photo catch up in reverse order

Merry Xmas!! These pics go from most recent to least. Above is the Xmas decoration Cat (christophes mother) insisted i wear!

This is Cat and i during that dinner

Me looking all Tarantino-ish with some replica pistols.
One of the many lovely sculptures in Chris grandmothers house

We were very happy to visit the louvre!
and notre damme
from the eifel tower
back at le louvre

remains of frogs legs entree! guess where
above and below are modern art exhibitions

at the arc
one of cats orchids
salmon dinner care of cat
we stole the pink panthers bed



walking the skinny streets of Boisemont.
these are from a dinner partywith friends of sarahs, John and Tracey
Guess ....

now that was cold....

Hi from Paris.

Hi all, i have just arrived back from Paris on the train. Sadly, Kate Sarah and I are all feeling a bit crap with a cold/flu; sarah especially, poor thing was up all night last night coughing and ended up coming back to christophes parents house in the morning today to recover a bit before Xmas. (send her some good vibes!)

So thursday night we went into paris, walked the Champs Elysee, visited a fun park inside the grand theatre, and went for drinks. Friday we went to the Eiffel Tower, saw a movie on the history of paris, then went for a traditional French meal. Today we got out early and went out to the Louvre (amazing! we spent 3 or 4 hours but could have spent days there) then went to a japanese lunch ( i have been craving it for a month!) then to the Notre Damme, had a coffee on the Seine overlooking the church ( which cost 3 times more than usual coffee shops!) then walked home along the river. Tonight, another 3/4/5 course meal awaits!

Happy Xmas all. Take care.

France.

We have arrived in France, christophe met us at the station and his father drove us to the family home. We just finished a fantastic meal, and i had an inhilation to clear up my sinuses (i am getting a cold :( poor me ). Now its ti,e for an early night!

will post again soon.

More pictures from London!

Hi Guys, another nice day in London. Today we slept late after a really big night at an Xmas party in the city (one block from Harrods). So then we went into, Harrods! We also walked around Hyde park, then came back early, retreating from the bitter cold, and to prepare for our trip to Stonehenge tomorrow, and the dinner party Kate and I will prepare tomorrow night.

So here are some more random shots from our time in London. Below, Katie trying on a mask at Harrods,


And Sarah in a striking hat!
Me outside Hampton Court Palace.
Kate in front of the river Thames.
Kate and i at the Xmas party last night (it was open bar, so we were a bit messy!)
and, yes, those cliche'd red phone boxes!
More soon!

Oh, and incidenly, today was the 5 year anniversary of my bypass surgery! Five years ago now i was in intensive care, and at xmas time i was eating half a tablespoon of pureed turkey paste, still totally bedridden. Thankfully things have come a long way since then! But as then, i am still surrounded by friends and loved ones!

London with the girls.

Hi all, am back in London now, with Sarah and Kate. I came back a day early from Tallinn to surprise Kate at the airport. I am happy to say the shopping drought broke in Tallinn, and i got a pair of shoes and a jacket, as well as some other little gifts.

Since we have been here... on Thursday Kate and I went to Hampton Court Palace, very nice. Friday we went in to see Big Ben and Westminster Abbey, then met sarah and saw the Tate Modern museum, went to see the big tree and carols in the city, then to oxford st for shopping. Today we went into Camden markets, and postponed Hyde park until a later day, as we all need to get ready for an Xmas party we are attending somewhere in the city tonight. So here are some random pics from the last few days for u.

Here is annemarie doing my hair!

Sarah and kate on Oxford st.
Kate and the queens swan at Hampton Court Palace.
This was a photo montage of the queen at the palace, kate and i decided to make our own...Class.. i know!

some pictures from Tallin-Tartu.

This first one is a statue on the streets of Tartu... kind of freaky at first.


This is me at a lookout at the top of old town in Tallinn. The river through the centre of Tartu, which was frozen over except for a few strips... cold.
I have lots more pictures ready to post, but that will do for now.

No Helsinki for me... :(

Well, i made it here again early to find the boats for today are cancelled because of bad weather. Again i could have taken the big cruiser, but to get back tonight i would only have 4 or 5 hours there, and would be too late to have a nice dinner in Tallinn. Bugger. Oh well, i will check out the old town some more.


So today is my last day, and it kind of sucks because yesterday and today all the museums are shut - which only leaves shops to browse as i have seen the tourist sights now... And i am getting the impression Estonia has had enough of me! The boat is cancelled twice, my landlady cracked the shits today cos i didnt make the bed and my clothes were on the floor, i got kicked out of a building(thought it was for tourists - it wasnt) and a shop attendant also cracked it cos i was looking for a price tag on a display t-shirt..
Besides that, i am down to about $5, and i don't want to withdraw more here, so i am only doing shopping if it is for xmas and they take Credit card.
Only 24 hours left til back in london!

