Mysore, Sravanabelagola, Halebid, and Belur

Hi everybody,

We left Munnar for Mysore after spending three nights in Munnar. The problem was that it took twelve hours traveling to get to Mysore so we broke the trip up into two days and spent the night in between at a fancy hotel in Coimbatore. In Mysore we went to tour the Maharaja’s palace (now it’s just a museum). It was amazingly over the top and impressive. The tour we took of it was pretty interesting. At night they light up the palace and its grounds with 96,200 lightbulbs and it is amazing to see. I got sick later that day and stayed mainly in bed the rest of our time in Mysore (I still have a cough).

After Mysore we caught a cab to Hassan. On the way we stopped at a town called Sravanabelagola. It is famous for having the world’s tallest monolithic statue, a naked Jain deity named Gomateshvara. It is amazing to see but to get to it we had to climb six hundred stone steps up a hill in the midday heat with only thin socks to protect our feet from the heat. It was such a terrible hike that after about thirty steps Colin felt so bad that he couldn’t go any further so we had to take turns staying at the bottom with Colin while the others went to the top. The statue was reeeaaally big and looked sort of Buddhist.

Hassan is a little town with not much to do. We used it as a base to go see the towns of Belur and Halebid. They both are home to huge 900 year old temples. They both are covered top to bottom in amazing carvings. (They are really well preserved and the worst damage is from a Muslim raid 700 years ago.) Every carving is different and portrays gods and scenes from Hindu mythology. In the Halebid temple we saw these two HUGE statues of Nandi the bull that were nine feet tall! They were both amazing (the temples not the cows). Today we left and caught a bus to Bangalore. It broke down in the middle and the bus filled with smoke so all the passengers had to get off and wait along the road for other passing buses to Bangalore. We’ve got three days left in India and we are spending them in Bangalore.

Goodbye!

Periyar and Munnar

Hi everybody,

We left Varkala and caught a TERRIBLE, twisty, stomach churning car ride to Kumily. We got in pretty early so we went to go ride elephants. We took a half hour ride through a spice plantation. At first it was sort of scary because the elephant swayed side to side when it walked, and once I was afraid that it would walk of the path. Once we got used to it, it was a lot of fun. The elephant’s skin feels so weird. Though the ride was awesome, it was rather uncomfortable and I don’t think any of us will ever walk the same again. That night Mom and Dad left me and Colin to go get Ayurvedic massages. They smelled like oil for a week after it.

Kumily is right on the edge of the Periyar Tiger Preserve and the next day we went to go see it. Our plan was to go on a boat ride to see wildlife along the park’s rivers, and then take a three hour hike through the woods. While we were waiting to get on the boat a group of monkeys were running around the pavilion we were on. They were so cute and they were hilarious to watch. The boat ride itself wasn’t that great. It was mostly birds except for this one time when you could see a wild pig very far off. Colin and I had to get up early so we fell asleep on the boat. We were going to go on a hike next but it turned out that children eleven and under weren’t allowed. Instead we toured a spice/fruit/ medicinal plant plantation. I never knew that pineapples grew on these really weird looking bushes. We got to try these weird fruits called egg fruits and rose apples. Our last stop was a view point three thousand feet up looking over the state of Tamil Nadu. It was pretty amazing.

The next day we caught another horrible car ride to Munnar. Munnar is incredibly green compared to the rest of India because it’s covered in tea fields. While there we went to a tea museum. It was interesting and they gave us these really good tea samples that converted Colin and I to tea. We also went to Eravikulam National Park. The Indians have a very different idea of what national parks should be like. There is one big, paved, path that you can walk up for half an hour before being forced to turn around and walk back down the same path. Along the path there were a ton of wild goats that came so close you could touch them. I’m ending this post here and continuing in the next post.

Goodbye

Greetings from Varkala, India

Hi Everybody!
From Fort Cochin we took a cab to Alleppey. Alleppey is known for its canals that you can take boats onto. We took a house boat to tour the canals. The house boats are really nice. Ours had a full size bedroom, a kitchen, and an open air living\dining room with a tv. Some house boats can be giant with restaurant-sized dining rooms and five full size bedrooms! A crew of three pilot the boat and cook all your meals for you. (They taste really good.) Most people spend the night on their boat, but we just spent the day. The canals were beautiful and you could see people’s houses and how they lived. We also passed a ton of rice paddies.
We then left to Varkula (where we are now). Varkula has a beautiful beach along the Arabian Sea, but instead of having a boardwalk there is a cliff lined with shops. The water is perfect and is awesome for boogie boarding. Colin won’t eat any Indian food so we are fattening him up at a restaurant that sells reeeaaaally good milk shakes. We spend most of our time on the beach (except for Mom who hates all things beach and spends most of her time walking along the cliff or in our air-conditioned hotel room).
I will try to post soon. (I know I say that every time and never do, but I’m sure this time will be different.) Please comment, though I know some of you are having trouble doing so.
Good bye

India!

