BUCKET LIST: Month Twelve - Cupcakes and Campfires

By: MJ + PJ

BUCKETED: Month Twelve – Italy, Switzerland, France, and Cambodia (May 2nd to June 1st, 2019)

Made it! 12 months, 52 weeks, 365 days… whichever way you want to measure it! We have not made it to our final destination yet, so onward we go!

This month saw us finish in Europe and start in Asia. We had planned to come to Asia before Europe, but plans change (see our month 7 review). Over our last three weeks in Europe we had company – family met us in Italy, and friends met us in France. This was a change for us as we had been following our own whims since leaving the US. All accountability in that time was only to ourselves. It was refreshing to have others around in that it gave us other people to talk to and explore with, along with space from each other. Having a break from traveling together 24hours/7days a week was refreshing.

We continued to use our Eurail Pass until the 20th of the month – three full months of use having started it in late February. It was clearly a good purchase for the way we travelled, and we have a whole post in the works about this topic. In Venice we used the transport of choice almost daily – water bus! It was an interesting experience and somewhat like a slow motion metro! Florence had light rail and Paris had a metro so we continued our ‘ride the rails’ pattern. We again used Uber on our exit from Paris, taking one to the airport to fly out to Cambodia.

We had two long flights on our expense list for our 12th month. One of which being our next destination. 🙂 This kept the expenses down for transport. We averaged $187 for our family per day for the month of May, which averaged out to be $62 per person per day. See out 365 Data page for the charts and data. If you removed the second flight to exit Cambodia for next month (which we had to purchase earlier than expected) our budget would have been $148 per day for the family – just a little under budget. Considering most of the month was in Europe. Another factor that kept costs lower was our ability to use a House Swap for the first ten days.

ITALY

Lido
- Coffee replacement hunt via cardiac MRI convention
- Lido bike ride
- Lido Al Cabaliere Restaurant with playground
Florence
- Firenze S.M.N Rail Station
- Basillica de San Lorenzo
  - Martelli and Donatello tomb
  - Crypt museum
- Florence Cathedral and Baptistry
- Sandemans Florence Walking Tour
  - Casa de Dante
  - Piazza della Signoria
  - Fountain (Neptune) – gas water spigot
  - Bombed building
  - Plaza Santo Spirito
  - Vasari Corridor
  - Pitti Palace
- Lunch at Cafe Ricchi
- Boboli Gardens
- Fontana dell’ Isola
- Porcelain Museum
- Mercado Centrale Firenze
- Galleria dell’ Accademia
  - Statue of David
- Church of Santa Croce (outside)
- Piazza de Santa Croce
- Pinocchio woodworking shop
- Galileo Museum and his finger!
- Ponte alle Grazi
- Piazzale Michelangelo
- Wine and Tapas Tour Evening
  - Carosello de Piazza della Repubblica
  - Cafe Gilli
  - Cantinetta Antinori Wine Bar
  - Wine window Buchetta del Vino
  - Procacci (Tartufi Alimentari di Lusso)
  - Plaza Santa Trinita
  - Ponte Santa Trinita (with season statues)
  - Stinky statue in wall on Bi Toscanella
  - Bulli and Balene Restaurant
  - Golden View Restaurant and Bar
- Ponte Vecchio Bridge and musicians
- Marni Store
- Florence Catherdal by night
- Hotel Martelli
- Icy-Wine for gelato
Pisa
- Leaning Tower of Pisa
- Duomo St Mary
- Baptistry of Pisa
- Street art
Lucca
- Lucca Walking Tour
  - Bassilica Minore di San Paolino
  - Panificio Chifenti
  - Statue of seated smoking Giacomo Puccini
  - Piazza San Michele
  - Chiesa di San Michele in Foro
  - Lego Batman on bike at Friking Lucca
  - Ricci and Pieri di Somo Caffe (closed
  - Carlli Caffe (closed)
  - Wine window Gusavit Aquam Vinum Factam
  - Lucca city wall
  - Basilica di San Frediano
  - Roman Piazza Anfiteatro
  - Istituto Musicale Luigi Boccherini and statue
  - St Martin Cathedral
  - Gelatarium (with swing seats!)
- Walked along the city wall
Florence
- Strozzi-Fallaci
- Pasticceria Statuto
- Giardina Baden Powell
- Gelateria de’ Medici
Milan
- Milan Central Station

