Good morning Paris! We took a morning walk to find some baked goods for the excursion later. At 9am on a Saturday, the streets were pretty quiet, even at the famous Moulin Rouge. Moulin is French for mill, by the way, eg red (wind) mill. It was our last full day in Paris, but we’d ... [More]
More sights in Paris
Another fine Paris morning. We hopped on the Metro… I was beginning to think everything in Paris is about 30 minutes away: a 10 minute walk to the Metro, a 10 minute Metro ride, and a 10 minute walk at the other end… but of course it was a product of where we were staying ... [More]
We’d been warned about scams and pickpockets in Paris. This seems to be backed up by any number of online videos showing examples of the problems. Apparently it’s phones rather than wallets that are the most commonly stolen items. Phone theft is also a problem in London. Seems like the thieves have worked out that ... [More]
(Backdated post. I’m falling a bit behind on these, but expect more soon) Time to change countries! We packed up our luggage and walked to Edgware Road tube, which we caught to St Pancras. (Looking at this picture, I just realised I’ve misspelt Edgware in an earlier post. It only has two Es. Now fixed.) ... [More]
One last full day in London before we headed elsewhere. After breakfast we hopped on the Circle Line and headed to Blackfriars -the train was packed, and it’s an indirect route but potentially the fastest by avoiding changes. From there we walked along the river to the Tate Modern. It’s in an old power station ... [More]
Sunday! After breakfast in the hotel, we had a morning walk around the neighbourhood, ending up back at Hyde Park. The Royal Parks Half Marathon was underway, with organisers cordoning off paths, getting ready for the energetic people to come through. Though busy, the park was still enjoyable, and while overcast, it was looking like ... [More]
Surviving jet-lag
(backdated post) Friday morning: time to head for Europe! Thankfully not an early morning flight – they are not my favourite. I finished packing then caught a train to Footscray to collect my travelling companion, then (for reasons of speed and convenience) we caught an Uber to the airport. They recommend arriving 2-3 hours early ... [More]
(backdated post) How fast can you get a passport renewal? Pretty fast if you’re prepared to pay. With about a week until the holiday, the travel agent pointed out that I had just five months left on my passport. I was already aware of this. I’d checked, and five was enough for the countries we’d ... [More]
Can we see the effects of the fare cut yet?
Some thoughts on Australia’s biggest Bus Rapid Transit deployment
Monday morning, and sadly time to head home from Brisbane. At home in Victoria it was Kings Birthday (still doesn’t sound quite right), but in Queensland they have that later in the year, so it was a standard weekday. I walked with my sister back to the Cultural Centre bus station again – she was ... [More]
(As usual with my travelogues, this is backdated to the day.) Sunday morning in Brisbane. More perfect weather! We planned a visit to University of Queensland. By the lake is a bench in memory of my dad, so it’s a must for our family holidays. Last time I was there, the bench was looking a ... [More]
Saturday morning in Brisbane, fine weather, low 20s again. I could scarcely believe it was winter. We headed out to explore South Bank and the Cultural Centre. The Cultural Centre does what it says on the tin – it’s got the State Library, Art Gallery, Gallery of Modern Art, Museum, Performing Arts Centre… and an ... [More]
For those of you who follow my blog for the public transport content, the next few posts will be one of my travelogues… but of course you will also find some PT observations in here. I quite like a winter warmer getaway, and this year an option presented itself: Brisbane for my aunt’s 80th birthday ... [More]