Mediterranean Cruise

Forward:

We have been looking forward to this trip all year. This is our official 25th anniversary trip, even though it isn’t taking place on our anniversary. This vacation will be the longest time away from home we’ve spent together since we’ve been married. This is a very active and adventurous vacation spanning fifteen days. The journal of our experiences is quite lengthy given all of the new experiences we shared. We hope that even if you find you have to read it in stages that you’ll enjoy the narrative and discover something new as we did. The length could have been shorter, but then it would only consist of a list of dates and places. We want convey the emotional experience of being there instead of just telling you where we went. Congratulations to you if you make it all of the way through this rather long entry.

Day 1 – October 13th (Flight to Barcelona)

Our flight out isn’t until two in the afternoon, so we have time to wrap things up at home. Cory drives us to O’Hare in the rain. Our flight is being made in two legs. First we fly to Montreal. After an hour and a half layover we continue on to Barcelona. The first flight is with United Express. We get to the airport a couple of hours ahead of time and have a late breakfast/early lunch in the terminal. After getting to the gate we learn our plane is delayed coming in, but we are not too worried yet. After they announce a mechanical delay due to some lighting needing to be replaced, we start getting worried. Our flight to Montreal is an hour late departing. We will now only have half an hour to make the connection.

While en route we learn that there are several other folks on the flight that are also connecting to Barcelona. When they come around with the customs forms we make some inquiries and are reassured that with the number of people connecting they should hold the plane. The group of us that are connecting make a quick job of deplaning and head towards customs. A fellow with a cart gives us a lift down the very long hallway to the customs area. When we arrive there an agent from Air Canada, who our second leg is with, informs us that the flight to Barcelona has been delayed two hours. We breathe a large sigh of relief. The line for customs for connecting flights is non-existent. We pass through easily and head to the gate.

At the gate we arrange to sit together. While we could select seats for the flight to Montreal, we couldn’t for Barcelona. The gate agent moves our seats to 14D and 14F, hoping we can get the person between us to switch and sit on the aisle. Because of the delay Air Canada is issuing meal vouchers that are good at restaurants in the terminal. We find a small bar and sit down to a cheese plate and some wine to pass the time. The cheeses are good and the wine enjoyable.

When we get back to the gate for boarding the flight has been further delayed. We finally begin boarding two hours after the original departure time. We wait until almost the end to board so as to avoid the cattle call. The plane is very comfy and the first class seating is actually recliners. The fellow sitting in between Rhonda and I agrees to slide over to the aisle and we settle in for the eight hour flight. Every announcement made on the plane is repeated three times, once in English, once in French and once in Spanish. Rhonda watches Abraham Lincoln, Vampire Hunter and I get started on the journal. See you in Spain.

Day 2 – October 14th (Barcelona)

The night didn’t hold much sleep for either Rhonda or I. Neither of us could very comfortable in the airline seats and we slept fitfully, maybe a couple of hours a piece. The plane has turned on the morning lighting and the attendants are coming by with muffins and drinks. We both have coffee. As I eat breakfast I can see the Pyrenees out the windows as we approach Barcelona. We land shortly before ten in the morning, local time. Immigration is easy and we both get a new stamp in our passports. After collecting our baggage we head out to get a taxi.

The day is beautiful. The cab ride down to our hotel on La Rambla is quick. The fare is about twenty-eight euros and we pay the fellow thirty-five euro. We later learn that this is an extremely generous tip. That probably explains why he didn’t mind blocking traffic and taking our bags into the hotel for us. We cannot check in until 2pm, but we pay for the room in advance. We stow our bags in a closet at the end of the hall and head out to walk La Rambla. We keep all of the important items in the backpack as the closet is not controlled.

La Rambla is a very long stretch of parkway running through this section of Barcelona. The walkway between the two lanes of traffic is very wide. All along it in different areas are souvenir stands, craft stalls, artist stalls, gelato stands, restaurants, and garden boutiques. There is even a pet store. Most of the businesses are extensions of the businesses along the street. This is very true for the cafes. The whole walkway is lined with plane trees. The crowd is very diverse.

We walk down to the harbor and view the statue of Columbus by the water. He is pointing to the new world. We are amused by the depiction of the missionaries converting the heathen Indians that is a part of the statue. We walk back up La Rambla and sit at the San Remo Café’s seating in the walkway. We both sit on the same side of the table so we can watch the people parade. We order a pitcher of sangria made with champagne and a margherita pizza. The sangria is not very sweet, which is great for our tastes. The pizza is like very thin cheesy bread with no sauce and is good as a shared snack. We enjoy the people watching so much we order a second pitcher of sangria and extend our stay quite a while. While watching we see a large couple trying to drive a rented scooter up the street. The woman is driving and having a hard time of it. We imagine the conversation at the scooter rental where the male is reluctant, but the female prevails and declares she will drive if he doesn’t want to. They bring us the best laugh of the morning. Eventually enough time has passed that we can check in.

We return to the Hotel Moderno and get our room. Though the day is perfect, our lack of sleep drives us to take a nap. We set the alarm for 5:30 and doze off quickly. We awake to the alarm ready to explore the other end of La Rambla. As we stroll north we spot an ancient looking tower off to our right. We turn on to a side street to find out what it is. It turns out to be an old church on a square. We then begin to aimlessly wander the narrow streets in the Gothic section of town with the intent of getting lost. We duck into a tiny gelato shop for a scoop of coconut and coffee gelato. We share the small scopes as we wander. We stumble across an artesian market in a square in front of the Barcelona Cathedral. The cathedral is next to the Gaudi workshop. The architecture on the cathedral is stunning and we decide to take a look inside.

There is a service going on inside despite all of the tourists. The cathedral is grand and gorgeous. We explore the areas open to the non-parishioners. After exiting the cathedral I head up a side street to explore an archway I saw peeking out during our approach to the square. This is the point when we actually get lost. After wandering the narrow streets for a while we lose track of which way La Rambla is. We eventually come across the first church we saw and make our way back to our original diversion. Northwards we get to the end of La Rambla at a very large square with some government buildings and a couple of fountains. It is the Plaza Catalunya. After traversing its perimeter, which is quite large, we turn back to head down La Rambla.

It is dark now and we want to find a place similar to our earlier stop to sit and have bite to eat and a drink. We stop at the Café de L’Opera across from the Gran Teatre del Liceu, or Opera House. We order up a pitcher of red sangria and a tapas sampler. The food is good and the people watching even better. We stay for quite a long time. Eventually our tiredness gets to us and we decide to call is a night. After getting back to the hotel Rhonda falls right to sleep while I put down my fresh memories into this journal.

Day 3 – October 15th (Barcelona and Embarkation)

We awake after a good night’s sleep at about 9:30. We dress and head for breakfast in the hotel. The meal has a few unusual items, like cured meats and sliced cheeses. It seems like a Spanish interpretation of a American or British continental. The coffee is very good, and we find some tidbits to make our repast with. We pack our backpack and head downstairs. We check out and store our bags in the same closet. We chat with the gal at the front desk about the walk to the Sagrada Familia. She says the neighborhoods are OK for walking and that it will take about thirty minutes. We realize that she probably walks a lot faster than we do, but we figure we can cover the two or so miles in about forty minutes.

We head out into the beautiful morning. The weather today is perfect. The sun is warm and the shade cool. The blocks in the central city are all very uniform and square with the corners cut off. All of the intersections are large and there are usually scooters, motorcycles and some small cars parked in the space where the corner of the block would be. This means that you don’t walk a straight line as you proceed up a street. You are walking more of a scalloped edge. As we walk north we get out of the touristy area along La Rambla and get into a more upper scale shopping region. We find the east/west street we want, Provenca, and turn towards the east. We get a little off track when we encounter Diagonal, a large throughway that cuts at an angle through the city, like Lincoln in Chicago. We quickly correct ourselves and are soon in the park to the west of the Sagrada Familia.

The basilica is remarkable. The structure was designed by Gaudi, and has been under construction for a hundred years now. There are cranes and scaffolds working on the south face, the middle spires, and many other areas. Each of the four sides presents a different style of architecture. We approach the west face, which is very modern art. As we circle the block clockwise we see classic gothic on the north, a sort of baroque east face, and a barely started modern on the south. These, of course, are my loose interpretations. The east face was the first completed. You can tell by the age of the stone, and the fact that it is the side you see in all of the little statuary in the shops. The details included in the facades are too numerous to relate. We take several videos and try to capture as much as we can. The line to get inside winds more than halfway around the large block the basilica sits on. We do not have the time to see the interior today. After spending a good deal of time exploring the exterior we head back towards to the hotel.

We elect to take a different route back. On the way we pass by a gaming store which we decide to poke around in. Except for being Spanish language versions, many of the articles for sale are the same as in the US. I see no Privateer Press items for sale, which I was kind of hoping for. It would be nice to have a model that I bought in Spain. Eventually we come to the Arc de Triomf which gives us our location on the map. We catch a road that we think will take us back toward La Rambla and our hotel. After a while we get the sense that we are going too far. When we get to the water we realize we have. We turn what we think is west and then arrive at a government plaza we saw the previous day. I then have a good idea of where we are and we turn down a road I feel will intersect with La Rambla. Along the way we see an odd little storefront that has nothing in it but an electronic ride like you would see in front of K-Mart. It is a surreal site. Eventually we make it to La Rambla and back to our hotel. It is about one thirty by now, so we still have plenty of time to get to the port.

We have the receptionist call us a taxi to get us to the dock. We have a nice chat with her while we wait. The cab ride is short and we are soon dockside next to the Serenade of the Seas. The embarkation process is quick and easy. We notice that the median age of the passengers is quite higher than any of our previous cruises. This was to be expected, though. While waiting in line Rhonda remarks, “I don’t see any kids.” I reply, “We are the kids.” Once on board we look for our room and try to get our bearings. Although the ship is scheduled to be dry docked next spring for renovations, it is in very good shape. We have an interior stateroom. We opted for an interior room so we could save some money to spend on shore excursions. The room has plenty of storage and is laid out quite nicely. It will be very comfortable for the two of us for the next twelve days. Since the bags won’t arrive for a while, we decide to grab a little lunch. It has been a long while since breakfast.

We head up to deck 11 and get lunch. We take our plates outside and sit facing the shore while we eat. Barcelona is very pretty from the sea. Our ship is docked next to a turning basin. We notice a little boat making circles in the basin. At first we joke about it being a new captain practicing his docking technique. After a few circles we begin to wonder what he is really doing. I then notice some cables hanging over the side from winches and figure it must be some sort of dredging operation. Then the joke turns into the captain looking for a quarter then was dropped over the side. After a little more exploring, we head down to the mandatory safety drill. When the drill is completed we head back to the room to see if our luggage has arrived. As we come down the hall we see our bags. Raymond is our stateroom attendant and he introduces himself. He is very animated and I will not have trouble remembering his name because he looks like Raymond K Hessel, the convenience store employee from Fight Club. We get everything unpacked and stowed without much problem. I catch Raymond and ask about the availability of an iron for a few of my shirts. He says there is no laundry room and things will have to be sent out to be pressed. This, of course, has a fee associated with it. I pick out three shirts and we bag them up for the ship’s laundry to press. We also inform him that the safe in our room is not working. Before we can finish unpacking there is a maintenance man there who fixes the problem.

Now that the ship is heading out to sea we decide to grab a drink and go up on deck. We get drinks at the bar at the bottom of the Centrum, which is the atrium that is open from deck four all the way up to the top of the ship. We walk out onto the boat deck and look out to the north and watch Barcelona fade into the horizon. The Pyrenees look rugged and foreboding behind the cities on the sea. As we watch the dark blue waters of the Mediterranean Rhonda spots two dolphins jumping towards the ship. They are racing to catch the bow wave of the ship, which takes them out of our site. We notice the sky turning red behind the ship, so we decide to find a place in the stern to watch the sunset. We head up to deck six and pass through the Pitstop, which is the ship’s sports bar. There is a cricket match on the TV and one patron in the bar. We refresh our drinks and learn that the Packer game is to be broadcast at 2:15am. We make plans to see the game and proceed to towards the back of the ship. We come to the casino which has only one guest playing three-card poker. The rest of the casino is empty. We notice a trend here. The casino games all work on US dollars, as that is the currency of the ship. As we proceed aft we come to the Schooner Bar, which will become our favorite hangout, and the specialty restaurants. The Portofino restaurant is advertising a murder mystery dinner two nights of the cruise. On a whim we make reservations for the dinner on day nine. We then also make a reservation at the steak house, Chop Grille, for our first day at sea, which comes after Naples.

We eventually make it to the back of the boat in the Safari Lounge. It is delightfully decorated and empty. We take seats all the way in the back by the windows to watch the sunset. A waiter, Nigel from India, comes by to help us. We get a bottle of wine, more economical, and have a long talk with Nigel. He is obviously a little bored since there are no other guests in the Lounge. The sunset is nice, but not spectacular. There is a complementary Bingo game at eight fifteen, and we decide to stay for that. Nigel gets us extra cards and lots of raffle entries. We move down by the dance floor where the bingo game is setup. The entertainment person, Celia, running the game repeats everything she says throughout the whole game in English and Spanish. We don’t win anything and then walk down to dinner.

We are guided to our table, 415. It is a large oval table that seats ten people. There is one couple there already. Two other couples arrive shortly leaving two empty chairs that will be filled halfway through dinner. As everyone is introduced we find that we all speak English. Rhonda has everyone give their names and professions. The first couple is from Oxford, England. They are James, IT, and Haley who works for the welfare system. They were married the previous Saturday. The next couple is Harry and Sarah. They are currently living in Las Vegas, but moving to Los Angeles. He is a recent law graduate who has taken the bar and is awaiting the results. They have been married for three years. He is going into entertainment contract law. Sarah is a legal administrative assistant. The third couple is also from England, near London. They have recently celebrated their twenty-ninth anniversary. Keith is an interior and exterior decorator, but he looks like a general contractor. Sandra is a nurse at a private college. The couple late to dinner is from Kuwait. The female is very soft spoken but speaks very good English. The gentleman doesn’t say anything. We didn’t get their names or occupations.

