Monday 22/09/08And here we are in Austria!! Last time we blogged we were in Rome. Just after we'd finished on the wi-fi there was the most amazing thunderstorm that rolled in over the hills. Big big drops of rain lashing down, fork lightning and really really loud thunder. Which made packing up in the morning fun as everything was covered in mud that had splashed up from the ground. But we packed up and got on the move again - destination Ravenna which we used as a stop-off point on our way to Venice. The further East we got the nicer Italy got - we drove through some really lovely Tuscan countryside which is more of what you think of when you think of Italy, and also through some impressive mountainous areas where you drive through tunnels and over viaducts almost continuously. The towns seemed to get nicer-looking and cleaner and the countryside less industrial and more farm-like. So it was nice to see some views of Italy that weren't disappointing. The next campsite was in a little town just outside Ravenna called Lido di Dante and was a part naturist campsite (but we passed, was a bit cooler here). On the Sunday we decided to bike the 7 miles into Ravenna to see what there was to see, the countryside around there is really lovely to bike through - very flat but lots of farming fields to see. There wasn't a huge amount to see in Ravenna to be honest and just as we decided to make a move back the thunder started… and then it started absolutely peeing down - all we had on were shorts and t-shirts! Boy did we look like tourists. We sheltered for a while but then decided we were just gonna have to go for it, believe me, 7 miles seems like a very very long way when you're biking in sheeting rain. We'd spent about an hour doing hand washing that morning and hanging it out and couldn't believe it when we got back someone had taken it all down, folded it and put it on the table under our awning - how nice was that?! Turned out to be a Dutch couple a few campers away. So there are some good Samaritans out there. There was a beach right by the campsite which we had a wander on on the Monday when it wasn't raining - it was nice and peaceful as no-one else was on it apart from a few surfers. The sea was weirdly warm - warmer than the air almost. Mad thunderclouds still rolling in from over the sea. Tuesday headed to Fusina which is just opposite Venice on the other side of the lagoon. Well, we must admit, neither of us had a clue that Venice was an island!! You can get to it via one very long bridge or by boat and that's it. There wasn't really anywhere to stay campsite wise in Venice so this Fusina was our best bet as the campsite was right on the marina where you could get the boat over to Venice every hour. The campsite was expensive at 30euros per night, we get most campsites for 14euros per night with our ACSI card, but the carpark at the marina was 13euros so we'd have had to park up to get the boat even if we had stayed somewhere else. It was a nice campsite though - very big, the motor home pitches weren't marked you just kinda found your own spot in a field right on the lagoon. Nice location - could watch the boats going past really close and could just see Venice over the other side. Had the coldest pint of Heineken at the bar - it started forming icebergs in the glass - lots of Australians running the bar bit so nice to be able to talk and listen in English for a change.Got the 20minute boat ride into Venice on the Wednesday. It's a beautiful city and was just like we expected really from what we've seen in films and books, only not as smelly as we thought it was going to be. A gondola ride would have been lovely, but our budget just couldn't stretch to one at 100 - 130 euros a ride so we just watched them go by from the bridges. Lots of touristy shops selling the same old stuff and lots of cafes, both of which were over-priced. Good job we'd packed our cheese sangers again. It was a nice city to bimble round but after a while we'd seen as much as we wanted as most of the streets and canals look the same. We found a rat too - check out the video. One of the not-so-nice parts of living there I guess. That night we decided to check out the campsite bar as it seemed the liveliest one that we'd seen since setting off. And it was! Got chatting to the barmen who were really friendly - Marty and Jonno, both Australians, and before long we were getting free drinks and shots and chatting away for ages - it was a real nice change to talk to someone without the language barriers. It would have been a cool campsite to work on actually but of course we had got there at end of season but Marty said that if we went back next March there'd be work at the start of the season. Hey ho. We told him we were heading into Austria next and he told us to look up a guy called Pauly at Bunnys Pub in St Johann in Tyrol and tell him that Marty sent us and that he might have some work. He reckons that for October Austria and Germany are the best places to look for work. Also met an American family who are based in Germany and were on their hols - Jay, Susanne and Michaela, and chewed their ears off for a good half of the night too (hi to you all if