Letters to a Sister : 30

Bruges

We went to Bruges. It smells of sweet waffles and warm Gluhwein. It has the metallic sound of horses hooves on cobble stones and the babble of mixed languages. It feels cold. Always. And sometimes wet. It tastes of blonde beer, chocolate and waffles. We saw Christmas lights, a skating rink, red brick buildings with staggered roofs. It was a good day.

It was also a cold wet day, but that can’t be helped.

We booked to travel with Oakhall Holidays because we’ve been with them before, it only costs about £30 and it’s really easy – you go to Sevenoaks and then sit on a coach. http://www.oakhall.co.uk

Following the attacks in Paris, I was slightly worried that there might be trouble or that security would be very tight. There was no trouble. There was also no security. None. Not until we came to re-enter England. Somewhat surprised. No one at all asked for photo i d or looked at our passports. If the Prime Minister is reading this (which I’m sure he does each week) then this is an area of security that you should perhaps look into. The tunnel seems a likely target to me.

When you arrive in Bruges, the coach parks a short walk from town and you are then free to wander where you want. Now, when we have been previously, we have had trouble finding a restaurant with free tables. (This time it was fine – the waiter told us that in the last week they have had 1500 cancellations due to the trouble in Paris. Mainly Japanese tour groups apparently.)

Anyway, IF you are with other people who really want to look around the Christmas markets and enjoy Bruges, then I would suggest booking a table. We went to Vivaldi, which is not far from the center. It had a lovely fireplace, nice food and clean toilets. I had the goats cheese and honey salad which was very good. Husband had fish and chips and mussels (also good.) The email is : vivaldibrugge@skynet.be

HOWEVER, if you are with the kind of people who are only there because you asked them to come, the kind of people who actually dislike Christmas markets and cold, wet weather, the kind of people who will get very comfortable next to the fire, drink several large beers and then have to be dragged from the restaurant and will spend the rest of the trip looking for somewhere dry to sit down, then DO NOT go there first. It will make the rest of the day much harder. (No further comment.)

There are a few things in Bruges that you really must do. You have to see the Christmas markets, which are small and a bit naff but you should see them anyway, the atmosphere is nice. You should drink beer (not too much).You should have a hot chocolate (which is served as a mug of hot milk. They then either give you a stick of solid chocolate to melt into it or a jug of melted chocolate to add. Delicious.) You should eat a waffle. You should visit a lace shop, even if just to admire the craft work. If you are of a robust disposition, you should go to the back of a chocolate shop. Here you will find chocolate moulded into every imaginable shape, much of it related to sexual organs. It is unusual and I cannot imagine how one eats it. I was going to take a photo for the blog but actually it was too rude, even for me.

If you have time, there are also horse and carriage rides, boat trips, windmills and museums. Many, many museums. I am not really a museum sort of person, so I cannot give any opinion at all, but there are lots.

We have been to Bruges in the Winter a few times. I always have a lovely time. A few blurry photos below…..

Great beer…..

Great waffles….

Great Gluhwein…..

Great hot chocolate….

Christmas Market :

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If you enjoyed this, you will love my new book: The Sarcastic Mother’s Holiday Diary.
I have always written a diary on holiday, so last Christmas, I decided to find all my old diaries and blogs, and make a book for my children. However, several other people also asked for a copy, so I have written a public version – it’s available on Amazon and has been described as “The Durrells meet Bill Bryson”!

Why not buy a copy today? I think it will make you laugh.

The US link is here:

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The India link is here:

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The UK link is here:

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Sarcastic-Mothers-Holiday-Diary-ebook/dp/B07N95281F/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1549014970&sr=8-2&keywords=the+sarcastic+mothers+holiday+diary

Gozo, Malta

Posted by anneethompson

Continuation of holiday diary.

Arrived at ferry terminal in good time. They leave every 45 minutes, so only had to wait about 10 minutes but in the hot sun it felt like forever. Was surprised by how big and near Gozo looked – like a peninsula across the bay.
Son 2 gave directions but the other two quite vocal. Conversations like:
Son: Take the next right.
R: This one, this one, turn right now.
Husband: I’m not going up that one, it’s too narrow. Right, which way now?
M:I think that’s wrong anyway.
Son: It’s not wrong, I know where we are exactly. Probably. Okay, if there’s a roundabout take 3rd exit. But there wont be, roundabouts are only on the map, they never exist in real life here.

Also hard to see ‘no entry’ signs as the sun has faded them all.
Gozo has more flat roofed houses and domed churches. Very pretty.
Met villa man in square and went to villa. ‘Panorama’ in Xaghra (pronounced ‘Shara’. My family never managed that.) We booked it through James Villas but it has its own website.
Villa very luxurious. It’s set on the edge of the hill with views across a huge valley towards the citadel at Victoria.

Drove down winding road to nearest big supermarket. A Lidl. Very stressful. No brands I recognised, hard to find everything we needed, very limited choice. M noticed maggots all over eggs. Not good experience.

Walked from villa into centre of Xaghra, about 10 minutes unless you got lost. Several people sitting outside chatting. Square has a few restaurants to choose from.

We ate at Oleander. Very friendly and welcoming. Food nice, especially the baked brie starter served on figs and walnuts. Delicious. Husband and M raved over the tomato, capers, olives and peppers bruschetta. Son 2 agreed it was delicious ( and he doesn’t even like capers, olives or peppers. Isn’t very keen on bruschetta either.) All too full to eat our main courses. Had lemoncello shots then walked home. Didn’t get lost.

Wednesday: Lazy day. Unpacked, did washing. Cooked pancakes and bacon – all takes ages in unfamiliar kitchen. Kitchen is beautiful but rather lacking in equipment. Used salad bowl to make batter. Only coffee maker seems to be a Nespresso machine ( but no capsules) or a cracked cafetiere which I don’t fancy using. Think maybe a dog mauled it at some point.
Pool boy came. He was about 70.
Boys found some toy boats and had races with them in indoor pool. So glad the sophistication of the villa has affected them.
Got cinema room working, watched a Mandarin dvd.
Horrid lunch. Hate Lidl.

Played ‘Game of Thrones’ board game. I still don’t understand the rules. Much testosterone fuelled arguing and making of alliances. Was a very long game. Lucky we weren’t in a beautiful villa with views across a valley full of sunshine. R hibernated somewhere. Wise girl.
Of course, the best thing of all is that long after the game FINALLY ended, it could be discussed at length, each move analysed, much advice given. Shoot me someone.

Strolled into town. Picturesque square/church rather spoiled by extensive building work. Found a small supermarket 5 minutes walk from villa. It sold everything that I had tried to find in Lidl, many with recognised brands. (I hate Lidl.) It opens at 6am, so ideal for buying stuff before breakfast.

Ate at Oleander again. No one really enjoyed their meal. Maybe it’s just too hot to enjoy eating.

Thursday: Lazed, swam, ice creams. The ice creams were like rocks so turned down the freezer to 1.
Pizza for lunch. Tasted mainly of plastic. ( Lidl).

Drove to Xlendi. Parked in car park behind the shops (everywhere we went was much less crowded than resorts in the UK. There are not many spaces in the car parks but there are always some.)

The shops and cafes run along the waterfront. It was very crowded with a shingle beach. There were buoys marking where was safe to swim (easy to get run over by a boat when swimming in Gozo.) We walked along a rock wall to some steps down into the sea. Swam/snorkelled. Mainly saw small shoals of fish. Water really salty ( stung eyes) and very deep – the only way out was up the steps

Drive home was difficult, winding roads and lack of signs. Apparently they were designed to be confusing because the island was raided so many times. They succeeded.

Ate in DVenue, another restaurant in the square. They had a good fresh fish platter. Nice meals.

Walked back to villa and watched Harry Potter (not my choice) in cinema room. This is a long room built under the pool, so is dark and cool. It has black leather sofas that recline and a big screen and sound system. Note to self: never allow husband to install a fancy sound system. He has it loud enough for the whole town to hear. Claims base is set too high.

Friday: Walked to local shop and bought local honey, eggs and milk. Made pancakes. There is also a bread van that comes from the local bakery and drives around the town honking its horn at about 10 every morning. Stops in various places. Nice crusty bread.

