First stop was Rome! We got there and had a day and half there before the cruise started. We got there at about 10am (after a LONG day and night of travel!) and couldn't check into our hotel yet so, despite our lack of sleep, we set out to see the sights!
Inside the Colosseum
Taking a break while walking through the Roman Forum
Cooling off with our first gelatto of the trip
After a few hours, we were able to go back to our hotel and take a much-needed nap before setting out again to see more sights.
Me and my mom sitting on the Spanish Steps. I'm in the blue shirt at the bottom of the picture and this old peddler man was giving us "free" flowers! Haha!
Trevi Fountain
Throwing coins into the Trevi Fountain to ensure our return to Rome
The Pantheon - the picture does not do it justice! This thing is huge and really magnificent!
Demonstrating how big the Pantheon pillars are
More gelatto from the famous Giolitti's
Our little hotel room with a cute little window overlooking a dark alley! Haha
My mom and I waving from our hotel windows
The next day, after catching the metro to the train station, hopping the train to the port, walking (with our luggage) half a mile to the shuttle, and then taking the shuttle to the ship, we were definitely ready to get our cruise started! We had a nice relaxing evening with lots of good food. The next morning, we were off and running again in Sicily. We rented a car and my dad drove us to a little town up in the hills called Taormina.
Beautiful view of the coast from Taormina
It was a quaint little town with lots of old churches and ruins
Lance and my dad eating legendary Sicilian canoli
After strolling through Taormina, we headed down to a little beach called Isola Bella. It was a really rocky beach, but it had a little sandbar that we crossed to this cool island and climed around on all the big rocks.
We are those three dots climbing on the big rocks
Beautiful views of the Sicilian coast line
The next stop was Turkey. We booked a tour to see the ancient city of Ephesus and man was it amazing! It is crazy the kind of things those people were able to build! And the workmanship is so detailed! Again, pictures just cannot do it justice, but here are some for you anyway!
One of the more famous ruins in Ephesus
The amphitheater. That thing was huge!
View of the port. You can see our cruise ship in the background
After the tour, we asked around and hopped a local bus to this great beach. The weather was great and the water was nice.
Getting some sun in Turkey
Lance and my dad doing some body surfing
Ok, we're halfway through! Next stop, Athens! This was, by far, the most fun port because we got to take a Segway tour! I wasn't completely sold on the idea before we came and thought it was a little nerdy, but after a few minutes on those things, we were all having a blast! It was also nice not to have to walk everywhere for a change. We cruised up hills, through gardens, dodged pedestrians, and crossed busy streets. We all made it through without injury, despite all the horror stories we heard when we told people we were going to do a Segway tour. After the segways, we went up to the Acropolis and walked around there for a bit before we had to high-tail it back to the ship.
Mars Hill, with the Acropolis in the background
Me and Lance on our segways. Oh how sweet!
The whole gang
Posing in front of the Parthenon
Lance and my dad, listening to Rick Steve's audio tours everywhere we went
We were experts at riding the metro after this trip!
The last stop on the cruise was Crete. I had always dreamed of going horseback riding on some exotic beach with the wind blowing through my hair, and when I found out they had horseback riding on Crete, I jumped at the chance. Let's just say things didn't go exactly according to plan! ;) The ride was several hours long and our backsides were definitely not used to riding! Plus, my horse was stubborn and was always wanting to stop and eat. Anyway, we probably won't be riding horses again anytime soon. The views were beautiful though, and riding on the beach was fun.
All set to ride. Helmets were also not part of my dream! ;)
Me, Lance, dad and mom(on the midget horse)
After the ride, we needed to relax a little, so we headed to the same beach to catch some rays
The next day was a day at sea, and also happened to be my birthday. We hung around the ship, playing mini golf, going roller blading, reading and relaxing on deck, and of course, lots and lots of eating! When the cruise was over, we still had two days left to explore more of Rome so we went to the Vatican Museum, St. Peter's Basillica, and Castel Sant'angelo. Then we stayed out until it got dark and got to see Rome all lit up. It was beautiful!
Vatican Museum
Inside St. Peter's
St. Peter's Square
Castel Sant'Angelo
Lance bought me a rose (how romantic ;) at the Colosseum
Wow, what a trip! It was so much fun to see all these places and experience so many new cultures. Thanks Mom and Dad for the trip and for being such great traveling companions! We could have never done it without you!