you managed to find our site). Not forgetting their dog either - Missy May! - who was the cutest fluffiest thing. So what with the free drinks and all of the socialising opportunities we were both completely hammered by the end of the night and rolled into bed about 3am… …and then of course woke up with our first hangovers since starting the trip. And on a packing up and driving day too!! Oh well, it was worth it.Spent the next two nights on Lake Garda - wow what a place. The pictures really don't do it justice - have got more footage on the camcorder which shows the upper half off better but we still haven't got round to uploading any of the videos. It was such a lovely and peaceful place and so calm after the crowds and fast-paced sightseeing of the cities. Really chilled out and lovely. At this point Kylie's favourite place since setting off and Andy's joint with the area around Cahors in France. It was soooo tranquil, we've both said it is one place we would love to go back to and explore a little more. It's a very very big lake - bigger than we both expected, you can't see the other side in some places. Also much clearer and cleaner than we were expecting - you could see the bottom no problem. Got talking to a Dutch couple on the Friday night although conversation was limited as their English wasn't that great (but a hell of a lot better than our Dutch). The lady warned us that Austria was colder than usual for this time of year at the moment and was checking we'd got plenty of warm clothes in a mum-like fashion. We lied and said yes.We decided to take the motorway from the top of Lake Garda out of Italy and over the Austrian border, mainly because the motorway avoids a black mountain pass that doesn't allow caravans and that we didn't fancy pushing with our motor home. The scenery got more and more mountainous as we entered Austria and the air got incredibly fresh and cold. Some of the mountains are so huge it's hard to describe what it's like driving through them, again the pictures don't do them justice! There were some of the biggest ones we've ever seen, and some of them had snow at the top which we could see from the road! We got to a campsite on Saturday 10 miles outside of St Johann in the middle of nowhere (actually near a town/village called Kossen) and halfway up a mountain by a ski lift. All of the paragliders are out here at the moment as it is not yet ski-ing season. We took a bike ride into Kossen yesterday, had a look at the ski lift and around the town, and then sat in an outside bar watching all the paragliders come in to land. It's really cold! As in socks, shoes, jumpers, coats, numb hands cold! But it's not a miserable cold, just a really crisp cold - and no wind, really still air. We sat looking cold at the bar and supping our beer and the waitress came over with two shot glasses and a bottle - 'schnaps from chef' - we'd only just had breakfast but thought it far too rude to refuse so in the interest of warming up we downed them. And warmed/numbed up. The scenery round here is so crisp and clean - the villages, the houses everything, it's so gorgeous. Picture perfect - like it's something off a postcard everywhere you look. It would be great if we could find some work round here as it would be cool to stop and see some snow. Although if we do end up staying we might end up staying until the snow is gone as we wouldn't fancy driving the van in their winter conditions - even with snow chains. The extra blankets have come out at night, but it's really not that bad yet - the house in Earlsgate was colder in winter - really! Quite surprised at how well the van holds the heat in - and how quickly it warms up. Of course it's only going to get colder if we hang around! So today we decided to follow up this lead at Bunnys Pub. Rather than driving into St Johann to try and find somewhere to park to only come back again, we decided to give the public transport a go. We were quite proud that we managed to get some info on the local buses as the guy in reception doesn't speak any English - there aren't many buses that run but we got one from a stop half a mile's walk away at 9:30 this morning - 9euros each for a return!! Cough cough! Wasn't expecting it to be that much. Comfy coach-like bus though and very picturesque route to town, but very mardy bus-driver. Oh well, guess he doesn't like his job. St Johann is a nice little town - very ski and wintersports orientated and you can tell it's not quite that season yet. We bought two hats and Andy managed to get directions to Bunnys Pub from the shopkeeper. And it closes on Mondays. All day. So we had a coffee and a hotdog and came back (18euro bus ride later grrrr). So now the plan is to drive in to the town tomorrow and start again. There was also a British pub that we noticed that was also closed so may be worth checking there - even if these places don't have any work themselves they will probably know someone who knows someone etc etc and I think that's how this job-hunting malarky goes, it's just good to start with a few contacts.Well, that's enough waffling from us for this blog we thinks. Hope everyone is well and happy. Missing you all still. Take care xxx