Well, it is the end of our wonderful journey. I am both sad to leave and anxious to see our fur kids. I know that their Auntie Rae has taken great care of them! On Thursday I had booked tickets for the Vatican museums at 2:30, a good time as most of the big tours had been and gone. I had pre booked a taxi, but all I could figure out was to book it to Vatican City. We were dropped off just outside the ‘Square.’ You can see in the photo above the arc of columns, so the Square

I thought Herculaneum was exciting, and it truly was. But Tuesday, with the major Roman ruins in Roma was nothing short of amazing!!! Yes, I keep using that word, but it is the one that truly describes my thoughts. Tuesday we were scheduled to tour the Foro Romano and Colosseo with an archaeologist. I had found out that such a tour was possible, so thought that it was worth the extra money. Was it ever! The day was to begin at 10:00 at the furthest part of the Foro from

It is Monday so it must be Herculaneum! We left the flat as it was just beginning to get light, and walked to Termini train station. I struggled to find our tickets as the tour company and I had communicated through three apps! Finally I found them and we were let through into the station. The train was already at the platform so we walked to the far end of the platform to car 2 and found seats facing each other. That is very important for me as I cannot ride backwards,

Via Balilla On Saturday our cruise ended at Civitavecchia. 😥 We shared a taxi with another couple to get into the city. Unfortuately, the taxi driver charged us both the full fee; I argued with him as I had done my research on what it would cost, but we had no other option. Neither of us had enough euros, so the driver stopped at an ATM which worked for neither of us. Of course it was the weekend, so our bank was not open to find out what was going on. 😫 The only saving gra

On Thursday we docked at Livorno in Italy. Livorno is near Pisa in Tuscany. Pinocchio’s creator was a native of Tuscany. Fortunately the locals do not share Pinocchio’s nose size! We went into Pisa to see the Duomo (cathedral), Baptistery and Campanile (bell tower). You probably know the Campanile better as the Leaning Tower of Pisa. Cathedrals are built in the shape of the cross. What you see here is the west door which is the main entrance to all cathedrals (that I k

Yesterday morning we docked at Sète in France. Our excursion for the day was to the lovely inland town of Narbonne, and to visit the nearby abbey of Fontfroide. Getting off the ship was a bit of a shock as the temperature was lower and there was a bit of wind making the short walk to the coach more brisk than usual. It was an hour’s drive to the cozy town of Narbonne where we found Christmas in full swing. We were dropped off by a very large decorated tree sculpture, and

We made it to Barcelona, España, the first port of our trip! Yesterday during a yellow dawn we flew in over the Montserrat range of the Pyrenees into this amazing city on the Mediterranean Sea. Wow is about all I have to say about that! Montserrat Range in Catalonia, España Sadly not my photo, we were looking down on it from not far above! Once onboard the Viking Vela we enjoyed some lunch and a bit of down time before getting into our stateroom. Then we had another bit o

Welcome to our latest excursion! We are shortly off to Barcelona, España to board our Viking cruise ship to sail the Mediterranean with stops in Sète and Marseille in France, Monte Carlo in Monaco, Firenze and Pisa in Italia, and finally Roma, Italia where the cruise ends. Then we will spend a week in Roma, with tours of the Colosseum and Roman Forum, the Vatican, and take a high speed train to Napoli where we will go to the suburb of Erculano to visit Herculaneum. It will

Saturday It is our last day; tomorrow we fly home. Glenn's fever has broken, but he is still fairly miserable. My throat is bothering...

Thursday Yesterday, after hearing the horrible news of the political situation at home, we took the next step in our journey, the drive...

Monday Hofkirche! This is an unusual and very amazing church. It is the burial place of Holy Roman emperor Maximilian I (1459-1519). ...

Tuesday Ah, Innsbruck! One of my favourite places in Europe. It is no longer the small town that I recall, but it is still tucked...

Saturday This morning we bid a fond farewell to the Gullveig, our new friends and Viking cruises. The trip was, for the most part,...

Thursday This morning we arrived in Passau, a small town on the border with Austria. Our small group from the ship (those of us who...

Wednesday Welcome to Krems! Today was a visit a monastery to enjoy the site and a local treat, apricots! Well, that was the plan. It...

Tuesday Welcome to Wien, the capital of Austria! This is the beautiful Stephansdom (St. Stephan's Cathedral), tucked in the centre of...

The Budapest Parliament Sunday Our first full day in Hungary, and first cruise! Yesterday we boarded the Viking Gullveig, enjoyed a bit...

Welcome to our latest trip! We will take a cruise on the Donau River (Danube) from Budapest, Magyarország (Hungary), through Österreich...

Why make an embroidery sampler? Are you learning new stitches? Using new materials? Using new techniques? There is always a learning...

In the churchyard, holly, green with berries of red and junipers next to ancient oaks grow. Tombstones upright and falling, names of old;...