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August 03
I’ve
watched it enough on TV and now I have experienced what the hype is about for Wimbledon.
Being so
accustomed to watching on TV , I was thinking the matches would be played during
the night , cause I always watched the game at night, but then ….. I was in Oz
and now I’m in London
but I’m going to the games during the day … eh? ….. ohhhh there’s time
difference! Jo is so clever, she worked it out for herself . 
Ped applied
for the ballot and we were really blessed to get centre court tickets for day 7
of the competition. The tickets were at the back, but we found that most seats
had a good view of the court. We were also blessed with great weather and great
games to watch.
The first
match was between Federer and Hewitt. Before the game I was undecided who I’d
go for. I liked Federer more than Hewitt, but when the game started, the Aussie
in me wanted to cheer for the Aussie! Go Hewitt!!! He played well in the first
game, but he couldn’t hold of the world number one.
The games
on centre court continue on without a break, so we for the first set of the
women’s match we walked around Wimbledon.
Courts were packed with people, the queue for strawberries and cream was insane
and the atmosphere was buzzing. The queues to get into Wimbledon
were even crazier; it took people hours to get the day passes. We were hoping
to do some star spotting amongst the crowds, but were unsuccessful; the place
was dotted with VIP lounges and restaurant to shy away from the crowds. There
was a definite distinction between the important and the commoners at Wimbledon. The important people wore jackets and hats in
the beach weather!
After the
ladies match between Kuznetsova and Radwanska, we were treated to a game with
the Frenchman Richard Gasquet and Andy Murray, the Brit’s hope in the
prestigious Grad Slam. Murray was down two sets and the Frenchman seemed firm
to win, but the encouragement of the raving crowd spurred Murray and he not
only saved himself from match after match pointed, but made a tremendous come
back to win the game.
The game was
exhilarating to watch, it’s so quick and fast paced where every point counts. I
was still buzzing the next day after being there and wanted to go back again
and again!
And the Wimbledon men’s final …… I watched it on TV and that gave
me a heart attack for 4 hours. Go Nadal!! 
Wonder if I
can pull my racket out to have a hit before the summer disappears.
August 02
| We were prepared for the unexpected in Marrakech as it was our first experience of a Middle Eastern city and also our
first time in Northern Africa, but it still managed to blow us away. | |
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| | Our first challenge was to make it from the airport to the old town without being ripped off. We were hassled and quoted
ridiculous prices, so our solution was to approach a westerner that seemed to be living in Marrakech and was picking up a friend.
We scored, and were able to catch a ride together with them. We felt safer with someone that’s been living on the turf for awhile
and spoke English. Our journey was interesting, not only because we were sharing the road with donkeys and horses, but also
because of the car conversation. The dudes we were travelling with talked about preparations for some program they were filming,
how they needed quad bikes and camels and things about camels piss and how if u run out of water in the dessert, poke a stick
into a camels throat and they will spew water out. If only we got that lucky and could talk our way into their team and spend our
4 days in Marrakech with them =p |
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| | At the old town we walked through the chaos and departed ways at the Djemaa el Fna square. We were now alone and I felt
like I was in a movie set from Indiana Jones. Our next challenge was to find our riad in the maze of souks. We were bewildered,
there was no such thing as a proper map and there were no signs, we were also warned not to ask locals and do not take up on any
ones offer to guide you as a high price would be paid at the end. So what do you do when you are your blind and mute?!
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| We were bewildered wondering through the souks which were a market place with stores that
were loaded with everything from teapots, to spices to bathroom needs to clothes, shoes and leather goods. All the streets looked
the same! We didn’t have time to enjoy the eccentric atmosphere, we were more annoyed with the shop keepers waving us into there
stores, shaking our heads at young men offering to take us to our accommodation, being amused by the ladies who stare and giggle
at our oriental features and on top of that trying not to get killed by the motorbikes that wizz through the tight paths. The
motorbikes were like flies in the Australian summer, they were buzzing by you every which way, they were fast and non apologetic.
I was tired already and was desperate to find our riad!
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| | With some luck, twist of fate and God’s blessing, we somehow finally managed to find the
hidden riad. I don’t know how we managed, but God guided us there and I was relieved to be at the door of our accommodation on
the back streets of the chaos. It was tranquil and quiet, it was like another world inside the riad. It was cool and breezy and
were offered mint tea and biscuits. Now my tourist instincts were back in play and I wanted to get back out to explore the city.
