Dubrovnik, "paradise on Earth"

Dubrovnik is a historic jewel on the Adriatic Sea with gleaming 12th-century medieval streets and incredibly preserved structures. The town is all surrounded by a towering medieval wall. From our veranda we could see this beautiful city spread out across the hillside.

Notice the bright orange tile roofs. They are common to most of the buildings.

We were limited in taking pictures due to the rain, but when we were ready to disembark the rain let up. In front of us was one of the three main gates which allowed us to enter the old town.  We entered through Pile Gate.

As you can see it was quite busy. There were at least four cruise ship that had docked today.

One of the first things we saw was Onofrio's Fountain. Water was piped to the town in the 14th century and this fountain is still working today.

Many people could be seen filling their water bottles with the cool refreshing water.







Next on the left, was the Franciscan Monastery. We were

fascinated that this is the location for oldest continuously operating pharmacy in the world.




Dubrovnik has many churches, monasteries, and mosques. Many of the churchs' treasures were destroyed by the eartbquakes in 1667, but still there are many church artifacts on display awe inspiring.

There are several steps leading to the Jesuit Monastery. You may recognize the steps from the TV series, "Game of Thrines".

We had a great day inspite of the rain. Tomorrow we are off to Split.

Corfu - Old Town and Fortresses

Corfu is an island off the southwestern tip of Greece that has been shaped by conquerors and royalty. Old Town and Fortress were built by the powerful Venetian Republic.

On our bus tour we saw the beautiful coastline, the Fortress, and wonderful Venetian architecture.

All types of boats can be found in the harbor, from small fishing boats to the huge cruise ships. The small island with the white church is called mouse island because it resembles a mouse.

The Old Fort protected the town which was inside the fort walls. Cannons protected both the harbor and later new construction outside of the fort.

The Venetian Republic governed Corfu and much of the early construction was influenced  by this government.

 The Liston Promenade was used only by the Venetian nobility. You had to be on the list or you were not allowed to walk down the promenade.

Religion played an important part in the development of the town. For that reason there are many churches an a synagogue.

 This Greek Orthodox church is the wealthiest church in Corfu. 

The British governed Corfu in the 1920's and built the Palace of St. Michael and St. George. Britain ruled Corfu for the next 40 years. Their influence is still felt today. Cricket is a very popular sport in the island and is played in the Spianda Square.

After the tour Bettie and I enjoyed a dip in mineral springs spa. It was very relaxing. This was followed by sitting in a 115 degree sauna and then spending time in the snow grotto which was -10 degrees. Very invigorating.

No History Lesson Today!

Hi, this is Bettie, we are at sea today with no port of call so I am going to tell you about our daily activities. Each morning we have our breakfast delivered to our stateroom and enjoy dining alfresco on the veranda. We then leave our bed unmade, dirty dishes  and water spotted bathroom and join the others for an exciting day in a new city. Greg has given you a great description of our daily adventures so I will not repeat. After a day of sightseeing we return to the ship and are greeted with a cool cloth to wipe the days sweat away . We then proceed to our state and...voila, the bed is made, dirty dishes have disappeared, and the bathroom is spotless! After getting a light lunch in one of the 3 restaurants it is now time to relax with our feet up and sometimes our eyes shut too.  Our next chore is to decide where to dine that evening. One of the venues specializes in Italian fare. This is a five course menu with wine choices of red or white. Another option is a themed dinner with a different cuisine each night. The third restaurant features the products of the country where we are in port. Now if we don't want to "dress" for dinner we can choose from the pool side bar or two other buffet style eating areas. They also have specialty dinners. The night after visiting Marseille France we had fantastic Bouillabaisse. No lack of outstanding culinary delights on this ship.

Each evening we go to the Star Theater for entertainment. One night it was the music of ABBA. We have not been disappointed in any of the performances. Needless to say this has been an adventure of a lifetime for us.

Napoli- Greek, Normad, Roman, Spanish, French?????

Napoli, Naples in English, was occupied by many different peoples. It was founded by the Greeks and later occupied by the Romans. Today, Roman ruins have been found such as the Roman baths.

