Goodbye Greece, on to Bulgaria!

Hey everyone,
I am now back on the ship, and will be for the next two days on our voyage to Bulgaria. Greece was great, the waters were crystal clear and the people were, for the most part, extremely friendly. The city of Athens itself was very dirty though, with graffiti everywhere, which was fairly disappointing.
The first day in Greece, we got tickets for a hop on hop off bus that would take us from the city of Piraeus, where our ship was, into the city of Athens. We first went to the Acropolis which was really interesting and reminded me of some of the ruins I saw in Rome, just different column designs. Getting up the hill wasn't very fun however, the ground was very uneven, slippery, straight up hill and 100 degrees out. It was definitely worth it though to say I have seen it :) After the Acropolis we went to the new Acropolis museum which held many artifacts from the Acropolis that they have preserved, including the original statues that were in the front of the Parthenon. After the museum we found an authentic little Greek restaurant where I had my first authentic greek salad, that would be the first of about 10 greek salads I would have on the trip! Obviously, I thoroughly enjoyed it, in fact, all of the greek food was so delicious. It is always hard to get on the ship and have salad pasta and potatoes after the flavorful food of the ports. Next we went to the flea market where I got some handmade leather sandals! They are super cute and I wanted them all! Then we got back on the hop on hop off bus and saw more of the city from the top of the bus. We went back to the ship for dinner and then started packing for Mykonos. We went to bed fairly early, as we had to wake up at 3am to catch our flight since the airport was an hour away and starting at 5am cabs were going on a 48 hour strike, so we knew we had to be at the airport before that happened.
We got to the airport early enough that I was able to skype with Kyle, and then the family. It was great to see all of your faces! By the time we got on the plane, the sun was starting to rise and we were able to see the sunrise over the islands since we never got high enough in the air to lose sight of the ocean. When we got to Mykonos we were able to put our bags in the hotel lobby and go to the beach until it was time to check in. We spent the day walking around the island near the beach, and laying in the sun. The water was so clear that we were able to see the fish swimming around by our feet when we were in the ocean. More greek salads and more beach time later, two nights in Mykonos and we were heading back to Athens.
The plane took off a half hour late and then when we got to Athens we found out the taxis were still on strike so we had to take a bus back which took an hour and a half. Then we had to walk for a half hour "shlepping" our stuff around only to get to the ship to realize that there was a huge line to get back on because there were only two people working to look through luggage.
So... A half hour flight followed by a 20 min taxi turned into a half hour wait, half hour flight, hour and a half bus ride, half hour walk, and a 45 min standing period just to get on the ship. We should have been back by 9 at the latest instead of 12, so we even got to see some people going out to bars as we were coming in with luggage.
The last day in Athens I had an FDP for class which was attending a lecture on Athens pride, and organization advocating gay equality. It was a really interesting presentation and it was sad to hear some of the stories about how the gay community is still treated today by their family, friends, and strangers by means of people spitting on them, being beaten or cut off from the family, and getting turned away in restaurants. After the lecture we got on the hop on hop off bus again and went and strolled Athens for a few more hours before heading back to the ship to leave for Bulgaria.
Bulgaria is probably the place I am looking the least forward to because no one has seemed to be able to tell me what to do there except lay on the beach, which to do that for an entire port seems like a waste of experience, so if anyone knows anything about Varna, Bulgaria, please share! I am doing a trip through the ship that is a dinner and dance show where there are fire dancers and breathers, so that should be fun!
Miss and love you all, hope everyone is doing well.

Croatia!

