Singapore and homeward bound

Had a 1 1/2 wait on the tarmac in Istanbul, were 22 in the queue to take off. Arrived in Singapore at 6 am.Got to hotel at 7.30 and had to leave bags and fill in time til 3pm. After only 1 hr sleep on plane, both felt remarkably good. Walked to nearest MRT and found we had to go to another station to get tourist pass. Worked out ticket machines then had to wait til 9am for ticket office to open. Went to China town and bought some bits and pieces, bag getting very full!! Stopped for 2 cold Tiger beers and had a fun chat with local guy.Headed to Little India for lunch then back to hotel... Well that was interesting..I know why it was cheap. Seems to be the red light district!!! But the restaurants were good, can't say the same about the room.Was a laugh though. Dave's lovely brother Andrew came to our rescue, he took one look and said"Pack your bags ,you are coming with me!"
Andrew's penthouse apartment was a far cry from our previous abode!!! Caught a taxi to Holland Village and Andrew kindly shouted dave a 30 min massage, that nearly ended up being an hour! Lucky man. Found a seat at a local pub to watch Wales vs France. The whole village seemed to be watching. Went for a good evening walk to the local bush reserve and nearly melted, but felt good for the exercise. Enjoyed a nice meal together. Great catching up and seeing a bit of Andrew's new TV venture producing a series on Money Matters. Very impressed.

Sunday: Left Andrew to catch up on some work and went back to China town to get a few bits and pieces had another couple of beers and lunch at the bar we went to on Friday, except this time the guy was supporting Australia!!! Got the MRT to Clarke Quay and found a bar on Boat Quay with a good seat for the rugby. Big All Black camp on one side and Aussies in bar on the other.Dave wore his All Black jersey with pride (thank you JB and Kim) as we romped in with a win. Had lovely meal at a local place then went to watch a laser show at Marina Sands. Another great day.

Monday:Got taxi to airport around 10 as Andrew had to work, next live show on tomorrow night.We were able to check bags in early so decided against returning to town, so hot and sticky. Got into Gold Lounge and chilled out.Skped natalie and chatted for nearly an hour. was great. Looking forward to home. A wonderful trip with fantastic memories amd great new friends. "It's been a GREAT DAY and a GREAT TRIP!"

Days 26- 30 in Turkey

A very early start, left boat at 5am! driver even got lost on the way to the airport.Enjoyed Air Turkeys lounge and flight to Istanbul. Met at airport by not 1 but 2 guides. 1 APT and the other a local Turkish guide. Istanbul is HUGE! 15 million people live here and sometimes 3 to 4 million walk around just on Taxsim Square on the weekend. Our hotel the Grand Hyatt is superb, it should be for $440 a night!
We enjoyed a belly dancing cultural show and dinner and visiting huge mosques and bazaars.Had our first rain in a month and boy did it come down. Visited the beautiful Topkapi Palace including a harem and the Grand Bazaar with over 4000 shops. Yes we were able to find a bargain or two.Went to an amazing carpet wholesaler where two of our group bought beautiful carpets.
After Istanbul the highlight of our trip was driving to the Gallipoli Peninsular where we had a superb fish lunch in the fishing village of Gallipoli. It was especially moving visiting ANZAC Cove, Lone Pine, Chunick Bair and to hear of the ANZACs surperb bravery. Teaching ANZAC Day will be more special from now on.It was really bleak day which seemed appropriate.People in our group were thrilled to be able to find the graves and names on memorial walls of loved ones that had lost their lives and have the chance to pay their respects.
Visited the ancient site of Troy ( trogan horse) before returning to Istanbul one last time to spend the last of our Turkish Lira. Our farewell dinner was at a wonderful restaurant called Dahill which had fantastic views of the night lights of Istanbul and the Bosphorous Sea.
It was very hard to say goodbye to our new friends of the last 30 days in what has been certainly the trip of a lifetime.
NB: will add photos later

Days 22-25

Into Romania via the Iron Gates and onto Bulgaria. Two very poor countries and the poverty and rubbish is a real contrast to the Europe we have seen so far. However everyone seems happy and family is very important especially children. Went to top of a surperb formation of rocks. A big climb up but a great view.The roads in Romania are terrible. Our guide told us that a road sign that reads 80 means the depth of the pothole!! Lots of farms. huge paddocks and no fences. At harvest time they all help each other. Interestingly the flashest houses are owned by the gypies.
Into Bucharest. Went down their version of the Champs Eleyses made even more luxurious by the Dictator Cheucheshu.
Heard the Dracular story as Translivania is part of Romania.
Our last night on the boat and hard to say goodbye to the wonderful staff.