Hi everybody!
We are in India!
Our trip here was loooong. We had to catch a taxi, two trains, a shuttle, and a bus to get to the airport in New York (it took about six hours). At eleven pm we caught a thirteen hour flight to a small country called Qatar next to Saudi Arabia. (We had to fly over Iraq to get there.) We then waited for two hours at the airport before catching another flight to Cochin airport in India. The flight was about four hours and after it we had to take an hour cab ride to our hotel in Fort Cochin. It was about 28 hours of traveling but there was such a large time change that we arrived at our hotel at five am the day after we left. The jetlag is TERRIBLE.

That day we walked around Fort Cochin. We walked down by the river there and saw these Huge fishing nets that Fort Cochin is famous for. We then went and saw the church where Vasco Da Gama used to be buried until he was exhumed. Some guy said he'd give us an hour tour of Fort Cochin in a tuk-tuk (look at the picture on the bottom). So, we all piled in and took the tour. It turns out the driver gets money from shops if he gets us in their doors so instead of going to all the major sights we went to see all the major shops. We got really tired of it really fast. The tour wasn't all bad. We got to go see the places where spices are prepared, stored and sold. They smelled heavenly. I tried using a huge sieve to sort through ginger with the workers, but they stopped me when I started sneezing all over it. We also went to a dutch palace with cool wall paintings. I haven't mentioned it but it is boiling here (high nineties) so we never stay outside for that long.

The next day we went to a very old Jewish synagogue because we heard there was an awesome bird show there. It turned out that the birds were actually at a Jain temple but we stayed at the Jewish synagogue since we were already there. It was cool but pretty small so after that we went to the Jain temple. It was pretty impressive. The art was amazing and I liked the domes on the buildings. We missed the bird show. That night we went to a traditional dance show, it was amazing. The coolest part was during the martial arts section when a guy spinning swords accidently broke one and part of the sword flew away towards the edge of the stage dangerously close to the front row.

The next day we went to an Indian amusement/waterpark called VeegaLand. It was a lot like an American amusement park except for some big differences. The women just wore their normal clothes into the water and men wore shorts and t-shirts. The wave pool was divided into two sections, one for the women and children and one for the men. The men's section was like four times bigger than the women's and had bigger waves. It was still alot of fun though.

Today we did nothing but homeschooling (fun). Tommorow we leave Fort Cochin and head for Allepey. I'll try to post soon. Please comment.
Goodbye!

Back in the USA

This is my last post for our Central American trip.

We did manage to get Colin to a zip line. We even got Mom to go (she was shaking when she landed on the first platform, but got used to it). Colin said he expected it to be scarier then it was, but it was still awesome.

The next day we caught a bus to Rio Dulce. It is a beautiful river, and it is mostly settled by people from the Caribbean. Our hotel was so cool. Our room was like a gazebo on the second floor. There was a thatched roof and floor, but the walls were open. The room was in the shape of a plus sign, and each of us got an alcove with a bed, chest, a mosquito net, and a reading light. The whole hotel was on walkways over the water. On our first day I was having stomach problems so Dad and Colin kayaked to a fort which they liked while Mom and I stayed at the hotel.

The next day I was feeling better so we went to a natural hot waterfall. On the ride there we took one of the vans they use like public buses. Our van was made to hold fifteen people, but they managed to mush in 24. The water was a perfect temperature. There was a small area under a rock behind the waterfall that felt exactly like a sauna. There were also tons of fish. You could jump off huge rocks on the side into the water.

The next day we had a loooong bus ride from Rio Dulce back to Antigua. We only stayed there for the night and the next morning we caught a plane out of Guatemala City to Florida. We are now at our grandparents’ vacation cottage in Florida. We got to have orange ice cream which was really good. It is COLD here. I know it’s not nearly as bad as the rest of the US but you’re not meant to be wearing a jacket in Florida. Tomorrow we start our drive up to Philly.

As I said this is my last post for this trip. I should start posting again around March 21^st when we catch a flight to India for our next adventure.

Goodbye!

Tikal

Hi everybody!

The day after we went to the Copan Ruins we caught a seven hour van ride back to Antigua where we spent the night. The next day we caught another van to Lake Atitlan. We stayed in a town along the lake called Santa Cruz. We didn't do much there. We hiked on a path above the water to a Mayan village. All the villagers there stared at us like we were in a zoo. Dad, Colin, and I went swimming in the lake. It was cold but fun and there was a giant seaweed forest. (There weren't any fish though.)

