Singapore UK and Europe 2019

Ein 105-Tage Abenteuer von MF's travel blog Weiterlesen

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Brno to Vienna
21. Oktober 2019 in Österreich ⋅ ⛅ 12 °C
We didn’t get away until 10 am as the drive is only 2 1/2 hours but we couldn’t book into our Airbnb until after 5pm.

We did have a bit of trouble leaving the city as I accidentally went down a one-way lane (too small to be called a street) ending up behind some industrial sheds where I had to do a 3-point turn to go back up the one-way lane,the wrong way, to get out. 1/2 way through the 3-point turn (when we thought no one was looking) Anne said “have a look at that”. Right in front of us was a huge waste bin (sort of a locked up cage) and standing inside the cage waist deep in the waste (did you see what I did there) was a young woman looking at us - I’m not sure who was more surprised her or us? By the time we finished our turn we got stuck in front of a semitrailer that was trying to reverse into the lane we had just come from. He stopped and we just managed to get past, I think there’s a good chance he still stuck there, being watched by the girl in the waste bin/cage.

Stopped at Korneuburg (lovely little town on the Danube) for lunch.

We got to Vienna too early to check-in so did what you would do in Vienna with a couple of hours to kill. Found a car park (not as easy as you might think in the middle of the city) and then sat outside of an Irish drinking (mineral water). Finally got to check-in. Not a bad apartment even if it has no TV - pity as we are now used to watching TV shows we can’t understand.

No pics taken today, you get a google maps screenshot of where we stopped for lunch..Weiterlesen
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Vienna - a full day here
22. Oktober 2019 in Österreich ⋅ ⛅ 15 °C
The apartment is in a great spot with about a 25/30 minute walk to a lot of the sights. Up a bit late as I had a late night trying to fix a Qantas booking. We booked our flights to come home leaving Paris on 6th Dec with a 4 night stop over in Tokyo. Unfortunately I booked Anne as Francia Francia (instead of Anne Francia) ☹️. Was on hold to Qantas over 2 hours waiting to be answered. I was just about to hang up when they answered - it took about 3 minutes to get it changed (maybe Alan Joyce should give up some of his salary to employ some more staff!!).

Vienna is also a great place with lots to see - churches, parks and squares. Hard to believe it’s late October (well and truly into autumn) and the weather is still so warm and sunny - I think it got to about 25 degrees today.

Anne and I were having a walk around and we got slightly separated and I ended up practically/accidentally joining a walking tour. I was listening to the guide talk about a building when I tapped Anne on the shoulder and told to to look up at a small bridge that connected a couple of buildings over a small lane way. When Anne turned around to look at me, it turned out to be a 90 year old Asian lady - ahh well, she was about the same height as Anne so anyone would have made the same mistake. Neither Anne or the lady in question were amused!!!!Weiterlesen
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Vienna to Bratislava
23. Oktober 2019 in Slowakei ⋅ ⛅ 16 °C
Left about 10.30am and sticking to mainly backroads again. Light fog lasted most of the way. It’s only just a bit more than 100kms so plenty of time to meander and stop - which we did at a town (still in Austria) called Hainburg on the Danube. Had coffee/hot chocolate and the Austrian version of Cannoli, not bad but not as good as the Italian original!!!!. Beautiful spot and you have to drive through the town gates - apparently the oldest in Europe.

We got to Bratislava and followed the directions given to us by the apartment owners - it’s actually in a pedestrian area where cars aren’t allowed and has tram lines. The instructions were “don’t let a tram run into you, and if the police stop you, give us a call and we’ll explain”. We managed to navigate the pedestrians and the 🚃. Right opposite the entrance is the police station - we shrunk into our seats (probably looked like the car was driving itself) and pretended “nothing going on here”. The instructions said to turn into a blue gate just after the Eiffel optometrist shop. We thought we had made it, but then saw the size of the gate/entrance. Lucky the car isn’t any bigger.

Had a bit of a walk to the “old town”. Went out for dinner late and then a night walk to the Bratislava castle. Another good day.Weiterlesen
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Bratislava a full day
24. Oktober 2019 in Kroatien ⋅ ⛅ 15 °C
The weather just keeps getting better - clear sunny skies and almost warm. There’s a coffee shop right next to us and Anne’s coffee addiction is now getting quite bad..

Back for a proper look at the old town and a walk to the presidential palace. Anne cooked a very good spaghetti for dinner.

Psyching myself up to drive out tomorrow morning (we’re heading to Budapest). Not sure whether to go left or right - should I get some advice at the police station?Weiterlesen
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Bratislava to Budapest
25. Oktober 2019 in Ungarn ⋅ ☀️ 21 °C
We’re locals - the coffee shop remembered our order!!! Went to a “market” just down the street to buy some more jocks (bought a couple yesterday) and she remembered my order - locals!!!!.

Okay - hesitantly hopped in the car and headed-off. A few pedestrians but we timed the trams just right. Got to the point where we got off the pedestrian area and joined the street when a policeman 👮‍♂️ stopped us. Whew, it’s okay, he was clearing the intersection so a politician and their entourage had a clear passage. We did end up doing a couple of wrong turns, but eventually got out of the city and on our way to Budapest.

