Day 25 - Finally Found Some Good Cooking!!

The problem with "backpacking" is food. Me and Mel always seem to struggle to agree or even find something worth the price we would like to eat. But in Florence on our first night we found the perfect place! A family run business that seemed to have been passed down through the generations. We started with a small pasta dish and moved on to a meat dish. Both dishes were amazing and it was clear that we had tried some of Italy's finest cooking, we even got bread!

Day 24 - Pisa, Tourist Trap or Home of an Amazing Italian

Before coming away I talked to my friend Jonny about travelling around Italy, and one thing I remember him saying was that you do not need more then a day in Pisa. I think he was right but I still think you can pack the day full of stuff to do. Once pretending to push over the tower, we went to look at how much it would cost to climb it. I knew it would be a lot but I was not about to pay 15 euros each to walk up a crooked tower to see an average view. Instead we paid 10 euros and got into 5 different buildings including the Cathedral, graveyard, 2 museums and a Baptistery. It turned out to be well worth the money seeing some amazing pieces of sculpture and art, learning details about the area and seeing the art of echo singing!

After doing all this we decided to buy a nice bottle of cheap wine and enjoy the comforts of the hostel, we did not realise we were about to have a history lesson and meet one of the most interesting people I have ever met. Guido, the 93 year old man we had been made to guess the age of the day before had not seemed to move in 24 hours, he just sat on the sofa watching TV. While Mel was updating facebook I decided to go and sit next to Guido and watch some TV, that is when he decided to start talking to me, in Italian! I had no idea what he was saying so I asked the guy on the desk if he would mind translating for me. At first he did not seem to want to and now I understand why as hours later it was 2am in the morning and Guido had filled me and Mel in on most of his life story, from joining the army in the second world war, hiding from the Nazis, his way with the women and his life as a tailor. It was amazing and Guido just reminded me of my Grandad, who had died 4 days earlier. I thanked the translator and Guido for that surprising but brilliant evening and the translator told me that he was happy that they had been able to cheer me up.

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Day 22/23 - From France to a Coen Brothers Movie to a Wonder of the World

It was sad to say goodbye to our mini summer break to the south of France, but it was time to return to the country we were meant to be in, Italy. And our first stop back in Italy was Genova, a city which seemed to be pretty empty but we used this chance to relax a bit and rented a pretty cheap secret hotel for around £50 and enjoyed every moment in what we called the posh Barton Fink, the room even had its own door bell!!

The next day we explored Genova and did not find much more then a founatin and part of an old wall. So onwards to Pisa and after getting lost and having to ask in a posh hotel for directions to our hostel we finally made it and was greeted by one of the nicest and friendist group of hostel staff we have had so far. Getting us settled with a glass of wine and a chance to guess the age of the owners friend who seemed to never move from the lounge (I gussed 75, turned out he was 93!), we popped out to a local restaurant for some mussel pasta, which was very yummy. We then took in the sight of the leaning tower at night which was dissappointing as they had not lit it up, so it seemed to be lost in the night. We then walked for a while and returned to the hostel hoping the tower would be better the next day.

Day 21 - Tom's Magical Mystery Tour Through the South of France

So as I have said France and Nice was a side track to conquer our problem over staying in Italy, but I decided to take Mel on one of my Magical Mystery Tours and visit two well known French towns. The first was the home of one of the biggest film festivals in the world, Cannes. It was another beautifully hot day, and again not like the flat boring cities of England, we had to climb hills to see many of the worth while sights, these included the 4 murals dedicated to the world of film painted on the sides of houses. The main area near the port that is normally used for the festival was mainly covered in red tape, builders and lorries putting something up for an event. We did though get to see most of the star's hand prints on the walkways. After posing in the corny cardboard cutout stands and a yummy ice cream we travelled onto the second stop and a totally different country!

Stepping off the train into Monaco was like walking into a aeroplane hanger, it was massive. And for some reason after that moment I hated it. Not sure why, I was in a weird mood anyway because of the last couple of days events but also I just felt so strange and totally out of place, I was wearing my new Venice T-shirt (a slant on the video game Vice City) and a pair of shorts with dirty trainers, while everyone else (including Mel) were wearing either dresses or suits. I just did not like it and that came across in my mood and once again I judged the book by the cover, because after a walk around the city, I could see it was a beautiful place. I have got to learn to give everywhere a chance!!

