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Created by GreggW
Gregg and Lindsay's Europe Trip '09
This has been a long time in the making, and there' … More
This has been a long time in the making, and there's still a long ways to go, but man are we excited. For a period of almost four weeks, my wife and I will be touring France and Italy and all that they have to showcase. We'll be spending almost two weeks in France and over a week in Italy, which is sad to say that it won't even come close to being enough time, mais c'est la vie. We'll be moving at a relatively break-neck speed to see as much as we possibly can. Some area's will feature extended stays, giving us a little break to fully soak everything in, but then it's back in high gear for an experience we can't wait to be a part of!
Mon 03/02/09 (day 1)
Ten More Months...
I wanted to start blogging about the trip, but didn't want to create a whole separate blog page to do so. The following posts will all have the Day one tag on them until we actually go next March. For now I just wanted to be able to share our excitement for our big trip. I'll probably post once a month until closer to leaving. Man, we're so excited!
We planned so much of the trip so early, because it was just so exciting to think about, and now it's kind of dull waiting around, lol. There are things that we can start doing to prep for the trip in another six months, but until then we're just trying to keep the wait from driving us nuts.
Planning the intinerary for the trip was really quite hard. We want to see SO MUCH of both France and Italy apart from their capitol cities, but you can only cram so much into three weeks. If you think that this current itinerary is ambitious, you should have seen the original one, lol! Our whole idea behind this trip is to honestly see and experience as much as we can. Once accomplishing the 'Grand Tour', it will leave options open in the future for places we want to revisit for more intimate stays.
Our choice to go in March of 2009 was fairly simple. I know most people prefer to go when the weather is warmer, but we simply had to stretch our money out as far as possible and choose an off season month. We initially were considering October of 2008, but our work schedules just wouldn't allow three weeks at that time of the year. That left March as the only other off season month that was worth considering. It'll be a little chilly I'm sure, which will leave a small regret in the nostalgic sense of sitting outside on a warm evening sipping on a glass of cognac, but there are many benefits that will erase much of that as well. So March it is! Ten more months!
We planned so much of the trip so early, because it was just so exciting to think about, and now it's kind of dull waiting around, lol. There are things that we can start doing to prep for the trip in another six months, but until then we're just trying to keep the wait from driving us nuts.
Planning the intinerary for the trip was really quite hard. We want to see SO MUCH of both France and Italy apart from their capitol cities, but you can only cram so much into three weeks. If you think that this current itinerary is ambitious, you should have seen the original one, lol! Our whole idea behind this trip is to honestly see and experience as much as we can. Once accomplishing the 'Grand Tour', it will leave options open in the future for places we want to revisit for more intimate stays.
Our choice to go in March of 2009 was fairly simple. I know most people prefer to go when the weather is warmer, but we simply had to stretch our money out as far as possible and choose an off season month. We initially were considering October of 2008, but our work schedules just wouldn't allow three weeks at that time of the year. That left March as the only other off season month that was worth considering. It'll be a little chilly I'm sure, which will leave a small regret in the nostalgic sense of sitting outside on a warm evening sipping on a glass of cognac, but there are many benefits that will erase much of that as well. So March it is! Ten more months!
Planned Activities
Mon 03/02/09 (day 1)
Tue 03/03/09 (day 2) - Paris
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Thu 03/05/09 (day 4) - Paris
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Fri 03/06/09 (day 5) - Paris
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Sat 03/07/09 (day 6) - Bayeux
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Thing to Do
Sun 03/08/09 (day 7) - Le Mont-St.-Michel, Pontorson
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Mon 03/09/09 (day 8) - Cognac
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Tue 03/10/09 (day 9)
Thing to Do
Wed 03/11/09 (day 10) - Les Eyzies-de-Tayac-Sireuil, Rocamadour
Thing to Do
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My mom and I are taking tour in November and I agree it is pretty dull waiting around for fall to get here!! It will be hard to strech money with the dollar not doing so well, but I think with just being in Europe I don't care if we don't do anything! It sounds like you will have a blast!
I'm not sure the Pisa-Rome connection will be an easy one without a car. I'd be more tempted to link Pisa and Lucca which are easily accessible by frequent trains. A day in Rome would be a real pity. I love Lucca and Pisa is a nice town but Rome, Florence and Venice are the don't miss sites of Italy.
As for France, unless you're a big casino fan I would personally skip monte carlo. Most of that coast is totally over developed. Eze is beautiful and Antibes is another highlight. Nice could be worth a visit (I would rate it much higher than Monte Carlo from having lived in Cannes for one year.
Carcassonne is a nice town and going in March it may retain more of an authentic feel but it felt a bit like disney land when I visited. I really like Toulouse--a beautiful town with a really vibrant city life. Nimes and Arles (van Gogh and Gauguin were here for at least a couple years) are two other highlights near Avignon.
I'm sure you'll have a fun if a bit exhausting trip!