Thursday October 18, 2012

We woke up this morning in Naples, Italy for our last excursion day. Originally Jill & I were going to tour Naples and then take the train and tour Pompeii but after a long week we decided that we'd sleep in a little, eat breakfast and just go to Pompeii.

Upon exiting the boat Jill & I had to get through a bunch of pushy taxi drivers and peddlers trying to get all the tourists to purchase their nick-nacks. We eventually got to the metro-train that took us to the train station where we took a train to Pompeii.

While on the train the passengers were serenaded by two different accordion performances, one was a 12 yr old and the other was a teenager with his friend that played the accompanying radio and tambourine. Both groups would play a little and then walk through the train asking for money. Of all the ports we visited Naples felt the worst off. Once we got to Pompeii we were greeted with more vendors calling out to the tourists to buy their books, tours, food, souvenirs, etc. at this point I was getting annoyed and was looking forward to being back on the boat but we pressed on because we both really wanted to see the buried  city. Once we got inside the site things were finally calmer, we got our map and description booklet and started through the city. We got to the end of the first street and realized that we were trying to look at each individual house in the entire city. At that rate we'd never get through Pompeii, so we set a course of visiting the larger sites only (theaters, bath houses, Colosseum  temples, and larger houses) and just glance at the smaller houses as we walked by them. It was remarkable that as old as the city was that the tile flooring and painted walls in many houses was still intact, and it was incredible. The way the ancient people incorporated the ductwork within the walls of their bathhouse to heat rooms was great (Jill didn't appreciate it as much as I did though). The ancient theater was in great shape too and is still used today for open air concerts and performances. And Mount Vesuvius on the horizon was spectacular. We only spent about 5 hours in Pompeii but as with all the other stops on this trip, we could've easily spent more time there. Our train ride back to Naples seemed a lot faster and when we got back to the port all the vendors and taxi drivers were got. Between the port entrance and our boat there was a nice shopping area were we purchased two pashminas (almost all Europeans wore one, even the men. So we bought one for my mom and one for Jill, I was tempted to get one but I didn't want to be mistaken as an uppity architect back in the states.

Back on the boat Jill and I ended up taking a small nap before dinner. After dinner we decided to watch The Avengers in 3D. We then went to the top deck to watch the party the boat put on for everyone. After the band stopped playing and the bars closed around 1am Jill and I went to bed excited to sleep in the next morning but sad that that meant our trip was wrapping up. We both agreed we'd have to cruise some more.

Wednesday October 17, 2012

Part of planning is expecting something with go wrong and being prepared to just roll with the punches.

The alarm went off this morning at 6am and Jill and I were up and ready by the time our room service breakfast came at 6:45. We ate and drank some coffee and we were off to get in line to exit the boat by 7am. We had scheduled a walking tour today in Rome which started at 9am so we needed to be quick. Unfortunately our captain had other plans. He told us that we where #6 of 7 boats all wanting to port this morning into Chivitavecchia and we didn't get cleared to exit the ship until 7:45. Every other day this week we've been able to exit by 7am. Every minute counts when the trains run only twice an hour and you're going into Rome for the first time.

Jill and I were literally the FIRST ones off our boat today and in the front seat of the first transport bus to the port gate. We immediately grabbed a map, train schedule, and two metro tickets. From there we jogged a mile to the train station and waited a few minutes before getting on the 8:02 train to Ostiense where we power walked our way through the crowd to get to the roman metro train which took us to the doorstep of the Colosseum. Even though Jill and I were moving quicker then those 'Amazing Race' contestants we still ended up at our scheduled meeting spot at 9:30. And we were the only ones there.

We did all we could. We couldn't have gotten to Rome any faster considering the given situation. It was out of our control. And although we wanted to be mad we had to remember that we were in freaking Rome! We got a map of Rome and walked to the Colosseum where we found a guided tour for both the Colosseum and the Roman Forum which included front of the line tickets for both too. Growing up you remember seeing pictures of Roman buildings like the Colosseum and the Roman Forum but when you actually stand inside it you get a real sense of how immense the buildings are. The United States don't have any buildings that are comparable. And the fact that Rome is still excavating and unearthing new items is even more remarkable.

