Pearl Travel

Marsielle

Yesterday we were in Marseille and doing a wine tasting of Chatreauneuf du Pape and then on to Avigon. The wine tasting was very good and the wine was excellent. We drove on to Avigion and saw the bridge of song fame or what is left of it. Today we have a relaxing morning – breakfast in our robes in the café was a hoot this morning and this afternoon we will be in Mallorca for a wine tasting and stop at a pearl factory. This will be my last blog for now as my computer time is running out. See you all back in Cleveland.

Monaco, Monte Carlo, and the Amalfi Coast

Today I bring you an update from Monaco and the Cote d’Azure.  We have spent the past to days at a pier in the harbor of Monte Carlo in Monaco.  I woke up this morning and looked out and wondered if this is where you live would you get tired of the wonderful sight that greets you every morning.  This is truly a jewel nestled in the Mediterranean Sea.  

Yesterday we spent the day on our own and strolled around Monte Carlo.  We saw the Prince’s palace, changing of the palace guard, the course for the Formula 1 race and generally rode around and viewed the sights. 

Today we had a day on the Cote d’Azure our guide Tony and drivers Patrick and John Jacques gave us a wonderful tour around the country.  We drove up saw lovely views overlooking Monaco and then on to Nice and again overlooking it nestled by the sea.  We were able to have lunch in a sidewalk café outside our weather has been truly fantastic.  We drove on to Eze a medieval village up in the mountains where we did some shopping for things of Provance – lavender.  We saw several other villages and sights along the way before returning to the ship.

Cinque Terre and Livorno

Going to catch up on two days today.  Yesterday we were in Cinque Terre.  I stayed on the ship but most of the group went off on their own and did the 5 towns of Cinque Terre by train and walking.  All said it was a beautiful area and they really had a great time walking between the villages and stopping at them as they progressed through the area. 

Today we were in Livorno and Joe and I did a tour of Lucca and the wine tasting at a boutique winery.  This small winery has about 16 hectares of grapes that they grow and produce wine form.  They only produce wine from their own grapes.  They also have 4 hectares of olive trees and produce EVOO cold pressed olive oil.  Unfortunately they do not ship wine to the US so we could not buy any but I did buy some EVOO.  This was an excellent tour put on by the cruise ship and we really enjoyed it.  Much of the other group went to Florence and really enjoyed it.  John and Char did the Discovery walk tour and said it was excellent.  Several of the other members of the group acquired new leather articles.  Florence is definitely the place to buy leather and gold.

Sardinia

Yesterday we were at the island of Sardinia.  Really a very beautiful island but we were personally disappointed in the shore excursion we took spent more time standing around than on the actual excursion.  It did not seem worthy of an Oceania type shore excursion and we did complete a complaint form regarding it.   On the plus side the weather yesterday was fantastic and when we came back to the ship we were able to spend some time in the hot tub!  It was over 70 degrees here – who would have thought it in November.  Last night we had dinner at Paulo’ one of the specialty restaurants (no additional cost) and had a superb meal.  Definitely fine dining at its best.  Today we are at La Spezia – Joe and I are taking it easy but most of the rest of the group are off exploring Cinque Terre by train and foot on their own.  After yesterday’s wonderful weather today it is cloudy overcast and foggy – we will see how the day develops perhaps it will burn off.  I continue to be impressed with this line and their excellent treatment of passengers.  Ta Ta for now more tomorrow

Napoli

As we continue on our way to Barcelona today we were on a private tour along the Amalfi Coast. We had 2 vans with 6 passengers each and we had a wonderful day. We visited a cameo factory and saw the cameo carved by a master craftsman. We stopped at an inlay wood factory and learned about that. We visited Sorrento and ate lunch on the side of the hill above Positiano. Our Lunch was at a little restaurant where MAMA made everything including her home made Lemoncello which was quite good a mixture of tart and sweet.  This evening we had dinner in the grand dinning room and spent a pleasant time listening to the piano player in Martini’s lounge. All in all a wonderful day in the Naples area. Tomorrow we are in Sardinia where we will do a wine and spirits tou

Bon Voyage

Today we left Rome and made our way to board the lovely Oceania Ship Insignia.  This is definitely an above average ship with personal attention to detail by all the crew.  We will be spoiled for the next 10 days as we cruise the Western Mediterranean.  Our cabin is a well appointed verandah cabin on deck 7 about the same size as the cabin on the Disney cruise ship.  The ship is beautifully decorated in a style of quiet elegance.   The port for Rome is Civitavecchia and it is truly a large commercial port located about an hour and a half from the city.  I would never recommend anyone sailing from here to not take a few extra days and spend some time in the eternal city.  Now we set sail in about a half an hour and we are off to toast our sail away.

Rome

Today we leave Rome and head for our cruise but I want to recap our Roman adventure.  The SCAVI tour we took the other day was a wonderful experience in the old burial places under St Peters. it is amazing the excavating that has been done there.  This tour takes several months to arrange and is done by appointment only.  Our tour yesterday took us to the “golden staircase”  the steps that Jesus climbed to Pontius Pilate they were brought here by St. Helen.  You climb them on your knees saying a prayer at each step.  It is posted only way up is on you knees.  We also saw a bit of Rome life today as there was a protest march about the fans getting “carded”  at soccer matches.  The fans object to that and were marching at several of the sights we were visiting. 

We are going to church this morning and then off to the cruise ship and so ends our Roman Adventure but not Italy as we have several ports of call still.

Rome

Another great evening and day in Rome.  Weather has been just fantastic last night after dinner we sat on the roof terrace sipping assorted beverages and chatting until quite late very relaxing.  Today a full tour of Rome with guides Monica and Laura.  Several hours in the Vatican Museum, Sistine Chapel and St. Peters then drives to various spots.  One of the best stops was to view the forum from the top of the “capotoline hill”.  just fascinating to see the ancient ruins some from BC.  A stroll around Piazza Navorna ended our tour.  We are off for dinner tonight and then on to the cruise ship tomorrow.  I think we are already for some cruise time – our feet hurt.  Lots of walking.

Buon Giorno

Good day from Roma Italy.  We arrived yesterday morning in wonderful Rome.  We were picked up at he airport and had about a 40 minute ride into the city and our hotel.  Our rooms of course were not ready  so we left our luggage and everybody went off on their own adventures to explore the city.  Some of us met and had lunch at an outdoor cafe and then back to the hotel for some much needed nap time.  This is probably the best way to adjust to the time difference.   As I type this is is shortly after 9AM here but only 3AM the morning in Cleveland.  Last night we had sightseeing tour of Rome to see the fountains and buildings etc bathed in light and then a wonderful dinner at Roberto’s.     A leisurely stroll saw us back at our hotel about 11PM and in for the night.  A wonderful day to start our trip. 

Today we are off to the Vatican to have a Scavi tour of the ruins and catacombs under the Vatican.  This is a tour not available to everybody so we are looking forward to this experience.

Have a great day as <i am sure we will.