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The Europe we missed
  • Brad and Mandy Pearce
Apr – May 2018

The Europe we missed

During our trip around Europe last year we did not manage to go to Italy and since we had cruise credits we picked an itinerary that took us around the boot plus a couple of other countries. While in Europe, we are adding the Russian river cruise. Read more
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    April 14, 2018
    Brad and Mandy PearceBrad and Mandy PearceThe Europe we missed
    Colourful character

    Here we go again

    April 14, 2018 in Australia ⋅ 🌧 24 °C

    So it has been 6 months since we came back from Europe and now we are heading off again to pick up some of the places we missed This came about because on our last trip the cruise line had offered $800 per person for flights but failed to release their flights in time for us to take advantage of the cheaper air. After some whinging from us (nothing like a good whinge) they offered us $1600 in cruise credits provided we booked another cruise within 12 months. We were able to combine a Mediterranean cruise, mainly around Italy with a Russian river cruise which had a fly free offer so we managed to get to Europe without actually paying for flights.....bonus!

    Shari dropped us at Varsity train station (thanks Shari!) as we are staying at a hotel near the airport. Easy peasy, stored our luggage in luggage racks and got a seat, hardly anyone on the train... until next station (Robina) when about 3000 people embarked (ok, slight exaggeration) due to spectators travelling to the Commonwealth Games. Standing room only. We didn't care, we had our seats. It was only crowded for a few stations though so it didn't really matter.

    Quiet motel, nothing flash and we headed off to the Eat Street Markets ( about a half hour walk) for dinner. Very balmy evening, amazing for mid April. The Eat Street Markets were pretty crowded but we had a couple of nice dishes (a pork belly with a spicy green apple salad, and a salt and pepper calamari, followed by a Tim Tam cheesecake sundae). Fortunately we had that half hour walk back to burn of our dinner. It really feels as if our holiday has started.

    Midday flight tomorrow - Brisbane to Singapore.    Read more

  • Brad and Mandy PearceBrad and Mandy PearceThe Europe we missed

    Not the best travel day

    April 15, 2018 in Australia ⋅ ⛅ 14 °C

    It is pretty safe to say that this has been a schmozle. Arrived in plenty of time to catch our flight to Singapore when, about an hour before boarding we were advised the flight was cancelled. No flights to Singapore for the rest of the day and we just had to be patient and Qantas will rebook our flights to the next destination. In the meantime they bused us all to a hotel in the city with instructions to ring the Qantas number or wait until we received a SMS from them.

    We got a rebooking for Tuesday with an early flight to Sydney and then to Singapore from there. The Commonwealth games were finishing today, that is why there were no flights available on Monday. This booking did not seem to get us to Barcelona in time to meet our flight so we spent the next almost 3 hours (mostly on hold) to Qantas to explain our predicament. Also busy contacting our travel agent who assisted us with emails and text messages flying back and forth (about the only thing flying apart from a few expletives from Brad)

    Finally, at around 7pm we received a message that we had flights to Singapore leaving tomorrow, BUT!, we had to get to Melbourne tonight on a Virgin flight which we had to pay for but will be reimbursed. So, pack up bags, taxi to airport again, and on a plane to Melbourne which arrives at around 11.30pm. ( I am currently updating my blog on the plane). Arrived safely in Melbourne and had a message that we had been booked into the Park Royal straight across the road from the airport. Hopefully tomorrow will be a better day but we seem to have ended up further away from our destination than we were this morning.    Read more

  • Brad and Mandy PearceBrad and Mandy PearceThe Europe we missed

    Barcelona or Bust!

    April 17, 2018 in Spain ⋅ ⛅ 16 °C

    It took quite a while but in the last couple of days we have spent around 24 hours in the air. Brisbane to Melbourne (2 hrs), Melbourne to Singapore (8hrs), Singapore to Munich (12hrs), Munich to Barcelona (2hrs). Apart from the initial cancelled flight from Brisbane that necessitated our unscheduled flight to Melbourne, we also had a delayed flight out of Melbourne because a passenger had a medical issue and could not fly so their luggage had to be located and removed from the plane before we left making us an hour late from take off. No problems with the next flight but we only had just over an hour to meet our next connection in Munich however our flight was late so we missed that one but they booked us onto another flight that left a couple of hours later (and they gave us vouchers - €7 each for some breakfast)

    We join our cruise tomorrow so updating the blog will be whenever we have access to WiFi but I will see how it goes.    Read more

  • Brad and Mandy PearceBrad and Mandy PearceThe Europe we missed
    La Rambles
    La RamblaCandy in the marketsThis is candyColumbus column

    .....and sail away!

