Home Sweet Afrikaaaaaaa!!

We left Portugal at 5am on a Friday morning & arrived in Cape Town at 4pm on Saturday.........it was a very...long....day! The lovely Celia & Jacque (the tour leader & driver from our trip last year) picked us up & it was straight to their place for a Braai (Sth African barbie).....delicious! Andrew has already decided that when he gets home he is going to build himself one. Over a couple of drinks it was decided that although our tour officially started at 9am the following morning, we would have far more fun with Celia & Jac on a winery tour....so we made the phone call & arranged to meet up with the group the following evening.

Photo:The inside of the first winery......can't remember the name so I'll show you a picture instead!

We headed off mid morning to the first of 3 wineries.......& oh how good the wine was! That was until we got to Fairview & were introduced to the delights of their goats cheese. I think Celia & I made the rounds of the cheese platters about a dozen times...& that was before the wine had even been tasted! Who knew the wine was supposed to be tasted with the cheese, we just thought the cheese was an appetiser. That meant that we needed to go back to the cheese with wine glass in hand to really get the full experience. What can I say....we really got our monies worth!

Photo: Someone may have indulged in a few too many reds.......don't you love the sticker - "Fairview Official Wine Taster"!

By the third winery we were all feeling pretty happy with ourselves so it was time for some lunch & maybe an afternoon nap! Before we knew it we had to leave for Stellenbosch....& the hostel for our first night with the group. There is nothing like getting to know someone on an intimate level by sharing a dorm room with them. Well, that's how we met our new family.....& Andrew didn't disappoint....he snored like a train all night! Welcome to the tour guys!!

Photo: Fun times with Jacque & Celia :)


In the morning we were introduced to our home for the next few weeks......the truck! Now the truck didn't have a name so after a few days she was christened "Sparkles" after my new favourite lolly!! We left Stellenbosch & headed to Citrus Dale. It was here that we met an interesting character by the name of Skokkie - a local bushman who took us on a nature walk near the campsite. When I say nature walk I really mean nature bush-bash as old Skokkie led us up & over rocks, through bushes & along narrow paths. Every now & then he would dart off into the bushes & return bearing some sort of creature who inevitably got the shits & couldn't wait to scamper off to safety. Some of the things he "found" included a turtle who did the running man mid air, a baby puff adder, a couple of scorpions, some caterpillars & a giant worm thing! He also showed us some really old rock art......but most of all it was all about how nuts he was!!

Photo: Crazy Skokkie.....& his equally crazy hair!

I've also forgotten to mention our awesome guides Peter & Bernie....well his name is Bernhard but that is a bit of a mouthfull so I christened him Bernie.....& it stuck!! They are both Zimbabwean & have the most luminous smiles with infectious, hysterical laughs to match. The rest of the group consisted of 2 Belgains (newly engaged), 2 Aussies (newlyweds) & a South African chick....(newly sex-ting!!).

Next morning it was up early....a theme that will be repeated throughout the next few weeks....& by early I mean 5am.....aarrrggghhh!! It was already time to leave South Africa & cross over into Namibia. This border crossing was like no other border crossing we have done before - & that's saying something cos we crossed from Zambia to Zimbabwe last year on foot & in the dark. It was like we stepped over the border and went from Earth to Mars. The change in landscape was incredible. There were massive rock formations followed by miles & miles of nothing.....not a tree or bush in sight. Then there was sand dune after sand dune.....& then there were a few more sand dunes!!

Photo: The first photo taken out the window just over the Namibian border......

Photo: .....nothing!!

Our first night in Namibia was spent at the most beautiful campsite called Felix United. It had a pool that looked out over the Orange River. What was funny though was checking out all the other "campers" who were also travelling around Africa "overland". So it has come to light that I have turned into a camping snob...or maybe that should be a reverse-snob. See, we are travelling pretty rough.....fantastic fun but rough. These other "campers" arrive at their campsites, have their tents set up for them (complete with camper beds), have their dinner cooked for them & then enjoy it sitting at clothed tables laden with platters & lit by candles. I think you get the picture. We, on the other hand, get to a camp, set up our tents, roll out our mats, start cooking dinner & then enjoy said dinner on our laps, under the romantic light of our head torches. BUT I wouldn't trade our experience for all the sand in Namibia.....which is a lot!!