After lunch, went for a drive. Drove to Dwejra Bay. Beautiful. Rocks down to deep blue water, Azure Window (a big hole in the rock which was very crowded with people taking photos), several ice cream vans, stalls selling tourist tat from Africa, St Anne’s chapel (more modern than expected.) You could look down onto the Inland Sea. This used to be a huge cave but the roof fell in, so now it’s a giant rock pool surrounded by cafes and full of boats for hire and divers. Took photos.

Drove through St Lawrences. Took photo of church, which was very ornate, lots of red and gold. All the churches here have a basket of material next to the door, so you can cover your shoulders.

Drove back to Xaghra via Ghasri, Zebbug, Xwejni Bay, Marsalforn. You can imagine how my family pronounce these names.

Saw interesting rock formations and salt pans but was told I had exceeded my photograph limit and the car was not stopping.

Getting into Xaghra a challenge due to closed roads but no helpful diversion signs. Also, Gozo DOES have cul de sac/no-through-road signs, because I have seen some. However it obviously did not buy enough because mostly they are unmarked and you just have to turn round when you get to the end.

Got home eventually. Ate several ice creams. Still not losing weight.

Played Game of Thrones with the males. Husband’s turns are like advert breaks in the US – you can write diary, read a book, cook a three course meal and still not miss any play. Boys had coded talks to discuss the rules in secret (like I would’ve cared.) R sunbathed and talked to the boyfriend.

Ate at DVenue again. Finished with complimentary lemoncello shots. Weekends get busier, so we booked a table for Sunday.

Saturday: Quick breakfast, then drove back to Dwejra Bay. Worried about hair being dry so put suncream in it. R asked me why my hair was blue.

Walked down some steep steps from the first car park to a cove where Fungus Rock is ( big rock where they used to collect a plant. Which apparently was not a fungus.) Water wonderfully deep, you could just float around wearing a snorkel, lost in an underwater world. The route into the water was via sharp rocks, so we wore swimming shoes ( bought for about £5 from Amazon before we came and they worked really well.) Saw rocks and seaweed and shoals of fish. Son 2 asked me if I knew my hair was blue.

Bacon and egg lunch at villa.

I stupidly said, ” The rocks look much nearer in the water than they really are.”
Males then discussed/argued about (for hours) the refraction index of water. M used breadsticks to illustrate. Argument somewhat weakened when breadstick went in his eye.

Played G of T. Each move took 27 hours.

Have noticed that no one listens to me. I think they honestly do not hear me, have grown accustomed to just tuning out my voice. Have started to speak with Scottish accent. This makes them all stop and stare at me in surprise ( not sure they actually listen to what I say but at least I now have their attention.)

Watched Pitch Perfect in cinema room. Still not my choice but not as bad as you might think.

Cooked steaks (horrible) and had them with red wine (nice) and salad (okay) in fancy dining room/wine cellar which has been carved out of the rock below the villa. Very atmospheric.

(Hair no longer blue. But suncream made it very wiry, was not a good idea.)

Sunday : Made pancake batter then couldn’t light hob. No gas. Annoying. Husband checked barbecue outside and managed to light it. Took ages to heat up but then worked fine. Was rather lovely to eat breakfast outside, overlooking the valley. Sent text to villa man who changed gas bottle later that morning.

There is a small dog who wanders along the ridge and peers at us. Doesn’t seem to understand French or Mandarin. Everyone has given him a different name.

Had cold shower. I have problems with the taps here. You sort of have to push them up to turn on then wiggle them left to get warm water. Sometimes works, sometimes doesn’t. No one else has this problem so it must be me.

Walked to church. Service was in progress but other people were going in so I slipped into the back. Was incredibly hot in there. Very full church, lots of families. No order of service sheet or hymn books or Bibles. Service all in Maltese, was like listening to Arabic, couldn’t understand anything. After 10 minutes, with sweat trickling down my back, I gave up and slipped out again. I’m glad I went – I don’t know how else to make Sundays different – but there seemed little point in staying long. Pretty church though, painted ceilings.

Husband went to cake shop, Cafe Reale. There is an Italian man who owns it. He gets up early every morning and bakes wonderful cakes. We tried a selection.

From about 11:30 to after 12 each day, there is lots of canon fire/fireworks across the valley. R suggested they are the midday canons and the Maltese are not very good time keepers. Husband suggested that maybe a bird had got lost and strayed across Gozo and we were hearing the hunters. (Hunting is a problem here, there are not many birds left now.)

Played G of T. Each move took 29 hours. Clearly one major difference between the genders is that females can decide future moves DURING someone else’s turn, hence taking much less time when it’s time for their move. Plus they don’t actually care that much.

R had washing machine disaster. Now has lots of clothes that match her yellow sundress. Boys played her lots of songs with the word “yellow” in. I’m sure they were trying to make her feel better.

Dinner at DVenue. Good again.

Saw a blue light on a roof. Told R they have blue stars in Gozo.

Monday : Husband went to buy water and milk. Hard to find full fat milk here. Today bought 2.5% fat. I think the darker the blue of the carton, the higher the fat content. But not necessarily.

Discussed family chores as husband has decided everyone should help (that idea went so well last holiday.) R and M responsible for all dishwasher duties. They immediately formed a trade union and appointed R as spokesperson. Spent some time discussing terms and conditions with husband, who tried to instigate penalty clauses but R told him it contravened European law. So glad he started this. Son 2 (in charge of rubbish disposal) kept offering to strike in support of R and M.

After lunch walked to square. Full of dusty roadworks, so continued round the corner to a little cafe. Had ice creams and coffee. ( I had Malteaser ice cream – clearly from Malta.) Hot walk back to villa.

Went to Victoria as R wanted to buy gifts (yaay shopping, my favourite.) Very windy. Told a storm was coming, 110 lightening strikes in Tunisia, apparently. Shops all rushing to get their displays inside.

We went to Maldonado Bistro. They didn’t open until 7pm but kindly let us go in early and have drinks while we waited.
Son 2 used his clever phone to translate the menu from English into Maltese and Mandarin. Helpful. The menu had 12 different bruschettas. This kept family occupied for 50 minutes (just the choosing bit. You may have not noticed but my family enjoys negotiating/discussing/persuading. Strong opinions. Not my genes.) R tried a kinnie, which is advertised everywhere here. It’s a bitter orange drink. Very bitter.

Bruschettas were huge when they arrived, half a loaf. Very nice. Great atmosphere (down in a wine cellar) and friendly service.

Only problem was toilets which Son 2 informed me were clean but built as stalls and the dividing partition was below his eye level. But he is very tall. Good restaurant, definitely recommend a visit. info@maldonado.com.mt

Drove home. Streets pretty at night. Saw several blue lights on poles. Boys told R it was an alien invasion.

Tuesday: Son 2 complained he had not slept due to M being in charge of air conditioning. He said it was practically snowing in their room and he might have pneumonia.

Drove to Xewkija (pronounced shewkeeya”. But not by my family.) Saw the third biggest dome in Europe ( except one in Malta also claims this. One is higher and one is wider, so there is some dispute. Sounds like my family.) The rotunda is nice, quite simple inside, apart from the massive dome. It was built over a smaller, more ornate church, which they moved to the side by numbering all the stones and moving them individually. It is now a side chapel.

The main church has some good modern art, including two statues made of papier-maché by Alfred Camilleri Cauchi. I like papier-maché, made a rather fine mask when I was at Junior School. Not that it really compares.

Went to small supermarket next to rotunda (husband has developed a peach addiction) started to absolutely pour with rain, ran to car, soaked.

Drove home through Victoria, which is like the moving staircases in Hogwarts in Harry Potter books – whichever way you go in you can never find the correct route out.

Cleaners at villa. Were very thorough, even found two towels husband had hidden in wardrobe in attempt to get extras. J asked them for blankets.
Lunch. Thunder storm.

