Rome
For my visit to Rome we only had one day and we had the world wonder tour. Royal Caribbean arranged for us to depart early in the morning for the one and a half hour drive to Rome so we could explore on our own before the world wonder tour.
We arrived at Piazza del Popolo and plotted a course to several sites. From the plaza, we took a taxi to Vatican City and visited St. Peter’s Square and saw Saint Peter’s Basilica. This church is the largest Christian church in the world. We weren’t able to go inside but we were able to walk around and see all of the amazing statues and decor. and it was very emotional for me to be standing in that square, the place where the pope says mass and people gather to be blessed by the pope.
From Vatican city we walked to the Pantheon and here we walked around to see to take pictures. There were a lot of people there. The Pantheon is the best preserved building from Ancient Rome and it has the largest concrete dome in the world.
After visiting the pantheon, we continued our walk and went to the Trevi fountain. We were very lucky because that particular day they were cleaning the fountain and many people did not get to see it running. We arrived after it was turned back on and after some pictures, I threw a coin over my shoulder. The guide told us that you had to hold the coin in your right hand and throw it over your left shoulder. I did my best. Did you know over 3000 euros per day are thrown in the fountain!!
Next we headed to the Spanish steps. The steps are the longest and widest steps in all of Europe. Metaphorically, the steps also represent a linking between the upper French community and the Roman and people community.
On our way back to Piazza del Popolo to meet our guide we stopped for some delicious gelato.
Our next stop was to meet up with the rest of the groups and enjoy a delicious lunch at a palace. As we entered into the palace. There were traditional guards who greeted us and, also some very traditional m
Ravenna is one of the new places cruise ships are docking now that Venice will not let the larger ships into their ports. We have an overnight in this port. For the first day, I am taking a tour to the Ferrari Museum in Maranello.
We drove out to the town and rode through the area of Modena seeing the original Ferrari factory and some of the office building. This town is not only home to Ferrari, but also other great cars like Maserati and Lamborghini to name a few. The car that we had (360 Modena) was named after this town.
We then drove to Maranello and saw the current factory before arriving at the museum. We had a museum guide who took us through the museum and shared the history of Ferrari and told us the stories about each of the cars and engines on display from the original model (125 S) all the way through the F8. Each evolution of the engine and body type had a story. Did you know if you own enough Ferrari’s, you can even have them make a custom Ferrari just for you? Yup, we learned about that process and saw one of the mock ups.
We saw the actual Hypercar which won the 24 hours at Le Mans in 2023. It was all dirty and beat up. Ferrari has a long history participating in the Le Mans races and has won 11 times. The final room had the history of their F1 racing cars. Jeff always enjoyed watching the formula 1 races and he was a Team Ferrari supporter.
I think the trip to the museum inspired our bus driver to drive the 1.5 hours back to the port as if he was in a Ferrari!
It was a fun day seeing the Ferrari history, I couldn’t help but think how much Jeff would have enjoyed the museum and I am sure we would have spent a lot more time looking at each car!
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Halfway!
We marked our halfway day with a cake and party. Hard to believe the cruise is half over, but half of the world left to see!
Next up Tokyo Disneyland. I headed to the monorail for an easy and quick trip over to Tokyo Disneyland. What surprised me about Disneyland was how it was all about Donald Duck. He was everywhere! There long lines to get a picture taken in front of the Donald displays. I emerged from the covered Main Street, called World Bazaar to see Cinderella’s castle…very magical!
The park is condensed over a much smaller piece of land than California and Florida’s parks, but many of the classic rides are there and the park uses the spoke and wheel format with many of the same themed lands. This park was also very, very crowded, but I enjoyed several rides and also watched the Jamboree Mickey Dance party. I did a little bit of shopping as well. In the evening, I was able to watch the Electric Dreamlights parade. I have always loved the nighttime parades.
After the parade, I headed back to the ship and arrived just in time to enjoy the folkloric show from a local Japanese dance company.
What a magical day!
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My last stop in South Korea, was Seoul. There is so much to do in Seoul, it would have been a good place to spend the night. Some people went on a tour to the DMZ, but I decided to take a tour to see the city of Seoul. It was a tough choice.
My tour in Seoul was to see some of the city highlights and it did not disappoint. The drive to the city was about 1.5 hours from the port as we docked in Incheon. Once again the Cherry Blossoms were in bloom which created amazing views and framed the roadways and the buildings.
We first stopped at Bukchon Hanok Village which is a neighborhood where all the houses are in the style they were back when the palace was in use. The houses were for relatives of the royal family or high ranking officials. Descendants of these two groups still live in the houses. The streets were very narrow and very steep.
Our second stop was the Gyeongbokgung Palace. This palace was built in 1392 and rebuilt in 1867 after it was destroyed. It was rebuilt again after ware destroyed it. Since the early 1990s, it has been slowly restored to its original form and style and has been protected as a museum site. There were numerous buildings on the property each with a purpose, residences, banquet hall, official buildings, etc. There were many people dressed in traditional clothing in the palace taking pictures, not only was it fun, but admission was free if you dressed up.
We then went and enjoyed a nice ginseng chicken soup lunch at a local restaurant before heading to the old market street which had many antique stores as well as vintage clothing stores. We did a little shopping before heading back to the ship.
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My next stop - Taipei, Taiwan. The ship actually docked in Keelung which is about an hour from Taipei. I took a small group tour to see some of the sights of the city it was an overcast day so visibility was limited throughout the morning.
As we got off the ship, we were greeted by a local dance group. These young children were between 9 and 13, boy could they dance. They were very excited to have us stop and watch as well as talk them.
As we drive to our first stop, I noticed how clean and manicured the streets and medians were kept.
