Rome

Flying out of Amsterdam after lunch we spent the rest of the day travelling to our accommodation. We stayed in a camping ground outside of Rome city called Fabulous Plus Camping. The first night we were in what they called a bungalow and the other 3 nights we were in a tent. The tent was way more fun- it was a permanent, large tent with two single beds.

The next day (Wednesday the 1^st of June) we caught the bus into the city and the metro towards Vatican city, stopping by a small restaurant to have our breakfast at 1130ish [it was more like a brunch] and ate turkey balls [just like meat balls but made from turkey]. After, walking towards the Vatican we were stopped by a tour company employee offering group tours inside the Vatican, which we took as we felt the information the guide could tell us would allow us to get much more out of our visit, not to mention the queue skipping that came with the tour. The Vatican galleries were wonderfully beautiful, large and containing so much Italian culture. There were some particular roman tapestries that were pointed out to us, when you’re standing on the left, approaching it the table down the centre is facing you; and once you pass it and are standing on the right, the table is still facing you. The guide described this technique as perspective and mentioned that perspective was lost in the Middle Ages. Continuing through to the Sistine Chapel, the guide gave us a detailed description of the art works before entry as it is a sacred area and guests are meant to be silent. There are also no photos allowed to be taken inside the chapel, but many of the tourists took some anyway. Some were a little more subtle, while others pointed their large cameras to the roof. Guards would frequently yell for the crowd to be silent or no photography etc. I’ve heard that sometimes guards will actually ask you to delete your photo as they are kicking you out. The tour guide explained that the copy right to the restoration belongs to some company in Japan who paid for the restoration work. Finishing the tour at the entry of St Peters Basilica we left our guide and continued in with crowds of tourist. The entirety, floor, walls and roof were beautifully decorated with spiritual artwork, sculptures including La Pieta by Michelangelo. At times it was overwhelming and we didn’t know where to look because there was so much to take in.

As Gemma had just recently read Angels and Demons and we watched the movie we wanted to see all the sights from the book. We knew that there was an official tour we could take but it cost about 50+ Euros each. We knew the first place; Castel Sant’Angelo was straight down the street from St Peters Square so we found that one easy and walked across the bridge lined with statues, like they did in the movie.  We later googled the other sites so we could visit them on another day

Through backstreets we aimed for the Pantheon. Every corner we turned revealed beautiful streets and had a stereotypically Italian feel. After a while we refrained from taking pictures of every striking walkway. We were slightly overwhelmed by the immensity of the Pantheon and the beautiful art work all around it; but wondered what happens in terms of the hole in the roof, when it rains.

From there we went to the Trevi fountain, which was absolutely packed with tourists but we were determined to get down to the front for a good photo and to throw my coin into the fountain. For those that don’t know, legend has it that if you throw a coin over your left shoulder, using your right hand you will return to Rome.  We spoke to a lady that said the Trevi fountain collects about 3000 euro a day from tourists throwing in their coins; and that it is given to a local charity.  For the fun of it Gem and I threw in our coins.

Unfortunately when we arrived at the Spanish Steps they were partly blocked as construction was taking place for what appeared like concert seating and we later found out it was for the upcoming national holiday parade. We walked up and sat half way for a moment, mapping out our latest route and our plans from here. We still don’t know why they are called the Spanish steps... one of those things we intended to Google but haven’t yet got around to it (if you know, please share the details). Not far from the Spanish steps was the Medici Villa. We first visited a Medici site when we were in Bruges and have since learnt that not only were they an extremely wealthy family and started the first bank ‘as we know them now’ (according to our Vatican guide) they also had two family members who were popes, and employed and trained Michelangelo (as you can see, they had lots going on). Strolling through the side gardens of the Medici Villa where from the wall was an amazing view across the city and the paths were lined with bust sculptures; unfortunately many had graffiti  or had what I called a nose job (in the way that their noses were missing).

