Mediterranean Cruise - Day 5 Rome

Well, I'd say I achieved feeling 85% better by this morning, and I felt good enough to go on our shore excursion: Highlights of Rome.  This morning, we found ourselves at port in Civitavecchia, Italy, which is about an hour and a half motor coach ride away from Rome.  As such, we had to meet early: 6:45 am.

As we drove into the huge city, I was once again surprised by the aridness of the land near the sea.  I saw large cacti and short, stout olive trees.  Right next to the port, there were ruins - parts of an old fortress, whose walls were meant to keep out invaders arriving by sea.

Once in Rome, we drove past several key buildings:

Piazza Venezia - at the hub of central Rome,  the buildings were once the embassy of the Republic of Venice in Rome.

Armed sentries at the site of Italy's Tomb of the Unknown Soldier

After we arrived in central Rome, we got off the bus and set off on foot to explore the sights that were surprisingly close together and right in the middle of the city.

First up: the Trevi Fountain.  This impressively large fountain (86 ft high by 161 ft wide) was built  in 1762 by Pietro Bracci.  It was work commissioned by Pope Urban VIII to be both beautiful and bring fresh water into the city.  It was carved from travertine stone, which was quarried nearby.  As you can see, they are restoring the fountain, but it will be glorious when they finish.

The papal seal is seen at the top.

It's the largest baroque fountain in the city, and the most well-known fountain in the world.  King Neptune's tritons guard the waters of Rome.

We were given free time near the fountain, and Chris and I admired the ancient columns facing the fountain.

Next we walked along the narrow cobblestone streets a few blocks, and as we came out around a cafe, we saw this:

The Pantheon.  Finished sometime around 126 AD, this is one of the best preserved ancient buildings in the world.  It is also the largest unreinforced concrete dome in the world.  It was built as a temple to the many gods that Romans believed in at the time, and has since had christian modifications.

The large, heavy looking doors into the Pantheon.

As you can see in the photo below, the dome is open to the sky via a 142 ft oculus.  The Romans believe the elements were not only a part of the natural world, but deserved reverence in their temple.

The area just below the oculus is roped off because rains make the floor slippery.  The marble work is beautiful.

The pantheon serves as a tomb for painters Raphael and Carracci, composer Corelli, and 2 Kings of Italy.

Raphael's tomb

The Fontana del Pantheon, featuring an egyptian obelisk.  Built in 1575.  Intended to bring fresh water into the city.  Ancient plumbing!

We walked on from the Pantheon a few blocks, and entered into another square: Piazza Navona.  The first thing we noticed in this plaza was the church: Sant'Agnese in Agone.  It was named for Saint Agnes, an early christian, who was martyred in the square.

 

Inside, the church is breathtaking. We were not allowed to take photos inside, but I found these online:

After looking inside the apse, we admired the fountain outside:

The Fontana dei Quattro Fiumi (Fountain of four rivers)

The Fountain of Four Rivers, pictured above, was designed by Bernini and depicts the four river gods protecting the four rivers and continents through which Papal authority had spread: the Nile representing Africa, the Danube representing Europe, the Ganges representing Asia, and the Rio de la Plata representing the Americas.

We boarded the bus again and traveled to a local restaurant, Papa Rex.  We ate lunch as a group, and were served salad, lasagna, a dessert and of course wine.

The day was beginning to get hot, with a forecasted high of 90 degrees.  I was beginning to lose energy, so recently recovered from my pneumonia.  But there was no way I was going to miss our next stop: the Coliseum.

Construction on the Coliseum was completed in 80 AD.  The amphitheater could hold around 65-70,000 spectators, who would watch gladitorial contests, executions, battle reenactments, and plays based of greek mythology.  It was badly damaged from earthquakes and stone robbers, who used those stones to build other major buildings in Rome.   

It feels like being a part of history to visit here.

Restoration work continues on the exterior.

A view of the "hypogeum" or underground network of tunnels and cages.

I loved this view: the sun coming through the arches.  In the lower right hand, you can see a roman numeral LII over the arched doorway.  Ancient entrance markers, so you could find your seat!

