athletes about the Aussie athletes, but when you look at the medal table I guess you can forgive them. Hehehe. We didn't get to see all of the Australian victories, but we did see a lot of them and every day they would show the front page of the Herald Sun and The Age. After about five days, they stopped showing the full medal table at all and only showed us sport specific tables that made the English look good.

As a result of our being here instead of at home, I've watched about a year's worth of sport in less than two weeks. Not sure if that's a good or a bad thing.

Manneken Pis?

2006-03-22T13:40:00.000Z

Adie and I spent a lovely couple of days in Brussels, the chocolate capital of the world, this past weekend. We went up straight after work on Friday on the Eurostar.

To be honest, it's not a bad way to travel. We were in the second class carriages. Second class. Hmmph! While I wouldn't try sleeping in these seats, they had much more leg room than airplanes and a sturdy tray table. The head rests were just too far back. Food was available at reasonable prices, but we didn't eat any so I can't comment on the quality.

When we arrived we had to catch a taxi. Mainly because we were tired and justwanted to find our hotel, but also because we were advised not to use the train system after 10pm. Our hotel was lovely and modern with really friendly staff. Our bathroom has a bath as well as shower and the bed was pure heaven! They had a special deal going for people who book online, so we also managed to get a really cheap buffet breakfast both mornings. So, if you're in Brussels check out the Hotel Silken Berlaymont Brussels. Try and get a deal though, the price for the hotel alone was too much for our budget, but through a deal including our train tickets it was really affordable.

Saturday was quite a busy day for us because we did almost everything on foot. Initially we took the metro into the centre of the city. The trains ran frequently and were clean. One train ride even featured a woman playing the accordion! On the Sunday we jumped on a tour bus to get out to the areas that we couldn't walk to and to get the commentary on the places we had already seen. It worked out quite well.

It should be noted that I was on a mission from the moment I reached Belgium borders. Find the chocolate! I'd done my research so that I wouldn't spend money on anything that wasn't worth it. (Not that that's really possible in Belgium. Even the dodgy, cheap chocolate is fantastic!) There were two shows that I had to visit: Neuhaus and Marcolini. We were very good too. We only bought home one box of chocolates from each shop. It did cost us 50euro, but OMG it's so worth it. Every night Adie and I sample a couple and I am seriously swooning at every nibble. Unfortunately we can't bring any home because the fresh ingredients will go stale. I promise to think of you all as I devour them though!

Apart from chocolate, we also got to see a lot of sights in Brussels:

A couple of amazing churches, with stained-glass windows, giant wooden carvings and stone statues.
Grand Place with it's guild halls and amazingly detailed and beautiful architecture.
A lot of parks! Brussels is filled with beautifully manicured parks filled with fountains and statues. It would be a real treat to see them in Spring or Summer.
The Chocolate Museum. 5euro and not worth it. It's two tiny little rooms that have posters up about how to make chocolate and a selection of moulds. At the back of the second room is a French chocolatier who constantly does the same 5 minute demonstration over and over again. Honestly, if you already know anything about chocolate (where it comes from and how to use it) don't bother. It you're a complete novice, you may enjoy it more.
A few huge palaces that are either lived in by the current King or Belgium or that have been lived in by people such as Napoleon when on his honeymoon. We weren't able to go into any of them, but apparently a few are open for a few months each year.
We went into one museum, it was in Grand Place and covered the history of Brussels. There were a lot of maps and models, as well as paintings and sculptures.
The Atomium, according to the website it's the most astonishing building in the world. It certainly is impressive. It's based on the structure of a molecule (I think) and has nine big silver balls, containing things like showrooms and restaurants, all linked by escalators and elevators. We didn't go into it because we only had so much time, but it was definitely something that I'll remember seeing.
Markets aplenty. The markets that they have in Brussels can be spotted a mile away because they all happen under the same red and green striped tents. There is a flea market near Grand Place that has some nice bits and pieces and an antiques market in Sablon.
And of course, Manneken Pis. This is a little statue in the middle of Brussels of a little boy taking a leak. The people of Brussels are totally in love with this statue and talk about how he's a symbol of freedom. They dress him up in one of his 700plus costumes for special occasions, they sing songs about him and they even drink from his... ahem... stream. The stories surrounding him are interesting and funny, so if you're into that kind of thing... look it up!

The last thing we did before heading to the train station was to sit down comfortably in Haagen-Dazs and indulge in their chocolate fondue. (We missed out on a cheese one at New Years so we had to make up for it!) This pot of warm chocolate sauce is served with 16 small balls of ice-cream (about 6 flavours), strawberries, apple, banana and chocolate brownie. You also get a side serving of caremelised nuts. Wow! This was such a fantastic way to end the weekend, and it kept me feeling full until we arrived back home in London!

St. Patrick's Day In London

2006-03-15T13:44:00.000Z

St. Patrick's Day is this Friday apparently, but perhaps to cash in on a couple of extra days, London held a big parade and festival in it's city this past weekend. While I did not check it out myself, Adie most certainly did. He spent an exciting afternoon watching people walk past him in costume down the street, listening to traditional Irish music and eating too much fudge.

Now while most people think of shamrocks:

Leprechauns:

and Guinness:

London decided the best way to celebrate this event was to dye their fountains green. Oh well, they have been talking about water restrictions over here lately. Anyhoo... should you have any questions about Adie's actual experience you will have to email him as I was not there to get the first hand knowledge.

