Bonjour, oui, comment allez vous?, tres bien, vous et ici....Ninja turtles

Vous et ici .......you are here. When travelling around I wondered about going back to places that I had visited before in my size 12 days and I realised that Paul should experience some of these wonderful places, especially the great Cities. If you know Paul, he really likes the little places and feels more at home and at ease. We had seen lots of little Irish villages so now was the time for visiting Paris, the most visited city in the world. Paulapedia fact....26 million visitors a year.

We departed at the main train station and walked our way to our boutique hotel. I call it a boutique hotel as our room was only big enough to stand up two bottles of boutique beer in. Trendy as anything but very, tiny. We made do...we threw our cases in and quickly climbed over them and shut the door and headed off down the Rue (de Remarks) to get a bite to eat. The fact that you can get a great meal and a bottle of rouge at midnight shows that you are not visiting  a small town. Exploring our new neighbourhood was safe and easy as many people were out and about.

Up early to walk to the Louvre but on this Tuesday it was closed. Not sure why but there was a crane moving around a huge covered up statue. A walk down the famous Champs Elysees saw us ending up at the Arc de Triomphe where we jumped on a double decker sightseeing bus and toured the city in comfort. Home late..... climbed back over the cases and hit the wall.

Eiffel tower next on the list and of course there is always a queueueueueueue...........Well worth waiting for as the structure and the view are magnifique. We were able to get right to the top of the tower which was great as they were shutting this area off at stages due to the volume of tourists like us all wanting to see Paris from the top.

Next stop was the Trocadero which is an Architectural Museum nearby. This had the most amazing "Art Deco" exhibition. But what took Paul's fancy was this apparently new structure inside which had him intrigued and taking photos even before the museum attendant informed him that it was a full sized replica of a Le Corbusier townhouse built in the 1930's......he is even drooling now as I type this.

Pompidou Centre was another must do on Paul's list. Yes, now in Paris he has a list which is great as he is deciding on some of the famous landmarks and cultural hideouts that he wants to visit. Pompidou was a controversial building which silenced its critics due to its immediate overwhelming popularity. The collection of various artworks and exhibitions including Roy Lichtenstein, a major figure in Pop Art was well worth the early start.  As stated previously the Louvre was closed the first time so I decided that Paul needed to see the most famous smile. We only had one hour but worth the euros as it was nearly closing time when we arrived there. Ha ha....talking to Paul at a later date he thought Mozart had painted Mona........(Mozart was too busy drinking at his local) this was when I started to roll my eyes at Paul but he recovered quickly and mentioned Picasso the guy who cut off his ear......I am eyeballing him now mentioning that artist was Van Gogh.....He replied "No I am thinking of Michael Angelo"... He was having a ninja turtle moment and sooner than later he realized the aria of his ways........ I think he was still in Le Corbusier land.

Paris done and dusted we were packing our bags again to head south to Lyon. Let's hope the next room is biggerer and betterer.

me on top of the tower

well worth the visit

view from the top

Pompidou centre

Munich madness (Munchen luncheons) and autumn biergartens

Munchen
On the train again and Tom is still hanging with his oldies. Munich greeted us with wonderful weather and this gave us the chance to experience the biergartens and explore the city. First up Paul and I did a 'free' walking tour of the old city.....free apart from the tip that is expected to be given to the guide at the end of the tour. This included a visit to the Hofbrauhaus a beer hall in the city centre. Apparently Mozart lived around the corner and would often go there. I guess these days it would be considered his 'local'. We were also informed the beer hall was where the Nazi party held functions and decided on their policies. Another interesting place was the Cathedral 'Church of our Lady'  with its two onion shaped dome towers located near Marienplatz. In the entrance of the interior of the cathedral you come across the legendary devil's footprint in the floor of the church. Long story about this and Paul will inform you all at a later date.

Another lovely part of the city was exploring  the English Garden which is a large public park laid out like an English Garden hence its name. We discovered the surfing spots and spent awhile just watching the surfers do their thing on the wave that was created in a confined space on the water ways. Lots of cycle paths, shaded areas and of course beer gardens. One of these is right next to the Chinese Tower which has been burnt down several times but is always rebuilt to the original plans.