Just before the border crossing into Hungry we again got pulled over, behind a truck, by a policeman. We waited for a few minutes thinking it might a breathalyser test. After a few more minutes the policeman stuck his head out and waved us on. I don’t think he had expected us stop and was wondering what we were doing (he wasn’t the only one confused). As we crossed the border we noticed all the other vehicles had stopped at a building off the side. We hoped they were just buying a road vignette (that you need to drive in a Hungry - we got one online) and not because we were also supposed to stop. No one chased us so we kept going.

We got to Budapest and had to drive through a maze of one way very skinny streets. I couldn’t find the reception for the apartment so I walked around aimlessly for a while, while Anne waited in the car in case it had to be moved. Eventually found the reception - okay where is our reserved parking? - nowhere obvious🤔. Got given a remote control and some brief instructions. The car park is under the building. There is a small garage door to the side and of course one car park behind us on a one way road. I decided in collaboration with the driver waiting for our car park that I would do a 3 point turn rather than go around the block and drive straight into the lift - too easy - except just as we were about to drive in, a van came out of the garage and it went a little pear shaped just for a moment . All of a sudden we had horns blasting and people yelling at us to back up as we had room, which we did and then it all came together again. The van drove out of the garage, we drove into the garage and the driver got his car park and the 5 cars behind him finally got to go. That is how you stop Budapest traffic 😁. The remote calls a car lift up from underground and when the door opens you drive into the lift and push the button for the underground No 2 parking floor. Again we picked the right sized car, another centimetre taller, or wider, we may not have fitted!!!

We dropped off our gear then went for a walk down to the the river Danube - magnificent (more tomorrow). On the way we had a look at the Hungarian Parliament House.

On the way back we stopped off at a supermarket to buy some food including bananas. Here you have to weigh your fruit and print out a price sticker, that you put on the fruit yourself, before you take it to the checkout. I put the bananas on the scale but couldn’t work out how to specify “bananas” in the search tab. There was an older couple behind us so I asked the man if he spoke English - “yes”. I asked him how to spell banana, in Hungarian, so I could search it on the scale machine. His response, slow and one letter at a time, was “B, A ,N, A, N, A” . The smart-ass was from Melbourne, also on holidays, and couldn’t speak (or spell) a word of Hungarian. As it turned out it’s actually spelled “banan”, so he wasn’t that far wrong.

Back to the apartment for a rest before tomorrow exploring the city. I had the world biggest veal schnitzel to eat for dinnerWeiterlesen
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Budapest day 2
26. Oktober 2019 in Ungarn ⋅ ☀️ 17 °C
History lesson Budapest is actually two cities separated by the Danube river. Buda on one side of the river, and Pest on the other. We are staying on the Pest side.

I’d been telling Anne that Budapest is the pick of European cities, hopefully over the next 2 days she’ll agree with me.

Actually we had a slow day and didn’t head out until about 10.30. We had a walk through the main shopping street/area on the Pest side ending up at a huge market on 3 floors with lots of local produce, clothes etc. On the way shady looking guys kept trying to sell us iPhone 11s at a very cheap price - I’m guessing either stolen or not working, or both. We also visited St Stephens Basilica.

Tomorrow we’ll go to the Buda side and Anne will be impressed!!!!Weiterlesen
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Budapest - last day
27. Oktober 2019 in Ungarn ⋅ ☀️ 19 °C
Last full day in Budapest and my last chance to convince Anne how beautiful this city is.

After breakfast (and Anne’s obligatory coffee) we were off to the other side of the river - the Buda side of the city. There’s an island in the river (Margit) that you can walk to (using a bridge obviously - I’m not Moses) Dropped in and a saw a beautiful fountain that went in time to music (Beatles, Rolling Stones etc.). You probably had to be there to appreciate it😛. The Buda side has what I guess you could call the “old town. Cobbled streets, stairways and lots of churches. The views from the river are magnificent- see the pics.

Heaps of cafes and restaurants so we stopped for lunch. Anne has a risotto and I ordered chicken dumplings - something got lost in the translation (literally) I got 🐓 but it certainly wasn’t dumplings. In any case it was very good!!!!!!

I’m not sure Anne thinks this city is as good as I do - but she is impressed none the less.

Tomorrow we try to get out of the underground car park and drive to Nagykanizsa - still in Hungry.Weiterlesen
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Budapest to Nagykanizsa
28. Oktober 2019 in Ungarn ⋅ ☁️ 16 °C
Leaving the apartment complex garage turned out to be a lot easier than driving in👍. The drive took about 3 1/2 hours.

Road safety doesn’t seem to be the first thing people think about in Europe generally, or Hungry in particular. It seems that as long as you put hazard lights on you can park anywhere - double park on the street , park on the footpath, or on the pedestrian crossing!!!! Road workers don’t bother setting up diversions. On the way we came across a council truck stopped in the middle of the road facing the wrong way. There wasn’t any warning signs or a stop/go man - just 8 guys working (well 4 working and 4 watching) on filling in a pothole. You just had to stop, try and look around the 🚚, and if you thought no one was coming, drive in the wrong side of the road to get around. At least it keeps the driving interesting 🙄.