As for the actual St. Patrick's Day? Well, apparently the strip of shops just at the end of our street is where they hold some really fab Irish stuff. We won't be indulgin however because we have Eurostar tickets to Brussels that leave that night. Oh well, at least Adie got to do something, even if it was a week early.

Who's Afraid Of Virginia Woolf?

2006-03-15T13:30:00.000Z

Well, I'm not! I'm in love with it actually. Kathleen Turner and Bill Irwin were perfect in the roels of Martha and George. And even though we had some of the cheapest and crappiest seats in the house, the power and energy coming off the stage was amazing.

For those of you who are unfamiliar with the play, it has three acts that can last anything from 3 to 3 and a half hours. It's set on university grounds where George is a teacher and Martha (his wife) is the president's daughter. They have just been to a party at Martha's fathers and Martha has invited a young couple from the party over for drinks even though it is about 2am. She did not run this idea by George.

George and Martha seem to have a mutual contempt for each other and constantly engage in verbal sparring, even when entertaining guests. It is this aspect of the play that Kathleen Turner and Bill Irwin did so well. Their relationship was real. The discomfort of the guests was palpable. The play was, simply put, great.

I almost didn't go to see it because I didn't think I'd be able to get cheap tickets and I just can't afford the expensive ones. I'm so glad I did though. It will go down as one of the best pieces I've been lucky enough to see. Good writing and excellent performances.

Our House... Is A Very, Very, Very Small House

2006-03-13T12:54:00.000Z

Adie and I decided that you all might be interested in seeing our current accomodation. It's quite cosy and it costs us approximately £780 per month, not including electricity. Ahh, London.

We are lucky to have a flat at the front because of the huge windows. It's even luckier that we're on the side we are because it's like a picture window with three parts to it, the flat on the other side only has the one window. Here you can see our kitchen. It has all the mod cons. A stove, oven and bar fridge. We also have a kettle and toaster. Off to the left you can see into our bathroom. All you can really see is the shower. There is also a toilet and sink in there, along with a medicine cabinet and shelf.
This final shot shows a little more of the lounge room and bedroom... oh, and the dining area (that would be the table you see nest to the TV. We've converted our wardrobes into an office as well by using the doors to display important information.

Yes I talk about it like I hate it, but I don't. Not really. Although I have been known to yell at the kitchen. It's a place to live and it's ours until July when we get on the road again. I must say though, it's really, really helping me to appreciate what I have at home!

Finally... The Photos From Ireland

2006-03-13T12:30:00.000Z

Well, here we go... the photos. I almost gave up on them, but it just goes to show that we all need to persevere in life to get what we want. I don't quite know what happened to the photos of the Rock of Cashel though. Maybe they're on another CD. I'll look into it.

This first photo is of Adie at some castle ruins. I honestly can't remember what they're called. I do have it written down back at home, but I forgot to bring it with me. They look really nice with all that green growing on them, I think.

Now this is me, freezing half to death at the Cahergall Stone Fort. It was really amazing. It was a perfect circle with this outer wall and then an inner chamber bit. I'm sure there are more technical terms but I don't know them... obviously. We had fun here. It would be a great place to play. Correction, it was a good place to play. We climbed and jumped and giggled. Imagine having to place all those rocks by hand!

Now this photo was taken on the Skellig Ring at the top of a hill after we stopped the car in middle of a one lane road just to take the shot. It was SO cold. OMG I have never experienced such freezing winds. It felt like icicles were passing through our bodies. Maybe we should have put our jackets on.

This one is of Adie after we'd climber to the top of Bunratty Castle. Luckily the rain had stopped because when we initially entered the grounds it was absolutely pouring! We were lucky to find this shot though because every other turrety thing we looked through gave us a view of power lines or the freeway or the carpark. It really stuffed with the atmosphere. This one almost looks authentic though. No wonder Adie's smiling!

Ok, this final photo is of us at the Cliffs of Moher. This place is just absolutely stunning. It takes your breath away. Partly due to the cold wind that whipping you, but mostly because of the most amazing views. Again here we were really lucky with the weather. As we were driving here the rain was heavy and constant. As soon as we parked, it cleared up and we had magnificent blue skies. Ask to see the other photos from here when we come home though, they are just amazing!

What I Intended To Do

2006-03-12T14:57:00.000Z

For some reason everytime I try to load the Ireland photos onto this blog, something happens to prevent me. Today it is the website. It's not giving me the option to post photos, usually it does. For those of you waiting patiently for them, please continue doing so in the knowledge that I AM trying. Tomorrow I'll give it another go.

Sorry.

Two Sides To Every Student

2006-03-10T11:21:00.000Z

In the past two days I have seen both extremes of student behaviour and regard for teachers. Last night I was able to see them at their best. Feeling proud and looking towards their teachers for acknowledgement of the work that they had done. Yes, I went to the school musical.

The script was absolutely atrocious. There was no clear storyline, no ending and many of the songs went on for far too long. The students involved however were just fantastic. They had energy, enthusiasm and simply loved every moment of being on stage in front of family and friends. They beamed after the show because they felt as though they had been a part of something great. It actually made me reconsider the way that I've been thinking about them. For these kids, that performance was something great. It's got nothing to do with them if they are born into an area and family that don't value the same things I do.

The other sextreme of behaviour happened on Wednesday. I was taking a class in the hall and at one point I could smell poo. I assumed a student had passed wind and left it at that. About 20 minutes before the class was set to end I could smell it again, but it seemed to be coming from me!?! I did a quick check of my clothes, a subtle look at and under my shoes, and I looked around the area I was standing in. (All while the lovely little ones did some rehearsals.)

