Europe! Beautiful structures dating from the Roman empire, magnificent architecture and comfortable weather make for a fine holiday destination.
I can only lament that my trip of 13 day duration was too short to explore even the countries I visited - Italy, Switzerland and France - in depth. As the Chinese saying goes, it was really just a trip to "走马看花"， literally - to see the flowers while horse-riding.
Sightseeing in Rome, Italy
I covered St. Peter's Basilica, the largest church in the world and the home of the pope. As it was the Tuesday before Good Friday, chairs were lined up in preparation for mass outside the church.
A short bus ride brought me to another must-see tourist destination - the Colosseum. People dressed in ancient Roman costumes were there to welcome us for photo-taking. I made an extra effort to avoid them as some were known to charge unsuspecting tourists exorbitant prices.
The Leaning Tower of Pisa, Italy
Pisa was a 4 hours drive from Rome. It hosted just one attraction that made us make the trip down - the Leaning Tower of Pisa. The tower did not seem to be inclining much, reason being that engineers had intervened more than 10 years ago to prevent it from toppling. But they still had to maintain some level of inclination to attract the tourists, I suspect.
In Pisa I tasted one of the best pizzas I had ever tasted in a small, touristy restaurant near the leaning tower. Unfortunately I forgot to take pictures of the pizzas! All I managed to find is a picture of me in the restaurant prior to the meal.
Gondalas in Venice, Italy
The weather was less than ideal during our day of sight-seeing in Venice - it was cold and drizzling. We toured St. Marco's church whose floors were collapsing under the weight of the immense pillars, payed an exorbitant amount (16 Euros) to see the Doges Palace and even saw a mafia boss in action at the glass blowing factory. Again, I avoided taking the touristy gondolas which cost 30 Euros a person, and opted for photo-taking at a distance.
Jungfraujoch, Switzerland
The weather at the beginning of our journey to Jungfrauchjoch, the highest railway station in Europe, started innocuously enough - with light drizzling. But as our bus headed up the mountain, the raindrops changed to snow! The snow started as tiny frozen raindrops at the base of the mountain, but gradually grew into a snowstorm as we climbed the mountain in our (thankfully) warm train seats.
Here, a bowl of hot vegetable soup at Jungfraujoch!
Thanks to the weather, the view at the summit was a "white-out".
Lucern, Switzerland
Surrounded by scenic lakes and snow-capped mountains, Lucern is a photography enthusiast's dream destination. We visited the famed lion monument, known locally as
Löwendenkmal, and took pictures by the chapel bridge near the old town.
The Lion Monument, built in memory of the Swiss soldiers who died during the French revolution. Note the sad expression of the Lion mourning the loss of the Swiss soldiers.
The Chapel Bridge in Lucern, Switzerland
Mount Titlis, Switzerland
The journey up to Mount Titlis was by a technology that was revolutionary in the 1990s - the rotating cable car! The view at the summit, however, was obscured by clouds and snow :(
Fontainebleau, France
Fontainebleau is a small town South of Paris which hosts the more obscure cousin of the Versailles Palace known as the Palace of Fontainebleau. It is so obscure that my tour group was virtually the first people to reach the palace at 830am in the morning. The palace is older than Versailles but has fortunately been restored by its subsequent inhabitants, and hosts a range of historical goodies such as Napoleon's throne among others. It is also the site of Napoleon's abdication!
Napoleon's throne in the Palace of Fontainebleau, France
Paris, France
Arriving into Paris for the first time, the picturesque Seine River makes an impact.
It is along this same river that many of the landmarks of Paris, such as Notre Dame, the Louvre Museum and the Eiffel Tower can be seen.
View of the Seine River from a cruise crossing under a bridge.
Notre Dame Cathedral. Unfortunately, I did not have the time to visit it during this trip.
The View of the Eiffel Tower from the cruise just before setting sail.
A leisurely drive through the city the next day gives us a different view of these landmarks of Paris. In addition, we visited the Place de la Concorde, the Arc the Triomphe and caught a glimpse of Napoleon's tomb.
The Arc de Triomphe, built by Napoleon to celebrate his victories.
Chapel of Saint-Louis-des-Invalides, where Napoleon is buried.
The Louvre Museum
One of the highlights of my trip was the Louvre Museum. Perhaps I had been read the Da Vinci Code one too many times, but I felt that the Louvre Museum was a must-visit after Robert Langdon uncovers one mystery after another in the depths of the pyramids.
The view of the Louvre from the outside. The weather was clear when we arrived.
The Mona Lisa, aka the most famous painting in the world.
Liberty Leading the People. In contrast with the realism of the surrounding figures, Liberty stands out as it is painted in a different style.
The view of the main pyramid entrance from within the Louvre. Note that the sky is overcast. By the time we left the Louvre, it was starting to drizzle, with strong winds that threatened to blow my umbrella away.
Next post will be on ??.