Males decided they wanted to build sandcastles on Ramla beach. As it was cloudy and cool, R and I decided to walk there. Started to follow road signs, then realised that they directed traffic along major roads so followed map instead. Reached a ridge where we could see beach but it was unclear how to get down to it. By this time the sun had reappeared and it was very hot. Two stray dogs joined us, happy to have some company and walked with us, waiting at every bend for us to catch up. We ignored them but they came anyway, was rather nice. Took an hour to reach beach (nice walk if not sunny.)
Found males in far corner of beach building Venice. Drove home.

Swam. Pool very cold when full of rainwater. Ate ice creams, which are still too hard. Realised the “fast freeze” button had been left on by previous guests.

Wednesday: After breakfast, drove to Victoria. Walked to citadel. Great views, could see all around island. Went into the battery, which led to the silos (huge grain storage areas, like great caves.) Very interesting. The silos are connected by a dark narrow tunnel (from when they were turned into a reservoir) so now you can walk right into them. Son 2 and R sang a chant, harmonising with their echoes. Was magical.

Then saw the rooms used as WW2 shelters. They were under the reservoirs, so if they’d been hit, everyone would’ve drowned. Not such a good idea.

Didn’t pay for the museum. Didn’t pay for the prison, but did put Son2 into the stocks outside. Didn’t see a Christmas tree ornament to buy. But did see some traditional lace. Shop owner said it was the last of her stock as all her suppliers were now in their eighties and younger women wont sell their work because it earns about 50p an hour. Seemed too mean to buy any.

Had lunch back in Xaghra at Cafe Reale. They have the BEST iced coffee. Still not losing weight.

Males decided to return to beach, we stayed here to swim but then the pool man arrived so we couldn’t. Annoying.

Males returned late, very happy, had built a brilliant castle and had been joined by another family (somewhat younger, so they could pretend they were building it for the children.) Also helped by ‘Steve the tiler’ from Australia who had used his building skills to good effect. M had heaved heavy boulders to protect it, Son 2 had applied a more scientific approach and incorporated some thatch to increase structural support. M rather disparaging of the thatch. It was slightly surprising how long three adult males could discuss a sandcastle for. Husband did suggest a post dinner drive to show me and R but unfortunately drank too much Cisk and was over the alcohol limit. Such a shame.

Nice dinner again at DVenue. Every Wednesday evening at 9pm in July and August a drama group performs in the square. It has an excellent sound system but I suspect the performance appeals mostly to their family members.

Afterwards the choirboys played football using the church doorway as a goal. Excellent use of space.

Looked across the valley. All the towns are now full of blue lights on poles. Apparently they represent Mary ( not aliens) and I assume are ready for the 15th, which is Assumption Day. There is a strong Catholic presence in Malta.

Thursday : Husband booked a boat for Friday afternoon, Xlendi Watersports, €80, 4 adults, 2 hours.

Drove to Calypso’s cave. This is where Ulysses was put under a spell by the witch Calypso when returning from the Trojan war (if you enjoy Homer.) It was confusing to find on maps as there’s also a viewpoint and you can’t tell which is on the road. Followed signs. There was a small boutique where an elderly lady (possibly Calypso) was selling clothes, followed signs along a walkway. Brilliant view of Ramla beach and out to sea. No cave. Searched around a bit (while husband checked sandcastle with zoom on camera). Found some disused steps and some scaffolding holding up a rock. I think Calypso’s cave has collapsed. Shame.

Went back to square for more iced coffee with cream at Cafe Reale.

Watched building work and cars narrowly missing each other. I must say, Gozo has a LOT of building work, they seem to be rebuilding the whole island.

Back to villa in time for 12 noonish canons. Gozo also has a lot of canons.

Went to the salt pans at Xwejni Bay. Very interesting. Shallow pools , cut by hand, to collect seawater. When it dries they harvest the salt crystals and sell it (Gozo sea salt.)

Walked around Qolla-L-Bajda. Weird rock erosion and a cave. White clay cliffs eroding fast, beach littered with great chunks of fallen cliff. Cove interesting but a bit smelly.

Evening meal in Marsalforn. Ate in Menqa L’Antika, which had good reviews but either we were unlucky and went on a day when they had staffing problems or they wrote them themselves. Good menu but food didn’t really match descriptions.

Malta

Posted by anneethompson

Extracts from a holiday diary: Malta
August 2015

Some names changed to protect identity. I have no idea why……..

Saturday: Taxi at 5am. Always stressful as everyone has set alarm for 4:30, knowing it will take half an hour to get ready. Lots of tension over bathroom space. Except for Mario. He had decided it wasn’t worth going to bed. Husband gave him a 3am deadline for being packed ( visions of him falling asleep, not packed, at 3:30.) I just love the whole ‘male territory’ thing.

Taxi and flights okay.
Mario announced in taxi he has a note on his phone: ” Reminder to future self. Rae does not need a window seat. In 2010 she had a window seat and she shut the blind and went to sleep.”

We flew with British Airways. R had the window seat.

Landed in Malta. Hired car through Avis, a Mazda 6. A very battered Mazda 6. As we left the airport, understood why it was battered. No one stops at junctions, you just have to try hard to avoid them.

Son 2 map read. Not easy as map had no road names and there were lots of unexpected one-way roads. Also roundabouts were marked on map but did not appear to actually exist. R and M gave regular input, husband ignored most directions. No idea how Son 2 remained calm ( this is why I REFUSE to be the map reader.)

Malta has lots of flat roofed buildings made of pale limestone. Reminded me of being in Palestine ( not that I’ve actually ever been to Palestine.)

Arrived at Meridien Hotel. Nice lobby. Had drinks while they prepared our rooms and looked at views, which are brilliant, across a bay to a church.
Rooms nice. Walked around town and bought water ( water in Malta tastes horrid, though is safe to use for ice, washing salads, cleaning teeth, unless you are particularly sensitive.) Even at 6:30 pm, it was really hot, sweaty within minutes.

Ate in Villa Restaurant, which is part of the hotel. Meals around €30 per head for starter and mains. Very nice. We sat on a veranda overlooking water, tiny lights in trees, beautiful. R told me that next to the sea you don’t get mosquitos so wont be bitten. This is not true.

Sunday: Breakfast. Amazing buffet, had pretty much everything. Need to lose weight before nephews wedding or will need bigger dress – was not a good start.
Family sat and chatted to each other on fb.
Planned day.

Hotel is at St Julian ( which explains why I couldn’t find it on map in Valletta. Another reason why I no longer map read.)
Valletta has a Crusaders fort. Caught bus. Very easy as Valletta is end of the line. Tickets cost €2 each and are valid for two hours (so you can get on and off buses with the same ticket within that time.)

Valletta was interesting, busy and hot. More limestone flat roofed buildings, flags, cafes, gift shops. Malta has lots of Festa – each town has a Saint and one weekend each year they decorate the town, have a parade, let off fireworks and are generally festive.
We looked round the free bits of the fort because the bits you pay for are basically museums and we don’t much like museums. Plus we could see lots just from the free bits. Great views. Loud canons at midday.

Fort built in 1556 by the knights from the Order of St John. Later, in 1798, Napoleon invaded and kicked out the knights. The Order still exist today – in the UK they are St John Ambulance Brigade, though the order itself is based in Rome and answers only to the Pope. ( Good book, ‘Malta and Gozo’ by Juliet Rix explains it all.)

All hot, so decided to go to Mac D’s for lunch. Got enticed into a cafe by man on the door. Had nice lunch in warm air conditioned dining room ( was less hot but not really cool.) Prices in menu differed from prices advertised outside but not by much ( worth always checking though!) Food nice and cheap. Toilets nasty. Service friendly. V rude American lady made a fuss because her margherita pizza had tomato sauce, not fresh tomatoes. When she left, waiter laughed and raised his hands!

Went round the Grand Masters Palace. Cool painted ceilings and suits of armour. Lots of ‘Do Not Touch’ signs. ( If you’re tempted to try on a helmet when no one is looking, don’t bother – they’re glued onto the modals.) Weapons room had lots of weapons ( not unexpectedly, you might think) and was very hot.

Got bus back to St Julian. Friendly lady on bus told me that you can buy a weekly ticket for €21. Actually, everyone on Malta is friendly. Apart from the rude American lady. And some journalists who were waiting outside the Courthouse with tv cameras and who wouldn’t tell me who was inside ( they just said “criminals” when I asked. So I took photo of them instead.)

