Amelia here, just needed to correct one of the Turkey entries thanks to a little help from Wayne (and I quote):
There seems to be an error on your blog. On your section about the blue cruise it states "Wayne, the pomme, took a lot of convincing to enter the sea". Shouldn't it say: "Wayne, the dashing pomme, entered the sea with style, grace and flair. Indeed, he touched the water with such beauty that Adrian became momentarily homosexual and fell in love with this mysterious stranger".
Wayne, I couldn't have put it better myself if I tried.
Saturday, 21 June 2008
Sunday, 15 June 2008
Italy, the beginning
La Bella Italia!
We've been here for a few days now and it is living up to nearly every expectation I have ever had about Italy! I love all the gesticulating, the fashion, the food, and of course, the absolutely, completely, unbelieveably insane driving (we nearly died today on our drive from Amalfi to Napoli...).
Arriving off the train in Bari, we had to do a bit of fence scaling to escape the port complex (they're not big on directions or signs here), but safely over we dragged our tired bodies through Bari to the train station in the surprising 28 degree heat. Saying ciao to Megan, we hopped on a train to Taranto. It was only five minutes after we got on that I (Amelia) realised that we could have got a cheaper train directly to our final destination, rather than the rather long winded and more expensive route I had accidentally picked. Ah well, at least we saw some more of Italy's countryside...
Our first stop was Matera. Yeah, I had never heard of it either. It's in the middle of Italy, about equi-distant from each coast. It's a jumble of old houses, churches, rock churches, and caves built into two valleys called 'sassi'. People were living in the caves until the 1950s, when the extreme poverty came to light and they were all forcibly removed into housing blocks. Not entirely sure it was a better move having talked to some of the locals! The landscape was stunning, although nothing compared to our hostel, Le Moncelle. It was a converted monastery, complete with chapel, bell tower and rooftop terrace - let's just say we're in a different hostel world now we've moved to Italy!
On the way to our next destination we briefly stopped in Salerno. Not expecting much, the Duomo (cathedral) there was absolutely incredible. Quite possibly the best church I have ever seen. Not only was it absolutely massive with exquisite mosaics and decorations, but the crypt which reputedly holds the relics of St Matthew (yes, the one and only) was unbelievable. The whole crypt was painted and the photos here don't quite do it justice (the ones of the crypt are at the end). Definitely one to beat (bring it on Rome).
After Matera we moved on to the Amalfi Coast, home to (and I quote), 'international jet setters seeking sun and romance' (or some such tourist nonsense). However, it was pretty amazing. The sea was startling blue, the narrow roads stomach churning, and the terraced farming on the hillsides something else. We were staying up in Agerola, up in the mountains, where apparently they used to send people with respiratory problems because the air was so beneficial and clean! Compared to the car fumes eminating from the houses near the road, I'm sure it was better up there...
We happened to luck in on Amalfi's saint's day which was cool, complete with marching band, paper mache figurine and fireworks. We also did the 'Walk of the Gods', a 3 hour walk from Bomerano in the mountains down to Postiano on the coast. The views were stunning, the 1700 (I swear I'm telling the truth) steps down at the end to the coast were not so much.
Photos soon we promise!
Next stop, Napoli.
We've been here for a few days now and it is living up to nearly every expectation I have ever had about Italy! I love all the gesticulating, the fashion, the food, and of course, the absolutely, completely, unbelieveably insane driving (we nearly died today on our drive from Amalfi to Napoli...).
Arriving off the train in Bari, we had to do a bit of fence scaling to escape the port complex (they're not big on directions or signs here), but safely over we dragged our tired bodies through Bari to the train station in the surprising 28 degree heat. Saying ciao to Megan, we hopped on a train to Taranto. It was only five minutes after we got on that I (Amelia) realised that we could have got a cheaper train directly to our final destination, rather than the rather long winded and more expensive route I had accidentally picked. Ah well, at least we saw some more of Italy's countryside...
Our first stop was Matera. Yeah, I had never heard of it either. It's in the middle of Italy, about equi-distant from each coast. It's a jumble of old houses, churches, rock churches, and caves built into two valleys called 'sassi'. People were living in the caves until the 1950s, when the extreme poverty came to light and they were all forcibly removed into housing blocks. Not entirely sure it was a better move having talked to some of the locals! The landscape was stunning, although nothing compared to our hostel, Le Moncelle. It was a converted monastery, complete with chapel, bell tower and rooftop terrace - let's just say we're in a different hostel world now we've moved to Italy!