Dinner was enjoyable. Conversation was lively and made things better. As soon as dinner is completed Rhonda and I excuse ourselves to go take a nap before the game. The ship is starting to buck and sway quite a bit. As we left port our Captain had announced that would be encountering very high winds and nine foot seas. It definitely feels like it. We both manage to get to sleep before too long and awake with the alarm at two am. We put on our clothes and head to the Pitstop. We see nobody on the way there and nobody in the bar when we arrive. The TVs are all blank with a simple announcement that we are out of satellite range. We wonder at this but finally come to the conclusion that the game must have been broadcast at 2:15am Monday, while the ship was heading into Barcelona, and this was technically Tuesday. We wander up to the Solarium on the deck eleven to get a snack and something to drink. I have mango water and a cookie. Rhonda has water and a piece of pizza. We watch what we can see of the waves breaking and roiling off the side of the ship. The stars are out, but it is very windy and cold so we don’t stay out long. We make our way down to the library, which is close to our room. After a bit we go back to bed.

Day 4 – October 16th (Cannes)

We sleep until about eight when I get up and shower. We both dress and go up to deck twelve to look at Cannes as the ship settles in. This is a tender port, so we stay out in the harbor. We explore the shoreline and spot some of the places we visited during our trip to France three years ago. We also spot the medieval hilltop town of Mougins where we stayed. After a while we wander down to grab a little breakfast. We sit along the entrance to the restaurant and watch the people coming in. There is a fellow from Serbia there who is selling fresh squeezed orange juice. Many people approach him but quickly retreat when they learn there is an extra $3.00 charge for it. We comment to ourselves how thankless a job that must be. When there is a lapse in the crowd coming in I mention that to him and he comes over to talk. We learn he actually likes the position better that working a station because he doesn’t have to lift a lot of heavy trays. It also provides him better hours so he can go ashore at most ports for a few hours with his fiancé.

After catching up this journal we decide to head ashore and visit the Grande Cafe. The trip over on the tender is quick and soon we are strolling familiar ground in Cannes. We make our way directly to the Grande Café and grab a table outside. We both sit on the same side so we are next to each other and facing the human parade in front of us. There is a toddler we notice who comes and goes in front of us a few times we later learn she is named Luka and belongs to a couple dining on the other side of the restaurant. We notice a pictogram on the side of the garbage receptacle along the walkway that amuses us both so much that I have to take a picture of it. It depicts a man strolling jauntily by a garbage can and tossing refuse casually into the bin. The attitude of the man in the silhouette in the pictogram is quite obvious and conveyed very well.

After enjoying a couple of demis of rose de Provence, some olives and a cheese plate we notice that the old men are now playing petanque. Petanque is the French version of bocce played with smaller metal balls on rough dirt courts. We walk around to the courts next to the street where there is a three on three game going on. We notice that the old men use magnets on strings to pick up their balls after a round. We cheer some good throws and between rounds an old fellow in a red sweater comes over and tries to hand a ball to Rhonda to throw in the next round. She declines through gestures because he doesn’t speak a lick of English. We convey the idea that we are from the cruise ship. Play continues and we are trying to think of the name of the object ball in petanque. We get the attention of the fellow in the red sweater and I ask him in my halting French. We get the answer we desire when I hear bouchon. After a while of watching the games we walk into the city a bit. We shop casually without any purpose, just looking at what is on display and enjoying the atmosphere.

After making a long circuit we arrive back at the Grande Café. We decide that one more 500ml bottle of rose is in order and sit back down. The waiter recognizes us and brings a bottle of water with the wine. We drink both. During our second round of people watching a couple of mounted policemen ride by. A small dog that looks similar to a Yorkie starts barking and pulling at the leash as if he were going to take on both horses and win. This elicits chuckles from more than a few patrons. We fall into conversation with the couple next to us. They are Brits that sold their house a few years ago and now live in Brittany. They are taking some time off here in the south of France. We explain that we would like to be able to retire to France as well. Eventually the water and the wine are both gone and we start to walk back to the pier to catch a tender back to the ship. We are heading back about forty-five minutes ahead of the last tender so we have no crowds to deal with.

Back on the ship we go to our room. I lay down to take a nap after the short night last night. Rhonda heads up to participate in a trivia game in the Schooner Bar. She doesn’t win anything, but has a good time getting to know another British couple who are also playing. She comes back to the room to join me in a nap. I set an alarm so I wouldn’t sleep too long and soon we are both up. It is a formal night for dinner this night. We both get dressed and proceed to the theater for the Captain’s reception. The reception is the standard fair for a cruise ship with the officers being introduced and a meet and greet with the Captain. Our Captain is actually a female. She is the first female captain of a major cruise ship in history. Dinner is good and conversation is lively again. The Kuwaiti couple does not return, though. We spend some time on deck after dinner watching the lights on the coast slip by. We know it is an early day tomorrow so we head to bed to get a better night’s sleep.

Day 5 – October 17th (Livorno-Florence)

The alarm goes off early, at least early for cruise life. Our tour is meeting in the theater at 7:15am to disembark and catch the bus to Florence. We made some breakfast selections from the room service menu the night before. The tidbits arrive, with coffee, as we are getting dressed and packed for the day. I carry a backpack each day that we can keep cameras, water, purchases and anything else we desire in. There are lots of people in the theater when we get there. Stickers with numbers are being passed out to the different groups. Ours is number 45, and we are instructed to wear the sticker high on the chest so it is visible at all times. Our group is called and we troop out of the ship and onto the docks in Livorno.

We are moored at a pier in a very industrial port. The town of Livorno is hiding somewhere south of the derricks, warehouses and other ships. There is a large row of busses waiting and we are led to ours. After three late couples finally make it to the bus we are off. Our driver is Fabio, and our tour guide for the day is named Ignazio. Ignazio is older and reminds me of a grey haired version of Bernie from the movie Weekend at Bernie’s. He has an easy manner about him along with a nice sense of humor. We like him right away. The bus gets started and we head inland. The terrain we are driving through is a wide valley floor between two mountain ranges. One very large and rugged range to the north, and a small one to the south.

As we head east toward Florence Ignazio points out some particular mountains to the north. He explains that those are the mountains that the Carrara marble is mined from. He points out other items as we proceed down the highway to make the time pass. It is about an hour drive, with some traffic, to get to old Florence. During the voyage he passes out small radios on lanyards along with a single earpiece. These are the devices we will all wear so we can hear what Ignazio has to say as long as we are within few dozen yards of him. I think this an ingenious way to communicate with the group without having to gather everyone in a small bunch and yell. With all of the sounds of the city and the other groups it becomes quite evident why this technology is being used by all of the tour groups we see during the day. One odd effect is hearing some things twice. As the group walks down the street you will hear a scooter pass Ignazio as his microphone picks it up and then you will hear it again as the scooter passes you.

The first stop is the Michelangelo Square to the southeast of the old town, on a high hill above the Arno River. We marvel at Fabio’s driving as he negotiates a large touring bus through the narrow and winding streets to get up the hill. The view of old Florence is remarkable. We are surprised at how much the Duomo dominates the entire city. After twenty minutes or so the group makes it back to the bus and we head down. We skirt the old town and drive along a portion of the city walls built back in 1330 or so. Traffic in the old town is limited to residents, scooters and vehicles with special permits. The bus takes us into the old town to a drop off area, the Piazza San Marco. Yes, the same name as in Venice, but looking much different. This is the last we will see of Fabio until the day is over. The rest of the tour is all walking, which is fine with us. The group piles out and we walk a few blocks to get in line to enter the Accademia di Belle Arti, or the Academy of Fine Arts. We see the first of the hawkers selling their stuff while waiting in line. These are guys who lay their merchandise, in this case art prints, out on the sidewalk or street and try to get you to buy them. We hear Ignazio speaking a lot of Italian and soon he comes back with tickets for everyone. The staff controls the flow of people in the museum so as to not let it become too crowded. Thus we must wait for a while in the street. Before too long we are led inside to pass through security.

Ignazio gathers the group on the inside and we troop into the first gallery. Here we view many paintings, most on wood, that date from the 1400 and 1500s that were rescued from churches in Italy. We spend some in this gallery waiting for a group to proceed into the next area. When Ignazio calls us together we are led into a grand hallway that leads to a large domed area. In the hallway are four of Michelangelo’s unfinished slave statues that were meant for a Pope’s mausoleum. There is also the last Pieta he worked on, also unfinished. And at the end of the hall under the dome is the David. David draws the eye. While Ignazio talks about the slaves and the Pieta, and the way Michelangelo worked, I force myself to pay attention to him and focus on the works near at hand and not let the David distract me. It is hard. The unfinished works are an amazing look into how the genius of Michelangelo worked and how he coaxed his statues out of the solid blocks of marble. The group works its way down to the masterpiece, David. The immediate impression is that of a figure that is larger than life. Standing sixteen feet high and on a pedestal, he is a presence that dominates the space with his majesty and simple beauty. While we gaze in wonder Ignazio highlights the details of the work that Michelangelo performed, and how he represented the human form. He also talks about the reasons Michelangelo chose to diverge from tradition and depict David in such a different way. The tension and confidence combined in the figure come through perfectly. It is hard to stand dry eyed in the face of such elegance. Ignazio closes his talk and allows some time for everyone to walk around the marvel in marble and take a closer look from all sides. Regretfully our time here runs its course and we must move on. The twenty minutes in silent reverie at the feet of David have made the journey worth the taking, even if nothing else was before us. No picture can do the work justice, and I understand why people make the pilgrimage to see the work in person.

We head out into the street to walk to our next destination. It is here that I first notice the police of old Florence. Their uniforms are of an old style with white helmets and white leather baldrics and bags. I imagine they are traditional and are a nice touch in this place. We proceed up the flagged stoned street to the Duomo and Baptistry. We arrive in the square that was the religious center of old Florence. Ignazio provides an enlightening talk about the buildings. I learn many new things. During his talk and ambulance comes through the piazza. It looks odd as it is painted neon yellow with neon orange trim. The piazza is filled with people and it has a difficult time getting through the crowd. The Duomo is covered with statuary, mosaics and reliefs. It is almost too much to take in. When done Ignazio leads the group up the street to the political center of old Florence. This is another square, but one of a decidedly different character. It is here that the guilds conducted their business, elected and ran their parliament, and demonstrated their dominance. In front of the Palazzo Vecchio stands a copy of the David in the place it stood for nearly four hundred years. There is an open air gallery to the right of the Palazzo Vecchio in which stands a dozen or so statues of various subjects. It has a nice feel to it, making these works available to all who frequent the square. It was a way that the secular power could demonstrate its sway and dominance apart from the church.

Ignazio gives the group about twenty minutes of free time and Rhonda and I shop for a few small items for the boys. Before long the group is back together and on the way to lunch. There is a restaurant about a block from the square that we all enter, the Osteria Dei Baroncelli. Seating is provided at large tables with bottles of wine already on them. Rhonda and I sit across from a couple from Phoenix. Their names are Gale and Ron. Lunch is served in a couple of courses, with pasta being first. Rhonda mentions that she can’t eat pasta to Ignazio, and an alternate first course is provided for her. Unfortunately it is a rice dish, which can be just as bad as pasta for its affect on her. We pass a very pleasant lunch conversing with Gale and Ron. The second course is simple and tasty, and the meal finished with gelato and coffee. We are all provided with bottles of water and the tour group heads out to the street to proceed with the afternoon.

The tour group reconvenes out in the street and Ignazio leads us to a Piazza Santa Croce. Our goal is the Basicila of Santa Croce, the largest Franciscan church in the world. He then provides twenty minutes of free time before we are to visit the cathedral. Rhonda and I quickly walk back up the streets we came so we can revisit the square with the open air sculpture gallery to take some video. On the way back to join the group we spot a mask being sold at one of the many carts along the street. The mask has a huge nose and is green and gold. We notice that a little of the brocade on the edge is lose and he drops the price. We buy the mask and rejoin the group.

Ignazio hands out the tickets to the group and walks us to the entrance. He points out that the Franciscans catered to the common man. The church is remarkable inside. It is heavily visited because of the significant people who are entombed here. The first tomb on the left as we enter is Galileo. Across from him is Michelangelo. We take special note of that one. Next to Michelangelo is Dante. Later in the trip we will learn that this tomb is empty and Dante’s remains are actually in Ravenna. Rhonda and I linger a little too long and have to catch up to the group in the front. There Ignazio is pointing out Donatello’s wooden cross, which was quite scandalous in its day. As the group begins to move to the exit Ignazio asks if anyone in the group sings. Rhonda pipes up and says that I do. I acknowledge that I can sing, but don’t do so actively anymore. Despite this Ignazio latches on to me and we follow him out of the cathedral.

Upon exiting the cathedral we find ourselves in a grassy open area. Next to the steps leading out of the cathedral is a small building, the Pazzi Chapel. After the whole group files into the building Ignazio begins to explain its purpose. It was designed by the same architect that designed the Duomo, Filippo Brunelleschi. There are stone benches all around the wall where the monks would seat themselves. The space is nicknamed God’s Mandolin and was used for their chants. The acoustics in the room are supposed to be perfect. Ignazio asks if I would sing for the group. I ascent and he places me in the middle of the room facing the small altar. He tells me to sing anything simple to the cross halfway up the wall. I begin singing the first verse of Shenandoah. As I begin softly Ignazio motions me to get louder. I need little encouragement as the vibrations of my voice begin to come back to me. I pick up the volume as the people in the space get silent. More people come into the chapel from the courtyard to find the source of the music. I stop at the end of the first verse. My voice reverberates around the chamber for quite a while and the people inside remain silent until it has dissipated. The experience was quite moving. Hearing yourself amplified and filling the whole space you are in without much effort is a testament to the genius of the architect. As my voice dies away the group enthusiastically applauds my efforts and pays me many compliments. Ignazio thanks me and seems surprised and pleased that he happened to pick a big voice for his demonstration. My notoriety as a singer will follow me the rest of the day.

The visit to the Pazzi Chapel is more or less the end of the tour. It was a great way to finish. Ignazio leads us on a long walk outside of the old city so we can meet with the bus. Along the way we walk along the river Arno. There are guys selling purses, key chains and squishy balls. These are toys that look like little round rubber pigs or other animals. They throw them on the ground which flattens them like a thrown egg. They slowly take their shape again and Rhonda compares it to the bad guy terminator in the second movie. We will see these same goods all over Italy.

The trip back to Livorno is quiet. Once back at the pier I thank Ignazio for the chance to sing in the Mandolin and give him a nice tip. He is the only tour guide we will tip this trip. Once on board the Serenade we drop off our backpack and go to deck eleven. We grab a couple of drinks and walk up to deck twelve to reflect on the day and watch the port. As we talk we watch the ships coming and going from Livorno. Eventually the Serenade pushed away from the dock and sails out into the open Mediterranean. Once there is not much else to see but the fading lights of Livorno we go down to the Schooner Bar to refill our drinks before dinner. The bartender is a fellow named Sheilendre. He is from Mauritius, which is a small island to the east of Madagascar. He tells us to call him Bobby. He is friendly and generous and becomes our favorite bartender on the cruise. We always wind up coming back to Bobby for our drinks, which he doesn’t always charge us for. Dinner is fine and the conversation very good. We like our table mates and the energy of the talk. We have an early tour in the morning, though, so we are off to bed not long after dinner.