After our tour was over Jill and I found the bus that went to the Vatican where once again we felt so small and insignificant due to the scale of the structures surrounding us. We gave my mom a call to wish her a happy birthday while standing in the courtyard of the Vatican and had to leave her a message. From there we had to start for the train back to Civitavecchia. Unfortunately so many other boats were at the same dock and on the same schedule as us and the fact the the train runs twice an hour and the it was a normal working day for the residents of Rome our 16:04 train was standing room only and we were packed in there like sardines. That was honestly the longest train ride ever. And the fact that the locals were short tempered and yelling at you for not getting out of their way didn't help matters. I've never been so happy to walk a mile as when we got back to Civitavecchia and off the train. Jill and I got back to our room by 17:30, cleaned up, and laid down for a bit before our dinner reservations at the ship's steak house, a well deserved reward for a long day.

Tomorrow is our last excursion and we're going to Pompeii. Compared to the past two days tomorrow will be a cake walk. We might actually get to take our time for once.

Tuesday October 16, 2012

Stress is defined as the constraining force or influence: as a physical, chemical, or emotional factor that causes bodily or mental tension and may be a factor in disease causation. I would agree with that definition. Today we traveled to Florence.

Jill and I ordered room service this morning so that we could get an early start to the day. We got off the boat by 8am and were one of the first ones on the transport bus that would take us to the city center of Livorno, Italy. Unfortunately we had to wait until there were enough people on the bus before we actually left the dock. Once we finally reached the city center we quickly found the information center where we got a map of Livorno. Objective #1 complete, next task was to find an ATM. According to Rick Steves there was an ATM within the same building. What he failed to mention was that it was associated with a credit union and the ATM wouldn't work with your bank card. We now had to scramble to find another ATM. One block away we found a bank with an ATM but it was inside the building and after about 30 minutes we found out that when a door has a pull type handle it might be a push type door. Unfortunately once we finally found that out there were two men camping out in front of the ATM and the other people waiting in line with us were getting upset. Another 15 minutes later we had finally withdrew some money for the next 3 days. With money and bust tickets in hand we got on the next available bus to the train station where we would take a train to Florence. The train station was quite easy, it was just a matter of waiting for the train to arrive. Our train ran every hour and was a 90 minute trip between the cities. What we didn't and couldn't plan on was how unreliable and late the trains in Italy would be. Our train to Florence was only 5 minutes late (which seemed okay) but once aboard the train sat at the station for another 15 minutes. Once we got to Florence we found the train time tables so we knew what time we had to be back at the station. 15:28, great three hours to see all of Florence. Man I wish I would've had some coffee this morning, room service messed up our order and brought us tea instead.

Jill and I quickly found the information center and grabbed a map and then started for The Duomo. From there we walked down a side street and had our first gelato on our way to the Plazzo Vecchio and the Uffizi Gallery. We weren't able to see everything at the gallery (you'd honestly need a whole day to do that), so we hit the important pieces and then quickly viewed the rest on our way to the exit. Once outside we had to choose between viewing the statue of David or going to the Ponte Vecchio as we didn't have enough time to do both before getting on our train back to Levorno. The walk to the Statue of David was too far away so Jill and I walked across the Ponte Vecchio, stopped for some photos of the Arno River, and then headed our way back to the train station. I likened our trip to Florence to someone baking the world's greatest cheesecake but they only give you a crumb and expect you to taste everything the cheesecake has. On our way to the train station we stopped for some hot preshutto sandwiches which were incredible. We got to the train station at 15:10, our train was on the board but no platform was listed. 15 minutes late. This was going to be cutting it close. Our train got back to the Livorno station at 17:30. One hour before our boat would close its doors and begin its departure. We waited about 5 minutes before our bus arrived that then took us to the city center. Also on this bus was half of Livorno's population, we were so crammed on the bus it wasn't funny. At one stop a little Italian grandma got on and immediately started venting. At one point I think she was even yelling at Jill because she just happened to be standing next to her. Man I wish we knew what she was saying, Jill and I had to control ourselves from laughing and causing further anger.