But were we told that the place was we were meant to stay was fully booked and had to be taken to another riad. And so we had to
move, but this time with a guide, thank God! And once again was treated with more tea and biscuits. It is custom that we had to
drink tea at each house we entered. Somehow in Morocco, the time was slow, although we took ages to find our riads and get
settled we still had a lot of time to venture the Old town and New town for the day. One day in the town was enough for us to get
a taste of the city and the next day we were off for another adventure, we were heading for our 3 day tour through the Atlas
Mountains and camping in the Sahara desert. |
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| For the next 3 days we were in a 4WD with Omar and three girls from DC, a friendship was
forged and we travelled through the winding roads of the Atlas mountains seeing the changing faces of Morocco, from towering
green mountains, to sun sorched mountains to the lush oasis and then to the desert landscape of the Sahara. We saw the
traditional berber villages, the beautiful Kasbahs and visited the movie locations for movies such as Gladiator.
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| | The life in the dwindling villages seemed harsh and hard. Children were selling goods and
asking for money. We didn’t have to give much to see a smile and excited glees, a small candy is all they needed to make their
day. I didn’t want to buy what they offered thinking I would be ripped off or that I don’t need more ‘junk’ in my home, but then
thinking back, I was thinking more of what I was getting out of it rather than what I could give. I do wish I gave more to those
children and the people in those villages. Nowadays our world is filling up with franchises and modernism because that is the way
to make money. It seems that these villages are turning from their traditional roots towards tourism as this was the way to
sustain their families. It was sad to see the dwindling beauties, is there any small way I can help, rather than be apart of the
culprit? The summers are harsh and the winters are blistering, their life seemed so hard, but then I guess this is what they are
accustomed to, I have just been brought up with another experience in life. Who is to say that a life of comfort is more blessed
than a life in the mountains? It is a matter of perspective and personal preference? Some personal thoughts here, but that was my
experience driving through the mountains, there was time for reflection, thinking about me, God, the world etc etc.
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| Favourite
Highlight of the trip was
definitely camel riding through the Sahara dessert and camping there for the night. The camels were beautiful and it was exciting
to ride through the stunning landscape of mountains and mountains of sand. It was also surreal to camp in the dessert under the
stars for the night. The Berber camp site was great and the food was amazing =)
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| Touristy
We took a horse carriage
ride around the new town and back into the old town. Got ripped off, but oh wells, all part of being a tourist =)
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| Yummy
At night, the Djemaa el Fna
square is transformed from a performance arena to rows and rows and stalls and stalls of Moroccan specialties. The atmosphere was
fantastic and the food was interesting, it was like being in a place full of ‘tai pai dorns’. An amazing and yummy experience.
Although we were not game to try the gourmet lamb’s brains. |
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| Interesting
Each city in Morroco
has its own colour, and the colour of Marrakech is Red. All the houses in new medina in Marrkech was a dusty, red, dark pink
colour. The contrast between the old and new town was very distinct. The old town has kept its character of the traditional
market place and the new town was big modern looking square blocks all looking very splish with gardens and cars. The lifestyle
also seemed very different, inside families seemed to work hard for a buck or beg for living, whilst just outside the dividing
wall, families played together in the nice parks, enjoying the cooler weather in the dusk.
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| Myth
Before I went to Marrakech, I
was told of stories how the men in Morocco stare at women as Muslim women are usually seen in the home. However, it wasn’t that
bad in Marrakech as it’s a very touristy city. And no camels were given in exchange for marriage =p
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| Bonus
After 4 days feeling dusty,
dirty and sweaty, I was ready to head home. At the airport outside some food bar, somehow I managed to step on the stinky piece
of crap! I couldn’t believe it, not in the market place, but in an airport?! The stench was unbearable and I had to clean the
gunk out of my shoes, but it was stuck in the grooves of the soles. I nearly puked and nearly had to chuck my shoes, imagine if
the whole plane how to smell it for the 3 hr ride home (wahaha, evil laugh). If I think hard enough I think I can still smell it
.. arrghhh … gross! What a nice farewell present from Marrakech.
