Fw: Goodbye Milan - it was short but sweet

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-----Original Message-----
From: "Sheila Hogg" <littlewonder@tiscali.co.uk>

Date: Fri, 14 Aug 2009 11:28:28
To: Blogg Blogg<contact2707.sheils@blogger.com>
Subject: Goodbye Milan - it was short but sweet


What a day yesterday was, arrived so late and then lost my directions to the hostel. Fortunately I had the address on my phone and a lovely couple used their map app on their phone to show me how to get there.
There I me an American girl called Jenny who was 6 months into her world trip. We were going to go to the Latinamericano Expo and tried very hard to find it but half way there we discovered that the metro stops well short of our destination so instead we went to see the Duomo. What a spectacular sight to see all lit up. When you get close up and see all the detail that has been sculpted into the stone and the 3d design on the five huge doors, you begin to understand why it could have taken over 100 years to build.

After a little bit of window shopping, drooling over the Prada designs and the Louis Vutton bags and cases, it was definitely time for something to eat and the nearest place was right there in the Piazza - MacDonalds. Yes I know, I can here you all screaming, eating McDonalds instead of lovely Italian food. Well it was 9.30pm, I hadn't eaten since before I left Rome and it was there! I must say it's the poshest McDonalds I've ever been in and when I ordered I knew exactly what I was getting (probably about 700 calories in one go) but it was delicious.

I think I have been extremely fortunate with my hostels. The Orsa Maggiore was better than many hotels I have stayed in while on holiday, thick white fluffy towels, crisp, cool bed linen and a lovely peaceful atmosphere after the hustle and bustle of the city. Last night the hostel was clean and the room spacious, the only fault was, it was a bit out of the way and difficult to find.

This morning got up early and made a mad dash across town to see The Santa Maria di Grazzia. This is where you find Leonardo de Vinci's fresco of The Last Supper another spectacular masterpiece. What surprises me though, wheb you ask for directions, the number of people who don't know where it is, I thought it would be as famous as the Doumo.

Now I am on the train to Nice as previously planned and a very picturesque journey it is.

I didn't manage to take many photos in Milan bur here is one of the very impressive Central station.
Sheila
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Fw: Onward to Milano

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-----Original Message-----
From: "Sheila Hogg" <littlewonder@tiscali.co.uk>

Date: Thu, 13 Aug 2009 14:56:59
To: Blogg Blogg<contact2707.sheils@blogger.com>
Subject: Onward to Milano


Finally have arrived in Milano after spending most of the day at Rome airport. Trouble with the engine meant that my flight was abandoned and we all had to wait for another plane to get us to Milan.

I was excited about getting there, now I just want to make sure that I still have a room for the night. I am hoping to get out tonight to the Latinamericardo Expo tonight to listen to a little live music which might go some way to making up for not seeing much today.

Here are a couple of pics from yesterday: the lift up to the panoramic platform on the Monumento a Vittoria Emanuele and the view of Rome from up there.
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Fw: Sunday a day of rest

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-----Original Message-----
From: "Sheila Hogg" <littlewonder@tiscali.co.uk>

Date: Sun, 16 Aug 2009 15:05:48
To: Blogg Blogg<contact2707.sheils@blogger.com>
Subject: Sunday a day of rest


It's been the most gorgeous day today. I have spent most of the day soaking up some rays and sleeping on the beach and now I am back sitting in front of my tent in the shade of a eucalyptus tree listening to the crickets.

There is no sand on the beach just pebbles which I thought would be most uncomfortable to lie but in fact were fine. There is a bonus to not bringing half the beach back in your towels and shoes etc. So I won't be put off going to a shingle beach again.

I forgot to say that there was the most spectacular fire works display here last night which went on for ages. At first I thought war had broken out what with all the banging and then the skies just lit up with an array of colours and sparkles, it was brilliant.

No pictures today because my phone is so low on battery now and I can't find an adaptor anywhere. The one I bought in Italy doesn't work here as it has three prongs and french plugs only have two, so I am trying to save energy.

As I have been sitting here writing this it would seem that I have had guests for dinner, the guests being ants and the dinner being me. The little blighters are much more ferocious than their Italian counterpart. Good job my mum gave me some great cream for bites.