On the way to our next destination we briefly stopped in Salerno. Not expecting much, the Duomo (cathedral) there was absolutely incredible. Quite possibly the best church I have ever seen. Not only was it absolutely massive with exquisite mosaics and decorations, but the crypt which reputedly holds the relics of St Matthew (yes, the one and only) was unbelievable. The whole crypt was painted and the photos here don't quite do it justice (the ones of the crypt are at the end). Definitely one to beat (bring it on Rome).
After Matera we moved on to the Amalfi Coast, home to (and I quote), 'international jet setters seeking sun and romance' (or some such tourist nonsense). However, it was pretty amazing. The sea was startling blue, the narrow roads stomach churning, and the terraced farming on the hillsides something else. We were staying up in Agerola, up in the mountains, where apparently they used to send people with respiratory problems because the air was so beneficial and clean! Compared to the car fumes eminating from the houses near the road, I'm sure it was better up there...
We happened to luck in on Amalfi's saint's day which was cool, complete with marching band, paper mache figurine and fireworks. We also did the 'Walk of the Gods', a 3 hour walk from Bomerano in the mountains down to Postiano on the coast. The views were stunning, the 1700 (I swear I'm telling the truth) steps down at the end to the coast were not so much.
Photos soon we promise!
Next stop, Napoli.
Friday, 13 June 2008
Croatia: part two
We arrived into a much hyped Dubrovnik fresh from our great experience in Bosnia i Herzegovina to find that whilst a very pretty city, there was perhaps not has much to do here as originally thought. We spent the first day looking around the old town complete with another successful walking tour from the information office's handouts. We then found a possie for the European cup fixture of Croatia vs Austria. As you can imagine the town was buzzing with everyone dressed up in the Croatian red and white flag. When Croatia scored in the first 10 minutes it was looking like it was going to be a good night, so a flare was lit and much beer drunk. Final score 1-0. Still didn't put the Croatians off their beer...
The following day we took a trip out to Mljet Island, which is where Odysseus was held up for seven years by some sweet sirens. The major feature of Mljet National Park is the two inland salt water lakes (Greater and Lesser Lake). The greater lake has an island with a church and monastary. We spent the day again walking and swimming. This was the warmest place we have swam yet.
The final day was spent doing administrative duties for the insurance claim before a final Croatian swim, beer and meal. It was great to meet up for dinner with Megan from Melbourne, who we had been constantly bumping into from Zagreb onwards. We were heading in the same direction so caught the ferry to Bari, Italy together.
Next stop: Italia!
(P.S. Amelia had a running count of how many nuns she could see in Croatia, after seeing nearly a dozen during our first six hours in Zagreb. Final count: 50 nuns, 5 brothers, and 1 priest. Not bad. Do you think the tally will be broken in Italy?)
The following day we took a trip out to Mljet Island, which is where Odysseus was held up for seven years by some sweet sirens. The major feature of Mljet National Park is the two inland salt water lakes (Greater and Lesser Lake). The greater lake has an island with a church and monastary. We spent the day again walking and swimming. This was the warmest place we have swam yet.
The final day was spent doing administrative duties for the insurance claim before a final Croatian swim, beer and meal. It was great to meet up for dinner with Megan from Melbourne, who we had been constantly bumping into from Zagreb onwards. We were heading in the same direction so caught the ferry to Bari, Italy together.
Next stop: Italia!
(P.S. Amelia had a running count of how many nuns she could see in Croatia, after seeing nearly a dozen during our first six hours in Zagreb. Final count: 50 nuns, 5 brothers, and 1 priest. Not bad. Do you think the tally will be broken in Italy?)
