Wow...Lots to fill you in on!
Our day at sea on Saturday was uneventful. We used the time to kick back and relax. Stayed out of the sun on lounge chairs by the pool. They had plenty of activities (pool olympics) and different music. It was really nice.
The dinner at the diningroom was fabulous - as expected. The 2 couples we are sitting with are wonderful and we have a great time. After dinner we go find somewhere with them for an after dinner drink. Our sitting for dinner isn't until 9pm, so by the time we leave there, have a drink or two and get back to our room, it's well after 1am. That's ok when we have a day at sea the next day, but when you have to get up early for an excursion -- it's tiring, but I wouldn't change it for the world.
Greg is still struggling with his gout. I ended up doing Athens by myself as well. However he did come with me today to Santorini.
My heat rash is nasty. I did go to the infirmary, but the guy behind the desk knew right away what it was and sold me some anti-itch cream. No cost for consultation, thankfully! Our wonderful British tablemates refer to it as 'corned beef on the leg' -- or something like that. So I don't know what kind of image that conjurs up in your head, but it's probably not far from the truth. Maybe I'll have to take pictures... lol
Athens was great!!! The tour took us to the Acropolis and then to the shopping district. :-) It's interesting having some of these old old old remements of ancient Greece mixed in with all the current structures.
Today was Santorini. It is beautiful! All the light colored building (mostly white) against the dark volcanic rock that it sits on. We went to the city of Oai where we had some time to do a little shopping. The scenery all around the island is spectacular. From there we stopped a local winery for samples. Wine making in Santorini is coming to end. No money in it, I guess. The mountain sides have all these little caves that they built into them for storing the grapes, etc as part of the wine making process -- all back in the day. Now they use them for storage or for the donkeys... We then were taking to another small village where we took a cable car down to the tender to get to our ship.
I don't know if I'm taking enough pictures yet. I have about 45o -- but some people say they already have over a 1000.... I guess I better get 'clicking'...
Tomorrow we are at sea again. Tomorrow night is our second formal dinner. I feel so under dressed at these things. A lot of woman go all out on their outfits. I just couldn't justify spending money on something I will most likely only where once. I need that money for my scrapbooking supplies! ;-)
The weather has been fantastic! Clear blue skies pretty much every day and hot! hot! hot!!!
Next destination is Naples, Italy. Until then -- have a great day!
Monday, August 31, 2009
Friday, August 28, 2009
Day 3 - Dubrovnik, Croatia
So -- the day didn't start off the greatest. Greg woke up with a sore foot. He went to the infirmary ($120 US just for the checkup!). He has gout. He couldn't go on the excrusion, so I went on my own. It was walking the wall of the Old City, a tour the Martime Museum (snore) and then some free time to explore the Old City.
Speaking of feet, I have a rash of some sort on my legs - just above my feet. It doesn't itch or hurt, it's just really red. I think it might be a heat rash, but I'm not going to the infirmary unless it really starts to spread or hurt.
Dubrovnik is wonderful and the old city is amazing -- but my goodness, I feel like I should just be a shell of my old self with all that walking up and down stairs in this blistering heat! Thankfully they had provided us with water beforehand and when we got to the ship, we were given iced face cloths and a drink of water.
After cooling off in our cabin for a bit, I went hunting for Greg. Found him lounging poolside reading a book. The ship departed Dubrovnik at 5:00pm and we were invited to go to the Helipad to take pictures (front of the ship), so I did that. Was able to get some nice shots.
Tonite was also the first Formal Dinner night. We hadn't been to the diningroom yet, so I was looking forward to it (the food -- not dressing up! ). We are seated at a table with 2 other couples. They are related and are from England. We really enjoyed our dinner with them.
There was a theater performance going on after dinner, so I went and checked that out -- Greg had gone back to the cabin to rest his foot. Now I'm here... :-)
I'm going to hit the Casino shortly and then I need to go the onboard library and find a book to read.
Tomorrow we are at sea all day, so it will be nice and relaxing. Maybe it will help Greg's foot and my rash...
Next stop -- Athens Greece!
Until next time...
Speaking of feet, I have a rash of some sort on my legs - just above my feet. It doesn't itch or hurt, it's just really red. I think it might be a heat rash, but I'm not going to the infirmary unless it really starts to spread or hurt.
Dubrovnik is wonderful and the old city is amazing -- but my goodness, I feel like I should just be a shell of my old self with all that walking up and down stairs in this blistering heat! Thankfully they had provided us with water beforehand and when we got to the ship, we were given iced face cloths and a drink of water.
