Okay! We’re back home and happy to be here. This was literally the longest trip of my life, trip of a lifetime they say, and with so many stops and places visited, I thought I should not only document our travels photographically but include brief stories of remembrance and learning as well. Hence this travelogue which I added to nearly daily of the trip but have not posted in weeks, because once our cruise began I had no access to the internet. So, I’ll review what I’ve wrote along the way and post bit by bit. I do this for me, to aid in reliving and enjoying a great trip, but I hope friends and family find something to enjoy as well. Read on! I hope this might bring a smile to your face or peak your interest about a place you’d like to visit. Whatever, best wishes to all and let’s pick up the story on the morning when we awake in Venice to board the Ruby Princess……..
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| We stayed on the third floor of this building. Very nice place! |
Sunday morning the church bells ring out even more than normally and they ring out a lot here. Something that doesn’t translate in photos are the wonderful sounds of this city.
I got detached from our little group for the second time on the trip and used the opportunity to do some solo exploring which was fun. I think everyone is getting frustrated with my being so pokey, though. I can’t stop taking photos though! Turns out I took more than 2400 on the trip so this is a tiny fraction!
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| I loved the way the water reflected the buildings. Venice has a reputation for dirty water but we found the opposite to be the case. It’s surprisingly clean and clear. |
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More reflections
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| Must have been wash day. I saw this scene a lot and loved how colorful it was |
The ship is really nice and Maggie, I think this is a sister ship to our Alaskan ship. It sure seems very familiar. Remember how we would leave our cabin, stroll through the art gallery, pass the goodies and the coffee bar on the right and go straight to the dining room on level 5? Yep. Same on this ship. It is huge, but after our spring trip aboard the Breakaway it seems quite cozy.
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| Our Stateroom |
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| Self portrait |
As I suspected, there are lots of seniors on this trip and we are some of them! Everyone is nice and very friendly; I’ve really enjoyed meeting so many new people. Mostly Americans, I think, which is a bit of a surprise. I thought we’d see many more Europeans. Anyway, English is the language of the ship, dollars is the currency and the electric outlets are American too. I feel like I’m home on the Great Lakes.
The ship is really isolating what with no internet and all. I’m expecting that to be a good thing, but I think it might backfire by enforcing isolation. Not sure I’ll enjoy that. Really feeling disconnected.
But we are getting to see parts of the word I never thought I’d get to, and it is kind of overwhelming. As mentioned, we’ll be in Athens on Wednesday and Turkey after that. We’ve attended lectures regarding our destinations and
I’m amazed at how little I really know. Lot’s of biblical connections here as Paul, the apostle, was from Corinth which we’ll be near and Mary, the mother of Jesus, is from where we are going in Turkey. Also, John, the apostle. So I’m getting to see the connection between the Christian and Muslim worlds.
Tonight we stay in port in Venice and then we shove off first thing in the morning on our way to a full day at sea before our first port. Next up: Athens.