Onto Roma,Italia

Well we left the beautiful Italian Riviera a few days ago and headed south towards Pisa. Amazingly, we were able to find a carpark close to the leaning tower, however it seemed to be on a street full of street merchants who spoke no English, but were very aggressive in their approach trying to sell their stuff. One of them in particular really bothered us, and despite trying to explain that we didn't know what he was saying, and walking away from him, he continued with his "aggressive" approach and foul gestures when we returned to the campervan. Never mind! We wandered across the road and yes, that tower REALLY is on a lean! And it wasn't as tall as I had imagined either. But the kids were all keen to try a variety of poses around it, and wander through the 101 souvenir stalls as well.

We then continued down the road for another 60km to our campsite, and that was lovely. We got there mid afternoon, and were able to spend around 3 hours in the pool before finding some dinner. When I say pool, it was actually 3 pools, with a bar, playground, etc attached to it - so it was just lovely. This campsite was really good, and had excellent facilities - the only drawback being that one of the neighbouring properties had an all night party going on, so we didn't get a lot of sleep!

And today we arrived in Rome, where we have 4 nights. Again, we timed our arrival so we could have a couple of hours in the pool, to cool off after travelling, before settling for the night. Only in this place, it costs extra to use the pool! However it does seem to be a nice place to say, and only metres away is a huge sports complex which the boys are very excited about (and free to use). We had dinner in the on-site restaurant tonight and it was just beautiful - very rustic looking, with exposed beams and joists, cobbled floors, old artefacts dotted around the place and a big wood-fired oven in full view which really added to the character. And to top it off, there is a dachshund and a long-haired German shepherd lazing round the restaurant too, which the kids absolutely smothered with attention. I guess I should add that the food and service were fantastic too!

So, we have the next 3 full days to explore Rome. We plan to do lots of sight seeing, perhaps some shopping. Glen needs to spend a day working, so the kids and I might have that day to have some 'downtime' here.

And only 9 sleeps left in the campervan! Yes, it is a very modern, clean and comfortable to travel in - vehicle, but we are all "over" the lack of space and limited facilities we have in here, and all getting on each others nerves. This would be a great option for travelling for 2, maybe 3 people, but not 6! This is our first and LAST time! I know this is supposed to be the experience of a lifetime for us, and I don't want to sound ungrateful - but seriously - only 1 person at a time can move through the cabin, and when 6 of us are trying to get organised for the day ahead, it is a frustrating exercise! Not to mention the dismantling and re-assembling of the furniture twice a day everyday so we can all sleep in here! And then trying to cook a reasonable meal with 6 each of knives, forks, spoons, plates, bowls, cups, 1 pan, 2 pots, a colander, a chopping board, a bread knife, a wooden spoon, and a vegetable peeler that doesn't peel anything! We also have to keep this thing clean, which is fine except that no cleaning products are provided. We have had to go out and buy everything we need to keep it clean: dishbrush, cloths, detergents - everything! So I hope you can understand when we say we will pleased to move onto Denmark and into a hotel where we will each have a little bit more than 10 square inches of space!

And I guess the icing on the cake today was when I was trying to choose between 2 pieces of swimwear before going to the pool, and an impatient Xanthe said "it doesn't matter which one mum, its not like you're THAT fat!"

And on that chirpy note - I really should get some sleep right now!

A fine place for a picnic lunch

Kids, stop fighting...