Mostar, Bosnia and Herzegovina
Mostar is in the H part of B&H, and is situated on both sides of the Neretva River. They have an 'Old Bridge' spanning the two sides that was completely destroyed during the war and was painstakingly reconstructed. Men still jump off the bridge now as they did pre-1990s, with it being 24 metres high it's no easy feat! They had an interesting museum all about the bridge and how they rebuilt it that we whiled away some time at, as well as checking out the local burek (Balkan version of the pie) and one of the best dinners we have had yet - the 'Herzegovina plate' - that was so large (and meat-laden) we had to take the remains home in a doggy bag... (and for those who know Adrian, that's pretty incredible we couldn't finish it off between us!)
Our hostel in Mostar was the highlight though, Majda's Rooms, where Majda told us all the best places to go, made us feel right at home, and ferried us to and from the bus station. Another highly recommended place! Mostar was nearly completely obliterated during the war and there are empty, bombed out buildings everywhere with signs saying 'dangerous ruins, do not enter'. Most of the inhabitants had to evacuate during the war and seeing the pictures of the town during the war you can completely understand why.
Another interesting things we did in Mostar was climb a minaret in one of the local mosques. It was about 100 very narrow and windy steps up, and the ledge at the top didn't do much to help dampen my growing vertigo that started ever since we went to the Aiguille de Midi (I blame you for this Dad, I'm sure it's inherited!). Gave you a great view over the city though and was cool to think about the guys coming up and doing a call to prayer 'live' rather than through a microphone system.
Overall, B&H was a really interesting country that would be well worth returning to. The people were very friendly and open and seeing as it will be the last 'reasonably priced' country we see for a while, it was hard to leave!
Next stop: Dubrovnik, Croatia
Our hostel in Mostar was the highlight though, Majda's Rooms, where Majda told us all the best places to go, made us feel right at home, and ferried us to and from the bus station. Another highly recommended place! Mostar was nearly completely obliterated during the war and there are empty, bombed out buildings everywhere with signs saying 'dangerous ruins, do not enter'. Most of the inhabitants had to evacuate during the war and seeing the pictures of the town during the war you can completely understand why.
Another interesting things we did in Mostar was climb a minaret in one of the local mosques. It was about 100 very narrow and windy steps up, and the ledge at the top didn't do much to help dampen my growing vertigo that started ever since we went to the Aiguille de Midi (I blame you for this Dad, I'm sure it's inherited!). Gave you a great view over the city though and was cool to think about the guys coming up and doing a call to prayer 'live' rather than through a microphone system.
Overall, B&H was a really interesting country that would be well worth returning to. The people were very friendly and open and seeing as it will be the last 'reasonably priced' country we see for a while, it was hard to leave!
Next stop: Dubrovnik, Croatia
Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina
We were so close, it would have been rude not to visit... That was the justification for a couple of nights sidetrip into Bosnia and Hercegovina and it was well worth every BAM (convertible marks to the more technical amongst us).
We bused down from Split into Sarajevo (the B part of B&H) along some pretty majestic scenery, dominated by the Neretva River. We arrived into Sarajevo pretty late (about 11pm) armed with directions to our hostel which was apparently only 5 minutes walk from the bus station. Whatever! After walking around for about half an hour we finally capitulated and got a taxi - the guy told us a) it was 'very, very close' (yeah, thanks, we knew that already!) but that we should b) be 'very careful' and that wandering the streets at night was maybe not such a good idea. But not to fear (this is for all the parents out there), we never came to any harm the whole time we were there, and in fact, the B&H's were some of the nicest people we've met so far!
Arriving at the hostel at about midnight, we rang the bell, only for it to be answered by one of the guests who said that the lady had gone and wouldn't be back until 10am the next day! (So much for 24 hour reception...) They let us up anyway and we crashed in one of the rooms. Early the next morning, on wakening and discovering that the kitchen and bathroom were one (ew!) and the whole place was pretty grotty, we left some cash on the bed and left. If you're ever planning on going to Sarajevo, avoid 'Hostel Enjoy' like the plague!
But onwards and upwards. There was another hostel in town that was highly recommended, Hostel City Centre Sarajevo, and it was probably the flashest hostel we stayed in so far. We were lucky to get the last rooms in the house - two lilos in a yet to be completed dorm room! But they were actually really comfortable and getting your own room but paying the least amount possible was pretty sweet. Apparently they do great tours out into the surrounding areas to waterfalls etc. - everyone was raving about them but sadly we didn't have enough time.