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July 24
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All trips have defining moments and Iceland defined the term ‘waterfall moment’ for us. |
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Still haunted by the Christmas trip, I was preparing myself for another travel nightmare. But, contrary to my pessimism, our flight to Iceland was amazingly
smooth. And sadly, we were so instilled with the ways of budget airlines, we were actually excited to have reserved seats, heaps of leg room, FREE earphones,
FREE movie, FREE drinks AND food on our Iceland Express flight. Arhhh the simple things in life …
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Iceland is a land of surprises as we drive through the mountainous landscape of changing colours. We didn’t really have a plan as to what to see, but we had
a general idea so once we figured how to type Iceland alphabet on the GPS, we were off and away.
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Our plan for the first day was to see the attractions along the Golden Circle route. There weren’t signs which said ‘Golden Circle this way’, so in hindsight
it was amazing that we actually managed to stumble across most of the main attractions. The first was the Þingvellir National Park. Being our own tour guide,
we wondered into a giant icy water fall and we chose to believe that what we saw in the national park were the tectonic plates. From there we continued our
drive and noticed a group of people up the top of a small elevation. Our Asian instinct told us to join them and what do you know, we had come upon crater
lake Kerið, a huge frozen crater drop in the mountains. Following on, we saw some cars making a right onto a gravel road and so we decided to use the same
trick and follow the crowds. Hoping off the car, we were confused as why people where stopping there? In front of us was the mountains we’ve been seeing on
the road and to our left was an animal farm thing, which Tracy pointed out she had seen in the tour book. So I guess that was our explanation. Until … we
looked down. It seemed like out of no where, this gushing waterfall stretched beneath us and had managed to quietly go about its business when were
preoccupied in working out what the fuss was about. And that defined our ‘waterfall’ moment. The beauties of Iceland lay in the most inconspicuous places and
when unexpectedly appear, they take your breath away.
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Other beauties that we saw on the day was the Geysir and Gullfoss area where we saw the geyser Strokkur spout boiling water 25-30 m high in the air. And at
night we went to a small town in search for food and once again we were surprised to find a restaurant we served this gourmet Icelandic lobster and skyr
cake. And to top off the day we saw the northern lights that night!
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The second day, we ventured down south to see the Southern Gems. We headed for the black sanded beach near Vik. The black beach was captivating and we were
nearly blown away, literally. We felt adventurous and tried to head for the glaciers, but our Subaru was stopped by massive tanks which had chains on their
wheels. We glady look their advise and stopped climbing for the tops and headed for the majestic Skogafoss waterfall. Peering at the waterfall from the top,
its powerful presence felt like the drop could suck you in. We then ventured up the 388 steps to the Skogarfoss falls and enjoyed a bird's eye view of the
region as well as the snowcapped mountains in the interior of Iceland. Our final stop was the Seljalandsfoss waterfall, where we got drenched walking behind
it and being waterfall’ed’ out, God decided to throw in a rainbow over the falls to make us snap happy again. Another great day was topped off with a lobster
feast and the northern lights again! Talk about being spoilt!
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On the third day, we headed for the capital of Reykjavík and at the last minute went on a whale watching tour. We were sorely disappointed with both. The
city was quite dull or was it because the countryside was too beautiful? And as for the whale watching tour, it was cold, the seas were rough and we caught
one second glimpses of really small whale fins as we scrambled across the boat to directions of ‘On your 1 o’clock’, ‘On your 11 o’clock, ‘On your 4 o’clock
whilst trying to battle sea sickness. Or maybe my expectations were to high and wanted to see whales or dolphins jumping out like the ones at sea world. And
for dinner, no lobster, but a very interesting fish buffet.
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Favourite
All the ‘waterfall’ moments and surprises which God gave us.
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Touristy
Standing in cozzies outside in freezing temperatures to take pictures of friends in the Blue Lagoon.
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Yummy
The tender Icelandic lobster dipped in garlic butter sauce
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Interesting
It’s really safe in Iceland. We left our car door opened for an entire 2 hour meal and nothing was missing when we came back. Thank God!
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Myth
Yes a lot of ice in Iceland, but maybe that’s cos it’s the end of winter?!
Icelandic lobster is actually scampi. The Aussies need to let them know what real lobsters are!
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| It’s been about a half year and a half since I’ve been back on this side of the world. The first sight of the bridge stretching across the harbour was beautiful and I’m proud to say that Sydney is home!