Son 2 informed me his shoe ( just one) is too big so he was wearing three pairs of socks. Sounded both hot and high impact on the laundry front. Bought him a shoe insole.
Walked to next bay and checked out restaurants. Everyone seemed very young and trendy ( am informed that the use of word “trendy” proves that I am old.) Ate ice creams next to sea.
Swam in hotel pool.

Walked around bay to Eat restaurant ( not part of the UK fast food chain.) V nice starter. R and I had cocktails which looked nice but mine was fairly low alcohol. Main courses okay but not great. When bill came, waitress said their credit card machine didn’t work. M ( the economist) informed me this was a scam. Either that or she was a bit daft to not tell us at the beginning as we may not have been carrying enough cash.

Monday: Nice breakfast. Family communicated by mobiles again. Might take a book tomorrow.

Drove to Mdina and Rabat. Mdina is the walled city within Rabat. Son 2 in charge of map again. Lorry ahead of us hit a tree branch which then fell and blocked the road. Son made up detour. Arrived in Mdina, which was surprising as Son admitted that at no point was he sure which road we were on. Did not stop him making decisive decisions at every junction, we were fooled. Apart from M, who labelled him the ‘Helen Keller of map readers’.

M requested that we not walk around in the midday sun. We arrived in Mdina at 11:50. It was hot. He hardly mentioned it at all.

Walked to St Paul’s grotto in Rabat. It started to rain. Was only about five drops but all males complained. Fear we may be holidaying in Sahara next year.

M complained that the name ‘Rabat’ is stolen from Morocco and St Pauls Cathedral is stolen from London. Walked around muttering about looking for the Maltese Eiffel tower and Statue of Liberty. We ignored him.

St Paul’s grotto was interesting, cool and dark, especially the catacombs. Not good if you don’t like confined spaces but excellent otherwise. Some of the best stuff is down narrow unmarked tunnels, so worth taking a boy with a clever phone or a torch. Tall males complain a lot.

Used toilets in museum. Nasty. Toilets in Malta also rarely have paper, so worth carrying your own supply.
Bought cushion cover for my collection. Has Maltese cross on it. Happy.

Ate lunch in Bottegin, Palazzo Xara in Rabat. Was okay and cheap.

Drove home. Got thoroughly lost. R took over map reading and took us in a big circle past some bamboo. Fired her and reinstated Son 2/Helen Keller, who took us all around the coast. Was scenic if not exactly direct.

Played new board game in the bar. I never actually understood the rules but everyone else seemed to enjoy it. Drank beers ( which helped.)

Tuesday: Breakfast at 9 (8 for me, am keeping to UK time. Mainly because it annoys the males.)
Husband collected a plateful of Maltese food ( pickled herrings, pea pastries, cheese). Ate a few mouthfuls, then collected a plateful of English breakfast food to ‘dilute’ it with. Told him he’s getting portly. He did not appreciate feedback.

Didn’t go to the Hypogeum in Paola as you have to book and there are no vacant slots for the next 20 years.

Drove to Hagar Qim to look at Mnajdra temples. Arrived 11:55. M hardly mentioned “midday sun” at all. There was an interesting 4D film before the monument ( my kind of history, short, informative and no long boring information boards to read.) Temples were unusual. And hot.

Drove back to St Julian with no detours. Son 2 told us, ” it helps if you know where you are when you start.” Explains a lot.

Checked out and ate lunch in hotel lobby. Nice food.

R said she needed to recharge all her electronics as her plug converters didn’t fit any of the sockets in her room. We pointed out that Malta has the same electricity as UK so she didn’t need any converters. R went quiet. Briefly.

Drove to ferry at Cirkewwa. I cannot begin to tell you how my family pronounce the names here…….

Paris

Posted by anneethompson

Paris

For many years, despite many many hints, I never went to Paris. My husband informed me that it was to be the epitaph on my gravestone: She never went to Paris.
Finally, in 2009, I stopped waiting for romantic husband to take me and decided to go with my daughter. For the record, I have been three times since (once with romantic husband, who clearly felt left out.) Not being a great traveller, we decided to go by train. My organised (if not romantic) husband booked the tickets for us and a night in a hotel.
We left home in good time and travelled up to St Pancreas with loads of time to spare. We found it rather funny that husband had taken us to station so early and spent an hour wandering around shops and having lunch in a cafe. We then dawdled to the platform entrance about ten minutes before train was due to leave. I then discovered that unlike a ‘normal’ train, you have to have your luggage checked and go through passport control when catching a train abroad. Everyone was very stressed by how late we were and we were whisked through security and boarded train just as it was leaving.
Train was easy and comfy and we had a meal as we travelled. After a while we went through a big tunnel. As we emerged on the other side we remarked on how short the tunnel had been and how the French countryside looked exactly like England.
We then drew into Ebbsfleet station and realised that we weren’t actually in France yet! When we did finally arrive in Paris, it was all very easy. We left the station and followed signs for the taxi rank. The trip was supposed to be to improve my daughter’s French before her GCSE. I realised how important this was when she declared, “Oh, I can see the French word for ‘taxi’. Look, it’s written on all their cars. It’s ‘Parisian'”

We stayed in Hotel du Louvre and I would highly recommend it. If you are not a confident traveller, it is near enough to walk to the Louvre, the opera house and along the river to the Eiffel tower. The staff were friendly, it was clean and they have a wonderful restaurant. Just beware if you have hot chocolate in the bar, it is unexpectedly expensive (much cheaper to order it on room service.)

Checked in and walked around. No guide book, so passed lots of buildings that were clearly ‘something’ but no idea what. Took lots of photos. Bought a very French cake in a very French patisserie.

Went to the Louvre. Finding the Louvre was easy (it was next to our hotel.) Finding the entrance was more of a challenge. We spent a long time trying various doors. Eventually realised that the pyramid in the centre of the courtyard was in fact, the entrance. Felt rather silly. Saw Mona Lisa (and other stuff.)

Went to Le Nemours cafe. It happens to be right next to our hotel (you may be noticing a theme here) but it is also a perfect French cafe. It seems to appear in ALL films set in Paris. It has the wicker backed chairs, the round tables outside, the half curtained windows, etc etc. It is also (for Paris) quite cheap.

Walked to Opera house. Fancy. Went to Lafayette – a shop which is more fancy than the opera house. I do not like shopping but this one is worth a visit, if only to see the domed glass ceiling and all the balconies.

Walked along river to Notre Dame. Happened to be inside when choir was practicing, which was pretty perfect.

Saw gargoyles and stained glass windows.

Got taxi back to station and train home. Taxi driver charged us an extra euro because we put bags in the boot. Not sure if that was normal but my French was not good enough to argue.
Arrived home and husband told us the name of all the buildings we had photographed and suggested we took a guide book next time.

Next visit was in 2011, when I repeated the trip with son who was about to do his GCSE. This time we drove to Ebbsfleet and parked there. Much easier if you live in the South.

On the train, I suggested that he should work out how to say, “We realise it is too early to check in but please could we leave our bags while we look around Paris,” ready for when we arrived at the hotel. Son told me that GCSE French does not cover that sort of thing. I informed him he had over an hour on the train to learn how, as my French is almost non existent. He wrote copious notes. When we arrived at hotel (same one as before. It’s nice) he read out his sentence. They did not completely understand but spent a long time explaining to him what he should have written. They then showed us around the hotel, explaining everything to my son in very simple French. Please note: My main suggestion for anyone visiting France is learn a little French. I found that if we spoke bad (in my case, very very bad) French, then everyone was really helpful and did their best to help us, often answering us in English so that we understood. People who just ask in English seem to have a much less friendly reception.

We did much the same things as when I visited with my daughter, though not the shop and not the hour trying to find the entrance to the Louvre.

Cool statue of lion playing football in Louvre.

Man feeding rabbit to his dog. Am not sure why he is naked but he is being very careful where dog puts his paws!

We also discovered the water taxi/bus which goes up and down the Seine. It was easy to buy tickets and you can get on and off where you want.

