Achtung!

Well hello there little blog followers! And by this I mean our families...no posted love from friends for a good while...de de de!!! ;)

Meg and I last left you on our odyssey in the lovely town of Verona...well I can say that much has transpired in the following weeks...we have visited 4 countries in the space of a week and taken many trains, buses, trams and metros to whiz us all over central Europe.

To begin I will draw your attention to the first couple of photos from our visit to Domodossola, an absolutely beautiful town in the north of Italy. We stayed overnight and bunked down in a cute little B & B where I was able to soak up a little sport by watching the European champions league final (Messi is the best) and spoiled Meg in the morning by waking her with fried eggs and spinach...mmm...we also had the chance to see some genuine alpine scenery as we were encompassed by the towering snowy giants that seem to nurse the town into a sleepy beauty. Then it was time to enjoy the entire reason for our visit to Domodossola (scenic rail to Switzerland). This was not originally part of the itinerary though we are very happy to have made it so. The panoramic windowed train exposed us to views of the Swiss and Italian alpine regions that give you a great insight into why people will endure the freezing conditions during winter. Our day came to a jolting halt of reality when we hit Zurich and decided to stay for the night before leaving for Munich. Meg and I went out for dinner and paid $20 AUD for 2 Kebabs and 1 fanta!!! OMFG!!! Glad we didnt plan to visit here initially as it would have been considered fiscal suicide.

Then onto the beer capital of the world...MUNICH!!! Oh yeah...we set up Kermie (the tent) and made our way back into the town center to find a place to eat...and drink giant beer!! As you can see from the photos we were successful! Munich is very relaxed and feels more like a village than an actual city. After some duely imbibed hops and yeast we retired for the night...zzz.
In the morning it was time to explore. As we sat down for breakfast we met a lovely good ol boy from the south...TIMAH (southpark joke) from Baton Rouge Louisiana and shared a meal while discussing what to do. We hit it off well and decided on a free tour of Munich...after some sights and informative history we bailed on the tour at the stop of the Hofbräuhaus (huge beer hall) and downed some local fare. We made tentative pland with Tim to catch up again and went our separate ways.

The next day Meg and I quickly decided to make for Austria. It was a rushed decision and so the trip was hasty. After some cross country running with packs we made our train and snaked our way to Innsbrück. This part of the world is truely astounding. We both rate Austria as the most beautiful country so far and Innsbrück went a long way to sealing the deal. Mountains soar into the heavens and are capped by white powder and the atmosphere in incredibly. We made plans to stay at the hostel and remembered that Tim was in the area so we figured we may bump into him along the way. Lo and behold, as Meg and I sit down to dinner, I hear the distinctive southern tones of one Tim Durel, who is suprised, though happy to see us and join for a meal. We make plans to hike the next day and retire after some tasty dark beers!! MMM!!! The hike was one of our favourite days by far. The weather permitted a comfortable hike to 1400 meters and gave us spectacular views of the town and alps. Meg got to eat Austrian snow, pat a donkey and we had a beer at the food shack high on the mountain. It was a wonderful experience. We had a great time with Tim and wish him all the best for the rest of his trip and decision for future studies...always welcome in Oz (hint hint)! Thats him with the big Kick ass pizza btw!

The next day the 3 of us parted again and Meg and I left for Salzburg. Another jewel in Austrias crown. We set up camp and relaxed on the grounds talking with the lovely Romanian campsite organiser. She gave us some insight into Austria and helped us book our Sound of Music tour. The next day the hills were alive with the sound of Meg singing. We had an extremely funny guide who could be a stand up comedian and the day was perfect. We also tried Apfel Strudel with hot vanilla sauce and got to walk around the city a bit. We took the afternoon to go to Berchestgaden in the south of Germany (how casual it is to visit 2 countries). Stunning scenery again and a peaceful afternoon. The back to Salzburg for dinner and sleep. One of the photos is on dusk of the old city of Salzburg as viewed from a bridge down river. That night we got a micro burst of rain and little Kermie got his first work out...passing with flying colours. Next stop Vienna!!

We stayed in a hotel for the two nights and loved having a bed again!! Meg also loves having room to throw her clothes around. After some exploring Meg and I wound up getting a free bottle of Champagne at a pub and we indulged in some relaxing nightlife, getting home late and sleeping in...ahhhh!! The next day we decided to walk around the city with no plans. We skyped the lovely parents and sister weish and got our family fix first! Love u guys! :)
In the evening Meg and I experience true romance as we got dressed up, went out for a nice dinner to see the Vienna Philharmonic play Mozart, Hayden, and Schubert and watched the Opera of Don Giovanni...fantastic! Then a ferris wheel ride before home to bed...an actual bed...oh yeah now this is luxury! And yes that is a photo of me eating a Grilwurstel (sausage) ewwww....actually tasted real good!