The Lazar Horse Show on PhotoPeach

Day 21

Now in the Serbian capital of Belgrade.The fortress was very impressive with 2 lots of outer walls and surrounded by water on 3 sides. Under Tito Yugoslavia was very prosperous as he played the US and Russia off against each other and got huge dollars from both.Saw evidence of the NATO bombing in 1991 but the place has a very positive vibe about it now.After the fall of Tito they had hyper inflation at a rate of 23000% a day ..Dave bought a 50 Billion dinara note as a momento.
During the day our guide Milos told us some jokes about the local mass produced the car, the YUGO ( like a Lada).
What do you call a YUGO at the top of a hill? ( A miracle)
What do you call 2 YUGOS at the top of a hill? (A mirage)
What do you call the shoke asborbers in a YUGO? (the passengers)
Why do all YUGO drivers go to heaven? (Because they have already been to hell!)
The entertainment after dinner was a Serbian musical and dance group. The male dancers had a hint of Russian in some of their moves and the ladies had a hint of turkish. they were very athletic.

Day 20

Another day...but 2 countries today. Croatia then Serbia. First did a walking tour of Vukovar, a town hit hugely by the war between the serbs and Croats in 1991 after Yugoslavia was broken up. The Serbs expected the locals to give up within hours but they fought hard and held out for months. you can still see the bullet holes in the walls which is quite sobbering. 261 locals were taken from the hospital, tortured in a local barn then shot and thrown into a mass grave. Went to a museum built around the barn which has pictures and names that continually roll on then went to a cemetery where it was very sad to see so many young men killed. There were also over 900 white crosse for unknown victims and 365 empty graves waiting for those who have never been found. Quite an emotional morning.
We then went to Ilok and went to a winery with a huge underground cellar that went over 100metres under a nearby castle.This wine was actually very nice, we bought a bottle. The winery gave 11 thousand bottles of wine for the Queens coronation..they still have bottles for special visits,and the same amount to William and Kates wedding.
In the afternoon we cruised into Novi Sad, Serbia. Another impressive fortress, lots of cafes and bars. Had a beer for $1.50 and changed our money. 10 euro is 1000 dinaras.It was strange to have 2000 denomination notes in my wallet.
Back on the boat we were entertained by a superb husband and wife classical duo (piano and violin).

Day 19

Into the Hungarian city of Pecs ( pronounced Pach)after looking around Mohacs (Mohash) where we docked.The highlight was visiting a Christain undergorund burial site that dates back to Roman times. Had a nice coffee at Maccas ( their toilets are free), most shops closed because it's Sunday!.
After lunch we were driven to an underground cellar for a wine tasting. The wines were average but the best part was the atmosphere underground and the tour of the next part called the Treasury Vault where individuals or companies pay a 10 year fee and receive 80 bottles a year which are stored in the vault until required. This cellar has been there for over 200 years.After another superb meal we took part in a musical quiz and our Gym Bunnies quiz team would be happy as we identified Eric Clapton and the Beatles to score a drink from the bar.

Day 18

Took a bus out into the country 45 minutes from Budapest to the farm owned by the Lazar brothers who were World Champion Carriage racers for a total of 13 years.Started with a schnapps (strong) then went on a carriage ride, toured the stables and trophy room. A highlight was a half hour show featuring an archery shooter on horseback, carriage racing, whip cracking horse riders who could make their horses lie down and do virtually anything. Then had Hungarian goulash for lunch with lots of red wine.Had a wander around Pest then caught the boat back across the river.
Saw the lights of Budapest again as we sailed off with a new lot of passengers. Only 2 kiwis.

Budapest illuminated on PhotoPeach

Budapest on PhotoPeach

Bratislava on PhotoPeach

Vienna on PhotoPeach

Durnstein and wine tasting on PhotoPeach

Day 17

Another day, another country. Hungary and it's lovely capital Budapest.A great sight seen from the river. As we sailed in Buda was on the right side and Pest on the left. Buda is hill and Pest no-one knows the meaning of. It was once called Pestbuda but was later changed because Budapest sounded better.City tour included Fishermans Bastion on the hill of Buda side, with great views over the city and river. Another stop was at a huge indoor makrket degisned bu Gustav Eiffel where we bought some salami for our ANZAC drinks. A highlight of our day was going by ferry across to Pest and on the underground to the beautiful Roman Baths.One pool at 38 dgrees was spot on. Another had spa jets that come up from your feet and then after 10 minutes a whirlpool started. Dave got some good snaps with his new waterproof camera.We enjoyed a beer and a cocktail and were entertained by a Gypsy Band and dancers who had lots of character. After dinner we went up on deck and enjoyed a couple of glasses of sticky wine as we sailed up and down the river and saw the beauty of Budapest illuminated at night.It was magical.

