Day 1
Walked to a cute local pub to celebrate our arrival.
Day 2
Headed off in the morning and walked down to the Thames. Caught the ferry to Grenwich. Wandered there for a bit then reborded to the Tower of London where Ann Berlin was beheaded by Henry VIII, had lunch at Hung Drawn & Quartered, great home made pies being their specialty.
A plaque on the outside quotes a passage from Samuel Pepys who witnessed an execution in Charing Cross on 13th October 1660...
"I went to see Major General Harrison hung drawn and quartered. He was looking as cheerful as any man could in that condition"
After lunch we headed back to town to get ready for our night out. Off to see The Jersey Boys at Picadilly Theatre. We got talked into purchasing a 'very special' package to enjoy a private room before the show and during interval. Drinks and nibbles provided. It was great fun, a wonderful indulgent, special experience.
Day 3
We went in search of 'the pub covered in flowers' at Notting Hill. The Churchill Arms, is said to be London's most famous watering hole. It was built in 1750 and was once frequented by Winston Churchill's grandparents. Easy to find and well worth the trip. It was beautiful.
We then saw a sign about street markets so we wandered off to find them in portobello road. They go on for the length of the street, about 4-5km. Stopped halfway for a refreshing sav Blanc 😀
Day 4
Today we're heading off to Gatwick airport to catch our flight to Venice. Wonderful experience with 'Booktaxivenice' met by a driver who took us to the water taxi, loved the water taxi ride to our accommodation. Interesting experience checking in to Rosella's 'whole apartment that sleeps 6' to find one bed made up and a very stressed housekeeper who was convinced we weren't going to be happy with fold out lounge, that wasn't even made up or had linen provided! She was correct but after stressing out a bit, thanks to Judy and Tony's great chilled outlook to the situation, we made the most of it and enjoyed our balcony and location.
Day 5
We headed off this morning and took a boat tour to Murano (island of Murano glass), Burano (island featuring lace making and lots of little stalls) and Torcello. We didn't get past the pub here 😃 Its a short stop and only a church to see so we didn't bother with the hike to find it! Another great day! Gorgeous weather and beautiful sites to see. We got back in time to see the start of the annual Regatta Storica Venice, the famous boat race held on the first Sunday of September each year where boats are decorated 16th century style and operated by crews in period costume.
We decided to have a chilled evening so took a couple of pizzas home, sat on the balcony and enjoyed our surroundings with Kerry in his new pants.
Day 6
We started the day with breakfast at our now favourite cafe in Venice after which we caught the ferry to the cruise ship terminal to begin our Greek island cruise. We boarded the cruise and enjoyed our first night on Royal Carribean's Rhapsody of the Seas.
Day 7
At sea. Sampled a few cocktails and got into the spirit of the cruise. Best Frozen Mojito!!!
It was very cool cruising out of Venice.
Day 8
Arrived at our first port of call Katakolon.
Took a taxi to see the sites. 4 hrs E160
Visited Olympia (where the Olympic Games began) lots of history.
Temple of Zeus
We then went to Karouta Beach where we sat and had a birthday drink in teensy glasses with a funny little jug of wine that tasted like it was half water. Very cute. They had a nasty storm come through the previous night so quite a lot of damage in the beach also evident in the beach cafes.
Very quiet with few tourists around. It was enjoyable but not a memorable stop.
Day 9
Arrived in Crete (Chania)
What a beautiful place. We went wandering the streets towards the harbour where we found endless alley ways with great shopping.
Eventually we stopped for lunch at an amazing authentic Greek taverna, lured us in with their Greek music, and authentic appearance. So happy to have found it! Spent the afternoon there experiencing Greek tasting plates and great wine!
Came back to the room each night to find these funny little things sitting on our bed looking after my sunnies 😀
Day 10
Today's stop was in Athens
Quite the capital city with 5m of the 10m Greeks living in Athens. Fortunate to find a great taxi driver as our tour guide. E140 for 5 hours. He took us to the Acropolis, where the crowds were pretty horrendous and showed us many iconic things on the way and on our return.
We saw the Olympic stadium where the new Olympics were first held, with marathons commencing from Marathon to Olympic stadium. We watched the changing of the guards in front of the parliament building in Syntagma Square in front of the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier which was quite the spectacle. The guards (Evzones) wear their traditional uniform every Sunday but as we were there on a regular day, they just wear their khaki uniform but they still wear their funny clogs with Pom poms. Photos could be taken with the guards one by one but no talking or touching! We didn't bother but we enjoyed the experience. LOTS of police and security around which made Judy and I a bit nervous.
Then we finished with lunch at a beautiful restaurant called Zorba where we enjoyed the worlds very best, most amazing Greek salad and we all thoroughly enjoyed everything that was presented! Amazing fresh food and beautiful wines!
Day 11
Today we arrived in Thessaloniki, not sure what to expect as each spot has been so different to the last. Took a walk along the waterfront towards the town looking for the markets. Great walk, a zillion cafes. Found the markets. Supposed to be some protest happening in the area which we were warned to stay clear of but we saw no real evidence of it apart from a high police presence.
Some very cute little cafes and sites in our travels
Day 12
What a day!