After cooling off in our cabin for a bit, I went hunting for Greg. Found him lounging poolside reading a book. The ship departed Dubrovnik at 5:00pm and we were invited to go to the Helipad to take pictures (front of the ship), so I did that. Was able to get some nice shots.
Tonite was also the first Formal Dinner night. We hadn't been to the diningroom yet, so I was looking forward to it (the food -- not dressing up! ). We are seated at a table with 2 other couples. They are related and are from England. We really enjoyed our dinner with them.
There was a theater performance going on after dinner, so I went and checked that out -- Greg had gone back to the cabin to rest his foot. Now I'm here... :-)
I'm going to hit the Casino shortly and then I need to go the onboard library and find a book to read.
Tomorrow we are at sea all day, so it will be nice and relaxing. Maybe it will help Greg's foot and my rash...
Next stop -- Athens Greece!
Until next time...
Thursday, August 27, 2009
Happy Birthday, Greg!
I think I have him an awesome birthday present -- a Mediterranean Cruise! LOL Ok - so maybe not, but I DID reserve us a dinner in the 'fancy' restaurant on board. We had an awesome meal. Heck, I even took pictures of some of it! LOL I'm sure we seemed a little 'red neck' or something. You'd think we never go out much.
Anyways, as for the rest of the day, it was great. We took a boat to Murano -- where they make the Murano glass -- and to Burano -- where they make lace. Since the ship was departing Venice at 3:00 pm, we had to be back on board by 1:30, so it was a quick excursion. We only had an hour on each island. They are both quite nice and I did manage to pick up some Murano glass jewelry and Burano lace. Burano is beautiful with the all the colorful homes. Apparently back in the day, because of heavy fog in the fall/winter, the sailors needed to find their way home, so the solution was to paint all the houses a different color. This tradition still lives on. It's a very colorful island!
Again the weather was HOT! Greg and I both melted on the 1 hour trip back from Burano.
We are now on the Adriatic heading toward Croatia. I'm not sure what time we dock, but our excursion doesn't happen until 10:00 am, so we get a little bit of a sleep in.
Before we left Venice, we had to travel through the main canal. I was able to get some nice shots of Venice from the ship. I also made a 'didn't think before I bought' purchase of a scrapbook album. It is nice, but after thinking about it, it's not what I really wanted for this trip. I asked if I could return it, but no deal. Sucks. Not somethin I can even put up at a Nook garage sale, unless you've been in the Mediterranean. Oh well. Guess I'll have to change my plans! lol
We've met several Canadians now. A couple behind as at dinner are from Hamilton. We didn't really talk to them, but the server had asked them and then mentioned that we were also from Canada. We exchanged a few pleasantries and then went on with our dinner.
I've just come from dropping $20 in the casino. It actually lasted a lot longer then ever happens for me at Fallsview! LOL
Anyways, it's really nice to be on board the ship and not having to deal with traffic or getting lost. I'm hoping that the captain knows where he's going... ;-)
Well...gotta couple more stops to make and I'm running out of time fast. I may have shorting my stories... but probably not.
Although your work day isn't even yet finished, my day is almost over! I'm nackered and think I'll will go and read for a while.
Night!!
Anyways, as for the rest of the day, it was great. We took a boat to Murano -- where they make the Murano glass -- and to Burano -- where they make lace. Since the ship was departing Venice at 3:00 pm, we had to be back on board by 1:30, so it was a quick excursion. We only had an hour on each island. They are both quite nice and I did manage to pick up some Murano glass jewelry and Burano lace. Burano is beautiful with the all the colorful homes. Apparently back in the day, because of heavy fog in the fall/winter, the sailors needed to find their way home, so the solution was to paint all the houses a different color. This tradition still lives on. It's a very colorful island!
Again the weather was HOT! Greg and I both melted on the 1 hour trip back from Burano.
We are now on the Adriatic heading toward Croatia. I'm not sure what time we dock, but our excursion doesn't happen until 10:00 am, so we get a little bit of a sleep in.
Before we left Venice, we had to travel through the main canal. I was able to get some nice shots of Venice from the ship. I also made a 'didn't think before I bought' purchase of a scrapbook album. It is nice, but after thinking about it, it's not what I really wanted for this trip. I asked if I could return it, but no deal. Sucks. Not somethin I can even put up at a Nook garage sale, unless you've been in the Mediterranean. Oh well. Guess I'll have to change my plans! lol
We've met several Canadians now. A couple behind as at dinner are from Hamilton. We didn't really talk to them, but the server had asked them and then mentioned that we were also from Canada. We exchanged a few pleasantries and then went on with our dinner.