We also went to a cafe right outside Notre Dame cathedral, overlooking the river. We ordered drinks and the friendly(!) waiter offered me a slice of gatueau. He then asked if I would like cream with it. When the bill arrived, I realised it was the most expensive cake I have ever eaten. I think the cream alone was about 6€. I told myself I was paying for the view and swore son to secrecy. Please note: Always worth checking prices!

Paris is lovely. You can wander around the streets, walk next to the river and eat in little cafes. Everyone is friendly (as long as you speak French, even bad French) and there is lots to see. One day I might even venture further than a mile from the Louvre……

Why not buy a copy today? I think it will make you laugh.

The US link is here:

https://www.amazon.com/Sarcastic-Mothers-Holiday-Diary-ebook/dp/B07N95281F/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1549015525&sr=8-1&keywords=the+sarcastic+mothers+holiday+diary

The India link is here:

https://www.amazon.in/Sarcastic-Mothers-Holiday-Diary-ebook/dp/B07N95281F/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1549015429&sr=8-1&keywords=the+sarcastic+mothers+holiday+diary

The UK link is here:

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Sarcastic-Mothers-Holiday-Diary-ebook/dp/B07N95281F/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1549014970&sr=8-2&keywords=the+sarcastic+mothers+holiday+diary

Lake Como, Italy

Posted by anneethompson

Lake Como, Italy

Holiday Diary 2009

Drove 1½ hours from Milan to Lake Como. Checked in to Grand Hotel, Menaggio, which we booked through Citalia.

The hotel was lovely, with pretty communal areas and a balcony in our room over looking the lake and surrounding hills. Very pretty.

Strolled around the town. Swam in hotel pool. Ate in hotel, nice meal. Friendly staff.Walked into town and played crazy golf. It was a cold evening.

Day 2: Got up early and went to gym. Then felt ill all day (so not used to exercise!)
We were late into breakfast so the buffet was rather depleted. Lazy day.

Day 3: Didn’t go to gym. (No need to over do it.)

Hotel were having a Gala night so were putting up some (slightly naff) decorations. Had a very complicated conversation with the maid about getting a larger sheet for the bed as it only has a single sheet on the double bed. Way beyond my language ability level.
Ate lunch in a square in town. Strolled around but it was too hot to walk for long.
Dinner was nice but we had a grumpy waitress who threw down food, spilt drinks and scowled a lot. Probably does too much exercise.

Sat on balcony and watched fireworks across the lake. They played classical musical and it was magical watching the reflections play across the water.

Day 4: Drove along side of lake and into Switzerland. Took about 2 hours. Beautiful scenery, even the kids thought it was good (“Looks like one of those posters which you know isn’t real. But it is!”) Went to St Moritz. Bit false, mainly hotels and designer shops. Had a lovely homemade soup and cheese sandwich lunch in a cafe.

The family all went on a train and cable car up to the peak to look at the Alps. Becky got an altitude headache but they all said it was good.

I got off the train at the first stop and tried to find Heidi’s house. No helpful signposts and I wasn’t really sure what I was looking for. The only possible contender I saw was pretty big. My image of Heidi’s grandfather was not multi millionaire. Maybe he extended it when her books became popular.
It was fairly chilly. I met other walkers, who were all wearing full hiking gear complete with boots and walking poles. Wondered if my silk skirt and sandals was inappropriate for mountain walking. Pretended I was local and looked at them like they were over dressed annoying tourists.
Walked down through pine forests, listening to cow bells. It was a mix of very lovely (as it grew warmer on the lower slopes) and a bit scary (because I was on a mountain all by myself without a clue as to where I was.)
When I got back to town my legs were shaking from walking downhill for so long! (Maybe I do need another gym visit.)
Went to co op and bought chocolate and cokes. Drove home after we managed to pay the car park ticket. The machine only took euro notes and we didn’t want swiss francs as change.

On the way back we stopped at a lake. It was totally perfect. David and the boys stripped off and swam. Lots of squealing when they realised how cold the water was! Luckily no one had a heart attack and we made it back to hotel slightly damp, very hungry, but feeling we had had a good day.

Day 5: David went to the gym then restocked his protein with egg and cheese for breakfast.
Morning by pool, lunch in bar next door.
Spent the afternoon at Villa Carlotta. This is a villa, built in the seventeenth century for a Milanese marquis. It is now a museum and botanical garden.

We were interested to see it as about fifty years previously, David’s grandparents had been and they had bought an ornament of the statue of Cupid and Psyche by Canova, which now belonged to us. They had the statue at the villa. (Not the original, in case you are wondering. One is in the Louvre in Paris, a second copy is in the Hermitage in St Petersburg and the plaster cast is in the Met in New York.)
We looked at the statue, took some photos (even though lots of signs told us not to) and bought another copy from the gift shop. It is not as well made as the model from fifty years ago, but only cost 16€ so seemed worth continuing the tradition.
The gardens surrounding the villa are very lovely and we spent some time wandering around. It would have been more enjoyable in a slightly cooler season.

Day 6: We took the ferry across the lake to Varrena. The ferries stop right next to the hotel and you constantly heard them announcing all their stops. It wasn’t particularly intrusive, they were only at certain times and not late at night, but whenever I now think about that hotel I hear the chant from the ferry information in my head. Shame they weren’t chanting something useful.

Varrena is a little town on a hill, full of picturesque lanes and old fishermen cottages. We walked around and then bought slices of pizza which we ate on stone steps leading down to the water. We found a cafe next to the lake and had some very good pancakes before getting the ferry back to Menaggio.
After dinner we walked into town. There was extremely loud music in the car park next to the hotel until 2am. It was like trying to sleep in a night club. Gave up and danced on the balcony for a while.

Day 7: Woke tired and grumpy. David escaped to the gym (coward.)
Morning by the pool, boys did not emerge from their room.
Drove to a viewpoint overlooking Lake Lugano. It was a long drive and a very confusing map. Ate a not very nice ice cream when we got there.
After dinner, a pianist played next to the pool. We listened for a while and James swam (not sure if he was meant to. He didn’t have inflatable crocodile with him, so am hoping it didn’t detract from the music too much.)

Day 8: Packed and left. Drove back to Milan for the flight home. It was very difficult to find a petrol station to refill the hire car before we returned it. Finally bought extremely expensive petrol from a man selling ‘especially refined diesel’.
Flew home. A good holiday.

A Snapshot of New York in March

Posted by anneethompson

A Snapshot of New York in March

A Quick Trip to the U.S.

Husband had a work trip in New York, so I decided to tag along. I knew it had been snowing (even more than usual) so chose my clothes carefully: no thick sweaters because all rooms, restaurants and taxis would have heating on full, very thick coat because outside would be freezing, walking boots because paths would be wet and salty. This all worked well except that I had not thought about the journey. As we walked through the exec lounge and sat in first class on the plane, everyone else was wearing suits and smart shoes. I pretended I was part of Bear Gryll’s production team and dirty walking boots were completely normal footwear. Think everyone was fooled. (Except for husband, who banned the woolly hat until we had left the airport.)

Stayed in the Chatwal Hotel on 44th Street btwn 6th & 7th Ave. Very nice place to stay, comfortable and clean with excellent facilities and art deco furnishings.

When we first arrived, I wanted to go and see the flower display that Rebecca Law had done in the Viacom building in Times Square.

I had seen it on the internet, so was interested to see it myself.

There are three different art displays, one in each entrance and one at the top of the escalators, before you go through the security barriers.

I liked them a lot, especially the upstairs one as it was in a smaller area and you could smell the flowers as they dried.

It was interesting to notice that people leaving the building all tended to look up at the display as they passed.Most art displays become ‘invisible’ after a while, where as this was clearly still being looked at.

We spoke to a man who worked there and had been involved with assembling the display. He said it was quite hard work. I think he enjoyed talking about it more than he had enjoyed actually doing it.

Strolled around. There were piles of snow heaped in the gutters and all the paths were very wet. I liked looking up, seeing all the different levels of rooflines. Lots of huge billboards flashing brightly lit adverts. The streets smell of roasted chestnuts and hotdogs as you pass the vendors. It was so cold, any exposed face actually hurt.