The sun was setting for the day and we decided to visit the Colosseum by night. We were in amazement as we exited the metro station straight in front of the site. Standing beside it in awe of the sheer size of it and its splendour lit up at night.

Our plan for the next day was to return to the Forum across from the Colosseum. Getting into the city at about 1.30, the colosseum and the forum were set to open at 2pm due to national holiday parades in the area. We lined up with the crowds and wondered the ancient city of the forum. How excited we were to be amongst the old ruins; reading all the information signs and listening closely to passing English guide groups for further information. It was interesting to imagine the original buildings using the images provided, comparing them with what remains. Half way through wandering the site storm clouds moved in and it started to pour. Many people scattered to find shelter. Gem and I, under a tree at first then after awhile figured we were already wet and just continued to stroll through the ancient ruins. The forum and colosseum housed an exhibition on Emperor Nero and by the end of both visits we felt Nero educated.

As the Forum took up most of the previous day we prioritised the colosseum for the first thing the following day. Again, the structure amazed us; and we’d now seen it one way or another every day we’d been in Rome so far.  Again reading all the signs and tagging on to listen to English speaking guides for further information.  There were sections reconstructed to help outline the original structure like the floor of the stadium and seating; we could also make out marks from where stairs use to run. We learnt that the colosseum was used for all kind of productions, that of the well known gladiator fights as well as animal fights and even aqua fights. Apparently they would fill the base of the stadium enough to have boats float and fight. There were remains which show very detailed graffiti that spectators had made by scratching pictures of battles or popular gladiators into the stone seating/steps. I think for us, part of the enthusiasm comes from, Australia being a relatively young nation; our historical sites are rather modern compared to ancient structures as these.

Using the rest of the day to visit the remaining sites from Angels and Demons, we made our way to the tomb of santi. It was however closed and we continued through the Piazza Nova which contains the fountain of four rivers; towards the ecstasy of St Theresa in the Saint Maria Delta Victoria church. Here there was a service being conducted so we sat in on the mass before looking seeking out the statue we were after.

To conclude our day and our final night in Rome we had dinner at a table by a mafia meeting, and got out of there as soon as we felt they were on to us listening in to their plans. To escape them further we took an early flight out of Rome heading for Volos Greece; we appear to have escaped them... for now.

Outside Pete's window on a Friday night

WaterloonPlein Station

Ben Biking

Claire at Iamsterdam

Claire and I fooling around

Playing chess

Stop that Julia Gillard!

NEMO

At the little Iamsterdam

Storm coming in at NEMO

Finding our next route in the cafe

Gold and white people

Riding to Holysloot

Snack break

Patting the wildlife

Sheep

29% Stroop!

Lunch with the cows

Which way next?

Parked boat

Mitch is here!

Off to the beach

A beautiful day

Sunbathing after our swim

On the couch we made

Amsterdam II - Friends come to visit

After Bruges we came back to Amsterdam, just in time to meet Ben and Shannon who were in town for 2 nights only. We grabbed a quick dinner with them and then took it upon ourselves to show them around the red light district. We marvelled once more at the neon lights that never seem to turn off, they make the girl’s underwear glow and their skin seem so dark. We found the golden boob in the sidewalk which we rubbed for good luck as the fortune told us to and settled down at a pub by the canal to watch the nightlife go by and compare stories of our travels so far.

The next day Shannon was sick but Ben joined Claire and I on our first day of bicycling around the city. We weaned ourselves onto riding by starting in Vondel park where we had been once before. Strangely I have discovered that I am allergic to Vondel Park, I have been twice now and both times found myself sneezing and developing puffy eyes which is strange as I have never had hay fever type allergies before but I guess Vondel Park is a rule of its own. After finding our bike legs there Ben showed us the ‘IAmsterdam’ sign that we had not managed to find before. It was down in Museumplein where we had not gone before, surrounded by the Van Gough museum as well as several others. Claire and I later returned to buy oil paintings from a shop there, I got Van Gough’s sunflowers and Claire now has the bedroom.