Day 20 - Our Holiday Away From Our Holiday

The whole time we have been away I have found it hard to call what we are doing something; backpacking, a life experience, inspiration? Who knows, but our few days in Nice, France can truly be called a holiday. Despite some bad news that I received the night before my family told me to continue having a good time. So after a lazy morning we dragged ourselves to the stony foot breaking beach and had a dip in the med, followed up with a walk along the pricey shops and a burger for a bite to eat. The afternoon was spent in the pretty old town, looking in the postcard and tourist shops. Then with a smoothie each, we walked the hill to the old castle taking in a pretty amazing graveyard and the sights from the top of the hill. But the day did not end there, we relaxed reading our books not watching the sea or the people walking the sea front, but our washing turning in the washer! A subway meat ball 6" was the real ending to the day and what a day it was!

Day 18 - Turin, the Hollywood of Italy?

So what do two massive film nerds do when they find out that the city they are in has a film museum? They go to maybe the best museum in the world!! Turin has the best example of a film museum I have ever come across. The museum started with an intro into the invention of moving images with a great range of brilliant examples of projectors, film equipment and early films. This section ended with a show reel of the first films and the last clip was of a steam train coming towards the camera and as it neared the screen the screen tore away and was replaced by a life-sized train coming into the audience. It was quite shocking and made sense once Mel told me that in the 1900s people literally ran from the cinema in fear of this clip and I think I know how they felt!

After this it was onto the main hall which was simply just amazing! The huge hollow inside of the dome was divided in to many areas which showed clips from different genres of film, each area dressed to match the genre, so for example the love room had a massive heart bed which you laid on and looked up at the screen to watch clips. Other parts included a display of behind the scenes photos of Marilyn Monroe, Orson Wells and Billy Wilder films, exhibits on the making of a film from script to the edit, costume department, directing, script writing and a collection of movie posters including a huge computer database of other classic posters.

The cherry on the cake was in the centre of the room, about 50 bed/seats dotted around the massive dome space, facing one of two big screens showing clips of Italian cinema and going from a space in the middle of the floor to the very top of the dome was a lift hung in the air by a few cables, which took you up to a panoramic view of the city which we didn't bother to queue for.

Day 17 - Watching the Italians

Today I learnt two things about the Italians, the first happened in Milan Station the second in the city of Turin (Torino to the Italians). As we got off the train in Milan station we had some time to kill so Mel decided to use the local rest room. As i waited outside the loos I watched two men fixing the device that stands in the way of the paying customer, till you give it a euro and its glass doors separate and allow you to enter. As I watched a mum, with 2 small children, rushed towards the gates to enter the loo and as they went to enter one of the glass doors simply exploded showering glass all over the loo entrance and one of the poor children. Furious at what had happened, and after checking the child was OK, the mother made the child drop his pants on the side of the platform and piss up the side of the wall, while a cleaner looked on completely confused by what he was seeing. She turned and yelled at the cleaner who just put his hands up in a way to say "hey I got nothing to do with this" and walked off, in which the woman grabbed her children and followed the cleaner down the platform continuing to shout at him.

The second thing happened in the centre of Turin. We had appeared to have arrived in Turin on an evening where everything seemed to be happening. In one of the squares stools had been set-up featuring themes along the lines of science, what it looked like was a massive science fair which I thought was a random but also pretty cool thing to have in a main square at 9 o clock at night. What really impressed me was the amount of people in family groups and even small groups of teenagers taking part and having fun! A bit further on in a different square a kind of food and drink event was being held, ramped full of Italians laughing, chatting and being pretty merry. From this day I learnt a lot about this race of people, they are proud, good people, who connect and get on well with each other but take no shit from anyone!

Day 16 - Goldfish Minds in the City of Canals

Day 16 - Venice

On arriving into Venice at 8.30am and after a night of very little sleep, we were awoken from our sleepy worlds by the most picturque view as we left the station, the grand canal sparkled in the sun light, the narrow main street was already busy with tourists and trade plus the sun was high in the sky delivering the perfect weather for what would turn into a great day in a beautiful city. This must be the first place that I have not judged on first looks, It looked a bit run down, but this just added to the charm making the city of canals a truly different and interesting place to be.

After dropping the bags off at the hostel, we grabbed a map and started to explore. 10 minutes in and I was in awe of every turn, narrow street and canal. From this a new term was born that Mel now uses a lot on this trip, "Have you gone round your bowl again". What I mean by this is that throughout the day I would turn to Mel and say something a long the lines of, "Wow, look at that building/bridge/canal it looks amazing" in which Mel would turn to me and say, "You are joking right? we passed this canal/building/bridge like 15 minutes ago! Have you gone round your bowl again?", referencing the fact that goldfish have very short memory spans!

