Marseile redoux

On this second leg of our journey we visited Marseille again.  Because I had been in Cassis on my first visit to France, I thought it would appeal to George and wasn’t too far from Marseille.  So as we exited the ship we hailed a taxi to see if we could find a boat to take us to Cassis around the shore.  Upon mentioning the name, our driver said he could take us there himself so off we went.  It turned out to be a beautiful day.  First a cruise to visit three claques or bays made by rivers via a charter boat.  Rough seas brought water down on us but we enjoyed the trip and the sea adventure.  Once back on shore there was time for a bit of wine and a snack, no nachos though like in Spain!!  Some shopping and then our driver took us up to the heights overlooking the sea.  George says it has been his favorite day so far.

 

 

 

another fun day with Pat and Carol!!

Barcelona .....

Two days in beautiful Barcelona were clearly not enough!!  I have to return to visit the museums we did not see and to visit more of Spain, my list is getting very long.  And the more I talk with these travelers, the longer the list is getting.  There are so very many places on this planet to see and only so many trips we can take. But I am  missing family and friends and home right about now.

 

I booked a private tour with the Cruise Critic group for the first day in Barcelona and it turned out really nicely.  Only eight of us in a nice van with a great guide, Marta.  First we visited Park Guell which was designed by Gaudi and is amazing.  Nothing is straight and everything is very organic looking.  He also designed the Sagrada church which is still under construction after 100 years.  They plan to finish in 2026!!  Then on to Monserrat which is a cragged mountain at the edge of the  plain.  Here is a monastery and the Black Madonna of miracles.  Many make pilgrimages to pray for help, and in return climb back on their knees.  The views from the heights were amazing and the cathedral beautiful. The monks here school boys in music and train them to sing in a choir until their voices change.

 

We made the long drive back to Barcelona and stopped to walk around the Sagrada.  Gaudi took over the design of the church and made more of his fantastic designs here.  The spires are still under construction.   I would love to see the inside but time was out and lines were very long.

 

For the second day, and the start of the second leg of the cruise, we took a taxi to the top of the hill near the fort and rode the cable car to the beach.  Views of Barcelona were beautiful from this height.  The beach was lined with sports facilities, large pools and courts for tennis and other sports.  The complex was part of the Olympic layout which also included arenas and facilities up on the hill.  No swimming for us but there were swimmers doing races which were fun to watch from the beer garden near the beach.  What did we eat…Nachos!!

 

  Park Guell mosaic bench

Park Guell 

 

Monserrat view

                                                                                                                                                                                     Monserrat jagged mountain

 

Monserrat cathedral         

 

  Barcelona city view  not our ship

 

 

 

 

 

Today we slept in, did laundry, worked on the blog, played pickle ball, met Cruise Critic group then lunched together, played cards, sat on the aft deck watching Italy and Sicily pass by as we went through the narrow straight with a pilot boat.  Beautiful. Then formal dinner and a show.    Tomorrow I will try to catch up more after our visit to Katacolyn and Olympia and the beach! We are hoping for a nice sunny day. 

Toulon. tours........

I planned one of the long tours for us in Toulon, much to George’s dismay!  Because I had spent a week in Aix on my first trip to France, I wanted to see more of the countryside this trip.  So off to Bourmes des Mimosas and Heyeres we went.  The countryside was beautiful once we left the city and hiways for the smaller back roads.  Of course many busses were also at the villages but as always we try to ignore that!.

 

Built on a hill top, the streets through Bourmes were up and down with charming buildings on either side. Flowers are the specialty here and we saw many beautiful gardes.  Then on to Heyres for a lunch break.   What we wanted to do?  Sit in the square and have a glass of local wine and a bit of lunch.  George tried the mousier hamburger…A Ham sandwich!  I had something nice but can’t remember what!!  Perhaps a bruschetta which I love.  In any case, it was lovely sitting in the sun, in France, sipping wine.  We rejoined the group for a tour of the village then the long trip back to the ship.

 

   Bourmes des Mimosas

 

 

  Lunch in Heyres square….loving the sun

Port after Port!!

We have left Barcelona and Marseille and will be in Livorno tomorrow morning.  The last three days have been beautiful and full of new sights…many photos to review now.  What I know is that I need to return to see more of the museums in Barcelona as well as the inside of the Sagrada.  We are booked for a tour to Cinque Terre tomorrow and must meet at 7 am so this is a very early night for us.  Tuesday is a sea day and I hope to catch up this blog and send photos of some of the beautiful places we have been.

 

Today was George’s favorite he says…we found a taxi with a debonair French driver who took us to Cassis for the day.  I remember it so well from my first trip to France with Edi where I sat at the side of the little harbor and sketched.  It was chilly on our little boat trip to see the calaques, or fjords, nearby but a shared bottle of wine from local vineyards warmed us up and made a pleasant interlude.  On the way back to the ship we drove to the top of the cliff for an amazing view of the town and sea below.

Port days

We are off to our second day in Barcelona after a day in Toulon.  I have many photos to review as soon as I get some time.  The weather is getting much better, warmer and sunny finally.  We’re looking forward to some new adventures in the Mediterranean!    

 

More soon……

Marseille

Because of bad seas in Monaco captain Nick Nash sailed us to Marseille for the day where it was sunny and nice.  We left the ship with Carol, Pat, Joanne and Craig and spent the day wandering around town.  A couple of taxi rides made the day easier.  We will return on the next leg and do a bit more sightseeing with a better idea of where to go.

 

 

Cathedral Major and friends                                                                                       Museum on the Med

 

  Notre Dam de la Garde

 

 

 

    

Gibraltar Cartagena and Majorca

We have had a busy  three days visiting three ports in a row.  It was exciting to sail into Gibraltar and find ourselves in such an historical place.  Wars and sagas have played into the history here.  Unfortunately it was very cloudy again and the rock was never visible .  Dripping rain followed us but we continued to the caves.  Carol and Pat joined us in taking a taxi to the St. Michaels cave and the Barbary apes.        

 

 

 

 

 

 

  It was a very wet day so we ended up finding a café for hot chocolate and scones.  My souvenir from Gibraltar is a cold!

 

    Cartagena  

 

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                           

 

  Cartagena turned out to be a beautiful day for walking and exploring the town.  It has been cleaned up and is a beautiful town now.  Roman ruins are exposed.  It was so nice to have sunshine after two days of rainy weather.  We walked all over and up and down the town eventually coming back to the main square where we found Pat and Carol sitting at the café.  We joined them for wine and tapas before returning to the ship.

 

 

 

 

   Majorca harbor is beautiful with thousands of boats, big and small.  No huge!!  There were sail boats on the water all day looking spectacular.  This was the day for our bike tour of the town.  First challenge was finding the meet point which we managed despite maps that were less than fine.  At that point I decided it would be best if I didn’t do the ride as the cold was getting the best of me despite hiding in the stateroom all last afternoon and evening.  George did the ride and enjoyed it while I took the HoHo bus around town.  When we met back at the ship he surprised me with Majorca pearls…sweet eh!!!  

 

So now a sea day..laundry and trying to get over this cold.  I am laying low as we have three more port days in a row coming up.  Monte Carlo is supposed to be rainy again and we have nothing planned so it may be a pj day again for me.  Big tour days in Toulon and Barcelona coming up.