Paris Day 1

We packed so much into each day that I had to separate them and of course 100's of photos were taken !!!

Tuesday 6th August saw us board the Eurostar High Speed train to France travelling under the English Channel, then working out which train we needed to get to our hotel.

Paris can I say is a whole different world all together. Everything is different not just the language. For the first half day I could not speak. I was completely overwhelmed by the whole place and could say that I did NOT feel at home at all !!!

There were people everywhere, the streets were crowded with people, push bikes, mopeds, motorbikes, dogs, buses you name it. It was chaos !!! The buildings though were beautiful, we have nothing like it in Australia nor have I seen anything that comes close to it. You can always look at books but nothing compares to seeing it all with your own eyes.

St Pancras International Train Station in London.

All Aboard !!

Goodbye England !!

Jim had warned me from the very start that everything in Paris would be small but even he was surprised by just how small our hotel room would be. The other surprise was that there was no railing in the bathroom to attach the shower head !!! What fun that would be to have a shower as you will see from the next few pics !!!

Hotel room and I am standing at the door to the room !!

Not so bad except for the shower and no extraction fan !!!

Nice view out the window to a small 2 way street !!

When we walked into our hotel Jim introduced himself and the woman just put a key on the bench and said 4th floor lift is over there. No hello no identification or paperwork needed !!! Now as I said Jim did warn me that things would be small but nothing quite like this .......

Yes that is the lift door and Jim is leaning up against the opposite wall !!

I just had to take this pic, there is only room for my backpack behind me !!

It really was a one person lift !!!

Day 1 again was all about finding out where we were located in the scheme of things. Again it was a full day of walking !!! and trying really hard not to get run over. Even when the lights change to walk there are still vehicles coming through so you really have to triple check before you walk. No one really pays attention to any light signals nor do they have road rules. No wonder when there are no lines on the roads !!!

This was our first stop and what a place it was. It just took my breath away. The place is Place de la Concorde and is the central location for everything. From here it is the beginning of the Champs-Elysees and my first glimpse of the Eiffel Tower.

Here I had my first Baguette and my first experience with the French language. I didn't do badly and got what I wanted !!! After lunch we headed into the park next door which leads straight down to the Louvre. It was so strange being in this place and seeing all these things with my own eyes.

My first glimpse of the Eiffel Tower

And the Champs-Elysees

Our travels next take us to the park that leads directly to the Louvre. The sun was shining and everyone was out enjoying themselves and relaxing by the fountains in the park.

We didn't have to pay to sit in these seats !!!



And yet another place to cross off the list !!!

The Louvre is a bustling place even on a day when it is closed !! The police patrolling the area all wear rollerblades !!! More walking to be done and when we walked through the arch ways leaving the Louvre we found all the tourist shops !!! Yippee and were greeted by the buildings in the next picture.

All the same one way

and all the same the other way !!!

The Paris Opera House

So the concludes our first day in Paris. The buildings are fantastic and so detailed. By the end of the day I had found my voice and was excited about what is to come while we are here. Stay tuned for Day 2 !!



The Trip of a Lifetime !!

Well here it is, the time has come for me to leave my family behind and head home to the mother land for the trip of a life time all thanks to my Uncle Jim. Thank you so much for helping me make this happen. There will be nothing that I can do or say to thank you enough for giving me this opportunity. We all love you very, very much.

The plan is for the two of us to head to London England to go back to where my family came from. To see where my mum and grandparents grew up and the meet family that I have only ever heard about. We are also throwing in some touring of London and a quick trip to Paris France !!!

Be warned that over the next few posts there will be a mountain of photos and an overload of information !!! So away we go !!!!

Sandy and I left the kids on Saturday night and stayed at the Rydges Hotel at Sydney Airport and this was the view that we had !!! Weren't we lucky Jared ??? !!!

Next morning at 3am Jim arrived for our nice early morning departure of 6am !!! Sandy came across to say goodbye then headed back to the hotel for some much needed rest before heading home.

Emirates flights now have cameras mounted to the tail and underneath so that you can see the outside while landing and taking off. So here we are waiting to leave.

All aboard and ready for our 14 hour flight to Dubai in an Airbus A380 !!! The first leg was fantastic there was plenty of room, hardly anyone on board and great staff.

Our first look at Dubai. It was all the same buildings and all the same colour around the airport. Very bland and dreary. I am sure that the further you got into the heart of the city the brighter it got.

Our next leg was an 8 hour flight into London again on an A380 only this time the flight was packed to the rafters and the most clumsy crew we have ever come across. We think that they may have been a newly trained crew. Everything that could go wrong did go wrong. Most things were dropped and half the crew didn't speak good English and couldn't understand what most passengers were saying.

During the flight there was a lot of turbulence and with just under 2 hours left we were served afternoon tea. The staff were just getting ready to clean all the trays up when they received a call from the captain to unpack all the carts and prepare for really bad turbulence. The poor staff didn't know what to do as they were worried about all our trays still out. But they did as they were told and pulled apart all the carts sat down and buckled up in their seats. Just as they had finished it all the captain called back and told them to repack everything and that it wasn't as bad as he thought !! the poor girls were very stressed and one male staff came from another part of the cabin and flipped his lid about what had just happened. Loud enough for a fair few of us passengers to hear him swear a few times !!! We couldn't land quick enough and get out of that plane !!!!