After MuseumPlein Claire and I showed Ben the floating flower markets by our house as well as introduced him to the cheese shops! He wasn’t quite as confident about standing there and eating all the cheese as we were but he got the hang of it. We went back to Pete’s for lunch then hopped on the bikes to ride up to NEMO. NEMO is a science museum up on the harbour of Amsterdam and you can walk up to the top of the oddly shaped building for a view over the city. It was also scattered with giant games of connect 4 and chess so we played some of that before a windy storm swept over us and we ran down from our exposed position. We rode around the city for a little longer before the cold and rain forced us into a cafe (there are worse things than being forced into a cafe). Our last destination was a windmill on the far edge of the city which we had seen on our map. We got kind of lost and wet getting there, but I argue that if you have no time limit and no reason to be anywhere in particular, can you really be lost? When we got there it turns out that it is a working windmill with a pub next to it where they serve the beer brewed in the mill. We couldn’t go inside so we sat by the canal and admired the view before taking our bikes back to the shop in the city and walking home.

Shannon joined us for dinner back at Pete’s and we all ate on the rug bathed in the candle’s lights which are always flickering at his place, he is big into ‘warm lighting’. It was a relaxed night and we said goodbye to Ben and Shannon until we see them next in Santorini.

We had a few quiet days after that whilst the cold weather hung around just ducking out to look around the local shops or people watch from the large window. On the Friday we noticed the vast majority of people in the pubs around us were dressed in white and gold and as they became more and more common we had to ask what was happening. We were told that every year four Dutch pop stars come together to perform as one in a hugely popular concert. The theme was white and gold and queens. We didn’t get explained why these dress-ups lasted all weekend but the city was taken over by these almost glowing people for three days.

On Monday we decided that no matter the weather, we had to get out. So we hired some bikes again and this time took them on a ferry across the harbour to a residential area which quickly led to fields crisscrossed by channels, dotted with wildflowers like poppies, canola, iris, clover and cowslip and scattered with cows, horses and sheep. Our end aim was Holysloot which was a cute town consisting of about 25 houses, a pub and a preschool. Claire and I ate our packed lunch in a field with some cows. Stroop waffles are our favourite food and we have figured that ‘stroop’ probably means caramel, mmmmmm.

On the ride back I stopped to pick some flowers and I had a lovely large bundle of ‘harvest flowers’ to bring home to Pete. When we dropped the bikes off we saw that a large arena had been set up in Dam Square. People were rushing into it and we didn’t want to be left out so rushed over to get a seat inside as well. We found a sand covered soccer pitch inside on which an orchestra was playing. They did a few songs then were joined by a choir who sang what I can only describe as the Tooheys ad ‘It’s a big ad, very expensive ad’ it was a very powerful song and made me want something cold and refreshing but I guess that’s brainwashing for you. The sun was out for the first time in days which was good as the main event was a series of beach soccer matches. We hung around for quite a while checking out the talent before heading back because Mitch was coming!

Mitch and his cousin Tom had contacted us to say they were coming for a few days and Pete had been happy to share his apartment, as long as they were ok with the floor. We got them some food and then went to say hi to Pete in his coffee shop where he introduced the boys to Amsterdam. Claire and I then took them up to the Red Light district. It has been commented that Claire and I seem to be spending a lot of time in the Red Light district but it is truly a fascinating area. Back at Pete’s it went like this – 1 room, 2 beds, 3 blankets, 4 pillows and 5 people but we worked it out and a decent amount of sleep was had.

On Monday we woke to a spectacular day. No clouds were in the sky and the decision was made to visit the beach. Pete had the day off so he joined us and helped us find the place via the train. We went past Haarlem and also found out where Zeeland is, Haarlem’s more famous counterpart being in New York and our own ‘newer’ Zeeland closer to home. The beach was one of the longest I’ve seen, not white sand but definitely not the pebbled beaches of England and there were plenty of people out to enjoy it. We stripped to our swimmers and tested the fairly cold water. Claire was hesitant but I whispered to her that we needed to uphold the Australian beach image in front of Mitch and Tom, so we ran straight in. As always happens we got used to the cold and splashed around in the waveless water. We figured that it was probably the North Sea but we are yet to confirm this with a map. Once out of the water Claire and I built a couch in the sand and relaxed in the sun, Amsterdam impressed me with its beach.

