TravelStream™ news feed for member kempstertravels on TravelPod's free travel blogs service http://www.travelpod.com/syndication/rss/kempstertravels en-us Copyright ©2009 TravelPod.com Wed, 26 Jul 2006 03:13:29 -0400 http://www.travelpod.com http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/kempstertravels/beyond_london/1148314920/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/kempstertravels/beyond_london/1148314920/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/kempstertravels/beyond_london/1148314920/tpod.html Wed, 26 Jul 2006 03:13:29 -0400 Time out of the big smoke!

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Cambridge, United Kingdom

Update soon...
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Cork, Dublin and the South West, Ireland

*Update soon!
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Rochester - Kent, United Kingdom

A day trip to Rochester to experience the days of old - The town folk put on a fantastic show as they celebrate the Dickens Festival. A great day out!
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Paris, France

Update soon!
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/kempstertravels/europa/1141245240/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/kempstertravels/europa/1141245240/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/kempstertravels/europa/1141245240/tpod.html Mon, 24 Jul 2006 07:03:35 -0400 A taste of the Mediterranean

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London, United Kingdom

Wow! So here we are in London Town. We've had the most amazing seven weeks of travelling. We've learnt so much, met so many fascinating people and... sampled some truly divine dishes along the way!

Despite the fact that we're still a bit weary at the moment, we can't wait to start planning our next weekend away. There is so much that we want to see!

We're staying with friends at the moment, until we decide where we'd like to base ourselves in this great 'kingdom'. We have both started to earn English pounds, working on a temporary basis here in London. We were looking forward to gaining some routine back into our lives, and (believe it or not) we're therefore both enjoying being back at work.

Thanks for coming this far with us - it's been great to have the opportunity to share our experiences with everyone. We'll keep you updated as often as we can and upload some photos really soon!

Love to you all,

Clinton & Dana
XXX
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The Cotswolds, United Kingdom

We have just returned from a lovely weekend away at the Cotswolds with Chelsea and Helen (Amber's sister and mum). It was a real treat to breathe the fresh country air and be surrounded by lush fields. The quaint villages were so pretty, and the scenery and company were both thoroughly enjoyable!

We stayed in the cutest little B&B which was run by a young English couple. Our room looked just like one that you would find in a doll's house, as you will see from the photos.

We spent a rainy Sunday afternoon driving between towns and kicking back in a warm country pub, where we all enjoyed the most delicious English Roast and a couple of pints. We managed to find ourselves in Wales by mistake, (nothing to do with the beers) before taking a lazy drive back to London... and reality. We can't wait to go again!
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/kempstertravels/europa/1141051620/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/kempstertravels/europa/1141051620/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/kempstertravels/europa/1141051620/tpod.html Tue, 04 Apr 2006 11:40:11 -0400 A taste of the Mediterranean

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Barcelona, Spain

We were charmed by Barcelona - such a diverse and exciting city, blessed with wonderfully unique attractions, colourful characters and a fabulous location on the shores of the Mediterranean.

Barcelona's brilliant street performers and amazing architecture kept us entertained, inspired and in awe for our entire visit. There is an enormous amount of talent in this fine city, such a lovely melting pot of culture and styles, which assists in the creation of a fantastic cosmopolitan atmosphere - eclectic, artistic and wonderful!

The Barcelona markets were among the best we've seen. Beautiful produce displayed by stall owners with such pride and perfection. An extensive array of consumables are available - from pig parts to juicy olives and fish so fresh that it still wriggles on the coolness of the ice. The myriad of colours reminded us of the diversity of nature's palette. We couldn't help but return a number of times, to absorb the atmosphere, sample some of the fine Spanish produce and admire the locals fluttering about the tapas bars.

It's no wonder that this thriving city attracts budding artists from all over the world. Simple immersion in this culture is enough to stimulate one's creative juices - even in those who often allow their artistic and creative abilities to lie dormant! Ah, what a likeable city!
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/kempstertravels/europa/1140615780/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/kempstertravels/europa/1140615780/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/kempstertravels/europa/1140615780/tpod.html Sat, 01 Apr 2006 17:59:10 -0500 A taste of the Mediterranean

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Venice, Italy

Another pleasant train ride through the beautiful Italian countryside and we were in the stunning city of Venice.

We somehow managed to time our stay here during Carnevale. It was wonderful to see the streets of Venice turn into theatres as elaborate costumes and mysterious masks were donned by all. The air was thick with excitement, the atmosphere extraordinary. Fairy lights and buskers decorated the bridges and streets, as the scents of Venetian dishes wafted from the jam-packed trattorias.

