My husband and I went on a 2 weeks Mediterranean cruise this month. The cruise started in Barcelona and visited Rome, Athens, Turkey, Egypt and Malta. We had SUCH a great time. I, of course, had to take my trusty camera along to capture all the wonderful moments. Okay, okay, my HUSBAND really carried everything around (thanks honey!). My camera bag weighed in at 18 lbs. (according to the airport scales). Hey! I had to downsize for the trip! :)
Without further ado, here are some of my favorite shots (see the post below for more photos).
BARCELONA:
Barcelona was the first taste my husband had of Europe. If you have never been to Europe, book your plane ticket NOW! The streets are so rich in history, it is a little overwhelming. He kept wanting me to take pictures of EVERY building we saw. It is really amazing how many have hand carved stone, etc. Barcelona didn't disappoint. We took a stroll down to the famous street of La Rambla. We pretty much just hung around there for the day, and we found all sorts of beautiful sights!
ROME:
For those of you who don't know, I studied abroad in Rome for a summer in college. When it came to Rome, I was our tour guide. Unfortunately, with only 1 day in Rome it is impossible to see EVERYTHING. So, I asked my husband if he would rather see the Colosseum, Trevi Fountain, etc. or the Vatican and Sistine Chapel (they are on opposite sides of the city). He was really interested in the Colosseum, so we went that route. Secretly, I was excited. Although the Vatican is amazing, I have a soft spot for the Trevi Fountain!
First, we went to the Colosseum and the Roman Forum (just across the street). I had actually not been inside the Colosseum, so it was a real treat for me!
Then, we hiked our way to the Trevi Fountain. It is hard to appreciate just how ornate the fountain is in pictures. It is all so detailed and SO beautiful. It is my favorite place in Rome, and I used to go there every few days just to relax when I lived there.
Lastly, we visited the Pantheon and the Spanish Steps. They are both a must see in Rome, though much more crowded than the Trevi Fountain!
ATHENS:
The next stop on our cruise was Athens. The weather wasn't too great (it had to rain sometime I guess). While wet and cold we searched for the metro station so we could go to the Archaeological Museum. We didn't stay there long as we weren't very impressed. Also, the streets in Athens are beautiful! They are almost all made of marble. I am sure in the sunshine, this seemed like a really good idea. All I could imagine as I was walking them in the rain was falling down and breaking a bone. Thankfully, we escaped unharmed! :)
Then, we made our way to Acropolis Hill (where the Parthenon can be found). The view was absolutely AMAZING from the hill!
Unfortunately, we didn't realize that everything on the Acropolis Hill closes at 2:30pm....for the REST OF THE DAY! We got there around 2:15pm, so we didn't even get a chance to hike to the Parthenon (we were bummed). I did manage to get a few shots of the Parthenon on the hill, as well as a small old theater we found not too far away.
TO BE CONTINUED ON THE NEXT POST....
For the second half of our cruise, we stopped in Turkey, Egypt and Malta. I expected Egypt to be my favorite place, but Malta actually topped the charts for me on this round of ports.
TURKEY:
The first place we visited in Turkey was the ancient town of Ephesus. The town is really amazing. Only about a third of it is currently unearthed, and the rest is still in progress. People like Cleopatra used to walk these streets!
This Mosaic is thousands of years old, but it is still beautiful!
This huge theater still holds concerts for some very famous people. Elton John, for instance, has played here before.
And I had to get a shot of this shop. Can you believe it?! GENUINE fake watches! JUST what I have always wanted!! :)
Our second stop was the House of the Virgin Mary. It is said to be the house where the Virgin Mary spent her last days on earth. The house is very small and understated. We collected some holy water, and tied a tissue on the wall. It is said in Turkey that if you tie a tissue on this wall and make a wish, when your tissue is taken away by the wind then your wish will come true. We will see!
EGYPT:
Egypt was amazing, don't get me wrong. But there were a LOT more locals "selling" (i.e. bombarding you with) their items. The town was also a lot dirtier than most other places we visited. Granted, they are in the desert but it was still a bit of a shock. The pyramids & sphinx were absolutely amazing. It is hard to describe just how big they are!
We also visited a beautiful mosque in Cairo. It was absolutely stunning. Most of the walls had hand carvings on them. THAT is why I LOVE Europe and Africa!
Last, we had a buffet lunch while we took a boat down the Nile River. Here I am hanging out on our Nile River boat!
MALTA:
Though Malta was never a place I really wanted to visit, I was pleasantly surprised to find it was one of my favorite stops on our cruise! The air is so fresh and everything is so clean. There are relatively few tourists, so it has a very welcoming feel to it. I felt much more at home in Malta than most of the other places we visited (with the exception of Rome, since I did live there for a summer). While in Malta, we visited a few prehistoric temples made of huge rocks. It is amazing to think how they moved those rocks without any equipment.
We also visited a nearby cave, which was very neat.
Here are a few random shots: A tree I liked, a typical Maltese boat, and a Maltese snail!
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