Category Archives: Travel

Paris, France

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View from Arc de Triomphe The LouvreCentre Pompidou

First Words. So many things have been written about Paris that I could say anything and I’m sure its already been said and a t-shirt printed for it. I was finally getting a chance to go to Paris after hearing all my friends speak so highly about it. After all the hype I really felt that I was going to be disappointed with this fair city but I found to my surprise that Paris really is a wonderful city and much like Salzburg, I cannot wait to go and visit again in spring.

The lit up Galleries Lafayette Window display Nice SnailsGiant HeadMoulin Rouge
Dates Out of Heathrow Saturday afternoon, 04 December
In to Heathrow Tuesday afternoon, 07 December
Airline BMI
Why go? Who doesn?t want to go!
Weather Some cloudy cover but most days were clear, cool and dry.
The experience I met up with Lana at Heathrow airport on Saturday morning. Poor thing was feeling a little bit ragged from all her flying around Asia and North America during the last month. However, she was in fine spirits and appeared to be set to tackle the Parisians.
First order of business upon getting to Paris was getting to our hotel. Although this was not supposed to be that difficult it really tested our patience as there was a longer than anticipated wait for what turned out to be an extremely crowded bus into the city. Then of course we had to navigate our way through the Metro system while dragging around, for Lana at any rate, a 30kg suitcase. Mine was slightly lighter at about 16kg. Finally, after about two, maybe three, hours (though I swear it felt longer) we arrived out our very lovely hotel Best Western Lorette Opera near Montmartre. And could we find anywhere to eat? (The story of our trip really!) We ended up at a Chinese restaurant that Lana had sampled on her last visit here. The bonus ? fried frog legs. Yummy.
After our nightmare start, getting around to the various sights was simply a matter of hopping on to the Metro. The Metro is great for getting around but they really do like to make you walk long distances between transfers. Don?t be mislead by the Metro map!
This was a great time to be coming to Paris with the shopping avenues lit up in their Christmas glory and the general spirits of the city high despite the cold. We made mandatory visits to high profile tourist areas, such as Notre Dame, The Louvre, Sacre Coeur, Sainte-Chapelle but never actually stepped inside these places. Not sure what happened with the time but we spent a lot of time walking! However, whilst Lana shopped, I did climb the Arc de Triomphe and Eiffel Tower for the nice views over the Champs-Elysees and Paris. Oh ? and we managed to catch a show in the form of Moulin Rouge. Definitely a lot of fun.
Highlights

  • Eiffel Tower at dusk with its beautiful lights
  • Satisfaction of climbing as much of the Eiffel Tower as possible
  • Gorgeous ice cream from Berthillon (31 Rue Saint-Louis-en-l’Ile ). I tried the gingerbread flavour and it was beautiful. Ice cream here is not cheap but you?ve gotta try it at least once. Watching the excitement of the locals as they line up with their take-away Styrofoam containers is entertaining as well
  • The christmas lights and window displays of Galaries Lafayette and the Au Printemps as they seek to outdo each other in the annual unofficial Christmas display competition
  • Centre Pompidou (even though I didn?t get to go inside!)
  • Yummy pastries for breakfast!

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    Lowlights

  • The difficulty of finding nice dinner places after 8pm at night. Paris is definitely not a 24 hour town
  • The shoddy seats you get at Moulin Rouge if you don?t book a dinner and show package

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    Final words Paris is a very beautiful city and one that deserves the praise that it receives. I can’t wait for spring 2005!
    Eiffel TowerEiffel TowerThe Lady

    Salzburg, Austria

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    Salzach 01 Salzach 02 Salzburg at Night

    First words. Salzburg is a city steeped in history and time can be well spent just wandering around and exploring the nooks and crannies. Alternatively there are plenty of day trips that can be made to explore the local sights. I can?t wait to go back and see it in spring/summer.

    Christmas Market 01 Christmas Market 02 Christmas Market 03

    Dates Out of Stansted 6.40am Friday, 26 November
    In to Stansted 10.25pm Sunday, 28 November
    Airline Ryanair. This was my first time flying with this low-cost airline and it was not a bad experience at all. The biggest negative (next to having to fly out of Stansted) was unassigned seating! Yikes! It was basically a stampede to get through the gate to get to the plane.
    Why go? Go if the Sound of Music, Mozart and Christmas Markets (at least from Nov until Christmas) sound appealing to you.
    Weather Mainly cloudy cover but days were cool and dry.
    The experience Waking up at 3am in the morning for a full day in another country was going to be tough. But when I arrived at the Salzburg W.A. Mozart Airport (named after Salzburg?s most famous son) and stepped off the plane to be faced with the beautiful mountain-scape and the brisk winter air I knew I was in for a good day. My travelling accomplices were already in Salzburg with Andrew, having arrived the morning before, and Carolyn and Mel, the night before so they were all well settled by the time I got to the hostel.
    Day 1 was Mozart?s Residence (which has a good self-paced audio guided tour that gives you more information about Mozart than you have room in your brain for), the bustling Christmas markets and the Bavarian Mountains (that?s right when in Salzburg, why not visit Germany??). The tour was average as except for a little time at King?s Lake (K?ssee) and a stop in the town of Berchtesgaden (for the obligatory eat-some-apple-strudel-and-contribute-to-the-local-economy rest break) most of the tour was driving to and around the Alps. More time off the bus would have been appreciated.
    Dinner was Wiener Schnitzel (of course) but I won?t go into how much drama was involved in finding dinner. Dinner is definitely not the main meal in Salzburg!
    Day 2.The Sound of Music Tour! You cannot go to Salzburg and NOT do the Sound of Music Tour. In addition to learning heaps more about Salzburg and the Lakes District you will hear the true story behind the Sound of Music and some of the secrets behind the making of the movie, you get to visit many of the places the movie was filmed at and most importantly you get to sing sing sing. As an added bonus free Edelweiss seeds (now I know you?ve always wanted them!) are given to you at the end of the tour.

    Day 3.The overcast weather from the day before had us planning for a Sound of Music morning (which showed at 10am daily at our hostel). However, the weather was enticingly clear enough for us to venture up to Festung (Fortress) Hohensalzburg. The Fortress is the largest, fully-preserved fortress in central Europe. Those fit enough can walk up to the Fortress but we took the easy way up via the Furnicular. There is plenty to entertain once at the top of the Fortress including the Fortress museum, a marionette museum, a tour of the state rooms, the views and an opportunity to try your hand at cross bow.
    Highlights
  • Sound of Music Tour (cheesy but good fun)
  • Festung Hohensalzburg (make sure you do the state rooms tour ? as part of the tour you end up at the top of the fortress with a 360 degree view of Salzburg)
  • Mirabellgarten
  • Colours of the Christmas markets
  • The Krampus Runs (Wild Spirits). Krampus is a scary looking goat-like creature that runs around and whips the evil spirits out of children and adults. Definitely entertaining to hear the shrieks (and giggling) around you as people try to dodge the Krampus.
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    Lowlights Missing out on going to the Ice Caves and The Trick Fountains of Hellbrunn Palace because we were out of season. (Oh well ? a nice excuse to go back!)
    Final words I’d go again!