Hello Ladies and Gentlemen,

I'm back, finally! After a month of galavanting around Europe, I'm finally back to the land of Deutsch. Which means access to a decent QWERTY keyboard to write the very blog I know you have all been waiting for. So without further ado, allow me to tell you in great detail all about my time with Loz!

Kathrin and I left Merzig at around 4:30a.m. to get to Frankfurt, where her Vietnam Airlines flight was scheduled to arrive at 6:30. We got there at about 7 and ran like headless chooks to her arrival gate. She had requested, nay, DEMANDED a sign be made, but I was way ahead of her. Being the amazing sister I am, I handpainted an awesome sign and was standing there like a kid on Christmas holding it high in the air.

I waited.

And waited.

And then I waited some more.

But all I could see was Asian after Asian walking through the gate, and I was beginning to worry until I heard a huge 'OI!'

Turning around, I saw my little sister for the first time in 7 months. If I could describe the feeling in words, I would! For a split second I felt terribly guilty that we were a little late, but then I was beyond happy that she was there, with me in Germany, and above all safe. I literally could not stop hugging her! Poor Kathrin had to put up with us talking and laughing like idiots non stop the WHOLE way home. It's safe to say we had a lot of catching up to do. I told her she should have a nap while it was still early, but that didn't stop her!

We went straight to Oma Lotti's house for breakfast, and as usual she did not disappoint. We had croissants, chocolate croissants, brötchen (little German bread rolls), ham, cheese, jam, coffee, tea, the works! If there's one thing I will miss about Germany, and there are many, it's the food. It was here that Lauren met Simon for the first time, he did me proud and was such a little cutie all morning, he just loves to entertain new people. After that we went home and I showed her around the house a little, but not too much! Because I knew the kids would be dying to show her their rooms.

We gave Mum a call to let her know Loz was safe. I decided it would be funny to pretend that I was Lauren on the phone.

Kate: *tired, dejected* hey Mum, it's me Loz

Mum: Oh hello Darl how ya going?

Kate: I'm so tired Mum it was such a long flight

Mum: Oh I'm sure it was darl, and how was it seeing Katie?

Kate: It was…yeah it was… HAHAHAHAHA

I've always been one to give the joke away, and not only did Kaz NOT find it funny, she proceeded to hang up on us and have a little spaz attack when we called her back. I pointed it out to her then and I'll point it out now; it's not MY fault you can't tell your own daughters apart!

Then we unpacked her suit case a little, I was pretending to be helpful but my alterior motive was getting my hands on the Vegemite, Barbecue shapes and Milo she brought for me. Actually, the barbecue shapes and Milo were for the kids and Oscar/Marc respectively; I can survive without them for 4 more months. But the Vegemite? That s*** is a must when you're abroad, it's the one thing I absolutely refuse to go without while I'm here!

We went to pick the kids up from school and then Kathrin cooked our favourite lunch, noodles with peas and ham and tomato-cream sauce, plus one of her amazing salads. After that, we went with Marius and Simon for a walk through the animal garden and to the town park on the other side while Anna and Kathrin went to an appointment, then Kathrin drove us all to the wolf park and the Merzig lookout before we all went to Saarlouis, a town not far away, where Anna had her ballet practice. I took Loz out for her first ever German ice cream and drink! I'll admit, she didn't get time to try the beer while she was here, but we did share a delicious vodka ice cream drink of some sort, and some waffles and crepes with ice-cream and chocolate sauce… did I mention I love the food here!?

By the time we got home at about 10, Loz was absolutely wrecked and I put her straight to bed! Then I thought… s***. We're leaving for our trip at 6a.m. and neither of us have packed yet. I mean, I had intended that we pack together, but the day was so jam-packed that it just didn't happen. Being extremely tired myself, I can't say I was all too thrilled about not only packing 2 bags alone, but organising last minute tickets, taxis and tours before we finally set off on our adventure. But nevertheless, I soldiered on and got it all done. Some may use the word 'champion,' but I don't like to brag.

After a solid 1 hour sleep I was up and about to make 100% sure I had everything right. Those who know me know I'm not the best at organising things, and based on previous evidence I'm sure you're waiting for the words 'and THEN I was at the wrong airport,' or 'ah crap, where's my passport?' to appear. SO, did we have any major failures? I guess you will have to read on to find out (sorry Wozzy).

