http://www.travelblog.org/Bloggers/MsNina/ Travel adventures in journals and photos from MsNina en-us Fri, 25 Dec 2009 16:22:22 +0000 Fri, 25 Dec 2009 16:22:22 +0000 Oh Italy how glorious you are Italy. I just spent a wonderful weekend in Tuscany at a beautiful guesthouse Fattoria Bassetto in a little village called Certaldo.I went to San Gimignano on my way from Rome to Certaldo a town famous for its medieval towers and for its hordes of tourists. Well it's not meant to be famous for them but it's got PLANELOADS of them. San Gimignano is indeed a beau http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/Italy/Tuscany/blog-96480.html Oh my giddy aunt But WHAT IS THEIR PROBLEM PLEASE GIVE ME A PARISIAN Oh for some of that ole Parisian friendlinesshellip Honestly these Romans can be sooooooo rude. I had some hardcore rudeness in Milan too and I remember that when I travelled around Italy when I 20 I found rude people all over the place back then my refrain was ldquoItaly beautiful countryhellip shame about all the http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/Italy/Lazio/Rome/blog-95136.html Irsquove now been in Rome two weeks and there is a lot to love about this city. The historical centre il centro storico is beautiful and full of Roman ruins and in what other way could we like our Romans... oops that sort of comment is for Part II which is seriously cool. Itrsquos awesome in the literal sense of the word to be wandering around town amongst old theatres forums lion http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/Italy/Lazio/Rome/blog-95135.html PHOTOS AND FRENCH VERSION TO FOLLOW SOON DES PHOTOS ET VERSION FRANCAISE A SUIVRE PROCHAINMENT...Ciao ragazzi e ragazze di Milano It's fashion week darlings in Milano or it is next week non lo so but already this week the fashionistas are throwing parties Armani and visiting their stores Dolce or was it Gabbana non lo so again but it was fabulous darling fabulous and George Robbi http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/Italy/Lombardy/Milan/blog-92522.html PHOTOS AND FRENCH VERSION TO FOLLOW SOON...Lyon situated on two rivers the Saune and the RhoneRhine with a charming old quarter recognised as a World Heritage Site by UNESCO site of the Basilica with its amazing murals home to the famous Jacquard silk and also the residence of STEF my friend Stef from Belgium as she is constantly reminded by all the Frogs who are hopelessly provincial an http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/France/Rh-ne-Alpes/Lyon/blog-92520.html PHOTOS AND FRENCH VERSION TO FOLLOW SOON DES PHOTOS ET VERSION FRANCAIS A SUIVRE BIENTOT...As everyone knows from my first post about Paris I adore Paris. I spent a wonderful 5 days in Paris again with my great friend Lily who has a gorgeous apartment which she's decorated impeccably and who is a fantastic cook and a supremely interesting intelligent and fun person. I walked an awful lot http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/France/Ile-de-France/Paris/blog-92509.html Jrsquoai pass neuf jours Lige ma chre Lige o jrsquoai vecu quand jrsquoavais 17 ans. Lrsquoanne passe je suis retourne Lige directe de Bangkok et Lige mrsquoa aparute une ville belle trs charmante les petites ruelles mignones maisons des parcs au centre trs agrables et un centre historique renouvell et beau. Mais il faut dire que Lige nrsquoest pas si belle http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/Belgium/Liege-Province/Liege/blog-92501.html Dear allHere begin the diaries of Nina in my state as willfully unemployed. Unfortunately I'm not yet bludging off the state though I'll be sure to grab a dole form from Centrelink as soon as I get home but am gallivanting through Europe.For those who don't know I finished work in Thailand August 25 and left dear Thailand on September 5 for the surprisingly sunny shores of Europe. I've alrea http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/France/Ile-de-France/Paris/blog-88149.html Well I have no little town blues coming from the Big Smoke of Bangkok but nevertheless I went to New York for two weeks in April. New York is a big city of concrete. When I used the adjectives ldquobigrdquo and ldquoconcreterdquo though ldquoconcreterdquo in the sense of stuff what you use for pavements is traditionally not an adjective to describe it to my little brother he http://www.travelblog.org/North-America/United-States/New-York/New-York/Manhattan/blog-59920.html Irsquove just been to Ko Chang which means Elephant Island. Ko Chang is Thailandrsquos second biggest island after Phuket and two years ago Taksin the evil Thai Prime Minister he's friends with little Johnny Howard and Dubya hardly illustrious company and boasts that he's a 'Texan Cowboy' because he studied there... spew said that he wanted Ko Chang to become the next Phuket. So