Roussilon - Toulouse - Chateauroux and rugby

Friday 28th September (Canet-en-Roussillon to Toulouse)

Awoke to see snow on the Pyrenees! Left at around 10am having decided to travel overland through some backroads to the medieval village of Carcassonne. The tiny villages on the backroads were delightful, with many ruined castles and the beginning of autumn leaves falling. The road was very windy and narrow, but Pam negotiated these well (albeit nervously). Stopped at a small village called Limoux for lunch. Apparently this area is a good training ground for cyclists and there were quite a number of Americans around. Pam was delighted as there was a small market here and we waited in a restaurant but received no service, so went across the road to a sandwich shop and had vegetarian quiche instead. On to Carcassonne where we had another “turn the corner moment” to be greeted by an amazing medieval walled city which had been beautifully restored and preserved. It lures more than 2 million visitors a year. The city walls are but the last in a line of fortifications built by Gauls, Romans, Visigoths, Moors and Franks. In the 13th century they protected one of the major Cathar strongholds. Spent about 2-3 hours here just marvelling at the architecture and authenticity of this village. Glad we were not born in this era! It also had a number of hotels within its complex, as well as a beautiful old church. Had a great afternoon tea of crepes, fresh cream with Grand Marnier. Off then to Toulouse and the Sofitel hotel for a well deserved lovely sleep with a soft bed and comfortable pillows which we did not have at Roussillon. Watched rugby then had dinner at hotel and off to bed.

Saturday 29th September (in Toulouse)

Had a great sleep, explored shops for 1 hour then off via public transport (metro) to the stadium to watch New Zealand play Romania. Good weather and good game with N.Z. winning 87 vs 8. Great moves by N.Z. – they look very hard to beat. Pam feels that Australia has no show against N.Z. unless they really improve their game. Were not playing with their usual team though – not sure whether this was because of injury or because Australia were just resting some of their key players. Caught the metro back to city centre, found a pub which served coffee as well as beer, and watched Australia defeat Canada (36 -10) but not very convincingly. Back to our hotel to watch Wales vs Fiji. Definitely one of the most exciting games we have seen with Fiji winning with a very close finish. This is the first time that Fiji has qualified for the quarter finals. Good on them. Down the street after this match to grab some dinner before returning to our hotel to watch Italy vs. Scotland (as our son-in-law is a Scot we felt an affinity with this team). Scotland did win 18 -16 but we really felt that Italy played a better game. Great result for Scotland as they are now also in the quarter finals. Off to bed as we leave in the morning for Chateauroux.

Tripping around from Canet-en-Rousillon

Tuesday 25th September (Canet-en-Roussillon)

Spent a lazy day at home, and, having just found out our last phone bill was $1,594 we decided that as we have free internet access at the reception area of the hotel, is part of the village, we would use Skype to make a few phone calls. This is really a cheap way to call with landline calls to Australia costing only $0.027c per minute and the sound quality is pretty good. Caught up with family and friends had lovely long chats. Off to Perpignan for afternoon tea then to our usual spot at Joe’s for pork spare ribs and rugby. (Japan vs Canada and Romania vs Portugal).

Wednesday 26th September (Canet-en-Roussillon to Le Barcares)

Drove to Le Barcares village, by the sea to check out the markets. Was cold and windy and occasionally rainy but that did not seem to stop Pam. She bought a couple of little things and a pair of shoes for her for around A$15:00, so was very happy with herself. She tells me that I should be very grateful that she has a size 41 foot as she cannot find shoes in this size, and I should be appreciative of the fact that she is saving us money! Cannot quite see the logic in this but never mind. Also beautiful seafood lunch on La Lydia which is a grand old ship imbedded and cemented into the sand right on the beach, and then coffee at Port La Nouvelle. Tiny and not very “nouvelle” (new) but great coffee. Back home for dinner and spent time trying to work out Wheel of Fortune in French on the T.V. (not very successfully). Downloaded and updated photos and off to bed for an early start tomorrow.

Thursday 27th September (Canet-en-Roussillon to Figures)

Today was another “crack of dawn” start being out of bed at 8.20am and on the road by 9.15. We programmed “Gar” to head to Figueres which is a few kilometres over the border into Spain and Pam had seen a notice somewhere that there were markets on there today. It was interesting at he border as cars, trucks and busses are put through different lanes and although there was only one car lane open the cars went through without stopping and there was no passport control. On both sides of the border there were police looking at the cars as they went through but we only saw one car (of the 100 or so in front of us) get pulled over. “Gar” got a bit lost when we got into the city so we took over manually, found what we thought was the markets but could not get a park so drove around the markets only to see they were produce markets so we continued to drive around town, got a park (scarce as the proverbial hens teeth) asked the traffic policewoman in a mixture of French and English “where are the markets” to find they were in fact in the next street some 100metres away. Two Euro got us two hours parking. Pam was in her element so I (Paul) went and got a “grand cafe crème” which even the Spanish seemed to understand. Met Pam some time later and she had bought a few things for the grandkids (looks like another case to be sent home) and then we went back to the car, put another single Euro in and got another four hours parking so we did not argue and had a seafood paella for lunch and then went to the Salvador Dali museum which was only 100 metres way in another direction. Inaugurated in 1974, and completed during Dali’s lifetime the Dali Theatre-Museum was built upon the remains of the former Figueres Theatre which was destroyed at the end of the Spanish Civil war. It contains the broadest range of works spanning the artistic career of Salvador Dali 1904 – 1989. The museum is itself the largest surrealistic object in the world. We both commented that we had never seen such a range of art in any one place before. There were art forms such as paintings, sketches, jewellery, sculptures, of all size and shapes. Many of these we did not understand or appreciate but many were simply beautiful and you could not help but admire them. This was yet another “tour highlight” for us. Back to our village to update diary, download photos, have our last dinner at Joe’s and pack as we have decided to leave a day earlier for Toulouse.