Hi everyone! I am going to try and get all caught up in this blog so that I am prepared to write for more after Greece!
Croatia was so incredible! It was my favorite country with Italy being a close second.
The first day in Croatia we woke up and went walking around the first half of the city and found a cute sit down restaurant to have lunch at. I wanted to have a salad but when I asked what was in each one the ingredients included pineapple and mayonnaise....no thank you! So I ended up just getting a grilled chicken breast. The conversion was really difficult to get a grip of because it is a 5 to 1 ratio so my glass of water was 20 kuna and my chicken was 50 kuna, but when you get a bill that says 70 Kuna you start to freak out until you realize that is only 14 dollars. After that I went to a village folk show that was...well, not worth my time or money.
The next day I went to Kotor, Montenegro which is a little old village in the mountains of Montenegro. It was a charming little stone walled village but the most amazing thing was all of the mountains. There was literally mountain behind mountain, so everywhere you turned there were mountains. After touring the town of Kotor we drove up one of the mountains for a great view of the Country, the roads were so narrow and so windy I didn’t know if I was more carsick or more nervous at the fact we were on the side of a cliff! After that, we drove down the mountain and went to lunch at a little outdoor restaurant, toured the beach side town for a half an hour, then came back to the ship. It was a lot of driving but it was totally worth it for the views (and to say I went to another Country). That night we went out and a friend and I decided to go back early and grab something to eat on the way. Unfortunately everything was closed so people told us to keep going and there was one a bit further. We kept walking and checking and every place had just closed, until we finally got to one that had a big chunk of dough sitting on the counter. The man told us three items we had to choose from and we only understood one which was “like a pizza, bread, tomato, cheese and ham” we said ok we will take two of those. By tomato we soon found out he meant ketchup, when we realized it was ketchup we were grossed out at first but were so hungry that we ate it anyway. I dont know if it was actually good or if we were just really hungry but it was SO good!
Wednesday we had a boat tour planned with about 13 of us that took us to three different islands. We ended up getting the boat to ourselves because we had a big enough group. It was so great to have the whole boat to ourselves, especially since we only paid 50 bucks each! After the first island, we went to the second and the Captain took us to his home where his wife prepared lunch for us. It was such an amazing experience. We started off with fresh homemade bread along with thin ham and cheese from a local farm. It was all the best of all those things I have ever had! Next they brought us soup, which I had a hard time even thinking about eating because it was so hot and humid out. It was like a minestrone  soup to the max because it was loaded with fresh vegetables. Then they brought us a place of lettuce, tomato slices and cucumber all from there garden. After this they brought us out fresh steamed mussels which they had caught earlier that day down at the ocean! The mussels were seasoned with olive oil and fresh tomato. The next course was the main course and we had fresh fish and homemade pasta, it was all so fresh and flavorful! Then, as if we were not stuffed enough, they brought us fresh doughnut holes that they made. We were all so full, but it was such an incredible meal! While we were eating our desert our boat captain came out and started playing an accordion and singing. It was such an authentic experience and probably one the best memories I have made yet. We then went to the next island for an hour and then returned back to Dubrovnik.
The next day I had an amazing time with my friend Ashley. The two of us decided to wake up at 8:00 and go see Dubrovnik for the last day. We went into the heart of the city and took a gondola ride (kind of like a chair lift) up to the top of a mountain to get a view of Dubrovnik. We got some beautiful shots of the city and one of the islands. Then we walked around the city a little bit and wandered upon the port where we decided to take a ferry to Lokrum island which is an island that is a natural reservation, so there were no houses on the entire island. The island was also inhabited by peacocks which were everywhere! It was a lot of fun to walk around and see peacocks at each turn. It reminded me of a park my Grandma used to take me to when I was younger that had peacocks all over the place. After Lokrum we went back to Dubrovnik and walked around the town and then had some authentic kebabs which are not like the kebabs us Americans think of. I kebab is a sandwich that has three types of meat on it (one was veal!!!) and then fresh vegetables, and cheese. It sounded disgusting and I tried to order it without the veal but apparently the meat was all combined already so I decided to plunge in to the deep in and try it. It was surprisingly really good! After that we walked to an internet cafe where I was able to skype my mom before the ship sailed.
Yesterday I did a bridge tour where I was able to see how they operate and steer the ship. The best part of it was that I got to sit in the captains chair and take a picture :) We get to Greece tomorrow, so I will update you with more after that!
Love to all,
Lauren

