Sunburnt and loving it!

Let us clarify, Hazen is the one with a wicked sunburn on his forehead. It´s all good though cause we are in Spain. Small, sleepy town of Tossa de Mar. We knew the town would be cool when we found out we would have to take 4 trains and a bus for a long day of travel. Even the lady at the France train ticket booth said it wasn´t possible so we took matters into our own hands. Got online and found a way to get to the neighboring town just in time to catch the only bus that goes to Tossa. We have a great studio apartment with kitchenette and balcony for 40 euro per night. The balcony looks over the town and the town looks over the ocean so by simple laws of deduction, we have a sweet view of the med. As you could have guessed the cheap price comes with a few minor quirks. Three showers have been taken and the forth came with tribulations. Aub jumped in right after me and all of the sudden the shower wouldn´t work but the bath would. No switches in sight to change from bath to shower. The kitchenette is nice and has a two burner stove. One minor problem, if you turn both on at the same time the breaker flips. Would like to meet the genius who wired this place. Yesterday we layed on the pebble beach most of the day and did a bit of swimming. The toplessness has reached a new level. Topos are everywhere. Awesome castle on the hill next to the beach and at night it is illuminated. Took a walk up there last night and felt like we had the place all to our selves. Not many tourists around; we think this might be where the locals go when they need a vacation. This morning we hit a huge market that spans across half the town. Lots of good stuff and fun people watching. Plan to try out the snorkling gear we got yesterday. Suppose to be a good place to do it. Will stay one more night before taking a bus ride to Barcelona.

Catching up on photos & southern france

Can't leave the alps without drinking out of a boot (or 6)

View of Lyon - Long day of walking with packs

Aub is turning into quite the wildlife photographer

Van Gogh's Starry Night

Same view but we call ours Cloudy Day

Packed Roman Bullfighting Arena - Opening Ceremonies

The first bull

The bulls are not the only losers - horses gets the nasty end of the horns a lot

Hey from southern France,

Starting to get the hang of this keyboard; just in time to head to spain and probably a new keyboard to learn.

Southern France has been brief but great. Yesterday we arrived in Arles and dropped our bags at our hotel (first private room in weeks). Headed to the nearby town of Nimes for a festival. Not sure what the festival was for or what was going on but it was a lot of fun. There were streetperformers everywhere and tons of good grub. We endulged just a bit. Aub had a double hotdog with fries and mayo stacked on top. Probably wasn't the best time for greasy fair food as our stomaches were still uneasy about the bullfight we witnessed. We watched the fights in a huge, well preserved Roman arena with about 8K other local fanatics. By the way, this was no tourist bus type of festival. We are sure we were the only people around that spoke english. Back to the bullfight, we did not know what we were getting ourselves into. According to our guidebook the goal to local bullfights was to snag a ribbon tied between the bulls horns & nothing dies. The fights we witnessed were the real deal. Six bulls went down between all types of hoopla and fan fare. The lady in front of us cried through most of it. The crowd was ferousciously intense. Much like a playoff game in the states. It seemed they had a say in how the bullfight progressed. Very interesting to witness but will probably not attend again.

A note on Roman arenas: 2000 year old sport arenas are scattered all across europe. These guys really knew how to build a place. I think Seattle fans would be much more likely to fund a new arena if they knew it would still be generating revenue 2k years down the road.

Today was spent wandering around arles. Very historical town beginning with arles being a major roman town. Vincent Van Gogh moved in to town and painted his masterpieces including starry night. Unfortunately this is also where he cut off his ear and moved to an insane asylum. Arles is also very scarred from significant allied bombing during WWII. Tomorrow we are headed to Tossa de Mar just north of Barcelona. Found out about this place from Travis & Sarah's friend in Chamberlain basin. Plan on staying at least three nights for relaxing/sunning/swimming before heading to bustling Barcelona.

waiting out a rainstorm

Excuse any errors and the shortness of the post as we are experiencing difficulty with the French keyboard. All of the countries have had slight differences but this is ridiculous.