Arrived at Kasadasi in Turkey, we all had some reservations about it but were so pleasantly surprised to be greeted at the wharf by beautiful traditional dancers.
St Johns church and tomb
Orpheus
After this we were taken to the Rossini Leather factory where we were given a glass of wine and enjoyed a fabulous private fashion parade by professional models. The loveliest leather we have ever seen. We bought a couple of jackets after haggling for quite a while and are very happy with our bargains!
Next we were off to a ceramic factory, another glass of wine and another private display in the making of a ceramic pot. It was amazing to see the process. We managed to get ourselves another bargain here. There was really no escaping these places without a purchase of some sort. They were incredible sales people!
Following this we had lunch at a traditional Turkish restaurant set behind a rug making factory. It was a feast and delicious. We were then given a demonstration on rug making. I've never had much of an appreciation for Persian or Turkish rugs but it was incredible to see the process from the beginning,
From the larvae to the finished rug.
One of these cocoons takes one week to grow from a speck to this and makes 2km of silk thread
We managed to escape without making any purchase here but JQ bought herself a lovely small one for a memento.
From here we went to The Ladies Beach which until now was only available to ladies. Now it is a mixed sex beach with shops and cafes all around. A very vibrant area that we would happily have spent more time in.
Ladies Beach
A view from 'the top' back to our ship
All in all a fabulous day! Tomorrows another new adventure...
Day 13
Started with a beautiful sunrise ☺️
Today's port of call is Rhodes, Greece
We walked into The Old Town - all a bit over priced, over crowded and a bit too commercialised.
Shopped and bought my lovely tomato dish with Zorba dancers, went for a cold drink at a cafe that sold the biggest beers ever for Kerry and Tony 😀
Day 14 Dubrovnik, Croatia
Hired another taxi driver for around E140 for 4 hrs. Took us around to show us the sites
The water flowing beneath the mountain from Syria to Dubrovnik
Bridge (need info 🤔)
Traditional embroiderer in The Old Town
Another lovely lunch overlooking another lovely waterway on another gorgeous day.
Day 15
Cruising our way back to Venice.
Starting the day on our bacon with a champagne breakfast!
Last night docked in Venice for disembarkation tomorrow. More cocktails.
Day 16
Off to Paris for 3 wonderful nights.
Gorgeous apartment booked through Paris equivalent of Airbnb
Literally overlooking Notre Dame. Fantastic location.
These pink flowers are on OUR balcony! That's how close we are to this wonderful cathedral.
Raining quite heavily, headed out for dinner at French cafe. Enjoyed best ever ham and cheese toastie called Croque Monsieur. Delicious!
Day 17 & 18
Earlyish start to beat the crowds at Notre Dame. So glad we did. Crowds when we left were steadily growing to ridiculous levels. Notre Dame is so breathtakingly beautiful.
We jumped on the hop on, hop off bus and did a tour of the amazing landmarks.
This flame of Liberty sits above the Tunnel du Pont de L'Alma where Diana and Dodi were killed and although it was already in place, it became an overnight makeshift monument in memory of Diana.
We drove around the crazy 'uninsurable' roundabout Arc de Triomphe where the rule is to give way to everybody trying to enter the roundabout. The result of course appears chaotic.
Champs de Élysées
Invalides
Moulin Rouge
We explored the area quite well by foot and found a great spot to enjoy lunch at Les halles.
Great little cafe that clearly targets students...offering a range of shots for bargain prices!
There was a silent protest happening in the square in front of us, protesting about cruelty to animals.
On the way home we stopped at a closed in secured area to see what was going on and were acousted by The French handball team promoting their 2017 world handball championships and proudly announcing their 5 year undefeated record. They took us through security because we were Aussies! It was very funny. This is their trophy.
Cute dog at the cafe - missing my furry babies
Then we made another pub stop on the way home at a cute little place in our street Il de la Cite
Of course we visited The Louvre (with a major hangover from staying up all night the night before playing Bullshit!)
We cruised the Seine and enjoyed the views of the beautiful Eiffel Tower, though the weather was a bit ordinary.
Day 19
Today we caught the Eurorail to London. Lovely relaxing trip. Arrived in London around lunchtime and checked into our stunning AirB&B apartment on the Thames. Beautiful!!!
After settling in, we headed off to find The Mayor Of Scaredy Cat Town bar 👍 A cute funny little bar. Very quirky. Situated beneath The Breakfast Club. Entry is through an old fridge! Very funny place. Apparently the wait to go in is about 2 hours later in the week and on weekends. Enjoyed our find 😀
The story goes that you must leave through the toilet! Men with their flies undone, ladies with their skirt tucked into their undies and toilet tissue stuck to their shoe.
This was Kerry's interpretation of the way to leave. Good fun, followed by a quiet night in, preparing for the long haul home 😏
Day 20
Arrived at the airport nice and early, around 10.30 for our 1.30 flight to Dubai, to be told our Qantas flight had been cancelled! After about 2 hours going back and forth between Qantas and Emirates counters, we were booked on a 4.55 flight. Adding around another 4 hours to our verrrrrry long day.
But, who cares?!
We had an amazing holiday with our great travel buddies! So much fun and can't wait for the next one! 🎈🍾🎉