Rome

Sorry it is taking me a bit of time to update my blog! There is always something going on or things to do. Here is the remainder of Italy:
        Mom and I woke up and walked to the Colosseum to meet our tour guide Stephania, to begin our all day tour of Rome. When we got there we were greeted by Stephania and found out that she thought it was just Mom getting the tour, and didn’t realize there were two of us. We had to go get another ticket for me, and then we began our tour of the Colosseum. We went inside and I was in awe, it was so amazing to see it all and realize that so long ago gladiators fought there and to imagine the thousands of people that packed the entire place, and the roar of the sound of the cheers that there must have been. I thought it was especially interesting that they had part of a wooden stage over the basement area, and then the rest of the ground exposed the basement. Because we had this view, it made it easier to imagine how it would have looked just seeing the wooden stage with the dirt on it (what the spectator would have seen) as well as where the Gladiators waited to fight and where the animals were kept. It is amazing that the Colosseum is still standing today after earthquakes and stone robbers.
        After the Colosseum, we walked through the ancient Roman ruins, and were told the history behind the pieces we saw, what we found the most interesting is that all of the architecture and sculptures were created before there were power tools, or tractors, or any type of machinery that we now depend on to create anything. After the Roman ruins, we went to the pantheon, where we saw more sculptures in a beautiful building with an oculus, which was a big hole, like a skylight in the roof, but it didn’t have any glass protecting it from the building, so there were drain in the building for when it rains! Next we were off to the Trevi fountain. It was a lot bigger than I expected and was very beautiful. Of course Mom and I had to throw a coin in. Turns out, one coin means you will return there, two means you will fall in love there, and three coins means you will get married there. Of course we each only threw one in after discovering this :) Then we went and had lunch at a little to go pizza place. Mom and I had the best pizza we had ever had! It was flatbread with thick bright red slices of tomato, mozzarella, and basil. After it was toasted they put olive oil on it...let me just say BUONISIMO! After our amazing lunch we went to the Vatican. Words can not even explain what a labyrinth of beauty and intricacy the pieces were that we saw inside. Beautiful statues made of various rock and bronze, tapestries that you could stare at for an hour and still not see all of the detail that went in to it (which were all done by hand!) paintings, and artifacts. But of course the most spectacular thing in the Vatican museums was the Sistine chapel. We both teared up at the marvel it was and the stories of Bible the paintings showed. We stared at the ceiling for over an hour and a half and know that there was still so much we hadn’t seen. If you have never been you absolutely must go and stand in awe of the magnificent ceiling and wall that was all painted by hand, by one man, who had to lie on his back to create it. When we left we went to St. Peters Basilica, which to me, was the most spectacular thing I had seen yet. This was largely in part to the time of day we went. We went when the sun was setting, so the light was trickling through the church windows and lighting up the place in a way that was so magical that I don’t know how anyone could see anything so moving and not believe in God and Heaven, I felt like I was able to experience a piece of it right then. There were beautiful sculptures that were over 15ft tall, they were so magnificent. After St. Peters Basilica our tour was over and we were so glad that we decided to have the private tour guide because we were able to have a personal relationship with her and ask her as many questions as we wanted, plus we were able to go at a pace we wanted.
Next we took a metro to the Spanish steps, walked up them, and people watched for a little bit. We left to go to our hotel to get ready for dinner but on our way we passed a restaurant with a display of home made pastas in front. We decided that was the place for us so we went in. The manager was standing at the front of the store and we listened to him singing Italian songs to intrigue people in. It was a very authentic Italian experience and we had a very good pasta dish with fresh tomatoes, home made pasta and olive oil. The power went off three times we were there which we thought was very entertaining.
Next we were off to find some gelato, our last one together :( Then we went back to the hotel and went to sleep. The next morning I woke up with Mom and had breakfast with her before she took a cab to the airport. I cried of course! We had such a wonderful time, thank you so much Mom for coming, Dad for letting her, and Uncle Bud for watching the kids :)
That day I took a metro back to the Spanish steps and walked up and down Via Condotti looking at all the shops there were. Then I wandered the streets some more and saw many more statues and churches on various streets before I went back to the hotel to get my things. When I got to the train station, there were two trains leaving for Civitavecchia. They were both leaving within 20 minutes of each other so I chose the later train which was 10 Euros less. I soon found our just why it was cheaper! There was no air conditioning and they oversold tickets so many people (including me) were standing. So there I was, packed in a train, with no air conditioning, with a 30 some pound backpack on in 90 so humid degree weather. After I got off I had to walk for 15 minutes to get to the shuttle for the ship. Needless to say, as soon as I got to the ship I took a shower and went to bed. Italy was so amazing, next stop Croatia (which I actually just left) so I will be reporting on that as soon as I can!
Love to all,
Lauren

More on Italy

Hi everyone!