Hooray it's London finally !!!

When we eventually got out of the airport our next adventure took us on the underground tube system. Exhaustion had definitely set in by now as none of us have had any sleep !!!

Double Tree Hilton in Bloomsbury Room 1

The next morning was a catch up on sleep day and work out exactly where we were in London so that when we returned from Paris would could hit the ground running. The funny thing was that we were up and ready to go first thing, no signs of jet lag. So off we went for what was to be a very long day with lots and lots of walking.

As soon as I hit the streets of London I knew I was truly home. The feeling was one of complete peace, no stress, no fuss. We ended up outside Hyde Park and next to Marble Arch after a walk down Oxford Street and all the fantastic shopping areas. Can't wait to get back here to do some shopping !!

 

Last night I was greeted by loads of these busses whizzing around the streets and they had the lights on inside. All I could think about was the Harry Potter movies with the busses on the English Streets !! It was a great introduction to London !!

 

Across the road was Hyde Park and the Speakers corner where people are allowed to stand on a soap box and preach about what ever they like and inside the park there were people sitting on deck chairs so Jim and I though great spot for a little rest out of the hot sun. Yes HOT sun !!

 

Relaxing in Hyde Park

So Jim and I took some photos and were just having a nice sit down when a guy came over and told us that it would be 1 Pound 50 to sit on the chairs in the park !!!! Needless to say we up and left !!! I'm not paying to sit in a chair in a park !!! So down Park Lane we walked !! It is quite funny to be in the places that are listed on the Monopoly Board !!!

 

My first taste of London was perfect, not quite what I imagined. It is very busy just like Sydney but with a very different vibe about it. As we are staying in the same hotel 3 times during this trip we were allowed to leave some of our things behind that we didn't really need to take to Paris. Thank goodness as my suitcase is super heavy !! So next stop Paris !!! See you there ......

Horsing Around

Facebook is a wonderful thing and I am so glad that I ended up joining. It has allowed me to keep in touch with all my relatives overseas and it has also let me reconnect with people that I have not seen in a very long time.

One of those people was a great friend of mine during high school but after that we lost touch. We have been chatting on line for a long time now and with the birth of her first child it was time to get back together and say hello.

So we took the plunge and while it was the school holidays the girls and I headed off on a big adventure. When we were planning the day I was thinking that she only lived up the mountain and it wouldn't take very long to get there. Boy was I wrong !!! What I thought would have been a 45 minute drive turned into a 2 hour trip !!! But there was no way that I was going to miss out. Plus the girls were beside themselves about seeing the horses and of course the gorgeous Nicholas !!!

You know it's going to be a good day when E wakes up and says "Mummy is this the day we get to see the horses?" Yes E today's the day !! Lucky for me I had trusty Gina (our Garmin GPS) to guide the way !!!

The girls were so excited to feed the horses

E had been waiting all week for this day !!!

Isn't he a cutie !!!

The 3 day old lamb in the paddock next door !!

Feeding Elysha's horse Kikki !!

After feeding the horses at home Elysha took us all to the racing stables to see her race horse Princess. The kids were hoping that they may get to ride a horse somewhere during the day and the time came. E had her turn first but both Princess and E were spooked so no sitting or riding for her. Next up was C, we were hoping not to spook Princess again but we did !!! but C was able to hang on and take a seat !!!

See there she is declaring this to be the best day EVER !!!

 Next stop was the park for some lunch. It was quite chilly but a great little park. And Jared you would have been very excited as we were right next to the Air Force Base !!!

You are such a happy little baby !!!

Here you go Jared, right on cue a large American aircraft took off !!!

Not a great shot but proof about the aircraft !!!

I just LOVE the look on Nicholas' face, what a classic !!

You are just so cute !!!

Thankyou so much Elysha and Nicholas for letting us come to visit. It has been way to long. We all had a great time and even though it has been many years since we have seen it each other, it felt like yesterday !!! We can't wait to catch up with you all again when it gets a little warmer and you come down to the beach !!! Roll on summer !!!

Birthday Princess

Another year has flown by and now my little baby is 7 !!! Not so little anymore. E is now growing into a fine young lady ready to take on the world !!!

Her birthday this year has gone on for 3 days !! First was her actual birthday, the next day was celebrating with Grandma and today was hanging out with her friends at the park. After a week of rain it was great to be able to get to the park as there was no backup plan in case of rain !!!

See I'm 7 !!!

Big girls camera !!

E's favorite present for the wrapping paper and the contents !

A Bulldogs Jacket. E's fav football team !!

The stash from Day 1 !!!

Cake 1 !!

Day 2 at Grandmas !!

Cake 2 !!!

So today was party day. E invited some of her friends from school to come along and have some fun at the park. No presents but come have a play and some cake !! Our fingers had been crossed all week for some sunshine as they was no back up plan should it be wet. Hip Hip Hooray the sun came out to play !!!

This was the easiest way to dry the slide !!

Just hanging around being a Bat waiting for friends !!

C just hanging around !!

Sandy found a new friend !!

I LOVE this pic and the kids loved posing for it !!

Cupcakes for cake No 3 !!!

I think E has had a very exciting 7th Birthday. Thanks to everyone for coming along after such a terrible week for the weather. E has made some great friends since starting school. It's always great when there are no tears and no fighting !! Roll on next year !!