The drive itself was okay if not riveting. We stopped off at a bar/cafe for lunch. All cafes sell alcohol, and all bars sell barista coffee (only fair I guess). We had a bit of trouble with the language (at one stage reverted to miming eating). I started to use google translate and the bar person/waitress hopped on to her phone to also use a translation app (apparently Aussie accents not heard out here very often). Me translating in to Hungarian and her translating into English. The double translation had some issues but we finally got a toasted panini each - though neither me or the waitress were quite sure what I was trying to order!!!!

Nagykanizsa is more of a stopping point for us on the way to Slovenia rather than a destination. Having said that a nice enough city/town. We had a bit of a walk around and dinner at a hotel. Anne had beef goulash soup and a side of grilled vegetables and a side of roasted potato croquets. I had an enormous roast pork with fries. Neither of us could finish our meals. The whole lot, along with 2 bottles of sparkling mineral water, cost $23 - very good value even for a cheapskate.

We stayed at the “Oazis” hotel that didn’t really live up to its name. It was in the midst of renovations and our room definitely hadn’t been renovated yet. At one stage I turned off a light and the switch fell off the wall onto the floor. No jugs to boil water (“we don’t supply electric jugs” - why would you supply coffee/tea cups then?). A sink to wash dishes/cups but no tea towels to dry up. 2 spoons and 2 forks but not a knife in sight (no sharp objects allowed?). And funniest part “we don’t supply toilet paper” (why the hell then do you supply a toilet ?). There was almost translucent blinds on the two windows and the two skylights in the room. Directly outside was an orange street light in misty light rain and this meant our room was bathed in the orange glow you would expect immediately after a nuclear holocaust. Some of you will know I carry blu tack and bandaids to cover the orange and blue lights of tvs etc. in hotel rooms because I need dark to sleep 💤. Unfortunately they don’t make enough blu tack and I only had about 20 bandaids. The cleaners the next morning will have wondered what the hell went on in there the night before. What added to the uneasiness of the night was the bathroom. I wasn’t sure if, inside, there wasn’t a torture chamber rather than a shower 🚿- have a look at the pic🤔.

Sleep was, let’s say, interrupted.

Tomorrow to Zagreb in Croatia for a couple of days.Weiterlesen
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Nagykanizsa to Zagreb
29. Oktober 2019 in Kroatien ⋅ 🌧 9 °C
We’re off to Croatia - Zagreb to be precise.

Hotel had a typical European breakfast - bread, cheese, salami and ham. Before we headed off Anne had to have her espresso (with frothed milk on the side - she is now officially a coffee snob/monster).

Croatia isn’t part of the Schengen area so we had to stop at the border crossing to get stamped out of Hungry and then checked/stamped for entry into Croatia- through without any issues (we did have to wind down the rear windows so they could check to make sure there were only the 2 of us in the car, why they wouldn’t check the boot I have no idea). The drive is nothing to write home about ( so I won’t ). Actually whist there were some nice villages and views, it rained most of the way.

Got to Zagreb (another city with trams that you have to negotiate) about 1 pm and parked the Duster in a secure underground car park @ £7 a day (cheaper than Brisbane 👍). The apartment is tiny but in the middle of town and newly renovated and modern (even a smart TV and aircon. It’s cold outside (about 6 degrees and raining) so you would think you would need to put some heat on. Not sure why/how, but like a lot of the other places we’ve stayed it’s uncomfortably hot so we opened windows.

We’ll do some exploring tomorrow.Weiterlesen
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Zagreb - a full day
30. Oktober 2019 in Österreich ⋅ ☁️ 5 °C
Woke up to a cold (about 5 degrees) showery day. Hopefully it will get better (at least stop bring wet) but it will only get to about 9.

Started exploring,after breakfast, by deciding to walk up a long long set of ancient stairs to the top of a hill - we followed 2 or 3 groups of people thinking they must be going somewhere interesting. Not so!!!! It turned out we were all going to a medical research facility - given some of the people we were following, we decided 🤔not to go inside. We found a roundabout way to get back down to the main part of the city and the old town. We walked around a really large old cathedral and tried to get in through a side gate when it mysteriously opened for us. We were about to go into a building when a guy came running out telling us this is a private property (he was Croatian so we guessed that what he was saying as he ushered us out). Eventually we did find our way into the cathedral and it didn’t disappoint- built over 900 years ago it has a lot of history. We did a lot more walking/exploring including finding the Gric tunnel (about 350 metres long) that was built as a bomb shelter and a promenade. We found a huge open market place (that unfortunately had started to close for the day) as well as lots of other great places/sights - really worth the visit.

Lunch at where else but an Italian restaurant (they really are everywhere ).

The weather wasn’t great, but added to the atmosphere.

Tomorrow we leave Zagreb for Slovenia.Weiterlesen
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Zagreb to Velenje
31. Oktober 2019 in Slowenien ⋅ ☁️ 5 °C
We’re off to Slovenia. I had told Anne this is probably the most picturesque country in Europe so, hopefully, it doesn’t let me down.

