This is our first "free" day on the cruise as we travel between Malaga, Spain and the island of Funchal, Portugal. It is a warm and sunny day and I am sitting on our balcony realizing that the ocean is 4km keep. Doesn't really matter because after the first 10 feet depth means nothing. We had our first full day of bridge and Larry's lesson was super. The bridge players are very good with the majority of them having well over 2,000 master points!!
I would like to describe our 4 shore excursions, each one being unique. Other than the fact that we feel like a bunch of sheep being herded onto the busses, the trips are great.
Our first stop was Monte Carlo and we took the tour to Eze along with a walking tour of the old town of Monaco. Eze is a small village situated on a high hill, complete with narrow cobblestone streets, unique restaurants and magnificant views of the whole French Riveria. It was a pretty intensive walk uphill for 25 minutes and some of the older folk could not do it. When we got near the top we each paid 5 euros and climbed higher through a beautiful cactus garden. Afterwards, we drove back to Monte Carlo and then walked to the palace to see the changing of the guard. Once we returned to the ship we were tired out but were so impressed with the beauty of the whole area. Docked beside our ship was a beautiful yacht owned by the ambassador from Saudi. Too bad I cannot post photos ... when I return home and get a better internet connection, I will add some photos.
On Tuesday we went on the wine tour to Jean Leon, a one hour drive from Barcelona. Once again, we enjoyed seeing the beautiful countryside with miles of vineyards. The Torres winery is the largest in Spain and employees 1,500. The winery is so large that we were seated in small trains to travel throughout the winery. We had a fabulous wine tasting of 4 wines. These Spanish wines are sold in North America and I have had the Celestial wine before. I did buy a few different bottles to bring home and I know we can taste some of them in Florida with Bob and Francine.
Unfortunately, a gentleman (87 years old) on our bus fell while walking down the stairs on the bus. He had had a hip replacement 4 months ago and broke it again. (Don't you do that Roeland) He was taken away by ambulance and was operated on that night. He is expected to be flown back to Toronto in a few days.
There have been several serious falls on the ship. Some of the people cruising should not be on the ship!!
After we toured the winery, we had a driven tour of Barcelkona before returning to the ship.
On Wednesday we docked in Valencia, Spain. What a beautiful city! We drove through the new modern part of the city on our way to tour the Llaro factory where they make porcelain figurines. It was extremely interesting to see the whole process. On our way back to the ship, we toured the old city. It is a very clean city, with lovely trees and flowers.
On Thursday we docked in Malaga, Spain which is the big tourist area along the Med. Once again, the flowers and trees were beautiful. It boasts 90 golf courses, but we only drove by one. Our destination was Mijas village (the little while town), located high in the mountains. All the houses are painted white -- it is the law that only white paint is allowed and they have to be painted once a year. They have donkey carts to transport you for a large fee ... the donkeys did not smell very good to say the least. It was a lovely day and once again, the photos will follow.
That is it for our tours. In Funchal tomorrow we are meeting Andrea and Dave who have rented a car and will take us around to see the sights. The good news is that we have set it up so that they can come aboard the ship.
All for now ... wine time! Love to all and keep your stick on the ice!!
No comments:
Post a Comment