Our tour of discovery through the Somme

On Monday we arrived in The somme. The Somme is the place where world war one raged from 1914 to 1918. many people died during this war. Over 300,000 Australian men were brought over to this area. One of the jobs was to defend the town of Villers Bretonneux. At this stage in the war the Germans were slowly loosing the battle of the Somme. One of the people who fought in this war was my Great Grandfather.

When we arrived at our accommodation in Bayonnaires we unpacked then went straight to Villers Brettoneux where there is a massive memorial and cemetary. It was really sad reading the names of the young men who fought and died in this war.

We also visited Le Circuit du Souvenir or The Curciut of Remembrance. This took us around many of the prominent towns and memorials of the Somme. In Albert we visited the Musee Somme 1916. This museum gave a very good explanantion of what happened in the war. It also showed you artifacts that have been retrieved from the war and many photos. It was a very moving experience.

Return to England

The view as we leave Meta, Italy James and Xavier prepare themselves as baggage to leave Napoli - Italy

We returned to England to find rain and cold. A change from the beautiful weather we left in Italy, but a chance to wear our jumpers again.

We flew into Stanstead Airport, hired a car and headed to Milton Keynes, a place described by Bill Bryson as a strange 'new' city in England with lots of roundabouts and not much character. We neaded there none-the-less as Scott was keen to visit Bletchley Park which was nearby - the place of the Enigma machine and the code-breakers during the 2nd world war.

Pictured below is William with one of the many code breaking machines from World War 1. Over 50,000 people worked at this site during the war.

We ended up spending two nights there and really enjoyed it. Scott and William visited Bletchley Park (another view of which is left with the first computer - what a size!), Elizabeth, Xavier, James and I did some swimming and shopping. All happy really.

We then headed down to Southhampton, having picked the day of the FA Cup to do this. This was particularly significant as one of our destinations was to be Portsmouth, and they ended up winning the FA cup!

We visited Stonehenge (below) on-route and spied the great stone structures.

Then it was on to the beautiful city of Salisbury, complete with a wonderful cathedral which towers over the city. I have lovely memories of a previous visit to this city with my father in 1993. I was so very glad that the city was still as beautiful as I remembered.

We were lucky enough to be visiting the cathedral at the same time as the Salisbury Choir were doing their final rehearsal for their production that evening and had the wonderful experience of being able to sit and listen to them. They were truly wonderful and sounded just beautiful in such a beautiful building.

Salisbury Cathedral is also the home to one of the 4 only remaining copies of the Magna Carta and we were lucky enough to be able to view a part of this. Elizabeth was particularly pleased that the Magna Carta had been signed by King John in the 1600,s as this meant, among other things, that in the instance that a female became widowed they wouldn't be forced to remarry! Thanks King John!

It was then on to Portsmouth to go on board HMS Victory - the magnificent specimen of a ship built just before Australia was discovered by Captain Cook (about 1768 actually) and on which Lord Nelson died. It was great to be able to walk through the ship and see what a beauty it was (and still is!).
We then drove back to London to stay again with the nuns near Victoria Station. The children were very excited about returning here and felt it was a little like 'going home'. I think we were all feeling a little weary and home-sick by this stage so going somewhere where we felt we knew was a good thing.

We quickly got back into the swing of London and picked up our speed, visiting the Science Museum, The Victoria and Albert Museum, Harrods, Hamleys Toy Store (Elizabeth and James pictured below in a car at the Toy Store), Greenich and The British Museum in 3 days.

Absolutely tiring but well worth it - the highlight I think being the British Musuem which is just amazing. The children were particularly taken with the mummies and the contents of the Etruscan Tombs were had seen in Castellina in Chianti, Italy. Scott was keen to show the children the Rosetta Stone and we also found the oldest thing there - a flint which dated back to 100,000BC - enought to blow your mind away!.

The children and I at the Royal Observatory in Greenich catching some sun!

