Florence, Venice, AND Vienna-all in 24 hours!

I keep thinking life cannot get any better, and then it does!
Yesterday morning I found myself standing in front of Michelangelo's David. I must say that it was one of the crowning experiences of my trip. I can't think of any moment that has been better. I was completely unprepared for how much it would affect me when I turned the corner and there was the David in all of his 14 feet of pure perfection. We got there early and the museum was almost completely empty. I was told I would have to get reservations because it was packed all the time but we took a chance and I guess tourist season is over because we were basically the only ones there. I had the opportunity to spend a solid half hour with David almost purely by myself and I loved every second of it. I honestly could not turn away. I have seen so many pictures of him but none of them are even close to the experience of witnessing him first hand. What the pictures miss the most is his face. The expression in his eyes is intriguing and moving. I kept staring from different angles (at his face not other parts of his body-mostly) trying to feel what he was feeling . It was truly inspiring. No matter what else I forget, my time with The David is something that will never leave me-it made a huge impact.
When Christy finally was able to peel me away we ran to catch the train to Venice pulling in there at a little after 1. We hurried and stored our stuff, bought train tickets for the night train out of there and hopped on the waterbus to see what this city was all about.
Now I must say that Venice is EXTREMELY touristy and overdone and crowded and yet I loved everything about it. It's even better than Disney world-well, at least tied for first. In Venice I felt like I was in a whole different world. It is the perfect mix of romance, history, beauty, mystery and entertainment. We toured the waterways, explored St. Mark's Square and the adjoining basilica, watched the sun set across the bridge and then got lost in the narrow and traffic free streets and shopped until it was time to get back on the train. It was plenty of time to fall in love with Venice but not enough time to spend money on things I don't need. I thought as I stood on the Rialto looking out at Venice after dark (a sight that everyone must see) I realized I could not have been happier with my time in Italy. It provided all the experiences I was hoping for and so much more besides.
I wasn't necessarily looking forward to another experience on the night train but it was the only way to fit everything in. We didn't even have beds this time, only a reclining chair. Luckily we ended up as the only two in our compartment and we were able to spread out quite comfortably. Of course it was a horrible night sleep and of course I do not want to do it ever again but it got us to Vienna bz 8:30 this morning and we didn't have to pay for a hotel. On the upside, trains are a wonderful way to view the country. We had a few hours of daylight this morning before we arrived and Austria has a gorgeous countryside. I have been very surprised by how much land there is still in Europe. I somehow thought it was mostly overcrowded cities but it isn't at all. Even in Italy there are so many landscapes that barely have a house or a person in sight. So many times I have thought of how beautiful the scenery is. Today was especially pleasant because Autumn in Austria is in full bloom. The fall colors were wonderful and it is the perfect transition from the sunshine of the Mediterranean to the winter I will be heading into the further north I get.
As we stepped out into Vienna we were immediately greeted by an older gentleman who wanted to help us find our way (and he actually gave us correct directions). This was followed by an entire day of extremely friendly and helpful Austrians who were patient and kind to their touristy American guests. Vienna in a lot of ways has been a breath of fresh air. It is refreshing to be back in a place where people are normal size (there are quite a few very tall girls and boys here which is great) and where the streets are wide, clean and easy to get around. Italy for all its charm is incredibly confusing and it was nice to know where I was today. It is a huge city with a lot of people but it feels so underpopulated compared to the masses we have faced in the south. We actually accidentally ended up here on their Independence day and found ourselves right in the middle of a big celebration at their city center. Some Austrians explained to us what was going on and how they celebrate and we decided to join right in. We watched their military parade and walked around pretending like we planned to come celebrate with everyone else. It was so fun! Their president was speaking to them tonight but since it was all in German we decided we didn't need to be there so instead we found a group of breakdancers and joined the crowds that were cheering them on. They were actually really good. Of course we saw the Palace and the Opera house as well and I learned more about the history of Europe and found more names and dates I need to research but mostly we just enjoyed Vienna.
I think this may actually be one of my favorite cities and one of the only ones I would ever really actually consider living in (along with London of course). I really like this place-AND the chocolate is AMAZING! Why can't we make chocolate like that in the states? It is 10 times better than anything I've had in America.
So, we're off tomorrow to Salzburg and then to Munich from there. I am so excited to get into Germany, I've been waiting for this the whole trip! I'll have lots more to say later on that.

A-LOT-O-GELATO!

