Avoiding the heat EU tour

Un’avventura di 127 giorni di Bec & Phill Leggi altro

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Giorno 24
mercoledì 27 settembre 2023 17:20
☁️ 23 °C
Altitudine: 47 m
Grecia Fanarás 37.654558, 21.62519237°39’16” N 21°37’31” E
1 2 2 2
Olive you glad for oil 🫒
27 settembre 2023, Grecia ⋅ ☁️ 23 °C
After our buffet breakfast we headed just down the road to the medieval Byzantine citadel of Mystra, where we walked from the top of the mountain through the ruins of the ancient city to the bottom. There were multiple churches as well as leftovers of buildings. I think for me this was my favorite ancient city to date. There was so many roads and places to walk.

After spending a long while here we headed to a little tavern nearby for lunch where Phill enjoyed the local speciality of Pork with a crispy skin and we had a side of crispy cheese.

We made our way to an olive oil museum to learn about different types of olives, oils and the techniques used. After leaving the museum we headed on the bus for a 2 hour drive to another store where we tasted different olive oils, olives and wine.

Finally, we arrived at the hotel for dinner and after we went for a walk around the town where we walked into a store where they had an Olympic torch just shoved in the corner because the store owner's brother was one of the original runners.

We grabbed some ice cream and headed back for some sleep.

Step count
Both: 11kLeggi altro
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Viaggiatore Great shot
27/09/23RispostaTradurre
Viaggiatore I guess canola oil just won't cut it now !
27/09/23RispostaTradurre
ViaggiatoreNot anymore.
28/09/23RispostaTradurre
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Giorno 25
giovedì 28 settembre 2023 09:19
☀️ 19 °C
Altitudine: 24 m
Grecia Ancient Olympia 37.638144, 21.62970637°38’17” N 21°37’47” E
2
2 3 1 1
Does this mean we're athletes?
28 settembre 2023, Grecia ⋅ ☀️ 19 °C
This morning began at the same location as the original Olympic games, in Olympia. We explored the ruins from the 8th century B.C. Its extensive ruins include athletic training areas, a stadium and temples dedicated to the gods Hera and Zeus. We both ran the distance of the original stadium, so that pretty much makes us fitness gurus.

We also explored the Archaeological Museum of Olympia, which held a good amount of the original statues and artifacts from that time.

After lunch we drove north to Patras, the capital of the Peloponnese and the west coast's largest port. We continued crossing the spectacular Rion-Antirion bridge, which is one of the world's longest multi-span cable-stayed bridges and longest of the fully suspended type. We went through the picturesque fishing villages along the south coast of the mainland to legendary Delphi.

Once we arrived in Delphi and checked out the amazing views from our room we headed to dinner, and had a stunning post dinner walk.

Step count
Both: 15.2kLeggi altro
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Viaggiatore Wow who would have thought we had a couple of Olympic champions. Athletes of the gods.. well done. Love the view from the restaurant... stunning
28/09/23RispostaTradurre
ViaggiatoreIt's surprisingly easy to win when there hasn't been a competitor in ~700 years!
28/09/23RispostaTradurre
Viaggiatore So glad to see blue sky
28/09/23RispostaTradurre
ViaggiatoreWe've gotten ridiculously lucky with the weather so far. We'll see if that luck continues!
28/09/23RispostaTradurre
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Giorno 26
venerdì 29 settembre 2023 08:48
☀️ 14 °C
Altitudine: 570 m
Grecia Athenian Treasury 38.481833, 22.5013538°28’55” N 22°30’5” E
2 2
Apollo told me to do it
29 settembre 2023, Grecia ⋅ ☀️ 14 °C
After yet another buffet breakfast we jumped on our bus and headed to the archaeological site of Delphi, where the oracle of Apollo spoke. It was the site of the omphalos, the 'navel of the world' (center of the world according to Zeus).

Delphi in the 6th century B.C. was the religious hub and symbol of unity of the ancient Greek world, where the priestesses would huff methane and carbon dioxide expelled from craters in the earth due to volcanic activity. This would cause them to have 'visions' of Apollo and would pass on his guidance to many kings and aristocrats.

After our history lesson, we hopped back onto the bus for 2-hours before we stopped for lunch and a stretch. Then we got back onto the coach for another 2 hours to arrive in Kalambaka.

We enjoyed a stroll around the town and some icecream before heading to dinner and an early bed.

Step count; 19.5k eachLeggi altro
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Viaggiatore Took me a minute to see it
29/09/23RispostaTradurre
ViaggiatoreGotta have the kitty photos
29/09/23RispostaTradurre
Viaggiatore You're ready, for a flight of arrows
29/09/23RispostaTradurre
Viaggiatore Love the old Kodak sign
29/09/23RispostaTradurre
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Giorno 27
sabato 30 settembre 2023 22:04
🌙 17 °C
Altitudine: 194 m
Grecia Kalambaka 39.699381, 21.63346739°41’58” N 21°38’0” E
2 1 2
Jesus take the wheel
30 settembre 2023, Grecia ⋅ 🌙 17 °C
Today began at 2 Christian Orthodox monasteries perched on top of rock formations at Meteora. They were originally built by hermit monks living in the caves carved into the sides of the rock formations.