Went to Duane Reade – useful if you travel with someone who snores (earplugs), are feeling unwell (medicines), or have lost your luggage (make up and toiletries.) They also have food for when you wake at 4am wide awake because the time zone is different.

Passed the New York Public Library, which I have seen many times but never actually been into, so decided to go inside. It has a beautiful entrance, you walk up marble steps into a marble lobby with many staircases.
I walked upstairs and came to a hallway with a beautifully painted ceiling and lovely carved door frames. Went into a room, where people were working at long tables and portraits lined the walls. There were no books. I had seen the library in a film where they had burned books to keep warm, so I was pretty sure there should be books. Unless they had burned them in real life?
Explored a bit further. Still did not see any books. There were lots of doors, which were locked. Found more paintings and a book in a glass case. Began to find this amusing. Were there books in this library? I wondered if the architect had got carried away with making it all look lovely and had then decided he did not want it spoiled with lots of books. Maybe the initial brief had been unclear. Guessed this may have caused some arguments, especially as the word ‘library’ had been carved above the entrance.
Asked a guard if there were any books. He directed me into a room of map books. Not really what I had hoped for. Saw lots of people studying microfiche, but no books.
Decided to go back to the entrance and ask at the ‘information’ desk. Felt a little surreal to ask “Are there any books in the library?” However, found a very helpful little man who looked like he should have been selling magic wands. He explained that actually this was a research library. He told me that most books – novels etc – are kept in the library opposite. He then clearly decided that as I was foreign, I may not understand what a library was, so went on to explain that residents could obtain a library card and could both read books or even borrow them and take them home for a week or two. Managed to keep my expression interested and surprised. Thanked him and left. I still have a feeling that I somehow managed to miss a huge room full of books, but I never found it. Beautiful building though.

Went to bed about 5pm. Woke about 3:30 am. At 4am, gave up on sleep and got up. Decided to try and find a deli or diner for some breakfast. It was snowing quite heavily, so very happy to have my sturdy walking boots and big coat. Did not expect to meet anyone, so pulled on jeans and coat over pyjamas. Felt rather adventurous to stand in Times Square wearing pyjamas!

New York at 4am is very nice. It is still brightly lit and feels very safe (I wouldn’t go down any small alleyways but main streets were fine.)

Lots of people were around – mainly shift workers and homeless people I guess.

Found a deli and had bagels and coffee. Nowhere in the world does bagels and coffee like New York. Perfect.

Walked past the ABC studios. They have a window into the studio, so you can watch them filming the breakfast show.

We were joined by a lady who became very excited to see Mary Mary about to perform. Apparently they are famous gospel singers. We joined her in waving excitedly and they looked pleased and waved back.

Luckily they didn’t know we had absolutely no idea at all who they were!

At 8:30 NY time, we went into the hotel restaurant and had pancakes and more coffee. (I was showered and dressed by now, in case you were wondering.) Had a stack of pancakes and maple syrup. Another New York essential. I figured this counted as lunch if I stay on BST.

In the afternoon we met some friends. Got a taxi (they allowed us to fit 4 people) to Central Park. It was so pretty with all the snow.

Ate in Tavern on the Green. This is a lovely restaurant right in the park, inside had lots of art deco furnishings, outside twinkling lights reflecting on the snow. It had comfy seats (makes a big difference to a meal!) and an open kitchen so you could watch the chefs. When we had eaten there previously (1999) it had a smart dress code but now it is casual, so jeans were okay.
Food was nice but my body thought it was 2am and could not cope with eating much. They packed up the remains of my dinner ‘to go’, which all restaurants in US seem happy to do and it takes the guilt out of having a small appetite.
A lovely evening in a beautiful venue.

Didn’t go shopping, but there is every opportunity if that’s what you enjoy.

It would at least be warm.

Another, colder, option is to visit the Intrepid Aircraft Carrier museum on the Hudson.

You could then eat in a typical American diner.

I ate in the Market Diner on 11th Ave and W34 street.

Had pie and coffee and pretended I was Jack Reacher.

A slightly more luxurious alternative with a much better view is dessert for $12 at The Mandarin Oriental on Columbus Circle. Afternoon tea is $48 (or $80 with a glass of champagne.) If you want a window table (which you will) then be sure to book it when you make your reservation.

Another fun thing to do is to walk along The High Line. This is a disused elevated freight railway, which has now been turned into a park/walkway. In March, with all the plants under snow and in freezing wind, is probably not the best time to see it. However, even in arctic conditions it is interesting. You can see lots of old industrial buildings, there is random artwork along the route and best of all you can walk for nearly two miles without constantly stopping for road junctions. (Walking in New York is mostly slow and disjointed unless you are in Central Park.)

Being in New York is always fun, always easy and there is always something to do. Even a short trip is worth the jet lag.
(And if you happen to know where the books are in the public library, please do tell me in the comments below!)

Why not buy a copy today? I think it will make you laugh.

The US link is here:US link

https://www.amazon.com/Sarcastic-Mothers-Holiday-Diary-ebook/dp/B07N95281F/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1549015525&sr=8-1&keywords=the+sarcastic+mothers+holiday+diary

The India link is here: India link

https://www.amazon.in/Sarcastic-Mothers-Holiday-Diary-ebook/dp/B07N95281F/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1549015429&sr=8-1&keywords=the+sarcastic+mothers+holiday+diary

The UK link is here: UK Link Here!

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Sarcastic-Mothers-Holiday-Diary-ebook/dp/B07N95281F/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1549014970&sr=8-2&keywords=the+sarcastic+mothers+holiday+diary

Thank you for reading
anneethompson.com
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Milan, Italy

Posted by anneethompson

Milan, Italy

Family Diary August 2009

Day 1: Train from Verona to Milan, 1½ hours. Rather hot because the air conditioning broke.
Checked in to Hotel De La Ville, booked through Citalia.
Nice hotel with good facilities. Looked at pool (small), bar (pleasant) and fitness room (looked okay.)

Walked around Milan looking for somewhere suitable for a family to eat that did not involve taking out a mortgage. Found a pub, which had a free buffet (which was not especially nice) with drinks plus you could order food. We had lasagna and pizzas.

Wandered around the cathedral, which was very pretty.
There is a nice big square outside where the whole world hangs out.
The outside of the cathedral is covered with some pretty cool gargoyles.
Very gothic.
It took over 600 years to build – which seems excessive until you see it. I expect it caused a few arguments at the time.

Strolled around some posh shops trying on perfumes.

Day 2: Buffet breakfast. We were quite late in eating and it looked like it had been there for a while, though the selection was good. The best bit was a little news sheet that you could pick up as you went in (in various languages.)

Walked around Milan.

Found a ferrari shop.
Bought a ferrari bag.
Also bought a ferrari hat for a friend’s new baby (my family felt he would have sufficient teddy bears and cute clothes.)

Saw a few pretty squares and the Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II. Which sounds like another church but is actually a four storey arcade of shops. I am not much interested by shops but the arcade was worth a visit.

I sat in the cathedral square and drank espresso while the family continued shopping. It was the most expensive coffee I have ever sipped, but I told myself I was paying for the atmosphere, not the coffee (or the dirty table.) Watched the world go by.

Bought some Dolce & Gabbana perfume (not sure how my daughter managed to persuade me into that one) and wandered around with the D & G bag pretending to be rich.
Sandwich/burger from a food hall.
Boys swam in pool on hotel roof (were not impressed by how shallow it was.)

We went to an art gallery. Saw some fantastic art (and some really bad art.) We had wanted to see ‘The Last Supper’ at Santa Maria delle Grazie, however tickets need to be prebooked a couple of months in advance, which we hadn’t realised.

Went to hotel gym with boys. They went in the jacuzzi (which was broken). We used a few machines but all the best ones were broken or had pieces missing. Shame.

Ate in McDonalds. By far the poshest McDonalds I have ever been in!

Walked down to Sforza Castle. This is a fifteenth century castle and at night it is floodlit. There is a big fountain in front and it is very pretty. Had ice creams.

David and I had drinks in the hotel bar. Pleasant.