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| It didn’t take long before settling back in. It was like I had never gone away. It was great seeing family and friends again and it was great to see that everyone was looking well and healthy. Praise God for that!
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| Deb’s wedding kept me busy for next week or so, and there was so much to do. I got an insight into wedding chaos, stress and anticipation, and I still don’t understand why brides put themselves through so much for this ONE day of forever?
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| The big day approached and I can really see God’s blessing on Deb and Daniel’s special day. The blessings were countless especially with the help of family and friends pulling together which kept the whole day run smoothly. Their wedding was awesome and if I had a dream wedding, it would’ve been exactly like Deb and Daniel’s, fairytale and perfect! I cried so much I think I actually had swollen eyes the next day. =p
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| Then it was time to head to HK for another family affair. This time it was Chinese New Year and celebrating grandma’s birthday with a family reunion and buffet. It was great seeing everyone and taking family photos. My grandma got to celebrate the new years with her children, grandchildren and great grandchildren. What a blessing =)
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| Praise God for family and Praise God for His wonderful blessings.
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| | January 03
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It’s been a year full of travelling mercies for us and it ended with one of our worst and yet best trips in 2007. |
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It was planned to run like clock work. 9 people and 9 days of travelling, hitting the towns of Zell Am See, Saalbach and Innsbruck in Austria, the Bavarian Alps then our final destination, Munich in Germany.
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Friday 21st 2007, the start of Christmas holidays and it was all joy when Grace, Ped and I headed for London City Airport to fly to Munich where we would meet the rest of the group. The airport was jam packed and we soon realised it was because all the flights were cancelled due to heavy fog. It was my worst nightmare coming true, and it was only the beginning …
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Everyone was rebooking their flights and our airline could only offer a night flight out on Sunday. It wasn’t good enough, but we took the spots as a backup.
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Our next plan of attack; we headed back to my office and hopped on the phones and websites searching for available flights, calling about refunds and fighting for our cause. It wasn’t a pretty sight. We were battered and bruised fighting airline policies, robots on the phone, sparse availability on flights, rising airfares and our sanity.
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Why is it that we can not use our return flight home if we don’t use the outgoing flight? Why is it that we can not be refunded? Why is it that we can’t talk to people with common sense?!
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Matters weren’t looking any better and it was decided we’ll deal with the aftermath later, the important thing was to meet up with the rest of the group. The only weapon we had left was our credit card, so we punched in the numbers and paid an insane amount of money to get to our original destination. During the time of fighting our airline, flights we had chosen were booked out and alternative flights prices had gone up by £100 …
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Be careful for what you wished for, Grace did say she wanted a warm bowl of instant noodles on the way to the airport, and that’s what she got, not knowing she would get her wishes in her worst nightmare. Tomorrow will be a better day …. So we thought ……
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The flights were from Stansted, which is out in the sticks. We decided to splurge on airport transfers since we were paying so much anyway, so we might as well. It was our luck that our driver was driving so slow we got overtaken by trucks, he tried to comfort us by saying he was slow cos he was sleepy, we had to look out for signs to the airport for him and practically had to show him the way to the airport. Our flights were delayed, we had crying babies in front of us, and behind us, kicking kids and a dad that like to play ‘guess what tune I am whistling’.
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We were on our way, but stresses continued as we had to make our train from the airport otherwise our plan to meet the rest of the gang at Zell Am See would fail. The flight delayed added the pressure, but things seem to getting better, we went through customs quickly, our bags came, we ran to the train station, we lined up for tickets, we got our tickets, we made it to our first connection … hoorah! We also made our second connection … yippee! And finally our last connection … high fives! We were so busy high five’ing at one end of the platform we didn’t see that the train was actually on the end of the platform waiting!
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Without much further pain, we arrived at Zell Am See train station and it was a happy sight to see Chris, Tracy, Herman, Cathy, Cylia and Michelle all waiting for us. Praise God, we made it! We made it! And our holidays were about to begin!
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Saalbach, Austria
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The Saalbach-Hinterglemm picturesque ski resort area for locals and it was the highlight of our trip. We snowboarded and skied on the alpine slopes for 3 days on the alpine slopes. It was a daunting task for the beginners and it was painful to even sit on the third day. Our apartments at the resort were great, we enjoyed saunas, fantastic food and a good game of poker to end the night. Great slopes, great food, great company … ahhh … it was all worth it. 
