Bye Bye Canal du Midi

We have had a most amazing time on the canal. A real mixture of wonderful peace and relaxation, and some very stressful times that tested us alot. We wouldn't have missed it for the world but it was very nice on the train today to let someone else do all the work.

We are in Nice tonight. It is just so beautiful here. We got on the train at Carcassonne this morning and came through Narbonne, Beziers, Montpellier, Arles, Marseille, Toulon, Saint-Raphael, and Cannes to get here. The Cote D'Asure is stunning. If I win 13 million on the lottery I will come live here and bring all my family and friends. We are planning to go to Monaco tomorrow morning then on the train to Genova. We might decide to explore Nice in stead of going to Monaco. Will decide in the morning. The weather is beautiful. We have been out walking till nearly eight with just a light sleeveless top (me).

We travelled 1st class on the train today as it was a six hour journey. Was very nice, more leg room. Will be 2nd class tomorrow so will know the difference then. We had to change trains at MArseille which is not easy. We had 45mins to get all the luggage off, find the next platform, go to the loo, find somewhere that makes half way decent coffee, and get back on the right train. No one to ask and no help on the train. Only saw an official once and no one checked our tickets at all. We could have saved 270 euros. The stations are full of armed security. There was a boy of about 14 with a machine gun laughing with his mate. Would have liked a photo but think that would have caused trouble.

Is good to have a bed thats not so hard, and bigger, a toilet I don't have to pump and a shower I don't have to stand in line to use.

Right, will load some photos then off to bed. Thanks to all those who have emailed me recently. I will catch up soon now we are back on line.

Stunning photo of the canal early morning taken by Kev

The Captain has it all under control

Me in my 7 euro top working on my tan!



Castlenaudry at night taken from the boat.



Cote D'Azure

Big boys toys!

Damn, you REALLY should be here!!

It was very foggy in the morning

Very hard to see as the sun came up, but incredibly beautiful

So many great photos to choose from

What the f--k am I supposed to do with this?

Lunch on the river after a hard morning:)

Locks on the Midi Canal

Kev chewing the fat with the locals

Funny the things that you miss. On the boat we can make a cup of tea or coffee and we have a fridge for cold drinks. Most of the hotels don't have these and I have really missed them. Is also good to have our luggage in one place for a week. We also have a very tiny toilet that you have to pump to fill and empty, a shower which I haven't used yet. No I'm not that smelly, we have used the showers at the places we have parked up for the night. We have to refill the water and recharge the power when we stop so not using much. We also have a gas stove, which is a bit of a challenge.

We had a scarey first day on the canal with little instruction on what to do. But once we got going it is not so difficult and very beautiful. It takes at least 15 mins to go through a lock and usually there are other boats jammed in so a good opportunity to meet people. Alot of english speaking people so good to have conversations again.

We have stopped at beautiful little places along the canal. There is a walking and cycling track running right beside it so we get to wave and practise our french every day. Have found some good french wines too!!

Karen you would just love the photo opportunities here! But I think you will be impressed with some of ours. It is hard not to get good photos here.

We have been here in Trebes for about 6 hours and there is a duck here that Kev is going to strangle soon. It has not stopped screaming (yes ducks can scream!!) the whole time. There are heaps of ducks here but just one horribly noisey one. Also 2 dogs and 2 cats at the bar with us.

Three more days on the canal. Will be very chilled out by then and ready for Italy.

No time to post qnd the keyboard is different ( all the numbers are in caps and I have used a minute looking for the brackets)

I am sitting in the port office in Carcassonne using the internet. I have 5 minutes until the next persons turn. So the canal is wonderful!!!! I have so many beautiful photos to post. Manouvering the boat is a real challenge for non boaties but we have made it through 24 locks and heaps of very tight turns.

The weather is hot 30 plus degrees and the canal is beautiful. Lots of shade in this part thank goodness. Have four more days on the boat then off to Nice.

Have meet some great people from Aust, England, Checz Republic, most people are having fun trying to get the boats to go the right way. No steering when going backwards and sometimes none when going forward!!! We travel till about 2pm then park up and walk a bit, talk to people then its vodka or wine oclock and relax until bed time; Superb!! Vaughn got your text thanx and yours Karen.