We had some breakfast and climbed into the taxi to begin our adventure; first stop, Paris! As we were driving along, I decided to make some friendly German conversation with our driver.

Kate: So, what's your name?

Driver: You already know my name

Kate: What? No I don't

Driver: Yes you do, I told you already

Kate: What? Today?

Driver: No, not today. When I picked you up from the club a few weeks ago! You were pretty drunk!

Kate: Ohhh… Alex, is it?

I actually had to look around to make sure I wasn't in Taree again; I thought that was the only place in the world I knew taxi drivers by name and they knew me by my address. Anyway, a taxi driver isn't a bad friend to have! We had a good laugh and he told me to make sure I call him whenever I want to be picked up next.

We made it to our train in plenty of time, and then we had to wait at the next station for about an hour before we could catch the train to Paris. But I wasn't taking any chances with time! I insisted we were early for all occasions. We had a nice little carriage shared with just 5 others.

Before Loz came, I did a lot of research and decided that buying a Eurail Pass would be the cheapest and easiest thing for us to do. The passes give you freedom for a certain amount of time, depending on which one you buy, to travel internationally between a certain amount of countries. It sounds easy, but it's actually quite a pain in the arse. Because rather than just jumping on the train with your passes, you still need to buy reservations and often pay a supplement before boarding. I booked our train to Paris on the phone with one lady, because I knew that would sell out quickly. Then once I'd decided where else we wanted to go and when, I booked those with someone else. I'm still on the fence with the old Eurail Pass! Nevertheless, when the Deutsche Bahn man came in to check our tickets, I whipped out our passes and reservation receipts with confidence. I'm not sure who has had the pleasure of dealing with Deutsche Bahn, but they can and will be quite rude if you have done something wrong.

He inspected our passes and ticket and informed me that I had only paid a reservation fee and not a supplement. I told him that the lady on the phone said this was all I had to pay with our Eurail passes, and he said 'well I'm sorry but you will have to pay the right amount of 26 euro.' Okay, so it was better than a fine each, but I was still so annoyed! The lady on the phone was pretty unhelpful as it was, and I was sure I'd relayed the information to her correctly. I didn't want a repeat of this on every train we took, so I asked him nicely if he could check the rest of the tickets I had booked to make sure I had done it right. He started fanning through my tickets one by one and concluded 'Wow! This is a BIG trip you're taking.' He even smiled and said all the tickets were correct. And as I was getting my wallet out to give him his 26 euro, he bid me farewell and told me to enjoy our trip. Phew! Possible stuff up #1 avoided.

Our train to Paris was so fast, we were there just on 10a.m. I was so excited to explore this city for the second time; I fell in love with it in December and I knew Lauren would love it as well! I had originally planned to do a free walking tour meeting at the Notre Dam Cathedral, starting at 11a.m giving us plenty of time. I was confident I knew how to use the metro having already spent 5 days there, but my confidence got the better of me and we ended up going the wrong way straight up! Once we got off at the stop for the cathedral, it was more difficult to find than I anticipated. So we ended up missing the walking tour which I was pretty bummed about; they're a fantastic way to explore the city and learn the history without putting in much effort at all. But missing the tour was the beginning of yet another fantastic day in Paris for me, and a second day in Europe for Loz.

We made our way around and through the cathedral and then stumbled upon the famous love lock bridge. Thousands and thousands of padlocks; some small, some big and some just over the top, but all with initials and professions of love on them. Once secured, the owners throw the keys into the River Seine as a symbol of their undying love. Of course it's not the only one in Europe and not even the only one in Paris, but it's still a magnificent sight. We then went to the Eifel Tower and bought some baguette, cheese and wine to devour on the grass behind it like the Parisians we are. The line to go up the top was about 20 thousand times smaller than it was in December, and we managed to get up within about an hour all together. A far cry from the 3.5 hours it took me.

On the way to the top, we met a handsome young American named Peter who was a little anxious about the ever shaky elevator ride. While we were sipping our 12 euro thimbles of champagne on the very top level, we ran into him again. This time we got to chatting for about 15 minutes about all kinds of stuff, from where he lives and go to schools to what he was doing in Paris. He was a funny boy and very easy to get along with, so when he said 'I have to go!' I was disappointed.

