Final installment so you won't be getting anymore email reminders out there. We will be quiet for another year LOL. I don’t think any of us were completely prepared for what greeted us at the Rome train station. Walking down the platform, the immensity of Roma Termini is incredible taking on much more of an airport feeling than a train station. To be completely accurate, it is more like Vancouver International meets Metrotown and Canada Line. You walk and walk and walk to get anywhere. We bought our Roma passes (a definite must for those visiting Rome: http://www.romapass.it/? [View Full Entry]

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This is a late entry that is meant to capture our time in Florence. We had to cut our Florence and Rome entries in half as they were too long together so be forewarned. Complaints can be forwarded to the to the owners of this website (not us). Mikayla from Ca Venier got up early to get us breakie so that we could catch the vaporetto at 7:45am (she was awesome). A quick trip back to Venice from Murano, we then hopped on a short train that took us to the main Venice train station. NOTE: For those who are going [View Full Entry]

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Another 6am wake-up as we left our time on Veli Losinj. We needed to catch a 9:00am ferry to the mainland and had a windy 1 ½ hour drive back up the island of Cres. Encountered a long line up at the ferry terminal but did manage to make it on. We resisted driving back up the coast to see the views as our minds have been filled with a couple of things: how much is it going to cost for the car damage (it is Saturday morning and Hertz closes at noon)? Will we be able to find accommodation? How [View Full Entry]

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Our spontaneous decision to head into Zagreb was fueled by the chance to experience U2 in this unique setting as well as an interest of seeing more of this incredible country that really is catching us a bit by surprise. We had thought most of our enjoyment would be along the coast but this venture inland has been wonderful. The country (or at least the city of Zagreb) has truly been captured by the U2 visit. The whole city is buzzing and accommodation is non-existent. The two concerts back to back meant that on the 9th and 10th there was not [View Full Entry]

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After 5 days of rest and relaxation on Hvar, it was time to get back on the road. Up at 6am, we were in the ferry line by 6:45am. We ended up being one of last 20 cars on the 7:45am ferry. The 2 hour ferry ride was spent playing backgammon, snoozing and sunbathing. Matt and Syd had their eyes on some marble bowls back in Diocletian’s palace in Split so as we drove back through, they ventured off to grab these souvenirs (they each try and grab something that represents the trip to them - apparently these bowls will be [View Full Entry]

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We left early in order to make the hour drive back to Spilt and catch the ferry to Hvar. We had pre-bought our ferry tickets but on close scrutiny realized that they were not for any particular boat so we wanted to make sure we would get our car on. The line-ups reminded us of the pandemonium on the docks of Athens but to a much lesser degree. After a couple of u-turns in the middle of traffic, we managed to get ourselves in the right line (we think) to get the 11am ferry to Hvar. The person that guided us [View Full Entry]

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We don't have regular internet so are relying on Internet Cafes every couple of days to keep our updates. Cheers Our final morning in Dubrovnik, we walked the walls of the old town, something that can’t be missed for the views and historical perspective (do it early in the morning or in the evening light). We then set out for Split but we were not sure if we would make it there today. Some of the adventure of travel is finding new and wonderful places to stay. With a family of 5 and accommodation being relatively expensive and in short supply, [View Full Entry]

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The flight across Europe gave wonderful views of the fields of France and the majestic Alps followed by the beautiful shoreline of the Adriatic. As we descended towards Croatia, the turquoise ocean water outlining the rugged coast gave us a taste of what we were going to experience for the next 3 weeks. Dubrovnik is pretty amazing to fly into at sunset with the scattered village lights dotting the coastline. Dubrovnik itself (population 47,000 - smaller than Maple Ridge) is truly perched on a steep hillside with houses clinging to the rocky shore. Last year, there were over 100,000 tour [View Full Entry]

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As the title suggests, we didn’t spend a lot of time in London. In fact, the only reason we ventured into this world renowned city was because the prospect of a 9 hour layover spent entirely in Gatwick airport was not particularly appealing. The 9-hour flight over was relatively easy if you polled the travel group. Even though it was a “budget” airline, the food was good and the individual screens allowed you to watch whatever you wanted (including the take-off and landing from a camera that was mounted just in the nose of the plane). We dubbed this the “crash [View Full Entry]

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Heading out from Leavenworth, we took the scenic route that took us past the spectacular Mt Ranier and through central Washington. The drive was much longer than we anticipated but most agreed (at least Dad did) that it was well worth it. Soon we were on familiar roads along the Oregon Coast and like usual, the beautiful beaches drew us in. Parking our trailer, everyone was quick to want to explore Cannon Beach and search out favourite ice cream and salt water taffy treats (those freebies are always welcome and addicting - oohh, just one more). We did some exploring that [View Full Entry]

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