Lukey and Louisey's Round-The-World Adventure

The end of our European Expedition is near...

but it certainly isn't over! We are back in Holland after a very jam-packed week and a slight change in schedule. Exhausted and slightly undernourished we are very happy to back in the cozy little town of Laag Keppel!

Starting where we last left off, we made it to the Alhambra in Granada and what a magnificent place it was. The Alambra consists of the Alcazar fortress, the Nasrid Palaces and the Generalife (gardens). It houses some of the oldest known Muslim art in the world. We arrived really early as to beat the crowds and it was a very good decision. We could wander through the different parts (except the palaces, you have to visit on the time of your ticket. They only let 300 people every half hour to go through so to preserve to buildings somewhat. Angkor Wat should really take note.) and weren't battling with overwhelming crowds. A real luxury. The fortress was pretty amazing and had views of Granada and surrounding Spanish towns. But what really took our breath away were the palaces. As you step into the building you are immediately inundated with art, carving and mosaics. It's really incomprehesible to imagine the amount of time and effort that went into creating this place. Every wall has intricately carved designs and every ceiling has something to gaze at with wonder. How all this could be done over 800 years ago is unbelievable. The pictures just do not do it any justice. And all of it is in pristine condition. It could have been done yesterday for all we knew. We really were blown away by this little known treasure. We left the palaces with sore necks to wander through the gardens (although there wasn't that much to see being winter, there are some pretty cool hedges though!) and just take in this wonderful place.

We left Granada entirely satisfied with the long trip we had endured to get there, but little did we know the worst was yet to come. Our next destination was Biarritz, France and to get there we spent 16 hours travelling by slow Spanish trains. A really horrendous experience. We left at 8am and arrived in Biarritz at midnight. Truly an exhausting day. We spent our time there enjoying the ocean views and dreamed of a beautiful summer vacation there, but alas the winds reminded us we were there at the wrong time of year. (that didn't stop the crazy people who were taking a dip in water though!) We tried to relax, but with the prospect of Paris on the horizon it was a difficult task!

The next day we were up early to get the train to Paris, but as it happened with our luck the train was fully booked due to a soccer match between Biarritz and Paris. So we were left waiting at the train station for two hours til the next one arrived. And when we finally arrived in the City of Lights we were welcomed by the seriously confusing metro system forcing our tired little brains and bodies to get a taxi to the hotel. Luckily for us, our hotel was right in the heart of Paris and the ride there was one of the most exciting taxi rides ever! Passing through the decorated buildings, stopping next to the Lourve and seeing the Eiffel Tower in the background and the Arc de Triomphe in the distance... it was a heart-thumping 15 minutes! We spent our first night in Paris just taking it all in and walking the streets.

On our first full day we headed for the Lourve. What a fabulous place! And very fortunately (and flukey) for us it was free because it was the first Sunday of the month! (A lot of museums are free on the first Sunday. Woo!) We spent the entire morning there just amazed by the vast collection of sculptures, egyptian art and paintings on display. There is just too much to mention! Alhough we did see the requisite Mona Lisa, which even in its small size creates so much intrigue and mystery. Just what is she smiling about? My favourite painting, however, was The Young Martyr by Paul Delarouche. A really thought-provoking piece. And of course all of the da Vinci, Monet et al was just marvellous. After our visit I kept asking Luke if we could go back! And of course the glass pyramid in the courtyard can keep you staring for hours. It really is a lovely sight by night too, especially with a lit up Eiffel Tower glowing in the distance too.

After the Lourve, we walked through the Tuileries up to the Place de la Concorde where the obelisk stands in the traffic. Then it was on to Champs Elysees for some window shopping (and to check out the four story high Louis Vuitton building. Oh how I wish I could have bought everything in there!) and the last, but not the least, Arc de Triophe, which was the site of some silly photos and car watching. (With 12 streets leading up to it and as the largest round-a-bout in the world, we thought we might be witness to a prang or two!) The next day we visited Ste Chappel and were overwhelmed by its stained windows, although the rest of it was not really worth the €4.50 entrance fee. Then Notre Dame which was gorgeous! It was dark and gloomy inside which gave a really interesting atmosphere. And the gargolyles and carvings on the outside were quite cool too. We later returned to Champs Elysees for shopping, exploring and people watching!

Our last day in Paris was very low key. More shopping around Place Vendome (We were on the hunt for world-famous boutique Colette and there were lots of beautiful designer windows to gaze into!) and we had intended on visiting Musee de l'Orangerie, home to various pieces of impressionist art, but with our luck it was still closed for renovation. Then for the grande finale, we made our way to the Eiffel Tower to see it when the lights were turned on! But again with our luck it was raining so it was a very short visit! Overall Paris was exciting, but a little overrated. Visually a beautiful city, but socially really dissapointing. (Can someone tell us where all the nightlife is? We looked really hard and could not find it. Or is it closed off to tourists?) Most of the people we came across were rude and you get to a point were the looks of disdain get really annoying and uncomfortable. Needless to say we weren't that sad to leave Paris.

And our last stop in France could not be any more exciting: Normandy. We arrived in the small town of Bayeux (the first town to be liberated by the Allies during WWII) to signs saying "Welcome to our Liberators!" The contrast compared to Paris was unbelievable! The people were so lovely to us and it was just such a great place. The hotel we stayed at was about five paces from the station and was nice and cozy. We also organised a tour of some of the D-Day beaches etc there too. The town itself is so quaint and friendly. We were recognised as people again! It was great! It was good to be able to greet people and be greeted back.

The tour was really a mixture of emotions. We started at the D-Day Museum at Arromanches, which overlooked the artifical ports off the beach. We saw two short films about the landings which were really interesting before we headed for some sights. It's a really strange feeling visiting these places and thinking the liberation of Europe during WWII happened right here! Our first stop was Longues sur Mer, which was the site of some German batteries. Large guns and turrets were still intact overlooking the ocean. Next was the powerful American Cemetery overlooking Omaha Beach. Such a respectful memorial. All of the 9,387 American service men and women killed at Normandy was represented with a marble cross or star of david. Most with their name, division and date of death engraved into the marble, but the 307 whose remains could not be identified were still remembered with a cross. A moving memorial.

We then continued on to the signal monument on Omaha Beach, with the infamous cliffs in the background. Our last stop was La Pointe du Hoc. An eerie place. Among the German batteries lie crater after crater and even barbed wire left after the war. How a seemingly peaceful area over looking the water was the site of a fierce battle is wonderous. The craters now are overgown with grass adding to the eeriness. Almost like a place left in time. A really interesting experience.

We left Bayeux the next day and made the jouney to Holland. Our plans include rest and eating and that's about it! We might squeeze in a day trip back to Amsterdam, but we are looking forward to just taking it easy. We leave for London on Thursday so we should be rested and replenished by then and are looking forward to Episode: London Calling.

posted by Louise and Luke @ 9:32 PM