Dolce Vita : Pisa, Florence and Cinque Terra

Among the countries in Europe, one of the most traveled and popular is Italy I think. And it has a lot to offer too. From the Alps to the islands to ancient history to fabulous beaches to Venice! It has it all! I myself have visited Italy at least 3-4 times, and still there are so many supposedly fabulous places there to visit.

My first trip to Italy was in Easter 2006, to Tuscany and close by areas (Pisa, Florence and Cinque Terra). We landed in Pisa, and were there for half a day. In Pisa, the only worthwhile place to visit is the Leaning Tower of Pisa, else don't much see the point of going there.

The Leaning Tower is located in an enclosed park-like area with green grass (which is very good for sleeping in the sun, especially if you are from a sun starved place like London!!), where there are three buildings : The Tower, the Duomo and the Baptistery. In fact, all three of them are tilted but possibly because of its height, the lean in the Tower is a lot more visible. The typical photograph taken by anyone who is visiting the Tower is with your hand superimposing the tower, as if its you who are pushing it down! Its a must for anyone visiting this wonder of the world.

There is a ticket to go up the Tower, a bit expensive, but if you are there, you may as well climb it! The climb is not too strenuous, and you will realize while climbing up that you start walking at a tilted angle, same as the angle of the tower! The climb does get a bit scary, specially when you are on the top and you realise that the building you are standing on is actually tilled and someday expected to fall down:)) In fact even when you get down, you will walk tilted for sometime. You get a good view of the Pisa town from the top of the Tower.

You can walk around a bit in the Pisa town, its like any other Italian town, light brown in colour, with old houses, and the mandatory river flowing through. The area around the Tower is also very touristy, lot of shops selling tourist ware. One thing you definitely should do while in Italy is to have the Gelato (ice cream). The flavours are varied, and its available (and needed) everywhere given the heat.

Our second stop was Florence. Inspite of everyone I know who has visited the city loving it, somehow I did not feel the same. The city is like any other Italian city/town. You can choose out of a couple of walking tours in the city. We took one, where they tell you the history of the city, the old families who used to rule Florence and the rest of Italy, where the 'hole in the wall' saying came from, about the Medici family and how they ruled the city etc etc. Florence is a city of Wealth and Art. Apparently it was ruled by a number of strong families, the most famous among them being the Medici family.

They owned the city and would do what they pleased too. You can even see a walkaway from their own house to other parts of the city which was built by them so that the Medici family members could travel around the city without having to walk in the open. This walkaway runs in the middle of houses and other buildings, and this could be done just because they were so powerful!
Florence was also where Michalenaglo worked for a part of his life. There are hazaar churches, piazzas and palazzos (palaces) you can see in the city, and most of them are actually quite impressive (you can see the huge list at the train station!). Someone who loves architecture would definitely fall in love with Florence, there is just so much to see and explore!!

The Duomo is the most impressive and famous building in the city, with its watch tower and the huge dome which was built after many years of trial and errors. Apparently everytime it was built, the dome used to fall down because of its huge size. After years of remaining an open roof church, the dome was finally completed using a new architectural technique devised by Michaelangelo.
Just next to the Duomo is the Florence city square with the townhall etc. Another couple of sculptures there, and a lot of history (most of which I have forgotten!)







Another thing to note in the city was the fresco paintings in churches all over the city, apparently a technique devised in Florence itself.









There are also a couple of museums in the city, with famous sculptures. The line to enter the museums is generally long, so you may want to take the walking tours which include the entry to the museums also. We saw one of the museums, the one with 'David'. Was a decent museum, with lot of sculptures etc.

