We didn’t do a lot of posting around here while we were on the cruise… it’s weird how all of that Mediterranean sun, surf, and culture did nothing to inspire us to lock ourselves in our cabin and write blogs posts… but I did keep a diary for most of the trip, and as time permits, I’m going back and posting notes to the dates I wrote them. Right now I have only through Day 1 up,. but they’ll all appear in the Med 2008 category, eventually.
Our visit to Italy’s largest and most populous city was a busy one, and themed: it was designed as a tour of locations that figure prominently in the plot of the Dan Brown novel Angels and Demons., with a smattering of other sites sprinkled in for good measure. Our trip took us to the site of each of the “altars of Science” that appear in the book—the churches of Santa Maria del Popolo and Santa Maria della Vittoria, the Piazza Navona, arriving finally in the Vatican City at Saint Peter's Square and Saint Peter’s Basilica. We also visited the Fontana di Trevi, the Pantheon, and Castel Sant'Angelo.
So what to say about Rome? For those like me who are inspired by the sense of history, it’s like an amusement park, with one extraordinary sight after another. Many of the ancient buildings you visit that would be impressive if built today become awe-inspiring when you consider they were built in the distant past. I spend twenty minutes walking around inside Saint Peter’s Basilica, marveling at the sheer scope of the place. 
Completed nearly four hundred years ago, it took 120 years to build. Photographs don’t do it justice. Smaller but no less astonishing was the Pantheon, the oldest standing domed structure in Rome—and after 19 centuries, surely one of the oldest structures on the planet. Each of the places we visited was a work of art in its own way. For all of this, it was clear we were just scratching the surface. Rome is definitely a place that demands a longer visit.
Lunch today, by the way, was very good. We were a bit apprehensive at first, because from the description, it sounded like would be a rerun of yesterday’s disappointing experience. The similarity was only on paper, however—the lasagna and roast were reportedly delicious, and they provided a vegetarian option for me, which included a delicious pasta dish—capellini, perhaps, with garlic and herbs?—and a salad that wildly exceeded my expectations. (Actually, I’m very easy when it comes down to it: put feta on something, and I’ll cheerfully eat it.)
Our travels today took us across Tuscany, as we disembarked at the port of Livorno and traveled by coach to the cities of Florence and Pisa.
Lunch at the Hotel Jolly was a bit uninspiring, to be honest. The lasagna was okay, but the roast—not my preference to begin with—was laden with gristle. Russell summarized: “mediocre.”
Early afternoon saw us off to Pisa. Approaching the city we saw mostly farmland; I was surprised how rural it was until you get close in to the city center. We arrived at our destination around a quarter to three, a staging area for busses just a short walk from the focus of our visit, the Piazza dei Miracoli.
Taking it all in, I was struck by the strange contrast, seeing such ancient building of renown nestled up against the suburban housing and office parks. Perhaps it comes from growing up in North America, a continent where a building over than a hundred years old is remarkable, but I’ve always been fascinated by old buildings, and the epic efforts that went into building them in the days before steel and modern technology. I found myself wishing we could see these buildings as they appeared when they were new.
Uuuugh… 6:45 was the meeting time for this morning’s shore excursion… So very painful. Selecting late dining sounded like a good idea when we did it, but we hadn’t factored in the duration of the formal dining arrangements on ship, where the meals last two hours, and the resulting short night last night. Good note for next time.
Our travels today took us to the beautiful harbor of Villefranche-sur-Mer, and to the neighboring Principality of Monaco. Our tour included a short walk to the palace square, with scenic views to the east and west, and a bus ride into Monte Carlo. Our drop off point there was just before the first turn on the route for the Monaco Grand Prix, not far from the Grand Casino (which we saw, but only from the outside, as we had opted for a morning tour, and the Grand Casiono does not open until 2 pm.) We did a little exploring, walked around town for a few minutes, and walked down through the Métropole (the local shopping mall) before returning to the coach.
The route back to the ship took us over the Middle Corniche Road, which presented some spectacular views of the Mediterranean and, once we crossed to the north side of the ridge, the nearby city of Nice.
When the tour ended, we walked up into town and found a restaurant for lunch. Mine: pizza quartre frommage, which was better than pizza should be legally allowed to be. Mmm, gorgonzola. Russell had the similarly tasty bruschetta quarte frommage , and Rip had a “pizza noisette”, the name of which ocnfuses me, since “noisette” is hazel nut, but which was basically a fish pizza, with tuna and anchovies. We all found it a little too fishy for our taste, but a worthwhile experiment nonetheless.
It’s now a bit after five in the evening; Russell’s napping, I’m catching up on e-mail and blogging, and the last we saw Rip, he was off to catch the tender back to shore and find somewhere to swim.
We spent today in this, the largest port city in France. Our tour took us around the city, then up to Notre-Dame de la Garde, the basilica at the city’s highest natural point. As I’ve traveled in Europe, I’ve seen many impressive churches and cathedrals, but this must be one of the most beautiful, all inlaid marble and mosaic tile.
When the bus dropped us back near Le Vieux Port, we elected to hang around in town, and wandered up and around the Canebière, the main shopping street. Sampling the local food is always high on my list of priorities when traveling, and we did do a bit of that… toasted sandwiches for lunch (and a strawberry tart), and later we stopped for tea, where Rip had some impressive espresso ice cream drink, and after which Russell and I stopped for crepes. The store was out of bananas, scotching my plans for the crepes banane-chocolat, but the crepes sucre-citron were an excellent alternative.
This was our first formal night for dinner; I opted for the French Onion soup (seemed only appropriate), the grilled halibut, with an apricot tart for dessert. It was all quite tasty.
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