HAPPY BIRTHDAY FROM TOULON!

November 30, 2013 / 8:45 p.m. Europe / 2:45 p.m. Erie
Mediterranean Sea, severe gale force winds, cast off from Toulon, France

Last night the seas were heavy, but this is a very big ship and it only felt like we were being rocked to sleep. Tonight the winds are supposed to be worse as we sail to Livorno/Florence-Pisa.

Today is Brian’s birthday and I really missed taking him, Denise, and Breanna to dinner. We finally figured out how to make an overseas call, again thanks to TK’s acumen. Dial + by pressing the zero down on the phone, then dial 1 and the 10 digit phone number. So, at 5 p.m. I wished Brian Happy Birthday from France, over 4000 miles away from Erie!

Aix-en-Provence
The bus ride to Aix from Toulon was about 1 ¼ hours along the coast. Yachts are still in the water, cypress trees grow tall, tiled roofs reflect the sun, and medieval church spires reach to the sky. The tour operator told us that we may experience delays on the highway because of a truckers’ strike. Indeed we saw at least 112 semi-tractor trailers parked along the exit by Aix, but they politely parked so vehicles could go around them. They are protesting the European Union’s new tariff on intercountry roads. We were lucky today. We also noted that regular gasoline averages $7/gallon.

As soon as I saw Ste. Victoire, the mountain made famous by Cezanne, I knew I was home. I was so pleased to see that Aix was having a festival, “Fete Noel en Aix en Provence.” Despite a forecast of rain, the day was sunny and children and adults were enjoying a train ride with Santa (Pere Noel) and a few other carnival rides! “Chalets de Noel” (Christmas booths) were set up on Cours Mirabeau with all kinds of items for sale, lavender sachets and soaps, winter hats and scarves, linens, some handmade toys, sausages, waffles, roasting chestnuts, and a lot more. I was especially happy to see that five different “santonniers” were exhibiting and selling too. I had planned on the long walk to one workshop on Cours Gambetta. Santons are tiny handmade, hand painted clay figures that represent a Nativity scene, as well as village people and animals. In 2008 I purchased Santons for B1 and B2 and hope to add to their collection!  No Black Friday rush for us!

We went to La Rotonde to meet the I.A.U. alumni director but she did not arrive. There could be many explanations, but I was disappointed. La Rotonde was one of our hangouts in 1967-1968, because we could talk the chef into making a “hamburger sandwiche.” Now they have their own “R Burger” on the menu!! They add Provençal herbs and mozzarella cheese, thin ham slices, tomato, and pickle.  It was not what I expected! TK stayed safe with penne pasta and tomato basil sauce. The pommes frites were just like I remembered.

 Of course we walked all over the old city, exploring every cobble stone alley, nook, and corner. Fountains abound in Aix and it is fun to find them again. Aix has buildings from the 11^th - 18^th centuries in this area. We had 4 hours to ourselves, not enough for me and probably too much for TK. He did like sampling at Saturday’s produce and meat market.  

Just as we were getting on the bus to return to Toulon/Ruby Princess it started raining. Back onboard we went straight to dinner. Highlight: key lime pie.

We have to arise extra early tomorrow as our tour to Florence meets at 7:30 a.m.

TK’s Takes: He is glad the weather held out for today.  He saw some firefighters gathered by their fire truck—we asked if anyone wanted to trade a patch. One kind firefighter (pompier) took the patch off his shirt and gave it to TK! TK also notes that it is very rough and windy (howling) tonight!

MEDITERRANEAN SEA, aboard RUBY PRINCESS

November 29, 2013 / 8 p.m. Europe—2 p.m. EST/ calm seas

This morning we walked for several hours along Las Ramblas and lovely medieval passage ways with a stop at the Market. This vast market is such a sensory experience, with fresh produce, beef, veal, lamb, chicken, fish and other seafood, eggs of all sizes (even emu), the spices, the nuts, mushrooms (43 different kinds in one booth), candies, pastries, Brian’s olives (this time I counted and there were 30 different kinds-stuffed with various things or marinated in various oils, etc.), and things I can never unsee again.  I won’t explain in this brief blog, and I saw many items at market when I lived in France a year, but today I saw some things that could turn me into a vegetarian.

