I am so very proud of myself for not getting lost. If there is a city I am going to get hopelessly lost and confused in, it will be Venice. This city has confused more seasoned travellers than I so I'm sure its bound to happen sooner rather than later. The most confusing part of getting to my hotel is to figure out how to get onto a vaporetto. I had a Venice connected ticket which should cover my transport needs while I'm here. All I had to do is figure out where to pick it up at the train station. It only took two wrong queues to figure it out. And wouldn't you know it I had to go to a automated machine to collect the darn thing. The next big challenge was trying to ... read more

Today I took a tour though the Tuscan countryside. First stop was Sienna, A lovely town not far from Florence. Sienna and Florence have had many wars over the years, the last one was about 450 years ago, but rivalry between the two is still very much there. The town is divided into 17 neighbourhoods, each with its own coat of arms, as we entered each neighbourhood the guide pointed out the coat of arms displayed clearly on the walls. Every so often we would come across a public building which had the Medici coat of arms, from the time the family took control of the city. The guide never failed to point out the arms of "the enemy" Sienna is most famous for its horse races, Il Palio which are held twice a year. The ... read more

So after a lousy nights sleep I was up reasonably early. Which was a shame because my train didn't leave until 10.30. I had heaps of time to finish packing, have breakfast and check out. I had a leisurely breakfast, having a good ol' chat to my new found Californian friends. A couple (don't ask me their names) who were sitting at the table next to mine my first morning in Rome, and we seemed to catch up there every day. Like me they were checking out today so were really just cooling their heals until they had to go to the airport. I checked out just after nine giving myself plenty of time for the cab to be late and/or road blocks, of course there were none and I got to termini station with plenty ... read more

So I was up early this morning as I had to meet the bus to Pompeii at 7.30. I got up at six, got myself organised, packed a spare pair if shoes and socks, and headed off to the Piazza di Popolo. Upon reaching the Piazza I realised the one item I did not pack was a jacket, it was quite cool early in the morning. The Piazza was another work of art, with an Egyptian obelisk towering in the centre, twin churches at one end and fountains on either side. The tour group gathered and we were split into two groups, red and orange, and piled onto the bus. On the way in an attempt to socialise the crowd the tour guide, Diana, was asking where we were all from. If you're from England put ... read more

Can I just say.... Wow! This city is so beautiful I cannot believe my eyes. While studying the map over breakfast I realised my hotel is only a few blocks from the Colosseum so I decided that was to be my starting point. Only two right turns and down the street....provided you start walking in the right direction...and that would be the point where I went wrong. Five minutes in found myself standing on a street corner, staring at the map looking left and right down the street thinking "where is it? I should be able to see it by now?" Next to me was a restaurant and the maître d asked me if I'd like to eat. I asked him if he could tell me which way to the Colosseum. He came and stood next ... read more