Later the Sicilians ruled Napoli and the royal family built the Royal Palace of Naples which is still standing today.

During WWII Mussolini's forces occupied the city because of the importance of the harbor. It was the second largest city in Italy, and he heavily invested in buildings and infrastructure for the city. Because of the importance of the city it was heavily bombed by the allies. Many of the historic buildings and structures were destroyed. Priceless artifacts were gone forever.

The Napoli train station is building of importance still today.

People around the world have a warm attraction to the city due to the abundance of elegant fountains, statues, and churches.  They all have detailed and intricate carving that is not to be found in today's towns.

This church was rebuilt to its original style after a bombing during the war.

The last stop on the tour was at the Villa La Floridiana Museum. The displays were amazing including many priceless artifacts from many past eras.

Today, excavation is continuing and many artifacts have been found from the past.

We had another day of wonder as we explored different places and cultures.

Rome in a Day

Rome wasn't built in a day, but we toured it in a day.

Our tour bus picked us up at Civitavecchia and we began our trip to Rome. We traveled through the countryside where we saw variety of crops including melons, corn, grapes, and olive trees. It like the hillsides you often see in the movies.

As we approached Rome I had a new respect for the drivers as they drove through heavy traffic, dodged small cars and scooters, and avoided pedestrians. It was relaxing to leave the driving the professional.

In Rome we saw several sites  of Roman ruins and walls.

Two other famous site that we saw on the way to St. Peter's Square were the Colosseum and the Circus Maximus. The Colosseum is where the gladiators fought and other contests were held in this 80,000 seat arena. It was interesting to note that in each of the archways there in the past had a sculpture and the holes in the walls held intricate decoration of brass and other materials. The Circus Maximus was where they held their charriot races.

Our next stop was at St. Peter's Square where the Vatican and St. Peter's Basilica is located. This rich pocket of Italy is one of the world's greatest repositories of history and civilization. It is also the residence of the Catholic Pope and therefore an area of power and wealth.

Two additional stops that Bettie and I wanted to see were Trevi Fountain and the Spanish Steps which were both movie locations. Bettie even got to throw a coin in the fountain and make a wish.

Off to Pisa

Last night we had an excellent meal at the Chefs Table which is a gourmet restaurant. The meal was Asian themed with 5 courses and each course was paired with a wine. In addition to the memorable meal they also gave us a cake to celebrate our anniversary.

This morning we left our port in Livorno to travel to Pisa. Of course we wanted to see the leaning tower of Pisa, and it was worth the trip. Indeed it is leaning. Pisa has tried to correct the problem by drilling under the foundation and pumping water out. This initially worked but now it is continuing to slowly increase its lean. Originally only 3 floors were built before it was noticed that it had shifted. Thirty years later they continued to build except the new construction was built to lean to the other side, therefore the tower is not straight. The top layer has shorter walls on one side to help correct the problem. One thing is certain the decorative carving in the stone is amazing.

We also visited the Baptistery which is where early baptisms were held and then the Romanesque Pisa Cathedral.

After lunch we took the shuttle bus we thought to Florence, but to our surprise to traveled to Livorno. Still it was a beautiful city with a fort, and many churches.

Fortezza Nuova - early fort which is now a park.

Early churches flourished because during the founding of Livorno the citizens were guaranteed religious freedom.

This early church is being reconstructed and has 6 naves.

The church to the right served Greek Catholics.

Monte Carlo - Glamor and Glitter

Monte Carlo is well known for its casinos, celebrities, and no taxes. It is the second smallest country in the world. Casinos were introduced to the country as a necessary income for the government and this income source has been so successful that its residents no longer pay taxes. The tax break has attracted movies  stars and others with sizable wealth.

We began our walking tour which took more than three hours and saw the many yachts. The harbor is full of very expensive boats; in fact the second largest yacht had been moored in Monte Carlo.

As we walked along the cobblestone walkway we saw a building above which had a beautiful view of the Mediterranean......it's the prison in Monte Carlo.