L'Abresle to Canet-en-Roussillon (South of France)

Saturday 22nd September (L’Arbresle to Canet-en-Roussillon)

Early start and ready to go by 8:30am (early for us), but could not find the owners of the house to return the key and to collect our $300 euro deposit. Pam went next door to the neighbour who spoke no English but managed to get across to her that we wanted to go and where were the owners? Fortunately they drove up (having been to the flower market to sell their flowers earlier) so after a bit of haggling we collected our deposit and were on our way. We had decided that as we had a 500km drive to Canet-en-Roussillon (which is about 20ks from Perpignan) that we would take the tollway (which we had been avoiding so far as we wanted to see the countryside and therefore the smaller roads). Drove through Valence, Orange, Nimes, Montpellier, Nabonne and arrived at Malibu Village (time share which we exchanged for our time share on the Gold Coast) at around 3ish. Did a quick drive around and then into Perpignan to the gare (railway station) to find out about getting the train to Montpellier for the game tomorrow. We were not too impressed with this part of the world as it was dirty and there were a lot of police around, trains were graffitied. Collected a timetable but then decided that we would actually drive into the game. Back to our new home where we found a wonderful restaurant just next door called Safari Joe’s. The owner, Joe Gilligan, is an ex South African and used to play Super 12 Rugby for the Cats before injuring his knee. Met a French lass, fell in love, started his restaurant business and always has the rugby on. This is great as our apartment only has French speaking shows and 3 channels with no Eurosport or BBC/CNN. Trying to find an English paper is like looking for a needle in a haystack. Do hope Australia is still there when we get back! Back to unpack and settle in.

Sunday 23rd September (Canet-en-Roussillon)

Drove to Montpellier, got a little lost even though the Garman (satellite navigation system)was doing its best. Garman has been a wonderful help the whole time but he got a little lost in the streets in Montpellier. We were looking for an area known as Place de la Comedie which we undersood had a lovely big square and big screen for the rugby. However, we got lost, headed into a tunnel, at the very last moment before we had to exit the tunnel (and therefore have no idea where we were as arman soes not work in tunnels) we saw a sign for Parking/Comedie. With the screech of brakes and a rapid right turn (on the wrong side of the road remember) we went down another ramp and into a car park. As it transpired this was directly under the centre square we were looking for and it took us 90 seconds to get to where we wanted to be. The Gods have been good to us! Had tried to catch up with Phil and Chris Johnson has we were both in Montpellier, but due to a combination of poor/nil phone reception we did not manage to catch up with them. Telecom’s roaming in the south of France has been pathetic. Here we were in the middle of Montpellier with “emergency only”. The square was magnificent with numerous very grand old buildings including the Opera House, park with large pond complete with dogs swimming, children playing, kids rollerblading, men play chess, mums walking their babies (all the prams seem to be much higher than in Australia which is good for backs). The most exciting thing to see however, were an abundance of yellow Aussie jerseys! This is the first time since we have been away that we have actually been in a crowd of excited Aussies, Kiwis and Scots. We had tried to get tickets to the actual game, but were unable to do so, so rather than pay extortionate scalpers fees we decided to watch the game on the big screen and positioned ourselves at one of the bars in the shade. The tram service to the actual ground left from this square which meant that as the Aussies left for the stadium, there was a bit more space. There were 2 games on the big screen this afternoon (Aus vs Fiji and N.Z. vs Scotland)so both Paul and I were happy. The Scots were there in force complete with bagpipes, kilts etc but the spectators were disappointed as Scotland had only fielded its B team as it was saving itself for the match against Italy next week. Met up with a great bunch of Aussies and watched both games with them. After the Aussie match the square started to become very full again so we were glad we had kept our great seats in the bar. (As it transpired Phil and Chris Johnson had come back to the square after the match and were probably very close to us but we did not see each other). Both Australia and N.Z. won their matches comfortably. A few of the people I spoke with who had been at the actual Aussie game said it was unbelievable hot at the ground and also that Australia were really just interested in getting through this match without any injuries, and were saving themselves for the quarter finals and semis. We left about 10 mins before the end of the NZ game as we had a 2 hour drive back to Malibu Village where we arrived in time to haveanother beautiful meal at Joe’s.

Monday 24th September (Canet-en-Roussillon)

The view from our room and all down the coast is of the Pyrennes Mountains. On the way down to Collioure (which had been recommended by Joe from the restaurant) we stopped for lunch on the coast close to Argeles-sur-Mer at a lovely hotel right on the beach called the Hotel Laguna. They were serving a magnificent seafood buffet which we happily consumed and then went for a walk along the beach, with Pam determined to say she had put her feet in the Mediterranean which she did! On to Collioure which was another of those wonderful, “turn around the corner and there is something spectacular” moments. We were very fortunate to get a park to explore this very picturesque seaside town and having a coffee while we looked out over the very blue waters of the sea. This tiny fishing village is dominated on the left by the Chateau Royal de Collioure which was originally a “Templar settlement” built on Roman foundations. The castle enjoyed its greatest splendour as the summer residence of the Kings of Mallorca. Vauban added its towering defensive walls in the 17th Century. The medieval church tower of Notre Dame des Anges once doubled as a lighthouse. Collioure was once Perpignan’s port but found fame when it inspired the Fauvist art of Henri Matisse and Andre Derain. Later both Picasso and Braque came here to paint. We took a trip on a little wheeled train up through the vineyards which had been there since 6 B.C. (try and get your head around that) on up to the foothills of the Pyrenees where we had a fantastic view down at Collioure and Port Vendre (Pervone to the French). Back to the village, a quick shop at the local Casino store and cheese, grapes and tomato as the appetiser and beef, tongue and vegetables for mains.

Few more great days at L'Abesle

Wednesday 19th September (l’Arbresle)

