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Peter BowmanPeter Bowman
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s’est rendu dans 6 pays. En savoir plus
  • Europe 2019
    Jour 22

    Amalfi Coast

    27 août 2019, Italie ⋅ ⛅ 25 °C

    After our lazy day yesterday we were up early and back on the local train back to Naples to meet up with our tour bus that would take us along the Amalfi Coast. They call the road Mama Mia, as it is skinny and windy and when you watch the way the buses navigate the tight corners and windy road.

    The scenery was amazing and our first stop was Positano which is a beautiful village with it’s narrow winding paths down to the beach. Shame we only got an hour here, but we would love to come back and explore the coast. Pete couldn’t resist a swim in the Mediterranean. Then it was back on the bus and off to Amalfi where we hopped on a boat and cruised the coast checking out the beaches and the celebrity houses along the coast. We found a boat that looks like the one we should have! Haha!

    We then had lunch at a restaurant on the beach and had yum seafood Spaghetti and a new drink, a lemon spritz using limoncello, Prosecco, soda and limone gelati, very yum and refreshing.

    Our last stop was Revalla (not how you spell it) where there was fantastic views of the coastline and some wonderful ceramic showrooms. Pete nearly had a table shipped home!

    I took a travel sickness tablet (due to windy roads) and so I slept all the way back to Naples. A great taste of the Amalfi Coast and definitely a place we would like to go back to.

    When we got back to the apartment we cooled off in the tiny pool in the garden of our BnB and made another platter that we ate overlooking the garden. We went upstairs to the terrace and watched the sunset. A great end to a wonderful day, our last night in Italy! Off to Greece tomorrow.    En savoir plus

  • Europe 2019
    Jour 21

    Lazy Day

    26 août 2019, Italie ⋅ 🌙 27 °C

    Ok so we had an incredibly lazy day today. We both felt that a lay day was required after three weeks of pretty full on travel. So we spent most of the day relaxing and sleeping and watching TV, because this was the first place we could get TV in English that wasn’t just the news. Watched a funny series called Jane The Virgin.

    We did get up eventually and had a platter for lunch/dinner and then we went for a walk down to a bar on the beach where we had a couple of drinks and then went home to sleep. A much needed rest day.    En savoir plus

  • Europe 2019
    Jour 20

    Now to Naples

    25 août 2019, Italie ⋅ ⛅ 22 °C

    We had a few hours in the morning before our train so we went to a Museum nearby that housed an exhibition of vintage clothing and decor. Then we wandered around seeing more historical buildings and having coffee and pastries of course!

    Our last train trip on our Eurail pass is to Naples. We would definitely use trains again as it’s been great. After a relaxing trip we arrived in Naples, worked out how to use the local trains and headed to Torre Annunziata where we had a fantastic Air BnB apartment. While we were on the local train a group of young guys hopped on in high spirits. They started talking to us and distracted us so that we missed our stop, we got off at the next stop and it just meant a bit further to walk as we couldn’t find a taxi.

    We had a rest and then headed to a supermarket to buy supplies and then we made our way down to the beach, finding a restaurant with a great view and good food.    En savoir plus

  • Europe 2019
    Jour 19

    A Day in Rome - A Test of Endurance!

    24 août 2019, Italie ⋅ ⛅ 27 °C

    Ok so off we set after a great breakfast in the hotel, even had scrambled eggs, a bit upmarket for our travel, but this hotel was booked by the travel agent so we certainly paid for it!!

    Firstly we ended up at something similar to our Shrine, which was a monument to an unknown soldier. The polizia were everywhere making sure you didn’t sit on the steps or the side of fountains. I didn’t want to sit on the edge I wanted to jump in to cool down, but alas that is forbidden. We continued our exploration and finally found the Panthenon which was open and free to explore. What an absolutely stunning building. We listened to an audio that talked about the history of the building and I marvel at how they got the massive slabs of stone and marble into these buildings. Incredible architecture. We stopped after this visit to sample a cold Sangria before moving on to the next place.

    We found the Piazza Navona which has three fountains and is beautiful square with lots of restaurants and bars. Again I was tempted to jump in a fountain but again the fun police were not cooperating.

    We found an exhibition of Leonardo da Vinci’s work and models built from his many drawings, what an amazing man. Must admit I didn’t realise the extent of his brilliance.

    We stopped for lunch in a small square where there was a market and enjoyed the misting fans. I was tempted to spend the rest of the day there, but no we were on a mission. We had a tour booked at 3.00 and had to meet the group at the Piazza Colosseum, and so we figured out the bus and the directions (well Pete actually!) if I did it we would still be lost!

    The heat was stifling as there had been a small rain shower which I happily stood in, but that made the heat even worse. Pete was worried I was going to explode I was so red in the face, but 5 bottles of water, and numerous stops in the shade and we made it around Palantine Hill, the Roman Forum and the Colosseum and it was amazing and worth the struggle. There were a few times (I must admit) that I thought I have seen all this before I will wait in a bar, but I’m glad I stayed with Pete and we got to see these things together. So much history it is hard to take in that some of these things are 2000 years old.

    Everywhere you look there is something historical to see from old viaducts to incredible churches.

    After a really full day we made it back to our hotel and decided to go up to a bar for a drink before going to the room to get ready to go out for dinner. Turned into three drinks and lasagne and salad because we were too exhausted to move. Then back to the hotel for dessert and a nightcap before we fell exhausted but happy into bed! Ah Roma!    En savoir plus

  • Europe 2019
    Jour 18

    On to Roma!

    23 août 2019, Italie ⋅ ⛅ 30 °C

    After a lovely relaxed morning we said goodbye to Venice, we probably could have had another day here but there is always next time! I am going to learn Italian when we get home as it would make life much easier and I love Italy❤️.