Just by chance we discovered the King's Square which has three temple buildings in the classic Greek style that appear to form a majestic statement to what would have been the main entrance into the city. You could almost believe that you were in Greece. Large statues adorn this area which is located off the main drag.

A day trip to Neuschwanstein Castle or the Fairy-tale Castle by train saw us climbing up to the top of the rock it is situated on. This castle was built for King Ludwig 2 who was King of Bavaria due to some unfortunate circumstances. Apparently he was rather shy, a good swimmer who met his death by drowning. Lots of rumours surrounding as to what happened on the fatal night of his death. Not long after he died the castle was opened up to the public in 1886......I guess everyone wanted to see what their taxes where paying for. Lots of swans around as this was the heraldic animal used.

It was also suggested by our tour leader that if possible a visit to a concentration camp should be one of the things to do. As I had already visited Dachau on my first visit to Germany I decided to forgo this and Paul went on the guided tour with out me. We haven't talked too much about it however the German philosophy is not to forget what happened in regards to the Nazi era. German high school students are required to visit two concentration camps as part of their education.

Munich was great fun however we needed to move on and Paris was our next destination. This was where we said our goodbyes to Tom who was off to Prague by bus.

Neuschwanstein Castle......Disney pays a royalty

for using this design.

Paul and the view

Autumn

The King and Queen

From one wall to the next.

Rothenburg ob der Tauber and a day trip to Wurzburg.

Our destination after leaving Berlin by train was to visit Julia who lives and works in Rothenburg during the week. Robert was also going to be there on the Sunday we arrived. We were looking forward to catching up again as they had both partied with us for Paul’s 60^th in Ireland. Tom was also venturing along for the ride. We had a few changes of trains at various stations, some with a 4 min connection…..this was a bit scary at first but having a 24 year old along helping to spot signs for the platforms was great. 

The walled medieval town we entered and explored was a truly amazing experience. I am not sure I would want to visit this place in peak season as it has over 2 million visitors a year. One of the first things we did was walk the city wall. It follows the course of the oldest town fortification. As you walk around the wall there are plaques acknowledging individuals and companies who have donated money to assist with the restoration of the wall.

A visit to the Medieval Crime Museum was thought provoking as it depicts a unique and detailed insight into 1000 years of legal history. There are lots of instruments that were used for torture and executions along with some very interesting masks that were worn to let people know you were being named and shamed for inappropriate actions, gossiping, rude comments or jokes.  

Some more history was uncovered at the Old Rothenburg's Craftsmen's House built at the end of the 13th Century. Apparently a hermit lived in this place for many years not needing electricity or running water. The house has its own well and due to no modern facilities being added it was preserved unaltered.

I really noticed the colour of the trees and the leaves here in Germany and the colours of autumn. Most of the shop window displays are based around this as a theme. Restaurants serve autumn foods such as pumpkin soup, local mushrooms, and lots of pork dishes. Really nice food and beer and thanks to Julia and her friend Thomas we discovered many delicious dishes.

Julia suggested we do a day trip to nearby Wurzburg . The train trip was very quick and easy and it didn't take us long to start exploring this City. During 1945 90% of this place was destroyed in about 17 minutes by fire due to it being bombed. Seeing a model of the city before and after the bombing and seeing how it has been rebuilt you realise that the history now apparent is due to the dedication of the population and the funding of the government. One of the most important palaces in Europe "Residence Palace" is in the central part of the city. This Palace has a magnificent staircase leading up to three large rooms with  brilliant vaulted ceilings painted by a Venetian artist depicting the four known continents. We Australians were not on the scene back then. Other parts of the Palace have been reconstructed to make this a wonderful place to visit. Crossing a bridge we ended up at the Fortress Marienberg for a quick tour and a visit to the museum and then back to the train.

Rothenburg was such a beautiful city, one we thoroughly enjoyed. Before leaving, Julia gave us a guided tour of Kathe Wohlfahrt an amazing Christmas shop that attracts lots of tourists. Thanks Julia, Robert and Thomas for showing us around. Next stop Munich.

