After our Baltic cruise and a bit of hiatus from writing, we are back to update our Journey with summer adventures. As the title states, we have been exploring the Mediterranean onboard my ship – and having a blast along the way!
My ship spent the summer season in Spain, France and Italy; sailing out of Barcelona and going to (in order) Palma de Mallorca, Marseille, La Spezia, Civitavecchia and Naples. We made a point to try to explore all these beautiful places, even going on specialized tours to some unique sites such as Pompeii and the Leaning Tower of Pisa.
Blooming Barcelona
The pride of Catalonia definitely deserves its status, as it offers something for everyone. We loved our walks through its full streets that seamlessly combined old with the new, their struggle for independence with the need to make everyone’s visit a memorable one. An area that we explored the most was around the popular, 1.2 kilometers-long street of La Rambla. 
Even in the early morning, with the stalls and street performers still getting ready, it is full of life.
Even when we turned to get lost in some side alleys we would find something of note. During those wanderings, we came upon a square with Cathedral of Barcelona as the focal point. We got extra lucky, because we got to experience an orchestra performance on the Cathedral steps. To this day we don’t know where the orchestra was from or how often do they perform there, but we certainly enjoyed their classical music in that sun-bathed square. Other places we can recommend include the Maritime Museum, with its unique exhibits portraying history of navigation; Basilica de la Sagrada Familia and the world famous Camp Nou stadium.
Passionate Palma
Popular tourist spot, the island of Mallorca, has many relaxing spots. But its capital, Palma is definitely its crown jewel. With its historic city, beaches and never-ending summer, Palma is truly a gem to behold.
Our walk around the picturesque Old Town and its narrow stone streets was filled with sights and fragrances.
You can easily wander off among all the people shopping, dining or resting under the ancient olive trees and lose track of time. Many artists, artisans and various shops can be found along the way. It is a place that has something for everyone (except maybe winter sports lovers)!
Magnificent Marseille
You can’t talk about Marseille without focusing on its Old Port (Le Vieux Port), which is a site loved by Hollywood movies, and it should be. It’s old, stone walls and numerous sailboats provide a picturesque background for any camera. We walked its length and enjoyed sidestepping into amazing little fountain squares providing you with a chance to enjoy some fresh and tasty pastry.
As this is France, you can’t throw a stone without hitting a bakery (or a baker!); if there is one thing that describes “French” for me, it is their unconditional love for bread, pastries and baking.
The city itself is hilly and as such offers lots of great views. Easiest way to get around is via small hop on-hop off trains which will take you all the way up to the basilica Notre-Dame de la Garde, Marseille’s most famous landmark.
Lovely La Spezia
Influenced by movie and books I suppose, I had the idea in my mind of a small, relaxing Italian town. Stone streets, coffee shops, flowers in the windows, sea breeze, you get the idea. La Spezia matched it perfectly. Loved stretching my legs through it. Additional perk to La Spezia included it being a starting point to two world famous locations – Cinque Terre and the Leaning Tower of Pisa.
Cinque Terre we explored on our own accord, getting there via a hectic train ride.
Cinque Terre is a National park and UNESCO World Heritage site comprised of five stunning villages. They are situated on the cliffs overlooking the sea and just provide an amazing exploration experience. We visited the last one, Monterosso al Mare. After a stroll up and down its alleys and a seaside lunch, we were going to go to the neighboring Vernazza, with its postcard-famous colorful houses, but due to our Little One’s schedule, had to leave it for next time.
The Leaning Tower of Pisa we visited on a separate occasion, and we had a guide with us. It is truly a remarkable and one of a kind landmark, which becomes even more memorable once you delve deeper into its history and curiosities. One of them is that it took a whole decade to stop it from leaning (and falling) completely on its side. Even though the Tower continues to angle down ever so slowly, at this rate it should remain standing for another 200 years!
Charming Civitavecchia
Civitavecchia is a lovely port and a gateway to Rome. Due to the Eternal City still being several hours away in either direction, we were not at liberty to organize a visit. Nor would it do justice to try to cram in a short window of time. Hence, we strolled the relaxing streets of Civitavecchia, enjoying its mild climate and slower pace of everyday life.
Noisy Naples
Situated under the gaze of the mighty Mount Vesuvius volcano, Naples is a loud and vibrant place. It stretches along a bay, which makes for a great view anywhere you want to explore along the coast. The problems arise once you continue exploring inland and the city center, as we did. We quickly found, neither the city, nor its many drivers, are baby stroller-friendly. The locals of Naples, maybe due to the proximity to the still active volcano, live life to the fullest. That didn’t deter us from finding ways to glimpse some of Naples’ castles and its most famous square, the humongous Piazza del Plebiscito.
The highlight though, has to be the place forever inscribed in tragedy and legends, the famous city of Pompeii, frozen in time.
For our trip to this ancient Roman settlement, which got annihilated in the year AD 79, we decided on getting a guided tour. Our thinking was that such a place deserves proper exploration combined with explanation, for us to truly appreciate it, and we were not wrong. It was quite remarkable to witness a city that thrived 2000 years ago, with some of its features, artwork and even denizens left standing to our times. The “culprit” being the very destroyer of Pompeii – the scorching volcanic ash that suddenly descended and in cooling, preserved the city in its final moment. Even though such site cannot be stroller-friendly, we thoroughly enjoyed it. Word of advice if visiting in the summer, make sure you bring some protection from the sun, there are not many roofs left standing to create a shade!
An American Autumn
These have been some of our summer adventures, which are being followed by autumn adventures! While my ship is getting a $165 million refurbishment, we are set to spend some time in the US and travel locally, but also internationally, in the coming weeks. To read all about it, stay tuned – next post coming next week!