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Innsbruck, Austria
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It was sad to leave Saalbach, but we continued to Innsbruck, which was a bigger and busier town surrounded by mountains. We visited the Swarovski Crystal World, and the next day we ate our way through the Christmas markets before heading off to Munich.
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Linderhof & Neuschwanstein Castle, Bavarian Alps, Germany
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The mad king spent all his money and efforts on the Neuschwanstein Castle, so it was a must see as even Walt Disney based their castle on Ludwig’s castle. Our tour started by visiting the smaller Linderhof castle which was built for one person and based on Versaille in France. Then we the Neuschwanstein castle perched on top of the mountains. It wasn’t as grand as I thought it would be but none the less, the castle makes a great postcard.
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Munich, Germany
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We were introduced to Munich on the walking tour which gave us a glimpse of its past being founded by monks, the beginnings of the Nazi regime and Hitler and how we could answer 95% of the questions with the word ‘beer’. Munich was a nice place to walk around especially with the Christmas decorations and lights and there heaps of shops. Somehow our time in Munich was always connected to the famous Hofbrauhaus beer hall. It was there and Augustine- Keller where we feasted on pork knuckles, suckling pig. It was a relief to eat instant noodles in the hotel on the last night because we were excited to see pork knuckles again the next day before we headed back home.
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After our nine day Christmas trip, we had great memories of bruises, beers and pigs. Cheers!
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***~~*~* God Bless in the New Year *~*~~***
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December 03
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New York, New York! I’m suffering from post NY shopping blues and recovering from walking 9am to 9pm for 5 days. |
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I would describe NY as my version of Hong Kong on this side of the world with its great shopping, food and crazy cabs. The yellow cab drivers are crazy and I find myself clutching to the handles for a 5 block ride as it swerves between lanes, jerks and jolts in the midst of honking horns, finger signals and cursing.
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Not surprisingly with the dollar being weak, it was shopping heaven and we also managed to visit a few highlights of the city. Everything was half price! What a dangerous thought! 
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Day 1 – Woodbury Common Factory Outlets
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We were told by Cathy that we needed to plan which shops we would visit for the day as we wouldn’t be able to see everything. You’re kidding right?! Well thank goodness we did wack a plan together cos the woodbury common outlets was absolutely crazy with the after thanksgiving sales. There was additional 20-30% off outlet prices!
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Now here’s crazy shopping for you, we got up at 5am to catch a bus which took us to the outlets. Its 6:00 am and people were already back with bags full after midnight shopping. At 7am we arrive at the outlet and it was like we were in an amusement park lining up for rides, except we were lining up to get into the stores to check it out.
Time flew by and before we knew it we hard to leave for the last bus back to Manhattan and at midnight finished the night with steak.
It was a crazy opener to NY.
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Day 2 – Macy’s, NBA, Times Square
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Before the game, we took a stroll at Macy’s which was down the road from us. Didn’t see much that we liked and wasn’t really impressed with the renowned department store. We then headed to Madison Square Garden to watch the game between New York Knicks Vs Chicago Bulls. Although the game wasn’t too exciting, the Americans know how to put on a show with the entertainment, music and gimmicks. Stars that were watching the game was Ray from Everybody Loves Raymond and John McEnroe. After the game, we walked towards Times Square. The lights were as impressive as I had imagined them to be and I went wild in the M&Ms store. The Hershey’s store was also cool, but luckily I was back to my senses then, otherwise there would’ve been major damage.
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Day 3 – Statue of Liberty, Wall St, Ground Zero, Century 21, China Town
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It was another early morning and we headed to Battery Park to head towards the Statue of Liberty. We were lucky that there wasn’t much of a queue for the security scan before hopping onto the ferry. In the afternoon, this queue was so long that it would’ve been a line up of 1- 1.5 hrs. On the ferry, the skyline of Manhattan was amazing, and seeing the Statue of Liberty was almost surreal. The perfect blue sky was great to capture the towering lady as she stood facing the ocean. On the island, there was another queue and another security scan before we could go inside the statue. The hike wasn’t up to the top, but it was already tiring. And the end of our hike, it was amazing to see through the glassed section of the roof, the stairs spiralling up to the top. It was also fascinating to see the exhibition on the history of the statue, how it was designed, built and transported from France to NY. It was well worth the visit!