Another gorgeous day!

The only clouds in the sky today were vapour trails from the aircraft, and there were plenty of those.

We were going to do some laundry today but there are none near here and we didn't want to waste hours. So we sent our knickers to the hotel laundry. So funny, they came back in a small (of course) wicker basket all beautifully folded with a small bag of sweets as a gift.

We got on the bus today and started with Poble Espanyol which is s full scale replica of a Spanish Village built for the international exhibition held in Barcelona in 1929.  It was meant to be demolished soon after but like the Eiffel Tower it is still going strong. There are 40 craft workshops, the glassblowing was amazing, and shops restaurants and a sculpture garden. Really lovely. It must have been great to live in a community that had a large village square where people used to meet to eat together and play and just hang out.

Then we visited the Olympic Stadium used for the 1992 Olympics. It still has an amazing atmosphere and had lots of people visiting as I expect there is every day. The surrounding area and gardens are beautiful too.

Then we walked down to the port to the beach. And yes naked man was there again. He is the only one who is naked and seems to spend his days walking up and down the beach and surrounds.
We wanted to eat at a restaurant that had been recommendedto us  and figured we wouldn't need a reservation at 6pm (got to be home before dark). Unfortunately the kitchen doesn't open until 8.30pm. They sure eat late here. So we had a drink and came home. It was beautiful, the outside area right on the sand. Will post some photos, I am getting good at that now.

I really liked the sculptures

Kev sorting out one of the locals!

The village square at Poble Espanyol



Restaurant on the beach, stunning!




View from the restaurant on the beach!

 A bit sad to leave Barcelona. We could have used another day or 2 here.

Back in the car tomorrow and off to Carcassone where we will pick up the canal boat on Friday. Our next big adventure. Not sure about updating the blog then but hopefully will find somewhere with wifi to keep in touch.

Cheers

Love Barcelona!!

What a beautiful day today. Officially 27 deg but I really don't think it was that hot but lovely to be warm all day. We got on the hop on hop off bus this morning. The buses are open on the top deck (have to be careful not to stand up when going through tunnels :). Which reminds me Kev stopped a young lady in front of us from getting hit with a large branch on the bus in Paris. As the streets are very narrow the buses are often in the trees and Kev saw the branch coming and pushed it away from hitting her. I think she thought he was touching her hair and as she didn't speak english we couldn't explain!

So we tikkied around town and got off at the beach. Wow. I will post some photos. Just beautiful. Funny, Kevin hates the beqach so he sat in the shade while I went down to put my toes in the water, which was pretty warm. Might have to swim tomorrow as is expected to be hotter. Well little did Kevin know that it was a topless beach. And you are right Karen. Everyone either wore a bikini or just a bikini bottom. I will be so overdressed in my swimsuit! And then there was the totally naked man. Just strolling around like you do. I wouldn't let Kevin take a photo of him but our eyes were on stalks. So funny!

Oh and Dean we saw a skateboarder, he reminded us of you!!

Then we went to Sagrada Familia. This is Gaudi's gothic church and apparently the second most famous catholic church in the world after the Vatican. Incredible. Gaudi worked on it for 40 years and left detailed drawings for its completion. It is still under construction and they hope it will be finished by 2026, 100 years after it began.

Love the ice cream here. Not as big as ours but lots of flavour. (Why do I always look short and dumpy in photos? Damn camera)

Facade on Gaudi's church

Interesting local buildin also designed by Gaudi

Bell Towers at Sagrada Familia

Then home for cheese etc on the balcony and off to bed soon.

Barcelona!

I am sitting on the balcony of our room at 10.30am (was too tired last night to do this). The sun is shining and it looks like it will be a beautiful day. We have just had a skype call with Karen. Lovely to hear her voice and Razz barking at the computer as it makes a funny noise when connecting to skype. The call was very frustrating as it cut out about 6 times in 20 min and we had to turn the video off to be able to hear at all. I called ffrom the iphone which was connected to the hotel wifi so I am hoping it was using that network. Hard to know as it says vodafone at the top of the phone. If anyone has any suggestions re improving skype calls please email me or leave a comment. I'm not sure what comments you all see on the blog? They all come to my email so thank you for those it is gr8 to hear from you and have feedback about the blog. I'm not sure if you all see the comments when you read the blog?

