Tag Archives: UNESCO

Cruises, History, Landscape, Travel - Italy, UNESCO, Veneto, Venice

Murano, Burano & Torcello – The Keys To Unlocking Venice

If you read about our recent trip to Venice (HERE), then you’ll know that we finally unlocked the key to really enjoying Venice.  In a nutshell, it involves beating the other tourists to the finish line.  If the “finish line” is a guided tour in Palazzo Ducale (Doge’s Palace), then be the first person in line in the morning.  If the finish line is grabbing a moment of solace in an empty Piazza San Marco, then you’d better be there as the sun rises (conversely, you can arrive well after the sun has set and listen to  the beautiful music of the dueling bands). Or, more simply, you can do what we did; visit this magical city in the off-season and get to know the city of Venezia (Venice) without having to put up a fight.

San Marco Campanile and Doge's Palace seen from the water
San Marco Campanile and Doge’s Palace seen from the water

If you’re blessed with a couple of days in Venice, I would suggest that you go a bit deeper than the surface level attractions.  Skip the gondola ride (it’s overpriced anyhow) and instead tour the neighboring islands.  With 117 to chose from, you’ll have your pick.  You can visit the Jewish Ghetto on the island of Cannaregio.  Many of the beautiful parks and gardens on the island of Lido are free of charge to you botany lovers.  Or, for the real adventurers, you could opt to wade into the marshes and cast nets with local fishermen near the island of Chioggia.

The Church of San Giorgio Maggiore Church on the island that shares the same name
The Church of San Giorgio Maggiore Church on the island that shares the same name

We knew that we wanted to visit the island Murano and watch how the world-famous Venetian glass was blown.  This would require a little preparation and so I enlisted the assistance of a guided tour.  I discovered a wonderful website that offers local tours at very reasonable prices – Viator.  Travel bugs, take note of that website!  It is a great resource for sight-seeing tours in cities all over the world. We will definitely use them again; my only regret was not discovering the website sooner.  When searching for a tour of Murano, we found a better option – a tour that also included the islands of Burano and Torcello.  You can find the link to our specific tour HERE.  I bought my tickets ($28 pp) and had the confirmation sent to my smart phone.  I showed up at the designated area, presented the pass on my phone and received our tickets to the boat.  Easy, breezy, lemon-squeezy. Continue reading Murano, Burano & Torcello – The Keys To Unlocking Venice →

Cruises, Travel - Italy, UNESCO, Venice, Wine

Venice, Italy – Alfred Hitchcock’s Inspiration

Have you ever wanted to sound like the world’s biggest a-hole and  alienate multiple friends, all in one fell swoop?  If so, pay close attention and do exactly as I say.  Kind of roll your eyes a little bit in an exaggerated act of annoyance and say the following words with the smug impatience of someone who thinks they’re as classy as Ivanka Trump (but really only has as much class as her father, ‘The’ Donald).  Repeat after me:

“Ugh.  We have to go to Venice… again?!  Bleeeehh.”

Do that, and you are sure to land on the top of most people’s sh*t list!  At the risk of losing blog readers, friends and maybe even a few family members… that is exactly how we felt recently when we went back to Venice.  I can fully appreciate this is a ridiculous thought to have and even more obnoxious to share… but hey, this is a blog that delivers brutal honesty.  When we booked our cruise with Celebrity Cruises a little while back, we did it despite the fact that the ship spent two days at port in Venice.  Don’t get me wrong, Venice is a beautiful city with a unique charm found nowhere else in the world. If you’ve visited Venice before, you may reminisce about the romantic gondola rides, the charming cafes and the stunning churches.  But when you’ve faced with a visit to Venice for the fifth time, you are more likely reminded of the crowded piazzas, overprices restaurants and long lines full of pushy tourists.

See, "First World Problems Girl" gets it!
See… “First World Problems Girl” gets it!

Venezia (Venice) has an alluring history that I find to be more fascinating than nearly any other city in the world.  I mean, the entire city has been floating on water for centuries, for Pete-sake!  I detail a brief explanation  of how Venice came to be in this blog post (definitely worth a quick read).

Doge's Palace with San Marco Campanile in the background
Doge’s Palace with San Marco Campanile in the background
The Lion of San Marco perches atop a tall pillar outside of the piazza
The Lion of San Marco perches atop a tall pillar outside of the piazza

Even though we weren’t very excited at the prospect of squaring off against millions of other tourists in a space not much larger than the Mall of America, we abandoned our original plans to stay on the ship and instead ventured onto Venice’s shores.  We were sure glad that we did!  Over the next two days we rediscovered a new Venice; one with more magic and charm than we ever realized was possible.  What’s the difference, you ask?  We were walking around in the off-season. Continue reading Venice, Italy – Alfred Hitchcock’s Inspiration →

Croatia, Cruises, Travel - Europe, UNESCO

The “Game of Thrones” is Played in Dubrovnik, Croatia

“We’ve had vicious kings, and we’ve had idiot kings…but I don’t know if we’ve ever been cursed with a vicious idiot for a king!”