The first we visited was used by monks, the other was nuns. These churches and locations were beautiful and as we left the final place we witnessed a priest and a bus driver get into a road rage incident outside the front of the monastery where the bus driver kept yelling 'give me a reason father, give me a reason you do this'

After that enlightening stop we headed for Athens. This was a 4 hour drive with a stop for lunch. After lunch we stopped at the site of the hot gates, and took in another statue and memorial of King Leonidas and the 300 Spartans.

We arrived back in the city and headed straight for the laundromat for some fresh socks.

After our clothes were dried and smelling better we got a gyros for dinner and headed back to the hotel to relax as the first week of our tour was over, we now have tomorrow as down time before boarding the island cruise.

Step count: 14kLeggi altro
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Viaggiatore Meteora always been on my bucket list, wonder if I can virtually tick it off
30/09/23RispostaTradurre
ViaggiatoreIt was stunning! I'm very glad we got to see it
01/10/23RispostaTradurre
Viaggiatore Love this shot,
30/09/23RispostaTradurre
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Giorno 28
domenica 1 ottobre 2023 23:45
🌙 21 °C
Altitudine: 88 m
Grecia Athens 37.983111, 23.72846937°58’59” N 23°43’42” E
2 3
Opa!
1 ottobre 2023, Grecia ⋅ 🌙 21 °C
Today was uneventful. As it was our first full day of nothingness we decided to battle plan the next month of our trip.

Now let me tell you, that sounds easy - but boy oh boy is Italy expensive, and trying to find the cheapest (decent) place and transport is a task. We ended up spending 10am to around 5pm in our hotel room planning (minus 1 coffee break).

The night ended up being a lot more interesting though, with our tour group we headed out to dinner. Where we had multiple courses of traditional Greek food while watching a variety of dances.

The highlight of the night is when Phill was called up to dance with the men. (video is attached)

Once dinner wrapped up we walked to a bar for a late night beverage before going back to the hotel for bedtime.

Step count: around 11k (the watches were thrown off with all our clapping)Leggi altro
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Viaggiatore My old friend "Lions milk"
01/10/23RispostaTradurre
ViaggiatoreOuzo : Terrible --- Free Ouzo : Palatable!
02/10/23RispostaTradurre
Viaggiatore Efzon guards, you have it all
01/10/23RispostaTradurre
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Giorno 29
lunedì 2 ottobre 2023 22:54
🌬 22 °C
Altitudine: 14 m
Grecia Kaminakia 37.453505, 25.32888337°27’13” N 25°19’44” E
2 1
Cruisin' n boozin'
2 ottobre 2023, Grecia ⋅ 🌬 22 °C
Today began by us running around trying to figure out how to send a parcel internationally from Athens before breakfast.

We ended up scoring a box from a local supermarket and buying tape from the same place to go back to the post office to send it off.

After our adventure we headed for breakfast then onto our bus to the dock where we boarded our home for the next few days - the cruise ship Celeste.

After a big lunch and some "free" cocktails we arrived at our first stop: Mykonos.

We explored the thin cobblestone streets,, swam and took some photos before ending the night in a bar where we had too many more cocktails.

Finally, we boarded our shuttle and ended up on board for a very late buffet dinner before bed.

Step count: 17kLeggi altro
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Viaggiatore Ahhh Mykonos, disco dancing till dawn in a windmill club at the top of the hill, are the pelicans still down at the port?
02/10/23RispostaTradurre
ViaggiatoreI didn't see any, but it was incredibly windy so maybe they were hiding!
02/10/23RispostaTradurre
Viaggiatore You'll be able to rest your pedometer for a few days
02/10/23RispostaTradurre
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Giorno 30
martedì 3 ottobre 2023 22:20
🌙 21 °C
Altitudine: 10 m
Turchia Öküz Mehmet Paşa Kervansarayı 37.860759, 27.25550937°51’39” N 27°15’20” E
3 1 2
A quick trip to Asia
3 ottobre 2023, Turchia ⋅ 🌙 21 °C
Today began in Turkey. We docked super early at Kusadasi and made our way to the ruins of the ancient city of Ephesus which was built in the neolithic period and came to full glory under the Roman empire. This site was stunning, considering the site is only 17% excavated it truly felt like we were walking through a city. Here we saw the lavish Library of Celsus, a gigantic 25,000 seat amphitheatre, and the well-preserved Hadrian Temple.

After our tour of this ancient city we headed to a Turkish rug consignment warehouse that specializes in silk rugs. We were shown how silk is extracted as well as how they actually weave the designs into the rugs. This was very cool, and I now understand why they are so beautiful and expensive (I'm selling a kidney if someone needs one).

