Cagliari

Day 14

Cruise Day #10 -  Cagliari, Sardinia

Sleep in day as we arrived in port at 13:00. Managed to get caught up on our blog from the last few days as it has been super busy..... especially with the longer tours we took these past two days.

We jumped on an excursion that took you to the various sites of Cagliari and explored it's history. We lucked out as Mike and Elaine also took the same tour and saved us prime seats on the bus! We stopped at various outlooks to get a view of the city as well as it's many laogons. These are basically shallow pools of water formerly used to produce salt. They are now home to many different birds but the most notable are the pink Flamingos.

We went by the large beach area of Cagliari (spiaggia del Poetto di Cagliari) with it's many stalls and eateries. As it was Sunday it was very popular with both tourists and locals.

Views of the city.

Lagoons with beach in the background.

Next stop was at the gates where the National Museum of Archeology is located. We climbed the sidewalk to the gates and entered the grounds as the bus could not fit through the narrow entrance. We had to wait a bit as the other tours from our ship were in ahead of us.  Once inside our guide gave us an in depth review of the rare ancient artifacts that represent the early history of life as well as the advancements in tool making through the ages. Very interesting for some :-) 

Artifacts from the Museum tour. Most descriptions were in Italian and my translator app failed miserably!

Axe head and it's forming mold.

Narrow streets with many angles and switches. These were designed to confuse pirates... and tourists!

After an hour or so we headed down the narrow streets past the Cathedral of Cagliari and on into the shopping district. Sadly a lot of shops were closed on Sunday but we managed a cool drink and some gelato to cool us down, It was about 33C toady!

Back on the ship we headed for a dip in the pool and while swimming we met up with Ali and Brad from the Rome tour . We got caught up on their travels the past few days but we couldn't stop talking about Rome and our adventures that day.

We arranged for dinner in the specialty restaurant and it was fantastic once again. We really appreciated the effort made by staff to get us in. (It was a last minute decision due to us missing our regular dinning room time.)

After dinner we went looking for David (our tour mate) in the Sports Bar to swap email addresses. David has a special perch with his name on it!! :-)  His wife Janet joined us and we spent an hour or so talking about tours and the whole Rome & Florence experience and got to know them a little better. Very enjoyable!

We cruised by the blackjack table on the way up and met up with several regulars. Great fun and I pocketed a few chips :-)

The trip to Cagliari was interesting but we found the excessive graffiti everywhere put a damper on the city's uniqueness.

Pisa and Florence

Day 13

Cruise Day #9 - Livorno  (Pisa and Florence)

BTW I updated the Rome blog from yesterday.

Up early again as we have the same small excursion group meeting up outside the Livorno Cruise Ship Terminal. We lost Ali and Brad and picked up Jennifer and Brian from Michigan for our day in Pisa and Florence.

Our driver/guide Clara met us and only hoped to do half as good as Enrico did with us the day before.  She did say that her van had WiFi though! We went to Pisa first to see the Cathedral grounds and the home of the famous Leaning Tower Of Pisa.

Cathedral and Tower in behind.

 We had tickets and after getting numerous photos, we climbed the spiral staircase.... all 252 steps (from inside to the bell tower floor). The tower had gone through extensive renovations and structural upgrades and it was beautiful.

The Tower Of Pisa

Steps within the tower are worn away by millions of Sketchers.

Stairwell at the top!

 The solid marble steps inside had become worn with grooves from the millions before us but still worked well. As you climbed the stairs the lean of the tower made some parts steeper than the others of course. Once on top of the tower we had great views of the Cathedral and the grounds.

View from the tower looking over the top of the Cathedral.

 We left Pisa and headed to Florence but we took a winding country road through the Tuscan countryside. It was beautiful and lush with lots of grapes being harvested. We stopped and had a sample right off the vine... oh so sweet!!

Tuscany in it's glory!

In Florence we went to a view point overlooking the city and then to the historical sites. First up was the Basilica di Santa Cruce and it's busy square. They were setting up some temporary structures in the square itself but the stalls were open and the gals happy! The Basilica is the resting place of several well known individuals, the most famous being Michelangelo himself.

Amazing workmanship in the Basilica di Santa Cruce

We made our way over to the Piazza del Duomo and had a place suggested for lunch by Clara. It was just off the square and it was called Restaurant Nuti specializing in Italian food. It was very busy but the food came quickly and it to was a gastronomic hit with our group! Very good!!

Piazza del Doumo

 After lunch we toured through the Piazza del Doumo with stops along the way for Kelly to purchase some of the fine leather handbags she likes. She was happy! This place is one of the most visited in Europe but we had no issued getting access inside.

Next up was a walk through the Piazza del Cecchio which is the town hall of Florence. It has a full size replica of David in front of it and this was the original location before being moved inside the  Accademia. We continued our walk around the area then down along the waterway to the Ponte Vecchio that crosses the river. It is basically a foot bridge lined on both sides with fine gold and jewelry stores.

Florence's City Hall. You can see the copy of David in the lower right.

Another great piece of art beside City Hall.