The first stop on the tour was the National Chiang Kai-shek Memorial. Here we watched the changing of the guards, a very solemn ceremony. We also walked through the gardens followed by a little time in Liberty square which was flanked by the symphony house and the concert house.
As we drove to our next stop, I was able to get some scenery pictures of Taipei. We stopped at the town/area of Jiufen which was the inspiration for the movie Spirited Away. Here we went to the local market street and had a delicious lunch with different local foods. Most of the foods were not for me.
Then we went t to the area of town where you could release a lantern. This was called Shifen Old Street. It was a bunch of shops along a railroad track where you could release your lantern. However the tracks are active so when the whistle blows everyone jumps out of the way of the train.
I bought a lantern with my friend, Sabrina and we each wrote in two of the sides. The lantern has four sides with different colors, each color represents meaning like good health (Red), Money (Yellow), Bliss (Pink), Sucess (Green). We wrote our wishes on the lantern and then light it and released it. Very fun. I wished for health and happiness for my family and my grandchildren along with a smooth delivery and healthy baby for Jessica and Trevor. I even tried to write some of it in Cantonese.
It was a long but very fun day.
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Hong Kong is an island city with so much history and a lot of people living in a small area. I took three tours in Hong Kong.
The first tour was a dumpling making class. Chef Faliz first took us to a local wet market. Each area/neighborhood in Hong Kong has a wet market. This market has different types of fresh meat and fish as well as fresh fruits, herbs and vegetables. She shared with us what you can buy for different types or meals.
Next we went to her restaurant and get ready to make the dumplings. We nixed and kneaded the dough, then made the filling with pork, Chinese cabbage and salt.
The chef than showed us how to fill and fold the dumplings. She showed us two different ways to fold the dumplings and she encouraged us to try some other folders. We made 10 each. After cooking them in boiling water, I enjoyed eating them with some chili oil, chili paste and soy sauce.
They were delicious but very filling. I will definitely try these again with different types of fillings. This was a great way to spend my first morning in Hong Kong - learning something that everyone in the country learns.
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Another World Wonder Day - this time a natural world wonder, the Great Barrier Reef. We arrived in Yorkeys knob which is just north of Cairns, Australia and our reef boat picked us up right at the ship. After about an hour or so ride, we arrived at one of the reef pontoons. This was a floating area with picnic tables, snorkeling and scuba gear, an underwater viewing area, a glass bottom boat, semi submersed sub and of course a snorkeling area. It even hard a cafeteria area and a bar.
In addition, the tour company had marine biologists, snorkel and scuba diving guides, lifeguards, cultural guides and many more.
Those who know me well know that I don’t like swimming in the ocean, but I knew I had to snorkel here. I signed up for a thirty minute guided tour of the area where a marine biologist took four of us around the snorkel area to explain to us what we were seeing. It was well worth it and then I snorkeled with my snorkel buddy to take a closer look at all the coral and the fish. All I can say is I am so glad I did.
We wore the skin suits to make sure we did not get stung by any jellyfish and to protect from sunburn.
After we snorkeled for a while, I enjoyed some lunch and then wanted into the viewing area and took the last semi-sub ride and got to see a turtle and a jelly fish along with several other fish.
We learned about the different stages of life on the reef. I would have liked to stay longer.
On the return trip, we learned about reef conservation as well as some demonstrations of indigenous instruments. We also saw a crown of thorns starfish. These venomous animals eat the reef so biologists try to remove them when they are young and small to protect the reef.
A great day which ended with a gorgeous moon sliver.
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So many things to see in the Bay of Islands and in New Zealand. I really just had a taste of the country as we did visit the Southern big island of the country.
Today I started out with a drive through the countryside to get to the Glowworm cave. In the way in, we saw an eel, it was quite large. We were not allowed to take pictures in the cave so I grabbed a photo from the internet to show. They looked like LED lights. They live for only 12 months and it is interesting to see how they catch their food (they eat mites and mosquitoes).
Next stop was the town of Kawakawa where the trains right down the main street, I enjoyed a delicious treat from the local bakery where different people from the town bake goods. There was also a famous bathroom which was quite fancy with the tile work.
Next stop was the Te Waimate Mission. This mission includes a building that was the second oldest in the island. It had and interesting story of survival. It is also the place where several tribes signed the Treaty of Waitangi which is New Zealand’s founding document in February 1840. There is also a garden picture (with the red structures) where the rest of the tribes signed the treaty. At the mission, I got to feed the cows.
The property also has a small school and a quaint church with a very old organ in it.
We then made quick stops at a water fall and bay overlook where I could get some good pictures before heading back to the tender fir the tide back to my ship.
One thing I noticed was how many shades of green could be found on the island and how hilly the whole area appeared. A great visit to a wonderful country.
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As we head toward Hawaii and I am enjoying 5 days at sea, I thought I would share a fun fact about the flags which fly on the mast when the ship is in a port. As we arrive in a port, the flag for the country we are visiting is displayed on the mast and the flag for the ship’s registry is displayed at the aft of the ship.
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Look at this cliff side hotel near Ollantaytamba. You have to rock climb to get to the rooms. They have a small area where they serve dinner and breakfast. After breakfast, you zip line to leave. Would you want to stay here? Maybe this is on your bucket list!
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There is a traveling piano man who shows up all around the ship. He is called The Stowaway as his story is he snuck on the ship and thus has to move around. I have seen him in the elevator and different elevator lobbies. Yesterday I saw him on my way into the Schooner Lounge. I listened to him play for a bit as he is very talented and then commented on all the cool stickers he has on his piano. He let me add the sticker for Chile and then gave me a bag full of goodies. A fun surprise!
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