Although we planned to take the 9.15am train to Lyon today the Fullers are not known for their early starts, so we eventually caught the 10.17. The main purpose of the trip was to collect Pam’s pants which she brought on Friday but needed to be let down. She was very excited about this –the 1st time ever apparently. It was also an opportunity to get our blog and emails up to date as McDonalds in Lyon has free WiFi. The train only took half an hour to get to the main station called Gare Lyon Par Dieu. This was a side of Lyon we had not been before and was close to Layfayette which is a big Paris based department store so Pam was in her element. Sit Paul down at the local MacDonalds to use WiFi and go shopping! Unfortunately the WiFi was not working so after only an hour it was decided we should go into town to collect the trousers and to try the McDonalds “downtown” i.e. near the Zara store that had Pam’s pants. This is where we had a bit of a challenge. We could not work out the best way to change stations twice, nor where to go, or where to buy our tickets. Pam has a good eye for helpful people, and approached a lovely dark skinned French lady who was amazing. She helped us purchase our tickets, actually went with us onto two different trains, and then walked up a number of steps to make sure that we were happy with where we were! Pam wondered if we would have been as helpful as this lovely lady was, had the boot been on the other foot, in Sydney! Admittedly the train system here is great and we never seemed to wait more than 45 seconds for a train to appear. This WiFi worked so Paul had heaps to do to update emails and the blog and Pam continued shopping in this area for a short while then decided to walk back to where we had been as she couldn’t work out the train system! (Purchased beautiful black and white top “ribbon lace” and scalloped. Looks lovely! Pam says she will wear it for her birthday and my 60th. For what it cost I hope she wears it more than twice!) I stayed where I was and caught the train to meet Pam at 6:30pm. Hungry by this stage and wanted to see the rugby. No reasonable restaurants around and no-one watching rugby so decided to spoil ourselves and go to the Raddison for dinner. The restaurant was called Restaurant Panoramique L’Arc en Ciel. This restaurant was somewhat of a cut above McDonalds where we had lunch! On the 32nd level with panoramic views over Leon. The staff gave us a beautiful selection of canapés, then an appetizer (which they just produced and we were not charged for) which was delicious. They were most surprised when we did not order an entree or a dessert and just wanted a main meal. We only had enough time to eat a main meal as we had to catch the train back to L’Arbresle. Paul ordered calf sweetbreads and Pam ordered the lobster. No vegetables with either of these, but a beautiful lobster frothy sauce in a tiny little glass with a straw accompanied the lobster. With the sweetbreads there were 6 snails and the actual sweetbreads wrapped in vine leaf on a long skewer. A long narrow shaped bowel that we would use to put olives in, was also part of his dish and contained tiny little mushrooms. I’ve not seem them before in Australia, but they are eaten a lot here. (Just as an aside - Pam has decided that if she sees another baguette she will scream and is still amazed that dogs of all shapes and sizes actually go into the shops with their owners!). Caught the train back to L’Arbresle which took only half an hour, then a fashion show with what Pam had purchased, updated diary and off to bed. Weather cold in the morning and during the day we noticed we had stripped off 3 layers and it would have been around 22 degrees eventually having started off at 7 degrees when we left for Lyon.

Thursday 20th September (l’Arbresle)

Today was the usual leisurely rise. Drove to Villafrance –sur -Saone & on the way stopped at the pretty village of Beaujouli and had lunch lovely waitress spoke no “Anglais” so pointing and our newly acquired French/English dictionary we had the Plat de Jour which was black pudding, potatoes and lightly stewed apple . The sausage was soft and melted in your mouth and was beautiful. Also purchased our new camera which should make our pictures less blurry. Pam very excited as found a shop that had clip on earrings! Came back to Super U for dinner - waiter spoke no English but we got there and had a steak. Made animal noises to ascertain what the words on the menu said. Waiter was a hoot and had just had new son Jardin. Did our grocery shopping and home to install software for new camera.

Friday 21st September (l’Arbresle)

Back to Roanne today as it has WiFi at the local McDonalds so we could catch up on some homework. On the way we stopped at a lovely little restaurant in Tarare and had the dinner de jour which was jarbon (almost raw ham) as an entree, followed by chitterlings which turned out (with the help of a couple of people sitting next to us to interpret) to be pork sausage. Pam has great fun making various animal noises but I think the pig one takes the bacon! Patrons were in stitches and the food was great. Dessert was a selection of cheeses and a blueberry pie. Back in Roanne Paul bought some new jeans and I did my usual looking but not buying, as we are already overweight (not just us, but our bags as well!). The French don’t seem to have any concept of skim milk, low fat or Weight Watchers and yet they don’t seem to be at all overweight. My (Pam ) observations: - have not seen any Asians at all in France so far, they now make bras with nipples so the poor men are getting completely conned, mauve is in for winter, spots and stripes are in for ties again which is great, there are no carparks like the ones back home in the towns, you simply park in an area near the square which each of the villages have known as Centre Ville (centre of town), you have to take your own loo paper with you everywhere as they don’t provide any, the male and female toilets are frequently next to each other whereby you share the same handwashing facilities. I have thought on a number of occasions that Paul might be had up for exposure, as it must be hard for the men to remember to put their bits back into their undies before leaving the urinals and turning around, because if they didn’t they would be in full view of the waiting ladies. To date he seems to have remembered thankfully! You cannot simply go into a McDonalds in the cities and use the loo as you must provide a receipt to show that you have actually purchased something in their shop that day. Finally, everyone in France has at least 2 dogs which go absolutely everywhere with their owners! They are often tiny little “rats on strings” but very cute. Now had an opportunity to take some photos which we hope to download onto the blog at some stage (either that or we can all meet up and have one of those wonderful slide nights for 16 hours!). Packed up when we got home ready for an early start tomorrow as we have a long drive.

L'Abresle our French Country Cottage

Sunday 16th September 2007

Had a good sleep although bed quite small and firm. We will pull another couple of mattresses on top of it tonight and see if it is any more comfortable. Pillows are different to Aussie ones. They seem to be very square and large which means that by the time you have the pillows in place there is not much room for a body. Ate our meagre provisions for breakfast, (known as petite dejeuner or little lunch) and then had fun trying to work out how the washing machine worked as all instructions in French. Absolute trial and error but eventually got it working and did the first load since we have been away. Off to explore our environment which is very pretty, winding roads and very green countryside. Had lunch (know as dejuener) at another little village which we were grateful to find as not much is open on a Sunday. Lunch was a Lyonnais Salad which is chopped lettuce (lots of it) with a tiny amount of chopped bacon, croutons and a poached egg. Sounds very strange, looked very strange but tasted fine. (Was a much better choice than the Steak Tartare – raw minced meat and raw egg). We have a little trouble with ordering food so it is sometimes trial and error. Pam asked for a lemon squash and ended up with a glass of pure lemon juice with water on the side!). Camera unfortunately has died so we have not been able to take any pictures since Lyon. Everywhere we try to buy one, they only have a French or European guarantee so we may have to purchase one with this guarantee. It is frustrating not to be able to take pictures of such pretty countryside. Another day with wonderful surprises around each corner. This time a lovely old Casino/Restaurant which we tried to get into for afternoon tea. Paul was not able to do so, and was turned away because he was wearing shorts! We then went back to our cottage, watched the French equivalent of Candid Camera which was very funny, then off out again to explore (Paul wearing long pants this time) as we planned to return to the “Casino Lyon Verte” for dinner and then be back home in time to watch the French/Namibia game. We decided to have dinner in the Bistro as the restaurant “La Rotonde” had some main courses at A$120. Had a great meal for $A30 for two and came out even on the poker machines. Home in time to watch France thrash Namibia.

