Monaco, Monte Carlo 4/22/14

 

Located east of Nice on the northeast coast of Monaco, Monte Carlo has long served as a major port for the area.  In fact, there are accounts of Julius Caesar landing his fleet in the harbor in 43BC!  Monte Carlo is well known for its Le Gran Casino as well as the home of the Grand Prix which is held each year in mid May.  When we first arrived, we could see the grandstand and the construction of the track.   Initially, we thought this was delightful, until we went out exploring and got caught in the detours!  Since 1929, cars have raced around the port and in front of the casino in what is the worlds most famous auto race. 

We disembarked the ship and with detailed instructions from Tom’s Port Guide and Rick Steves, we managed to walk up to the cliff top old town (Monaco-Ville) taking escalators, elevators, stairs and a scenic walk along the ocean.  If you weren’t informed, this would have been a long tedious trip.   Kos is always “informed”! 

When we arrived at the top in Old Town, we boarded a little tourist train for a short tour around the area. 

Old town was wonderful.   Beautiful flowers, palm trees, clean as a whistle.

We wandered around the narrow streets, had some lunch in a café and then began to explore the lower town and marina area. 

The preparations for the Grand Prix were in progress which made walking around the area somewhat difficult. 

We didn’t get a chance to go into the Le Gran Casino because it opened late in the day and our ship didn’t stay in port for the evening.  Probably just as well. 

Fortunately, I found the perfect yacht but unfortunately Kos didn’t have his checkbook on him. 

Marseille, France April 21, 2014

 

Well, our first port was less than we hoped for.  It was a cloudy, cool day when we left the ship via shuttle bus that would take us from the port to the marina area.  The drive through the residential area was dismal.  Actually reminded us of Tunisia.    But, once we arrived in town, our spirits were lifted somewhat.   We walked around the area and found a little tourist train that brought us up to the top of the mountain, the Cathedral of Notre Dame.  Beautiful views.  The driver ordered us out of the train and told us to get on line to wait for another train to take us back to the marina area.   He didn’t speak English and was not the friendliest chap.     Afterwards, we found a little café and enjoyed a baguette with brie! 

Boarding the Nieuw Amsterdam–April 20, 2014–Easter Sunday

 

Today we checked out of our hotel and took a cab to the cruise terminal.   Arrived at 11:30 AM and boarded the ship by noon.  The security and registration process was very organized and efficient.  Since this was our first cruise on Holland America, we were anxious to find our way around the ship.  What a pleasant surprise!  Very nicely laid out.  Our cabins were ready right away and seating was available for lunch in the dining room.  No buffet chaos!  So far we are impressed.   Most of the staff are from the Philippines and appear to be very friendly and hard working.  Our bags came right away….we unpacked…and went on to explore the ship.  One of the things we noticed right away is that the main  pool area has a retractable roof.  This will come in handy on cool days.  Since the cruise has only one sea day, I don’t think there will be many sunbathers!  We noticed that most of the passengers are somewhat elderly, but in pretty good shape.  Not many wheelchairs, walkers and canes on the cruise.   I suspect that the ambitious itinerary may have deterred those who were not mobile.   The private cabana’s below could be rented for about a hundred bucks a day!   NOT.   Surprisingly, there were a few passengers who took advantage of this.

One of the selling points of this cruise, besides the timing, was that fact that Best Price Cruises offered a drink package as an incentive which would have cost $45 per person per day if we had to purchase it.   Of course, we wouldn’t have, but it was a nice perk so we investigated how this benefit can be used.  On Royal Caribbean and Celebrity, we have a special lounge where we can go during specific times (5 – 8:30 PM) where we can enjoy before dinner drinks and appetizers.   But – this drink package allows us to have up to 15 drinks a day in any lounge at any time…even at dinner…as long as the drinks are priced at $7 or or lower.   Soda, bottled water, specialty coffees, wine, and cocktails were included.     Now, we’re really happy! 

After our dinner in the dining room and the first night’s show, we wandered around the ship looking for something to do.  We found Jim Fisher (the Piano Man) to be fantastic.  A talented guy, he had everyone singing along.   We also found Krista, above, who played folk guitar in the Crows Nest lounge at the very top of the ship.   She was also very good, in a sleepy kind of way!     LOL

So, we’re off to a good start!  Tomorrow we’ll dock in Marseille, France.

Barcelona, Spain–April 19, 2014

 

Arrived at our hotel, Tryp Barcelona Apolo Hotel,  where our room was ready for us by 9:00 AM.  The hotel was located about 5 blocks from La Rambla and was about a 10 minute walk.   After our usual brief nap (we flew all night), off we went to have lunch at the Marina area.

Tapa’s are one of our favorite meals, especially in Spain!  

Since we have spent some time in Barcelona in the past, we only stayed one night at a hotel before we would board our cruise on Holland America Nieuw Amsterdam, our first time on Holland America.   After lunch we strolled up La Rambla and decided to adventure onto the side streets.   WOW.  We found wonderful tapa’s bars and shops that we didn’t know existed.   Walked to the West of La Rambla towards the Cathedral.   Now I wished that we would be staying another night here.   It’s interesting how you can visit a place several times and still find something new! 

Tomorrow we board our ship for a 12 day cruise through the Mediterranean.