London, May 30

Nice to be back in Stephen's flat , starting to become familiar.
We decided this would be an at home day, need a little break from all of the travelling.
I have some handyman projects to do , install some floating shelves in the kitchen, replace some old lights with LED,'s, try to pigeon proof the balcony.
After breakfast Stephen, Mark and I set off  by bus for Home Base, a smaller version of Home Depot.
Needed wall anchors, light bulbs and pigeon screening.
Supplies in hand we returned home. Stephen and Mark left us and went downtown.
I installed the shelves, replaced the bulbs and used some wire screen to block out the pigeons, time will tell if it works.
We had decided to go out for my birthday dinner to the Indian restaurant on Goldborne Rd that we enjoyed in our first week here.
It turned out to be like an episode of Faulty Towers.
When we got there the restaurant was being renovated and the main floor was closed and the stairs to the lower floor were to much for Karen's sore hip which had been causing her a lot of pain.
We decide to place a takeout order so we could eat at home.
So here we are in an empty , under construction main floor . The owners are so eager to please, they bring out some chairs for the three of us then produce a table and proceed to put a table cloth on it and bring us some papadums, dips and a beer to make up for us having to wait.
As we wait , takeout drivers keep arriving to pick up orders, the phone is ringing with orders as well as internet orders coming in.
One owner, a small guy that reminded us of Manuel from Faulty Towers, kept running around, trying to keep up, paper orders all over the counter, him exclaiming everytime a new order came in. He kept saying the kitchen couldn't keep up.
So we sat in our chairs watching the mayhem for almost an hour , drivers coming and going.
Food delivery in London is a big business, several companies with cars and motorcycles deliver for many restaurants.
We finally got our order with many apologies.
Took an Uber back and had dinner, Stephen had bought a cake for my birthday so that was dessert.
An unconventional birthday dinner but a memorable one!

.

Parma to Nice. May 28-29

After breakfast at le Querciole bnb we started the drive to Nice .
Once again the weather is wonderful, sunny and up to 25°.
The drive through the hills is very pretty, lots of picturesque villages and old ruins dotting the countryside.
After about an hour we were at the Mediterranean coast but we only got occasionally glimpses of it.
Much of the Autostrade or freeway goes through tunnels.
I have never seen so many, I wished we had started counting them.
It started to feel like we were spending half the trip underground at 130 kmh.

No wonder the tolls are so high, to pay for all the tunnels!
Eventually we emerged and were at Nice.
We found our budget hotel and went out to explore the area.
Stephen wanted to find a beach so after the usual few wrong turns we found one and managed to even get a parking spot!
He and I had brought our swim suits and were determined to have a swim in the Mediterranean.
The water was a bit cool but the air was warm so we dove in.
Might not get the opportunity again!
There were several topless women here and there on the beach as is common here.
Tried not to look!
We went to a beachside bar and had a drink before returning to our tiny room to organize our suitcases for the Easyjet flight to London tomorrow.
This morning, May 29, we awoke to light rain but by the time we got yo the airport it was a downpour.
Our flight was late arriving because it couldn't land due to thunderstorms.
An hour late we took off for the 1 1/2 hour flight to London.
It was cloudy when we landed but by the time we got to Stephen's flat the sun was out and it was warm again.
The good weather seem to be following us!
We had only one day with light showers in Paris and a thunderstorm in Milan but we were in the Duomo for most of it.
The rest has been sunny and warm, hot even.

Venice to Parma May 27

We got an early start for our trip to Parma.
Got packed and had breakfast then hauled our luggage down the street and caught a vaporetto to the Tronchetto parking garage, picked up the car and were on the Autostrada by 9:30.
It is a 3 hour drive to the Agrotourisima farm we are staying at tonight.
The scenery along the highway in northern Italy isn't as nice as France. A few fields and some old buildings but mostly industrial.
After about 2 hours we were entering the hills and the scenery improved.
As we got near our BnB we decided to stop in a small town to buy some wine for tonight.
Stephen and I went in and the place was totally empty!
We wondered around , found the wine ,then the manager appeared and told us in Italian that the store was closed.
It was about 1:30 and siesta time.
He kindly let us pay him cash for the wine and fished change out his wallet because the tills were all closed.
We then proceeded several miles up a narrow but paved road to the BnB.
Beautiful spot overlooking a valley.
The owners speak no English and there are no other guests so it will be an interesting dinner and breakfast which are included in the price.
It is a very nice rebuilt farmhouse with a separate building next to it .There are  4 different rooms, we have one that sleeps 3 with a double and single bed.
Stephen and I walked up into the field behind the house and through some tall grass and it caused Stephen's eyes to puff up and get itchy .He had a bad allergic reaction to the grass.
We gave him antihistamines and eye drops to help him feel better before dinner which is served around 8 pm.

The meal was excellent, 4 courses starting with thinly sliced pancetta and slivers of Parmesan cheese from the region, next was ravioli with cheese filling in butter, olive oil and Parmesan, third course was braised venison followed  by panna cotta with homemade strawberry sauce.

At the end of the meal, Paulo, the owner, offered us glasses  of his homemade lemoncello made with his own lemons.

