Croatia, Dec 18 to Jan 3

We stayed in Croatia for 3 weeks. I met the whole family from my dads side and there are so many people. We stayed with dads cousin Zoran, Zorans wife Katie, their son Antonijo and Zorans mum Tonja. I really enjoyed staying with them. Every single day we where busy, its was very tiring. Everyone we saw was so nice and I will never forget anyone and the great time I had. We had big dinners and lunchs everyday. We ate a lot of meat, potato and soup but it was very nice and different.



We went to a few different towns. In Sisak we saw dads Aunty Maria and his cousins Mira and cousin Stipe. We also went to Zapresic and saw dads cousins Zvonko, Bratso and Ante. Stubica Toplica to see Teta Kaja. Samombor to see Dads cousin Zdenka. In Zagreb we saw dads aunties Mandica, Marijana, Danica and dads cousins Lidija, Renata, Diana, Sanja, Jasna, Ivan, Damir, Ljerka and Christina

While we were there Antonio had his second birthday, he is such a cute kid. Even though we couldn't speak the same language, we got along very well. Check out how similar Zoran and Antonijo look on their 2nd birthday.

It was only snowing once and that was in Brinje, we went there for 3 days to see dads uncle Stipe. I was very lucky to see snow because it started snowing the day we got there and it stopped snowing the day we left. I couldn't make a snow man because there wasn't enough snow but I had a snowball fight with dad, it was really fun but dad threw to hard. Dad hired a car so we could drive there, we had that car for 11 days.

For Christmas we went to Kutina, with Zoran to have Christmas with his wife(katies) family. We had lamb on a spit, which I've never seen before, so that was different for me. I had a really good time. Katie and her 2 sisters are 3 really cool girls.

For New Years we bought $100 worth of fireworks and yes its not illegal in Croatia.
That was a really fun night, one of the fireworks fell apart while it was exploding and nearly hit Zoran in the head, it was pretty dangerous but so absolutely funny. Everyone was running, afterwards we just laughed about it, that was probably the hardest I've laughed on this holiday.

I also really enjoyed meeting Antonija, she is the daughter of my dads cousin. I met two of her friends Tajana and Andrea. I had alot of fun with them. I think I saw them 3 or 4 times, we hung out a lot at a cafe near her house.

Hello Zoran, Katie, Anyonijo, Tonja, Antonija and everyone else, I will came to Zagreb again one day. Thank you Zoran and Katie for everthing. I really enjoyed the tiramisu pancakes and the hungarian girl cake, I'm looking forward to the recipe.
Thank you everyone for everything. I really did enjoy myself, Croatia is a great place.

Venice, Day 2

Today we looked around Venice. Most of the day we spent looking for a carnival mask for me. We finally found one. We also went on a gondola, it was a bit expensive for half an hour but it was good. Another that was expensive is the soft drinks here, they can be upto $20 for one can.

I also fed the pigeuns. It was fun but scary, they fly all over you. Venice is such a pretty place to go to!!

Venice, Day 1

Today we got into Venice, its very nice here, I love it. Our hotel is great and the people are very nice. The food is excellent here. The senery is so different I really like it. I love the masks they make here and Ive found one I really like so I think I might get it. We have been half a day and dad already got us lost, its so confusing here. Its a great place.

Italy, Day 6

Today we went back to the Trevi Fountain. Dad wanted to throw a coin in, but it was nice to see it for a second time. This time I threw 2 more in. Dad had a surprise place to take me after that, it was a shelter for stray cats. I really enjoyed it. They have about 300 cats and they let them roam free and they have a big park for the cats to hang around in. In Italy no one is allowed to harm any stray animals, so the cats and dogs can roam around without being harmed.
All the cats are cleaned and vaccinated. So your allowed to play with them and pat them. I could have stayed there all day and played, but dad thought it stank, so he wanted to get out of there. I bought my cat Tommy a little Christmas present, all the money they get goes to helping run the shelter. After that we went to St Peters church at the Vatican, that is by far the biggest and best church. Today we where lucky because we didnt have to wait long at all to get in. We went in the church first, then went to the tombs of the popes. I saw them all including Pope John Paul II. Today is our last day in Rome!! Ive had an excellent time!!

Pompeii

Im so glad we got to go to Pompeii. We where so close to not going, but we went in the end. Its so amazing how a city can still be half standing after it was covered by lava. The town was quiet big, Im guessing it could have been around 20,000 people. But no one knows for sure. It had everything a town back then could need. Houses, bakeries, surgeries, spas, amphitheatres, temple, parks, markets, holiday homes for the rich and so many other things. I liked their pedestrian crossings, they are different to todays, but not by much. Everything was ruins, but u could nearly make out what the buildings could have been. The strangest thing to see was dead bodies that have been discovered, that was very cool but strange to see. Pompeii was origanally 66 hectares, but only 45 hectares has be discovered and restored. So there is still more to be discovered. It was a fun and interesting day at Pompeii!!

The Vatican!!!

Today we went to the Vatican. It was so busy today, the busiest day in Rome. We where going to go into St Peters Basilica, but it was a 3 hour wait. We decided that was way to long to wait. We got to see the outside though. Instead we decided to go into Sistine Chapel and Vatican Museum. We waited 1 hour to get inside and the line was up to 600 metres long. Once inside it was still busy, there was people everywhere. We got to see paintings and statues by Micheangelo and Raphael. The most exciting painting to go and see was the creation of Adam. I dont think we got to see any paintings by Leonardo. We went to the room were the new popes are elected, thats were the painting of the creation of Adam is. There was quiet a lot to see. There was alot of great paintings, statues and tapestry. I didnt have a favourite because there where too many artworks!!