Day 6 – October 18th (Civitavecchia – Rome)

We squeeze in an early breakfast in the Windjammer on deck eleven before we have to meet in the theater at 7:45. Our ship is docked at the far end of the port of Civitavecchia. The bus cannot drive through the town, so it has to circle around to the north before heading south past the town and on towards Rome. Erica is one of the two tour guides and Davido is the driver. It is a ninety minute drive to Rome depending on traffic. Erica explains the name of the town Civitavecchia. It means old city. There are a few interesting tidbit in the bus as we roll along. We are given the same sort of radio contraptions we had the day before in Florence and test them out to make sure everyone is working.

After coming through some Rome traffic we arrive at the train station where we pick up the main tour guide. We never do catch her name. She is an older lady with a lot of knowledge. She will lead the group through the tours and Erica will follow the group to make sure there are no strays. Erica will spend her whole day counting people with the number 45 on them. Yes, we have the same tour number as yesterday. As soon as the guide is on board she starts talking about the significance of the various locations and structures we are driving by. She has the driver take us over a couple of the Seven Hills of Rome on our way to the Colosseum. We drive by the political center of Rome and the location of the Circus Maximus. Finally, we get to the first destination.

Once at the Colosseum we see why Erica has the job she does. There are people everywhere, scores of tour groups and thousands of other visitors. Before approaching the Colosseum the guide has us stop before the structure in an open area. She will make her best efforts to get us in the best locations to see what she is talking about and take pictures. She proceeds to point out the forum, the temple of Venus, the Arch of Constantine, and start of the Appian Way. The arch is significant for the fact that it is the first monument acknowledging the Christians. She goes on to talk about the two things that the Romans provided that made their huge empire possible: water and roads. This is a thought that hasn’t occurred to me before, but makes a lot of sense. The Roman ability to deliver clean water and remove dirty water is simply amazing given their technological limitations. That ability coupled with roads enables cities to flourish.

What can I say about the Colosseum? How about what isn’t widely known and impressed me. The Colosseum’s proper name was the Flavian Amphitheater. The name Colosseum came in later years when the Colossus of Nero stood in proximity. It took only eight years to build the amphitheater. It was built in a hurry because the emperor that commissioned it had many political rivals and he wanted something win over the popular opinion. The Colosseum has three walls, of which only the inner wall is still completely intact. The arena would hold 50,000 people while managing to keep the plebeians separated from the upper and middle classes. Not only did each have their own seating areas, but each class had it own halls and stairs so one class didn’t have to mingle with another. Upon entering the Colosseum we climb to the middle level where the middle class sat. The lower class stood on the top level, but little of that part remains and tourists aren’t allowed there. What strikes both of us is how small the whole structures seems when compared to say, Lambeau Field. While there both Rhonda and I notice the arches built into the supporting walls as if a doorway was filled in. The guide explains that arches were actually built into the wall to help support the weight because the Romans understood the load bearing capacity of arches. Eleven arches alone are visible in the portion of the wall that we are looking at. A small section of the wooden floor of the arena has been reconstructed so people can get a feel for what it actually looked like. Before too many centuries the slaughter of the games fell out of favor. The Colosseum was abandoned and the iron that helped hold the blocks together was stripped along with much of the marble. I guess the Romans knew about recycling too.

As we are exiting the Colosseum area the guide points out a stand selling the book she had been using to show us comparisons of the ruins and what they looked like in their height. It uses overlays to do this and is quite clever. We purchase a copy, which I am sure the tour guide gets a cut of the sales of from the vendor. We make our way back to the bus and load up. We pass the Circus Maximus again and then drive along the Tiber. We cross over to the right bank and wind up a hill. I am amazed at the driver’s handling of this large motor coach through the tiny, crowded and winding roads. We arrive at a hotel where lunch will be served. We sit at a table with three other couples. One is from Atlanta, one from near Quebec, and the other from British Columbia. Lunch itself is unremarkable. This conversation is OK, but somewhat dominated by the male Georgian. The man from near Quebec explains at one point that his wife can understand everything we are saying, but that she only speaks French. They are more engaging and we converse with them through the remainder of the meal.

Rome is surprising to me. I expected crowds and congestions, and it has that in plenty. What surprised me is the lack of a big city skyline. We drove through one business area that had some apartment buildings and office complexes, but nothing was over eight stories high. There is little mass transit, and only two subway lines, which leads to the great congestion. It doesn’t have the American urban feel to it. The graffiti is everywhere, as it is in all of the Italian cities we visit on this trip. Rome has that odd blend of old and new that we also see in all of the cities we visit that lend it a charm, but the crowds and bustle in Rome make it difficult to embrace the charm it is trying to exude.

The Vatican museums are on the docket for the afternoon. Once lunch is complete we board the bus and take a short ride. The Vatican is surrounded by a high wall. The group has to get off the bus a few blocks a few blocks away from the entrance and walk back along the wall. There are fellows selling the same trinkets lining the streets trying to make a euro off of the tourists visiting the museums. The wait outside is short which is one great advantage of being part of a pre-arranged tour. We pass inside the new entrance and get everyone through security. After climbing some steps we are at the start of the long, connected hallways that comprise the museum. The collection is vast and would take many days to even glance at. We will traverse a series of galleries that house the heart of the collection.

The first series of galleries hold hundreds of statuary and carvings that were rescued from the Roman Empire during the centuries after its fall. There are remarkable and wonderful little snapshots of life in Rome all the way. One could spend a couple of days just scrutinizing the details and artistry represented here. The guide tries to keep us together in the press of people as we move forward. Since the galleries are long hallways with a downward slope, the impression is that of a slow moving river of people with small eddies where tour guides make stops. The radios we wear are invaluable in this place as our guide is able to keep a stream of comments and explanations in our ear that we wouldn’t be able to normally hear. As we proceed through the galleries we arrive in the area housing some incredible tapestries. They are epic in proportion and done with such skill at to look like paintings and not needlework. The next portion of the museum houses all of the maps of the different regions of Italy that were commissioned by the same pope that established the Gregorian calendar. They are a fascinating picture of the world from ancient times.

Eventually we wind our way out to a courtyard. Since talking in the Sistine Chapel is discouraged, there are places for tour guides to talk to their groups about what they will see inside. Our guide brings us to a spot with three displays showing images of the chapel. She talks us through the artwork and points out significant features we should look for. After some additional question and answer time, we are led to the entrance of the Sistine Chapel. There is a short stop for those that need to go to bathroom. I head downstairs to use the facilities and we get a glance inside. Rhonda is very excited, but I tell her to wait to the side so we experience the chapel together. I return quickly since we have about twenty-five minutes free to explore the chapel and we want all the time we can get. We enter the chapel at the end with the altar and turn our gaze up.

The Sistine Chapel is another of those amazing sites that has been overexposed. Everyone has seen pictures and documentaries. Like all of the others from the David or Mount Rushmore, to Paris Streets Rainy Day or Redwoods, the personal experience cannot be replicated in media. So how do I with my meager skills describe the impact of this place? The chapel is larger than one expects. It is filled with people with their eyes all turned up. There are Vatican guards scattered about watching for people using cameras or video recorders and also about shushing the crowd from time to time as the noise level increases. As we enter a soft chime sounds and an announcement asking everyone to be quiet in several languages is played. When the eye is turned up, your entire vision is filled with the colors and images put upon the wet plaster all those hundreds of years ago. It is inescapable. The Last Judgment dominates the room. It covers the entire west wall, which is behind the altar, in one huge image. The figures in the painting seem to swirl around Jesus and continually draw the eye to find something new in every corner. The deep blues of the background tie the dark shades of hell and light colors of heaven is such a way as to keep the whole wall unified as one image instead of separate scenes. The works of Michelangelo above the windows, on the ceiling, and on the wall behind the altar are clearly discernable from the work of his contemporaries which are visible around and between the windows. The colors are more vibrant and the textures more defined. The textures of the flesh and robes are rendered with a sculptor’s eye and seem to move as your gaze traverses them. Some of the images almost jump off the walls and ceiling at you. The trompe l’oeil effect that Michelangelo used on the columns and frames of his images on the ceiling is amazing. The columns he painted on the ceiling look three dimensional instead of flat art on a ceiling. I have never noticed this effect in any picture I have ever seen of his work. It is almost dizzying to look up from the middle of the chapel and have your eye tricked into seeing something that isn’t there. We make our way through the chapel, stopping to gaze up at each panel in turn. As our time winds down the group begin to gather at the end of the chapel. The tour guide begins to whisper further comments through our radio sets in our ears. She points out a small dark square of wall in the front corner of the room. It is a spot that the cleaners intentionally left dirty to demonstrate the change they effected. There is a plaster patch directly above us where part of the ceiling between two Noah panels has fallen. No attempt is being made to recreate the work as it is recognized that Michelangelo’s genius was unique. The blank space reminds you of how fragile this masterpiece is and that eventually all that will be left are images that cannot convey the emotional experience of being there. The guide continues to talk and she is clearly reluctant to leave this space and depart its majesty. When someone who visits the chapel as part of their job several times a week cannot easily be torn away, it gives you some sense of how strongly this place can affect you. This is only our first experience, and it is overwhelming.

The group eventually exits the chapel and descends to the front of Saint Peter’s Basilica. The press of people now gets the heaviest of the whole day. We can see the line of individuals snaking down the side the Saint Peter’s Square that are waiting to enter the basilica. Being in a pre-arranged group doesn’t allow you to loiter has long as you might want to in some sports, but it does get you by most all of the lines. We are not prepared for the immensity of the basilica. Our group enters through the main doors and I am struck by the sheer scale of things. There are crepuscular rays coming through the windows high in the dome that lend a sense of the supernatural to the cavernous space. Ornamentation, statues, reliefs, frescos, gold, marble, iconography, mosaics and people are everywhere. No corner suffers from inattentions from the architect, Michelangelo, the builders and artisans that followed his designs, or the numerous people that have come to view the basilica. Once inside our guide leads the group to the right. A section of the church has been separated by a twelve foot curtain. Through the gap that people are walking we glimpse a distant vision in marble and Rhonda squeezes my arm.

Like the other wonders of Michelangelo we have recently viewed, the Pieta is remarkable. The disadvantage here is that the statue is kept at a distance from the crowd behind bullet proof glass. Unlike the David which you could view from all angles and almost touch, the past attack by a madman on the statue has prevented any such intimacy here. That is unfortunate, as I would like to see this masterpiece from all sides. Regardless, the viewing is amazing. One note from the guide’s talk that I didn’t know is that pieta means compassion. Rhonda and I linger a while after the guide has given her talk so we have the time to move up to the rail at the front of the viewing area. After the group begins to move away we finally pull ourselves away and catch up. I am a little surprised to see that Pope John Paul II is entombed here, not far from the Pieta. The basilica is overwhelming and there is too much to see and talk about. One other note I will make is that some of the famous paintings that graced the wall in various places were removed to protect them. Exact copies that have been rendered in mosaics have replaced the paintings and are almost indiscernible from the originals other than the gleam from the mosaic material.

Once we exit the basilica the group proceeds into Saint Peter’s Square. Piazza San Pietro sounds so much better, doesn’t it? The square is filled with chairs. The only open spaces are the walkways on the sides. It is rather disappointing. I was hoping to see the square in its open splendor, but it is not to be. On the way out of the basilica there are two papal guards standing watch. The Vatican guard is drawn from the Swiss army and these two wear the traditional uniforms, which are quite colorful. The group exits the square and the guide stops us in front of a row of shops just off the Vatican grounds. The guide releases the group saying that we have twenty minutes to use the facilities and shop if we care to. Rhonda and I pick up some trinkets for the boys and a Coke Light. There is no Diet Coke in Europe, only Coke Light.

Once the group reconvenes we say goodbye to our main guide and take the long drive back to Civitavecchia. The ride is quiet and many people nap a little, including Rhonda and I. The bus makes the same circuit around Civitavecchia it made leaving in the morning. As we drive along the docks the fishermen have returned from their day’s labors. There is a long row of them with their sterns tied up to the dock that runs along the road. They have tubs of freshly caught fish on the backs of their boats and on the dock. There are a goodly number of locals perusing the impromptu market making purchases for dinner. Erica asks the group if we would like to stop. The general consent is no. While fresh fish for dinner would be good, the likelihood of being able to get it back on board is slim.

Once back aboard the Serenade we make our way back to the room to drop off our bag. There is a note waiting for us announcing that the departure of our tour in the morning has been moved up. We then proceed down to the Schooner Bar for a drink and some 80s music trivia before dinner. It is convenient that the trivia is always held in our favorite lounge with our favorite bartender, Bobby. We do OK at the trivia, but don’t win. We decide to go to dinner a little early so we can mix up the seating. Our efforts are successful in changing where we have been sitting and having the group shake things up a bit. It is a nice difference as everyone is next to someone new and it enlivens the conversation. I think this is the best dinner table we have had on any cruise we have taken thus far. The conversation lasts for a little while after the meal is complete again. The long day has taken its toll and everyone retreats to their beds.

Day 7 – October 19th (Salerno – Herculaneum)

The morning comes quickly and we are soon packing our day bag and walking up to the Windjammer for a quick breakfast. The hostess is cheerily singing her morning ditties and greeting everyone. The weather is morning is once again perfect. While the morning is a pleasantly cool, it is sunny and the temperature is predicted to be seventy degrees. We get to the theater in plenty of time to receive our tour stickers and be herded off of the ship. The dock here in Salerno is much smaller, but still industrial. This is the end of the Amalfi coast, though, so the scenario beyond the docks is stunning. The city of Salerno lies to our right and the outskirts that are before us climb up the mountains that come down to meet the sea. We see the highway skirting the edges of the mountains at some height. It is a nothing but a series of alternating bridges and tunnels. It is quite feat of engineering and construction.

