Europe 2009

11 June - Home at last!

2009-06-11T22:10:00.001-07:00

After an unscheduled night in Salt Lake City, flight changes too numerous to count, and a few frayed nerves we are HOME! John and I reflect that it is both a happy and melancholy occasion to have our trip end. It is so good to be home and see the family and familiar surroundings. I love my washer and dryer and I can't believe how gigantic my PC monitor looks! I have become very used to the Acer netbook! Our 1750 sq ft house seems huge! It is sad that our trip, so anticipated, is behind us now but we cherish the memories. I hope to start compiling my 11 GB of photos for an album tomorrow. We are unpacked, some gifts given out, kisses and hugs shared, laundry done, and we are blessed and thankful we have a wonderful place to come home to. Travel stretches your boundaries, educates your mind, changes your outlook, and changes you from within if you let it. We are grateful for all our experiences that we will mull over for many years to come and thankful we were able to have this wonderful "trip of a lifetime" together.

10 June - NY-MN-UT, but NOT HOME

2009-06-10T22:33:00.001-07:00

Okay I am not happy. I am not home. What a fiasco today! Certainly things could be worse and I hope they are not tomorrow. We went to the airport at the appointed time. Our flight showed ON TIME until it showed "Canceled" - We saw the plane was taken out of service, perhaps it was the American Airlines plane that made an emergency landing? Who knows. As soon as I saw this I was on the phone to AA and they rebooked us going to Atlanta, Salt Lake, and then Fresno. We rushed to a separate part of the airport (by bus). As we were waiting for the bus we asked an employee how to get to that location, she offered to TAKE us there and help us out! What sort of miracle was that? Until that moment I swear there was NO ONE smiling at that airport! She was such a sweet young woman. It was quite a hassle to actually GET the boarding passes but we got them. Now the flight is Minneapolis, Salt Lake, and then Fresno. We finally got what was needed and then she walked us through security and to our gate. I have never been treated so kindly. I was thankful I purchased a cross necklace at the Dublin airport and I fished it out and gave it to her. She seemed touched and appreciative. After that flight things did not go as planned. The transfer in Minneapolis was a snap. She said she put us on as needing a wheelchair so we would make the flights, but we didn't need that. We made the gate and time just fine. It was after we were on the plane there was a problem. It was unbearably hot on the plane as the ground power had gone so we sat. Finally this was fixed and we headed to Salt Lake. However, we were so late that our Fresno flight was gone. I am too tired to be too upset. Anyway we have a FREE hotel, taxi, and food so here we are. We need to leave for the airport by 5:30am to hopefully catch a 7am flight to LAX and then on to Fresno arriving at 11:30am. I HOPE!!! I am sure something of more interest must have happened today, but if it did I cannot recall it at the moment!

09 June - Back to the USA - Paris/Dublin/NYC

2009-06-10T07:15:00.001-07:00

We were up and ready to go at the appointed time of 10am. Our luggage has grown! If any of our Rick Steves travel buddies see this photo they will laugh. We used great restraint in "shopping" until we finished the tour but we did have in mind several things we wanted from Southern France, so these things were planned. Note the bright blue RS bag and how well it expands. I believe they secretly call this the "Don't Tell Rick" bag.

Our shuttle was due to arrive at 10:30am but when it was close to 11am we had the staff call for us. Apparently, there was an accident on the freeway and the shuttle was stuck in traffic. Thankfully the staff called us a taxi and we made it to CDG airport in no time at all. We checked in and began our wait. All our flights were on time so that was a blessing for us. Incidentally, our Aer Lingus flight from Paris to Dublin did not even offer a drink free of charge. A soda was E$3. water E$2.50. We were glad we made a sandwich and had our water bottles filled. Our layover in Dublin was just long enough to spend the last of the Euros we had and off we went. To our surprise we were served a meal, snack, and beverage on this Aer Lingus flight! We had the treat of having our own personal TV/Movie screen and a large array of things to watch. We flew on a lovely 330 Airbus and wondered how this amazing and huge plane could just fall from the sky? Maybe we should wonder how it stays up there at all? What a tragic event that was for so many. I feel we had an overdose of information on that loss since the only channel we could receive in English in Paris was CNN. Anyway, we are back to the US safe and sound, thankful for that. We are wondering how we will adjust to the time difference. They told us here at the hotel that many flights were canceled out of LGA (LaGuardia) today due to storms and such across the country but weather is supposed to clear, so we hope it does.

08 June - Vincennes and Paris

2009-06-10T06:55:00.001-07:00

Our last full day in France. I remained in a bit of a funk unable to access email and feeling too isolated. However, John walked to the Internet Cafe that was closed yesterday and it was open and our connections worked just fine there. He checked our flight information and all things are fine for that. This is a relief for me. Later in the day we took the bus to the same Internet Cafe and posted the blog and replied to what emails we could. I felt so much better then!

From there we went into Paris and awaited the lighting of the Eiffel Tower at 10pm. Actually, it was still a bit light but it was magical we enjoyed that. I asked a young man to take our photo and then we took a group photo of he and his friends for them. They were a lovely group of Brazilians! After that five minute event we walked to a nearby cafe and had a delicious shrimp and avocado salad, our last meal in Paris for now. We saw the 11pm sparkle and then took the Metro back. We took a taxi from the Metro back to the Royal Regency because it was too late to walk and now we are headed to bed. A quiet day but successful too since we had news from home.

07 June Vincennes

2009-06-08T11:05:00.001-07:00

Today we were to go to Giverny, Monet's home and gardens. We woke up early and began to get ready but just lost energy for the plan. We are tired, it looks like rain, and we decided we didn't want to spend a combination of four hours on Metro, train, bus, and/or taxi to get there. I guess it proves we have traveled too long on this trip. I am personally feeling isolated since I have not even been able to look at my email for five days now. We decided a better way to spend the day would be lunch at the Australian Bar that has Wi-Fi and catch up on email, also confirming our flight home on the Internet since we can't even call from here without an unknown fee.

As to not make it a wasted day the first order of the day was to unpack everything and repack it ready for flying and travel home. That took until approximately 1pm when we then headed out to have our lunch. The Australian Bar is a fun place, if you can read the steps each one had a distance to a point in Australia. The lunch was tasty, the people friendly, the service was good but the overall experience was unsatisfying as far as the Internet. We were unable to connect to the Internet at the cafe and even though they tried to help us "this happens a lot" so we were unsuccessful. From there we walked to the McDonald's that we were told had Wi-Fi also. Here we were able to connect but we were still unable to actually post anything or check our flights. From here we walked to the Internet Cafe and found it closed on Sunday. By now it looked like a storm was imminent so we walked back to the apartment. Overall, a time consuming and frustrating experience.

We first thought we might head back into Paris tonight and see the Eiffel Tower at night with the lights and all but good humor and the desire to do so has escaped us.

06 June - D-Day and Visit to St. Avold, Lorraine American Cemetery

2009-06-08T11:04:00.003-07:00

I can't say it was a lovely day in any way, but it was meaningful. We are glad we went to the Lorraine American Cemetery. When we woke the rain was here as predicted. Sadly, we were not perceptive enough to bring our coats with us for the day.

Anyway, off we went via bus, Metro, TGV, and regular train for our arrival in St. Avold. We called the cemetery and a lovely, professional, young woman name Valerie picked us up and take us to the cemetery. The flowers we ordered were waiting for us in the office. It is a lovely cemetery despite the rain, but it also a very sad experience. Somewhat like going to Pearl Harbor or viewing a prison camp museum. So many crosses or stars, row after row of those who gave the ultimate price for freedom for so many. After bringing us to the main office Valerie drove us to the grave site of Robert Glos. We placed the flowers on his grave, she placed a US flag and a French flag on the grave and said those were ours to keep when we left. One thing she also did was rub sand in the name and dates on the cross so the text would show up. She pointed out that even the sand is significant because it was sand from Omaha Beach. Of course by then I was shedding tears thinking of this young man of 21 who left the Napa Valley and never came home again. Certainly, I believe these young men; husbands, brothers, uncles, cousins, etc. are in another place now, but it was a moving event to visit this cemetery and chapel especially after all the stories of WWII and other things we have learned on this trip.

I suspect many of you have viewed the happenings in Normandy at the various beaches. Please keep in mind there are 25 (or 28) cemeteries across Europe holding those soldiers who remain "forever young." Lorraine American Cemetery is the largest in Europe. I won't say anymore about this visit but just post a few photographs.

We decided to change our return trip to Paris since we would not walk around or have a picnic as planned due to the rain. We would also forgo any plans in Paris due to rain and mood. A moving day.

05 June Paris-Vincennes

2009-06-08T11:04:00.001-07:00

Today was the day we were to go to Versailles but since John didn't really want to (and I have see it), it was up to him to make a plan for the day. He did a great job! He used the Rick Steves Paris 2009 travel guide and noted interest in the Bastille area. There was a two mile walk through the area that seemed interesting, so that is what we did. Of course we started with the bus and the Metro into Paris and getting off in the Bastille this time for the Marais Walk beginning in the characteristic quarter there, through that and the Jewish quarter, and ending in the artsy Beaubourg district. Our walk included: Place de Bastille, Hotel de Sully, Places des Vosges, side trip to the Picasso Museum (pictured Femme Bust, Bronze 1931), Rue des Francs Bourgeois, Rue Pavee, Camille Brassiere (for lunch), Jewish Quarter, Rue Ste. Croix de la Bretonnerie and a brief stop at the Pompidour Center. It was a lovely walk and a lovely day. We were not impressed with the art at the Pompidour Center. It was listed as "Modern Art" but it was mostly things we either could not understand or seemed a bit grotesque or profane. Many rooms came with warnings that the content of the room might be disturbing. We did enjoy the few of the Paris skyline from the sixth floor.

About lunch-My lunch was fish and ratatouille so it was delicious, John continues to order things that he is not entirely sure of. This time it brought him a pork sausage that had to be a sausage of "innards" (we asked the man sitting next to us). We did realize it was pork, but knowing it was sausage would have made me wary. John is the man though, as he ate it.

After this we took the Metro on to the Lafayette Galleries in hopes of a bit of shopping. However, the prices were so exorbitant we decided not to buy anything. Time to head home and prepare for our trip the St. Avold tomorrow, D-Day. There are many events going on all over France tomorrow, especially at the Normandy Beaches,

04 June Paris-Vincennes

2009-06-08T11:03:00.003-07:00

One thing I want to mention before what we did today was an encounter at the front desk. John went down to see and confirm our travel on 06 June to the Lorraine American Cemetery. We wanted to be sure we were in fact headed to the correct departure train station since it was listed slightly different. When the man at the desk asked where we were going John told him the cemetery and that we have a relative there who died during WWII. He immediately said "Thank you"-I find it touching that the French people have not forgotten the sacrifice of lives and appreciation for all who died to give them freedom.

We decided after overdoing things yesterday we would slim down our plans for today and just go to the Rodin Musee and Invalides to see Napoleon's tomb. We started out about 10am and took the bus to the Metro this time. That saved about 1+ mile walking on the day right there. We transferred just once and got very close to the Rodin, just around the corner in fact. We had an enjoyable visit there using our Rick Steves Paris book both to find and tour the museum. It was amazing how empty the museum was as there seem to be so few people at the places we go to. Tourism must really be taking a hit in this economy. We have no problems taking photographs free from other in the pictures. After the Rodin, since we were so close to the Rue Cler area in Arrondissement 7 we just walked over there for lunch. This is the lovely, quaint area we stayed in at the end of the Rick Steves tour. We had a delightful lunch at Tribeca; chicken for me, steak for John, with a salad for each of us plus creme brulee. After this John decided he really didn't want to see Napoleon's tomb after all, and I have, so we just walked on Rue Cler and then took the Metro back to Vincennes. Since we still had energy we walked back to the Royal Regency from the Metro. We stopped at a cafe that advertised Wi-Fi and Internet, but they really had no computers for use, but free Wi-Fi if you eat or drink there. We will probably do that one day since we have been unable to check our email or post this blog for a few days now.

For your viewing pleasure:

The Kiss, Rodin 1888-1889 in Marble:

The Gates of Hell, in Bronze (never finished):

The Thinker (or two):

03 June Paris/Vincennes

2009-06-08T11:03:00.001-07:00

Walking, that was the word for our day, Rolinka would have been proud of us! We were up and out shortly after 9am and didn't return until after 5:30pm so I am tired tonight, well my feet are! We did have a lovely day beginning at the D'Orsay and ending at the Musee National de l'Orangerie.

We especially liked the D'Orsay as we had the Rick Steves iPod tour to use and we really saw the highlights and had them explained to us. We really enjoyed the Impressionists and their works. We got to see many Van Gogh paintings that somehow completed our visit to Arles. The Degas and others were such a treat to see. We saw fantastic statues and other paintings. We also had a lunch break there at the cafeteria, which was a simple but delicious meal.

The Musee National de l'Orangerie has a delightful collection of Impressionist artists. The highlight is the Monet Water lilies but there is also the collection of Jean Walter and Paul Guillaume collections. (Cezanne, Renoir, Matisse, Picasso, and Modigliani, etc.) After visiting there we were very close to the Louvre and we thought we would have and aperitif but could not find a close place so we just took the Metro back to Vincennes and walked back to our apartment. We definitely would stay in Paris if we did this again.

Since our large meal was lunch we have cheese, crackers, and fruit for our evening meal and then collapsed. It is hard not having email and knowing what is happening at home.

Degas:

Ingres:

Picasso:

Monet:

Random Travel Musings; Train, etc.

2009-06-08T11:02:00.001-07:00

While sitting on the train traveling from Avignon to Paris many thoughts are running though my mind. It is 1:45am and my loved ones are sleeping. I wonder how many days it will take us to adjust and reenter PDST? Hopefully, the one night in NYC will give us a brief head start on that.

About the train: I am not sure if I mentioned this before but we purchased the 2nd class Senior SaverPass. This pass is for 2 or more people traveling together. One does not need to be a Senior to by this pass but the price is a little lower if you are a senior, if I recall correctly. Of course this works well for us because all our travel has been together. However, in making our reservations after buying the pass we were unable to book 2nd class from Paris to Perpignan and had to pay the difference (E$114. I think it was). Keeping this in mind I should have made the reservation sooner. In retrospect I believe the 1st class pass would have cost less than the one upgrade. The advantage of the 2nd class pass is you travel with mostly locals. The advantage of the 1st class pass is larger seats and more leg room, fewer families with children (sometimes loud and unruly), and better ventilation or use of A/C at a higher level. Now understand, 2nd class is not bad, just not as nice. I am a bit concerned about the number of people who are coughing, sneezing, and blowing their noses. In addition, we have felt that if is enjoyable to look out the train, view the countryside, and see the area. In reality on the high speed trains (TGV in France and yet another newer name I don't recall) the train is within slopes or walls most of the time so you really don't see a lot. Photographs are almost impossible. I say this to remind myself that when/if the opportunity arises it would be beneficial to use a couchette (sleeping car) for a long distance between some cities or countries to also save the price of a hotel room.

About renting a car: Driving is not at all difficult in France. The traffic circles are a joy and no challenge at all. They are clearly marked and one only needs to most importantly know what city direction one wants as the names are prominently listed whereas the route numbers seem to be somewhat of an afterthought. I am not sure we would rent a car again--depends on our age and ability when we come again. It might be more enjoyable to hire a local guide with a car or book a few individual tours to outlying areas.

About Group Travel: (Rick Steves groups anyway) The advantage of group travel with a nice, energetic, friendly group with a terrific guide is when/if you get in a bit of a travel funk you have all of that "fun" going on around you and it perks you up. Plus, who wants to be a dud or a grump in front of others, but of course we can do that when it is just our spouse! Looking forward to other group adventures! However, we also like being on our own because we can decide how long to stay and look at one thing or another and move at a slower pace. A balance of both is good.

The news here: We so enjoy the world news we receive here. Of course little of it is about the US but we are learning so many new details about other countries. Even our World News at home is not so informative. In two days Poland will celebrate the solidarity election and move that was the beginning of the end of Communism. Calling this the "Autumn of Change" and many specials to be shown. It would be interesting to watch these programs. There was a man about our age making some comments; he said that before 1989, all one could buy was vinegar and mustard unless you "knew someone" who could procure other items. So of course he fells life is better even though it is still a struggle. I think many in our country have no idea how bad things could really get for the US with the debt we are in and being so deeply in debt to China and other countries.

02 June Arles-Avignon-Paris

2009-06-08T10:57:00.001-07:00

We left Arles at our designated time and made it to Avignon in plenty of time even though we missed the TVG station as we drove into the city arriving at the city wall the first time around. However, we drove around the wall, saw the signs for the TGV, and got back on track. As we arrived there another couple about our age zoomed in, ran in with their car key, and then ran up the stairs luggage in tow to hopefully catch their train. I am glad we had a realistic idea about our abilities and left with the idea of arriving one hour earlier than needed. As it was we were unable to fuel the vehicle because each place we stopped did not have diesel. One place that did have it required a card to access filling our tank, which of course we did not have. They will fill it and charge us, I am sure that will be an eye-opener. At any rate we arrived in plenty of time to use the restroom, have a cappuccino, buy a sandwich for the trip, and get to our area on the platform 10 minutes prior to departure without rushing. The new TGV station here in Avignon is quite modern looking as you can see.

The train ride was uneventful. We were glad we had a sandwich to split, chips, and a cookie for John that I purchased at the station as the the dining car is still unavailable due to strike. There were a lot of children on the train or perhaps the few there were made it seem like a lot. (this would be one reason to be in 1st class instead of second class for noise reduction) These not-so-well-behaved children continually test the patience of their weary parents and their antics are only things we might enjoy from our own grandchildren. Nevertheless, hilltop towns and quaint villages whisk by at 200+mph. One does not have the sensation of traveling fast but when you see the freeways and know the cars are traveling 120 kilometers per hour then you realize your speed. Paris is just 2.5 hours from Avignon, nonstop by TGV.

Soon we arrive at Gare de Lyon and it is a brief walk to Metro line 1. However, we now tote a large bag of fabric and the blue tote full of souvenirs and other items so it does not seem so fast. We are no longer the streamlined roll on board and one personal item travelers we once were. At the end of the line we decided we would just get a taxi but each one that passed had occupants. Eventually our bus # came by and he told us the appropriate place to wait to catch the bus in our direction. We quickly crossed the street as the bus was waiting there and we boarded for the short ride to the Royal Regency. There was a communication gap as we forgot what we wanted to say but fortunately a sweet young woman came to our rescue and told the driver where we wanted to get off. From there is was a long block to the timeshare and we were happy to arrive. They are friendly and nice but not overly helpful. We were really ready for someone else to carry our luggage but they gave us a cart, which was fine as well.

Our studio apartment is lovely and spacious, we even have a small table and chairs on the grass outside the patio door for our convenience. It is so nice to have a kitchen and some space to put our things. The bathroom and other areas are huge in comparison to our accommodations of the last few weeks. We have a closet, sofa, mini table, microwave, fridge, dishwasher, etc. Almost all the comforts of home. We are shocked not to have WiFi and the Internet has not worked here in a month (per the man at the front desk). Who knows when we will post our blog, though we have been shown two sites to walk to, it would take more time than we want to spend right now. As I said the actual studio apartment is very nice and we will take pleasure in that. The amenities, such as they are, are not so great other than that. We would probably exchange and stay within Paris next time. There is a pool table, but it has a hole and the sticks are not so hot with no tips per John as he already tested this feature.

