Cinque Terre, Italia

November 5 - 10, 2007

The Cinque Terre greeted us with beautiful weather and even more beautiful sunsets. These five villages (Riomaggiore, Manarola, Corneglia, Vernazza, and Monterosso al Mare) are set on the western coast of Italy, north of La Spezia and south of Genoa.

Though I had read as much as I could about this Italian paradise before we made our trip arrangements, we didn't have a good feel for where we should stay. We heard from some people that it can be very difficult to find a place to stay during the high season, but since we were not arriving until the end of the season we had quite a number of options. We could have skipped the reservations entirely, but being the eternal planner and avid risk avoider, we made reservations at two bed and breakfasts. We were both pleasantly surprised and a little bit disappointed. We spent two nights at Eremo sul Mare (The Hermitage Over the Sea) in Vernazza and three nights in Manarola. Our accommodations in Vernazza were incredible! We still think back to those two relaxing nights and fabulous Italian breakfasts and wish we were there right now. After Eremo sul Mare, just about anything would have been a disappointment. We stayed in a fine bed and breakfast in Manarola the remaining three nights, but found ourselves continuously wishing that we were back at Eremo sul Mare.

Beautiful Sunsets
Below are two photos of the incredible sunsets we watched during our stay in the Cinque Terre.



Monterosso al Mare
Monterosso al Mare is the resort town of the five. They truck sand in every year to cover the beach for the summer tourists.


Vernazza
Vernazza was our favorite town of the five. Not only is it home to Eremo sul Mare, but it is also home to Il Pirata 5 Terre (a bad owned by two Sicilian men who serve the most incredible pastries. These two guys were the most friendly people that we met in all of the Cinque Terre.


Eremo sul Mare
Below is the view from our room and one of the resident cats, Marie.



Corneglia
Corneglia sits up on a cliff, approximately 383 steps up from the train station. We hiked up and down all of them twice during our stay. Fortunately, at the top, we were rewarded by treating ourselves to some fabulous gelato.


Manarola
Manarola was a beautiful sight at night. There is a little garden that sits on a cliff above the town from which one can watch the sun set and the town light up as the great ball of fire falls below the surface of the water.

During the day the pastel village relaxes in the sunshine.



Riomaggiore
Riomaggiore is the southernmost town and the first you see when arriving by train from La Spezia. As you pop out from the tunnel, the sunlight bouncing off the pastel buildings is blinding.

The walk from Riomaggiore to Manarola is called Via del Amore (Lover's Walk). It's flat and paved and easily accessible by all, unlike some of the other hiking trails between the villages. The sights are breathtaking. There's a new adventure for the eyes just around every bend.

Terraced Vinyards

The terraced vineyards are amazing, particularly when you realize that they were built by hand so many years before.

Roma, Italia

November 2-5, 2007

We spent three wonderful days in Rome... at least that's what I remember about the city. If you were to ask Eric, however, you might get a different response. "Don't get me wrong," he often recounts to our friends, "it was beautiful but there were people everywhere." He's right. Rome is absolutely beautiful! But there are people everywhere. No matter what direction you turn or what time of day or night you venture out, there are people everywhere and you can't really get away from them all as Eric wished we could. I took it in stride. But I think I was a little more used to the crowds after living in The Netherlands for 3 months and traveling about Europe on my weekends. Eric was fresh from home, the land of open spaces and big yards in the suburbs. Rome is nothing like home. Nevertheless, we both had a great time.

On our first night, we took an evening walk along Via dei Fori Imeriali. This street passes by the Colosseum, Roman Forum and Trojan Market, all of which are lit and glow beautifully in the night.

Trajan Market
This area used to house over 150 spaces for shopping of all kinds and, on the top floor, the welfare offices.


Colosseum
This amphitheater opened in 80 AD with 10 days of games. This Colosseum is known by the Romans as the Flavian Amphitheater because it was constructed under the Flavian emperors. The name Colosseum comes from a colossal statue that used to stand outside the amphitheater. The Colosseum has withstood the test of time (for the most part). Most of the original walls still tower above the Roman Forum, but one "new" wall is visible along the side housing the visitor's entrance.


Roman Forum
The Roman Forum was once the heart of the Republic. though it isn't so obvious anymore. Today it's filled with broken marble statues and ruins of buildings. But as we walked through, ears pressed to the audio-guide speaker, we could imagine the forum in its height. We listened to tales of life in Rome during the early centuries BC and we particularly got a kick out of walking over the same stone pathway on which Caesar once walked. Even though Caesar was a ruthless ruler, it's not everyday that one has the opportunity to step on the same stones as such a well known character in history.