Group twenty-eight boards the bus and meets our tour guide for the morning, Carmine. The driver is Franco, who begins the trip by driving us towards the highway we can see above us that we observed from the dock. We have about a forty-five minute drive today to get to Ercolano, where Herculaneum is located. The morning sun is on the mountains and the drive takes us through some fantastic scenery. First we travel along the freeway that follows a little of the Amalfi coast before turning inland. The highway takes us north towards the bay of Naples, through some narrows valleys until we come out onto the flatter regions east of the bay. Once out of the mountains that make up the Amalfi coast we can see Vesuvius, which dominates the eastern skyline. It stands alone like Fuji above Tokyo. Carmine points out the new and old towns of Pompeii as we pass them.

The bus makes a stop at a cameo workshop and store on the outskirts of Ercolano. We get an explanation of the manufacture of cameos and the shells that they are made from. The group receives some education and the use of the facilities in exchange for the store’s opportunity to make some sales. Rhonda and I browse around and see some beautiful workmanship. There are a couple of tempting pieces, but they are much too expensive. As the group boards the bus Carmine has bottles of water for everyone. The tour moves on to Herculaneum. We pass some residential neighborhoods where most of the homes have garden plots. Carmine explains that the soil is very good around this area and agriculture thrives here. The wine made from the grapes grown on the slopes of Vesuvius is a particularly good product of the region. We make a mental note of that for later.

After a short time we arrive at a parking lot. There are a few other buses here and a nice, rather new looking visitor’s center. There are also the requisite souvenir stands under awnings in one corner of the parking lot. They are closed at the moment. I guess they are like the gift shops you find at the exits to the roller coasters in amusement parks back home. I am sure they will be open when we return so as to not miss their opportunity to make a euro. Carmine gathers up the group and passes out the tickets. Rhonda takes up the video camera and I put the still camera in my front pocket and we follow the group through the gates and into Herculaneum. The old Roman town lies beneath what is now ground level. We are on a walkway on the edge of a drop of fifty to sixty feet. The whole of the excavated part of Herculaneum sits within the modern town of Ercolano. It looks as if some giant peeled back part of the modern town to reveal the ruins underneath. Looking to the north and east you see the modern town built right up to the edge of the excavation. Most of Herculaneum still lies underneath Ercolano.

Carmine is not using a radio like the tours the previous two days. It is much quieter here, so he is easy to hear if you stay close to the group. Since Rhonda and I tend to trail the group to take pictures apart from the crowd, we miss some of his explanations. I keep up with him through most of it though and am able hear what he has to say, which is extremely interesting and educational. The walkway descends a long slope to the west of the excavation and then crosses a bridge to enter the ruins in their northwest corner. The edge of the excavation is a sheer wall of earth that has been dug out to the original sea level. When you look down from the height of the walkway to the famous boathouses you can get a sense of the how much Vesuvius changed the landscape. You also appreciate how much work has gone into excavating the amount of the city that has been exposed. Vesuvius itself is visible from the walkway. Looking east you see the drop to the original waterfront, the ancient town buried over nineteen hundred years ago, the modern city above the ancient, and Vesuvius looking over it all in the distance. It is quite a remarkable juxtaposition of elements.

The visit to Herculaneum could fill a journal of its own so I will hit a few highlights. The super hot mud that buried the town acted as an excellent preservative, but is a challenge to remove. The many frescos and partial frescos on the walls are bright and vibrant. The upper stories on many buildings remain, supported by some of the original woodwork. Walking up the street, you can get a good sense for what it felt like to walk it before the disaster. Many floor mosaics remain in the houses. In house 22 there are some very colorful wall mosaics that are amazingly well preserved. The plumbing that fed the fountains at the head of the street we are walking up is somewhat preserved and lead piping is visible. Near this fountain is a wine merchant’s establishment. A fresco on the outside of the shop presents a pictorial price list to passersby, like a menu if front of a modern restaurant. Very visible evidence of the Roman ability to provide clean, fresh water and dispose of dirty water is present here. The female bath houses and sewers under the streets we are walking are a testament to that skill that made cities possible in the first century after Christ. What strikes me most about Herculaneum is the preservation of the commonplace. Yesterday in Rome we saw the remains of temples, monuments and the great works of the empire. Here we see the remains of everyday life that has been scoured from Rome as it grew because it wasn’t thought worth saving in the centuries after the empire’s fall. The ability here to walk streets lined with hotels, houses and shops that are a picture of everyday life is an amazing experience.

The tour spends a lot of time in Herculaneum. Carmine makes many stops during out exploration and points out and explains what we are seeing. The pace is more casual than yesterday, and it is easy to linger and still catch up to the group. We come across a couple of other groups, but mostly have the place to ourselves. Eventually though we make our way back to the visitor’s center. Carmine provides a little free time for people to use the facilities and souvenir shop if they want to before we have to be back on the bus. We have been buying the boys the same trinkets to add to their collections during this trip: shot glass, wristband, and keychain. There is nothing like that here and we simply buy a Coke Light at half the price of the one we picked up yesterday near Saint Peter’s Square. Location, location, location, eh? Rhonda and I enjoy the scenery during the drive back to Salerno. Franco slows down the bus a bit as the highway comes out of the mountains and turns to heads down the Amalfi coast. The view is spectacular from the heights of the freeway we are traveling and I try to snap a few shots through the windows. We wind up the coast and retrace our route back down to the port where we say goodbye to our tour.

Once on the docks Rhonda and I walk right onto the free shuttle that is taking people to the Salerno town center. It is a little after noon now and lunch sounds like a good idea. We are near the home of the pizza and want to give the local fair a try. It takes about fifteen minutes to get to the middle of the main drag along the waterfront. We stroll along the streets looking for a place to buy the boys’ items, but find nothing at all. We do pass a wine store and duck in. We want to purchase a bottle of the wine made from the Vesuvius grapes. We manage the find the wine with only a few words of Italian and the purchase is made. Soon we are back out on the street. After much walking we finally decide to try out a restaurant far from the bus stop.

One establishment in particular catches our eye. There is a fellow loading wood from his car and taking it into the restaurant by the cartful, so that is a good sign. We approach and are led to a table outside on the side street. We can see the park that lines the waterfront from here and the day is fine. It is warm in the sun, but surprisingly cool in the shade. Before long the waiter approaches us. We order a bottle of the Vesuvian white wine. It has a dark yellow color and is very good. For our repast we decide on local flavors. We order a plate of buffalo mozzarella and Parma ham. Rhonda asks how big the pizzas are and the waiter says, “Normal.” He has little to no English and our Italian is just as nonexistent, but we manage to order the margherita pizza to follow the cheese and meat course. When the first course arrives it is simple but lovely. There is a ball of the buffalo mozzarella the size of a softball sitting on a bed of greens with thinly sliced ham spread nicely around the rest of the plate. The cheese looks as if it was just removed from the curing bag. Rhonda cuts into the cheese and it give off some water. It is very porous inside though smooth on the outside. The cheese and ham go very well when eaten together. Once we polish off the initial course together we have some time to drink wine as we wait for the pizza to be cooked. The “single serving” pizza is brought to the table already divided for two. It is about a foot across, thin and delicious. We are pleased with our lunch experience, and very surprised by the prices. The pizza was only four euro and the cheese and meat plat nine. For thirteen euro we had more than enough excellent local food to fill us up. We dally and enjoy the afternoon as we finish off the wine. Unlike in the US, the wait staff doesn’t hurry you away so they can turn the table. In fact the bill is not even brought to the table until you ask for it. We eventually do ask, in Italian, courtesy of the phrasebook I carry in the backpack.

We walk back to the shuttle stop about an hour before the last pickup as we don’t want to get caught in the rush to get on the ship. Once back on the ship we drop our stuff off in the room, grab the binoculars and head up out on deck to enjoy the day. We stand at the rail on the boat deck and watch the people coming back on board and the town of Salerno, reflecting on the day. As the gangways are pulled aboard we proceed up to the top of the ship to watch our departure from Salerno and the Amalfi coast. The sea is very calm and the ship glides out of port. We walk from one side of the ship to the other to observe the coastline slowly shrinking away. The sun is setting to the starboard side and we take up residence along the rail. There is a fisherman gathering his nets from the water while the orange ball of the sun sinks into the Mediterranean near the Isle of Capri. The rugged mountains of the coast are cast in a hazy purple silhouette as the day fades from the sky and the towns lining the shore begin to twinkle with lights. What a lovely way to spend a sunset.

Once the sky darkens we walk down to the Schooner Bar for the evening game. Today Geoff, one of the activities staff, is doing word puzzles. He is late do to some confusion with the time no one is around to play, except for us. We go through the puzzles out of fun, and spend another forty minutes or so talking with Geoff. He is a pleasant fellow from Florida who is on the last cruise of his current contract with Royal Caribbean. We learn about the structure of working for a cruise line and what the life is like. It sounds like something our son Cory could do and enjoy. Geoff finally has to head to his next appointment and we have to go to dinner. The menu tonight is inspired by Great Britain. One item on the menu, as a side dish, is “bubbles and squeak.” I have no idea what this is but ask James and Haley. I learn that bubbles and squeak is a dish created from leftover vegetables mixed up with mashed potatoes and fried in a skillet. Dinner is another lovely affair and each couple has done something different today. We all share our different experience and move on to topics from our respective homes. It is another great evening of conversation.

Eventually we all go our separate ways. There is a 50s and 60s dance party in the Centrum tonight. The deck at the bottom of the open space with the bar, band and dance floor is packed. Rhonda and I stand along the rail four or five decks up and watch the festivities. We dance to the music in our own space and notice other couples doing the same. The way people line the rails watching things below reminds me of the library scene from the movie City of Angels. The party lasts fairly late. Once the music quits we decide to explore the portions of the upper decks we haven’t been to yet. I want to stay up late since we are passing through the Strait of Messina tonight. Earlier in the evening as we were preparing to sail from Salerno the Captain had made her daily announcements. During this she mentioned that we would be passing through the strait shortly after one am.

We kill some time exploring as the ship gets emptier and emptier. Rhonda and I are on the boat deck as the lights of Sicily begin to get close. We walk from one side of the ship to the other through the Centrum. We are trying to decide where the Strait of Messina is by guessing which gap in the lights along the shoreline it is. As it turns out all of our guesses are wrong. The strait is only two miles wide near the north end, and sits at an angle to our approach. I didn’t learn width until later. As we get closer we can begin to descry the beacons on the ends of the piers defining the opening. There is also a large tower sitting out on one of the piers that is illuminated by lights that constantly change colors. As we enter the strait we walk from one side to the other to view the activity on either shore. We can clearly see cars moving on either side and are surprised at how narrow the strait is. Rhonda comes out with drinks from the bar so we can toast the passing. The wind whips in and sprays us both with cocktails scooped right out of the open glasses. We now resolve keep our drinks covered. We notice a few crew members poking their heads out on deck as we pass the tower. We don’t see any other guest on deck on either side of the ship. Maybe they are all the way on top. It is about two in the morning when the shorelines begin to fall away on either side. We see a small boat approaching our ship and I realize they have come to pick up the pilot. We watch the whole process as the flood lights on one side of the ship are lit and the small boat pulls up to the door on the side of the moving ship. The pilot jumps aboard the small craft as it bounces in the waves and begins to walk around the rail to get inside the cabin. Rhonda yells out a couple of loud “Grazie!” to him as the small boat begins to pull away from just below us. The pilot has heard her cry and waves back to us. That caps the night and we finally head to bed.

Day 8 – October 20th (At Sea)

Today is a whole day at sea as the ship steams around the Italian boot towards Venice. Rhonda and I both sleep late. The last three days have been long, busy and full of new wonders. Today is for recharging the batteries for the second half of the trip. After our very late night passing through the Strait of Messina we finally roll out of bed around 10:30. One of the advantages of an inside stateroom is that it is can be fully dark at all times of day. When we arise and walk out on deck we see it is another beautiful day. We are more southerly today and the temperature is in the upper seventies. We forgo breakfast in lieu of some coffee and go to the Schooner Bar for progressive trivia. This is round one of the three part trivia game and we score fairly well despite Geoff’s difficult questions.

Since we are not docked, the main dining room is open for lunch today and we decide to give it a try. It is open seating and we wind up at a table with some Norwegians and others of the elderly majority onboard. Luckily the couple next to us is a pleasure to talk to and we pass a good lunch. They are from Florida now, but formerly of Ohio. They have been married 62 years. One thing about cruising with so many retirees, our twenty-five years of marriage doesn’t seem like much when compared to many of the folks we run into. They don’t act their age and seem as if they are in their sixties instead of eighties. Both Rhonda and I hope we have it together as much as these two do when we reach their age.

After lunch we sit for a while and catch up the notes for the journal. Trying to actually write it doesn’t work well as we seem to always be doing something. When we aren’t, like today, I want to relax rather than sit and write. So we will take notes each day that I will use to spark our memories and fill in the details when we get home. We participate in a digital scavenger hunt which is a lot of fun. Teams race around the ship taking pictures of the various items on their list. We follow that with some cribbage in the Schooner Bar before another session of trivia. We played a lot of trivia on this cruise. As the afternoon wears into evening we have to go back to our room to get ready for dinner. It is a formal night and we are dining at the Chops Grille tonight.

The Chops Grille is a fancy steak house on the ship. It requires an additional fee and reservations, which we made on the first day. We get dolled up and arrive on time. We order a nice bottle of wine and a modest dinner, at least by the restaurant’s standards. The waiter is surprised that we don’t order more, but we know how much is enough, and we are here to have a nice dinner, not gorge ourselves. The food is good, but not outstanding. While we enjoy a leisurely meal, the service here borders on negligence at times. We decline desert, as we are both content. Also, we feel they are preparing something special because we told them we are celebrating our anniversary. We saw a neighboring table receive an entire cake, which we have no use for. Besides, we want to get to the theater for the Liar’s Club that is starting in about twenty minutes. We excuse ourselves and feel a little disappointed in the experience.

Geoff had told us the previous day about the Liar’s Club game show that the activities staff is going to stage. Based on his leading comments we are expected a fun time. We pick up a couple of drinks from Bobby on the way and find a seat towards the front of the theater. This show is based on the old TV game show Liar’s Club. In the show the panel is given an unusual, but real word to try and define. The audience will vote by applause for the one they think is correct. The panel for tonight consists of four activities staff members dressed up in character. The fellow from Turkey who we know by his nicknamed of Mally, is playing Ugly Sasha. He is in a horrid drag costume that is a hoot. Geoff is playing Tiger Wood’s love child. My favorite of the night is Tim, who is dressed up as King Julian from the Madagascar movies. He has the voice and characterizations down pat. Lastly, the cruise director Ken is Oost, the Russian officer in charge of the lifeboats. The words selected are intentionally risqué, and the definitions appropriately laced with innuendo and impropriety. The words are flart, clinchpoop, pei-pei, vagitis, and hawsehole. The whole event is a blast. Rhonda and I will joke the rest of the cruise about seeing lots of hawseholes as it is the hole in a ship through which the anchor chain passes.