Once at the city center Jill and I quickly walked to the pick up point for our shuttle bus to the boat only to have someone tell us that the last bus to our boat had just left and we'd need to find a taxi. I felt my blood beginning to boil. Just when I was about to start looking for a cab another bus pulled up. Thank goodness.

Once back on the boat we had just enough time to empty our pockets of maps, ticket stubs, receipts, change, etc. and get our 18:45 dinner and then a musical at 21:00, Saturday Night Fever. The musical was great, it's now midnight and Jill and I are already stressing about tomorrow's trip into Rome.

Monday October 15, 2012

Today was going to be a busy day. Villefranche, France didn't have a port large enough to dock our boat so we dropped anchor in the sea and would have to take tenders (boat taxis) to/from the shore. Once on shore Jill and I wanted to visit both Nice and Monte Carlo, unfortunately they were each 10 minutes from Villefranche. In opposite directions. Good thing I stretched my legs this morning.

After throwing down a quick breakfast Jill and I went down to Level 1 where we knew the tenders were loading from. As we exited the elevator we met Kyle and his wife who were both originally from Rocky River and now live in Florida. The four of us were shocked that there was no one else in line but didn't complain, we were all talking about what we had planned and were anxious to get started. Suddenly a cruise line employee comes up to us and says we need to wait on Level 3. Upon exiting the elevator we are greeted by a full elevator lobby and see more people lining up down the stairs to Level 2. Damn. Jill and I were busy talking to Kyle's wife to notice him slip away. As we stood in the elector lobby more people kept coming, no line was forming and we were all getting concerned as to when we were going to get to leave. Suddenly I felt the back of my shirt getting tugged. I was worried that it had gotten grabbed by the elevator but when I turn around I see Kyle in the elevator. "Get Jill and my wife and get in the elevator". We didn't ask any questions, we got in and we went back to Level 1, Kyle said he was talking to the cruise employee that kicked us to Level 3 and he found us 4 seats on the next boat. As the elevator doors opened we were greeted by the employee and he escorted us threw the boat to the tender. As Kyle walked by and thanked the employee I noticed Kyle slip the worker a paper bill, I wasn't able to determine if it was a US dollar or a Euro but Kyle's negotiations got us to the front of the line. We all talked some more on the trip to the shore but once we reached land we each went our separate ways, they were taking a bike excursion and we were headed to Nice.  If I ever bump into him again I owe him big time.

Now on land in Villefranche, Jill and I got on the train and headed west to Nice. On e we arrived in Nice we first headed to the tourist center, grabbed a map and found out where to catch the tour bus. Lessons learned from the day before. With maps in our pocket (don't want to walk arou d with them looking like tourists) we made our way to the boardwalk. On the way we walked along Nice's version of Chicago's Michigan Avenue, stores galore. Nothing fancy but everything and anything was for sale. Being on a mission we didn't stop, we had a boardwalk and a bus get to. As soon as we got to the boardwalk we immediately got on the bus that just happened to be there (great luck) and started the guided tour. I don't know if our driver was trying out for the next Monaco Grand Prix but I was white knuckling the seat in front of me the entire time because our driver was hard on the gas and late on the brake the entire trip. The prerecorded audio on the bus couldn't even keep up. After finishing the tour (in record time probably) we made our way back to the train station but made one stop on the way for an espresso, from McDonalds. And yes, it's called 'le Big Mac'.