Monday 17th September 2007

Woke late after a great sleep, having re-arranged the mattresses! Downtown to explore the village after breakfast, but, like most small villages of France not only do people not work on a Sunday they don’t work on a Monday. i.e. most shops are shut. Did manage to find a hairdresser open though and I (Pam) had a haircut – looked like something out of the Rocky Horror Show – all spiked up and short! I thought it was very game of me to get my hair cut in a salon where they did not speak one word of English! Paul just sat there and looked aghast! Never mind – hair will grow (hopefully). When I get back to the cottage I’ll wash it and see if I can make something of it which will not frighten everyone. Drove to Villefrance-sur-Saone (which is a village of France on the Saone River), for the best lunch I have ever had. Was in a tiny grotty looking pub, the toilet was like the ones in China (just a hole in the floor) but the meal was delicious. Simple boiled potatoes, with beef bourguignon, and an amazing sauce. Have never eaten meat that was so tender you could eat even if you did not have any teeth! Most of the shops were open in this city, which was great so we looked around for a camera, a case for my glasses and someone to repair my very expensive “Dior look alike Shanghai glasses” as the side wing had fallen off and I looked pretty stupid with just one! Found a camera and glasses shop and had my glasses fixed and a camera ordered. The camera should arrive within 2 days so we will go back to Villafrance and collect it hopefully on Thursday so we can take some pictures prior to leaving for the south of France on Saturday morning. Had coffee here, visited a beautiful old church (just prior to a funeral service) then drove home through little villages such as Pommiers, Anse, Lachassagne, Alix and Charnay which was some of the prettiest countryside we have seen on our trip through France to date. A lot of corn fields both here and in Germany, but for the first time we saw a lot of vineyards. Back to L’Arbresle and to the local large supermarket (a bit like Big W) which was surprising in a tiny place like L’Arbresle. Bought wine, cheese, salmon & bouillabaisse and when we got back home we had the salmon, (which we realised after eating it, should have been micro waved for 3 minutes) without the compulsory French baguette. No T.V. at all tonight, no rugby and still no English speaking television station. Updated diary, checked on train timetable from L’Arbresle to Lyon for Thursday and off to bed.

Tuesday 18th September 2007

Happy 33rd Birthday Nathan! Rang and spoke with Nathan for his birthday. Baby had been partying hard so Nathan was a little tired, but sounded well and happy. Our little cottage has shutters at each window and when it looks like a storm or we want to go to bed, the shutters must be closed as there are no blinds of any description. This suits me (Pam), but would not suit Alexa! Had a little storm last night and it was lovely hearing the rain on the roof, knowing we were snug and warm inside. Having purchased our provisions yesterday it was lovely to have an Aussie breakfast of tomatoes, bacon and eggs. Still getting used to everything being shut from 12md to 2pm as we had tried to get to the post office yesterday and missed out. Today, after breakfast we headed off into L’Arbresle and it was lovely to see the shops open as we have been here for 2 days and very little has been open. Posted postcards with 3 minutes to spare then off to Roanne for lunch via N7.This again was one of the pettiest drives we have been on in our local area, as we headed from the Rhone valley to the Loire valley. Such a shame we do not have the camera yet. Went through the villages of Tarare and Symphorien-de-Lay. Bought a couple of things for the grandchildren and also some hairspray for me. (last of the big spenders). Back home via our little pub where we called in and asked if they would be kind enough to have the rugby on at 9pm as Scotland is playing Uruguay tonight. No problem so back to our house for cheese and wine and a Weight Watchers microwave meal!!!!! before heading to the pub to watch the game. Off to Lyon tomorrow on train to collect pants which were too long and to get our blog and emails up to date. As I type this, the view from our bathroom window is of 22 white goats, 4 brown goats and very green rolling hillside. The view from our kitchen window is of rolling hills and beautiful willow trees and an orchard. The view from our bedroom is similar and the view from the main room is overlooking the village of L’Arbresle. Not a sound other than the church bell and the occasional train in the distance. Surprisingly, no bird sounds either. Little dogs everywhere in village – people even put them in little handbags and take them on the aeroplane! Mainly small dogs with puffy tails and little coats. They also go into all the shops with their owners but I think the French could take a leaf out of our Aussie book in relation to dog poo. Have to be careful where you step.

Lyon and the first Rugby match NZ v's Portugal

Friday 14th September 2007 (in Lyon)

Woke up at 8:30 am having had a beautiful sleep and Pam’s back all better. Had breakfast downstairs, over to get the car and park it in a 24 hour car park. Still bumper to bumper and it took Paul 20 minutes to manoeuvre the car out of its spot. Then off to explore the city. Found the Tourist Bureau and jumped onto a “hop on – hop off” bus tour. This has been the best way to discover the city as you have little ear phones and the commentary is in English. Thank goodness. Bought a McDonalds salad to eat on the bus and at the conclusion of our trip Paul went to collect the rugby tickets for tomorrow from Tane Norton who had been given the tickets to bring over from New Zealand, as the tickets had arrived after we had left Sydney. Pam went to explore the shopping. $A15 for a pair of knee hi’s pantihose! ($A22:50). I also needed a white bra but they were around $A80 so this purchase will have to wait. Did go into Printemps which I felt was more like D.J.’s 6th floor so did not purchase anything other than a cup of coffee. Had to show my receipt in order to use the toilet or pay .50euro! Did find a shop called Zara which had some great clothes – such a shame it is autumn and not summer over here. (Paul however is very grateful). Did buy a pair of black pants which were TOO LONG!!!!!! Can you believe it. At last – pants that are too long!!!!! For an extra 4Euro they will take them up for me and I can collect them next week when we come into Lyon from our apartment at L’Arbresle. Met Paul at around 5pm and watched an Adidas street advertisement utilising the All Blacks and the world cup theme. Difficult to explain but they had a rugby ball and rap music and balanced and danced on one foot, one elbow etc. The young ones will know what we mean. Back to our apartment, had a welcome bath and now downstairs for dinner and to watch England play South Africa. Meet some other Kiwi’s, 2 Swedes who had driven down for a long weekend, 2 Poms (1 pregnant even though on the pill aged 40 with hubby /special friend around 60), 2 Germans & 2 Irish. Good night – England lost badly. Interesting to note that the English people thought that the headlines would be along the lines “Good effort boys” where the Kiwis, had they lost a game, would be severely ridiculed and it would be raised in parliament! Off home to pack as have any early start tomorrow.