After a bit more walking around Turkey we headed back into the ship before we started sail for Patmos.

On Patmos we visited a beach and enjoyed a leisurely stroll through the township before relaxing with a coffee and watching the world pass by.

The night ended with a very impressive cabaret show on the cruise ship and a 'Greek bbq' for dinner

Step count: around 19k

PS. On our short trip we did try Turkish coffee (it's just Greek coffee), Turkish delight, lions milk and haggling.Leggi altro
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Viaggiatore A few treasures there, the silk ones do fold up quite small, but you might need at least one kidney for the rest of journey, so I'm thinking Turkey deserves a return, dedicated trip later, I have lots of handy hints, may even be available as a guide, once my hip is better
03/10/23RispostaTradurre
ViaggiatoreI think I'm a fan of that idea, sell a kidney, win the lottery and come back
03/10/23RispostaTradurre
Viaggiatore Ahhh donderma !
03/10/23RispostaTradurre
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Giorno 31
mercoledì 4 ottobre 2023 21:55
🌙 23 °C
Altitudine: 29 m
Grecia Ammoudes 36.364597, 28.20927236°21’53” N 28°12’33” E
2
1 1 2
On the Rhode again
4 ottobre 2023, Grecia ⋅ 🌙 23 °C
This morning we jumped out of bed for a 7am call time as we had a full day at Rhodes ahead of us.

We began our adventure at Lindos, about 55km from Rhodes Town and high above the local village at the Acropolis of Lindos with the Doric Temple of Athena, built in 300 BC. After exploring these ruins and the local town we headed to one of my favorite locations to date: Rhodes Old Town.

The Old City is surrounded by 4km long walls and is one of the biggest and best-preserved Medieval settlements of Europe. This fortified medieval city is full of buildings showing the history of the island, from the antiquity, the Byzantine times, the Middle Ages, and to Turkish rule.

After strolling through and checking out the Palace of the Grand Master, the hospital of the Knights, the inns that were used by the Knights, and the Gothic churches, along with the narrow stone-paved alleyways, the stone arches and apses, the various mosques, churches and houses we headed back to the boat for lunch.

After our (included, aka free) lunch we donned our bathers and headed out in search of a beach.

On the way we stopped at the supposed location of the Colossus of Rhodes - which for those following at home that know what that is: Apparently the statue wasn't actually standing with his legs apart? Apparently that was an artist impression many moons ago that people just ran with.

We finally got to a pebbled beach where we had a refreshing swim and sunbath before going back aboard.

The day ended with a cocktail party with the captain and a show about the Greek gods.

Step count: 27kLeggi altro
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Viaggiatore Is Rudolph lost?
04/10/23RispostaTradurre
Viaggiatore Ahh those European beaches perhaps like Hawaii, they should import some sand from Ozz
04/10/23RispostaTradurre
Viaggiatore Love that scarf, is that the Turkish one?
04/10/23RispostaTradurre
ViaggiatoreYes it is!
05/10/23RispostaTradurre
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Giorno 32
giovedì 5 ottobre 2023 22:25
🌙 20 °C
Altitudine: 17 m
Grecia Crete 35.340747, 25.13823335°20’27” N 25°8’18” E
2 2 2 1
Isle miss you, seaya Aegean soon
5 ottobre 2023, Grecia ⋅ 🌙 20 °C
Today we started off in Heraklion, Crete. We left the ship and followed a yellow line to
Rocca a Mare, a 16th century Fortress. Then continued on to the city to explore and enjoy the area.

We again boarded and headed to a 'cocktail party' with our tour guide where he explained the disembarkation process and what is happening tour as it was the final day of our 2 week tour.

After some cocktails and coffees we headed to the on board casino for our traditional pokie session. When I say traditional, I mean we did it on the only other cruise we've been on where we won $40 off $20. This time we picked out our lucky machine, and inserted a crisp 10 euro note, after about 2 minutes of playing we walked away with 104 euros. So that is a 100% win streak for us with cruise ship pokies.

We then arrived at our final stop - Santorini, The 'Black Pearl of the Aegean' specifically we went to the cliff-top village of Oia. The views here were absolutely stunning.

We expected to see a lot of tourists, but I don't think we fully comprehended how popular this island is, in peak season they see up to 160,000 visitors a day. Now that's a lot of people for these tiny streets where there's only 15k permanent residents.

Once we got back on board we enjoyed Mexican for dinner and enjoyed the views from the volcanic islands as we sailed away.

Step count: 22kLeggi altro
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Viaggiatore Funny?
05/10/23RispostaTradurre
Viaggiatore Dunny ?
05/10/23RispostaTradurre
Viaggiatore Now you can have mains and dessert for next few days,
05/10/23RispostaTradurre
ViaggiatoreIt pretty much covered 2 coffees on Santorini
05/10/23RispostaTradurre
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Giorno 33
venerdì 6 ottobre 2023 10:34
☀️ 23 °C
Altitudine: 72 m
Grecia Acropolis Museum 37.968614, 23.72856737°58’7” N 23°43’43” E
1
1 1 2
Disembarkation
6 ottobre 2023, Grecia ⋅ ☀️ 23 °C
This morning we disembarked from the cruise nice and early, made the hour bus trip back to Athens and said Goodbye to our tour guide Pavlos.