William, Elizabeth and I were lucky enought to be able to see Billy Elliot at the Victoria Palace Theatre which was a real treat and very enjoyable. Scott and William, Elizabeth and I were also lucky to be able to attend the Chelsea Flower Show. This was a wonderful experience. In some ways it showed up the Melbourne Flower Show but overall I would say that the Melbourne Show really is a world-class event. Australia really does do 'gardening' well!

Below - the children and Scott saying farewell to Sister Veronica in London

Leaving England at St Pancras Station to take the Eurostar through to Channel Tunnel to France and Belgium.

Italy - belissimo!

And so it is that as we prepare to leave Italy after 4 weeks travelling through the beautiful country, we stop to take stock of the wonderful experiences we have had.
Arriving in Italy on the 18th April we were a little nervous about travelling to a new country (except for Scott who was just excited!), driving on the 'wrong' side of the road, speaking Italian, different customs and food. Now, on the 15th May, we are all wiser and much more prepared for travel in Italy.
Our experiences have been wide-spread. We have stayed in 3 locations during our visit - Greve in Chianti, Rome and Meta. Greve - to the north of the country, Rome in the middle, and Meta on towards the south of the country. Greve is an inland township, Meta a seaside township. Our accommodation in both Greve and Meta was in fully self contained homes, in Rome we stayed with Filipino nuns. All accommodation was perfect for our needs, well positioned and allowed us the freedom to prepare our own meals or make use of the local restaurants. We found Rome expensive, Greve mildly expensive and Meta far cheaper.
With the exception of our two weeks in Greve we used public transport to travel Italy. We arrived by planed at Pisa, hired a car and drove through many townships and hamlets in the Chianti region. The roads generally are very narrow and windy and the italians are amazing drivers - fast, confident and at times what seems to be 'carefree'! We have very much come to appreciate why the SMART car, motor bikes and Vespers are so popular in Italy.We travelled from Pisa to Rome, and from Rome to Meta by train which was excellent. Punctual, easy to follow and a good way to see the country and experience to people as well as other travellers. Whilst in Rome we used the bus and walked, in Meta we used the bus, the train, walked and the ferry service, all of which were really efficient and enjoyable.
We have learnt alot about Italy too whilst we have been here: about its history from the Etruscan times. We have visited Etruscan tombs, castles and fortresses, the ruins of Pompeii, The Vatican. We have watched and listened to the people, enjoying their lively banter across small alleyways from their balcony's. Their animation when speaking. We have immersed ourselves in two different small towns and at each got to know some of the locals - In Greve - the local pasta man, the restraunter, the green grocer, the delicatessan owners. In Meta - the local private beach operators, the barman at the Internet Cafe

