We made it to Monaco/France! And let me tell you, there is nothing simple about the trek it took us to get here. I just need to get this out and then I’ll move on. I’m pretty near sure that Italy is where all trains go to die. I’m not even kidding you. The Italian rail system has got to be one of the most dirty, unorganized, chaotic means of transportation I’ve ever seen, including that of some I’ve used in third world countries. I just don’t remember a worse transportation experience. Perhaps it was the fact that half of Italy was on train strike, perhaps it was the fact that the entire train was double oversold. (yes, others had our exact same ticket, down to the seat number!), or maybe it was just the fact that these trains look like they’ve literally just wandered out of hiding from WWII. Who knows. Either way, it was just a mess & what should have been 7 hours of leisurely travel through the Italian countryside & into the south of France took over 12 hours. The adventure also included an 30 minute impromptu stop to revive an unconscious drunk man, as well as a temporary all-car seizure by Italian police frantically checking passports & looking for someone I can only imagine shouldn’t be allowed to use public transportation or roam about the free world.
But moving on...We finally arrived into Monte-Carlo & couldn’t have been happier to get off the train! I don’t know if many of you have ever been to the country of Monaco, but it’s quite a sight to see & I hope to write about it more maybe tomorrow. It’s hard to keep up on the blog thing when you’re in a constant state of moving around. However if you’ve ever wondered what $300 million dollar yachts look like or what Mediterranean mansions look like up close, you can find it all in swanky Monte-Carlo.
From the train station we drove the short 10 kilometer drive back into France to the medieval town of Eze. If you’re not familiar with Eze, it is an old stone village set high into the mountains overlooking the Med Sea, Nice and Cannes just down the coast. Think the Count of Monte Cristo-esque. The entire town is carved into the side of the hill & there are no cars allowed, as the streets aren’t really streets at all but more like little cobble stone alley ways. We’ve also had some of the most amazing meals here with views you’d just die over! There is nothing more incredible than sitting on your balcony, enjoying a glass of wine while overlooking the Cote d’Azur & enjoying the cool Mediterranean breeze. It really was one of the most beautiful sights I’ve ever seen in all my life.
Today we went back to Monte-Carlo & spent the day walking, eating & shopping in Billionaires Land, but I’ll have to write about that later. Tomorrow morning we leave for Switzerland, with a stopover in Bellagio’s Lake Como region. (Italy). I can’t even wrap my mind around the photos we’ll find there. I’m living ever photographers dream.
Thanks for taking the time to read about our continuing Journey. Bon nuit.
Tuesday, June 3, 2008
Saturday, May 31, 2008
Venezia~
well we made it to italy! after over 24 hours of traveling via plane, train, bus & boat we arrived in venice. it's insane to think of how long it took us to get here. however a big thank you to american airlines for flat bed seats & real pillows!
so upon arrival in milan we took the train into venice. now i'm not sure what classifies a first class train ticket here in italy, but i'm pretty sure it's not what we paid for....sitting crossed legged on your luggage all the 3 hour way doesn't exactly come to mind. but hey, it's all part of the adventure, right? it's too bad there wasn't room enough to move in our little train car. the photos would have been worth about 10,000 words.
however once we made it to venice everything was worth it. i had forgotten how enchantingly lovely & yet bizarre this little maze of a city is; and certainly being here with ryan has made it even more surreal, in every positive sense of the word. there's something so incredibly wonderful about traveling with the person you love most in this world. getting to wander the streets hand in hand & taking photos with that person is such a joy. we've had such a fun time just getting lost in the cobble stone streets & winding canals.
yesterday really was, in every aspect, a perfect day. let me give you a glimpse of it: starting the day at 8am, (with a divine 14 hours of sleep behind us! yes, jet lag found us afterall.) with an amazing buffet breakfast, not without of course, chocolate croissants & fresh fruit, yogurt with granola, and a double extra foamy latte. following breakfast we headed out from our hotel and made our way along the grand canal & then on to the rialto bridge. from there we wandered the mazes of the canals and took about a gazillion photos. nothing, in my opinion, is more fun than exploring with a camera...especially when it's a new canon 5D with all 2.8L lenses! haha!however, i must interrupt to say that on an annoying note, everyone in venice thinks they are a photographer. and they're not. they very very much should not be. but ryan told me to just be nice & not to be a photo snob. i love him.