Little old Peter leaned in to kiss me goodbye and say 'nice to meet you.' Naturally, I prepared my cheek for the taking. But to my surprise, this 17 year old not-so-gentleman grabbed my face and planted a big sloppy one right on my lips, then turned around the did the same to my sister! I felt like such a foxy cougar. If you're reading this then you have probably seen the photo of my sister having a pash with him; and contrary to what she will tell you she was MORE than happy to do it, even if it was my idea. So Loz gets a photo passionately kissing our new friend, while I managed to get in a photo with some overweight and smelly Indian men. I think she won that round.

After that very interesting adventure, we went to the Champs Elysees. The novelty of being together hadn't quite worn off yet, so we were laughing and giggling like dickheads while we were walking out of the metro when a very well dressed and good looking French man named Malik said to us 'girls, where are you from?' He proceeded to walk with us for a few minutes and we had a lovely chat, all the while I was admiring his pretty accent. It's no secret, I have a thing for French guys, I always have and I always will. We exchanged details and then Loz and I went to the Sacré Cœur because I wanted to show her what an amazing cathedral it was!

My loyal fans might remember my story about the Parisian gypsies forcing a wrist band on me and then trying to bleed me dry for it. You might also remember that it happened at… you guessed it! The Sacré Cœur. So I was more than prepared to fend off my little friends this time round. The church is set at the top of a rather large hill, the access to which requires some several hundred stairs… at least it felt like it after a day of being on our feet! And to quote my sister 'how can anyone who makes it up these stairs still believe in God?'

After I was satisfied I'd showed her the best I knew of Paris, we went to go and find some dinner. I'm not sure how the waiter felt about us; I think he knew we were only there for the free Wi-Fi. But we had a delicious meal and it was already time to leave Paris on our overnight train to Figueres in Catalunya (Spain).

I'll admit I was absolutely thrilled about getting on the train. I had booked beds for us, and we would be able to take a much needed shower… or so I thought. The room was like a shoe box! There were 2 tiny bunk beds squished in, with barely any room for luggage. We made light of it by doing some planking and then I walked up and down the carriage looking for a shower, until finally I found a conductor who said 'the showers are only for first class passengers.'

WHAT!

Note to self, or in fact anyone, do NOT attempt to have a make shift shower in the toilet cubicle on a train. It does not finish well and you may end up even dirtier. But I will say it was the best experience I had out of the 3 overnight trains we took. I had the best night sleep and was not impressed when I was awoken at 6:30a.m, but I was super excited about seeing my boys on the other end!

I met Oscar and Marc on my second trip to Ireland. We spent all of a few hours together, but we stayed in touch and they offered me a bed for any time I wanted it! So I jumped at the chance to see them again in beautiful Catalunia. The trip from Figueres back to Vic, where they live, took a good hour and a half. I couldn't believe they came all that way so early in the morning to pick us up! I didn't know much about them but I knew they loved their sleep. The week only got better from there on in.

Marc had to go to work when we got home, so Oscar went and bought us Churros with chocolate for breakfast (YUM!) and then took us to the markets in Vic, which were bustling with busy Catalonians and full of lovely clothes, shoes and food. Although we had a good night sleep on the train, we were more than ready for a siesta by the time we got home in the afternoon. Oscar insisted we sleep while he prepared some more delicious food, I don't even know the name but all I know is that it was oily/tomatoey/bready/salty goodness! Oh my God, it was amazing.

That night we went to an outdoor party in a nearby village, where bands were playing live music on traditional instruments and everyone was dancing and having a great time. Marc and Lauren had prepared Sangria beforehand, which was disgusting and lethal. It was a really fun party and we met some really cool people!

The next day the boys drove us about 2 hours to an extremely beautiful and secluded beach on the coast of Catalonia. There wasn't a lot of sand, but many rocks and cliff faces and the water of the Atlantic was so beautiful! We went to Oscar's Mum's house for dinner that night, and she cooked Paella. And it was probably the best thing I've ever eaten, I'm not gonna lie! I would kill for a big bowl of it right now. Nothing beats authentic homemade food. Oscar's Mum Nuria and stepdad Ignasi are so incredibly lovely; they were so welcoming to us, and it's easy to see where Oscar gets it from.