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From there, we went to see Wall St and the New York Stock Exchange. It was fenced off to prevent tourists from getting too close. It was a nice building, but if you don’t know much about finance or stock markets, we wont really understand the significance or the prestigious nature of the place.
We then headed to Ground Zero. Again it was fenced off and now the hole was filled with cranes and construction work. The piece of land was pretty big and I took a moment to remember the events that have happened and how the dust was filling the narrow streets between the high rises. I couldn’t imagine the full extent of the terror and sadness that once filled the area, but it was a sombre thought.
Close to Ground Zero, is Century 21. This is a department store with a lot of bargains, but you had to trawl through what they had. I didn’t have the patience, so after a quick geez, we headed towards Chinatown.
We arrived at an area which looked like Chinatown with all the Chinese signage, shops and eateries. It was so much like an old Hong Kong. It was only later that we discovered that what we saw was only the outskirt of Chinatown, we weren’t even in the main part. The NY China Town is huge and definitely deserves the ‘China Town’ title, unlike other ones I’ve seen. Even the Macca’s Sign had Chinese on it and they had Aji Ichiban!
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Day 4 – 5th Avenue
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Another day of shopping and this time it was on 5th Avenue. We attacked Anthropology, Banana Republic, Gap, H&M, Kenneth Cole, Coach, NBA Store, Abercrombie & Finch, Apple Store, Nine West, Tiffany & Co and Nike. We also visited, The Trump Tower which was also on 5th. We had to line up to go into Abercrombie and Finch and since we had to line up to go in, I thought I might as well take a pic with the model. He had great abs!
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Day 5 – Central Park, Little Italy, Soho, Greenwich Village and Unfinished Shopping
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Our last day was spent finishing up on our shopping list and also enjoying a walk through Central Park. The park was huge and it was beautiful in autumn. The pictures will speak for themselves.
We then went to Little Italy, walked to Soho and then past Greenwich Village. Soho has all the high street stores and some boutiques as well. We passed an area which was being shoot for a movie or something. We didn’t get to see anyone famous , but it was pretty kool and it was amazing to see how much gear and people they use for one scene.
At night, we went up to the 68 – 70th levels at Rockefeller Centre and enjoyed the night view of the city. No other night scene compares with all the lights that glimmer into the darkness.
New York, New Yooooorrrrrrk!
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Favourite
£1 = $2
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Touristy
Took a picture with the naked cowboy in Times Square
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Yummy
Had an amazing Black Cod with Miso Sauce, fantastic sushi and tempura green tea ice cream …… it was a dream …
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Interesting
In the middle of Times Square, there were people all dressed up and dancing to tunes to get people to go upstairs to use the free restrooms. After 3 days of passing by the place and being sceptical, we decided to try it on the last day. The ‘Charming Restrooms’ was exactly that, clean, comfy restrooms in the middle of Manhattan. Other gimmicks at the place was dancing cheerleaders, a photo shoot area, a souvenirs shop for ‘charming’ merchandise and sending free postcards. All of this was for the cost of your vote on whether you preferred your ‘Charming’ toilet paper to be soft or strong.
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Myth
Still not sure why New York is referred to as the big apple
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November 15
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Tuscany is a region on Italy’s west coast. In April, we did a whirlwind tour of Italy and visited Pisa and Florence which are the renowned cities of the area. This time we went back to the same region, but had a more hands on experience as we got a glimpse of the local Tuscan life and learned to make fresh pasta on the Tuscan hillside.
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On the first day we were greeted by our own local guardian angel, Andrea, who took us around the country side and visit local Tuscan towns. The weather was perfect for driving through the scenic country side as we visited these towns. We were treated to rolling hills of greens mixed with burnt oranges, browns and yellows. The atmosphere of the region is very rustic, romantic and care free.
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We were blessed to have Andrea who was a fantastic guardian telling us about Tuscan life, which is basically, eat, drink and be merry, life is short! We were also treated to one of the songs he sang to his wife. Apparently he makes up a poem or song to his wife everyday!
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Our first stop was, Casciano a small town between Siena and Florence. We snacked on our jam filled tarts and biscuits from the local patisserie as we took a quick stroll around the area and locals went around their usual business of buying fresh pasta and veggies or sipping on espresso in the café.