Anyway, yesterday we drove from Toulouse over the Pyrenees to Barcelona. What a beautiful, beautiful place. I don't think the pictures will do it justice. We climbed to about 1700m above sea level and the temp outside dropped to 11 deg. It must be very beautiful in the winter. Very flash ski resorts as this is where many in Europe come to ski in the winter. Taking photos at 120km hour through a car window is a real challenge. Have lots of nothing at all and lots of trees in the way. On the way up the road wound around the hills but once we got to the top it was very much quicker going down with many huge viaducts crossing the gorges. At the top was a huge tunnel. About 6km long which totally confused the GPS. Several times she told us to do a u turn!!

We went through about 6 toll gates, with several very close to Barcelona. We had problems with one where we went through the reserve lane (open) by mistake so didn't get a docket. This created a huge problem at the next one as you are supposed to put your docket in, it tells you how much you owe and you pay and the barrier lifts and off you go. We couldn't find a person anywhere. We sat in the car at the side for ages hoping someone would come to help. Then we walked to what looked like a deserted building and talked into a box to someone who didn't speak english. But we finally tried to go through and she made it work for us and we were off. The other problem was a toll that only took credit card, no cash and it kept declining ours!! Anyway we are here. Ask us the story of trying to get into the parking building! very funny!

I found some actifed yesterday for my cold and it has dried up my nose. So I feel much better today and pleased to be here for 3 days. This hotel is 3 stars compared to the ones we picked up on the way down and the main difference is the hotel staff here speak good english which is so important. Without that we can't find out how to get to the places we want to go.

Kayley, we got your skype message this morning and we miss you heaps too. Every day we say, Kayley would love this wish she could be here! I will try to work out how to answer your message :)

I upload some photos the other night and at the end the internet connection failed so I lost them on the blog. Thankfully I had saved what I had written. So will have another go here.

These are pears growing at the Luxembourgh gardesn, indicidually wrapped in papaer!

The cars on the right are parked and we are driving down this road (slowly) and turning right at the yellow barrier

Very narrow streets

Here we are in Toulouse!

Has been an interesting couple of days. We set off from Poitier yesterday morning and programmed the GPS to take the smaller motorway which we thought was 2 lanes each way. So funny. I will post some photos (lots since Dean says I need to post more, if I can as this internet connection is very slow) of some of the roads we went on which were barely big enough for one car let alone room for one each way. It is amazing the narrow roads that cars drive down. I guess if you have stone buildings from hundreds of years ago there wasn't much need to worry about how wide the gap between them was.

We headed for La Rochelle with the intention of walking along the beach and paddling our feet in the water. Well La Rochelle was hosting Europe's biggest ever boating expo with 3000 boats. We wondered why there were so many cars queued up to get to the beache. When we finally got close a policeman, who thankfully was very nice, turned us away as you had to park miles away and get a bus.

So we headed for Rochefort which was lovely. A beautiful city square (which is very common here). We arrived about 3pm and most places were closed between 1pm and 4.30pm. The only two places to buy cheese were closed. Lots of flower shops open??? I have been very impressed with the blue cheeses we have tried here but yet to taste the rochefort:)

Between Rochefort and Bordeaux we got stuck behind a tractor and a motorhome and an old git who Kevin said should be shot. It was so bad we pulled off the road and waited for a wine shop to open (4.30pm) and bought what turned out to be the worst red wine I have ever tasted. Must have seen the tourists coming. We threw the first bottle out. Have 2 more different brands but not expecting much improvement.

Slept in this morning. I have a bit of a head cold so haven't been sleeping so well. Drove into Bordeaux which was really beautiful. Amazing bridges and buildings. Then hit the motorway for Toulouse. It sure eats up the miles and we were mostly doing 110kmhr. The limit is 130 when it is fine and 110 when it rains. We were passed by 2 horse floats and a motorhome and lots of cars. They really fly past at 130-150km. Cost us $17 in tolls but worth it. When you travel on the smaller roads no one seems to pass even very slow things like a tractor. I guess they figure if you want to go fast you would be on the motorway.