On Monday Oscar took us to the city of Barcelona, where we explored and he showed us some things we wouldn't have otherwise seen! We had Tapas for lunch, more amazing Spanish food, and wandered around until the early evening. Barcelona is a nice city, the people are cool and it's full of tourists like every major city. It's so different seeing things from a local's perspective though!

On Tuesday Oscar left us to fend for ourselves while he went to work. He drew me a very messy map which detailed how to get to the beach, and I was a little worried given my piss poor sense of direction. He also told me the bus to the train station was free, so with that we walked about 10 minutes to the bus station and when it came, we jumped on and sat straight down. Next thing we hear is the bus driver whistling and beckoning us towards the front of the bus. We were so embarrassed, because it turns out the bus WASN'T free and I'm still arguing with Oscar about it to this day :P. We were still unsure of Oscar's map, and some ladies sitting near us took immediate pity. Maybe because we couldn't read the map, or maybe because we looked like loser free loaders who knows. Neither of them spoke a word of English, but they still made every effort to show us where we needed to go and make sure we were on the right track. We found the beautiful beach without any loss of direction, and when we made our way back to Oscar's house the same ladies were on the bus! It's so amazing what can be done when two strangers do not speak each other's language. If you try hard enough you can still communicate and get whatever you need.

The next day was bittersweet, because we had to say goodbye to the boys who had given us so much and expected so little. But at the same time, we were catching the train to Valencia and it was time to see a new part of Spain!

The train to Valencia took about 5 hours, and it went really fast. I drank the leftover Sangria, because it wasn't gonna drink itself and it's always 5 o'clock somewhere in the world right? We found our hostel really easily, and I must say I chose well. Great location, party atmosphere and full of people. Loz wanted to do some shopping, so we spent the afternoon looking around the city and then made our way back in time for Happy Hour.

We decided to do a pub crawl that night, and we met a bucket load of Aussies from a top deck tour. The pubs we went to were really fun, and Loz and I met a guy named Clayton from America who was also staying at the hostel who we tagged along with for most of the night. The annoying thing was that it took FOREVER to get into the club at the end, which was supposed to be included in the price. Anyway we finally got in, and it was right next to the beach so we decided that going swimming at 6am would be a fantastic idea. Nice and refreshing! Safe to say we didn't make it out of bed until the early afternoon the next day.

Loz and I decided to make our way to the beach, and as we walked out of the hostel we saw none other than Clayton himself sitting under a tree. He told us he had been waiting for a bike tour but they never came, my personal belief is that he had been waiting for us all day so he had someone to go to the beach with. I was glad we had him with us seeing as neither of us can read a map to save our lives, and he got us to the beach quickly and without a hitch. The stupid train ticket machines in Valencia don't take credit cards and Loz and I were out of cash, so we mooched a couple of euros from Clayton and then bought him lunch as a return favour.

We also neglected to bring sunscreen, so Clayton was kind enough to lend us some of his which we all but emptied, inadvertently of course. We decided that the name Clayton was getting a little old and we should jazz it up a bit; and thus, Clay Clay was born. I'm not sure if it was the name change, the sunscreen theft or the loans we took, but I think Clay Clay was all too happy to get rid of us by the end of the day. We made up many Clay-tastic puns and got ready for another Clay-riffic night in Valencia. When we saw Clay Clay in the hostel bar, he ignored us! But he had a change of heart and joined us outside for a drink later on, where we had already made friends with a guy named Derrick. Clay Clay had a sudden change of heart and was our best friend again! We had kind of intended to go out that night, but we ended up just having some drinks at the hostel and chatting away with everyone we'd met. Nobody wanted to do the s***ty pub crawl again! We all agreed it was a waste of money, and after a couple of drinks Loz and I were super ready for bed.

We were up a little earlier the next day, we had a flight to catch that night and we wanted to go to the beach beforehand. But without our Clay Clay, this proved an extremely difficult feat! We got lost on the way to the metro, then caught a bus which got us even more lost. Possible stuff up #405: NOT avoided! But I asked a lovely man for directions in my perfect Spanish, i.e. saying 'Aqua' and motioning some breaststroke with my arms in mid-air. He understood though, and we eventually got to the beach with a couple of hours to spare before our flight.

So that was it for Spain/Catalonia already! We were off to take our one and only flight together for this trip. It was time to get our Italian on with some Pisa, Florence, Venice and Rome. To be continued…