An autumn view of the city

The valley below the city.

One of the gates

Tom and the nutcracker

The tourist and the Nutcracker.

The wall around the city

Wurzburg Fortress Marienberg on the hill.

Tom, Thomas, Julia and Father Christmas.

Wurzburg .. Fortress Marienberg

Berlin, Bears and Bunkers.

After such an awesome break in Mongolia staying with Rod, Aaggii and Tuggsuu our next port of call was revisiting Berlin staying longer this time. We were meeting up with Tom and both of us were looking forward to seeing him since we parted company in Ireland at the end of July. Tom was now travelling solo as Owen had headed back to Geraldton in August. Tom's hostel was very close to our hotel near Alexander Platz. It was great to see him again and to listen to his travelling tales. Beers at the bar then off for a bite to eat. Tom suggested we do a walking tour of the city with one of the tour groups.

The walking tour was very interesting and very thought provoking as I was reading Stasiland stories behind the Berlin Wall by Australian author Anna Funder who had lived and worked in Berlin. As we were walking to the meeting point of the tour we came across some activists outside the Russian Embassy protesting about Greenpeace protestors who had been detained by the Russians. Paul not missing an opportunity for a cause had a chat to them about the issues and then a photo shoot. The tour was well organised and took around 2 hours. Some of the areas we covered on our tour were Brandenburg Gate, State Opera, Bebelplatz scene of the Nazi Bookburning, Hitler's Bunker (Now a car park) Checkpoint Charlie and lots more. With lots to think about we headed straight to a bar for a beer.

The next day Paul who was hanging out for a kayak tour and a hot rod tour did both of these and I declined the invitation to join him to walk around Berlin. I headed back to some of the historic places that had been noted down from the walking tour.

PAUL'S PARAGRAPH........the kayak tour was a bit of an ezy-pezy with a young guide named Lars who was a uni student. One girl did the whole trip with her high heels on - oh well. I did a quick change and a cross town taxi trip to start my hot rod tour. I was 10 minutes late which was a bit of a worry as I was their only customer. Initially the guys were not going to do the tour but decided to go ahead with it as I was leaving Berlin the next day. The tour cost 70€ for two hours, but the first and last vehicles in each group are to be tour guide driven, so it really wasn't a cost effective exercise for the operators. None the less, the tour went ahead with me as their sole participant, and it was a real buzz hurtling around the streets of Berlin at up to 55kph in a small petrol driven hot rod. I've never seen so many pedestrians pointing, smiling and taking photos in my life - well worth the experience.

cheers

waterways

Handy little griller

Paul joining in

one of the many buildings

Symbols of Berlin

Paul climbing the wall

The centre of attention when driving on the streets.

King of the kayaks

The pubs serve no beer and a sober walk home.

After a couple of busy days out in the countryside we decided that a rest in the city was in order. We had the opportunity to visit Rod's work place in the city centre and meet some of his colleagues. They were all laughing at Rod saying how much I looked like him however I wasn't as ugly as him! They were all friendly and like Aaggi their English was amazing. After having a quick meal at a restaurant in his building we headed off to an a tribute to Pink Floyd at the Cultural Centre. This was a very professional production with 6 bands getting together to revive PF's music. The centre was jammed packed with fans and a good night of entertainment by all who attended.

Of course Saturday was reserved for the football and this was a luncheon at Bojangles pub that an Aussie guy runs. Very nice place and comfortable atmosphere with them serving the best Guinness pie on tour. After the disappointing result we moved onto a couple of other pubs and finished the night off at the Bull restaurant known for its Mongolian hot pot. This is where you select a broth and then add your ingredients to it. You have your own pot that is lit from beneath much like a fondue. You can add more broth as you go. Very nice food and really fresh ingredients. The mushrooms were amazing.

Sunday saw as at the circus and living in the city you can walk to most places. This circus was without animals and more of a cabaret style of entertainment. As it was an international circus there were various artists from Europe and America. I had to close my eyes when it came to the sword throwing as the girl dropped a couple before throwing them at the target which was her male partner. Not sure how many male partners she has had! After all of the excitement we ended up at  the Mongolian BBQ restaurant with another traditional style meal.