We were a bit smarter today and programmed the GPS to go straight to the airport hotel. We figured the staff might speak more english which turned out to be so. We were able to get directions to take the bus and tube into town and back. If we take the car it is very difficult to get a park in town. Toulouse is lovely. We got on the little tourist train (on wheels) which goes about walking pace. The commentary was french but we had a written english version. 35mins for 5.50 euros each. When we got off it started to rain so we popped into the local bar (as you do) and sat next to some french people who spoke fairly good english as they had lived in the USA for 2 years. It was so good to talk to french people who could explain some of the things that we wanted to know although they couldn't work out why my phone says it has no credit even though I loaded 15 euros yesterday and got a message to say it was accepted. Will have to go back to the l'orange shop for the 3rd time. We bought a few NZ things with us to give to people so gave their son a keyring and a pen and they were really stoked.

Kev tells me Ireland beat Australia in the world cup. My God! I bet the Irish are still partying!!

Off to Barcelona tomorrow. Have to drive the car to the hotel so hope that will go well. Kevin is doing an amazing job with the driving. Dean, we will be checking out the places you have recommended. Sounds like there is so much to do we should have a week instead of 3 days.

Driving in France

There were 7 of us at breakfast this morning, 2  from Te Aroha, 2 from Wellington and a lovely girl from Auckland. We all had a gr8 old chat.

Was awesome day today. We were picked up at the hotel and driven via 2 other stops, to Orly Airport. The guy behind the counter spoke reasonable english and they had a car with a GPS for us. Hooray!

He gave us a run down on how the gps worked but unfortunately forgot to tell us anything about the car, and the manual is entirely in French. So no info about the cruise control (Kev has that sussed now) what petrol to put in, how to open the bonnet or anything else. Putting petrol in will be tomorrows little challenge!!

Anyway Kev was the star driver and we got away with no problems. Onto the A10 which is the main motorway south. The speed limit is 130km and with 3 lanes we were able to travel at around 100 and pass things in the slow lane without getting in the way of the fast lane. But as we got further south it reduced to two lanes which meant when we pulled out to pass there was always a porshe or a merc right up our arse and making rude gestures.

Kev asked the guy at Hertz if there were tolls and he very cleverly said no. Saved himself a lot of grief from us. So the first stop on the motorway was a shock. First you have to take a ticket to get through and then when you get off the motorway, as we bravely did for lunch and comfort stop, you have to pay the toll to get off. Has cost us about 20 euros today so being mean we will try a different tack tomorrow. We want to go on the smaller roads anyway so that is another challenge. At least on the motorway there is no oncoming traffic and no roundabouts.

We decided to stop just before Poitiers as we didn't want to go into a big city. Might have been better as the GPS didn't cope at all and we ended up on some very narrow windy streets with traffic two ways. Kevin did an amazing job especially having to cope with me freaking out. Stopped at the first hotel we came to which cost 39 euros for the room, which is basic but fine and 4.95 euros for breakfast.

Have been out for dinner and a much needed drink. Tomorrow we are going to La Rochelle, on the coast, Rochfort and then Bordeaux. Not sure if we will risk driving into Bordeaux.

Forgot to say when we went to Luxembourg Palace yesterday they grow fruit trees, apples and pears. They even have their own bee hives. Funniest thing was the fruit on the trees were individually wrapped in white paper. Will put up a photo soon if you don't beleive me. Thought it must be for bird protection but some of the trees were completely enclosed in bird proof netting???

Last Day in Paris

Well, we did go to all the places we wanted to fit in today. We started with the luxemburg palace and gardens. Really lovely. You are not allowed to sit on the grass so there are heaps of chairs set out for people to sit on. There were lots of people using the park. Joggers, walkers, dogs, (we travelled with one on the tube today, so well behaved) people playing tennis, tai chi, lots of PDA, individuals going through their exercise programs and then at lunch time a big influx of office workers enjoying the sun.