While we were staying there we caught a van to Chichicastenango. It is a town that is normally quite unremarkable except for on market day when the whole center area is filled with stalls and TONS of people. People from all the surrounding cities and villages come to sell and buy the things they need. It was a bit overwhelming but cool. One of the other cool things about Chichicastenango is its religion. The churches mix Mayan and Christian practices. We had just gone in to explore a church when a procession of people in traditional Mayan clothes marched up the church steps. In the lead were two people. One was playing an old fashioned drum while the other was playing a wooden instrument that seemed like a cross between a recorder and an oboe. Some of the men were carrying a platform holding the statue of a Christian saint. In the back a guy was holding a small statue of a horse and dancing. The group stopped at the entrance of the church where they burned incense on a platform and then proceeded to kneel several times, each time facing a different direction. After they went into the church the dancing guy stayed. Someone handed him a wooden sphere covered with firecrackers. As he danced the firecrackers on the sphere he was holding started to explode. It was so awesome! The ceremony then ended and everybody filtered into the church.

After we had stayed near Lake Atitlan for three days we caught a van to Antigua. The next day we caught another van two hours to Guatemala City where we caught a bus to Flores. It was around ten hours in all. Flores is a little town by a lake. It's nice but the real reason we came is that it's only an hour away from Tikal. Yesterday we went to see it. Tikal was amazing. The temples were Huge. You don't realize how big they are until you climb them. Another thing you don't realize is how far apart the temples are. Between them is vast amounts of jungle. Our tour was four hours long, but we only covered the amount you would normally in a two hour tour because we spent most of it hiking through the jungle. We saw lots of wild howler monkeys, spider monkeys, and toucans. There were also giant, hairy, tarantulas (shiver).

Today we hope to let Colin finally zipline but we are not sure where we are heading next. I will try to post soon. Please comment!

Bye!

P.S. For all those people who are in the middle of that huge snowstorm, we are so jealous (except for Mom and Dad who are enjoying being cooked)

Hello from Honduras

Hi everybody!

We are now in Honduras, but first I will write about our last day in Antigua.
We had to get up at five in the morning to catch a bus to the bottom of the Pacaya Volcano. From there we took a hard one and a half hour hike to the top of the volcano(well not to the top-top but close enough). I think the only reason we made it to the top was because a couple guys on horses kept on following us asking is if we wanted a ride. They seemed to think that we couldn't make it to the top, and we wanted to prove them wrong. At the last part of the hike we were clambering over a huge area of lava rocks that made mini avalanches when you took a step. At the top we saw molten lava and you could stand less then a foot away from it if you could bear the heat. We got to roast marshmallows over the hotspots at the top. It was then another hour hike down, though it wasn't nearly as bad.

The next day we had to get up at three (after gettting up at five the day before)to catch a six hour bus to Copan (the town not the ruins)in Honduras. Two hours in we learned that Colin and I had diarrhea and it was not a fun rest of the trip. We had planned to go to the Copan ruins the next day, but while I was better by then, Colin started puking, had terrible stomach aches, and even worse diarrhea. Mom came down with it too. Dad and I left a sick Mom and Colin at the hotel and went zip-lining. I got kind of scared when we asked one of the zipline workers how high up the ziplines went and they said 3 thousand feet (I realized a few minutes later that he meant 3 hundred feet but it was scary at the time). It was sooooooooooooo cool. It felt like you were flying. You just had to try to forget how high up you were and enjoy the ride.

The next day (today) we were all feeling better, so we went to see the Copan ruins. They were pretty spectacular. We got to see the ball court, the hieroglyphic stairs, and climb to the top off the tallest pyramid. I think my favorite was the hieroglyphic stairs. There was also a pyramid where the whole front was made to look like a serpent and the stairway was its tongue.

I hope to post soon but I don't know that there will be internet at our next hostel. Please comment.
Goodbye!

Pictures!!

Follow this link for our travel pictures on Flickr - there are a couple of sets that we finally uploaded. Let us know what you think.

Pictures on Flickr

Hello from Antigua

Hi everybody! This is Madeleine. Sorry I haven't posted for so long. I will start where I left off before. Boquete was really nice. We went to a flower show and at our hotel a toucan kept on flying into the dining room. We were going to stay longer, but Dad's computer crashed. That meant we had to leave early for Alajuela (a city near San Jose in Costa Rica) so he could get it fixed. We took two bus rides to get there, ten hours in all. At the bus station, someone was selling tons of cute little chicks for 75 cents each. In Alajuela we went to a butterfly farm where they raise butterflies to sell to live butterfly exhibits all around the world. The butterfly exhibit in Philadelphia has butterflies from this place. It was interesting, but in the end they gave a long and reeeaally wierd speech about finding your inner butterfly. We also went to the top of the Poas Volcano. The crater was huge and smoking. The sulfur SMELLED when the wind blew the smoke cloud toward us. I would like to say that we had alot of traditional Costa Rican food, but we mostly ate at a Tex-Mex place. We got to fly from Costa Rica to Guatemala in first class. We got comfy seats and cushions, our own mini-TVs where we could watch free movies, and a whole meal that looked fancy and actually tasted good. We are now staying in the city of Antigua in Guatemela. In Mom's words, it is a charming colonial city with cobblestone streets and many ruined churches and monasteries. We have spent alot of our time here touring them. There was one with an underground room that had an amazing echo. We have also gone to the Antigua market. There are lots of beautiful Mayan products like huipiles, but also lots of fruit, dvd's, confetti, and underwear. We have had to be careful about what we eat and drink here because certain foods and tap water can give you diarrhea. It's kind of annoying. I hope I will be posting again soon, but I don't know if we will have WiFi in the places we are going to next.

