1986 - Europe by double decker bus (Part 2 - France & Italy)

Saturday 10 May - Woke feeling surprisingly well. We drove from Barcelona along the coast to Antibes in France. Quiet afternoon and evening, although the camp site was busy due to it being the weekend of the Monaco Grande Prix.

Sunday 11 May - A lazy day by French Riviera. There were heaps of people around as Monaco Grand Prix was on. The afternoon was spent in Nice and perfume factory that makes all the well known smelly stuff (Chanel No. 5 etc). After dinner in their car park we visited casino in Monaco and managed to lose 20F in slot machines.

A town on a hill near Nice.

The French Riviera.

Monday 12 May - Drove from Antibes to Florence in Italy. The coast road is a combination of dozens of tunnels and viaducts. We stopped in Pisa to look at a certain tower. We are able to climb to the top and it feels very funny when walking up a spiral staircase that is on a lean. There are no guard rails on the outside balconies either. We arrived in Florence late afternoon and had a traditional Italian dinner of pasta, chicken and vegetables and an early night due to not feeling all that flash.

The Basilica and bell tower (on a bit of a lean).

The bell tower.

The Basilica.

The spiral staircase inside the tower.

The town of Pisa from the top of the tower.

Tuesday 13 May - A free day in Florence. We saw all the main sites / sights, more shops (leather, gold, silver) and lots of churches.

Steve feeding the pigeons.

David and his large hands.

Giotto's Tower.

The Ponte Vecchio over the River Arno.

A general view over the city.

Wednesday 14 May - Some people went back into the city whereas the rest of us visited a monastery that makes a very strong alcoholic beverage (there is a theme developing here I can see!). Lazy afternoon in camp catching up on reading, playing volleyball etc. First sight of water pistols. See later in trip.

Local monastery.

Thursday 15 May - Drove from Florence to Rome. After lunch by Colosseum, we had a walking tour of old part of Rome (there are lots of old parts). We visited the Capuchin Monastery to see the remain of 4000 odd monks buried there. Rather gruesome seeing hundreds of skulls and other bones glued to the walls. The camp site is great, with a pool, three bars and a zoo.

The Forum.

The Colosseum.

Inside the Colosseum.

The memorial to King Victor Emmanuel II.

The Trevi Fountain.

The Spanish Steps.

Friday 16 May - More sightseeing, Vatican City Museum (Sistine Chapel and heaps of statues), St Peter's Basilica (covered in scaffolding). The afternoon was spent at the catacombs with 40km of passages and half million graves. Another BBQ, camp disco and fancy dress party.

St Peter's (with scaffolding).

Swiss Guards at the Vatican.

St Peter's Square.

Statues inside the Vatican Museum.

The roof of the Sistine Chapel.

Saturday 17 May - Free day. The others went into city whereas I stayed at camp to read, write letters, photograph the llamas and sunbathe by the pool.

Larry the llama at the camp site.

Sunday 18 May - Drove from Rome to Sorrento. We stopped at Monte Cassino for a look around the rebuilt monastery. Very interesting.

The Abbey on Monte Cassino.

The Abbey on Monte Cassino.

The Abbey on Monte Cassino as seen from the Polish Cemetery.

The Polish Cemetery.

The Eternal Flame at the Polish Cemetery.

Monday 19 May - We caught the ferry from Sorrento out to the island of Capri, a large rock in the Mediterranean Sea. We rented a taxi for day to tour the island. There are spectacular views from top of mountain. Bus party after dinner back in camp.

The island of Capri.

The town of Capri.

The town of Anacapri.

Our transport around Capri.

Tuesday 20 May - Drove to Pompeii. We had a good tour around ruins with an interesting guide. There are no photos at all of Pompeii and for the life of me I have no idea why. From there we drove to Metaponto on way to Brindisi (ferry to Greece). Nice beach by camp site, but lots of mosquitoes and a couple of snakes.

Wednesday 21 May - A lazy morning and an afternoon arrival in Brindisi. A 10:00 pm sailing from Brindisi to Corfu. We slept on deck as night was warm, but a bit uncomfortable as ferry decks are known to be rather hard.

Brindisi ferry port.
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