Temple of Vesta - This temple was tended by the Vestal Virgins, noble priestesses chosen at about age 10 for thirty years of service tending the sacred flame. For their service they were allowed certain privileges such as front row seats at the Colosseum and the freedom to travel without a male escort.

Eric and the Audio-guide


Palentine Hill
The word palace originates from the Palentine Hill. This was the place where emperors and the wealthy took up residence. Today, the Palentine hill is filled with palace, house and apartment ruins, and beautiful relaxing gardens.



Trevi Fountain
This beautiful fountain, made even more famous by the movie The Dolce Vita, is an amazing sight. The legend goes, if you throw a coin backwards over your shoulder you will return to Rome again someday.



St. Peter's Basilica
Pictured below is the Piazza San Pietro. This piazza can be filled with the faithful during a service by the Pope or filled with tourists, during museum hours. Reaching Piazza San Pietro but failing to make it into the Vatican Museum and the Sistine Chapel was one of the biggest disappointments for me in Italy. I had heard that it was best to go to the Vatican in the early afternoon because that was when the lines are the shortest. Unfortunately, when we arrived in the early afternoon, the lines were so long that by the time we would have reached the museum entrance, it would have been closing time. We sat for a while on the piazza, taking it in, before making our way back toward our hotel.


There was so much that we were able to see, but so much more that we didn't have the opportunity to explore. I guess that means we will have to go back someday.

Barcelona, Spain

October 31 - November 2, 2007

We departed from Eindhoven, NL early Wednesday morning. The hotel we chose was conveniently on the bus line to the airport. It wasn't the greatest hotel, but we felt fortunate that we did not need to call a cab. I had learned from previous experiences that taking a cab in Europe is very expensive, so we were almost happy to be dragging our suitcases down the street to the bus stop despite the fact that we could see every breath hang in the frigid air.

Eric's first experience with Ryanair
While I tend to equate the Ryanair Experience to a bus in the sky, Eric's first impression was that it was mass chaos. Slightly different opinions maybe... Eric purchased our tickets from the website before he left. At that time we indicated that we would not check any luggage. It made sense as we planned to be traveling light and of course it saved us a few Euros. So we arrived at the airport and stood in line to get our tickets. Unfortunately, since we had underestimated the amount of space 3 weeks worth of travel items would take we had an extra piece of luggage that we were forced to check we found ourselves standing in another line to pay for our one piece of checked luggage and then another line to get through security. After we made it through to the gates, we had just a few minutes to look up our directions to our hotel in Barcelona before we got into another line (for boarding). Eric couldn't believe that we were standing in line to board a good hour and fifteen minutes before our flight was to leave, but there we were. I was determined to ensure that we would find seats next to one another. Finally we boarded and what Eric like to call mass chaos broke out. The doors opened and the people started pushing and running toward the plane. We climbed the stairs to the doors and we could already hear the flight attendants calling out "please take the first available seat." We found to seats toward the back of the plane, right by one of the doors so that we could make a quick exit and (hopefully) be some of the first people to make it through customs. The flight was good. It was not too turbulent, but we were treated to the typical Ryanair rough landing as we came down with quite a thud.

What No Customs?
That's right, when flying from The Netherlands to Spain a passenger is not required to pass through customs. Eric was really bummed because he was looking forward to his first stamp in his passport. But no such luck... In fact he had no such luck throughout our entire vacation because we didn't get a stamp until we left for home.

Bus Ride to Barcelona
The thing about Ryanair is that we rarely fly into major airports. This is the case in Barcelona Girona. Girona is about a 50 minute bus ride from the airport to the bus station in the city and the cost is about 40 Euros per person round trip. But when you only paid about $20.00 total for your airplane tickets, an extra 80 Euros to get you to the city doesn't seem like too bad a deal. The bus ride was fairly relaxing and the scenery was beautiful. While Eric napped, I peered out the window at the remnants of castles sitting at the tops of the hills.

The Ibis Experience
The Ibis Hotel is somewhat like a Days Inn. It's a chain hotel that's nothing fancy but it's a place to sleep and they provide a decent breakfast in the morning. Our hotel was situated near one of the main metro stations so it was a convenient place to start and end our exploration of the city each day.

