I'm just trying to walk myself home.
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In September of 2012, my daughter, Mary Polly and I went on a Mediterranean Cruise. This post is all about the unbelievable boat that took us on this fabulous trip, the Carnival Breeze. We boarded this ship in Barcelona, Spain. Last year at this time, I had already booked our Mediterranean cruise on the Carnival …
Barcelona was the first stop on my trip with Mary Polly to Europe in September. We spent two nights there, exploring this beautiful city before boarding the Carnival Breeze for a 12 Night Mediterranean Cruise. Read all about our first day in Barcelona here. Our second day in Barcelona started with a quick stop …
Barcelona was the first stop on my trip with Mary Polly to Europe in September. We spent two nights exploring this beautiful city before boarding the Carnival Breeze for a 12 Night Mediterranean Cruise. Mary Polly and I arrived at the closed metal doors of Santa Maria Del Pi Cathedral in Barcelona in …
Venice was our last stop on our anniversary trip to Italy in 2004. It’s one of those places you see pictures of all your life, but you cannot even believe it is real when you get there.
It is decadent and glorious and everything you could imagine. Even in December.
December 9, 2004
Venice Italy
Where do I even begin?
Venice is absolutely breathtaking. The whole city is just oozing elegance. From the very first moments on Vaporetto #1, I have been in awe.
Like a great maze, there is a treasure around every corner, a beautiful church, shops full of every possible color of glass and marbled paper, bright and elaborate masks, bridges, market stalls and gondolas. I have waked around in a dazed dream-like state.
Yesterday we just walked and walked and walked. We had the most wonderful sandwiches and cicchetti (Italian tapas) which we ate on a bridge. We went to San Marco and just stood there in the square.
We went back today to tour the cathedral and we took our time because I was enamored with every detail. The whole inside of the building was covered in mosaics and the pieces are tiny! When I got up close to them I could not believe all the tiny little quarter inch tiles.
My favorite mosaic was the one of Jesus sitting on the throne ruling His kingdom. Our guidebook said that Jesus was commonly pictured like this (instead of on a cross) in Byzantine cultures. I bought a postcard of this mosaic to remember Jesus this way–Sovereign over all, his hands stretched out in front of him, welcoming. Not to worry. He’s handling all things.
Why do we take these milestone trips with our children? It was on our trip to Italy in 2004 that Taido and I dreamed up the idea of taking our children to Europe one at a time. We delighted in the thought of our little ones running through the cobblestone streets of San Gimignano, and …
What to Wear on a Mediterranean Cruise hello, Whitney here, posting for Alison today while she’s away on vacation. I took these pictures of her and Mary Polly as they were packing for their trip and thought they would be a perfect way to link up with Lindsey from the Pleated Poppy for WIWW. This …
A Day in San Gimignano, Italy Taido and I went to Italy for our 10th anniversary in 2004. We were married in December, so we chose to go during that month even though we were taking a chance on the weather. We did have some rainy, cold days, but the lack of crowds at all …
I loved each and every museum we visited in Florence, but I especially loved San Marco. Maybe it was because I was just trying to check seeing Fra Angelico’s frescos off my list, but I wasn’t expecting as much from this experience as I was from the other places on my agenda. Maybe it was …
December 3, 2004 Florence, Italy I’m sitting in front of Michelangelo’s David. It is larger than life, perfectly situated under a brilliant dome. He is captivating. We wandered over to the Accademia to see if we could make reservations for tomorrow and it was wide open with no line. So fun! So we bought our …
Falling in Love with Italy Eight years ago, Taido and I walked hand in hand in the streets of Italy. It was December. We were celebrating being married for 10 years. We fell in love with the Renaissance in Florence, we picnicked in the ruins of a Tuscan hill town, and we succumbed to the …
What to Pack for a Mediterranean Cruise Mary Polly and I leave tomorrow for our Mediterranean Cruise and we are all packed!! We have deliberated a lot about what to take to Europe with us. In general, if I am flying somewhere, I really like to travel light, but we are also trying to have …
Every time I pack a bag lately, I am mentally taking notes. In some ways, all my summer packing has been preparation for packing for our upcoming trip to Europe. I am looking to find a balance between a very minimalist approach and including enough ensembles to make it fun to dress for dinner. I …