Finally on the 31^st we said goodbye to Amsterdam, we walked to the station with Mitch and Tom who were going on to Cologne and said goodbye for the second time before rushing to our bus to the airport. We spent the whole day travelling and ended it in a very warm caravan park in Rome eating our first bowl of Italian pasta (still not as good as the one in Bruges).

In Bruges

Being in Amsterdam for 2 weeks we decided that part way through we would take a small trip elsewhere for a few days. Originally we were going to go to Brussels in Belgium – it’s only about 2 hours from Amsterdam by bus. After discussing with Pete he suggested we do Bruges instead. It’s a few more hours on a bus but he had heard it was a more enjoyable destination as he had friends that had visited both Brussels and Bruges and they much preferred Bruges.  It was set. We left earlish on Monday the 23^rd and arrived for lunch. Being dropped at the station with only an address for the hostel we were staying we found a street map and wrote out the directions we needed to take.  Half an hour in we found another map to confirm where we were/ where we were heading. We figured out that we’d missed the street turn off and mapped out a new route from the location we were now. Again after another 30minutes following the directions we had we discovered we had missed the street again. Finally we just followed a canal and eventually made it to our hostel. It was a lovely scenic route wandering in the sun. 

Gem Mapping Out Our Route

Market Square

ICE CREAM!

Chilling at the end of  a Canal, by Jan Van Eyck statue

That first day we wondered through the main squares in the city and grabbed lunch and ate under a monument in the sun. Following it up with dessert from Da Vinci ice creamery – we had been informed it was the best in town; and we were impressed. A little tired we relaxed reading our books (Gem is reading The Slap and enjoying it; while I’m nearly half way through Robinson Crusoe, a slower read but I’m enjoying it.) and napped before going out for dinner up the street. Here we mapped out and planed our route for the next full day of exploring Bruges. After, we went for a pint in the pub attached to the hostel and watched a movie before heading to bed.

Brugge Houses by Th Canal

Up bright and early to get a good start on our day, eating breakfast (included in the Hostel package – WIN!) in the Restaurant next door. Here we recorded our Birthday message for Jason; getting strange looks as we sang into the computer. Firstly we started on the east side of the cities edge climbing 4 different windmills along the canal. Following that canal along we passed Grootseeminarie - a catholic priest school; and entered a hidden romantic court yard. The map we had highlighted Hof Bladelin which is unique because it use to be the property of the rich Italian family De Medici. The guide said we were to ring the door bell and one of the nuns which now lived there would let us in. That is just how it happened, they let us in, then they re-entered their house and we were free to enjoy the beautiful walled off courtyard. From the street, you would have no idea that it was there behind the door.

White Windmill

Gem Sitting on the Red Windmill

The Black Windmill

Claire sitting on the Red Windmill

 

The Swans!

De Medici Gardens

The Entry

The Belfry was our next stop and is at the head of one of the main squares in the town and has over 366 steps to the top. We had hoped to be up there while the bells chimed as we had heard them the day before. Waiting by the cogs at 12 they did not ring, by the time it got to 12:28 we were sure they would chime for 12:30 and the mechanics began to wind, and with excitement Gem began to record what was happening, still no chime at 12:30 and by 12:32 we gave up and continued up the very top of the tower, where we had an amazing view of the surrounding cityscape.

