Rome... What an Experience!

Wow! What an experience! The moment we stepped foot into our hostel, Casa Olmata, we knew we were in for a treat! The hostel is an old and antique looking building right off the main square near Termini Train Station and oh boy we are glad we are checking out tomorrow. Our room is very dusty and smelly and the shower is even worse! You feel like you are standing under someone taking a tinkle and the water is super hot, insanely hot or freezing cold. There is no happy medium whatsoever with the shower. Also what they said was offered in our hostel isn't even close, its definitely a run for our money! But the good thing is we can get a good laugh out of the situation and really respect the amazing hostels we have already visited. Today we took a tour of Rome and what it had in store for us. The Colessum is magnificent, huge and to believe there were statues lined on the outside that they took down later in the Medieval times. We saw where the Pope stays and the beautiful fountains laid throughout the city. Now, Our bus driver well she was just a crazy lady! She was screaming Italian at everyone in her way and when they say Italy has the highest accident rate they definitely aren't lying! One Taxi even bumped into our bus! The sad thing is, you are safer in a bus then you are walking as drivers swerve to miss you in the crosswalk! Well it has been an amazing experience for us but on May 2, we are going to say "So Long Rome and Hello Portugal!" The good thing is we will have funny stories to tell when we get home about our experience in Rome. But for right now Ciao!
Love From
P&T in Rome, Italy

Verona now off to ROME!!

What an amazing time we had in Verona! We went into the city on Saturday night to view all the historical sites and to see what could catch our breathe. The Arena was pretty spectacular and was made all from stone. When we walked down towards the Arena there was a live band playing in the Square and it was nice to hear music! We went to our first pizzaeria and fell in love right away so last night we went back and got more pizza! :) The pizza doesn't even compare to the Canadian Pizza with its thick crust and all. Here they use fresh ingredients and make the crust fresh before your eyes.... and when you eat it you feel like your in heaven. LIKE ITS A PARTY IN YOUR FACE (just for Melissa Irwin!) Today we are heading to Rome for the next 5 days and will hopefully meet up with Monique and Adri, Patrick's Auntie and Uncle. Well we are off to catch the bus to the train station! Talk to you soon!
Love From
P&T in Verona, Italy

Verona, Italy... what an amazing start to a country!!

Well what an amazing start to Italy! We arrived in Verona 1/2 hour behind schedule due to technical difficulties with the train but we made it here safe and sound! Once we got here we needed to take the bus to our hotel as it was too far to walk to it. Well we purchased our tickets and got on the bus we were suppose to get on. Well there was only one problem if you were not from the area you had no idea what bus stop you were at as there were no signs on their bus stops. Well Tam built up some courage and asked one of the Italian boys on the bus (who happen to be the bus driver before they switched off) if they knew where our hotel was. Well he said to us "Follow me and I will help you." Well when it was our time to get off the bus with him, we followed him to our hotel. He was very nice and even tried to speak English with us. Before parting ways he told us to have a lovely time in Verona. What an amazing start! It gives such an amazing feeling to realize that there are still people like that in the world. It was a very nice and warm welcome. When we got booked into our room, we asked the lady at the reception desk "Where would be a good place to enjoy Italian Food?" She told us that there was this restaurant, a Buffet with Italian Food just across the street. Which was good for Patrick as he could eat a cow! Well when we arrived we asked the waiter where we could sit and we caught him so off guard with our English that he became so nervous but did answer in English, it was absolutely adorable! Well the food was amazing and we even had a Bio (Organic) Coke as we were eating at an Organic Restaurant. HELLO to an amzing time in Italy!

Munich, Germany than off to Italy TOMORROW!

What a day it was on the train from 9:07am to 4:00pm, Tam had to give herself a time-out as she had the giggles and was crying from laughter as she thought she was the worlds funniest comedian ever!! We are so exhausted from the travel and after arriving we found out we couldn't stay longer in Munich so we are off to Verona, Italy tomorrow as well. We just love to be true backpackers, always on the move and in trouble. We are staying 3 days in Verona and then off to Rome for 3 days then we are hopefully off to Barcelona. Time sure is flying by! 2.5 more months and Tam's Mom, Sandy will be meeting us in Ireland and we know one little girl who sure is excited to see her Momma! :) and a Momma that is excited to see her little girl too! It will be an unforgettable meeting. Well we are off to reserve some seats to Italy so we don't get kicked off. So we will talk again soon!
Love From
P&T in Munich, Germany