We walked to the car park (about 500 metres away) in the rain,and about 6 degrees, so not a good start - a coffee/hot chocolate on the way helped a bit. For a change we got out of the city okay and headed on back roads towards Slovenia. When you put into the GPS “no tolls and no motorways” sometimes it takes you through some country one lane roads that has locals, on tractors, wondering what you are doing out there (if the looks on their faces is anything to go by).

As we got closer to the border, I told Anne that the roads had a very familiar feel about them from my motorbike trip of 3 years ago (actually I think I saw the same confused 🤷‍♂️ tractor driver back then). I said to Anne won’t it be funny if we have the same trouble, I had back then, getting across the border. Sure enough, when we got to the border and stopped, I said to the guard “we can cross here?” He nodded yes. Handed over our passports and as soon as he saw “Australia” he changed his mind to a no. Unfortunately the crossing was only for “locals” from both sides and not for anyone else. He told us we would have to go to the border crossing at Kumrovec. I asked him nicely and he put it into the GPS. A female guard came out an instructed us to drive through into Slovenia, to turnaround, and then go back into Croatia. She kept our passports to make sure we did! I swear it was the same woman that made me do the same thing when I was as last here on the bike. Anne was only slightly amused - she reckons a third time and they’ll lock me up for a while. At least this time I had the right border crossing in the GPS and it was easy to find. 3 years ago they gave me a very bad mud map (because I couldn’t understand their instructions) and I had to stop 3 or 4 times to ask for help (from confused guys on tractors).

We finally crossed the border, the rain pretty much stopped and the country opened up into beautiful green rolling hills, and majestic mountains, dotted with picture-perfect villages. The road was fantastic to drive (I remembered how much fun it was on the bike). Anne agreed - prettiest country we’ve seen so far.

We got to Velenje (a small city) and checked in before heading out for lunch and a look around.

We walked up the hill to the Valenje Castle. It was a bit of a steep climb but well worth the hike. The castle was built in 1270 and is now well preserved as a museum. Some fantastic views from there as well.

A rest tonight then we’ll (try) to cross the border into Austria tomorrow.Weiterlesen
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when did you get your passports back?
08.11.19Antworten
ReisenderShe kindly gave them back to us on the way back through and waved as we drove away (she probably thought “they’ll be back”!!)
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Velenge to Villach
1. November 2019 in Österreich ⋅ ⛅ 5 °C
We're heading into back to Austria after a great breakfast - lots of variety and as much as you can eat (lucky I have the ability to fill up for the day ahead).

I've been meaning to mention the long, long street names found in some European cities (particular in Eastern European countries such as Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland and Slovakia amongst others). Streets are often named after famous people or politicians etc. Street names like "Zygmunta Krasinskiego Ulica" or "Avenjia Marina Drzica Ulice". Whilst the names might be long (and take a while to say) the streets themselves might be quite short. The problem this presents, when using a GPS, is that by the time the GPS finishes telling you to turn right into "Avenjia Marina Drzica Ulice"", you've actually driven past!!!! The GPS will re-route, but it keeps happening over and over again.

Slovenia is a small country, but what it lacks in size it makes up in scenery and fantastic roads. We were back into Austria pretty quickly .

We got to Villach and tried to drive to the hotel which unfortunately (again) located in pedestrian only area in the "old town". Anne tried to convince me to drive down an ever narrowing laneway that lead to the square - thankfully I resisted, the other end was far too skinny for any car. I had only just finished telling her the story of the guy who followed his GPS into a mine shaft and got stuck!! I think we would have had to change our hotel stay from one night to the rest of our lives. Having said that the car would have been parked only about 50 metres from the hotel so it would have been a short walk after we got out of the boot as there would have been no way to open the doors. We found a park, walked to the hotel and got directions on how to get to the court-yard at the back. We did eventually manage to find our way, but I'm pretty sure, from some of the looks we got, we drove the wrong way up some very narrow streets and some footpaths as well. Staying in the middle has a lot of advantages as far as sight seeing, restaurants and people watching,but it is hell on the nervous system😨. We had lunch after booking in - first time in a while I was tempted to have a very large whiskey (to calm the nerves) but I resisted.

It's a very quiet day due to the "All Saints day" holiday. So hardly anything open. As much as I hate to admit it, we ate at Austria's version of Kentucky Fried Chicken. At least we had a more traditional dinner at the hotel restaurant (though after we did walk down to McDonalds so I could have a sundae - the shame of it all).

Tomorrow we head into Verona Italy - hopefully my Italian will be as good as I hope it is (I've had a few embarrassments in Italy before😊).Weiterlesen
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Villach to Verona
2. November 2019 in Italien ⋅ ⛅ 9 °C
Breakfast and headed off, towards Verona (Italy) about 10 am. The drive out of the town wasn't quite as hard as the drive in, but I'm pretty sure we did find a one-way street to drive up the wrong way. Lucky it's Sunday and still pretty quiet. As Anne said "no one got hurt".

