Hunting Grounds of the Kings AND a Cathedral fit for the Kings

Just in case you were wondering what we'd spent all our pounds on... here' s our little gem of a car. Still wouthout a name I may add. Perhaps we'll call it 'The Pounds'.

This fireplace is in the middle the New Forest. It is a memorial to the Portuguese Army battalion based here during the first World War. They were based in the forest to produce timber for the war effort.
The New Forest has 3000 wild ponies which are cared for by the verderers (commoners) who also live in the forest. Every year in April they are rounded up and branded according to who cares for which ponies and the "surplus ponies" are counted (Greg thought the lonely planet's wording was halarious) .

This was me trying to camouflage and get close to the deer which you can't see in the distance. It would have worked if Bec and Rob hadn't got there first.

We saw albino deer!! There are 5 breeds in the forest. These ones are fallow deer. The bigger the antlers are, the older the buck.



After lunch in a lovely old pub and some beer (it was St Patrick's day) in Beaulieu (pronounced Bewley) we walked along the river 2 miles to Buckler's Hard. Below is a picture showing the only houses. Admiral Nelson's ships were built here before the Battle of Trafalgar.


On Sunday we drove to Andover to the Hampshire market where Rob bought us lovely blueberry pies and then drove on to Salisbury. Salisbury cathedral has the highest spire in all of Europe's cathedrals. it was built between 1220 and 1258. Its very impressive both inside and out.

The cathedral also contains one of 4 remaining copies of the Magna Carter. This document was written in 1215 and is the basis for many countries civil rights. Find out more about it at http://www.bl.uk/onlinegallery/themes/histtexts/magnacarta.html

Perhaps only the Mitchells will understand the following photo but I wanted to try and get a photo on a stile. I think I need my little bro Jono to complete the picture? Greg had no idea what a style was before coming across this.

ON THE MOVE AGAIN

Well actually we've only moved a few miles towards the hospital but we've up-graded (and down-sized) from the last place. So here is a virtual tour of our new abode. It's a flat on the first floor of a 2 storey, large, brick house.
Front door is on the far right. Our miniscule kitchen on the left. We've still managed to cook a roast chicken and a fresh fish from the market although we've only been here 3 nights. Thought we deserved some nice market produce. We're thoroughly sick of the lack of choice in English supermarkets.
Our lounge room. The sofa couch is being delivered next Tuesday so we can have people to stay(...hint hint to any friends or family travelling out there).
No licence for the TV yet so its forbidden for a while. We're getting into reading more.
Our cheery bedspread! And luxury of all luxuries...a built-in-robe.
A different angle to the lounge room and kitchen. The windows have a great view over the street during the day. Good for people watching at breakfast time.
"How do we deal with this fish?" Wish you'd taught us how to gut it Dad. Below is where all the gourmet miracles happen.
Yep Greg is really fishing for some more company here in the UK.

PARIS - The city of LOVE

So after a year of talking about going to Paris for our first wedding anniversary we finally did it!!
We organised a day off from work of Friday and flew out of Southampton Airport to Charles De Gaulle in Paris!!
On our first train ride in the city of love we were serenaded by an accordian player!! FANTASTIC!! Our hotel was in central Paris near the church of Madeleine and the Opera House. We walked all around the Left bank on day one and took a cruise on the Seine River. The guide spoke 6 different languages. For dinner we visited the Saint-Germaine area and Greg ate snails for the first time. So MUCH garlic!!


On day two we ate breakfast at Cafe madeleine. Coffee and croissants. We did make the mistake of thinking the price on the menu included the whole basket of croissants. An expensive breakfast of 32 euros! On the right is a picture of the Madeleine church. Seems really out of place with its Roman columns.

Then we walked to the Eiffel tower. The sky was clear blue but the high winds meant that the top level of the tower was closed. We were quiet happy just going to the first level and spent a good hour spotting the sights from our high view.

Next we walked to the Arc De Triomphe. 12 avenues exit from this roundabout!! And what a roundabout it is. Napolean comissioned the Arc to be built in 1806 and it was finished in 1836. It's 51 metres high and soon it'll have a museum at the top. We were able to climb to the first level which is still very impressive.
















That night we happened to be seated next to another Australian couple at dinner. We spent a lovely evening hearing all about their travel plans and their experiences living in London.

On Sunday morning we woke up early to get to the Louvre. Once there Jane pointed out that the queues above ground next to the pyramid were not a good sign since the ticket desks are all 20 metres below. We couldn't see the masses of people waiting to buy tickets. A surprise awaited us. Once we'd queued up top and gone through the entrance in the pyramid eveyone walked straight into the gallery. Sundays are free!!! Well it was great for the bank account but there were so many people making the most of the free visit. We made a beeline for the Mona Lisa and then relaxed and sat infront of a few famous paintings for much longer, taking in all the details. If anyone can tell us what the ?glass? orb is that's seen in many religious paintings we'd be thrilled to find out. Its often held by angels in the sky above the king or queen or biblical character depicted below.
This fountain is in the Place de la Concorde.

Then sadly we had to fly back to Southampton where the rain was pouring, the car was still in the garage and we were still living in a nasty old rotten house in the red light district. But not for much longer....