Terezin Concentration Camp

What an experience today was, you couldn't even imagine the feelings that goes through one's mind on a tour like this. You feel shocked, speechless and a sense of emptiness in your heart. How could one man do this to an entire race. Why the Jews? What made them so different from the Nazi's beside their culture and way of living? They are still human beings that have ever right to live just like the Nazi's did. Its not fair that one man can say you live and you die. Innocent children who only saw dreams and hopes were stolen away from them just because of their race. They were meant to grow up to become teachers, lawyers, doctors, farmers, any profession their hearts were set on but yet they spent more time on wondering when their last hours or minutes were numbered before it was their time to be sent away to Auschwitz. At Terezin there were only 300 prisoners that were executed some of them being Jews and the rest passed away from malnutrition, poor hygiene and diseases that resulted from overpopulation within the cells. There was one group cell that was meant for 100 prisoners but by the end of the war it was housing between 400-600 prisoners. Another cell that was meant for one person for bad behavior was filled with 20-30 prisoners, towards the end of the war they removed the doors to house more prisoners within their cells. Can you imagine being taken away from your family and having to live with 20-30 people some of them living and some of them that had passed? That your weren't given enough food to survive properly so you lost 1/2 your body weight within days?
  We are so thankful that we don't live in war but our thoughts and blessings go out to those who are fighting in war or have been in war. Its not easy and we can't even explain the feelings one person or family may face but our hearts go out to you.
Love 
P&T in Prague, Czech Republic

This Week Has Just Flown By

Today the sun is shining and its absolutely beautiful outside! :) It really is nice to see! On April 16 we had a BAKE DAY!! We made monster cookies, impossible pie and Annie asked Tam if she could do something with a million peppers, so we made stuffed peppers for supper. The family loved it! Annie said it was nice to come in from outside and be able to sit down and eat. It made us feel really good that we could help in some way. On April 17, we decided to head into Traunstein by bike... wow what a work out. The 16 kilometer round trip was a little more then we anticipated, the uphills and busy highway were a little intense at points but we made it to Traunstein and back in one piece!!Yesterday we went to Prien a Chiemsee to the Islands of Herreninsel (Island of Man) and Fraueninsel (Island of Woman). At Herreninsel we went on a tour of the Royal Palace by King Ludwig II. King Ludwig II built a copy of the Versailles Palace as a "Temple of Fame" in honor of the Sun King Louis XIV of France. The first 3 rooms we saw were never even used. Then we saw King Ludwig II private bedroom, dining room with a elevator for his table to be set below him, study and his dressing room. Our tour guide told us that there are 70 rooms in the Palace and only 20 were completed due to King Ludwig running out of money, makes you wonder why even start something if you can't finish it! It just blew our mind! Then we headed to Fraueninsel we didn't have much time to look around as the last ship to Prien came at 6:00pm so we walked around, climbed a tree and walked out onto the pier. All in all we have had an amazing week and are hoping to head to Salzburg tomorrow. :)
Love From
P&T in Quirn, Germany

 On The Boat to the Islands

 Patrick was actually standing on a different tree branch, nice picture!

 What a beautiful view!

On our way back to Prien. :)

Family Fun Day!!

Today was a great day! We went to Erding Thermal Spa where we got to play on 16 slides; one of them being the longest slide in the world!! It was a great day with Annie, Ernst and Michael!! We had some laughs and made sure we were tired out!! After we were done our day of swimming we went to pick up Anna-Marie from her girlfriend's wedding. Then we made the hour trek back to Traunstein. We got back home to the farm and we had a lazy day since the weather is STILL RAINING but what an amazing day to spend some time with a family that opened their homes to us and has made us feel at home. We couldn't have asked for a better stay in Germany! :) At the moment we are listening to a live solo performance of Michael playing the accordian :) it sounds amazing and to see the traditional instrument be played for us. :) What a fun filled family and were glad we got to spend time with them!
Love
P&T in Quirn, Germany