We took the autostrada on a very wet rainy and cold day - I guess it had to happen sooner or later. The drive through the mountains into Italy was beautiful despite the weather. You don't go over or around the mountains so much as through them. There were impressive tunnels after impressive tunnels. Between the rain and wet weather there were a few stretches of road that were between 50kms and 80kms speed limits. This didn't seem to register with any other car on the road. The autostrada has a maximum speed limit of 130kph in dry clear conditions. I think most of the other drivers took the 130kph as the the minimum speed in any weather/road condition. I was overtaken (despite exceeding the speed limit) by every other car on the road. We saw a couple of motorbikes on the road and caught up with them when we stopped a roadside cafe - they said the rain/wet was just bearable, but the cold (wind chill well and truly below zero) was just terrible. Here I was missing going for a ride🙃.

Italy is a fantastic place (I may be slightly biased), but it does have its quirks and issues (like other places). When we stopped at the roadside cafe (part of a service station) a beggar (older woman) asked for some money for food - unfortunately you just can't afford to give to everyone who asks (and we have given a fair bit while travelling around as homelessness is everywhere - like at home but maybe more obvious). When we parked I noticed that a lot of the individual car parks had signs saying webcams were available - I though wow that's modern without thinking why. It was only when we got inside that I saw signs explaining how to download a smart phone app that let you keep an eye on your car while you are inside - just in case someone was trying to break into you vehicle. The homeless at least ask, these buggers just go straight to the taking.

We missed a turn but finally got to Verona around 2.30pm and booked in. Still cold and drizzling but, without complaining,started some sight seeing. I know it seems as if we visit a lot of churches, but they do tend to be amongst the most magnificent of buildings each with their own history and full of wonderful paintings, sculptures and artifacts. They really are museums and windows to the past. I'm really not very religious so apart from funerals and weddings, really the only time you'll find me in one. The Basilica of San Zeno (over a 1000 years old) didn't let us down. The walk around gave us an idea of what to do/see tomorrow as we're staying for a couple of nights.

About 5 pm (now raining properly) we started to head back to the hotel and dropped into a market on the way to get some food/drink for the night. It was a pretty big supermarket (the amount of fresh food compared to supermarkets back home is amazing - people tend to shop only for a day or two and mostly eat fresh). We walked into a sort of "anti room" before you walked into the store proper. Our umbrellas were wet so I convinced Anne to leave them in the foyer in front of the shop (along with a panini I was going to throw a way). Cut a long story short someone stole the umbrellas but left the bread - pity the store didn't have umbrella webcams😩. It was raining pretty heavy and we had a way to walk so Anne went back in, and €20 later we were on our way. Anne has been keeping a running tab of our spending - she put the €20 under a new category called "Stupid" (with the note in brackets "Maurice" that I think is a bit harsh). We now have bright orange umbrellas that makes us look like walking tour guides (I wondered why we had a bunch of Japanese tourists followed us back to the hotel 😆).

Tomorrow a full day exploring Verona.Weiterlesen
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A full day in Verona
3. November 2019 in Italien ⋅ 🌧 12 °C
Another rainy cold day but after breakfast we grabbed our umbrellas and set off. We found the "Arena Di Verona" a beautiful Romania Amphitheatre built in the first century and seats over 20,000 . It was so well built it's still used today for rock concerts, operas and plays. It was wet and cold but I guess added to the atmosphere. It usually costs £10 to get in, but it was only £1 because of the rain.

Italy really is a wonderful place, but it is full of rip-offs. As we left a couple of guys, dressed as Roman soldiers, were getting tourists to have their photos taken with them. I somehow ended up getting mine (Anne took the photo) but then the fix comes in and they want to get paid - all I'll say is I ended up £20 poorer😢. At least with pickpockets you don't know it's happened until later. I'm still pissed-off about it!!

Despite the hassle, Verona really is a gem.Weiterlesen
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New you would get catch eventually
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Verona to Bergamo
4. November 2019 in Italien ⋅ ⛅ 15 °C
It’s only a 2 hour drive and it’s sunny - a nice day for a drive in the countryside. We’re staying off the toll roads so should see some nice scenery with any luck. We’ve seen our first sight of snow, albeit on top of a far off mountain - I have a feeling we’ll see more by the end of this trip.

Got to the hotel early (about 12.30pm) and luckily we got to check in without having to wait. The hotel is great and after dropping our stuff off we headed out to eat and explore.

Like a lot of Italian cities/towns that are built on a hill/mountain there is an “alto” (high) part of the city and “basso” (low) part of the city. We caught the finoculare (a type of cable car for steep inclines) to the alto and the citadel. You would think that sooner or later you would get tired of looking through cathedrals and churches, but each one is different with their own histories - we looked through a few more. Besides they’re cheaper than museums and sometimes you get bread and wine thrown in 😁. Late afternoon and we were going to walk back down but the funiculars was only £1.30 so we rode back. We saw the worlds smallest car!!!!

Light dinner then turn-in.Weiterlesen
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Bergamo to Castell'Alfero
5. November 2019 in Italien ⋅ ⛅ 15 °C
I’ve really been looking forward to this part of the trip - we’re off to Piedmont. This region is in the northern part of Italy (think Turin and the Olympic Winter Games of 2006). My mum and dad were born here in little rural/rustic villages (all cobblestone streets, terracotta tiles and washing hanging outside windows). We booked a little apartment next to an old castle in a small, very old, hilltop town called Castell’Alfero (near Asti - I’m sure many of you would have, in your youth, drunk too much Asti Spumante). It should also be a nice drive through Piedmont - in Italy Piedmont is as famous for wine as Tuscany is, and more famous for food (home of Nutella for a start!!). It’s just that the Italians want to keep it a secret for themselves.