http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Thailand/Central-Thailand/Ko-Chang/blog-4564.html Sorry for the sporadic and increasingly halfhearted nature of these blogs.Important news from October 20 November 5 I shall be in Europe. First I'll be taking leave from October 20 30 visiting Liege Belgium and London. Then I'll be on a work trip visiting countertrafficking organisations in Kiev Ukraine and Rome from the 31s to November 5th. If your path happens to cross mine send m http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Thailand/South-West-Thailand/Phuket/blog-23253.html Comme jrsquoai crit dans le blog pass en anglais mon organisation a pay un voyage de recherche pour moi et cinq collgues en Europe. Quelle joie Nous allons passer trois jours Kiev en Ukraine et puis trois de nous six allons Rome pour quatre jours et le reste vont Londres. Nous allons rencontrer des des organisations qui travaillent aussi sur la traite des tres humains. Alors http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/Belgium/Liege-Province/Liege/blog-26658.html Dear allSorry for not having sent a massive group email earlier I'm alive and kicking in Bangkok. My mother is visiting me here and we went to Rai Leh and Ko Phi Phi two of the areas affected by the tsunami but left there the 24th and were safely in Siem Reap marvelling at one of the 7 Wonders of the World Angkor Wat when the tsunami hit.It's now almost seven months that I've been w http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Thailand/blog-4561.html Sydeney... a beautiful city but also a CURSED city. People walk very very fast in Sydney and sometimes they even run. They are also pushy and rude. All of them except for the people who didn't grow up in Sydney such as all THREE nice people there one English guy and two Italians. And they are ALL rich and have stupidly flashy cars. And the food is waaay too expensive and not that great. And http://www.travelblog.org/Oceania/Australia/New-South-Wales/Sydney/blog-18645.html Hello all Please accept my apologies everyone for being a miserable correspondent and for updating my blog and keeping you abreast of my adventures so inadequately. I have been crazy crazy busy working a minimum of 12 hour days working on weekends completely abdicating my responsibilities as a volunteer English teacher in favour of my responsibilities at my two paid jobs... I'm pretty exhaus http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Thailand/blog-14519.html Irsquove just spent the week in Phnom Penh a city I love. Itrsquos small and easy to get around the restaurants have great food and beautiful dcor great atmosphere far superior to Bangkokrsquos restaurants the wine doesnrsquot have a tax of 400 like in Bangers the Cambodian people Irsquove met are friendly the motodops motortaxi drivers charge us foreigners double what the http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Cambodia/South/Phnom-Penh/blog-4562.html Vang Vieng Lao PDR one of the highlights of my time away to be sure. I walked through clouds of tropical butterflies It was just glorious. So so beautiful.Lucky me was sent to Laos again for work from Monday 6 Wed 8 and so took Friday before off and spent the weekend there. Vang Vieng is a beautiful town situated on a river and surrounded by these dramatic karsts limestone rocks with http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Laos/West/Vang-Vieng/blog-12663.html I've just returned from a weird visa run to Laos where I also had the privelege of attending a Lao wedding. The visa run was weird because I was told a million different things by various members of the Lao and Thai bureaucracies and I was very worried that I would have to reenter Thailand on a tourist visa and thus be an illegal immigrant But in the end it all went smoothly but with NO thank http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Laos/West/Vientiane/blog-11766.html Only nine months after I arrived here I have finally decided to embark upon a Splore Bangers mission. My rule is to go to somewhere new or do something new every weekend. There are minimum standards for this i.e. going to a restaurant I've never been to in my own neighbourhood doesn't really count but going to a new restaurant in a neighbourhood I rarely frequent and it being a bit of a missi http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Thailand/Central-Thailand/Bangkok/blog-8523.html Koh PhaNgan home to the infamous Full Moon Party an event of pestilence and pollution I plan to never ever attend has turned out to be the most pleasant surprise of my travels in Thailand. PhaNgan is beautiful. My photos are crap the colours are so pathetic but it really is beautiful. I had assumed that it was just a party island but I was happily mistaken. PhaNgan was a very welcome ch http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Thailand/South-West-Thailand/Ko-Pha-Ngan/blog-8520.html