Day 44 – Livorno, Italy for Florence/Pisa – July 4th, 2015

Posted on July 4, 2015 by oriana77

Livorno, Italy – 07:00 to 19:00

Today was a virtual repeat of yesterday, we just visited a couple of different cities in Italy. An early start with a lengthy bus ride into Florence, followed by another bus ride into Pisa, before returning to our floating home in Livorno. The heat today in Florence and Pisa was even worse than Rome yesterday, probably topping out close to 40C. Our relaxing dip in the pool upon returning was extremely welcome and refreshing. As usual, I will do a separate post on the tours once I get caught up with the photographs.

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Day 43 – Civitavecchia, Italy for Rome – July 3rd, 2015

Posted on July 3, 2015 by oriana77

Civitavecchia, Italy – 07:00 to 19:00

This morning we arrived in Civitavecchia, which is the first of four port days in a row. After the large number of initial sea days, this is quite a contrast, and all these ports is really putting a dent in our sea day routines. Civitavecchia is 50 miles from Rome, so this will be a long day as we visit the Vatican City, Trevi Fountain and the Coliseum. Once I get caught up with the photographs, I will do a separate blog post to cover the tour.

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Day 40 – Venice, Italy Murano and Burano Tour – June 30th 2015

Posted on July 2, 2015 by oriana77

Today’s tour was a boat ride to Murano and Burano Islands, which are located in the lagoon, to the rear of Venice. Murano is famous for its glass industry and we are visiting the factory where all the glass masterpieces are manufactured. After the glass factory we head to Burano for a demonstration of hand made lace. Off course ample purchasing opportunities are available at both locations.

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Day 40 – Venice, Italy – June 30th, 2015

Posted on July 2, 2015 by oriana77

Our second day in Venice after a very welcome overnight stop. We have another tour booked this morning, which due to the 13:00 departure, the meeting time is 06:55, a tad early for Judi. So an early start for breakfast in Horizon Court, back to the cabin to pick up cameras and off to Princess Theatre for the tour. Yet again the organisation of the tour department was exceptional and after a bit of a wait in the comfort of the Theatre we headed down to the pontoon to join our boat. I’ll do a separate post to cover the tour, which was first rate.

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Day 39 – Venice, Italy Grand Canal Tour – June 29th 2015

Posted on July 1, 2015 by oriana77

After the tour of the Doge’s Palace we met up with Bruce and Viv and decided a Grand Canal cruise was next on the agenda. We visited a couple of ticket booths, but the 18:30, which was the last guided cruise of the day was fully booked. No problem, we headed to the Aqua Bus, which runs regular service all along the Grand Canal.

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Day 39 – Venice, Italy Doge’s Palace – June 29th 2015

Posted on July 1, 2015 by oriana77

Sea Princess arrived in Venice at 14:00 and today we planned to discover the attractions of Venice on our own. To be more precise, we planned to visit Doge’s Palace, take a cruise on the Grand Canal and if time, visit St. Marks’s Square and Basilica. We were heading into town with friends Bruce and Viv, so once we were all ready we set off on the hike to the Princess shuttle. Just missed the 15:00 shuttle, which departed just as we arrived, but we got the next one, which dropped us off next to Doge’s Palace about 15:30.

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Day 39 – Venice, Italy – June 29th 2015

Posted on July 1, 2015 by oriana77

Venice, Italy – 14:00 to 23:59

An interesting morning today, as our daughter’s almost daily video updates on our grandson’s progress has got us to finally admit we are missing too many milestones. Add to the equation my dad is also coming to Vancouver in September and our son and daughter-in-law are visiting from Dubai, so the magnetic pull of home has finally reached 1/2 way around the world, solidly grabbing our attention. It is something I have been contemplating for a couple of days and when presenting the argument to Judi, it was a very short discussion. To summarise, Aussie touring is cancelled and in Southampton, I will reschedule flights to head home mid-September.

Oh yes, we’re in Venice today and tomorrow.

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