    April 18, 2018 in Spain ⋅ ☀️ 22 °C

    I am pleased to report that today has gone smoothly. Our hotel was fairly basic but located in a great position being a very short walk from the major hub of the city. Thought it may have been noisy but it wasn't. Had time for another walk down La Rambles, this time with camera in hand for a few shots of the area. It seems the locals don't really get moving until 10am as the shops were still closed.

    We organised a taxi for 11am and it arrived at exactly 11am. Embarkation was not that busy and being "3* mariners" we were able to board earlier. Lunch, tour of the ship, welcome cocktail with the captain for return guests, unpack our bags, mandatory life-boat drill and dinner filled in the rest of the day. We intended to go to the evening entertainment but we were just so tired we decided to call it a day. Probably the only people that go to bed at 9.30pm on a cruise ship.

    Ocean is smooth, weather is fine and we are just arriving into Marseille for our first port of call. With a bit of luck will find WiFi hotspot to post this.    Read more

  • Brad and Mandy PearceBrad and Mandy PearceThe Europe we missed
    Our selfie in front of the Parc Lonchamp
    The marseille signThe Castle of If a la Count of Monte CristoPart of the protest marchView of Notre Dame from Parc LonchampView over harbour from Notre Dame

    A day in Marseille

    April 19, 2018 in France ⋅ 🌙 15 °C

    Beautiful warm sunny day with temperatures that were just right. We had not booked any tours and just decided to explore Marseille on our own. Shuttle bus dropped us in town and we walked a couple of km to the Palais et Parc Lonchamp which is basically a monument to celebrate water. Very pretty area with fountains and statues and gardens. On our trek up the hill there was a massive protest going on which seemed to involve unions from all public sectors such as transport, education, health, construction etc. Not sure what they were protesting about but it seemed to be anti-Macron (French President) sentiment. There had to be thousands of people marching / chanting / sirens etc. At one point just as we were walking past, someone had thrown a rather large thunder- bunger under a car and the resulting explosion and smoke really made our hearts race because we didn't know what was happening.

    Wandered back along the marina to catch the Petite train which would take us up
    to Basillique de Notre Dame de la Garde which gave us a good panoramic view over the city. We also drove past the Castle of If where Jose Custodia Faria was imprisoned and was the basis of the story written by Alexandre Dumas " The Count of Monte Cristo". All in all out was a pretty good day - only spent €16 (on the train) - so certainly not breaking the budget and got plenty of exercise as we walked about 10km. Tomorrow we head to Monte Carlo and we have a full day booked tour which should be good.    Read more

  • Brad and Mandy PearceBrad and Mandy PearceThe Europe we missed
    View from Eze
    EzeNice signWaterparkBeach at NicePart of Grand Prix circuit

    Monte Carlo, Monaco

    April 20, 2018 in Italy ⋅ ⛅ 16 °C

    Another day, another country...this time one of the world's smallest countries, Monaco and it's main region Monte Carlo. The only smaller country is The Vatican City, Monaco is well known for its Casino, Princess Grace, and of course the famous Formula 1 car race, but more about that later.

    We had a tour, rather temptingly titled "Jewels of Cote d'Azur" which was basically a bus ride along the French Riviera to Nice, visiting the small town of Eze along the way. Eze is a village perched high on a rocky outcrop overlooking the Mediterranean. There are only about 50 inhabitants that live there which is quite understandable because you have to climb rather steepish hills to get there - cars can only go so far. We wandered around the narrow alleyways until we found a courtyard that had fantastic views. Brad was busy getting some photos when a well dressed gentleman came after us to advise us this was a private terrace - there was a sign on the gate (if they wanted it private they should have closed the gate). Didn't matter, Brad had already taken the photos.

    Then we headed to Nice, which is really just another city. Their beach is covered in large pebbles about the size of your palm, not really conducive to sunbathing but the water looked nice. Had a large flat area dotted with water jets that kids, adults and dogs were enjoying and I would not have minded having a go myself but we were off to lunch and I don't think a wet t-shirt was quite appropriate.

    After lunch it was back to Monte Carlo to check out some of the highlights such as the palace where Princess Grace/Prince Rainier lived and where Princess Caroline lives, the cathedral they were buried in, and nd the Monte Carlo Casino (ho humm....just another casino that costs €12 to just enter the gambling area although we were permitted to enter the main hall free of charge).