For most of the day we just wondered the streets till we hit a dead end, and would just turn around say "O dear" and walk the other way. The main sights in Venice were good and interesting but nothing could beat the joy of walking over a new and different canal or finding a pretty square. The most disappointing part of the day was finding out how disrespectfully other tourists are! We went for a look at the Cathedral and once we got in, after a bit of a wait, I had already had enough of the other people pushing in line and when we finally got in the crowds pushed even more! Adding to this they took pictures even though it said not too and tour group leaders shouted at their groups to speak louder then the group next to them, even though it was sign posted saying that tours were forbidden! No one looked at the church and its brilliant art work, they walked round turning suddenly snapping a picture and moving on a glazed over boredom in their eyes. We had to leave, I could not focus on what I was seeing because of now much I was being shoved and also because of how angry the other visitors were making me.

After this we returned to the streets and soon I was happy in the maze again. It was soon time for a rest and we returned to the hostel to discover our cramped 5 bed room complete with wet room in the middle of the bathroom between the toilet and sink, meaning that I could have had a shower, used the loo and brushed my teeth all at the same time! After a sleep we dined in an expensive restaurant, in which the waiters and chefs just yelled at each other, we got a front row seat because they had sat us right outside the kitchen door, but I did get to try the local cuttlefish which was very tasty. Then as the sun went to bed and the moon arrived in the sky parts of the city that had been a tiny bit disappointing in the day came alive in the evening. The squares filled with live music and even the local tacky street sellers helped to light up the sky with their floating helicopter light sticks. It was a great end to a perfect day.

Day 15 - Sleeper Train My Arse!!

Lots of travelling today, but first we finally agreed on a new route. Instead of Venice, Padora, Verona, Milan, Pisa, Florence and Rome. It is now Venice, Turin, Nice (plus maybe a day trip to Cannes), Gonavo, Pisa, Florence and Rome. Excited and a bit worried about the new plans, we boarded the train to Vienna to await our first (and hopefully last) night train to Venice. In a rush to get the train we rely on the old trusty Macdonlds takeaway and make the train by minutes. Sitting in the pitch black carriage we wait to see that we are on the right train, and once both border control and the ticket man come round we know it is safe to relax. Or as much as you can do on a train that sits at stations for hours with the bright lights blurring through the window at the early hours of the morning and a woman (not Mel) who sings while listening to her Ipod and snoores to the point that the noise becomes part of my dream! No sleep for me then!

Day 14 - A Lot of Beer, A Whole A Lot of Fun!

We finally made it to a tent for Oktober Fest at about 2pm, after 3 hours of again trying to find different routes through Italy with no luck! It took us about 10 - 15 minutes to get the nerves to sit down on a bench after circling the tent twice. Once sitting down the 4 Aussies already sitting at the 10 seater bench welcomed us into the fold shaking hands and raising their 1 litre tankers to toast us once he got our beers, and shouting the German word for cheers (poute).

By the time the second litre came it was like the group of us where long lost friends. By the end of the 2nd litre I was way on the way to tipsy land, managing not only to get lost on the way back from the toilet but also making friends with 2 different groups of Germans, one of them tried to teach me the language the other teaching me the songs and hugged me with one arm until they left.

By the time 11pm came in which by this time the Aussies had dunked their cameras in their beers, set fire to their hair and beards and flirted with each other to the point of writing "I like you" on each others hands, came I managed to have 3 litres and stop because I was feeling really gassy and decided to have some water which also turned out to sparking, they did not sell still water for some reason. Mel impressed me the most by having 4 litres beating me!

On saying good bye to our new friends (email addresses in pocket) I brought Mel one of the famous cookie hearts that had "I love you" written in German. A great day and a brilliant chance to be part of an age old festival, something I would recommend to everyone and hope one day I will do it again!!

A nice little video of us with our drinking friends (remember i was drunk)

Day 13 - Film Wins Over Real History, Plus a Glimpse into the Near Drunken Future

While the rain fell for a second day in Salzburg we did one of the most disappointing museums I have ever been to, the house Mozart grew up in. The only saving grace was a documentary film about his life, that we could have rented from Lovefilm! We then caught a train back to Germany, this time to Munich, for one of the biggest festivals in the world, Oktoberfest!