Day 3: I went to Mass in the cathedral (Duomo). People were queuing to go inside but if you are attending Mass you can go straight in. You need to be appropriately dressed (covered shoulders and knees.) I found it hard to follow the Italian, though there were some discernible words. I just liked being there.

Walked back to the castle. It was way too hot and felt a lot further during daytime. Drank lemonade in the gardens.

The kids stood in the fountains (other people were too, so I figured they wouldn’t get shot.) A man approached David with some English passports he had ‘found’. He wanted David to go with him to a phone box to phone the owners. David said he would use his mobile at which point the man became very aggressive and snatched them back. I took photos of him which I later showed some police who were in the cathedral square but they were completely disinterested.

Dinner in a restaurant at the top of La Rinascente which is a shopping mall selling designer stuff (pretty boring unless you like that sort of thing) but has a very interesting food hall at the top and a restaurant on the roof. It was lovely, we sat in the balmy evening air over looking the gargoyles on the Duomo. Very atmospheric.

Had drinks (and hot chocolates) in the hotel bar and played cards.

Day 4: Collected hire car and drove to Lake Como.

Puglia, Italy

Posted by anneethompson

Puglia, Italy

Family Diary 2012

Monday: Drove from Sorrento to Puglia.
Mammoth journey, took forever. Loads of traffic – most of it on the wrong side of the road whilst over taking at least one car and two scooters on a blind bend.
Also had a detour due to a forest fire.
Nice lunch at a service area – freshly cooked burgers and nice sandwiches.
Arrived in Torre Canne about 4:30.
Spent a long time looking for Hotel del Levante. (We booked this holiday through Citalia but I think they no longer use this hotel as it isn’t on their website. I don’t know why – it wasn’t the prettiest hotel we have stayed at but we liked it.)
We unpacked and looked around.
It all felt very foreign after the Sorrento Hotel Bristol and was much less luxurious. However, it was clean and the pool and beach were excellent.
Dinner was okay.
Slept well even though it was quite noisy.
The rest of the family stayed up.
There was a shared computer in the foyer which James had a dispute over with another guest (who felt that he was more important so told James to let him use it. Man was now on Mike and Mark’s hit list.)

Tuesday: Got up and walked along the beach to the lighthouse.
There were lots of men setting up stalls on the beach selling beachwear and toys. Hotels were setting up their chairs on the beach, ready for guests.

Breakfast.
Big discussion about that evening. The hotel was holding a Gala Night which involved paying an extra €15 per person to ‘cover drinks’ (we had already paid for dinner in our ‘half board’ rate). Which was quite a lot for six of us and we had to pay even for those who wouldn’t drink.
Coffee at breakfast was nasty, but the hot chocolate was good.
There was a buffet breakfast with a good range of fruit, cakes, cheese, eggs etc.
Some people took food from breakfast to eat later (which I am not sure was ethical.)

Swam. We were invited to play volleyball. We lost, but not too embarrassingly.
Went in sea until David told me there might be jellyfish. (We did not see any jellyfish the entire holiday, so he may have been lying because he was bored with me swimming.)
Pizza lunch from pizzeria next door.

Went to Gala night.
It was brilliant so I am very pleased that we did!
They had set up a fountain in the pool, there were lights in the trees, ice sculptures, flowers and candles.
All very beautiful.
We sat at tables around the pool, listening to the sea.
There was a huge buffet, which we thought was the main meal but then they served dinner! Lots of food, lots of wine.
There was a band with a singer, then fireworks, then dancing.
They brought out a massive chinese lantern which they lit using a blow torch and set off to float above the sea (we were a little nervous at this point in case it set fire to the guests, but luckily no one got burned – would have rather spoiled event…)
Lots of people came onto the beach to watch the dancing – I am assuming they walked up from the town. Mark did one of his frenetic dances and they all cheered (proud mummy moment.)
Was great fun.

Wednesday: Very sleepy.
Late breakfast at 9.
I went back to bed, family went on beach.

Went into town just as everywhere was shutting. David bought a ball. Mike didn’t buy a tee-shirt. Becky didn’t buy a jumper (yes, a jumper. Why? It’s boiling hot!) Everyone hot and grumpy.

Drove back to hotel. David only went wrong once, family very restrained in their feedback.
Hotel man looked very depressed when we gave him another car to fit into his over crowded car park (maybe he drank too much last night too.)

Spent the afternoon in the sea and pool.
Boys took inflatable boat into sea. Didn’t float to Corsica (lucky, would have been inconvenient.)
Becky was presented with shells – was not especially keen on the crab claws or the bits that were still alive.
I swam with David for a while and did not get stung or eaten.
Read and had an ice cream and an espresso next to the pool. Felt very contented.

Dinner was slightly dysfunctional (the staff must have been tired from the previous night.)
The house next to the hotel had a party. Extremely loud music for much of the night. Not much sleep again.

Thursday: After breakfast went to Alberobello.

Saw lots of trullo.

These are little round white houses.

They were first built in the fourteenth century. The Count, who owned the land, told all his workers to build them because they could be quickly dismantled when the land was inspected and he could avoid paying taxes.

They were pretty, but it was too hot for them to be interesting for long.

I bought a cushion cover for my collection (more expensive than ones bought in Asia or the rest of Europe or US!)

Mike didn’t buy a tee-shirt. Becky didn’t buy a bikkini (but at least she was now looking at weather appropriate clothing.)

Friday: Breakfast at 9.
Every morning, David woke the boys by phoning their room with an annoying poem or song. Every morning James answered and put down the phone. It was a little ritual. Do hope he never phoned the wrong room.

Did nothing. Nice.
Last night, the boys watched a horror film where the main spectre was called Natasha. Today, when they were swimming, a small girl joined them. They asked her name. She said ,“Natasha.” They then both roared, “Na-ta-sha” back at her. Luckily she seemed completely unalarmed by this and continued to play pool volleyball with them. Must have had older brothers.

Saturday: I walked along the beach before breakfast.

I really liked that beach.

It was packed with whole families, mostly Italian, from grannies to babies.

Sellers walked up and down with swimwear and beach toys.

Everyone was relaxed and enjoying themselves.

After breakfast we drove to a zoo but it looked a bit naff and over priced.
Drove on to some caves.
I wandered around gift shops and had a coffee in the shade and read.
The family went into the caves and said they were excellent.
Had lunch there (not overly efficient service.)

Drove back to hotel. Got petrol – always an adventure in small town europe if you don’t speak the language. This time we had to pay in advance. Worked it out eventually.

Sunday: Day by sea and pool.
Boys played volleyball against various teams, including ‘marathon girl’ (who was a very pretty teenager who was also rather good at volleyball!)
The hotel staff wandered around, inviting people to join in various games. It was ideal for a family.

I stopped worrying about people ‘stealing’ from breakfast. Everyone seemed to do it and were very open about it. One old lady even took foil with her to cover her plateful!

Enjoyed the sea. Had big waves.
Nice dinner (they were sometimes a bit random.)

Chatted, then James took his holiday photos. All of them, for the entire holiday. In his room. Not going to be an artist I feel.

Monday: We packed.
We asked to keep one room until we left in the afternoon. Everyone moved their stuff in.
We swam and played on the beach.
Made sand animals on the beach and lots of people stopped to look at them. Clearly the Italian word for “Dragon” is “Crocodee” Showered, pizza, played Catan.
Flew home. Good holiday.

anneethompson.com

Taormina, Sicily

Posted by anneethompson

Taormina, Sicily

Family Diary, August 2007

Saturday: Arrived and picked up hire car at airport.
Drove to Hotel Excelsior Palace, which we booked through Citalia.
It was hard to find the car park, all got a bit stressy. Narrow roads, pedestrian walk ways and lack of sign posts did not help.

Our room had a view of Mount Etna. I wondered how far away it was compared to Pompeii and Mount Vesuvius.

Sunday: Swam, walked in town, swam.

The best bit of the hotel is the pool. It is set in the gardens, so you walk down through orange and almond trees,along flower lined pathways, to the pool area.

The pool overlooks the coast on one side and the cliff continues behind the hotel, so you can look up at the mountain tops on the other. It is beautiful.