―Tyrion Lannister, summarizing King Joffrey

King Joffrey might just be the most evil little man-boy on the planet, but he has got one thing right – he gets to live in a beautiful and unique city (King’s Landing) with a history no more interesting than the real-life city in which the show is filmed.  If you’re a fan of the show Game of Thrones, you may know that most of the filming takes place in Dubrovnik, Croatia.  This site was chosen after season one wrapped (they originally filmed in Malta) because of the city’s perfectly maintained medieval appearance.  It is purely coincidental (and perfectly fitting) that the city of Dubrovnik happens to have a past that is as violent and completely peppered with dastardly deeds as King’s Landing itself.photoAK

Midway through our cruise on Celebrity Cruises ship, the Silhouette, I was bursting at the seams with excitement.  The port of call I was most eager to see had finally arrived!  The previous ports had been no less fantastic, Rome (here and here), Florence (here), Corfu (here) and Kotor (here) – but this was the icing on the cake for me.  I’m a fan of the HBO hit series, but more importantly I’m a fan of history. I’m also a fan of 6’2″ blond models and this city seems to export them in droves. Continue reading The “Game of Thrones” is Played in Dubrovnik, Croatia →

Cruises, History, Montenegro, Travel - Europe, UNESCO

This Will Get Your “Kotor” Running!

I am not a dedicated student of history or geography, although I like to believe I have a little knowledge of the world.  I recently exposed my own ignorance on the recent affairs of eastern Europe and I am embarrassed to admit the depths of it to you now.  Let this paragraph serve as my confession booth when I tell you that just over a year ago, I had never heard of the country of Montenegro.  Allow me to further confess that as recently as six months ago, I didn’t know  that Yugoslavia was no longer a country, but rather a former Socialist Republic that had been divided into what stands today as seven independent countries (Serbia, Kosovo, Macedonia, Croatia, Montenegro, Bosnia, Slovenia) .img216

Of course, I knew that this entire Slavic area of the European continent was [very recently] rife with political tension and civil unrest. The result of which sparked years of bloody wars culminating in both great losses for many of the citizens and great victories for each independent nation.  I knew this because when I was younger, my sister and father each had friends from the area.  But eleven-year old Greg was more interested in tuning in to see how MacGyver was going to use a pocketknife to escape from a flooding submarine than he was to tuning into C-SPAN.macgyver

Continue reading This Will Get Your “Kotor” Running! →

Cruises, Friends, Greece, History, Humor, Sipping Espresso, Travel - Europe, UNESCO

Let’s Set Sail Together Again (Corfu, Greece)!

4 Comments

It’s been nearly a month and a half since my last meaningful post and I am once again faced with the monumental task of getting caught back up.  I’m not sure how or why I allowed myself to get so far behind, but I do know that I have left myself a lot of work.  The wine, cheese and salami will just have to wait (well, I suppose it can’t hurt to have a little wine while I write).  I would like to apologize to my readers for this delay and I would like to acknowledge one loyal reader in particular;  Helen  actually reached out to me through our Contact Us page and basically said, “what the hell, Greg – where’ve you been?!”  Helen and everyone – even though it can’t excuse the lack of content, we  just got back from a two-week trip to the States where, in my capacity as Best Man, I roasted my good buddy Josh and toasted his beautiful bride, Abby (read about Josh and Abby’s trip to visit us here and here).

While we were home, I rediscovered some magical things – burritos, quality customer service and Netflix.  We haven’t watched as much TV over the past year as we did over the past two weeks.  I became obsessed with the Netflix original series, House of Cards – an amazing drama starring, Kevin Spacey as Frank Underwood, a cagey and politically ambitious congressman who is constantly scheming and conniving to reach the next rung of the political ladder.  If Frank Underwood can work through all hours of the night and stay ten moves ahead of his opposition, surely I can bang out a few extra blog posts in the next couple weeks.

You and me both, Frank
You and me both, Frank

We still have tons of travel left to do together – I’ve only written about the very first part of our cruise late last year and so much has happened since.  So put on your boating shoes and let’s get going… Continue reading Let’s Set Sail Together Again (Corfu, Greece)! →

Travel - Italy, UNESCO

The City That Inspired the Renaissance

4 Comments

The Renaissance was a cultural movement that spanned three centuries and gave us some of the world’s most precious treasures.  It changed the way people thought, it altered politics and it had an impact on art and architecture that lasts to this day.  The exciting changes in art and philosophy reached across Europe and quite literally brought people out of the Dark Ages and into the light of a new era.  There is little debate about the birthplace of the Renaissance; nearly all scholars will agree that it is Florence, Italy.  Because of the city’s important impact on the world as we know it, as well as it’s own unique beauty – Florence is a city that everyone should see in their lifetime.  If those are not compelling enough reasons, Florence is in Tuscany – one of Italy’s most beautiful regions.