Goodbye!

Boquete

Hi everybody!
We've just arrived in Boquete. It is a small town in the Panamanian mountains. Our last few days in Bocas del Toro were alot busier than our first. On Friday we took a trip to Red Frog Beach. Our boat ride out was awesome. We had to go through an area of water with tons of waves and the boat flew into the air when ever it hit one. Oddly, none of the adults enjoyed the ride. Red Frog Beach gets its name from the little red frogs that live there. We went searching for some, but the only ones we found were four that had been caught by local kids, and we had to pay 25 cents per person just to look at them. (When Valerie saw them she immediately said "They're cute, I want one". In the middle of our beach trip it started to rain and we all had to get under the roof off a restaurant. (It was closed because the cook was missing.) When the rain didn't show signs of stopping we decided we should go. We had to hike across the island to catch a boat in the pouring rain. We had to stop at the main island to get groceries, but by the time we got there we were all WET. We finally got our groceries and thought that we had a nice 15 minute boat ride before being warm and dry in our villa. We were soooooo wrong. Just as we got on the boat it started pouring buckets and the fog was so bad we couldn't see much out of the boat. Our boat driver got lost and for a while we weren't sure if he knew where the island was at all. We finally arrived back at the island soaked through and shivering fifty minutes after we left the main town.

The next day we spent at home, recovering from the last one. We spent most of it homeschooling. Dad, Andrea, and I went snorkeling and found hundreds of sea urchins.

On Sunday, we went on a trip to Starfish Beach. On the way we passed a group of five wild dolphins which was really cool. We also stopped by a place called Bird Island because of the many birds there. (Whoever named the island must be very creative with names). I have to say I liked it even though I don't normally like bird watching. Starfish Beach had an amazing amount of starfish (as you can guess by the name). I had no idea their could be so many types of starfish. After that we took a boat out to a spot in the water where we could snorkel off the boat. There was a beautiful reef there. It looked exactly like the ones you see in movies. I saw rainbow fish, coral of every color, and some things that I don't know what they are. After that we went to the main town to get supplies. Dad left my clothes on the boat (I was wearing my swimsuit at the time) so I had to walk through the town wrapped in the towel.

Monday, we took a tour of our island's cacao plantation. It actually was more of a forest covered with cacao trees. There were tons of wierd trees like one that had things that felt exactly like needles covoring it. The leafcutter ants were also really amazing. There were pathways that looked like the trails you take hikes on, but thinner. It turns out they were made entirely by leafcutter ants walking over that strip of ground thousands of times. We saw a hill that looked normal, but if you looked closely you could see that it was all one giant anthill. We got to try cacao beans grown there. You could taste a sort of chocolate flavor, but it didn't really taste good.

Today we got up, packed, and took a 4 hour ride in a cramped van to a city called David where we caught a cramped school bus 45 minutes to Boquete. There we caught 2 cabs to Villa Marita where we are staying. There is an amazing view and our rooms are alright.

That's all (this has been a long entry) I'll try to keep posting.
Goodbye!

Hello from Panama!

Hi everybody, this is Madeleine. Sorry it took so long to post.
Right now we are on a small island off of Panama. We are staying at Starfish Villa with my Grandma Alicia, Aunt Andrea, Cousin Valerie, and Uncle Malcolm. We spend most mornings (and some afternoons and nights) homeschooling, and spend the rest of the day relaxing. There is great weather and amazing snorkeling. (I saw a two foot long starfish, almost ran into a jellyfish, and have seen tons of other colorful fish.) I am sort of hesitant to get in because on the boat ride here we passed a lot of small buildings with pipes leading into the water that looked suspiciously like outhouses. Overall it's really nice here except for the chitras which are mosquito-like bugs that love to eat us alive.

Before this we were in Florida with my Grandpa and Grandma. We got to go to a powerplant where at least eighty wild manatees were swimming around! We also got to see this guy play an organ that not only played muic but controlled lights and other instruments around the room!