Saturday 15th September 2007

Had breakfast downstairs, paid our bill and collected the car from the 24 hour parking station. Drove to a free carpark out near a metro station, but close to where we had to head out of town after the game at Leon between All Blacks and Portugal. Thankfully had a very helpful Frenchman who assisted us with the purchase of our train tickets. The French to date have been wonderful – very helpful and charming. Met a couple of French people on the train who told us in broken English that some people from Turramurra were coming to stay with them next week! Our seats were only 14 from the front, and started off in the shade which was great as the temperature was at least 25 degrees, but then the sun moved (how dare it) and we were very hot. Purchased another cap and a couple of small radios which fitted neatly into our ear, which enabled us to hear the commentary in English. This made the game much more interesting, especially as the earpieces can be used at all the games. Cost euro$10. Good match with Kiwi’s thrashing Portugal. Great atmosphere with everyone very supportive when Portugal did something worthwhile. Left game 8 minutes early when the score was 101-3 so as to avoid the rush as we wanted to get back on the metro, collect our car and head off to L’Arbresle (pronounced L’Abrella) so we could catch the Aussie match against Wales (called Pay de Galles) in French. Arrived in our little village, found a hole in the wall as we needed euro and then to the nearest little pub to watch the game. They were in fact watching the soccer but Pam said “je suis Australienne” and they took pity on her, and switched it to the Rugby. Lovely people who went out and bought us chips, baby tomatoes and cheese for us to eat while we watched the game, and would not let us pay for it. Thankfully Australia won, although a number of errors and they did not look quite the force to be reckoned with that we had hoped for. Never mind – perhaps they are just warming up. After the game we found our little cottage and were met by the owners, his daughter and numerous children, who, fortunately between them spoke a few words of English because the owners did not speak ONE word. We spoke more French than they spoke English which isn’t saying much. We live upstairs in the cottage and the owners live downstairs. The view from all windows is of rolling hills, green trees and willows, white cows and white goats, blue sky and sunshine. T.V. not quite as attractive as not one channel (there are only 3) are in English, with no phone and no internet. All walls are timber and sloping upwards to a high pitch. Only problem is that we sometimes forget and hit our heads on the upward slope. Went into town, only one tiny shop open, and bought some milk, coffee, muesli and bread. We have never eaten so much bread in all our lives and will probably come back the size of a house. Went for a drive through the village, which took all of 37 seconds, and then had dinner at another little village (Saint-Bel) about 7 kms. away. Seemed to be the only one open and we had a lovely dinner of duck and white fish. Back home and off to bed.

Copenhagen to Paris to Lyon

Tuesday 11th September 2007 Odense to Copenhagen to Paris (CDG) to Fontainebleau

Had a typical Danish breakfast of rye bread, cheeses, pates, salami and coffee and, while we were having breakfast, a little man appeared and started cleaning the windows. There was a chorus of Pam and Paul commenting “we know, you have people to do that”! Britta dropped us at the station in Odense and we caught a train directly to Copenhagen airport. This only took an hour and a half as did the flight to Charles de Gaulle (CDG) airport in Paris. We had been warned about CDG terminals and we were very thankful that we had no time pressures as we could not find the exit (circular terminal and we needed gate 4). We exited at 20 and went to 19, then down to 10 where it ended due to construction. We should have gone the other way because it went 20 to 36 and then back to 1, 2, 3, 4. (everyone knows that). Picked up our car a brand new Peugot 207 and we drove to the nearest garage to fill up and as I pulled up in a “Carte only” and it would not accept my “Carte” so I had to move to another pump to fill up. So finally after 2 hours we were on our way in the Paris peak hour, driving on the wrong side of the road. Our satellite navigation was absolutely invaluable in getting out of the airport and Paris, with only one “re-calculating”. When you make an error the little Garman says “recalculating” – this simply means you stuffed up and it has to recalculate a new route for you. After an hour and a half on the road we arrived at Fontainbleu where we had booked at the Mercure Hotel for one night. Beautiful evening meal in the hotel. Only CNN and BBC news on the T.V. so an early night.
Wednesday 12th September Fontainbleu to Beaune

Had a good sleep and was looking forward to a lovely French breakfast. This was disappointing as the food was cold and had been sitting there since 6:30am. Probably half our fault as we did not come down for breakfast until 9:45am.Decided against eating here and walked into city (Centre-Ville). Our French teacher had told us that each village had a sign to the centre of town, (Centre-Ville) but we really did not believe him at all. As it has transpired he was quite correct. Could not face a baguette or ordinary croissant so Pam chose a chocolate croissant and a crepe. Quite palatable. In the centre of town was also a beautiful palace. After breakfast we drove to Sens then to Auxerre for coffee, then to Djon, via tollway, as we planned to spent the night in Djon. No hotels were easily accessible so we decided to drive to Beaune (Bone) where there was a Mecure hotel with a very nice room and meal.

Thursday 13th September 2007 Beaune to Lyon

Drove from Beaune via Macon (a little village with a carousel in the middle). Just lovely. We had a lovely salad for lunch. Paul has nicoise and I had one with fried goose liver (yummy!), then to our apartment in Lyon which is in the middle of town in a delightful square which our apartment overlooks. We are at the part of Lyon where there are many restaurants so finding somewhere to eat was not a problem. We had typical Spanish food – tapas and sangria! Went for a walk around the area – beautiful night. Ended up next to the Saone River where the buildings were illuminated and looked magnificent. Every time we turn a corner there seems to be something totally unexpected in Europe. The illuminated buildings were La Basilique Notre Dame de Fourviere, le Palais de Justice and the ?Church of St Jean. A cup of coffee cost us 5 euro each = $7:50 Australian. Well worth it. Still not happy with our camera but every place we have tried to buy a new one does not have an international guarantee so we are not happy to purchase. Opened the windows of our apartment to hear all the sounds and see all the sights of the people in the square below. Wonderful. All babbling in French, singing and laughing. When we closed the double windows (I guess this is like our double glazing) all the sound disappeared and off to our beds we went after watching BBC news. Pam had a sore back this evening which she was anxious would not hinder our trip. There was no where to park out car near our apartment so we had to leave the car parked in the street all night, which turned out to be fine. The other cars certainly hem themselves in. When we checked on our car in the morning, the car in front and behind, were actually bumper bar to bumper bar! There are a lot of Smart cars in Europe – very cute and they park them into the tiniest of spaces.

