Monday 23 May 2011
Uzes
Our week at Uzes has been very relaxing......just as was needed after the wonderful but very busy trip we have had.
This little village lived up to our dreams of living in France and experiencing it's culture. We found the locals friendly and patient with us as we attempted to converse in their language....a few laughs here and there. Everyone greeted us with 'bonjour' and we soon learnt 'combien'.....how much. We did very well with ordering wine and food (thanks Graeme) however the last night had us ordering 4 pizzas instead of 2 (thanks Graeme).
Most of our time here was spent reading, sleeping, walking, eating, drinking and some shopping. A couple of day trips, one to Marseille to view the mediterranean and another to the surrounds of Uzes. The car/van we had seemed to be wider than most of the roads and add to that the traffic coming from the other direction/driving on the 'wrong side of the road', assisted to add to the excitement on the day.
The following photos are only but a few of our snaps that we took in this week!!!!
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Wednesday 18 May 2011
Tuesday 17 May 2011
Onto Uzes
So the fast train from Paris to Avignon was exactly that.....at 250 k's per hour we saw some of the country side but unable to take photos through the window as all blurred. This trip took us 3 hours....would have been a good 8 hours by road.
Well we got off at Avignon train station....headed off to collect our 'hire car' from Avis. There were 5 of us and all our luggage...we were wondering how we would fit all our luggage into the 'meduim' size car we booked. No problems.....as Avis did not have the car we booked they upgraded us!!!!!!!!! To a 9 seated van....perfect for the Griswald family to start their holiday.
Graeme (our designated driver) took to the left hand side of driving like a duck to water (ha ha). We were moving well in our manual 9 seated van until the first sharp turn right....did not make it round the narrow turn so had to reverse.....after 5 mins and another car waiting patiently behind...we finally found reverse (all back to front) and proceeded our way out of the car park. Phew!! we were all exhausted by this time but in the capable hands of Graeme driving and Caitlin navigating we were on our way.
Uzes was about 45 mins drive through typical countryside and little villages along the way. Driving into Uzes, again through narrow cobblestone streets, we found our way to no. 8 Rue De Coin, located the key and let ourselves inside. Here we were in our little home for the next week full of excitement and ready to investigate the cottage and the town. Unable to describe this wonderful little cottage, bit to say we settled in easily....you will need to see photos.
The next morning we discovered THE MARKETS!!!!!!! Ohh La La....we had heard from people we met in Paris that the markets were great in Uzes.....and we were not disappointed. Needless to say we all found our feet....and walked and walked. Bought goodies for the next few days.....cheeses, olives etc.......what a great place. To top it all off the village itself....a little medieval village is full of little discoveries, nooks and crannies. Yes! we will be fine here for the week.
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Sunday 15 May 2011
Paris
After a harrowing 10 hours on the bus, we finally arrived in Paris. Caitlin had flown in the day before and met us at our hotel. She had spent 2 days in this wonderful city so was able to show us around.
The next am we joined a city tour with the group who came to Paris with us to get our bearings and be shown the historical points of interest. Included were the Champs De Elysse, Eiffel Tower, Arc De Triomph, The Louvre whilst moving back and forth over the River Seine.
We have fallen in love with this city and wish to come back to explore further. We had two days of trying to fit it all in.... Our free time shopping, site seeing, afternoon at MontMartre, night river cruises to see the Eiffel Tower lit up at night, and an eventful eve at the Moulin Rouge....
Still we needed much more time. This was only a taste.
Friday morning was the official end of our tour with APT. We have been extremely well looked after and recommend this company for any travel plans in the future.
Now we are on our own....to travel by fast train to south of France. Our cottage awaits in a little village called Uzes....near Avignon.
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Amsterdam
We continued the morning sail on the river Rhine, then through the last two locks for the journey. The last lock allowed us to enter a 70 kilometer canal that took us into Amsterdam at 1400 hours. The weather was overcast which dampered our first impressions of the city.
The afternoon was spent viewing the city on a canal boat. Amsterdam is known as 'the Venice of the north' due to all the water canals weaving their way through the city. We were amazed at all the tall and narrow row of houses that were standing on a slant. The foundations are set in a very sandy base that does not offer any stability. How these houses are still standing I don't know.
The canals also feature many boat houses along the edges. They are connected to power and sewage and many have their own little gardens. These houses are not pretty site and in effect create a cluttered mess for the canal system. However the system itself and the quaint little stone bridges could be quite a picture if not for the state of some of the house boats.