During the week we mainly explored the city visiting museums and a temple. The National Museum of Mongolia has some interesting exhibits on the Stone Age sites in Mongolia and an outstanding collection of costumes, hats and jewellery. Most of the costumes are set out with a male and female costume representing the Mongolian ethnic groups. There were real examples of 12th Century Mongol armour, traditional farming and domestic implements. The last display hall sets out Mongolia's recent history and the 1990 Democratic Revolution which I was not really aware of. Unfortunately for us the Museum of Natural History was closed due to it being deemed unsafe and being rebuilt, so therefore we could not witness the dinosaur skeletons that are one of the main attractions.

On the 1 October (please note the date) Paul and I decided that we would head back to one of the many Irish pubs here in UB. I said to Paul that I was going to have a Guinness with my lunch so when the waiter came over to take our order he said that he couldn't serve me a Guinness or Paul a red wine. Mmmmm this sounds strange as there was plenty of black beer flowing here on Saturday. I messaged Aaggii who apologetically informed me that on the 1st day of every month there is no selling or serving of alcohol in the city by decree of the Mayor. Can you imagine the outcry in Australia! I soon got over it and soberly walked onto the next museum.

Ready for the game.

Temples in UB

Big foot Paul

Florence and Lawrence and yaketty yak yak

Sand dunes, snow and the simple things of life.........vodka.
Paul and I once again had the opportunity of being chauffeured around the Mongolian countryside by Rod's friends Tumee and Suldee. We were picked up early Tuesday morning and headed towards Central Mongolia stopping for a camel ride before visiting the Erdene Zuu Monastery in Kharkhorin which is surrounded by a walled compound. This is Mongolia's oldest monastery and was the first Buddhist monastery in Mongolia. It had between 60 to 100 temples and also many gers inside the walls and up to 1,000 monks in residence. Unfortunately during the Communist times most of the temples, bar three were destroyed and many of the monks were killed. Our guide informed us that many of the statues were saved or stored by locals and this place remained closed until 1965.

On to the next stop which was along a road that changed many times. Smooth tarmac to completely rutted roads, via detours and tracks we were closing in our destination. As the sun went down so did the temperature and before long our first sighting of snow. Paul was very excited about this as this was his first experience with the white powder. Photo shoot stop followed by a quick nip of vodka had us warmed up and ready for the challenges along the way.

We had been booked into a small unfinished shop/lodge and by the time we got there the cook had retired for the night. Instant noodles purchased with a cup of tea and another shot of vodka had us sleeping like babies. The only thing was the toilet was downstairs and then a short trek to locate it outside. Paul did this in his shorts and Dunlop vollies! Up early with a quick snack and off to find the crater. (Horgo extinct volcano)

To get to the volcano we needed to cross an icy flowing river by way of a very rickety bridge A new bridge had been built but wasn't opened. I am not kidding when I said to Tumee...."You've got to be kidding me. We are driving over this bridge with all the uneven planks that are not joined together"? For my benefit Suldee and Paul got out of the car and straightened some of the planks then they both walked across. Knowing that Tumee swam like a rock I stayed with him in the car to drive across. The snow was absolutely beautiful and the trek to the top of the crater was memorable to say the least. After a snow picnic we headed off to the White Lake with the backdrop of the Khangai mountains to gaze upon.

Another  treat for Paul and I was to be able to visit the Tsenker Hot Springs set between pine and larch trees. It was dark by the time we arrived so we settled into our bungalow as it was too cold for the gers. Most of the resort rooms had gone to some locals who were there to attend a wolf hunt later on that night into the early morning of the next day. Paul was about to get out his placard to save the wolf however Tumee said he would get out his placard to save the sheep. A group of monks were also staying and I believe they were from Tibet however living in India.

Due to me having a few vodka injections early in the day I had a hot shower instead of sitting in the hot pool. All the guys went off to the men's pool and immersed themselves into a hot bath of 40 degrees. At the source of the water it is around 86 degrees......you can see the steam. There are pipes all over the place, which all the villagers tap into. After a goodnight sleep we left and headed back towards  UB calling into a Turkish Museum.