Day 16

A new day, a new country. Into Slovakia.We did a walking tour of the capital Bratislava. Highlight of Dave's day was sitting in an open air cafe with his Aussie mate Gordon and Karen, buying 2 pints and a 12oz of local beer for under 5 euro.Spent a nice relaxing afternoon strolling around the streets.
Capatains dinner tonight ( and he did the right thing and left his table for us). The entertainment tonight was superb with a 5 piece girls group with flute, violin, viola, chello and piano,playing modern movie tunes. We even got up and danced. We were treated to an impressive fireworks display at the back of our boat.

Day 15

The day started with a city tour of Vienna with lots of beautiful buildings and statues.Past an ornate furnace designed by Henry Vasser ( the guy who didi the unique toilets in Northland).This furnace burns the city's refuse at an extremely high temperature with virtualy no emissions. Saw the stables of the Spanish riding school at the Palace. A highlight fo Karen was purchasing a necklace and matching earrings at swarovski. Enjoyed a coffe ( there are over 2800 cafes in Vienna). After dinner we went to a Mozart and Strauss concert at the lovely old Stoke Exchange building. The concert icluded opera singers, ballet dancers and a 10 piece orchestra.

Salzburg and the Austrian Lake District on PhotoPeach

Regensburg and 60's party on PhotoPeach

The Upper River locks on PhotoPeach

Day 14

We went on a guided tour of the Melk Monastry. It was a huge complex that even holds an exclusive school within its walls. There are 10 libraries and it would take you 300 years to read all the books there. One Abbot designed a reusable coffin to save money.
The church was another wow with lots of gold leaf and frescos on the ceiling.
In the afternoon we enjoyed the 25 degree temperatures on the sundeck with an ice cream party while we admired the beautiful scenery of the Wachau Valley.
While Dave had a quiet afternoon I joined a walking tour to a tiny city called Durnstein which means dry stone. That was what the wall was made of.In those days if they had a stone wall enclosing the town they could apply to become a city and then they could collect taxes from those who came inside the walls which created wealth for the area.After our walk we were treated to aprricot schnapps, brandy and chocolate, then we finished off with apricot bubbles.
After another superb dinner we went to a wine tasting with our guide Catherine from this morning. The wine was ordinary compared to ours but the atmosphere including an Austrain accordian player and singer and getting up and doind the bird dance all added to a great atmosphere

Day 13

This was our big day on tour. From 9am til 7pm we were on the Salzburg Sound of Music tour. A coach trip through lovely green countryside took us to Salzburg. Our guide took us on a 2 hour walking tour which included a lovely narrow main street with guilded signs above each store as they are not allowed neon. We then took a cable car to the fortress. The view over the town was amazing. Looking the other way we saw the alps and Hitlers Eagles Nest.Another hightlight was the Lakes District where we pulled off the highway and saw a superb lake with sky divers coming off a far away cliff ( not unlike Queenstown). We then went to the village of Mondsee where the church was used for the wedding in the Sound Of Music. You could see why because it was absolutely amazing inside. This was an exhausting day but a special one.

Day 12

This morning Dave went to the Audi factory, 4 rings stand for the four companies united, now owned by VW. Travelled on the autobahn. We were doing 100kms in the bus and being past as if we were crawling along. There is no speed limit on the autobahn. Tha Canvastown kids will be interested in how they hunt boars here. They sit on the top of big stands and wait for the pigs to come out of the bush and drink beer.
I spent the morning in Regensburg, a lovely little medieval city that still has it's city wall, although now many houses are built into it. The stone bridge was built in 10yrs and was considered and engineering masterpiece. During the war the city declared itself an "Open city" which meant they welcomed in the Allies and avoided getting bombed.
When the boys ( and Janine and Fran) got back we walked into town to see the beautiful Cathederal and went to a Hungarian market where we enjoyed a nice cold wheat beer in the sun. All the shops were closed as in Germany it is law that shops close on Sundays.
After dinner there was a sixties night with wigs, glasses, blown up guitars etc. The staff dressed up and got everyone grooving, including Fran, the hoola hoop queen and Janine the dancing queen. The rum punch went down well too.