We returned to the Hotel Pulitzer (a hotel I recommended on Trip Advisor) about 12:30, retrieved our luggage, and took a taxi to the Ruby Princess.  Boarding the ship was very smooth—TK thinks of everything (charge cards & passports registered, location of ship’s areas studied ahead of time).

Our balcony stateroom is such a bonus, with ample closet space, a desk, lots of drawers and shelves, and a regular bathroom. Our stateroom experience last year on the NCL Epic when we cruised the Med really jolted us (translucent toilet capsule, translucent shower capsule, sink in the bed area) but we are very pleased with the Ruby.

We toured the ship thanks to a scavenger hunt. It is about 50 F today, so we won’t be swimming soon. The captain warned of heavy seas to come tonight, so we will take Bonine before going to bed.

Tomorrow we arrive in the port of Toulon, France where we have arranged a bus ride to Aix, the city I love. We are meeting with the Alumni Director of the school that I attended in the late 60s for lunch at La Rotonde, the restaurant where I had my first “hamburger sandwiche and pommes frites (real French fries)”, and two of my favorite desserts, Poire Helene (pears, vanilla ice cream, and chocolate sauce) and Peche Melba (peaches, vanilla ice cream, and raspberry sauce). 

TK’s takes: He is starting to remember more about Barcelona when he was in the Navy, e.g. chickens roasted on a spit on open fires and sold in alleys, the friendly people.  Easiest embarkation ever, we walked right on, great stateroom.

HAPPY THANKSGIVING FROM BARCELONA!

November 28, 2013 / 8:30 p.m. Europe—2:30 p.m. EST
Sunny, high 40s

 

While our family will just begin Thanksgiving dinner, we are in our hotel for the evening. Our dinner was paella at La Rambla on Las Ramblas. No turkey, no pumpkin pie on the menu. We settled for chicken paella (Spanish rice) and chicken/beef paella for TK. This probably was not a 3 star restaurant, but what a day we have had otherwise.

At 9:30 a.m. we took a taxi (6 €) to La Sagrada Familia, one of the most breathtaking, inspiring, spiritual churches I have ever entered.  Construction was begun in 1892, but the church will not be completed until about 2026.

Describing Sagrada Família, art critic Rainer Zerbst said, "It is probably impossible to find a church building anything like it in the entire history of art” and Paul Goldberger called it, "the most extraordinary personal interpretation of Gothic architecture since the Middle Ages.”

 I was so intrigued by this church last year that when Tim said we could return and tour inside I was very happy. We bought the tickets online which meant we had no wait to enter. We spent about 3 hours at least trying to capture every aspect, from the unique stained glass windows, the Nativity façade, the Passion façade, the incorporation of nature, the unbelievable use of mathematics, and a special tour of the Passion bell tower. The Passion tower is about 300 feet high. We took the elevator up and I walked down. The spiral staircase, reminiscent of the nautilus shell, was a little scary as I descended, narrow and no railing on one side. My knees were shaking the whole way down, but the view of Barcelona and the close-up view of the spires’ tops were worth the effort!

 

 

 

 

 

 

I truly hated to leave the church, but we took a taxi to Museu Picasso. The Metro is available, but the learning curve would slow us down (French or English no problem). Plus the cost of a taxi was extremely reasonable.  Pablo Picasso lived and painted in Barcelona. His friend decided to create this museum during Picasso’s lifetime, so Picasso donated many of his originals. The first room was filled with his work from age 13-18. His skill is certainly evident. I did not know that Picasso’s father was an art teacher.  Anyway, the museum shows examples of the evolution of his style. The Picasso Museum itself occupies five large town houses or palaces on the street Carrer de Montcada. The original palaces date from the 13th-15th centuries.  http://www.museupicasso.bcn.cat/en/

 After visiting the museum, we walked and walked the rest of the afternoon, toward Las Ramblas.  The streets were early 13^th – 15^th century, filled with small boutiques, art galleries, tabacs, and so on.  Our rule is, never pass up a chance for gelato (there is absolutely nowhere in Erie for true gelato, so we tried strawberry, pina colada, tutti frutti, raspberry, and coffee flavored. I loved strawberry, tutti frutti, and pina colada.

Finally, we had dinner as mentioned first. We continued walking until after 8 p.m. The streets are lighted for Christmas, and we saw Santa Claus! We also saw what we think was a rehearsal for an outdoor ballet---varied orchestra music, e.g. Macbeth, the opera. So beautiful, the delicate dancers on an open air stage, the director suggesting graceful steps.