The structure is made from travertine stones (set without mortar to allow fluidity during earthquakes) and bricks.

Our last stop of the day was the Vatican.  We were bussed to a large underground parking garage, and when we emerged to the surface, we were standing in St. Peter's Square.  It was so neat to see the square, where people come to hear the pope speak on Easter and Christmas Eve, and where people wait anxiously for the voting of a new pope.  The square was designed and built by Bernini.

Chairs were set up near the Basilica, as the pope had spoke recently.

The famous colonnades and statues of the saints lining the top.

We waited briefly in line for security, then walked into St. Peter's Basilica.  The church is amazing.  It remains one of the two largest churches in the world, able to accommodate 20,000 worshipers.  It is the burial place for its namesake: the apostle Peter.  Many popes have also been interred here.

There are three notable doors entering the basilica, each ornately carved with depictions of important papal happenings.  This one is the "Holy Door", which is only opened on Jubilee years.

Saint Helena

The main apse, with the throne of St. Peter.  The stained glass has the dove of the Holy Spirit in the middle.

Inside the central dome: a creation by the great Michelangelo.  The bronze altar is St. Peter's Baldachin, by Bernini.  It stands above St. Peter's tomb.

Everything was ornate and gilded and a masterpiece.

One of the many beautiful tile mosaics.  Looks like a painting, but it's tile.

Vatican guard at the ready.

A magnificent church.

Thoroughly impressed, we walked out to the square again and found some gelato.  We earned it!  From start to finish, the tour lasted 10 hours.  And we spent most of it on our feet.  After getting back to the ship, we ate dinner in the main dining room and then went straight to bed!

P.S. We've learned on this cruise that the Aussies like baked beans served on their scrambled eggs in the morning.  There were a surprising number of Austrailians and New Zealanders on the cruise.  Chris tried the beans, and said it was good!

Mediterranean Cruise - Days 3 & 4

The alarm went off at 6:30am so we could get ready for our next excursion: Monte Carlo, Monaco.  I felt miserable: achy, coughing, sore throat, and chills.  I got in the shower anyway, hoping that I was just feeling the morning gunk and would improve with some steam, but I didn't.  I told Chris I needed to see a doctor, which was no easy decision: the ship's medical bay and doctors function on maritime law, so you pay for everything out of pocket.  But I felt that if I didn't get whatever this was stopped soon, I'd end up in a foreign hospital and pushed off the cruise.

I went down to the medical bay and they discovered I had a 102.4 degree fever.  The doctor diagnosed me with pneumonia (aspiration pneumonia from that cherry tomato), after ruling out flu and Legionnaires disease (required by the CDC for all cruise ships) and after hearing an awful-sounding right lower lobe of my lungs.  They gave me a Rocephin shot in my tush and started me on zithromax.  I was put in 24 hour isolation in my stateroom due to the fever.

So needless to say, we missed our excursion.  I pretty well slept the remainder of the day.  After seeing that my fever went away and I had eaten, Chris decided to leave the ship and explore some of Monte Carlo on his own.  He described the town as something straight out of a James Bond movie,  In fact, it was the scene of two Bond movies.  Monte Carlo has some of the priciest real estate and yacht slip space rental in the world.  The shopping scene is top-tier, catering to the uber rich.  Unbelievably expensive cars line the street, mega yachts fill the bay, and of course there's the casino...

Yachts parked in the bay

Our ship parked at the end of the port.

These next three photos are odd, but they indicate the finish line for the Formula One Monaco Grand Prix, which has been run since 1929.  It's considered one of the most important and prestigious races in the world.  Along with the Indianapolis 500 and the 24 Hours of Le Mans, it forms the Triple Crown of Motorsport.

The starting line, and a fancy car just happens to be there.

Chris made his way through town and up to the casino.  There's a cover charge just to go in and see the casino, and I'm told that cheap slot machines cheapen up the image, but it is nonetheless impressive inside.  Photography was not allowed.  The casino was the inspiration for Ian Fleming's fictitious casino in Casino Royale, as well as being the setting in Goldeneye and Never Say Never Again.

