Florence

They say that when you throw a penny into the Trevi fountain, you'll return to Rome. Well in our case, that wish couldn't have come true sooner... we suddenly remembered that we'd forgotten our camera memory card in one of the computers at the youth hostel in Rome. So no sooner had we arrived and Dave was on the next train back to Rome.

With no time to spare, I checked into the hotel and headed for the Galleria Dell'Accademia to catch a glimpse of the most famous sculpture in the world... Michaelangelo's 'David' in all his glory! The queue was another tester, but well worth the wait - it was more spectacular that imagined, but 'no photos' please. When Dave got back, we headed out together to marvel at the red, green and white marble Duomo, the Ponte Vecchio (the only bridge not to be destroyed during WWII), the square surrounding the Uggizi gallery with the life-like replicas of David and various other famous sculptures. Strolling through the streets on the way home we were able to snap away at the sunset and the fairytale city of lights before picking up a folded pizza (with all the goodness on the inside).

We awoke to dripping gutters and grey skies, but still determined to look inside the Duomo. The humidity made the climb up to the Michaelangelo square more difficult and with the rain clouds rolling in we scoffed down our lunch before scurrying to find shelter. It was a cool afternoon as we browsed through the pasta shops until it was time to catch the overnighter to Nice.

All roads lead to Rome

Past experience has shown that the early bird catches the worm... and luckily for us, it ensured that we had the most comfy bed for the night for our 9 hour ferry crossing to Italy. Smiles lit up our faces as we closed our eyes and let the gentle rocking of the ferry on the Adriatic take us into dreamland.

We awoke to weary faces and stiff-necked travellers all eager to put their feet on solid ground. Another stamp in the green momba and we jumped on the first bus we saw with no idea where we were going. Luckily we were dropped off at the main train station in Bari... only to find out that the next train to Rome was leaving mid-afternoon. So off we went to explore... At about half 9, no shops had opened yet so we thought that maybe we had crossed a date line during the ferry crossing and were about to set our watches back by an hour until we found out that it was a public holiday. Not much exploring to be done, but we were soon able to find our seats on the tracks headed for Rome. The directions were unclear as to the bus stop for the hostel, but with darkness closing in, we ably found our rooms (with the help of a few English-speaking Romans). It was not surprising that after a long day of travelling, our 1st night in Rome was uneventful... but we had arrived.

They say that when in Rome, do as the Romans do... in our case, the 'Romans' were hoards of other tourists, so we took to the streets in search of the Colosseum, Roman Forum, Constatine's Arch and the Monument of Vittorio Emmanuel II. Works by Michaelangelo, Raphael and other Rennaissance greats surrounded us and the sheer thought of walking in the footsteps of Julius Caesar, Mark Anthony, Mussolini and Pope John Paul II filled us with a sense of awe and wonder. The penny thrown into the Trevi fountain was followed by a stroll down the Spanish Steps and in and out of each piazza we came across. Not many people did as much walking as we did that day, but we were rewarded with an Italian pizza and gelate with scoops the size of polo cross balls!

An early morning visit to St. Peter's Basillica ensured that we beat the crowds and the heat. The mere size of the basillica was enough to impress with the grand square and 120m dome. Inside was the magestic alter piece and separate chapels at each turn. A walk up to the top of the dome which allowed 360 degree panoramas of the city. Not even the hardiest of Zim fuel queuers could have been able to endure the >1 km throng of people making their way, 1 baby step at a time toward the Vatican Museums, and ultimately the Sistene chapel, so we gave it a skip and headed home to get some laundry done.

Crowds seemed to be the order of the following day as well - each person wanting to get their one perfect picture at every spot... makes you wonder if any post cards are ever sold. The Vatican Museums were well worth the 3 hour wait in the queue, but after wondering through the galleries for 4 hours, we were spent. It is a true test of endurance with the Sistene Chapel coming right at the end, but amidst hundreds of other 'illegal' photographers, we finally saw Michaelangelos masterpiece which took him 4 years to complete! After such brilliance, we had to rest, but not before a photo at the Pantheon.

So many steps taken down the paths of history and it was soon time to pack our bags ready for our next adventure... although a pint at the Irish pub with their big screen TV (Dave was craving TV), the Nag's Head did not go amiss.

