Monday, May 17, 2010
Did I leave you hanging?
Yes, we are back...I guess it has taken me so long to finish my journey's blog because I really didn't want it to end!!! Yet, all things must come to an end but when one door closes another opens. The ship's door closed, we walked down the gangway for the last time, said our goodbyes to the wonderful crew, and turned in our "don't leave room without it" card and planted our feet back in the USA. Now to relive the memories of the people, places and experiences....to try and share with all of our friends the similiarities and the differences of different countries and their people. I would do it again....Ken would do a segment but three months was a bit long for him.
Back in the USA we along with our now ten pieces of luggage finally found a town car that cost an arm and leg to transport us to the hotel where we met my son, Chris. We spent two days in NYC touring in the "big red hop on hop off" bus and left just in time. We left Saturday morning to drive to Maine and the bomb scare in Times Square was Sat. night. It seems our whole trip we just missed events like hurricanes, protests, strikes, etc. We sure were blessed the whole way, especially with the weather. The people were out in NYC as the day was a beauty which apparently they had not experienced in awhile.
We drove up to Maine and spent the week at a friend's beach house.... a very generous friend, Heidi and loved it. The Rill family (with five childen) met us there and the week was filled with touring the coast, playing on the beach and once again enjoying exceptional warm weather. We even had a graduation on the beach for the oldest Rill child, Brixton who graduated from eighth grade....he was home schooled and will be going into high school. Not too many students have a graduation on the beach...it was very touching as his dad spoke of his transition into becoming an adult.
Ken and I took the youngest girls to Bar Harbor for a day and Ken had more fun than all three of us put together. He really enjoyed singing, telling stories and of course shopping with the young ladies and they were a pleasure to be with.
Chris' graduation topped the trip off with his Baccalaureate on Friday eve and graduation on Sat. morning. I can not tell you how proud we all are of Chris and his determination and persistance in achieving his Master's in Divinty. Staying in school for seven straight years, after 12 years is amazing to me!!! He's not done yet, though, as he was awarded the top scholarship from his seminary to study in Edinburg, Scotland next year!! Road trip!!!
Ken, Chris and I visited friends of Chris to see their garden after graduation...wonderful place and had dinner with one of my good friends that I grew up with, MaryLou and her husband Keith.
And to end the trip of all trips, journeys of all journeys and adventures of all adventures Sunday morning we celebrated Mother's Day with a wonderful breakfast and gathering of our group where Tammie and I were the honored Mother's. I may add Tammie really deserves it...mother of five and home schools them all. Their whole family is a great team led by Tammie and her hsuband Dave. After saying goodbye to all, which wasn't too hard as Chris would be driving home and the Rills will be visiting us in June, we drove to the airport and flew home to Destin where Jenny picked us up. She had flowers waiting for me at the house and when Nick called to wish me a Happy Mother's Day my day was complete!!!
So the dots on our map are now all connected....we made the trip all the way around the world....it is so hard to believe. Ken and I keep asking each other....were we really gone? Were we really on the other side of the world? WOW!!! Has reality set in? Who knows? What I do know is I am a very fortunate person and so blessed that I was able to experience this trip. Now, back to pulling weeds in my garden, where I also am blessed. Maybe I'm not in another country, not living where I have 24 room service, not having my bed made everyday and food prepared for me, yet I am with my wonderful family and friends living in beautiful Destin where the beaches ARE the most beautiful beaches in the world and digging in the dirt. What more could a gal ask for?
Thanx for sharing this voyage with us...Amen!!!
janet and ken
Back in the USA we along with our now ten pieces of luggage finally found a town car that cost an arm and leg to transport us to the hotel where we met my son, Chris. We spent two days in NYC touring in the "big red hop on hop off" bus and left just in time. We left Saturday morning to drive to Maine and the bomb scare in Times Square was Sat. night. It seems our whole trip we just missed events like hurricanes, protests, strikes, etc. We sure were blessed the whole way, especially with the weather. The people were out in NYC as the day was a beauty which apparently they had not experienced in awhile.
We drove up to Maine and spent the week at a friend's beach house.... a very generous friend, Heidi and loved it. The Rill family (with five childen) met us there and the week was filled with touring the coast, playing on the beach and once again enjoying exceptional warm weather. We even had a graduation on the beach for the oldest Rill child, Brixton who graduated from eighth grade....he was home schooled and will be going into high school. Not too many students have a graduation on the beach...it was very touching as his dad spoke of his transition into becoming an adult.