End of the Cruise Amsterdam & Copenhagen

Sunday 9th September 2007 Cologne to Amsterdam (Holland)

We travelled at night and I understand we arrived at Amsterdam about 2.00am. We awoke at 6.45am, had breakfast and had to be out of our rooms by 8.15am as they need to get things ready for the new cruise which departs tonight at 5.00pm. We were allowed to stay on board until after lunch which meant we could leave our bags and go and see a bit of Amsterdam. At 9.00am we headed off to do a canal cruise with our NZ cruise mates (ex police inspector and police lady). The canal cruise started at 9.55 and was like the London Red buses (i.e. hop on hop off) so we headed for the Anna Frank museum. The canals of Amsterdam are dirty and not as picturesque as Venice, however a number of the houses that front the canals and the houseboats on the canals themselves have a real character about them. One of the points covered by the guided tour commented that most of the houses sloped out at the top and, as they are four or five stories high, they have a pulley at the apex of the roof so that they can lift things into the house from the road or canal below. This was particularly important in the 17th and 18th century when the houses were built, as many of the houses were owned by merchants who had their warehouses in the top stories of the houses. We arrived at the Anna Frank museum and the house that was the hiding place of Anna Frank, and now a museum designed to reflect the living conditions of the Frank family as described in “The Diary of Anna Frank”. The Frank family were Jews that were hidden for 2 years during the Nazi persecution. The tour of the house with its many quotes from the diary, was a sober reminder of the friendship shown by the family that hid the Franks, the conditions under which they lived, and the horror of the persecution and subsequent death of most of the Frank family. The Frank family were betrayed by someone (we do not know who) and sent concentration camps. Anna believed that all her family were dead, (when in fact her father was still alive) and it is felt that she also gave up the will to live and died only a short few weeks before the liberation. Her father eventually died at the age of 93 and is seen via video in the museum discussing his daughter and the family. Pam spent longer here and found it very very sobering. Did not want to talk to anyone – just to sit quietly and reflect. After this we rejoined the canal trip and returned to the river boat where we had lunch. We had arranged for Nick Marshall, who was near Amsterdam (Urtrech) studying, to join us for dinner that night and he met us in town and we caught a taxi to the Hilton Hotel at the airport (as we have an early morning flight to Copenhagen the next day to deposit our bags) and then back into town where Pam did some shopping and Paul and Nick walked through the “red light area” which was an interesting part of Amsterdam’s culture. Nick explained that there was a vast difference between a “cafe” where you could simply buy a coffee, and “coffee shops” where you could purchase coffee and marijuana and whatever else. Paul went into one but the smell was enough to put him off his coffee, so he left! Caught a train back to the Hilton and had a lovely steak dinner with Nick, who then caught the train back to his Uni and we had an early night.

Monday 10th September 2007 Amsterdam to Hamburg (Car to Odense in Denmark)

Flew to Hamburg where Britta met us, after having driven 3 hours from her home in Odense, (pronounced Oonze). Called into Abena on way to Britta’s and dropped off one of our small bags so it could be sent to the office in Sydney, as we were concerned about having too many bags when we do our tour with Martin as they have strict baggage restrictions. Had a lovely typical Danish lunch at Britta’s home with husband Bert (pronounced Biert), Mikkel aged 12 and Linnear aged 10, and two Siamese cats (Tim) and ? (cannot remember). Afternoon tea at Britta’s Mum’s home, which she offered Port and Baileys. Her late husband had a hobby of setting gemstones in various shapes in sterling silver and she showed these to us with a mixture of pride and sadness (he only died 10 months ago). Back to Britta’s where we had a look at Bert’s work and he demonstrated his machine that creates models from a computer program and layered plastic. We had a typical Danish tea. It was chicken breast fillet stuffed with sun dried tomatoes and this was then wrapped with thin Danish bacon and baked in an oven and served with potatoes (baked with a sweet onion mix) and salad from their garden. It was a great family meal as both the children tried to speak to us in English as they are both learning it at school. Britta and Bert were really the most hospitable hosts and although we were only in Denmark one day, it was a most memorable time for us. They even gave up their bed for us and they slept on the floor with the children. One of Britta’s expressions, when asked how she does something, is to say “we have people to do that” which usually means she buys it from the shop and doesn’t actually cook it herself.

River Boat Cruise - Rudesheim to Koblenz

Friday 7th September 2007 Rudesheim to Koblenz (Castles of the Rhine) (Germany)

This morning we went up on deck to witness for the first time a whole host of “Castles of the Rhein”. These were amazing and the countryside and villages around them was absolute picture postcard. It was a shame that it was a little hazy and overcast but nevertheless still magnificent. At 11:30 we had lunch on deck which was a traditional German “fruhschoppen” known as 2nd breakfast! This consisted of a selection of German sausages, pork, sweet cabbage with potato and a very sweet mustard as well as the traditional German mustard. Yummy! At 1.00pm we arrived at Koblenz which is over 2000 years old and is at the confluence of the Mosel and Rhine rivers. The word ‘confluence” was later corrupted to become “Koblenz” It has the largest fortress in Europe having been built in the 12th Century. We had a quick walking tour with a guide who explained that 85% of the city was destroyed in WW2. Some the renovations after the war were in the historical architecture, and others are in the architecture of the 1950’s making it a not particularly attractive city. After returning to the ship we left again by bus for a tour of Marksburg Castle. This castle is the only one in the area which has escaped ruin and largely maintains its medieval character. It is still inhabited today. Built the 1200’s it includes an Armoury, Museum, Torture Chamber, original bedroom, kitchen, chapel and herb garden with commanding views over the Rhine, Mosel and the town of Koblenz. We were met by a tour guide who gave us a very interesting tour. Back to the boat for NZ rack of lamb which was beautiful and one of our best meals so far.