Basilica di Santa Maria del Fiore – the famous Duomo of Florence

We recently embarked on a cruise aboard Celebrity Cruises new ship, the Silhouette.  We chose this particular cruise for a variety of reasons; among the most convincing was the itinerary.  We have wanted to visit certain parts of Italy, including Florence and parts of southern Italy.  The ports of call fit in with our “Italy bucket list” perfectly.   Continue reading The City That Inspired the Renaissance →

Travel - Italy, UNESCO

When In Rome…

1 Comment

I suppose that I’ve sufficiently succeeded in being completely cheesy and unoriginal, using the two most obvious cliche’s to name my two posts about Rome (first post).  Oh well, this is what you can expect from me when I’m faced with the monumental task of bringing you up to speed on our many recent adventures.  So, let’s begin!

When I last left you, we had seen the Pope’s home (Vatican City), a bunch of steps (Spanish Steps) and a some running water (Trevi Fountain).  The next day, we wanted to see a pile of stones (Colosseum) and a big dome (Pantheon).  And if anyone ever describes some of the world’s most precious treasures like that again, smack them! Continue reading When In Rome… →
Travel - Italy, UNESCO

All Roads Lead To Rome

1 Comment

If all roads lead to Rome, nowadays you could also say that all European cruises start from Rome. Well, maybe not all – but a good many of the cruise ships use this port of call as a starting point for their Mediterranean voyages.  At least, this was the case on our cruise aboard Celebrity Cruise Lines ship, Silhouette.  The Silhouette is one of five ships in their newest Solstice Class – a group of sleek, modern ships with a heavy emphasis on style and dining.  The ship and the cruise did not disappoint.  We had many ports of call and a lot of wonderful activities that I’d like to write about, so let’s start at the beginning… Continue reading All Roads Lead To Rome →

Beaches, Castles, Cruises, Family Stories, Food and Drink, Greece, History, Humor, Photography, Restaurants, Sipping Espresso, Travel - Europe, Turkey, UNESCO

Our Final Days at Sea

1 Comment

We recently had the most amazing vacation aboard Holland America’s Nieuw Amsterdam  and I have had a wonderful time writing about it.  I have discovered even more about each destination as I’ve researched them further and I have had the pleasure of reliving it all over again as I post the pictures.  I hope that you’ve enjoyed your time aboard with us.  Sadly, I will close this chapter of our overseas adventure and move onto the next story in an upcoming post.  There is still plenty more to come in the blog pipeline…

“Dad, wrap this up already – you’re putting us all to sleep!”

If you joined us thus far, you’ll know we visited Venice, Olympia and Athens in our first post and then Istanbul and Lesbos in the second post.  The final leg of our cruise transports us to Kuşadası,  Santorini and Argostoli.  As always, we’ll include some of our shipboard life and hopefully you’ll be able to stick with me – I’ve got a ton of pictures in this final post. Continue reading Our Final Days at Sea →

Beaches, Cruises, Family Stories, Food, Food and Drink, Greece, History, Humor, Landscape, Photography, Shopping, Sipping Espresso, Travel - Europe, Turkey, UNESCO, Wine

Come Here, You Turkey!

1 Comment

In my most recent blog post, we embarked on a cruise throughout the Mediterranean.  I’d love for you to continue the adventure with us as we head to Istanbul, Turkey and the beautiful Greek island of, Lesbos.  I’ll finalize our voyage in an upcoming post that will include the final ports of call and some more stories about our shipboard life.

“Oh, tell me… tell me all about it!”

When I last left you, we had visited Venice, Olympia and Athens.  By this point in the cruise, we really hit our stride and had fully immersed ourselves in everything Holland America’s Nieuw Amsterdam had to offer.  We were overeating delicious food (and then trying to work some of it off in their state-of-the-art gym), spending time in the casino (maybe too much time… literally every casino worker knew me by name), taking in shows and making friends all over the ship.  We found a couple of other families with small children, but for the most part – we were in the minority (not fitting into your typical “cruise-goer” demographic).  I’ll tell you what… if you ever want affirmation about your kids cuteness – go on a cruise with thousands of grandparents missing their grandkids.  They were all so happy to pay us compliments about Julia that it made us excited to take her anywhere on board. Continue reading Come Here, You Turkey! →