Frankfurt Christmas Markets

Poor Mr V ... yesterday was a day of shopping and he tagged along behind mum and I carrying our bags ... such a good husband.

Yesterday was pegged as a day to explore the shops and the Christmas Markets.

The shopping prices are comparable to Australia however the range is greater and I will admit we had a ball.

Now to the markets ... they were huge. They were also extremely busy at night and not really conducive for a relaxed night of shopping, drinking and eating. Mr V totally freaked out at the amount of people and had a huge fear of losing me .... Im so short I get lost very easily in the crowds. 

We had a taste of the markets however left rather early and will be attempting it again tomorrow afternoon.

Let me give you my first thoughts ... the smells of sweet cooked sugar and spicy mulled wine drag you in. It was cold but not too cold and your breath fogged the air in front as you stroll down the narrow alleys decorated with pine boughs and lightings. The stalls are filled with things to look at and the people were happy however the one thing I felt missing was sound. No christmas music was playing and for me that would have added to the overall experience.

Tomorrow will be a second change for Mr V ... I hope to report a more positive experience on my poor husbands behalf.

Frankfurt ... A Beginning

So for us Frankfurt is a rest before we begin our festive journey down the romantic road. 

My mother joined us today for this part of journey .... so then there were three! Today we wanted to keep mum awake but obviously not overdo it so today we got on the hop on hop off bus. The city seems mostly focused on the financial sector so the tour mostly focused on the banks competing for the tallest building and which bank moved where. 

Oh yes ... check out this amazing subway entrance!

Germany itself has a heavenly sense of order with everything so very functional ... I happen to love Germany ... its and easy place to visit. Nothing is complicated, nothing is hard work which is a nice break after some of the more difficult places we have visited.

We also did something that I have not done before ... we visited the Frankfurt Natural History Museum which was awesome! I have never see dinosaur bones before and now I have.

Tomorrow we start our exploration of the Christmas Markets and everyone is excited for a different reason. Hubby can't wait for the food stalls, mum can't wait for the christmas decorations and I can't wait to see the people. 

More updates tomorrow peoples but for now .... take a look at the impressive museum.

Two Aussie Tourists in Romania

I need to start by apologising for my absence, however while Romania seems to have wifi everywhere, whenever you try to do something your computer decides its time for its own holiday.

I am pleased to report that here in the Bucharest airport it appears the world is suddenly a good place again and the "net" is back up and running and I have stacks to share.

Let me start by saying it is completely different to what I imagined. It is modern and appears well thought out and the history is just so damn interesting we asked our poor guide a never ending lot of questions.

So we didn't get to see Bucharest much itself instead focusing on the little towns around the Carpathian Mountains. First stop is the tiny little skiing town,  Sinaia and in particular the breathtaking Peles castle. This castle was just like something out of a fairy tale and while I am unable to show you pictures of the interior, the external shots will give you an idea on just how lovely this whole experience was.

Next was Bran castle ... touted as Dracula's castle, its really just a medieval ruin that king Vlad Dracul stayed in one night a few hundred years ago. It does give you a good idea on just how dark, cold and bloody the history of this country really is.

Over the next few days we visited churches and fortresses, small towns and medieval walls and got to see some of what makes Romania so special.

I should mention that during this little visit the temperature stayed an average -15 to -20 degrees. This was cold even for the locals and make somethings like feeling your fingers and toes a bit difficult but overall we got to see some amazing places sometimes completely on our own, no crowds and a lovely dusting of snow making everything that little bit more special.

I think the pictures here speak for themselves however I will say that I am ever so impressed with this country .... its not mentioned enough and I know of very few people who have visited but if you are thinking of touring Europe, Romania should be on your list!! 

Sorry - Im still here ... sort of

Oh and I have so very much to tell you however internet connection here is worse than bad however tomorrow I arrive in Frankfurt so should be able to give you an amazing overview of Romania. 

Please be patient ...

Kiev - A City of Churches and Snow

So today was our one and only day in the city of Kiev and we were determined to make the most of if ... that was before we woke up this morning to find Kiev ... a city covered in snow. Unusually high snowfall in the city have made getting around rather difficult. We tried from 9.30am to 3.30pm before wet and tired we retreated to the hotel. 

It's actually pretty disappointing because the city itself it heavenly, full of lovely architecture and pretty churches it would have been great to explore. The problem is the cities we are visiting just are not capable of dealing with such large amounts of snow and ice. The snow melts by cars driving and people walking over it causing a rather dangerous layer of ice which even the locals are wary of and then ankle depth of slush ... a lovely mixture of snow, water and brown dirt that seems the love finding its way into your shoes.

I am quite proud to say I have not fallen over once here .... there was one close call where a lovely local man caught me and swept me off my feet. If I wasn't married it could have made for a lovely beginning to a love storey .... man saves girl from slushy road and in return she marries him and has his babies! Maybe the cold has gone to my head .... I'm tempted to delete the above but perhaps its best I leave it so you can see just how insane the weather seems to be turning me. 

So todays post is dedicated to our combined bravery in visiting some of the most beautiful churches in Kiev. We did visit an underground burial ground for monks and while interesting Mr V found all the mummified remains just creepy.

My favourite church would be the yellow one ... for some reason it just seems magical and fairy-like. When we entered there was a service going on and the choir was heavenly. Choirs in churches just do it for me because before to long I had tears in my eyes. This church seemed warm and loved and it was small enough for me to declare this to be my favourite church so far however Mr V just cant seem to understand why I like it so much. Maybe he just cant feel how special this seems to me because even from the outside its something special! What do you think? are you with me?