After arrival we headed out to get groceries. The first store was a slight disappointment but not knowing what the next would bring we purchased a few things. We had to pay E$.03 for a plastic bag to carry the items in. John took these things back to the apartment while I ventured on to the next grocery. This one was much better and we got all our needed supplies; cold cuts, eggs, butter, oil, lettuce, fruit, bread, eggs, vegetables, etc. We got a couple of steaks for dinner, which I managed to overcook, but we still ate them. Dinner was a salad, steak with mushroom and zucchini (and bread). Dessert was packaged cream caramel, which wiped away all thoughts of the over done meat. The cream caramel was not as tasty as the ones Odette had but I could not find anything "high end" like that. This was more like Pudim de Leite that we had had in Brazil. Good nonetheless! I was happy I bought herbs in Avignon as I opened and made good use of them here.

Of note we really enjoy the World News on CNN here. It is much better than our World News at home, much more detail. Right now Poland is in the midst of celebrating 20 years of freedom as in two days it is they will mark the 20th anniversary of the vote by the bloodless Solidarity Movement to wipe out Communism. They are going to have several specials on TV about this. I wish we could watch them. Of course we recall Pres, Regan telling Mr. Gorbechev (sp?) to knock down the wall, but there was much more that contributed to that than the US intervention that we did not really hear about or I do not recall. They interviewed a man about our age. He recalled that before this time one could buy vinegar and mustard. If one wanted more than that they needed to "know someone" who could procure other things. We are so spoiled in the US and I wonder how bad things could get in the future? I think we have no idea yet.

1 June-Arles

2009-06-01T12:48:00.001-07:00

We woke early but did not really get up and going early. The buffet offered here in the hotel is E$12. (read US$16.) each and since I really don't care much for breakfast and John was not impressed with the choices, he got us a coffee, quiche, and apple tart for a total of E$12. to eat in our room. That was a nice start of the day. Our hotel is lovely, as shown here. We were out and about around 10:30am after checking and replying to a variety of emails from family and new friends from the RS tour.

Off to the tourist office and purchased the booklet we wanted to do some walking around Arles with information in hand. As we were there the little tourist train went by and we hopped on to hopefully have a brief overview of the city in English. It was a bit of a disappointment because it only went places we have walked already so we didn't learn much. After hopping off we began the Van Gogh walk in reverse (since that was our location).

We stopped for a full menu lunch at the cafe where Van Gogh drank with his friends and got into a conflict with one on the night he cut off the lobe of his ear and gave to a harlot. Sadly disturbed, young man with such talent. The cafe food was good, not outstanding but the atmosphere was nice and the Forum Square was lovely. After progressing further on the walk we came to the area of our hotel and decided to again take the mid afternoon off. It is the heat of the day and the most crowded so it is a good time to stay in. Pictured here is the hospital where Van Gogh stayed and painted many paintings, including this courtyard.

We continued out our walk around 4pm but this time we decided to actually start at the beginning and then end up back by our hotel again. It was an enjoyable walk but sadly one of the things I wanted to see most was closed; the recreated bedroom of Van Gogh. All the painting Van Gogh did here (around 300) not one remains here, which seems a shame. He was a Dutch painter and of course there is the Van Gogh museum in Amsterdam. There is the Van Gogh Foundation where many posters or copies are, but the focus of the foundation is to allow upcoming artists in Van Gogh style to present their work. It was interesting with a few nice works but a lot of things that we really didn't care for. It is an interesting walk and we wish we had more time here as there is a lot to see and we simply have no more time. For instance there is the Camargue wildlife area just out of Arles but one really needs a full day to properly see it. This area is flanked by the Rhone on both sides "the Grand Rhone" and the "Petit Rhone"-we were told we could see wild boar, many birds, and more. We also didn't have time to go to three outlying areas we hoped to see. Again, John says next time.

A little more shopping and a fabulous dinner (crepes) rounded out the evening. There have been some threatening clouds but no rain. We are packed and pray for an uneventful trip back to Avignon to take the train to Paris tomorrow morning.

We do have CNN in English here and see that a plane is lost in route from Rio to Paris, so very sad. I hope they can find the wreckage so at least the family will know what happened. The GM news of bankruptcy is no surprise.

31 May-Avignon to Arles

2009-05-31T13:56:00.001-07:00

We woke to rain this morning. I packed and after breakfast John walked to the parking garage for the car and then parked in front. I waited in the lobby and replied to some emails. When it looked a bit clearer we ventured out for our trip to Arles. Meanwhile, we met this couple in the lobby about our age and they are riding bicycles throughout the area. They are from San Francisco. They were not too thrilled about the rain and I was really happy we are not doing that! (not that we could) Anyway, off to
Arles, which went very well until we actually arrived in Arles--Of course we did not know where we were going and finally we stopped and I drove so John could navigate. Sadly, this was not an improvement. We asked directions a few times to no avail. The problem with a map is you need to know where you are to get where you want to go. Well after a tiff we finally found the hotel. It was remarkable later when we discovered at the time we switched drivers we were about one block from the hotel! A mere 45 minutes to an hour we found it! Anyway, we can laugh now but it was not so funny at the time.

After the driving fiasco it was quite a relief to see the hotel! The Le Calendal hotel is very nice, though small, it is right by the arena. There is a lovely garden dining area but we decided not to eat here right then as we need some walking and air. After checking into the hotel and John taking the car to the municipal parking garage, and walking back, we headed out to lunch. We decided on the plat de jour, which we were only sure was lamb. We were surprised to get three lamb chops and a mountain of french fries! Again, we could not eat it all. I believe the portions are becoming Americanized! We got a half bottle of the house wine, which has Vincent VanGogh on the label. I saved it for a souvenir. Incidentally, the rain stopped when we arrived and we had a sunny day thereafter.

From there we went to the arena and purchased the pass we needed to go there and to a few other places in Arles, which we will do tomorrow. We wanted to go to the TI but found it closed on Sunday at 3pm. This will be our first stop tomorrow. The arena is not as large as I thought it would be. The one in Nimes is more impressive, of course the one in Rome is also. We walked around inside and out and noted all the renovation taking place. It is different than other renovations we have seen as they seem to actually be replacing stones with new stones and sort of "renewing" the look of the place. We can't decide if we like that look or not. Anyway, we saw it. The tiny figure peeking out from behind an arch is me (sharon).

From there we did the last of our shopping or so John believes, and headed back to the hotel for a rest. Later we ventured out for dinner and had another lovely meal. Again, we met more people traveling with a Rick Steves guide book. We felt as kindred spirits when they said they drove around for an hour to find their hotel once they arrived to Arles! Our restaurant owner/operator stated that Rick Steves was here just a few weeks ago so we should keep our eyes open for him since others saw him in Florence. It is light late and we have enjoyed the day but we are ready to sleep now.

PS: For 30 May

2009-05-31T11:15:00.001-07:00

I forgot to mention that on our way back from Pont du Gard we stopped at Carre Four, this is something like a grocery/department type store, maybe the most like a Super Walmart. Anyway, I wanted to stop there because they also have these stores in Brazil and I knew we could purchase some little things to eat or drink very inexpensively, which we did. I will say we bought toothpaste at less than half the price of the pharmacy within the city walls of Avignon. There were many choices for pre-made sandwiches or fresh fruits and vegetables. We used our picnic set and had a nice little meal in the evening.

Our vehicle is Diesel and we need to return it full. Diesel seems to cost a bit less than gasoline, which is US$7.00, yes you read that right.

30 May-Avignon

2009-05-30T12:53:00.001-07:00

We had a beautiful day in John's words, of course I totally agree! However, when we woke we had the strange realization that we lost a day! Some how we thought we still had today to walk around and shop in Avignon and we were picking up the car tomorrow. We quickly rearranged our schedule and had help from Sylvie to call the car rental agency to ask if they would hold our car until later because we wanted to wait until after 12 to pick it up. Off we went to check a couple more places for fabric and kitchen accessories. I found a few more gift and decided I definitely liked the fabrics and items they had at Le Lavandin "de tissues en Provence". So after several more stops we arrived there and I began picking out all I need to completely redecorate my kitchen/dining/family room area. Of course this mean we need the new tile put on the floor and new sofas; a complete remodel in this area that John just started with the enlargement of the entry into the kitchen area by the refrigerator. Anyway, I am excited to have all the fabric, plus table clothes, napkins, and 2 sized of bread baskets or they are really items that can be used as other dry containers also. You can see what I mean by this photo. I had a wonderful time shopping and John was right there with me with the conversions from metric to inches so I will be sure of what I have. The man in the shop was so sweet after our large purchase he gave me a free apron I had chosen and told me to pick one of the thick kitchen towels as a gift. What a nice young man. I told him we had visited his shop 9 years ago and I have been thinking about coming back for fabric and other things ever since!

Alas we are done there and head back in the direction of the hotel. Just a brief stop for some delicately scented soaps. John is hungry so we stopped at a very touristy place on the square. I noticed we are right next to a woman who sold Debra a painting 9 years ago! I bought another of Pont Du Gard today. We had a nice lunch, I am a bit embarrassed to say we had a hamburger and fries with a salad, but we did. It was delicious. Anyway, Deb I am 99.9% certain this is the same woman, don't you think so???

Back to the hotel to drop off our purchases and then off to the bus stop to the TGV station in Avignon. When I was here before there was only one Train Station, the Centerville station or Avignon Centre Station. Now there is a separate station for the high speed, TGV trains just out of town. We rode the bus for E$1.20 each and arrived there and after two enquires found the rental agency. We will not be having the tiny Ford Ka after all but an upgrade to this Citroen. We don't mind because it has AC, it is still a manual transmission and that is what we booked.

Off to Pont du Gard! When we arrived we decided to do the walk to the bridge first, this was probably a mistake. However, we had a lovely walk across, under, and around the bridge. What a relaxing and lovely place to visit. We watched swimmers and kayakers enjoying the Gardon River flowing below the bridge. To know this is entirely held together with absolutely NO mortar and has stood for over 2K years is amazing. We think we are intelligent, and we are in many ways, but this is still and amazing feat. By the time we returned to the museum area we were too late for the film and also in entering the museum. John was not too disappointed and has stated when we come back to spend a week or two we will do it then. John is the little speck on the right side of the photo. The information we want to know we can probably find out on the Internet; such as when they built the walk along side of the Pont du Gard and how they managed to use the keystone in these arches and build this without mortar. It is really amazing. The oldest and largest Roman bridge/aqueduct in the world. Incidentally, the one arch over the river is larger as you might notice, and it is the largest arch ever built in this style by the Romans. This is an amazing place to visit and I hope each one of you can come here and enjoy it as we have one day.

29 May-Avignon

2009-05-29T13:39:00.001-07:00

We slept in! We did make it down for breakfast by 9:30am and out and about by 10:30am. We decided to take the Rick Steves walking tour of Avignon after a stop at TI (Tourist Information). They did not have the particular Michelin maps we wanted there so our first detour was to FNAC where we found what we wanted with just a little help. We have the two suggested maps for driving in the area, so John is feeling very confident. We shall see. After that we began our tour for the day.

First we went to the Palace Square and on to the Musee du Petit Palais. It was interesting but we have seen a lot of religious art so we didn't stay there too long. It was a good thing too as they close at 1pm, though we could have returned later in the day, we did not. I mainly wanted to see the Botticelli painting they had and we did that along with the 15-16 different rooms. From there we walked up to the park at the top of the hill behind the Palace of the Popes, Parc des Rochers des Doms, for the panoramic views of the Rhone River and valley, the broken bridge, the city, St. Andres Fortress, limestone covered Mont Ventoux, and much more. While in the park we stopped at a sweet, friendly cafe and had an "American" lunch of a hamburger, chips, salad, and a coke light. It was simple and delicious, though it was not as fully cooked as we expect our hamburger to be. Now off we go down the hill to walk part of the ramparts and head out to St. Benezet Bridge. However, after the walk down the mountain and ramparts we decided another detour on the tourist train was in order. This departed and returned to the same spot at the bridge so that would work out well for us. The ride was somewhat interesting, but walking gives better views and photographs, and keeps one more in touch. This little train was fine for resting the feet though! Now we were off to the bridge and the English audio tour that was included in the price. Again, we had lovely views and impressive breezes from the center of the river.

After that we headed on the walk back toward the Palace of the Popes. We detoured again at two fabric stores with kitchen linens that I wanted to inspect. I selected a few towels I liked but still have a couple more shops to look in before I make a decision. Now we are off to the Palace as time is growing short. The tour was interesting, again an audio tour in English so one can go at their own pace. However, we are getting tired and there are hundreds of stairs so we are somewhat relieved when the tour is over. Now we have new decisions to make, what to eat for dinner?

We stopped at our first choice in restaurants but they do not serve until 9pm. On to the next choice of cafes near our hotel. We don't want to back track and want to stay in the correct direction. We chose a pizza cafe in the open air and made our selections. This was a three course meal again, but the portions were huge and we could not possibly eat all the food ordered. We could have easily shared one meal, live and learn. As we ate another couple came and sat next to us. They were from Australia and after talking we discovered we are staying in the same hotel. We are somewhat refreshed after eating but certainly ready to go to bed.

The Passion Pass: You pick this little booklet up free at the TI office. As you visit sites listed in the pass you receive discounts. We saved around E$20. today with it.

Our Hotel: It is a lovely and quaint place. The establishment owners could not be more gracious or caring. Our room is spacious and we have WiFi and all other comforts. However, the hotel is noted in the book to be "12 quiet rooms" (see rooms in photo) and while the rooms might be quiet outside our window is anything but-young people late and night and delivery trucks for the pub next door in the morning. However, we do not regret our choice and suspect a room in the back would be perfect. At least we have double windows to close and keep the sounds out, but we also like the fresh air. I love the lavender scents everywhere!

28 May-Perpignan to Avignon

2009-05-28T13:17:00.001-07:00

Our train departed at 8:40am so René said we should allow 20 minutes, plus 20 minutes extra so we did leave their home just before 8am. We were there in plenty of time and they came in with us and got us on the correct train and off we went. This was bittersweet for me as of course I do not know if I will see them again or not, but Lord willing we will. We had a wonderful time, we are so thankful to our cousins for welcoming us into their home.

Our first stop was Narbonne where we had a two hour lay over to catch the next train to Avignon. During our wait we had a nice cappuccino and baguette with cheese. We had a banana that Odette gave us to take on the train already. The time passed fast as we watched people and trains come and go. There was one sleeper train that came from Germany with many people dressed in motorcycle outfits. In addition, at the end of their train they had approximately 200 motorcycles and 50 classic cars. Of course we have no idea what they were really doing but we could speculate that it was some sort of rally or something. John walked up and down the platforms looking at all the different vehicles.

Our train was a couple minutes late but it was not a problem and we boarded and rode to our Avignon destination uneventfully. I dozed most of the way other than waking at each stop. John read the Rick Steves Provence book. It was a very short walk, maybe 10 minutes, to the Hotel Boquiers and we were cheerfully greeted by Madame Sendra. I say "Madame" but she is young, 35-40, and energetic. We have a spacious, lovely room, the "Lavender" room, and we feel very welcome here. It is nice since I feel rather sad to leave the cousins and a bit homesick too. We rested the rest of the afternoon, posted the blog, and replied to emails. About 6pm we headed out for a walk. We wanted to go to the TI (tourist information) office and get a couple of things but they were closed. We will venture there first thing in the morning to get the free "Passion pass" which gives discounts into various locations after the first time you use it. There was a similar "passport" in the Perpignan area but we did not take advantage of this in time to benefit from it. From there we walked around for about an hour and then went to Le Caveau Du Theatre, the restaurant we had decided on for dinner. We planned to eat outside but before we ordered we decided to move inside because of the wind. It was a delightful three course meal; John had an avocado and ham starter, mine was artichoke and various pates. Our plat was pork for John and duck for me, both served with potatoes. Dessert was glace (ice cream), three kinds with a cookie and some pieces of fruit. We had Cote de Rhone red wine with dinner and an aperitif also made locally with our dessert. We are stuffed! So we walked back and now we are ready for bed.

About the rail pass: I find it strange that we have been on a train with three different legs of a journey and only the first time we were even asked for our ticket. That time they only glanced at our ticket and did not fill in or punch the rail pass. I guess this should not be of concern but I hope no one will look at it and think we tried to sneak though without using the ticket or something. Of course I have read that there are stiff penalties for getting on a train without the proper documents. Interesting, and I will ask Rick Steves office about this process later, after we are home.

27 May Perpignan

2009-05-28T07:28:00.001-07:00

Ah, the mountain is in view this morning! After a relaxing breakfast we were off to see the center area of Perpignan, I would say "old town" Perpignan. There is one very old section of the city wall that remains, but that is all. There is shop after shop of anything you could possibly want from salt to formal wear. I did find what I was looking for, the Porro to bring home. Then we walked all around the city looking in interesting shops. My favorite shop was a kitchen, fabric, and garden shop. It is the same shop where René and Odette got the fabric used on their patio area. It is a very heavy cotton fabric, almost like canvas with any color combinations you can think of. I wanted to buy something but I was overwhelmed with the choices! I would love to bring a lot of things home from that shop, it were 3 or 4 levels of all sorts of things. It would have taken hours to choose and then calculate US to metric system to know how much fabric was needed! I will have more time in Avignon for this and that was my plan to begin with.

Today we were able to take our wonderful hosts to a restaurant of their choice. Odette chose a delightful French Cafe where we had a delicious three course lunch. Odette has promised she will not prepare and evening meal if we have a big meal for lunch. We had Caprese type salad with mozzarella tomatoes basil and lettuce, pork (galtes de porco) with vegetables and rice, and creme Catalan for dessert. All of this was delicious. With it was the house wine Dom Brial brand! There is a story behind the name of this wine. The people who own the vineyards and winery do not carry the Brial name, nor are they related in any way. However, they chose this name because about 15 generations ago there was a Brial who was a priest and became a famous historian in his time and was called Dom Brial. They chose this name because it is a well-liked, respected person and good to sell the product. Incidentally, the wine was also good! After lunch entertainment was René and John helping fellow push a car to start it...I am ashamed I have no photo to show of this event! Sadly they were not successful but it was fun to watch!

While eating we noticed posters for Byrrh (pronounced "Beer") hanging on the walls. We asked about this and of course after lunch we went to the nearby town of Thuir and toured the Byrrh Caves (cellars) and had another wine tasting. They have a cast that holds over 1M liters! Again, René did a wonderful job of translating all important things for our benefit. The wines they sell are more of an aperitif. I hope the bottle we bought does not break when we bring it home! It has an apricot fragrance and taste and can be consumed as it is or in champagne. I forgot to ask in what proportion to use it with champagne but I will try to ask René later.

I probably have not mentioned that every village and town in Europe has a war memorial. On these memorials they list the names of men who have died in war, any war. The small village of 45 people where our Rick Steves guide now lives has a memorial with just one name, but the Europeans take the losses very seriously and have a great respect for the lives lost by both their own and other countries. Anyway, I say this to tell you that as we left the Caves Byrrh there was a memorial with the name Joseph Louis Brial who died in WWI. René does not know of this Brial but he was certainly some relative.

After leaving Thuir we went to see Odette's brother and wife, they are also near by in Baixas. They have a lovely home neighboring on vineyards and have a small olive orchard right in their yard. You can see they grow giant asparagus! I am just kidding, of course it is cactus but it very much resemble a giant asparagus! They also have a yard full of pet turtles,which their delightful granddaughter showed me when we arrived. What a kind and gracious couple. We didn't stay long and then we returned to pack our bags and think about the trip for tomorrow. René was kind enough to confirm for us with the hotel in Avignon and also to make sure the train was indeed running again since apparently there had been some sort of strike.

Odette also prepared a "small" evening meal for us if foie gras, fig, salad and a delicious sweet wine sort of like sherry to drink in a small amount with the meal. It is now time for bed and thinking about all we have done for the last three days and the kindness of René and Odette is overwhelming. We will leave with the hope that we will see them again one day.