Day 9 – October 21st (Venice Day 1)

This morning the Serenade is coming into Venice. The previous evening when the Captain made her daily announcement she had mentioned that we would be picking up the Venetian pilot at 8:30 and passing Saint Mark’s at about 9:00am. Rhonda and I wake in time, get dressed, grab the cameras and walk up to deck twelve. When we get out on deck we can see lots of other people lining the rails on all sides. I remember that she said San Marco will be on the starboard side, so we find some rail and settle in. The morning is cool and foggy. The ship is slowing cruising the lagoon and the islands making up the city creep out of the fog on either side of us. The only landmark I know is San Marco and I look for that. We finally see the bell tower and Doge’s Palace materializing out of the fog, which has lightened somewhat already. As we pass the bells begin to chime. It is Sunday morning and soon many of the churches are sounding the calls to the faithful in a grand choir of bells. It is a very magical moment and a good omen for our time here.

As we approach the cruise terminal on the northern end of the island we see four other large ships in port. People begin to drift away from the rail and back into the ship, as we do. We stop by the excursion desk and pickup our Save Venice book. This is a book that we purchased as an excursion that is published by an organization that restores sites in Venice. The book is a collection of hunts and puzzle that will take you around Venice at your own pace. We glance through the book as we eat breakfast in the Windjammer. Since we are moving at our own pace today, we are in to hurry. We will take our time getting ready and let the rush of people heading out for tours subside. The Save Venice book has a map in the front, but the streets are not labeled and we know we will need something better if we are to wander on our own. We plot a rough course to some sites in the book starting from San Marco. Now we just need to get there.

After returning to the room to pack our backpack we head to shore. Once off the ship we find ourselves on the dock with only one direction to go. We walk towards the gate to the port and see a sign saying there is a water bus here somewhere around. As we pass the gates and get to a rail stop, Rhonda gets the feeling that we missed a turn. She asks a person at hand and we are directed the correct way. Nestled at the head of the slip next over from where we started. Between the huge cruise ships is a small ticket booth and dock. It is Aliliguna, the public transport service. We purchase a couple of round trip tickets for fifteen euro each. We ask if they have a map and we are given a large map of the city with every street labeled. Bingo! The fog has lifted to a light haze in the sky with the sun preparing to burn the last of it off. The vaporetto arrives before long and we are soon cruising back up the lagoon to Piazza San Marco. The water bus docks next to a park a short distance to the west of the piazza. The walkway along the lagoon that leads to the piazza is lined with stalls selling all sorts of souvenirs and masks, some of which are lovely. There are people everywhere. I imagine the tourist to resident ratio is pretty high. We dive in.

One of our favorite places is Mackinac Island, where motorized vehicles are not allowed. The pace of life there is slow and taken at a walk. Here in Venice there are no motorized vehicles, except boats. There are no scooters and no bicycles, only foot traffic. While there are a lot of people, it does not have the hustle and bustle feel of Rome of Florence. I think it is because everyone walks and you don’t have to worry about getting run down by a wild scooter. There is no buzz of motors racing by, no honking of the horn. The architecture varies from the old to the ancient. Streets also vary from moderate to miniscule as they wind between and around the buildings that occupy as much of the precious land as can be managed. As you venture farther from the main attractions of the city the crowds disappear and you can have some streets to yourself. We immediately like the sense of the place and know we are going to enjoy our visit.

The first stop we have planned in our Save Venice book is the Doge’s Palace. The palace is one of the cornerstones of the Piazza San Marco, sitting along the waterfront. The palace has columns running on two side of it. There is a collage of images taken from the columns in the book and it is our job to locate them and note their locations. As we soon learn each column has an eight sided capitol, and the each side has a small sculpture. While each column has its own theme, they are all different, and the sculpture on top of each side is different as well. That makes up a collection of 280 unique sculptures. That is a detail that I am sure gets lost on a lot of folks who just snap a picture and walk by. We begin to walk around columns depicting different birds, skill trades, baskets of fruit, faces, musical instruments, vices, virtues, and the like. It is an amazing view of the everyday and the common. Our favorite of the thirty-five columns has to be the journey of a couple. It starts with the man looking up at a woman in a tower. You then see them courting, professing love, getting married, in bed together, with a new baby, raising a child, and then finally burying their child. The big lesson that we will take from this book today is to take a closer look at the details that make up the whole when viewing the architecture of the city.

Our next stop is the church of San Salvador. We know the general direction so we choose a street off of the square begin to walk. As we pass through the narrow streets we come across a shop selling cosmetics. Rhonda had mentioned that she wasn’t happy with the polish the salon on the boat used on her yesterday, so we enter. It is a small place staffed by three clerks. We find some nice polish and some remover. As we do this the shop begins to fill and warm up. We complete our transaction and get back out into the cool street. After some twists and turns we find the church. Unfortunately it is closed and we cannot find a way in. Looking at the map we see we are close to the Ponte di Rialto so walk towards the Grand Canal. We come out onto the canal to the west of the bridge. The day is fully bright now and the view of the famous bridge from the banks of the canal is marvelous. As we walk towards Rialto we see a restaurant with outside seating at the foot of the steps to the bridge. It is mid afternoon and breakfast was a long time ago. On a whim we decide to stop here for lunch. We sit at a table right along the rail and take up one of our favorite pastimes, people watching. Lunch is a fine affair with wine, mussels and a pizza with pancetta. Like in Salerno, there is no rush to get us out and turn the table, so we take our time and soak in the atmosphere.

After our late lunch we shop for a little bit at the shops on and around Rialto before continuing on to our next hunt. The big map now comes in very handy as we make our way to the Church of Santa Maria Dei Miracoli. After some time we eventually find the church and see that it is open to visitors. In this church we are looking for sculptures again. While things in the church look symmetrical, they are not. We spend a lot of time scanning the walls, stairs, columns and the altar for our treasures. There are two we never find. Two older ladies are sitting at a table near the front of the church and eye us warily the longer we stay with our gazes turned upward. It is a fun exploration and we finally give up on locating the last two images. Our next hunt is one where we have to find the differences between the picture in the book and the real building. Since we will be sitting still for that one, we make a stop in a tiny gelato shop on our way. The façade we need to study is the Scuola Grande di San Marco. While once a palace, the building is now the hospital, but you wouldn’t know it by looking at it. The Save Venice foundation has restored this façade to its late fifteenth century magnificence. We sit on the steps to a canal, nibble gelato, and complete the puzzle.

By the time we are done with the gelato and the puzzle the sun is in the decline. We are quite a way from our bus stop and decide to put the book away for the day. We head in the general direction of Saint Mark’s Square and begin to walk. Along the way we do some shopping and browsing and just enjoy being in Venice. Night has fallen by the time we get back to the hub of the city. The lights are on in the piazza and the crowds have diminished noticeably. We wander through the shops lining the piazza. After passing numerous glass shops during the day a lot of it begins to look the same. We come across one shop that is decidedly different. The highlight of their display window is a chandelier which is done in black with flames spurting from it and devils cavorting around it. Another work is Charon guiding his boat over the River Styx. Devil and mythological images dominate their work and we both love it. Unfortunately the prices are astronomical and all we can do is take pictures. By the time we complete our circuit of the square all of the restaurants are closing. Thus our idea of sitting and having some wine outside is aborted. Instead we walk back to the dock and catch our ride to the Serenade.

Since the ship is docked and not on its usual schedule, dinner is open seating. Rhonda and I go, but we miss our normal tablemates. The Love and Marriage game show is tonight in the theater, so we excuse ourselves after the main course, stop at Bobby’s to get a couple of drinks and stroll to the theater. Love and Marriage is the ship’s take on the Newlywed game. Every cruise we have been on plays the same game and we always attend as it is typically very funny. What is different about the show that the cruise lines put on is that they will take a newlywed couple, a couple married 20-30 years, and the couple that has been married the longest that they can find from the audience. This evening there are only two couples in the middle group willing to play the game. A couple sitting next to us and Rhonda and I. We both have to express our desire to play by repeating a silly phrase to Ken, the cruise director, who is emceeing the show. The audience votes and Rhonda and I wind up selected and walk up on stage. The newlyweds on our right have been married just one week, while the “old” couple on our left has been married forty years. During the periods when one sex or the other is taken backstage so their partners can answer questions we learn something interesting. Every one of the participants is a nurse except for me, and I work in medical products. Strange world. As it turns out Rhonda and I win the game with the most matching answers. We are awarded a slew of Royal Caribbean branded stuff and a bottle of champagne. Flush with our victory we exit the theater as celebrities.

Our first encounter comes in the Pit Stop sports bar less than half an hour later. We stop in for a refill and to check on the Green Bay Packers. Another game is on, but we are waiting for halftime of the afternoon game to see how they did. Being seven hours different from home still seems so odd when you think about how late it is where we are and that it is mid-afternoon at home. While we sit and chat with our neighbors more than a few people making their way through the bar recognize us and congratulate us on our win. As it turns out, the show was recorded and will be broadcast several times during the remainder of the cruise on one of the cruise channels of the TV, which we haven’t even turned on yet. Our notoriety will grow as more and people watch the program and we will be recognized on ship and shore until the cruise is over. Once we get the news that the Packers had won, we head for bed knowing it is late and we have an early tour in the morning.

Day 10 – October 22nd (Venice Day 2)

The alarm wakes us early today because of the tour we are taking. Breakfast consists of some pastries and coffee from room service. Once we are showered and have ourselves together we proceed to the theater to join our group. Yesterday we had walked off the starboard side of the ship straight onto the dock. Today we are led down to the port side where we board a vaporetto which is pulled up next to the Serenade like a tender. Once the group is on board the water bus takes us around to the north and past the train station. We dock and are let off next to Papadopoli Park near head of the Grand Canal in the sestiere, or neighborhood, Santa Croce. It is here that we meet up with our tour guide.

Our tour guide today is Monica. We are taking a walking tour called “Secret Venice” during which we will walk through four different neighborhoods of Venice and see some of the sites off of the beaten path. Monica and her assistant pass out the radio sets we will use to listen to her today. The morning is clear and cool. Rhonda is a bit chilled in her shirt sleeves, but we know the day will warm into the seventies. The early start will play to our advantage as we will encounter very few people, even on the Rialto. As the group makes its first stop we learn that there is only one piazza in Venice, and that is Piazza San Marco. All of the other squares are called campo, or field, in order to maintain San Marco’s prominence. We learn a few other navigational terms that would have helped Rhonda and I get around yesterday. The first stop is a building with a well adorned façade where the victims of the black plague were housed and treated. The lesson that the Save Venice book taught us yesterday comes into play as Rhonda notices a minor detail of the sculptures on the columns. There are rats carved into the base of the columns. As you work your way up the side of the building you see the infected people and then the caring for of those people in a chronological progression.

Monica likes her gothic buildings and points out several as we proceed through Santa Croce and into San Polo. We pick up several interesting tidbits during stops along the way and the walk itself. The group then comes to the Campo della Pescheria. This is a large square along the Grand Canal at about its midway point. The square houses the food markets. Pescheria mean fish monger’s shop and there is a large space dedicated just to them. The space it empty at the moment, but you can still smell the seafood. The rest of the market is bustling with the locals buying their produce. Mushrooms are in season and there are tables and carts full of various kinds. Rhonda and I remark to each other how wonderful of a mushroom soup could be made with some of these. Small peppers are very numerous as well. They are tied into bundles which look like small bouquets of red and yellow flowers. The colors and varieties of all the produce on display are wonderful. As the group proceeds around the corner, following the Grand Canal, we come to the Ponte Rialto. Rhonda and I didn’t realize we were so close to the market yesterday. As we proceed over the bridge and into the sestiere San Marco, Monica mentions that the rent on the retail stalls located on the bridge is around eight thousand euro a month. I think that one advantage of paying the high price, aside from the enormous foot traffic, is that your shop would never get flooded. Apparently the city floods a few times a year during the winter high tides.

Once in the San Marco neighborhood Monica takes us through some narrow back ways to a small open area. It is the Corte Seconda del Milion. The buildings here date from the 1200s. Aside from their age, what makes them significant is that this is where Marco Polo lived when he was in Venice. The structures now seem very dilapidated. This is kind of sad given their previous tenant. The tour continues through several more small streets and past some remarkable architecture. We arrive at the hospital where Rhonda and I had gelato and solved a puzzle the previous day. Monica talks about the façade we already know about and the nearby church. This is where the tour ends. The radios are collected and the last questions asked and answered. It is now getting close to noon and Rhonda and I are rather hungry. We want to go back to the market and explore the area some more. We decide to just stop in somewhere along the way for a bite.

As we near Rialto we come to what we refer to as “Smiling Man Square.” The real name is Campo San Bartolomeo. We call it smiling man square because of the statue in the middle of the square. The countenance on most statues is thoughtful, dour, or even angry. This statue is of a man taking a stroll with his cane and he has a very pleasant smile on his face. There is a restaurant in the square with outside seating. It is still rather cool so we decide to sit inside at the corner table where we can still watch the people in the campo. We order a couple of café lattes to warm ourselves up. Inspired by the mushrooms on display in the market we passed earlier today Rhonda orders some tortellini with porcinis and cream sauce. It turns out to be her second favorite meal of the whole trip. Once Rhonda begins to get full I push aside the second half of my sandwich and finish off her dish. It is indeed delicious. We have the waitress wrap up the remains of my panini, which we will take with us. We have seen just a few beggars here in Venice and have decided to give one of them the leftover sandwich rather than letting it go to waste.

We make our way back towards the market on the Grand Canal. We stop in some shops along the way looking for glassware and masks. The market is still a hive of activity. We stroll its aisles taking in the colors and sounds. We daydream about having a place here in Venice that we could take some fresh product back to in order to cook up dinner. The cheese and meat shop holds a special appeal to us with our love of the cheese plate as a meal. We cross the Rialto again as we turn east to continue exploring. We come across an older lady begging on the steps of a bridge. She is in a position of supplication as we pass. We ask in our halting Italian if she would like a Panini. She emphatically says yes and we give her the sandwich. Before we are out of earshot we hear her open the sandwich and dig in.