One thing you can definitely do when in Italy, and that is shop! I walked around a bit in Florence while waiting in the line for the museum, and there was hazaar shops with amazingly designed clothes and sold very very cheap. Some of the most stylish clothes i bought in Europe, were actually from Florence:)

Our last halt on this trip was in Cinque Terra, where we actually got a feel of what the Italian word , 'Dolce Vita' (the good life) actually means! Cinque Terra refers to a national park in the north of Italy,within which were discovered 5 villages. The 5 villages are Montessoro, Vernazza, Corniglia, Manarola and Riomaggiore. [Links from Wiki photos] All the 5 villages are located on cliffs, in a straight line along the ocean. These villages were discovered quite late, as they are isolated from the rest of the mainland by the mountains which surround them. They are not reachable by road, and are completely isolated from the world. The people in these villages just enjoy a laidback life away from the world, and you would learn that too, within two days of being there! Long lunches, looking at the panoramic view, walking around spending time in the villages, and the forest and the walks and the treks. A relaxing time is what you will get here!

The Cinque Terra villages can be reached only either by train which link the 5 villages or else by trekking. The trains are similar to the mountain trains we have in India, like in Ooty and Darjeeling, and run at their own pace. The tracks are next to the sea, passing through tunnels in the hills giving amazing views of the woods and the sea, a mesmerising journey... The trek between the villages is quite a favorite too among tourists, to walk from one village to the other, eat some tasty food, and enjoy the local wine and then to move on to trek to the next village! The villages are all similar, but still different. You can timepass there too, in the small by-lanes. Shopping there would be expensive though.

The treks between the villages are fun, and not too long or taxing, with picture-perfect views on the way. Frequent stops at the villages and elsewhere gives the much needed break. You can also hire cycles to cycle in the national park (which we were not able to do). Some of the

villages have beaches too, but not too impressive.








Food is one of the easier things to come by in Italy, especially for vegetarians. The pastas and pizzas that you get in Italy, are somehow (and I cant understand why) much much tastier than what you get elsewhere. Not sure what they do to it, but I guess once you have the Italian food in Italy, you never like what you get elsewhere! For vegetarians, there is always the Penne Arrabiata and Penne Pomodoro to take you through the trip. Waiters will take good care of you too, asking frequently, 'tu to ben hai'? 'ma ben hai!' (meaning something like, hope everything is fine, yes everything is fine!) :) Could'nt help laughing everytime they ask!!

Trains in Italy are as they are in India, chaotic, and never on time. Specially in Cinque Terra, the train driver starts the train only once he sees that everyone who got off the train is back on:) Timings dont really matter there, as they say, dont hurry, 'Dolce Vita'!

Magical & Mystical BlackForest

A vacation, completely unplanned, going where time, the mood of the day, the map or the road takes you.. and that too on a shoe string budget (or at least close to it!).. Thats what this trip was.. Its one of the best European trips I had, for many reasons actually.. It was for 4 days, which was definitely much more than the two day trips we did so often in Europe. Its very important to have that time to get the feel of any place, to feel the culture, to feel relaxed, and to actually get the feel of a real vacation. Plus it was the best possible European summer weather, sunny and pleasant.. No plan in mind, go wherever you feel like, stop wherever you feel like (Thanks to a car with a driver ;-)!). Where everyday you wake up and decide what you want to do, and there is always something interesting to look forward to!

This trip was completely unplanned from the start. The friends who were to go on the trip could'nt all make it. Someone had the bright idea of applying for a two day Schengen visa, instead of four, basing it on the goodwill of the visa office to issue a longer visa. Well he got what he asked for, a two day visa!! Though it worked out well for him, so no complaints;-). Thankfully another friend who joined the trip later knew how to drive, guess that's what also made this trip memorable. The location of the trip was decided again by the fact, that on a long weekend, where you start planning the trip late, you end up going to the cheapest place you can get your hands on the tickets for! Someone mentioned the Blackforest area in Germany is good, checked on the Ryanair map, saw a cheap flight going there and booked the flight! The weather forecast for the Easter weekend in Blackforest was bad, it was supposed to be raining for the entire four days, and it did not rain even once (Thank god! And from then on, we stopped depending on forecasts for our trips!!)

We landed at Baden-Baden which is a border airport for the Blackforest area in South-west Germany.

We hired a car (using a one page Indian license, all in tatters), and decided then that this would be a backpackers trip, where daily expense per person would not exceed EUR 50. Given that we hired a car, there wasnt much left for food and lodging, and anyways we exceeded this amount by 100%. But still, we did keep expenses under check throughout the trip (to the displeasure of the ant)! We took a map of the country around, DID NOT take GPS, and then off we went....