From Bamburg to Nuremburg on PhotoPeach

Rothenburg and Klitzen on PhotoPeach

Day 11

Today we visited Nuremberg and opted to do the WW2 tour. We visited the National Congress built for Hitler, to his plans ( based on the Coloseum in Rome- but bigger) to hold the Nazi party rallies. It has a granite exterior with brick for most of the thickness of the walls. It was never finished or used for its intended purpose because war came first. It was built to hold 50,000 Nazis. Then we went to the remains of the Zeppelinfield where the rallies of up to 100,000 people gathered to listen to Hitler speak. Our German guide Alexander was vey passionate about how Germans feel about what happened in the past. It must have been a terrible time for everyone.
Then we went into the old city centre and looked around market, bought a few trinkets and ate Lebkuchen ( gingerbread), more like a spiced biscuit.
We sailed in the afternoon and went through massive locks that took us up to the highest point in the river. We sailed into what looked like a big garage, the door closed behind and started to fill with water.It was amazing how deep the lock was and how fast it filled. When you get to the top it is like to are sitting up on top of the trees as you look down to the river we have just come from. At 6.30 we sailed past the Continental Divide and celebrated with blue bubbles! There are lots of low bridges to go under and it was funny to see the wheelhouse disappear down and the Capatin pop his head up through a hatch to steer the bo

Wertzberg on PhotoPeach

Day 10

Today after breakfast we were treated to a 2nd breakfast "fruhschoppen" ( one we really didn't need but had to try)which consisted of sausage, pork, sourkraut, a potato mixture and pretzel breadsticks washed down with a nice cold beer. No one needed lunch that's for sure.With german music it was a great atmosphere.We also had a very interesting lecture about the European Union.
After lunch we went on a walking tour of Bamberg-The Franconian Rome, with our tour guide Aimee.Through the centre of town runs the river and one area is aptly called "Little Venice". Bamberg has 9 breweries and 81 more in surrounding areas. It's specialty is Rauchbier (smoked beer)a dark, red ale with a smooth smokey after taste of bacon. We all got vouchers for a free one...very interesting smell and taste.After dinner we had a wonderful singer called Valerie who sang songs in many languages from the Coutries in Europe.

Day 9

Today we had a guided tour of the Prince Bishops Residenz. It is a beautiful baroque palace. It had a huge staicase with an enormous fresco on the roof along the lines of the ones in the Sistene Chapel.It had a room of painted mirrors. Everything was very elaborate and over the top but great to see. We had time to look around the little market square before catching a bus the Rothenburg a pictureque village that is completely surrounded by its city wall.The town is also home of Germanys famous Kathe Wohlfaht Christmas store and there is even a torture museum.
After dinner The Aulic Council and Wine Queens escorted us to Germany's oldest wine cellar where we sampled 5 local wines served by 2 bucksome Wine Queens.A good night was had by all...well at least the by the ANZACs.

Dave's 50th dinner on PhotoPeach

From Miltenberg to Wertheim on PhotoPeach

Day 8

What an amazing day Dave had on his 50th birthday. We started the day with a champagne breakfast and then we had a glass blowing demonstration by a 7th generation glass blower from Wertheim.Then we went on a walking tour of the quaint village of Miltenberg.The main street was chock full of cute little half timbered houses.After a carbo loading lunch 6 ANZACs joined a touring group of 21 to bike from Miltenberg to Wertheim- only 31 kms!!Andrea would be very proud of us.. especially me because she knows I hate the bike!!What an amazing afternoon as we followed the river through little towns along a very busy cycle way, only about 1 km on open road. We stopped half way at a beautiful little bier garden for a well earned cold one.We finally arrived at our destination just before the shops shut and had time to visit the glass blowers shop.We then set sail again. Our wonderful new friends had arranged for balloons at our table, kindly blown up by our non cyclist friends, champagne- Moet and Chandon no less.Dave was presented with his own Captains hat- especially good as we always sit at the Capatins table. As dessert was served, the lights went out and everyone started to sing as a beautiful cake with fireworks on top, came out as well as another bottle of Moet. We are so lucky to have met these wonderful people in Paris. When we arrived back in our room the housekeepers had made our towels into a birthday cake with crepe paper ribbons in the colour of the German flag, decorated with chocolates for candles.An wonderful end to an amazing day.

