Stuart and Shelley’s Travels

For out last day in Provence, we drove back to the village of Saint-Remy-de-Provence. This place inspired Vincent van Gogh…

Yesterday we visited the weekly market in Vaison-la-Romaine, one of the biggest in the area. The streets were packed with…

Today we visited Villeneuve-les-Avignon, a village on the western side of the Rhone river, opposite Avignon.  There’s a Saturday Brocante…

The lovely cottage that is our home in Provence (on the right in the picture) is part of a little…

Every year in Provence, more than 70,000 acres of lavender are cultivated, transforming the countryside into a sea of fragrant…

The city of Nimes, very close to where we are staying in Noves, is famous for bull fights (only one…

After a complicated day of travel yesterday from Heraklion to Provence (taxi, plane, bus, train, hire car), leaving at 7:30,…

Saganaki is a dish where shrimp are cooked in a rich and spicy tomato sauce with ouzo and feta that…

Today we drove from Chora Sfakion on the southern side of Crete to the tiny village of Nomikiana.  Set on…

We have been reliably informed (although I have not fact checked this) that the airport at Heraklion is consistently rated…

This looks like a fairly boring picture, but it is the actual site of the battle of Waterloo, where the…

This may be a slightly longer entry than usual.  We have spent a very solemn and reflective few days in…

Our short stay in Amsterdam was all about museums – Ann Frank’s House on Thursday and then on Friday the…

This little place is just around the corner from out hotel. In 2018, it was awarded the trophy for the…

You have to be up early to get a picture of the Notre Dame with no crowd in the foreground,…

It’s hard to believe that a year has gone by – what a year. It’s Monday morning and we are…

Somehow it wouldn’t seem right to end our adventure without a final homage to the food of France. Last night,…

We arrived in Strasbourg yesterday afternoon and headed straight out to explore. This city is absolutely charming – distinctly Germanic…

We came to Beaune in 2023, and we had such a good time that we decided to stop here again…

It’s definitely not Bondi. To start with, there are no waves, and the water temperature is a brisk 18 degrees.…

When the plat du jour (the dish of the day) is sole meuniere, there is no discussion. A very simple…

One of the first things that strikes you about the Mediterranean is the colour of the water – an almost…

I’m afraid the next few posts will be rather boring – we are happily settled on the Mediterranean coast and…

It is now Friday evening, and we have arrived in the Occitane region on the Mediterranean coast. Our last day…

After a quiet weekend wandering around local markets, Monday was a step up in pace. In the morning, we drove…

Today we decided to drive to the seaside town of Cassis, just south of Marseille, and have lunch at a…

I’m not a great fan of deserts; however, cherry clafoutis is an exception. We look forward to buying fresh cherries…

It hasn’t taken us long to settle into the relaxed pace of Provence. An early start in the morning to…

We spent our last evening in Paris just wandering and ended up at a restaurant we had been to once…

It’s Friday, and our last day in Paris. Yesterday we walked through the very classy Montparnasse district and found a…

After the devastating fire in 2019, the restoration of the magnificent Notre Dame Cathedral is now nearly complete. Walking inside…

Leonardo da Vinci’s Last Supper is remarkable not only for its artistry but for its survival against all odds. Painted…

The train from Rome to Milan was fantastic. It’s still very hot, but that didn’t deter us from visiting the…

Bill Bryson’s quote about parking in Italy, which appears in his book Neither Here Nor There, humorously describes the chaotic…

Our first day in Rome was somewhat complicated by the fact that our luggage decided it would like to go…

We have had a wonderful time on Crete. The photograph is of the Venetian fortress of Heraklion, situated at the…

We did go back for another helping of the saganaki prawns – too good to miss.

Sorry, couldn’t resist a dreadful pun. On the island of Crete, wild thyme seems to grow in profusion on the…

We arrived in Crete very late and very weary on Friday night. Had a few delays, but nothing that really…

Our flight to Zurich leaves Sydney at 9:15pm on Thursday, and it’s Shelley’s Birthday on Friday (we celebrated earlier this…

Only 10 days until we leave on our holiday. This time, we are planning to do the unthinkable – disconnect…