First Cruise stop: Messina, Sicily

We did not book the cruise because of this port, that is for sure.  In fact, the excursions were so unexciting that we did not book any at all!  We decided this would be one of our "cheap" stops and we would invest in a walking map of the city.  It was nice . . . but pretty much uneventful.  It is an ancient city founded in the 8th century BC by the Greeks but much of the ancient structures were destroyed by a devastating earthquake as well as multiple attacks and plundering throughout the ages.

Our first stop after disembarking from the ship was the church of Annunziata dei Catalani.  It was pretty but definitely not as elaborate as other churches we had visited.  This church was built in the late 12th-13th century and had a series of arches and a noteworthy dome.   
 

 

 

We next continued up the Cathedral of Messina and the Astronomical Clock.  This cathedral was much bigger than the church and was very peaceful . . . we took some time to sit and enjoy the inside of this quite place.  The ceiling was rather beautiful!  It was built in the 12th century but the majority of the structure had to be rebuilt in the early 1900's due to a devastating earthquake. 

 

We continued our walk through the streets of Messina (stopping for gelato at various intervals) with my dear o'dad exclaiming "Bonjourno" to each Italian he saw . . . sigh.  After walking to the top of the city we were able to behold a rather pretty site of the city, ship and sea below.  We also met and Italian fellow dressed up as Mickey Mouse who offered so generously to drive us about in his car. . . I am sure his intentions were pure. 

That was basically it.  Like I said, pretty uneventful.  We headed back to the ship early.  Definitely not a must see location . . . but we were looking forward to the promise of Athens!

 

Cruise time!! First European cruise . . . we were not dissapointed!

When I received an email with a discounted European 7 night cruise for $399 a person I had no idea that the ship would be so nice. . . I honestly thought we would get a small cabin, tucked away under a stairwell in the furthest part of the ship . . and that was ok . . .after all we were only paying $399 a person for a week of fun, floating about the Mediterranean sea.

I was flabbergasted!! Royal Caribbean's Navigator of the Seas was stunning!!  The ship was amazing! Complete with a basketball court, a state-of-the-art gym and spa center, rock climbing, miniature golf, roller rink, several pool areas and a small shopping strip down the center of the boat, this ship was not at all what I expected!  I was even more blown away when we found our room . . . only to discover the room looking out over the main promenade! It was beautiful!

And the food. . . . since I have run out of positive descriptive words, let me just say. . I gained about 7 pounds.  Is that enough description for the food?? 

Oh what fun we had about the ship . . . games of rook, shows, ping pong and more food. . our days at sea were relaxing and enjoyable. . . never boring . .

 

 

 

We were able to spend quality time with my parents (much needed) as well as the enjoyment of four countries!  (those adventures will be separate posts)

 

 

Overall . . . Royal Caribbean impressed me . . . . I would recommend this cruise line . . and this specific ship! Lovely it was!

 

(back to our road trip through Italy) . . onward to Pisa and Cinque Terre!

Wow . . . never thought I would make it to the leaning tower of Pisa . . . but that is just where I ended up one sunny day in May! :-) Pisa was great!! I have heard some negative comments about the fact that the only thing to see in Pisa is the tower . . . but I definately think that is enough! It was fabulous! I think we enjoyed looking at all of the poses people were striking in an effort to "hold up the tower" almost as much as viewing the tower itself. Truely was beautiful and I am so glad we did not listen to those negative comments and decided to stop! I LOVED it!!

 

 

 

 Our next stop was the Cinque Terre! The cinque terre consists of 5 small villages (within hiking distance to each other) along the coast of the Italian Riviera. The five cities, along with the area surrounding, are listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. We personall visited the fourth city, Vernazza, which is the most famous and most pictured of all 5 cities. We were able to see first hand the great distruction that came the the Cinque Terre in October of 2011 when torrential rains caused severe flooding and mudslides. Almost two years later we could still see the damage that was done. Vernazza was colorful and full of life! (it was also raining and quite wet) We enjoyed a nice lunch at the edge of the pier and continued with a hike up in the hills to get better views, and pictures, of this little Italian jewel. I would have loved to stay a few days and hike (or take the train in the event of sudden laziness) from one town to the next. I have heard that each of the cities have their own unique style and beauty. Well . . . I have a year left here in Europe . . . perhaps I will make it back before I leave :-) We also witnessed the sneaky fingers of "umbrella snatching Bev" . . be careful with your umbrella. If it is left laying about she will snatch it faster than you can blink . . . we added two large umbrellas to our stash this day

 

(boys enjoying one of the many "gelato" stops)

 

 

(umbrella snatching Bev strikes again . . and again. . and again)

 

 

 

A trip full of disaster . . . featuring Breath of Death and Breath of Decay (mika and milo). Also known as . . . Our 4-year anniversary trip

 

 . . . . our 4-year anniversary was coming up . . . oh my!!  Where to go?!?  We live in Europe . . so many different exciting places to go within such a small radius!  We decided to go to a small, medieval walled city in Germany . . . Rothenburg ob der Tauber.  Little did we know the horrors we were about to face . . .

We decided that our sweet, cuddly, fuzzy, white angles (mika and milo) should come with us as it was just a one night stay and the place we were visiting was very dog friendly.  We also had some recent nightmares with dog sitting and decided they would be safer in our care.  It was to be a grand couple of days!  We were planning on taking our Christmas photos there, spending a couple of days walking through the cobblestone streets and shopping at the cute and quaint boutiques . . . just enjoying the company of our small little family and the four years we had been together.

Our difficulty started with the 3.5 hour drive in which we encountered numerous "staus" (German traffic jam), yipping and whining from the backseat and to top it off the high pressure pump in the mini went out.  We arrived tired, worried and in bad dispositions. 

