Day 8 - Provence, France

We docked this morning at our first stop of the cruise in Toulon, France after a somewhat breezy night (up to 110 mph winds according to our Captain). Fortunately, the ship was as stable as a rock so it didn't bother us at all. We were first taken to the village of Aix-en-Provence where we spent a few hours exploring their downtown marketplace and walking through the historic areas of town.

Then we were off to Marseille where we drove past their bustling harbor and went to visit the amazing Basilica Notre-Dame de la Garde (at top of the hill in this photo) that was dedicated to the seafarers.

On the winding road leading to the Basilica we could see the islands in the harbor including the Chateau d'if on a tiny island in the middle. It is famous for being one of the settings of Alexandre Dumas' adventure novel The Count of Monte Cristo.

The inside of the Basilica Notre-Dame de la Garde was jaw-droppingly beautiful.

The view of Marseille from the Basilica grounds showed the sprawling city that surrounds it.

Before we leave the city, I must note how obvious it was that the garbage collectors were on strike protesting a legal issue in France and some other protesters were setting the piles of garbage on fire.

Day 7 - Navigator Of The Seas

After a long bus ride from Venice, we finally arrived at the port of Civitavecchia, Italy and boarded the Navigator Of The Seas. This ship holds over 3100 passengers - the largest ship we've ever been on.

The entrance to the Royal Promenade features a statue that depicts a man measuring the clouds with a yardstick.

A large number of interior rooms have a view of the Royal Promenade and all of its shops and bars.

At one end of the Royal Promenade is a piece of art that rises about 7 stories. It was inspired when the artist was scuba diving and looked down at the bubbles rising from other divers below him.

Vintages, a wine bar on the Royal Promenade, has a vintage car sitting outside.

The other end of the Royal Promenade with entrances to the library, dining and meeting rooms.

The main dining hall where we enjoyed a lot of good meals.

This is the main swimming pool and lounge area with the Canary Islands in the background.

Here is the more private adults-only pool area.

All in all, this looks like a fun ship to spend the next two weeks on.

Day 6 - Florence and Venice, Italy

We left Montacatini and headed east. Our first stop was in Florence where we saw the beautiful Santa Maria del Fiore church from the outside (it hadn't opened yet).

We also saw the famous Florence Baptistery with its famous golden doors.

Back on the bus that took us to Venice. We then boarded a ferry that took us to the island of Venice.

Once on land we walked down to the Plaza of St Marco where we admired Basilica with all the other tourists.

The gondolas awaited our arrival along the canal.

We finally boarded our gondola and our gondolier took us for a scenic ride through Venice.

Then we took the ferry back to the mainland for a well-deserved night of rest.

Day 5 - Tuscany, Italy

Today's tour took us to the rustic city of Vinci - located on a hilltop surrounded by olive trees - home of Leonardo da Vinci.

 
Our first stop in Vinci was at the home where Leonardo was born and raised (originally located about 3km from here in Anchiano).

We then toured the fascinating da Vinci Museum that was loaded with original drawings and working models of his amazing creations.

Our last stop in Vinci was da Vinci's Studio where he created many of his beautiful paintings and other artwork.

We then traveled to the Chianti region of Tuscany (between Florence and Siena) to tour the Il Palagio castle that dates back to 1252.

Once we entered the courtyard, we were serenaded by an excellent Italian accordionist who played a wide variety of music and encouraged us to sing along with him.

One of the rooms off of the courtyard contained a small, but beautiful, chapel.

We were then brought inside to enjoy a marvelous lunch with a wide variety of tasty wines. Seated with us at the table are our good friends, Linda & Bill Krupp, Ken & Joanne Hafke and Muriel & Frank Florio whom we were traveling with. We all left full and happy.

We then returned to Montecatini, we decided to take a little stroll before dinner. To our surprise, we found a local spa called Terme Tettuccio. It was closing as we arrived but we did get a glimpse of what they had to offer. This place must be for the wealthy. . .

Day 4 - Pisa, Italy

As luck would have it, Pat and her boyfriend Keith (who are both fine artists living in Sacramento, CA) were also vacationing in Tuscany where they were painting pictures of the Tuscan area. Since, as Pat put it, we were too darned cheap to come out and visit them in Sacramento, they would meet us for lunch in Italy. ;-) So, we took the local train to the town of Pisa and met them at the base of the Leaning Tower of Pisa. Once we took the obligatory "holding up the Tower" pictures, we all went to a peaceful outdoor restaurant and enjoyed a delicious local soup for  lunch.

Next, we toured the Baptistery and walked around the Cathedral grounds.

Day 3 - Vatican City

At 7:00 am, we boarded a bus that took us to tour Vatican City and the Sistine Chapel before taking us to the quaint town of Montecatini in Tuscany. When we arrived at Vatican City, we entered the Vatican Museum through the entrance on one side of the massive wall that surrounds the Vatican.

In the museum, the layout of the Vatican was explained to us using a detailed diorama. We had entered from the area near the white coat at the right of the picture.

The inside of the museum was absolutely breathtaking! The walls, ceilings and floors were covered in the most beautiful art we have ever had the pleasure of seeing.

We then went through the beautiful, but crowded, Sistine Chapel (where, unfortunately, no photography was allowed) and then entered Saint Peter's Basilica whose massive size had everyone enthralled.

Here is the dome above the alter in Saint Peter's.

Below it is the main alter.

As we exited the church, we found ourselves in Saint Peter's Square.

We then boarded the bus for our stay in the Tuscan town of Montecatini Terme located between the towns of Florence and Lucca. We checked into the Hotel Parma e Oriente where we will spend the next three nights. Here is the view from the balcony of our fourth story room.

Day 2 - Arrive in Rome, Italy

We left Orlando at about 5:30 yesterday and arrived in Rome at about 5:30 pm after stops in Chicago and Frankfurt, Germany. Allowing for the 6 hour time difference, we spent a total of about 18 hours in airplanes and airports. Fortunately, all of our flights were on time and uneventful. Needless to say, we were glad to finally check into the Hotel Aran Mantegna where we enjoyed a nice dinner and a wonderful night's rest. Tomorrow, the fun really begins...