Driving from Cannes to Italy through Monaco today. We are in the process of making our way through over 150 tunnels built in the 1960's as part of the route. All along on the right is the sea and to the left is hills and clif faces with houses dotted between the vegitation.
Monaco principality is made up of two hills- Monaco and Montecarlo. Monaco is well know for Grace Kelly, the Monaco Grande Prix and tax avastion. Only 30 passports are issued each year by Prince Philip here for 1 million euros. Passport application is on invitation only. As you DON'T pay tax here- the milion eurosis a good investment. So you haven't made it in the world till you have a Monico passport. Its a few hundered dollars to purchased a parking permit to park our tour bus in Monaco for less than 2 hours. They know how to do business here.
How romantic, after Grace Kelly's death in 1982, her husband Prince Rainier, left a white rose on her tomb everyday till his own death. They are both buried in the catherdral in Monico where they were married.
Rocco, our fabulous Italian driver stopped the Tafalga bus at pol position on the Grande Prix race track, we did the count down and then with the sound of Formula one racing cars in the background we took off whizzing through the gears whilst pretending to win the Grande Prix - good fun.
Oh my goodness Italy is so very beautiful.
Making our way to Piza we passed the mountains which are mined for marble- this is where Michaelangelo bought his marble to make the sculpture of David.
The leaning Tower of Piza is 7 stories high and took 129 years to build as it was interupted twice due to two wars. The square which the bell tower is located is know as the square of mericals. In 1990 they started to address the problem of the tower leaning as it was going to fall over. It know leans 3.9 meters over it's base.
Ok, my turn for a rant.
Tuscany has been the biggest disappointment. I think of Tuscan villas, wineries you know, all that jazz. Well we at the Tuscany Inn. It's an awful motel in the middle of NO WHERE over looking the train tracks. From our room I think we close enough to throw stones at the train as they go past😤. As I write this rant, another train just went past and yes its 10pm at night and we have double glazed windows, and I can still hear the train! There is nothing! here.
So don't get me wrong, I don't mind the motel so much, its where we are that I have a problem with! I am not here to stay in 5 star hotels etc. I'm here to see Europe and staying in the back end of no where with a foggy car park and thats it, is not what I had visioned for my one night stay in Tuscanny! Ok and to top things off it's been a stressful day after Monico and Pisa when we figure the old phone I had with me which I put my Australia sim card in has walked out of the top of my back back! So we have had to (oh wait second train since writing this post) call Telstra to block the phone😝.
Ok so tomorrow can only be amazing.
Ciao bella/ ciao bello
(Ps please feel free to comment-we would love to hear from you guys).
Hugs and love.
Nicolette.
Not able to see anything in the area at all?
ReplyDeleteNope. We drove through some lovely countryside the next day on our way to Florence - that was literally it.
DeleteLooks like a warehouse... Have you checked you still possess all your organs?
ReplyDeleteWhat, no photo of you trying to push the Piza straight?
ReplyDeleteHey Katrina, we did do the corny but obligatory "holding up the Pisa" photos but they were on another camera that we're having trouble getting the photos off. Once we sort those out when we're at home I'm sure you'll get to see it :-)
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