After the16 minute train ride from Salzburg to Freilassing, Germany we stopped in the train station to book our trains to Paris and to cover up our bags to protect them from the rain. We then found our way to the car rental spot and were soon on our way to Füssen down the Romanischstraße (Romantic Road) which goes from Würzberg to Füssen.Although it was grey skies and drizzling, we still were enamoured with this beautiful drive through numerous small towns set between green hills and valleys. Stopping at one small Gasthaus, we enjoyed delicious soup. The flavour was so rich and flavourful but I must say the portions of meat kind of resembled small brains! We soon headed out where we finally came to the road leading to Füssen. As we approached, could see the ... read more

Leaving our apartment in Budapest laden like two pack mules, we made our way to the train station where we boarded a lovely Railjet bound for Vienna. Once we arrived we found using the Metro System to be a piece of cake, or maybe I should stay "Strudel"! We exited the Metro station and found ourselves in the most beautiful city. Lovely shaded biking and walking paths formed the median between lanes of traffic while exquisitely grand buildings lined the streets. We made it to our Pension only to find that we couldn't get in until 4:00 and it was only 2:00. Curtis went off in search of a bank machine while I guarded the bags, people watching from the bench. We then enjoyed a nice light lunch before heading back at 4. We buzzed and ... read more

Leaving Turkey left us with a mixture of emotions and a sense of sadness. This gentle country, with it's array of breathtaking landscapes, gorgeous mosques, the call to prayer that echoes out 5 times a day, little old Turkish men sitting around with their backgammon boards, hijab/ harem clad old women weeding fields by hand under the hot sun, and the overall gentle nature of this country are memories we will forever treasure. We had arranged to take a shuttle from Selcuk to Izmir Airport. Our meeting place was just past the hospital by a parkette. We were to be there by 10:30 as the shuttle was to arrive anywhere between 10:30 and 10:45. So we said our good-byes to the staff at Hotel Bella and began our walk to the stop. Arriving just after 10, ... read more

After short flights, we arrived in Antalya, a beautiful city situated on the Turquoise Coast. We exited the airport and searched for our name being held by one of the several shuttle drivers. Hmmm. No luck. We waited and kept looking as new drivers arrived. Still no sign bearing our name. Not quite sure what to, do one of the shuttle drivers noticed us and asked where we were staying. He immediately called our Pansiyon and within about 5 minutes a driver was calling out to us. We followed him and soon piled our bags into a taxi. Antalya is a huge, modern city. The drive took about 30 minutes and then we entered Kaleici, the old town of Antalya. Here the streets narrowed to cobblestone lanes. Our driver was a little unsure of where our ... read more

Our shuttle picked us shortly after 10:30 on Sunday morning and our trip to Ataturk Airport took forever!! We couldn't figure out why we had to keep taking the tiniest of backstreets. We soon found out the reason...the Istanbul Marathon was on! Another race in another beautiful place!!! As we pulled up to the airport we were hardly prepared for the congestion. First of all you can't even enter the main part of the airport until all your luggage is put through the scanner. So we joined the infinite line. Getting to the front, piled our bags on, emptied or pockets and finally got into the massive airport. Little did we know that we had entered through the international departures area and we were soon running to find the domestic departures. After going down escalators and ... read more