Italy, Rome - 28th - 29th July 28th July Arriving in Rome just before lunch (sooo nice to have a short trip in the bus), we caught the Metro into the city, to the Colosseum. A quick walk around the outside of the Colosseum to buy a hat from a stall holder (bargained him down from 15Euro to 9) grabbed a bite to eat then met the group for our Imperial Rome Guided Tour. We took in/learned about/explored the Colosseum (from the outside only); ruins of the anci...

Italy (Pisa, Florence), 26th July - 27th July 26th July Leaving France we stopped at Fragonard Parfumeur for a tour of their perfume factory, with a spot of shopping. Pisa - a short stop here for the touristy photo opportunities that only the Leaning Tower of Pisa can offer. Onto Florence and the best accomodation of the trip. A quite night in Florence at BarGarta, and an opportunity to briefly see Florence at night. Took some cool photos across the...

French Riveria (Antibes, Cannes, Nice, Monaco) 24th July - 25th July 24th July Another day on the bus with a couple of stops, one of which was the last remaining walled city of Aigues Mortes, France. This walled city is gorgeous and such a shame we had a limit time here (only 1hr), but nevermind, somewhere to come back to. 25th July Under our own means we explored the French Riviera. I made my way to Cannes, not somewhere I had intended to go, but...

Barcelona, 22nd - 23rd July Two nights and one full day is beautiful Barcelona!! 22nd July On leaving Lyon we stopped at Pont du Gard - an ancient aquaduct that is no longer in use. However, many of us would have liked more time here simply to walk down to the river for a swim. We had our first introduction to the heat of the south. On arriving at the Barcelona Contiki village, we began with a night of Tacos and Sangria, followed by chilling out on ...

France, Lyon 20th - 21st July 20th July Travelled from Paris down to Lyon in the wine region, past many fields of giant sunflowers and vineyards galore. Stopped at Fontainebleau, a 'small' hunting lodge where we wandered briefly around the extensive gardens before doing a quick shop for snacks. Dinner at the hotel in Lyon before some of the group took the Metro over to the Old Town for a drink at a pub. The streets of Old Town Lyon are the quintessential...