EURO 2006

STOP IT with that place!! Peta and I just got back from a month in England, Italy and Croatia. We went with Toby and Sarah, and of course the cutest baby we saw in all three countries....... Daisy. There is no doubt that England is damn awesome, although we did get there during a heat wave, so didn't get to experience the miserable side of the Poms. They are amazing at looking after their historical stuff........being a history buff (which is not real good being an Australian - Oz discovered in 1700's as you obviously knew), I loved just being able to look around and see things that were so old. Tom and Sara Benyon live in a cool place on the Thames, at Tom's school actually, which is highly prestigious as you would expect. It was great seeing them, and they really showed us the finer points of British bartering by getting us free tickets to centre court at wimbledon. JEEPERS.....there's no doubt that Wimbledon is one of the most elegant, high class, toffy nose, strawberries and cream style events I've ever been to. Was great to see the Woodies in action though!!

Then there's Italy.....just happened that we were there right when they won the world cup. Sitting in a restaurant in Venice, every eye including the waiter's, on the screen, we got to experience the 'jubilation of a nation' winning the most highly sort after trophy in world sport. Italy was stinking hot, and every tourist and his family pet dog seemed to be there, making it the most crowded, touristy place since visiting Mong Kok for a cheap mongolian bbq 6 weeks ago. We thought we were lucky to escape with our limbs intact after having dinner at an obviously, Sopranos-style, mafia run restaurant in Bolognia, until I got my camera pick-pocketed on a bus in Rome, with all our photos still on the memory card, and had to chase them down the street, grab the bag and camera back, and sprint back to jump on the bus.........now that was lucky!

Croatia had its moments, but Dubrovnik SHUT UP!!!! Easily the best place in Peta and my view that we visited. Infact, we all (including Toby and Sarah, and Daisy if she could) commented that we could live there. What a beautiful place, and well preserved 'old stuff'......you'd have to be a spanker to want to bomb it (which we saw plenty of remnants of) and even more of a spanker not to look it up if you were ever in Croatia.

But we're back in HK now, and to be honest, it's nice to come back to our place and just relax for a bit. With work around the corner........all good things must come to an end.