Alison Parker
Once again my dog sulked as we brought the suitcases out to pack. The Mediterranean in August is very hot. Barcelona is an unusual city for strange architecture. We had a Rail pass and caught the Fast Train to Madrid. 300km an hour and it is SO smooth. The day trip to Toledo, a medieval city, was very interesting. Central Spain is very much like the wheat-belt areas of Western Australia, but substitute sunflowers for wheat. Our hotel in San Sebastian, on the north coast of Spain, was set high on a promontory overlooking the whole bay. As it was Saturday, the whole town was very busy. Lots of people strolling around the Old Town. Tapas is a style of eating, with numerous small courses of a selection of plates. This is a good way of sampling and testing your taste buds. Our Holland America cruise on the Oosterdam, departed from Barcelona . First stop at Monaco. The Global Financial Crisis is just a myth, the Ferrari’s, Lamborghinis, Masertis, Porches’ were all lined up down the street. The boats in the harbour were all ‘to die for” sleek and glossy. From the port of Livorno, we visited the Leaning Tower of Pisa, joining all the people taking photos to make it appear as if you are holding up the tower. We had a traditional Italian farmhouse lunch, then called into Lucca, a walled Roman city since 177BC. As we had been to Rome before, we opted for a shore excursion to the Tuscan area. In contrast to Monaco the Etruscian grave sites are thousands of years old and had only just been discovered last century. Puts life into perspective. Other ports included Nafplion and Katakolon in Greece, where we pretended to by Olympic athletes at the site of the original Olympic Games. Then on to KerKira Corfu, where we climbed to the very top of the fortress. Dubrovnik was a highlight of the cruise. The city is beautiful and walking the whole wall is strenuous in the heat but well worth the sites. Sailing into Venice, was spectacular. You literally cruise right past San Marco and the Grand Canal. After disembarking the ship, we stayed a few extra nights in Venice, as we were meeting friends doing a Cosmos tour of Italy. After a few days, we felt like Venetian and not tourist, not getting lost at every turn. Catching a very early morning train to Milan transferring to Bellinzona, we then joined the William Tell Express, a scenic train with half glass roof for mountain viewing. Through lovely villages, valleys and tunnels. We got off the train and straight onto a Vintage, fully restored Paddle Steamer. My husband was in seventh heaven and spent over an hour just watching the engine. We paddled, from Fluelen to Lucerne after an included three course lunch. Zig zagging across Lake Lucerne really is picture postcard scenery. Last few days in Zurich, before jetting home to Perth. Once again, another memorable holiday