now back to the perfect day: following a few hours of sight-shooting, we stopped for lunch along the grand canal and had the most perfect table on the water. and of course, what do you order in venice except pizza, right? then after lunch it was gelato time. a ritual after pretty much every meal.
after a few more hours of wandering we came back to the hotel to get ready for dinner at the Grand Canal restaurant at the Monaco Hotel; our table literally looked on to about 30 gondolas docked in the water, bobbing up and down with the wake. and i'm not kidding when i say it was the best wine & gnochi i've ever ever had!
so that, in breif (or not) was our day.
this morning we woke up a 5:30am & headed to st marks square for some foggy, early morning photos and this evening we're doing a sunset gondola ride. we'll share on that soon. tomorrow morning we leave for monaco, with a train ride through italy, on through the south of france, then finally into monte-carlo. thanks for reading about our adventures. we'll be posting photos as frequenly as we can! ciao!
on our walk this morning.
check out those camera muscles!
on the rialto bridge yesterday. we ate lunch under
the red canopys behind us.
so upon arrival in milan we took the train into venice. now i'm not sure what classifies a first class train ticket here in italy, but i'm pretty sure it's not what we paid for....sitting crossed legged on your luggage all the 3 hour way doesn't exactly come to mind. but hey, it's all part of the adventure, right? it's too bad there wasn't room enough to move in our little train car. the photos would have been worth about 10,000 words.
however once we made it to venice everything was worth it. i had forgotten how enchantingly lovely & yet bizarre this little maze of a city is; and certainly being here with ryan has made it even more surreal, in every positive sense of the word. there's something so incredibly wonderful about traveling with the person you love most in this world. getting to wander the streets hand in hand & taking photos with that person is such a joy. we've had such a fun time just getting lost in the cobble stone streets & winding canals.
yesterday really was, in every aspect, a perfect day. let me give you a glimpse of it: starting the day at 8am, (with a divine 14 hours of sleep behind us! yes, jet lag found us afterall.) with an amazing buffet breakfast, not without of course, chocolate croissants & fresh fruit, yogurt with granola, and a double extra foamy latte. following breakfast we headed out from our hotel and made our way along the grand canal & then on to the rialto bridge. from there we wandered the mazes of the canals and took about a gazillion photos. nothing, in my opinion, is more fun than exploring with a camera...especially when it's a new canon 5D with all 2.8L lenses! haha!however, i must interrupt to say that on an annoying note, everyone in venice thinks they are a photographer. and they're not. they very very much should not be. but ryan told me to just be nice & not to be a photo snob. i love him.
now back to the perfect day: following a few hours of sight-shooting, we stopped for lunch along the grand canal and had the most perfect table on the water. and of course, what do you order in venice except pizza, right? then after lunch it was gelato time. a ritual after pretty much every meal.
after a few more hours of wandering we came back to the hotel to get ready for dinner at the Grand Canal restaurant at the Monaco Hotel; our table literally looked on to about 30 gondolas docked in the water, bobbing up and down with the wake. and i'm not kidding when i say it was the best wine & gnochi i've ever ever had!
so that, in breif (or not) was our day.
this morning we woke up a 5:30am & headed to st marks square for some foggy, early morning photos and this evening we're doing a sunset gondola ride. we'll share on that soon. tomorrow morning we leave for monaco, with a train ride through italy, on through the south of france, then finally into monte-carlo. thanks for reading about our adventures. we'll be posting photos as frequenly as we can! ciao!
on our walk this morning.
check out those camera muscles!
on the rialto bridge yesterday. we ate lunch under
the red canopys behind us.
---and now for the real photos. here's what i've really been up to:
gondolas
laundry day
venice at dusk
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