Ken and I took the youngest girls to Bar Harbor for a day and Ken had more fun than all three of us put together. He really enjoyed singing, telling stories and of course shopping with the young ladies and they were a pleasure to be with.
Chris' graduation topped the trip off with his Baccalaureate on Friday eve and graduation on Sat. morning. I can not tell you how proud we all are of Chris and his determination and persistance in achieving his Master's in Divinty. Staying in school for seven straight years, after 12 years is amazing to me!!! He's not done yet, though, as he was awarded the top scholarship from his seminary to study in Edinburg, Scotland next year!! Road trip!!!
Ken, Chris and I visited friends of Chris to see their garden after graduation...wonderful place and had dinner with one of my good friends that I grew up with, MaryLou and her husband Keith.
And to end the trip of all trips, journeys of all journeys and adventures of all adventures Sunday morning we celebrated Mother's Day with a wonderful breakfast and gathering of our group where Tammie and I were the honored Mother's. I may add Tammie really deserves it...mother of five and home schools them all. Their whole family is a great team led by Tammie and her hsuband Dave. After saying goodbye to all, which wasn't too hard as Chris would be driving home and the Rills will be visiting us in June, we drove to the airport and flew home to Destin where Jenny picked us up. She had flowers waiting for me at the house and when Nick called to wish me a Happy Mother's Day my day was complete!!!
So the dots on our map are now all connected....we made the trip all the way around the world....it is so hard to believe. Ken and I keep asking each other....were we really gone? Were we really on the other side of the world? WOW!!! Has reality set in? Who knows? What I do know is I am a very fortunate person and so blessed that I was able to experience this trip. Now, back to pulling weeds in my garden, where I also am blessed. Maybe I'm not in another country, not living where I have 24 room service, not having my bed made everyday and food prepared for me, yet I am with my wonderful family and friends living in beautiful Destin where the beaches ARE the most beautiful beaches in the world and digging in the dirt. What more could a gal ask for?
Thanx for sharing this voyage with us...Amen!!!
janet and ken
Wednesday, April 28, 2010
Rome Sweet Rome..almost home sweet home!!!
Bonjourno,
As I write this blog, I am sitting on my bed in the middle of almost packed luggage. We have been cruising on the Queen Mary for six days and will be greeting the Statue of Liberty early tomorrow morning. What an adventure this has been. I think I got behind on my blogs in the last few weeks so today before I get off the ship. my goal is to finish with our last tour...to Rome.
Ken and I took two different tours...he visited the highlights of Rome and I went to the Sistine Chapel. We did see some of the same landmarks though. Our dock was in Civitavecchia, which is two hours from Rome. The buses actually are pretty modern and with the tour guide's commentary on the city it makes the time go quickly. The first thing I noticed about Italy was the green...it was Spring and the rolling hills dotted with purple crepe myrtle trees was such a delightful view out our window. Along with our guide's wonderful Italian accent, I felt like this was the frosting on the fabulous cake we have been enjoying this journey!!
Our tour took us first to a very popular fountain called The Trivia Fountain. It is tradition to make a wish here while throwing a coin over your shoulder into the fountain. The fountain is surrounding by magnificent sculptures. On the way to the fountain we saw two women with a baby stroller...it was kinda weird because I saw one of the ladies using a cardboard to block the baby or something....the next thing, she grabbed into the pocket of one of the elder men's pocket...he knocked the cardboard and her down. We were warmed..beware of gypsies. It has been amazingly sad how people use children to help with their begging and crimes. Fortunately this was the only episode that we knew but after that I turned my backpack into a frontpack!!
Next we took a journey back to the days of the Gladiators with a visit to the incredible Coliseum. It is Rome's finest amphitheatre commissioned by Emperor Vespasian in 72AD. This immense sculpture once held up to 55,000 people. Subterranean passageways lead to holding chambers for competitors, animals and equipment and the 76 entrances to allow the access for the eager crowds.
From here we walked to the Vatican Museum which houses one of the most impressive collections in the world. The artwork is unbelievable...you hear about it all but until you are in front of it...you just can not believe it...I still can't!!! Michelangelo..what a guy!!!
Our last stop was the magnificent St. Peter's Basilica which took over 100 years to build. It sits on over 800 pillars and is adorned with 44 altars....that is a BIG church!!! It is by far the largest church in the world. We saw where the Pope stands to give his speeches and all that good stuff. They have Wed. morning service when he is in town...I guess he didn't know we were coming because he wasn't there.
The history of this city is ancient It is the capital city of Italy and Lazio, and is Italy's largest and most populous city. It's history as a city spans over two and a half thousand years, as one of the founding cities of Western Civilization. It would take alot more time than we had to really see the sites yet I feel we got a very good feel of the history of the place.