26 May Perpignan, Collioure, Banyuls, etc.

2009-05-28T07:09:00.001-07:00

Another French breakfast (chocolate croissant no less!) and we were off for the day. Our first stop was Collioure, which is another lovely village on the sea. The wind is blowing and the water is rough but very beautiful with all the white caps. The village is famous for anchovies, culinary excellence, wine, and olive oil. In addition, one can walk and see many things such as a chapel, fort, windmill, and much more. They still use areas of the fort by the water to train the French military, the Navy I believe, as a lot of the young men were wearing wet suits and some others had camouflage clothing. We had a nice walk around the town and around 12:30 we headed for Banyuls just a short distance away.

In Banyuls we had a lovely picnic and after that we walked down to the sea and across the entire beach and then back through the town. We tried to find the kitchen type store where we bought things before but we could not. Most stores there close between 2 and 4 pm and open again after that. This is the Spanish influence of the area. We walked back to Annie and Xuxu's home and then prepared to leave. It was perfect but we did miss Annie and Xuxu being there.

Now René took us on an adventure up to the top of the mountain on narrow country roads. Both Odette and I were a little worried a few times but we had amazing views of the sea, villages, and vineyards. Of course René is an excellent driver. amazing. We were very close to one of the signaling stations at the top of the mountain but one had to walk the rest of the way and the wind was blowing very hard so we did not attempt this.

When we are down from the mountains we stop in yet another village I cannot recall the name of and we get oysters and langistino for dinner, we are still full from lunch but again, we eat. I must say these were the most delicious oysters I have ever eaten! Then we walked around the area of home and now it is time for sleep. I could write much more but I am tired and not thinking too clearly. We had a wonderful day.

25 May - Perpignan

2009-05-28T06:59:00.001-07:00

The program for our day began at breakfast at 8:30 am. We had a nice French breakfast with delicious coffee Odette made especially for us, as they drink tea. I am not sure of the exact time we left for Fortress of Salses but we first stopped for a moment at a medical supply sort of store to get some shoes for Germaine, as she took a fall again and they think she needed new shoes to prevent slipping. After getting the shoes we went to the Fortress and took a tour. The tour was in French but with the flyer in English and René translating some of it we had a very nice visit there. John was as impressed as I hoped he would be. The fortress was constructed in the late 15th century between France and Catalonia and stands today in wonder with original status in most parts. It is an amazing place.

From there we returned to the home of René and Odette and had a delicious lunch, it was approximately 1-2pm. We had appetizers of anchovies and bread, then noodles with meatballs and sauce, and pear tart for dessert, then coffee and a chocolate too! After lunch Odette took the purchased shoes to Germaine and René took us on another outing to Elne, the cloistered Roman Cathedral and castle built 4-5 centuries before Christ. I believe I am stating this correctly that this was build by the Romans under The Great Constantine in honor of his mother Helene, later becoming Saint Helene, and shortened to Elne some time after that; it was the Great Constantine, who under the Romans first declared Christianity to be a legal religion. René believes St. Helena in Napa County is also named after this same mother of Constantine the Great, which gives us another connection. This was an extremely interesting visit, even having bones of someone excavated and on display. Many of the marble carvings were still very well preserved, though some had been partially destroyed during the Revolution. Remember the people were so poor, depressed, angry, etc. that they even defaced churches that they felt were associated with the power of Kings or royalty. It is amazing that there is as much remaining as there is. After this visit we took a different route back and stopped to watch a glass blower in another small village. Then back to their home. Odette had not yet returned but she did shortly thereafter and another meal was prepared. At least I am allowed to help a small amount so I don't feel too bad. I think it is a lot of work for them to have us here but they are very gracious. Gazpacho and quiche, plus a variety of desserts was the meal. I marvel at Odette's garden; it is lovely and I have taken many photographs of it. We can see it keeps both of them very busy to have it as lovely as it is. René states he follows her instructions, we all laughed at this as John does the same. I am missing home after being here and wondering how everyone is?

After dinner we drove to a nearby lake, actually three lakes, and took a walk around the man-made area. It is very nice with picnic facilities and such. One area allows fishing and boats without motors, one allows swimming, and the third does not allow anything because it is a sanctuary for birds. It is nice to have this peaceful area so close to their home, what a lovely place to live.

24 May - Paris to Perpignan

2009-05-28T06:50:00.001-07:00

Away we went to the train station by 8 am. We wanted to allow plenty of time and as it was it took us 45 minutes to get there. We still had plenty of time since the train didn't leave until 9:25 am. That is our train in the far, far background. Our conductor spoke no English but the man of the couple in front of us did and he assured us we would not miss Perpignan as the train does not go past that stop. Fortunately I thought to buy a sandwich and apple in the train station as there was no food service on the train due to a strike. That was fine as we had a couple cherry tomatoes and some chips left from another time too. We saw a lot of the countryside on the way here. The trip was uneventful and we saw René and Odette the moment the train pulled in. This is a dream fulfilled for me to return and see my cousins again, so I thank you Lord for the opportunity.

It was a short ride to their lovely home, it is beautiful like a small resort. Their yard is lovely, there is a lovely pool, birds singing, pet turtles, a patio that is covered, more like a summer room or winter room, I am not sure, but it is beautiful. You can see the Catalan fabric used for the table cloth and other areas in this covered patio area. We had a refreshing cold drink and then we made a short trip to Castelnou. A fort built in 963 (yes, that is only three digits). Parts have been renovated after a fire and other destruction but it was very interesting and a mild activity to complete our day. Then we came back to their home and René grilled both lamb chops and beef kabobs. Odette fixed ratatouille (vegetables fixed a delicious way and she will give me the recipe) and rice to go with this but first we had a delicious salad of avocado, shrimp, tomatoes, and lettuce. We enjoyed our dinner and also dessert of strawberries. René tried also to use my French calling card and we still could not make it work. He will attempt to call the company tomorrow. I did call Mom from his phone but she was not home, but at least I could leave a message. Both Odette and I feel a bit frustrated we cannot communicate better but we can a little. She is so sweet and gracious. I am sure René will be very tired of translating before we leave. I must say it feels good to lay down in bed tonight, even if we didn't do a lot today.

23 May Paris

2009-05-23T13:22:00.001-07:00

Today we slept in. Our tour is officially over with Rick Steves but several from the group have stayed on, most going to Versailles this morning. John decided he didn't want to go and I have been there before. It is a nice castle and all but there are many others to see! We were happy about our decision the way our day went and because the others told us it was very crowded there due to the four day weekend for most Parisians, well maybe most French. I woke early but managed to fall back to sleep and we made it down for "breakfast" about 10am. Noe and Sara, Ron and Becky were waiting for their shuttle as they fly home today. Scott and Geordine also slept in but told us of the 7pm group plan to meet in the lobby and go someplace for dinner. Meanwhile we have repacked our clothing, books, maps, etc. and we depart for the Royal Regency in Vincennes to leave some things until we return from the cousins and Provence. As we left for that outing we also bid farewell to Keith and Karen as they left on the Metro at the same time to take the shuttle to CDG airport. Our trip to the Royal Regency (timeshare) was a bit longer than we hoped, not the Metro part (15-20 minutes) but the walk after getting off the Metro. I suppose it would not have seemed as long if it was not raining and we knew where we were going. Finally we found the place and all the staff was quite friendly and nice. They stored one suitcase and one very stuffed backpack for us. That leaves us with one suitcase and my tote, plus a small back pack and my purse. We do have an expansible bag in the suitcase too. On our Metro trips we experienced some really great music today!

After leaving there we rode the bus back to the Metro station to head back into Paris. This was fine but we had to use 2 tickets because we couldn't determine if we could get a transfer. I think we should have received a transfer but again there was a communication gap. Actually we used 3 tickets because we stopped at Gare de Lyon (one train station of several in Paris) where we will depart tomorrow for the cousins. The third time we stood in line we actually got someone to help us and our pass is validated and we paid the extra needed to upgrade us from 2nd class to 1st class for this one trip only (E$110.40) to Perpignan. I am glad we didn't put this off until tomorrow as it took quite some time, well over an hour. I believe we could have had a first class pass each for what we paid in the one upgrade, live and learn. Also, had I made that particular and most popular reservation earlier I may have gotten it in second class. Again, a learning experience. We then back toward the hotel stopping to buy some fruit and a sweet item from the bakery. We had a half cheese sandwich as we worked out the Rail Pass issues so we were hungry by then at 5pm. We are to meet some of the group in the lobby for dinner at 7pm but I am sure we will be hungry again by then.

We had a group of 8 for dinner tonight; Scott and Geordine, Jack and Helen, Gretchen, Helen, and John and me. We walked just a short distance to Le Bouquet and had a delicious dinner. John had steak and I had scallops, a fun and delicious dinner for our last night in Paris with new friends. Oh, last night we began talking about a reunion trip for our group. We think it will be next year on the Big Island in Hawaii where Scott and Geordine live. It would be great, I hope it works out. We had "red wine of the month" at our restaurant, which was Gamay, and of course delicious.

We really can't say enough nice things about our Rick Steves trip and our guide for the tour. She seemed to go above and beyond in most cases. She never seemed to get tired either! She lives in the south of France and she will be researching a new Rick Steves book for that area. She was very interested after all I told her about our cousins and wanted René and Odette's contact information. I gave this information to her feeling that it could work out well for all of them. Time to get to bed. We want to be to the train station one hour early just to be sure things go smoothly.

22 May Paris

2009-05-23T02:41:00.001-07:00

Off to the Louvre via the Metro first thing this morning. We all either had passes or tickets so we went in by way of the stairs near the arch to avoid the long lines waiting at the Pyramid. We had a delightful English woman named Janice to do our tour. Our first highlight was this Sphinx, which is 1900 BC, 4K years old, weighing 28 tons, and made of pink granite. We were informed you will find these ancient works with the noses destroyed as this was felt to be the way to remove power. The Louvre was very warm, I did not realize very little of it is air conditioned. I am guessing it must have been cooler weather when I was here in 2000. The Mona Lisa is air conditioned, as is another wing, but other than that is is not. We saw several highlights of the Louvre; you will recognize Aphrodite, then the Victoire de Samothrace or "Wings of Victory" which is 2nd century BC. I had been told in the past that the "Wings" is the oldest Greek statue in the world, but our guide did not say this so perhaps an older one has been found since 2000, or it is not a fact. I will check that one of these days. After these and other highlights our tour was over. However, after a brief lunch we went back in to the area of statues and stayed for a few more hours. We did some shopping in Louvre stores, they have a regular mall there now with all sorts of high-end stores. My assignment was to find a card and gift wrap for the gifts we have for Rolinka tonight. After that we had a leisurely walk through part of the gardens and a few shops along the street and the Metro back to the hotel. We rested and then got ready for the Metro trip to Rolinka's apartment here in Paris for dinner. She and Antoine were very gracious to invite all of us to their home for the last dinner we would have together. It was very nice and she seemed very touched by the gifts that we all contributed to get her. Some of the ladies in the group were ingenious in picking out some special things she really wanted and liked; shoes her choice and size from the Mephisto store in Beaune and a heavy mortar and pestle from a kitchen shop there also. The funny part were some doggie toys for her pup (who is huge at 5 months) and it was very entertaining to watch him! One of the toys was an iBone, which really made her laugh since many in our group either had iPhone or iPod touch or some sort of device and wanting Wi-Fi at each stop. Metro back to the hotel and attempted to use the phone card again with no success again. I did this blog and was unable to post, falling into bed at 1am. We will sleep in tomorrow for sure!

For Steven-Brazil in Paris

2009-05-21T14:08:00.001-07:00

21 May - Beaune to Paris

2009-05-21T13:44:00.001-07:00

It was a nice cool morning for departure and we arrived after just a few hours in the coach and one restroom/snack break. In route to Paris we passed a Trafallgra bus tour. Same size coach as ours but completely packed with people! On our coach there are at least 2 seats for every person! This really has been a wonderful trip for us. Upon our arrival in Paris we actually had a bit of a city tour from our coach, an orientation of sorts. Here was our first peek at the Eiffel Tower as we entered the city. There is no city like PARIS! Apparently there was not the usual amount of traffic so this made it possible to drive by several sites. Rolinka has commented several times that she is surprised about the lack of crowds and we can only guess it is the economy. She said the Rick Steves tours are down 40 percent, which is a pretty significant amount too. We arrived very close to our hotel and bid Rene farewell. We had free time for lunch and then met at 15:00 to begin our afternoon site seeing. First we went on the Metro to be sure everyone understood the lesson we had on the coach in route to Paris. It is logical and quite easy to understand with a few basic instructions. Then we walked through the Latin Quarter and saw a few historical sites before heading to Sainte Chappelle. This is a lovely chapel that some king (sorry I forgot his name by now) had built. The stained glass is magnificent and tells a complete story of the Bible I think. From there it was a short walk to Notre Dame Cathedral. Though I have seen this from the outside before we were unable to go inside last time I was here, it is breathtaking. The facility holds 7K people! The first stone was laid in 1163 and took just 150 years to build, this is actually pretty fast for a Cathedral. During the Revolution the French thought the Kings across the front of the Cathedral repre3sented the French Kings so they destroyed them, not knowing they were the Kings of the Bible they were destroyed and crashed to the ground. In the 1970's someone gardening found the original and damaged heads of the Kings and they are now displayed in a nearby Medieval Museum. Isn't that amazing. It is said 7 million people visit Notre Dame each year and 1 million of those are Americans. I wonder if this will be true for 2009? This is where our tours for the afternoon ended and we have free time now and John and I entered the Notre Dame and spent more than an hour looking all around and listening to part of a mass in French. From there we walked around a bit an noted that Notre Dame is quite lovely from the sides and back too, though the front is what we see photographed all the time. We took the Metro back to the Rue Cler area where we are staying and had a delicious dinner once again. We were going to stay out until 10pm to see the Eiffel Tower twinkle but we are tired and we shall save this for tomorrow night. It is hard to believe this tour portion will be over in just 2 more days!

20 May Stechelburg to Beaune, France

2009-05-21T13:05:00.001-07:00

We left Stechelburg and the lovely valley in the Swiss Alps at 7:50 am. There was just a brief delay with of a heard of sheep in the road stopping traffic and then off we went. One restroom stop and one lunch stop later and we arrived in Beaune (pronounced "bone") France in the Burgundy area of France. We had a brief orientation of this lovely and welcoming small town and then visited Hospices de Beaune Hotel-Dieu. This was an interesting 1400's sort of hospital/hospice place that actually ran until the 1970's. After that we had a bit of free time to look around and I also bought a France phone card, which I am not really quite sure how to use just yet. We also went to a book store listed in the Rick Steves book and we could have browsed for hours at all the various things, including books. The group then met for wine tasting and a delicious four course dinner followed that. This doesn't sound like a very busy day but as we walk back to the hotel it is close to 10 pm. Right before our dessert we gave Rene some parting gifts as he will drop us near our hotel tomorrow and head back to Belgium where the coach company is located. He is a nice man and a wonderful driver. Both Rene and Rolinka have made this trip so special. There are some problems connecting to the Internet so I probably won't be able too post or read email tonight. We'll see... check out our dinner:

Tomorrow we arrive in PARIS!!!

19 May Stechelburg, Switzerland

2009-05-19T12:49:00.001-07:00

Here we are in "cow country"-just kidding! It is really beautiful here and we awoke to a crisp, clear morning with blue sky and not a cloud in sight. The mountains just outside our windows are majestic.

Today is tram day. We ate eggs directly from the chicken and soft boiled, also fresh cheese, all which is so very good. We took a back path; a trail leading to the tram along the small, rushing river. Wild flowers are everywhere, cows graze, waterfalls roar, it is and idyllic setting for sure. You might know I am not so keen on trams and heights, but I am here and I am doing it, plus John really wants to go. So we purchased our round trip ticket for $69 each (I really don't know if this is Euros or CHF [Swiss Francs]) but the usual price is $99. so it is a bargain this early in the season. We make four stops and switch trams four times to climb to over 10,000 feet at the top, which is Schilthorn. We started the ride at the station in Stechelberg, about .5 miles from our hotel. The next stop is Gimmelwald, then Murren, then Birg, and finally arriving at the highest point Schilthorn. There is a trail where the adventurous can hike this but it is only open from Murren and below as there is too much snow above that point. We were able to see the specific three mountains in the area but not all at the same time. While at the top we see a film that surprisingly focuses on a 1967 James Bond 007 movie that was apparently filmed here. Since I am not James Bond fan I never did figure out the name of the movie. We decided to have a cup of coffee in the restaurant while we waited to see if the clouds or fog clears for better views. The restaurant revolves like the Space Needle in Seattle, so that was fun. We had the signature dessert to go with our coffee, a little flaming dish with very strong liqueur of some sort. Whatever it was, it was good. We stayed for a full revolution but the clouds didn't clear so we headed down. Again on the way down we had better views than from the top. We got off in Murren and walked around the lovely little town. This town also seems to be the jumping point for the hang gliders, definitely not interested in trying that! After a walk around and picture taking we went back to the tram and rode back to Stechelberg and walked back to our hotel.

Now it is about 3:30pm and we decide we will rearrange our suitcases and leave one backpack on the bus for the remainder of our stops. When we get to Paris we will contact the timeshare and see if we can leave one of our bags there while we go south to see the cousins and Provence area. I don't think it will be a problem, then we will also know our way back upon our return.

Dinner was at 7pm and another huge meal with soup, salad, main course, and dessert. We are stuffed, headed back to the room to pack and be ready for 7:45am departure to France tomorrow morning.

On a sad note Kim and Adrian, new friends on this tour who are from Australia, will be departing tomorrow. Their first grandchild was born early with many problems and though they have stayed on for most of the days things look very bleak now and they are heading home. Please pray for little Lucas Adrian and his healthy survival and that they can arrive home to be with their daughter and son-in-law when they are most needed.

18 May-Cinque Terra to Switzerland

2009-05-18T12:28:00.001-07:00

Leaving the Cinque Terra today and I really don't mind as it is humid and we will hopefully head to some cooler weather in Switzerland. It is scheduled to be a long day on the bus but we knew this already. However, most of the day on the coach made me feel antsy. We did have three stops one was quick, then lunch break, then a stop in Interlaken. I believe Rolinka had to gather some last minute information for us and also confirm our arrival in Stechelberg, at the Hotel Stechelberg so we had time to shop in the city. Everything was very expensive but we did manage to buy some Swiss Army Knifes that could also be engraved, so those were fun to buy. We have not exchanged any money for Swiss Francs as both our dinners will be included at the hotel and we purchased salami, cherry tomatoes, dried fruit, nuts, crackers, and wine for a picnic tomorrow. We are also told that our Euros will be accepted, along with credit cards in most places. Switzerland is not part of the European Union yet, which is why they are not using the Euro.

We have had nothing but fabulous views of mountains and waterfalls. Hopefully the clouds will clear and we can see some of the high peaks of Europe from the valley where we are staying. Since we only walked a few miles yesterday and basically nothing today our legs and knees are feeling pretty good tonight! Tomorrow we will ride a tram and do a bit of walking but probably not a lot. Saving ourselves for France. We are told there is Wi-Fi here, we will find out pretty soon if it works or not.