Off now to shower and tend my wounds.
Sheila
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Fw: Grasse

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-----Original Message-----
From: "Sheila Hogg" <littlewonder@tiscali.co.uk>

Date: Sat, 15 Aug 2009 22:07:38
To: Blogg Blogg<contact2707.sheils@blogger.com>
Subject: Grasse


This is the Justices Court. It's quite strange having this contemporary building in this ancient city.
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Fw: More from Grasse

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-----Original Message-----
From: "Sheila Hogg" <littlewonder@tiscali.co.uk>

Date: Sat, 15 Aug 2009 22:03:34
To: Blogg Blogg<contact2707.sheils@blogger.com>
Subject: More from Grasse


PJ, if you're reading this, what kind of butterfly is this.
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Fw: Antibes

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-----Original Message-----
From: "Sheila Hogg" <littlewonder@tiscali.co.uk>

Date: Sat, 15 Aug 2009 22:01:10
To: Blogg Blogg<contact2707.sheils@blogger.com>
Subject: Antibes


Had a really good look around the area last night and as I haven't been able to buy any gas yet to cook with I bought. a slice of pizza for my supper. Can you believe it, I spend all that time in Italy avoiding pizza and it's the first thing I have to eat in France.

Today I took the train inland a bit to a place called Grasse. This is the world capital of parfumiers and has been for nearly 300 years. There is still a lot of parfumeries in Grasse making the oils, essences and formulas which they then sell to Estee Lauder, Lancome. Dior, Chanel etc.

To get to the old town there is a steep climb to the top of a hill, not unlike going to the top of Aurther's seat with the odd set of steps thrown in for good measure, but we're quite good at steps now. Once you get to the top, the views are as spectacular as, dare I say the panoramic views of Rome.

The there was a service in the cathedral so I only managed a peak inside but it did look charming and just like the rest of Grasse, smelt delicious. Every where you go, every alley or corner that you turn has a perfume shop and the whole of the old town just smells like you are constantly walking through a garden in full bloom. You can even distinguish individual scents, especially rose, lavender and verbena which I especially like.

I visited the musee international de la perfumerie which has recently opened after a complete refurbishment and for a few euros you get an impressive education in the perfume manufacture and marketing. There are videos and guides in several languages and there is even an interactive area where you can mix a choice of oils and see what kind of scent they make. This museum is a real heavy duty nose workout. There' just too much about Grasse to tell you here without boring you; let me just say I went for the morning and didn't come back to Antibes until after six.

I still hadn't bought gas and all the shops were shut so, as it was Saturday night I found a lovely restaurant over the road from the marina and had a meal complete with french fries. When I got back to the camp I went straight to the bar for a couple of drinks just to round the night off.

It's so lovely here I am going to use this as a base to explore rather than travelling over the last few days. Have booked my train to Paris so I will see lots of the lovely countryside from a very comfy seat. The trains are amazing here, they run on time, are very comfortable and are not expensive, unless of course you are going to Paris.

Going to the Picasso museum on Monday, lying on the beach tomorrow, otherwise I think my feet will refuse to go.

Here are some pics from Grasse today. The chimney is part of one of the biggest parfumeries.
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Fw: Antibes

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-----Original Message-----
From: "Sheila Hogg" <littlewonder@tiscali.co.uk>

Date: Sat, 15 Aug 2009 22:01:10
To: Blogg Blogg<contact2707.sheils@blogger.com>
Subject: Antibes


Had a really good look around the area last night and as I haven't been able to buy any gas yet to cook with I bought. a slice of pizza for my supper. Can you believe it, I spend all that time in Italy avoiding pizza and it's the first thing I have to eat in France.

Today I took the train inland a bit to a place called Grasse. This is the world capital of parfumiers and has been for nearly 300 years. There is still a lot of parfumeries in Grasse making the oils, essences and formulas which they then sell to Estee Lauder, Lancome. Dior, Chanel etc.

To get to the old town there is a steep climb to the top of a hill, not unlike going to the top of Aurther's seat with the odd set of steps thrown in for good measure, but we're quite good at steps now. Once you get to the top, the views are as spectacular as, dare I say the panoramic views of Rome.

The there was a service in the cathedral so I only managed a peak inside but it did look charming and just like the rest of Grasse, smelt delicious. Every where you go, every alley or corner that you turn has a perfume shop and the whole of the old town just smells like you are constantly walking through a garden in full bloom. You can even distinguish individual scents, especially rose, lavender and verbena which I especially like.

I visited the musee international de la perfumerie which has recently opened after a complete refurbishment and for a few euros you get an impressive education in the perfume manufacture and marketing. There are videos and guides in several languages and there is even an interactive area where you can mix a choice of oils and see what kind of scent they make. This museum is a real heavy duty nose workout. There' just too much about Grasse to tell you here without boring you; let me just say I went for the morning and didn't come back to Antibes until after six.

I still hadn't bought gas and all the shops were shut so, as it was Saturday night I found a lovely restaurant over the road from the marina and had a meal complete with french fries. When I got back to the camp I went straight to the bar for a couple of drinks just to round the night off.

