PIZZA, PASTA & LOTS OF RED VINO

MONDAY 4 SEPTEMBER - ROMA TO SIENA

It was an early start so we could catch the 8.47am train to Siena via Chiusi. We arrived at 11.40am ready to explore the wonders of the well preserved medieval city set in the heart of Tuscany. Churches, musuems and atmosphere was plentiful. Rach and I were a little disappointed to learn that we had just missed out on the running of the horses (known as Palio) at Piazza del Campo which happens twice yearly in July and August.

Our sight seeing commenced with lunch at a lovely ristorante on the city square, Piazza del Campo. We had great views of the surrounding buildings, abundant tourists and even a busker playing jokes on passer-bys. With al dente pasta and beer in our tums it was time for exploration including the Torre del Mangia (complete with bell tower) and Palazzo Pubbilco, Duomo (most towns have these maginificent cathedrals - this one from 1200s and decorated with works by Michelangeo, Bernini and had a intricate marble floor however unfortunately the facade was covered in scaffolding), Museuo dell'Opera (complete with artistic collection), Facciatone (facade with brilliant views of the whole district), Crypt (painted walls from 1200s), Bapistery, Basilica Santa Maria Dei Servi (from 1533) and the Piazza San Fransico.




After all the walking and our first run in with a very rude Italian lady at the bus station (we decided to catch a train to Montepulciano the next day instead) we had worked up an appetite so endulged in pizza, red wine and beer once again on the Piazza del Campo.

BLUE SKIES AND ANCIENT RUINS

SUNDAY 3 SEPTEMBER - ROMA

I arrived in Roma at 7.15am and was a little weary after little sleep and the line up for passport stamps was not exactly inviting. The line extended to the back of the rather hot room and there were two officers checking EU citizens and another two checking foreigners even though there were ten times as many foreigners! There was no consideration of transferring the EU officers over when they had finished either. It was holy Sunday so I guess they were not in any rush.

I made conversation with a Brisbane couple about to embark on a Greek Island hopping cruise and was quite relieved when we all decided to find our way to the central train station on the Express airport train together. (Thanks to all you who reminded me to validate my ticket BEFORE boarding the train as this was a reoccurring issue for many unaware tourists).

It took me over four hours but I managed to get from the airport to the central station and to the hotel but not before unsuccessfully haggling with a taxi driver, finding the local bus station, working out which bus to catch, finding where to buy a bus ticket (Tabachhi/Cafe), determining which direction to catch the 360 bus (although the first attempt was unsuccessful) and finding the hotel. An experience, but learnt a lot about Italy this morning!

Luckily my hotel room at the Hotel Cilicia (recommended!) was ready at 11.30am so I showered and dozed (not simultaneously) whilst waiting for Rach who was flying in from London. I have not seen Rach for 2.5 years since she moved from Adelaide to London where she is still loving life and especially the opportunity to travel all over western and eastern Europe.

At 2pm Rach arrived and it was straight out to see the Rome sights which I had partly seen six years earlier but it rained farily consistently over the week I had spent in Italy. This time I was hoping for better weather and so far so good - blue skies and high 20 C temperatures.

The afternoon was spent wandering from sight to sight including Colosseum, Arch of Constantine, Forum, Monument to Emanuele II, Pantheon, Trevi Fountain and Spanish Steps.

NEW YORK NEW YORK

SATURDAY 2 SEPTEMBER - NEW YORK TO ROME

I awoke to more grey skys but this time it was matched with rain and my plan to discover more of the vast green areas of Central Park were dashed. I had an enjoyable breakfast at a quaint deli type cafe and then dabbled in a bit of shopping. The rain eased but I was running out of time so headed to Hudson River (just west of the hotel) and walked along the paths. I discovered three more buildings emblazened with 'Trump Place' so I could only guess it was more of Trump's Empire.

The shuttle picked me up at 12.30pm and I arrived at the airport at 1.30pm (everyone was surprised it only took an hour). This meant I had a whole 3.5 hours to kill before my flight left from JFK to Rome.

The flight was pretty lacking in entertainment which seemed a trend for AA flights but luckily was only 8 hours.

FRIDAY 1 SEPTEMBER - NEW YORK

It was also time to say goodbye to Andrea (unfortunately at 5.40am!) as she was off to Japan for a work conference. Then it was straight off to Liberty Island in hope of beating large queues for the ferry. I arrived without too much waiting (but another security check was install) and wandered around the island for most of the morning taking pics of both the statue and Manhattan.

The 93m tall and 225 ton Statue of Liberty (sculpted by Frederic-Auguste Bartholdi) was presented to the USA in 1886 as a gift from France. The green colour is a result of oxidisation of the exposed copper shell.