Cruising on the Rhine on PhotoPeach

Day 7

Today was castle day. We travelled along the most famous stretch of the Rhine River hearing about the history of the many castles we saw. We had several coffees with "Men's liquer" Yum.Lots of pretty villages,vineyards going up steep hills.One hard case priest in the 17th century found a solution for getting men to church.On one half of the building was a bar and you had to walk through the bar to get to the church.
In the afternoon we stopped at Rudesheim. It has a population of 10,000 but has over 3 million visitors a year. It has quaint, narrow cobblestone street with lots of bars etc.We travelled by a mini train up to Siegfried's Musical Cabinet musuem which was amazing.The highlight was one cabinet that had almost a full orchestra including violins in it. Walked back to the boat where the boys enjoyed cards up on the sundeck.

Cologne on PhotoPeach

Wonderful Amsterdam on PhotoPeach

Day 6

Woke up in Cologne after cruising all night. Had a walking tour of the city with our lovely guide Monica. The highlight being the Cathederal which had superb stained glass windows and missed the bombing of WW2 which is lucky as it took 600 years to build.In town Karen bought 2 pair of shoes for 5 Euro each. Then we went to a flower show in Koblenz with our guide Otto.There were acres and acres of everything to do with plants. Highlights were floral graves and a cable car ride over the Rhine which was spectacular.Another superb meal followed by an excellent 2 piece band who got us up to dance.

Day 5

Woke up after a good nights sleep to the most amazing breakfast. Did a really informative canal trip of Amstersdam. There are over 200 canals. Then we did a walking tour to the flower markets. You can also buy your cannabis seeds there but we settled for christmas decorations.
The evening highlight was a classical violin trio who entertained us after another superb meal. The staff really seem to like our table and were very attentive... never an empty glass all night.

From Paris to Amsterdam on PhotoPeach

Day 4

Today we had breakfast in France(Paris), lunch in Belgium (Antwerp) and dinner in the Netherlands (Amsterdam). Photos may be hard to put on due to internet restrictions but we will try.Had Belguim chocolate, Belguim beer and Belguim fries in the market square.(Known to us as French fries because the American GIs had no idea where they were when the locals made them during WW2.) Arrived in Amsterdam around 5pm and had a welcome cocktail party hosted by the Captain, with Champagne and red roses for the ladies. Our Paris group took over the Captains table for a wonderful 6 course meal with copious amounts of wine.
After dinner 8 of us walked a short distance to the Red Light District which was an eye opener.
All in all another great day.

A day on the metro on PhotoPeach

Day 3: On the Metro

Last night we had a fabulous meal while cruising up and down the Seine then watched the illuminated Eiffel Tower as the lights flickered on the hour. After a tour by night we crashed and enjoyed a sleep in this morning.
As there are only 9 of us on this section of the trip, our Tour director Emma took us on the Metro to Mont Martre to see Sacre Coeur and visit the market square where all the famous artist of French history, painted. Even managed to see the last 10 minutes of the All Black game in an Irish Pub.Some of our fellow travellers bought beautiful original paintings but decided that 290 Euro could be better spent this trip.
Then we returned to visit Fragonard Parfumeur Musuem where many euros were spent by some.
Back now after a fullon day soaking my feet in the bidet... well isn't that what you are meant to do??

Paris Sightseeing on PhotoPeach

Day 2: Bonjour from Paris

After am hour on the tarmac waiting for clear airspace over Asia,we finally took off at 1am. Eating supper at 2 in the morning was a little strange. With lots of empty seats we were able to stretch out and try to get some sleep.When we were finally allowed to lift the window shades we were lucky enough to see a beautiful sun rise over Venice and ahead we could still see the black of night.

We arrived only 30 mins late to be greated by Micheal ,our chauffer driving a lovely silver Mercedes. With skillful driving we arrived at our hotel in Paris ( 1 1/2 hours to travel 30kms) to met our APT Tour guide Emma.

Day 1

First day of our big trip and the first place we went was... the dentist! Poor Dave broke a tooth on the flight over but by 10 this morning a lovely dentist in the plaza across the road had it all fixed for less than it would cost in Nz and knew all about us, our family and our holiday plans.

Spent the rest of the day checking out Singapore on the hop on hop off bus with lunch in a little local place in Little India/ $15 for the both of us including a nice cold beer!!!

Then spent a couple of hours relaxing by the pool at our hotel (29 degrees today).

Enjoying the Singapore Airlines Gold Lounge before our flight to Paris at 11.55 tonight.

Dave's Grandad is in this picture. He was a medic in the New Zealand Army who served at Gallipoli from Day 1 of the campaign until the last day. Visiting Gallipoli at the end of our tour is sure to be a highlight for us both.