Mediterranean Cruise 2011!

Okay, here's the Reader's Digest version of our amazing trip!!!

Itinerary: September 18th, fly direct to Paris, then to Rome

Sept 19: arrive in Rome, wander around city after checking in to our hotel, grab a bite to eat!

Sept 20th: Wander around Rome! Head to port city (Cittavechia)in the afternoon!

Cruise:

Day 1:Cittavechia, Rome

Day 2: Day at Sea

Day 3: Chania, Crete

Day 4: Rhodes, Greece

Day 5: Day at Sea

Day 6: Ashdod (Jerusalem), Israel

Day 7: Haifa, Israel

Day 8: Kusadasi, Turkey

Day 9: Day at Sea

Day 10: Athens, Greece

Day 11: Day at Sea

Day 12: Palermo, Sicily

Day 13: Naples, Italy

Day 14: Cittacechia, Italy

What a fun vacation! It went by so quickly! It was the perfect mix of history, adventure, culture, relaxation, etc.! We were lucky enough to be seated at our dinner table with 2 other couples; one from Canada, and the other from Slovakia. We got to know them really well and spent the majority of our time on the ship, and some land days, with them! We played trivia at least twice a day, and came home with more Royal Caribbean paraphenalia then we know that to do with! We did our own thing at the stops in Italy and Greece. In Israel, we did a group tour with about 14 other people and a guide. In Turkey, Matt and I did a private tour with an archaeologist. AMAZING! Highly recommend that! Our favorite stop was probably Turkey. Being able to tour Ephesus was unbelievable! The amount of history there is crazy! We visited the city of Ephesus, the Terrace Houses (where Socrates lived!) and the place where the Virgin Mary supposedly spent her final days. We had amazing food every place we went! I've still been craving Falafel balls, Tzrani dipping sauce, souvlaki, and pita! Mediterranean food is the best! We only had about 2 hours of rain our whole trip! Not too shabby! The weather was wonderful; pretty hot, but nice! We were able to email home on our days at sea, and Skype to the kiddos when we were on land. The only hard part of that was the 9 hour time difference! It was so good to see the kids' faces and hear their little voices! We missed them so much, but it was so nice to get away, just the two of us! I'd do it again in a heartbeat! I am so grateful for a husband who shares so many of the same interests I do, and loves seeing the world with me!

At the Coloseum!

Matter at the Parthenon!

Chania, Crete! Beautiful harbour town!

My guy and I on our first formal night!

Check this one off my bucket list! I've ALWAYS wanted to ride on a camel! At the Mount of Olives, I ran in to the restroom, and when I came out, matt had this baby waiting for me! There's a pretty strict dress code in the Holy Land, and I didn't want to chance not being let into places, so I wore a floor length knit dress. (and loser running shoes...we walked A LOT that day!) The dress was a bit of a challenge getting onto that camel, but well worth it!

In front of the Jerusalem sky line!

Matt and I in the Garden of Gethsemane

I was a full on bawl baby at the Western (Wailing) Wall in the Jewish Quarters in Jerusalem. There's such an amazing presence there knowing that people have been praying here since Christ was on the earth. Plus, it's one of the only original places standing in Jerusalem. Probably my favorite place in Jerusalem!

Us in the Dead Sea! It was amazing to float there! Everyone there used the dead sea mud all over them to exfoliate and revitalize our skin!

Matt and I at the Sea of Galilee

Matt and I ate in Chops, one of the specialty restaurants on the ship. The food was amazing! They were so nice and gave us a special anniversary dessert!

Our last night playing trivia together! We killed it with movie theme songs trivia!

Me in front of our docked ship in Rhodes, Greece

Us in Rhodes, Greece!

In front of the house where the Virgin Mary supposedly spent her last days (in Turkey)

In front of the Library at Ephesus, one of the seven ancient wonders of the world

Matt and I in front of the ampitheater in Ephesus, Turkey!

The girls at the Acropolis in Athens! Anna, me, and Pat

All of us met up to tour Palermo, Sicily!

Jean Paul and Anna(Canadians), Dave and Pat(English), Lenka and Dan(Slovakian) and us!

Every trip needs an awesome self taken photo! This is a classic Matt cheeser! So, so fake!

The only picture of me and matt together in Pompeii! At this point, 11 or 12 days into our vacation, we were exausted! Plus we walked millions of miles each day seeing amazing places like Pompeii!

Pompeii guy... So cool how well preserved the bodies were!

This was by far the greatest trip I've/we've ever been on! Great destinations, great friends, great food and cultures!