So, the tours have ended...I just got back from a wine tasting, on our way to the "passenger" talent show. I was hoping Ken would play his digiredo but he said he is not prepared...possibly on a spaghetti Sunday he'll play for us. Afterwards we are going to the planetarium, dinner and our last show. When we wake up at 4:45 we are going up to the bow to see us go under the Barisono Bridge (3 meter clearance) and the Statue of Liberty as we arrive in our home sweet homeland.
I'll write once we get settled in Maine and finish the trip. Chris is picking us up in New York tomorrow where we'll stay a few days and then drive up through Boston to the Maclin's place which they so generously are letting us stay until Chris graduates. Our flight home will be on Mother's Day...how apropos....
Arriveiderci,
janet and Ken
As I write this blog, I am sitting on my bed in the middle of almost packed luggage. We have been cruising on the Queen Mary for six days and will be greeting the Statue of Liberty early tomorrow morning. What an adventure this has been. I think I got behind on my blogs in the last few weeks so today before I get off the ship. my goal is to finish with our last tour...to Rome.
Ken and I took two different tours...he visited the highlights of Rome and I went to the Sistine Chapel. We did see some of the same landmarks though. Our dock was in Civitavecchia, which is two hours from Rome. The buses actually are pretty modern and with the tour guide's commentary on the city it makes the time go quickly. The first thing I noticed about Italy was the green...it was Spring and the rolling hills dotted with purple crepe myrtle trees was such a delightful view out our window. Along with our guide's wonderful Italian accent, I felt like this was the frosting on the fabulous cake we have been enjoying this journey!!
Our tour took us first to a very popular fountain called The Trivia Fountain. It is tradition to make a wish here while throwing a coin over your shoulder into the fountain. The fountain is surrounding by magnificent sculptures. On the way to the fountain we saw two women with a baby stroller...it was kinda weird because I saw one of the ladies using a cardboard to block the baby or something....the next thing, she grabbed into the pocket of one of the elder men's pocket...he knocked the cardboard and her down. We were warmed..beware of gypsies. It has been amazingly sad how people use children to help with their begging and crimes. Fortunately this was the only episode that we knew but after that I turned my backpack into a frontpack!!
Next we took a journey back to the days of the Gladiators with a visit to the incredible Coliseum. It is Rome's finest amphitheatre commissioned by Emperor Vespasian in 72AD. This immense sculpture once held up to 55,000 people. Subterranean passageways lead to holding chambers for competitors, animals and equipment and the 76 entrances to allow the access for the eager crowds.
From here we walked to the Vatican Museum which houses one of the most impressive collections in the world. The artwork is unbelievable...you hear about it all but until you are in front of it...you just can not believe it...I still can't!!! Michelangelo..what a guy!!!
Our last stop was the magnificent St. Peter's Basilica which took over 100 years to build. It sits on over 800 pillars and is adorned with 44 altars....that is a BIG church!!! It is by far the largest church in the world. We saw where the Pope stands to give his speeches and all that good stuff. They have Wed. morning service when he is in town...I guess he didn't know we were coming because he wasn't there.
The history of this city is ancient It is the capital city of Italy and Lazio, and is Italy's largest and most populous city. It's history as a city spans over two and a half thousand years, as one of the founding cities of Western Civilization. It would take alot more time than we had to really see the sites yet I feel we got a very good feel of the history of the place.
So, the tours have ended...I just got back from a wine tasting, on our way to the "passenger" talent show. I was hoping Ken would play his digiredo but he said he is not prepared...possibly on a spaghetti Sunday he'll play for us. Afterwards we are going to the planetarium, dinner and our last show. When we wake up at 4:45 we are going up to the bow to see us go under the Barisono Bridge (3 meter clearance) and the Statue of Liberty as we arrive in our home sweet homeland.
I'll write once we get settled in Maine and finish the trip. Chris is picking us up in New York tomorrow where we'll stay a few days and then drive up through Boston to the Maclin's place which they so generously are letting us stay until Chris graduates. Our flight home will be on Mother's Day...how apropos....
Arriveiderci,
janet and Ken
Tuesday, April 27, 2010
Travel not only stirs the blood...It also gives strength to the spirit!!
Yasas from Greece,
As you can see from the photos, it was another "dress up" night on the Queen!!!! We are at a cocktail party that they invite certain people to...whether you are on the world voyage, traveled thousands of days or are in with one of the crew!!! Anyway, it's free champagne so I usually get there at the beginning and Ken joins up with me..ha-ha!!
