LEVANTO
On the day we travelled here from Lucca, there was a train strike!
This means that no trains were running. While Jason (our tour group leader) was sorting it all out (coz we were meant to be going on two trains) me and Sabine were up on top of the city wall, rain falling on our shoulders, watching the BIG tropical thunder and lightening storm.
In the end we took five buses and one train to Levanto, and it took three and a half hours more than expected!
On our first day in Levanto we did the Cinque Terre (“5 lands”) walk.
It is a track (and UNESCO world heritage site) that winds up and down hills between 5 pastel coloured villages on-top-of cliffs.
It was a lovely walk with beautiful scenery. It was fun, but challenging.
After the walk, in the evening, we went to a pesto shop. We took a course on how to make pesto. It was a lot of fun. All 9 of us had a go each at making our own pesto using…
Garlic
Basil
Pine nuts
Salt
Olive oil
Parmesan cheese
I liked Kath’s pesto the best (Chantal).I liked Kate’s pesto the best (Sabine).
Monday, September 29, 2008
Monday, September 15, 2008
Tuscany
Tuscany
Within Tuscany we were staying in a small town called Lucca. Lucca was within walls, and you hardly ever saw a car – everyone biked or walked. The roads were very narrow and cobbled. Everyone in Lucca recycled everything.
On our first afternoon there we hired bikes and cycled around the city walls. We cycled around once with our tour leader, stopping to look at the sights. We then could go around a few more times by ourselves. Each lap was 4 km.
On our first afternoon there we hired bikes and cycled around the city walls. We cycled around once with our tour leader, stopping to look at the sights. We then could go around a few more times by ourselves. Each lap was 4 km.
One day we went to Florence or Firenze. There we went to the Uffizi art gallery. I found it quite boring.[Sabine] I found it very cool looking at the old portraits of royalty.[Chantal]
We went to the Ponte Vecchio bridge. The Ponte Vecchio is famous. It is very old and has lots of jewellery shops on it. We saw all the huge fish in the water waiting for someone to throw food in the water.
On our free day from the tour we walked around the town and climbed the Torre Guinigi [the tower of the seven oaks.]
It had 233 steps and as you went up the stairs there were pictures that told a story of olden times. At the top the view was spectacular, and there were 7 oak trees planted there.
The next day we went to Pisa. There we saw the leaning tower and climbed it. The tower had 308 steps and it was strange climbing on a lean. There was a great view of the Tuscan hills and Pisa itself.
That night Sabine, Kate, Ben (the other children on our tour of Italy) and I made dinner for the adults (with a lot of help from our leader Jason). We made rock melon and ham, figs with reduced balsamic vinegar, pecorino cheese with local honey, spaghetti Bolognese, chick pea salad, a green salad, tomato and mozzarella salad, and a barley salad. For dessert we had straciatella ice cream with strawberries and raspberries.
Roma
Rome…
Rome is full of motor scooters and cigarette smokers !
Rome is HOT and Romans are crazy drivers !
Rome is full of motor scooters and cigarette smokers !
Rome is HOT and Romans are crazy drivers !
Here is Chantal at the Coliseum.
The Coliseum is a place where gladiators fought each other and exotic animals for the emperor’s entertainment nearly 2000 years ago…
It could seat around 80,000 people!
It was amazing being able to walk in the same places the gladiators had walked. And to see the tunnels where the animals used for fighting were kept.
We visited the Vatican City where the Pope lives, which is like another country within Rome.
We did a tour around the Vatican museums, the Sistine Chapel, and St Peter’s Basilica.
It was amazing to see all the artwork that had taken artists so long to do, like the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel which took Michelangelo around 15 years.
It was very good being on a tour because the tour guide explained the meaning of the art.
Here we are in front of the famous marble Pieta by Michelangelo in St Peter’s Basilica, which is the biggest church in the world – it was two football fields long.
The Vatican City is guarded by these guards.
They wear these costumes. If you want to be a guard you need to be:
· A man
· A virgin
· Catholic
· Swiss
Here is Sabine at the Bocca della Verita (the Mouth of Truth).
In the old days someone behind would have a sword and chop off your hand if you replied with a lie.
This is just one of many Gelati (Ice cream) shops we have visited. This one had 100 flavours to choose from ! The ice creams here are real ice creams that taste of what they say they are. They are DELICIOUS!
We threw coins into the Trevi Fountain. This is so we will return to Rome…
There was a man in a shop across from the fountain, and as the fountain was being built he complained about how he did not like it. So the builders built a huge vase so it blocked the man’s view of the fountain.
They wear these costumes. If you want to be a guard you need to be:
· A man
· A virgin
· Catholic
· Swiss
Here is Sabine at the Bocca della Verita (the Mouth of Truth).
In the old days someone behind would have a sword and chop off your hand if you replied with a lie.
This is just one of many Gelati (Ice cream) shops we have visited. This one had 100 flavours to choose from ! The ice creams here are real ice creams that taste of what they say they are. They are DELICIOUS!
We threw coins into the Trevi Fountain. This is so we will return to Rome…
There was a man in a shop across from the fountain, and as the fountain was being built he complained about how he did not like it. So the builders built a huge vase so it blocked the man’s view of the fountain.