As I mentioned before, Rhonda and I collect masks. Venice has an overabundance of masks. Most are lovely, but after a few dozen shops and stands things begin repeating themselves. As we wander the byways of sestiere San Marco we come across a window display with a few unique pieces on display. One in particular is a half mask with the look and horns of a devil. We proceed in the shop to take a closer look. There is a lone woman tending the shop and she is happy to retrieve the mask from the display for us to view and try on. She has other examples of the same shape of mask decorated in different styles. She explains that the masks are all made of paper mache using the old techniques in their workshop here in Venice. We eventually settle on a lovely version in blacks and golds with musical scores decoupaged in a couple of spots. We ask if we can see the artisan who made the mask, thinking the workshop is in the same building we are. We soon find out it is not. After completing the sale the lady leads us out on the street and locks her shop. We follow her for about five minutes before coming to another doorway. Here she takes us inside and introduces two women who are working on masks as we enter. She explains the situation and departs back to her store. The ladies working on the masks are very gracious and sign our new purchase. They also allow us to photograph them with their handiwork that we now own. This experience is a great example of super customer service.

Soon we wind up back in the Piazza San Marco. Each restaurant around the square has dozens of tables and chairs setup outside of their restaurant. Some even have bandstands setup with small string quartets or bands playing live music. Rhonda and I sit at a table on the outside edge where we can observe the whole square. We order up a bottle of white wine and rest our feet. The afternoon sun is very warm and all memories of the morning’s chill are banished. The wine comes with a great deal of ceremony from the white jacketed waiter. It is flavorful and hits the spot. Along with the wine and water is a small bowl of unsalted potato chips or something very much like that. I suppose it is a pallet cleanser. We sit and watch the people in the square. More and more vendors are pushing their carts out of the backstreets into towards the waterfront and the main square to setup for the late afternoon and evening crowds. The pigeons are numerous and brave. A few boldly approach our table looking for something to eat. Rhonda tosses them a few crumbs from the ships. There is a fellow sitting fairly close that bends down and feeds a pigeon out of his hand. Rhonda tries the same and then has another idea. She sets aside a few of the larger chips. When we have finished with the wine and are preparing to move on, she takes the chips and crumbles them up in her hands. She walks to the middle of the square and spreads a few of the crumbs to attract some pigeons. More than she bargained for arrive in moments. She then holds her hands out from her body and opens them up. Pigeons begin to roost in her hands, on her arms and even on her head to get to the food. Her hands are very gently picked clean in short order. Rhonda suffers no hurt from the birds and has a fun experience in the exchange.

We want to spend the afternoon lost in Venice. It turns out that this is easy to do. We wander north east from the piazza toward sestiere Castello. We are headed a direction most tourists don’t go, so the crowds thin quickly. The remainder of the afternoon is spent exploring the shops, streets and architecture of Castello. Late in the afternoon we enter a small campo named San Provolo with a couple of restaurants in it. We decide to have a bite to hold us until our late seating dinner. We take up an outside table with a good view for people watching. Some wine, cheese and mushroom pizza make a wonderful repast. There is a bar not far from us that is playing music that is audible to us. The music is a selection of nothing but Sting and Police songs. It is a nice accent to the meal. With the wine we are served some breadsticks, which we don’t eat. They are the dry cracker variety and we take some with us when we leave. Rhonda wants me to feed the pigeons as she did, so we walk back to Piazza San Marco. The breadsticks make a lot of crumbs. After I have my go at feeding the pigeons from my hands we still have a bunch of crumbs left. There are other tourists in the square who watched me with the pigeons. We offer them the crumbs to try it out themselves. A few think we are trying to make money off of them like the rose peddlers, but finally one lady understands and gives it a whirl. Her boyfriend has a good laugh as she is covered in pigeons and we are glad we could add a memory to their trip.

Evening is coming on and we decide to make our way to the vaporetto that will take us back to the ship. Venice has been a glorious experience. Conversation is energized at the dinner table as everyone shares their experiences of the last two days. The ship is hosting a masquerade dance in the Safari Club. Everyone is encouraged to wear the masks they bought in Venice. We found a black and silver glittery mask for Rhonda during our afternoon wanderings. I decide to not wear the mask we had signed for fear of messing up the signature. Instead I choose to wear the mask we bought in Florence which, according to the seal on it, was made in Venice. The dance starts out slow, but as more and more masked people show up it gets very lively. We do a little dancing and a lot of people watching. At one point the band takes a break, so we wander down to the Schooner Bar to say hello to Bobby. After we return to the Safari Club we can see the party died during the break. We spend a little time in the Casino, but neither make or lose any money. Given the late hour we decide to call it a night.

Day 11 – October 23rd (Ravenna)

We have another walking tour today. We ordered some pastries and coffee again from room service the previous night. This works out well as we can get showered and ready while having a bite. Once we have ourselves together we head down to deck three to exit the ship. When we exit the ship we are on a large pier with nothing else around, except a gate and small building where the pier meets the land. This is Ravenna’s new cruise terminal, and ours is the only ship in town today. We ask if we are in the right place, because the ticket only said on the pier. We find out we are and wait in the morning sun. Before too long a bus comes down the pier to pick up the group we are a part of. We board and are introduced to the guide. She is not feeling well, but no one else was available today. She will do a wonderful job despite her illness. Unfortunately we never catch her name.

The bus begins its half our drive to the heart of Ravenna. The guide hands out the radios and begins to talk about the area. Apparently Ravenna used to be a coastal town, but over the centuries the silt from the River Po has filled in the region. As a result the city is sinking, much like Venice, because of the soil it has been built on. During the drive in we see numerous fishing shacks along the waterways that line the whole area. A big chunk of the area between Ravenna and the Adriatic Sea is a wetlands preserve. As we drive into town it has a very provincial feel to it. The buildings are small and unassuming compared to some we have seen. Also, the buildings are not as crowded in as the previous cities we have been in and there is a sense of space you usually don’t feel in European cities. The bus drops us off at the Piazza Garibaldi in front of some large public edifice. This is where we will pick up the bus back to the ship when we are ready to leave Ravenna. The guide has provided maps for everyone and makes sure we all know where we are. The tour will not come back here and she wants to make sure everyone can get back on their own.

The group begins to walk. The first thing you notice about Ravenna is the lack of scooters. Bicycles are the preferred mode of transport here. The streets we are walking where the cars don’t frequent have white paving stones running down the middle of them, creating a lane six or so feet wide. This, our guide tells us, is for the bicycle traffic. Pedestrians are to keep to either side. The streets are lines with parked bicycles. While you hear the occasional scooter buzz by, mostly it is the sound of bicycles bells that accompanies our walks today. We pass a wide section of road where the street vendors are. This is not a market on the scale we saw yesterday, but rather a small collection of stalls offering nuts, candies and other such light fair.

The first stop on the tour is the Battistero Degli Ariani. This is an ancient baptistery, built around 500 AD, known for its mosaic. I should mention that mosaics are what Ravenna is famous for. The tour today will focus on them. The baptistery shows the evidence of long life because it has sunk below the current street level about six feet. Outside, the guide talks to the group about how mosaics are made and the various materials used. We then proceed inside. The only thing of note inside is the domed ceiling that is covered by a magnificent mosaic. The center circle shows a scene of Jesus being baptized. This is circled by the twelve apostles preparing Jesus’ throne. Aside of the mosaic itself, one element of the image depicted is significant. That is the nudity of Jesus. This is full frontal nudity too. Nothing is hidden, only veiled beneath some waves of the River Jordan. Our guide mentions that this was a highly unusual thing to do, and that fact that it survives to this day is remarkable.

The group ascends to the street and we continue on our way. While crossing a street a small car zooms by and honks. This elicits a “Mama Mia!” from our guide in her surprise. I had yet to hear an Italian utter this cliché, but here it is in Ravenna. She would blurt it out a few times more during the day, so I get the feeling it is an honest habit of her speech. We pass through the main town square and continue on towards an old monastery that has been turned into a museum dedicated to Dante. Our guide explains that while Dante was exiled from Florence he resided in Ravenna. If fact most of his life was spent here and he died in Ravenna. After the Divine Comedy worked it’s magic to establish the Italian language and make Dante extremely famous, Florence wanted Dante’s remains back. When they came to collect his bones they could not be found. They were evidently hidden. Hidden so well that the tombs in both cities remained empty for a quite a long time. Eventually his remains were rediscovered in Ravenna and he was re-entombed here. After this story our guide leads us to the tomb, which is near at hand.

Our next stop is across the square from Dante’s tomb. It is the Basilica San Francesco. The Franciscans were everywhere it seems. A couple of things about this place capture my interest. Firstly, the current structure was built in the tenth century. Over the intervening centuries two former doorways in the front were walled in and replaced. The top of the arch of the oldest entrance sits about five feet above street level. The top of the arch of the second is about eight feet above street level. With these two flanking the current doorway you can visibly see the sinking of the basilica over the centuries. Secondly, a crypt from the original structure was discovered under the altar. This is notable because the floor sits at the level of the original structure and ground water creeps into this chamber and covers the floor. To add an almost oriental flare the Franciscan monks maintain goldfish in the water. If you drop a half euro piece in the slot to turn the lights on you can see goldfish swimming over the mosaic that was laid many centuries ago. It is very surreal.

The tour continues with a walk to TAMO, the mosaic museum of Ravenna. We walk through a piazza on our way that is unlike all the rest. Our guide explains that the buildings on this square were put up during Mussolini’s reign. She detests the buildings partly because they are ugly, and partly because old buildings were taken down to make space for them. The museum is housed in an ancient church that still has partial frescos on the walls. Our guide takes us through a brief history of the art of mosaic. Essentially mosaics were born out of a desire to create a floor covering that was more durable than rugs. Thus the early mosaics are found on floors and emulate rugs. The height of the art was from 100 BC to 100 AD. In the museum we can see examples of mosaics from all periods, and it is kind of sad to see the decline of the art over the centuries. Eventually mosaics fell out of vogue and were replaced by frescos. After our time at the museum is complete the group returns to the square near Dante’s tomb and San Francesco.

The tour stops to have a small tasting of two local wines and some hors d’oeuvres. It is a nice chance to talk with the tour guide. Rhonda questions the lady serving the food on her recipe for the pesto she used with her pasta. We also have a chance to walk up to the roof garden to take in a view of the neighborhood, which I take advantage of. Once the tasting is done the group moves on. The guide points out a restaurant as we pass stating that it is the best place to eat lunch if we are staying in town. She leads us back to the central square of the town, Piazza Del Popolo. She has a long talk here speaking about some more history of the city and the buildings at hand. With that the tour is complete. The radios are collected by an assistant. Rhonda and I linger for a bit to ask the tour guide about the local dishes. She says two represent classic Ravenna cuisine. They are cappelletti al ragu and strozzapreti. She recommends a bottle of local sangiovese to go with the cappelletti. She explains that strozzapreti translates to “priest strangler”, and people of the area are sometimes called priest eaters because of this. There is no history of killing priests, so she is not sure where the name came from. We thank her for her help and walk back towards the restaurant she recommended.

The establishment is named Ca’ de Ven. It is an old building that is being repurposed, and is surprisingly large inside. The domed ceilings in the front part are painted and there is art all over the walls. We are given a table partway back and a waiter who doesn’t know a lick of English. Ordering the meal is not much of a problem since we know the dishes we are looking for. Getting a local sangiovese is pretty easy too. The wine is delectable and the pastas even more so. The cappelletti is a sort of cheese ravioli in a ragu, or meat sauce. The priest killer is a medium length, rope-like pasta in a cream sauce with peas. We take our time and reflect on the day as we eat. The restaurant fills a bit because it is lunchtime. We enjoy observing what the others are eating and the order in which they move through their selected courses. We finish our pasta and take our time with the wine. After visiting the restroom Rhonda comes back and declares there is a toothbrush vending machine in the bathroom. When I make my own journey I investigate. I should mention that most of the restrooms in Europe that we have been to have a common area with a sink, and then “his” and “hers” stalls leading off of that shared area. The toothbrush machine dispenses a tube about three inches long with a short toothbrush and single serving tube of toothpaste in it. This is the first time I have seen anything like this and I am quite amused. Back at the table the waiter comes by to see if we want coffee. We initially decline, but after sitting for a bit and feeling a little sluggish due to the pasta and short night we change our minds. A statement of “Due café.” quickly gets us two shots of coffee. This is the good stuff like what we had in France a few years ago. Thick and strong, but not bitter. Rhonda adds a packet of sugar which almost doubles the volume. We make short work of our caffeine fix which finishes off a wonderful meal.

As we wander the streets in the general direction of the Piazza Garibaldi we see a vending machine attached to a wall outside along a walkway. After the adventure of the toothbrush we stroll over to investigate. It is a condom vending machine. In the US this one would be hidden in the bathroom, but here in Ravenna it is conveniently located outside. Of course this elicits jokes about being in the Ravenna red light district, but we have seen nothing so seedy anywhere we have been today. We arrive back in the piazza with the carts and stalls selling candy and the like. We purchase some candy for the boys and some nuts for ourselves. Content with our visit to Ravenna we make our way back to the bus stop and catch the shuttle back to the ship.

Back on board the Serenade I decide to take a little nap. The previous night was short and there is a late game show we want to participate in tonight. While I lay down for a bit Rhonda takes her book out and finds a quiet place to do some reading. Before long Rhonda is waking me to get ready for our murder mystery dinner tonight. The dinner is not for a while yet, but we want to hit another trivia session in the Schooner Bar. Beside, that gives us an excuse to visit with Bobby. By the time we get to the bar for trivia we can see out the windows that the ship is steaming southeast across the Adriatic. Trivia is fun and we do OK, but not well enough to win anything. The murder mystery dinner starts in the Safari Club soon, so we wander down that way.

As we enter we are assigned a table and grab a seat. Here we will watch the entertainment staff perform Act 1 of the mystery. It is a gangster tale with “Two Ton” Tony, his rival, his wife, his sweetheart, his right-hand man, a waitress and a narrator. The show is fun and sets the stage for the mystery. At the end Tony his killed back stage and we are ready for Act 2. Everyone moves down the hall to the restaurant, Portofino. We are seated at large tables according to our previous assignment. The rest of the mystery doesn’t play out as interactively as we were expecting. The suspects will come in at a couple of points during the meal and play out more of the mystery. Our only interaction with the cast comes late in the meal when they rotate from table to table allowing the diners to ask questions of them. After that all of the guesses are made and the final scene is played out. We discover it was his wife. Rhonda and I have fun, but are a little disappointed in the whole affair. We do meet a nice couple from Oregon who are sitting next to us. We have a pleasant time conversing with them between acts and coming up with questions for the cast. None of we four get it right.