One could not discuss Amsterdam without mention of the 'coffee houses' where it is legal to choose your variety of marijuana to partake in a little joint to soothe the mood. No we did not partake but it was interesting to see all that was on offer....purple head, silver flower etc....
The other famous feature of Amsterdam is the red light district, suffice to say limited time prevented a visit to this area. We really only had a few hours in the afternoon and once back on the ship needed to pack, have the last dinner with our new found friends and to bed for an early morning rise. We leave the ship at 0800....off to Paris, via Belgium on a bus.
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Monday 9 May 2011
Cathedral in Cologne
Orchids at Koblenz
Day 13. Koblenz and Cologne
This was an early morning start.....0800 from Andernach and traveled by bus to Koblenz. At Koblenz we attended the 'Koblenz Flower Show'. This was a fitting excursion on 'Mothers Day' but I have to say the 'Flower Show' in Melbourne is far superior to this. However the tulip displays were lovely. Here we also traveled across the river from the Ehrenbreitstein Fortress to the Deutsches Eck where the 'flower show' continued.
We were all feeling a little tired by now as the cruise to date has been very busy with excursions, dinners, a couple of late night 'socializing' events have started to wear us down.
The bus continued to take us pinto Cologne where we meet the ship at 1300. A quick lunch then Graeme and Carol went on a bike ride tour around Cologne through the parks a quick stop at a beer garden for a beer (fantastic atmosphere) then back to the ship. Ruth did the walking tour and Kevin caught up with some reading.
In Colonge we visited the tallest Cathedral in Europe (until the Eiffel Tower was built in Paris). It was due to this that little of it was destroyed during WWII as it served as a land mark for the allied air strikes. However about 90% of city surrounding the cathedral was destroyed. It now is a city of modern buildings but the cathedral offers a main point of interest. Cologne is also well known for it's 'Eau de Cologne' made famous by the brand '4711'.
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Vineyards
View of village along Rhine
Bordering the river as we sailed past, this is one of the scenes that we had the pleasure of seeing. Many of the villages are not very deep and they make good use of every bit of space, hence many buildings built into the mountain walls.
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Street scene in Rudesheim
Pianola
Day 12. Rudesheim and Andernach
This morning sailing we left the River Main and entered into the River Rhine. The Rhine is a much wider river to sail on and is considered to be busier with more wafer traffic. There are families who live on their barges...they travel with their boats, cars and all family needs on board. We even saw a children's playground on board for the little kids.
We enjoyed a leisurely morning sailing, passing many little villages, more castles and many caravan parks. This was amazing to see the caravan parks along the river front. It certainly makes you think for future holiday possibilities. We then sailed into Rudesheim at 1pm.
Rudesheim, yet again another quaint little village which is known for the music museum that housed musical instruments as a far back as the 12 and 1300's. Aunty Jill you would love this with the old pianola's and carnival instruments.
A short cable car ride to the top of the escarpment gave us the most amazing view of the river and surrounding countryside. Ruth loved the ride!!!!!!
Back on board at 4pm after a stroll through town, more cruising along the river to dock at Andernach where we stayed overnight. Graeme went on a night tour after dinner but was back early before he found himself ensconced in a little pub. Thank goodness Kevin was with him to keep him safe.
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Saturday 7 May 2011
60's night on board ship
Wertheim
Friday 6 May 2011
Day 11
Wertheim and Miltenberg
We docked at Wertheim, still on the River Main, at 0800. Wertheim is one on the most picturesque places in the region. A charming town that was located within close walking distance to the ship. We did our own thing here instead of the walking tour and visited the shop of the glass blower, coffee and generally just wandered.
We were back on the ship again for lunch and sailed to Miltenberg....again we did our own thing, caught up on our blog, relaxed and went for a stroll along the river before dinner.
Tonight we go to the fine restaurant on board....the Erlebnis Restaurant. On boardbthere are three restaurants.......the main two on most nights offer a different cuisine, but the third....e Erlebnis is located at the rear of the ship. It seats 24 guests and offers a fine dinning experience. A degustation of sorts....taste of 4 entrees, a choice of main then a taste of all 4 sweets....then cheese if you can. Wine is served to match the food. You need to book for this experience and the menu is changed weekly.
So now need to walk and sleep before dinner to gather our strength forth feast.
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Greek restaurant in Kitzingen
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