The next few days saw more early starts, sand, rough roads, rocks & more sand. We walked around one side of the Fish River Canyon. It is the second largest canyon in the world behind some unkown one in Arizona!! It measures 160km long, 27km wide & up to 550m deep...mega vertigo!

Photo: Fish River Canyon


We also stopped off in Sesriem where we were taken on a beautiful sunset, canyon walk by Bernie. There really is nothing like sunset in Africa!

Photo: Ahhhhhh!!


Before we knew it we were getting up at 4.30am for our excursion to Dune 45 for the most beautiful sunrise I have ever seen. The dune is so named because it is 45km from the Sesriem Canyon & they say that the sand is over 5 million years old.....Phwoaaah!! We drove out there & began the 170m climb to the top. I will admit that we didn't actually make it to the top before the sun started to rise so we parked our butts on the side of it & were wowed by the sun slowly rising in the distance. It was also around about then that I realised I had mobile phone reception for the first time in Namibia...so I got to call Bec for her birthday - a massive highlight! I may have shed a few tears following that phone call....but what a surreal thing to call your best friend while she's having her afternoon coffee on the other side of the world & you're watching the sun rise over picture perfect sand dunes in Namibia......pretty memorable!

Photo: Happy Birthday Bec xxx


From Dune 45, we jumped in a Land Cruiser & headed out to explore some more sand dunes. First stop was Sossusvlei, a large clay pan which on the odd occasion floods but is mostly a dry, unihabitable expanse of sand & undergrowth. As we began our walk (which our guide Peter had kindly volunteered to lead for us!) we began to discover that some creatures actually thrived in this environment. Everywhere we looked we could follow tiny little beetle tracks across the dunes....the funniest being the ones that went straight for a bit then did a little loop like maybe they were trying to lose a predator!

Photo: Maybe he just lost his way....??

From here we went up one of the hundreds of sand dunes and were confronted with a spectacular sight - Dead Vlei. A huge salt pan with 1,000 year old, dead trees dotting the barren landscape. It is so hot & dry out there that the trees have literally dehydrated. We had a ball running around in the 35 degree heat like idiots taking stupid photos & carrying on. It was amazing.

Photo: Acting like a clown in the Dead Vlei.....


After exhausting ourselves in the Dead Vlei, we climbed yet another sand dune to get a glimpse of Ostrich Vlei...but the real highlight of climbing this dune was the run back down it!! Fun, fun, fun :)

Photo: Just distroying the nature......

So it was back in the jeep & then on our next stop - Swakopmund......& that's where the fun really starts...... ;)

Chilling out in Portugal

When we sorted out our passport situation in Paris we decided that we needed to go somewhere for a week or so to chill out before leaving for Africa. We didn't mind where but it needed to be cheap. We spun the wheel & landed on Portugal.

We arrived in Porto late in the afternoon & jumped straight on the train at the airport & zoomed into the city. What an impressive train system.....clean, efficient & cheap. It took us into the centre of town & after a 20 minute walk we arrived at the hostel...well we saw a big, red door with the appropriate number displayed above it. What the hell, ring the bell & hope for the best. A young man answered the door & welcomed us into the hostel like we were entering his home. He carried our bags to our room....a 10 bed dorm....then took us on a tour of the building. A massive lounge room with flat screen TV, DVD's, big fluffy couches & cable TV, a fully equipped kitchen & the room was immaculate...with 2 bathrooms inside the room!! This going to be heaven.


I am ashamed to say, however, that I didn't even leave the hostel for the entire time we stayed in Porto. Unless you count going to get food...from across the road. We did make friends with the local pizza shop...they made our margherita pizza in the shape of a heart!!

