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Sailing from Roma to Napoli! |
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Written by Keith Rhoades
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Saturday, 03 October 2009 |
WEll, I am splurging and purchased 120 minutes of internet time while I at sea...so I will keep it short. I am so happy and at peace. We got to the port in Cevitaccia and there was no line to get on the ship. We got right on and the ship is absolutely luxurious. This is by far the biggest and most luxurious cruise ship I've been on. Our luggage got to our room, we unpacked, and then toured the ship...checked out all the lounges, casino, gym facilities, etc. We then had to do our Emergency life jacket practice and then we went to our first dinner...had grilled snapper! So now getting caught up on internet stuff and then heading to the casino. Tomorrow morning we arrive in Naples. Outside is absolutely gorgeous...full moon shining off the meditteranean sea....warm weather, stars in the sky.....The more I taste luxury the more I want and the harder it will be to go back to the days of backpacking and hostels.
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Written by Keith Rhoades
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Friday, 02 October 2009 |
After I wrote you all last night, Craig and I went for a walk to the famous Trevi Fountain which I had never seen at night...it was beautiful all lit up at night. We went and had Gelato and then I was exhausted and got back to the St. Regis and passed out at 9 pm.
The next thing I knew it was 7 am and the alarm was going off. We got ready and headed out for coffee and croissants and then decided to take the subway up to the vatican. Its always an adventure using public transportation but we managed just fine and go the vatican at 9:15 for our 9:30 tour. I had been to St. Peters before in 2001 but missed the vatican museum and sistine chappel because the line was too long. Again the line was a 3 hours wait..but luckily we had previously arranged a private tour so we didnt have to wait. The tour was nearly 4 hours long....it is the 2nd largest art collection after the Louvre in Paris! I learned so much about Michaelangelo and Rafael that admire them even more than I did before. To see the Sistine Chapel was incredible and they recently restored it to it glory and color...was magnificient. The collection of ancietn greco roman art and sculptures were wonderful...and it helped me appreciate it more having travelled to Turkey..ephesus..pompeii, istanbul, troy before so i could better understand the antiquities. The life of Michaelangelo complete fascinates me...genius.
After the tour of the galleries we went to St. Peters basillica. Believe it or not...it was very hot here today...and to visit the vatican you have to wear pants and more formal clothing so I was getting very hot. After we toured the Basillica we went for a very late lunch of pizza followed by more gelato. Got back a while ago and Craig is taking a nap so Im doing my internet stuff and I think we are heading out later back to Trevi Fountain and possibly the Coloseum and Forum tonight. We still have some time tomorrow morning as we dont head to the cruise terminal until 2 pm.
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Written by Keith Rhoades
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Thursday, 01 October 2009 |
It is 5:30 pm here in Rome....It is hard to believe that I am actually over in Europe. I flew yesterday from LA to Atlanta where I met up with Craig. Had lunch and then got on our 9.5 hour flight to Rome. For some reason it was a long 9 hour flight. I never thought we were going to get here. We arrived this morning at 9 am, had to clear customs and get our transportation to the St. Regis in central Rome. The hotel is absolutely luxurious! After we got checked in we went for a walk and then had lunch at a little cafe on a side street. I just love Italy..Europe...sitting in an outdoor cafe, sipping espresso and chatting about all kinds of stuff.
We got back to our room and Craig was tired and wanted to take a nap....but not me....go go go. I changed and took a shower and went to the Presidential palace, The Trevi Fountain, and just wandered around. It is hard to believe I was here before and I actually felt a little sad when I got here thinking of all that has happened in the 10 years since I was last hear. Plus, the 2nd time you visit a place it just doesn't seem to have the impact and awe as it does the first time. But each trip is different.
Of course, it wouldn't be an adventure without a little drama. In the past, I have always been able to use my ATM card to get cash. While I was out I went to the ATM machine and it said card rejected. I went to 6 different ATM machines and they all rejected my card and said Not Valid. I went into the bank and they said I had to get prior approval to use it international before I left the states. I couldn't even get a cash advance. I came all the way back to the hotel and booted up my cell phone and called Chase...luckily they were open and they put me through to fraud protection. They authorized me to use my card so I then went back to the bank and was able to get some Euros though that cell phone call is going to cost me a pretty penny.
We off to go grab dinner and hopefully gelato. Tomorrow we do the tour of the Vatican and Cistine Chapel.
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