We went to bed full and happy.

In the morning we drive to Nice.

Pictures below;

The Querciole BnB

They have horses and a cat!

A church down the road

Venice, May 26

Another beautiful day in Venice!
Stephen and I brought back coffee and pastries for breakfast the we all headed out in search of some shops Karen and Stephen wanted to see.
Later we split up and Karen and I went for lunch by the San Marco waterfront.
We then took a vaporetto back to our stop and returned home.
Karen's leg had been really bothering her do she needed to rest it.
I went out on my own and took another vaporetto across the Grand Canal to explore the other side.
I saw the Church of Santa Maria Della Salute the walked aways to the Peggy Guggenheim Collection which calls itself
" the most important Italian collection of modern art".
It is housed in an old building she took over and stocked with art she collected including Picasso's, Jackson Pollacks, Salvador Dali's and many more.
Stephen was home when I got back so we all had a couple of glasses of wine and some bread and cheese before heading to a store Karen had seen that had some Venetian ballet type shoes she wanted.
Then we stopped at our favorite Spritz bar for a couple of Spritz's before dinner.
We went to a little place we had come across by accident, very quiet, in a little courtyard down an obscure calle.
Very good fixed price 3 course meal for our last night in Venice.
Tomorrow we drive to our Agrotourism farm near Parma for one night.
Pictures below

a leaning tower

Rialto Bridge

Emergency services

Our street Calle de Paradiso

hanging out our wash

Venice, May 24-25

The drive from Milan went without any serious incidents.
Missed one turn off in a roundabout but quickly got back on route thanks to our GPS.
It took a little under 3 hours to reach Venice, we found the large Tronchetto parking garage and soon were at the vaporetto station.
A vaporetto is exactly like at city bus but on the water.
You scan your ticket and get off at your stop.
We bought 3 day unlimited passes for €40 each except for Stephen, if you are 29 or under it costs €22.
This seems expensive until you know that each single trip would be €7 so it can quickly add up if sightseeing and getting on and off.
Our apartment is near the Rialto Bridge stop so we got off there into throngs of people. The bridge is one of the tourist attractions.
We made our way through the crowds trying to follow the map our BnB host had sent us. We took a few wrong turns in the maze of alleys they call streets or Calles.
While standing on a small bridge on the way  I felt something wet on my bald pate. I had been shat on by a pigeon! Bastard!
We got to our place but were 1/2  hour early for the man meeting us to give us the key so we trundled our suitcases a few feet to a cafe and had lunch.
We met the man who spoke no English but was very nice and he managed to tell us all we needed to know about the apartment.
Very cute place, I suspect it may have belonged to the mother or grandmother of our host.
Very clean and fully decorated and a well equipped kitchen. It looks like someone still lives here but it is now just a rental.
After unpacking we set off exploring. There is a small but well stocked grocery/convenience store only a few feet up the street so we loaded up with wine and water .
Around 6:30 we headed to the small square behind our place for a spritz and glass of wine.
A spritz is a drink made with an  aperitif called Aperol , Prosecco, and soda. Very refreshing!
Many restaurants don' t open until 7 pm and the one we wanted was the same. It was Al Mascaron.
We shared a couple of different seafood pasta dishes then returned to the apartment full and tired.
After a good night's sleep we headed over the Rialto Bridge to the Rialto public market which happens every morning.
lots of fruits and vegetables but the main attractions are the fish stalls selling every kind of  seafood imaginable. Clams ,shrimp, octopus,and fish.
We bought a bag of small shrimp for an afternoon snack, only €8 a kilo, much cheaper than home.
I ran back and put it in the fridge then we all caught the vaporetto that goes all the way to Lido Island and back. Lido is a resort type area with a long sandy beach on the far side but we didn't go there. We stayed on for the return trip with seats in the open stern area and excellent views of Venice.
We got off at the Arsenale stop and had lunch at a cafe on the waterfront, far from the crowds of San Marco square and Rialto.
After lunch we hopped back on to our Rialto stop and came back to rest our feet.

Rested, Stephen and I headed off to see San Marco . Karen stayed behind to relax and shower.

It didn't take long to walk there with few wrong turns and dead ends.

The square is huge and full of people in the hot sun so we did a quick walkabout then headed back. Got lost several times and finally had to resort to Google Maps on my phone to lead us home.

Pictures below;

the culprit that shit on me

Everything comes in by boat

Rialto Market

Church of Santa Maria Della Salute

Postal boat

Chaotic Grand Canal

One of the many beautiful boats

San Marco Basilica and piazza

A vaporetto 

 

Milan May 23

We had a good night's sleep in spite of some traffic noise.
The apartment has electrically controlled blinds on the outside of the windows and when closed completely black out the room.
After showers we walked across the street toward the Duomo and found a cafe for breakfast then walked another couple of minutes to the Piazza del Duomo, the square at the Duomo , to buy tickets to go inside.
Short line, only about 10 minutes. As we stood the sky got very dark then we heard thunder then saw lightening.
We just got our tickets and were headed inside when the downpour started. Luckily we were only in it for a minute before getting inside.
Very heavy security, soldiers with automatic weapons everywhere. All bags opened and inspected, metal detectors passed over us, then we were through.
Awesome church, second largest in Italy and third in the world, high vaulted ceilings and beautiful stained glass.
We could hear the rain pounding down from inside.
We paid for a lift access pass so we took the elevator to get to the exterior roof of the Duomo where you can walk amidst the gargoyles and Saints on spires.
Very cool, and by then the rain had stopped.
Too many stairs for Karen to reach the very top but Stephen and I went up and admired the views.