    Finally, to end the day we walked past of the Grand Prix circuit. The race is on next month and all the barricades and grandstands were being erected - crowds of people everywhere - absolute mayhem! Still, it was a good day even though we were very tired at the end.    Read more

  • Brad and Mandy PearceBrad and Mandy PearceThe Europe we missed
    Leaning tower of Pisa
    Baptistry at PisaOverlooking FlorenceStatute is David (not the original)Florence duomoTuscan countryside

    Pisa and Florence

    April 21, 2018 in Italy ⋅ ⛅ 16 °C

    Ship docked in Livorno and from there we had a small group tour to Pisa (to see the leaning tower of course) and then on to Florence. We arrived at Pisa fairly early and ther were very few people around....nice! The leaning tower of Pisa started to lean after 3 levels so instead of fixing the footings or whatever the architect tried to straighten it up. The result, according to our guide was that it is shaped like a banana. The tower is actually a bell tower for the cathedral and there is an equally impressive circular building called a baptistry.

    From Pisa we drove towards Florence (about an hour or so) and were dropped off in the city centre (one of the advantages of doing asmall group tour as the buses simply would not fit). Florence is the home of Michaelangelo's David. Actually, it is the home of 2 David's - the exact replica which is outside on public view - and the original inside the museum. We didn't bother going inside but I'm sure we wouldn't really be able to tell the difference.

    Other sights to see in Florence are the Duomo (church) and baptistry, both made from white, pink and green marble; the Ponte Vecchio which is a bridge that crosses the river Arno and has shops lining the sides. It was a big day and we did a lot of walking. We couldn't get over the crowds of people but this seems to be the norm in Europe.    Read more

  • Brad and Mandy PearceBrad and Mandy PearceThe Europe we missed
    Colosseum
    Inside the ColosseumTrevi fountainSpanish stepsRoman paradePart of St Peter's Square

    Rome in a day

    April 22, 2018 in Italy ⋅ ☀️ 22 °C

    They say Rome want built in a day but we certainly tried to walk it in a day. Rome is a good hour from the port of Civitaveccia and we were bussed to the station to catch the train into Rome. We had reservations to the Colosseum which turned out to be a big mistake as we couldn't find the place to exchange the tickets and spent half an hour waiting in the wrong line. After going back and forth a couple of times an information guide suggested we buy tickets to a guided tour leaving in 10 minutes and save all the queuing otherwise it would possibly be a couple of hours in lines. So it cost us a little extra but we were a bit time poor so it was worth it. Always wanted to see the Colosseum so now we have and can cross that one of our list of notable world landmarks.

    Today (Sunday) was incredibly crowded. I don't know if this is the norm but there must have been some special occasion because there was a parade with Roman soldiers etc. Someone said something about it being Rome's birthday..... not sure? From the Colosseum we walked to Trevi fountain, trying to follow a tourist map that really isn't that detailed but we found by following throngs of people we reached our destination. Photo taken, dipped our hands in the water, then moved on to our next destination... the Spanish Steps (once again following the crowds).

    Don't really know much about the Spanish Steps except it is a really pretty time of year to visit as there were large pots of flowering pink and white azaleas lining the steps. We climbed to the top..I noticed there were 12 steps in each level (was this significant?) but I forgot to count how many groups of 12 steps there were... it was quite a few and we were puffing a bit when we got to the top. From there we could see the dome of St Peter's Basilica which we would head towards.

    We missed the Parthenon, maybe we will pick it up on our return. Walked over the Tiber river towards St Peters Square and now we have entered the smallest country in the world - The Vatican City. The Sistene Chapel and Museums are not open today being a Sunday so it was just photos of the square - pretty impressive anyway. Back to the train station, very tired having walked approximately 11-12 km. Brad got back to Civitaveccia and discovered his shoe had blown its sole - lucky it lasted the day. He will have to buy new shoes though.    Read more

  • Brad and Mandy PearceBrad and Mandy PearceThe Europe we missed
    Amalfi coastline
    View from aboveBeach at AmalfiChurch in AmalfiLooking down on AmalfiNaples featuring Mt Vesuvius

    The Amalfi Coast

    April 23, 2018 in Italy ⋅ ⛅ 18 °C

    We docked in Naples, a large city which has the towering Mt Vesuvius as its backdrop. Many people choose to go to Pompeii as their chosen tour but as we have already seen it, we opted for a small bus tour to the Amalfi Coast. I say tour rather lightly... it was more we had a driver take us to the Amalfi Coast. The extent of the conversation or information from the guide was " Look over there, the large white house on the point belongs to Sophia Loren" and "This is the factory where they make Limoncello" (Ok, so I didnt really mind this stop because we tasted a few samples of this rather strong spirit)

    Lunch was a bit ordinary too, but I guess the main drawcard of visiting the Amalfi Coast is the spectacular views and the photos really don't do it justice. Unfortunately there was a haze in the air so we didn't see it at is best but it was still very nice. The beauty of the small group is we could drive to these areas, a tourist bus simply would not be able to manoeuvre the narrow, winding roads.