Okay so I'm in Florence and I'm tired so this will be short but I can't go to bed without blogging my story of the day.
We got off the ship early this morning and headed straight for the train. We arrived in Florence early this afternoon and have spent a marvelous day seeing the city. Florence is everything everyone says it is and cannot dissappoint even the most difficult to please. It's just a joy to be here. It's much calmer and quieter than the other cities I've been to in Italy (or elsewhere for that matter) and the Florencians seem to take a special pride in their city and in sharing it with others. However, all is not perfect here in Firenze, let me tell you what happened today.
We decided to do a historical walk through the city (thanks to our handy guide book) and ended up at a beautiful piazza. Well, you can't sit in a piazza without some Gelato and since Florence in the Gelato capitol of the world we figured we had no choice but to get some. We found a nice shop and headed inside. Usually I get a little cup of it but I decided to go big and get it in a cone today. So, I picked my flavors and told the lady that I would like a cone. She pointed to the tiny McDonalds cones that I hate and I motioned to the normal cones instead. She looked at me like "are you sure?" and I ignored the look and nodded yes. This is one of those times speaking the language would really come in handy.
I kind of stopped paying attention until she handed me the cone and then I had no choice but to take it. The cone was not normal size as I had originally thought, it only looked that way because 3 feet of it was hidden when I chose it. The cone was GIGANTIC and she filled it so high I could barely even see over it to get to the cash register. At first I thought this was somewhat humorous and then I had to pay. "12 Euro please." I'm sorry, what? 12 Euro for gelato? That's almost 20 bucks! You know, I looked around and there was no listing of prices anywhere and I have noticed that happens a lot in Europe. We never have any idea what we are getting or how much it is going to cost and all we can do is point to something and hope for the best. I often end up getting something I didn't really want all because I have no idea how to get what I do. Whatever. Anyway, I didn't want to look like I had made a mistake and at that point there wasn't anything that could be done anyway so I just forked over the money, grabbed a spoon and headed for the door not exactly sure what had just happened.
Well, I get out into the piazza and see hundreds of people with gelato in NORMAL SIZED CONES exactly the way I had wanted it, and here I am trying to balance a gallon of ice cream in my hand. Why me? I tried to forget about the money I just spent and enjoy the stupid ice cream but after a few bites I was pretty much done. Done? I just spent 12 Euro on this and there was no way I was going to throw it away. Since you can't save ice cream for later I had to dig in and stuff it all down. I am sure that I epitomed the gluttonous American Europeans love to look down upon as I sat there gorging myself on an oversized portion of their delicate and dainty gelato but what was I supposed to do? I even had to use a big spoon instead of their little ones because it was melting too fast to eat slow. Maybe some of those staring should have come helped me out.
You would think after getting down to the cone I could call it quits for a job well done but nooooo not me, I had to shove the entire 5 ft cone down too. The cone was the instigator of all of this in the first place-I wasn't going to let him get off scott free! I felt ridiculously ill when I finished but I ate every last bite. I actually got a round of applause from the crowd that had gathered to watch the American pig stuff her face and someone even wanted to take a picture with me.
All in all it was a great experience, something I will cherish for the rest of my life. I could barely even focus on the amazing Uffizi art gallery we saw afterwards because of how sick I felt. However, I must say the gelato was amazing even though my stomach still hurts.
It's a little ironic that this morning as I left the ship I thought about how nice it would be not to have to eat so much food anymore because I was tired of feeling so full all the time. I guess I wasn't done eating yet. Who knows, maybe there is still an all you can eat buffet in my future.

Oh, the places I've been!