A German collegue of mine had once mentioned that there is a nice place called Strausbourg near Black Forest and that we should definitely go there. We spotted the place on the map and started driving towards it. We took detours on the way, whichever way we felt was more scenic, which the driver clearly did not like! We reached Strausborg in the evening and it was a big surprise. Its a nice little town, and it seemed very French. So off came someone with a theory about how it was part of France before WW II and the Germans took it over, and so even though the culture is French, the city is in Germany. Next day of course we figured out that it was indeed France. (Thats the beauty of current day Europe, you move from one country to another, and you do not even realise it!)
Strausbourg is one of the most picturesque town visited by us, with canals running through the town, a calm laid back atmosphere, and again a very charming town to walk around. The one-ways can be confusing though, we actually went around in one circle three times looking for a parking!

The cathedral at Strausbourg is worth visiting. Located in a square where you can sit and enjoy the sun. The view from the top, of the town below is nice. There was the usual town square festival happening to timepass, with swings and rides.










You can take a boat ride in one of the canals, and get a brief history of the town.

There are a couple of Indian food places there, one was our favorite. In fact on the last day, we even drove back from Germany to Strausbourg just for that food! You can walk around the old French quarters in the city, and if a festival is on, as it generally is in summers, there is enough to do and relax in the city. Dont really remember much actually, what all we did, other than look around etc. Partied in Straubourg at night, landed up at a Salsa place though, which inspired a couple of people to learn salsa too!

After a day there, we drove away from Strausbourg, towards Black Forest. Someone mentioned a town name which was apparently very popular and we started driving towards that town. Was a refreshing drive, through hills and villages, and inns on the way. Small German villages, where you can stop on the way and eat at the inns.

We stopped at a castle we saw from the road, when we went up, it turned out to be a youth hostel.




Was an amazing place with an awesome location though unfortunately fully booked. That's when we decided that we would stay in a youth hostel. We got the address of another in Titisee, and went off there. On the way were the usual waterfalls, full of Indian tourists. Blackforest is famous for the huge cuckoo clocks, and they have an awesome collection there. The German dress is also quite interesting, din get to buy that though:(.

We reached Titisee by night and checked in to the youth hostel. I think it was next to a stream, and again on a deserted road. For dinner, we had the food we had packed from the Indian restaurant in Strausbourg in the afternoon, was fun eating from tiffin sitting on the road next to the lake,, biryani with dal, and within budget too.

Titisee is actually a lake side town, with a few shops, guess thats about it. Unlike the rest of Black Forest, there were a lot of Indians in Titisee, seemed more touristy than the others! We had a relaxed day, went boating in the lake, ate leisurely. (Dont try peach schnappes in Germany, its not what you think!). We drove around the area, and found a ski slope which in April also had snow! So thats what the plan was made for the next day. The few pubs in Titisee had the local people coming in for the drink. Was interesting interacting with some of them (since Germans are my favourite people among the Europeans).

The last day, we went skiing, short and sweet. Some people tried to show their skills (or should I say lack of skills) in skiing, was a fun sight to see them try to negotiate the slope! Took the ski lift to the top of the hills, and got a good view of the forest around, wonderful again! After skiing, drove back to Strausbourg for Indian food for lunch, and then back to London! There were a couple of more places to see in this area, the Rhine Falls, sports theme park etc. For next time I guess:)

The Blackforest area is surreal, expecially when it gets cloudy and the roads are also covered by clouds. The forest reminds you of some of the fairy tales you may have read in your childhood. The Grimm Brothers based their tales here, (and the black forest where Hansel and Gretel got lost in the fairy tale was this exact forest). There has been large scale deforestation across the area now though which is not good news. The perfect place for a long vacation!

Cornish Land

Something about this place is different from England, the language for sure and the people too! Its again one of those not so frequented places in UK, tourists visiting UK would'nt really visit Cornwall, but its quite good a place for people staying in UK to spend some quality time. Cornwall is a separate country apparently, similar to Wales and Scotland, but somehow people don't really know about it. Am not sure how this sovereignty works, but the Cornish have their own flag etc, and their English accent is different (& better) too!

