Adriatic and Med. Cruise

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Adriatic and Med. Cruise
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Messina, Italy
October 30, 2025 in Italy ⋅ ☁️ 21 °C
Today we docked Messina, the large port of Siscly. Our tour today is to Castelmola and Taormina.

Castlemola rises 1,736 feet above sea level. It has two main streets and a population of 1700 people. The site on the hilltop has been settled since Ancient Greek times and is considered to be one of the most beautiful cities in Italy.

It is the home of almond wine. We had a sip at the taverna that creates this tasty treat. It is a lot like port with an almond flavor.

Our next stop was the town of Taormina. It is a beautiful town whose early history includes Greek, Roman and Norman domination. There is a Greek theater that was built in the 3rd century BC with a capacity of 10,000 people. The site has been used for theater performances, public gatherings and gladiator games.

After visiting the theater we wandered through the town. It was very beautiful and full of churches, lovely old buildings and great views.

It was a lovely day full of amazing scenery. This is a very touristy area because of the beautiful setting, clear waters and warm coastline beaches. We were glad to be visiting in the off season.Read more
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Adriatic and Med. Cruise
Naples, Italy
October 31, 2025 in Italy ⋅ ☁️ 18 °C
Today we will explore Pompeii and Herculaneum.

We have all heard about Pompeii and the effects of the volcanic eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 AD. The city was buried in 30 feet of pumice and ash. Excavation of the site began in the mid 1700s. We were not prepared for the vastness of this site. Houses, gardens and shops spread over an area of 160 to 170 acres.

Our first stop was the amphitheater. It is one of the oldest surviving amphitheaters in Italy. It was used for gladiator battles and circuses.

Walking through the city we passed by well preserved frescos. Every building had frescos, mosaic floors and large gardens.

Herculaneum is a smaller site and was destroyed by a different kind flow from the volcano. The city was buried under a pyroclastic flow that solidified and protected it against looting and the ravages of time. The pyroclastic flow carbonized the wood so more of the furnishings were preserved in this city. We saw a bed and a table that had been perfectly preserved.

In the area of the harbor there are storage areas where more than 300 skeletons have been discovered. It is felt that the people were waiting for a boat to escape on and the boat never arrived.

Herculaneum is more preserved than Pompeii and provided a detailed look at Roman life in 79 AD.

We were so glad to be able to see these two well preserved cities. It gave us a great look at how the Romans built and ornamented their cities and a great feeling for everyday life.

Next - off the ship and on to Rome.Read more
TravelerOk, now I understand. I didn’t know why I was getting this, but reading your NEXT trip explains it.
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Adriatic and Med. Cruise
Rome, Italy
November 1, 2025 in Italy ⋅ ☀️ 18 °C
Rome is huge. The history is long and complicated. The ruins are large and complex. It is an amazing and wonderful place.

We left our ship early on the 1st and had a long taxi ride to our hotel. Luckily the rooms were ready and we could get settled before our first tour.

We walked to the Colosseum to meet our guide. The streets were absolutely packed with people, motor bikes and cars. The colosseum was extremely crowded. We were overwhelmed by the size of this place. We were regaled with stories of the gladiators, executions and other bloody sports that occurred in this place. It is the largest amphitheater ever built. It was built in 8 years from 62 to 70 AD. It held 65,000 spectators.

From the Colosseum we went to the Palatine hill. This area is considered the center of Ancient Rome and was the place where emperors and highly ranked citizens lived.

Most of Rome is a “lasagna” of layers with temples replacing ancient houses then palaces built on temples.

The Forum sits just below the Palatine hill. It was the center of religious, political and economic center of Rome. It was first developed in a marshy area that was paved in 600 BC. It became a square where roads converged, a market place developed and slowly emerged to be the nerve center of Rome.

Our first day in Rome was overwhelming. It took us a while to get our bearings and adjust to the many visitors here. It was All Saints Day and a jubilee year and people were out to celebrate. We are looking forward to our next days here to see and learn more.Read more
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Rome Day 2
November 2, 2025 in Italy ⋅ ☁️ 22 °C
Today we had a tour to see famous fountains and squares.

We met our guide at the Spanish steps. The steps were built between 1723 and 1726. They connect the Spanish embassy to the French church located at the top of the stairway.

The next stop was at the Trevi fountain. The fountain has a long history of supplying water to Rome. Its key location is at the junction of three roads and is supplied by an aqueduct 22 kilometers long. The construction of the current fountain was completed in 1762. It was highlighted in the 1954 film Three Coins in the Fountain. It was absolutely mobbed when we visited.