    Brad was also able to replace his shoes that died during our walk around Rome, so that was good.    Read more

  • Brad and Mandy PearceBrad and Mandy PearceThe Europe we missed
    Village of Taormina with Mt Etna in the background
    Along the seafrontAnother shot of the beachfront... just pebblesBrad's artistic shot of the shipTender boatsLoading the tenders

    Taormina

    April 24, 2018 in Italy ⋅ ☀️ 23 °C

    The next couple of entries will be rather brief because we have been to them both on a previous cruise so we didn't do any special activities in Taormina. Last time we docked in Messina and were driven to Taormina which is just a touristy village set up high with fantastic views. This time we anchored at Taormina and used tender boats to port. The town is nestled at the foothills of Mt Etna which, as you can see from the photo, is smoking. I guess it is only a matter of time before Taormina goes the way of Pompeii, buried under a volcanic eruption. Brad and I just walked along the seafront which really wasn't the touristy area and stopped at a cafe to buy a gelati and use their WiFi (where I sent the last post from). Had a very short walk on their horrible pebbly beach but that was even worse than walking on very soft sand. After that we caught the tender boats back to the ship so it was a pretty uneventful day for us. Some people did the Godfather tour (afterall, this is Sicily) and said it was really enjoyable .Read more

  • Brad and Mandy PearceBrad and Mandy PearceThe Europe we missed
    Little village we rode up to
    Corfu harbour

    Corfu

    April 26, 2018 in Greece ⋅ ☀️ 22 °C

    Yesterday was a sea day which also happened to be Anzac Day. There are about 400 Australians (plus a few Kiwi's) and a dawn service was held on board the ship... around 150 people in attendance. This was a nice touch.

    In Corfu, it was another nice day although there was quite a haze covering the area. Last time we were in Corfu it was simply spectacular..I guess we saw it at it's best last time. Never mind. We had booked a mountain bike tour of Corfu (why you ask? That is a good question and I am wondering why too). It wasn't too bad but there was a bit of hill climbing. Ok when we got to the top it was all downhill so that was fun. Brad enjoyed it... me, maybe not so much. The views were not great due to the haze.    Read more

  • Brad and Mandy PearceBrad and Mandy PearceThe Europe we missed
    Overlooking the old town
    Buggy ridingOur jalopy - note the dirtBrad's artistic shotInside the city wallsLots of cats

    Magnificent Dubrovnik

    April 27, 2018 in Croatia ⋅ ☀️ 22 °C

    A great day, perfect weather-wise and a bit of fun had today. The cruise ship docked about 4km our of the main "old town" area and we had a tour up the cable car, then buggy riding, then a stroll around the fortified town.

    Great views from the top and the buggy riding was a bit of an adventure. Trouble was it was very dirty and we all returned covered in a fine red dust. (Ahhh! My white shorts had only just come back from the laundry and they were filthy again). As well as that, I did my usual trick of falling over, loose gravel on a slope, and scraped my arm and cut my hand as I grabbed a thorny shrub on the way down. Nothing more serious hurt.... except my pride. Brad just shakes his head at me - not very sympathetic, is he! At least I got to have a drive as well.

    Back down in the old town it struck me as very clean, no litter, no graffiti and yet it was only around 25 years ago that this area was involved in war as the former Yugoslavia was breaking down into the smaller nations like Croatia, Bosnia, Slovakia, Slovinia etc. There are the usual souvenir shops etc. Also lots of cats wandering the streets. We will be visiting Dubrovnik again next week so we will walk the walls and explore the town then.    Read more

  • Brad and Mandy PearceBrad and Mandy PearceThe Europe we missed
    Overlooking Kotor and our ship
    Part of the pathPart of moat surrounding city walls

    Kotor the cat capital

    April 28, 2018 in Montenegro ⋅ ☀️ 27 °C

    Kotor is a town in Montenegro that reminds me of a Norwegian Fjord. We only had a half day here and there is not a great deal to see here as this port is a relatively new entry to the cruising calendar. Apparently Kotor is known for its cats, although i think I saw more in Dubrovnik.

