14 years ago
Thursday, September 11, 2008
bordighero
The Italian Riviera. We spent our time left in Italy beach hopping, enjoying the hot weather while we could as we were hearing reports from friends in London that the weather was getting increasingly autumnal. This day in Bordighero was very overcast but also incredibly hot. Many hours were spent in this spot and others like it.
Wednesday, September 10, 2008
the cinque terre
I'm afraid this entry will be sparse when it comes to photos as the Cinque Terre did not lend itself to pause for photography, at least not in a car. For those who have not yet travelled this far, the Cinque Terre is a small section of the Italian Riviera in the province of La Spezia, comprising of the coastline, five villages, and the surrounding hillsides. It is beautiful territory, but would best be discovered on foot, as the roads are perilously narrow, winding around the coast line and the mountains lining it.As we travelled along the road, leading the way were small three-wheeled Piaggio's, navigating the sharp turns with ease. possessing the ability to stop at any point along the road without it being too dangerous. We got the feeling that these roads were designed with the
Piaggio in mind, and not for large family size Land rovers. What was most astounding about the Cinque Terre was that the Italians had obviously been unperturbed when discovering this landscape and decided to make every inch of it habitable or to use it as their workplace. Houses were perched high up on the mountains, wedged into the rock face, and every inch of space left was planted out with vines, making for a particularly difficult journey to work.
Tuesday, September 09, 2008
a long day
We had our first really bad day today, due to a combination of the Italian's poor road signage and my short temper.
After disembarking the boat in Ancana at 7am, Woz and I were really keen to make the most of our early start and get some good driving under out belt before a long lunch break. Once we reached the motorway we were flying along, loving being in Italy and loving being on the road. Not long after this however we had to take an exit to transfer to another motorway. In what we have discovered is the norm, at 130km per hour we were given 500 metres notice to turn. I think by about 400 metres I had worked out in my mind what I had read on the sign, by 450 had worked out which direction we had to turn and by 500 said to Woz, 'We have to turn right soon' and zoom, past the exit we flew.
'Never mind, we'll take the next one and go back' we said happily. We were on holidays, we didn't care about exits, but adventure!
Twenty minutes later, we finally reached the next exit on the motorway and so having gone so far along we decided we'd take the smaller roads back to the main motorway. Until now I had been able to navigate us smoothly to any given destination and with a fresh boost of confidence I was up for the challenge. What followed was at least an hour of driving around in circles in rural Italy. We would approach an intersection, be given two choices, take one, then reach another intersection and be given two entirely different choices, neither of them heading in the direction we wanted, so we would choose one, then get to the next intersection and be faced with an entirely new direction once again .... this continued for HOURS and by the end of it I was cursing Italy and it's town planners. 'Now I remember why we hated Rome!' I screamed at the cows we passed.
By afternoon we reached La Spezia and the start of the Cinque Terre but it took us so long to find the actual road that leads to the Cinque Terre that we spent yet again another hour just driving around in circles, cursing the Italian town planners. By late afternoon we finally found ourselves on the right road and drove along the Cinque Terre from start to finish, reaching the last town at sunset.
Oh and yes, it was worth it.
After disembarking the boat in Ancana at 7am, Woz and I were really keen to make the most of our early start and get some good driving under out belt before a long lunch break. Once we reached the motorway we were flying along, loving being in Italy and loving being on the road. Not long after this however we had to take an exit to transfer to another motorway. In what we have discovered is the norm, at 130km per hour we were given 500 metres notice to turn. I think by about 400 metres I had worked out in my mind what I had read on the sign, by 450 had worked out which direction we had to turn and by 500 said to Woz, 'We have to turn right soon' and zoom, past the exit we flew.
'Never mind, we'll take the next one and go back' we said happily. We were on holidays, we didn't care about exits, but adventure!
Twenty minutes later, we finally reached the next exit on the motorway and so having gone so far along we decided we'd take the smaller roads back to the main motorway. Until now I had been able to navigate us smoothly to any given destination and with a fresh boost of confidence I was up for the challenge. What followed was at least an hour of driving around in circles in rural Italy. We would approach an intersection, be given two choices, take one, then reach another intersection and be given two entirely different choices, neither of them heading in the direction we wanted, so we would choose one, then get to the next intersection and be faced with an entirely new direction once again .... this continued for HOURS and by the end of it I was cursing Italy and it's town planners. 'Now I remember why we hated Rome!' I screamed at the cows we passed.
By afternoon we reached La Spezia and the start of the Cinque Terre but it took us so long to find the actual road that leads to the Cinque Terre that we spent yet again another hour just driving around in circles, cursing the Italian town planners. By late afternoon we finally found ourselves on the right road and drove along the Cinque Terre from start to finish, reaching the last town at sunset.