Geneva was a nice place; definately a very international flare. It was also very interesting to see how french switzerland differed from italian swiss and german swiss. A lot of culture in one small country. Got into Lyon yesterday and had a bit of trouble locating our hostel. Finally found it but we were definately cooked. Today has been a lot of fun. Watched a massive bocce tournament. They do not play bham rules; weird. Hit a couple of markets and got some great fresh grub for a picnic. Found a huge city park/zoo. all kinds of exotic animals. Laid down in the grass to take a nap and at the same time it started raining like mad. Huddled under a tree until the bulk passed and then headed to the internet cafe. Tomorrow we head to Arles for the rest of the weekend. Suppose to be a good festival with flamenco dancing and bullfighting. Probably to Tossa Del Mar in northern Spain to lay on the beach as we are feeling a bit tired. This traveling thing is hard. The french seem much more accepting of tourists at this point. Have to wait and see what a big city is like though. More to come including pics of the boot (you will understand) so stay tuned.

Sad Day

Walking underneath a waterfall - very cold and wet

Swiss Alps hostel hot tub - yeah, it's wood fired

Just another day on the trail

Another decent lunch spot - note Hazen lower right

Sadly, this is our last night in the Alps. I think we might cry a little on the way out, but our legs will be screaming for joy. We have done some pretty serious hiking the last 3 days and our legs just didn't want to go this morning. They loosened up though and we got in a pretty good hike.

We are off toward Southern France tomorrow. We will be stopping in Geneva, Switzerland but we haven't decided if we will stay the night or keep going to Lyon, France. Followed by the French Riviera by the weekend (more sun tanning). Thanks for all the comments and encouragement. We really appreciate hearing from you.

More Alps

Hazen found the best rope swing in the middle of nowhere.

Mountain woman of the Alps.

One of the many avalanches we saw on a day hike.

Tough view for lunch - looking from left to right - Eiger(behind clouds), Monch, Jungfrau

Irresistable Alp photo - same 3 mountains as above

Spent the last two days completing some amazing hikes. Yesterday we put in a long day and made it up to the snow line. We stopped there for lunch. On the way down we spotted about 15 shimlus (mountain goats) skylined on the ridge. We watched them run around for a bit, but were too far away to see details.

Today was an amazing day. We watched avalanches. How cool is that. It all started by walking a couple doors up from our hostel to get some of esther's homeade yogurt for breakfast. Then a few more doors down we stopped at a barn and picked up some cheese and sausage from the farmer. Made for a perfect lunch. Easy cheese ain't got nothing on this stuff. Not even Cheddar Bacon flavor easy cheese. Took an easier walk today and headed up to the beginning of the valley. Saw our first avalanche when we were still quite aways from the mountains. We finally got to the base of the mountains and took a perch. Every time a new avalanche started the ground shook beneath us. The rumble echoed all through the valley. What a sight, What a day, What a place.

The hills are alive with the sound of music!

Still Hanging out in San Marco Square. In between Museum Visits.

Hiked to a castel to get a better view of Verona. Very nice town.

Lugano, Switzerland perched on the side of Lake Lugano. Notice the sailboats on the lake.

More perfect weather days.

On the northern edge of the Alps. Headed to Gimmelwald.

Getting closer to Gimmelwald. Unbelievable mountains.

Not there yet, I think we might like this Switzerland thing.

Guten tag,

Have traveled a lot of miles since we talked last. In fact we are even (butchering) speaking another language. We went through Verona and had a good time walking around town checking out the place. Met some fun people from the Netherlands at the hostel and had some interesting discussions.

Headed out of Italy to Lugano. Very beautiful place. Seems a lot like Riffe lake but with steeper valleys as it is in the foothills of the alps. The hostel was quite posh with a swimming pool and everything. Needless to say, we endulged. After a few nights there we jumped another train (many trains) to Gimmelwald.

Here is how our current day went. On the train in Lugano at 855am changed trains in Luzern at 1138. Took new train to Interlaken and arrived at 1345. Jumped a new train to Lauterbrunnen and arrived at 1440. Took a tram to the ridge line at 1450. Fell onto another train down the ridgeline and arrived in Murren at 1520. Walked 30 minutes into Gimmelwald. Yah, we're tired. But it was all worth it. Neither of us have seen a place this beautiful before. The town of Gimmelwald is at 4500 feet and perched on the top of a cliff. The view is of three of the most amazing peaks in all of the alps. Our hostel also has the same view. The town has 100 permanent residents and very few tourists. A dream come true. The next many days (not sure how long) will be spent hiking in the many trails through out the area. Have to go for now as internet is free here and we have people breathing down our neck to get at the computer.

