A day at a water park

Today we were heading to a water park - Splash Park - again close to Marseille and only about a 15 minute drive.  The kids were keen to try out the rides and so as soon as we got into the gate they were off! Karl went to explore the park and find us a good spot to settle.

Today was hot, although a bit windy and we knew that Connor, while he is always keen to get straight in the water he gets cold very quickly and often gets out to lie on the hot sand/concrete to warm up, he lips blue! Karl found the main pool (the had a little water slide and a flying fox, with deck chairs surrounding - the chairs could be hired for the day for 5 euros.........we hired one as I figured this could be my spot for the day - I was not so keen today to ride the rides.........and was happy to stay with the bags and be the return spot!

After a play in the main pool Karl and Loks went to ride the main rides.......while Connor stayed with me to warm up! They were away for quite some time and when they got back Karl was keen for a rest! The other boys were back in the pool playing on the flying fox and bombing into the water.

After a while Connor was keen to hit the slides around the park and so the boys were off and I got some quiet chill time - perfect!

We had a fab day and as we left the park we decided to head to Aix en Provence for dinner (well mainly for a guinness as Karl was keen for one and we knew a great little Irish pub there) and so we found our great little pub for drinks and a great pub meal before checking out the markets, getting ice-creams and heading home.

The end of a great weekend and our last here with a vehicle! Karl is a real whiz now driving on the wrong side of the road and finding parks anywhere - he really is a local Marseille "crazy" driver! Watch out Palmy when we return!

The boys with our "racing car" - loving the peugeots........

Exploring around Marseille - A trip to Verdon Gorge

Today we had a hire car - yay - and we were out and about heading to Verdon Gorge to explore.  Karl picked up the car at 9am and then headed home to pick us up.  We got sorted and then we were off.  We had no GPS and so Karl used good ole Google Maps to get our initial direction and town sorted.  

Our first stop was Moustiers-Sainte-Marie, a very gorgeous little town where we stopped for lunch and a wee explore.  There are just so many gorgeous towns in France - and this was another one - just beautiful.

We were then off to see the much anticipated Gorges Du Verdon (in French: Les Gorges du Verdon or Grand canyon du Verdon), in south-eastern France (Alpes-de-Haute-Provence).  It is a river canyon that is often considered to be one of Europe's most beautiful.

It is about 25 kilometres long and up to 700 meters deep. It was formed by the Verdon River, which is named for its startling turquoise-green colour, one of the location's distinguishing characteristics. 

The most impressive part lies between the towns of Castellane and Moustiers-Sainte-Marie, where the river has cut a ravine to a depth of 700 metres through the limestone mass.

We began our drive into the gorge from Mousteirs-Sainte-Marie - spectacular and absolutely not a drive for the faint hearted! 

We did not go all the way to Castellane as we were keen to do a small loop and then head back to the end of the end of the canyon, where the Verdon River flows into the artificial lake of Sainte-Croix-du-Verdon (in French: Lac de Sainte-Croix) where we knew we could swim and hire pedal boats - our plan for the afternoon.

Of course the boys spotted some blackberries on the side of the road and were in........bare feet and no shirt and all - blimey Kiwis.

After spending the afternoon here we go on the road back to Marseille - about 90 minutes drive stopping for delicious ice-cream on the way. 

What a great day. 

Day 10 - Our gondola ride in Venice

 While we know a Gondola ride is super touristy - we could not come to Venice and not actually do one.  I did one 22 years ago with "the girls" on my Contiki and imagined it would be much more romantic to do it with a partner - and I was right - even if the kids were on board!

 They were super excited about doing a gondola ride - and for ours it was actually quite quiet on the canals - it was 7pm, the day trippers were gone and there were times when we were the only people we could see - fantastic!

  After the quiet peace of the small canals we then went out on the Grand Canal - luckily there were not too many boats zooming past and we had an uneventful ride - our guide was great, he spoke good English and explained about the buildings we were going past; his experience of being a Gondolier and how he had learnt from his dad.

 Lions abound in Venice and is the cities patron animal.

A Gondola ride is certainly something special and a must do in Venice- it is touristy for a reason!

It is now time for us to fly back to Marseille for our last couple of weeks before we get home.

We have had an amazing time in Italy - it really is a fabulous country and we have been so lucky to have this family time here together exploring and experiencing - just amazing!

Day 9 - Exploring Venice

Today we were training to Venice.  We checked out of our hotel and had a quick wander around a church near us before we headed to the train station.  Our train left at 11.50am and we arrived in Venice at 3.35pm.  We all love travelling by train - there was lots to see and we enjoy this relaxing mode of transport.  Once in Venice we caught a vaporetto along the Grand Canal to St Marco and our accommodation.  

Our first views from the canal trip - the famous Rialto bridge

Fab colourful buildings

The boys enjoying the ride =

We arrived at St Marco square and here is the basilica - impressive.  We waited n the square for our accommodation lady to arrive to show us to our apartment.  She took some time as she had guests locked in a lift - oops - and so we had time to hang while all we really wanted was to get to our accommodation and chill.  Our accommodation was close bye and it was great - amazing location!

The great lions adorning the square

The square is big and we had some fun =

One of the great things about Venice is exploring the streets, canals and bridges - it really is amazing and getting lost is lots of fun.  There are shops everywhere and it is clear that the high tides are really having an impact on Venice -

There are also old wells everywhere - that used to be the main water supply for the city

The beautiful leaning tower of Venice -

Hanging with the boys -

The food, also delish!

Tourists in some areas were crazy - but they really seemed to congregate in the same areas and not explore so it was great to go out and about..............................and away from the hordes!

We found a cool chocolate and coffee store - yum!

The boys loved the little souvenir stores and bartering - they spent ages in there while we chilled out at the restaurants and bars -

An afternoon spritz on the grand canal!

Strolling the streets -

Not too long after high tide - not a big one so no flooding of St Marco Square today -

And then there is the delish gelato - often enjoyed multiple times a day! Our excuse - ice-cream goes with everything!

A cool shop window that took our fancy!