Monday was another busy day. Mom couldn't sleep past 3:30 so at 5:00am she decided that it was time for us to wake up and leave for the day! We were rolling by 6:00. We caught a boat to the train station and bought tickets to Verona. Mom told the man we needed tickets to Verona, he said when, and she said "non so" and he said ok, two minutes train 7!!! So we ran to the platform and just barely made the train. 
When we got to Verona we checked in to our hotel and found out that we ended up getting the room we requested which was the only room in the hotel with a cute little balcony looking over piazza erbe. After checking in, we went to the coolest little coffee bar and had an authentic Italian experience of "due cappuccino and croissants", at the bar (meaning standing at the bar) that's the way it's done. After our cappuccino we went to the arena, duomo, another church, and Juliet's house. Mom and I both touched juliets boob to keep our love! We had a nice lunch in the piazza erbe near our hotel. Afterwards we walked to a castle and it was amazing, spectacular views of the city that we hadn’t even seen yet, and lots of fun pictures on the castle wall. By then both of us were in so much back pain we struggled back for a short rest. Then back out for a little shopping and gelato :) We went out at about 9:00 for dinner at the best place. We had the best pizza and some yummy wine. Then we went to the piazza bra (outside the arena) and strolled, people watched, listened to Ricky Martin sing (he was at the arena) more gelato :) and then back to the room at 11/12 with another busy day ahead.

Tuesday morning we headed to Siena! When we got to the train station we found out that our trip was going to consist of getting on 3 different trains. We were a bit nervous because the train system was already confusing enough only having to worry about one train, let alone 3. Fortunately we made each of our trains and made it to Siena around noon. We met a girl a little younger than me at the train station that was heading in the direction of our hotel so she offered to walk with us and point it out. Our hotel was so quaint! It was a large home that the woman had inherited, which she turned into a bed and breakfast. Our room overlooked a little valley and made us feel like we were living the authentic Italian experience instead of the more touristy side. We went out to explore and find some food, by this time it was 2pm. We had three restaurants written down that had been recommended to us so we went in search of them. We soon found out that every single one closed down for a few hours between lunch and dinner, and we just so happened to go during that time. We found ourselves in Il Campo, which is a huge Piazza, and found a restaurant facing the open area so that we could enjoy our food and do some people watching. The food was pretty good there, but the best part of it was our location. It was such a beautiful day and it was so much fun sitting and visiting while watching all the different types of people around us. After lunch we went to see the Duomo which was so incredible and massive. All of the churches have so much detail to them! Siena is divided up into four or five major areas and we are in one, so that gives you an idea of how much there is to see and therefore how much we must have missed as well. The streets are just a little wider than Venice and not many cars. Lots of motor scooters you have to watch out for. The streets are also very steep, lots of up and down, and all cobblestone. It's wonderful. They are lined with private places and stores of all kinds. Beautiful hanging lanterns of assorted size, shape, and style and decorative doors all add to the charm. Swarms of people of all ages, babies to elderly, exude an energy that is both intoxicating and comforting. The campo is huge and surrounded by these amazing old buildings with so much detail and statues of all kinds. It makes you feel as though you are in an arena.  The campo is also a large sloping cobbled area surrounded by trattorias, pizzerias, and gelatorias filled with outside visitors. People play, sit, visit on the campo all day. That night, mom and I went back to one of the restaurants we had tried to go to earlier, and were so glad we did. It was this beautiful, almost cave like but in a good way, place and the owner was the host. He was very convincing when he told us, "madammosele, why do you not want to just relax?" we had pasta and wine and chatted from about 8:30 until 10:30 before heading out to stroll again. It was 11 when we returned to sit in the campo, with a gelato of course, and there were probably 500 people there, again all ages, sitting chatting, and enjoying the evening. At 12:30 we were finally heading to bed.