As it was only 9am and we couldn't book in yet we dropped our bags off and set off on an adventure.

After wandering around we headed into the Acropolis museum. The museum was great and had heaps of artifacts and pieces from the acropolis which we visited just a week ago.

After some more walking and a successful post office trip we ended the day just relaxing in the room watching the historical Greek movie - Mumma mia, with dinner which was a mix grill.

Step count - 26kLeggi altro
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ViaggiatoreOopa
06/10/23Risposta
Viaggiatore Nearly missed you
06/10/23RispostaTradurre
Viaggiatore Souvlaki, gyros, or schwarma
06/10/23RispostaTradurre
ViaggiatoreThat one was a falafel shawarma
07/10/23RispostaTradurre
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Giorno 34
sabato 7 ottobre 2023 10:13
☀️ 23 °C
Altitudine: 84 m
Grecia Athens 37.983297, 23.72832237°58’60” N 23°43’42” E
1 3 2
That's a wrap on Greece
7 ottobre 2023, Grecia ⋅ ☀️ 23 °C
Today we said goodbye to our included tour accomodation. No more 4 star hotels for us....

After our midday checkout time we headed to our favorite laundry mat, for the third time this Greece trip. After our clothes were successfully cleaned we headed to our final hotel in Athens to drop off our bags before a stroll through the city.

After 3 when we were able to check in we headed to our room and continued with booking and researching the rest of this month.

We took a quick break and headed towards the acropolis for cocktails with a view - before grabbing a final gyros and heading to bed for a early night.

Seeya in Italy

Step count: 17kLeggi altro
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Viaggiatore Love the Greek adventure. Well done. Now looking forward to some roman ruins, Italian food and more cats.
07/10/23RispostaTradurre
ViaggiatoreLoving our daily catch-up, I'll be hanging out for food, Al said some restaurants have a big wheel of fresh cheese, which they will scoop out for you, and the pizzas only have a couple of ingredients but great quality
07/10/23RispostaTradurre
ViaggiatoreI'm looking forward to it! My pants aren't though
08/10/23RispostaTradurre
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Giorno 35
domenica 8 ottobre 2023 23:31
🌙 19 °C
Altitudine: 16 m
Italia Giardini di Piazza Cesare Battisti 41.122074, 16.8667441°7’19” N 16°52’0” E
2 1
αντιο σας Greece, Ciao Italy
8 ottobre 2023, Italia ⋅ 🌙 19 °C
Today we said goodbye to Athens and spent most of the day in the airport.

After a very quick flight we landed in Bari. After some Google maps and train issues we ended up not going to our original accommodation and booked a last minute room in the towns center.

After dropping our things off we went in search for the areas best rated pizza on trip advisor and Google. This took us to SpizziPizza, where as we were waiting we heard some fellow Australians talking about the mushroom 'incident' of Leongatha.

After enjoying our very first Italian pizza - which was delicious, we went for a late night stroll around the town and headed back to the accommodation.

Step count: 19kLeggi altro
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Viaggiatore Guessing you didn't eat all those
08/10/23RispostaTradurre
Viaggiatore Wat she doing
08/10/23RispostaTradurre
ViaggiatoreTrying to Google translate ask me how to get a bus ticket, it's very confusing
09/10/23RispostaTradurre
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Giorno 36
lunedì 9 ottobre 2023 09:52
☀️ 23 °C
Altitudine: 18 m
Italia Giardini di Piazza Cesare Battisti 41.122433, 16.86655841°7’21” N 16°51’60” E
1 1 3 2
Oldie but a goodie
9 ottobre 2023, Italia ⋅ ☀️ 23 °C
For our first morning in Italy we woke up, packed our things and headed to our included breakfast - a cappuccino, a croissant and freshly squeezed OJ 👌

We then wandered around Bari, enjoyed another cappuccino and had one of the most delicious lunch rolls ever: A prosciutto, sun dried tomatoes, pistachio spread and burrata roll.

After more aimless walking we headed for our bus which took us to the 3rd oldest city in the world and the oldest in Europe - Matera.

After some back and forth with our hotel/b&b owner she informed us we couldn't check in until 19:30, we got off the bus at 15:30. So we had a good chunk of time to kill and places to explore with our lovely packs, as we couldn't drop them anywhere either.

Phill got stuck chatting (listening) to a local for almost an hour, before we explored an old underground water tank. We then walked through Sassi de Matera which is a cave network inhabited since the Paleolithic era with excavations & expansions over the years. But more on that tomorrow!