I don't have much else to say about Porto...cos I didn't see any of it....what I can say is that on our way out of town on the bus (on the way to Lisbon) I did catch a glimpse of the town & it did look lovely. I feel kind of bad that I didn't make the effort of getting dressed (yes, I spent the entire time in my jarmies - even when going the shops) & having a bit of a wander around town. You need to understand, there was a "Keeping Up With The Kardashians" marathon on MTV & I had a whole season to catch up on!!


So it was on to Lisbon. The bus ride was uneventful...except that the bus driver yelled at me when I tried to carry our small daypacks onto the bus with me, he wanted me to put them under the bus in with the other luggage. There was no way that was happening cos we carry our money, laptop & camera in our little packs, so I just ignored him & climbed on the bus. Problem solved. I did notice him giving me stink eye in the mirror but after a while I just gave it back & I must give it better than him cos he got scared & looked away. So we arrived in Lisbon & again we were blown away by the efficiency of the public transport. In no time we were in the centre of town & negotiating the twisting, winding streets looking for our hostel. It turned out to be easier than we thought & was only a 5 minute walk from the metro.

We arrived in the foyer of the funkiest hostel we have ever seen. We had been impressed by the hostel in Porto but this one really took the cake. It had an old fashioned barber's chair in the corner of the room, a coffee table suspended by wires from the ceiling & a looooooong dining table at the end of the room - big enough to seat about 20 people. WOW! Then we heard the best news of all - they had a luggage lift. Heaven! Then we were shown to our room......painted bright blue with a funky tree design all over the walls & ceiling & a birdcage light fitting hanging down. The best hostel we have stayed in anywhere, ever....& only 15 Euro per night including breakfast. Ohhhh....did I mention the breakfast. We came down on morning 1 & were faced with - freshly made crepes with nutella, scrambled eggs, cold meat, cheese, cereal, fruit, toast......Mmmmmmm!! I could feel my resolve to get out & about in the city starting to falter, especially when we discovered that every floor had a lounge room with comfy couches, books & free WiFi. It boggles the mind how how the rest of the world gets hostels so wrong!

Photo: The ceiling above the bunk......


Another great service they offered was a free city walk with one of the guys who owns the place - Antonio. He is such a lovely guy, very friendly & really excited to be sharing his home with us. The walk took in the main sights of the town including a really cute little sqaure called "Tolerance Square". Lisbon prides itself on it's tolerance, not only of different races & cultures but also of all sexual preferences. They are well known as being the gay-friendly capital of Europe. In Tolerance Square, alot of the African immigrants gather every afternoon to sit in the square & chat & share their traditional delicacies with the locals. It was a really lovely atmosphere with all the kids running around playing chasey & having a great time. It was also in this square (at 10am) we tried a local drink called Ginjinha - a kind of cross between port, red wine & ginger, served in a small plastic cup & sipped. Not my cup of tea but Andrew must have liked it cos he went back & had another try the next day!

Photo: Mmmmm....numnums!



We also got to see a couple of beautiful churches. One in particular was damaged many years ago by fire. If this was any other European city they would have had the scaffolding up so fast & it would have been completely restored. Not in Lisbon - in fact they did nothing...except replace the roof that had collapsedbecause all the locals were continuing to worship there, without a roof!! Inside the church you can still see black flames marks up the walls & the remnants of charred beams. The most interesting thing was at the very front of the church....a statue of Jesus turned chocolate coloured from the smoke but still proudly out on display.....they really don't discriminate in Lisbon!!