Anyway, enough about the accommodation! Sarajevo itself was absolutely fascinating, the recent history of the 1991-1995 conflict is just in your face everywhere you look. It was strange, but you even got used to seeing bullet holes in everything. We did a tunnel tour of a tunnel that the city built under the airport from Sarajevo city itself (which was quasi-surrounded by the Serbians, apart from the airport which was in UN hands) out to the B&H free territory. The guides were two people in their late 20s who gave us a pretty frank description of life during the war - there's still so much hurt and anger about it all which is pretty easy to understand when you go there and see it for yourself. The corruption and confusion that still reigns in the city is also a source of huge frustration - they have two police forces, three presidents that each have power for a year each, and can never get agreement between anyone so can never move forward. It really made you appreciate an open and relatively simple political system!
We had initially planned to spend the night with some other people from the hostel, but Adrian found some really cheap tickets (NZ$7 each!) to Carmen at the National Theatre, performed with the Sarajevo Philharmonic. Well, that's not something you're going to turn down is it! It was Adrian's first time at an opera, so what better place to start than Sarajevo. It wasn't an opera in the sense that I'm used to (a big theatrical production), as the leads and the chorus just stood on stage and the leads were just in regular dresses etc., but it was definitely a lot of fun.
We'll post some pictures as soon as we get our disposable camera developed!
Next stop: Mostar.
We bused down from Split into Sarajevo (the B part of B&H) along some pretty majestic scenery, dominated by the Neretva River. We arrived into Sarajevo pretty late (about 11pm) armed with directions to our hostel which was apparently only 5 minutes walk from the bus station. Whatever! After walking around for about half an hour we finally capitulated and got a taxi - the guy told us a) it was 'very, very close' (yeah, thanks, we knew that already!) but that we should b) be 'very careful' and that wandering the streets at night was maybe not such a good idea. But not to fear (this is for all the parents out there), we never came to any harm the whole time we were there, and in fact, the B&H's were some of the nicest people we've met so far!
Arriving at the hostel at about midnight, we rang the bell, only for it to be answered by one of the guests who said that the lady had gone and wouldn't be back until 10am the next day! (So much for 24 hour reception...) They let us up anyway and we crashed in one of the rooms. Early the next morning, on wakening and discovering that the kitchen and bathroom were one (ew!) and the whole place was pretty grotty, we left some cash on the bed and left. If you're ever planning on going to Sarajevo, avoid 'Hostel Enjoy' like the plague!
But onwards and upwards. There was another hostel in town that was highly recommended, Hostel City Centre Sarajevo, and it was probably the flashest hostel we stayed in so far. We were lucky to get the last rooms in the house - two lilos in a yet to be completed dorm room! But they were actually really comfortable and getting your own room but paying the least amount possible was pretty sweet. Apparently they do great tours out into the surrounding areas to waterfalls etc. - everyone was raving about them but sadly we didn't have enough time.
Anyway, enough about the accommodation! Sarajevo itself was absolutely fascinating, the recent history of the 1991-1995 conflict is just in your face everywhere you look. It was strange, but you even got used to seeing bullet holes in everything. We did a tunnel tour of a tunnel that the city built under the airport from Sarajevo city itself (which was quasi-surrounded by the Serbians, apart from the airport which was in UN hands) out to the B&H free territory. The guides were two people in their late 20s who gave us a pretty frank description of life during the war - there's still so much hurt and anger about it all which is pretty easy to understand when you go there and see it for yourself. The corruption and confusion that still reigns in the city is also a source of huge frustration - they have two police forces, three presidents that each have power for a year each, and can never get agreement between anyone so can never move forward. It really made you appreciate an open and relatively simple political system!
We had initially planned to spend the night with some other people from the hostel, but Adrian found some really cheap tickets (NZ$7 each!) to Carmen at the National Theatre, performed with the Sarajevo Philharmonic. Well, that's not something you're going to turn down is it! It was Adrian's first time at an opera, so what better place to start than Sarajevo. It wasn't an opera in the sense that I'm used to (a big theatrical production), as the leads and the chorus just stood on stage and the leads were just in regular dresses etc., but it was definitely a lot of fun.
We'll post some pictures as soon as we get our disposable camera developed!
Next stop: Mostar.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)