Arrivederci Italia!

Aubree doin' her part

Duomo in St. Mark's Square - Venice

Pigeons are out of control

Perfect sunset in Florence

Perfect Sunset in Cinque Terre.
Monterosso is in the distance.



The beach life isn't too good to the hair

Our last few days in Cinque Terre were perfect. We toured all five towns, took a small hike, and of course more sunning. Aubree is as tan as she has ever been. Quite the beach bunny. Although she isn't as comfortable as some of the locals. We have never seen so much toplessness. Hazen is still getting use to it all. He will keep trying though. No good pictures yet. Also, he will keep trying (just kidding).

We had a absolutely flawless day of travel from Cinque terre to Venice. It turned out to be about a 6hr train ride. Venice has been fun as the weather continues to be perfect. We had a museum day today, touring the Correr Museum and Doge's Palace. They were both very interesting and some of the best museums we have seen yet. Aubree particularly enjoyed walking across the Bridge of Sighs in Doge's Palace. This is where prisoners walked and viewed their last glimpse of venice before they began their sentence. The prison looked quite harsh. Alcatraz looked like Disneyland compared to this place.

Tonight is our last night in Venice and we are getting ready to take a 45 min night lit Vaporetto ride down the Grand Canal. It should be fun and a much better alternative to the Gondolas or continuing to walk in circles through the city. What a maze of old town italy. It definately appears that Venice has been dying a slow death for quite some time with Tourists barely keeping its heart beating. Will be interesting to see what happens with this place over our lifetime.

Early train ride to Verona to smooze with the Capulets tomorrow. Then up to Lugano just across the Swiss border. Probably central Switzerland by this weekend. Hello Alps!

Desires are begging to present themselves. This is an unanticipated problem that we have not been able to deal with yet. Hazen is dying for some caffiene (even choked down a cafe latte), steak, hamburger, or even a good bratwurst. Aubree is hanging with the good old Chocolate. I think we might be able to fulfill a couple of these soon but this Italian cuisine is beginning to wear on us.

Our giant "buffet" breakfast this morning was something we were both looking forward to instead of the normal crappy roll and cappucino. We even set our alarm so we could be there bright and early. Arrived to see lots of cornflakes, yogurt, tang, and hard bread. To top things off Hazen dished up his first bowl of cereal in two weeks and the milk was warm! I think he died a little inside. We saved our rolls just in case we were mugged later in the day so we could bludgeon the perp.

Too Busy Lately! Too Much Sunning and Swimming

Happy Mother's Day!

Had a rough day of travel a few days back. We left Perugia thinking we would head toward Florence and have a quick day trip in Sienna. We spent most of the day traveling and only got to spend a couple hours in Sienna. The highlight was an amazing bus ride from Chiusi to Sienna through the heart of Tuscany. Sienna was beautiful; we hung out in the Piazza for quite a while. Think they were having some type of gay pride parade. Took the wrong bus to get back to the train station and ended up with a very long bus tour of Sienna and the surrounding area. Took a late train to Florence just in time for an amazing sunset. In Florence we mostly walked around and ate. Very busy city.

Found the best eating deal in Italy that we have seen so far. We ate gourmet grub two nights in a row. Hazen had rabbit for the first time. Very good. Hostel was very noisy as it felt like I-5 was right out our window. That's what we get for reserving in advance. Aub was also not fond of the very ripe sewer smell at the doorstep. The sunsets over the arno river were absolutely perfect. Couple of great evenings.