Wednesday morning mom and I were so excited to have our private tour of Tuscany! Our driver picked us up and we went driving through all sorts of back roads to see the more local side of Italy. We went to this little town that looked like a giant brick and stone wall from the outside. When we went inside we discovered that it was a little village that you wouldn’t even know existed if you just looked at the outside. We were amazed by how big the village was inside, with shops, restaurants, and homes. After that we went to Montachino for wine tasting at Brunello. We had some of the best wines we had yet there! The tasting room was located right inside a fortress that was beautiful. After the tasting we were able to go up on the walls and see the beautiful view of the country. I had the best pasta of my entire trip after that! Next we were off to another wine tasting and tour a winery. The most interesting part of this tasting is that we tasted olive oil, which our driver knew a lot about, so he told us how to do a proper olive oil tasting and spot a good olive oil from a bad one (who knew there was such a thing)!  Following this we drove to Orvietto, another quaint town, in which we went to see the Duomo, which our driver said was one of the most beautiful in the world, and it really was. It was so massive and there were mosaics all over the outside of the building. Mom then spotted someone who looked a lot like Sarah Jessica Parker, and it turns out, it WAS! I was so excited as she is one of my favorite actresses. I was able to snap a picture of her discretely, and mom was able to get one of me and her in the same frame. After seeing the town of Orvietto, we headed to the train station to go to Rome. The ride was only a little over an hour long so we got there by 8pm. We then walked to our hotel, unwilling to pay the 30 Euros that the cab drivers thought we would be naive enough to pay, which was only 10 blocks away. We were so exhausted that we just went to bed since we had another busy day planned for thursday with a private guide to show us all of Rome.

Will write about Rome later! Having a great time, miss you all!

Venice!

Ciao from Italy! Mom and I have been very busy doing so much I don’t even think I will be able to cover all of the good memories we have made.

Saturday the ship pulled in to Naples and I was so excited to get off the ship and get to my Mom in Venice. We were texting back and fourth once I got there and we both decided that going by air instead of train would get me there quicker and since it wasn’t too much more we decided to go with flying. I looked at prices online but since it was so close to the departure time we thought it made more sense to just go to the airport because maybe I could get on something sooner.

I went outside without a clue where to go and a man yelled taxi? I said yes! He then informed me that the taxi ride to the airport was 60 Euros...which is about $75/80! I said I can’t do that and asked where a bus was. He said he could go down to 50, I said that was still too much so he asked me what I wanted to pay. I said 30 Euros max and he started yelling to the other drivers to see if anyone was willing to take me for that much and one guy said yes! Off I was to the airport and for half the price they wanted.

When I got to the airport I went to the ticket stand and they told me that the plane that left the soonest was 400 Euro, the same flight I saw online for under $200. I then was in quest of internet to find and book the flight I originally saw. I found a computer that there was internet at, put in 10 Euro only to find out from some people I stopped, that the machine ate my money and there was nothing anyone could do about it because the airport was not in charge of the machines. I then decided to see if there was wifi that I could buy a day pass with. I found it, booked my ticket for the price I had originally seen, and was off! My flight to Rome was delayed 20 minutes and my flight from Rome to Venice was delayed 30 minutes, but I eventually made it there.

I then walked about 10 minutes with the 40lb backpack on, to the water taxi and took the hour water taxi to my Mom. I was so happy to see her waiting for me at the dock!! We walked to the hotel which was a quaint little place away from the hustle and bustle of the streets. We set my stuff down and went off to explore Venice. Venice is such an interesting city (its sinking!) the only taxis were water taxis, and the buildings were so tall that you could never figure out where you were going. Pair that with the fact that the streets were never ending and what you have are two mice in a maze in search of cheese, or in our case, PIZZA!

Unfortunately, the best luck with we had with food in Venice were two places that had pizza; and gelato from anywhere. The pasta didn’t seem fresh and the sauces were potently salty. We were bummed about the food but were not about to give up the search!

That night in Venice we took a water taxi from one side of town to the other and back again. It was neat to see the city lights from the water. Mom described it the best way, it felt like we were on a Disney ride! The buildings were all in the water with doors coming right up to the water, and all the buildings were tall, old, and beautiful. The sky was clear, the stars were sparkling it was all so magical!