I've just come from dropping $20 in the casino. It actually lasted a lot longer then ever happens for me at Fallsview! LOL
Anyways, it's really nice to be on board the ship and not having to deal with traffic or getting lost. I'm hoping that the captain knows where he's going... ;-)
Well...gotta couple more stops to make and I'm running out of time fast. I may have shorting my stories... but probably not.
Although your work day isn't even yet finished, my day is almost over! I'm nackered and think I'll will go and read for a while.
Night!!
Wednesday, August 26, 2009
All Aboard!!!
Well we are now on the ship. It's a great ship, from what I've toured of it so far. Our room is nice. I've unpacked everything so we are settled in.
We're going to go for dinner in a little while and then we do an evening gondola serenade. I'm looking forward to that. We were suppose to do that 11 years ago when we were in Venice, but it was cancelled due to weather. It looks good out there so far, so hopefully it won't be cancelled again!
Greg paid for his parking ticket today. He thought I had mis-read the numbers and that maybe it was only 11.20 Euros. Yeah right! It seems he parked in some 'specialty' parking and that's why it was so high. We had no idea. Didn't really see any special signs around. Guess we were lucky tho... if they had come back again and the car was still there, they would have towed it away -- that would have been another 250 Euros! Did I mention that he was driving an Alpha Romeo? He was loving it. He's anxious to see what we'll get in Spain. I didn't do any driving in Italy, but I think I will in Spain... if he lets me... ;-)
We met 2 other couples at the airport today (that's where we had to drop the car off) from Ontario. One couple is from Cambridge, the other from the Distillery District in Toronto. We lost them as we went through all the boarding hoopla. Maybe we'll run into them again.
Anyways...it's been great so far. I've tried to take lots of pictures. Hard to get pictures of Greg and I together, but we'll have to work on that.
That's it for now. I've bought my 'package deal' for using the internet. May eat them up fast, the connection is so slow!!!
Until next time...
We're going to go for dinner in a little while and then we do an evening gondola serenade. I'm looking forward to that. We were suppose to do that 11 years ago when we were in Venice, but it was cancelled due to weather. It looks good out there so far, so hopefully it won't be cancelled again!
Greg paid for his parking ticket today. He thought I had mis-read the numbers and that maybe it was only 11.20 Euros. Yeah right! It seems he parked in some 'specialty' parking and that's why it was so high. We had no idea. Didn't really see any special signs around. Guess we were lucky tho... if they had come back again and the car was still there, they would have towed it away -- that would have been another 250 Euros! Did I mention that he was driving an Alpha Romeo? He was loving it. He's anxious to see what we'll get in Spain. I didn't do any driving in Italy, but I think I will in Spain... if he lets me... ;-)
We met 2 other couples at the airport today (that's where we had to drop the car off) from Ontario. One couple is from Cambridge, the other from the Distillery District in Toronto. We lost them as we went through all the boarding hoopla. Maybe we'll run into them again.
Anyways...it's been great so far. I've tried to take lots of pictures. Hard to get pictures of Greg and I together, but we'll have to work on that.
That's it for now. I've bought my 'package deal' for using the internet. May eat them up fast, the connection is so slow!!!
Until next time...
Tuesday, August 25, 2009
We made it to Venice!
The drive to Venice today was a breeze. I was able to print off a map from Google before I left our hotel in Ravenna, so that helped a big time.
Now comes the OUCH! We drove off from the hotel this morning and I noticed that there was something under the windshield wiper. I pulled it out when we got to the gas station. It was a parking ticket -- for 112 Euros!!!!! Nuts!!! We had no idea how to pay for it, so we will deal with it when we drop the car off tomorrow.
We enjoyed our stay in Venice so far. We walked from our hotel to St. Marks square today which was about 30 minutes through the maze of Venitian streets. I let Greg do the navigating. It was HOT, HOT, HOT!!! But we still enjoyed it. After we got back, Greg had a nap and I went wandering on my own. I was at the train station, on the front steps writing post cards when a lady sitting next to me started chatting. Turns out she live in California, but grew up in Uxbridge. She seems to love to travel. She travels alone, which seems a little sad, but she enjoys it.
We went for a nice dinner and now we are on our way back to the room for the night, but I
walked by the internet cafe, so I had to stop in.
I am sure I am missing details of our adventure so far, but I only bought 15 minutes and I want to get this posted before I run out of time.
Until next time...Ciao!!
Now comes the OUCH! We drove off from the hotel this morning and I noticed that there was something under the windshield wiper. I pulled it out when we got to the gas station. It was a parking ticket -- for 112 Euros!!!!! Nuts!!! We had no idea how to pay for it, so we will deal with it when we drop the car off tomorrow.