He made his way back to the ship.  With me still in isolation, we spent the rest of the evening resting in the room.  Chris brought food from the Lido deck buffet, and we called it a day early.


On Day 4 - I woke feeling a bit better, maybe 50%.  I had to report back to medical bay to ensure I didn't have a fever to be released from isolation.  All was good.  We had already missed our excursion to Livorno, Italy (seeing the leaning tower of Pisa) by the time that was done, and that was kinda fine with me... I wasn't too sure how much energy I had.  We spent the day napping and watching on-demand movies (I was really grateful that they had a nice selection!).  I did venture out of the room to eat meals, and then watched the Da Vinci Code in the ship's movie theater in the evening.  By the end of the day, I was feeling 70% better, and hoped I would have the energy and stamina to make tomorrow's excursion to ROME.

Mediterranean Cruise - Days 1 & 2

Today, we woke at 5 am to leave the Renaissance Paris Vendome by 6am.  We used the metro to transfer over to RER trains to go to the airport.  We did great on the Paris metro, learning that "sortie" means exit in French.  Today, however, we boarded a train going to wrong way.  We mildly panicked, but got off the train only 1 stop down the wrong-way line, turned around, and got on the right train.  ,:) Whew!

Even with our wrong turn, we still made it to the airport at right around 7 am.  We worked our way through security and to our gate.  This flight left at 10am, and landed in Barcelona, Spain shortly after 11am.  We had ABSOLUTELY no wiggle room in the schedule, as the ship sails from port at 4pm and the last airport to ship transfer left the airport at 2pm.  With a few showers in the Charles de Gaulle area, we prayed for no delays.

The flight went off without incident, even with a 10 minute holding pattern we were put in over Barcelona due to air traffic.  We made it in plenty of time.  We picked up our checked bags, then easily found our transfer just outside of baggage claim.  We rode a motor coach to the Port de Barcelona, and were dropped off right at the Holland America Cruise terminal.  It was unfortunate we didn't get to see any of Barcelona, will have to save that for another trip...

We boarded without incident, learning that the ship was fully booked and on schedule.  We had booked an interior stateroom, and though we hoped for a magical upgrade, none was to be had.  Oh well, don't plan on spending that much time in the room anyway!

We dropped our bags off in our staterooms and explored the ship, picking up a late lunch at the 9th floor Lido buffet.  The Holland America Nieuw Amsterdam is a 5 year old ship with a capacity of 2100 guests.  It has 11 floors.  Our stateroom was on the 7th floor, near the middle/back of the ship, room 7096.

We had the mandatory safety boat gathering, and then we sat on deck and watched Barcelona fade away into the distance.

Adios, Barcelona!  We saw many other cruise ships at port, including the HUGE Allure of the Seas (Royal Caribbean), which to compare - has a capacity of 6300 passengers!

Relaxing at last!!!  AAAHHH. 

I'm pretty sure he was trying to nap when I wanted a photo.

After Barcelona faded out of sight, we unpacked a bit, decided to sign up for unlimited laundry so we could relax and not be washing clothes in the sink (I agreed to forfeit alcoholic drinks, it was that important to me!), and then we ate a nice dinner in the main restaurant.  At this meal, I aspirated on a roasted cherry tomato.  Consequences forthcoming.

Our first sunset.  A serene setting.

The next morning, we were still sailing toward our first port of call, St. Tropez, France.  Chris had meetings in the morning, so I got up and ate breakfast early at the buffet and read a book.  I was beginning to not feel so well, so I went back to the stateroom to sleep a little longer.  I woke up before lunch, and met Chris in the Lido for a quick lunch before our first excursion: Tastes of Provence.

The large ship couldn't pull into the small port at St. Tropez, so we dropped anchor in the harbor and "tendered" people to shore using 3 lifeboats.  A small dock folded out of the hold of the ship, and we walked out a door and stepped onto the lifeboats, which would hold 85-100 people each. 

A loaded tender headed for shore.

After making it to shore, we got on a motor coach and drove around quaint St. Tropez, which is small, about 6,000 permanent residents.  We drove by huge olive trees; our guide told us that the trees trunks grow 1 cm a year, so many of the trees we saw were centuries old.