Finally I found the source of the smell. It was on my HAND! I had somehow managed to get s smear a dog poo ON MY HAND!

As the darlings started perfoming their plays, I started searching for the source of this smear. My eyes seached under chairs, on shoes... everywhere they could. Finally I found it. Someone muct have had it on their shoe and then put their foot onto a table where the substance had scraped off. Somehow I must have touched the table.

Now, in my fear of what the students might do should I leave them, I then proceeded to continue the class rather than run screaming ot a bathroom to scrub my sullied palms. I don't think my composure has ever been tested to such a degree. Eventually the class finished, I quickly marched to the toilets and washed... and washed.

Initially I figured the whole ordeal as an accidental and embarrassing moment. I certainly didn't see any malice in the incident. When I arrived home I found out thatI was wrong. I also found out that I did not get to poop on my hand from the table. I got it on my hand when I picked up my keys. Yes, some little (please, please excuse this) f***er thought it okay to grab MY keys, that were sitting with my things, and use one of them to scrape the poo from his/her shoe! How disgusting. How little regard this person has for the people around them.

I don't like that particular class.

I'm going to try focusing on the positives I was able to witness last night and not on the horrors of what transpired on Wednesday. I make no promises though.

Measure For Measure

2006-03-09T16:13:00.000Z

I went to see some Shakespeare at the National Theatre last night. You know, get some culture? How can one justify coming to the United Kingdom and not going to see some of the Bard's work? I mean, really!

Actually, I'm never really that thrilled at the prospect of watching Shakespeare. It can be terribly boring and often directors miss the point entirely. This particular performance came highly recommended though and seemed like it had potential. I'm glad I listened because I am now a fan of the work produced by a company called Complicite.

Forget traditional Shakespeare... that can be saved for the Globe. (Which I may just indulge in come summer.) Forget crappy modernisations... that can be left to MTC. No, Complicite bring an edge to Shakespeare that I'm sure was there in his heyday but that seems to be absent from so many productions of his work in these contemporary times.

*I just re-read myself. I do sound like a prat, don't it!?! Oh well, too bad. I'm enjoying myself!

The Measure for Measure I saw last night was modernised but it was gritty too. There was some nudity, sexual references, violence and fake blood, but it was all done in a way thatdragged the audience into the performance and allowed us to feel the play. That and my incredibly crappy seat that ruined my back.

Some people didn't like it and left. (Please note that they did not leave as the couple in the brothel simulted sexual acts, but when poor Isabel's shirt was ripped from her body. Maybe they don't like grit.) Everyone else seemed riveted. Laughing, either becaus ethey understood the joke or because it made them uncomfortable. Staring, open-mouthed because the performances were so powerful. Clapping like maniacs at the end because they were satisfied by what the show provided.

Some excellent performances, filled with passion and conviction. Some interesting questions left in the minds of the viewers. And all for only £10. What a fantastic world we live in hey?

Resurrection Blues

2006-03-08T14:40:00.000Z

Last night Adie came with me to see Resurrection Blues by Arthur Miller. They were free tickets so he decided he'd tag along. We thought we were going to see Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? But we had been told the wrong thing. Oh well. Theatre is theatre.

This play has one of those all-star casts...
Jane Adams, George Antoni, Megan Arellanes, Peter Brooke, Neve Campbell, James Fox, Nigel Francis, Jeffry Kaplow, Caroline Madden, Peter McDonald, Sarah Mennell, Matthew Modine Maximilian Schell, Ronan Summers.
And all-star production teams...
Director: Robert Altman, Set designer: Robin Wagner, Costume designer: Jenny Beavan, Lighting: Rick Fisher, Sound: Matt McKenzie

Unfortunately, It's been ripped to shreds by the critics. We went in with an open mind, the critics can get it wrong... but this time they were pretty right.

The script, at times, was really engaging and brought up some truly interesting ideas. At other times it was odd, disjointed and just plain unpredictable. The acting, at times, was well done and believable. Neve Campbell did a good job. Luckily her character suited her style of acting. Other actors also performed reasonably. Unfortunately the lead actor was abysmal. Either he was drunk, the director was drunk or he just hated being there. He was ll over the shop with his lines and with his action. Actors who were okay usually, really struggled when they were on stage with him at the same time. It was baffling.

I'm going to get my hands on the script and have a look at it to see if it's at all the writer's fault. Did Arthur Miller really write the line "And now it's crumpled your willy"?

Mary Poppins

2006-03-08T14:29:00.000Z

This Monday night Adie and I went to see Mary Poppins at the Prince Edward Theatre. I grew up with Mary Poppins. Well, not literally. It's not like she was MY nanny or anything, but I certainly did watch the film about thirty thousand times!

The stage production was very good, with a lot of cast members flying about. It was interesting to see how they adapted the story to the stage. Some bits were left out, some embellished and others totally new. It was quite traditional in ways (like the singing) but also used a lot of contemporary techniques (mainly to do with sets).

Adie and I both agreed that the second act was better paced than the first as at times the story did drag. It was also a really strange interval. Quite a few audience members, including ourselves, felt that maybe the play was finished because the story seemed to be up to the end point of the film. There was no curtain call though and so we figured there would be more. There was, so it's a good thing we decided to stay.