We enjoyed our stay in Venice so far. We walked from our hotel to St. Marks square today which was about 30 minutes through the maze of Venitian streets. I let Greg do the navigating. It was HOT, HOT, HOT!!! But we still enjoyed it. After we got back, Greg had a nap and I went wandering on my own. I was at the train station, on the front steps writing post cards when a lady sitting next to me started chatting. Turns out she live in California, but grew up in Uxbridge. She seems to love to travel. She travels alone, which seems a little sad, but she enjoys it.
We went for a nice dinner and now we are on our way back to the room for the night, but I
walked by the internet cafe, so I had to stop in.
I am sure I am missing details of our adventure so far, but I only bought 15 minutes and I want to get this posted before I run out of time.
Until next time...Ciao!!
Monday, August 24, 2009
Hello from Ravenna...
Well -- we made it! What a LONG 2 days it has been.
The flight to Rome was uneventful -- thankfully! Everything since then has been an adventure!
It took us FIVE hours to find our hotel in Rome!! The streets go in multiple directions and there are NO clear street signs -- and they change name constantly. Needless to say, we did not really get to see much of Rome at all.
I tried to go onto the net from our hotel there, but it did not work, even though I still had to pay for it. Oh well!!
We left Rome this morning around 10:30. We arrived at our hotel at around 10:30 pm! We had tried to take the scenic route, but that was taking forever and got a little dull after a while, so we got on the autostrada. Bad idea!! It was nuts! We were actually stopped for about 20 minutes at one point.
This adventure sounds vagues familiar to me... something to do with the 4 hour tour around Buffalo... :-)
Anyways, we here at the hotel. A little hungry, but too tired to care! No way are we taking the scenic route to Venice tomorrow. We are going straight there so we can enjoy some things instead of spending the entire day in the car! Although I did see a nice shopping area in Ravenna -- and Greg needs shoes since he forgot to pack his. Nice Italian shoes -- can't go wrong with that!
Only one more night and then we board the ship! :-)
I do not believe the hotel in Venice has internet, so I will post again when we are on the ship on Wednesday.
I do not know if they covered any of this on Canadian news, but Athens is having major fires. Not sure how this will impact our trip. I will keep you posted!
Good night all!! I'm tired from a full day of driving and trying to figure out how to use this Italian keyboard! That the tab broke off my pop, now I can't open it.
Definately time for bed!!
The flight to Rome was uneventful -- thankfully! Everything since then has been an adventure!
It took us FIVE hours to find our hotel in Rome!! The streets go in multiple directions and there are NO clear street signs -- and they change name constantly. Needless to say, we did not really get to see much of Rome at all.
I tried to go onto the net from our hotel there, but it did not work, even though I still had to pay for it. Oh well!!
We left Rome this morning around 10:30. We arrived at our hotel at around 10:30 pm! We had tried to take the scenic route, but that was taking forever and got a little dull after a while, so we got on the autostrada. Bad idea!! It was nuts! We were actually stopped for about 20 minutes at one point.
This adventure sounds vagues familiar to me... something to do with the 4 hour tour around Buffalo... :-)
Anyways, we here at the hotel. A little hungry, but too tired to care! No way are we taking the scenic route to Venice tomorrow. We are going straight there so we can enjoy some things instead of spending the entire day in the car! Although I did see a nice shopping area in Ravenna -- and Greg needs shoes since he forgot to pack his. Nice Italian shoes -- can't go wrong with that!
Only one more night and then we board the ship! :-)
I do not believe the hotel in Venice has internet, so I will post again when we are on the ship on Wednesday.
I do not know if they covered any of this on Canadian news, but Athens is having major fires. Not sure how this will impact our trip. I will keep you posted!
Good night all!! I'm tired from a full day of driving and trying to figure out how to use this Italian keyboard! That the tab broke off my pop, now I can't open it.
Definately time for bed!!
Monday, August 17, 2009
Only 5 more sleeps...
and Greg and I are off on our Mediterranean cruise!
We will be gone for 3 weeks! We're flying into Rome and then driving (via Ravenna) to Venice. We board the ship in Venice and then go to:
We will be gone for 3 weeks! We're flying into Rome and then driving (via Ravenna) to Venice. We board the ship in Venice and then go to:
- Dubrovinik, Croatia
- Athens, Greece
- Santorini, Greece
- Naples, Italy
- Rome, Italy
- Florence, Italy
- Cannes, France
- Barcelona, Spain
We disembark from the ship in Barcelona. From there we are renting a car and driving to Valencia, Spain; Cartagena, Spain and then to Madrid, Spain. We fly home from Madrid.
My plan is to update my blog with our adventures, so if you want to follow us along, check back here often!
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