Saturday 8th September 2007 Koblenz to Cologne (Germany)

All the maps and information we need for the next day is put on our bed during dinner. Tonight we had the forms to complete and $ to put in as gratuities for the staff plus a questionnaire re the cruise and the staff. Suggested gratuities are for staff and crew 10euro per guest per day to be shared among them, and $3 euro per guest per day for the cruise manager. (1 euro is around $1:60 Australian). We are yet to determine what is reasonable.
Today we docked in Cologne (Germany) but did not have a long time here before we had to sail for Amsterdam. We did however have a walking tour with a lovely young man who is in his final year of medicine, wants to be a neurosurgeon or anaesthetist and will in fact be working at Royal North Shore early next year! The main focus of the walking tour was to the Cologne Cathedral. The relics of the Magi are kept here behind the alter in the original gold and silver container. The magi remains are supposedly the remains of the three kings who visited the baby Jesus. 90% of Cologne was destroyed during WW11 and much of Cologne has now been restored. The Cathedral was not however destroyed! Amazing really as we were trying to bomb the railway station which was right next door! Cologne is the 4th largest city of Germany and is the centre of the German Roman Catholic Church. Even though the Cathedral is beautiful there is nothing we have seen which compares with St Peter’s Basilica in Rome (the Pope’s house). Only had about half an hour to look around and I bought a silver belt.
Back to our ship ready to sail for Amsterdam and to pack up our gear as we have to be packed up & be out of our room by 8:15am. When we got to our room there was an invitation from the Captain to join him at the Captain’s table for dinner. I (Pam) did not want to go as there was a tennis match with Federer in it – the semi-finals of the US Open but Paul insisted we go. Only one other couple were invited and this turned out to be a wonderful evening. The other guests were Gabiella (the cruise manager from Munich) and Monique (the hotel manager from Amsterdam) and a lovely American couple whose luggage had not made it onto the ship (Lufthansa airline). It eventually arrived yesterday so the lady (Annette) a last had something to wear. Lufthansa had given her “emergency” gear which consisted of 1 toothbrush and toothpaste as well as an XL white T-shirt – how poor! I think I would have bought some lovely European clothing and billed it to the airline. Clothes are expensive and have not bought any of them as they now have all the autumn/winter stuff in and I rarely buy stuff in winter. Captain’s dinner turned out to be amazing with 6 courses, champagne, white wine and red wine. Have had trouble sleeping the last few days but should sleep well tonight!

River Boat Cruise - Speyer to Rudesheim

Wednesday 5th September 2007 Speyer (Germany)

We stayed in Speyer all day so after breakfast there was a walking tour of Speyer which we did in small groups with the aid of microphones and wireless receivers. Speyer was a Celtic settlement resettled by the Romans then destroyed by the Huns in 450 AD. The name “Speyer comes from the English word “Spire” probably referring to the six spires of the massive Romanesque cathedral built around the year 1030. The walking tour included the Kaiserdome cathedral which is one of the largest medieval churches built in only 30 years. Domnapf is the huge sandstone basin built in 1490 and filled with wine during medieval times when ever a new bishop was installed. We also visited the Jewish ritual baths dating back to 1100’s. Although the Germans never liked the Jews and over periods of plague etc used to blame them for the evils of the time and murder them, they needed them in the city as merchants and money lenders as the Catholics could not charge interest. We had coffee and Pam looked at some shops then back to the boat for lunch. After lunch we went to the beer garden and with the assistance of Skype we rang the children. Pam then headed back to the shops and bought jeans (29 Euro=$45) which will require weight watchers to fit in to them comfortably. Paul stayed at the pub and worked on getting the blog up to date and to replying to some emails. After dinner we watched a movie called “Step up” and Paul went back to the “bier garten” to complete the blog and emails.

Thursday 6th September 2007 Speyer to Rudesheim (Germany)

This morning we left Speyer at 6.00am and had a late breakfast in our room and watched Roddick v’s Federer in the quarter finals of the US Open. Great game. Lunch on board and 2.00pm we arrived at Rudesheim where we took to walk to Rudesheim where we had free time till 4.30. During this time we went up on the Chairlift over vineyards with great views but hazy with drizzle. This cable car goes to the Niederwald Monument which commemorates German unification in 1871. Back to a cafe in town where we had a” Rudesheim Kaffe” which is served in a special mug with cognac, lit for 5 secs, Coffee poured on top from a separate jug, then a huge dollop of whipped cream is added (also from a separate little saucer) and sprinkled with chocolate pieces. The whole thing is then drunk through a straw. Delicious and very very warming!
Rudesheim is probably the most famous wine town in the world being the centre of the wine industry in the fabled Valley of the Lorelei. They have around 3 million visitors a year with 50% of them being from abroad. Heavy bombing during WW11 destroyed most of the original Gothic and Renaissance timber framed and gabled houses. The main street is quite windy, only 6’ wide and 360’ long with many tiny little shops, cafes, & wine bars and is known as “Strangle Lane”! Great place for Riesling.
At 2:30pm we had to be back at the boat for a coach trip to a wine museum in the Bromsburg castle where we had a tour of this lovely castle and a wine tasting of the only wine they make – three different types of Riesling, which varied in price from A$10 to A$200. The three were all very different with the first one being very light and refreshing but dry, the second one was a little sweeter and not as fresh and the third one (Pam’s favourite) was more like a sweet dessert wine. The cellarmaster explained the importance of using the finest rimmed glass available and never filling the glass more than ¼ - 1/3rd full as this gave the wine the largest surface in which to breathe. Also explained that you never hold a white wine glass on your hands as they increase the temperature of the wine and the glass should therefore only ever be held by its stem. Cork stoppers are no longer used and are being replaced by screw tops (which he thinks the Germans may have some trouble with) and a new type of glass stopper.
Caught the bus back to the ship had dinner and watched Casino Royale. Updated the diary and off to bed.