Then it was back to dry land and another rush of famous New York sites including Ground Zero (World Trade Centre site) which was a little eerie, Wall Street including American Stock Exchange, New York Stock Exchange, Federal Hall and Trump Towers, Pier 17 and then finally the Brooklyn Bridge which was a stunning piece of engineering.




In the evening I caught the subway to Union Square and wandered through Chinatown but all the shops were the same and I ended up back at Times Square before heading back to my hotel to pack.

THURSDAY 31 AUGUST - NEW YORK

I awoke early today as wanted to visit the Empire State Building and had heard the lines were rather long, especially later in the day. Whilst I headed through Central Park/subway to the Empire State Building, Andrea headed to Bloomingdales and Macys for some shopping as she had seen the stunning views only a few weeks earlier.

I arrived at the Empire State Building just before 9.30am and was delighted to see no line up out the front and only minimal line up inside. By 10am I was in the elevator rising to the 86th floor - in just 45 seconds. This building was built in 1929 after the stock market crash and only took 410 days to be built. It opened in 1931 and became the most exclusive business address but was so expensive to rent it remained empty for years and became known as 'Empty State Building.' The building became more famous however for the views and the public (>35 000 each day) have flocked to observe the brilliant views.

As I left the Empire State Building around 11am the line up was outside and around the corner so was happy for my early start. Then it was off to Victoria's Secret and Macys for some shopping.



Next it was onto the Rockefeller Center which was conceived by oil magnate John D Rockefeller in the 1930s and is the largest privately owned complex in the world. As we exited the building we realised the MTV Music Awards were being held tonight and then red carpet was laid out in front of the Rockefeller Center, just metres from the Radio Music Hall where the Music awards were being held. The number of police and security guards seemed a little excessive.

Other sites we visited included Chrysler Building, Grand Central Station, Australian Embassy, Madison Square Gardens, Flatiron building and for something completely different the Museum of Sex which consisted three exhibitions;
1.Peeping, Probing and Porn (Four Centuries of Sex in Japan),
2.Stags, Smokers & Blue Movies (Pornographic films prior to the 1960s)
3.Spotlight (Artifacts reflecting change in Americans attitudes).

After a hectic day it was straight back to Times Square for a NY Broadway Show 'Fame Becomes Me' a musical comedy about the life of Martin Short (starring Martin Short). I was quite excited to realise Jason Alexander (better known as 'George' from Seinfeld) was just 3 rows in front of me and he defintiely has not changed since the demise of the show.

FROM NEW YORK STATE TO NEW YORK CITY

WEDNESDAY 30 AUGUST - BUFFALO - NEW YORK

Happy Birthday to my little niece, Kialah, who turns the massive '2' today. I will see you in just 13 days :)

Well it's come to that time again - pack up and ship out. Although I have found 3-4 nights in each place is great and definitely more enjoyable then my 2000 trip which was only 1-2 nights at each place.

The morning was spent packing and relaxing in preparation for a full on 3 days in New York City. Bring it on! ;)

Arriving at the Buffalo airport we were greeted with a sign stating 'Buffalo - enjoy our hurricane free beautiful summer and fall.' I have a feeling this was making fun of poor Florida who are currently going through bad storms.

The hour flight ended up being an hour and a half due to the circling we undertook to delay our landing. The good news was we had individual TV screens and satelite TV which entertained us. I discovered four different versions of Judge Judy!

The shuttle bus ($20 each) was a better option then the taxi and dropped us at the door of our 2 star hotel via Harlem which was quite interesting.

After a quick refresher we headed out to Times Square for food (Planet Hollywood), photos and shopping. I finally purchased a new watch after mine stopped after being waterlogged two weeks earlier at Seaworld!

Times Square was a great start in NY as had a great atmosphere, plenty of people and plenty to see and do.





TUESDAY 29 AUGUST - BUFFALO

It was time to explore more of what Buffalo had to offer so I caught the subway then used my trusty feet. I visited the Buffalo Zoo which was quite good for seeing animals up close as, unfortunately for the animals, the enclosures were quite small. It was good seeing the Amercian bears....rrrrrrrraaaaaaaa and finally people recognised my Australian accent as just that and not New Zealand! YAY



I then wandered through Delaware park (a huge park with walking trails, golf course, sports facilities and the like), across the expressway, saw an imitation of Michael-Angelos 'David' and along the river past some rather interesting architecture.



I missed the Albright-Knox Art Gallery, as it is closed on Mondays and Tuesdays, so headed along Elmwood Avenue - the shopping strip.

A yummy home cooked meal completed the day.