Aligning of the planets

One day we will travel, when the kids are off our hands. How many of us have said that? While our kids Tim, Madeline and Liam aren’t quite off our hands, they are certainly old enough to leave behind so pouring over divinely described and exotic locations in the Sydney Morning Herald Travel Section has become a Saturday morning habit.

The convoluted path to traveling to France and Italy in September 2010 started just before October 2007 when Tony was invited to go to Denver, Colorado in the US of A to present at a fire conference. The US was not on the radar for choice of a joint holiday, but staying over in San Francisco for 3 days was surprisingly exciting and somewhat liberating for Tony the novice traveler.

The next opportunity came up in February 2009 when Australia played Japan in Yokohama in a football World Cup qualifier, in school term of course which effectively ruled Veronica out. As it happened, Jetstar was starting flights to Japan that very week, and the soccer (football) tragic got an airline ticket for $520 return to Osaka. Again, Japan was not on the travel radar, but the lure of seeing our boys play against the Blue Samurai, in Japan, was a big magnet. In the end, the extended Jarrett fan group was eleven (Tony; our sons Tim and Liam; Tony’s brother Andrew and  his sons Matthew, Paul and Dean; Tim’s mates James and Shane; Paul’s mate Robbo, and Matt’s fiancé Yvonne).

The stories about Japan being so culturally and socially different than Australia were repeated to anyone who stood still. In September 2009 Veronica we traveled back to Japan and spent a rewarding 17 days in country.

We loved the Japan experience and the notion of travel itself. This bought forward our plans for an extended European holiday to September 2010.

Once it became known that we were going to go to France and Italy, friends offered lots of advice about places to see and places to stay. Three particular people need to be mentioned:

• Simon Laverty for digging out his 1977 art and history back-packing itinerary that identified key museums, galleries and churches.
• Marilyn Bestetti for convincing Veronica (it didn’t need much effort) that France and Italy was the place to go to, and for Bed and Breakfast hotel suggestions for Paris and Venice that we took up.
• Cousin Anne-Marie Nolan who recommended the magnificent Deux Freres in Roquebrune-Cap-Martin, French Riviera.

So this is our story.

Tony and Veronica Jarrett

May 2011