The City from Park Guell
This now beautiful city park was once designed by Antoni Gaudi to be an early gated community. The garden reminded me a bit of Alice in Wonderland with its gingerbread houses and mosaic designs.

From the high point in the park, you can see the whole city spanning out before you, all the way to the Mediterranean Sea. It's a beautiful sight.


Sagrada Familia
The Sagrada Familia is perhaps Gaudi's most famous and beautiful design. This church is a work in progress, as Gaudi's work began in 1884 and they expect that if work continues at the same rate they may finish in about 50 years. Since work has been ongoing for such a long time, it has had many architects but most try to remain true to Gaudi's original design ideas. We walked around the outside taking in the intricate designs before purchasing our tickets and heading indoors. The construction continues, even as the tourists walk through and observe their work. I was most impressed by the design of the pillars surrounding the nave. The pillars look like trees towering overhead with a shimmering canopy at the very top. We hope to have the opportunity to visit once more when it's finished, but we'll be in our 80"s so we'll see.





The Marina


We enjoyed the marina and the beach. The water is so clear and blue that we could see sparkling schools of fish swimming around under the surface of the water.

The Beach


Esglesia de Santa Maria del Mar
One of our other favorite sights in Barcelona was the Esglesia de Santa Maria del Mar. This beautiful "People's Church" is filled with stained glass windows. The church once suffered from fire and the blackened ceiling still remains.

Ahh...Paris avec Mon Cheri

October 28, 2007

Thalys (TGV) to Paris
We hopped on the train early Saturday morning to catch the Thalys to Paris in Liege. Sometimes you can get pretty good deals on Thalys tickets, but we were not fortunate enough to catch one of those deals. We purchased our tickets when we arrived in Liege and I was feeling pretty stressed about the dent it was making in our bank account. Two round trip tickets from Liege to Paris was about 300 Euros. Yikes!!! We ended up spending more on our train tickets to and from Paris than we spent on all of the rest of rest of our vacation transportation combined (including travel from Maastricht to Barcelona to Rome to the Cinque Terre to Pisa and back to Brussels). But it was worth it. We had a very enjoyable time together in Paris and it was so nice to see Eric's Uncle Jacques and Aunt Martine, as well as his second cousin Frederique. In between catching up with the family, we relaxed in the local cafes sipping cafe au lait and munching croissants, an expensive pastime we quickly learned. On Sunday Morning, we grabbed coffee on our way to meet Eric's second cousin. We each had 2 cafe au laits (a total of about 12 ounces of coffee) and one croissant. When we got our bill, I just about fell off my chair. It was 20 Euros, which after conversion at the exchange rate of about 1.5 totaled $30. "Just pretend this is our honeymoon" Eric kept saying to me. "We're probably never going to get to do this again so don't worry about the money because it's worth it for the experience." Well, I tried not to worry and to just enjoy the experience, but we made sure not to let it happen again anyway.

Jacques Thunnissen Guided Tour of Paris
Eric's Uncle Jacques met us at our hotel Saturday afternoon and he took us on a walking tour of Paris. I have now had the luxury of taking two guided tours of Paris with Jacques and I have to say it is such a treat. I think Jacques should start his own business guiding tours and sharing this history of the city he refers to as "The most beautiful city in the world." You can't help but to share his love and appreciation for the city as you walk though its streets and talk about life and landmarks.



Eric, too, really enjoyed his uncle's knowledge and company. It was the first time he had been to Europe on his own and the first time that he had seen Jacques on his own too. Throughout his childhood and adolescence Eric's mom, Annette, took the boys to Europe to see their family so it felt familiar for him, but he said it also felt very different because we had to rely on ourselves to get around. Eric did a great job though. He said he didn't really remember any French, but it seemed to come back to him and just flow out. He struggled every once in a while to recall a word, but I think if we had more time in France he could have been conversing fluently with the locals.

After our tour, we joined Jacques and Martine at their apartment for dinner. It was a fabulous dinner and the conversation was even better. I really enjoy sitting back and listening to Eric's family chat. Conversations are full of history, politics, current events and catching up. I could tell that Eric was really glad that we had found a way to see them. We both were.

Brunch with Eric's Second Cousin

We met up with Eric's second cousin Frederique, her husband and their beautiful daughter for brunch on Sunday. Frederique teaches linguistics at a Parisian University. After brunch we took a walk together and visited her university and a local zoo. It was a very enjoyable time. The accompanied us back to the metro and gave us directions for how to get back to the Thalys train station before we said our goodbyes.