The next day we departed for Prague and spent most of the day on the train. The weather was not so good so we dediced to sleep in a room at the camping ground. After avoiding some hotel poachers at the train station and overcoming the language barriers, Meg and I enjoyed the helpful difference in exchange rates in the Czech Rep (Note megs flashing the 1000 note) She is such a high roller. We enjoyed some cheap food and beers at the restaurant close to our bed. The following day we explored Prague and completed another free walking tour, thanks New Europe, and also met some lovely English friends...Stu and Becky. We met with them again later and tried some Absinth at a dark underground pub. Thats Stu and Me sharing a Vodka red bull...cheap backpackers we are! We exhanged details and possibly may catch up in the UK for some good times.... good luck with your exam results Becky and start eating vegetables Stu!! Prague has such an amazing history, buildings and culture...a really well preserved treat unlike any other place!

Onto BERLIN!!! What a great city...this place has felt the most like home since our departure from Oz and is absolutely brimming with fun things to do...the people, architecture, history is so brilliant and enjoyable that I rate this my favourite City so far! Meg and I had planned for 2 nights and stayed for 3 as we had such a great time! We went and did some normal things too like the cinemas twice! Ahhh...to be normal again! So in Berling we took our time and did some war tours, a pub crawl and generally soaked up this really cool place! The pub crawl was really fun as Meg and I had not been out with people for a big 1 for a long time. We met some really nice people and I think we even went to some cool clubs...bit hazy on the details though ;) I could talk forever on this place... highlights are the Reichstag building...some photos of the very cool glass dome can be seen from the inside...the history on the GDR and Berlin wall...and the massive Tiergarten! So tired tho so Ill keep it short! Thanks to Richard and Gill for their help with Job companies in the UK...nice to meet you and share a beer! P.s Germans dont have to worry about NAZIS anymore...there is a new and much more sinister threat to the people....thats right....STORMTROOPERS AT BRANDENBURGER TOR!!!! Also there are pics of Meg and I freezing in unusual cold weather and the holocaust memorial...google that...it is a very unique and interesting work!

Next stop Paderborn...some may wonder where this place is...and why we are visiting?? Well there is one answer to satisfy your curiosity!! And the answer is ABSOLUTE VODKA!!! Hahaha...while on Tioman you may remember that we met some lovely German people and drank a little too much with them...anyway we made good on our promise to visit them as we traverse Germany and we were very excited to arrived and meet with Christoph, Viktor, Michael and Natalie once again! The generosity and welcoming nature of this group of now very good friends was quite overwhelming...I could be forgiven for mistaking them for the close group of friends I cherish in Australia...we were greeted at Paderborn station and taken to Natalie and Christophs for cake and coffee before visiting to Michaels swinging bachelor pad! ( Michael is the one kicking his leg up behind Meg in one of the pics)...we had a bbq at his place and met some more of their friends...the night was perfect...we got to see some of the scintelating Paderborn nightlife and check out the infamous Dück dance moves (Viktor is pictured with white t shirt in the club next to me) while enjoying some beer and partied late into the night...err...morning...we got into the last club CUBE at 0330 and found it to be empty...not to worry...fusbal was ready for a work out and we laughed and played terribly until the place shut and ugly lights came on! The group shot of us kicking our legs is at approx 5am....sleep zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz!! Best recovery feed in the morning (Leish note the awesome bread..I ate that for u!) and coffee...now we can function.

Unfortunately all of our best laid plans came undone as rain and slow brain processes ground our activities to a halt...but then.... a ray of sunlight....lets go....and play...TEN PIN!!! YAY!!! Christoph, Viktor, Meg, Michael and I had a blast knocking down pins and high fiving our gutter balls...Megs enthusiasm was a highlight....we then had a short stroll around the sprawling city center and returned to get ready for dinner! The food was an absolute treat...traditional Schnitzel an dark wheat beer that I have fallen in love with! We had some great conversations before the night got away from us and we had to say good bye and farewell!

Special mention goes to Christoph and Michael...first Christoph, thank you kindly for all of your organisation and correspondence...you made us anticipate the time happily and made us feel very welcomed since Tioman. And Michael...we can not thank you enough for allowing us to feel so welcomed into your home...Meg and I really appreciated your hospitality and will not forget the great time we had at your place.

