2007-09 Europe

View our photo's of Florence Hotel address - Hotel Eden di Miceli Beatrice & C, via Nazzionale 55/157 R, 50123 Florence. Tel: 055.483722 Cost - 110 Euros per night for a double room with private bathroom Location - 300 metres from the main train station and walking distance to all the main tourist attractions and museums. Comments - Our room was on the 1st floor at the front of the hotel. The room was quite large with a seperate bathroom. However the curtains were not heavy enough and the morning sun streamed into our room very early. The staff were all spoke English and where extremely helpful. We would highly recommend this hotel, however we would ask for a room on the back side of the hotel (away from the main street) as it tended to be a bit noisy on Fri & Sat night and first thing in the morning. Thurs 20 Sep (weather - cool in the morning & evening / warm and sunny during the day) Spent the morning checking our email and calling home. Went to the Uffizi muse

View our photo's of Geneva Mon 17 Sep (weather - a bit overcast with sunny patches) It is Francine's birthday today and she went to work so she can celebrate with all her colleagues. The girls went into the city to spend the day window shopping, as everything is very expensive in Geneva, so they can't afford to buy anything. We took the rubbish down to the basement before going into town and Francine showed us the compulsory nuke shelter under the builbing, very impessive with 8 inch thick concrete doors, food stocks and air vents etc. Francine has her room down there filled up with excess furniture shoes etc, she says thats ok because there are plenty of other rooms. They also have funny gun laws here, Alex showed us his Gloc pistol and the AK47 they keep in the wardrobe, even if you are not in the military here you have to keep up your shooting practice at the range, if you have a gun licence you can carry guns loaded, if you dont have a licence you have to carry your am

Fri 14 Sep (weather - warm and sunny) Arrived in Geneva at 5.20pm and Francine met us at the station. We piled ourselves and luggage into her car, a bit of a queeze but we managed. Francine's apartment is very big by European standards. 3 bedrooms, lounge/dining, kitchen, 2 bathrooms and a balcony. We went to a friend of Francine's for dinner to celebrate Francine's birthday. It was a traditional Brazilian meal of beans and rice. When we arrived people were dancing and having fun. It was a great night, everyone was very firnedly and made us feel at home. Sat 15 Sep - This morning we had coffee and croissants at the local market place, then did a walking tour of Carouge the city where Francine lives. It is only 10mins from the centre of Geneva by tram. The buildings are very old and quite magnificent. We returned to Francine's place to meet her brother Melo and his wife Sheila. They are off to Sicily tonight for 10 days holiday with Francine's mum and dad. Had an

View our photo's of Lyon Hotel address - Hotel Premiere Classe Lyon Part-Dieu, 75 Boulevard Viver Merle 69003. Lyon Cost - 89 Euros for the first night and 59 euros per night for the remaining 2 nights for a double or triple room with private bathroom. Location - 3 blocks from the main train station, but quite a distance from the city centre, the river and the old city of Lyon. However trams, buses and metro provide easy access to all these areas. Comments - Staff spoke English and were friendly and helpful. The room was quite small and the shower very tiny, but the room was clean, modern and quiet. Wed 12 Sep (weather - cool in the morning & evening, beautiful & sunny during the day) After consulting our internet research and the local tourist map we decided to spend the day exploring the old city. Lyon is the 3rd largest city in France (pop. 413000) and is set in the Rhone Alps region on the Rhone and Soane Rivers. We bought a 1 day travel ticket that gave us unlimit

View our photo's of Paris Hotel address - Citadines Voltaire Republique, rue ?Parmetier (9e) Cost - $448.00 for 2 nights for a double room with private bathroom, kitchenette with a stove and a fridge. Nice to be able to have tea & coffee in our room and a frdige for Mark to cool his beers! Metro - Parmetier metro station 1 block from the hotel. Comments - The staff spoke English and were very helpful and friendly. Mon 10 Sept (weather - A little cool in the mornings, but warm - mid 20's and sunny by noon) Today we explored the Left Bank and visited Notre Dame Cathedral. We also visited the Louvre and said hi to the Mona Lisa - along with a couple of hundred other people. Dropped into Napoleans appartments but he wasn't home.....so we just wandered around his opulant chambers and oogled at the size and glamour of this period. Mark is impressed with the scale of the buildings and the architecture. He expected it to be bigger and older than our buidlings at home, but

Sun 9 Sep - Depart Perth 6am EK425 (Air Emirates) - Arrive Dubai 1.15pm. Depart Dubai 3pm EK075 (Air Emirates) - Arrive Paris 8.20pm eeekkk!!!! we need to be at the airport about 4am! We had a couple of friends offer to drive us to the airport...until they discovered what time our flight was! The flight from Perth to Dubai was great. Comfy chairs, great food and lots of inflight entertainment. We both watched 4 movies - but not the same ones so now we'll have to go to different cinemas when we get home. The flight from Dubai to Paris was not as good. It was a smaller/older plane, but we survived and finally arrived in Paris and found our hotel 27hrs after we left Perth. Went to a cafe for a night cap and then hit the sack. 11pm Paris time - 5am Perth time. We are staying at the Citadines Voltaire Republique which is in the 9e and very central. The closest metro station is Parmetier which is less than 1 block from our hotel and only 10 mins from the Seine River.