The climate surprised me, was more rocky and dry soil than I expected for the famed Provence area.  We drove up to a tiny hilltop village called Gassin.  It was very old and picture perfect.

Here, we learned a bit about the products of the region: wine, olives, and lavender.  I bought a sachet and soap from a nearby vendor.  

They grew like weeds here.  Sometimes it looked like people planted grapes on trellises above their patios just for shade.

The views from this hilltop village were amazing.

Really like this photo!

The tree in the foreground is an olive.  They were easy to distinguish from their greyish green leaves.

Next, we drove to a nearby winery, Bertaud Belieu, where we saw how the process works and were allowed to taste three wines that they produced there: white, rose and red.  The rose wines are distinctive for the area, and it was our favorite.

Tasting.  A fun day.

We bought a sparkling wine to take back to the ship, corkerage free.  We re-boarded (using the tenders again), and ate dinner in the main restaurant.  We rested in the room for a while and then decided to go to the evening comedy show, which was just alright.  By then, I was beginning to feel pretty bad, so I just went to sleep, hoping I would feel better in the morning.

Paris Day 4 - Versailles

Today, we actually slept in, which was nice.

A quick word about jet lag.  We've always traveled west, to Hawaii has been our largest time change.  Traveling east turns out to be a tad harder.  Jet lag hit us hard on the 2nd and 3rd days on the ground in Europe.  I felt tired, grumpy and I had no appetite at all.  I basically had to force myself to eat.  Sleeping was a struggle, with multiple nighttime wakings.  But by today, day 4, I finally was beginning to feel normal.

I had intended us to be at Versailles early to beat the Saturday crowds, but that's ok.  We got around and caught breakfast just as they were closing, then set out down the streets of Paris with our umbrellas. A light sprinkle had begun to fall, and I had one umbrella.  Luckily, the hotel gave us another. Above, Chris is walking ahead of me down Rue de Rivoli.

We walked to the nearest RER train station, and settled in for the 40-45 min ride SW to Versailles.

Versailles, probably considered a suburb of Paris, is historically important for many reasons, but primarily it was a show of opulence and power, built by King Louis XIV, and added onto by Louis XV and Louis XVI.  It was also the site of the signing of the Treaty of Versailles, which ushered in peace after WWI. 

We exited the train station in Versailles and were a little disappointed that the rain hadn't stopped.  But we trudged through it to the palace.
 

Still smiling

 As we approached the grand cobblestone courtyard in front of the palace, we saw the line formed for entry, and were further disappointed...

Luckily, we made it through this line in about 35-40 min and got inside.  Hot on our series of Rick Steve's audio tours, we loaded up the Versailles tour and began exploring.

The gardens, photo taken from an inside window.  There are 250 acres of sublime gardens, fountains and sculptures on the compound.  We had hoped to tour them but opted not do due to the rain.  :(

The overall feel of Versailles is extravagance.  Each room seems more impressive than the last.  Gold leaf, filigree, murals depicting French victories, angels deifying French leaders, marble busts, crystal chandeliers... it goes on and on. 

Portrait of Louis XIV

Glorious in battle, conquering all enemies.

The famous Hall of Mirrors, where the treaty was signed.  This room was magnificent.  240 ft long, 33 ft wide.

Portrait of Marie Antoinette

After touring the State Apartments, King's Apartments, and the Queen's Bedchamber, we left the palace grounds to go search for lunch.

Versailles is a cute town once you get away from the tourist-y palace.  It feels like a community where I could easily live.  I had researched and found a cafe that I wanted to go to for lunch.  We were having trouble finding it, so we stopped twice to ask directions from locals.  We used broken French, but seemed to get our ideas across.  In the end, we found it.

L'Instant Fraicheur is located on a tiny alleyway in Versailles, and as we entered, the owner greeted us with a handshake and a smile.  He seated us, then explained the menu in English.  We ordered, and enjoyed fantastic and CHEAP food.  It was a highlight of the day.

Afterwards, we made our way back to the train station, then the hotel, and began packing for the next leg of our journey: a flight from Paris to Barcelona, and transportation to the ship for our 12 day Mediterranean cruise.