Right now I'm in Naples, just headed back to the ship after a fabulous tour around Pompeii. I'll mention that in a minute but first I have to tell you what these last few days have shown me. First, I haven't talked about Ephesus-great place. It is not far from the port of in Turkey called Kudasaki I think (don't have time to look it up right now) so we basically jumped off the ship and jumped into a cab for a gorgeous 20 minute ride down the coast. The weather, just like every other day, was perfect. I can't believe what amazing weather we have had. Even down to today at the very last port, the weather is sunny, 70's, light breeze, not hot, not cold, just PERFECT! I am definitely going to miss the Mediterranean.
Anyway, so gorgeous drive, get to Ephesus and find basically mini Rome. It was a really cool place but it reminded me of many of the ruins I saw already in Rome, only on a smaller scale. That was actually cool to see that the smaller cities were built after the capitol. Since the system worked, why change it? You could see grooves in the cobblestone from the chariots, bath houses with the same ingenious aqueduct system-heated and cold, a big library, some brothels, a public toilet (I got a fun picture of that), a town market square, temples for worshipping their many gods, and the best part of all-the ampitheater. Why was the ampitheater so cool you ask? Because the Apostle Paul spoke there to 25,000 people who did not agree with what he had to say and from that event he was exiled from Ephesus altogether. I stood in the center of that theater trying to imagine what it would be like to look up into 25,000 unfriendly faces knowing the probable outcome of your words. I have always greatly admired Paul but after that experience, my admiration increased ten fold. It made quite the impression on me and I felt so privileged to be where he was. Other famous biblical characters who resided there include John (who wrote the 4th or 5th book of John there, can't remember which at this moment) and possibly even Mary, the mother of the Savior. They have no proof that she lived there, but assume that she went with John and that she and he both died in that place. We spent several hours walking around those ruins, I just wanted to capture it all.
Our cab driver gave us some fun surprise visits on the way back to the ship and since he didn't speak English he just pretended not to know what we were saying when we would say "no, just take us back, no please, we don't need to stop again, no seriously please just take us...okay, thank you this is a great stop thank you so much for stopping here." I am sure he gets kickbacks for taking us to these places so there was no way he was going to pass them by. First we went to a carpet factory-out in the middle of nowhere by itself mind you-and after a warm greeting they gave us a tour. We had no idea what was going on, we just knew we were supposed to get out of the cab so every stop was an interesting surprise. The factory was actually pretty cool, he showed us every step of making a carpet from spinning the silk to weaving the rug. There were several women working on different carpets and some of the designs were very difficult. I was glad we made that stop. But of course after the tour they whip out all the carpets they have made and start encouraging you to make an offer. The carpets were definitely the best I had seen on our trip but none of us had any money whatsoever, so he kept reminding us that we also have credit cards and he will even trade in our cameras if we want. The carpets there are much more expensive then in the Bazaars and I can't even afford those so we all had to decline. Some of the rugs were 5000 plus but they were unbelievable. If I had money that is probably the one thing I would consider buying is a really nice silk carpet that I would hang on my wall and put behind glass so that no one could touch it. They were so pretty.
It took forever to get them to realize we really were not going to buy anything but as soon as we got out he pulls over to another house in the middle of nowhere, this time a leather shop. The whole store was full of very expensive, very nice but very ugly leather coats and leather pants-yes, leather pants. I wanted to take a picture of the pink ones but the owner didn't like that too much and since we were in the middle of nowhere with 3 huge Turkish men I decided not to push it. We got out of there faster, now realizing what was going on but wondering why he would bring 5 young Americans to a shop that has its own ATM inside the gate. I think they think we all have endless credit limits, but whatever. We eventually made it back and sailed to Greece for our final Greek port, this time in Athens.
Athens is enormous, but you can't really get a feel for its size until you get to the Acropolis which is up on the top of a very large hill in the center of it all. We entered the archaelogical site (which goes on for miles) at the base and worked our way up. Man, the Greeks sure knew how to pick em'. Each of the Greek islands we have been to have been spectacular and there are no words to describe the scene from the top of that hill. Unbelievable and unforgettable. On top of that, I stood face to face with the Parthenon and the Acropolis, the cream of the crop as far as Greek ruins are concerned-the things I have been learning about since grade school. The Greek civilization was amazing. How they got such a large helping of genius in arts, architecture, philosophy, math, science, and everything else is beyond me. I am consistently amazed by how advanced they were. Obviously other people have been too because people have been copying them ever since. We still use much of what they began. So yes, Athens-amazing. Not sure anything else can be said. The city itself is nothing too special, except that it is Greek and that just somehow makes it cooler than other cities, but it's huge and crowded and kind of run down and dirty although I suspect that it is nicer since the olympics that were held there.
They actually began a strike that morning in Athens and all the post offices, some of the trains and buses and who knows what else were shut down. We saw part of the demonstration and it was interesting to see all the police everywhere with shields and guns ready to fight back if necessary. Not someplace we meant to be in the middle of, that's for sure. We got out of there as soon as we could. Maybe we witnessed a little piece of Greek history in the making though. Who knows?
Okay, Naples and Pompeii, our final stop on the cruise of a lifetime. I would like to say it's nice to be back in Italy. Naples is not the greatest Italian city and yet it still has the Italian charm that I really love. I already know I want to come back to Italy. We still have to go to Florence and Venice but I already know I love this country. I want to learn Italian and be Italian and look Italian but I guess wishes only go so far.
So Pompeii is a little way out from Naples. About 87 AD a massive erruption from Mt. Vesuvius covered the town in 7 meters of ash suffocating everyone and everything in it. Pompeii was a different experience than any other ancient city we have seen. Only about half of it has been excavated so far (they are working on the other half) and it had to be restored after serious destruction in WWII but the restoration was not to show us what the city was like before, it shows what it looked like after. It isn't painted and cleaned like the other ruins, it is left just the way they found it when it was uncovered. It has a strange and ominous feel that makes the horrific event real in your mind. The ash and mud kept the city well preserved so even some of the people are lying in the positions they died in-adult and child alike. The city itself wasn't anything special, a typical Roman town with temples, baths, markets, theaters and such but its preservation is astounding. We walked through rows and rows of houses and stores and I could see so much of what their life looked like day by day. They even had a laundry and some bakeries still set up and some of the original mosaics are still on the floors of their houses. It isn't beautiful but it is powerful. I am really glad that I saw it all.
I think I mentioned this before but I continually think of the people whose lives we are stepping into and try and imagine what they would think of all this. Could they ever have known that 2000 years later people from all over the world would be touring their little town walking through their houses and down their streets? Could they have foreseen the day when their lives would be studied and their buildings excavated brick by brick? I doubt they ever thought that their civilization would be completely destroyed and life as they knew it would end in one day.
Anyway, it keeps hitting me how real these people were and how similar in nature they are to us today. Even though they lived long ago, they don't seem that different from any of us today. I think that is something I will take away from this whole experience. No matter when people live, no matter how different their lives might have been, there is so much that is universally the same. I like finding those connections. I like to remember that they were and are real.

Turkısh Delıghts and then some...