We visited squares with obelisks in the center. There are 8 Egyptian obelisks and 5 Roman obelisks in Rome. The Egyptian obelisks were transported to Rome after the Roman conquest in 30 BC. The Romans used special obelisk ships to transport the obelisks from Alexandria across the Mediterranean Sea and on to Rome. There are 5 Roman obelisks that were manufactured in Egypt during the Roman period at the request of wealthy Romans. They are scattered all over the city. This obelisk is in the center of the Fountain of Four Rivers built by Bernini in 1651.

We were scheduled to see the Pantheon but Mass was being held there. We were provided tickets to see it tomorrow if possible.

Our evening tour was a food tour in the district of Trastevere. The tour began in a restaurant with a wine cellar dating back to 80 BC. We sampled their slow cooked pork recipe traced back to Julius Caesar.

We travelled on to a couple of street food places where we sampled deep fried Italian rice balls stuffed with mozzarella cheese and slow cooked pork (porcetta) sandwiches. The last stop included pasta carbonara and eggplant lasagna.

All of there courses were paired with the appropriate wine or beer.

If that wasn’t enough we stopped for gelato. Then we had a lovely walk back to our hotel. We walked across the Tiber river and enjoyed a night time view of St Peter’s basilica

It was a great day full of new things to see and enjoy.

Tomorrow: The Vatican Museums and Sistine Chapel.Read more
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Rome, Day3
November 3, 2025 in Italy ⋅ 🌙 16 °C
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Rome Day 4
November 4, 2025 in Italy ⋅ ⛅ 12 °C
Today we go to the Vatican Museums and the Sistine Chapel. We were booked to see St Peter’s Basilica, but it was closed to tours.

The Vatican Museums are huge. Pope Julius II founded the museums in the early 16th century. The collection includes 70,000 objects 20,000 which are on display. We only began to scratch the surface of the variety and complexity of the exhibits during our visit.

The next stop was the Sistine Chapel. The Sistine Chapel was built by Pope Sixtus IV between 1473 and 1481. It is a long (118 feet) and narrow (48 feet) room with a ceiling that is 66 feet off the ground. I was not ready for the impact of Michelangelo’s last judgement and ceiling frescoes even though I had done a lot of preparation and study prior to our visit. It was a privilege to be able to see the chapel and wonder how one man alone could create such powerful art.

The Sistine Chapel is the same dimensions as the King Solomon's Temple as outlined in the books of I Kings and 2 Chronicles.

In the afternoon we visited the Pantheon. The Pantheon was originally a 2nd century Roman temple and was converted to a Catholic Church in 609 AD. It is one of the best preserved ancient Roman buildings because it has been in continuous use. The large dome is still the largest unreinforced concrete dome in the world.
Interior of the dome

It was a great day.

Tomorrow: No scheduled tours and packing for home!Read more
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Adriatic and Med. Cruise
Rome, Day 5 Home!
November 5, 2025 in Italy ⋅ 🌙 9 °C
Today is our last day. With no tours scheduled we had a free day.

After breakfast we decided to wander. We headed out toward a park Bill remembered visiting on a business trip many years ago.

We had a delightful stroll down a shopping street. We passed through the wall of the old city into the Villa Borghese.

This 200 acre park was originally the home of Cardinal Scipione Borghese. It was built in the 17th century.

Today it is a green space full of walking trails, fields and beautiful buildings. We enjoyed the exhibit of sculptor Pietro Canonica. It was located in his home on the site and gave a real sense of his work space.

The park contained many beautiful statues nestled in the trees.

It was a beautiful and relaxing way to spend our final day.

We got down to the challenging job of packing and getting ready for our 3:30 am pick up time to go to the airport.

Our route home is Rome - Istanbul - Seattle, about 24 hours door to door. Whew!

Here are some statistics describing our trip.

Number of countries: 5
Number of Ports: 16
Number of tours: 27
Number of UNESCO Sites: 17
Number of Air Miles: 14,140
Number of sea miles : 1,350
Number of steps walked: 361,212
Number of steps per day: 11,652

It was a WONDERFUL trip. It was perfect to share this journey with Bob and Brenda Kerr. They are great traveling companions. We are so grateful to be traveling again.

The end.

Narrative By PattyRead more
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Adriatic and Med. Cruise
Travel Home Stop In Istanbul
November 5, 2025 in Turkey ⋅ 🌧 15 °C
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Adriatic and Med. Cruise
Istanbul To Seatac
November 5, 2025 in the United States ⋅ 🌧 13 °C
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Trip end
November 5, 2025