Our next train ride then took Jill and I to Monte Carlo, one of the places I couldn't wait to see for one reason Côte d'Azure, the track that the Monaco Grand Prix is raced on. But it would have to wait, we first caught a bus to the Palace of Monaco where we took an audio tour through some of the rooms of the palace. We then walked through the Cathedral next to the Palace where Grace Kelly is buried. As we walked down the hill to the port of Monte Carlo the sounds of exotic sports cars were echoing through the buildings. Once we reached the bottom of the hill we walked down pit row (burn outs still visible on the pavement), we then walked up Lotus Hill and through the tunnel and up to Grace Kelly's turn. As we made the trek multiple Ferraris, Porches, Bentleys, and Lamborghinis drove past us along the same race path. It was awesome. We then took the stairs up to the Casinos Gardens and to the entrance of the Casino. I knew we'd see some more nice cars up there but I was ready for the DB9, Mercialago, or Ferrari 540 all parked out front. It was good thing Jill and I went to Nice first today, if we would've came to Monte Carlo it would've been hard to get me out of there.

With time winding down we walked through another casino garden, ate Hagen Daz next to the Casino and then walked back to the train station. Once back in Villefranche it felt like a ghost town compared to both Nice and Monte Carlo. We walked down the street back to the dock and got in line for the tenders. Another successful adventure.

All the walking is definitely taking it toll. After getting back to our room Jill and I both inadvertently fell asleep before having to quickly shower and get to dinner. The lamb shank was good but I was so tired It could've been a steak'em burger and I would've been happy. After dinner Jill and I ran some errands around the boat and then retreated back to our room for some well needed sleep. So what do I do? Stay up until 2:25 am writing my adventures. I'm sure I'll pay for it tomorrow. I mean today.

Sunday October 14, 2012

Today we woke up in the port of Toulon, France. After exiting our ship Jill and I headed towards a small waiting area in order to cross the bay and reach Toulon.

Upon reaching Toulon Jill and I needed to find the train station in order to reach Cassis, which was a out 30 minutes to the southwest of Toulon. Unfortunately France is not as friendly to Americans as Spain was, signs were in French only (no English in small type anywhere), and finding an English speaking resident was impossible. If we were going to make it today I was going to have to recall my French language classes from high school, from 16 years ago.

We eventually found the train station and were able to purchase round trip tickets to/from Cassis from a train employee whose English was as broken as my French. Needless to say Jill and I were still worried that we were going to end up lost somewhere in France. To our surprise we ended up in Cassis, our confidence was slowly comi g back.

Parked in the front of the train station in Cassis was a old Japanese man driving a tour bus that was headed to the casino. After a scenic drive throw Cassis we were dropped off in front of the casino, Jill was excited but now we could rely on Rick Steves to get us to the city. If you don't know who Rick Steves is, he's the Oprah Winfrey of European travel. We saw so many people walking around with the same book we had its not even funny.

Upon reaching the beachfront of Cassis we found a bunch of little storefronts, some selling clothing or other merchandise but the majority were small cafes. We stopped at one that caught our eye and Jill and I enjoyed some paninnis. Not the Permanti Brothers type paninnis that American are accustomed to, these were a footlong French baguette that had cheese and whatever else in it, and was aced back in the wrapper so it could be eaten with one hand as you walked. Jill and I also shared a small carafe of wine and a chocolate crepe.

After lunch Jill and I had enough time to walk around for a little bit and take some scenic photos before having to retrace our steps in order to make it back to Toulon. The trip back to Toulon was a lot easier since we now established land makers. As Jill and I walked back to the taxi boat we were able to enjoy Toulon a little more and laugh at the fact that us in Toulon was probably like a French person that didn't speak English visiting Napoleon, Ohio. The Toulon locals that saw us laughing probably rolled their eyes at us and cursed Americans under their breath but we didn't care, we had successfully navigated ourselves to and from our ship without anybody having to call a search party for us. Chalk one up for Team Buehner!

When we got back to our room Jill and I had enough time to freshen up before attending our first formal dinner night. At dinner we met a retired couple sitting next to us from England (Tony and Norma). I'm beginning to think that everyone on this boat is fun to talk to and share stories with. Oh, and the medium rare prime beef is amazing. As Jill and I walked out of the restaurant we stopped and had some photos taken of us. We then headed back to our room for some well needed rest. Tomorrow, Naples and Monte Carlo.