    There was a fortress you could walk up to but at 1350 steps on an uneven path, I decided to let Brad have the privilege of doing the climb (charged him €8 too). He said it was fairly strenuous and at one point he was crawling up on his hands and knees ( so he says, although he didn't take a photo of that bit so he may be exaggerating???). I found myself a cafe with WiFi so i could send emails and my blog.

    Bought a couple of small souvenirs, wandered along the city walls (all these old European cities seem to have walls surrounding them), back on the ship and sailed out. Next port is Venice and as I am writing this we are just cruising into Venice and it looks amazing!!!    Read more

  • Brad and Mandy PearceBrad and Mandy PearceThe Europe we missed
    Sailing in to Venice
    Bridge of SighsInside Doge's palacePart of St Mark's BasilicaRialto bridgeJust one of the thousands of gondolas

    Venice = very nice

    April 30, 2018 in Italy ⋅ ☀️ 21 °C

    We spent a day and a half in Venice as it was a change over day with half the ship disembarking and a new lot of passengers joining the cruise. There are three other cruise ships in port already so Venice is bound to be crowded. The port is a little way away from the main square and the only way is by water...there are no roads where we are going (to quote the Doc in Back to the Future - am I showing my age here? )

    So we arrive in Venice and the place is a sea of people ( This is also a public holiday weekend). When you think of Venice you really only think of the canals, gondolas/ gondaliers, a couple of famous bridges (Rialto bridge and Bridge if Sighs), St Marks Basilica & Square and the Grand Canal. Apart from the Doge's Palace there is not to much more to see. I guess it is the uniqueness of this place that is the main attraction.

    We had a tour of the Doge's Palace - very ornate with gold and painted ceilings and apparently one of the largest canvas paintings in the world. We crossed the Bridge of Sighs which does not have any romantic connotation associated with it as the gondoliers would have you believe as they punt you underneath. Instead it was actually the direct path to the prison. The sighs would be the sound the prisoners would make as they crossed the bridge, possibly only a one way trip.... Or so the story goes.

    It is known as St Mark's Basilica (and square) because that is where the apostle St Mark is buried. Trouble is, St Mark died in Egypt , not Venice, but as the Venetians were always competing against Rome (who had St Peter), they decided to steal the body from Egypt and bring it back to Venice. To do this they hid his body in a large basket and covered it with pork so when they passed through customs the Muslims would not touch pork and thus not find the body. True story - fascinating stuff. There is a depictation of this event on the front of St Mark's Basilica. Unfortunately we were not able to go into St Mark's as the queues were just too long.

    We didn't go on a gondola as it is quite expensive and when we looked at the faces of those travelling, nobody seemed very happy, including the gondalier. We got plenty of photos though and we also made our way to the Rialto bridge, did some shopping and bought a piece of Murano glass (another Venetian specialty) and a couple of other souvenirs. Back onboard on off to Split in Croatia.    Read more

  • Brad and Mandy PearceBrad and Mandy PearceThe Europe we missed
    River float
    Village of OmisFree climbersOmisInside the village of OmisSplit from the ship

    A Sunny day in Split

    May 1, 2018 in Croatia ⋅ ⛅ 18 °C

    Split is the 2nd largest town / city in Croatia with rather dramatic scenery surrounded by massive barren mountains. We didn't stay in Split itself but headed out to a little village called Omis then down the river by boat to a mill (now a restaurant). Being a public holiday (May Day), all the locals were out enjoying their day off. Actually, they talk about Aussies won love their long weekends, I'm sure the whole of Europe have been relaxing since Saturday making it an extra long weekend. There were people kicking balls, playing badminton, fishing, free climbing (madness), zip lining, but not many swimming as the river is still very cold - very clear though.

    The villages are all immaculately clean, not so much the cities. The city of Split itself is rather ugly with apartment blocks built around 30 years ago accommodating mainly for the Navy as this was there centre. A pleasant day... not too taxing physically... but nothing that I would call a 'must see'. There was a tour to Krka national park that has lots of waterfalls which may have been nice to see so that may have been a better option.    Read more

  • Brad and Mandy PearceBrad and Mandy PearceThe Europe we missed
    Fantastic views from the walls
    Note the new and old roofsNotice all the people walking around the wallsSteep street in the old town1Hot chilli lolly, top left

    Dubrovnik City Walls

    May 2, 2018 in Croatia ⋅ ☀️ 28 °C

    This was our 2nd time in Dubrovnik and the plan was to walk around the city walls. Beautiful day and we didn't want to fork out $14US each to have a shuttle bus take us into town.... it was only 4km, mostly flat except for the last big hill, so we decided to walk in. It took a while but we were pretty pleased with our efforts.