The next morning we got up and went to explore some more. After roaming the streets for a few hours we decided to splurge and go on a gondola ride! We went by Cassanova and Marco Polos house. It was a very neat experience and we were both very glad that we decided to do it. Venice was great, there was so much to see and there never seems to be enough time to see it all. We got to bed around midnight, looking forward to our next adventure in Verona! Ciao for now!

The rest of Spain and Sea Olympics!

Spain was so much fun, I am so sad that it is already over. Let me just tell you about everything I did after Montserrat...

We had our first tapas after we all got back from our different day trips. We ordered two things we thought sounded good, and two things that the professor recommended and one liter of Sangria to split between 3 of us. The tapas were small portion appetizers and very interesting. One was chorizo, sausage with an interesting flavor to it, croquettas, which is bread and I think cheese that has been deep fried, bread and tomato, which I thought would taste like crostini and bruchetta, when really it was just a couple pieces of bread with a tomato rubbed on it, and a spanish omelet, which is potato and egg. We were glad we ordered them, to say that we did, but did not feel compelled to try them again during our trip.

That night we all went to a discoteca (dance club) and we waited until midnight because they said that the night life didn’t begin until 11:30. We soon found out that they weren’t joking. We got there and we were the 10th or so person in line, with no one else inside! It got very busy about an hour later and we soon learned that they do not seem to have a maximum capacity limit. None of us wanted to pay for the expensive taxi ride back so we walked the 2+ miles to the ship where we then watched the sunrise since it was so close to that time.

Tuesday, after not much sleep, we went out on Las Ramblas, a huge street that has every type of souvenir, store, person or outfit that you can think of. It took a few hours just to see a little bit of it. After we walked on Las Ramblas for a good 4-5 hours, we rushed back to the ship to get ready for the Flamenco show. The dinner was buffet style with plenty of options, they just were not labeled which made me a little hesitant. I stuck mostly to cheese and bread type items and some paella after I was told one of the items I thought looked good was rabbit. The show started after dinner in a quaint little theatre in the restaurant. We had front row seats which was really neat because we could watch how fast their feet were dancing, and when the women dancers would dance near us their dresses would hit our knees. Flamenco is a dance where the women do not need men and they tell you that through their dancing and singing. We had a really great time and I am so glad I made sure to include that in my trip.

Wednesday we went to lunch at a cute little restaurant we found down a small alley. There were about 10 of us together that day and after lunch we went to park juelle which is a “park” designed by Gaudi, a famous architect. The park was a large gravel area that was located on top of columns and cement so it felt like we were floating in the air. We were above all of Barcelona so we were able to get some really pretty pictures of the whole city. There were little vendors everywhere selling little interesting trinkets and there was even a live performance. The performance was by a man in leopard tights, high top shoes, a leather jacket, and guitar shaped sun glasses. He sang classic songs like Rock around the Clock, however he put them in a rock beat and threw in multiple unnecessary obscenities. After park juelle we went to Las Ramblas to explore some more. After another couple hours we still hadn’t seen all of the strip, but needed to get back to the ship to get ready for the “concert” (which was really just a house DJ playing music).

That night I never went to sleep, I just got back from the concert, got ready and went out again. That day I went on a hop on hop off bus with a friend where we were able to go all around the city and see the places we hadn’t been able to get to. I am really glad we did that because Barcelona is just so big it was impossible to see it in just 4 days. Time flew by, and before I knew it I was having to run to a cab to get back to the ship for an FDP (Faculty Directed Practica) on Doctors without borders, which I needed for class. As soon as that was over a basically went to sleep for the rest of the day and night.

The next day was Sea Olympics, in which we participated as a team with people from our deck against the other decks. We all were given a color to represent our “sea”, ours was green, and then there were different events through out the day that people participated in. Events included, jeopardy (which I competed in), tug o war, volleyball, soccer, pull ups, stand up comedy, musical chairs, poker, and synchronized swimming. The synchronized swimming was by far the most entertaining, especially when they consisted of the all male teams. One all male team performed to the song single ladies, in which they rolled up their shorts to be really short and right before they jumped in the pool they took their shirts off to reveal bikini tops they were wearing, it was extremely entertaining! After the long day we were all exhausted. I went to my room and packed for my week away from the ship in Italy, so excited to see my mom, that it was hard to fall asleep.