Tartu

Hey all. I am in an internet Cafe´ in Tartu, the little university town a couple of hundred km's south east of the Capital Tallinn. Today hasn't run smoothly at all - for starters i was meant to be going to Helsinki today, but when i got to the station i found out that the boat was not going today (hydrofoil) because the wind was too strong! So that sucked; my only option was to take the massive cruise liner that left 2 hours later, but it wouldnt get in until 4pm! So i have moved that to tomorrow (fingers crossed re the weather) and hustled my way to Tartu instead. It is a 2.5 hour bus ride each way, but only cost about AUD$15.

It is a small town really, and i didnt have an agenda here, just heard it was the other place to visitin Estonia, and figured i might as well see it whilst i can. I went to the tourist info and got a map with a suggested self guided walking tour... i did that. Now i dont know if the map was crap or i am just totally useless (the latter i fear), but i continually got lost! When i finally found a cathedral i was searching for, it was ordinary, and both my video camera batteries had died! Ahh well.

So, it was cold here when i arrived at midday. Then the sun went down. At half past friggin 3 in the afternoon! And with the darkness came appendage shrinking cold that has set into my bones... ah well, at leat i am thawing out in the cafe´. Oh, so having seen all this Village has to offer, and freezing my nuts off, i went to the bus station to see if i could get an earlier bus back (present one leaves at 9 arrives after 11.30) so i dont hang around here freezing, and can get home early for another early start tmrw... but they said no. I was thinking to just buy a new ticket for $7, but i will put that money towards a fancy dinner tmrw.

So there we are, all caught up. Sorry i still can't put any photos up yet, it seems there is only one internet cafe in each city, and neither have card readers, and i dont carry the gear with me. Anyway. Back to Tallinn, to Helsinki, Tallinn, then to London to reunite with Sarah and Katie and the trip proper begins!

Tallinn

DAMN, i just typed up a long post, and the stupid net cafe computer turned off on me!

Anyway, broad strokes:
- i am here safe, its a little city, i did LOTS of walking today
- i am staying with a homestay setup near the town centre
- tmrw i am going to Helsinki for the day, may go to Tartu (a 'happening' student town) the following day
- i had cool ye olde style dinner tonight, wild boar and cinamun flavoured beer (and thinking about going back for Wild BEAR!!)
- ummm, damn it the last post was relaly detailed and long, but i couldn't be bothered typing it all up again!

Anyway, its hard to get net access here, but i may be able to get online briefly at the cities i visit.

I hope all are well, will post pictures when i get the chance (probably after going back to london).

So, here are some pictures from Berlin! Above is me in front of the Berlin wall, part of the graffiti art there...

First up below, me in a christmas ball -- i managed to escape.

This is the second largest section of the Berlin wall remaining... and ironically it is surrounded by a fence to save it from being hacked at for souvenirs..

This was a cool monument to the book burnings, it is outside Berlins oldest modern University (indeed the oldest in the world), and it is completelz underground - a huge room of empty bookshelves. It is big enough to hold 20,000 books, the number the Nazi's burnt on that spot.
Some handsome chap in front of some handsome building...

Brandenburg gate... said to be the heart of Berlin.

This is the last picture i took of the open air graffiti gallery that adorns the largest piece of the wall remaining... and fittingly it preceeded a kind of shitty afternoon;

I took the train out to see this gallery, and on the advice of the hostel guy here, i sought out a 'communism statue/monument'. It took ages, lots of walking in the freezing cold, and finally when i got to the area on the corner of the map he directed me to, i couldn't find anything! I grabbed some late lunch, then sought out some helpful souls to guide me. The third (a convenience store clerk) informed me i was very close to the mark on the map i was seeking, but didnt know what i was seeking... (starting to sound like the holy grail!). Anyway, after chatting to another local, it seems it was just a half meter sqaure plaque on the ground... thats all there is in the area! So, either the guide here showed me the wrong place, was messing with me, or there was some other miscommunication... In any case, i was amid a ghetto-ish area, kind of lost and bloody cold... nevertheless, i found my way back in the dark, and now am at the hostel. It wasnt that big a deal, but a pain in the ass to waste half a day when i only have 2 days here.

On a brighter note, the film museum i went to this morning was really good, 2.5 hours flew by there. Only let down was the exclusion of world film, and the inclusion of a CGI exhibition... damn u CGI!

Berlin

Today was great, i went on a free walking tour of berlin, it
lasted over 4 hours, and u only give donation at the end,
free Berlin tours 0 check them out. We saw all the main
attractions, and there were 4 others from my hostel on
the tour too. I also  met a Korean woman from New Zealand
on it, and we went after to the museum and to wander
through the Xmas markets etc. I was really nice to have
some company for a while. The museum we went to had stolen
artifacts from all around the world there, including
 complete sections of walls and facades of buildings re-
assembled there. It was impressive in terms of  "how the
 hell did they transport that here", but kind of disgusting
too --  surely the nations want their cultural antiquities
back... So, after the tour i have seen a bit of the city,
and tomorrow i will visit the parliament building and
lookout, and go to the film museum. Other than that i
haven't decided, will do that before bed.