Photo: Charred remains & black Jesus.....sneaky photo taken while the priest guy was talking ;)



Towards the end of the tour we jumped on an old fashioned tram car for the steep ride up to the flea market. Not much to be bought but a great place to people watch. On the way back down the hill & after jumping off the tram we wound our way through more twisty, turny streets into a residential area. The kind of area where people hang their washing out between the buildings opposite each other & neighbours carry on conversations from top floor windows down to the street. We arrived at a tiny restaurant & were treated to the most amazing local meal. Cod fish pie with vegetables & rice, olives & bread & wine. Delicious! Once we had stuffed ourselves silly we returned to our home (it really felt like home!!), showered & went out to meet Heather & Megs...the Canadians we had met up with previously in Prague & Budapest.

Photo: The Lisbon skyline



It was fantastic to see them again & to catch up on all their travels in Croatia & Greece...it just means we have now added more places to the "must see" list! We went out for sushi, which turned out to be delicious - despite the the fact that the first thing the waiter said was "We have no tuna or avocado...."...WHAT??? I also had my first sangria, by all accuonts not that great but I didn't mind it. Then it was back to the hostel for cocktails into the wee hours & bed. The rest of our time in Lisbon was taken up by shopping, walking around, more shopping & eating. On the last day we ventured down to the waterfront. Looked lovely from a distance & we were thrilled to see so many fish really close to the sea wall.....well, upon further investigation we realised that they were actually feasting on the raw sewerage that was pumping out into the water...NOT SO NICE!!

Photo: Errrr.....pooooooos!!


Oh, & I almost forgot to tell you about my new friend Pedro. Earlier in the week I had spotted a hairdressing salon just down from the hostel. It looked quite modern & the hairdressers all had great hair so I thought "What the hell!" & booked myself in for a cut & colour. So I arrived for my appointment & was introduced to Pedro. Now Pedro had about half a dozen studs in each cheek, rings in his nose & eyebrows, long, long hair tied back in a bun & he was wearing a headband. Now admittedly, alarm bells should have started ringing then but I just thought he was a bit eccentric. So we sat down & I gave him the whole sob story about backpacking, no hairdryers, camping in Africa etc & asked him to cut it short & into a low maintenance style. Maybe that's where I went wrong. You see without my glasses on I am as blind as a bat so I couldn't exactly see what he was up to. I am also used to having a razer near the back of my head so that didn't bother me....but once it was all over & he triumphantly spun me around in the chair & gave me a mirror to check out his handy work I realised the horrific truth.....he had shaved the back of head....I looked like a boy...for real!! I didn't know whether to laugh or cry so I just paid him, smiled sweetly & ran back to the hostel to show Andrew the damage. Needless to say there was no sympathy there...he laughed & laughed & told me I looked like a proper lesbian now!! At least I was in Lisbon where I would be accepted for who I am - Lesbian or not!!



That night we took our place at the giant table downstairs for one of Antonio's famous "Family dinners". It was amazing & really did feel like a big family all gathered around the table, sharing bread, wine & a massive feast of soup followed by peri-peri chicken & rice then fruit salad. Antonio fussed over us all like a mother hen & made sure everyone had enough to eat & enough wine. Before we knew it the time ticked over to midnight & we hadn't left the table yet. That's just the kind of place it was.



It was with sadness that we left Portugal, it turned out to be the perfect place to rest & recharge our batteries before we left the Continent for Africa. Next time we'll definitely head down south to check out the beaches & sleepy resort towns......I'll just have to make sure that I have a haircut before I go!!

Treasure hunt in Paris!

So time for Paris - Round 3! With my detailed intinerary (based on Dad's list) we headed off on foot on day 1 of the challenge. From our hostel in Mont Martre, we headed down into Paris via the Galerie LaFayette & the Opera House. Now, Dad had cryptically asked us to go into the perfume department on the ground floor & look up. It wasn't until we were in there that I remembered his photos from there & why he told us to do that.

Photo: It is hard to photograph the roof so you can see how amazing it is.....


The view of the stained glass ceiling is phenomenal. Chaddy's got nothing on this place. From here we headed up onto the roof for a spectacular view of the Paris skyline & the back of the Opera House. We had seen the front of the Opera House all lit up on the night drive but I was looking forward to going into the foyer & checking out the opulence. Unfortunately for us there were rehearsals for a new ballet being held at the time & for what turned out to be the ENTIRE time we were in Paris so it was a no go zone. Bummer!