Oh what do I say about Turkey? They are a breed of theır own. We got to spend Saturday late afternoon and Sunday mornıng both ın Istanbul but for a cıty that bıg we barely scratched the surface. There are 13 mıllıon who lıve there and I feel lıke every sıngle one of them was everywhere I went. The place ıs packed.
We started at the Grand Bazaar where everythıng from t-shırts to carpets are sold. We learned that people have been comıng there for centurıes to get great deals on dıshes, rugs, leather, jewelry and anythıng else they could get theır hands on. The salesmen there are seasoned and defınıtely know how to get you ın theır door. They all know Englısh phrases but I'm not sure they all actually know the language. Thıs ıs what you hear goıng down any of the streets (agaın, no quotatıons) hello, my frıend, my frıend-I remember you how are you? and Yes please yes please thank you welcome welcome. and hello? hello? yes please frıend let me take all of your money please let me take all of your money. and other thıngs lıke that. I must say ıt was pretty fun to walk around and watch them try so hard to convınce you to pay a fortune for theır junk but I watched them sell quıte a bıt of ıt to many tourısts (mostly Amerıcan) who thought they were gettıng a deal because they bargaıned ıt down one lıra-theır dollar- from the startıng prıce.
Sometımes they don't want to bargaın wıth you though. Two frıends and I bought t-shırts at the same place hopıng to get a lıttle bıt of a deal for buyıng three but when we offered hım a lower prıce than he stated he just smıled and saıd what do I look lıke, a used car salesman? Alrıghty then...we bought the t-shırts anyway.
The carpets are really why you go there and those salesman really do know how to get you to gıve them your money. We met a very nıce man who spoke excellent Englısh and has travelled extensıvely all over Amerıca. He ımmedıately made the connectıon that we are LDS and actually knew quıte a bıt about us because he has frıends ın Utah who are LDS too. Sıde note-there actually are a few wards ın Istanbul even though ıt ıs 99% muslım. Anyway, he lured us ınto hıs store and gave us really good apple tea (caffeıne free! caffeıne free! he saıd) and dısplayed hıs collectıon of beautıful hand woven carpets. Luckıly one of the gırls I am travellıng wıth really dıd want to buy a carpet because otherwıse he probably could have suckered me ın to gettıng one myself so we watched them bargaın ıt out. He (and I must say she) dıd such a good job. He found one she really loved and then started at somethıng lıke 1500 dollars. Jamıe wasn't goıng to spend more than 500 and she told hım that almost rıght away. Well, he worked and worked and worked for her to come up even a lıttle bıt and he was so nıce and persuasıve that I was almost ready to whıp out my own credıt card and pay for ıt myself. He kept comıng down and down and down untıl ıt was about 800. I thought that was a great deal and found myself tryıng to persuade Jamıe to accept ıt! She stood her ground though and he saıd 700. Then ıt got really good-he gave the most eloquent speech about hıs sacrıfıce and how much he wanted to help her and gıve her the best prıce possıble. Instead of doıng what I would have done (accepted the offer and probably bought another one as well) she saıd 500 was all she could offer and then she walked out. He guılt trıpped and guılt trıpped untıl she was all the way down the hall and then fınally shouted OK 500 500! I could not belıeve ıt. He gave that whole speech about hıs kıds and hıs lıvıng and how he couldn't afford anythıng less and then he fınally says okay?! No wonder they love Amerıcans-most of them are soft suckers lıke me.
Anyway, she got her carpet and my respect and I am sure he stıll made quıte a profıt. He really was such a nıce man though, I wouldn't mınd payıng too much ıf the money was goıng to hım.
SO after the lesson ın bargaınıng we went to the Blue Mosque-one of the largest and oldest ın the world. It ıs massıve and from the outsıde ıt ıs a spectacular pıece of art and archıtecture for any perıod ın hıstory. I spent over an hour on Sunday just sıttıng outsıde admırıng ıt. The ınsıde ıs not quıte as spectacular because even though ıt ıs stıll ın use, ıt has fallen ınto dısrepaır. Despıte that, ıt was a great experıence because most Mosques are not open for people to walk through and tour. We were very lucky to have the opportunıty to go through ıt. It just happened that we were there ın the early evenıng and many men and women were there for prayer. They are supposed to pray 5 tımes a day and wherever they are prayıng, they are to face Mecca. We watched them go through a serıes of oblatıons and then prostrate themselves ın prayer. The women pray on the exterıor, the men on the ınterıor. All women there to pray were expected to cover theır heads and wear long skırts and everyone had to take off theır shoes (ıncludıng us). It's kınd of sad because what I wıll remember most from that Mosque ıs that ıt smelled of stınky feet. Serıously, ıt was hard to concentrate because ıt smelled so bad. I have no ıdea how they can focus long enough to pray.
The lıttle I have learned so far about the Muslım relıgıon ıs fascınatıng and not at all what I expected ıt to be. The prıncıple of charıty and goodwıll toward men ıs stressed over and over and they repeatedly state that Allah (God) ıs the only God and that He ıs above all else. Of course ıt was establıshed by the revelatıons of the prophet Muhammed whıch are laıd down ın the resultıng Koran but so much of ıt ıs just lıke the Chrıstıans. Major dıfference of course uıs that although they belıeve that Jesus was a prophet and respect Hım greatly they do not belıeve ın Hım as theır Savıor. And actually they belıeve that ınstead of Isaac beıng nearly sacrıfıced by Abraham, ıt was Ishmael (who they are all descendents from). So Joseph of Egypt, Abraham, Noah, all those men were prophets and Muhammed ıs the last Prophet that they belıeve has been on earth. Anyway, just one more thıng to look ınto when I get back-who needs a socıal lıfe anyway?
Our tıme ın Istanbul went way too fast but I feel lıke what I saw was satısfactory. Here are a few more random thoughts-many mosques fıll the cıty and the ancıent and modern all seem lıke one. It ıs the one cıty that ıs on two contınents connectıng Europe and Asıa wıth just one brıdge. The nıghtıme vıew of the cıty from the shıp was spectacular and I would rather be safe on the shıp than anywhere else. It ıs the fırst cıty I really dıd not feel safe ın although I am not quıte sure why. Okay that's enough, glad I got to see ıt, glad I got to leave ıt (I almost got lost and left ın Turkey wıth no money, no passport, no credıt card and no ID at all-a story for another day) and glad to be ın another place.
Next tıme I'll tell you about Ephesus and my experıence ın another part of Turkey-don't worry they have learned the same phrases to get Amerıcans to buy theır stuff....excuse me, excuse me, do you need another carpet to balance out the weıght on your arms?-I don't want you to get ınjured (a comment we heard as Jamıe was leavıng the Bazaar wıth her rug ın hand)