Our hotel was very nice.  Hotel Eisenhut was located right in the middle of downtown Rothenburg and had old world charm.  Wood beam in the ceiling, quaint rooms and beautiful views!  Unfortunately one of our precious babies decided to soil the carpet as soon as we went to dinner.  sigh.  We had JUST let them out.  why??!?  Nevertheless. . . dinner was delightful!

The village was equally as delightful! Cobblestone streets, shops, pastries and old crooked buildings . . . it was as if we had stepped back into the 1300's when most of the buildings were made.  I would have loved to have spent hours meandering aimlessly through the streets, eating goodies and buying trinkets . . . however . . when walking our little angels, milo decided it was his duty to inform us of every other dog, sound, car and insect that he came in contact with.  We ended up carrying him most of the time with one hand firmly wrapped around his muzzle.  Mika choose the most inappropriate spots in which to relieve herself. . . such as the front carpet of a nice hotel. . . . again. . . sigh.

(bakery with famous schneelballen)

I think we managed to get some decent pictures . . maybe.  And we were able to enjoy the delightful schneelballen (dessert famous in Rothenburg) as well as poke around the Christmas Village in the Kathe Wohlfahrt. 

Rothenburg ob der Tauber, I shall return!

We decided just to leave early . . . come home. . . have some dinner and light a fire . . .

We also decided that was the first and last of the pups adventures with us in Europe

(Happy 4th year anniversary hunny!!  You are an amazing, caring and talented person!)

 

Ponderings of a nurse

I never thought I would be thinking of a change in my nursing career. . . after all Labor and Delivery was the reason I became a nurse!  L&D was my passion!  I feel honored at every delivery I am present in . . . it is a magnificent event and so life changing.  To give birth to a child is a very intimate and personal time in a person's life and I am able to be a part of it.  The feeling of helping a human being enter this world is incredible! It doesn't seem possible that life could be transferred from two separate people to create a new life . . . it truly is a miracle!

However, I have been doing some thinking lately . . .

Change is important . . . without change life becomes stagnant and robotic.  Change is not easy . . in fact I both crave and hate it!  It stresses me out . . . yet gives me hope.  Nursing is such a career in which stagnation can lead to an uncompassionate and cynical healthcare provider.  As caring for other individuals is the basis of nursing there are few things worse than having a "burnt out" nurse.  In nursing school I witnessed the cruelty of a burnt out nurse first hand.  It was not pretty.  She humiliated her patients that depended upon her for the very most basic needs a human being can have.  I cringed at her inconsiderate words and behavior.  I vowed I would never behave in the way this woman did to any of my patients.

 . . . and thus my current introspection . . .

my current thoughts are leaning towards a career in the Operating Room . . . there is so much to learn and see with a complete different skill set than the one I currently possess.  The human body is an amazing machine.  To be able to see the inner workings of this machine would be "oober cool!" I have also been contemplating medical missions for years . . . I think being an OR nurse would render me a little more valuable in such a mission. 

life is interesting . . . it is unpredictable . . .fluid . . . I want to make sure my life matters. . . that I have provided something valuable to help others lead a better life. 
 

On the road once again . . stop number three. . Vatican City!

Our third stop in our Italian road trip was back up again to Rome.  This day we spent most of our time in the Vatican City, mainily St. Peter's Basilica.  It seems to me as if I have used the words awesome, incredible, beautiful, amazing, etc. way too many times during my posts already so I am a little at a loss for a new word.  St. Peter's Basilica was all of these things and more!  My only regret was that we were not able to visit the Sistine Chaple (most famous of all Vatican City buildings for the painted ceiling done by Michelangelo . . . think "creation of adam") on this visit.  We had run out of time and would only be able to see one of the two . . St. Peter's Basilica or the Sistine Chaple.  Seeing as I have seen both in previous years I left the decision up to my fellow travelers.  We stuck to the basilica.  Think of the most ornate builing you have ever seen . . . add incredible paintings and sculptures. . . then add in the tomb of St. Peter . . . add some more gold to that . . . then multiply by ten. . . you have St. Peter's Basilica!!  St. Peter's is of Renaissance architecture and time period and is one of the largest churchs in the world.  St. Peter's is regarded as one of the holiest Catholic sites. It has been described as "holding a unique position in the Christian world" and as "the greatest of all churches of Christendom".  I have included some video footage so you can see for yourself the magnificence of this structure!  After spending several hours in the Vatican we then headed off northbound for our adventures to Pisa and the Cinque Terre!
 
 

 

the second stop in our Italy roadtrip . . . beautiful Amalfi

 

Amalfi coast was absolutely stunning!!  It was a stop that we did almost as an afterthought after Pompeii.  We were done with Pompeii with several hours to spare for the day . . . I had read about the Amalfi coast and we decided to take the drive.  Boy was it worth it!!  I wish we had spent at least a whole day here!  Instead we had just a few charming, romantic and thrilling hours.  The coastline drive to Amalfi was gorgeous!  We stopped at one point just to take in the beauty . . and of course a few photos.  As we descended into the city we were met with a variety of tightly packed buildings which gave it a quaint feel.  Amalfi is located right across the street from the ocean so we were provided with a lightly scented ocean breeze and a fine mist on our faces.  As the sun started to set the lights of the city came out.  Stringed lanterns of different shapes and sizes gave this small village a feeling of "home".  The further we wandered back into the small alleyways the more of the city came into view.  Where you thought you may just be walking down a dark pathway you ended up in a wonderful market square full of sea food and lemoncello products!  Of course there were plenty of gelato shops as well!  We ate at a well known seafood restaurant complete with live music and a feeling of jovial hospitality.  I think we were all very hesitant to leave this little jewel of a city on Italy's southern coast.  It is a must to anyone traveling in this region of the country!