Monte Carlo

Well, we survived a storm on the way to Barcelona - 77 mile an hour winds and 16 foot seas. Time for a patch, green apples and ginger. Joe's scooter came on board, and he's happy exploring. I went into Monte Carlo and had a great croque monsieur and a glass of wine (it was vinegar not long ago). Then into the Grand Casino and what to my wondering eyes should appear but the ever lucrative meerkats. I put 10 Euros in and in a matter of about four minutes was able to cash out with .20 Euros. It'll make a great scrapbook addition. We're back in the closet, but I had them take all the bed-making stuff out of the drawers and bring me a clothes rack. Can't wait til we set sail for Livorgno, then i can get back to my favorite little meerkats. Obviously French snootiness has attached itself to the meerkats in Monoco. Au revoir.

The Holy Land

A whirlwind tour of the Holy Land is complete. You can't upload pictures on the ship's computers, so I'll have to do that when we get home. Also, I'm writing this without notes, so I'll fill in later. The first day consisted mostly of getting on and off the bus. We began in Nazareth at the Church of the Annunciation - where Gabriel appeared to Mary. There is a continuing struggle with the Muslims in Nazareth and they are currently protesting because they want to build a mosque adjoining the church. Sound familiar? Then it was off through a thick haze (the guide said not smog, just dust and humidity) to the Sea of Galilee. Up the mount where Christ delivered the Beatitudes, then down to Sea. My left brain was amazed at distances - how far it was from the mount to the sea to Capernaum. I washed my hands in the Sea of Galilee but was distracted from any contemplation by a guy doing figure 8's on his jet ski. From there we visited the ruins of Capernaum, which are under excavation. There is a church built on stilts over what are purported to be the runis of St Peter's mother-in-law's house. I say purportedly because I believe many of the sights in the Holy Land are built on estimations or are simply memorials to the idea. Not that it matters. After that, a wonderful meal at a Kibbutz and a stop at the River Jordan.

Then off to Jerusalem, through the Judean Desert where temperatures were at 38 degrees centigrade. I'm not sure of the conversion, but it was hot regardless. I had not paid attention to the politics and learned later that the agreement to halt building in the West Bank expired at midnight. Now I understand the bulldozers and cement trucks along the side of the road. These week is Succoth (sp?) and it is a week-long holiday. When we arrived in Jerusalem, it was the Priest's Blessing Day, which occurs during Passover and Succoth. We visited the Old City at about 10 p.m. and it was packed with people. The ultra-orthodox Jewish men with hats of every size and fabric made quite a display. Then it was back to the hotel.

Monday was clear and hot. But I shall have to leave y'all handing as Joe and I are off to Egypt in a few minutes. Let me just say that the Holy Spirit is ever-present in the Garden of Gethsemene.

Arrivederci Roma

Well, I have no idea how to spell "goodbye" in Italian, but that was my best shot. The luggage, Joe and I have arrive on the Celebrity Equinox safely, although he had just one blip left on his wheelchair, and if the battery goes dead, there is no resurrection. A long 9 1/2 hour flight to Rome made easier by a last minute upgrade to Business Class. i think I'm spoiled. A suicide driver in a Mercedes mini-van got us safely to the Hotel Cicerone, which was close to the Vatican. We checked in, had a good lunch, followed by a nap and a good dinner, followed by several Italian white wines and a Benedictine and Bailey. I was able to find the air conditioning switch about 3:00 a.m. this morning and it made it much more comfortable. After another harrowing ride to Civeteveccia, we are save and sound. Ciao.

Don't cry for me Argentina . . . .

Ahhh, at long last. The cruise. Why should we whine? Does anyone work for Delta? If so, shame on the baggage department. We got Joe's electric wheelchair in Buenos Aires - in many pieces. I figure to cause that much damage they must have dropped it from the airplane onto the tarmac. We've been a lot of places and it's suffered a lot of dings, but nothing that I couldn't fix. This poor thing is beyond recognition.

But, that was yesterday. We have a manual wheelchair and a strong pusher (me, the kickboxing queen). We were relatively exhausted yesterday after a day flying, but undaunted, I took an afternoon tour of Buenos Aires. We saw the normal big sites - I'd been there in 1961, but memory being what it is - they were mostly all new to me. I really wanted to see the cemetery and almost got to. When I woke up, the bus was empty except for me. Drat. Otherwise, we found Buenos Aires to be delightful. Tremendously friendly and helpful people and good food except for an overcooked steak - mine, not Joe's.

We stopped for a drink at the piano bar tonight, and I got Joe a Beck's. Then Elbert came by and asked why Joe wasn't drinking Bass. Seems he was on our cruise a year ago Christmas. He remembered us and that Nick and Joe drank Bass and that I drank white wine. (He also remembered Maggie, go figure.) I could never work on a cruise ship, I CRS. Miss y'all.

Off we go . . . .

Joe and I are off on a great adventure. Daisy has gone to visit her boyfriend and surrogate parents, Patty and Fred. (She was initially sad because Maggie's puppy has made her life intolerable) but if anyone can fix that Patty can. And Daisy does like the special early morning time with Fred when he's reading the paper and she get her ears scratched.

We're nearly packed; I'm wondering what I will discover I left in the bathroom when we get to Atlanta. All the chargers are packed, I think. I believe I have more clothes than are necessary, but at two bags each, what the heck. Besides, what would I want to buy in Argentina and Chile anyway? Certainly not wine. p.s. I've had a really low iron count so the doctor asked me if I'd had any weird food cravings. Like chocolate, I asked? No, more like blackboard chalk or dirt. Whew! No weird cravings for me. Thank goodness, I'm normal. Bring on the chocolate. I did tell him that my daughter's lab puppy had been eating dirt - did he think she was anemic? No, just a destructive puppy.

I've pledged to exercise and eat sensibly on this cruise. I have 500 hundred "free" minutes on board to access the internet. I'll keep you posted. Actually, it will be more like an open diary. I thought maybe I could give up diet sodas and processed sugar (including Splenda) on the cruise. Seems a lofty goal, much like eating chalk. Notice there was nothing about chocolate. I do like their chocolate croissants, which they have every other day. Maybe if I sleep til 1000 on those days, they'll be gone. That's a concept. Help! What have I forgotten? Maybe to go to sleep.

Tune in for stories of our great adventures. Penguin pictures to follow.