We should be staying here in Panama for the next week before leaving for Costa Rica, then to Guatemala (probably).
I will try to start posting more so keep on checking, and please comment.
Bye

Last Europe Post

Hi everybody! This is Madeleine. We are back at home now, but I will tell you about our last five days of traveling.

We took a ferry from Naxos to Athens, and the next day we went to Delphi. It was really neat to see all the ruins and where the oracle made her prophesies. Sadly, around half the site was closed because of a rock fall so we couldn't go up next to the Temple of Apollo, the theater, or the stadium. The same day we went to a small Greek mountain town. It was really strange, because it was 80 degrees in October, but alot of people ski there in the winter.

The next day we spent in Athens. First we wandered around the city and saw the Temple of Zeus (though all that was left was columns), the Roman Agora, and some Greek Orthodox churches. The afternoon we spent at the Acropolis and the new Acropolis museum. It was a long climb to the top of the Acropolis, but it was worth it. It was really wierd to see the Parthenon after seeing pictures of it for so long. We also saw the caryatids (columns shaped like women).

On our last day in Athens we saw Syntagma Square (the main government center of the city). We also saw changing of the guards in front of the parliament building. The guards have very odd costumes (with pompoms) and a strange march. Then we saw the Agora, the ancient central market/business place where all of the famous philosophers hung out. Our last stop was the National Museum of Archeology where most of the Greek artifiacts are placed. We saw a famous bronze statue of either Zeus or Poseidon (they are not sure which) that they found under the sea. We also saw Agamemnon's death mask.

Our trip home was TERRIBLE. We started at 9:30 AM Athens time and got home at 9:30 PM the next night (Athens time). That is 36 hours of traveling. We had to catch a flight from Athens to London, London to Shannon (where we spent the night on freezing metal chairs in the airport), Shannon to Dublin, and finally Dublin to Philly.

Our next big trip should start in the middle of January, and I will start posting again then. I might post about some of our shorter trips around the US before then. Until then, bye.

Greetings from the Greek Isles

Colin's Blog Entry

Howdy Folks!

This is Colin.

I'd like to tell you about what we did

Day 1: We went to our hotel, it had a restaurant and a swimming pool. It was cool. One of the restaurant workers's son Dimitiris, a common name in Greece, grabbed toy trucks and threw them in to the swimming pool. We met a kid from Canada. His name was Peter.

Day 2: We went into town called Fira we saw small cable cars and people on donkeys. We also went swimming at the Black Sand Beach. Peter showed us fish.

Day 3: We went to the Red Sand Beach. I ran ahead onto the beach before anyone else got their except for Madeleine who was chasing after me. We met Peter and went out looking for fish.

Day 4: We went to a boring museum then we took the ferry boat to Naxos. In the ferry line Dad met someone he knew.

Day 5: We drove up the hills of Naxos . I led Madeleine down these stairs in the mountains. On the way up I was out of breath. Then we went to the beach. Dad thought we didn't need snorkels because we had goggles. I got out really early because there were no fish or waves and it was boring.

Day 6: In the middle of the night I woke up from my horrible nightmare and it was 5 am in the night. We went back into Naxos town and walked around and had lunch, of course, I had my pizza Margherita. Then we went to a new beach and saw lots of huge fish. One was as big as my whole hand! On our way back we got Magnums - ice cream cones with vanilla ice cream and chocolate syrup. When we got back to our hotel we ran into two cats. At night while we were writing in our journals we spotted a cat outside. We went out and petted it and fed it tuna - then the other cat came along and we did the same. Then, while we were inside, a new cat came along but we stayed inside and they stayed on our porch.

Greetings from Colin. I hope you have enjoyed my blog and tomorrow we will be in Athens.

Madeleine's comments.

Santorini:

The first thing I would like to make clear is that the whole island of Santorini is an active volcano and that we rode a boat into its crater. From Fira we got some amazing views of Santorini ( and some donkeys).The buildings in Greece are really all white. The museum was not boring - it was filled with artifacts from the last time Santorini erupted when the Minoans were still powerful. The beaches were actually black and red with fish swimming in the water which was pretty amazing. We have been trying Greek cuisine especially Spanakopita.

Naxos:

Our first day here we drove to a cute little mountain town called Apernathos. All the streets and sidewalks were made of marble. Those "steps" that Colin and I went down were actually a long trail on which Colin made us go way farther than we should have. We spent the rest of the day on the beach. At first we did think that the beach was boring, but today we found a spot filled with fish. We also explored Naxos town and got to look at an old Venetian castle. We got to see this giant arch to an ancient Greek temple (only the arch and floor are left), and the remains of a temple to Dionysus.

That's all for now.

Hello from Santorini

Hi everybody! I'm going to tell you about the past week (and a bit).