Next up is the Quest game in the Safari Club. We have played this before on cruise ships and it is a hoot. How the game works is that the audience is broken up into teams and given a number on a card. The emcee will call out an object which the team has to bring up to him and show their number. The team is then awarded points. All teams can bring up an object and score, but the first three to do so get bonus points. When Rhonda and I arrive in the Safari Club there is a pretty good crowd, which bodes well for a fun time. We sit at a table with a young couple and an old couple. The young couple is from Liverpool and has never played before. They will participate very heavily and Christian, the male, will be our all-star. The game starts out very benignly with things like a stateroom key, a sock with a hole in it (every sox has a hole is it at the top) and a Cruise Compass, the daily onboard newsletter. Then things start picking up. Now the emcee wants things like a bra not being worn, a woman carrying two pair on men’s pants not being worn, which Christian and I provide, and a man in women’s shoes, which Rhonda provides and Christian wears. The game has gotten frenetic and the emcee is playing the crowd well. Everyone is laughing and fully in the spirit of things, which makes it all the better. The host then wants teams to bring up a tall bald man. This we don’t have so we miss out on this point. The host keeps the men up on the dance floor and picks the tallest of the group which he places in a chair. Next he calls for teams to send up a woman to kiss him on the head. After this is done the fellow is blushing fairly well and Ken, the emcee, asks him if he would like the ladies to come up again. The fellow sitting in the chair sheepishly replies, ”No.” At that point Ken calls for a man from each team to come up and kiss the sitting gent on the head. He is now such a deep shade of red you would think his face would burn. The finale of the game is for each team to send up a man without a shirt, wearing a bra, and accessorized as a woman. Christian nobly volunteers and our team gets him dolled up. The final embarrassment is that each fellow has to walk the runway to the song Pretty Woman. All of the guys up front are good sports and play along, doing their best to impress. Our team does not win the game, but a great time is had by all.

We are too wound up by the game to go right to bed so we visit Bobby, who is now in the casino bar for a drink. We spend a little time in the casino playing some slots and actually make some money. Finally we wind down and head for bed.

Day 12 – October 24th (Split)

Today we are in Split, Croatia. We don’t have any expectations or fore-knowledge, so this will be completely new today. Breakfast is again light fair from room services while we get showered and ready to go. We have a tour today called the Taste of Split. Again, we have no expectations. When we are ready we walk to the theater to get our group stickers. When our group leaves the theater and gets down to deck three we see a lot of people in line for the tenders. Since we have a tour our group bypasses them all and we are soon on the boat riding to shore. It is a gorgeous morning. The sky is crystal clear and the temperature warm. The high is supposed to be seventy-two this afternoon. The weather for all of our time on shore has been amazingly perfect. I would have thought at least one day would have been rainy or cold. Aside from the foggy morning in Venice, which was actually fun, the weather has been perfect.

As the tender takes us to shore we can see the city of Split in front of us. It very prettily circles a small bay in the middle of the Dalmatian Coast. The Adriatic is spotted with islands both large and small off the coast here, which we can see behind us. The mountains rise up not too far behind the city as you head inland. It makes for a lovely view as we motor in on the glassy water. When we get to the pier out group exits the tender and gathers on shore. Our tour guide today is Anna. She has the least accented English of any of our tour guides so far on the trip. An assistant passes out the radios to everyone. That means all of our tours except Herculaneum utilized the radios and ear pieces, which really make things so much better. After introductions and a welcome Anna leads us forward towards the dominate feature of the shoreline, not far from the marina. It is Diocletian’s Palace.

As we find out, Diocletian was a Roman Emperor in the third and fourth centuries AD. He was a native of this region and rose through the ranks to become Emperor. He was the first Emperor to give up the throne and retire, and also the last to persecute the Christian, who had it in for him. He built his retirement palace here on the shore of what is now the city of Split around 300 AD. The palace takes up the space of two or three city blocks, depending on the city. What makes this structure unusual is that a majority of the interior space of the palace is occupied by the city. There are homes, shops, restaurants, hotels and a church located within the structures inside the four surrounding walls. After the history lesson Anna walks us into the palace.

We start by descending some stairs to arrive in the basements. The basement area we are in is a couple of tall hallways. They have been cleaned up and reinforced. The sides are lined with stall occupied by merchants selling a lot of souvenir type goods, but also a dose of other items. Most of the stalls are just opening as we enter. Anna takes about the basement and the building of the palace. When we move on we ascend a large staircase on the opposite end from where we came in. This leads us to the main square of the palace, the Peristyle. The square is surrounded on three sides by large steps. There are cushions and flat tabletops on two sides that belong to the restaurant located here. Rather than crows the small square with tables and chairs, they use the seats provided by the Romans. On our right is the former mausoleum of Diocletian. I say former because the Christians kicked him out a few centuries after the fall of the empire and converted his mausoleum into a church, the Cathedral of Saint Domnius. There is also a beautiful bell tower that was added around 1100 AD. Anna takes us into the cathedral. It is very unconventional since it was made out of an octagonal mausoleum which a choir added to the east side. We eventually find ourselves back out in the Peristyle.

The group then proceeds to another area of the palace to enter a museum. The museum used to be a home and displays many relics, mostly focused on the renaissance. There is one notable exception. They have the marble table of Diocletian. The table has been placed in a space such as it was in Diocletian’s time. The rounded side of the table is lined with elevated beds and cushions. The flat side is about waist level. The flat side is where the servants would approach and lay food on the table for the reclined diners who would stuff themselves, purge and return for more. Being able to overeat in such a fashion was a show of wealth during Diocletian’s time.

Once our free time in the museum comes to a close Anna leads us back through the Peristyle and to the only remaining Roman temple within the palace. There were three, but the Christians did away with two and convert the Temple of Jupiter into a baptistery. There is one reason I mentions this. Diocletian brought a lot of Egyptian granite to be used in his palace. Along with the granite columns he brought fourteen sphinxes. All but two of the sphinxes are gone, and one is here in front of the former Temple of Jupiter. This black granite sphinx dates from the fifteenth century BC, which makes it the oldest art object we have seen on the trip. Anna takes the group out the west gate and into a regular square. She points out a currency exchange that doesn’t charge a few so anyone who is staying can get some kuna, the Croatian currency. The exchange rate is about five kuna to one dollar, or about seven and a half kuna to one euro. On the walk back to the marina we pass a few musicians. Most are doing a good job and collecting some money. One in particular looks like he found the guitar he is trying to play. He just strums the guitar and makes inarticulate sounds hoping someone will toss him some coins.

Back in the marina the group boards a bus for a short drive. We are heading east to a restaurant where we will taste three local wines. The bus cannot get down the small street the restaurant is on, so it has to drop us a couple of blocks away. When we arrive we can see we have the place to ourselves. I guess it is too early for lunch. The group troops in and has seats at some preset tables. Rhonda and I sit with a retired couple from Dallas and some Canadians with very little English. We have a nice time talking to the Texans. The wines are served up with a plate that has a bite of cheese, a slice of meat, and a small pastry. Each food sample is to be tasted with one of the three wines. It is a nice little taste of the local flavors. Rhonda and I favor the white wine, which we will remember for lunch later today. We feel bad for the one fellow who is minding the establishment and serving everyone himself. I would think that knowing a bus is coming that he would have recruited some help. After some time we finish up and walk back to the bus. The bus returns the group to the marina, where the tour ends. Rhonda and I talk to Anna and ask about the local cuisine. Anna tells us that we don’t want to eat at any restaurant that serves pizza, because that is not Croatian. She tells us black risotto is the classic dish of split, but a beef dish that is marinated for a couple of days and served with gnocchi is another. She recommends that we should look for a restaurant with a menu dominated by seafood.

Rhonda and I start our time together in together in Split by backtracking to the currency exchange. Although Anna said that euros will be taken in some places, the kuna is best to get the best price without any exchange up charge. I would like to have some of the Croatian currency to take home anyway. We drop in and exchange forty euro for 300 kuna. Anna had mentioned that the main market of the city was located beyond the east gate of the palace. We decide to head that way and have a look around. We cut through the palace, stopping to take a picture with the sphinx. When we emerge out of the east side of the palace we step into the most diverse open market I have been in. It is spread out in the streets covering a few blocks. Everything is here to be had, not just foodstuffs. Once you pass through the grocery you get into the flower market, then the men’s clothing, then women’s, jewelry, then house wares. It was like someone took a department and put it outside, with several stalls per department. One place was selling jugs of wine. While that doesn’t sound unusual, the jugs were. They were these large plastic jugs that look like something you would buy a gallon of fruit juice in back in the states. Here it was very affordable wine. Maybe the quality is suspect, but I am sure it is just everyday variety.

We circled around the outside of the palace and stop to break our first fifty kuna bill on a bottle of water. We refresh ourselves as we walk back into the palace from the north gate. The north half of the palace was where Diocletian’s garrison was quartered. As we walk the narrow streets we happen by a chocolate shop. We duck in to see what we can see. There are chocolates in small bars and candies with some unusual flavor combinations. We settle on a lavender and almond flavored bar and a fig and wine reduction bar. These we pack away for the one of the days ahead. We decide to walk back to the basements to see if we can get the boys’ collectibles at the stalls down there. We have some luck for the boys. At one stall we ask about the different kuna coin denominations. When making change for our purchase the lady provides us with one of each of the coins for my collection. We then have some luck for ourselves. A book that Rhonda’s friend Janel had bought us recommended purchasing an everyday item as a souvenir so you would think about your trip every time you use it. I liked the idea and that is what prompted me to buy an Italian leather wallet in Venice. Down in the basement of the palace we come across a stall selling house wares and knickknacks made of Brac limestone. The limestone mined from the island of Brac, not far offshore, is prized the world over for its high quality. In fact it is this stone that was used for the columns of the White House in Washington. We find a lovely little covered bowl that will make a great salt cellar.

We wander towards the west looking for a place to have some a late lunch. We come across a likely place with lots of outdoor seating on a square. We approach and look at the specials board, with has black risotto on it. That is a good sign. When the host approaches us we ask if they serve pizza. He says that they don’t and starts to tell us where we can get some. After some amusing banter we get him to understand that we are looking for a place that doesn’t serve pizza and his fits the bill perfectly. Pleased that the tour guide would recommend his type of establishment he shows us to table. The day is fine for outdoor dining. When the same fellow comes to take our order we request the black risotto and the beef and dumplings. After a little more confusion we get a bottle of local white wine ordered for the meal. It is too hot for reds. While sipping wine and waiting for our meals a didgeridoo player comes into the square, plants himself along a wall and begins to play with his hat out. That is something I haven’t seen before. He doesn’t attract too much attention or donations, so he moves along after twenty minutes or so. We have received our dishes in the meantime and they are wonderful. The risotto has squid and “shells”, small clams, in it and is colored with the squid ink to make it blackish. Thus the name. Rhonda’s beef and dumplings is held together with a stew-like red sauce. The beef is tender and the dumplings light. She declares this the best meal she has eaten on the whole trip. We take our time eating and finishing the wine. When we finally ask for the check it is 335 kuna.

While sitting and finishing our bottle of wine we reflected on our impressions of Split and this little corner of Croatia. We are pleasantly surprised. The city is cleaner than some of the others we have been in with much less graffiti to boot. We have seen many more street musicians which are a nice touch to the atmosphere. The language is harder to interpret since it looks like Polish when written and sounds that way too when spoken. The city still has its number of people trying to sell you stuff as you walk by. Here it is Middle Eastern women selling embroidery instead of black men trying to sell you purses. Overall we are impressed. We are drowsy from our meal and the spate of short nights so we decide it is time to say goodbye to Split. We find our way back to the shoreline. Anna had explained that you just need to go downhill because everything in the city slopes towards the water. We then wind our way to the marina and the dock where the tenders are. We make it just in time to board a tender that is about to leave.

Once on board the Serenade we take a very short nap to recharge our batteries for the evening. First up is the evening trivia session in the Schooner Bar. The subject tonight is movie music, which I feel pretty confident about. I am able to get everyone one of the fifteen answers right except for X-Men, which nabs us our first trivia victory. The prize is inconsequential as the Love and Marriage game victory provided us with everything they give away. The victory is what we were looking for. We mix up the seating at our table again for dinner. Everyone has a great time comparing our impressions of Croatia. Rhonda and I also get caught up on everyone’s time in Ravenna since we were at the murder mystery the previous evening. The night is capped off with a trip to the casino where we give back our winnings from the previous day.

Day 13 – October 25th (At Sea) Today the Serenade will steam its way back around the Italian boot and towards Spain. Rhonda and I sleep until 9:30. Upon waking we get cleaned up and stop by the Windjammer for a muffin and some coffee. Geoff is hosting the second session of his progressive trivia late this morning. We attend and do fairly well, about the same as our first session during our first day at sea. We are feeling pretty good about our position, although we can’t be sure how the other teams are doing.

The day is in the mid seventies for temperature, and mostly sunny. This ship drives through a little rain around midday, but that is no big deal. Our day is filled with taking notes for the journal, some bingo, lots of cribbage, and watching the world go by. The Serenade passes back through the Strait of Messina in the late afternoon so we get an opportunity to see it in the daylight. It doesn’t hold the same magic it did at night though, and we do not stay riveted to the rail as we did then.

Tonight is the last formal night on the ship. Rhonda and I get dolled up and head to the Centrum early for more pictures. We have been taking photos each of the formal nights and at other times trying to capture a good image for out anniversary picture. The photographers are all capable, but not special. We have not been impressed by anything we have taken so far, but we keep trying. Dinner is another great conversational event. We have been so lucky with our tablemates on this trip. The entertainment staff is hosting a disco inferno in the Centrum tonight. We want to get a space on the main floor so everyone leaves fairly promptly after dinner is finished. Rhonda and I snag a spot at the bar out of the flow of traffic. The dancers come on a start up the show. Once their routine is done the dance floor fills up and the energy level is high. We are waiting for the appearance of the Village People, who are the activities staff members we have come to know. They soon arrive dancing down the steps. All four of them are very into character and obviously having fun of their own. Geoff had said earlier that this would be his last disco on the ship and he wanted to go out in style. It is all a lot of fun and goes on for some time. When the band finally stops for a break, Ken announces that the party will move up to the Vortex. The vortex is the dance club at the top of the ship. We talk to James, Haley, Keith and Sandra, who are just down the bar from us, and agree to meet up in the Vortex. The party never really makes it up to the top of the ship. Some people will come up, but most of the energy dissipates on the way up it seems. Rhonda and I and our English friends occupy a table towards the windows overlooking the ship. We have a grand time of our own and don’t break up until almost three in the morning.