    As with anything in Europe, there was a fee to walk around the walls - 300 Kuna or around $25pp. Lots of stairs up and down and approx. 2km around. The ocean is clean and clear and a beautiful blue colour. Looking down on the city below you could see the tiles that had to be replaced after the bombing 20-30 years ago.

    After our walk around the walls we found this fantastic lolly shop (We saw it before when we were here last). Bought an assortment of lollies to try. One of them was called a hot chilli pepper. We thought it was just a gummy lolly but when we ate it it sure packed a punch - burnt our mouths for ages.    Read more

  • Brad and Mandy PearceBrad and Mandy PearceThe Europe we missed
    Blue eye lake
    Albanian welcome dancersView overlooking SarandaLooking straight down into the irisClear water streamsOne of the many bunkers

    Saranda Albania

    May 3, 2018 in Albania ⋅ 🌙 19 °C

    Today is our wedding anniversary - 32 years... how about that! So where do we celebrate it but Albania!! To be honest, before now we really didn't know where Albania was. (It is a small country below Croatia)

    What else do we know about Albania? Well, Mother Theresa came from Albania as did the actor Jim Belushi (according to our guide). They have a rather striking looking flag - a double headed black eagle on a red background; and I guess they are a fairly poor country - the average wage being about €200 per month.

    Saranda is not a usual cruise ship port and I think our ship was the first of the season so to celebrate we were meet at the dock by school children who presented us with friendship bracelets with Saranda beads , welcome to Saranda stickers and children and adults dressed in traditional costume doing their traditional dancing.

    Our tour took us to look at some ancient ruins in Saranda featuring beautiful mosaics.... but the mosaics were covered underground for protection and all we saw were some canvases of pictures of the mosaics, so I don't really get the point of this stop. Next we travelled up to a castle ( was a castle but now a restaurant) for the view over the town. Would have been a very nice view on a clear day but unfortunately it was fairly overcast and hazy.

    Then we visited the main attraction - the blue eye lake. Essentially it is a bubbling spring whose source is very deep and gives it a very deep blue colour in the centre - like an eye. The water is the clearest water I've ever seen but very cold, about 10°C. Unfortunately, one lady went to feel the water and slipped on the bank and fell in. It was a bit of a struggle to get her out.

    Finally, there are 750,000 bunkers in Albania.... yes, three quarters of a million little concrete structures. These were built by the dictator of the country (can't remember his name) during the cold war around 50 years ago. He was convinced that both USA and Russia were going to invade Albania and so he spent millions of dollars they didn't have to protect his nation. Many have been pulled down to reuse the steel, or they have been repurposed as shops etc.

    So Albania was kinda interesting... at least it wasn't crowded like many of the other ports we have been to. We finished of our anniversary in one of the specialty restaurants on the ship so that was a nice ending.    Read more

  • Brad and Mandy PearceBrad and Mandy PearceThe Europe we missed
    1Katakalon - gateway to Olympia
    Red filterPina Colada on our balcony

    Katakalon

    May 4, 2018, Eastern Mediterranean ⋅ ☀️ 22 °C

    A quiet day today. Most people go to Olympia - the birthplace of the Olympic Games where they light the Olympic torch before every games, and also the temple of Zeus. As we visited this place several years ago we just stayed in the town of Katakolon and looked through the shops. They had some nice things from unique ceramic pieces, wooden and glass artworks and various sculptures and paintings, as well as the usual assortment of souvenirs.

    Brad practised some artistic shots with his camera while a caught up on my blog, spoke to one of the boys who happened to be online at the time, and checked out some photos of Layla that May sent through. Overall, a relaxing day...a change from yet another 'old town'.    Read more

  • Brad and Mandy PearceBrad and Mandy PearceThe Europe we missed
    The war cemetery
    MonasteryInside the ornate Orthodox churchView over the harbour of ChaniaChania harbour frontFormer mosque (now an art gallery)

    Souda

    May 5, 2018 in Greece ⋅ 🌬 21 °C

    We docked at Souda on the island of Crete. Located pretty much in the middle of Asia, Europe and Africa, Crete became a very important island that the forces from all sides wanted to have control of. During the 2nd World War, Crete was the site of a battle involving mainly British, New Zealand and Australian allied forces who were attacked by German airborne forces (paratroopers). Many lives were lost - we visited a well maintained war cemetery with around 100 Australian soldiers and around 400 New Zealand soldiers ( the largest section being British)

    Our tour then took us to an old monastery / Greek Orthodox church, once again in a well maintained setting. The church was very ornate featuring a lot of gold. From there we went to a monument of someone or others tomb, but this was mainly for the view over Chania (pronounced with a silent c), a pretty village on the harbour, often referred to the Venice of Crete.