Day One: Today we went to Siena. It's really neat because there are many neighborhoods which each have their own flag, symbol, church, and fountain. They all compete against each other in the Pallio on the Campo (a big center square). We got to walk around the Campo and spent a long time at a fountain there. The fountain had wolves with water spurting from their mouths. Pigeons like to sit on the wolves' snouts and stick their heads in the wolves mouths to drink.

Day Two: Today we drove to Massa Lubrense (a small town near Sorrento). We stopped at a small hill town called Orvieto. It was cute and had a view but not much else. Apparently, Massa Lubrense is home to the Sirens who lured Ulysses.

Day Three: Today was Colin's birthday. To celebrate, we went to Pompeii. It was really neat, because it was really well preserved. You could walk into the houses and still see frescoes and mosaics. We then went to Naples (the home of pizza) for Colin's birthday pizza. You could watch them make it, and it was really good. We then got him a giant gelato before heading home for presents.

Day Four: Today we drove the Amalfi Coast. We got a breathtaking view of the Mediterranean and the coast. It was also kind of scary because you are driving along a winding road on the side of a cliff. We stopped to go to the beach at a town called Positano. The water was incredibly clear and there were fish swimming around you.

Day Five: Today we drove from Massa Lubrense to Rome. We tried to get up to the top of Mt. Vesuvius but found it virtually impossible.

Day Six: We started off the day at the Colosseum. Only the skeleton of the building is left (the seats, marble, steps, and iron bars were all taken away), but it was still amazing. We saw the Roman forum. It was covered with the ruins of temples and government buildings. We got to see the place where Julius Caesar was cremated. We walked to Trevi Fountain which is a GIGANTIC fountain with a statue of the water god. We climbed the Spanish Steps before heading back to our apartment.

Day Seven: Today we went to Vatican City. We walked to the Vatican Museum and got to see the Sistine Chapel. Next we went to St. Peter's Cathedral. It really is huge. We saw one of the Cardinals doing some kind of ceremony in there, and he was surrounded by the Swiss Guards. We went up to the top of the dome where you could see Rome stretching out below you. It was 1,100 steps in all. Then we wandered around Rome for a few hours. It was our last day in Italy.

Day Eight: Today we flew to Santorini. We spent most of the day flying. There is a black sand beach a few minutes from our hotel, the first I've seen.

More later...

Switzerland and Italy

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Howdy Folks this is Colin! We've been in Switzerland and Italy

Day 0

We went on a planet hike in Zurich but we skipped Pluto and then took a cable car back down to where we started.

Day 1

We took a mini-train up a mountain called Mt Pilatus in Lucerne. Madeleine was a coward, she was afraid we would crash. We had good viewpoints of other hills from the top of the mountain.

Day 2

We drove from Zurich to Venice and on our way we saw the Alps. They are a group of mountains that are bigger than the Rockies.

Day 3

We went to Venice and saw lots of gondolas but we couldn't take them because they were too expensive. Instead we took a water bus and a short gondola ride across the canal.

Day 4.

We drove to the Eurocamp, it's a campsite in the countryside of Italy near Florence, and went to the pool. The pools were awesome and had a lot of stuff - it was cool.

Day 5.

We went to Florence that's the town, where Leonardo da Vinci lived. We went up in Il Duomo, a big church with a domed roof. On the way up to the top Madeleine counted a hundred more steps by accident - there should have been 358.

Day 6.

We went to Pisa and saw the Leaning Tower of Pisa. Pigeons fought over our dropped Cheetos. Next we went to Lucca where we went on a bike ride around the top of a wall around the city.

Day 7.

We decided on going to Siena but instead we explored the Eurocamp and decided to go to Siena tomorrow.

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Hi Everybody this is Madeleine commenting on Colin's post.

Day 0.

The planet hike is where you hike the distance of the solar system shrunken down (the relative distances are preserved). We got to go up to a viewpoint around the middle of the hike and could see all of Zurich and the surrounding area.

Day 1

I admit I was scared on the train ride up Mt. Pilatus but you would have been too if you were riding on a 48 degree angle with a 6000 foot drop onto pointy rocks a few inches from you. On top of Pilatus you are supposed to have a great view of Switzerland but the day we came it was so foggy that you had trouble seeing people across the viewing platform. We walked around Lucerne for a while but Mom did her ankle in which limited the distances we went.

Day 2

Colin Dad and I climbed one of the foothills of the Alps. You think you have climbed really high until you look around and see the rest of the mountains towering around you.

Day 3

Venice was amazing. We got to see St. Mark's square and cathedral. The floors of the cathedral were covered with really cool mosaics and patterns. We had time scheduled where we walked down random streets to see what Venice was like. It was nice to see what an ordinary neighborhood in Venice was like but it was kind of sad because parts looked like they were falling down and empty. We got to see Marco Polo's house but it is now a seafood restaurant and it is less cool now that there are eels swimming around in his windows. We got gelatos and looked at a mask shop (Venice is famous for its festival in which people parade around in masks).