Photo: Beautiful Opera House


After grabbing some lunch on the steps of the Opera House we headed off to the Place de la Concorde....& along the Champs Elysee where we got to pretend we had money. I don't think the shop keepers appreciated my nose prints & drool on their windows but too bad! The shops along this boulevard occupy some of the priciest real estate in the world & their window displays did not disappoint. There was even a queue to get into Louis Vuitton....I couldn't even afford a key ring in that place!

Photo: Heading towards The Arc de Triomphe


At the end of the Champs Elysee is of course the lovely Arc de Triomphe. Luckily there is a pedestrian underpass to get into the middle of the roundabout cos I wasn't too keen on playing chicken on the most dangerous intersection in the western world....all 12 roads leading into it! Underneath the Arc de Triumph is the tomb of the unknown soldier. It also has the eternal flame which apparantly has only ever gone out twice.....once was when a group of Aussies peed on it....classy!! Back down the other side of the Champs Elysee we headed to the Obelisk. Now, I'm not too happy with the Egyptians at the moment but I will go into that more later!

Photo: Standing under the Arc....luckily for us, they had just finished cleaning it so it looked shiny & new!


We also checked out the Princess Diana tribute. I had imagined that she died on the outskirts of the city so it was shocking to realise that it happened in a tunnel right underneath central Paris. From the memorial you can see the Eiffel Tower & the top of Notre Dame. The gold, concrete flame is a bit ugly but the railings & concrete around it have been decorated with tributes, pictures & random statements which made for some interesting reading. For some reason there were lots of Michael Jackson tributes written there too!

Photo: I still can't believe that the accident happened right in the centre of Paris...


By the end of Day 1 we were exhausted & had estimated we had walked about 15kms so we headed back to our hood for some dinner. Later on we went up to Sacre Coeur....literally a 5 minute walk up the hill & there it was. The prettiest & whitest Basilica I had seen & of course even more spectacular all lit up at night. I just love the smooth curves of the pure, white stone. What's more, there was a lovely view of the night skyline & the sparkly Eiffel Tower from the top. I could have spent all night up there.....especially when we headed into the little artist village area with shop after shop selling freshly cooked crepes with Nutella & cream. Heaven!

Photo: Sacre Coeur by night.........

Photo: .......& by day!!


The next morning it was back to Sacre Coeur to meet up with Gav & Christine, the Kiwi's we had hung out with while on Busabout. After a skip around the inside of Sacre Coeur it was back down into the centre of Paris to knock a few more sights off the list. We headed down past Moulin Rouge to Jardin de Touleries, next to the Louvre Museum. As it was a Tuesday, the Louvre was closed but it gave us a great opportunity to get photos of it with much less people around....not an easy thing to do at any of the sights in Paris! Before heading off to Notre Dame Cathedral we had the obligitory crepe break - something that would be repeated several time that day! The crepe guy even recognised us when we went back later - I thought it was cool but Andrew was disgusted!!

Photo: Not a bad place to get married aye???


So we walked along the Rhine with our crepes & criss crossed along all the bridges (including the Carrie bridge from Sex In The City) & ended up at the stunning, gothic, Notre Dame Cathedral. The stained glass windows inside were breathtaking but not the most intersting part. I was fascinated by the confessionals. I have only ever seen them in movies really so I was picturing the old, timber boxes that you sit in with the Priest guy peering at you through the little sliding window. Well not here. No, instead they had a set up that I can only describe as the kind of place you go to when you have an appointment with your bank manager. So freakin weird!! Before we knew it we had to say goodbye to Gav & Christine & grab the metro back to Monte Martre....for our nightly visit to Sacre Coeur.

Photo: I'm sure Dad has this photo.....

Photo: I half expected Barbara from the ANZ ads to walk out....