The Metro
Eric and I found ourselves commenting on how much we loved the metro so often that it makes me laugh to think about it now. But it is true, we love the metro. To us, it felt like the best invention since sliced bread. We never once got lost or felt confused about how to get from one place to another. We also noticed the metro trains ran so often that we never felt like we were wasting our time waiting. We both wish that Minneapolis and St. Paul would build a metro system like the one in Paris (or even a more extensive light-rail system). The day they do, we'll be trading in our cars for bicycles and train tickets because it's such a great way to get around and get more exercise that we do right now.

We headed back to Maastricht late Sunday afternoon so that I could be ready for my last day at work on Monday. We were sorry to be leaving, but looking forward to all of the other adventures we still had ahead of us.

Edinburgh, Scotland

October 14, 2007

The long trip to Edinburgh began on a train from Maastricht, Netherlands to Charleroi, Belgium. I must say that I do love the trains, but I wish I spoke fluent French or Flemish. Yet again, I found myself on a train misadventure. This time it was due to the train changes. I had learned from previous experiences that it was a very good idea to print the train schedule and itinerary and bring it with me on my trips. Unfortunately, the train schedules and changes are not necessarily the same from hour to hour. For example, at 3pm you might be able to take a train from Maastricht to Liege-Guillemins and from Liege-Guillemins to Charleroi. But... an hour later you might have to make two changes. If you only have the schedule for the first trip, you won't end up in the right place at the right time. This was my problem. I did eventually make it to Charleroi, but with about 3 extra changes and a lot of hand gesturing with the conductor as we tried to communicate about my predicament. When I finally arrived at the Charleroi Sud station, I hopped on the train to the airport just as I had planned and only about 2 hours late. Then came the next unfortunate learning experience (or as they would say at work"opportunity"). I arrived at the airport expecting to find my hotel located nearby. I had reserved a room at the IBIS Hotel - Charleroi Airport. Well, as you might be guessing, when I arrived at the airport, the IBIS Hotel - Charleroi Airport was nowhere to be found. I had to take a taxi to the hotel which was located way out in the middle of a farm field. Shadows of crops and cows were all that I could see in the darkness.

The next morning, bright and early, I took a cab back to the airport at 5AM for my 7:30 flight. I checked in and found a place to rest before boarding began. Even though it is an international airport, Charleroi has the feel of Flying Cloud Airport in Minnesota. I found myself reminiscing about the field trip I took once to Flying Cloud with my aviation class as I sat and waited for my plane to arrive.

It was a nice flight, very smooth, but even so I remained anxious because I knew that I still had more traveling ahead of me once I arrived in Glasgow, Scotland. The trip from Glasgow to Edinburgh was about an hour and was pretty inexpensive because they offer a deal (half off tickets) to travelers to arrive at Glasgow airport. So I arrived in Edinburgh at about 9:30am and began my exploration of the city.

The weather was rather icky. It was overcast and raining off and on, so I made my way up to Edinburgh Castle first.

Edinburgh Castle

The castle was one of my favorites that I had the opportunity to tour. It has been well preserved and there is a great audio tour that I rented. They also offer a free guided tour, but I decided against it as the timing was inconvenient for me. I made my way through the castle soaking up the history and imagining what it would have been like to live back at its glory. It's so easy to romanticize about the times of Kings and Queens, but you are knocked back into reality as you hear about the battles and the dangerous times in which they lived. A highlight was viewing The Honours, the Scottish Crown Jewels and reading about their history. They are the second oldest set of crown jewels in Europe and were once thought lost. In reality were actually hidden by Scottish Loyals to prevent them from being broken at the order of Oliver Cromwell and many many years later, when the time was right, they were brought out of hiding to the people of Scotland.

Cannongate Kirk

Cannongate Kirk is a pretty simple church, by European standards. It's nothing like the St. Paul's Cathedral in London or the cathedrals I saw in Belgium. But it has a simple elegance to it.

The Royal Mile



I made my way down the Royal Mile with the men in kilts and all the other tourists. I stopped to warm up with a cup of tea and shortbread, then I moved on the Hollyrood Park and the long hike up to Arthur's Seat.

Holyrood Park


Holyrood Park is quite a big park which feels like a beautiful respite just at the edge of the city. It's quite the hike up to Arthur's Seat, but fortunately the weather cooperated and the sun came out as I started my climb.