It's so lovely here I am going to use this as a base to explore rather than travelling over the last few days. Have booked my train to Paris so I will see lots of the lovely countryside from a very comfy seat. The trains are amazing here, they run on time, are very comfortable and are not expensive, unless of course you are going to Paris.

Going to the Picasso museum on Monday, lying on the beach tomorrow, otherwise I think my feet will refuse to go.

Here are some pics from Grasse today. The chimney is part of one of the biggest parfumeries.
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Rome Day 2

Today I went out nice and early to avoid the crowds and at 8.30 the streets are very quite.  I took the 64 bus to the Vatican City and missed my stop so ended up walking around the walls of the city which is quite a pleasant walk and you get to see the dome from different perspectives.

I had wondered where all the people were but was soon to find out when I got to the entrance to the Vatican City, there they all were a huge crowd of people all waiting to get into the museum and I was now last in that queue. 

It was so worth the wait.  I can't even being to describe the sights that you will see. 

If you are coming to Rome, the Vatican museum is a must see site and apparently if you go after 12.30 it is a lot quieter, but whenever you go, don't get dragged along with the crowds, just go at your own pace so that you have time to saviour the art.

Of course it is Raphael's stanze and Michelangelo's frescoes that are the stars of the show although the supporting cast are also breathtaking including the picture gallery or Pinacoteca, where Raphael's Transfiguration and Leonardo's St Jerome hang. The gallery of maps is also stunning, but nothing prepares you for the beauty of the Raphael rooms or the Sistine Chapel.  When you see the work of these two artists you are truly blown away.  The Sistine Chapel is so beautiful, when I saw it, I cried.  You are forbidden to take photographs in the Sistine Chapel and that's not such a bad thing because it gives you time to enjoy and appreciate this masterpiece. 

I bought a large poster of the fresco work on the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel and rather than lump it around Rome for the day and then worry how I would carry it home without bending and crushing it, I just posted it to myself back home from the Vatican Post Office.

By the time I got out of there it was 1pm so I jumped back onto the 64 bus and headed in the opposite direction. I got of at Piazza dell'Ara Coeli and climbed even more steps to Piazza del Campidoglio.  From there I took the lift up to the very top for the most stunning views of the city.  From up there you can see Rome 360° and it was fabulous.

After that I tried to go to the Spanish Steps and got lost on the way.  I took the bus in the wrong direction and ended out on the outskirts of the city. Don't let anyone tell you that the Italians are not helpful.  I walked into a supermarket and asked for directions.  Not one person could speak English but between the four of them they managed to give me great directions for getting back into the centre of Rome and were really nice about it.

Eventually I made it to the Steps and as expected there were swarms of people all over them, relaxing, chatting, just being there.  Up the stairs the view is good, but I think I was spoiled by the panoramic views earlier in the day, so back to the bottom of the stairs.  I've done so many stairs lately, that it is starting to hurt coming down them just as much as going up them.  Hopefully they will be the last set that I will climb for a while.  I think that I must have climbed up and down about a thousand steps in the last 24 hours. 

The fountain at the bottom of the Steps is supposed to have the sweetest water in Rome so like the other tourists I filled my empty water bottle.  Now it could be that I was just so thirsty that anything would have been wonderful, but it did taste extra sweet, even nicer that the water that you can get at the Vatican. Who knows?

A little meander down Via Condotti to check out what's fresh with Armani & Co and then into an ice cream parlour for my daily reward of ice cream just to undo all the good that those steps must have done. Down past the Parliament buildings and onto the last stop of my sight seeing for the day,  Fontana di Trevi.  My sister Anne told me to go at night to see it at its best and by this time it was 8pm.  I remember thinking just before I turned the corner, I hope this lives up to expectation, believe me it does.  It is the most spectacular fountain that I have ever seen.  However, the crowds of people make it impossible to take any kind of a good photograph.  I have been told that like the Spanish Steps, if you want to see these without tourists, you have to go between 2am and 7am, not tonight Josephine, it's bed for me as I have to be up early to catch my flight to Milan.

P.S. I have so many insect bites on my body now that I surely must have lost weight.

Sheila

Next stop was

 

Sheila Hogg

Sheila Hogg Photography
www.sheilahogg.co.uk
email: contact@sheilahogg.co.uk
Tel: 07525028805

Roma

Okay so I did not manage to tell you about my trip to Sassari on Sunday.  I thought it would be a really good idea to get of of Alghero for the day so took myself off to the train stations.  Of course there is only one choice so I took it and ended up in this quant medieval walled town.  It was hit pretty abadly during the war and so there is quite a lot of new building in comparison with the old town. 