17 May-Cinque Terra

2009-05-18T12:27:00.001-07:00

We could sleep in today but of course we woke up anyway but we moved slowly and didn't head to breakfast until 9:30. Today's breakfast was a bit more than we have been getting while in Italy as we had fresh and canned fruit, not just rolls, cereal and yogurt. The hearty breakfasts ended when we left Austria. Today we even had cappuccino from a "person" and not a machine; delicious! It seems warm already and I suspect it will be a hot day as we head to the old side of town to get the boat. It is not so much that the temperature is so hot but it is humid. There is either an overcast or humidity that keeps the air from being clear, just a haze hanging everywhere. We headed to the old town and bought our boat pass for the day and went all the way to the last village on the 11:30am boat. The views of each town were interesting from the boat. I am sure they would be fun to explore. I am a little surprised to see so many college age men with backpacks, apparently making their way through Europe as cheap as possible. When we got to our destination of Riomaggiore we went on the little walking tour of the town in the Rick Steves book and enjoyed it. We had lunch at Ristorante la Lampara and I had this delightful meal called spaghetti al cartoccia; a fragrant, baked spaghetti dish in foil with clams, muscles, shrimp, and langostino (sp?). It was delicious and I really enjoyed that. John had a pizza with clams, muscles, shrimp, scallops, and langostino. However, back out on the street we are just overwhelmed by the heat of the day. We meandered back up and then down the shady side of the street and decided to walk to the trail head to see if any of the path was at all shaded, it was not. That determined our next choice that we would head back to the marina and return by boat. It seemed like such a great idea to walk the trails between the towns when we watched the videos of people romantically strolling along such a lovely path, it lost something from the video to the reality of it all. I really can't imagine being here in the heat of the summer. There are a lot of people swimming in the sea and it looks quite inviting but we are hot and just want to get back to our hotel. Rolinka warned us many European women would be topless but we didn't see anyone topless, poor John. The old world views of the towns will have to do.

Back to our hotel room, more laundry as our clothes are dripping, and we spend the rest of the afternoon resting and relaxing in the cool hotel room. After full recuperation we went out to eat at Miky just down the street. Thankfully it has cooled off some. We had another delicious dinner from a restaurant referred to in the Rick Steves book. John had a huge, tender, succulent sirloin steak and I had sea bass ravioli. A grilled plate of vegetables was an accompaniment and white wine from Cinque Terra went nicely with everything. I had lemon tart for dessert and John had Le zeppole-a warm cream puff with vanilla and strawberry sauces with berries. Yes, he ate every bite! After dinner we went for a stroll along the beach and water front, did a bit of shopping, and headed back to pack as we leave in the morning. Talking to a shop owner she said it got warm just the last two days and it is unusual to be so warm right now.

Throughout the day we ran into different people from the group. Most hiked at least some portion of the path but we have no regrets as it was just too hot and humid for us. Off to Switzerland tomorrow and we understand some cooler weather is ahead, we are glad of that. Hopefully there will be some Wi-Fi available soon.

16 May-Rome to Cinque Terra

2009-05-18T12:25:00.001-07:00

It is sad to leave Rome as there is much more to see but we also knew it would simply be an overview and Rome is definitely a city we would like to return to one day. Departure at 8:15 and our coach picked us up right in front of the hotel, that was really nice. It is a long travel day but the beautiful Tuscan Countryside helps us pass the time. We had a nice stop at a hill town, Massa Marittima. We had about one hour there and we first had a cappuccino so we could use the restroom! While we wandered about the small town savoring aroma of bread baking and food cooking Rolinka prepared a picnic lunch for us and then we drove on to Monterosso. One very interesting sight along the way were the rock quarries where the marble that Michelangelo used came from more than 500 years ago. They still get marble from these same quarries. What looks like snow on these mountains is the marble. We also saw the leaning tower of Pisa in the distance and took a blurry photo of it. Finally we arrive in the Cinque Terra area and board the train for the very brief, 10 minute ride to Monterosso and our hotel Punta Mesco. This time we have a nice little patio and hopefully the weather will be pleasant and we can enjoy it. Again we simply drop our bags in our rooms and head out for an optional orientation walk just in the Monterosso area, old and new town. We can rent a beach umbrella and two lounges for E$10. per day but laying in the sun is not fun for us. We will probably buy a boat pass for the day and ride from Monterosso (the first town) to Riomaggiore (the last town) and walk part of the trail back catching the boat where we can back to Monterosso. The whole place is lovely and quaint and there are a lot of options. We ate in one of Rolinka's favorite places called L'Aliamarea in old town and it was very good. John had "wild boar" which really just looked like pork chops and I had ravioli. We had the typical white table wine which is popular in this area and it was very good. By the time the meal was over we were hot and it was very stuffy in the restaurant so we were the first to leave. Along the way back from there we stopped for a taste of Limoncello and bought some to bring home, why I am not really sure! I must say we feel very excited about the fact that we don't need to set our alarm in the morning!

15 May-Rome

2009-05-18T12:23:00.001-07:00

We are up early and not too ready for that, seems like our heads just hit the pillow. However, we have an early entry at the Sistine Chapel and we must be on our way. There is also the threat of a Metro strike so we at least hope to make it to the Vatican City before this happens. We depart for the Metro at 7:45am and make it before the strike time. We visit the Vatican Museums and then the the Sistine Chapel. All of this is very amazing and I have no words to describe the beauty of the Sistine Chapel. The entire ceiling tells a story of the Old Testament, or I should say the creation up to and including Noah. It is lovely, breathtaking. It is quite surprising that we are allowed to take photographs of all the various things in the Vatican Museum and the Sistine Chapel. One is not supposed to talk in the Sistine Chapel but there is a constant roar of noise with guard shhhing people constantly. A gorgeous view at every turn, majestic statues, mosaic floors, painted ceilings, tapestry maps, something marvelous any direction one turns, it is overwhelming! Our organized tour ends after the Sistine Chapel and we have the rest of the day for free time. Since we are here John and I went into St. Peter's Basilica and did the Rick Steves audio tour of that. This too was amazing with the grand finale of Michelangelo's Pieta. I have at least 100 photographs this morning because truly a picture does say 1000 words. This is an unforgettable place to visit and we think at least a week in Rome to slowly savor each magnificent place would be best. Now I mailed a few postcards from the Vatican Post Office and we headed off to find a quick lunch, then back to the hotel to rest. Sure enough the Metro is not running so the taxi was E$18. back to the hotel. This was a long distance across the Tiber River so it was worth the cost. We could be reimbursed but we forgot to ask for a receipt. I typed the blogs and John slept, then I slept and he went to find an ATM to replenish our supply of cash. I did plan to do a little laundry, but that didn't happen. I had to force myself to get up and not just sleep until morning. One thing I really wanted to see and climb are the Spanish Steps so we walked there in the evening then found a delightful restaurant from the Rick Steves book to eat our dinner. We had a little trouble finding the restaurant but I asked a nice couple passing by, they spoke some English and he pulled out his GPS and located it for us, they almost wanted to take us to it but we were sure to find it. They were so nice and said it was a pleasure to help us. He had been to San Francisco and loved it and I told him I was raised in Napa Valley and he said "Oh yes some good wine." People are so friendly! As we ate our meal at Ristorante il Gabriello a young couple from LA came in as they were also using the same book! Just as stated in the book Claudio was serving along with other waiters and the food was "e bella." We had a fantastic veal scalloppini and roasted vegetables, and of course dessert. The red table wine they serve in all the restaurants so far is really good. It is so mellow and flavorful without being overbearing. I have no idea what it really is, but it is a good value and delicious. Our carafe tonight was only E$6. while the roasted vegetables were $10. We were fortunate to be seated as it was so busy and usually a reservation is required. Another lovely day. We leave for the "vacation from our vacation" to the Cinque Terra tomorrow morning.

14 May-Florence to Rome

2009-05-18T12:21:00.001-07:00

What a fantastic day we had! However, it was almost midnight when we got back to the hotel and ready for bed so no blog was done at that time. Now I will try to catch up on what we did. Upon our departure we had a different bus and driver. There are specific laws and rules about driving busses in Europe and everything is recorded on the computer within the coach that is used. Rene could not continue to drive us without having the appropriate rest times in the allotted time so we will not be in our usual coach again until we depart Rome. We departed Florence at the appointed time and drove through Tuscany on our way to Rome. Lovely, rolling hillsides with grapes and other crops are the view all morning. It would be nice to come back and just visit villages of Italy but right now we are excited to see the Eternal City of Rome. After just one short break we arrive and pass through the ancient city walls. Our hotel was a quick walk from where we were dropped off by the bus. This entire hotel is on the 4th floor of the building so we did things a bit differently this time. I think everyone walked up the steps but a couple of the guys loaded and unloaded the tiny elevator with all the luggage so that was pretty nice. Then everyone was on their own to walk to a couple of nearby places for pizza or sandwich take away and we ate together in the hotel dining area. After lunch we had about one hour to rest and be ready to leave on the tours of the day. We headed out at 3pm and walked straight to the Colosseum. Again we had a local guide Francisca along with Rolinka. I think I mentioned this "whisper" system most guides are using now. We are given an ear bud and radio and the guides no longer have to try to scream over crowds but can simply talk into their microphones and everyone can hear. This is very nice as you can also wander and still hear her and also know where she is. We were told all the amazing facts and folklore about the Colosseum. There is no proof Christians were killed here, but certainly many animals and people were killed here for a variety of reasons, all with political control of the people as their goal.

From the Colosseum we walked directly to the Forum, which is simply amazing. It is said that 80% of the history of Rome is still buried under the current city. They have more ancient ruins discovered each time the dig for transit or sewer systems and the like. It is still unknown what is yet to be discovered under the current level that we see now. There is part of the old Roman Road still visible at one point. After the Forum it is up the steps to the other side where the jail is that states as tradition Peter and Paul were imprisoned together. Surely it is believed Peter was there for sure before his crucifixion but of course there is no proof, we trekked down to take a look anyway. Then onto Capitol Hill and the statutes and waterfall there, then on to the Panthenon. This was magnificent from the outside but sadly there was a closed function inside and we could not go in to see the dome or interior. We can perhaps go back tomorrow if we have time. On to Campo de Fiori square where we had free time for 90 minutes for dinner break. We went to the first available place to sit and relax for a meal. I was really wondering if we would be refreshed enough to continue after more than 4 hours of walking. However, salad, pasta, and 2 glasses of wine each refreshed us and we met up with the group to continue our walk at 9pm. The first view for this evening was the Fountain of the Four River Gods (or something like that!) then Trevi Fountain so we could toss our coin and be assured of a trip back to Rome to visit again. Gelato and more walking ended our evening and we had a wonderful first day in Roma!

13 May-Florence, Italy

2009-05-13T13:23:00.001-07:00

We were up early and off to the Uffizi Gallery by 8am. I think our group was the first ones in and that was great since it was not very crowded. We had a wonderful local guide from the US. She married an Italian man and has lived here for years and she was very good. I could not take photos inside of course so you will one day see my album with scanned postcards inside and explanations then. The painting with the seasons from April to October was very interesting as was the only painting done my Michelangelo outside of the Sistine Chapel. Our tour ended around 10:30am and the rest of the day was free time for us. I did get this one good photo of Ponta Vecchio today from a window at the Uffizi and the decorative doors on the back of the baptismal in the square. It is almost impossible to get many photos because of the people but more so one cannot get back far enough to get the entire feature in because things are so huge and close together.

We slowly walked back to our hotel making several stops and looking at many things. When we got back I posted the blog for yesterday and straightened our our things for the next departure. The clothing I washed last night is dry and we are pretty much set. We decided to do this resting and then head out for a nice late lunch and call it dinner and just have a snack tonight but we failed to calculate the Eash factor into this! Both John and I believed we knew how to get to the desired restaurant so we didn't bother to bring the book with instructions or the actual name of the restaurant, which we both forgot of course. An hour and one-half later we arrived back to our room hot, sweaty, and a bit frustrated. Oh well, we learned an important lesson to bring the guide book and not be so cocky! When we got back John took the book and went around the corner to get "take away" (not "take out" here) and we had a delicious picnic in our room with sliced pork, steamed zucchini, salad with cold fresh tomatoes, and something like couscous that was also delicious. John rescued the day with this meal. The man at La Mescita was delighted when John showed him the Rick Steves Best of Europe book and said, "I am in that!" John said he knew and showed him the page where his little shop was listed. He beamed and said, "Rick Steven" (yes, that spelling is right!). Funny! When we told Rolinka she said sometimes they call him "Ricky Stevie" when they see her groups coming. So, we have a nice memory even if we didn't find our first choice in restaurants.

Another neat thing today, others had the auspicious treat of seeing Rick Steves today when they were doing laundry of all things! We hoped he would come to our happy hour but Rolinka contacted him and for whatever reason, he could not. Darn, that would have been pretty cool!

Yes, we had Happy hour on the patio right out side our room. Everyone brought a little something to share and Rolinka brought wine, juice, cups, plates, and more. We bought some Lemoncello (sp?) to share, some wine, and coated nuts we bought in Amsterdam. It was a fun time and talk and hear of others adventures of the day. Then it was a gelato run and back to the room to pack and be ready to head for ROME tomorrow. It will be a full day tomorrow and we hope we are well rested for it.

12 May-Venice to Florence

2009-05-13T04:02:00.001-07:00

We left Venice and though we were happy to come here and see this unique place we have no desire to return. Seeing San Marcos (St. Mark's) Basilica was and is very worth the trip here. Many in our group went to other place and did a lot of shopping, there are tons of places to shop. As we leave Venice we take a return walk to the boat "boat bus" and ride back to one of the few docks that connect with the mainland and meet our coach for the ride to Florence. The countryside was agricultural in nature and one would think of home except it was greener than we usually see. In addition we see a lot of the red poppies along the way filling fields with such lovely color I only expected to see in Provence. Soon we came to the "Appodine" (sp?) mountain range where the highest peaks are 8-9K ft. Of course we passed through a much lower pass but there were lovely views to be seen. We stopped for lunch at a road side auto stop, one which was built over the freeway. Lunches served in these places are pretty good and very reasonably priced.

Upon our arrival to Florence our coach had to pay E$330. for the privilege of entering the city, cars pay no fee. Another walk to our hotel and check in, this one has an elevator and we are on the 2nd floor. In Europe the 2nd floor is really the third floor as they start with the "ground" floor, then 1st, 2nd, and so on. The name of our hotel today is the "Hotel California" and it is such a maze inside that we can see how we might check in and never check out! We drop our bags and meet on the street at 4:30 pm heading to the Accademia where we will see the statue of David. How amazing and breathtaking these statues created by Michelangelo are. The pictures we have seen do not really make the impression one feels when standing before these magnificent works of art. It is really so amazing it makes one weep. Unlike sculptors of his time Michelangelo did not use models. What he sculpted came from within him or as he said, it was within the marble and he simply revealed what was hidden there. He was an interesting man and even went to mortuaries to dissect bodies to see how the muscle and tendons were intricately connected under the skin noting bone structure and such to make his work so remarkable. The first works we see are what some call unfinished, it is really unknown if they are actually unfinished or if they were meant to remain this way. These particular works are quite interesting and set a perfect stage in the hallway leading to the original statue of David. As I said photos do not show the magnificence and we are not even allowed to take photos here anyway. The photo I have posted here is of the replica of David standing near the city public offices near in a town square.

As we leave the Accademia we have our orientation walk of the city for over two hours. We saw the Ponte Vecchio, Michelangelo's house, Pitti Palace, Medici Palace, Giotto's Tower, Duomo (Santa Maria del Fiore), Baptistery, Plazza della Repubblica, Mercato Nuovo, Uffizi Gallery, and more all from the outside. It is interesting and informative but we are tired and getting hungry for our dinner to come, scheduled at 7:30 pm. On the coach we also had some history and orientation about the Renaissance. I did not realize that the plague in the 1400's killed two-thirds of the population and then things actually became better for the people because there were fewer people and this brought on the Renaissance. One doesn't think about the plague and death of so many as being a positive thing but the strong survived and the power at that time was here in Florence, later moving to Rome.

Now we have arrived to dinner at La Spada Ristorante-Rosticceria. A fabulous four course dinner awaits us; starter of 3 types of bruchetta, antipasti of 3 types of pasta, main course of beef, pork, and chicken with rosemary roasted potatoes, and last but not least Panna cotta with berries for dessert. Everything was absolutely delicious. We had the house red wine, which was also delicious. Interestingly enough there was another group, teens from an American School in Milan, sharing the big room with us. Since they were having a birthday celebration it was a very festive evening. Of the thousands of hotels and restaurants in Florence, they are also staying at our same hotel! After this long and filling dinner it was quite challenging to walk back to the hotel but we did so before collapsing on the bed in exhaustion. I was unable to even write this blog so I am catching up on this the following day.

11 May-Venice

2009-05-11T12:14:00.001-07:00

What a fabulous day we had. At 9am we had a tour with a local guide, Elizabeth, showing us some back streets and explaining many facts about the area; how Venice is sinking, the deterioration, and the difficulties, challenges, and expenses of living here. The people are amazing. The tour ended outside St. Mark's Basilica in the Piazza. There is fresh, clean, clear water coming from fountains all over town. We also see decorative cisterns all over town that in years past they collected rain water, of course they don't use these now. This arch is the ancient entrance to Marco Polo's home.

From here we had a great tip from Rick Steves to go check our back and get a pass to not stand in the very long line but go directly into the church, which is exactly what we did! We also had an audio tour on our iPods that took us through the church, museum, and other exhibits, it was really wonderful to have this audio tour even though it took us a few tries to know we were pausing the iPod at the correct spot. Again, no photos are allowed from the inside so I cannot send any of today. I bought postcards to scan for my digital album of the trip. The city is a hub of activities all day but especially on the streets in the morning as young, strong men roll huge carts off supplies in by hand from the boats. Often we see what we can only think is a traffic jam of boats.

It was warming up and it is definitely humid today. I am so glad we did not come later in the season. As soon as we picked up the backpack we had gelato (ice cream). That refreshed us and we spent some time walking around just looking at various things and ending up at a Venetian glass shop that Rolinka recommended. They had a lot of lovely items and I got a few small gifts to bring home. Believe me I will pack fewer clothes next time. Three outfits and maybe and extra shirt and the rest of the room is for souvenirs. After this we decided to find something to eat.

We are not too hungry but it is close to 2pm so we better eat. We passed up many options and ended up back at San Marcos (St. Mark Square) and ate at the Florian Restaurant, what ambience! It is one of the three cafes on the Piazza that plays music and it was very special to sit there and listen to the music watching the people and Piazza life. There is a cover charge of E$6. each and with any order you apparently get olives and potato chips (just what I need, more salt). I had quiche and John had a salami sandwich. John's first drink was a mimosa and mine was a Rossini (champagne and strawberry juice). When we had a second drink we both had the Rossini. The mimosa was pretty tart. This was a large price to pay (E$98) for such food but it was the experience and we simply enjoyed it very much. Now with full stomach's and souvenirs in had we headed back to the hotel. We relaxed and reflected on all we had seen and eagerly headed out to meet the group for our gondola ride at 6:30pm.

We had four gondolas for our 40 minute trip. It was not so romantic, but a lot cheaper than renting our own ride, which would have been much more. It was enjoyable. Now we are back at the hotel with a couple of take away sandwiches and the bottle of Bardolino Chiaretto wine we bought the other day at a rest stop, and some biscotti Veneziani. It is time to pack for departure tomorrow morning at 8:30 am to head to Florence. I was happy to finally reach Deb by phone today too.

