Monday 10th –14th August, Paris, France

We have 5 days in gay Paris and although this will be our third visit to this beautiful city, we both are excited and want to revisit places that we’ve been before!! We can never be bored of the Lourve - each time we go, we leave with a new perspective. We also visit the d’Orsay and are wowed by Van Gogh and Renoir. We have an evening at Mont Mart and do our best to consume as much Steak Tartar and red wine that is humanly possible! We drink at the Latin Quarter and enjoy people watching...
On one of the days we walk down one of the most exclusive streets in Paris to see people armed with Chanel, Hermes and Cartier bags! We also see a customised golden Ferrari and a Rolls Royce with orange velvet interior amongst other things. What financial crisis???
We’ve had have an awesome 6 months... from Africa to our adventures in the Middle East and the decadence of Europe..... but now we begin to count down our days. On Friday we’ll be flying back to Sydney for three and a half weeks. Whilst we’ve been away, Beverly was diagnosed with Hodgkin’s Lymphoma and has been undergoing chemotherapy. We can’t wait to give her hug and see everyone all our family and friends. There’s no doubt that Sydney is our home and we can’t wait to be back there... even if only for a little while :)

Saturday 8th – 9th August, Loire Valley, France

A couple of hours drive further north and we hit the magnificent Loire Valley. Chateaus, vineyards, great food, decadent gardens, wonderful weather... what more can you ask for? Although we only have two days here, we want to make the most of it. We are blown away by the enormity of the chateau at Chombard and the genius behind Chateau Chinnonceau which is built over a river! We go between delightful meals and visiting these enormous palaces of which they say there are 57 in the region! Our favourite meal is set in a garden behind one of these gorgeous palaces, where we devour a gaspachio of melon with prosciutto and foi gras mousse! It’s a tough life.
We promise ourselves that we’ll be back one day with our bikes and camping gear... it’s a perfect place to do a bike tour!

Friday 7th August, Bordeaux, France

Sunday 2nd August – 6th August, Bilbao, Spain

Our next stop is Bilbao. As well as being nearby beautiful beaches, we’re also in the heart of Spain’s culinary genius as this area has the highest number of Michelin rated restaurants in the world J Although, you don’t have to be fine dining to enjoy Bilbao’s culinary delights. When we arrive we’re starving so we find a great bar and order some “pinchos” which I liken to Spanish yum cha where you help yourself to what you want. We knock back a few Martini Rosso’s and feel our muscles instantly relax. This combination of Pincho’s and apertivi’s becomes a daily staple!
The next day we explore the city. We also visit the Guggenheim museum which is both fascinating and frustrating as I swing between being wowed by creative brilliance to then thinking that I (with zero creativity) could probably knock up something similar at home!
We use Bilbao as a base for several day trips around the area. We visit San Sebastian and our visit to the beach reminds us of Bondi with the abundance of Aussie accents and the beautiful small waves! We also visit Santander, the choice for Spanish locals when they want to get wet! Our time in Bilbao is extremely relaxed...