We had crepes for lunch. Ticked another thing off my list of must do in Paris! Kev was good and had savoury. He said it was like soggy bread! He should have had caramel like me. It was devine. I wasn't sure how to eat it and there was no one close enought to copy so I just chopped it into bits and scoffed. I wondered if we were supposed to roll it up first? Does anyone know the protocol for eating crepes in Paris.

Then we went to see the Sacre Coeur church at Montmatre. This is a lovely place. All narrow winding cobble streets. We got the bus from the town up to the church. It was very full when it stopped and the clever people got on at the back even though the sign said you weren't allowed. We tried to get on the front and caused a big argument between the bus driver, who asked everyone to move back, and a passenger who didn't want to move back. Thankfully we couldn't understand the names he was probably calling us. We are fast learning the advantages of being  able to say, no speak french, when we get something wrong. So we all finally fitted in and off we went. The bus stopped about 4 more times and just kept squashing people in. Then at the next stop the driver picked up his bag and left!!! He had a big discussion with a woman who was getting on and we all waited packed like sardines in the heat and he came back 10 minutes later and off we went again. Hilarious!
maybe toilet stop? or afternoon tea?

The church is lovely with fabulous views over Paris.

We are picking up the rental car tomorrow and heading for Barcelona. We have 4 days to get there. We don't have any accomodation booked so will just stop wherever. Hopefully will be able to keep the blog updated. Will be exciting!!

Wow what a day!!

Me laughing at Kevin!!

Traffic chaos from Arc de Triomph

Firstly Versailles. OMG!!!
No wonder they got their heads chopped off. they were even more out of touch with reality than today's politicians!!

We went on a small guided tour. Just eight of us and the guide. She was really good and it all went smoothly. Was good also to talk to people who spoke good english. Funny, 4 from Brazil and 2 from Canada!

The tour finished at midday and we got dropped off in town. We wanted to buy a spare battery for the camera and another memory card. It is so funny shopping in Paris. Firstly no one wants to serve you. Then when you find someone he doesn't serve just points you at someone who is supposed to, then he has to find someone who speaks english. a very little!! then he looks up what you want on a computer and says yes we have one (well I think thats what he said) . then he gives you a docket, still haven't seen the battery, and we wait in a long queue to pay. Then we go downstairs and wait in another long queue to actually get it. Problem is all signs are in french and we have waited in the wrong queue. So wait in the right queue and hand over docket. then wait to receive item. Then I insisted on opening it to make sure it was right. Many dirty looks later and we are done!!
So don't buy anything in a department store in Paris.

Totally different experience tonight when we went to the laundry near here. No attendant and all signs in french. There were 3 girls in there just hanging out, about Kayleys age. They were lovely. With much giggling they escorted me to the shop to buy soap powder and then back to the laundry to make the machines go. They spoke a very little english but young people here are very keen to improve and practise the language.

Then we wandered around and discovered many lovely shops so bought meat, salad, cheese, and bread. All fresh and beautiful and the shop keepers really helpful and friendly, although none spoke english. We are really good now at Bon Jour, Bon Soir, Merci, Parelez vous Anglaise, Excuse moi Pardon and I'll just point!

Kevin had a moment tonight and posted his postcard to his dad with out a stamp. We had a hilarious time trying to think what label would be on the bin they would have thrown it in. Stupid foreigners, silly old farts, New Zealanders, over 60's....

Will upload a couple of photos, hopefully.

Last day in paris tomorrow. getting nervous about the driving now. Picking up rental car from Orly airport on Friday and heading for Barcelona. Traffic in paris is enough to scare the hell out of anyone. Planning a visit to Monmatre and Sacre Coeur tomorrow and maybe Luxembourgh Gardens.
Cheers

THE LOUVRE AND RUDE FRENCH PEOPLE

Well I could fill three blogs with the Louvre and only cover half of it. Absolutely mind blowing. Napolean's apartments, French sulpture, Rembrant, endless huge paintings and then there was the Mona Lisa. This little dull painting sits in a room of huge brilliant masterpieces and I couldn't help but think somehow the Mona Lisa has had a very good marketing plan!!

