Cruisin'
Picture time! I limited myself to just a couple highlights from each port and a couple from the ship itself so as not to make this post as long as the path from the port to the town of Santorini (see below). I'll give brief explanations too so you know what you're looking at, but if you want the full story or the links to my complete photo albums, just ask! Of course if you know me at all you know that a scrapbook will soon be in the works too...it won't be done for probably at least a year though!
The ship departed from Venice, so we arrived with a few days to sightsee first. Part of the city is on the mainland, but I loved the allure of the historical portion which is located on one of 118 islands where no cars are allowed--all travel is done by boat or on foot. There are DHL delivery boats, boat speed limit signs, and even boat gas stations!
Another of the islands, Murano, is known for the glassblowing trade and abounds with showrooms and shops.
St. Mark's Square as seen from one of the outside decks of our ship during the sailaway from Venice.
Next stop: Dubrovnik, Croatia. I had no idea what to expect, but Dubrovnik was a beautiful city. I would most definitely go back, or visit another part of the country if I had the chance.
The most popular attraction is walking atop the city walls; it's about a mile-long loop around the historical part of town. The views were spectacular!
Our itinerary then took us to 3 Greek isles, the first of which was Corfu. We spent the day exploring town on our own, which led us to "New Fort;" I climbed up some rocks to check out this intriguing spot.
Greek flags adorning a side street in town. I had fun trying to remember enough Greek from my junior year at Drury to match the Greek street signs to the English names on our map.
Our only Holland America Line shore excursion was a tour to the Robola Winery on the island of Kefalonia, when the ship docked in the port of Argostoli. Robola grapes are only grown on the Western slopes of the mountain range near the winery due to their unique geologic and climactic conditions. Thusly the wine, which is only available in the white variety, is unique to the region and is only sold there--never exported.
After the tour bus dropped us back off near the port, I took advantage of the brief walk back to the ship to put my feet in Argostoli bay!
My favorite destination in Greece by a long shot was Santorini. The ship was anchored offshore, and everyone was ushered to the base of the cliff in the photo via tender boats. From there, there were 3 options to reach the town above: take a cable car, walk, or ride a donkey. If you look closely, you can see the winding path for donkeys and foot traffic in the center of the photo. I went with option C and loved every minute of it!
There were breathtaking sights every which way you looked in Santorini; it was exactly like something out of a movie (Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants, anyone?), blue-domed churches and all!
Back to Italy now...the ship docked for a day in the Sicilian port of Catania before continuing up the western coast. Sicily is known for cannoli, and for good reason. I only ate one of these (that would be a cannolo), and it was divine.
This is where you'd be able to see Mt. Etna if it weren't so cloudy!
Three major cities occupied the next three days, and we had private tours booked for each of them. We got a great deal by booking with the same company. Our driver on the first day (port of Naples--we went to Pompeii and the Amalfi Coast), Mario, claimed to have a lot of "friends"--Robert DeNiro and Bill Gates to name a few. I'm not sure how much of it I believe, but he did take us to one of his friends' homes, which happened to be next door to the cheese making factory they own. I'm not sure I will ever eat mozzarella that fresh again!
COOL looking pasta in a quaint coastal town called Sorrento! I got some of the multicolored striped bowtie kind, and I have yet to decide if I am going to eat it or just look at it!
We didn't have a lot of time at Pompeii, but it was sufficient to get a sense of what the town went through when Mt. Vesuvius erupted almost 2000 years ago, especially when you look at the human figures like this one--covering his/her face from the horror--that were preserved under 24 ft. of ash.
Roma! Looking at the Coliseum through the Triumphal Arch of Constantine.
I threw a coin in the Trevi fountain, which means that I will return to Rome someday according to the legend.
Michaelangelo's "Pieta" in St. Peter's Basilica. It is behind glass now because some nut took a hammer to Mary's face and Jesus' hand...who does that?!?!?
Our last stop in Italy was the port of Livorno, the gateway to Pisa and Florence. I am in love with the Tuscan countryside after the drive there. I think I stared out the window the entire way. It was a little hazy but I think that made it all the more picturesque.
View from the top of the Leaning Tower of Pisa--I love this shot because you can totally see the incline!
We disembarked the ship in Barcelona, Spain, and had two full days before our return flight to the U.S. I have been to Barcelona twice before, but one place I insisted on going back to for a 3rd time is La Sagrada Familia. The cornerstone was laid on this enormous cathedral, architect Antoni Gaudi's masterwork, in 1882, but he has obviously since passed away and it's STILL under construction. They're making progress though, I promise!
Street performers line Las Ramblas, Barcelona's most famous pedestrian boulevard. This quirky one features a Spanish delicacy, paella.
I don't know if the lighting of this statue was intentionally placed to create that shadow or not, but check it out!
This blog wouldn't be a true reflection of my cruise unless I included some images from the boat of all places! As anyone who has been on a cruise will tell you, the food is fabulous, and there's a lot of it. We ate in the main dining room most nights. To give you an idea of what it was like, the above photo shows baked brie with an apple and cranberry compote--and that was just my appetizer (albeit hands-down one of my faves)!
YUMMY lasagna!
The buffet restaurant had a "Late Night Snack" every night, but we only went once since I have NO idea how you are supposed to be hungry again at 10:30 after having a 4-course dinner. We chose wisely though, and held out for the "Dessert Extravaganza!"