    We spent some free time in Chania which was nice along the harbourfront but the ever present shops contain pretty much the same assortment of souvenirs - just a different name on the front of their fridge magnets / t-shirts / mugs etc. Anyway, it was quite an interesting day trip to Crete and I learnt some history about a place I really did not know anything about before.    Read more

  • Brad and Mandy PearceBrad and Mandy PearceThe Europe we missed
    The windmills
    Little Venice of MykonosTypical Mykonos- narrow alley, white walls, accented with blueSteps (beside windmills) looking towards Little VenicePatmos the pelicanBrad has a dip

    Mykonos

    May 6, 2018 in Greece ⋅ ⛅ 18 °C

    This Greek island is another port we have visited previously so we decided to walk around the town. All trip Brad had decided he was going for a swim at Mykonos but when the day arrived it was overcast and a little on the cool side. We wandered through Little Venice and to the windmills for the usual photos, then back through the narrow alleyways to the town beach area.... no-one swimming and Brad doesn't want to look like the only goose out there. (Actually, there were a couple of white geese swimming there - thought it a bit strange to see geese in salt water).

    Walked back through the narrow alleys to find a place to eat and while we were waiting for our meal, Brad announced " there is a pelican coming down the street". Sure enough, there was Patmos, a rather famous pelican that wanders around Mykonos, complete with his entourage of people. He walked right around the table where I was sitting and strangely he is a rather unusual shade of pale pink. We missed him last time so it was great to stumble across him even when we were not looking for him. I think he might be Patmos the third as a pelican has been wandering the streets of Mykonos for years.

    The day had warmed up and when we walked back to the town beach, Brad could see a couple of people having a swim so it looked as if he was going to get wet. I stayed on the shore and took photos as proof. He said it was cold at first but very salty. A satisfying day.    Read more

  • Brad and Mandy PearceBrad and Mandy PearceThe Europe we missed
    Sail in to Valetta
    View from top gardens over harbourThe old hospital ward - 155m longOne of the planes - FaithSt George Cross - the original oneFiring the 4pm canon - perfect timing

    Valetta

    May 8, 2018 in Malta ⋅ ☀️ 18 °C

    Another new country to add to our list - this time Malta. We had a really nice time at Valetta and is a place steeped in history. It has been under the control of various empires for thousands of years from Roman to Ottoman but now is quite British. Once again, due to its strategic location, Malta played an important role in WWII and in fact is the only country in the world to receive the St George Cross - the highest civilian award that can be given.

    Another fortified city, Valetta is quite spectacular to sail into. We toured independently, visiting the gardens, The Malta Experience (an audio- visual about the history of Malta), and also included a brief tour of the hospital which boasted the longest ward in the world at 155 metres long; and Fort St Elmo which tied all the history we saw in the AV together.

    During WWII they had 3 small planes (nicknamed Faith, Hope and Charity) that they constantly flew around to help thwart incoming attacks from the enemy. This was one of the reasons they earned the St George Cross.

    Twice a day they fired canons and Brad was pretty chuffed to get the perfectly timed photo. It was a long day with plenty of walking, but very enjoyable.    Read more

  • Brad and Mandy PearceBrad and Mandy PearceThe Europe we missed
    Azure window
    Coastline near azure windowPart of an aquaduct - no longer in use obviouslyOne of the many churches on this islandExample of the balconiesThe all seeing eye painted on fishing boats to ward off evil

    Gozo

    May 9, 2018 in Malta ⋅ ⛅ 17 °C

    Gozo is another island of Malta and we spent half a day here. We did the hop on hop off bus, or rather we hopped on but didn't hop off until the end as time was short and it was the only way we could guarantee to get back to the ship on time . There was not a great deal to see in Gozo - there is a church with reportedly the third largest dome in the world, a blue grotto or azure window or something but we really only glimpsed these things from the bus.

