Cruise Day 3 - Naples, Italy!

Today on our Mediterranean we port in Naples.  We get off the ship and meet up with our tour director, Josh, who happens to be from Tulsa, OK.  Josh is in Italy studying of all thing philosophy.  Not sure what you can do with that degree other than just teach but he was a really nice young man and spoke really good english LOL  :-)   Anyway Josh and our guide, Nello who was hilarious I might add did a great job as did our bus driver.  We started off on our way down the Amalfi Coast which was pretty but also dirty in my opinion. The big thing there is lemons and limoncello.  Limoncello is an Italian lemon liqueur mainly produced in Southern Italy, especially in the region around the Gulf of Naples, the Sorrentine Peninsula and the coast of Amalfi and islands of Procida, Ischia and Capri.  Boy they had some HUGE lemons there too.  I didn't partake of any limoncello but I did have a refreshing lemons freeze drink when we got to Positano.   Then we went to the ruins of Pompeii, which was destroyed in the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in AD 79. It was pretty cool seeing all this old stuff LOL.  

Pompeii Ruins

Entrance to Pompeii

Pompeii

Day 4 we're off to Rome!

I'm Back....

Well, I haven't blogged in a few weeks so here's the deal.   My hubby and I went on an amazing Mediterranean cruise so for the next few days I will take you on a revisit of our adventures day by day.  We booked our cruise with Norwegian which we used for an Alaskan cruise about 10 years ago which was also wonderful.  

Sagrada Família church

Columbus Monument

 Casa Batlló

Arc de Triomf

Day 1 -- We flew out of Atlanta to Barcelona, Spain.  When we landed in Barcelona we were there early, 8:30am and the cruise line had arranged to take us on a bus tour of the city prior to boarding our ship, the Epic.  Barcelona is the capital of Catalonia and the second largest city in Spain. We got to see some highlights of Barcelona which included the Sagrada Família a still unfinished Gothic style Roman Catholic church by Antoni Gaudi. Gaudi also did some other amazing buildings in Barcelona such as 

Barcelona Cathedra 

Casa Batlló & Casa Vicens.    We also got to see the Barcelona Cathedral, the Columbus Monument,  & the Arc de Triomf among other sites.  Then we were off to board our ship the Norwegian Epic. Pretty big ship I might say too at 155,000 tons with 3, yes 3 water slides, 3 pools, 5 hot tubs and over 6000 people on board.  We left Barcelona about 7pm and were on our way to our first port Naples, Italy on Tuesday.  Monday was our day at sea so we just relaxed and explored the ship and that evening went to dinner at the Taste. We had steak & lobster which was soooo yummy and then we were off to see the Blue Man Group which was really fun.

Cruise Day 4

Today our adventure takes us to Rome, Italy!

We started our day off walking down to the train station in Civitavecchia to meet our guide, Josh from Can't Be Missed Tours.

Civitavcchia Train Station

We take the train to meet our tour guide who's name escapes me but she was a very informative guide.  We venture on to the Colosseum.  It was so cool getting off the train and going out to look over at the the Colosseum which is situated just east of the Roman Forum. Construction began under the emperor Vespasian in 70 AD, and was completed in 80 AD under his successor and heir Titus. 

The Colosseum

The Colosseum could hold, it is estimated, between 50,000 and 80,000 spectators, and was used for gladiatorial contests and public spectacles such as mock sea battles, animal hunts, executions, re-enactments of famous battles, and dramas based on Classical mythology.

Inside the Colosseum

After the Colosseum we hopped on a city bus and road around looking at the sites of the city on our way to the Pantheon. We pass the Altare della Patria 

Altare della Patria 

The Pantheon is a building in Rome, Italy, commissioned by Marcus Agrippa during the reign of Augustus as a temple to all the gods of ancient Rome, and rebuilt by the emperor Hadrian about 126 AD.

Pantheon

Then we continue on our walking tour on around the plazas until we come to the famous Trevi Fountain.  You can hear the waters rushing from blocks away and we you finally get there it's really awesome. 

Trevi Fountain

Trevi Fountain a fountain in the Trevi district in Rome, Italy, designed by Italian architect Nicola Salvi and completed by Pietro Bracci. Standing 86 ft. high and 161.3 ft. wide, it is the largest Baroque fountain in the city and one of the most famous fountains in the world.

A traditional legend holds that if visitors throw a coin into the fountain, they are ensured a return to Rome. Coins are purportedly meant to be thrown using the right hand over the left shoulder. This was the theme of 1954's Three Coins in the Fountain and the Academy Award-winning song by that name which introduced the picture.

Spanish Steps

From Trevi's Fountain we made our way over to the Spanish Steps which climb a steep slope between the Piazza di Spagna at the base and Piazza Trinità dei Monti, dominated by the Trinità dei Monti church at the top. The Scalinata is the widest staircase in Europe. 

After a nice lunch of Pizza and gelato we made our way over to Vatican City.

Layout of Vatican City

Vatican City is HUGE & BUSY with visitors! Vatican City territory consists of a walled enclave within the city of Rome. It has an area of approximately 110 acres, and a population of around 840. This makes Vatican City the smallest internationally recognized independent state in the world by both area and population.

Pomodoro’s Sphere Within a Sphere

We enter the museum and embark on The Path to the Sistine Chapel.  Along the way to our destination, we’ll pass the countless works of art that have been collected and commissioned by the popes over the centuries, spanning from the BC era (The Belvedere Torso) to the twentieth century (Pomodoro’s Sphere Within a Sphere).

Last Supper Tapestry 

After viewing some of the museum pieces we finally make it to the Sistine Chapel were we get to see the famous painted ceilings by Michelangelo.  We weren't suppose to take picture in the chapel but I tried to sneak some anyways but they didn't come out so good...LOL

Sistine Chapel

That's about as good as I could get without having the "photo police" after me....LOL

We exit the Sistine Chapel through a passageway reserved for tour guides, which will lead us to St. Peter’s Basilica, the final stop of the day.  After a brief talk about the building’s history, we're  given time to wander through the biggest church in the world, and take in over a hundred years’ work of the greatest artists of the sixteenth century. 

Vatican City has so much to see there is no way I can put it all in this blog but it was totally awesome and I'm not even Catholic LOL 

Tomorrow we're off to Pisa & Florence!

Have a good one!