SWITZERLAND

Avenches
- Roman amphitheater and arena
- Sanctuari de Cigognier
- Theatre Aventicum
- Roman Museum of Avenches
- Galerie du Chateau d’Avenches
Bern
- Marketgasse (main street)
- Lollipop Candy Shop
- MyMuesli Shop
- Pfeiferbrunnen Fountain
- Zytglogge clock tower
- Einstein Bench
- Bernisches Historisches Museum / Einstein Museum
- The Cathedral of Bern
- Mosesbrunnen Fountain
- Nydeggbrücke Bridge and Aare River
- Bearengraben (Bear Pit)
- Untertorbrücke Bridge
- Läuferbrunnen Fountain
- Zähringer memorial
- Schenk Geigenbau Bern (instrument maker)
- Gerechtigkeitsbrunnen Fountian
- Kreuzgassbrunnen Fountain
- Einsteinhaus (outside only)
- Kindlifresserbrunnen Fountain
- Golden Elephant outside of Stadttheater
- Kornhausbrücke
- Meret Oppenheim Fountain
Lucerne
- Lion Monument
- Kapellbrücke
- Unter der Egg Promenade and Reuss River
- Reussbrücke
- Nadelwehr Luzern
- Spreuer Bridge
- Wasserkraftwerk Mühlenplatz
- Fondue House du Pont
Engelberg
- Titlis Mountian
- Cliff walk
- Suspension bridge
- Glacier cave
- Titles Panorama Restaurant

FRANCE

Paris
- Sandemans Walking Tour
  - Note Dame
  - Fountain of St Michel
  - Palais de Justice de Paris facade
  - Tour de l’Horloge du palais de la Cité – 14th Century clock
  - Place Dauphine
  - Pont Neuf bridges
  - Bibliothèque Mazarine area
  - Pont does Artes
  - Louvre grounds and pyramid
- Carrousel Arc de Triomphe
- Tuileries Garden
- Place de la Concorde
- Saint Lazare Train Station (twice a day!)
- Wonderful visit with our good friends from Loveland!
- Palais de Chaillot
- Trocadéro Gardens
- Eiffel Tower (Day of the 130th Anniversary!)
- Champ de Mars
- G20 Supermarket at 143 Rue Saint-Dominique
- Seine River Cruise
- Eiffel Tower 130th light show… from the wrong side.
Versailles
- Versailles Palace Gardens area via Les Petits Train
- Versailles row boats
- Place d’Armes
- Versailles Palace
Paris
- Sainte-Chapelle
- La Féte du Pain Paris
- Place Louis Lépine
- Shakespeare & Company bookstore
- Pont Saint-Louis
- Berthillon Glacier (gelato store)
- Ma Dame Louis (historic ‘establishment’)
- Péniche Marcounet (Seine side bar)
- Eiffel Tower 130th light show… from the correct side.
Montmartre
- Le mur des je t’aime
- Square Louise-Michel
- Florence Cafe
- Sandermans Walking tour
  - Moulin Rouge
  - Apartment of Vincent van Gough (Appartement de Théo Van Gogh)
  - Café des Deux Moulins
  - Le Moulin Radet
  - Statue of Saint-Denys
  - Rue Norvins
  - Clos Montmartre
  - Au Lapin Agile
  - Sacré-Cœur
  - Amorino Gelato
Paris
- Day at the Louvre

CAMBODIA

Siem Reap
- New Street A/Little Pub Street
- Psar Chas Market
- Siem Reap Art Center Night Market
- Angkor Silk Farm
- Wat Preah Prom Rath
- Pub Street
- Smile of Angkor (show with buffet)
- Sunrise Small Tour
  - Angkor Wat
  - Angkor Thom
  - Bayon Temple
  - Baphoun
  - Phimeanakas
  - Terrace of the Elephants
  - Terrace of the Leper King
  - Ta Ken
  - Ta Phrom
- Big Tour to spread out temples
  - Srah Srang
  - Banteay Kdei
  - Pre Rup
  - East Mebon
  - Ta Som
  - Neak Pean
  - Preah Khan