Carnevale is timed to coincide with the ten days leading up to Lent. The mere thought of abstaining from some of life's little luxuries calls for some partying and the Venitians showed us how it's done. By all accounts, it's not half the show it used to be in the 18th Century but it was by far the biggest street party we've seen so far!

The drizzly and bitterly cold weather was no deterrent for the festive folk. Children rugged up in gorgeous animal costumes took much delight in showering passers by with confetti. Many little ones took advantage of the spotlight by dancing and waving to their audiences and posing for photos.

Our accommodation was certainly not what the web site had promised it to be, but we managed to negotiate a reduced rate for the tiny room, without a bathroom, for a little under $100 AUD per night. We enjoyed a great location, just a stones throw from the train station, but a long and adventurous walk to the impressive Piazza San Marco. We managed to get ourselves lost each time we ventured out to the elegant and divine piazza. The streets can be extremely narrow and windy - some are also poorly signed, which makes for an exciting adventure ... unless you're in a hurry to go to the loo and don't want to pay the exorbitant asking price of 1 Euro (nearly $2 AUD) for a go on the chilly porcelain rim.

Venice is rich in fancy crafts, predominantly glassware, and there is certainly no shortage of places to spend any excess Euros if you're lucky enough to have some!

The only people we encountered doing the hard-sell in Venice were the Gondaliers - had the weather been finer, we'd have considered parting with the 62 Euro (fixed price for 50 minutes) as a special treat, however, no amount of superb singing or piano accordion could lure us into the beautiful boats with wind like ice!

Venice is certainly like no other place in the world. There is no doubt that the cost of maintaining such a city is extremely high, so the exorbitant cost of things is well justified and well worth it for a visit. We were pretty lucky to have stumbled upon a cute and cozy bar for a couple of warming glasses of red wine to find that their customers could use the internet for free - we became locals there for our short stay in Venice. For the cost of one hours internet usage elsewhere ($15 AUD), we could buy 5 glasses of vino rossi and use the internet for free! BRAVO!
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/kempstertravels/europa/1140878460/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/kempstertravels/europa/1140878460/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/kempstertravels/europa/1140878460/tpod.html Sat, 01 Apr 2006 17:46:32 -0500 A taste of the Mediterranean

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Milan, Italy

Our trip to Milan was brief. We couldn't bear to be so close to the Winter Olympics without experiencing the atmosphere, so we compromised some of our time here to make a quick trip up to Torino and the Italian slopes.

While we were only in Milan for two nights, we were able to get a reasonable feel for the city and a quick look at it's main gem, the Duomo. Unmistakable Gothic architecture, this masterpiece is an astounding backdrop to the city's main piazza. The facade is apparently unforgettable, so it's rather unfortunate that it was undergoing maintenance at the time of our visit. The external structures that we were able to see were extremely impressive, as was the interior, complete with the most stunning artworks and enormous lead light windows.

We visited it on a Saturday evening, and after marvelling at the outside, we followed the crowd inside to find that Mass was about to commence. We decided to stay for the service, which was very long, due to the fact that it was partly bilingual. The cathedral was absolutely freezing. As the priest gave his homily, we could see the fog caused by his breath from the very back of the church.

Helping to maintain the city's reputation as the Italian fashion capital, many of the Milanese church-goers on this particular evening came dressed in designer coats and carried their Saturday afternoon Gucci and Prada shopping bags with them as they went up to receive Communion.

We were lucky enough to get the opportunity to see a fashion parade in one of the most prestigious shopping precincts in Milan. We felt a little uneasy, wearing the same 'slightly worn' outfits that we'd been sporting for the past six weeks, but enjoyed the show despite this!

We're sure that there is much more to this city that we didn't get to see. We did like what we saw, but if we were to return in the future, we'd certainly try to pack a few more classy outfits!
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/kempstertravels/europa/1140965040/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/kempstertravels/europa/1140965040/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/kempstertravels/europa/1140965040/tpod.html Mon, 20 Mar 2006 18:48:21 -0500 A taste of the Mediterranean

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Torino, Italy

We caught the dawn train from Milan in an effort to absorb some of the Olympic atmosphere. We'd attempted to buy tickets to the Men's 50KM freestyle final the night before, but missed out because ticket sales closed earlier than the advertised times.

We still made the trip up to the mountains, where the skiing events were being held. Even though we were not inside the gates, we were right outside the finish line when the Italians came first and the crowd erupted. The atmosphere was unbelievable. We had so much fun messing around in the snow, and the scenery was just gorgeous!

Back in Torino, we strolled around the Olympic Sponsor's Village, sampled some of the local delicacies and smiled quietly as the Italians all cheered and sung their anthem with such gusto when the Italian champion received his medal. While far too brief, we thought our side-trip to Torino was great. The streets were decorated beautifully, the piazzas alive with excitement and the passionate locals were elated!
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