Day 14 – October 26th (At Sea)

We sleep until mid morning after our late night. The third installment of progressive trivia is this morning. After getting ready for the day we grab a muffin and some coffee and proceed to the Schooner Bar. This is Geoff’s last day and he is feeling jaunty. We chat with him before the game begins and find out he has a new contract on the Freedom of the Seas out of Port Canaveral. We are happy for him because we know that is the ship he wanted as it is an hour from his home. Geoff has decided at the last minute that third session of the progressive trivia will be audio trivia. He will play a snippet of a Broadway show tune and we have to guess the name of the show it comes frm. We feel pretty confident until some of the more obscure shows are included, which I don’t know the music for. It is with some trepidation that we pass our answers over to another team for scoring. After going through the answers we don’t feel so bad about how we did. Geoff then gathers up the scorecards and sits behind the piano to tabulate the final results. We are cautiously optimistic as he calls third and second and we are not mentioned. Sure enough, we win. Geoff brings comes over to congratulate us and present our prize. It is a big collapsible tote bag stuffed with goodies. The two best things are the tote itself and the bottle of champagne inside. There are four of all of the Royal Caribbean branded items we already received for the Love and marriage game.

We take our loot back to the room. We are very thankful for the tote as we were unsure how we were going to get everything we purchased back home. Our checked bags were not much underweight to begin with, and we don’t want to add anything more. So having another carry-on will help immensely. We have way more Royal Caribbean stuff than we will ever need. We decide to keep the pens and highlighters for Rhonda’s work, and just a couple of other items. We then get some laundry bags and make up gift bags for our dinner friends. We fill a bag for each couple that includes all the hats and shirts and other items we have left. Lastly we consider the two battles of champagne we have now. We decide to share it at dinner tonight with the whole table. We take the bottles to the dining room and ask them to have the chilled and ready for table 415 during the late seating tonight.

Lunch is had in the Windjammer. Afterwards we decide to see how our latest pictures turned out. We spend a good deal of time collecting all of the different shots we have had taken during the cruise and sorting through them. We finally settle of two that we both like and make the purchase. We get in a few more games of cribbage before turning our attention to the task of getting packed. The packing is a bit of a chore, but our new tote helps a lot. With the work out of the way I pick up the camera to take some shot of the places and people that have been the center of our attention on the ship. The weather is turning very rough. The skies are stormy and the seas high. I begin to feel a little off and Bobby provides some ginger ale. He says that the last day coming into Barcelona always seems to be a bad one. As the evening wears on things get better for me, which I am thankful for. We put our bags out before dinner so the porters can pick them up for tomorrow’s debarkation.

Our final dinner with our friends has arrived. The champagne is brought to the table and all are served except for Harry and Sarah, who are Mormon. Not long after things get started Harry has to excuse himself. The rough seas today have taken their toll on him and he is a bit green around the gills. We pass out the gift bags to all three couples who are surprised and pleased. Conversation is again energized and fun. When the dining room finally starts to empty Sarah excuses herself to go check on Harry. The rest of us adjourn to the Schooner Bar and continue our conversations. We finally say our collective goodbyes and part ways.

Day 15 – October 27th (Barcelona)

We awake early and dress. It is our last morning on the ship, which is in port now. Our debarkation group won’t be called for a bit, so we take our carry-on bags and have breakfast in the Reflections dining room. Each debarkation group has an area where they are supposed to gather to wait until their group is called. Ours is the main theater. We finish up and arrive in the theater about five minutes before our time. The crew member tells us that our group has already been called and we can debark. We walk off the ship without ever having to stand in line. Our bags are waiting for us and we snag them and walk through customs on our way to the cab stands. This is the fastest cruise ship debarkation I have ever experienced. The sun is not up yet as we engage a waiting taxi. The ride to the Hotel Moderno is fast as the streets are practically empty this early on a Saturday. We have a night’s stay in Barcelona before our flight back tomorrow. Even though the debarkation is quick, the transatlantic flights all leave once a day, early in the morning. We would be hard pressed to have made a flight.

We know we are way too early to check in, but we drop off our bags in the hotel storage room. It is a bit odd to be back here after twelve days. Everything is still very familiar, but with all of the intervening activity, it seems a long time ago. We walk down La Rambla towards the water. The sky is lightening, but the sun has not yet cracked the horizon. The morning is pleasant and quiet. The storms of yesterday have all passed, but there is still some clouds in the sky and a threat of rain. We find a bench down along the waterfront in the marina and watch the sun herald a new day. As the sun comes over the water and warms us we reflect on the last few days and wonder what we should do today. Some grey, pendulous clouds come overhead from behind us and we decide to walk back to the hotel in case rain does come. At the hotel I pull out my computer and fill in some notes. Rhonda hops on the hotel’s computer and catches up on e-mails. Later in the morning we check with the desk and they have a room ready. On our way down to the front desk we notice a luggage scale on the second floor. That will come in handy later. When we enter our room we see that it has four single beds. Rhonda goes back down to the desk to tell them that we don’t need that much room. They explain that all of the other rooms are already booked. Oh well, four singles it is. Lunch time is approaching and we want to find a different place along La Rambla to eat. The one we decide on is passable, but not as good as our last experience on La Rambla at the Café L’Opera.

We have decided to take the bus tour of the city. It was recommended by a few people we talked to on the ship. We picked up some ticket discounts at the hotel, so we walk up to the main square at the head of La Rambla. How the busses work is that there are three different colored routes. You use the same ticket to get on and off any bus throughout the day. That way you can hop off to see a certain site, and then hop back on the travel to somewhere else. It is a great system. We plan to change busses once and essentially take a tour of the entire city. The busses are double deckers so we sit in the top to enjoy the day. When you board the bus you are given an earpiece that you plug into a jack in the seat in front of you. Below the jack is a key listing the different languages the program is played in. After some playing around we are both listening to English. As the bus approaches each site the recording, keyed by GPS I suppose, comes on and tells you about what you are driving by. We spend more than two hours touring the city on the red and blue routes. As the bus descends out of the hills overlooking the port we decide to hop off at the foot of La Rambla.

Once off the bus we walk north past the Columbus statue and onto La Rambla. As we stroll north we decide to take a random turn to the east and find ourselves in a large square. There are some palms growing in the middle around a fountain and around the perimeter. Cafes line the square and we select one at random to have a coffee at. We sit and people watch the folks coming and going in the square and enjoy the coffee. By now the sun is lowering and the shadows growing long. We continue our exploration into neighborhoods at hand. The streets are narrow and most can only accommodate pedestrians. The Saturday crowds are building and all the storefronts are busy. As evening deepens into night we find our way back to La Rambla. We want some good sangria and know where to find it. There are no tables available at the Café L’Opera, so we lurk at the nearby newsstand. Before long a space frees up right on the front edge, next to the passersby like we enjoy. We order up two large sangrias which should last all evening. Dinner is a cheese plate. I finally run across a cheese I don’t like. There is an odd blue, pasty cheese that takes all of the moisture out of your mouth and makes the sides of your tongue feel funny. There is more than enough other enjoyable cheeses to make up for it. We have a good time watching the weekend crowds traverse La Rambla and sipping our sangria. Eventually we know we are done and the relaxing part of our vacation has come to a conclusion. With an early start in the morning in mind we make our way back to our hotel. We repack the bags and weigh them on the scale on the second floor. Once we get things balanced out we retire for the night.

Day 16 – October 28th (Barcelona-Zurich)

Our flight leaves early this morning. In order to get to the airport a couple of hours ahead of the flight we are up at about 5:30. The hotel calls us a taxi since they have a particular company they use. The taxis all look the same to us, but they can tell them apart. The ride to the airport is easy due to the light traffic at this hour on a Sunday morning. We give the driver a five euro tip and proceed into the terminal. We find the Swiss Air check-in desk and see a long line. An agent comes out and helps people electronically check in and get their boarding passes. It doesn’t take us too long to get our bags checked. The weight is fine and we next have to contend with security. Once again the early hour helps out and we are through and into the main terminal with about an hour to spare before our flight. We decide to get some breakfast. When I go to pay for breakfast I realize that I left my debit card in the taxi. This puts me into a panic and a foul mood. At least this happened at the end of the trip. We make a call to the hotel and explain what has happened. They say they will contact the taxi company and we should call them back in a bit. I hope the large tip we gave the driver helps our cause. After a while we call back and get some good news. The taxi company acknowledges that they have the card and will deliver it to the hotel. This is a big relief.

When we get to the gate we see that our flight information is displayed on a screen above the door. As we get closer to what should be the boarding time the screen goes blank. Now we are wondering if there is a gate change since there is still no plane at the gate. We find someone and ask what is going on. We find out that the flight has been delayed coming out of Zurich due to a snowstorm. The departure time has been pushed back two hours. We explain that we only have an hour and a half connection in Zurich. We are assured that they will know all of the impacted people and that the departing flight will probably be delayed as well. There is nothing to do about it, so Rhonda and I spend the time playing some cribbage while waiting for out plane to arrive. The trip up to Zurich is easy. I was hoping to get a good view of the Alps from the plane, but the mountains are under cloud cover most of the way.

As we begin our approach to Zurich an announcement is made about the connecting flights. Most connecting flights have already left or are canceled. Only a handful of cities are mentioned as “tight connections”, of which Chicago is one. Rhonda and I deplane as quickly as we can upon landing. As we exit the jetway there are two gate agents there fielding questions. We ask about the flight to Chicago, as we are unsure where the gate is. The fellow tells us that Chicago has already left and we should proceed to the transfer desk. This is bad news, but what can you do about the weather? The line at the transfer desk is huge, probably a hundred and twenty yards or more. It has obviously been a bad day for air travel in Zurich and we settle in for a long wait. About twenty minutes after we get in line we hear our name on the intercom. It seems we are being paged to our gate and the plane hadn’t left after all. The bad part is that we are in terminal A and need to get to terminal E. We proceed with all haste, but have to take a tram to get between the terminals, which slows things down. When we get to terminal E we see that our gate is that last one. We run down the terminal only to arrive at the gate minutes too late. The plane is still there, but the jetway has been pushed back. The gate crew is also missing. Weather delays are a part of life that I can deal with. The incompetence of the gate agent that had told us the flight had already left has me steamed, especially since we still had a chance to make our flight.

Now we know we are in Zurich for the night. There is a different transfer desk here in terminal E, so we get in line once more. The line is shorter here, but it still takes us three hours to get to the front. The agent taking care of us is friendly despite the difficult circumstances she is working in today. Hurricane Sandy has the east coast of the US jammed up and she has trouble finding a way for us to get home. Eventually she gets us a flight connecting through Atlanta on Delta. Swiss Air is going to put us up at the Hotel Ibis Messe nearby, which a free shuttle runs to. The agent also provides us with some phone cards that we can use in the terminal to make some calls home. We make use of the cards to notify people that we will not be getting home and find out how things are there. We claim our bags and walk to the shuttle stop. The snow is still coming down, and we only have our fall jackets for warmth. When the shuttle does come it is a fairly short ride through business park type developments to the hotel.

The hotel is very modern looking. The room barely fits the bed, but that is Europe. Dinner is disappointing, as the vouchers provided by the airline limit the selection on the menu to just two different items. The food is uninspired and we get the feeling that we are not seeing the best side of Switzerland. With the whole evening to kill we move to the bar area. We can sit at a table there and play cribbage. We get a bottle of wine which is quite nice. After a few hours Rhonda orders up a cheese fondue we had seen advertised on a board outside the bar/restaurant area. The fondue is wonderful, much better than the dinner we had. It is still snowing out, but there is really nothing to see outside other than hotels and office buildings. When the wine is gone we decide to call and a day and hope for better tomorrow.

Day 16 – October 29th (Zurich - Home)

We have to catch the shuttle for an early flight, so we are up well before the sun. Breakfast is provided at the hotel and it is an odd affair. There are lots of cured meats and cheeses, like in Spain. There is a large variety of eatables. The thing I like the most are the whole loaves of bread that are setting out on cutting boards so you can slice up your own toast to the thickness you want. After some coffee and a few bites we grab the first shuttle to the airport. One thing I should mention about the Zurich airport. There is an underground tram that you have to take to get from the main cluster of terminals our to terminal E. This is part of the reason we couldn’t get to the gate in time after the page yesterday. Anyway, as you ride along you hear the sounds from a farm with cows lowing and cowbells tinkling. There is also a series of monitors lined up along the tunnel wall about halfway through the ride that shows a brief video clip. On the way out to terminal E the video is a girl in lederhosen with the Alps in the background kissing you goodbye.

We get to the gate with our bags checked in plenty of time only to find out that the departure is delayed. At least the delay is only about forty minutes. The flight is packed as I am sure all of the people who missed various flights yesterday are on this one. Also, with hurricane Sandy storming up the east coast of the US I am sure there are a fair number of reroutes on this flight as well. Eventually all get aboard and we are on our way. The pilot comes on to say his hellos from the flight deck and mentions that Sandy is going to give us a big push and we will be arriving on time despite the late departure. This is quite a relief as most of the people have connections out of Atlanta. The skies are still overcast with the remnants of the storm, so nothing is visible on the ground as we fly away from Switzerland. The Delta plane is a definite step down in comfort and amenities from the Swiss Air plane. We are on our way to the US and home, so we are pleased to be flying and not sitting in an airport.

The flight over the Atlantic provides a lot of time for reflection. This trip to Europe has definitely been a different experience from our previous trip. Our week in France was a great immersion into the culture. We stayed locally, bought our own groceries, drove ourselves around and had a little of a sense of the pace of life in Provence. This cruise has been a buffet of sites and experiences. It has been busy and filled with some of the wonders of art and architecture of the past two thousand years. We have also had the time to slow down and taste some of the local flavors. I suppose what this trip has given us is a sense of perspective. To walk on two thousand years old streets and gaze at art older than the United States will do that. The way the European lives in harmony with the ancient as a part of their everyday life is refreshing to see. Especially in a country where the old is demolished to make way for another strip mall that will stand empty. I don’t mean to condemn the US, I love living here. I guess I am using hyperbole to make a point. We are a young country, and the pace of our life could use a little adjusting. Rhonda and I have vowed to not let the little stuff get us down. When it does try to intrude I will think on the standing at the feet of Michelangelo’s David, or walking the streets of Herculaneum to bring my world back into perspective.