River Boat Cruise - Zurich to Speyer

Sunday 2nd September 2007 Zurich to Basel (Fathers Day)

Rang the children at home as all were at Warragal Road with Sarah and Harry. Had a lovely long chat with them and also the grandies. Great to speak with them all together although it made Pam a little homesick. Checked out of the hotel, took a taxi from hotel to airport at Zurich, where we met with the Uniworld (river cruise company) representative and joined a small van (10 people) for the 1 hour drive to Basel, where we boarded (2.00pm) the River Ambassador ship for our 9 day river cruise down the Rhine. Basel is Switzerland’s 3rd largest city, with much of its architecture and history dating back to the 1500’s. During the afternoon more passengers joined the ship which can hold 120 people. We explored the ship, which has three decks, Our cabin, whilst small, is quite adequate with its own bathroom. At 6.00pm we had a safety briefing and dinner at 7.00pm which was a five course meal not dissimilar to the meals on the Millennium. We really have eaten well on this holiday. Back to the cabin around 9.30pm a bit of work on the diary and off to bed. The boat sailed at midnight and travelled during the night to Breisash

Monday 3rd September 2007 Basel (Switzerland) to Strasbourg (France)

This morning we awoke in Breisash after a difficult nights sleep due mainly to European doona’s which Paul loathes and detests and Pam loves for an hour before she wakes up in a lather of perspiration. The pillows also left a bit to be desired. A quick talk with housekeeping and hopefully it will be resolved tonight. Early start this morning with the buses leaving for Colmar at 8.40am. During this day the boat travelled onto Strasbourg while we took a bus and visited the Alsace wine region of France. First we travelled to Colmar where we were joined by guides who took each group (40 people) on a walking tour of Colmar. Unfortunately I had left my camera on the ship as the architecture and beauty of this small town was spectacular. Many of the houses had window boxes (typically geraniums) and one area was called “little Venice” which had a canal and very pretty houses with old wooden facade (In England it would be called Elizabethan so I guess its the same time period). From Colmar we travelled though Alsace wine region to Riquewihr which is a well preserved medieval & renaissance city. Fortification, houses, and courtyards from the 13th to the 15th century and a city wall with gates and towers dating from 1291. Lunch was as per the guides recommendation i.e. “La Tarte Flambé” which is a French Pizza with double cream, onions, cream cheese and bacon on a very thin Pizza base and heated over an open flame. Very tasty but maybe not weight watchers. This region is also home to Storks who build large nests to have babies prior to migration. Their were many places where the locals had built high flat round platforms for the storks to build their large nests. From Riquewihr we travelled to Obernai past many, many grape vines which were just starting to be harvested. This was a month earlier than normal due to a very unseasonably hot start to summer last April/May. We had afternoon tea and then back on the bus to Strasbourg where we rejoined the boat. We had dinner and slept better than the previous night.

Tuesday 4th September 2007 Strasbourg (France) to Speyer (Germany)

Early start again (8.30am), as we boarded a smaller tourist boat for a river tour of Strasbourg which was a fabulous way to get and overview of the city. This was another one of our favourite towns. During the 5th century Attila the Hun took the city from the Romans . After centuries of the city being German it became French under Louis the 14th until 1871 when it became German after the Franco Prussian war. The French again took over after World War 1, and in 1941 the Germans again took over at the start of World War 2 until liberated by the French in 1945. It is the seat of the European Parliament and International Human Rights Institute and home to Albert Schweitzer who was a pastor, doctor and musician, who used to give organ recitals to raise money for his hospitals. The city was the birth place of the French National anthem. The picturesque old quarter of Strasbourg is know as “Petite France”. After the boat tour we walked into the centre of town and visited the Cathedrale de Notre Dame, a medieval masterpiece built over three centuries between 1176 and 1439. Its spire is 469 feet which was Europe’s highest in the middle ages. After a coffee Pam visited La Fayette, a French Department store and Paul headed off to and Internet cafe as we have no internet connection on the boat. Back to the River Ambassador where we had lunch and set sail for Speyer in Germany where we arrived at 8.00pm. During this trip we had an emergency fire drill, rain, sunshine and three locks. Each afternoon we have a port talk about the port we will be visiting the next day. Speyer had a beer garden about 50 metres from the boat that had free wireless internet connection so soon after we arrived Pam and I went over and got on line to get our emails up to date. Had a enjoyable German wheat beer, back to the boat at 10.30pm and then a great nights sleep.

Venice to Zurich

Saturday 1st September 2007 – Venice to Zurich

No sleep in today as its breakfast at 7.00am with the water taxi booked for 8.00am. We debated about which was the best way to get to the airport with the Public Vaperetto (water bus) costing 25 Euro each taking and hour and we would have to walk from our hotel to the grand canal to catch it. With 5 bags we decided to pay the extra 50 Euro and take a water taxi directly from our hotel to the air port (30 minutes and 100 Euros). As it turned out the tide was so low the water taxi could not quite reach the hotel so we still had a few minutes walk over a couple of bridges but no major problem. It’s quite usual to see people walking around Venice with suitcases because the only means of transport is the canals and not all hotels can be reached by canal.
We checked in at Marco Polo airport for our flight to Zurich and because it was a Star Alliance flight I could use my “Star Alliance Gold” pass to give us an extra 10kg of baggage, priority check in and access to the lounge. Somehow after starting with 3 bags (50 kg) and two carry on bags and having sent 10kg back to Australia we still have 3 bags (50 kg) and two carry on bags. Methinks Pammy has been shopping in Venice.
The Swiss air flight (90 minutes) was uneventful but very picturesque on descent into Zurich. On arrival we caught a shuttle bus (called the “Ben Bus”) to the Sofitel. We then waled into town and had lunch at an amazing department store which had a fabulous self serve restaurant complete with fresh juices, birchers, vegetables, hot meals etc. Then did a short walking tour by ourselves following the map we had picked up from the hotel. We the caught the tram back to our hotel and did not pay as we did not know who to pay or where to put our money! Did see the police pull over a driver and 3 armed police got out of the car and asked for his licence. Interesting that there were 3 of them – usually only 2 in Australia. Noted that one armed policeman always stayed at the back of the vehicle. After a short rest in our hotel we then walked back into town and had dinner at the barnhoff (railway station) of fresh grilled fish and salad. No shopping for Pam as it was after 4pm and a Saturday and the shops were closed. Opened Father Day cards that night as it was after midnight in Australia. These were very much appreciated as it must have taken considerable effort to get the kids to get their act together! Watched some more tennis and the English version of “Who Wants To Be A Millionaire”.