Exploring Rome on Foot on Sunday - Joyce

While Al,  Kathy and Lucie headed to church........John, Yvonne, Gerry and Joyce set off for an "exploratory" walk.  Bruce had some work to look after, Dave wanted to "nurse" his allergy flare up and Linda to get some R and R plus work on the Saturday night blog, so they opted to stay back at the Hotel.

The walking group wandered past the Colisseum once again and then meandered on a walkway up "one of the Hills, ending at S. Bonaventvea Church.  From the walkway we had a view of many of the sights we had taken in yesterday evening, but from a different angle......the Roman Forum, the City Hall, etc.  

Back down the walkway and past some more of the Coliseum to take in the sights on the street.  

Many street "entertainers"(?) hoping to receive coins for their efforts from those passing by.  

We were even "accosted" by a Gladiator who wanted us to have our picture taken with him.  It was agreed to do so, he then had the picture taken then three or four more, wanting 5£ a picture!!!!!   Not!

Our group then walked along another walkway and up another Hill, going up the back way to City Hall.  kAfter deciding it was time to head back to the Hotel, and choosing what we hoped was the quickest route to get there, we stopped to say hello to "the Boys" while heading down the "chariot" steps to the street below.

With John in the lead and following the map, we picked up our pace considerably, pausing occasionally to confirm we were on the right track.  

Only once did we take a wrong turn, but after John pulled out his GPS we were quick to get back on track and made it back to the Hotel, ready for a shower and rest but instead, joined the rest of the gang for pizza and beer at a sidewalk cafe nearby.  

Back to the Hotel to get packed up and rest before Happy Hour.  Al entertained us royally on the piano while we enjoyed a pre-dinner drink in the Hotel lounge.  

Dinner at the Hotel and once again, didn't disappoint .... it was wonderful.  

To our rooms and bed. During the night, a big rain, thunder and lightening storm which seemed to go on and on.  It woke me up at 1:00am and I'm still awake at 2:30am, the storm continuing to rage!!  Tomorrow (actually, later this morning) we head to the ship.  Hopefully the storm will have abated.

Roman Fashions - Joyce & Gerry

Anything goes in Roma!  We could not believe the 'painted on pants' we saw!  

And the shoes!  

But oh the beautiful Brides!  (And Grooms!)

Maybe it is good luck to trash the dress by dragging it over dirty rocks and the ancient ruins but they all seem to do it!

Basilica di San Clemente - Kathy & Lucie

Sunday, September 29, 2013.  Lucie,  Al and I went to mass at the Basilica di San Clemente.  It is a beautiful old church.  The Mass, of course, was all in Italian, but it is amazing how much we understood.  There were 3 priests, one who did all the singing - a wonderful voice.  

We took a tour after Mass of the catacombs below the church.  

  This Irish Dominican church is a microcosm of Rome, with the many layers of Roman history visible in its structure.  At street level is a 12th century church with a Renaissance and baroque additions.  Below are excavations of a 4th century basilica, atop a Roman house from Nero's era and a Mithraic temple from the first century BC.  

The church also has magnificent mosaics, frescoes and pavements.  All in all, it illustrates the evolution of Christian art between the first and 19th centuries.  It has a enclosed courtyard which is featured in the photo above. 

 The church was a short walk from our hotel, The Lancelot.

Rome Tour #1 - Linda

On Saturday we had a great 4 hour tour of the Rome highlights.   Our tour guide, Rahul, was a wealth of knowledge as we toured "The Eternal City".   As our hotel is close to the Colosseum, we began there (just a drive around as we have a Colosseum tour after the cruise).  We then headed towards the Circus Maximus - a long, oval field that once hosted chariot races.   All that remains today is the turf!  We then headed towards our first stop, passing many ruins, monuments and ancient buildings along the way!  The Piazza del Campidoglio was designed by Michelangelo, and is the embodiment of Renaissance architecture.   Guarded at the foot of the many steps are gigantic statues of Castor and Pollux.  

Proceeding up the steps to the church, Santa Maria in Ara Coeli, there is one of the best views of the Forum.  Back in our comfortable van, we proceeded to the Piazza where the Trevi fountain is.   It was VERY crowded so we plan to come back after the cruise to thrown in our three coins, and do some shopping in the many shops along the cobblestone pathways. 

  We then proceeded to the Pantheon - a monumental round temple that is considered the best preserved ancient structure in the city.  It has the largest concrete dome ever built -it is a MOST impressive structure!  From there we walked to the Piazza Navona,

 originally built as a stadium for athletic contests, it now hosts many shops, cages, artisans and vendors selling souvenirs.  We had dinner in a little cafe off the Piazza and then a drive up to the hillside outside of Rome to see the city at night!  It was a great overview of this magnificent city!

Mozart Concert

Last Wednesday in Vienna Al obtained tickets for us all to go to Der Goldene Saal des Musikvereins (the Golden Hall of the Musikvereins) to see a wonderful Mozart concert.   The concert was performed by 30 musicians, all in historical 18th century costumes, including wigs!   

It made us feel that we had stepped back into the 18th century.   The performance included arias and duets from "The Marriage of Figaro", "Don Giovanni" , and "The Magic Flute", along with many others.   By the end of the evening the conductor had us clapping along to the music, enjoying the beautiful sounds of classical Vienna!   