Annie and The Family

We departed from Nuremberg on April 10 and headed even further south to a place called Quirn, which is a little community made up of 10 people and with significant others it is 13 people. Annie met us at the train station and we were so excited to meet her. Finally we met a nice family that we could stay with and feel like we found our place. The weather may not have been nice but the company has been warm, friendly and a lot of laughter. In the family there is Annie (mom), Ernst (dad), Opa, Hubert (28 years old), Anna-Marie (25 years old), Stefan (23 years old) and little Michael (15 years old) and we feel right at home! We have even taught Michael to make friendship bracelets :) Yesterday we went into Berchtsgaden and toured the Salt Mine which was an amazing tour. We then decided to hike up the steepest mountain you could possibly find but we made it to the top in 1 hour!! Patrick and I ventured throught the Dokumentation of Hitler which was moving, shocking and sad to see. It was all in German so we had an Audio Guide tour but still the pictures did most of the explaining. After we had to wait 1 hour for the bus so we decided to hike down, we just keep putting ourselves through misery lol. The walk down was much easier than the hike up. Tam had a little melt down on the way down and found every word there was in the book. She was tired of grumpy people, the miserable weather and hiking up and down an insane mountain and all Patrick could do was laugh at her. He couldn't take her seriously because of her huge grin on her face!! LOL. Before we headed back to Traunstein we bought some groceries and a wobbly pop to reward  ourselves from the hard day of work. We had to wait 1 hour for the train so we ate some pistachios and had some good laughs where Tam was even in tears! What an amazing day!!
Love
P&T in Quirn, Germany

A Better Day

Today was a great day, the weather still wasn't the best mind you but we made the most of our day. We started off at the Tucher Mansion Museum, Tam did a marvelous job at being a tour guide and Patty being a photographer. We saw many old cabinets and paintings, it was quite a sight to see. After we went to the Toy Museum which was awesome there were so many dollhouses and porcleain dolls which are Tam's FAVORITE and Lego of course for Patty. We also did a tour of the Rock Cellar and man it was amazing! Tam was a little nervous as it hard narrow walkways and was way underneath the group. They used these cellars as air raid shelters during the war so you can get an image of how deep they are. We went out for an amazing supper and where Tam enjoyed her second beer in 2 days!! Cheers to a great day!
Love
P&T in Nuremberg, Germany

Germany

We are in Nuremberg, Germany and it has been a rough start to the trip in Germany. The weather is cloudy and dreary, we're tired from not sleeping well and have had a rough go with rude people. Last night we went to Barfüsser and Tam had her first full beer!! She had Nuremberger bratwurst, sauerkrat, and a bun especially for Daddy Frank. It sure was a good meal Tam really enjoyed it. We are going to purchase a Museum Pass for €21 each to go see the Toy Museum and make the best of the last 3 days left here. Then we are not sure what are plans are yet but we will keep in touch.
Love
P&T in Nuremberg, Germany

Some Help!

Well friends and family we are in need of your help... we are looking for volunteer work or places that need an extra hand, we are not asking for money, just a place to stay and see the culture. The best way of doing that is to stay with people that we know or family and friends may know. If you know of any people that would be willing to take us in, please e-mail us at my tamararairdan@hotmail.com.
Thanks for your help!
Love P&T in Berlin, Germany

Where to Start?

Well we have had some busy times behind us, we went to Rotterdam and to the Sea. We celebrated my birthday on the 28th of March in the small village of Hattem. We went to the Bakery Museum and to the Anton Pieck Museum to see his collection of art and to be told that the Eftling was designed from his work. Then on the 30 of March, we celebrated my birthday with Hans, Annette, Marcel, Oma, Opa and the little neighbor boy Nick. We had a lot of fun! We met up with Ruben in Deventer yesterday and spent some time with him before we continued our journey to a new country which we will start tomorrow :) We are going to Berlin, Germany. :) So excited!
   We have had an amazing time in Holland and would like to thank everyone for their hospitality and opening their homes to us. We truly appreciate everything that everyone has done for us. Especially Oma and Opa who took us in for our first 3 weeks here. It was amazing to stay with you and we had a delightful time!! We would like to thank Monique and Adri for also opening their home to us and helping us to find a place to stay in Berlin and what is really interesting to see while we are there. We would also like to thank Rob for letting us stay with him and showing us around his area. We really enjoyed ourselves. We would also like to thank Hans and Annette for showing us the farm last night, it was great! Tam was very happy to be able to feed a baby calf!! We would also like to thank Marcel for the gift of the Deventer tour! It was thoroughly enjoyed! We would like to thank Dennis, Angelique and Colin for the visits! What fun we had and laughs too!! We would just like to thank everyone! You are all truly loved!!
Love
P&T in Twello, Nederlands