The camel is representative of our great time in Egypt...we could've dressed the part...oh well...notice my Egyptian bracelet. By the way, that is what I've been collecting everywhere I go...bracelets. Needless to say I have a big collection of bracelets!!!
The next photo I titled "3 blondes with stripes"!!!
So we are onto Athens...what a great day and what was so special is we met up with Niki, my longtime friend who lives in Greece. We had to go to Plan B on our meeting as all the taxis and buses went on strike and the ship was docked about 30 minutes from town. We took a tour in the morning to the Acropolis and our initial plans were to meet up with Niki who was taking the metro and come back by taxi or shuttle bus. Since parking is so bad in the city Niki didn't want to drive. Well, parking is bad, but with 17,000 taxis and the buses off the road it was very easy driving and she ended up driving into town, we met at the museum and had a great lunch on the Platka. I must say I was a bit nervous if we hadn't caught up with her we would have had no way back to the ship..Not good!!! Boy, I was so glad to see her...my first girlfriend in 3 months...it was so emotional. Our tour to the Acropolis was another taste of ancient history. To look at the building, the sculptures and the designs just blows my mind...how did they do that??
I hated to say goodbye to Niki and was sad that her daughter, Katarina was unable to join us. She had unfortunately come down with something that morning and was home sick from school. Athens is the capital and largest city of Greece. It is also known as the birthplace of democracy. Named after the goddess Athena, Athens is one of the oldest city in the world with a recorded history of at least 3,000 years. Today, the Greek capital is a bustling and cosmopolitan and metropolis with an urban population of 3.1 million people and a metro population of 3.7 million people. it was the host city for the first modern-day Olympic Games in 1896 and in 2004 welcomed the Summer Olympics back home with great success.
All in all it ended up to be a great trip, especially with less traffic...it was almost as the Red Sea was opened and we were able to drive through...they even had one lane that only taxis were to drive in that we could drive in. It was the only Niki said she had driven in that lane...I guess there's a first for everything!!!
One more tour to Rome and we are done; too soon!!!
Looking forward to sharing all the other exciting adventures with y'all when we get home!!
janet and ken
As you can see from the photos, it was another "dress up" night on the Queen!!!! We are at a cocktail party that they invite certain people to...whether you are on the world voyage, traveled thousands of days or are in with one of the crew!!! Anyway, it's free champagne so I usually get there at the beginning and Ken joins up with me..ha-ha!!
The camel is representative of our great time in Egypt...we could've dressed the part...oh well...notice my Egyptian bracelet. By the way, that is what I've been collecting everywhere I go...bracelets. Needless to say I have a big collection of bracelets!!!
The next photo I titled "3 blondes with stripes"!!!
So we are onto Athens...what a great day and what was so special is we met up with Niki, my longtime friend who lives in Greece. We had to go to Plan B on our meeting as all the taxis and buses went on strike and the ship was docked about 30 minutes from town. We took a tour in the morning to the Acropolis and our initial plans were to meet up with Niki who was taking the metro and come back by taxi or shuttle bus. Since parking is so bad in the city Niki didn't want to drive. Well, parking is bad, but with 17,000 taxis and the buses off the road it was very easy driving and she ended up driving into town, we met at the museum and had a great lunch on the Platka. I must say I was a bit nervous if we hadn't caught up with her we would have had no way back to the ship..Not good!!! Boy, I was so glad to see her...my first girlfriend in 3 months...it was so emotional. Our tour to the Acropolis was another taste of ancient history. To look at the building, the sculptures and the designs just blows my mind...how did they do that??
I hated to say goodbye to Niki and was sad that her daughter, Katarina was unable to join us. She had unfortunately come down with something that morning and was home sick from school. Athens is the capital and largest city of Greece. It is also known as the birthplace of democracy. Named after the goddess Athena, Athens is one of the oldest city in the world with a recorded history of at least 3,000 years. Today, the Greek capital is a bustling and cosmopolitan and metropolis with an urban population of 3.1 million people and a metro population of 3.7 million people. it was the host city for the first modern-day Olympic Games in 1896 and in 2004 welcomed the Summer Olympics back home with great success.
All in all it ended up to be a great trip, especially with less traffic...it was almost as the Red Sea was opened and we were able to drive through...they even had one lane that only taxis were to drive in that we could drive in. It was the only Niki said she had driven in that lane...I guess there's a first for everything!!!
One more tour to Rome and we are done; too soon!!!
Looking forward to sharing all the other exciting adventures with y'all when we get home!!
janet and ken
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