Arthur's Seat (Height of Arrows)


Arthur's Seat is probably not the place of the legendary King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table, but grew out of the corruption of the Gaelic word ard-na-said, meaning Height of Arrows. From the top the old inactive volcano, I could see the whole city. It was a beautiful sight. Unfortunately, the winds were blowing and my hat and scarf were not sufficient to keep me warm.

Carlton Old Burial Ground


Before I had to catch my train back to Glasgow, I walked through the Carlton Old Burial Ground where I encountered graves and memorials of David Hume, Thomas Hamilton, Robert Burns and a statue of Abraham Lincoln.

I stayed the night at at youth hostel in Glasgow by Kelvingrove Park. This was probably one of my favorite hostels. It reminded me of an old victorian-style home. I stayed on the top floor in a big room with an attached bathroom. It was nice and clean and I would definitely recommend this hostel to my friends and family. The next morning I grabbed my last cup of Scottish tea and headed back to the airport.

My trip to Glasgow and Edinburgh was a nice way to cap off my travels as a "single" woman before Eric was able to join me in Europe.

London, England

October 7, 2007

London was great. It felt a little like being back at home. Many of the sights felt so familiar to me because I have seen them on the news or on the Rick Steves travel show on PBS. And, of course, the biggest reason I felt so at home... everyone spoke English!!! It was a big shocker when I got on the train and realized that I didn't need to pull out my phrase book to translate the announcements. I've gotten so used to feeling out of place the last three months (fighting my way through the language barriers) that when I arrived in London it felt like a special treat to be able to read the headlines on the newspapers and to understand conversations that I overheard as people passed me by. The other major factor was the Coffee-To-Go. There was a Starbucks on nearly every corner in London. No, I'm not exaggerating... almost every corner. Almost immediately, I broke my own rule to avoid all things American as much as possible (so as to experience as much of European culture as possible while I am here). I marched myself right into the first Starbucks that I encountered and joyfully ordered a grande mocha to go. Then I carried my prize all around the city, sipping as I walked. (How un-European! I'm such a rebel.) After I got my To-Go coffee fix, I walked my feet right down to stubs in an effort to take in as many of the sights as possible.

British Museum
I started by running (well maybe just walking at a brisk pace) to the British Museum. I had my heart set on seeing the Terracotta Soldiers from China that are currently on exhibition at the British Museum. A word to the wise, if you want to see the Terracotta Soldiers, purchase your tickets well in advance (well in advance). When I reached the front of the line, I was informed that they were sold out of tickets for both Saturday and Sunday. BIG BUMMER. Anyway, I toured the rest of the museum trying to focus on all of the great things I was able to see while I was there, rather than to focus on my disappointment. My favorites were in the Egyptian exhibit (including the Rosetta Stone and a large number of mummies) and Roman exhibit (gold coins and all).



After the British Museum, I took in the London Bridge, the Tower of London (from the outside only as it cost ~$22 to get it), the Shakespeare Globe Theater, the St. Paul Cathedral (also from the outside), and Big Ben.

London Bridge

Tower of London



Globe Theater


St. Paul Cathedral


Big Ben and Parliament


I particularly enjoyed the Tate Modern Museum and the National Gallery which both hold a number of works by very famous artists such as Rembrandt, Van Gogh, Raphael and Monet.

National Gallery


This is a picture of one of the fountains in Trafalgar Square just in front of the National Gallery.

Constitution Pub


After a nice meal at the Indian Palace, I joined a few of the locals, an Italian, and an American couple in the Constitution Pub for a cider and some Rugby. I tried to get the locals to explain the rules of Rugby to me, but they were just as lost as I was, so we turned to conversation about American football. It was a fun time and a nice way to get to spend an evening out on the town.

Buckingham Palace


On Sunday, I made my way to Buckingham Palace. Unfortunately, during the fall the Changing of the Guard occurs only every other day and Sunday was an off day. The guards were not dressed in their fancy bear skin hats, but instead smaller caps that looked much easier on the neck muscles.

Horse Guard


I was able to catch a glimpse of the horse guard on Whitehall across from the Banquet Hall. Quite a sight.

London Wall


On my way back to the train station, I walked past several sections of the old London Wall (or what's left of it). It was neat to see the ruins just nestled in amidst the new buildings.

All in all, it was a very nice trip. I think I may have to go back again someday.