Our Roman Holiday

Since we've been to Rome (2009), we decided not to take a planned tour and just wander on our own - with a little help from a nice bus that took us from Civitavecchia (Rome's port) and dropped us at the Piazza del Popolo (the people's square) in the center of Rome.

The main gate into the city centre.

We wandered down the Via del Corso and found a little cafe - cappuccino and chocolate croissant, please - before heading over to the Trevi fountain.  On our way, we passed through a private breezeway...so pretty I had to stop and take a couple of pics. 

They say you should toss a coin over your right shoulder and into the fountain to ensure that you will return to Rome.  We did it in 2009, and here we are, so...here's to the next time.

So many people in Rome this week...it's holy week, there's a G7 meeting, it's high season (the best weather in Rome is in April), and it's cruise ship season.  Geez!

Did a little shopping for papal robes.

Found this cute little guy in Piazza della Minerva.  Designed by Bernini, the elephant supports an Egyptian obelisk - probably from some ancient nearby temple.

And, isn't the Pantheon around here somewhere?  ...Oh...

There it is...at least the back side of it.

So incredible.

A fine example of a Corinthian column.

There are tons of shops and restaurants in the piazza.  It was a beautiful day and the people watching was great - so we stopped for a beer.

Next stop, Piazza Navona.

Beautiful Bernini Fountain of the Four Rivers

And a quiet restaurant a few blocks behind (better and cheaper food) for lunch.

My new profile picture.

After lunch, it was time to head back to the meeting point for our ride back to the ship.  But first, a couple of other sights: Caesar's Forum (where he was stabbed 23 times).

And the Vittorio Emmanuel monument.

People call it the wedding cake.

Just beyond the cake, you can see The Forum - the large ancient market that sits in the shadow of the Coliseum.  Unfortunately we didn't have time to do those today (we've toured them before).  Fingers crossed that coin thing works.

Of course, we found a pub and stopped in for a quick drink, and then did a bit of car shopping.

 I know this seems like a quick tour, but we had six hours.  We had two meals, a beer, saw some highlights, did some shopping, and thoroughly enjoyed the day.  We WILL be back.  Ciao

Tomorrow - Sicily!

Cannes/Nice Yesterday & Ajaccio Today

Cannes (pronounced Kahn) is beautiful.

But unless you like lusting after other people's super yachts and envying the gorgeous bodies (well most of them) splayed out in the French Riviera's glorious sun, there's not much to do there when it's not film festival time.

So we decided to go to Nice.  It's about 40 minutes away by train (11 euro), and the station in Cannes was an easy walk from the pier.  Once in Nice, we went out of the train station, turned left and walked two blocks to catch a tram (1.50 euro) that took us into old town.

Busy train station

We're heading to Nice Ville (one of three stations in Nice)

Nice Hall of Justice - Liberte, Egalite & Fraternite

Lovely marketplace in old town

A giant grasshopper planter - what no home should be without

Another gorgeous day

Beautiful beach - rocky, though, instead of sandy

Love this building

And this fountain

A surprise in the vending machine - dark chocolate and peanut.   Mmmmm

Another beautiful building

The park on the left is a grand esplanade through the top of old town

In old town, all roads lead to the beach

After a bite to eat, we took a lovely long stroll through the old streets and along the beachfront.  Time to head back to Cannes.

Back on the ship we ate dinner and relaxed at bit, but we could hear the casino calling...we obeyed.  And with great luck too!  We closed the place down and walked out with over $600 of the house's money!  Sweet dreams!

This morning we woke up in Ajaccio (a-dah-chio), Corsica.  We have another perfect day ahead.

Another place where all roads lead to the beach!

Corsica is one of those larger islands in the Mediterranean Sea - close to Italy AND France, it has bits of pieces of many cultures.  It's mostly known for being Napoleon's birthplace.

We had a walking tour planned, and guess what? people with canes and eye patches and hearing aids signed up for it.  Idiots!  The whole group was slowed down, the information repeated over and over, and questions asked multiple times.  I hate to be THAT guy, but dammit, if you have a bad knee and a hearing aid, don't fucking sign up for a walking tour.  

On top of all that fuss, our tour guide was terrible.  She was well-versed on the history of Napoleon (she spent 20 minutes on his family tree, alone), but we didn't learn anything about the island today.  She had not pre-booked our group tour into the Napoleon museum, so we stood around for 30 minutes while she negotiated our entry.  She led us into the Cathedral during a service, so we had to turn around and go right back out.  I got the feeling that this was the first time for her to do an Oceania tour - and likely the last.  One of the social directors of the cruise line was on the tour with us, and she spent the entire time with a sour look on her face.  Believe me...I know why!

Anyway, here are some pics from the church and museum:

Maybe I should do my powder room ceiling like this.