We spent most of yesterday at the Louvre, then got on the hop off hop on bus and toured the whole center city. Had dinner out again last night. I am reserving my judgement on French food until we get out of Paris when I am sure it will improve ;)

Today we went to Notre Dame which was awesome. Then had lunch on the Champs Elysee. I really think that place is cool. Green spaces, bustling with people just a nice atmosphere. We  were silly enought to go into a small cafe and order coffee. It came in egg cups and was disgusting. I threw mine away and then ducked into Starbucks. Will stick with them in future. Then we climbed to the top of the Arc de Triomphe and was well worth it for the view. 108 metres high and 360 deg views of Paris. Then we walked around the park under the Eiffel Tower. The fountains there were lovely. Lots of people all having a good time. Apart from the poor guy we saw get pulled over by the police. He was still waiting for his ticket to be issued when we passed by again 40 mins later.

Tomorrow we are going to Versailles in the morning on a tour so that should be good. Hopefully will be able to find somewhere to buy a spare battery for the camera as we only have one and it is hardly lasting the day.

Today I bravely bought a sim card for my phone. You have to be assertive to get noticed in shops here. After I got to speak to someone then I had to sit in a queue to speak to somone who could help. We have found the language a problem too as even when people speak english it is hard to get good communication. Anyway I think I have bought unlimited free data and 50c minute calls to NZ and 30 cent texts. Fingers crossed. Paid 9Euros for the simcard and then need to top it up.

Off to bed now. Early start tomorrow.

PS Kev was targetted by a beggar this moring. Must have a kind face. He tried to give Kevin a ring saying Kevin had dropped it. Then asked for money for food. Took his ring back when he didn't get any!!

Oh and I forgot about the rude people.There was a real scrum for the tube tonight with about 20 people trying to get on when there was only room for 10. I got spat out the back onto the platform and nearly got seperated from Kevin. Never mind, the next tube welcomed us on!!

Paris!!

Hard to believe we are really here, until we realise no one is speaking anything we understand.

Interesting trip on the Eurostar. 18 carriages and all of them full. Not much leg room (bit like a plane) so we played footsie all the way with the people sitting opposite us. We were facing forward and they were facing backwards so all our feet were in the same place. You don't really realise how fast you are going until you pass something going the other way. Then there is a bang as the slip stream hits    and the train rocks then they are gone.

The people sitting opposite us came from Ashburton. Small world. Trip usually only takes 2 hours but we were an hour late getting in due to some electrical problem on the line. Then the queue for a taxi had at least 300 ( I kid you not) people in front of us. I think our train being late held up others behind us and we all arrived at once. it was well handled though and most people waited patiently.We were through in about an hour.

Had dinner out tonight. I went with the waitress recommendation (salad)  as the menu made no sense to me. The menu had lots of burgers and bagels, some thai and Indian and lots of salad. It was very nice, yummy cheese and all the usual things we would have in a salad. Kevin had the steak :) and thought it was very good. He approved of the French beer (better than the English) and I had a chardonnay which was the only wine I recognised on the list.

Hotel is quiet and has a lift thankfully as we have carried our suitcases up and down many steps today. Not all of the stations have lifts. Room is small and no tea making which we will miss.

Off to the Louvre tomorrow I think.

Kev.
I enjoyed honking over the ground at around 160/180ks again bringing back memories of those speeds at work. It was great to talk to some kiwis again on the train.As it is the anniversary of 9/11 2night we are watching amatuer filming of it on a froggey tv channel seeing pictures we haven't seen b4.Im loving the time over here and got around to stroking the first cat on arriving at the hotel on arrival.I      haven't seen a dobbie or border collie yet.There must be some around these parts.I've been growled at three times to date by army/secruity people so far for being in the wrong place.At least Mollie and me didnt get busted for pashing up in public in Dubai. It was too bloody hot for that carry on any how.

Last day in London

We spoke to Karen this morning and it was so cool. It is just great to talk and we did it through Skype so hopefully free! She is doing an amazing job with the dogs who are all very good. They have been walked lots, feed, brushed and loved lots. This as well as working, cooking and cleaning, Karen, you are a star!!

