Florence

We didn't stay long in Florence. everything that we came to see had a big long line. We have a motto.....if there is a line don't bother. Perhaps not the best as we missed seeing lots of things but standing in over 30 degree heat for hours doesn't really appeal. Wasn't overly fond of Florence, but seen we were only there for 30 min I don't think its really fair for us to coment much.

Pisa

We went to Pisa and did what every tourist do and took photos of us with the leaning tower...

Venice

Venice was somewhere that both myself and Paul had always wanted to visit. For the both of us it was as beautiful as we imagined. We stayed at a campsite outside Venice with the plan that we would take the boat there.....however it was a Sunday and no boat service ran so we ended out driving in...lucky for us this was before peak time so didn't have any trouble with parking and traffic. I have to say that the Italians have CRAZY campsites......you could go on holiday for a week and not leave the campground... well if you are a family anyway (Italian do the hokey poky at 10pm wasn't too exciting for us). We spent the day walking around the city that is built on 117 islands and managed to get a bit lost. We had a look at all the main buildings including the Basilica Di San Marco and the Doges Palace. Was a good day and one of the highlights of our van trip.

Italy.....

We started our trip to Italy by driving from Switzerland to Milan. We stayed just long enough to visit the Duomo which is the worlds largest Gothic cathedral. Building started on this amazing building in 1386 and was completed almost 600 years later. Our camera decided to play up at this point so we made a stop at the nearest camera store and bought a new one.... very exciting!

From Milan we drove to Verona. Very exciting for me as this is the town that Romeo and Juliet is set in. We walked through the graffiti covered entrance way to visit the balcony and a statue of Juliet. We also saw the amphitheatre which is the third largest in existence.

The start of Switzerland

We took a quick drive through Geneva and decided it wasn't really the city for us. We saw Europes fountain with the highest water flow which was kind of strange. On this first impression we were a little disheartened by what Switzerland had to offer.... don't get me wrong as I'm sure Geneva has lots to offer. As we ventured into the country it turned out to be one of the most beautiful places we have been too. I especially loved how all of the cow (and some sheep and goats) had bells on. What a peaceful sound.

Zurich- This is the biggest clock face in Europe.
Lucern. I absolutely loved all the buildings with the artwork...

Lucern again. This bridge is dating from 1333.

Me in Bern

Yes you see right this man is eating small children!

Beautiful countryside.

Our brief stint in Andorra

On our way back into France we decided to drive through Andorra. A country that is 2 1/2 times smaller than Paris which shouldn't take much time to drive through at all. We were going to stroll around the shops as there is one shop per 40 people and the prices are more affordable than the surrounding countries. However the weather was horrible and also due to the fact that we are trying not to spend money we decided to stay in the van. Unfortunately as we were driving down the mountain it sounded as if Charlie (the van) has a very grumbly tummy so we got towed half way to the mechanics.....we were saving money. After a few days waiting for the van to have his wheel nuts fixed we were back on the road.

Snow in summer!

To France we go...

Annecy. The town that Paul has decided is his ideal living spot should NZ sink into the sea. Beautiful lake and stunning town.
Me in Annecy.

Lake Annecy

Monaco- where there were plenty of super yachts and fancy boats to entertain Paul for a long time.

In Nice exploring the old town.

Where we parked our van in Nice. Poor Charlie didn't really fit in with the other cars there.

This photo was taken somewhere close to St-Tropez.

Carcassonne. One of Europe's largest city fortifications. Was a lovely place to spend the day strolling the streets.

This is a photo from the town that we stayed in for a few nights when we thought 'Charlie' (our van) was broken.....but alas just a wheel nut loose. Still it was a beautiful town.... although not that much to do and see.