Saw the leaning tower of Pisa. Yep, it's still leaning. Headed up to Cinque terre for a much needed break. Had a rough time finding a room but managed to snag a beauty with a good view and private bath. This is our third day here and all we have done is sun bathe on the rocks, swim in the Ligurian, nap, eat Foccocia, and drink grapes. This place is heaven. We will be here two more nights to complete the tanning process. Don't want to look like aliens when we get to spain. Venice is next on the agenda. Probably three nights there and then headed to Switzerland. Internet is quite expensive here so will probably try to throw up some pics when we get to Venice. Hope all is well back home. Cheers

A few pics

First Dinner of the Trip. Grocery store grub on the rooftop of our hostel. How Romantic!St. Peter's Basillica - Un-photographable
Foro Romano - Yeah, we walked where Julius Ceasar walked

The River Nile - about 10' long

Facade on the Duomo in Orvieto @ Sunset. Que Bella!

Quick Cat Nap before the next train ride

Aubree enjoying exploring the castle in Assisi

Unbelievable town of Civita - Only access via Donkey Path Bridge

Stay Tuned.....More to Come!

Fun Facts

While skeleton keys look fun and simple, it turns out they are ridiculously hard to use. Especially after a caraffe of Orvieto Classico (Yummy vino) while standing in the dark.

Aubree is quite the savvy traveler. She has won many of the "where the hell are we" arguements. Rest assured she will not leave any stone unturned on the entire continent. Also, Aub is turning into quite the wine drinker; I am quite impressed.

Hazen nearly suffocated a man with his own pillow because of the man's snoring problem. Things worked out ok for the man as Hazen's anger was transferred to the man's girlfriend while she vomitted in the bathroom and talked to herself all night.

Turns out that washing clothes by hand is much harder than having a washing machine. Also drying clothes takes a long time if you don't have a dryer. Also if sed clothes do not dry in time they emit a retchid odor that might piss off bunkmates. Good thing they don't speak english or I might be in trouble.

Just as aub's toe began to heal, she took a nasty spill walking down the road. "Apparently" there was a hole in the road that Aub fell into scuffed up her knee and hand. The good news is she didn't get run over by the bus that she was trying to avoid.

When ordering something at a restuarant; if the waiter says something you are not sure of whatever you do, do not say yes. Things can turn out badly in a number of ways.

Will try pics tonight, Hazen forgot the camera. Cheers

Hey all,

We are finally feeling refreshed and a little less stressed. Rome was amazing and loud and stressful and busy. Like I said in our last posting the Colosseum was amazing. Trevi Fountain and the Spanish steps were both packed with people during our evening/gelato walk. OOOHHH, We love their gelato. We had a little bit of rain (Monsoon) the second day! Still managed to get out and see the Pantheon, the Piazza del popollo, and a few other fun places. Took a nice evening stroll in the Villa Bourghese (Central Park) it was good to get away from the noise for a while. It was good we took the metro on the third day because our leg muscles are definately very sore. Stood in line for about two hours to get into the Vatican museum. Once we got in it was very cool. Hazen might have become impatient a time or two with "crazy" tourists. It was really fun showing Aub some of the things that I really enjoyed last time and seeing new things as well.
We were very lucky to find a good grocery store so we have been eating very well. Headed up to Orvieto last night and got into town just in time to watch the sun go down behind the facade of the duomo. What a beautiful sight. The last batch of tourists were headed out of town as we were headed in. Attempted to use the phone but think we wound up calling someone in Russia. Will try again tonight. Sorry Lynn. Staying at a nice bed and breakfast where there is absolutely no english spoken. Aub is quite upset about a lip in the floor that has her big toe plastered all over it. (Heather stubbed toes are NOT funny) Went to the restaurant below our room for dinner and had the best brueschetta (that we didn't know we ordered) and amazing margahrita proschuito pizza. They had a band playing that our waiter deemed the "fake cranberries". They were quite good. We continued to listen to them after we went to bed. Spending today relaxing, sleeping, and doing laundry. Will try to make our way toward Civita tomorrow before heading north. All in all we are doing well and Hazen did not get jacked by the gypsies in Rome this time. Yeah!

We Made It!

We made the marathon trip over here and have landed on our feet. Definately suffering from some serious jet lag. Nothing a few ciestas can't cure. Aub and I walked over to the Colosseum and Forum Romano to do the Ceasar Shuffle this morning. We plan to hit the spanish steps and Trevi Fountain this evening. Probably will hang out in Rome for two more days before heading north. Will send more information next time as we are running out of minutes.