Before heading off we had breakfast at a close-by cafe, thought we’d have something traditionally Italian like bacon and egg sandwiches. We didn’t get what you would get at home. Instead we got two pieces of un-toasted bread with pancetta and fried eggs on top, some greens and tomato. Not bad, if only they supplied cutlery!!!

We had a bit of a hiccup with our navigation and ended up going through the middle of Milan. There’s Italian traffic, and then there’s Milan traffic. We ended up doing some pretty radical turns and crossing lanes but eventually we got out of Dodge. After this the drive is pretty normal, but once you hit the hills of Piedmont it’s just plain beautiful. Rolling green hills with small towns throughout the valleys. But, most spectacular, almost every hill has a castle or church sitting atop with a village rolling down the side - it’s hard to keep an eye on the road.

We arrived at Castell’Alfero early/mid afternoon after a drive up the hill towards the castle. The road has signs showing you must carry snow chains between November and April. It’s cold, but not that cold yet. The village looks like it hasn’t changed in hundreds of years. The castle itself is thought to be about a 1,000 years old - most of the people who live here look old enough to have been there when the foundation stone was laid 😛. Anne and I definitely brought down the average age of the town population!!!.

The apartment we booked for 6 nights is 3-stories (tall but reasonably narrow). It’s on a one-way cobbled street. We’re living in Italy!!!!! Anne unpacked while I had a walk through the village and used a couple of locals to try out my Piedmontese (local dialect of the region and quite different/seperate to Italian - I t’s actually so different that UNESCO has classified it as a language). Let’s just say I did okay but maybe there was a smattering of both Italian and English words thrown in - when in doubt add an “A” or an “O” to the end of an English word and it sounds Italian, even if it makes no sense.

During the next few days we get to start exploring and visit the birth places of my mum and dad (Sala and Cereseto - see what I mean by the “O” and “A”).

More tomorrow.Weiterlesen
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Castell'Alfero Day 1
6. November 2019 in Italien ⋅ ☁️ 10 °C
Breakfast then a walk up to the the “Osteria” (a type cafe/restaurant) for Anne’s early morning coffee (no hot chocolate so I had to have a tea). These are great little places where the locals turn up for a quick coffee pick me up. They often shut for a couple of hours, from late morning, before reopening in the afternoon - this place also does dinners so I booked for Friday night.

After coffee we set off Cereseto, a little very old village where mum was born (for years we thought it was Ottiglio, but this is where the family moved soon after). We got to the village and found the Municipal Office - there really isn’t any much else there.

We told the guy behind the counter why we were there. He disappeared for a few minutes and came back with a large very old birth register. He flipped through a few pages and quickly found mum’s birth registration - it was a lot quicker and easier than I thought it would be. We took photos of the record (and I almost immediately sent a copy to my sister Mary). There’s the usual information including about parents etc. - it really was terrific and I’m pretty sure mum would/is be happy 😃 too. We had a good walk around Cereseto with its tiny streets. It’s small but beautiful.

After Cereseto we headed off to Sala to see if we could get birth records for my dad. We found the Municipal Office but the woman behind the counter was about to close up and the office doesn’t reopen until Friday (I told you it was small). We had a walk around Sala to have a good look around and had a quick chat to a local (an elderly lady) and the conversation went a bit liked this:
Her - “where are you from?”
Me - “Australia”
Her - “I went to Austria once”
Me - “nice but we’re from Australia”
Her - “If I wasn’t so old I’d go back to Austria for another visit”
Me - “no I’m from Australia not Austria”
Her - “I know but I like Austria”
Me - “nice talking to you bye”

She also mentioned that there are more dead people in the cemetery than live people in the houses!!!!!! I wonder how many of them (dead or alive have been to Austria- probably not many to Australia).

Anne and I found the cemetery (it is pretty big and I wouldn’t be surprised if the old lady was right) and had a look to see if we could find any of my family. Anne found a grave with a picture of a woman that she thought had a Francia family resemblance and we took a photo. We found out later she was right, it was my grandmother!!!

We went for a drive to Ottiglio where mum grew up and I think we found the building where mum and her family lived (residence above a small shop they owned).

After Ottiglio we set off to Asti for a look around and Anne found a street market. Being the wonderful person I am, I followed her through the about 75 stores where she bought one coin purse🤷‍♂️.

A gelato later we headed back to Castell’Alfero. Before dinner we had an evening walk around the village.Weiterlesen
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Reading your entries give me a laugh to start the day off. I still wonder how you survive Methinks it's thanks to Anne - Peter
22.11.19Antworten
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Castello'Alfero Day 2
7. November 2019 in Italien ⋅ ☁️ 9 °C
It was supposed to rain today so we were going to have a lazy restful day (we’ve been on the go for over 2 months now). But, it’s not raining so out we go !!!! Had to drop in to our local cafe so Anne can have her morning coffee hit before a walk around the the “bottom of the hill” part of town.