 Once safely across without Kelly getting to close to said gold & jewelry, we headed over to the Galleria dell'Accademia  and after some some expert work by our tour guide we were in! Clara was able to get both Kelly and I tickets (which we had not done for this venue) as well as get everyone entry for 5 euros. The museum had some sort of special that day and was actually turning away people.

The star of the show. Incredible.

 This is the home of Michelangelo's David sculpture and it is simply incredible to see in person. The detail and the shear size is overwhelming. There was so much more to see but it paled in comparison to seeing David. We spent another 30 minutes or so touring the facility before rejoining our tour guide for the drive back to the ship. She was kind enough to take us to her favorite Gelato shop were we indulged in a post tour treat!

Back at the ship we skipped the dinning lounge and took a late night dip in the pool. Another amazing day of touring Italy! Finished yesterday's Rome blog and did today's while Kelly slept.

Tomorrow we go to Sardinia.

PS This method of touring is better for us in several ways.... it's usually longer so you see more, it's much more personal, it's tailored to your needs and somewhat flexible,  it's comparable or cheaper than other excursions available through the cruise line. A little organizing by someone and you're set so watch for these on the roll call on Cruise Critic. We will!!

Rome

Day #12

Cruise Day #8 - Civitavecchia (Rome)

(Updated Sept 29th)

Up very early as we had to be on the dock at 8 a.m to catch our private tour. Kelly met a group through the Cruise Critic Roll Calls and we joined three other couples for a private tour of Rome and it's many sights.  At the dockside parking lot we introduced ourselves and met Mike & Elaine from the Cleveland area, David & Janet from Huntsville, Alabama and Ali & Brad from Toronto. With everyone loaded and our driver Enrico at the helm we headed off on our long awaited adventure to the heart of Rome. In an hour or so we made our first of many stops within the city as we drove beside an aqueduct that was over 1600 years old... and still works!

The first one was the "Fontana dell"Acqua Paola"  built in 1612. We learned that the Pope at the time, plundered the city and used various parts of buildings to construct these "new" structures. We also had views of the city in front of this structure.

Fountain of Water Paul

A carved marble column telling the story of Marcus Aurelius. As many people could not read at the time, his triumphs were laid out in pictures circling upwards on the column.

Incredible detail!

 We then went to the Pantheon built in 27BC. Incredible marble columns weighing 60 tons each!! The top of the church is cut out to allow light in.... and rain :-) It's called an Oculus and works amazingly well.

Huge Marble structures... mind boggling how they transported and erected them.

The oculus allows the light in.

Next was the Barogue Church "Chiesa Di S. Ignazo." It feature the first 3d type painting on the ceiling as well as a painting that represented a dome, which it did not have. The eyes played tricks :-) Incredible

We were stunned at the interior of this Church.

Our whirlwind journey took us to the Column of the Immaculate Conception and the Spanish Steps in the Piazza Di Spagna.The steps are great example in Rome and this is where Kelly posed a'la Lauren when she visited the steps in 2006.

Kelly makes the pose!

We did go to the Trevi Fountain although it was under restoration and you couldn't really get a good view to do it justice. I guess we will have to come back in a couple years when it is finished.

Enrico showed us all the top spots to view from and the Roman Forum or what is left of it was simply stunning.

We were then dropped off near the Coliseum and after giving us explicit instructions on our "VIP" entry we walked past the queue of people and into the Coliseum. Words or pictures really can't describe this place as it just puts you in awe of history. You can imagine the huge crowds cheering on the gladiators.... all amazing!

Outside the Coliseum as we headed to the entrance. You can see some restoration work completed.

Inside. You can see the reconstructed floor area in the rear along with a sample seating area.

We basically stayed together as a group as we explored the different levels and views. We walked the upper level all the way around and then it was sadly time to go.

Our driver made arrangements to have an authentic Italian lunch served to us at Hostaria Dino e Toni Italian Restaurant.  It was very good as one would imagine. After lunch we were driven over to the entrance to Vatican City where we met Selene our tour guide.

Selene took us through Vatican City and the Sistine Chapel after getting us priority in the lineup... in fact we basically walked right in :-) We were outfitted with a radio and ear piece so she could talk us through all the things we would see. The fact that she was a history major didn't hurt either.

St Peter's Basilica

The artwork is beautiful and stunning.

Did I mention "stunning"? :-)

Wow!

After the tour we were just overloaded mentally with all that we saw. It was time to head to the ship with incredible memories... it was almost too much for the mind to digest.

Back at the ship... yep Sail Away drink, dinner and then relax (fall asleep) then get up and go to bed & try and blog. 

We planned on another private tour tomorrow in Florence & Pisa.

Villefranche

Day #11

Cruise Day #7 - Villefranche

We quietly slipped into the tiny bay at Villefranche after cruising along the French coastline past Marseille. As there is no dock large enough to handle this ship we tendered into port via several sleek passenger ferries. They had six ferries running with two separate disembarkation spots.... all very efficient but it take a bit longer to get to shore.

Coffee on our balcony as we enjoyed the views then off to breakfast before catching our tender for our Monaco and Monte Carlo excursion.

Tender vessel.