Deb and Fiona were there too, staying for the show so was great to catch up with them as well.

Well all the things I said we were going to do today didn't really happen. We got on the hop on hop off bus, hopped off at buckingham palace to see the changing of the guard. Forgot it was Saturday and the crowds and queues were bad. Back on the bus and heading for Tate Gallery. We got side tracked at a pub called the Wellington! Had to hop off and have lunch. We wanted to eat at an English pub so took this opportunity. I orderd lamb shank pie and will try to load a photo of it. Amazing, 7 hours later I am still full. Kev very bravely tried the London Pride beer and decided it was flat. But managed to force down 2 pints!!
Back on the bus headed for Tate Gallery but got sidetracked with Thames Festival so hopped off and wandered around there for a bit. Then it rained a little and we hopped on the tube and came home about 5pm. We did manage to write postcards for Kayley and Paige and posted them so will be interested to hear how long it takes them to arrive.

So paris tomorrow. See on the news it is supposed to be 29 deg there tomorrow. And drama in Cairo so hoping that will all settle down before we are due there.

Big day yesterday. We had a tour to Windsor castle, Stonehenge and Bath. Started off not so good. We got on the wrong bus at the hotel pick up and only made the tour because they were late. Not as bad as the people next to us who were on the wrong tour bus! Very embarrasing as they had to get swapped over at the first stop. We were an hour late getting away as the traffic was terrible and then got stuck on a very narrow road because of an accident and the driver had to turn the huge coach around. Did a very good job. Then we went the alternative route which was VERY narrow and windy. Didn't get back to town until after 8pm. Windsor castle was just mindblowing, and so too Stonehenge and Bath. Boy am I going to bore you all to death when we get back!

Today we had to find a doctor as Kevin's excema has flared up. That was a mission. But when we got there they were lovely people, and free for over 60's. So are lots of things here, or at least discounted.

That took all the morning. This afternoon we did Westminster Abbey, Portobello markets and the Tower of London.  No words to describe this.

So instead I will describe breakfast which is amazing in itself. Buffet breakfast included with the room rate and I thought it would be a pastry and cup of tea. There is cheese, including blue cheese, cold meat, crackers, 4 different fruit juices, many cereals, fresh fruit salad plus several types of melon, kiwifruit, apples etc, 3 types of hot sausage, bacon, eggs, mushrooms, tomatoes, toast, muffins, pastries galore, biscuits, cake, 20 different types if tea and coffee etc. Vaughn, I would take a photo for you but I have already embarrased your dad by filling my bag with things for lunch :)

So last day here tomorrow. There is the Thames festival tomorrow so we will probably go into town. Have finally sorted the tube and worked out how to hail a taxi. Want to go to the Tate modern gallery, take cruise to Greenwich, go to the Natural history museum, Not sure if we will fit that all in. Hoping to Sype Karen in the morning. The dogs are doing great and not missing us nearly as much as we are missing them!!

Off to Paris on the train on Sunday. Very exciting!!

Will put up some photos soon. We have hundreds!

OH MY GOD!!!

A very cool day today. Yes, the weather was a bit of a shock. Jerseys needed to fight the cold wind.

We started with Hyde Park which is a short walk from Hotel. Beautiful place and HUGE! So many dogs. They were everywhere (saw at least 500, seriously) and every breed except border collies which is just as well as we are definately missing ours (and you kids of course :). Saw the Diana memorial at Kensington Palace, and the Diana memorial fountain. We would call it a water feature as there is no fountain but it is truly beautiful. So cleverly designed.
Went to Harrods! OMG. The people, the security, the prices, the food!!! I got sidetracked for a few mintues and found Kevin talking away to one of the staff (I found them too intimidating and beautiful to even make eye contact with). Laughing about her being pregnant and not letting Kevin sit in her chair. Hilarious.
Then we took the tube (there are lots of stories there) and the bus to St Paul's Cathedral. OMG!! That is the most beautiful building I have ever been in. Only thing to compare for amazement value would be Hearst Castle, but totally different obviously. Took 400 steps to the outside viewing area. You kids will be amazed at my  "getting over my fear of heights" progress.
Aftere that we stopped a couple of police to ask for directions. You kids will imagine Kev chatting away to them. The guy looked about 12!! The woman was lovely. We have photos to prove it. They must get sick of people asking directions, 3 other lots stopped while we were talking to them. Then we managed to get the tube back, with a change of trains, and are chilling out at the bar.
Day trip to Windsor Castle, Stonehenge and Bath tomorrow.
Will upload some photos soon.
When we leave London on Sunday it will be about 6 weeks before we are back in an English speaking country!