The Islands of Greece one more tıme

Alright, I have four days to catalogue here and so much has happened. The keyboard is different here and I am not patıent (or rıch) enough to fıgure ıt all out so just ignore any strange letters and symbols that pop up.
The last Greek island we went to was Santorini which was so unbelievable. I haven't been able to upload any pictures as of yet but I can't wait til I get home so I can show everyone what these places look lıke. Santorını ıs hıgher than the other ıslands have been. There ıs no beach on the bottom. From the water all you can see are enormous clıffs that go straıght up and at the top ıs an entıre cıty stretchıng from end to end. All along the top of thıs ısland there are doorways (wıth no doors) that lead down to restaurants or hotels but all you can see through them ıs the ocean. They look lıke huge pıcture frames wıth vıews no photo could do justıce to. The hotels and shops these doors lead to are carved ınto the sıdes of the rock-beds and all. It's so cool. When I add that to the dynamıc colors of the buıldıngs, the food, the shoppıng and the people I feel lıke I am really gettıng the whole Greek experıence. These ıslands are everythıng I pıctured Greece to be and so much more.
So sınce the town ıs so hıgh up we had to go on a lıttle hıke. There was a tram servıce available and a plethura of donkeys but those are for the other people, not for us. I decıded we needed the exercıse and the experıence, and plus I didn't want to pay for any of ıt when I could walk (dıd you expect anythıng else from me?) The donkeys all looked at us lıke we were crazy and so dıd some of the passengers, but 624 steps and 30 swıtchbacks later, everyone who lıstened to me was glad they dıd-we had braggıng rıghts for the rest of the day. And anyway, who wants to rıde a smelly donkey when you can have a half an hour of burnıng quadrıceps? They should pay me for the toned muscles they're goıng to have by the tıme we're done.
Once you get to the top, ıt's a great lıttle town wıth lots of shoppıng. The jewelry and wıne are world famous but I guess I wıll hıt those shops next tıme around. I dıd splurge a lıttle though and bought a really cute bag, mostly so when people say (I can't fınd the quotatıon marks so just pretend they are there) Oh what a cute bag, where dıd you get ıt? I can say oh thank you, ıt's from Santorını-you know, Greece? Come on, that's pretty cool.
Anyway, we shopped the day away and even found some old churches whıch were ınterestıng because the art ıs so dıfferent from what we have seen ın any prevıous countrıes. I can't really explaın what ıt looks lıke, ıt's just Greek.
On the way back down they trıed to convınce us to rıde the donkeys agaın but you couldn't pay me enough to rıde one of those thıngs down. They were slıppıng and slıdıng all over the rocks and we went two tımes as fast as they dıd wıthout the dıscomfort and the stench (although we dıd have to dodge some pıles of theır output along the way). The donkey salesman (I have no ıdea what to really call hım) was grabbıng my arm and pullıng me to the donkey beggıng me to get on. He wouldn't let go and I thought maybe he was beıng a lıttle too pushy but now I know he was mıld compared to what was ın store for us next. I'll save that for another post though and fınısh my day wıth the usual-layıng out by the pool, readıng, eatıng and loungıng my way to our next destınatıon. Surprısıngly ıt never gets old!

Cruising through Greece!

Okay, so I don't have much time but I have to give a little update of where I am. Right now we are in Rhodes, Greece-one of the islands in the Mediteranean. It's a fantastic island-beautiful beyond words-with a very interesting history. There are two parts to it-old and new city. The old city is medieval with walls and large ditches where motes used to be. Most of it is still intact so you can see the levels of defense they had to protect themselves from the Turkish invasions. There are several forts, outer walls, inner walls, cannons, guard towers and all kinds of stuff. I definitely wouldn't want to try to invade. From what I understand, the city was basically always at war-someone was always trying to get this land and I can see why. It's a beautiful island. The new part of the city is really pretty and it seems like people here have a lot of money-nice buildings, nice cars, nice shops, etc...
We spent the morning on the island seeing all the tourist sights and then the afternoon has been spent hanging out on a gorgeous beach. The water is so blue and clear that you can see everything and it is the perfect temperature as well. I couldn't imagine a more ideal day, it's been wonderful. In fact, the whole cruise thus far has been that way. I am not sure how I could have lived this long without going on a cruise, it is SO fun. The ship is beautiful and the weather has just been unbelievable. We've spent every day hanging out by the pool and eating every hour. It's heaven.
Yesterday we got to see a great little island called Mykonos-exactly what I picture when I think of Greece. All the buildings and churches are white with blue trim and all the locals just hang out all day. They were all so happy and relaxed and they live in the most beautiful place ever-maybe they know something I don't?
All I know is that I love life right now. Every day I get up and go to the top deck so I can see the sun rise, explore a great new place, hang out by the pool/beach, and then get dressed up for a four hour dinner in the dining room. Then I retire to my room where the bed has been turned down for me and when I wake up in the morning we are somewhere else so I get up and do it again. No wonder cruising is addicting!
Tomorrow we go to Santorini, another Greek Island and then to Athens and on to Turkey from there. There are several waiters on the ship from Turkey and Greece so I am trying to learn as much as I can from them about their countries and their experiences. So much to see and so much to learn, I am just trying to soak it all in.
Anyway, I'll post more in a few days after we've seen a few more ports. Everyone needs to come to Greece though, it's not possible to be in a bad mood while you're here, it's just too beautiful.