Overall we did enjoy ourselves and I think I'm definitely going to have to buy the dvd of Mary Poppins if it's available as soon as I get home.

Adie Update

2006-03-07T15:45:00.000Z

It has been brought to my attention that I have a habit of prattling on about myself and neglecting to fill people in on what's happening in the world of my other half. So it's time for me to make a quick ammends.

First, Adie is currently working for the London Transport Museum. He goes to a venue for the day where they provide him with a space and with lunch and he speaks to ten grade 6s at a time about how to catch public transport in London. Funny! He talks about safety and stuff and he genuinely loves it. It doesn't look like it will last beyond Easter, because they just don't have enough booking, so he's making the mostof it before he has to go back into the classroom.

Next, two weekends ago Adie was sick. I mean REALLY sick. He couldn't keep anything inside of him and I started to worry about how I was going to help him when I haven't been onto National Health yet, have no car and no idea where the nearest doctor let alone hospital is. Luckily the chemist was a very understanding and kind man who, after making sure thatAdie hadn't just gotten himself plastered the night before, gave me some magic pills and directions to the local emergency room. Adie is all better now and he's even eating dairy again! There is one little restaurant around the corner, however that will no longer be getting our business. (It should be noted that the restaurant was definitely not responsible, as Chip ate an identical meal, but it will forever be associated with that night in the bathroom.

In a general sense, everything else in Adie's life seems to be running smoothly. He works Mon-Fri. He's being dragged to theatre on a very frequent basis. He organises excursions for the weekends so that we never feel as though we're not making the most of our trip. (Last weekend we went to the Covent Garden Market, which was freezing!!! Will have to go back when there is more sun and less wind. Not this but next weekend we're going to Belgium because I feel like chocolate and Adie loves me!) He's meeting interesting and fun people for work. He gets to come home to me. What more could he possibly want from life.

Should you have any other questions about my husband, feel free to ask. I think I've covered most of it though.

ET Phone Home

2006-03-01T13:50:00.001Z

Well, maybe not ET. I've got access to a really cheap phone card and would like to catch up with some people back at home. I do realise that for you all life goes on and you still get to see everyone except myself and Adie, but we are not in the same boat and wouldn't mind even a ten minute call to say hi.

So, if you'd like a quick catch-up, email us and tell us a day that would suit. Noshie can call people on (your time) Monday nights from 7pm onwards, Saturday 6am - 11am or 7pm onwards and Sunday 6am - 11am or 7pm onwards. Adie is only available for the Saturday or Sunday times.

If you don't know my email, shame on you. Just leave a note on here and email you with the details.

Theatre #1

2006-03-01T13:50:00.000Z

I thought I should start writing about my London theatre experience today because, even though I haven't actually gone out to see anything yet, I saw two performances at school yesterday.

The first was a group called Orange Tree who bring Shakespeare into schools. The year 9s are doing Macbeth so that's what the actors looked at. They did quite well, especially considering some of our kids would rather do anything other than watch a Shakespeare performance. They started with a quick performance of the important bits and then went on to disect a couple of specific scenes. The nice thing about the waythey did it though was that they gave the students ownership by allowing them to make directorial choices. Eg. Where should we set this scene? In a car? Ok, let's do it in a car! or How do you think Macbeth is feeling right now? Drunk? Ok, he's drunk! It made for some interesting interpretations and certainly got the kids thinking beyond the story and about the emotions.

The second group were called Synergy and they consisted mainly of prisoners from a local jail. The other members were former prisoners. The piece thatthey showed was about choices and the consequences of your actions. It was quite powerful, used multi-media and came across as being very real because it was being told by the people who have lived it. The group were also happy to answer questions honestly during a quick forum and then they ran a workshop.

It was a really busy day, even though I didn't do all that much. I did learn a lot though.

We're In A Booking Frenzy!!!

2006-03-01T13:40:00.000Z

Adie and I have been booking up a storm. How exciting! First thing booked were theatre tickets. Pretty low key, but I'm excited. We're going to see "Mary Poppins" on Monday night! Yay!. I grew up with this in movie form. I watched it all the time and knew every word of every song. In primary school we even did a little performance of it in the multi-purpose room. I can't believe I'm going to see it on stage!

Anyway... we've also booked some stuff for this coming holiday. Two weeks in April. We will be going to Germany, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Austria and Hungary. In that time we'll also quickly catch up with some family in Germany. Exciting!

About six weeks after that we've organised to go to Italy for mid-term break. We'll see things like Rome, Venice, Pompeii and Capri. Lovely. Weather will be getting warmer and we'll be soaking up the atmosphere on the continent. Adie can't stop talking about it.

Of course our summer holidays are still being spent in Greece, Spain and Turkey, so maybe we'll come back a bit brown. Jealous? That's a bit mean I guess. Just think, in order to be able to do it all we have to live in a tiny little room that won't heat and that only allows us about 10 minutes of hot water in the shower before the tank needs 90 minutes to reheat. There are chilly nights while I sit in bed with the hot water bottle chewing on a bag of Percy Pigs (yummiest lollies ever invented) thinking about the sunshine.

It's so worth it though!

Colleagues

2006-03-01T13:28:00.000Z

Part Two in my London schools rant.

The people you work with have a huge impact on how easy things are and how much fun you have while "working". My school is interesting because I work relatively closely with one person who makes work a fun and happy place to be (Cat) and another who seems to want to make me feel like I'm an insignificant little bug with no clue about my supbect area or about how to teach it (Yogurt).