    Some of the architecture was rather interesting - enclosed wooden balconies that protrude from the side of the building. Couldn't really fit more than 2 people, certainly not a chair and table and they don't look all that secure.

    This is a short entry - probably a port we really don't need to stop at but would possibly be better to do a ship tour instead.    Read more

  • Brad and Mandy PearceBrad and Mandy PearceThe Europe we missed
    1This building (town hall? ) was used in the final scene of The Godfather 3
    View from shipIn one of the oratories - large painting by van EykDetailed sculptures in other oratoryClose-up of one sceneStreet scene

    Palermo

    May 10, 2018 in Italy ⋅ ☁️ 15 °C

    Palermo is on the island of Sicily (Italy) and we did a tour of the Mysterys of Palermo. This included a trip to the Catacombs of the Capuchin monks. Here there were well preserved bodies of people from the late 1500's through to the 1800's? (not sure of date). There was even the preserved body of a 2 year old child who died of influenza in 1920 - the family got permission to open the catacombs for her. Quite interesting, people were very small back then. Could not take any photos, but then, it is bit macabre!

    We then had a walking tour through 2 oratories in the city. I am not really sure of the purpose of an oratory- they are sort of like a church or cathedral but it is a place where they meet to recite the rosary. My apologies to my Catholic friends as I probably have this entirely wrong but when the guide explained the paintings and the sculptures which outlined each of the 'mysteries' of the Christian faith (eg, the nativity, crucifixion, Pentecost etc - there were 15 sections) it made sense. The detail was incredible.

    Apart from that, Palermo is a large city. The traffic is chaotic, everyone seems to drive and park all over the place. Not a pretty city but an interesting day nevertheless.    Read more

  • Brad and Mandy PearceBrad and Mandy PearceThe Europe we missed
    Mt Vesuvius
    On the trekSee the people walking around the rimCrater views1

    Mt Vesuvius

    May 11, 2018 in Italy ⋅ ⛅ 22 °C

    We arrived in Naples again, 2nd last day of the cruise. Brad had booked a trek up Mt Vesuvius which all sounded a bit too strenuous to me so I just stayed on the ship, had a leisurely breakfast, finished up a couple of my footprint blogs and went to the port terminal to find WiFi so that I could post them. Naples is not a city I cared to walk about on my own so I was happy to have a bit of a day off from touring.

    Brad said the walk up Mt Vesuvius wasn't too bad...a little steep in parts and you got to look down into the crater. Steam was coming out of fissures but no eruptions (thankfully). He said there were people selling pieces of lava which was a little strange because you only had to bend down and pick up pieces. They may have been carved into a shape or something but I don't know why you would buy it.

    Back on the ship it was packing our bags for disembarking and we even went to afternoon tea - very civilised with little sandwiches, cakes and scones with jam and cream. Not sure why we had not gone to this before as it was served every afternoon. For the last week or so we had been going to trivia with Bert and Margaret, a retired couple from Northern Ireland - Bert was very funny, always had a joke to tell. They were very clever and we won a majority of the time much to the disgust of the other teams. We were asked by a couple of other teams if we were continuing on the cruise but we were all leaving so now they are happy because they think they have a chance.

    As usual, it has been a good cruise and the longest one we have done (2 back to back cruises of 12 days each). The ship is one of the older ones in the fleet and is looking a little tired but we were happy with our room.    Read more

  • Brad and Mandy PearceBrad and Mandy PearceThe Europe we missed
    The intricate dome (blurry)
    St Paul'sInterior pictures. Some a little blurry due to low light and no flashDetail of ceiling

    Return to Rome

    May 12, 2018 in Italy ⋅ ⛅ 16 °C

    Ship docked in Civitaveccia we had a Glimpse of Rome tour with transfer to the airport. We are actually staying in an airport hotel and flying the next day so we thought we may have time to visit St Peter's Basilica and the Vatican in the afternoon. The bus tour took us past a few things we did not see before such as Circus Maximus (think Ben Hur and the chariot racing), Palantine Hill and Roman Forum plus Republic Square with its impressive large building. We didn't get any photos of these though because to much reflection from the bus windows. Actually, the main reason was because the camera was at the bottom of the backpack and too hard to get out.

    We did stop at St Paul's Basilica which is smaller but is still the largest church I've ever been in - very ornate, very impressive. It's a good thing we stopped here because as it turned out we never did get to see the Vatican (except from the outside). By the time we got to our hotel it was 2pm and to get back into Rome and queue up we did not think we would make it. Maybe it is something we will have to aim for in the future (or maybe not!?!)    Read more

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