Roma Fantastica!

I am just finishing my third wonderful day in Rome so I figure it's time to report. Tomorrow we leave for Civitaveccia, where the cruise dock is, and start our 11 day tour of the Mediterranean. We are definitely excited for it (I am especially looking forward to fresh fruits and vegetables) but I am sad that my time here is over. Rome is a fun city.
When we were in Paris I thought the Louvre was so great partly because the building that held such precious art was a precious piece of art itself. Well, if the Louvre was cool, Rome is amazing because the whole city is basically one big museum. You don't have to go far to find ancient ruins, and the chances are the place you are staying is ancient itself. Our first day was consumed with ancient Rome. We started at the Colloseum where we received a first class tour and then continued with the tour guide through the old Roman Forum and up to Palatine Hill (where Rome got its start way back when). 4 hours later we were still walking through ruins and temples and basilicas until we found ourselves at the top of Capitol Hill. Here modern and ancient Rome merge seemlessly giving you the complete view of what Romans are all about.
The last big sight we viewed that day was the Pantheon which inspired the much later and greater St. Peter's Basilica. Just as we walked in the building, a boy's choir began singing and we realized it was the beginning of a Friday night mass. The acoustics in the Pantheon are excellent and we heard the whole thing.
So, after viewing an entire day worth of Roman architecture and listening to hours worth of Roman history here is what I think. Romans were basically big bullies. The whole city was founded by two random twin boys raised by wolves (supposedly) who fight to the death for the throne. Romulus beats out Remus and is therefore King-a bloody beginning that sets a thousand year trend. Rome's history is violent and brutish, full of deceit and betrayal, and they love to tell it even today. They were incredible warriors and they used intimidation any chance they could get. Every building still here today has something to do with the biggest and the best. Everytime they had another victory in battle or conquered another poor little struggling nation they would build a gigantic arch and have a "we're the best" parade. They turned the losers into slaves and forced them to worship their pagan gods and fight starving animals for sport. I'm not saying the Romans were putting on a false show, they really were the biggest and the best, I just think it's kind of rude that they flaunted it so shamelessly.
Despite their lack of humility, they really were an incredible world power. I wonder if they would have believed it if someone told them their reign would not last forever. Either way, they have left a legacy that I have found fascinating to walk through and I'm so glad so much of it is still here.
Second day was Vatican City-a country in and of itself. We decided that since it was Saturday (the busiest day of the week) and in October (during the peak of tourist season) we would pay a little extra, get a group tour and skip all the lines. I quite enjoy doing the tours anyway because having someone give in depth explanations for what we are seeing and telling us the stories behind the sights makes it much more memorable and valuable to me. I don't mind paying extra for my education. I think we made the right decision because the line would have been 2.5 hours or more and I don't like standing in lines when I could be actually seeing stuff.
Anyway, I really wanted to savor and appreciate the Vatican museum, the Sistine Chapel and St. Peter's Basilica, but unfortunately it wasn't quite the experience I had hoped for. I think the main problem is that it was just too crowded in there. We had a good tour guide and even though there were 50 in the group, we each got headsets and he talked into a mike so we could all hear what he was saying no matter where we were in the museum. But they kind of rush you through (because there are 1000's of people waiting in line to get in) so he would talk as we would dodge people while trying to get a quick glance at whatever he was talking about. The headsets were great but if you got too far away from him (which didn't take much to do) you couldn't hear anymore, so on top of dodging and viewing you had to speed walk through the crowds. All of that on top of being surrounded by hot and sweaty Europeans made for a tiring and semi-unenjoyable three hours.
Having said all that, the Vatican is still a must see and there are treasures that do make the misery worth it. The Sistine chapel was amazing but I was disappointed by how disrespectful people were. It says in EVERY language possible "silence," but people still talked-and not even in hushed tones. So the whole time you are viewing the chapel all you hear is SHHHHHH over the crowds and the guards clapping and shouting "silencio!" Very ineffective. It also says no cameras and yet flashes were going off everywhere. The only place that actually was quiet was the crypt, but that's because there were only dead people down there.
St. Peter's Basilica is enormous and GORGEOUS. It was pretty neat to have a tour guide take us through because he explained many of the relics-including a nail and a piece of the Savior's cross-and some about the early Christians and even the Catholic church today that I was unaware of. I have loved learning all about the church and Christian history and I am in awe of what some of the early Christians sacrificed to stay true to what they believed.
We actually found an LDS church not too far away to attend today and it was so nice to feel so at home in such a far away place. We just happened to pick the mission president's ward so he and about 10 missionaries greeted us in English and then provided head sets and translations for us so we could understand all that they were saying. It was great. All the members were so nice and so beautiful. Why is that? Italians are some of the most beautiful people I have seen anywhere-children and adults alike, everyone looks like a model. I feel very self conscious walking around these streets, especially in my backpacking attire.
This afternoon we have wandered from piazza to piazza people watching and window shopping. Even though there are more churches here than anywhere else I have seen, it seems as if most people not in them-they're shopping instead. One of my favorite things has been sitting by the fountains eating Gelato listening to the music in the square and looking at local artists paintings. It's just a fun place to be. We have had 3 days of absolutely perfect weather made even more perfect because I haven't seen the sun in 6 months. The sunshine makes everything better and so does pizza. The food is MUCH more to my liking here than it has been in cities past and I think my pants are getting tighter.
Anyway, that's Rome in a nutshell, it's been a marvelous experience. I am wondering what awaits me in Greece and Turkey but I'm guessing it has something to do with naked statues and power hungry egotistical leaders who have nothing better to do than think of ways to immortalize themselves in history.
Ciao!