Saturday October 13, 2012

After a quick breakfast at our hotel we packed up our bags and checked out by noon so we could check in to our boat. After a short bus ride to our boat, dropping our bags off at bag check, waiting in the check-in line, and taking a couples photo for the boat (yeah, great idea taking people's picture after they've been running around trying to check-in) we finally got to board our boat. What a boat! I don't know the dimensions off hand but it was the largest boat at dock and looked immense! We went right to our room (8554) to drop off our remaining bags and then went to grab lunch. Unfortunately everyone else on our boat had the same idea. It was like college dining hall all over again on steak night. Finding a table was hard, and then trying to navigate through people was even harder. And p.s., when the waiters ask if you want something say no, nothing is free, especially the alcohol. But at least we got to keep the cup, which we then forgot at our table. Oh well.

After lunch we took a short walk around the pool before our mandatory safety drill. At our safety drill we met Dan and Dina from Chicago. Dan was your typical loud American; Yankee jersey, talking out loud to get a reaction, and asking people if he was going to get sea sick. It made me laugh.

Jill and I then went back to our room to finish unpacking our bags and sit on our balcony sipping our champagne and wave to the people on the other boats as our boat finally pulled out of dock (5pm). At this time I also was relieved to find espn on our tv with College Gameday airing! Gotta love that time difference.

After watching Gameday for the first time this season Jill and I went to dinner. We were assigned a dining time and table so it went A LOT smoother then lunch. Jill had sea bass and I had pork medallions. So good. We also met a nice couple sitting next to us from Phoenix (Larry and Luise). I wore my OU polo shirt (gotta support the team on game day) and I think it helped meet people. Go Bobcats.

After dinner Jill and I walked around the boat some more but ended up sitting outside the 'pub' drinking a beer, where we then met Dave and Courtney from Peoria, IL. They were both engineers that had just gotten married last week.  As we were sitting there talking the boat staff put on a carnival type parade which was quite random but people liked it.

At midnight Jill and I finally decided to call it a night. We have a long day tomorrow with a lot of walking. Only 2 more hours before the Ohio State game?! Forget that, I'm going to sleep.

Friday October 12, 2012

 After a 6 hour flight we finally landed in Barcelona at 2am. I couldn't sleep on the plane because I was too excited and every time I did close my eyes we'd hit a patch of turbulence and I'd be WIDE awake again. Oh well.

After meandering around the Barcelona airport for a bit Jill and I caught a taxi to our hotel. We couldn't understand her and she couldn't understand us. Luckily she understood where we needed to go and she taught us how to say 'Good day' in Catalonian [bon-dia].

Unfortunately we arrived at our hotel too early to check in so we dropped our bags off and decided to start site-seeing. We jumped on the touring bus and took our quick tour of Barcelona. We got off the bus and did our own tour of La Familia Sangrata and Parc Guell, both were incredible. Barcelona is definitely not afraid to experiment with its architecture. You can see everything from old gothic style to modern all within a few blocks.

The streets here are crazy. Taxis might outnumber automobiles as most people in Barcelona have mopeds, walk, take public transportation or even rent bikes.

After site-seeing for about 9 hours lack of sleep finally caught up with me and we checked into our hotel for a fast nap and shower before dinner.

We left our hotel and walked up La Ramble and found a nice tapas restaurant. Jill and I each has 7 tapas and we washed them down with a pitcher of sangria. So good!

After dinner we walked up and down La Ramble some more and we realized that in order to fit in women need to dress like they're working the corner and guys need long hair, tight jeans, and a black 'Members Only' jacket (with or without a scarf).

It's now 1:30am and we're back in our hotel. Jill's asleep and I'm trying to find something to watch on tv. Our plan for tomorrow is to grab breakfast and check in to our boat before 2pm. Time for some sleep.