Not a bad looking guy.

THIS is how I'm painting the bathroom ceiling.

Napoleon's coronation crown.  That's some nice bling.

A beautiful orange tree outside Napoleon's home - a lovely terrace.

Time to go back to the ship.

Since we had such a big day yesterday, and a pretty full day today (considering we were kinda hung over and soooo tired), it's off to bed early.  Tomorrow - Roma!  

Ciao!

A Twofer!

Mallorca yesterday, Barcelona today.

Mallorca was/is fabulous.  Lots to see and do.  We bought tickets for the hop on/hop off bus as well as for the castle and the cathedral (a massive edifice that reflects in the sea).

We headed straight for the castle.  A perfect defense fortress - it's at the highest point on the island = you can see enemies coming from the hills, from the flat coast or from the sea.

Apparently when they built the fort, they dug up a shitload of Roman ruins. Hey, it's Europe, you can't plant a tomato without excavating a coliseum.  Their museum and statuary was impressive.

It was a gorgeous day, and hopped back on the bus to get back down to town so we could eat...of course...it had only been a few hours since we last visited the trough.  

We landed at a tapas restaurant and ordered chorizo, cheese, ensalada russo, patatas brava, cod-stuffed peppers, and beer.  God I love Spain.  We ate our fill and did a bit of shopping before heading to the cathedral. 

DAMMIT!  The cathedral closed at 2:15 (it was 2:30).  My bad...I should have checked the information page they gave us at the visitors center.  Shit.  Oh well, lesson learned.  Instead, we found a proper pub called the Tavern.  I say proper, because 1) it was run by an old British guy, 2) it was dark and woody, 3) they had three rugby games on the tvs, 4) there were a bunch of old Brits in there, 5) there were some really good beers in the guy's beer fridge.

At 7:30 we boarded the shuttle back to the ship...somebody's gotta be last, right?  Since we'd eaten so much, so late, we skipped dinner and went straight to the bar.  We met up with our friends Bernice and Jacques.  They disembarked in Barcelona, and we'll miss them on the last leg of this trip.  

BARCELONA

This morning we arrived in Barcelona about 6am...I woke up feeling the warmth and love this city generates.  We took a cab to the cable car, but our driver let us off at the wrong tower (we didn't know until after he'd driven away).  No worries, we found a path to the right one and bought our tickets.

The view was/is spectacular!

We wandered around Montjuic (a small community on the hill just above Barcelona) for a bit and then headed back down to the city.  We found a lunch spt and dug in for the paella.

Yum!  We love Barcelona.  We were here last year during our month-long vaca in Spain.  Barcelona is a huge city, but it's sections/quarters/neighborhoods make it feel totally manageable.  We love old town, but are beginning to spread out a bit and tackle more of the communities.  

Old town - or the Gothic section - includes the Cathedral de Barcelona, and dozens of small streets zig-zagging away from the central plaza.  Lovely plazas dot the space, and stores and restaurants beckon you to step inside.  One such place?  Craft Barcelona. 

You know our love of craft beer...this is just the place for us.  We tried several local beers and loved practicing our Spanish while our bartender was practicing his English.

Next time, we'll head for the Black Dog brewery, one we passed earlier in the day (but it was closed).

Time to head back to the ship.  Sigh.  Tomorrow we're in France (Cannes).  Viva la France!

Sailing the Mediterranean

We've never been on the Med, but woke up this morning to a beautiful calm blue sea...hopefully boding well for things to come.

Quiet day today.  BINGO, lunch, nap, happy hour, dinner, after dinner drink...you know, the usual.  We;ve made some fun friends so far, unfortunately, most of them are getting off in Barcelona.  You see, our 24-day cruise is actually two cruises: Miami to Barcelona and Barcelona to Athens.  Tomorrow we get to Palma de Mallorca and Barcelona the day after.  About half of the passengers aboard will get off in Barcelona, and I'll be really interested in the make-up of those who get on in Barcelona to continue the cruise to Athens.  I'm thinking maybe a bit younger and more European.  I could be totally wrong, but I'll miss the friends we've made who are leaving.

Anyway, Mallorca is part of Spain, and we're so excited about visiting - we love the food, the wine, the language, and the warmth of the Spanish people.  We'll have a shuttle that will drop us off right in the middle of town, across from the beach.  That's right...beach, beer, and tapas.  You can show your jealousy now.

I filled out a comment card on the cruise services and staff and totally berated the powers that be for the shitty internet...there's really no excuse: if you can't provide reliable, fast internet, then don't offer it.  I would rather read newpapers and watch the shipboard tv news than be completely frustrated every evening when I try to log on.  It truly colors my cruise experience.  And, of course, I told them so.  Curse words and all.  What are they gonna do, throw me off the ship?  I'll keep you posted.