Next stop...Barcelona?

Barcelona ended up as our next stop purely because it is the starting place for a cruise we were hoping to get on. It wasn't in the original plans and frankly I wouldn't have minded if it had stayed that way, but I guess it's all part of the adventure.
So, night trains are not my favorite. Actually they are now my arch enemy. It was possibly one of the worst nights of my life. I would rather have stood for 12 hours. I am hoping to arrange things to I don't ever have to take one again but it did get us safely from Paris to Barcelona arriving just as the sun was coming up over the water. Just as we were gathering our stuff to leave the room, a piece of metal jumped out at me and almost cut off my thumb. It had nothing to do with me at all, it was all the stupid ladder's fault. Cursing the train and everything associated with it, I walked-thumb in hand-straight to the dock where we sat for most of the day. We were unable to get on but by the time we left my thumb ran out of blood to gush so the day wasn't a total disappointment.
We were starving so we headed to find something to eat. I was so excited to eat something un-french but my hope died as we walked through the streets finding shop after shop full of none other than french baguettes. They didn't have quite the same amount of mayonnaise but everything else was the same. Why??? I ended up eating at McDonald's-which I would never do in the states, but I was desperate!
Fortunately that was the end of disaster and we found a really nice place to stay right off La Rambla-the main road where everything goes on. Now, if Barcelona had been the only place in Europe I had seen I would have thought it was a pretty cool city. But, come on-London, Paris, Barcelona? Pretty much doesn't compare. It was fun though and it was a nice break from non stop sight seeing. We wandered around the city and had a much needed good night's rest. In the morning we saw the major tourist attraction-the Sagrada familia-an unfinished but massive chapel begun over a century ago, scheduled for completion in 30 years or so. It was neat I guess but we were ready for the next city.
So, the question is where am I now? After much contemplation on what we should do and how we should best spend our time (and not forgetting my intense hatred for night trains) we chose to fly to Rome, and what a good choice that was! We just found out we have gotten on the cruise we wanted the most (which leaves from Rome on Monday and goes to many ports in Greece and Turkey) and which gives us 3 wonderful days here. We found a fantastic bed and breakfast to stay in and have already had an unbelievable day-Rome is back up to par with our other sight seeing show stoppers. I'll give details about Rome in another entry but I have to say I LOVE IT HERE!

Paris #2

Still reading, eh? Thanks mom.
So because of the cooler weather (which got much better after the first day I might add) the crowds were relatively small for Paris standards which made seeing everything much more manageable. We only had to stand in line once and it was for less than half an hour-unheard of in the summer months. Therefore we decided to take a walking tour from Notre Dame all the way along the Seine ending up at the Arc de Triomphe all the way at the other end of the city. Paris is filled with one world class gem after another-intermixed with a fascinating history. The tour took us to Sainte-Chapell where we walked into a beautiful basement chapel for the servants, impressive enough to be worthy of my entrance fee. When we climbed the stairs my breath was literally taken away-not because of the stairs but because of the view. That has never happened to me before. The real chapel, constructed by and for King Louis IX (the only French king who is now a saint) is beyond words. The title means stained glass and it gives meaning to why Paris is called the city of lights. From the outside the building is gray and lifeless. From the inside it is a world of glorious and dynamic color shining through 15 separate panels telling the entire Christian history from Genesis to the crusades. On the final circular pane in the back of the chapel is depicted the 2nd coming of Christ, the climax of all Christendom. I could have stayed there and basked all day long. No matter what else I see, it will definitely be one of the highlights of the trip never to be forgotten.
That chapel is contained within the Palais de Justice-home of France's Supreme Court. Interestingly, so is the Conciergerie-the prison which has, for hundreds of years, housed political and religious criminals awaiting trial and possibly death. Marie Antoinette herself spent almost two years there before her execution at the guillotine and many original artifacts from her stay still remain. The stories of torture and misery are extensive for any whose fate sent them to this place and the darkness and despair are made all the more dramatic because of the contrasting light that lies less than 10 feet away.
Moving on we strolled through the Tuileries Garden-the Gardens of the Louvre palace and down the Champs-Elysees to the Arc, climbing 284 stairs to again view Paris at night this time watching the cars below. The Arc is in the middle of an enormous round about that merges 12 large boulevards with no signs, lane lines or traffic lights, it's just one big free for all. We must have spent a solid hour up there trying to figure out how everyone gets out unscathed. It is a mystery to me because from up above it looks like complete chaos. Every once in a while a car would just stop somewhere in the middle and I know they were down there crying (like I would have been) wondering how they got into this mess and how they were ever going to get out.
One last day in Paris led us to the Palace of Versailles. Um, we thought the Louvre and its grounds were amazing but it was nothing compared to this place. It is an hour outside of Paris and it is UNBELIEVABLE. Louis XIV created it and man did he do a good job. It represents Paris at it's peak and it is all about the good life of France-parties, riches, and all of the finer things in life. I'm not going to try to explain it-you just have to see it for yourself.
A few hours at the Orsay (housing the greatest compilation of impressionist art in the world) found us completely satisfied with (and exhausted) from the trip and ready to crash on the night train out of town.
I have added French History to my list of "to do's" when I get back and I can hardly wait to get started. I am pretty sure I would never want to live in Paris, France, but I would jump at the chance for a return visit (although next time I'm bringing all my own food!)