Cat is fantastic. She comes from a musical background, loves theatre and is so cultured and passionate she makes me want to go out and better myself after every conversation about her weekend plans. She plays piano, sings as she works and is trying to get me a free ticket to see Kathleen Turner in "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?" She brings in fruit and demands that I share it with her and is disappointed when I eat crisps instead. (Note the Englishism...crisps, not chips. Hehehe.) Having known me for no more than two weeks she has accepted thatI can do my job, is interested in my methods of teaching and treats me like an equal and friend.

Yogurt on the other hand is a rude, insensitive woman who likes to feel that she is better than all around her. At first I didn't realise what was going on and I would leave conversations with her in near tears because she would make little comments about what I should have done or did wrong or whatever. I soon realised however thatthis woman has all sorts of issues about herself and that she is projecting them onto the people around her. Poor, pathetic twit.

Supply vs Part-Time

2006-03-01T13:03:00.000Z

Part One in my London schools rant. (Sorry if I've already said any of this.)

While I always knew that it was important to have people in your workplace who possess the sorts of skills that we should never undervalue, eg. ability to communicate (both verbally and physically), flexibility, dependability, sense of humour etc... I have never had it highlighted to me so fully as I do here in London.

As a supply teacher you have no access to anything. Including keys, resources and other teachers. Let me elaborate... because I feel the need to, not because I worry thatyou do not understand.
Keys: Under no circumstance will you be given any. Fair enough, in some school you'd been in one hell of a lot of trouble if the students got their hands on them. It means thatyou are constantly asking people to let you in. In some schools this is easy enough because any full time member of staff will have access to everywhere. In other schools however, only certain people have keys to certain rooms and inevitably none of them are around when you have 30 screaming, fighting year 9 boys wanting to get in.
Resources: In the event that you have not been left any work (50/50), there are usually two possiblities. The first is to scrounge something from the head of department which is often not pitched at the right year level and can sometimes take up no more than half the lesson time. The second option is to be prepared by having a multitude of sheets and workshops ready. The big problem here is that many schools are not willing to let you photocopy and when you prepare for a workshop, you find that you've been put in a windowless room thatseems to contain all excess furniture thatthe school doesn't yet want to throw away.
Other teachers: As a supply teacher you don't seem to exist where the full time teachers are concerned. If you end up the only supply teacher at a school on any particular day you may very well feel quite isolated and lonely as other teachers turned their chairs so that their backs face you and not achknowledge you as you ask a question like "Excuse me, but could you point me towards the toilets?"

Now, as a part-time teacher in a school things are quite different. I may still not have keys(and come report time I will be writing like a maniac for my 250 odd students) but I do have access to resources and, more importantly, to teachers.

I am not ignored when I ask a question because I am a familiar face. The rudest anyone has been to me is when they ask "What is it that you teach again?" Most of my drama classes take place in one of the drama studios, which I might add have fully functioning stage lights and black out curtains! I have access to the Internet, a computer, telephone, fridge, microwave, kettle, and have been given a shelf and chair in the office right next to the drama room. Also, whenever I need to whinge, ask a question or search for a resource, the head of drama is there. Lovely.

Work Update

2006-02-23T17:31:00.000Z

Just to keep you updated on the whole Noshie work thing, I did get that job that I interviewed for and the lady I work with is so relieved to have another qualified drama specialist that I could do nothing and she'd welcome me. For those who are interested in these sorts of things or who like to check OFSTED reports, I now work 4 days a week at Shene School in Sheen. (Spelling is intentionally different.)

I've almost met all my classes. Some are quite good but wary because they haven't had a consistent teacher in awhile, and others are working at trying to either send me balmy or have me lose my voice. One of my supervisors told me with a smile yesterday that now that the Year 7s have been streamed unfortunately I've ended up with all the lowest classes. I could have told her that!

Let me tell you about streaming. Instead of mixed ability groups, kids are placed in groups academically. Also, classes vary in size. I have several of the "low ability" classes that have more than 30 students in them. Yay. I have another with only 15. Go figure.

I see myself as being faced with a challenge and I look forward to getting to know these kids and showing them that my classes are worth it. If they disagree, well there can be consequences!

Irish Family Reunion

2006-02-20T12:30:00.000Z

While visiting family in Ireland we managed to:

Eat far too much good food
Laugh at stories we'd heard before and those that were new
Learn some new dirty jokes
Catch up with people we haven't seen in a long, long time
Drink far too much alcohol (yes, even me!)
Come into contact with Absinthe... that evil green liquid
Find out about family history
Watch a cousin's dvd of his bungee jumps and parachuting in New Zealand
Generally have good craic

We think we will end up back in Ireland at some point. Depending on when that is, we may even go up North to see the Giant's Causeway. Who knows.

When Irish Eyes Are Smiling

2006-02-20T11:26:00.000Z

We've just returned from Ireland where we managed to do a whirlwind tour over the week of midterm break. Midterm break... what a fabulous thing!

Anyway, we started last Sunday. Chip and Dale had arrived the night before and picked us up in the hire car. We drove through some absolutely amazing scenery as we wound our way to Cashel, home of the Rock of Cashel which is more like a castle than a rock.

We decided to stay in B&Bs while travelling because they are cheaper and you get to spend some time with the people of the area. In Cashel we stayed at this old Abbey that had been sold off at some point but was a beautiful old building. The lady that ran it was lovely and helpful and made a delicious traditional Irish breakfast for us in the morning.

