Brussels

My European adventure had its finale in Belgium, with a short stop in the city of Brussels. An old friend of mine from Australia now lives there and it was a nice way to say goodbye to Europe.

Taking the high speed train, you are not aware that you have crossed the border of France and Belgium and not long after you arrive in Brussels.

Brussels has the EU headquarters and is also the home of many non-European immigrants, so it has quite a multicultural feel. It has many old buildings such as the one in the square below

There are many towers in Brussels - the city has an architectural style of its own and the buildings have been well preserved.

One of the more quirky buildings is shown below.

There are lots of open spaces and gardens adding to the beauty of the city. The weather was not so good - for summer it was very cold, but the flowers added a bit of colour to the grey.

So here ends my journey through Italy, France and Belgium. Back to Asia next week!

Paris

What a beautiful city. I was very excited about the opportunity to visit Paris it did not disappoint. It is architecturally stunning, historically so well preserved and just plain classy.

The first thing I saw in the distance flying in was the Eiffel Tower. This famous landmark seems to appear around every corner and it was amazing to actually see it for real.

The River Seine flows slowly through the city and is a nice place to be, either walking its banks or on the water itself.

The Arc de Triomphe marks the start of the Champs Elysees in grand style. I just had to wait for a red light!

The Louvre is a collection of many buildings, both the old and the new.

Notre Dame Cathedral is enormous.

There is a Pantheon in Paris, but quite different to Rome's version.

Sacre Coeur is located on one of the few hills in Paris and although the weather was poor that day, the church still looked against the grey sky.

Seems appropriate to finish this blog with just one more view of the Eiffel Tower...

The South of France

It sounds pretty cool - "When I was holidaying in the South of France". We drove across the border from Italy into France and the town of Menton - out home for the next week.

We stayed in the apartment of a friend of Judy. This was the view from the balcony to the coastal mountain range that towers over the Mediterranean.

We were greeted by beautiful weather with warm days, cool nights and brilliant sunshine. It was not too crowded either; we were just ahead of the busy summer tourist season. Here are a couple of views of the town.

We took a narrow, winding road up the mountain from Menton to the hill top town of Sainte Agnes.

A short drive around a couple of headlands and you find yourself in a new country - Monaco. Everywhere you went you could see wealth but it was also rather charming.

Two things Monaco is famous for are the Monte Carlo Casino and the Formula One Grand Prix. Here is the casino.

and a tribute to the racing car legend Fangio

We did spend some time at the beach but it was hard to get comfortable on the rocks. Judy braved the cold water but I only got up to my ankles. I have been spoilt by the tropical waters of Thailand! The final pictures show the town of Nice.

Cinque Terre

We spent our final days in Italy on the stunning coastline known as the Cinque Terre - the five villages.

The first of the villages below is Monterosso.

A difficult walk (for John) or a short train ride (for Judy) and you arrive at Vernazza.

We then both took the train to the next village of Manarola.

Our final village (for us it was the Cuatro Terre) was perched on one of the highest cliffs overlooking the Mediterranean. It is called Corniglia

Before leaving Italy and crossing the border into France we had the opportunity to spend a few hours in one of the most beautiful of the towns on the Italian Riviera, Portofino. You can see why it is a favourite amongst the rich and famous to moor their yachts for a while...

Tuscany

Our Italian adventure continued with another train journey to Florence, the biggest city in Tuscany. The heart of the city is the 'Duomo' - the Cattedrale de Santa Maria del Fiore.

Construction of the Duomo began in 1296 and one of it's main features is Brunelleschi's Dome, with it's stunning artwork lining the inside.

It is 463 narrow, uneven stairs to the top of the dome but the view makes it all worthwhile...

The city of Florence is found on the Arno River and the oldest bridge is the Ponte Vecchio. The only surviving original bridge (the others destroyed in World War II), the shopped lined bridge was built in 1345.

In Florence we picked up a rental car and drove through a very wet Tuscany to the UNESCO World Architectural City of Heritage site of San Gimignano. This charming 10th Century fortress on a hill is dominated by a series of towers.

The narrow streets weave their way through the city and it is very charming and peaceful.

The location in the Tuscan countryside isn't bad either...

Our final stop before leaving Tuscany was Pisa. You just had to check out the famous leaning tower, which was surprisingly a lot smaller than expected but great to be able to see.