It was 20 past 7 at this point and we had just walked what felt like 2000 steps (with our packs still on) so we decided to get some gelato. Now this chocolate gelato was the best thing I had ever tasted, 10/10 will be going back tomorrow.

After it finally hit 19:30 and we could check in, we dumped our packs and peeled off our very VERY sweaty Tshirts and headed to complimentary drinks at the attached restaurant where we also enjoyed a tagliere di salumi e formaggi (meat and cheese tray).

Once we got back to the room we booked a walking tour for tomorrow morning, we also washed the clothes we wore today as they were a biohazard.

Step count: 21k

PS. If you're a fan of James bond, the latest one from 2019 was apparently filmed hereLeggi altro
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Viaggiatore When you're in Istanbul, they have a similar one, quite spectacular
09/10/23RispostaTradurre
Viaggiatore Beautiful shot,
09/10/23RispostaTradurre
Viaggiatore 10/10, sounds amazing, but does it extend to 11/10, if there's something even better?
09/10/23RispostaTradurre
ViaggiatoreThat's a problem for future us!
10/10/23RispostaTradurre
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Giorno 37
martedì 10 ottobre 2023 22:19
☁️ 19 °C
Altitudine: 391 m
Italia Museo Archeologico Nazionale "Domenico Ridola"40.663531, 16.60962240°39’49” N 16°36’35” E
2 2 1
Do tomatoes count as fruit?
10 ottobre 2023, Italia ⋅ ☁️ 19 °C
Today began with a walking tour of the Sassi de Matera and the ancient cave dwellings. We toured a cave church as well as checking out some remodeled houses as well as seeing the old abandoned buildings.

For lunch we enjoyed a focaccia and more delicious gelato, before heading to a supermarket and back to the accommodation for 'Riposo' like the locals (everything is closed for 3 hours).

We had an afternoon explore, where we walked down a ravine that we were very unequiped for - before heading to dinner of bolognese, bruschetta and a limoncello spritz.

Step count: 21kLeggi altro
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Viaggiatore Not liking that looks worse than Cooks Hill
10/10/23RispostaTradurre
ViaggiatoreWas not a good hike to do in sandals and a skirt
11/10/23RispostaTradurre
Viaggiatore A suspension bridge, one of Mums favs in Nepal, just needs a yak
10/10/23RispostaTradurre
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Giorno 38
mercoledì 11 ottobre 2023 12:29
☀️ 25 °C
Altitudine: 18 m
Italia Antiquarium - Villa Maritima 40.65069, 14.62546240°39’2” N 14°37’32” E
1 1 2
Coasting along
11 ottobre 2023, Italia ⋅ ☀️ 25 °C
This morning we jumped on a 3 hour bus ride to Salerno before jumping on another 50 minute bus to Minori on the Amalfi coast.

Being a bus driver in this area should be an Olympic sport - it's even more windy than the Great Ocean road and pretty sure it's thinner too, with even stupider tourists. There were at least 6 occasions I thought we were going to crash or roll.

We went to check in to our hotel and spent 20 solid minutes trying to get the owners attention (he was sleeping on the couch in the next room which we could see into).
After we got set up in our room that looks straight out the 70's we donned our togs and headed for the beach.

After swimming and sunbathing until the sun went down, we walked the 2 minutes to our hotel to shower before embarking to find dinner, which ended up being a miscellaneous spread of hot fried food that we enjoyed on our balcony.

We decided to head back to the street for a late night walk where we made our way to a chocolate/ dessert store where we spent too much money on delicious food we didn't need.

Steps: 16.3k

PS. Smokes are so cheap here - and in vending machines? No wonder everyone still smokesLeggi altro
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Viaggiatore Good to see still some good looking choices
11/10/23RispostaTradurre
Viaggiatore And no pictures of cancerous body parts on packs
11/10/23RispostaTradurre
ViaggiatoreHow boring right?
12/10/23RispostaTradurre
Viaggiatore Al and I are planning some time on Amalfi coast next year, so keep an eye out for anything special, for eating, drinking or visy
11/10/23RispostaTradurre
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Giorno 39
giovedì 12 ottobre 2023 11:15
⛅ 23 °C
Altitudine: 7 m
Italia Spiaggia di Castiglione 40.637117, 14.61156140°38’14” N 14°36’42” E
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1
Soaking up the sun ☀️
12 ottobre 2023, Italia ⋅ ⛅ 23 °C
After a late wakeup we caught the bus 10 mins down the road to Amalfi - it was supposed to be 10 minutes but the chaos of the drive made it closer to 15 as the bus had to keep giving way to other buses, cars and scooters as the road is only really wide enough for 1 to get through on the corners.

We wandered around Amalfi, grabbed some lunch and headed to the beach. We rented out some beach chairs with an umbrella and set up where we stayed for most of the day enjoying the sun and the cold ocean.

After the clouds covered the sun and we realized we would have to wait another hour for the bus if we didn't leave we packed up and jumped on the next bus back to our accommodation.