Monday saw us going to the Rock of Cashel itself. This castle is constantly under refurbishment in some way or another, but it still has small portions of the original frescoes painted on the walls and ceiling. It also has some amazing carvings around the doorways and on the sarcophagi. Faces, dragons, human figures. There is also a cemetery around the main building and people who can claim ancestry can still be buried there.

From Cashel we headed towards Kilarny, one of the most visited places in Ireland. Of course we saw an awful lot on the way there, but I just can't write that much here... you'll have to wait for your invite to our photo marathon. Coming to a loungeroom near you in 2007! Hehehe.

We again found a B&B in Kilarney and again the people who ran it were incredibly talkative. This worked out really well because it meant that we found out all about the best places to eat and to visit.

Tuesday started again with an Irish breakfast. Chip was funny because he saw a big bowl of fruit and so helped himself to a rather large portion. Unfortunately for him, what he thought was pear turned out to be grapefruit. Oops. Maybe I should have warned him.

We started our daily travels with a quick photo opportunity at Ross Castle down the road before heading for the Ring of Kerry. We had also been given the directions to the Skellig Ring which is another scenic route that doesn't allow buses. We found out why. Windy, steep and only enough room for one car! Totally worth it though. We saw some of the most spectacular coastlines we're ever likely to see. We also had the chance to eat in a tiny little pub in the middle of some fishing village with nets and fishing type stuff strewn about the place. I do believe that I had some of the most incredible tasting smoked salmon ever!

After doing Kerry, we headed for Limerick. (I think!?! -will double check) This city was disappointing for two reasons. The first was the traffic! It took us over an hour to get from one side of the city to the other and out. The second was that it's changing too much. Now, I'm all for progress. There's nothing I like better than to have all I need at my fingertips, but every town we travelld in felt like Ireland except Limerick. Limerick had beautiful old buildings and charm with a modern monster plonked next to it. Oh well, it's not my place to complain about another country's progress.

Just outside the city we eventually found a B&B in Bunratty, right near tha castle and Durty Nelly's. Of course we had to go to Durty Nelly's for dinner, even though we weren't particularly hungry. It's apparently the oldest pub in Ireland and was exteablished in the 17th century!?! Adie had been tehre before on another visit and he enjoyed remembering something about camping in a field of cows. Maybe you should ask him about it.

This B&B was the most Catholic, even though our first was in an old Abbey. The lady who ran it was totally devout and told us stories of the friars ermoving the evil spirit of her grandson's grandfather (not her late husband) because he was giving the poor child nightmares. Her belief made me a little nervous.

After another delicious Irish breakfast, we headed to the Cliffs of Moher. In the middle of nowhere there is this path that leads you to the most stunning sight that is the Cliffs of Moher. Unfortunately it wasn't quite as remote as all that. They are in the middle of digging a big chunk out of the rock to build a tourist centre. Again, progress hits a natural wonder. The cliffs themselves actually reminded me of the area around the twelve aspostles, except that it was really green, wet, windy and there was a medieval fort built there.

All along the edge were safety barriers to keep people from falling over the edge to their death. Even so, some stupid people climbed over this barrier and inched towards the edge to take photos. Never mind that it was slippery and wet grass that htey were standing on and forget that there were impressionable kids everywhere. It really annoyed me and made me nervous. Selfish I know, but I really didn't want to have to be there if one of them fell off the edge. Who needs that memory!

From the cliffs (focus on the beauty not the dunderheads), we headed to Longford to visit family... and that's the next post.

Photo Catch Up

2006-02-17T17:14:00.000Z

Prepare yourself. There are a lot of photos ahead.

NASA
This photo was taken at the Kennedy Space Center with some guy who was an astronaut out in space; I can't remember his name though. He was very American but also very nice.

NEW YORK

We were lucky enough to find some NYC police to pose with us for a photo. (Actually, they all seem to want their photo taken, but I digress.) See the look on my face? Yes, that's me shitting myself as Mr Policeman draws attention to his ridiculously large gun!

Hehehe... I got to feed the squirrels. They were so cute! Never get them through customs though. Ahh, Lady Liberty. Symbol of this, that and the other. This is merely one of approximately thirty photos taken of the statue. I like it because Adie is in it.

CANADA
Here we all are having a lovely buffet lunch over-looking Niagara Falls. Check out the view! No Nina! No! Don't jump over the edge! I'm funny, yes? Okay, maybe not but our photos are starting to get really predictable. Oh, doesn't Adie look good in his ear phones and sunglasses! This was on the helicopter that showed us some amazing views of the falls and the landscape in general.
Adie is very good at taking photos of me making starnge faces. This is just one of many that I thought I'd treat you to. It's a special shot of me in my beloved beanie. I can't remember why I made the face, but I do know that my beanie is no longer a part of my life. I left it in Argos while looking for a cheap alarm clock. I will treasure the memories...
Here we have Adie posing with a barrel that some total fool decided to get inside of and then go over the falls in. Why? I hope Adie hasn't got any stupid ideas!

Settling Down A Bit

2006-02-09T15:00:00.000Z

Well, we've been working now for a couple of weeks. The schools are many and varied. All boys, all girls, co-ed. I haven't had to go through another school like the dreaded year 11 boys last week. The more you teach here, the better prepared you are for it which makes it easier.