Not entirely sure that two young boys and a large inflatable crocodile add very much to the atmosphere.

Monday: Swam Lunch in a pizzeria. Walked through the town with David. If you like very crowded walkways and lots of designer shops, you will love Taormina.

Unfortunately, I hate shopping, especially for clothes, so it was rather wasted on me.

Plus I got blisters from wearing pretty but uncomfortable shoes.

Tuesday: Swam. Bought lunch in a supermarket and ate it in the garden.
Dinner in hotel (nice.)

Jazz concert in a Greek theatre.

This was excellent. We sat on chairs, listening to some really good jazz while watching the sun go down behind the Greek stage.

It was very romantic (well, it would have been had we not had three quite vocal children with us!)

Wednesday: We decided to drive to Mount Etna. I was very excited, having never been close to a volcano before and having rather a passion for bonfires and burning things in general.
However, the hire car gears jammed up on one of the many extremely steep roads.
We waited in a very hot town (which had no public toilets) for a pick up truck and then a taxi to rescue us.
It was hot and boring and uncomfortable.

Swam.
Walked through town with David (it was still just a lot of shops and well designed women trotting around.)
Had coffee in a square, which was nice.

Evening meal was by the pool. The hotel had set up tables with lots of candles and flowers. It was so pretty.

Thursday: We got the hotel mini bus down to the beach.
This was a mistake. The hotel was up a cliff, so we couldn’t walk back. We were deposited at the beach and told the mini bus would return in five hours. The beach was full of beautiful people tanning themselves. The chairs were laid out practically next to each other, each with a small sunshade. Five hours is a long time. Even the sea was crowded!
No way you could go for a run, build a sand castle or even swim properly. You just had to lie there, trying to read and sweating away while beautiful people strolled up and down elegantly between the loungers.

Returned to Taormina and bought ice creams.
The new hire car was delivered.
Walked through the town again.

Friday: The boys slept through breakfast so David smuggled them hot chocolates.
David announced he was going to only eat fruit for the rest of the holiday (probably due to seeing all those beautiful people on the beach!)
Swam. David was seen eating bread rolls.

Drove to Etna. Lunch in a Deli in Gliaglosse. David ate a lot more than just fruit (that did not last very long at all!)

Etna was brilliant. We walked over a recent eruption (that May.) It was like being on the moon. There was total silence, no birds or insects, nothing growing. Brilliant.
Rebecca complained it was just a lot of black rock.
We saw some geologists with all their equipment.

Drove back early so we didn’t miss the car park. Parking was a pain. The hotel used the main car park in Taormina. There was often a queue to get in and it could be hard to find spaces.
I wonder if it is possible to just hire a car for occasional days when actually in Taormina and not to bother actually having one for the whole holiday. It seemed more hassle than it was worth.

Swam.
Drank peach champagne cocktails and played cards in the bar.

Saturday, Sunday, Monday: Days by the pool and strolling around town.

Tuesday: Went on an excursion, booked through the hotel, to Stromboli.
We were picked up and taken to a little port by coach.
We then were taken by boat to a small island. The children swam and we wandered around for a while. Had some lunch.

The boat then took us to Stromboli, which is an active volcano. About every twenty minutes, a plume of smoke could be seen coming from the top and flowing down the side, then steam as it hit the sea. We stopped on the island and could walk around the town.
Had a drink and looked at the church.

Then the boat took us around the island. We were given a simple pasta dinner. As it got dark, you could see sparks and fire in the smoke as the volcano erupted. Excellent!

Wednesday to Friday: More time swimming and relaxing.

David and I did another visit to Etna (Rebacca told us she had seen enough black rocks, but the boys came with us.)
We talked to a photographer who had been there at the last eruption. He said he had been climbing up while everyone else was rushing down! He said you could easily see the lava pathways, so it didn’t feel dangerous and he took some really amazing photographs. I bought a couple (one is included at the end. I cannot read his name – he signed them all- I think it is David Sav.)
We wandered around and found the roof of a building that had been completely engulfed by lava. It was so interesting.
There was a clear line, one side everything was dead and covered in black lava, the other side, all was living vibrant forest. Fascinating.
It must be so exciting to actually be there when it erupts, so much power and energy completely unrestrained. So much bigger than anything people do. I like things that remind me of how small I am.

I would have spent more days at Etna, but even David declared he was at saturation point for black rocks.

A brilliant holiday if you like either expensive shops or volcanoes. I realised I should have been a geologist. Bit late now.

Verona, Italy

Posted by anneethompson

Verona, Italy

Family Diary, August 2009

Flew Gatwick to Verona. Taxi to Romeo and Guillietta Hotel, booked through Citalia.
Hotel was small, but a great location as it is in an alley right next to the opera arena. Our room was okay but tiny, there was not even room to open the suitcase! However, the air conditioning was good and the shower was excellent. (It should perhaps be noted that in 2014, when we wanted to return to Verona to see an opera, we decided to stay here again. For position and price it is fabulous.)

Lunch in an outside pizza place, Canteena del Arena. Pleasant.
Walked around. Had coffee and ice cream and a spritz (which cost €19 each. Hmm.)
Found a supermarket.

Had dinner in the main square, right next to the Roman amphitheatre (which is where they stage the opera.) It looks better preserved than the one in Rome but is smaller.

Spent the evening walking through pretty squares which the children complained were spooky.

Wednesday: A brilliant day!
I woke 6am and made David get up. The boys joined us and we borrowed bikes from the hotel and cycled round Verona. It was perfect. Lovely cool air, very few people or cars. We saw lots of pretty squares and ancient buildings.

Back to hotel for breakfast.
Walked to Dante’s square and had coffee and ice cream.
Looked around a market. Some nice ‘touristy’ stuff.
Saw the balcony from ‘Romeo and Juliet’.

At 8pm, we went to the opera (we had pre booked our tickets when in England.) We were shown up to the stone steps, where everyone sat (apart from a few people who had paid extra for chairs in the main arena. I think our view was better, though probably not so comfortable. When we returned in 2014, we took garden chair cushions to sit on!)

They herded more and more people in and we kept squashing up until it was completely full. I liked it. It made you realise what it must have been like in Roman times, they sat on the same steps, looking at the same stage.
The two girls next to James (who we didn’t know) had a picnic. Somehow he managed to be invited to share it. He will go far in life.
The opera was brilliant. We had told the children that they had to stay at least until the first Act (it was Aida.) The boys left during the first interval and because the hotel was so near they could safely walk there on their own. A good first introduction to opera for boys.
Rebecca and David both stayed until the end. The Triumphant Entry scene was fantastic – there were 300 people on stage, including four white horses. (After that scene, everyone clapped and cheered and some people thought it was the end and left!)
It was probably not as good musically as The Royal Opera House in London, but without a doubt was the most impressive staging I have ever seen and was a brilliant introduction to opera for anyone who has never seen one. We sat on ancient stone steps and watched the moon rise in the warm sky while listening to the music. It was magical.

It finished about 12:45. We collected the boys and had a pizza and red wine supper. Everywhere was open, it was as busy as daytime. Went to bed 2am. Great day.

Thursday: Got up 8:30.
Breakfast in hotel (it is an okay breakfast, pleasant buffet and good coffee.)

Walked to a Roman theatre next to the river.
Woman giving out guide books at the entrance asked our nationality and David said, “German.” Why? We were then given all the information in German, which none of us can read.

Went back to hotel via market square and had iced drinks.

After dinner had hot chocolate in the square. It was very thick and dark, reminded me of blancmange, which my Mum used to make when I was young.

Went to bed early but had a bad night. Thin walls and the man in the next room had stomach upset. Most unpleasant.

Friday: Walked to cathedral. Rebecca had to wear a ghastly blue hooded cape over her shorts.
Drank lemonade on a terrace next to the river.
Lunch in square. Boys had buckets (literally) of lemonade.

Taxi to station, caught 4:30 to Milan. We discussed how noisy the Verona hotel had been. We all thought the sound proofing was very bad. Except for the boys. They said they had not heard a thing. But the lady next door had been very rude and kept banging on their wall. Oh dear.

Anne E Thompson

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