The Night Tour After Mozart

After the concert, we were lucky enough to have been taken on a walking tour around the old streets of Vienna. Our tour guide was one of the leading scientists and lumber specialists in Europe.

He went to university in Vienna and was happy to show us his old stomping ground. The old cobblestoned medieval streets were narrow and full of charm. We saw the university, the pubs and even Mozart's house, the one he stayed at while he was in Vienna. He explained to us that Vienna was the centre of Europe and very important, thus the buildings reflected this.
The next day, we were off to see the Danube.
After maneuvering the underground, we found the canal, a tributary of the river. That part of town was not too nice.Lots of graffiti hung on the walls beneath the bridges but some of it was very good art. So we then took another underground train and went to see the river. No, it wasn't blue!
It was a murky greeny-brown but flowed very fast.
It was about 1/4 kl. wide. Well, we saw it!
By now it had started to rain so we back into town to find a wine garden. Many we're closed because of the rain but we did find a covered one. Beer, wine, goulash and strudel was the order of the day and we really enjoyed it.
Back to the hotel and a short walk to the restaurant for tonight's supper!
Tomorrow, it's Rome! It will be so nice to hear the language. In Austria, you spit the words out but Italian, multi bella, it rolls off

the tongue and comes out like a song!

After a very nice trip to Rome, we were picked up by our hotel and driven there.
The weather was warm. It actually felt like Hawaii.
The hotel is beautiful! There are lots of tropical plants, palm trees and vines that add to the ambience of this Olive Garden type place. We had Happy Hour in the bar patio. It was just beautiful, 

full of greenery, color and charm. We really are in Italy at last!

Lucie & Joyce Arrive at Roma!

Lucie and Joyce hit the road to the airport (thanks for the ride Jim), on the 26th, excited and somewhat sleep deprived, ready to embark on our Roma/Mediterranean sojourn. 

A long uneventful trip to London, a bit of a frantic rush through Heathrow to catch our connecting flight to Roma only to learn take off was delayed by 30 minutes.  Pause for a breath!!

After a long wait for our luggage, a wonderful welcome from the Vienna bunch who waited for us at the Roma airport.  How neat.....so glad to be here.  Thanks for waiting at the airport for us.....pretty special.

The Hotel Lancelot is enchanting!!!!  Old but quite wonderful!!  Were able to arrange for dinner at the Hotel and boy oh boy, delightful and sooooooo good.  

On the plane, heading for London and Rome!

Lipanzzers Mozart & Vienna at Night

We were able to take in a morning practice of the world famous Lipanzzer Stallions.    Very impressive Leaping and precise stepping!  There were five horses  practicing at a time Independent of each other for 30 min each over a two hour period.  It was nothing like a full show.

Opera House Vienna - Kathy

Tuesday, September 24, 2013

Vienna Opera House

Bruce, Gerry, Dave, Yvonne & Kathy took a guided tour (after the art history museum).  Unfortunately, the guide did a poor job of narrating....she spoke too fast and her English pronunciation was not very good.  BUT, the Opera building is amazing!  The architecture is beautiful.  Construction took place from1861-1869.  80% of it was destroyed in WW2.  It was rebuilt but the architecture was not near as beautiful.  

Once a year they level the floor and turn the Opera House into a Grand Ballroom.  Couples from all over compete for a chance to dance from midnight to five am - like a Debutante Ball.  It is a great honor to be chosen!

Art History Museum Vienna - by Yvonne

Today (Tuesday 24 Sept)

we went to the Museum of Art History.The building was erected in 7 years and it was done in the Viennese classical style, ornate, intricate and beautiful. No amount of money was spared and you can see it as you look up into the 150 ft. ceilings. The paintings and art were spectacular! The exhibits consisted of objects from wealthy families and royalty and Ancient Roman, Greek and Egyptian artifacts. The European objects were from the 13th to 17th century and were made of many mediums, gold, silver, alabaster, ivory, wood and many precious stones.They were again very ornate and beautiful. The ancient artifacts were wonderful. They had things from Pompeii and Ephesus and many sarcophaguses, as well as a lot of hieroglyphics. I found all this so interesting that I only saw the first floor. When I found the group Bruce and Gerry had found upstairs and were having a beer!    

Dave & Yvonne in Toronto

Waiting for our flight to Vienna in Toronto

It is a dark and gloomy, rainy day in Toronto.  So glad we are leaving!!  Kathy and Al are on a different flight so we will meet them at the hotel in Vienna.  Bye for now Canada!   Vienna here we come!

Leaving Chelsea

We are on our way!!

Celebrity Reflection

We start our journey on 21 September 2013 by flying from Vancouver to Toronto then on to Vienna, Austria. Gerry & Bruce, Yvonne & Dave, Al & Kathy and John & Linda will all depart the same day - some on separate airlines - and meet in Vienna Austria for a brief cultural interlude. Al will be working but he will find time to celebrate Kathy's 60th birthday on 23 Sept and hopefully a Mozart concert.   After 5 days enjoying Wien hospitality we will jet to Rome, Italy and join up with Lucie and Joyce for a three day taste of Roma!

 We will then  set sail on the Celebrity Ship: Reflection for a fabulous 11 day tour of the Mediterranean.  Stay tuned ..