Next up on the itinerary was the beautiful Palais de Luxembourg, maybe my favourite garden in Paris. It is a student area so has a very relaxed vibe with heaps of groups of kids chilling out in the gardens having picnics & hanging out. There are also lots of cheap eateries & I found some amazing brownies nearby.....I think that adds to the nice memories of the area! Then down to the Pantheon (nothing compared to my favourite Roman structure!!) & the Bastille. The Bastille is not very exciting but there was a bomb scare there while we were there so that added some colour. They ended up closing all the roads & the metro & bringing in the dog squad & police in riot gear.

Photo: Palais de Luxembourg


The rest of the day was a blur of cathedrals, parks & yep, you guessed it, crepes!! Oh, & Andrew payed $9 for a 250ml beer......aarrrrrgggh! One of my favourites was St Chapelle, another gothic cathedral like Notre Dame but with no tourists (good tip Dad!). The stained glass inside was amazing but what was exciting was that there was a troupe of acrobats hanging from the ceiling, practicing for some sort of perfomance inside the Cathedral. They spun around on their silks & ran up & down the pillars & walls...it was really cool & quite modern for a church!

Photo: Just hanging out in church....as you do!


On our last full day in Paris, we had to pick up our passports (no problems there - woo hoo!) & then we were off to tackle The Louvre Museum. I had been warned about The Louvre.....you know...."You could spend a week there & still not see it all....". Well, we kinda stuffed up. We were going to go the night before because it was half price night but we were too exhausted, so we decided to go after picking up the visas. This meant we didn't get there until 3pm but we thought it was open until 9pm like the night before......whoopsies, that is only once a week for half price night. SO, it actually closed at 5.30pm. Hmmmmm......we made the decision to head straight to the Egyptian Antiquities section because neither of us are much for paintings & we are both interested in Egyptian history. Remember I said earlier that I wasn't happy with the Egyptians? Well it's because they have been having an ongoing battle with the French Government over the Obelisk in Place de la Concorde. You see the Egyptians want the Frenchies to return it to them & the Frenchies don't want to. So the Egyptians came over & took back a heap of the Egyptian artifacts from the exhibition. This has resulted in rows & rows of empty glass cases, empty hooks on the wall & a seriously depleted collection. Boooooo!

Photo: Amazing.....


It was still amazing though. Walking through the vast halls of the museum - though it doesn't take too long before you forget to look at the artwork & find yourself craning your neck at all the amazing frescoes & stunning architecture. I guess I'm not really cut out to be an art lover!! Of course, a visit to the Louvre would not be complete without stopping in on the Mona Lisa herself. I was so surprised by how excited Andrew got. We battled our way through the crowds of people & there she was. A bit small but impressive all the same. It is one of those moments when you say "Oh my god, I can't believe I'm here". It seems it had even more of an impression on Andrew than me because every time I turned my back he would scamper off back to see her again. He was a bit star struck I think!

Photo: There she is.....behind reflective glass!!!

Photo: All the crazys vying for a look.....including Andrew!!


So our visit came to an end, we will definitely have to go back just to wander the endless halls & soak up the atmosphere some more. We had a date with my favourite icon in Paris though.....the Eiffel Tower. The funny
thing with the Eiffel Tower is that it doesn't matter how often you see it, you only need to spot it peaking through the trees for it to catch your breath all over again. We headed over to base of the tower....& that's the other thing, as you walk towards it, it doesn't seem to get any closer....you just walk& walk!! We were planning to climb up it but because of strong winds, they had closed the stairs & were making everyone go up in the lift. This resulted in over a 2 hour wait.....we gave up & headed up onto the hill opposite it instead to wait for the light show. It's ok though, cos we need to leave some stuff to do when we go back :)

Photo: My favourite....


And so our adventures in Paris came to an end. We are next heading to Portugal & to be honest, I am looking forward to the break!! Europe has been amazing but it is relentless. It is the kind of place where you feel the constant pressure to be out & about all day, every day because there is so much to see & never enough time. Although.....there's always enough time for another crepe!!