Paris, a little delayed...

So, I am actually now in Rome but I have a few minutes and have to write about my amazing experience in Paris. Let's start from the beginning.
So our chunnel experience from London to Paris was relatively uneventful (we almost didn't make it on, but since we did it was uneventful) but fun. London was rainy and cold when we left which made it easier to leave-did I mention that I love London? Anyway, when we arrived in Paris the weather, although a tad bit warmer, wasn't much cheerier and I would come to find out that the people would not be either. A few brief encounters with some people who must have been paid to be so incredibly unhelpful reminded us that we were now dealing with a whole new ballgame.
Paris is not an easy way to navigate when you don't really know where you are going and even with a good map the streets wind around and can be confusing. We had a hotel, we had a map, we had correct directions but we still wandered up and down streets for a very long time with our huge packs on our backs in the middle of very large crowds. Well, to our delight as we stood helplessly on the same corner we had passed 3 times already, an old man came to our rescue. He asked us if we needed help and he pointed us in the right direction, smiling as he sent us on our way. "What a nice man" we thought. What a nice man indeed! Half hour later and a half hour further from our hotel we realized that he had sent us in the opposite direction of where we needed to be and that we were literally only one block from our hotel when he sent us packing. I had heard Parisians loved to give Americans the wrong directions but I didn't really think that was true! He laughed all the way home while we walked around in the rain.
Luckily the owner of the Bed and Breakfast of where we were staying when we finally found it made up for him in abundance. He is a short curly haired man with a huge smile and a very french sense of humor. We had numerous conversations with him and we always left laughing. It was a great place to stay and we were within 2 minutes of Notre Dame which made our sight seeing a lot easier.
Our first night, despite the wind and rain, we decided to hit the Eiffel tower. We arrived at the top just as the sun was setting to view Paris at night-which is much better than Paris during the day. A few hundred years ago I'm sure it was clean and bright but years of pollution and decay have made it somewhat dingy and dirty. Coming from London the contrast was even greater because London is so clean and well kept. I must admit I wasn't so sure about Paris when we got there, but after viewing it at night from the highest point in the city I decided it might not be so bad after all.
We walked back along the Seine river-a walk we would come to know well over the next few days-and tried not to watch couple after couple making out on each and every bridge. There were even couples taking pictures of themselves while making out on the bridges...interesting. I didn't find Paris romantic but apparently other people do-not sure what the fascination with pda's in Paris is but the displays were rampant. Also, what's up with the food? I hated everything I ate in Paris and I thought they were known for the greatest delicassies in the world. Pretty much everything is on a baguette and it is loaded with one of three things: Mayonnaise, butter or cheese (or a combination of all three). There is usually some meat mixed in there but the majority is basically lard. The crepes were mediocre but even the pastries were not that great-maybe I just do not possess the taste buds of the French but whatever it was, I am not a fan.
Let's get to what I am a fan of-everything else. Paris is jam packed with fascinating architecture, art, and history to boot. I spent three days with my jaw on the floor trying to fathom what I was really experiencing. I thought nothing could top my London experience but honestly, Paris was right up there with it. We spent our first full morning touring the Louvre-which, being an enormous and incredible palace was a museum in and of itself. The French decorate with gusto-they leave no square inch untouched. Everything from the carpets to the ceilings were painted with scenes from the political and religious (which was basically the same thing) culture of the day. The museum was basically created when the revolutionaries took over the palace and threw open the doors for all of the commoners to see. Most of what we saw was originally the private collection of royalty including the Greek Venus De Milo, Da Vinci's Mona Lisa, Raphael's Madonna and thousands more sculptures and paintings from centuries gone by. The palace is huge, we only saw a select collection, but what we saw occupied the whole of the morning.
This entry is probably occupied the whole of your morning as well if you have read it all so I am going to stop and start another entry just to give your eyes (and my fingers) a break.