Much of the architecture found in Monte Carlo is neoclassic which was popular in the 19th century. It is very ornate and exudes the feeling of affluence. One example of this style of architecture is St. Nicholas Cathedral.

Two other buildings that may look familiar are the Grand Casino and the Hotel de Paris.

The city also has large public gardens which have wide variety of plants. As we walked back to our ship we both remarked about the beauty and how clean the city is. It is a paradise along the Mediteranean.

Marseille - City of Old World Charm

The day began again with breakfast on the Veranda. We have decided that this could be be habit forming. After eating we toured Marseille by bus.

The city began as a fishing village and later became the capital of Provence. As we entered the city, their fishing heritage was evident. There were fishing boats, yachts, ships of all sizes.

It is amazing how many buildings built in the 1600's or before are still standing and in use. The buildings seem to cling to the hillsides with narrow roads leading to the homes and small shops. Notre Dame de la Garde can be seen from a great distance because it sits on the highest point in the city.

After the tour we had free time to walk though the city. The city building was beautiful with flags flying out front. The ornately craved stonework is still amazing and has withstood the test of time. Even the occupation by the Germans during the war did not destroy this building.

We found an intricately carved and painted carousal. We sat and watched as children enjoy their ride.

We continued our walk and found a very small shop which sold items from the area....and yes we left with a shopping bag with spices and lavender.

As we left town we saw a copy of the sculpture of "David", the prison where the Count of Montecristo was held, and the forts which guarded the port. Wow!

Exploring Barcelona

What a great way to begin a day full of anticipation of the secrets of Barcelona. We had ordered room service which arrived promptly at 7:30.

It just can't get much better than eating breakfast overlooking the Mediterranean.

After breakfast we boarded the bus and headed to downtown Barcelona which has two distinct areas; old Barcelona built in the first century and new Barcelona. We saw the Basilica de la Sagrada Familia whose architect was Antoni Gaudi. Construction began in 1882. The basilica is famous for its depiction of many religious events.

Here you can see the crucifixion of Christ. After Gaudi's death other archtects have continued to design the basilica with goal of completion in 2026.


We continued the tour and examined the remains of walls, towers, and aquaducts that were built by the Romans.

The remainder of our time we spent exploring the narrow streets and small shops.

La Rumba

Thursday night we were entertained by La Rumba a musical group that played music that a blend of Cuban and Flamingo. It was highly energy charged with guitars, drums, dancing and clapping. We smiled as the crowd began shouting "Ole, ole" and was clapping wildly to the music. Great fun.

The Adventure Begins

We left for Indianapolis Airport on Wednesday. Our daughter-in-law was our chauffer and we felt like royalty, no hassel with parking or shuttle buses. While waiting to board we had a Starbucks and then proceeded to TSA. Because we had been preapproved there was no delay.

It took us over 12 hours to get to our final destination, Barcelona.

Even though it was a long flight, Air Canada is an excellent air carrier. We were served drinks throughout our trip, served a 3 course meal with cloth napkins and silverware, given Ipads to watch in flight movies.

When we arrived in Barcelona we we greeted by Viking staff and bussed to the ship.  So far things have gone very smoothly.

Our cabin is well appointed and has a beautiful view from the verranda

Tomorrow, the fun begins with an excursion into Barcelona.

Celebrating Our 50th Anniversary

What do you do to celebrate 50 years of marriage bliss? We are taking our first Mediterranean cruise and will be visiting 6 different countries. Hopefully we will have good Wi-Fi for you follow us on our adventure. Be patient we haven't left yet.

Home at Last

Yes, we did make it home after having trouble on the road.  We had a warning light come up on the dash but, fortunately we were near a Ford dealer in Sioux City that could work on large vehicles.

We were lucky because we could drive to the dealer and did not require a wrecker to get the coach repaired.
 The transmission had to be rebuilt and it was all under warranty.  The dealer could not have been more helpful and we believe that the transmission will give several miles of trouble free driving.

For those of you who have been reading our blog we hope that it has been enjoyable and we will continue our blog when we are off on our next adventure.