Wednesday, September 3, 2008
The day is here
The view from our hotel room across the harbour to Kowloon
Us up at Victoria's Peak...
The holiday begins !!The first flights…
The flight from Wellington to Auckland was good – it only took an hour. The only bad bit was when our ears ached at the end. We flew over Kapiti Island, and saw snow covered Mt Ruapehu and Mt Taranaki. It was gorgeous! Going through the clouds was amazing.
The flight to Hong Kong was ok, up until the last four hours, when it started to get tedious. (The flight took 11 and a half hours). It was a smooth ride. There were screens on the back of the seats, and they gave us blankets and pillows. We barely slept as it was uncomfortable(Chantal) no it wasn’t (Sabine).
Hong Kong airport is huge. When we walked out of the airport it was like walking into a wall of steamy bathroom air. By the time we got to our hotel it was 03:00am New Zealand time, and 11:00pm local time. I slept like a baby that night (Chantal) I didn’t – Chantal kept hogging all the covers (Sabine).
The next day we had a big buffet breakfast. This was yummy and we stuffed ourselves full of melons, fruits, hash browns, bacon, eggs, cocoa pops, croissants, sausages, and an unidentified delicious asian food!!
We spent most of that day recovering from the flight, as well as reading and swimming. We took a walk around the local area, trying to find the biggest mall in the Southern Hemisphere, but we couldn’t find it. After half an hour, we stopped looking as me and Sabine were suffering from dehydration and couldn’t breathe due to the heat and humidity!
Today, our last day in Hong Kong, we went on a tour. Hong Kong is very tall. It is filled with tall buildings. They are currently building one which will be 118 storeys high. We are on the 21st floor, which is tall enough for us. However, the view is great. We can see Kowloon across the harbour and millions of tall buildings, some scungy, some new.
We went to Victoria’s Peak which is a mountain on Hong Kong Island. From the top of this we couldn’t see too much as the fog/smog was too thick. We then went to Aberdeen, a fishing village. There we went on a boat called a Sampan, which took us to see the boats where people lived. A sign on the boat said that it was only allowed in the typhoon sheltered harbour parts! That really freaked me out (Chantal). Next we went to a jewellery factory which was semi interesting (Chantal) and boring (Sabine). Most of the time was spent looking at jewellery that was far too expensive. Dad whinged and moaned as we did this. Each counter full of jewellery had a person behind it. When you went up to the counter the person immediately jumped up as though the Queen was coming. Dad said this freaked him out. Lastly we went to the Stanley Market. This was cool, and we bought souvenirs. They had lots of cool togs there. Tonight we have a twelve and half hour flight to Rome… which we are not looking forward to!
The flight from Wellington to Auckland was good – it only took an hour. The only bad bit was when our ears ached at the end. We flew over Kapiti Island, and saw snow covered Mt Ruapehu and Mt Taranaki. It was gorgeous! Going through the clouds was amazing.
The flight to Hong Kong was ok, up until the last four hours, when it started to get tedious. (The flight took 11 and a half hours). It was a smooth ride. There were screens on the back of the seats, and they gave us blankets and pillows. We barely slept as it was uncomfortable(Chantal) no it wasn’t (Sabine).
Hong Kong airport is huge. When we walked out of the airport it was like walking into a wall of steamy bathroom air. By the time we got to our hotel it was 03:00am New Zealand time, and 11:00pm local time. I slept like a baby that night (Chantal) I didn’t – Chantal kept hogging all the covers (Sabine).
The next day we had a big buffet breakfast. This was yummy and we stuffed ourselves full of melons, fruits, hash browns, bacon, eggs, cocoa pops, croissants, sausages, and an unidentified delicious asian food!!
We spent most of that day recovering from the flight, as well as reading and swimming. We took a walk around the local area, trying to find the biggest mall in the Southern Hemisphere, but we couldn’t find it. After half an hour, we stopped looking as me and Sabine were suffering from dehydration and couldn’t breathe due to the heat and humidity!
Today, our last day in Hong Kong, we went on a tour. Hong Kong is very tall. It is filled with tall buildings. They are currently building one which will be 118 storeys high. We are on the 21st floor, which is tall enough for us. However, the view is great. We can see Kowloon across the harbour and millions of tall buildings, some scungy, some new.
We went to Victoria’s Peak which is a mountain on Hong Kong Island. From the top of this we couldn’t see too much as the fog/smog was too thick. We then went to Aberdeen, a fishing village. There we went on a boat called a Sampan, which took us to see the boats where people lived. A sign on the boat said that it was only allowed in the typhoon sheltered harbour parts! That really freaked me out (Chantal). Next we went to a jewellery factory which was semi interesting (Chantal) and boring (Sabine). Most of the time was spent looking at jewellery that was far too expensive. Dad whinged and moaned as we did this. Each counter full of jewellery had a person behind it. When you went up to the counter the person immediately jumped up as though the Queen was coming. Dad said this freaked him out. Lastly we went to the Stanley Market. This was cool, and we bought souvenirs. They had lots of cool togs there. Tonight we have a twelve and half hour flight to Rome… which we are not looking forward to!
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