Our friends in Meta - the internet cafe with Nino (above) and Bar Antionette with Maria(below), the local family who run Bar Antionetta who gave us a fond farewell and some local produce to eat on the plan), the green grocer and some of the young people.
The children are now confident to speak in Italian, greeting people as they walk along with "Buongiorno, salve, Buonasera or ciao depending on which is most appropriate (and usually getting it right!) . They are very confident with their numbers and in saying: Parlo inglese - which is 'do you speak English?' They automatically say grazie for thank-you and prego for 'your welcome'. They can say "Permsso" to get past someone, and scusi - to enter into a conversation. They were all very nervous to start with but have gained so much confidence over their time here.
They have learnt some manners too - saying please and thank-you automatically, standing for an adult on the bus or train and not pushing infront of adults and excusing themselves when they are trying to get through a crowd. We do hope that continues!
The highlights for the children have been:
William
I wasn't really excited about going to Italy. I was nervous about the language. Now - Italy is fantastic. The food is really nice, especially the tomatoes, pasta, pizza, bread and gelati. The language was hard to get used to at first, then it ws good. I would love to come back!
In Meta I enjoyed going down to the beach and it was fun and different having to pay to get onto the beach. We went to Sorrento, Pompeii and Positano. The bus trips were long but enoyable. I did some air-rifle shooting which was fantastic and even hit a bottle.Rome was nice but busy. We saw the Pope drive past and went to reconciliation at St Peters. I didn't know that Vatican City was a different country! I think all you needed was a few days in Rome to see the main sights - the Vatican, the Pope, the Colleseum and Circus Maximus. Then I was ready to leave!Greve was my favourite place in Italy. It was quiet, peaceful, there were lots of little shops that were walking distance and most of all, the people were very friendly. My first Italian phrase was - could I please have a table for 6 - in italian of course! Where we stayed there was a games room with pool talble and table tennis table, a pool and a playground as well as a great balcony. We visited many places, my favourites being San Gimiarno, Lucca and Florence.
Elizabeth
Italy is wonderful. The food is tastier than at home. The bread is nicer in the south of the country than the north. The people are really friendly. The language is good once you know what you are talking about and gain confidence.
We liked staying in the small towns rather than the big ones where you can get lost and you don't feel so safe.
The Vatican was really nice and so were the paintings in it. Lucca was a wonderful place, expecially riding the bikes, both normal bike and tandem bike along the walls. Florence was great and we climbed the duomo which was 463 steps - not much - and got this amazing view from the top. We saw a copy of the statue of David which was alright - the original is in the Uffizi but that was shut.
I loved the people and the beach and the food. I loved Italy.
Xavier
I liked Italy. I enjoyed trying out the language and the people were kind. In Greve I Liked visiting the castles, watching the cats, lizards, turtle and ducks. I liked going to the pool room, the pool and the playgrounds. My favourite cats were Spike and Midnight - (Elizabeth and I named them all).

The beach in Meta - dark grey sand and pebbles

In Meta is liked the beach, the bus and train rides and the people. I got to ride on a Vespa too. We went on buses, trains and ferries. I liked shooting bottles in Positano with dad.
In Rome the nuns we stayed with were really nice, especially Sr Mini. I like the crowd of people at the mass we went to in St Peter's Square and the Vatican.
James

James with Xavier searching the sand and pebbles for treasures in Meta, Italy

What experiences he has had - riding a vespa, driving a train, climbing castles, hills and steps. Learning to speak in Italian, trying out the food, going to the beach and playgrounds, having his cheeks pinched to within an inch of their lives! We think that James has enjoyed Italy!
Today we travel by bus to Sorrento then take another to Napes Airport where we will fly back to England. We await our next travels.
Gabrielle, Scott, William, Elizabeth, Xavier and James

Meta - Italy

Italy

What an interesting and fantastic country Italy is. We have had an absolute ball here. There have been so many times that we have been unable to think nothing but - "let's put it down to the European Experience" - as a friend of ours Grant advised us prior to our departure. Time is certainly not given the extreme importance that it is in Australia. Generally the people work slowly and steadily - 10 minutes is more often than not 20 and 100 metres is more often than not 400.

Once you get in the swing of it though it is really a pleasant experience. We have found the people extremely friendly and the public transport great, aided I think by our efforts to try to communicate in Italian. We don't do a great job, but at least we try!

We have just finished 3 weeks in Italy and have decided to stay another week - such is the time we are having. During our stay we have been sighted on the side of the road whilst each of the children take turns to be car sick, running along the side of the freeway in Pisa to chase down a taxi, taking photos of the beach hand Enzo on Meta Beach as he poses for Scott (an absolute crack-up I must admit), making cow noises in the local butcher to ensure we are buying beef and not some rather obscure meat type, carrying our take-away caffe latte home in an emply Heineken Beer Bottle and lining up for an hour or more at the colleseum to find upon our arrival at the front of the queue that we don't have enough cash on us to gain admittance.

Now we are in Meta in the south of Italy, 50 km south of Naples. It is a beautiful small village on the water and we have found that we are enjoying the place so much that we have decided to stay an extra 4 days. Here are some photos of us at the local beach. We have spent 2 full days simply at the beach. We are to tour Pompeii and the Amalfi coast whilst we are here, but are finding it difficult to extract ourselves from Meta. Maybe we will soon!

