The all new Wembley Stadium is a sight to behold. Approaching it takes forever, coming out of Wembley Park station the stadium looks massive and continues to do so. Walking towards it takes forever. Massed throngs of ticket touts block all available footpaths. Today was all about football. For the second time Wembley was hosting a regular season NFL game, this time between the New Orleans Saints and San Diego Chargers. Last year's Giants-Dolphins game had become a mud bath due to incessant rain. Today, however, rain wasn't expected. At least not to the same level.

Walking down from the hotel to Louvre and spending several hours in the famous museum and gallery is a taxing affair. Arriving early is recommended as the queues grow quickly. There are some extremely touristy things to do in Paris and the Louvre is one of them. It's a big museum. Very big. It would take days to see everything. Those visiting Paris for a few days should think ahead. Plan and have an idea of which areas you would like to see then head in. There are over 35,000 things to see ranging from the ancient Egyptian and Greek civilisations through to the more modern and famous works of art.

The Eurostar is not the romantic train journey that the adverts would have you believe. It is, like many train journeys in England, an overcrowded rather dull affair. It is mundane and similar to any train journey except this one's just a little bit faster. At least, that is the view from the Cattle Class.

It's been a while since I came down to London. Not travelling to London often helps you forget how dirty the city is. Buildings look dirty and the streets are awash with litter. However, it was an enjoyable half day excursion. The convenience of a hotel near the Kings Cross and St Pancras stations was going to be useful tomorrow. Bags are dumped and we're down into the tube station for a brief trip then we all wandered slowly heading towards the Tower of London.

Venice. The beauty of the Queen of the Adriatic. Taking in a walk that took in the Santa Maria della Salute and San Giorgio Romano along la Giudecca. I managed to count 97 backpackers who were, as I believe the ghastly phrase is, "doing the Academia".

Morning and the day starts with the smell of fresh baking comes in through the windows. There are few smells that are better than fresh bread. Europeans know about good baking. This early in the morning the streets are quiet. The Venice rush hour is a hectic affair of men with carts. Deliveries are made to the cafés, restaurants, shops and museums. Hand carts deliver and hand carts remove the rubbish. Everything is transported through the narrow streets of Venice and loaded or unloaded on the boats in the canal network. The stalls begin to open up and the Rialto Bridge is quiet.