Finally we entered El Corte Angles (department store, 4th largest in the world, largest in Europe)which turned out to be a city block footprint and 9 stories high. I believe it is bigger than Macy’s in NYC! There were 3 sets of escalators!!! Women’s, Men’s, Children’s departments, electronics department that could compete with our Best Buy, housewares, a full floor of toys and Santa’s workshop, even paint and things found in a hardware store, and much more, and a full scale grocery store in the lowest level.  The store reminded me of the Boston Store in its glory days, only a much larger scale.

Now we are in for the night, and we enjoyed Face Time with B1, Denise, and Brian. Just like we were with them. I tried Coleen’s iPad, but they must still be dining with family.

We had a nice Thanksgiving and wish our family could be with us!

 

TK's Takes:  Barcelona's nightlife is thriving. Reminds him of NYC. (Note: Barcelona's population is 1.6 million people)

HOLA! FROM BARCELONA!

November 27, 2013

Hotel Pulitzer/Calle Bergara 8

After 3 different flights, beginning at 12:05 p.m. EST out of Erie on November 26, we arrived smoothly in Barcelona at 3 a.m. EST. We retrieved our modest luggage and took the Aerobus (5.90 € each) to Place de Catalunya which is near Hotel Pulitzer. I am very pleased that Tim figured all this out last year so we look like pros! We were checked in and getting organized in our room by 5 a.m. (11 a.m. Europe time). The weather is sunny and cool, mid 40s, but I am getting along with a sweater and a fleece jacket.

By 6 a.m. we were walking along the nearby Las Ramblas, an internationally acclaimed street for strolling, with many restaurants and shops, the wonderful and huge market, Mercat St. Josep/La Bouqueria, and more.  One store, something like Macy’s in New York, had 6 floors of women’s and girls’ apparel. I noted that Levi jeans 504 were 81 €, another Levis jeans were 131 € ($178), plain Dockers were 93 €, some shoes were 15-20 €. I am noting this because the euro is worth about $1.36 today. So, jeans are EXPENSIVE!!  Plus I wanted to show off that I know how to make the euro symbol (type 20ac then alt-x).

By about 8 a.m. Erie time TK was fading, so we stopped and had lunch at Hard Rock, not the most cultural of meals, but we needed regular food. Cheeseburgers and fries. Tomorrow we will eat like the Spanish!

It is now 9:30 a.m. (Erie time) and TK is resting while I write. We are sagging after 25 hours of travel and culture!

HOTEL PULITZER: Its Avant Garde design appeals to us, clean, modern, and comfortable, great location, free wi-fi, reasonably priced, and we stayed here last year.

MERCAT ST. JOSEP/LA BOUQUERIE: This is one of the most exceptional markets I have ever experienced. It is about three times the size of Philly’s market and the choices are astounding. For Brian, there are probably 15 different choices of olives, stuffed with feta, or ham, or anchovies to name few. So many varieties of mushrooms, morel selling at 40 € a kg.! Beef and cheese prices were comparable to Erie. So many kinds of seafood. The candies and cookies, the vegetables. The vendors seem like artists as they design and display their “groceries.”

 TK's TAKE: He did not sleep on the overnight flight, many interruptions, dinner and breakfast. He says he is not as young as he used to be.

JK's TAKE: Since we both wanted aisle seats we sat across the aisle from each other. My seatmates were probably early 70s, from Arizona, and also going on a cruise. They fought loudly with each other using foul language almost the whole flight, while drinking lots of wine. It was very distracting and disconcerting. At one time the lady asked the cabin steward to get her a flight out of Barcelona back to Arizona, she wasn't going any further with her husband. The steward replied that we still had 4 hours to go till we were in Barcelona. I did not sleep either but I did read over 500 pages of Greg Iles' Blood Memory. Thank goodness this couple is not on our cruise!

TUESDAY TAKE OFF

Erie, Pennsylvania / November 25, 2013

In less than 24 hours we will be flying across the Atlantic (if the weather cooperates!)  Our 25 inch bags are packed and now my carry on is packed except for the things that need charging! I don't have as much room in my luggage as I hoped.

It is very cold in Erie--33 F right now. We sure hope that Europe is about 10-15 or more degrees warmer.