This morning I had an interview at a school near Richmond that is looking for a part-time drama teacher. Last night at about 5pm I was told that they'd like me in today and could I please teach a 20 minute workshop about some aspect of Romeo and Juliet. That's as well as the interview. A smart way of finding out a lot about a teacher before hiring them but shit... I was nervous all night and all morning! They did offered me the position but I need to see if they will pay enough because it's part-time over four days. In terms of time off it's lovely because I would get late starts and early finishes at least twice a week, but if I don't get paid for at least two and half days a week then I can't earn enough to live. We'll see. I'm a lot more comfortable here now so the supply work isn't as difficult... it's just incredibly boring!

On Wednesday I worked at an all-girls school. It was quite nice actually because most of my day was English and the work left was something that I could get involved with and use some of my teaching skills with. The problem here was that they have two campuses within a ten minute walk from each other and I was never on the same campus for more than one lesson. On the bright side, my butt may just shrink yet!

Our apartment is nice and cosy, if a little chilly when we get home from work. We bought a blanket and have stocked the fridge so it's starting to feel a little more like a home.

One of the agencies has organised a bit of a soiree tonight at their offices. I don't want to go. I couldn't be stuffed. I've had to travel halfway across London and back today for my interview and, I'm sorry but that was just a bit stressful, so I'm tired and want to go home. *whinge whinge pout pout* It's bad enough that we're a small group of four teachers who seem to like to complain. I don't want to be in a room with a whole lot more teachers, who I don't even know, complaining about god knows what. I will go though... and I'll probably enjoy it. Maybe I can take tomorrow off as a result?

My Most Horrible Class

2006-02-05T15:03:00.000Z

I must preface this with a note that all of my classes have been reasonably fine, if a little boring. Do not assume that I have to put up with this everytime I step into a classroom.

Okay, here we go. At the end of the day I was told that this particular Year 11 class is the worst in the entire school. Why they put supply teachers in there knowing this, I can't imagine.

The not so bad stuff:

Half of the class ignored me.
They threw rubbish on the floor.
Two boys refused to come into the room and instead stood in the hallway.
One boy became quite amorous with his table, but stopped after about 2 minutes.

The bad stuff:

The entire class waged war on each other using slingshots and paper.
One student climbed out the back window... he returned (via the window) about 5 minutes later.
On about 3 occaisions, students simply left the class.
Two boys made fun by throwing books about the classroom.

The really bad stuff:

The two boys who wouldn't come in were afraid to do so because they were being physically bullied by two boys in the room.
One boy set fire to an elasic band, making the room stink, and then complained because the melted rubber burned him. He later set fire to his exercise book.
When I asked what it would take for me to get these boys to participate in the lesson, I was verbally sexually harrassed.

It was a tough class and all of these things escalated over the period of about 25 minutes before I was able to get some support from another teacher and the head teacher was called over. I will not be going into their class again. It felt as though they had conspired before I had even walked into the classroom to create havoc.

Again, I really want to stress that this is just one experience. Others have been better. I hope that there are not that will be worse.

Words To Avoid When Teaching Teenage Boys

2006-02-05T14:57:00.000Z

Local vernacular is an interesting thing, and I thought that I had it sussed. I've been listening to my students to try and understand their slang and I've been avoiding using the words that make their faces screw up into a question mark.

Unfortunately I did saw one word, that with hindsight I really should have known, that left me with a class of 15 year old boys rolling on the floor laughing because their teacher had been so incredibly rude. (Unknowingly I swear!)

We were talking about woman who had been left at the alter and the effects that this had had on her. (It related to a poem.) So I start going on about this hot spunk that she was going to marry and how he broke her heart. How was I to know that "spunk" does not mean attractive person, but instead it is a really crass way of saying sperm!?!

Thnakfully now I know. The boys told me... again and again. I hate it when I blush in class.

Teaching

2006-02-05T14:49:00.000Z

Well, teaching here is certainly interesting. I think that the most disappointing thing is the lack of actual teaching involved. In the work that I've done so far, I've felt more like a baby-sitter or zoo keeper than a teacher. It's pretty boring.

The kids here are okay. We are having a lot more problems because we are the supply teachers and these kids have been programmed to behave more like wild animals when their actual teacher is away. The four of us talked about it and we think that maybe it come down to trust. As a general rule I think that you can say that our Aussie students will trust you to be their teacher and keep them engaged. If you let them down their trust wanes and they start to act up. Ultimately they lose respect for you. Here, they expect you to earn their trust, and as a supply teacher there just isn't the time.

On Thursday I have an interview for a part time position teaching drama in Richmond. There is also another part time position teaching drama in an all-girls school somewhere. Hopefully I can get one of those jobs. That would mean a steady position for about 3-4 days a week and the option to take the other days off to travel, sight-see or do an extra day of supply. Thankfully, because the part time positions are through our agencies, I still get paid at the daily rate of £120 a day. Yay! I'll keep you updated.

Arrrival In London

2006-01-31T12:28:00.000Z

Well, we made it to London after all that manic travelling around the States. We were tired and I must admit, a little smelly, after the overnight flight from Toronto. But no rest for the wicked. We had to catch the train to Gloucester Street and then walk to our accomodation so that we could get ready for our first interview that afternoon.

London is as I remember it, but we've had quite a lot of sunshine during the day. It's bloody cold at night though. Jeepers!

Our first week (almost) has been so busy. We've had to organise our three temp agencies, get bank accounts and most inportantly, find somewhere to live! We do have accomodation until the 4th but nothing after that and we can't really afford to stay where we are. That has meant that we have to go to agencies, look on the Internet and search papers for suitable places and then get on the tube to find these places on foot. Half the time the places have been terrible and the other half of the time it's either already gone or has a heap of agency fees we weren't told about. There was a lot of freaking out going on.