NOTE: You may be wondering about the horrific bedbugs?? Well, incase you didn't catch my rantings on facebook, we unfortunately had a VERY bad case of bedbugs in our hostel in Paris (I'm not sure how the mattress didn't get carried away while I slept on it). Sadly, it has since come to light that it is quite common in Paris, which is a real shame because it did put a slight dampener on things at the start. Especially when I was trying to walk around the city covered in hot, itchy bites, trying not to scratch myself into oblivion. The standard of accommodation in Paris is sooooo bad it defies words but they've got the goods as far as the sights go so it will never stop people from going there. It is just a bit sad that they don't care about people more. Love you anyway though Paris xx

Photo: This is the only photo I have of some of the bites....& it was taken 2 weeks afterwards!!

Paris.....Brazilians, dead people & Disney.......

We arrived on Paris at 10pm & were very lucky to have a bus driver who was willing (read: crazy) to drive up the Champs Elysees.....& around the roundabout...twice!! We also happened to drive past the Eiffel Tower as it was sparkling.....my favourite thing to see in Paris. It was fantastic to do a tour around the city at night actually because it really comes alive at night.


We checked into the hostel where the bus dropped us off & went straight to bed.....until... At about 3am a couple of pommie blokes came in, drunk, & decided to pack their bags....for an hour & a half....with the lights on! Now for those of you who know me, you might find it hard to believe that I don't really have the patience for this kind of thing, I know, shocking! So I gave them over an hour before I stuck my head over the side of the bed & said "Are you guys going to be done soon?" (very sweetly I might add). They ignored me...huh?? So I said, not so sweetly, "Shut the F*** up, there are 10 other people in here trying to sleep". One of them then looked up & said rather matter-of-factly "It's a hostel, get used to it!" & went back to his bags. I was so shocked by his response that I shut my mouth & lay back down....while Andrew lay in his bunk laughing his arse off! After about 20 more minutes they went to bed & 2 hours later they left. C'mon people, if you're gonna go out on the piss the night before you leave at least pack your shit before you go out! Anyway, that's my rant....I feel better now....thanks for listening!

So we checked out in the morning & went to a new hostel....a 3m x 3m room with 2 bunks & a bathroom...it was cozy. We also had a mission today....lodge our application for Brazilian visitor visas for next month. What a mission that turned out to be. We jumped on the metro & arrived at the Brazilian Embassy....turns out the Consulate Offices have moved. So we walked about 20 minutes down the road & found the consulate office. It was here that the excitement began. We asked the guy at the front desk where we need to go for the visa desk. He asked us if we had lodged the online application....we said "Ummm...no!"...so we needed to do that first. Unfortunately the website is only in French or Portugese so we didn't know about the online stuff. Luckily there was a computer there that he said we could use & upon realising that we couldn't read the language, he even came & sat with us to translate. We finished that up on our own (it took about 2 hours) & went back out to reception for our next instructions. Problem...apparantly they had stopped giving out numbers for the queue for the visa desk about 15 minutes earlier. Our new friend saw the distress on our faces (we had shared with him earlier that we needed to get these processed quickly cos we couldn't afford to stay in Paris!!) & told us to go to the Post Office & pay the fee then come back to him....quickly! SO off to the Post Office we went, paid our fees (with the help of the amazing staff in the PO) then ran back to the Consulate. We ran, puffing, through the doors & he came over straight away & led us into another room. He started asking to see our paperwork & as I got it all out he slipped a number for the queue into my hand with a bit of a wink! We were soooo grateful & relieved.