Oh and yes, it was worth it.
Monday, September 08, 2008
this one was written out at sea
Given our last choice of home it might strike you as a little odd to learn that I have a genuine fear of being on water at night. For this reason I will never go on a cruise regardless of the on deck swimming pools and open buffet. I did however, in a moment of weakness, agree to take the ferry across the Adriatic Sea from Split in Croatia to Ancona, Italy. An overnight trip, leaving Split at 9pm and getting in the following morning at 7am.So, now I write to you, with the coast of Croatia long since vanished in the night, as I sit in our 2 berth cabin, deep in the belly of the ship. I am trying to think of everything but this fact so as not to let my imagination get the better of me but I'm afraid I have watched 'Titanic' too many times and I am fighting a losing battle.
at long last!
Finally we have good news. The visas have been approved - all three of them!
We received an email this afternoon. It has certainly put our minds at rest as we had been continually running through possible scenarios in our thoughts and conversations, should we return to London and find ourselves without a visa for Nate. We feel as though we can finally look forward to the future and can't wait to set up home again after being in a temporary frame of mind for so long. We're now sorting out what is required to get us there (visas stamped in passports etc.) and estimate we'll be 'deployed' as they say, by the end of the month!
We received an email this afternoon. It has certainly put our minds at rest as we had been continually running through possible scenarios in our thoughts and conversations, should we return to London and find ourselves without a visa for Nate. We feel as though we can finally look forward to the future and can't wait to set up home again after being in a temporary frame of mind for so long. We're now sorting out what is required to get us there (visas stamped in passports etc.) and estimate we'll be 'deployed' as they say, by the end of the month!
somewhere we never thought we'd see
On our last day in Croatia, having already spent a few hours at the beach, Woz and I decided to take the short drive across the border into Bosnia & Herzegovina, to a lake which on the map looked fantastic, and possibly a venue for our afternoon swim. The drive there was amazing, our first diversion from the coast of Croatia and it seemed to get hotter, rockier and much, much, higher as we drove up into the mountains.
On arriving at the border we were denied entry as we weren't able to produce a green piece of paper which had something to do with motor insurance. We were told that we could buy this at another border control a few kilometres along the border so we headed that way. At the second border crossing our passports were checked three times but we were not asked to show our little green piece of paper. On the third check we were waved through and we were in! A little nerve-racking!
Driving to Bosnia was a spur of the moment decision and so we drove there without having researched whether as an Australian I would need a visa but on the border decided not to draw their attention to the matter. It seemed like the kind of country where if you asked if you were to pay a visa they would say yes and take a hansome sum for the privilege. So, no questions were asked and we were through. We spent only a few hours there, driving around, only getting out to take photographs. The lake was man-made, in a valley, surrounded by mountains, with a few villages scattered around it. Despite the heat, we saw not one person bathing, or even spending any time near the water. It was eerily quiet in the villages around the lake, with us only seeing other drivers and the occasional cyclist. After a few hours we headed back to Croatia to spend a few more hours at the beach before we headed towards Italy.
On arriving at the border we were denied entry as we weren't able to produce a green piece of paper which had something to do with motor insurance. We were told that we could buy this at another border control a few kilometres along the border so we headed that way. At the second border crossing our passports were checked three times but we were not asked to show our little green piece of paper. On the third check we were waved through and we were in! A little nerve-racking!Driving to Bosnia was a spur of the moment decision and so we drove there without having researched whether as an Australian I would need a visa but on the border decided not to draw their attention to the matter. It seemed like the kind of country where if you asked if you were to pay a visa they would say yes and take a hansome sum for the privilege. So, no questions were asked and we were through. We spent only a few hours there, driving around, only getting out to take photographs. The lake was man-made, in a valley, surrounded by mountains, with a few villages scattered around it. Despite the heat, we saw not one person bathing, or even spending any time near the water. It was eerily quiet in the villages around the lake, with us only seeing other drivers and the occasional cyclist. After a few hours we headed back to Croatia to spend a few more hours at the beach before we headed towards Italy.
Sunday, September 07, 2008
getting to know you
Driving through Croatia the first thing that slaps you in the face is the stunning coastline and rugged mountains towering overhead. Having come from Germany however where every rural village is pristine, we were shocked at the state of the houses running along the coast. We couldn't tell if the obvious decay was due to past unrest, negligence or purely a different perception of what is aesthetically pleasing. Most were concrete boxes, a few rendered or painted a bright colour but the majority seemed to be dull and uninspiring. Hard to imagine when the view out the window of almost all of those houses would have been second to none. We had to take off our western-tinted-glasses to appreciate anything other than natural beauty. It was spectacularly hot in Croatia, 37 degrees on one day we were there. Perfect for swimming - and we did, every day.
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