Day 4

We're staying in a trailer in the Eurocamp (somewhere in Tuscany). It's got four pools, a restaurant, a gelateria, tennis courts, soccer fields, bocce ball areas, a bazaar, a market, a playground and tons of other stuff.

Day 5.

Today we went to Florence.

We had an early start and went to the Uffizi (it's an art museum with lots of famous paintings). We saw the birth of Venus, Lacoon (a famous Greek statue that inspired both Leonardo da Vinci and Michaelangelo to reach new heights.), the really famous painting of Medusa by Carvaggio, and another painting in which Leonardo da Vinci painted an angel. Next we got to see the Duomo. It's huge and the inside of the dome is covered with paintings. Dad Colin and I did climb the stairs up to the top. But it was Colin who miscounted the stairs. We were both counting up into the 300s when Colin loudly stated that he lost track and then started counting from 240. We then left and went to the Accademia (another art museum with lots of sculptures). We got to see Michaelangelo's David. He was amazingly realistic though his hands were a bit big, and Mom found him "aesthetically pleasing".

Day 6

The Leaning Tower really does have a serious lean. Next to it there are two other leaning buildings; a cathedral and a baptistry. The baptistry amplifies your voice and makes it echo for ten seconds, so every half hour the security guard sings and harmonizes with her echoes. It's incredible to hear. Lucca is this incredibly cute and untouristy city (compared to Florence). The walls of the city are from medieval times and are easily as thick as an average road.

Day 7.

Today was our day of rest. We washed clothes (finally) got groceries and went to the pool. We also got the WiFi to work after a long time without. Tomorrow we go to Siena. Bye.

==============================================================

P.S. It's me Colin. When Madeleine said that I lost track I re-remembered. It actually was Madeleine who miscounted the steps on Il Duomo not me.

Hello From Paris

Hi Everybody,

We have now been in Paris for 3 days. We got here on Sunday afternoon and went to see Sacre Couer. It's this giant church on a hill but the main thing people come to see is the view. You can see about all of Paris from there. We all loved the street performers, especially this guy who did tricks with a soccer ball. He managed to climb up a lamppost with the ball spinning on his nose, and then at the top juggled the ball with his feet while hanging on the pole with only one hand.

After Sacre Couer we walked to an area in Paris called Madeleine Place. There is a Madeleine church, a Madeleine Blvd, a Madeleine subway station and at least 5 stores named after me.

The next day we started at the Louvre. We got to see the Mona Lisa along with the Winged Victory and the Venus de Milo. They were all amazing and surrounded by HUGE crowds. We walked through the Tuilleries which were beautiful before eating a healthy Parisian lunch of baguettes and Nutella (chocolate spread) along the Seine.

On Tuesday we started at Notre Dame. The front was covered top to bottom in amazing statues, and the huge circular stained glass window was awesome. We got to climb up 378 steps to the bell tower where we could see the bell, but sadly we could not ring it. We also got to see the gargoyles up close and look out on the city.

We went to see the Shakespeare and Co bookstore which apparently a lot of famous writers wrote their stories at. I think that the coolest thing we did that day though was go up in the Eiffel tower. Colin, Dad and I went up to the second level where you could see all of Paris. We walked around the outside of the second level a couple of times before starting to freeze (it was really cold) and going back into the inner part of the second level. There we got our first French french fries and waited for the sun to set. Once it was dark out the whole city lit up. It looked like someone had spread Christmas lights over the city. We looked around a bit more before going down. We arrived just in time to see the Eiffel towers lights flashing. Once an hour for around five minutes they blink the mini lights on the Eiffel tower at rapid speeds. It was really cool to watch.

Today was our last full day in Paris. We got to go and see Versailles which is a GIANT French palace built over 200 years ago. We first walked through the gardens. There were fountains, orange trees, flowers, statues, a canal meant to copy the ones in Venice, and the fake ruins of a Greek temple. It was incredibly beautiful and unimaginably large.

We then went into the palace itself. There was no space on the walls of the palace that was not decorated. After the palace we went back to the neighborhood our hotel is in. Colin and I tried our first ever crepes and had them for both dinner and desert.

Overall I really liked Paris, but there is one thing I would change. Apparently there are no rules here about cleaning up after your dog, so even when you are just walking down the street you have to be reeeeally careful where you step. Tomorrow we leave for Switzerland.

Check the following link for more photos:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/42179806@N08

Goodbye.

London and Stonehenge

Hi Everybody,


This post will cover two days. On the first day Suzanne came down from Scotland to see us.We all started off at the Imperial War Museum ( Except for dad who was away visiting Oxford). We went to an exhibit on World War I and walked through a submarine. They were both pretty cool. We then went to the London Eye, it's this gigantic Ferris Wheel in London that takes half an hour to go around. You could see almost everything in London. The best view is of Big Ben and the Parliament buildings. We had to get on and off of the Eye while it was moving which was kind of freaky.