Wow! We are in London.

Hard to believe we really are here. And it rained when we arrived. Kind of a nice change from 40 deg in Dubai.

So exciting. Flight was long but good. An hour late getting away but made up most of that. Hotel is good. Really nice area. We got dinner tonight from the local deli and she heated it up for us. I had paella. Was very good.

It is much cooler here in London. We got the tube from Heathrow to our hotel. Well had to get a taxi here from the nearest station as it decided to rain. Has stopped now though and looks ok for tomorrow.

We both feel like we are still on the plane as everything is moving under my feet.

Going to visit Harrods tomorrow also Hyde Park, and whatever else is around here to see.

Is 8.40 here but we gained 3 hours today so off to bed for a bright and enthusiastic start tomorrow.

Cheers

Bloody computer

For heavens sake! My computer had decided to change it's language to Arabic (or whatever it is here)and I have spent ages changing it back! Hopefully that won't happen every time we cross a border.

Well we have arrived safely and it is all very exciting! After a very long day yesterday we arrived here about 4.30am local time which is about lunchtime NZ time. Not much sleep on the plane despite the sleeping pill. There was a very noisey crowd of young west indians (I think) singing songs and dancing at 1am.  Kevin and I have survived the sleep deprivation quite well for a couple of old geezers. We had breakfast on the plane about 3am and again in the hotel at about 10am. This to follow our two dinners last night, one on the flight to Auckland and the other on the flight to Dubai! Then we tried to go out for a walk today but the 40 deg heat was like a furnace so we opted for a taxi ride to the train station.  Took the train through town and down the line for about 50 mins. Note to all prospective visitors to Dubai, when there is a very small notice on the train door saying "this compartment for women and children only" it is very embarrassing to then be marched out of said carriage by security!

We saw the tallest building in the world, and Karen will kill us because we forgot the camera. Not a good start but partially redeemed by many photos on the iphone. Also lots of men in traditional dress and most of the women, and there weren't many, in burqas. We went to the biggest mall in the world, Kayley you would have loved it!! 56 shops just devoted to childrens fashions. If you would like a genuine Armani jersey let me know and I will see if I can get a mortgage on the house to cover it. No pet shops!! Kevin reckons they eat them all here. The only animal we have seen was a very skinny cat.

Anyway enough for today. On to London tomorrow! Hope the drivers are better there than here. Hotel here is awesome!! Room is lovely, staff are great and breakfast was amazing. And they let us into our room at 7am.Thanks Tina!!

Cheers

Headless Chooks!

Wow 2 days to go and life is crazy. Have been busy saying goodbye to people, sorting out last minute things and finally started packing. Have decided to take one skirt (yes I know, most of you have only ever seen me in trousers) three pair of shoes and cool and comfortable casual stuff. Both suitcases are half full so heaps of room for the shopping!! (and alcohol)

Have found out how to load photos to this blog so as long as I can remember how when I need to you can expect to see some photos of our exciting happenings. Have been watching the DVD of how to manage the canal boat. Fool proof it says!! ha ha they haven't met us yet! Oh well we can always tie it up somewhere and chill out and drink wine for 7 days. Then we can make up stories about how clever we were at making it go. I'ts making it stop that worries me. No brakes and no steering when going backwards!! Kevin thinks he is the captain & I am the crew and I should pipe him on board as he comes and goes! What do you guys think?

Karen arriving back from Wanaka about now and Kevin's retirement function tonight.

All systems go!