This time we decided not to get any euros in the U.S. and rely on ATMs in Europe. I did break down and sent for about $100 in euros two weeks ago--there are many different scenarios that could occur. Tim is confident that we will be able to get euros easily. We use charge cards most of the time anyway, but one does not charge a cup of coffee or other little things.

Tim is the best trip planner!

ITINERARY DETAILS

ITINERARY DETAILS

Right now it is snowing in Erie as we anticipate our Mediterranean and Transatlantic cruise Tuesday. A lot of snow is predicted for tomorrow, but we sure hope that it clears by Tuesday! 

We are leaving Erie at about 11 a.m. on Tuesday morning to fly to Cleveland then Newark. From Newark we will fly off to Barcelona about 7 p.m.

Europe’s time zone is six hours ahead of us, so if we arrive in Barcelona at about 10 a.m., it will really be about 4 a.m. in Erie. That’s important to remember since we are activating my cell phone and we don't want to wake anyone up in the middle of the night!!

Here is our itinerary:

DATE/2013	PORT OR AT SEA	TIME	PLANS
11-27/28	BARCELONA, SPAIN HOTEL PULITZER	ALL DAY!	GAUDI’S LA SAGRADA FAMILIA, WALK LAS RAMBLAS, EAT, AND RELAX
11-29	BOARD RUBY PRINCESS STATEROOM C218	BOARD BY 1 P.M. SHIP DEPARTS ABOUT 7 P.M.
11-30 (BRIAN’S BIRTHDAY)	TOULON, FRANCE	IN PORT 8 A.M. TO 6 P.M.	WE ARE GOING TO AIX EN PROVENCE!!!!!!!!!!!!!
12-1	LIVORNO, ITALY	IN PORT 7 A.M. TO 7 P.M.	WE ARE GOING TO FLORENCE ON OUR OWN FOR THE DAY
12-2	CIVITAVECCHIA, ITALY	IN PORT 7 A.M. TO 7 P.M.	ROME TOUR OF THE CATACOMBS AND SEVEN HILLS
12-3, 4, 5	AT SEA		RELAX!!
12-6	FUNCHAL, MADEIRA, PORTUGAL	8 A.M. TO 5 P.M.	TOUR ON OUR OWN
12-7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12 (B1’S BIRTHDAY), 13	AT SEA		RELAX
12-14	FORT LAUDERDALE, FLORIDA	7 A.M.	FLY TO ERIE!

 

I am almost finished packing and my checked bag only weighs 33 pounds!!! I'm doing good! Tim's weighs 40.  My carry on and tote will be heavy because I am taking both the 10 inch laptop and my iPad, plus my DSLR camera and my Canon SX260. Technology!!

CELL PHONE: This time we are sure my phone will be operable in Europe. If we make calls while in port it will be $.99/minute. From the cruise ship the cost is $2.49/minute. We can send texts for $.50 each and receive texts for $.05 each. So now we can be reached and  it won't really cost that much! This cost is sure better than the $30/minute it cost when I lived in Aix in 1967-1968!!!

UPGRADE:
I have to say that TK is doing the happy dance today!! He got an upgrade email first thing this morning. Originally we were booked for an inside stateroom. That was fine with us really because we don't know what the weather will be and the cruise was so reasonably priced. NOW, we have a balcony stateroom!!! That is frosting on the cake to be colloquial!!

Now we are just finishing up some last minute details before we leave on this new adventure.

AWAY WE GO AGAIN!!

Next Tuesday, November 26, 2013, we are flying off to Barcelona for a cruise on the Ruby Princess! After I told Tim no more cruises for 2013, he found this killer deal--air fare one way, 2 extra nights in Barcelona, and a 15 day Mediterranean and Transatlantic for a lot less than we paid last year for the Norwegian Epic.  I agreed because we can return to my Aix en Provence, France!

Anyway, I am almost packed and today I am setting up my new 10 inch laptop for the trip. We have tickets to go inside La Sagrada Familia in Barcelona, the fabulous church designed by Gaudi and begun in the later 1800s. The cathedral is still not finished, but last year when we saw the exterior, I knew I had to return to Barcelona to see the interior!! I did not know we would be back in a year!!

The trip comes at a cost. We will miss Thanksgiving with our dear family, Brian's birthday, and B1's birthday.  I am hoping we can make up for that in several ways!

So, another segment in Exploring the World begins!!!