We had driven from London to Cornwall, and actually landed up there because on a long weekend, we left London in a car with no idea about where we are going, and as there was no accommodation available anywhere on the way, we reached Cornwall, the tip of UK. After calling up tens of hotels during the entire drive, we found a youth hostel which had rooms free! So even though our earlier plan was to go to upto Exeter only, we drove on till the very end of UK, into the heart of Cornwall, till St Ives. St Ives is a bustling little sea facing town, with quite a lively night life. Most of the people there were too old though (which is somehow true for a lot of places in the UK, hajaar old people enjoying a quiet weekend in the countryside)! St Ives had good Indian food available though, that really helped!

Our youth hostel was in Zennor, in the middle of nowhere, on a deserted road near the town of St Ives.The road was dark at night, but during the day you realised it was an old house barn that had been converted to a youth hostel and was situated on a cliff next to the sea. Quite a lucky find, given that the other option was to sleep in the car! Did a small trek in the early morning, climbed down the cliff next to the hostel next to the sea.



The next two days were just driving around in the area. Went to Lands End, its the farthest tip of land of UK. There was a mela type thing happening there, good timepass. Tried one of those kiddie sliding things, realised as adults you fear those more than kids do! It was like skiing, you see 4-5 year old kids swooshing past you, while you standing there clinging to any support you can find!

There is a theatre in Cornwall, Minack theatre 'Under the stars'. Its a amazing open air theatre which is actually on a side of a cliff and the plays are staged in the evening, under the stars with the sounds of the waves lashing on the rocks as the background. Its awesome,and in case you land up at Cornwall, you should definitely see a play there.

Just next to the theatre is a beach which you wouldnt find detailed in any of the maps around. Its hidden by cliffs all around, with white sand and clear blue water. We discovered it just because we were at the theatre, and got a view of the beach. If you can find this beach, should definitely go there. Cornwall is generally warmer than the rest of UK, as its in the Southern end, so that beach may be open to swimming even when the rest of the beaches in UK get too cold. There are a couple of water sports happening in and around Penchance, like cliff jumping etc in case you are interested (Din get to do much of it though).

On the way back, we stopped at Exeter for a snack. It has an impressive cathedral, the picture is below. Heard some more stuff to do there, but somehow never ever get time to do all I want!!


On the way back we stopped at the Eden Project, an environment park setup to preserve the different fauna and flora on this earth. Interesting and different! They maintain all these different life forms in temperature controlled greenhouses, to preserve them. I think the aim is to have something similar to a Noah's Ark ready in case its ever needed!

The English countryside : Peak District

Peaks is something you wont see much in peak district, if that's what you expect! You have bigger mountains in Mumbai than in the peak district :) What you get to see though is the slow rural English culture, with stone houses sprawn across green fields, village shops selling fresh fruits, men playing cricket in the afternoon, and sheep and cows grazing lazily in the meadows. You get to see what you may have read in countless English novels, of hills stretching till where the eyes can see, covered with green grass, meadows with a stream flowing through.. That I guess summarizes this region, a nice weekend getaway about 2 hours or so from London.

You can go there by car, or by the train. The train line only goes till a town called Chesterfield, from where on you would have to take a cab. There is no public transport in this region, no buses etc as it is quite remote and sparsely populated. But cab services abound. In face, the inhabitants of this area run their private cars as cabs in their spare time!The peak district is a national park, and no new construction is allowed there.

My trip to peak district was very short, an impromptu plan to land up there as a friend wanted to get out of London. So a gang of us landed up for a trek plan for the weekend. Bakewell is the major town centre in this area. We took a trek from Bakewell to Monsal's Head, where our hotel was located. Across hills, walking next to streams and through small forests. You will run into sheep and cows grazing across fields. You may even spot a llama if you are lucky! (I dont think though that they are supposed to be in England!)