We then walked down the path by the Eye and watched street performers. We saw a balancing act and tons of dancing. When one guy was break dancing he asked Colin to come and do some of the dance moves he told him to do. When he asked for another volunteer Colin "suggested" me. So I had to go and dance in front of everybody. It was incredibly embarrassing. We then rode a double decker bus to our fine English dinner - a pizza restaurant.


Day 2:


Today we went to see Stonehenge on our English countryside tour guided by Suzanne. It was amazing, the stones were way bigger than they looked in the pictures and came from 240 miles away. We got audio tours and got to walk around it but you couldn't go too close. It may not seem advanced but they used lots of techniques that are what keep it standing today. We then left and because we were starving stopped in a small town for lunch. We then went to Avesbury to look at this giant circle of stones put down VERY long ago. The site was on top of a huge deposit of chalk that you could cut out of the ground and use. There were sheep roaming freely among the stones so the ground was covered with sheep dung. There was a huge ditch that had been dug around the site that Colin and I loved to run around in. By the time we got back to London it was 8PM so we are now about to go to sleep.


P.S. Check out some new photos on our Flickr site:


http://www.flickr.com/photos/42179806@N08/sets/72157622225270595/

Update from London

Hi everybody,
Thanks for all the comments! We have been in London for three days now, but first I should talk about our last day in Ireland. We went to a well-preserved Norman castle called Trim Castle. We also went to Newgrange, a gigantic neolithic grave mound that is about 5,000 years old. On the winter solstice, the sun shines through a special hole above the door, lighting up the chamber. There was over 300-year-old graffiti. You think it's cool until you realize it's written on over 5000-year-old walls.

The next day we spent flying, but Tuesday we spent sight-seeing. We saw Big Ben and the parliament buildings. We then saw the Changing of the Guard at Buckingham Palace. The bands played "Money Can't Buy Me Love," which Colin thought was inappropriate. We also went to a ginormous toy store and wandered around London.

The next day we went to the Tower of London. We had an awesome tour guide, or yeoman warder (also called "beefeaters"). We learned that Humpty Dumpty is actually Richard the Third. After that we went to the British Museum, which was amazing. We saw the Elgin Marbles, Egyptian Mummies, and the Rosetta Stone. We went to the British Library where we saw songs handwritten by the Beatles, along with Leonardo da Vinci's notebooks, Shakespeare's Folio, and the Magna Carta. We then went and visited with Dad's cousin and his family.

Today we went to the Tate Modern art museum and went to Shakespeare's Globe. We saw "As You Like It." We were groundlings which meant we had to stand, leaning on the stage, through the whole performance.

We then went and had dinner with my great-aunt Mary and explored a new neighborhood.

I would also like to add that we saw London Bridge, but it wasn't falling down.

Update from Dublin

Hello Everybody,

This is Madeleine. Today we explored Dublin. First we walked down Grafton Street and saw this amazing puppeteer who made his puppet dance (and kick people) very realistically. After that we walked through Trinity College. It was founded by Queen Elizabeth I. We went to Dublinia which is this awesome museum that covers the history of Dublin. They let you play medieval games and wear viking helmets. After Dublinia we went to the National Museum of Ireland. They had a lot of amazing artifacts, but I have to admit that I liked Dublinia better. We rode a double decker bus back to the fancy hotel we are staying in. That's all for now.

P.S. For those who asked questions, here are some answers. Famine cottages are houses that people lived in during the famine. The one we went to was converted into a small famine museum. Alpen cereal is oats with nuts and raisins (a lot better than it sounds). Yes there is pizza in Ireland and lots of it. The food in Ireland is about the same as America's. We did have scones and Irish potatoes which were both delicious.

Here is a link to our Flickr page where we will be posting some of our photos.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/42179806@N08/

A Report from Colin in Dublin

Hello Everybody,

This is Colin. We wanted to tell you about days 4 and 5.

Day 4

Yesterday we went around and saw the Ring of Dingle. We saw a broken castle and a ruined church made out of rock. It was very awesome. We went to two beaches. One had streams that we had to jump across, and it was pretty cool. We went to some famine cottages with a beehive hut in back like the kind that monks lived in. We slept in our hostel, and we got a cereal called Alpen so that we didn't have to eat the disgusting Fruit and Fibre cereal this morning.


Day 5

Today we drove from Dingle to Dublin, and we got a fancy hotel with a nice flatscreen tv. We drove to dinner at this place called "Bits and Pizza." They had delicious cheese pizza and for appetizers we had garlic bread.

Goodnight everybody and see you tomorrow with our big report on Dublin.