To all: I feel strongly that our genuine connection will endure time and distance and you will always be welcome down under and extended the same courtesy that you were so willing to give to us. It was lovely to spend time with such intelligent, motivated people. Hopefull we can meet again before we leave, or you can come over the chanel to England for a little holiday. Stay safe and well until we meet again!

Peace xoxo

For the fam....Next stop Rotterdam...the biggest harbour in Europe and then Amsterdam...nuff said... lots of love from our last night in Germany...Im gonna miss it! M&J xoxo

Bapada Boopie

Ciao Bellas,

First of all let me apologise for the ridiculously long time it has take for us to post!! We have just been soooooo extremely tied up with eating....uh....I mean sightseeing...yeah thats it...sightseeing! Well anyway...all apologies aside, let me fill you in on what we have been doing in the great boot...

I think we left you in Avingon where Meg and I had a little down time...and since then until now there has been precious little of that commodity! We left Avingnon and stopped in gritty Marseille, a Harbour town with a strong Algerian influence...our hotel room was quite grotty but did the business and we wandered around with not much to do. The next day we hopped a train to Toulon in the hope that we could get a ferry to Rome. After a 20 minute walk with packs to the terminal we were duely informed that this service has recently been abandoned...nice! With some quick rejigging and directional assistance the route was changed to get the train to Genoa and then overnight it to Rome....overall it was to be a 12 hour train hike....needless to say we bailed on that idea and stopped in Genoa (via Nice, Cannes and Coastal Italian towns that yielded breathtaking views)...we were so pumped to enter the country of Pizza and Pasta and talking with your hands. It took all of 20 minutes to book into a local 1 star hotel and then go out for some authentic Italian grub...best pizza ever....and cheap too!

The following day we farewelled Genoa and headed for Florence...what can I say about the birthplace of the Renaissance, Michelangelo and the Medici dynasty? It is absolutely overwhelming the amount of history and intricately constructed buildings here that dwarf anything my mind could fathom before...From the Palazzo Vecchio to the Massive Duomo Basillica and up to Michelangelos Garden, Florence is a true Tuscan treat that is arguably the real heart of Italy! Meg and I dined in the Piazza Della Signora under the huge Torre Arnolfo and listened to a free concert of Italian folk tunes which was a nice touch.

I got a little sick in Florence and had a bit of a snappy tom at Megzy! She is such a good egg though and takes it in her stride, nuturing me back to awareness and enjoyment! After 2 nights in Florence we had to say Arrivederci and then chuggalugged our way to Roma...by this stage I was very run down and stuffy and the heat was killing me...we had decided to stay at the Seven Hills campsite out of town to accrue some extra play money...little did we know the campsite was a 45 minute walk with packs fully loaded and we did not find out about the courtesy shuttle bus until we got to the campsite of course! OMFG!!! Again Meg tolerated some very Cranky Pants from me as I was tired sick and fed up with walking...then the pegs would not go into the ground without bending...we did not have a mallet...the heat the heat the heat....arghhhhhhhhhhh!!!

Anyway the tent went up and I fell asleep at about 8pm. We checked out the camp site the next day and it was very well appointed...2 restaurants, a steak house, pool, sports grounds, and a quiet little niche for us! So we made use of the FREE SHUTTLE BUS and made our way into Roma...which for anyone that has not been is bizzare for a Capital city...no sky scrapers here, or massive traffice jams...it was strangely small and very accommodating to pedestrian travelling needs. Not to mention, more ruins than you can poke a stick at! I mean it is just a historical mecca of gargantuan proportions.

The first day was dedicated to the Vatican city Museums and Saint Peters Basillica (the largest and most opulant in all of Europe). The Piazza outside the Basillica was very impressive and then you go inside...you just can not describe the amazing amounts of man power, death, enslavement that would have been needed to create such Titanic church! WOW! And then we wandered throught the museum where we silently, in awe, gazed at the Frescoes of Raphael and Michelangelo...the Cistine Chapel was and hour of sitting, looking, head shaking, and lack of comprehension at how one man could spend four years of his life on scaffolding craning his neck up to the ceiling and letting the power of god guide his hands to such majesty! Apparently Michelangelo was never the same, physically, again after the demands of this effort...

The following day Meggy and I hopped a tourist bus and did a 2 hour loop of the city before deciding to visit the COLOSSEUM!!! Man what an experience that place is...built until it was servicable in just over 4 years and finished off in 8, this staduim (a design that was the catalyst most others were fashioned from) could seat between 40 and 70 thousand screaming spectators who would watch the most grusome battles take place! WOW! Probably Meg and my favourite place so far....the we walked around the Roman Forum next door and wandered through the ghostly remains of Titus Arch, Agustus house, and the Circus De Nero where christians were burned in piles to provide light for the feast of the Roman emperor...eeeeww. That was a huge day...we came back to the camp ground dusty, hot and tired and decided to treat ourselves to some lovely Vino Della Casa (cheap house red) and the best Tiramisu I have ever had the pleasure of tasting! MMMMM.....