We wandered around and grabbed some things for dinner which we ate on our balcony before going out again (under the guise of getting step count up) and got some gelato.

Step count: 11kLeggi altro
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ViaggiatoreFinally a lazy day getting your vitamin D 😊 & soaking up your surroundings ❤️
12/10/23RispostaTradurre
Viaggiatore Stunning photos. Love the bus scene. You could reach out and shake hands with the other driver!
12/10/23RispostaTradurre
Viaggiatore Have sent some shots to Al, looks gorg
12/10/23RispostaTradurre
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Giorno 40
venerdì 13 ottobre 2023 22:45
🌙 20 °C
Altitudine: 11 m
Italia Napoli Centrale Railway Station 40.852456, 14.27474740°51’9” N 14°16’29” E
2 1 2 2
A slice of heaven
13 ottobre 2023, Italia ⋅ 🌙 20 °C
We left our little beach haven and jumped on a bus then train to arrive at the birth place of Pizzas - Napoli.

While waiting for our check-in time for our accommodation, we sat on some steps and enjoyed our first Neapolitan pizza. It was strange because it was served folded in quarters wrapped in paper. And my gosh was it delicious, especially because it was 4 aud.

We dropped our bags at our accommodation (after being welcomed by our very excitable and strange host) and did what we do best, get lost.

After wandering and checking out lots of alleyways and side streets we decided to go back and relax before heading out in search of dinner.

Dinner ended up being a Pizza Fritte, which is just a pizza folded in half and deep fried. And it was pretty good - it was very large in size.

"Pizza is too healthy, I'm glad they found a way to make it bad for you" - Phill 2023

For dessert we had a cannoli and a random chocolate cake.

Step count: 22k

PS. I feel like we've both developed a cigarette addiction with how much secondhand smoke we're inhalingLeggi altro
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Viaggiatore I had delicious lunch in the port area, when we parked there on last year's cruise, best mozzarella I've ever had
13/10/23RispostaTradurre
ViaggiatoreThe mozzarella and the tomato sauce for pizza is outstanding
14/10/23RispostaTradurre
Viaggiatore Love this shot maybe should be on front of your Penguin travel journal book
13/10/23RispostaTradurre
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Giorno 41
sabato 14 ottobre 2023 23:55
⛅ 18 °C
Altitudine: 23 m
Italia Forum at Pompeii 40.748819, 14.484540°44’56” N 14°29’4” E
2
Crispy like a pizza pie
14 ottobre 2023, Italia ⋅ ⛅ 18 °C
Today we headed to the city of Pompeii to check out the city which was frozen (boiled?) In time.

We didn't do much research or look into it at all, but it was so much bigger then we expected as Phill said "it's almost like this was a full city" we ended up walking around for 4 hours and didn't see all of the area, it was insanity.

Pompeii and the ruins ranked up to both our favourite archeological sites and just the sheer size and scale of what was maintained. Although seeing the plaster casts of the bodies was a bit more confronting then anticipated, especially being able to see skulls, teeth and children.

After this we jumped back on the train, travelled an hour back to Naples and went in search of dinner - spoiler, it ended up being pizza again (no fruit or vegetables have been consumed this week)

To conclude the evening we had some Italian desserts (couldn't tell you the names) with tea while Phill played Ceasar 3.

Step count: 24.5kLeggi altro
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Viaggiatore Al keen for Pompeii, must remember to do the short version
14/10/23RispostaTradurre
ViaggiatoreI'd book a guided tour, that way they can show you the 'best of'
15/10/23RispostaTradurre
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Giorno 42
domenica 15 ottobre 2023 15:56
☀️ 25 °C
Altitudine: 67 m
Italia Parco dei Quartieri Spagnoli 40.847172, 14.24455840°50’50” N 14°14’40” E
2 2
MasterChef
15 ottobre 2023, Italia ⋅ ☀️ 25 °C
Today was a very lazy day to begin with, we didn't leave our accommodation until about 16:00.

Once we did leave we hiked up 30 minutes of stairs to get to a museum/ church that we didn't go into, before heading to a pizza making class.

In our class we learnt how to make the scrumptious dough, ate bruschetta while it rose and then put our Neapolitan toppings on (mozzarella and basil) before cooking it In the pizza oven for 3-5 minutes.

The pizzas were delicious with our complimentary glass of wine and we enjoyed a coffee (espresso) and lemon sorbet for dessert.

We went back to our accommodation, grabbed our dirty laundry and headed to our favourite place - the laundromat. We watched our clothes spin in circles until after 10pm before heading to bed.

