Trip to Italy plus...
In and around Europe
This is my first attempt at writing a blog and I've decided to keep it so I have a journal of our travels and so I can share them with my family and friends. I'll also need to spend less time writing emails.... ;-)
We are preparing for a month of adventure. Neither Gary or I have been away from home for this length of time since our marraige but in honor of our 30th anniversary we are headed out on June 4th and will be returning on July 4th. I hope to add to this page every few days while we are away... and please send me feedback.
Briefly, the plan is to fly to Glasgow, Scotland where Gary will play in a golf tournament at Turnberry. We will then head to Rome for a couple of days of exploration before we join the National Geographic Expeditions "Italy and the Dalmatian Coast" tour. We will set sail on the Royal Clipper and visit the islands of Ponza, Capri & Sicily and then Corfu, Greece, and Kotor, Montenegro. From there we will visit Dubrovnik, Croatia and the Croatian islands of Korcula, Hvar, and Losinj before ending the voyage in Venice.
After spending a couple of nights in Venice, we will drive to Lake Como for three nights and then continue on to Monte Carlo, Monaco for two nights. Florence will be next for two nights followed by three nights in Siena. We have timed our stay to be able to enjoy Il Palio there on July 2nd. At this point, our journey will be coming to a close as we stay one more night in Rome before flying back home to the bay area in time to hopefully see some fireworks.
The excitement is building..... I just sincerely hope that I remember to pack everything that I need to take.....
Route taken and entries by Real Traveler babeck
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1
Arrival at Turnberry in Scotland
Today has been the beginning of our long planned trip. Our flight departed on June 4th from San Jose, California, went through Chicago and arrived in... Continue reading » -
2
A Full Day at Turnberry
June 6- I was awakened to the sound of the sheep, we have quite a group outside our room in the field next door. Gary met up with the three of... Continue reading » -
3
Our Arrival in Roma - June 7th
June 7th- Today is the day when we began the rest of our adventure and had to leave beautiful Scotland. We flew from Glasgow, Scotland to Dublin, I... Continue reading »
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4
First Full Day in Rome
Our hotel is nice -- I especially like the green marble on the floor in the bedroom and bathroom & the room is a nice size. Breakfast is includ... Continue reading » -
5
Private Tour of the Sistine Chapel
This was our last morning on our own for a while. The day started off rather wet -- not outside, but inside. As my eyes were closed shampooing my h... Continue reading » -
6
Rome Tours and Setting Sail
Our bags needed to be outside our hotel room this morning by 7:15a.m. so they could be picked up and transported to the ship while we were on our morn... Continue reading » -
7
Sailing on the Tyrrhenian Sea
Our first night at sea was very restful and we slept well. After a yummy breakfast buffet, we headed to the "Tropical Bar" (the general meeting pla... Continue reading »
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8
The Isle of Capri plus...
,June 12- The Isle of Capri plus...
We arrived for breakfast at 8 a.m. and were still there at 9:45. Erla Zwingle had joined us for breakfast... Continue reading »
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9
Taormina & Mt. Aetna
At about 10a.m. this morning in full sail, we passed through the Strait of Messina between the Italian mainland and the island of Sicily. It was ve... Continue reading »
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10
At Sea Heading to Corfu, Greece
As we were to be spending the day at sea today, I slept in for a while and didn't go to breakfast until around nine. Our favorite waiters are Zoran (C... Continue reading » -
11
The Island of Corfu, Greece
We docked at the new port of Kerkyra on the island of Corfu at 8 a.m. this morning and by nine we were off the ship and heading towards the 4x4s th... Continue reading »
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12
The Undiscovered Country - Kotor, Montenegro
This will be a short entry but an amazing day has just transpired in my life. It is a day that I'll never forget!!!
After breakfast, we atten... Continue reading »
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13
Croatia - Visiting Dubrovnik
We had another talk by Grace Fielder this morning to help prepare us for the next few days here entitled "Dubrovnik-Ragusa: Pearl of t... Continue reading »
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14
Father's Day in Korcula, Croatia
It's Father's Day, and we dropped anchor on the island of Korcula (pronounced Kor'chula) at 10:30 this morning. After breakfast we attended an i... Continue reading » -
15
Hvar, Croatia
We caught a tender for Hvar city a little after 10 a.m. this morning. The first thing that greeted us was the lovely scent of lavender. Hvar is known... Continue reading » -
16
Losinj, Croatia- the Last Day of our Cruise
Our last stop before Venice is the island of Losinj (pronounced Lo-sheen), Croatia. We caught the first tender ashore in the quaint harbor of M... Continue reading » -
17
Venice, Italy
June 21st (Wednesday)- We set our alarm for 5:30 a.m. because we were to sail into the Venetian Lagoon around 6 a.m. It was an incr... Continue reading » -
18
Menaggio, Lake Como
23 June Today we left our Venice hotel by water taxi and were dropped at Piazza Roma where we schlepped our bags through the bus station. I stood... Continue reading » -
19
On to Monte Carlo!
After breakfast and checking out of our Menaggio hotel, we drove next door to the ferry boat and caught the next boat for Varenna. We dro... Continue reading » -
20
Firenze, Italia (That's Florence, Italy)
28 June We finally arrived in Florence and it was a long drive from Monte Carlo which we left at around 11 a.m. today. We came on the autostrade (... Continue reading » -
21
Off to the Palio - Siena Italy
30 June We had breakfast, packed, went out to do a couple of errands and were able to store our luggage at the hotel while we grabbed some lunch. B... Continue reading » -
22
Orvieto, then Rome, then home...
Time had finally come to pack for the final time on this utterly fantastic trip that we had experienced for the last thirty days. I’m very thankful th... Continue reading »
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