We sat & waited in the queue for 2 more hours & we were the last ones to be seen. The lady who was helping us started to speak in Portugese & I said "I'm so sorry, I don't understand"...oh-oh, no English! She was amazing though & her English was much better than she realises so with lots of pointing, smiling & sign language we managed to finish the rest of the paperwork. Not before speaking with some dude in Brazil who said that we wouldn't be apporved unless we could provide a current bank statement. He then hung up on me & was left even more confused than before. It didn't matter, the lady had a quick conference with her colleagues & decided that we must look like nice, honest people & announced that it would be no porblem, "Come back on Thursday to collect". That gave us another 7 days in Paris....geez, what were we going to do with ALL that time??


Well, it is no secret that Paris is my Dad's favourite city right? SO he had sat down & drawn up a looong list of SOME of his favourites ways to spend a day in Paris. So what did I do? Got my notebook out & plotted an itinerary for 4 & 1/2 days of sightseeing....kinda like a treasure hunt! you might be wondering why I didn't plan for 7 days?? Cos we were heading to Disneyland for 2 days first of course!

Photo: Great way to spend a morning, hanging out with the dead people!!


Before we hit Disneyland though, we went out to one of the "attractions" on Dad's list - Cimetiere Du Pere Lachaise...or the cemetary where Jim Morrison & other famous folk are buried. We had the inside tip to pick up a free map inside but one lady was being very entrepreneurial & selling home made ones for 2Euros. Hahaha...suckers! We studied the map, marking all the "must sees" & set off on the trail. Andrew asked at one point why didn't they have the graves numbered or something......you do tend to forget it is a cemetary...with real dead people! It is a really cool place just to wonder around in & some of the graves are sooo old. Unfortunately it is getting a bit run down & we saw numerous graves where the head stones had fallen down, often knocking down the ones around them & causing all sorts of carnage. We did take in all the big names though; Oscar Wilde, Bellini, Edith Piaf, Marcel Proust, Chopin, Sarah Bernhardt & of course Jim Morrison. Some might say it is a weird way to spend a morning but we both had a great time. I will admit is is abit weird that we would do a cemetary & Disneyland in the same day though!

Photo: Jim Morrison......tucked up in a corner!

Photo: Oscar Wilde....covered with kisses!

Photo: Who doesn't love the Sleeping Beauty castle??

So we jumped on the train & took the 40 minute ride out of town to Torcy where we even booked into a HOTEL...no bunk beds...ahhhhh, the luxury!! There is nothing to do in this area, much like Anaheim in LA so the next day it was straight to Disneyland. When we were in LA years ago we spent 5 days at Disneyland & could probably have spent a few more....we loved it. At Eurodisney we would only have the day to see it all so we were ready for a big one. After queuing for almost an hour in the security check....one guy, manually checking every bag, pram & wheelchair...we finally made it through the magical gates. It was 10.30 (the park had been open 30 minutes) & we headed straight to the first ride to collect a fast pass. (A fast pass entitles you to go to the front of the line during a designated time on a designated ride without waiting at all). The time on the fast pass was 2.25pm - 2.55pm.....how in the hell had all the fast passes been taken until that time when the park had only been open for 30 minutes....hmmmm?? Something fishy going on! By 3pm the fast passes were for 9pm & by 3.30 they had been closed. Basically that meant that we had to queue for every ride & the average wait time was 75 minutes. BUT, the rides were amazing.....except Space Mountain cos I was absolutely terrified & kept my eyes firmly closed the entire time! The rollercoasters were the best though & I screamed & laughed my way around every one....Andrew is still deaf. During the times when we weren't queuing, we walked around, ate way overpriced fried food & bought waaaay too much Disney crap....although I still wish I'd bought a t-shirt....next time!

Photo: My favourite.......

 

By the time we left it was almost 10pm & we could barely walk from exhaustion but it had been a fantastic day. I really love Disney, have most of the movies & totally get the hysteria that surrounds the characters.....& Andrew loves a goofy hat!

Photo: See, I told you......

The next day, instead of cheking out, the hotel let us hang around until 4pm watching the F1 GP on their giant flatscreen before we headed back into Paris to hit "The Great Paris Treasure Hunt".....can't wait!