Croatia

We jumped on the train at Budapest ready for a 15 hour trek to the coast of croatia via Zagreb, the capital city. Having got to the station really early, we were momentarily over-the-moon that we found great seats in a cabin all to ourselves. As the train started moving, 2 brit girls and 2 canadian girls decided to ruin our fun and asked nicely if they could sit with us. Of course we were delighted that we would now have to sit upright for the remaining 15 hours so about an hour or 2 in, we left for greener pastuers and would you know it, we found another empty cabin. At the border at about 7 that evening, just before bed time, we were told that our cabin didn't go to croatia and were promptly kicked back into cattle class. The conductors did however seem very interested in our Zimbabwean passports which were checked about 4 or 5 times at all hours of the night. The trip in general was possibly my worst in living memory and Jen and I must have changed cabins about 4 times and eventually settled for the corridor outside the toilets...

Anyway, Croatia was amazing...definitely one of my highlights with the miles and miles of beautiful cliffs dropping into bright blue seas...the clearest water I think I've seen. We arrived in Split at dawn with no accommodation booked and craving bed so were very happy when a random lady came up to us just outside the train station and said 'you need bed'...of course we took it. We stayed in a lovely house with this lady and her family (and a couple other backpackers) and she walked us through the beautiful old town and gave us a mini tour before arriving. We stayed about a minute outside of the the old palace and centre of town. Fantastic location.

As we only stayed one night in Split we didn't do much except walk the lovely beach paths (there were a few...mainly pebbled) and explore the ancient old city with white marbled floors. As we were making our way to the bus station to catch our 4 hour trip to Dubrovnik we bumped into some familiar faces...what are the chances! Ian Roberts and Tammy just happened to be doing some shopping in the area so was great to catch up with them and have someone speak our native tongue back at us...well almost. We did however learn that the 4 hour trip to Dubrovnik was actually an 8 hour hall so weren't that excited to be leaving.

The trip wasnt all that...I panicked when we first got on and Jen had moved some big Croatian man's bag off our seats and he started shouting at us in some foriegn language in front of everyone. I panicked again when we went through the Bosnian border...was quite sure we had got onto the wrong bus but apparently the only road South went through Bosnia. Bless.

Dubrovnik was fantastic too...very very beautiful with so much history and stunning views off the cliffs over the bright blue waters. We got lost finding our accommodation so asked a Croatian man for directions and he proceeded in taking a 15 minute detour with us to the front steps of our house and he was more than happy to help...we found the Croation people to be so pleasant and helpful...much more than the others.

We walked around the beautiful old city that afternoon which was really cool and then found out all about day trips to the islands which we were keen to do the following day. Our trip to the island Mljet was definately one of our highlights. We were almost first in the queue that morning and caught a speedy ferry across to the island which is said to be the most beautiful and greenest of the Croatian islands and contained a number of stunning lakes...the island itself was a national park. We got there and decided to hire scooters but were dissapointed to find that they were all out so had to settle again for mountain bikes. We cycled all around the lakes (up a couple of killer hills...I was extremely proud of Jen!) to the sea and back again, stopping every couple of kilometers for a dip in the warm water. It was really beautiful...we left with some mean sun burn but well worth it. Our last day back in Dubrovnik we decided to make a beach day and basically did nothing until our 9 hour ferry trip across to Italy left at 11pm that night on the massive Marco Polo Jadrolinja ferry.

Budapest

Well, expectations of a magestic city were soon forgotten as we arrived in a run-down , smelly city where poverty and boose are rife. We found our hostel after an hour queue for the Split train ticket, and then a 6 km walk past alternative kebab and sex shops... then over a bridge. It was nice enough, but encouraged time spent exploring the city rather than staying in the room. With only a day and a half to spare, we headed to the palace and fishermanàs bastion along the river. Views from both spots were prime and made the climb worth it. Dinner was a delicious pizza with the base as thick as a 2" nail and a chicken salad with more chicken than the green stuff - what a find! After a good nights rest, we awoke with the sun to start our day before the heat prevented us. Nothing runs on time in Hungary, so we treated ourselves to a cup of joe before hiring our 2 yellow zebra bikes for the day. That was probably the best €6 we've spent this trip. We headed up the tree lined avenues, dodging pedestrians and cars driving on the wrong (right) side of the road, into parks and onto the island. We sped past the Turkish baths and around the spectacular houses of parliament, before posing for a photo at St. Stephens. We were spent, but headed out for an early dinner with the promise of an early night. Bags were packed, bills were settled, and the free internet was exploited until it was time to catch the overnight train to Split.