Steps: 14kLeggi altro
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Viaggiatore Hope you were taking notes to replicate same at home
15/10/23RispostaTradurre
ViaggiatoreThey gave us the (very roughly translated) recipe!
16/10/23RispostaTradurre
Viaggiatore Is that the Laundromat or luxurious accom
15/10/23RispostaTradurre
ViaggiatoreThat's our accommodation, or it's the shared courtyard of a dozen flats. And in one of them there is a shared kitchen and room for us
16/10/23RispostaTradurre
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Giorno 43
lunedì 16 ottobre 2023 10:13
🌧 18 °C
Altitudine: 26 m
Italia Napoli, San Pietro ad Aram 40.852211, 14.26750340°51’8” N 14°16’3” E
2 1 1 1 3
Pasta La Vista
16 ottobre 2023, Italia ⋅ 🌧 18 °C
This morning we said goodbye to a rainy Naples and caught an hour train to Rome.

Once we got to Rome we were able to check into our room straight away, and we pretty much immediately went for a wander.

We went to a museum/art gallery called 'Welcome to Rome' which taught us about the history and evolution of Rome from its origin until today. We then walked and saw some landmarks including the Trevi fountain.

We came back to the accommodation, enjoyed some snacks while watching a piece of Roman history - the Lizzie McGuire movie.

At 8:30 we headed to a tipsy cooking class, where we enjoyed some spritzers while making pasta. We ended up making 2 kinds of pasta - Carbonara and Pasta Cacio e Pepe. Which were both absolutely delicious.

Step count: 20.3k

PS: let it be known - a pizza was eaten everyday in Naples!Leggi altro
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Viaggiatore Queuing for gelato or pizz
16/10/23RispostaTradurre
Viaggiatore Pizza
16/10/23Risposta
Viaggiatore Laughing at pre made holes, maybe making your own wells is in advanced class
16/10/23RispostaTradurre
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Giorno 44
martedì 17 ottobre 2023 21:21
☁️ 19 °C
Altitudine: 65 m
Città del Vaticano Piazza dei Protomartiri Romani 41.902214, 12.45435941°54’8” N 12°27’16” E
2 1 2
Up high, down low
17 ottobre 2023, Città del Vaticano ⋅ ☁️ 19 °C
Today started nice and early at around 5:30am so we could get up and walk the hour trek to the Vatican, we also made a detour to see the Trevi fountain and the Pantheon before the big crowds moved in.

We met up with our tour group and ventured into the smallest (and wealthiest) country. Once inside, we made our way through the very impressive museum, the Raphael rooms, the hall of maps, tapestry gallery, the Belvedere Courtyard before heading to the Sistine Chapel where we enjoyed Michelangelo’s spectacular paintings.

Next was the tour of St. Peter’s Basilica, Europe's biggest church which was so very impressive and excessive.

We walked home, enjoyed some lunch before heading out on our next adventure.

We joined our next tour where we discovered 3 of Rome's most significant archeological sites, the Capuchin Crypts, the Catacombs of St. Callixtus and the Appian Way.

The Capuchin crypt was made up of the bones of 4000 monks, which was very strange. Afterwards, the tour look us to the catacombs which once housed up to 500,000 bodies, it was insanely large and incomprehensible, it was a maze of empty crypts and creepy drawings.

The tour ended by dropping us back off in town where we wandered around some other sites such as the massive Monument to Victor Emmanuel II before grabbing some food from the shops before a calm night in.

Step count: 28.8kLeggi altro
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Viaggiatore Great shot, nice backdrop
17/10/23RispostaTradurre
ViaggiatoreStunning art on the ceilings
18/10/23RispostaTradurre
Viaggiatore Watch out for a person slipping down the stairs !
17/10/23RispostaTradurre
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Giorno 45
mercoledì 18 ottobre 2023 09:40
☁️ 18 °C
Altitudine: 27 m
Italia Colosseum 41.889992, 12.493341°53’24” N 12°29’36” E
2 1
ARE YOU NOT ENTERTAINED
18 ottobre 2023, Italia ⋅ ☁️ 18 °C
This morning we made our way to the Arch of Constantine to begin our guided tour of the Roman Forum, Palatine Hill and the Colosseum.

The first 2 stops were beautiful and filled with history but nothing could beat the main attraction of the day. We arrived at the Colosseum and marvelled on the base level before enjoying the panorama of the top level.

The 2000 year old amphitheatre could hold 50,000 to 80,000 spectators, the sheer size of it was unexpected and impressive, including how it has survived and the evolution (and deconstruction) throughout history.

As we left Phill said to me "well now I've seen this I don't have anything to look forward to in life" (thanks Phill)

We ran back to our accommodation for Phill to change into pants before we headed to the Pantheon. The Pantheon has the largest unsupported concrete dome in the world, now this thing was MASSIVE, the top was open too so it was letting the rain in all over the marble.

We headed back to our accommodation and stopped in for a gelato break before relaxing for an hour before we headed out for dinner (and another gelato break after dinner)

Step count: 22.4kLeggi altro
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Viaggiatore Friends, Romans, countrymen, lend me your ear!!! Or whatever the famous quote was
18/10/23RispostaTradurre
ViaggiatoreAll I remembered was "are you not entertained" we did plan on re-watching before we visited but ran out of time
19/10/23RispostaTradurre
Viaggiatore Glad to hear quality control of gelato continues
18/10/23RispostaTradurre
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Giorno 46
giovedì 19 ottobre 2023 13:13
🌧 22 °C
Altitudine: 66 m
Italia Campanile di Giotto 43.772797, 11.25593143°46’22” N 11°15’21” E
3 2 2 1
No haycart in sight
19 ottobre 2023, Italia ⋅ 🌧 22 °C
This morning we left the beautiful city of Roma to head to another beautiful city - Florence.