                                       Amazing stretch of sand dunes mixes into the landscape.

A bridge we crossed to get to the crater.

A new bridge had been built next to it but wasn't opened.

During the peak time these shelters would be selling food.

A snow picnic. Baileys, vodka.....you decide.

A short stop for a prayer.

Volcanic rocks that dot the landscape

On top of the crater.

Yaks on the move

Thermal springs.....hot pools.

Local herdsman

On the return journey to UB we stopped

at a lake.

Paul and Tumee looking for a drink

Where's the car?

Mongolian Magic and Khan you're the man.

Snow capped mountains could be seen from the plane window as we flew into Ulaanbaatar the capital of Mongolia on Monday 23 September. Rodney was there at the airport waiting for us and his two Mongolian friends Tumee and Suldee. A quick trip from the airport to Rod and Aaggii's apartment located in the middle of the city through peak hour traffic. Paul and I noticed straight away that the Mongolian drivers love using their horns. It seemed like every chance they got they were hooting it. Buses were packed with commuters, that made the London tube look very comfortable.
I have to admit that at first I was shocked to see the lack of trees especially after being in Berlin. With it being autumn here in UB the trees are losing their leaves and are a golden brown. Lots of building works of new apartment blocks around the outskirts of the city and also in the CBD as well. Paul has taken lots of photos of the buildings in various stages.

Aaggii and Rod have a large apartment on the 6th floor which is the top floor of a city apartment that does not have a lift. I am gradually getting use to this form of physical exercise. Apparently it came as a furnished unit! Aaggii told us that the owner of the apartment delivered a new fridge to them and when the four guys got it to their floor it wouldn't fit inside the door. The fridge then had to go all  the way back down the stairs again. After a wait of a few days to round up four more guys to bring it up again, this time taking the doors off the fridge and the apartment to fit it in. Paul and I have bought very little shopping so we don't have to lug it up the stairs.

Tugsuu attends a school close by and we were pleasantly surprised when we saw him after school as he has changed so much. He is taller and much thinner, keeping himself busy with judo and guitar lessons.

On the second day, Rod's friends took us on a road trip heading out of town. The first sight was the Chinggis Khaan monument. An absolutely fascinating Museum attached to the Interpretation Centre added to this unique experience. Suldee took us to his Uncle's place which was very close to the Monument for a traditional meal. This meal was 'horkhog' where the meat and vegetables along with water (Tumee did add a good quantity of tiger beer to the liquid proportions) are placed in a container and then the hot rocks are then added. The rocks were heated in the fire and are river rocks.

We were made very welcome by his Uncle and Aunt who sang songs for us. They were very surprised though with Paul's drinking habits as in Mongolia red wine is considered a woman's drink. The uncle added vodka to Paul's red wine so I guess Paul is now a he-she! After eating we continued on to a tourist camp to spend the night in a traditional ger or yurt. We were very lucky as ours had heating under the floor and a small wood fire inside. The next morning there was ice on the small pond. We travelled through the countryside, noticing yaks, sheep, many horses and lots of tourist camps. Apparently in the summer months many Mongolians visit the countryside for their holidays.

We had a fascinating visit to the Mongolian Observatory and were treated to a night of star gazing, We set our alarms for midnight so we would arrive at 12.30pm. There were 3 students who were studying astrophysics that joined us. Lucky for us the astronomer spoke English and was able to explain the constellations we were looking at. The moon was an amazing sight through the telescope.
Whilst we were sitting in the dark taking it in turns to view the various stars I noticed that Paul had his biro out and was writing some notes about what we were viewing. The next day I asked Paul for his biro so I could finish off some postcards. I didn't have the heart to tell him that his biro wasn't working. Not sure yet if he has discovered that he has no notes on the stars that we viewed.

The amazing Chenggis Khan monument 

Snow capped mountains

Prayer wheels.

What will happen if I ring the bell?

Turtle Rock

View from the temple

Me and my ger