Our experience in Rome

Our travels through Rome

Elizabeth - I went to Rome on a train from Pisa. It was very nice, first class of course - and we got our own cabin. When we got to Rome the train stzation was busy. We got a taxi to the front gate of Via Guisseppe Missouri which is where we were stayng. When we got to our apartment the nuns greeted us nicely. They gave us our keys and off we went to our rooms - no. 20 and 22.

Later that day we went to check out St Peters Square, near the Vatican. It was quite busy and people were lined up everywhere to get into the Vatican. We didn't go in, we didn't want to get into the line. We went out and suddenly the police closed the exits. We were wondering what was happening. We asked the policeman and he said that the Pope was going to come past in his car. A couple of seconds later about 16 plice motor bikes came driving into the gates to vatican city , then two police cars, then the pope in his car. He waved to us and it was very exciting. We had dinner afterwards at a place nearby - it was nice - we had a great day!

William - We arrived in Pisa. We then caught the train, first class, to Rome Terminal. We had our own carriage at it was very nice. In Rome we caught a taxi to the nuns. We went in and were greeted by Sr Mini. That day was the feast day of St James so Sr Mini gave James some cholocation. We were in rooms 20 and 22 on level 3. From our windows you could see a whole different country - we could see the Vatican. Later that day we decided to go for a walk down to the Vatican. We had a look around the Vatican. When we were leaving the Police stopped us and said that we couldn't exit - the Pope was coming home. We waited for about 5 minutes and sure enough the Pope came home with heaps of police around him and a helicopter overhead.

We were not sure if it was the Pope - but have alook at this movie clip = you decide.
AFter that we went to the lovely restaurant near the Vatican. I had spagetti carbonara, mum had seafood risotto, dad had meatballs in tomato sauce and James and Xavier had spagetti carbonara. Elizabeth had a bit of everyones.
Here are some of the other things I did while we were in Rome. We visited the Colleseum, Circus Maximus- the sight of the Ben Hur Movie, St Peters Bascilica and went to an amusement park. We went for a long walk right around Rome. Overall Rome was great but we only needed a few days there.

Greve in Chianti - the Chianti region of Tuscany

The medieval procession in Castellina in Chianti Xavier at the local barber

As we prepare to leave Tuscany we can reflect on a wonderful 2 week tour of the area. We have thoroughly enjoyed our first experience of Italy as a family, having met many locals, practiced our Italian, driven to many lovely locations and explored interesting, pretty, sometime breathtaking sights. To put our experience into words would not be sufficient - our photo's show a much better insight into our travels - so here we go:

We arrived in Italy - in Greve in Chianti, after flying from London (Stanstead Airport), hiring a car then driving to our home to find this - our home for 2 weeks:

We visited the local market place which was set up in the main piazza of Greve to purchase our fruit and vegies, cheese, bread and ham:

We ventured on walks to the top of the hill behind us to the tiny hamlet of Greve called Montifiorelle:

We bought gelati (many times):

We had a history lesson via Scott and the staff at the museum in Castellina in Chianti on the Etruscan times (approx 800 - 600BC):

We hired bikes and rode then (twice) around the walls of the city of Lucca:

We took cheesy photo's at the Leaning Tower of Pisa:

We played on many, many playgrounds:

We swam in the pool in Greve in Chianti:

We climbed the duomo in Florence, saw the statue of David and explored the streets of Florence:

We went to mass in the Cathedral of Saint Catherine in Siena and went to the Sienna Piazza:

We made friends with the local green grocer Ricko and the lady and man from the delicatessan:

At times we felt a little grumpy:

We watched a medieval procession in Penzano in Chianti and another in Montifiorelle:

We made friends with other people staying at the same place as us:

We sampled local wines:

We bought from the market:

Scott, Xavier and James had haircuts at the local barber, Elizabeth at the local hairdresser:

The food was great - we think because the raw ingredients were locally produced by small farmlets nearby:


We had a great time and sadly now we must leave for Rome and the next part of our adventure.