View from the top of te Belfry

Bells in the Belfry

Belfry Steps

The Belfry

After we sat on the steps, soaking up the sun in the Burg square waiting for the Church next door to reopen, watching buskers. Particularly this little green man posing as a statue –he was quite cute. We’d seen him the day before and I had actually initially thought he was a real statue, being small and matching the colour of other statues around the city.  This Church was Called Holy Blood Chapel because it housed the ‘Holy Blood Cylinder’. This Cylinder is believed to be filled with Jesus’ Blood. Apparently, as a miracle it has been known to transform from solid to liquid and back again; on the other hand science shows it could just be due to temperature change. People come to line up and you are meant to place your hand over it and pray. We weren’t notified of the process until handed a flyer following a viewing so I just touched it and looked; while Gemma was a little grossed out and resisted touching it. To be fair, it truly wasn’t pretty.

Gem Eating Belgium Waffels

Claire Eating Belgium Waffels

Via the Pandreitje which is an old prison converted into over 100 apartments we continued to Gruuthuse (an old Palace) which had an exhibition on the development of Bruges through the years as well as other historic pieces. Being a traveller through Bruges has its advantages as the ‘junior’ rate for this exhibition ranged from 17-26 and it was only 1 Euro. The Church of Our Lady next door housed Michelangelo’s ‘Madonna with child’. As a juxtaposition we after ventured to find what has been titled Bruges’s Red Light District. From the description on the map we were expecting old drawings and paintings on walls of a small street of exposed people. Finding it we actually discovered a glassed notice board with a few printed suggestive cartoons from back in the day. Back to moral wanderings we finished our self guided tour in the Beguines houses – a smaller community inside the city for women, particularly nuns or alike, which contains garden areas and canals featuring many swans and wild life. Funny enough this interesting map we’ve been following highlighted this as a ‘Place to Kiss’ there were a few of these noted on the map as well as parks described as good for Frisbees & cute asses.

Pulpit in the Church of Our Lady

Michelangelo's Madonna with Child

Collecting dinner from a cute family owned deli (the 9 year old son helped serve us), after dropping our stuff home, we ate on the steps of a church across from our hostel, soaking up the final parts of the sun. That night we also  watched the Movie ‘In Bruges’ and were able to point out places we’d been that day and understand the importance of the swans in making this city ‘a #*$!ing fairytale’. (An edited quote from the movie). Our other favourite quote was “If I were retarded, and born on a farm, Bruges might impress me. But I wasn’t, so it doesn’t.”

Movie Quote Written on the Wall inside the Belfry Tower

Our final day in Bruges we were going to dedicate to the markets they had on in Market square and other souvenir shopping before dropping by our final destinations on the map. As we entered the Markets in the morning we discovered it was specifically for fresh fruit and veg, meat and flowers. We wondered through sampled fruits, in particular some sweet pineapple that was handed to us by a man in his stall yelling things in Dutch about his fruits to customers.

Fruit and Veg Market

We then started looking for the lace stores that crowd the city. Every other day we had been unable to get away from them but today it seemed that we were ‘Touristicly retarded’, and managed to find ourselves temporary lost in the commercial area. Eventually we found the stores we wanted and popped in and out comparing stock. For lunch we made our way to this Italian Restaurant named Medard. This was a place highlighted on our very informative map, and we tried to get a table the day before but they were full. Here we ordered the house specialty – small spaghetti for 3 Euro. Receiving the plate we found the small was quite large and very filling, so we were highly impressed and wondered the size of a large until we saw a man order it... Massive, but he had just ridden 40 odd Km so he deserved it. It was also delicious. Gemma has added this to the list of her ‘best of things’. She recognises that we haven’t made it through Italy yet, but that this bowl of spaghetti was the best she has eaten.

Bubbles in Market Square

Spaghetti Lunch

Gem Ready for the Bus Ride Home, With all her bags

Before heading for the bus back to Amsterdam we walked through the Smedebpoort which is an old gate way into the city. Here hangs a scull (well now it’s a bronze replica) of a traitor, who in 1688 opened the gates to enemies. Finally we spent just under an hour under a tree in the park across from the bus station reading our books on a rug and eating more of our Belgian Chocolate. YUM.

Traitors Scull

Reading in the Park