Better late than never!

So I'm doing an atrocious job of updating my blog! I have a heap to elaborate on but for now, in a nutshell, I'm loving the history and beautiful architecture that I've been fortunate enough to see in Paris, Hamburg, St. Gallen and Liechtenstein. Autumn is a lovely time to visit with so many deciduous trees and even though it's very chilly now there have been far less tourists around than I would have expected. To date we've toured The Louvre and Palace of Versailles, visited the Bibliothèque nationale de France, dined in the Eiffel Tower, cruised the Seine River by night, viewed a show at the Moulin Rouge, climbed Notre Dame Cathedral, shopped till closing time at Galleries Lafayette and consumed too much red wine with the friendly locals at Le Richer and that was just in Paris! To be cont...

3/11/11 Melbourne to Singapore

Excitement turned to mild anxiety as the morning of our big trip finally arrived.  The fact I had still been up at 1am that morning copying songs to my iPad and wrestling with my sewing machine to take up my new jeans most likely contributed, however it was more likely the fact I was about to leave my boys for just over a month on my first ever overseas journey.  As per usual I'd packed way more than I was likely to need (even though this time my holiday necessitated a bit more baggage) so I managed to talk myself out of taking six scarfs and twenty or so tops and zipped my suitcase.  When Mum arrived and saw how much stuff I had she convinced me to remove yet a few more essentials so we'd have room for some all important shopping.  She thought it was kind I'd packed enough clothes for both of us but assured me it was totally unnecessary! Hopefully the lederhosen, stein and beer mat that Ian has requested from Hamburg will now fit (amusing visuals coming to mind!) Good old Mum then kindly agreed to fix my jeans (after the sewing machine debacle from earlier that morning) and off to St Kilda we headed to collect Peter who was to chauffeur us to Tullamarine.
For once in my life we arrived at the airport with plenty of time to spare and for some reason, unbeknown to me, the entire place was extraordinarily quiet.  So we checked in, grabbed a bite to eat, farewelled Pete (who insisted we have a photo with the security lady in customs) and headed for the departure lounge without incident.  Our Singapore Airlines flight departed on time and I was surprised at how much space (and booze) was available to us on board.  Perhaps more surprisingly was the fact that I was able to eat the special 'Jain' meal that was served up to me.
So after several glasses of French riesling, a Singapore sling, loads of water (resulting in a few trips to the ladies), a decent movie 'Friends with benefits' and many laughs with Mum, I'm sitting here feeling really pleased with myself for actually laying fingers to keypad and writing this recollection of the beginning of what's bound to be an awesome trip.