At our 4 star hotel I got my first view of a TV in 2 weeks, and while Mel had a snooze I watched the last half of Transformers 2, a film fully improved by watching it in German (some how). After our small break we went in search of the festival, to check out the site and what we had in store for the next couple of days. Well I tell you this, I have never been to anything quite like it in my life! On the road into the grounds everyone walking the over way was either zig-zagging or finding it hard to balance.

As we entered we realised one thing straight off, it was like Hull fair but with out the Chavs, and just a lot nicer! The rides seemed like they had been built in the last 10 years and the smell of fresh cooking filled the air not knowing what to taste first.

On entering our first tent I was a bit speechless, hundreds of wooden benches filled the spaces and on these sat, or more likely stood, thousands of people singing and dancing to German songs waving there massive 1 litre tankers over their heads, arms round the neck of the person next to them. It was simply amazing and I could not wait to become part of it the next day. The reason we did not join in then was the fact that it is near impossible to get a seat after 5pm (it was around 6) and you can only be served at a seat. We decided to walk some more of the fair and after that go towards the city centre for some grub. Walking through the red light distirct we came across a movie themed bar where everything on the menu was named after a film. I had a "Lost in Translation" sandwich and watched the waiter try to cover me and Mel in 2 glasses of coke which he dropped onto the floor. To end this evening it was back to the hotel and 2 hours of searching for places and routes in Italy, which ended with no real solutions.

Day 12 - How a Popular Musical Can Out Rank World Famous Classical Music!!

After a pretty expensive day in Vienna we moved on to a city best known for 2 things. You would think that the most important thing it was well known for was that one of the greatest composers of all time, Mozart, was born there, but no you would be wrong! According to the postcards and posters it is more famous for an AMERICAN film made over 40 years ago, a little film that goes by the title "The Sound of Music". Yes I am talking about Salzburg. A town which we only saw in the rain but we did not let that stop us! After booking into a nice hostel, we ventured off on a tour, well a map with a walking tour drawn on it which we decided to do on our own. We took in the sights of some amazing churches, the view from the castle which was still impressive with the level of fog, a graveyard and tiny narrow shopping streets which included Mozart's birthplace. Deciding to risk the food at the hostel we returned to eat and do some washing. After a good sized plate of chips and chicken wings, we watched a couple of films, "Bend it Like Beckham" and "Mr & Mrs Smith", and managed to avoid an early night by chatting to a group of Americans. Going up to bed at 01.30 I realised that this is one of the things I loved about the travelling, meeting new people and getting lost in conversation. Lets hope the next few weeks delivers some new faces to meet, chat for a while and get lost again into the crowd never to see them again, maybe even some we will stay in contact with who knows.

Day 11 - Centre Pieces and Singing Rapists

So as normal the full day of a city started off the same, me moaning about something or other. Today it was the fact that Vienna seemed to be one big building site. Since arriving into the city at the south station all I had seen was building sites or places covered in scaffolding. As we wandered down the main high street towards the city centre I kept pointing out to Mel each site/scaffolding as we went and when arriving in the main centre, in between some amazing palaces and museums the first thing I pointed out was the scaffolding on the side of a museum. Mel not best impressed by this information told me that I should give each place some time before judging it on first impressions. She was right because by the end of the day I would have seen two sights that I would not forget in a hurry.

The first was the Palace Hofburg the home of Empress Elizabeth (Sisi), which housed an amazing collection of glasses, plates, serving platters, centre pieces and much more, with some of them dating back to the 18th century. That was only the ground floor the rest of the Palace had been broken into 2 parts, the first was an exibition on the life of Sisi and the second was the rooms that Sisi and her husband had lived in. Armed with a very good audio guide we took the best part of an afternoon to tour the building, and was blown away with the detail of some of the items.

The second sight was a real treat and something that is in "1001 things to do before you die". While reading the map we saw that for 3 euro you could go and see the Opera standing at the back, all you had to do was arrive an hour before it started and wear trousers. So we joined the queue and managed to secure standing space at the back of the upper gallery with a pretty good view. Learning of the title of the Opera, Mel and the excited "young Owen Wilson" American next to me pointed out that "Don Giovanni" was written by Mozart. I then realised that I was at the Opera, in Vienna, watching "Don Giovanni", the closest that I would normally get to seeing this would be on a cinema screen and I would be paying around 25 pound for that, and it had little computer translators so we knew what was being said!

From this I have learnt to keep my mouth shut and wait to see what the day has in store for me!