After we descended we went a few steps to the Renescenté department store , Italy's largest chain.
We had lunch on the top floor with views of the Duomo and the rain again pelting down on the glass roof.
After lunch we did some window shopping then went next door to the Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II, one of the worlds oldest shopping malls, built in 1872.
Very impressive glassed roof mall with all the high end shops we can't afford to buy in.
The rain had stopped and the sun was out.
Later we came back to the apartment for a rest and Stephen went back out to explore and shop.

Pictures below,

Duomo of Milan

Galleria shops

Duomo at night

Paris to Milan , May 20-21

We've done so much in the last 2 days.
Saturday morning we all took an Uber to the Gare du Lyon station where we were to pick up our rental car and Mark would take a train back to the Eurostar station.
The Hertz office was very hard to find and once found finding the car was not easy but we finally got it done.
Our GPS took awhile to find itself so we had a few wrong turns finding our way to the Autoroute but once on it started enjoying the drive.
Most  of the way has a 130 km speed limit but also tolls.
Not long before we had to go through a toll booth and pick up a ticket to bee payed for at the end of the toll road.
We motored along through beautiful green fields with little villages of stone buildings and churches every so often in the distance.
The terrain gradually got more hilly with the occasional vineyard  or old castle in view.
All of a sudden this came to a halt as all 3 lanes of traffic stopped.
I checked Google maps on our phone and it advised there was a 1 hour and 30 minute delay do to traffic congestion.
So we sat in the car in 30° weather , mercifully we had AC.
People got out and chatted and smoked cigarettes like this was a normal occurrence.
After 40 minutes we started to move, only about 1/2 a mile then stopped again.
This happened twice more and finally we started moving at a crawl then finally after 1 and 1/2 hours we were at full speed again.
Soon we came to the pay end of the toll road and were charged €28 for the privilege.
Finally got to our budget hotel in Annemasse, France at about 6.
We found a nice sidewalk cafe for dinner the went back to the room and collapsed.
Today, Subway morning we checked out and drove 25 minutes into Geneva, Switzerland.
Found a parking space luckily and walked to another sidewalk cafe for a breakfast or croissants and Cappuccino's then walked down to the lakeshore to see the waterfront and the Jet d'Eau fountain of Lake Geneva.
By now it was time to hit the road to Milan.
Another beautiful drive climbing into the Alps.
Lots of chalets on the hillsides on the way to the summit and entrance to the Mont Blanc tunnel which is 11 km long through the mountain .
After paying a €40 toll we came through the other side and were in Italy !
After another 2 hours and a few more tolls and only some minor wrong turns we found our Air BnB  in Milan.
Quite nice, more room than Paris and only 2 blocks from the Duomo of Milan which is the second largest church in Italy and 3rd in the world.
We got unpacked and had a nice dinner of spaghetti carbonara at a nearby restaurant.
Came back and watched a movie with Stephen.

Pictures below;

Châteauneuf 

Geneva

Swiss Army Knives

Mont Blanc

Paris, May 20

Well, everyone was so tired after so much walking yesterday that we slept until 10am.
Then it was a matter of  bathroom roulette with 4 of us and one bathroom!
The guys headed off to who knows where , Karen and I found the address of a street full of shops we wanted to see and upon arriving  after a very short ride via Uber were embarrassed to find that it was about a 5 minute walk across the street.
Uber has  a €5 minimum charge so it was a relatively expensive trip!
Uber has been a lifesaver for us, so convenient and relatively cheap. When you have such a short time in the city you don't want to be spending it trying to find bus stops and train stations when you have no idea which to take in the first place.
The street we wanted is the Rue Mouffetard and is a pedestrian only street although motorbikes seem to go anyway.
Lots of cheese ,wine , butcher and fish shops, as well as many sidewalk café's ,which are everywhere.
We bought a 1/2 bottle of wine , a sandwich and some dessert pastries and Ubered off to the Luxembourg Gardens and  Palace for a picnic lunch.
Found a nice spot near the pond and ate our lunch and watched the people.
After lunch we bought a baguette and some stinky cheese for our happy hour.
I felt very Parisian walking home with a baguette sticking out of my shopping bag!
We need to start getting organized for the next leg of our trip tomorrow when we will pick up our rental car to begin our drive to Italy.
Tonight's dinner will probably be a crepe from a place down the street.
Don't know if Stephen and Mark will be back, they are out enjoying their first sunny afternoon in Paris.
Glad they seem to be having fun!

Pictures below;

Scenes from Rue Mouffetard

Luxembourg Gardens and Palace

Sidewalk cafe on our corner

The little courtyard we go through to our apartment