10 May-Austria to Venice, Italy

2009-05-10T14:31:00.001-07:00

First breakfast and then on the road to Italy. We were warned that the first 1.5 hours of road would be winding but beautiful. I took Dramamine, though I am not really sure I needed it as the roads were not bad. The majestic Alpine views were beautiful. Here are a few facts some of you might know if actually paid attention in geography. There are 700 miles of Alps. Austria is a country that is 2/3 Alps. Of course the highest Alps are in Switzerland. As we left Austria the Alps we saw were between 5 and 6,000 ft. high. Many still have snow but they won't in another month. The entire area is covered with many feet of snow 4 months of the year. There are a lot of tunnels in Europe. We went through a short 2 mile tunnel today. We were told we will pass through a 10 mile tunnel when we leave Italy and go to Switzerland. The summit of our pass from Austria to Italy today was Fernpass 3,600 ft. There are deer, wild boar, fox, and other small animals in the woods. Bear are now extinct. We listened to a bit of Mozart on the road as he was Austria. He had written 25 symphonies by age 16 and died of unknown causes at age 35. He had stomach pains, went to bed, and found dead in the morning. As our ride continues our guide Rolinka tells us many other facts of the area. We passed by the city of Innsbruck, named for the river Inn, meaning "bridge over the Inns River." This area of Austria and Italy is really very German, the people speak German down into Italy quite a ways. This area is called Tirol even as part of northern Italy and the people call themselves Tirolians. We also passed by the valley where the "Ice Man" was found, sadly a visit to see him in a museum was not on our agenda. Our stop in the morning was a McCafe where we got coffee and were able to view a part of the Roman Road, which was also the path we hiked yesterday. As we passed through this area we also saw very different mountains, the Dolomites. It would be interesting to know the geology of the area. We have been informed it we want to mail postcards we should do so from the Vatican as they will arrive quickly, unlike mailing them in any other area, I plan to do this. We have passed the border into Italy before we stop for lunch, so we had our first meal in Italy; salad and 3 different samplings of panini sandwiches, then gelato for dessert. The it is back on the road. The coach is comfortable and most people nap after lunch. We have had a brief Italian lesson and outline of what we will do as we arrive to Venice. It is anticlimactic to see the area just outside of Venice as it is very industrialized and looks so polluted. Finally we arrive to the point where we will get a boat taxi to take us to our hotel via the Grand Canal. We are responsible for our own luggage and that is not bad for us, but some people have brought things much too heavy. Anyway, we have a 40 minute ride to the departure from the boat and then a 15-20 minute walk including steps to reach our hotel. Now things look like the Venice we expected! Luggage is dropped in our rooms and we all meet in 15 minutes for an orientation walk and dinner. As we walk onto St. Marks Square I can say it was breathtaking. To even see the outside of St. Mark's Basilica and know his bones rest there is pretty amazing. The Basilica was built in 828! Dinner was pizza, wine, and dessert. No labels on the first bottle of wine for our table (all included) but it was delicious. Afterward we walked back to the hotel, made phone calls with our E$5. phone card talking with Mom and Jeff. Unable to reach others and heading for bed.

09 May-Austria

2009-05-09T12:53:00.001-07:00

Our day began with breakfast of course, then we began our 5.3 K walk to Neuschwanstein Castle. I was a bit harder than we anticipated but we made it. Most of it was up hill and we were the last to arrive of those who went, but 5 did not go at all. Here is a view of our hotel from the hike up the mountain. Our hotel is the white building. During this walk we went from Austria to Germany on what is called the Roman Road. The walk-hike through the woods was more beautiful than words can say. John and I both enjoyed this more than we enjoyed the castle.

After the castle we had a lovely picnic in a meadow by a church. This was a delicious lunch with large mixed green salad, cheese, meats, and a variety of wonderful bread. Mayonnaise and mustard come in metal tubes like toothpaste was years ago, a tidy way to server this on a picnic too! As we were eating we saw people arriving and then the bride and groom. We were able to observe this personal time for this young couple. As we ate in the meadow amongst majestic views of the Bavarian Alps. We also saw two forms of hang gliding or parasailing; one from the high peaks which we think did not have motors and then some that began in the valley floor with motors. John would have liked to do this but there was really no time. The good option for our group was the summer luge. I decided not to go as I thought it would be hard to get in and out of the luge and also a bumpy ride. I regretted it a little bit when I saw how fun it looked but then I also had a great time taking photos of everyone doing this. Today we were back to the hotel about 3:30 and I am grateful for a little down time to rest, shower again and arrived refreshed for dinner at 7:00pm. Tomorrow night at this time we will be in Venice!!! Leaving early and all day in the bus.

08 May Rothenburg, Germany to Austria

2009-05-08T13:17:00.001-07:00

I am unable to read or send email tonight, I am not sure why.

Off we went at 7:45am to head to Dachau, where we arrived around 10:30am as the rain stopped and the sun came out. This was not a happy place, no surprise there. I won't go into the different exhibits but I do think everyone should visit one of these camps sometime in their lives.

We saw lovely views of the German countryside and later views of the Austrian Alps. After leaving Dachau we headed into Munich. Our goal was to just drive through the city and take a look and go to a beer house. This is exactly what we did. You can see we enjoyed a couple types of beer and some very festive music to go with it. I promised the group that I would post our guide's photo here on my blog. I thought she was standing on the table, but I see now that she was only standing on the bench. Anyway we had a blast and also learned new toasts!

From there we drove on toward Austria and the church in the Meadow. It is a lovely Rococo church, no not Baroque, but Rococo. Very ornate, built in the mid 1700's. It took the Zimmerman brothers eight years to build this church and is a big attraction these days. In addition we see May Poles in almost every city. These are different than we think of May Poles. These poles have different things on them indicating what services you can receive in the town, very cute.

Dinner was a wonderful buffet. Sorry this is not too interesting tonight but I am tired and the system is running so slow. Of note, a book I want to read it "Pillars of the Earth."

07 May Rothenburg ob der Tauber-Germany

2009-05-08T12:36:00.001-07:00

On the road at 8:30am this morning as we move along to Rothenburg. Last night and today I watched the small video clip downloaded from Rick Steves via iTunes and showed it to John today. That long with our guide book was a good refresher from what we read in the past. We arrived before our 12:30 appointed time but our rooms were ready. The Hotel Gerberhaus is lovely. There is a bakery, bar, restaurant area and everything is very clean and decorated in a somewhat Bavarian style. Everything looks quite comfortable and some of the group even did some laundry in the facility here. It is very nice they have down pillows and comforters, but I am allergic to down. They said they put a different pillow in my room, but it is not there so it must be in a different room. Thankfully there are a couple of small, simple, decorative pillows and it is not cold and I can use my coat or a bath towel for covers.

Anyway, on to our day. We dropped our luggage and met in 10 minutes to walk to the town square for a brief orientation from Roelinka. From there we walked through a Christmas store. Since I really can't buy many things there is little point in looking but we also looked in a little shop at a couple of wine glasses. The shipping cost as much as the glasses so I didn't get them. Next we were deciding on a spot for lunch, our first meal that we were not impressed with. However, we had a large supper planned as a group event and we will not starve, that's for sure.

Next we headed for the city wall and tower that we were able to climb, "Ate Schmiede an der Roderschutt forge and wall." The tower provided splendid views in every direction. Going up was not bad but coming down was very steep. We then ventured around the wall to the north and northwest for a different view of the city along they way. Along the wall there are plaques of cement with names of people from around the world who donated money to restore the city after it was 45% destroyed in WWII. This is the most well preserved Medieval town in Europe. This was a pleasant walk, again with gorgeous views, which ended somewhat near St. Jakob's Church where we wanted to see the wood carving we read about. Actually, the church itself was more impressive to us than the wood carving. It was time to head back to the hotel as we are meeting at 6pm and walking to the group dinner at Kloster-Stuble. Here we had our authentic Schnitzel and some sort of potato dish I can only compare to potato salad. Prior to the dinner we had a delicious salad with grated white radish and carrots, and cucumbers, tomato, and a wedge of orange over the lettuce. Dessert was a version of banana split.

Following our meal we walked to the town square just in time to hear the clock chime 8 and see the Meistertrunk ("Master Draught") show. A window opens on each side of the clock and on one side a wooden figure of the mayor moves ever so slowly to drink the supposed 3 liters of wine to save the town from destruction. This is a fairy tale but certainly draws a crowd. Then the Night Watchman begins a spiel about ancient times that is pretty informative and done in a jovial way and somewhat entertaining. If we were not tried I am sure we would have enjoyed that more but after the walk was finished with him we headed back to the hotel. We must be on the bus at 7:45am in the morning ready to roll for Dachau Concentration Camp and a visit to Munich. No Internet here or better put no free Wi-Fi . We were going to pay E$1.00 to have it for an hour but there is no one up to pay now. Oh well, I will post this tomorrow or as soon as I can.

06 May 2009 Bacharach & St. Goar-Germany

2009-05-06T11:38:00.001-07:00

This has been a wonderful day! Breakfast at 7:45am and departure with our local guide Herr Jong at 8:30am. What a fabulous and interesting man. Brought us to tears more than once about stories of the war, but yet he has such a vibrant and passion for life still at 78 years old. As a young German boy he remembers the war well and spoke of many moving stories he can tell. His brother was forced to go to war as one was taken and shot if they refused to go. After the war he waited 10 years for word of his brother and when the final prisoners of war came from Russia his brother was not amongst them and he knew then his brother would never come home. When he was a boy a plane was shot down near where he lived then (not here in Bacharach) and he ran to this plane and saw a dead American soldier from this plan and prayed one day he could tell the family of their son. When he was 14 the night before his confirmation there was an air raid and as he hid on he ground he prayed to God that if he was spared he would believe in Him. One of the girls to be confirmed with him did not arrive, because she had been killed. After the war they were so hungry and staving, he used to look for dried potato skin in the storage baskets and then make soup from that. Now this is the sad and touching parts of his life, but this man also rejoices in the life he has had too. Such humor, appreciation, thankfulness, and love of life he has. We visited a shopkeeper who played the piano for us. He also paints and we returned later in the evening to buy a small painting of our hotel. We just loved Herr Jong, with wishing wells, special doorways, tidbits of history and other interesting information his zest for life was so apparent. At one point he pulled out slate to give an example of the roofing material and he asked if anyone was celebrating a birthday or event. No one said anything so I said our anniversary was in January but this was our trip to celebrate and he scratched our names in the slate as you can see here and gave it to us. We will never have a more meaningful souvenir. If our day ended with just the morning walk amongst the town, hills, vineyards, ancient city walls, and back we could not as for more.

However, now we had a quick bathroom break and boarded the bus for St. Goar where we will visit Rheinfels Castle. First we had a brief orientation of the area, then we had our lunch break with some extra time, and lastly we met for the hike up to the castle. For lunch we split a small sandwich and a full sized apple strudel for each of us; delicious! Alas, it is time for the trek up to the castle. She kept telling us it would be a difficult climb, and it was. Three of our group began the climb but could not make it, thankfully we were not one of those three. We were slower than the rest but we made it. The castle tour was conducted by another local guide, a young girl, and she was very nice. The castle was interesting, the views from up there were fantastic, the walk down through the forest was a lot easier than the walk up, and then we headed for the next adventure of the day, a short cruise from St. Goar back to Bacharach. Again the views as we sailed up the Rhine just cannot be compared.

The vineyards are unbelievable with such steep slopes, planted in slate, yet delivering delicious Riesling wine and other varities. In fact as we walked this morning we went through a vineyard where our exact wine from last night (which we finished tonight) came from.

So now we have had another lovely and inspiring day. We are tired, back to the hotel and we had a simple meal here at the hotel; an artichoke salad and more of that delicious asparagus soup. Then we came up and packed our bags as we depart in the morning for Rothenburg where we will have free time after our arrival and spend just one night before we continue on to Austria.

Netherlands to Germany

2009-05-05T14:17:00.001-07:00

Up and out to the bus by 8:30 this morning. First we met our handsome driver Rene. He also lives in the Netherlands. Oh, and we are to call our vehicle a "coach" not a "bus" as it is very nice, has leather seats, and all sorts of comforts. They even stock the little fridge with sodas, water, and beer that we can purchase for E$1.00. Since I bought a bottle of Lipton green tea with lemon today and it cost about E$3.00 you can see this is a great bargain for us.

Our first and really only stop for today was Keukenhof. This we did instead of the open air museum because these wonderful gardens are only open for a few weeks in the Spring and it would be be a shame to miss such an event. It was a beautiful stop and everyone seemed to enjoy it. After entering we were on our own to see what we chose to see and return to the bus by noon. We saw so many beautiful flowers, it is hard to describe. Facts about Keukenhof: Has won prizes as Europe's most valued attraction, famous throughout the world, has had 44 million visitors in the last 60 years (60K in one day last weekend), 100 varities of tulips, 15 kilometers of foot paths, 7 millions bulbs planted by hand, and more facts as well but I won't list them all. I am glad it was not crowded when we visited.

From there we began our journey to Germany. We were to be in the bus 7 hours today but by law the driver must take 2 half hour breaks during this time so we did also and it made the time go pretty fast. Fortunately, it did not begin to rain before we left Keukenhof, but unfortunately it rained most of the way to our hotel in Bacharach. We drove on the Autobahn and the drive was nice. We made our two stops at rest areas that have so much to offer. One thing, we must always pay E.20 to E.50 to use the toilets. That is just how it is done in Europe. The restrooms are clean and nice so one really does not mind. We arrived about 6:30pm to the Hotel Kranenturm. The building is a 700 year old castle, renovated into a hotel. Thankfully we have a room on the 2nd floor (it would be the 3rd floor in the US as they call the 1st the "ground" floor). We have a fantastic view of the Rhine River right out our window. The view is briefly interrupted by the trains passing by quite frequently, but we don't believe it is a problem. I am glad we are not on the fourth or fifth floor! Remember, we carry our own luggage. The weather was too poor to take a photo of our hotel but I took a photo of a painting of it in our room.

We were served dinner at the hotel; cream of asparagus soup to start, entree consisted of chicken breast, white asparagus, and potatoes, dessert was a scoop of apple strudel ice cream. All very filling, delicious, and very German. Our wine tonight was a delicious Riesling made right here in Bacharach. Roelinka tried to teach us a song after dinner so we can sing it in a few days at a beer hall in Munich. We didn't sound too good. We did have a nice day despite the rain and time on the bus. Tomorrow is to be a strenuous day of walking, so it was nice to have this rather quiet day.

Beautiful tulips:

Amsterdam, Netherlands 04 May 2009

2009-05-04T13:26:00.000-07:00

We were up, dressed, and consumed a marvelous breakfast then ready to go in the hotel lobby by 8am. We walked briskly to the train station and took the train for 15-20 minutes into Amsterdam. This cost was covered by the tour but the tickets said E$33.50. In fact all but lunch and dinner were covered today. As soon as we arrived in Amsterdam we went to Anne Frank's House. What a moving experience that was. We were not allowed to take any photos inside but I have this one photo of her statue outside. I bought a folder for E$2.00 and I can scan some photos from that for my album. Amazingly the woman who was one of the Frank Family helpers will turn 100 in January. Throughout the house are displays and recordings of the actual people about the events that took place. We viewed Anne's actual diary. As I said, it was very moving.

We walked around the city enough to get some nice photos and see the various architecture. It is so beautiful. Flags are flown at half staff because today is a holiday commemorating the end of WWII; a day of reflection to commemorate this. At 8pm the entire nation has 2 minutes of silence; trains stop, people do not speak, and the TV broadcast has just some national things leading up to the 2 minutes, then it is silent with just a photo too. How interesting that we went to Anne Frank's House today. Tomorrow is a day of celebration; a memorial for all. There will be a huge celebration in Amsterdam tonight with the queen and every thing! We went to the square where this will be celebrated and viewed the square and the Peace Monument. Next was a visit to one of the "hidden" churches, a picture is here. This came about because of the reform; Martin Luther's influence. The people of the Netherlands were no longer happy with Catholicism. They felt each person should do as they believed, or not. Therefore, even though most of the country was now Protestant they felt if others wanted to be Catholic that was fine too, but they would need to be somewhat covert about this, so these hidden churches were made. They used the front of houses and then they opened up into huge, beautiful churches inside. Next was the facility that was once an orphanage. It was an interesting stop with some wood carving statues of David and Goliath. We then learned about the three X's as the symbol of Amsterdam. You see XXX on buildings, boats, etc. These are things people want to be mindful of in the city. The first X is for fire, the second X is for plague, and the third X is for water. One can see his symbol in many places and you can see how it means so much to them since the buildings are so close together, they are below sea level, and plague spreads fast in close quarters.

Another thing about all of the cities, they have caricatures out front above the doors or on the sidings, and mosaics in the sidewalk out front that have been there forever. These would tell people what sort of store it was as there were many illiterate. For instance a tailor would have a mosaic of scissors and the pharmacy would have a caricature of someone with an open mouth. Oh yes, there are many McDonalds. We met some German apprentice carpenters on our journey. As part of their training they must leave home and travel all over Europe for 3 years and 1 day. They talked to us briefly and we gave them a small donation to take their photos. Roelinka said they are an unusual site and we were fortunate to see them as this is rare.

We were amused about these men's urinals on the street. A man just stepped out of it before John posed for this photo! Different cultures bring different things.

Next was our lunch break. We were on our own with a few different options. We ended up with a piece of pork leg, roasted potatoes and a salad. All of our choices were delicious. We shared our meal and we still could not eat it all. (E$16.00). I wanted some sauteed spinach I saw but I had to order fish in order to buy this and the offering was eel, so I passed.

After this we headed to the Rijksmuseum. Our guide gave us a tour and explained so many of the paintings to us. It was fabulous. We saw and had explained many Rembrandt masterpieces. This really brought them to life. He was an amazing and talented man. Again we were not allowed to take photos so I bought a book of postcards for E$10.00 and I can scan them. It was a wonderful visit. As we perused the book store I discovered that John recalled two phases in Dutch that John's Father taught him! "Pass the bread" and "Is your mother home?" How amazing that after 25 years he came up with this. I have asked him many times about this sort of thing and he said he just remembered. Perhaps hearing all the Dutch speakers prompted this.

Now we are off to our canal cruise. It was very interesting and so nice to sit down after all the walking. There are dried blossoms from trees blowing all over the city and many floating in the canals. In case you wonder if that is trash, it is not. As we cruised we went to the largest canal entering the North Sea. Low and behold, what do we see but a cruise ship. As we got closer I noticed it was the Vision of the Seas; the one June and I, plus Cheryl and a friend went on in December 2007. Here is a photo for June and Cheryl.

We got off after some time and walked to the Red Light District. Yes, prostitution is legal in the Netherlands, as is smoking pot. Again our guide asked us not to take any photos. It was actually interesting. They ladies wait in a "window" that they rent, not naked but seductively dressed. They are self employed and pay taxes, etc. These ladies make good livings, which makes it hard for them to quit; maybe $500.-$600. per day. They have health care and more. Some are even wives doing this at night and mom's by day, with their husband's consent. It is a different world.

Walking to the train station now and heading back to Haarlem to the hotel. By the time we arrive it has been a 12 hour day and we can feel it! But we saw at least three times what we would have seen on our own. Walking back to the hotel many couples stopped for dinner but John's knee is bothering him and my feet are tired, so we came back directly to the hotel. We got a tray of meat and cheese, plus a bottle of wine and that was our dinner. Jeff the wine was from France; Tariquet famille Grassa-Merlot, Syrah, Tannat. What a fantastic day we had.

Temperature: Cold, some wind but not horrible. Very warm in the museum. Supposed rain expected tomorrow.

I am wondering what will happen with the Uncle situation tomorrow! Waiting to hear from Deb tomorrow about that. Wow, I am TIRED, I hope this blog makes sense.