Vienna

Our last night in Stramberk turned out to be a nightmare as we both only got about 2 hours of sleep as there was a massive drunken party taking place in the hotel room next to us. Would have joined but we knew we had a huge day coming up trying to find our feet in a new city that was foriegn to both of us. After about a 4 hour train trip, we arrived in Vienna tired, in 40 degrees heat, in the dodgiest part of town and had no idea how to work the tube/tram system (which is really really convenient and extensive everywhere we've been). We had to get help to buy our tickets and asked a couple of times where our stop was... we did notice however, that no one else seemed to have a ticket, nor were they ever checked.

Vienna is filled with buildings on the grandest scale...even the suburbs are made up of 15th century buildings that have been converted into appartment blocks/offices. We found the hostel where we had booked for our 2 nights and apparently they had only booked for 1 of us! Eventually after about 4 hours in 40 degrees heat, we found a place that we think were university residences converted and suited us perfectly and where we could both stay together...they were just about 30-45 mins walk to town so quite far out. We had a little nap and then toured around the city on foot...its definately one of the most beautiful cities we've been to so far because it is so much cleaner than the rest, and filled with really colourful gardens and parks every couple of blocks. We decided to treat ourselves to a restaurant and both ordered a schnitzel that filled our plates...was fantastic. We then walked down to a square and watched an open air concert (Wagner's symphony in E major or something) until dark...about 10 o'clock.

The next day we explored every inch of the city...Jen's highlight of the day was definately the market which contained hundreds of stalls of fresh produce...she was in her element pointing out all these types of fruits she had told me about once before and I hadn't a clue what they were...dragon fruit, jack fruit, etc. Everything that could be stuffed was, and everything else was either pickled or preserved. We could buy anything we wanted, including tongue, trotters and king prawns. Luckily the budget did not allow any of it!

We became experts with working the trams and hopping on and off before we had to show a ticket. But I have to admit that we counted every station and waited with bated breath until the doors closed at each stop. We did have to dodge the cops on one or 2 occasions when they are waiting at the other end, but luckily we had forewarning. Bed time could not come soon enough and it was great to give our legs a rest after all the walking of the day. Our tickets to Budapest were already in our bag, so we got an early night, in anticipation of catching the train at 7 the following morning.

Wedding bells in the Czech Republic

After a 2 hour flight we arrived in Prague and were greeted by the rest of the Brown family who'd already tried the local brew and decided that the Czech, being the beer capital of the world, was the best place anyone could possibly want to spend a holiday. We were dropped off at hostel elf where the signs in reception promoted the smoking of 'incence' and beer was cheaper than a bottle of mineral water!

Brochures advertising Prague by bike were handed out, but when we discovered that the total gradient that we'd have to climb was 2000 ft, we agreed to see the city on foot - a 6 hour walking tour which included a boat ride on the river, lunch, refreshments and a guide was the best value for our Czech crowns we could find. The tour started in the old town square and moved through the Jewish ghetto and into King Wenceslas square. We are all experts now on the various types of architecture that has shaped the city as it is today, including the gothic, renaissance, baroque etc... It was a wonderful journey through history as we meandered through the alleyways and marvelled at the cobbled streets. We had a stunning boat ride on the Vlatava river under a few of the bridges and down the canals. Lunch could not have come soon enough, but our experienced guide showed us the real Czech 'pub' experience with a couple of brews, delicious dumplings, goulash and roast pork. The final part of the tour ended in the Prague castle from where the views of the city were spectacular. A trip to one of the beer gardens could not be missed, and with a view of the river we all sipped on a pint or two as we watched the sun go down. We each received a complementary ticket for the evening walk and, being Zimbos, we made sure we got our moneys worth.

Well, after a couple of days in Prague, we heard the wedding bells tolling, and made our way to Ostrava (a 3 hour train trip east of Prague). It was a family gathering of extreme proportions, and I am glad to report that these Czechs, after being out done and out drunk by the Zimbo contingent, will finally know where to find Zimbabwe on a map! It was a brilliant 15 hour wedding with traditions such as the bride being kidnapped, the groom having to eat soup with a holey spoon, and pay off a fake bride who suggested that he was the mother of her child. It was such good fun and after 3 / 4 shots of slivovice, we were all speaking the same language.

Tomorrow we are going to catch the train to Vienna to try out their shnitzel.