Monsal's Head has this amazing hotel run by a family, with rooms with a view of the valley below. Apparently in the valley below, there was a railroad once which bridge you can still see. The river Wye flows in the valley, you can take a short walk in the area there, is mesmerising (just make sure that you don't get stuck in a hailstorm!!). The restaurant at Monsal's Head is amazing, very very tasty food, especially in the cold weather. You can eat the food inside or outside, depending on how the weather is. There is a pub also next to the restaurant there, where the village folk come everyday for an evening drink. Very nice atmosphere, a very different experience.

Buxton is another town close to the peak district, nothing to see there but a good place if you want to spend just 2-3 quiet days in the countryside. Its fun to pick the freshly grown vegetables sold in shops here, they are tastier than the usual city vegetables:) One place to visit nearby would be the Chatsworth House, an erstwhile house of a Duke (I think!) Majestic building, well maintained gardens.

All in all, a comfortable and relaxing weekend getaway from London.

Austria : Salzburg & St Anton

The best people I have met in Europe have been Austrians! Very friendly (in the non-artificial way), know English well, are generally more intelligent to talk to, and with a good sense of humour too! They are not the most famous Europeans, the French, Italians and Spaniards overshadow them but for sure they are the most intelligent and sensible Europeans I have met. Its so much easier to strike up a conversation with them, about politics, sports etc. And they have a very pretty country too. Very similar to Switzerland, similar hilly area, small wooden houses... Reminds me again of DDLJ, the romantic movie of our generation (yet again!).

Have been to Austria twice. Once was to the city of Salzburg. This had actually been a surprise find, as its not as well-known a place to go to. Its a small city, but surprisingly lots to see and do. The city has two castles, one of them is shown here. Its perched on top of a hill, and gives a good view of the city below.

The city is famous for two things, one is that its the birth place of Mozart, second the famous movie 'Sound of Music' was filmed here. Suprisingly, not as many people in the city know about Sound of Music as much as people outside the city!

The Old Town of Salzburg was nominated as a World Heritage Site in 1996.There is a river which flows through the city and on both sides of the river are the places to visit. There are lot of places to spend time in :







The gardens of Mirabell are beautiful....














There is Mozart's House to visit.......













The market lane of Getreidegasse is a good place to timepass...and go shopping!

The Leopoldskron Castle is where the movie 'Sound of Music' was shot. (We actually crash-landed there at a wedding party! And as I said Austrians are good people, they involved us in the marriage feast!).

There are regular Mozart concerts in the castle, you can book one of those. There are also a couple of cathedrals, and baroque style churches to see.

Next day we went to the Konigsee lake which is actually in Germany. You can take a boat to the centre of the lake. Its a good place for a picnic. There is a cathedral also there and some trekking points. On the way to Konigsee also lies the Eagles's Nest which we could not see though. It was supposedly Hitler's resting place in the old days.











Austria is famous for skiing too. Our other trip to Austria had been for skiing. We landed in Salzburg (technically not, as we landed somewhere in Wein and then drove to Salzburg) and stayed in a youth hostel with a view of the castle. A good place to stay if you travelling to Europe on a budget. For skiing, we drove towards St Anton, and on the way, stopped at Kaprun. Did some skiing at Kaprun, and then off to St Anton.

St Anton is a very popular ski resort, so please always book rooms in advance, otherwise you may not get them later! In fact, you can also stay in villages near St Anton, and go for skiing, as there are regular buses which ply between the ski area and the ski slopes. On thing to try out is Apres Ski, where you can party on the ski slopes while coming down on your last round of ski. People get quite high, with all their ski gear, drinking, and dancing and jumping and their last ski down the slope is all about falling topsy turvy.

We even spent a new year in St Anton, which is supposed to be the party area of Europe in winter. Well we spent time watching Tam movies:)). Anyways each village also has its own display of fireworks on New Years Eve, which is quite good.

The trains in Austria run like clockwork, you can actually time your watches to the trains. Another place to visit in Austria, is Innsbruck. Been through it many times, but never managed to stop there. The Austrian landscape is picturesque, its an amazing country, and definitely I would like to go again and again.