Our room steward Setyawan (from Indonesia) made us critters out of bath towels almost every night. This was my favorite!
I hope that wasn't too exhausting to read, because it was exhausting to experience! No complaints though, it was a worthwhile whirlwind that I thoroughly enjoyed re-living as I wrote this.
Until next time, blessings!
The ship departed from Venice, so we arrived with a few days to sightsee first. Part of the city is on the mainland, but I loved the allure of the historical portion which is located on one of 118 islands where no cars are allowed--all travel is done by boat or on foot. There are DHL delivery boats, boat speed limit signs, and even boat gas stations!
Another of the islands, Murano, is known for the glassblowing trade and abounds with showrooms and shops.
St. Mark's Square as seen from one of the outside decks of our ship during the sailaway from Venice.
Next stop: Dubrovnik, Croatia. I had no idea what to expect, but Dubrovnik was a beautiful city. I would most definitely go back, or visit another part of the country if I had the chance.
The most popular attraction is walking atop the city walls; it's about a mile-long loop around the historical part of town. The views were spectacular!
Our itinerary then took us to 3 Greek isles, the first of which was Corfu. We spent the day exploring town on our own, which led us to "New Fort;" I climbed up some rocks to check out this intriguing spot.
Greek flags adorning a side street in town. I had fun trying to remember enough Greek from my junior year at Drury to match the Greek street signs to the English names on our map.
Our only Holland America Line shore excursion was a tour to the Robola Winery on the island of Kefalonia, when the ship docked in the port of Argostoli. Robola grapes are only grown on the Western slopes of the mountain range near the winery due to their unique geologic and climactic conditions. Thusly the wine, which is only available in the white variety, is unique to the region and is only sold there--never exported.
After the tour bus dropped us back off near the port, I took advantage of the brief walk back to the ship to put my feet in Argostoli bay!
My favorite destination in Greece by a long shot was Santorini. The ship was anchored offshore, and everyone was ushered to the base of the cliff in the photo via tender boats. From there, there were 3 options to reach the town above: take a cable car, walk, or ride a donkey. If you look closely, you can see the winding path for donkeys and foot traffic in the center of the photo. I went with option C and loved every minute of it!
There were breathtaking sights every which way you looked in Santorini; it was exactly like something out of a movie (Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants, anyone?), blue-domed churches and all!
Back to Italy now...the ship docked for a day in the Sicilian port of Catania before continuing up the western coast. Sicily is known for cannoli, and for good reason. I only ate one of these (that would be a cannolo), and it was divine.
This is where you'd be able to see Mt. Etna if it weren't so cloudy!
Three major cities occupied the next three days, and we had private tours booked for each of them. We got a great deal by booking with the same company. Our driver on the first day (port of Naples--we went to Pompeii and the Amalfi Coast), Mario, claimed to have a lot of "friends"--Robert DeNiro and Bill Gates to name a few. I'm not sure how much of it I believe, but he did take us to one of his friends' homes, which happened to be next door to the cheese making factory they own. I'm not sure I will ever eat mozzarella that fresh again!
COOL looking pasta in a quaint coastal town called Sorrento! I got some of the multicolored striped bowtie kind, and I have yet to decide if I am going to eat it or just look at it!
We didn't have a lot of time at Pompeii, but it was sufficient to get a sense of what the town went through when Mt. Vesuvius erupted almost 2000 years ago, especially when you look at the human figures like this one--covering his/her face from the horror--that were preserved under 24 ft. of ash.
Roma! Looking at the Coliseum through the Triumphal Arch of Constantine.
I threw a coin in the Trevi fountain, which means that I will return to Rome someday according to the legend.
Michaelangelo's "Pieta" in St. Peter's Basilica. It is behind glass now because some nut took a hammer to Mary's face and Jesus' hand...who does that?!?!?
Our last stop in Italy was the port of Livorno, the gateway to Pisa and Florence. I am in love with the Tuscan countryside after the drive there. I think I stared out the window the entire way. It was a little hazy but I think that made it all the more picturesque.
View from the top of the Leaning Tower of Pisa--I love this shot because you can totally see the incline!
We disembarked the ship in Barcelona, Spain, and had two full days before our return flight to the U.S. I have been to Barcelona twice before, but one place I insisted on going back to for a 3rd time is La Sagrada Familia. The cornerstone was laid on this enormous cathedral, architect Antoni Gaudi's masterwork, in 1882, but he has obviously since passed away and it's STILL under construction. They're making progress though, I promise!
Street performers line Las Ramblas, Barcelona's most famous pedestrian boulevard. This quirky one features a Spanish delicacy, paella.
I don't know if the lighting of this statue was intentionally placed to create that shadow or not, but check it out!
This blog wouldn't be a true reflection of my cruise unless I included some images from the boat of all places! As anyone who has been on a cruise will tell you, the food is fabulous, and there's a lot of it. We ate in the main dining room most nights. To give you an idea of what it was like, the above photo shows baked brie with an apple and cranberry compote--and that was just my appetizer (albeit hands-down one of my faves)!
YUMMY lasagna!
The buffet restaurant had a "Late Night Snack" every night, but we only went once since I have NO idea how you are supposed to be hungry again at 10:30 after having a 4-course dinner. We chose wisely though, and held out for the "Dessert Extravaganza!"
Our room steward Setyawan (from Indonesia) made us critters out of bath towels almost every night. This was my favorite!Until next time, blessings!
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Carol