Italy, Day 3

Today we went to see the Ancient Roman Ruins. First we went to the Colosseum, it was big and there wasnt a lot left of it. I was so happy to go there. I have looked forword to b that the most in Rome. We also went to the old city centre, from 2000 yrs ago. It was so old, It hard to believe that people were living in Rome 2000 yrs ago. There were lots of old statues, temples and churches. A lot of it is so old theres nearly nothing left. We had sunny skies today, it was great weather, but it was very busy!!

Italy, Day 2

This morning we had beautiful weather it was very warm and sunny. But by this afternoon the clouds came in and it rained. Today we went to the Trevi Fountain, it is such a big, beautiful fountain. I definetly did not forget to make a wish, but Im not sure if I threw it over the correct shoulder. Then we went to a war memorial called tomb of the unknown soldier. The we went to the the Pantheon, it was so old, about 2030 yrs old. We went in but they were doing renovations, which was a bit of a bummer. Compared to all the other temples and churches we have seen, this one was probably the smallest. Then we went to the Spanish steps. There wasnt very many steps, I thought there would be more. It was nice to go and see though.
Italy is such an old city, quiet crowed but very pretty and very different to all the cities Ive seen so far!!!

Italy, Day 1

We arrived in Italy on Wednesday. We arrived in Milan at 7:00am. We had breakfast their but we only stayed for an hour and didnt leave leave the train station. So I never got to see Milan. We then arrived in Pisa at 12:45pm. We had 5 hours in Pisa so we looked around. We went straight to the Learning Tower. Well we nearly went straight there, dad kinda got a bit lost but we Eventually made it there. We had lunch right infront of the Learning Tower, that was nice. We left Pisa at 5:00pm and got to Rome at 8:45pm. We had a quick look around our nieghbourhood that we are staying in and had dinner. By that time it was getting late so we went back to our apartment.

Paris, Day 7

Today we went The Palace of Versailles. We were unlucky because it was shut , so we didn't get to go inside the palace. We only got to go in the gardens and to their holiday homes, which were on the palace grounds. The palace grounds are 800 hectares, but they used to be 7800 hectares. The garden was huge, there was 99 water fountains and even more ponds. In the gardens I also saw the kings holiday home. And we saw a house that was made just for Marie Antoinette in the garden. The palace was huge it was much bigger then Buckingham Palace!!!

Paris, Day 6

Today we went to The Louvre. It is such a big place, we didn't even get to see everything. I don't even think we saw half of everything. We definatly saw The Mona Lisa though, it was very busy around her. And there are no photos allowed of her. But everyone was trying to sneak them in, they all got caught. Even me!! We also saw statues of Venus De Milo, a Sphinx, Lady Liberty, Apollo, Hercules and so many more. We also saw lots of paintings and artefacts.
Dad did 2 funny things in the Louvre today. First he was taking a picture of something he wasn't supposed to, got to close and set off an alarm. But there where lots of other people doing it too. Secondly we sat down to have a rest, and dad thought it would be a good idea to learn about the paintings, so we sat down and read a paper about them. Once I had finished I looked at dad and he was sleeping. That was quiet funny.

It was very busy because it was free for today. By the afternoon we were both tired and it was just too busy so we left. We had seen enough any way. My favourite thing was Venus de Milo!!!

Paris, Day 5

Today we didn't do too much, but we did see dead people. We went to the Catacombs, there are about 6 to 7 million peoples bones stacked underground. The Catacombs go for 300 miles under Paris, but we only saw about 1 mile of it. It was very interesting how they stacked the bones so neatly and they are all there since the 1800s. After that we went to a graveyard and saw Jim Morrisons, Oscar Wilde and Edith Piafs gravestones. Today was a pretty relaxed day, we didn't do to much. We are off to The Louvre tomorrow I've been waiting to go there all week, I just hope its good.

Paris, Day 4

Today we went to the most popular place in Paris, The Eiffel Tower. We waited in line for a whole hour just to get in the Eiffel Tower. It was very high and has the best view of Paris. It was very cold and very windy at the top. It was probaby under 5°c. It took us 2 hours just to look at the Eiffel Tower, so half the day was over by the time we had finished. Then we went to The Madeleine, it was a church dedicated to St Mary Magdalen, it was a very small church, but it was pretty. Then we went to Place De La Concorde, its an area full of monuments in between the Louvre and The Champs Elysèes. So after that we walked down Champs Elysèes which is Paris' expensive street. It was a very nice looking street, all the trees where lit and The Arc de Triomphe was at the end of the street which made it look even nicer. We went to the Arc de Triomphe, but not the top. They also had a war memorial there which was nice. I also got to light a candle for someone in the The Madeleine!!!

Paris, Day 3

Today we checked out The Latin Quater its a university area. There are a lot of art galleries and expensive shops. We also went to The Panthéon, but they put a modern piece of art in there which definetly ruined the place. Otherwise The Pantheon was lovely. We went past some other churches aswel, Saint Sulpice and Saint Germain Des Prés. We also went to the Luxembourg gardens and saw the Palais du Luxembourg. The Palais du Luxembourg is a very nice palace but its not as good as The Buckingham palace.
Then we went to La Défense, its the trading and business district of Paris. We saw the Grand Arch, which is a hugh arch, its over 30 stories high. I also saw a big statue of a thumb, it was kinda weird but cool. Then we went to the La Defénce Christmas markets. I really enjoyed that market, it was big and there was lots to see. The maximum temperature today was 9.5°c and very cold. We didn't go out that night because it was too cold.