Ended up at the town of Moncalvo where we had lunch at a restaurant that was recommended to us as having very good Piemontese cuisine. From the outside it’s just a door in a building - I wasn’t even sure if it was open. We went through, and like a lot of these places, all the action was “out the back”. It’s a set menu with a small selection of antipasti, small selection of first and second plates and then a desert selection. The meal was fantastic, I had agnolotti (a local version of ravioli) and it tasted just like my mum used to make - perfect. By the time we left the place was packed (50 plus people) on a Thursday.

After taking a few phots of Castell’Alfero we did end up have a lazy afternoon back at the apartment. The photos will show you how pretty the town and area are - tomorrow will head back to Sala and see if we can get my Dad’s birth information.Weiterlesen
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Castell’Alfero Day 3
8. November 2019 in Italien ⋅ 🌧 9 °C
Off today (without time for Anne’s coffee hit - she is going to go through withdrawal 😛) to Sala to see if we can get my dad’s records. The woman at the office was really helpful and we soon had a copy of the birth registration details. She then asked us if we wanted to see something interesting - of course!!!

We followed her downstairs to a large underground round shaped room (made of old brick) with a chute to the outside at the top. Have a guess what this was used for? Before the days of electricity and freezers/fridges, people would harvest ice from high up in the mountains and cart it back to be stored for sale to the local town’s people. Workers would go down into the room and chop of hunks of ice to be hand winched to the top. As the ice was sold it was replenished.

We headed off to the town of Casala Monferrato to do some laundry - there’s no end to the excitement. I even managed to help some locals out by showing them how to use the machines (even though we hadn’t read the instructions and there was twice the amount of detergent you are supposed to use in our machines and we now smell like a walking soap factory!!!).

I also let them know they weren’t allowed to wash their horses, dogs or cats in the machines. They looked at me as if I was some sort of idiot (so did Anne when I mentioned to her what I’d said to them). I said “well have a look at the instructions on the machine, it’s even illustrated to make sure there is no misunderstanding”. See the photo below if you don’t believe me😛).

Headed off to visit the city of Alessandria before going home. We had a coffee here, and a cannoli that tasted the same as a type of zabaglione we used to make as kids after school.

Tomorrow we’re visiting some of my cousins - looking forward to seeing them (Anne and I actually visited them about 13 yeas ago when we were here).Weiterlesen
Haha Maurice, I guess Anne is used to apologizing for you at home or overseas😂. Still having a ball by the sounds certainly covering some country. PL
24.11.19Antworten
ReisenderResponse to PL “😛”
28.11.19Antworten
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Castell'Alfero Day 4
9. November 2019 in Italien ⋅ ⛅ 10 °C
Today we’re off to the town of Pontestura to spend a couple of hours, over a coffee, with some relatives. We got to Antonella’s place around 10 am. When I rang her, a couple of days ago to arrange, she asked if we wanted to stay for lunch. I had said we were a bit short on time and a morning coffee would be best. Her mum, brother and a couple of other cousins were there to see the relatives from Australia. It was a really good visit and we got to talk about family etc. Morning tea (sweet breads, biscuits, pastries, cheese, 5 types of ham and a heap of other food) would have fed a small army. We were still there talking and eating at 1.30 that afternoon - Italians are extremely welcoming (and in reality got us for lunch!!!!!!!!!). We were told the story of when my mum and Belinda (my niece) visited a few years ago. They toured Turin and the area showing them around and eventually ran out of sights to see. Not wanting to end the tripping around, and a bit desperate for what else to show them, they took my niece and my mum to the “red light” district in Turin. Apparently Antonella’s mum was horrified, but my mum enjoyed it (though she never told us about it when she got home 😛).

For dinner we walked to the Osteria for some local cuisine. Mum and daughter cook and dad is the waiter and runs the bar - the place is what you would imagine a little family run Italian restaurant would be like.You get a small choice of appetisers, first plates, second plates and desserts all on a hand written menu. I had 4 dishes and whist Anne only had 3, she made up for that with a copious amount of wines and two moscatos (the walk back down the hill was quite an adventure for her). The dinner, in a building that used to be a horse stable (which in the middle of the dinning room floor was still the old water-well that was now covered with strong glass you could walk on) was really very very good. The atmosphere, service and food is what you would expect at a very classy ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ restaurant.

A really enjoyable day.Weiterlesen
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Castell'Afero Day 5
10. November 2019 in Italien ⋅ ⛅ 8 °C
Today we caught up with another lot of relatives - we went to my cousin Pio’s house for lunch with another 14 relatives. We had an absolutely fantastic time - these people are very welcoming and simply opened their hearts to us. Only a couple of them speak some English, but everyone made sure Anne was included. We had appetisers and drinks (in front of a fireplace) then moved to another room (also with a fireplace) for the main lunch - and more drinks. Pio did most of the cooking for a 4 course meal that wouldn’t have been out of place in a very high class restaurant (he used to be a partner in one of Asti’s best restaurants/hotels). Pio belongs to a hunting club and one of the dishes was a wild boar from a hunt). Italians love to eat, drink good wine and talk (energetically and loudly) - we didn’t leave until 5.30pm.