    We boarded our train and once again had a relaxing trip with table service and free water, drinks and snacks! Very civilised.

    On arrival in Rome we were hit with two things - millions of people and the heat! After a bit of research we hopped on a local bus and found our hotel which was a lovely hotel with a big room. Had a brief rest then it was out to explore. We found the Spanish Steps and the Trevi fountain, which considering the heat and people was amazing.

    One thing about Rome everywhere you look there is history, beautiful buildings, fountains, statues and gardens. Back to the hotel for dinner and an early night to build up our strength for a full day tomorrow!    En savoir plus

  • Europe 2019
    21
    Jour 17

    Beautiful Venice

    22 août 2019, Italie ⋅ ⛅ 25 °C

    It’s raining in Venice! After a slow start to the morning we headed off to use our hop on hop off water bus pass. It was much cooler today which was great for walking around. Our first stop is St Marks! So many people. We ended up getting tickets to explore the Doges Palace and only had a short wait to get in. Absolutely fantastic and the history was amazing. We spent about two hours wandering through the palace and then the Bridge of Sighs which led to the prison area.

    When we finished we were going to wander around but there were way too many people so we jumped back on the bus and went to Murano. It is a beautiful place and much quieter and less tourists. Interesting that some shops had signs saying not Chinese glass, which it wasn’t and it would have been a shame to destroy the local industry with Chinese imports.

    Had a yummy pizza on a canal and then looked at the many shops with amazing glass sculptures and jewellery. I was lucky and got a pair of Murano glass earrings. The ride back passed some beautiful buildings and sights!

    We got back to the start and then found a little bar for the expected refreshments and then we found a wonderful little restaurant where Pete says he had the best Seafood pasta ever! We shared some yum mussels and made short work of the bowl!

    Walked home after Pete had the best Tiramisu ever! We are off to Rome tomorrow.    En savoir plus

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  • Europe 2019
    Jour 16

    Onto Venice

    21 août 2019, Italie ⋅ ⛅ 23 °C

    After a lovely breakfast on the terrace we headed off in the car back to Florence to drop off the hire car.it was an easy drive with Google maps until we realised our offline map had sent us to a bridge that was closed! Lucky we had internet so we quickly recalculated and managed to get the car back with incurring any traffic fines, we hope.

    Made it onto our train and had a relaxing couple of hours speeding towards Venice. When we arrived the clever accommodation booker (Pete) had found us a hotel that only had one bridge to climb to reach our hotel. Mind you we had four flights of narrow stairs to make it to our room, but the lovely staff carried our bags for us.

    After a quick refresh we headed out to explore Venice and marvel at the beautiful buildings and canals. We were going to do a go dale ride but 100 euros about $180 made us think twice. Still we found a lovely place to stop for refreshments, but had some pretty average food. We went back for our afternoon siesta which was much needed!

    We decided to stay close to the hotel for dinner and found a lovely little restaurant on a canal. Weather was a bit cooler with quite a bit of wind, but quite refreshing after the previous hot days. Sooooo many tourists it makes it hard to walk the streets during the day but easier at night so we did more wandering until we were well and truly exhausted. More exploring tomorrow.    En savoir plus

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  • Europe 2019
    Jour 15

    Taxi, taxi

    20 août 2019, Italie ⋅ 🌙 21 °C

    Up sort of early and the Taxi driver set off for Pisa! Good navigation got us into the centre of Pisa and parked. We walked through the streets, having to stop for a refreshment, as it was hot, hot! We found the tower and of course Pete had to try to push it over, while everyone else was trying to hold it up!

    After looking at all the incredible buildings we headed off for beach nearby for a swim. Soooo many people but it was still great to have a swim, but too hot to sit on the beach for too long. It was amazing seeing the mountains in the distance while standing in the water.

    Then we set off again and went to Lucca, a walled city where we wandered around, we have done a lot of that, oh and also had to have some refreshments too!

    We finally returned home and we made a platter for our last night in San Gimignano. Off to Venice tomorrow.    En savoir plus

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  • Europe 2019
    111
    Jour 14

    Tuscany

    19 août 2019, Italie ⋅ 🌙 21 °C

    The weather is amazing as is the location. Truly spoilt in this beautiful place.

    In the morning we went and found a laundry and washed our ever growing bag of dirty clothes, bought some food and then headed off in the car for an adventure.

    We headed to Cecina which is on the coast going through amazing villages and fantastic scenery. Arrived at Cecina and it was not the quiet little town I remembered! Firstly we found an Italian Aldi store which was amazing. Found a couple of beach towels and bits and pieces, then headed down to the beach. Absolutely packed beaches with umbrellas as far as the eye can see.

    We then drove on down the coast to San Vincenzo where we were looking forward to a seafood pasta, but no luck we arrived too late and the kitchen was closed, so we shared a kebab instead!

    On we drove and that’s when the fun began! We only had offline Google maps that had trouble keeping track of where we were. We found a gorgeous village called Rocca Strada which had lots of housed built into the side of the rock with narrow windy streets. Best part was we were the only tourists there!

    On we drove heading for Siena, where we took so many wrong turns and one time ended up going under a bridge that we were supposed to be going over! No we didn’t kill each other but it was getting pretty tense and in the ended we skipped stopping in Siena and we both agreed never again without a online map!

    Drove on and muddled our way back to San Gimi where we stopped finally at a local Pizzeria as Pete was desperate for an Italian pizza and I had seafood risotto to make up for missing out during the day. We were happy to finally be at home and we will remember the adventure of getting lost in Tuscany for years to come! Pete finished the day with Limoncello!    En savoir plus

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