The last day Meg and I packed up and stayed in Rome itself, which was a treat...we wandered around the city from the Spanish steps to Piazza Navona, the sacred ruins to Fontana de Trevi, the Pantheon to Piazza de Campidolglio and winding through some very fashionable areas! Long story short...I think we got good mileage out of Rome!

Next stop Napoli...however, everyone that we spoke to about this place told us not to go...mmm...so we changed our plans and then made camp in Pompei! Have I mentioned how hot it is here yet....everyday since Florence has been about 25-30 degrees with about 75% humidity which makes for very sweaty backs with bags!!! Anywho...after errecting our house, Meg and I wandered to get some food in the quiet town that receives around 3 million tourists a year for Vesuvius and Pompei ruins....preserved in the ash of the Volcanos explosion! We sat at a cheap restaurant and had some average pasta but thought yeah its cheap...and then the waiter bought out some "complementary" dishes that we did not order and gave us the impression they were on the house and we thought....oh how lovely...only guess what....yeah.... they appeared on the bill! Then all of a sudden...the waiter...forgot how to speak english...like he was struck with some form of stigmata all of a sudden...friggen con artist!! See cranky faced photo!

The next day we made a summit of Vesuvius and walked around the main crater at the top...there were some truely magnificent views of the Pompei Valley and all the way up to the Amalfi coast...in the afternoon we caught the train down to Sorrento...WOW...this little town is an absolute gem of a place....the shear coast line makes you wonder why anyone would want to build residence here...and then you look at the Mediterranean ocean and you go...oh...yeah....I suppose its worth it! We both had our first dip in the ocean in Italy and it was sublime...nice and cold and in a primo spot...right next to Peters beach (posted a photo and thought of dad lol) that we could not go into as it was 8 euro just to get on the beach! How good is Lemon Ice when you are parched (check out gigantic lemon)!

The following day we toured through the ruins of Pompei...it is simply amazing how well preserved this city is...and the history is astounding! Some of the earlier parts of Pompei were formed in the 6th century BC! Im talking 2600 years ago! And it was a thriving, bustling place, with a fish and meat market, bakeries, government building and even brothels with suggestive drawings above the rooms....we had a blast and were absolutely knackered at the end of 4 hours of walking in the sticky heat (by the way I thought cricket was an English invention, though clearly this bronze statue is depicting a man in a delivery stride at the crease??) LOL....but not knackered enough to not get the train to Naples just to try Pizza from the home of Pizza!! We went to Da Michele where Pizzas have been tossed since 1870! Only two choices, Margherita or Marianara and we slurpped them down with a bottle of frosty suds!! MMMMMM.....totally worth it!

From Napoli to Verona! Almost a 12 hour hike on the train and on our feet looking for a hotel to stay in!! Some more cranky pants from Josh...its stressful not knowing where you are going to sleep for the night when there are almost no more shadows in the day!! Luckily there were beds left at the Ostello de Francescatti! Check this place out on the web....its a HI Hostel in Verona that is a 16th Century Villa on huge grounds with beautiful gardens...stunning....the last photos will be of the grounds here! We then day tripped to Venice from here...one of the most out of this world places...20 million tourists a year...hot as hell and more rivers than streets with gondola men singing to love struck couples or alternatively groups of asian tourists. We wandered around to San Marco and checked out the amazing Church in the piazza (the best Ive seen yet) it is covered with mosaics of half centimeter squared tile and just the most amazing depictions of religious events and then chilled out by the water with gelati! We returned to Verona and showered at our hostel before going out to dinner like real Italians do at 10pm....returning to a lovely little restaurant right by the river! Quattoro formaggi and Tagliatelle al Porcini with a litre of Vino Bianco to knock us on the head and then zzzzzzzzz!

Meg and I left the Hostel this morning and got lost on our dedicated day of rest....man....ended up getting a taxi to the next hotel and now we are chilling out for the afternoon...which you kinda feel guilty for because Verona is arguably the most beautiful Italian town Ive seen and I have only seen a small portion! Meh...chilling is good! So tomorrow we leave for a scenic rail ride from Italy into Switzerland and then onto Austria...it seems like Italy has flown by....though I feel a cooler climate and cheaper beer will be a welcomed change...and my memories of the people,food and language will not fade fast!

Until next time my compatriots.... Ciao! xoxoxoxoxo