It really was a fantastic day - had toast for dinner (and even that was too much).Weiterlesen
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Pio's place at Asti
11. November 2019 in Italien ⋅ 🌧 6 °C
We’re staying with Pio tonight before heading to Bologna tomorrow. His house is (beautiful and located at the edge of Asti) is built on 3 levels (the bottom built into the ground includes two “Salas” (dining/entertaining rooms - each with a fireplace/BBQ). We got there at 3.30 pm and sat around the kitchen table talking right through until 10.30 pm (Pio managed to cook us a great dinner at the same time). I have to mention dinner - Anne went right out of her comfort-zone and ate agnolotti made with donkey meat!!!! She probably won’t ever have it again, but said it was fine😁. Anne said the home made wine was also very good. Cheese and honey for desert - I think we’ll bring that idea back home with us.

A really really nice day with a really really nice and generous host.

Tomorrow we head to Bologna.Weiterlesen
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Bolonga italy
12. November 2019 in Italien ⋅ 🌧 8 °C
Today we’re off to Bologna (home of Bolognese sauce). We left reasonably early as Pio is off to help butcher the 13 wild boars the hunting club killed over the weekend - apparently they are a real pest, do a lot of damage to local farms, so it’s a “community service”. We’re staying in the heart of the city (in yet another pedestrian area and have to drive amongst people through tiny cobble stone streets). I must be getting used to this so just drive the Italian way - honk and if they don’t get out of the way honk the horn again (louder and longer whilst gesticulating wildly) and swear!!!!. Lucky we reserved parking at the hotel - the garage is tiny fitting only 2 cars. Lucky it was empty when we parked, and I have no idea how they will get another car in there.

After booking in we headed out, in pouring rain, for a late lunch and to explore. It’s a beautiful old city with lots of history (and the usual churches/cathedrals and towers).

For dinner, on the recommendation of one of my cousins, I had a spaghetti bolognese that I have to say was better then any I’ve had before.

Boy it rained on the way back to the hotel.Weiterlesen
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Bologna to Citta di castello
13. November 2019 in Italien ⋅ ⛅ 11 °C
We’re heading to Rome and Città Di Castello (City of the Castle) is an overnight stop on the way. We stopped at a small village, for a coffee, and found a parking spot but it was only for a maximum of 30 minutes. I asked a local who said “if you get a ticket frame it - it’ll be the only one ever issued in this town”. I really did expect a ticket on our return (nearly bought a frame) but none!!!

We got to Città Di Castello mid-afternoon and really weren’t expecting much - just somewhere to stay overnight. Wow were we, once again, surprised. Really nice (and cheap hotel) and the town looks like something out of a storybook (complete with fortified wall). Beautiful streets, the castle and 2 very old magnificently maintained churches. I climbed the cathedral tower and the views of the town were fantastic.

We stopped in at the cathedral and listened to musicians rehearsing for a mass. We came back later in the evening and it looked like a bishop was giving the service, and there must have been more than a thousand people crammed in side.

Like many European towns (and some cities) the place shuts down for 2 or 3 hours after lunch (eat and a siesta - something I think would go well back home). But, they then reopen until 8pm or later. By 3.30 pm the main square was completely full of families - not sure where they all came from.

We stopped in at a restaurant, around 7 pm, for dinner. Even though the place was empty (looked like they could sit at least 50 people) they said they couldn’t fit us in unless we were happy to eat now and be out by, say, 8.30 pm. Italians like to eat late, and take a long time doing it!!!! Another really good meal (lucky we’re averaging about 10 kms a day walking).

I liked the place so much I tried to convince Anne to sell up and move here 😁.

Tomorrow my Italian driving skills will be tested - we’re staying at an apartment in inner Rome. I’ve been practicing my gesticulating, horn honking and swearing (and my apologising to other motorists). I’ll need a good sleep......Weiterlesen
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Citta di Castello to Rome
14. November 2019 in Italien ⋅ ⛅ 15 °C
Had breakfast at the hotel then headed off (not sunny but not raining 😁) through the region of Umbria to Rome. What a magnificent drive - green hills and tall mountains littered with quaint towns, churches and castles (and lots of olive groves) - just magic.

Stopped off at a small town for lunch - got served by a nasty woman who, I’m guessing, didn’t take to strangers (why else was she nice to everyone else?). She got a one ⭐️ google review!!!

Rome traffic - it was as bad as I expected and to top it off the GPS wouldn’t take us to the Airbnb we booked. Eventually I double-parked and put my hazard lights on (as I’ve said before, hazard lights flashing cure all driving evils) and sent Anne out on foot to find where we had to go. She was gone ages - I’m thinking I’ve lost Anne and still don’t have a place to stay tonight. Eventually we got there - a ground floor two bedroom apartment in a gated community (off street secure parking), too good to be true, but true it was). The place was perfect. The area is full of restaurants, coffee shops, bars, grocery stores with a handy metro close by.

Time to de-stress after driving in Rome.

Tomorrow some exploring.Weiterlesen
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