Once on shore we gathered with our tour guide and proceeded to the bus. It was a nice coach with very  comfortable seats and we all received radio receivers to hear the guided tour as we got on. A quick 25 minute drive along the lower coast as we traveled through several tunnels.  We arrived in Old Monaco then descended into the basement garage that was full of buses. We then walked through the garage and took two separate escalators and an elevator to reach the street level and the entrance to the Centre Scientifique du Monaco. A beautiful building that rose up from the shoreline and was the start of our tour.  

Kelly in front of the Centre Scientifique du Monaco.

Shoreline view from the bus garage at the Centre Scientifique du Monaco!

 We walked in front of both Princess Caroline and Princess Stephanie's residence as we made our way up to the Cathedral du Monaco which is the resting place of many Royal Family members including Princess Grace and Prince Rainer III. Absolutely stunning inside! 

Cathedral of Monaco

After a tour on the cathedral we walked up a narrow street past the Legislative and Justice Buildings to the main center of the palace grounds. Numerous shops and restaurants lined the area and there were spectacular views from all around. 

Kelly in front of the Palace.

 We walked around the immaculate grounds and got some great pictures from the high vantage points. 

Looking south from the palace grounds. This is a small marina:-)

The center of Monaco's marine district! I was humbled by the shear wealth on display.

After the tour of the Palace grounds we reloaded our transport and drove over to the new part of Monaco. It was hustling and bustling with lots of tourists checking out the sites. We walked by the famous hairpin turn of Monaco's F1 track that will now forever remain etched in our memory... sort of.

The famous hairpin turn in the background :-) Tourists in foreground.

Next on our walkabout was the famous Monte-Carlo Casino but we decided not to go in! 10 Euro to see inside... hey they are rich enough!!!

Casino

My car was parked out front :-)

We continued the walk and found a nice French Pastry store so we naturally loaded up on some croissants and other items and ate them in the park. Very romantic I will say:-) Back to the bus for our return drive back to the ship. We went through the tunnel that the F1 guys blaze through... we were much slower. The route was different as we went the high road with views of Nice and other sites before returning to Villefranche. A quick look around the shops near the dock and we jumped on a tender and returned to the ship. Sail-away drinks and then dinner and some Blackjack... then we were done!

Tomorrow is an early get up as we go to Rome and Vatican City!

Barcelona

Day 10

Cruise Day #6 - Barcelona. Spain

We awoke early at 6:00 am to watch the ship gently pass through the entrance to the huge shipping port of Barcelona. I fetched some coffees as Kelly hit the shower in anticipation of our day ahead. We grabbed a nice healthy breakfast and headed out of the docking area and walked to the World Trade Center about 25 minutes away. There we walked up and almost like magic, we climbed aboard the hop on, hop off (HOHO) Bus of Barcelona City Tours (Greyline). Kelly had pre-booked us so all we had to do was show the printed receipt and we were on.

View as we leave the ship towards town.

They do two routes of the city... Orange that took you west and Green that took you east. You can hop on or off at any of several stops. You had an audio tour as the bus moved through the various sections of town as well as free WiFi access (although the sign in was in Spanish!) so we didn't bother:-) We grabbed the Orange bus to start with and went along for about an hour and a half before getting of at La Rambia to do some sightseeing and look some for lunch. Amazing views as we traversed the city, the Olympic Stadium, Placa' Espanya and the Barcelona Football Club!

The Venetian Towers and the entrance to the 1929 Worlds Fair.

At Placa Catalonya

Antoni Gaudi lived here!

 We settled on a small restaurant called La Boqueria that served up Tapas and enjoyed various cuts of meats and cheeses. We even had a bottle of red wine to go along with the traditional food. Fantastic! Right across the street from the restaurant was the St Josep Market that had amazing displays of products for sale. Kelly would have spent the day there but after six candy shops, eight meat shops and seven seafood shops I was pretty much done!

Entrance to the Market

Amazing colors... and candy!

One one many Seafood vendors.

Meat shop with an amazing selection.

Back on the HOHO bus for a ride on the Green line that took us to our primary destination the Sagrada Familia. This incredible structure, still under construction since 1882, is an eclectic collection of designs from various people. It all comes together in this ongoing masterpiece of design and art. We were simply amazed.

We walked back to the main street and caught our HOHO bus down to the Trade Center. We hoofed it along and arrived at our ship with a few minutes to spare. Yes a full day for sure! Even watched a small yacht sail in... that needed a pilot on board!! Go ahead... google "Lady Moura" and see what 200 million can buy you! The name on the side is 24K Gold!! Read and see more pictures about this mega yacht here

Lady Moura cruises by us.

We made our way back on board our ship at 16:26... four minutes to spare then it was up to the Sky Bar for a sail away drink before dinner.

We relaxed and then entered a roulette tournament in the casino. Buy in was 10 dollars and we had a great time. For several rounds Kelly was the chip leader but was knocked out at the end. Great fun and entertaining as well.

We watched a great show of lighting of to the Northeast from our balcony before retiring to our beds.... we are done! The storm raged on and our ship was engulfed in cloud, lightning and rain for several hours.