Anyway we did manage to sign leases yesterday on a small studio apartment (this means small room that contains everything... bedroom, dining, lounge, kitchen and bathroom) in Willsden Green. The rent includes all bills and council tax, it's fully furnished and is close to the tude and a supermarket. That's all we need. Chip and Dale signed a lease for an identical apartment just across the road.

So with accomodation organised, the only thing we really need to worry about is work. Adie has had work since last Friday and he really needs a break. These schools are exhausting! The rest of us started yesterday. I can't really describe the experiences of others but I can talk about what I'm doing.

I went to the Haverstock School yesterday in Chalk Farm. I will admit that I walked past it because it actually didn't look like a school. It looked more like a hospital. It's three stories high and the front is all in frosted glass. Anyway, after security buzzed me through the front door, I made my way to the staff room to find out my teaching load for the day. Two year 7 maths, year 9 art and year 10 drama. Pretty cruisy considering I get paid for the whole day even though I only teach 4 out of 5 periods. For those of you who worked with me, the kids are pretty much the same as what we're used to, but if ours are a five on a scale of one to ten, these guys are pushing a seven. There are schools here where the kids are trying to bash through to an eleven, but I'm hoping I don't get sent there.

The day would have been fine except I have this little problem at the moment... I've lost my voice. I thought it was better when I got up on Monday, but today as I sit around not working because my voice is non-existent I think I maybe made the wrong decision. From talking to other supply teachers it seems as though there are two main problems with this type of work. The first is that the students see a supply teacher and turn feral. The second is that there is either no work left or the work left does not take up a full period or it's boring.

Here's a basic rundown of my first day in an English school:
Period 1- Students finish work with 20 minutes to spare, have to find a way to stop them wandering aruond too much.
Period 2- No class, but soem bright spark sets off a fire alarm so that we all have to stand outside in the cold.
Period 3- A drama class that has been put into a class room to do writtten work because, even though I'm drama trained and I've explained this to the head of drama, they're "year 10s."
Period 4- An art class where I can't get into the room for 20 minutes and then there's no work left, have to find a way to stop students from throwing pencils.
Period 5- A beautiful class where there was a maths support teacher who took the class for me while I helped to supervise. She used to do supply and talking to and watching her was really positive.

There is just so much going on at the moment. Adie and I can't wait to settle, have our own place, stop living out of a suitcase and start feeling less temporary. Less than one week!!!

Oh Canada!

2006-01-24T19:36:00.000Z

We are here in Toronto spending our last hour in a warm Internet cafe while it snows outside. Tonight we leave for London. We will arrive there by lunchtime (25th Jan)... for those of you who were asking.

We've done a lot of kicking back and relaxing while here in Toronto. Our first day saw us going to the Hard Rock Cafe for dinner... we wanted to try something different... and an early night.

Sunday was our big day because we went to Niagara Falls. It took about 90 minutes to get there, and when you do it all seems a lot smaller than you expected it to be. Then you start considering just how much water is flowing here and it blows you away. We were also quite lucky to have sunshine, which meant that there was a constant rainbow in the mist off the waterfalls. It was just stunning.

Adie and I decided that due to this being a once in a lifetime kinda trip, we really should get in a helicopter and fly over and around the falls. Wow! How fantastic! This little helicopter, that kept flying sideways as it turned, took us over the whirlpool rapids, past the falls and then back around. We are so glad we did this because the views, not only of the falls, but also out over Lake Ontario to Toronto were just amazing.

This was such a good day's outing. Other things we did were:

Eat lunch from the penthouse of the Sheraton Niagara with perfect views of the Falls.
Watched an IMAX movie about the myths, history and daredevils who have all been involved with the area and the Falls.
Tasted ice wine, which we found a little too sweet. They wait until the grapes are frozen solid to squish them. It means that there's no water left. Chip and Dale tried some champagne with a drop or two of ice wine in it and that sounds like it would be yummy. On it's own it's like straight wine cordial! We did find a fantastic bottle of white and we'd love to bring it to dinner to share with our family in East Grinstead... nudge, nudge, wink, wink.
Saw the world's smallest chapel. It only holds 5 people!

When we got back to Toronto we met up with Chip and Dale and decided to go ice skating on a rink that is just opposite our hotel. Now, I've been ice skating before and am far too scared for my knee, so I became official photographer as the other three make their way around the rink. The first ten minutes were hilarious as none of them really knew what they were doing... and there were no handrails! Chip and Dale have had some experience roller-blading, so they eventually found a rythym. Adie has never, ever done anything like this and I was so proud. While his style was a bit wobbly and jagged, he did not fall over once. Well done I say.

So we ended up with a really busy Sunday and then two days of not much at all. We did go on a sight-seeing bus trip of Toronto yesterday, but there's not much here that we wanted to see. I guess we could have gone to the shoe museum or the ice hockey hall of fame, but we just couldn't find the motivation.

Today it's all about getting ready for phase II... London, where I might add all three Primary teachers already have work and I don't! I guess that just means I'll have to find ways to occupy my time. Theatre anyone?

Added Photos

2006-01-24T19:34:00.000Z

We've just added some photos to 'Universal Studios', 'San Diego', 'Las Vegas', 'Grand Canyon' and 'Disneyworld'. So keep your eyes open and re-check those posts!