The Best of Europe in 21 days~Day 1 Rick Steves Tour

2009-05-03T14:05:00.001-07:00

Our flight to Amsterdam was bumpy but uneventful. They took away our "too large" toothpaste so we replaced that at the airport. We found our way out of the airport, to the bus stop and onto the appropriate bus. Upon arrival in Haarlem we were very turned around and with the wind blowing it felt freezing cold, so we took a taxi for E$7.50 to our hotel arriving at 3:50pm. The meeting time for orientation was 4:30pm so we just had time to get to our room, freshen up and make it there on time. Everyone was there on time and we had an approximate two hour orientation, informal and fun. After the orientation we headed off to our Indonesian dinner. Indonesia used to be a Dutch Colony and therefore many Indonesians live in the area and Indonesian food is what they are know for here. The only other foods they are known for is pancakes, per our guide Roelinka. It was an interesting dinner where they brought all this food out and set it on the tables and then explained what each dish was. Only then did they give us a plate and we began to eat. It was delicious and we were stuffed. After dinner a local resident/guide named Hans met us and took us on a brief but chilling walk around the neighborhood explaining culture, customs, and many old buildings. He was 52 but seemed younger, very happy, and very entertaining. One very wonderful site we saw from the outside was the store and home of Corrie ten Booms family. If you have ever read The Hiding Place you know of this home. If you have not, do so as it is very moving. Boy am I glad I did bring my coat and scarf. Our room is clean and adequate, not fancy as the lobby looked in previous photos. However, it is stuffed with lovely woodwork and antiques. One great thing they have free Wi-Fi that actually works! Therefore, I can actually post this blog and hope to read and reply to email tonight also. Tonight while out on our walk it was 50*F. Believe me we enjoyed walking just to stay warm. WE ARE IN AMSTERDAM!!! I can barely believe it!

Farewell to the Cruise 03 May 2009

2009-05-03T12:57:00.001-07:00

It was an early morning for us, especially since I was still awake at 2:30 am! I had decaf coffee after dinner and I suspect it was not decaf. We were up by 5am and out of our cabin by 5:50am. Off to the "special" waiting area for Platinum members to wait to disembark. We were to meet Clem and Jackie there to share our car transportation to Heathrow. They weren't there when we arrived, in fact there were only two people there. They told us to just go ahead and walk off so we did. We were off the ship and waiting at 6:55am. How fast is that? I called West Quay Cars to see if they were open, they were not. Jackie and Clem came along a few minutes later and we began our wait for the 7am time for our car to arrive. They were not there at 7am so I called again and they said he was three minutes out. He came about ten minutes later and off we went. We were to Heathrow in around one hour. We rambled around for the next few hours and our flight was actually on time so we bid farewell to The Voyager of the Seas, England, and took flight to the new adventure awaiting us!

Cherbourg, France 02 May 2009

2009-05-03T12:14:00.001-07:00

Here we are in France! We were to dock at 12 noon but we actually docked about 1:15 pm, which was really 2:15 local time. We were to stay on ship time, I believe because this will be the time zone when we arrive in Southampton tomorrow morning. John and I will lose another hour when we fly to Amsterdam tomorrow, I hope just one hour I am not sure.

Our day was quiet and nice. We decided not to get worn our on a tour and simply walked the mile or so into town. Actually we spent about three hours walking and one hour enjoying wine and Creme Brulee at a local cafe as we watched tourists and locals passing by in the pedestrian shopping area of Cherbourg. We would have liked to have gotten souvenirs for everyone but with the limited space and the expense of mailing things this will need to wait until our final days in Paris. We visited another ATM so we have Euros in our money belts to last us for at least a week and perhaps longer if we are able to use the credit credit card for some of our purchases. All our breakfasts and half of our dinners are provided plus all entry fees to places we go. That leaves lunches and snacks, plus free time expenses. It is hard to concentrate on telling you about Cherbourg when we have such anticipation about beginning our trip tomorrow. Cherbourg is a a lovely port with a military harbor in the Normandy area of Northern France. Several tours went in and around the coast of Normandy. No D-Day tours were offered from the ship's excursions but individuals we know did these tours. The timing was short and they would not have much time there. There is a wealth of history in this area as you might imagine. Should we ever return to this part of France I really want to see Le Mont St. Michele. Again, there was not really time to do this even with a private tour. One could get there and back with a quick look, but it warrants a full day at the minimum. I fondly recalled my last visit here when Mom and I took a tour of the Saire Valley and surrounding areas, which was lovely. Remember the eels at the one port Mom? We had a nice day strolling along the shopping area where there were many locals. There were fantastically fresh produce choices and fresh fish in at least two locations including: clams, muscles, oysters, and some items I didn't recognize. France is very friendly and none of them laughed at my poor pronunciation of the few words I do know. A walk back to the ship and a brief rest before we headed to our final dinner on board. Oh, one surprise, they ran out of lettuce on this cruise today. They did have shredded ice berg to serve at the station but none for Caesar salad for dinner. I am sure with going to dry dock they tried not to have any leftovers. We departed Cherbourg about 8:30 pm and we are inching our way across the English Channel as I type this. We are all packed and scheduled to walk off with our bags between 5:45 and 6:15 am. Our car and driver are supposed to be here at 7am. Hopefully our trip to Heathrow will be smooth and our flights on time.

June FYI: I bet the people who take world cruises don't really gain weight. After about 10 days one begins to long for the ordinary and would not eat like we do in the beginning.

Deb: I am having our formal wear and a few other things sent to your house instead of our address because it will be a box sitting at the P.O. for too long.

Tomorrow Southampton, Heathrow Airport, Amsterdam, 30 minute train ride to Haarlem and our first evening dinner with our tour group for the next 21 days. Incidentally, we got an email from Rick Steves that we will in fact see Kerkenhoff (sp?) in Holland with a change in itinerary from the open air museum when we depart Haarlem. I am thrilled because I very much wanted to see these fabulous gardens I recently read about but knew we would not have time and it was not on the schedule. I am thankful Rick Steves organization is sensitive to the seasonal things happening and that we won't miss it.

Temperature: 53*F 10:30pm

Sea: Moderate (I think they forgot to change that because the Channel is more like being on a lake.

Nautical miles from Galveston 5339, from Cherbourg 19, to Southampton 85.

Everyone: Not sure when we will have email again and my regular cell phone will no longer work. In emergency call the world phone number most of you have.

Love and miss all of you. Mom&Dad/John&Sharon

Cobh, Ireland 01 May 2009

2009-05-02T01:42:00.001-07:00

We made it! Docked right on time. We had a delightful day in Ireland despite the rain when we disembarked. It cleared up by our first stop and we didn't have any further rain the rest of the day. To say Ireland is green and lush is an understatement!

We booked a tour with Butler Buses eCoach as recommended on the Meet & Mingle group from Cruise Critic. It was a fabulous trip with a wonderful local guide and driver. They were prompt to pick us up right as we got off the ship. Though it was a "big bus" tour it was much less expensive than the ones from the ship. We paid E$40. for both of us, that is a little less than US$56. Others in the group had a "small bus" and that would definitely be our choice next time as with the big bus there are always stragglers who cause delay. The ship tour was at least twice that much. Our tour included: Blarney Castle (we paid our own admission of E$8. each), the town of Kinsale and nearby view of Fort Charles, sites in and about Cork City, and Cobh. Cork was the final departure point for the Titanic before meeting its watery grave, also the Lusitania! There are trails for the Titanic and a museum for both but we didn't have time to visit that too. Anyway, I am sure it is sad but we would have walked through there if we had time. Of interest 8 million people lived in Ireland before the great famine. Many died and 1.5 million+ immigrated leaving about 4 million in Ireland. To date there are 4.5 million people in Ireland. If you have relatives who immigrated they more than likely left from Cobh/Cork as that was the departure port. Incidentally, they seem to use Cobh and Cork interchangeably though they are actually two different locations very close together. Cork is also a "county" and when they say they are from Cork they could mean the city of Cork or the county. We very much enjoyed what we did see and should we return one day there is a rich history and great beauty to explore. In Blarney we had two hours to roam around. We chose not to stand in line the entire time to climb 100 stairs and kiss the filthy Blarney Stone! We did walk to the castle and all around the grounds, particularly enjoying the lovely garden called the Rock. Near the castle parking area there are shops of all sorts. The "famous" one is the Blarney Woolen Mill. John got a hat, the sort he used to wear, and we got a Guinness shirt for Jeff. It was a very refreshing stop. From there we drove to Fort Charles, a huge place and we only took photos and headed to Kinsale, which we had the opportunity to view from Fort Charles. We had 1.5 hours there to have lunch and roam about. We had authentic fish and chips at Dinos. We happened to bump into Becky and Mau from the ship and shared the table. Unfortunately they did not serve Guinness at Dinos, which we heard so much about and wanted to try! From there we decided to find an ATM to get Euros at a good exchange. That was a snap once we found the machine. Unfortunately we received them in denomination of 50's. Next stop was a store I saw down the street with a lot of locals buying things. We bought a Guinness to try, just one can, and after one taste we knew it was not for us~but we tried it and received change at the same time! So that was very successful. Heading back to Cork and Cobh now, what a lovely drive. There was a prolific plant with yellow flowers growing everywhere. Actually the guide explained it is a weed, a scourge in fact. It spreads and though it looks lovely at this moment it spreads rapidly and is very hard to get rid of. Despite that, the hills, houses, cattle, horses, and fields are beautiful. Into the city and the guide told us so many things I really can't recall much. A brief stop at Cobh Cathedral, the largest in this section of Ireland, and back to the ship. We decided to skip the meal to enjoy the departure. It was quite interesting as we had four local pilots on board. As we headed out of the harbor a kayak and a couple of jet skis began to head for the ship. The kayak pulled away very soon but the jet skis persisted in circling the ship and playing "cat and mouse" with the pilot boat. The pilot boat went after them a couple of times but eventually they backed off. More interesting was removing the four pilots from the ship in the rough waters but they did that with what seemed like "ease" eventually. Now we are headed south to Cherbourg, France. We are skipping the show tonight and checking email and trying to post this blog. After we are off the ship my regular cell phone will no longer work. We also don't exactly know when we will have email. I am not really checking the JSEash@aol.com email as it is so difficult on the ship, just the EashTravel@aol.com.

Temperature: 3*C 7am (40*?), 57*F 8pm

Wind: Force 7 near gale.

Sea: Slight 1.5 to 4 feet

Nautical miles from Galveston 5025, from Cork 46.5, to Cherbourg 295.

Cruising 30 April 2009

2009-05-02T01:40:00.001-07:00

Another beautiful day at sea. It is beautiful even though it was not sunny most of the day. In the captains report there are swells to 10 feet but we feel very little on this ship.

Deb asked if we heard about the Swine flu, indeed we have on CNN radio (can't get the TV version in the mid Atlantic and haven't checked on that today). Then tonight we had a couple flyers along with the Cruise Compass that tell us about the precautions, indications, and all we ever wanted to know about the Swine flu. Of note, RCI has suspended all ports of call in Mexico. We shall see what the future brings. I hope having our flu shot this year might help??? On board they have dragged out the hand sanitizer and say they are wiping down all areas with disinfectant more frequently than usual. My eyes have been itching since more disinfectant has been uses and I have a stuff nose. Two days ago I twisted my shoulder the "wrong" way and it has been hurting, plus I cannot raise my arm. I hope this is better soon. John's knee is fine. I don't want this to sound like a medical report of complaints but would appreciate your prayers as we start the "strenuous" part of our trip in three days. As a matter of fact John's knee felt so well he tackled the rock wall today. We did a lot of walking and more flights of stairs than I can recall to count. We love the cruise but we are eager to get to our Rick Steves tour!

We might have mentioned before that the ship is going to dry dock in Germany at the end of this cruise. Some workers will board in Southampton to begin work at that time. I mention this because they have building supplies and other things covering the basketball court on deck 13. This would be a great disappointment to someone like Steven if this were to happen on a cruise he was on. I doubt anyone on this cruise would notice! I would say at least 3/4 on board are of the senior set!

Sea: Moderate 4-7.5 ft (comment above from Captain?)

Temperature: 52* mid morning, 57.2 now at 10 pm-as the captain says one does not go to Ireland for a "beach" vacation.

Nautical miles from Galveston 4808, 978 from Ponta Delgada, and too Cohb (Cork) 170.

Cork tomorrow! Ireland or bust!!! This photo is a view toward Cork from the Heli Pad on the ship, deck 5.

Cruising 29 April 2009

2009-04-30T02:21:00.001-07:00

Heading north to Ireland, the British Isles, Old Blarney, Home of the Shamrock, etc. This was a cooler day at sea with rain clouds all about us but we were not actually in the rain. Up and to our first event of the day, an enrichment lecture about the Vikings. There is an interesting bunch and advanced in many areas, of course extinct now I guess. He never did say why they died out. I saw something on the Discovery channel once with the idea that it was climate change that basically destroyed their civilization, not sure of the facts of course.

We did a bit more than two miles of walking today, with the wind resistance I am sure it counted for MUCH more and burned many calories! After lunch I did a bit of laundry and we watched a movie on TV. We are thinking a lot about the next phase of our trip while still enjoying this stage.

About 3:45 we headed to the "special" Ice Odyssey show put on for people who are Platinum members (us) and above. What a spectacular ice show it was. The extra part was bringing out a few of the performers to do some particular movement or feat, complementary appetizers, wine and drinks, plus a brief address from the Captain at the end. The performers are from all over the world and really do a fabulous job. My pictures do not do it justice, it is so well done and really worth going to see.

Formal night, the final formal night. I was sure I would have a large plastic bag for things to send home by now but I don't. We are considering a $15 gift shop bag to put our things in for Emma at West Quay Cars to mail home for us. I decided I will have her mail it to Deb's house so it won't be sitting at the Post Office for weeks. Anyway, now we can pack those things and have them out of the way. So far washing a few things every few days has worked out well.

Temperature: 57* 8:30 pm

Sea: Moderate 4-7.5 ft.

Nautical miles from Galveston 4319, from Ponta Delgada 489, and 659 to Cohb, Ireland.

Ponta Delgada, Azores, Portugal 28 April 2009

2009-04-28T15:07:00.001-07:00

This morning we are trying to get back on track with getting up earlier. Even with the time change being gradual it has been somewhat challenging. There has been a "one hour forward" several nights in a row. That would be fine if one can just drift off anytime they choose but that is not so easy for some of us. Today I have vowed to avoid excessive carbs to have a better sense of well being.

First thing this morning we could see some island in the Azores chain off to the port side. We got ready and went to a lecture about the Portuguese - "They Were Everywhere" and it was interesting. Next we went to trivia, which was fit for snoozing so we left, walked, and went to lunch. I had salad and a small steak for lunch. John has a salad and corn cakes (like corn fritters more or less).

We planned a ship excursion in this port of call; Furnas Valley, meeting first in the LaScala Theater at 2:15, scheduled to return at 7pm. We will miss dinner in the dining room but that is fine with us. After a week+ of cruise food the novelty tends to wear off. Of course it is still delicious but just not as exciting. Whoever was in charge of dispersing numbers for the tours really failed. Instead of calling each group to get there numbers they just had everyone show up in the theater, what a fiasco. I am sure it ruined the day trip for several people and at one point cussing with an impending fight seemed on the way. That is when I left. John went back in and eventually got our numbers and we did take the tour. Most of the time was on the bus but we did have 20-30 minutes in four different places. The first stop was Parque Terra Nostra, which was lovely and lush. Stop two was the Hot Springs, the water tasted really bad. I didn't swallow mine since no one was looking I spat it out! From there we drove and then walked up a trail to look down on Furnas Valley, inside the crater where there is a lake, two villages, and more. Just breathtaking views. The last stop was a city center with a lovely old Baroque church and simple park. We saw a Brazilian store there. I asked the guide about the relationship of the Azores with Brazil and she stated there are a lot of Azorean's in Campo Grande a state in southern Brazil. John had a cup of cafezinho, I would have but I know it would keep me awake. We were one of the last buses to depart the ship and next to the last to return. We had a quick bite in the Windjammer and then to our room. The ship departed as we were eating. They keep calling for one couple to check in, perhaps they were left behind?

Temperature: 62.6* 9:00pm

Sea: Moderate 4-7.5 ft

Nautical miles from Galveston 3836, from Ponta Delgada 6, to Cohb, Ireland 1142.

Cruising 27 April 2009

2009-04-28T15:04:00.001-07:00

John was sick in the night, must have been something he ate because he was fine when we got up very late this am. I awoke with a headache. I guess the easy living and FOOD is getting to us. In addition John "wore" a whole cup of vanilla latte the is morning too. Poor guy, at least it did not burn him. Needless to say I spent some time doing laundry. Hopefully all the mishaps are behind us now!

We got a detailed letter from the captain today stating that due to very strong westbound surface currents in the Mid Atlantic they have had to slow down and we will have a late arrival into Ponta Delgada. Therefore we will arrive at 2pm and stay until 8pm instead of the planned 12 noon to 7pm. The are listing new times for all excursions and slightly changing the dinner hours tomorrow also. None of this really concerns us and we are flexible.

Today we did a couple of fun activities. One was a slot pull organized by the Meet & Mingle group. Everyone who wants to play uses $20 and has 4 $5 pulls on the slot machine. What the balance is at the end is divided amongst the participants. It was fun and we each got $12. back from our $20. Quite a bit of fun for only $8!

Our big event of the day was the Mystery Dinner in Portofino Restaurant. We attended this with some friends from our group so that part was fun too. We met in one of the lounges and the actors/characters began their play in there. It was very entertaining and I did guess the right person as the murderer. The food was delicious and included wine. The served a Pinot Grigio or Cabernet. We both had the shrimp, appetizer, salad or soup, and a unique version of Tiramisu for dessert. We had a great time.

Thanks to Cheryl I have a photo of how my banana plant is doing at home! Thank you Cheryl!!! We will be having a "Banana Harvest" party when we get home if they are not gone before then. I am not really sure how long it takes for them to mature.

11 :30 pm

Temperature: 66.2*

Sea: Rough 7.5 - 12 (we feel little)

Nautical Miles from Galveston 3516, from Bermuda 1630, to Ponta Delgada, Azores, Portugal 315.

Cruising 26 April 2009

2009-04-27T08:03:00.001-07:00

I spoke too soon about that weather! We woke to gray skies and more wind, 35 knots across the bridge this morning as compared to 10-15 other days. Seas were stated as moderate when we got up but I suspect that must be the high end of moderate. Since we have been sleeping with our balcony door open we noticed this first thing in the early morning hours, even before dawn. No rain yet but with the wind our balcony is quite damp.

We passed customs today, which took all of five minutes. A British customs officer came on board in Bermuda to complete this so we will have an easy and fast departure. He was funny saying that is was such painful duty with a big smile on his face. Looks like he will do this for just three days for a total of 18 hours. Meanwhile he can enjoy the ship and all the amenities.

I had a minor mishap today, John stepped on the back of my sandal and that broke the plastic clasp. Janice you like my newer style as compared to the lace up sandals, but this point is a definite draw back. Laces would not have broken. I did manage to sew the strap onto the other side and I hope they will hold up. Maybe I can find a place in Europe with Keen sandals and get a new clasp I can simply put back on them. If not, then I will just have the one pair of shoes that I must wear socks with and that will be more difficult if the weather turns hot. Such is life and the well made plans for footwear!

John's knee is sore, thankfully it is not worse. It was a quiet day for us and we decided to lay low after the recent mishaps. We are missing everyone today as well. It took four tries and 20+ minutes just to read five emails and reply briefly to two of those. Not sure when I can even post the blog. Tomorrow will be a better day! Perhaps prayer will hold the "Eash Factor" at bay for us!

Temperature: 60.8*

Sea: Moderate 4-7.5 (more movement on the ship perhaps due to the increased speed and/or wind conditions, but still so little movement, I am surprised)

Nautical Miles to Ponta Delgada: 888, from Galveston: 2943, from Kings Wharf: 1057

Wind is 28 knots across the deck tonight. The report states it is raining but we can't really see it. Outside areas are damp but it is hard to know if this is from rain or simply mist from the sea blowing in the wind. I guess we will sleep with the door closed tonight to be sure the carpet does not get damp.