After we arrived we headed to our accommodation to drop off our bags in a hallway (very safe) before embarking on a journey around the city. We stopped by the most beautiful 2 story food hall, some markets before getting to the Galleria degli Uffizi, which had thousands of beautiful and somewhat questionable pieces of art including The birth of Venus.

After spending a good amount of time in the museum we headed to our accommodation to check in and securely store our bags.

We specifically chose this accommodation as it had a view of the Cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore and Brunelleschi's dome, and we are quite literally at its doorstep, the view is otherworldly and stunning.

We then decided to climb Giotto's Bell Tower, which was just under 500 steps and gave a wonderful view of the city.

For dinner we decided to splurge and try one of the city's delicacies - a 1.5kg Florentine steak. Phill had an absolute ball with this and has made the statement that it was "the best steak I've ever had" (which is good because it was a weeks worth of groceries)

Step count: 25kLeggi altro
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Viaggiatore Is this like room service?
19/10/23RispostaTradurre
ViaggiatoreMore or less, it would be amazing to have these in Melbourne for after work
20/10/23RispostaTradurre
Viaggiatore Aperol spritzer?
19/10/23RispostaTradurre
ViaggiatoreYup! Not as bad as I expected
20/10/23RispostaTradurre
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Giorno 47
venerdì 20 ottobre 2023 22:08
🌧 17 °C
Altitudine: 341 m
Italia Tantucci Palace 43.321147, 11.33036743°19’16” N 11°19’49” E
2 1 2
The best of Tuscany
20 ottobre 2023, Italia ⋅ 🌧 17 °C
Today we embarked on a tour of the Tuscan countryside.

The day's first stop was the city of Siena, where we had a guided city tour, including exploring the beautiful Siena Cathedral, before wandering around the small alleyways ourselves.

After Siena we enjoyed the scenery as the bus enterd the Chianti wine region. When we arrived at a vineyard, we sat down for a traditional Tuscan lunch comprised of fresh bread, pasta, salad, cold cuts and local cheeses, accompanied by a wine tasting. We tasted 4 wines in total and probably polished off 3 bottles between us before we had to rally to the bus before traveling onward to San Gimignano, where we explored the squares and cobbled streets, and browsed the local shops.

The day's last stop was Pisa, where we watched lots of people doing the thriller dance at the famous Leaning Tower of Pisa. We arrived at the perfect time to get some photos in the rain before watching a vibrant sunset.

Step count: 23.7kLeggi altro
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Viaggiatore Great shot
20/10/23RispostaTradurre
Viaggiatore ? In contention for front page of Penguin journal
20/10/23RispostaTradurre
Viaggiatore Tough life, but quality control important
20/10/23RispostaTradurre
ViaggiatoreSomeone's gotta do it!
21/10/23RispostaTradurre
Viaggiatore Congratulations from us, what fantastic news, we're so happy for you both 💖💖💖
20/10/23RispostaTradurre
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Giorno 48
sabato 21 ottobre 2023 22:51
🌧 16 °C
Altitudine: 9 m
Italia Campo San Polo 45.439569, 12.33274645°26’22” N 12°19’58” E
2
The Sinking City
21 ottobre 2023, Italia ⋅ 🌧 16 °C
Today we said goodbye to the beautiful city of Florence and hello to another unique gem in Italy -- Venice!

After a ~2hr train ride we arrived at the terminal and stepped out to view the Grand Canal in all of its splendor. Apparently Venice is sinking by 1-2mm per year, and let's just say it doesn't have too many left from our calculations. The water licked up the side of the paths and often spills over onto the footpaths.

First up for us was finding our accommodation, which was slightly more difficult than our previous stays, due to the twists and turns of the canals. Once we found it and checked in we decided to go and watch our first movie while overseas! Aptly, it was A Haunting in Venice! A Hercule Poirot whodunit taking place in the city. The movie was good, ignoring the 10 year old Italian kids that decided to watch the film too (not sure why they'd be watching a murder mystery, maybe the times have changed)

Afterwards we explored some of the city, which was even more flooded than before! They even brought out temporary raised paths for people to walk on in certain areas.

After checking out the town we came back to the hostel to recharge a little before heading out for some dinner (pasta and a slice of pizza) and another token gelato.

Step count: 17.3kLeggi altro
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Viaggiatore Good thing to see it now, soon you'll need scuba gear
21/10/23RispostaTradurre
ViaggiatoreWhen it fully floods, those gondola people will make a killing!
22/10/23RispostaTradurre
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