I hope all at home are well!

Berlin.

Its 11pm and i have just arrived into berlin, the hostel is really nice. So i realised with the way the flights worked out that i actually have only 2 days here, as i arrived late and leave very early in the morning - and will have over 4 days in Tallinn (arriving early leaving late)... i guess i will wish those were reversed... but i will try to go to helsinki for the day from Tallinn.

I had my first real conversation on the plane today, sitting next to a couple... was interesting, she is from Prague but living in Milan, he is italian living in Bologna, and they both have relatives here in Berlin...

anyway, time to unpack and get ready for an early night, unfortunately with so little time here, i guess i wont be experiencing any of the famous berlin night-life.

DAMN IT

I think i got swindled... long story short i ran into a guy who (apparently) had his passport and wallet stolen, and had to get to the Canadian embassy to get an emergency passport and what not... after finding the station with him i offered some money to help get the transport to the embassy and for basics for the 2 day wait for the new documents (which were needed to get any money)... So i gave him what i thought was reasonable, he was going to wire it back to me, but the email address he gave to me bounced back like it doesn't exist... f***er! I really hope that there has been some confusion, because i really believed he was in need and i normally have an ok sense for that sort of thing... oh well. Otherwise had a good day, went to the thermal baths, and they were HUGE! There must have been over 30 different pools indoors, ranging in size from a few metres wide and long, to big ones. They also had a series of outside pools, that were at a pleasant 36-38 degrees. There were also some sauna's that ranged in temp up to one very hot one, that had an ice chip dispenser outside to cool off after. And it was all housed in an old beautiful building, see below. So for about 2 hours there, and use of a towel it cost about AUD$15.I bought rolls and meat to make lunch at home to save for a nice dinner tonight, but it ended up costing 1100 HUF all up, which is only like AUD$7 or so, but seeing you can get a set menu lunch for 550HUF, it was kind of a waste of time. I went back to St Stevens Basilica after lunch to go on a guided tour, but for some reason it didn't run - but i got to see the famous preserved right hand of the namesake.

I just got back from having a dinner at the restuarant i was looking forward to visiting since i arrived, i will post about that on the food blog.

Hope all at home are well.

FOOD FOOD FOOD

Hey, i have just updated my food page with some pictures from the meals so far on my trip in Prague and Budapest. Click the link on the top left to check it out.

Budapest

It was raining all day today, but much warmer than Prague, so thats nice. But the visibility was really poor, and a few sites were closed due to the season. I took a 2 hour bus tour which showed around some of the major sites. I also went on a guided tour through the parliament, and went to the christmas markets and shopping district. Tomorrow i will head up to the park and visit the heros statues, the thermal baths and the terror museum. I also stumbled across a michelin rated restaurant today that has main meals for around $15-20 aussie dollars, which is a bit pricey for meals in this area, but for i think it would be about $40 in australia... So i may go there tomorrow night if i have been good with money up to that point. Its 6pm now, i think i will just chill out a little longer then head out for another wander, then to a Hungarian restaurant the lovely hostess at the hostel suggested.

Budapest

Now i am in Budapest. It was a 7 hour train ride from Prague, and it was a little dauting when i got off at the station, very sleazy and dodgy. But after i made it into the city by metro things seemed a lot better - the same was true of my accomodation - at the Budapest Backpacket King - whilst it was easy to find, the front entry was pretty dodgy looking, and going up the stairs it seemed like an abandoned building, but once inside its wonderful. The staff so far have been unbelievably friendly, its cheap too, comes with espresso coffee in the morning, and it is literally one block from the famous basilica. And they gave me a chocolate santa this morning because it is santa day today in Hungary!

So the plan for today is go visit the Basilica, wander around the city area, then take a 2 hour bus tour of the city to get my bearings and see what i want to return to. Then in the late afternoon i think i will go visit a big statue park, and tomorrow finish the sites and i am determined some time to visit the thermal baths here - the biggest one is a constant 44 degrees C, with indoor and outdoor areas, and there is another bath that apparently uses thermal water that comes up to 75 degrees!!!!! Only 2 and a half days here, so better get cracking.

last few pics of prague

From the skeleton museum/crypt we visited, a coat of arms, and a chandellier.

The crowd below the tower look out, and a collection of skulls...

Of course i have heaps more pictures, but these will have to suffice for now.

Some info - in Prague we stayed at the Old Town Backpackers, and it was excellent. It was about 14 euro per night, and came with a basic breakfast. It was reallly clean, had some cooking facilities and the staff (all bar one) were really nice and helpful - and it is only 5 minutes walk from the old town square. If you are going to Prague check it out. It really helped to have a guide too, as our friends Karin and Dani have been there many times before - so they were able to direct us to some realy cool pubs, restaurants and out of the way sites.