Cruising 25 April 2009

2009-04-27T08:02:00.001-07:00

Today it is starting to cloud up a bit. Temperature dropped to 64* but it is by no means cold or horrid. Coffee for breakfast adding pastry and a banana for John. For lunch we went to the dining room again. We didn't want anything on the menu but they have a beautiful salad bar and we each got a huge salad. The choices are almost endless, including: Shrimp and Prosciutto sliced right from the whole, cured leg. It would appear that they have just three rotating menus for dining room lunch service, which is of course more than adequate for us. For dessert we had sugar free pineapple upside down cake, which might have been my most favorite dessert thus far. We have yet to eat in the Windjammer buffet area for anything but breakfast, and then just John did.

John had a slight mishap today. He tripped or slipped or ??? on the last step and fell down onto his knee. He told me after the fact as I was not with him at the time. When I did know we went back to the room and put ice in a Ziplock so he can ice it. It doesn't look bad and it is only sore, so hopefully it will be fine

Wine tasting with the Meet & Mingle group today at 4pm. This is a nice group of people; friendly, outgoing, and a pleasure to get acquainted with. There were so many bottles of wine we could not possibly taste all of them! We bought some Pinot Grigio in Galveston and put it in our luggage, which arrived unnoticed. The event was held in two cabins that were side by side aft cabin balconies, very nice and really huge. I am sure the one balcony is at least six times the size of ours. It was a D1 category, so basically the same price as ours but we did get a senior price and those particular cabins were probably not offered for senior pricing.

From there it was time for dinner again; mushroom tart, cream of asparagus soup, Caesar salad, fisherman's plate with lobster and shrimp, and for dessert sugar free berry tart, which was simply delicious. The show tonight was a comedian, he was very entertaining and also sang songs from the 50's and 60's. We received gifts of two Crown and Anchor caps on our bed tonight, another perk from RCI for us, how nice.

Oh, we did receive a credit back for Internet time, of course from a handsome Brasileiro from Sao Paulo no less! It was good to talk to you today Mom! I was glad Deb and I could exchange a couple of text messages, though she did not reply to the last one, maybe she did not receive it. Verizon works just fine on the ship but will not work without their phone connections at sea. We will have the World phone after that time.

Temperature: 10pm 64.4*

Sea: Moderate 4-7.5 ft (but seems slight!)

Just 1358 Nautical Miles to Ponta Delgada, we are now 2473 Nautical miles from Galveston, and 587 Nautical miles from Kings Wharf, Bermuda.

About the weather, it is so calm and beautiful one can really call this crossing the "pond" ~ certainly nice and we are not complaining but it is much less adventurous than crossing last year with my mom and sister. The captain said earlier he would avoid bad weather when possible and we can see rain and dark clouds in the distance in almost every direction. I suspect the temperature will drop further as we go on but one never knows. CNN has switched from TV to a radio version since as suspected we have lost some TV channels but there is little time or desire for such things anyway!

Kings Wharf, Bermuda 24 April 2009

2009-04-25T06:07:00.001-07:00

Our first port of call! What a beautiful day, we could not have imagined anything better. We arrived at the expected time of 8 am and left at 16:00 (4pm).While I have always wanted to see Bermuda we are only in port for eight hours and we decided to walk about the dock area and see the sights there. The Royal Naval Museum is a short walk from where we were docked. There is a ferry terminal that many of or shipmates went on to different areas of the island. Also the Clocktower Mall, Rumcake Factory, Bermuda Maritime Museum, Dockyard Glassworks, and a number of restaurants. We had a bite to eat at the Bonefish Bar & Grill. It was good but expensive for what we got. Anyway, we helped their economy a bit. We went to the Bermuda Maritime Museum for the majority of our visit. Not the typical museum, though we did not see all of the inside. Mostly we wandered around the outside where some cannons have been restored and other interesting places such a light tunnels, magazine holes, meandering over turrets, and over the limestone walls, steps, and some unrecognizable rubble, dodging sheep dung as we went; we had a great time. The sheep keep the grass surrounding the area looking very nice. As we explored I found an old shell casing amongst the rubble. I turned it in and it will no doubt be put on display as they continue to dig up artifacts from the period of time this area was inhabited by various groups; soldiers, prisoners, slave, and others. There is a Dolphin Experience to visit as well, included in the $8. or $10. admission to the museum, but we didn't even go look at it. No Pink sand beaches for us this time either. I think the ideal cruise for Bermuda would be one of them from either NY or Philadelphia that sails directly to Bermuda and spends two days in two different ports then sails back. You would then have plenty of time to see everything. The ferry and bus service seems to be very efficient.

Interesting facts: Bermuda has more vehicles per square mile than anywhere else in the world, but you can't rent a car there, Bermuda has the highest per capita income in the world, 138 islands totally less than 21 sq miles, the 6th largest population per sq mile in the world (higher than Bangladesh or Bahrain).

Dinner was the usual delicious feast in the regular dining room: Between us we had appetizers of shrimp cocktail, scallops with risotto, creamy garlic soup, and chilled strawberry soup. Entrees were lamb shank, grilled tiger shrimp, and chicken Marsala. Dessert was Tiramisu for me, that plus ice cream for John.

A brief walk on the deck and we are calling it a night.

Temperature: 68*

Sea: Slight 1.0 to 4.5 ft (but it looks moderate) Incidentally the sea temperature is 77*!

Next stop: Ponta Delgada, Azores, Portugal-1890 Nautical miles. From Galveston 1941 Nautical miles.

I will leave you with this picture of the sky as we departed Bermuda, the photo does not do the majestic sky justice, it was magnificent.

Cruising 23 April 2009

2009-04-25T06:03:00.001-07:00

There are a lot of swells in the ocean today but we barely feel anything. There was a bit more swaying last night as I bet they turn the stabilizers off at night. Coffee on our balcony again, the sky was a mellow orange color though the ship is sailing at such degree that we did not see the sunrise today. Sparse clouds float past but no threat of rain, certainly idyllic. After coffee in our room I had a coupon for speciality coffee on the Promenade, which was delicious, the coffee they serve routinely is not very strong or full bodied.

Our first event of the day was a lecture "Cruising Victorian Ladies" and the speaker had on the full garb and explained all of it as she took it off to a modest degree. Then it was off for our walk but the deck 4-5 walk we like was partitioned off up the stairs so we improvised. Some folks are complaining about the wind but we find it refreshing! The Internet was down when we checked so we went on to lunch in the dining room. Caesar salad with shrimp for me and beef fajitas for John; salad was good but fajitas not so much. We don't want to eat too much anyway as we have our fancy "Portofino Wine Dinner Series" tonight (menu and wines listed below) at 7:45pm.

Cabin Crawl from 2-4pm; this was a small event another woman and I put together. One is able to view others cabins, two groupings of cabins, for one hour each. No set times, just within that hour set aside for it. Of most interest was the Grand Suite and Jr. Suite. The aft balcony was really big also. Of course all of these categories come at a higher rate than our balcony cabin. Looks like they are replacing the older TVs as they die out with flat screen types. We are thrilled with what we have! After the crawl some of us met at the Viking Crown Lounge for a drink. It has been interesting to meet so many people who are almost "professional" cruisers. Within the group there is so much knowledge that I suppose any question we had could be answered.

Crown & Anchor Welcome Back Party at 4:30; typical welcome party serving 3-4 drinks to choose from, wine, and champagne. No appetizers but that is fine as we have the big dinner tonight.

The show tonight was 6:30 pm for us since we had the later dinner plans. It was the typical Broadway presentation, nicely done with a couple of excellent singers. We slipped out early to our special dinner. It was remarkable, just fantastic, we really enjoyed it. Here is the menu with photos:

PORTOFINO WINE DINNER SERIES

~~~

Antipasto Freddo

Tuna Carpaccio and Tomato Tartare~with Kalamata olives, crispy lettuce and herb oil

Danzante Pino Grigio

Veneto, Italy

Antipasto Caldo

Pan seared bay scallops and lobster~In basil seafood nage with double whipped mashed potatoes

Il Ducale Sanjiovese, Ruffino

Tuscany, Italy

Insalata Della Casa

House Salad-Radicchio, arugula, Romaine, Belgium endive, tomatoes, olives, fennel with crispy Prosciutto, Feta cheese and chive dressing (no additional wine)

Piatto Principale

"Creazione Dello Chef Marco"-Roasted Beef Medallions, Parmesan custard, asparagus, sweet corn puree and golden shallot reduction

La Vite Lucente Sanjiovese/Merlot Blend

Tuscany, Italy

Dolce con Sapori Toscani

Mascarpone and Strawberry crepes-Citrus scented Galliano syrup, candied orange peel and almond Florentine

Errazwriz Late Harvest Sauvignon Blanc

Casablanca Valley, Chile

I really don't know what else I can say about this meal that you cannot see with the photos. One thing, we could not even drink all the wine they gave us, a full glass of each type! We did finish the first and last ones, the second red wine with the beef was just wonderful. I was surprised at the alcohol content of that wine also, 20.5 percent. That is very high for wine. The Maitre' d gave a wonderful presentation telling us of each course and each wine as we went along. This is certainly not something one would want to do often, but it was a great experience for a foodie!

Temperature: 68* (11:00 pm)

Sea: Moderate 4-7.5 ft. Gentle breeze.

Miles from Galveston: 1,763, to Bermuda 122 (nautical miles)

One Frustration~

2009-04-25T06:00:00.001-07:00

I do feel frustrated with the Internet on board! I have journaled each night for the blog but we have been unable to publish this most days. The service on board is very expensive, unreliable, temperamental, and quite slow even when it does work. Several times we have spent many minutes signed on but wondering if it is working or not. We did purchase a package of minutes, which brought the price down to .37 per minute from the standard fee of .55 per minute. Now I really don't mind paying for this IF it worked, even if it worked slowly. We spent at least 15 minutes trying to publish the blog for both the 23rd and 24th to no avail. Hopefully we can publish today. You know John, more than once he went down to guest relations and had them reverse the charges we wasted while trying. However, last night they would not reverse the charges saying that our website was down. We will address this issue today as well. I seriously doubt Google websites are/were down, especially since the woman sitting next to me could not get to her desired websites either! It is not a huge deal nor does it overshadow our enjoyment of the cruise, but it is frustrating as the representation is "Stay Connected" to share your cruise with friends and family at home. Certainly the idea is nice but the reality of this is different. Just a tidbit of information to know before one decides to keep in touch by email or blog.

Cruising 22 April 2009

2009-04-23T19:12:00.001-07:00

A quiet day at sea for us. Turning the clock forward everyday has caught up with us and we did sleep in. I was ready and left first to go to a digital camera talk graciously provided by a photographer in our Cruise Critic Meet & Mingle group. I learn something new all the time and this time it was how to take multiple photos and "stitch" them together forming a panoramic photo. I hope I can actually do this when I get home! I visited with a few people from the group, which was nice.

Today they had a Caribbean Food Festival and we went to that at 11:30 for lunch. There were lots of things but we didn't eat all of them! Just some delicious ribs, coleslaw, and salad. I think John had a few other things. We had a delicious Sangria punch with the meal. A brief breeze through the $10. item sales and back to our cabin via the library to send an email and pick up the Sudoku of the day.

When we got back to our room the movie Doubt was just beginning on TV so we watched that and relaxed. Time for dinner. The days are passing so quickly!

Dinner: Mozzarella, tomato basil salad, scallop and muscle gratin, perch for Sharon with creme Catalan for dessert but it was not that good so I only had a few bites. Scallop/muscle gratin, vichyssoise, sirloin steak for John, with too many desserts to mention! The captain came around to all of the tables in our area. He is so young, such a nice man from Sweden.

Wine for today: Caliterra, Sauvignon Blanc.

Sea: Moderate 4-7.5 ft waves (we feel little to no movement)

Temperature: 73* 10 pm

They aren't stating the miles but we have gone around the tip of Florida, a bit north, and then headed East to Bermuda.

I commented to John we haven't seen a single being of sea life except seaweed. However, some friends saw flying fish today so I will continue to keep my eyes open to see something out there.

Cruising 21-April-2009

2009-04-22T08:38:00.001-07:00

Sunrise:

Sunset:

Another beautiful day cruising in the Gulf of Mexico. Up at 7am John went to the dining room for his breakfast having eggs Benedict. He liked it but it is not "fast food"-However, he met his ping pong buddy after that and they had a good time playing. When I was dressed I went to see an historic interpreter. She was fairly interesting and the talk was about pirates. She will be giving a variety of talks on each sea day. I had to leave early to meet John at the Rumba dance class. That was fun too and we felt quite accomplished since we learned so much already in our classes from Ted. We also walked our mile+ and took a million stairs again. My calves feel this so that shows me it is firming and strengthening some. We also took a little French class, didn't learn much as we can already say Bonjour, Bonsoir and Je m' appelle... LOL Peaked in at the art auction (don't worry June, no more photos), watched the comedy headliner show that was rather ho-hum. We had such a nice time visiting with Clem and Jackie at dinner they have become good friends.

10:00 PM

Miles from Galveston: 880 Nautical

Miles to Bermuda: 1006 Nautical

Temperature: 69*

Sea: Slight, 1.5 to 4 ft.

Wine for today, a standard favorite, Mount St. Michelle Riesling.

Lunch: Spinach salad with feta and roasted pumpkin, grilled herb encrusted shrimp, sugar free Key Lime pie. John had the same but peanut butter chocolate pie. I might add feta is not my fav but this was delicious as it was infused with herbs.

Dinner: Shrimp cocktail, crab cake, grilled cod with cauliflower and spinach, sugar free fruit pillow. John had pork instead of cod, and a variety of desserts! Table mate Clem is a dessert junkie too so he and John have a lot in common to talk about!

Cruising 20 April 2009

2009-04-20T19:42:00.001-07:00

We got up at 7:00 am since we pretty much decided to do this every day as at home (for Sharon, not John) so we will not be used to sleeping in late and staying up later when we begin the Rick Steves portion of our vacation.

We had coffee delivered and a somewhat lukewarm breakfast for John. After he was ready John headed out for a real breakfast and a ping pong tournament, but lost the first round. I got ready and walked down to deck 5 to check out the promenade, then back to the room to meet John for the 10:00 am Muster Drill. This was the first time we ever did this after sailing. (quick and more or less painless)

From there we went to the Meet and Mingle in Cleopatra's Needle (a large lounge). We met some of the people we have been "talking" to on the board. Interesting... We saw Bob and Bette H. who we met for lunch in Napa a few weeks ago. Everyone had varying stories of the flight adventures of yesterday or the day before.

There was a Caribbean Line Dance class that was to follow but we were hungry and staff was not ready yet so we went up to use our free coupons for Johnny Rockets. The 50's Diner experience is normally $4.95 but at Platinum members we have a free coupon each. It was quite delicious and a great fun. They have music of the period and the waiters. John had an Oreo Sundae along with our delicious burgers, fries, and onion rings. They also have other sandwich items, chili, shakes, malts, floats, apple pie, etc. I believe the experience is worth the $4.95. After this heavy food we walked a mile on the track and went to the gym. Since we are on deck 9 we have been getting a lot of stair time. Up to 14 for cards, gym, and open spaces then down to 5 for most things, and 3 for dining...of course what goes down must go up...and so on...

We came back from all of the above to "freshen up" and put a few things away. However, I feel asleep and John "dosed" as he watched TV. This was our first formal night but we didn't go. I hope it was not lobster but really I was just too full to eat again anyway.

Jeff: No wine report for today as we didn't have any, missing dinner and all.

Clocks forward one hour tonight.

8:00pm temp is 70* degrees. Lovely weather and sea conditions. 427 Nautical miles from Galveston.

John went out now to see about Wi-Fi and sending this.

Sail Away! 19-April-2009

2009-04-20T19:34:00.001-07:00

Wow, what a breakfast we were served, three courses to be exact. What a wonderful start to the day. I have my short hair cut, which is quite curly now due to the humidity! This am we walked to CVS and bought a few things in bigger sizes to take on board. We decided to smuggle a bottle of wine on board for the wine tasting then we discovered one cannot buy alcohol of any sort before NOON in Texas. In addition one can only buy wine or beer on Sunday, no hard liquor. Pretty good idea really. After the walk there we were really hot so Linda (B&B owner) gave us a ride to the pier. She was so gracious and took us on a drive all along the seawall. It was interesting but sad t o see the devastation that still remains after hurricane Ike. It appears that many of the places will not be rebuilt and Linda said that FEMA has not come through in promised relief for rebuilding in some areas.

We timed our arrival at the port to avoid the first rush of passengers but that was not to be. Apparently the ship arrived three hours late, so everything was delayed. What long lines but we are grateful we are here and not still waiting in Dallas at the airport. We met a couple at IAH yesterday that missed their cruise~now that would be bad! Just a two hour wait and we were on board around 4:00 pm. When we got to our room our bags were there so we unpacked. Our cabin is so nice and spacious! A three cushion sofa and our bed is larger than queen size but probably not as large as a king. It is nice and very comfortable. Our extra bag of formal wear and supplies had not arrived but by the time we were done with dinner it as here.

Dinner was very nice, table for six, just four of us tonight. Service was impeccable, We immediately hit it off with our table mates Clem and Jackie from Dallas, TX. A lovely Christian Catholic couple celebrating their 40th anniversary today! What a privilege to dine with then and learn all about their family. Please pray for their son Gregory who is undergoing chemo for leukemia. He just graduated from college and was diagnosed. The prognoses is good but he still has further treatments to endure. Clem is a retired pilot and Jackie was a stewardess. Our wine with dinner was Beaujolais Villages, Laboure-Rio (French).

Shortly after dinner and our walk we sailed away! Yes, we were to leave hours before this but it really didn't matter since we were on board and enjoying the ship already. We may have found our favorite walking path already: Deck 4, covered but a terrific view about 3/4 of the way around, then up stairs, around the front of the ship, down the stairs and back on deck 4. A complete loop with several shuffle board stops along the way if we decide to do that.

Next stop~Bermuda!

Galveston At Last! 18-April-2009

2009-04-20T19:30:00.001-07:00

It has been a long day but we are finally in Galveston, time 9:30 pm. We got up at 4:00 am and Deb arrived to take us to the airport early, I wasn't ready yet! Even though we left FAT only1 hour late we would have made our other plan because it was late too. However, it never left and was finally canceled about 4:30 PM. What an unfriendly crowd at the airport when they are tired of waiting. When the flight was canceled everyone ran to the counter to rebook. After waiting in the horrendous line for about 20 minutes they only helped one person. I then recalled the Amazing Race and how some people swooped in and booked flights by phone. So, while standing in line I called American and rebooked on the ONLY flight left with room today to IAH (Bush). We were supposed to go to HOU (Hobby) and had a paid transfer BUT that was not to be! Anyway we rush by Sky Train from B terminal to A terminal and made the flight! After arrival at IAH we had to purchase a Super Shuttle ride for a total of $145...BUT we are here! We missed the Meet & Greet dinner at Gaido's, but we are here! We are here drinking a delightful bottle of New Zealand wine; Nobilo Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc 2008. Fruity with a citrus finish, very good.-plus this plus a plate of cheese, meats,toasts, veggies, and cream cheese with Jezebel sauce. This is an interesting little sauce that looks like thin apricot jam, but there is horseradish in it! I will find out the ingredients. It was a welcome treat since we just had a small bite to eat about 2:00.

Jezebel Sauce

(Combine all, cover and chill)

1 jar 16-18 oz. pineapple or apricot preserves

1 jar 16-18 oz. apple jelly

1/2 cup (8 oz. bottle) prepared horseradish drained, (not cream style)

3 Tablespoon dry mustard

2 teaspoons coarsely ground black pepper

Tomorrow is the BIG day!

2009-04-17T20:22:00.001-07:00

"Leav'n on a jet plane...." Boarding passes are printed, the bags are packed, and as far as we can see things are in place for our absence! Is it really happening? All the planning, reading, saving, dreaming...Is it really going to take place? John is confident, I am not convinced it will really happen!

THREE Days until departure!

2009-04-15T10:20:00.001-07:00

We are packed and all but the final details are in place (stopping mail, paper, and turning off the hot water heater!). It is hard to believe we even managed to fit in our "formal wear" for the cruise in the simple, carry on suitcase! We sent Rick Steves ETBD our final questions, which have to do with Metro and Museum passes in Paris. There are so many varied "perks" with the Rail Pass we have and other offers that it is confusing to know what is the best options. For instance, since we can get a FREE trip from Gare de Nord in Paris out to Charles De Gaulle (CDG) Airport on departure, is it worth the extra day of Metro Pass to do that or just go from were we are staying at the Royal Regency, Vincennes. Hopefully with the experienced folks at Rich Steves they have already determined the cost effectiveness of the various options and we won't need to figure that all out. There is no need to spend money where it is not necessary! Best to save to have it to spend on French wine!

Speaking of money. The exchange rate has become quite favorable since we booked our trip. EUR$1.32 to USD$1.00 and GBP$1.48 to USD$1.00. It was much closer to 2:1 when we booked. So, our USD will go father than we thought it would initially.

5 DAYS! YES, JUST 5 DAYS!!!

2009-04-13T22:14:00.001-07:00

9 ~ Yes just 9 days until we leave for EUROPE!

2009-04-09T18:54:00.001-07:00

How did the time pass so quickly? Today I made our rail pass reservations. We should have those in the mail in 3-4 days. We have all the trips we planned with just a slight variation in schedule. Our clothing is laid out, checked and double checked, and we will be putting it in our bags ONE WEEK ahead as suggested and testing to see if it fits and what we might change our minds about and leave behind. We are checking things off our "to do" list as we go. I am trying to stay calm as I tend to get a bit anxious before a trip and wonder what I am missing and what could go wrong!

We leave NEXT month! Just 36 Days!

2009-03-12T16:21:00.001-07:00

Today I booked a car for three days in the Provence area. It is a Mini Ford Ka and supposedly holds four people, so it should hold the two of us and our two carryon pieces of luggage. Sure looks tiny though, pretty cute! Anyway, we will pick it up our last day in Avignon. Therefore, we will have it for our use during our time in Arles. We will drop it off in Avignon the day we depart for Paris. Having the car will give us the opportunity to see more countryside in this area and visit a few wineries. We will also use it when we visit Pont du Gard, which is the oldest Roman Bridge/Aqueduct in the world. You will probably remember it from a Volkswagen commercial! There is so much to see in around this area that we can't possibly see it all on the five days we will have but I want John to at least see some of the sites I saw in 2000, along with some new explorations for the two of us. Certainly we won't need the car for the first few days as we will explore Avignon on foot and public transportation if need be.

Lorraine American Cemetery in Saint Avold, France

2009-03-01T12:08:00.001-08:00

Thanks to a cousin we have the information needed to visit the grave site of yet another cousin who died during WWII. Of course we did not know him but he was cousin to my mother. My mother and many of her cousins, along with her brother my beloved uncle, joined the military to do their duty during those difficult times. Sadly, this cousin Robert L. Glos never came home. He was a gunner, as was another cousin, and his plane was shot down over Europe. Story has it that some of the men had parachuted out but Bob did not. Later, after the war, the pilot came to see his mother and father. He said that the plane took a direct hit right in the area that Bob was and he thought Bob died instantly. The pilot told them what a great guy he was and respected by all. I see this as little consolation when you have lost a son. The cost of a war is never forgotten by those who have paid such a price. His mother wanted his body brought home but his father was against it stating that they would never be sure it was really him. As my mother stated, "Things do get mixed up during a war" and of course there was no DNA testing back then. Thankfully, his mother was able to visit his grave site at Lorraine American Cemetery before her death, along with his sister and niece. Therefore, I was able to receive the information as to the location and contact information. We did want to visit a cemetery from this era and what one would be better than this? We have received very accommodating and kind emails from Lorraine Cemetery since our first contact. They have offered to pick us up at the train station, drive us to the cemetery and escort us to the grave site. We can also preorder flowers for the grave, which we will do. We have been invited to attend a Memorial Day Ceremony on May 24, which will consist of a one hour service at the cemetery followed by a pick nick" in the nearby city of Saint Avold. We planned to be leaving for our cousins in the south of France that day but we are trying to see if we can change our plans and visit for that ceremony instead of a day in June as we first planned.

In part, here was some touching information we also received from my cousin: "IT IS A VERY EMOTIONAL PLACE, IT IS AMAZING. THANK YOU FOR GOING TO VISIT BOB. THE GENTLEMAN SAID FEWER AND FEWER RELATIVES ARE COMING BECUASE THEIR PARENTS ARE ALL ABOUT PASSED AWAY AND THEIR SIBLINGS ARE OLDER AND DON'T REALLY TRAVEL SO THANK YOU FOR GOING ON BEHALF OF OUR FAMILY. THEY TOLD US ALL THE TREES AND PLANT MATERIAL THERE ARE FROM AMERCIA AND THE SOIL SO THEY ARE ESSENTIALLY BURIED IN AMERICAN SOIL JUST NOT 'ON' AMERICAN SOIL."

Only 55 days!

2009-02-21T11:15:00.001-08:00

It is hard to believe we are leaving in just 55 days! We received notice that our Rick Steves documents have been sent to us! Exciting news there!!! I haven't posted anything for awhile because of the concerns about John's leg. There was a possibility of postponement due to that and all the problems recently with Uncle. All said, there has been no time to plan anything else anyway. As most of you know the doctor has told us that John's inflammation should be cleared up or under control before we depart and that we should continue to plan to our trip as scheduled. We appreciate your prayers and concerns. As far as Uncle, Debra and Sam, Jeff and Cherri will step in to fill the gap, along with a few close friends of ours. We just hope situations will be uneventful in our absence.

78 Days to go!

2009-01-29T13:01:00.001-08:00

Another big day, we made the FINAL payment on the transatlantic cruise! We wish we were sailing right now! It is nice that we ended up with a deluxe balcony cabin. This is our floor plan, our 220 sq.ft. of space for 14 days! We were pretty excited to get this for such a good price. Apparently with the poor economy and the cruise not filling up too fast these better options came up for us. It is nice to have the extra room for a longer cruise like this. If we choose to just rest in our room it is more spacious. I get a little nervous when I think of all the last minute things that need to be done but we will make our lists and check things off one at a time! In a few days we will make the final payment for the Rick Steves portion of the tour and then our little travel money account will be getting pretty skinny! Right now the only pending reservations are for a hotel room in NYC on the way home. We will fly into JFK and leave from LaGuardia the next morning. This seemed like the best plan so we have one night to acclimate a tiny bit to our drastic time change and insure we will make our connections. I am sure we will be eager to get home by then.

91 days until departure!

2009-01-16T09:55:00.001-08:00

As of today we have a reservation for our five nights in Provence after spending time with our cousins in Perpignan. We decided on two hotels suggested in the Rick Steves guide book for Provence. After leaving the cousins we will travel by train to Avignon and stay for three nights at the Hôtel Boquier within the walls of the city and walking distance from the rail station. We certainly cannot do everything we wish for in just three days, but we will make our list of priorities for this location. Our room, the Lavender room on the second floor, will be our home for three nights. On the last day there we will rent a car and venture to Arles for the last two nights in Provence. This hotel there is another choice from the guide book, which we simply could not resist! It is a bit more expensive (79€ compared to 62€ per night) but sounds fabulous! Partial quote from the book: "The Hôtel le Calendal is a seductive place located between the Arena and Classical Theater...comfy lounges and a lovely palm-shaded courtyard... Pool, spa with Jacuzzi and a Turkish bath... they even have the Rick Steves Provence video on DVD in the lobby." We will have the smallest double room with no view, but sounds like the ambiance is more than enough to please us especially since they offer low cost delicious meals and we are steps from the Arena in the heart of the city! Thanks to our shrinking world and the Internet we were able to confirm all reservations with little effort. We will have a car three days to explore the countryside, visit Nimes, try some local wine tasting in the vineyards, and of course the much anticipated visit to Pont du Gard (the oldest Roman bridge in the world). So now the next step is some price comparisons and get our little car lined up. A small French car keeping with the culture would be fun!

103 days and counting!

2009-01-04T10:05:00.001-08:00

We have purchased our rail pass from Rick Steves Travel and resolved an issue with our flight from Gatwick to Amsterdam. Our flight was canceled by the airlines and rebooked at a bad time. Now we will fly out of Heathrow later in the day, but still make our 16:00 rendezvous in Haarlem with the group. Happily there was no extra charge for this change. The Euro seems to be holding around US$1.00:E$1.40, this is encouraging, since our pocketbook feels the crunch of the recent holiday season...but thus far we are managing to pay as we go so the entire trip will be covered before departure but the money we have saved for this is quickly dwindling!

118 days to go! Cruises, fuel charges, balconies...

2008-12-20T13:40:00.001-08:00

The price of the cruise has dropped and fuel charges have been dropped from most providers as well! We can get the balcony at a senior price for less than we booked the inside cabin! Amazing! I am on the Meet & Mingle list with other Royal Caribbean travelers and they talked about these discounts so I put them into play with Todd at Cruise Vacation Outlet! A balcony is a great treat and we love having it, we just could not justify the expense at first. So, now we have an UPGRADE for LESS! This along with the rising US$1 with respect to the Euro will increase the stretch for our budget! Every little bit helps!

First and Last Hotel Information Has Arrived!

2008-12-05T15:19:00.001-08:00

It is an exciting day for us because today we received the names and locations of our FIRST and LAST hotels on the Rick Steves portion of our Europe trip. They look pretty great, fancier than we anticipated them looking. We will be at the Ambassador City Centre Hotel in Haarlem, right near Amsterdam for the beginning of the tour. It is great to get this information along with complete, detailed instructions on how to get to the hotel from the airport, which is just 30 minutes away by bus! Our last hotel is in Paris, Hotel Beaugency we will be contacting this hotel as we want to spend an extra night there after the tour is finished. This extra night will give us a chance to do some catch up on travel journals and to savor those last moments of the tour before heading south of France to visit the cousins. We will return to Paris at the end of our trip to spend week in Timeshare property just out of Paris but we will also enjoy staying in the heart of the "City of Lights" too.

European Rail Pass~135 Days Until Departure!

2008-12-03T09:47:00.001-08:00

We haven't had a lot of time to plan things due to holiday company and caring for "Uncle" in our spare time. However, we are are almost ready to purchase our Rail Pass. We have planned out our days of rail travel and specific trips. I called Rick Steves Travel yesterday and they confirmed our thinking about which pass to purchase, and that actuality that buying a pass does save us at least $200-$400. There are a lot of "ins-and-outs" that are somewhat unknown to us, such as last minute travel discounts certain days of the week, etc. We are glad to have someone with knowledge and experience to call for advice on this. We will be getting a Saverpass 2nd class ticket. There is little difference with a 1st class ticket other than seat configuration; 3 plush seats per row in 1st class, 4 skinnier seats per row in second class. Either way we can sit side-by-side and we don't need "plush" seats! We want to purchase the pass before the end of the year as the price go up in January. The pass is good for six months from the date of purchase and good for 30 days after the first use, which in our case will be May 23-24, after the scheduled tour with Rick Steves Travel. In addition, we will need to book reservations two to three months out to be sure we can be on the particular schedules we have planned for. Thankfully Rick Steves Travel can advise me on that too. Departure is coming up so quickly for us!!!

ONLY 146 Days!

2008-11-22T12:08:00.001-08:00

The family, company, and holidays will take priority over our trip planning for the next few weeks. We will continue to gather information and order our rail pass before the end of the year. Typically there is a 10% increase each year on January 1st. One can purchase these up to six months in advance so we will take advantage of that small savings.

PC2 Go must go...Acer takes it's place!

2008-11-17T07:59:00.001-08:00

John had the little PC2 Go set up and ready. He did some preliminary training with me and got me going. I could access and send email, load and configure photos, and post to this travel blog from it! These are the main things we wanted to be sure to be able to do. I also downloaded a few programs, as did John, and we still have plenty of room left on it. As we made a trip to Costco we saw yet another model that John preferred! We took this home to try it out. It is slightly more compact, weighs a smidgen less, and the keyboard and screen are slightly larger. It does not have the handle attachment so it will be more compact in our luggage. So of course the other has been cleaned up and taken back. We again have all the desired programs loaded and feel fairly confident about the use. The small size takes a bit of getting used to. However, we have used one before and in a few days one becomes more or less accustomed to the size. I am guardedly optimist that I might be able to input photos to a web album, along with journaling, and have a photo album almost ready for printing when we arrive home from our trip! This would be ideal, at least I would not be sitting here with seven weeks of photos to figure out! Of course right after getting the new Acer up to speed HP sent an email about their new mini product... this is up to John!!! He thinks we will just stick with this one for now. We will play with it for a few days and see how it goes.

Galveston B&B - 162 Days and Counting!

2008-11-06T17:16:00.001-08:00

The Villa Bed and Breakfast is now booked for the one night before the cruise begins. We will have the Provence Room. Seems fitting since we will also visit the Provence area when in France. Take a look if you would like. The Provence Room. We have been researching transportation from HOU (Houston Hobby Airport) to Galveston Island. Unfortunately, due to the damage from Ike this is not a "valid location" to drop a rental car at his time. That might change. If not, we will take the Galveston Limo Service, which is really just vans or mini buses with door to door service. That would work as well for us too at $30. each for seniors. However, we might check into simple public transportation (a bus) as well. Anyway, the room looks so amazing with a Jacuzzi tub for two! Maybe we will spend our time there relaxing instead of exploring Galveston. We will be leaving home at 5am with a 6:45am flight and ultimate arrival time of 11:45 am in HOU. This should put us into Galveston around mid afternoon. Since we sail at 5pm the next day, there really isn't a lot of time to explore, but hopefully we can see a few highlight in the area.

Planning AND Shopping AND Counting The Days!

2008-10-30T09:34:00.001-07:00

After a review of magazines last night I discovered some further places to explore in Provence. Some further investigation will determine if we want to dedicate time to visit them or not. We have just so many days and we want to be sure to plan correctly so we don't miss the most important things we want to see. Rick Steves says PLAN but then be flexible. We agree with this philosophy. We have found in the past if we don't "plan ahead" we simply look at each other and can't decide what to do.

We have both been looking at and pricing small travel laptops. Today one came up with a bargain price from Costco with free shipping and we ordered it. The good thing is, if it is not what we want, it can be returned to the local Costco. Of course, we get the free support line to help with the learning curve too.

Take a look if you would like: PC2Go

Despite the time consuming distractions of the care Uncle Bill has needed, we are getting back on track with our planning and life here at home. ONLY 169 days until we leave for EUROPE!!!

Shopping Day

2008-10-27T22:10:00.001-07:00

Today we placed our order for books, maps, and travel guides for our Europe trip. Many items will be included with our tour, but we need a few things for the independent travel part of our trip. When we booked the 21 Days Best of Europe trip with Rick Steves RickSteves.com we received a 20% discount code for any one time purchase. It was soon to expire, so today was the day! It was tremendously helpful to have visited the Travel Store when we were in Edmonds after our Alaskan cruise. It is helpful to see and touch items as well, when making a decision about what is needed and wanted. So now our purchases are made and we will have all the information needed to plan our independent travel after the program with the Rick Steves tour.

The planning process

2008-10-17T11:31:00.001-07:00

Today I spend some time updating and making this blog look more as it should so it makes some sense to the readers. Be patient, I am new at this. Now that most of our big transportation is in place it is time to start planning the details of our travel. It is important to have good plans per Rick Steves and then to of course, be flexible. We will spend part of our time on rail travel and we need to investigate just what will be our best option. We also want to have a car for a few days in the Provence area after leaving our cousins location. We need to determine if a rail and car pass or just a rail pass with separate car will best suit our need. Hopefully we will have time to sit down and plan some of this very soon.

Our Cousins

2008-10-17T11:10:00.001-07:00

09-23 I wrote to my cousins and that part is also going into place. René will plan our program while there and he will either take us, or loan us his "little car for daily use" - THAT should be interesting! I did drive before in France, and rural was a snap, cities-not so much. We are making preliminary plans for both Paris and part of the Provence area we will visit. There are choices, we can't see everything! We are also in the process of purchasing insurance for our trip, that will be 1K+, but we MUST have it. Anything can happen. Here is a photo from Sharon's visit to France in 2000.

Airfare Completed!

2008-10-17T11:09:00.003-07:00

09-21 It’s a red-letter day - we have now booked ALL our flights for our Europe trip! This is very exciting for us as our plans are becoming firm and we were able to book ALL of these flights for a total of $898.75 for the TWO of us!!! This was using a couple sources of points we have saved AND enumerable web searches and phone calls! We are very excited and very pleased, even if it has been frustrating with so many dead end searches along the way. The end result is very pleasing! Now it is time to begin further planning of our independent travel after we end our time with the Rick Steves tour on 23 May in Paris. See below:

18 April - FAT to HOU (Fresno to Houston, via Dallas on American Airlines)

03 May - LGW to AMS (London Gatwick to Amsterdam, British Airways)

09 June – CDG to JFK (Charles de Gaulle to Kennedy, via Dublin on Aer Lingus)

10 June – LGA to FAT (La Guardia to Fresno, via American Airlines)

Rick Steves Europe Through The Back Door

2008-10-17T11:09:00.001-07:00

08-23 It was really exciting to visit Rick Steves Travel Center in Edmonds, WA. We were able to ask a lot of questions and get all sorts of advice. We also took a class on digital photography and we are even more excited than ever for our EUROPE TRIP! www.ricksteves.com

A week in PARIS!

2008-10-17T11:07:00.001-07:00

08-01 Today we booked the Royal Regency very near Paris! We were very excited to be able to use timeshare points for that! We will see what we want and can, in and around Paris, rest, then fly home. I hope this gives us enough time to visit the cousins and see everything we want in the Provence area and southern France.

A mild Shock

2008-10-17T11:05:00.001-07:00

06-22 Shocking - we realized we will have just 9 hours or so to get to Amsterdam from Southampton! I counted the days wrong. We checked cheap flights and that should not be a problem, sure would like a buffer though. Considered canceling the cruise and just flying, or do a different cruise, John says “NO WAY!” Anyway, there are a lot of cheap flights out of London airports, but it is too soon to book, they don’t book that far in advance.

2008-10-16T21:26:00.001-07:00

The first steps....

2008-10-16T19:18:00.000-07:00

06-20 We had an exciting day... Finally Rick Steves put their 2009 tour schedule on the Internet. We are BOOKED!!!! We will start his tour May 3 in Amsterdam!!!!

We will cruise transatlantic leaving 04-19 on the Voyager of the Sea, sister ship to our Thanksgiving cruise ship the Explorer of the Sea. Galveston, TX to Southampton, England. We will have about 36 hours to get from there to Amsterdam. There is a train/Ferry combo that can do that from London to Amsterdam for about $60. each... if we want to sleep our way there in a room is it about $120. each... we might do that as it is cheaper than a hotel I am sure! YAY!!! We are both very excited about this.