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We then went to a town called Monteriggioni, which is a residence for the soliders/army. When you walk through the city walls, everything breathed a Tuscan air, from the rustic orange and brown stone walls, small spots of red flowers, wooden ornaments and crawling ruby vines to the warm smell of cooking seafood, dough and tomatoes. We didn’t have enough time to absorb everything, but it was enough for us to fall in love with the romantic and homey life of Tuscans.
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From there we headed for medieval town of Siena. The buildings are packed together following the slopes of the hills. Even the piazza at the centre of the city of is sloped downwards and is shell shaped. Located at the piazza is the massive city hall and access to the Torre di Mangia. We climbed up tight and winding stairs to be rewarded with a beautiful panorama of the city and Sienese countryside.
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And the end of the day we visited the peaceful and picturesque towns in the Val d'orcia area.
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We even fitted in a quick trip to the factory outlet which had Gucci! Most of the styles were too out there, but we did manage to pick up some bargains.
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Yes all that was in our first day in Tuscany! And now we move on to our second day where we joined a cooking tour!
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We were picked up from Florence by our guide, Jesse. The morning was relaxing as we tried and taste the extra virgin olive oil and wines that were made on the estate. I’m not a expert of either, but it was nice to hear about the processes and the work that goes on in the farm. We were then taken to the family home of Christiania to make pasta. Her home is situated in the Chianti area and the views were spectacular. Our group was taken to the basement which was all set up for us to get our hands dirty and start making pasta. We were assured by Jesse that making pasta would be easy and wouldn’t go back to the dried stuff. I was sceptical!
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Jesse was right about making pasta, it was very easy! Some flour, egg, salt is all you need! We put the dough through the pasta through a kneading machine to help flatten out the dough and from that we made spinach and ricotta ravioli and fettuccine noodles. It was easy, but I wasn’t convinced it would taste any good. But we shall see …
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Now it was time to try what our amateur attempts tasted like. We were welcomed into Christiana’s kitchen and dining area. It was perfect to host a feast and you can see the kitchen was well equipped with sturdy looking pots, utensils and hardcore oven for making great food. We treated her and her kitchen like a super star and snapped away like paparazzi clicking at every movement she makes and grabbing her for a photos.
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Entrée was a slice of homemade pizza, and Italian dishes which we never had before. There was baked fennel with a creamy sauce and some potato and egg omelette/quiche thing. Next course was our ravioli, which Christiania tossed with a bit of butter and sage. It was very impressive and we could really taste the difference of freshly made pasta. It was bouncy and you could taste the egg. So good!! Then came the fettuccine. Again Christiana added her magic touch to our already fantastic pasta. Her tomato, basil and chilli sauce was mind blowing. We all agreed that it was THE BEST pasta we’ve ever had! Then there was coffee and tea and more importantly dessert! Christiania is known for her tiramisu, but this time she made a chestnut biscuit/cake as chestnut was in season. Again, it was amazing.
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We went home with our bellies full and very satisfied with our Tuscan experience and we’re all going to start making our own pasta.
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Belisimo!
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Favourite
This is a hard choice, but I would say my favourite place was hanging out at Christiana’s home. And it was also great to have our local guide, Andrea with us so he could explain what things were and have a more local Tuscan experience.
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Touristy
We have become professional tourists were we get dropped off, get told we have to be back by a certain time and then we set off snapping and whizzing about the area, snapping away as the time flies by. We might not be able to enjoy a relaxing coffee and people watch, but we do get to see a lot of places in one day.
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Yummy
I won’t go on anymore about Christiana’s cooking, because I’m sure you all get the idea by now. Another great place was just a local sandwich shop we dropped by on the first day for lunch. We had pesto and anchovy sandwiches, salami and cheese sandwiches, wine, and some pork. It was very simple, but tasty and it was great to try some typical Tuscan food.
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Interesting
It was noted that there was no microwave in Christiana’s kitchen. She said she couldn’t bring herself to buying one.
The dessert we had was a chestnut cake/biscuit and it was made from chestnut flour. I didn’t know there was just a thing.
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Myth
Jesse was right when he said we would be converted from the dried stuff to the fresh pasta!
Once you have made pasta and find out how easy it is and how great and different it tastes, there is no going back! We have all been converted and looking to buy those dough machines.
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