Of course, clever me did not think for a moment that the whole town would close in the afternoon, so there I was wondering lonely as a cloud, only there were none in the sky, kit was 32 degrees.  Not a pub or a cafe open, my only option was the cathedral which also had a museum of religious artefacts.  The good new is that with all that marble it was quite cool inside, and the even better news is that their displays of robes heavily embroidere with gold and silver threads and encrusted with jewels was absolutely amazing.  The silverware was out of this world including the silver throne.  The walss were pained with frescos and were stunning, there were ruby, emerald and diamond rings and at the end of it I was really pleased that I visited it.

On Monday Mira (the Russian girl that I met) and I thought we should have an easy day and go to the beach, save my feet for Rome and that is exactly what we did.

It is now Tuesday evening and I arrived in Rome at about 11am.  I found my hostel, had a quick shower and straight out the door. 

My feet are never going to feel the same again and I have only been to the Vatican.  Once again I am lost for words as the beauty of the place is something that has to be experienced.  There are no words to describe the splendour of the building. 

While I was there I thought that I should at least go up to the dome.  Over 500 steps, what is it with these Latins and their steps.   You have to queue to go up and after standing for about half an hour in the scorching heat, you then decide if you want to climb all the steps or take the life past the first 200.  I do not think anyone chose the steps only option.  I have taken loads of photos from the dome so I will be boring all my friends with the sights I have seen today.  I promise you by the time I had climbed down the stairs at the end of the visit, my whole body was shaking.

After a further wee stroll around the Castle of St Angelo I took myself off to a lovely little restaurant for a well earned supp and a glass of wine.  A mixed salad to start with and pasta with wild boar to follow.  It was delicious.

I am so tired that I can hardly think what to tell you next, so I will take myself off to bed so that I can start it all again tomorrow..

My apologies if this doesnt read right.  I have forgotten to bring my glasses to the computer and cannot find the apostrophes on this foreign keyboard.

Sheila

 

Sheila Hogg

Sheila Hogg Photography
www.sheilahogg.co.uk
email: contact@sheilahogg.co.uk
Tel: 07525028805

home for now. jpg

Here is the camp site where I am staying. They seem to have thought of everything here, every night there is a huge barbecue for anyone to cook on, they have provided electric sockets by the wash rooms so that you can charge your phone, dry your hair or even boil a kettle if you brought one. The camp site is la Marion and I highly recommend it to anyone planning on camping in Sardine.
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Sardinia

Arrived yesterday and managed to find my way around pretty easily so far. I am staying on a camp site at Alghero which is the main resort in the northwest of the island.. Alghero is resolutely Catalan dating back to the mid thirteen hundreds when Sardinia fell to Spanish invaders.

I strolled along the sea front to the old town centre watching a beautiful sunset at the same time. The centre is a maze of cobbled lanes, Spanish Gothic palazzi and then there is Porta a Mare. Full of jewellery shops, little boutiques and cafes, and just buzzes with life in the evening. A slice of pizza for supper and an ice cream for the walk home made for a perfect end to the day.

Today I will be using all my energy sunbathing and planning visits to some of the many sights to see including the Grotta di Nettuno.
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Holiday

Rushing around trying to get everything packed and jobs up to date before I leave this evening for my trip to Europe.  

I will be starting from Sardinia and working my way back to the UK calling on Rome, Milan, Nice, Montpellier, Mende and finally Paris - I think my camera may be working overtime.!! 

I hope to post some photographs along the way.

Sheila

Welcome to my Blogg!

Welcome to my blogg. My name is Sheila Hogg and I live in Berwick upon Tweed in Northumberland.

Photography as a career choice arrived late in my life, but fortunately passions are timeless, and after taking the plunge and embarking on a course of study to perfect my craft, I eventually realised that taking photographs was something that I would want to do forever.

My strength lies not only in my professional approach, but also in my ability to relate to people. Whoever you commission to take your photographs, you want to know that they are interested in you, that you can get on with them, and that they can build relationships that allow them to get the very best photographs possible.

I am qualified to degree level and am a member of the British Institute of Professional Photographers. A qualified licentiate member means you can be sure of a high standard of quality and a professional service. BIPP qualifications are highly regarded and are recognised across the world as a benchmark of excellence. A Licentiate qualification reflects a high level of experience, skill and achievement.

So who ever you choose to take your photographs, always select a qualified professional photographer.

On this blog I shall post when I can, let you know what I have been up to and anything in general I feel would bring a smile to your face.

Feel free to view my main site HERE.

Happy Blogging!

Sheila.