I had a wonderful time on our cruise. It was a once in a lifetime trip that I hope to be fortunate enough to repeat. Dana did an excellent job, as always, of detailing the journey on the blog. However, there were a few things that were missing. I will start from the beginning of the trip.
So after the whole interesting experience getting to Barcelona the fun started. I thought that the airport there was very pretty. I know that is a weird statement but it is true. The building was designed to be a big open space with a ceiling that looked like a giant wave. The floors were a super shiny green tile that was a little hypnotizing. Now it could just be that we were there at 11:45 at night so it was empty and I was a little high on exhaustion. But it really was a cool airport. I kept thinking that “Eric Jensen would like sleeping here”. Eric likes to brag about his phone app. that shows good places to sleep in an airport that he has used a few times. So we make our way through baggage and I pulled out my phone to call the hotel to get the shuttle. I was excited to have one free thing on the trip since the whole European experience has cost money. Our phone of course does not work and keeps texting me something in Hungarian that has EU and a number in it. I get pissed and try to use a pay phone that also does not want to work. It won’t work with a card despite bragging that it does. I go to an ATM and get some Euros but it only takes change, of course. The information booth at the airport won’t let me use their phone or call for me. So after a few cussing spells I break down and get us a taxi while Dana pets my arm. The one free thing I was excited about had disappeared. We arrive at the hotel and are happy to find out they have a free shuttle to the cruise ship. So at least one free thing, however it was the last. The rooms were really cool and modern. The shower was huge and a nice change from our small bathtub shower with waist high tile. So we enjoyed a much needed night of sleep.
The next day we have the first normal breakfast since being in Europe and we loved it. In Hungary they usually serve bread, butter, and jam. However, the bread is not toasted nor is there an option for that. They also give you cold cuts, a pepper, and cheese. So a nice breakfast that is hot with eggs, sausage, and bacon was beautiful to see. We arrived at the cruise ship at around noon which is 6 hrs before it left. We were waiting in line at check in and two ladies behind us were from New York. They were talking extremely loud about how they “Couldn’t wait to get back to Manhattan.” Which was funny since they were about to be on a cruise. It really annoyed me because I wanted to turn around and say, “Then don’t get on the boat and spare us please.” I have dealt with so many people from NYC who act like NYC is the greatest place on earth. I am sorry but I would rather live in San Fran., London, Portland, Chicago, or any of a number of other places before NYC. We checked in and they told us our room would be ready later but that we could eat lunch and have drinks until then. We were up the ramp before they finished the previous instructions. We found an outside sitting area on the back of the ship with an incredible view of Barcelona. We got some tea and coffee and just enjoyed the view. Then people started arriving from all over. We overheard people from Australia, United Kingdom, France, and of course the USA. We were talking about things we did not miss about Texas when a guy in full decked out A&M gear sits at the table next to ours. We both began to say how we had moved half way around the world to get away from those people. We both were so tired of the extreme dogmatic conservatism of A&M when we lived in Texas. So with that we left and laughed and went to our room. Later we went to dinner and met some nice people. Before we all introduced ourselves we ordered food. The couple next to us went first. The wife spoke good English but we could not figure out her accent at first. Then the husband went and Grunted “Steak” a couple of times to the waiter. We both thought “Poor guy only knows the word steak.” The couple spoke to each other and we could not understand what they were saying. A little later we all introduced ourselves and they ended up being English. Dana and I both were a little surprised. The entire night was us nodding a lot and trying our best to understand them. They were of Scottish decent but it really was like another language.
The next day was the thunderstorm French experience that Dana has already talked about so I won’t get into it. That morning we had breakfast and sat with a group from the Connecticut-New York area. They asked us about the World Series and the Rangers and we said that we were excited. I said, “It was nice for the Rangers to finally knock out the Yankees.” They got mad and were like “It is a good thing that you are on the other side of the table.” Another thing that annoys me is that New Yorkers think they are super human tough and I simply do not get it.
We then went and drowned walking around Nice and Monaco. Then we went to dinner again and sat with a nice group from Scotland that were extremely nice. It was a married couple with the husband’s father. The father had just turned 95 and looked in great health. They were all as nice as could be and were a pleasure to talk to. However, the father was almost impossible to understand his accent was so thick. But we enjoyed the company.
The next day was Genova and we enjoyed exploring the city. That day was rather relaxed and we had a great time. We ate alone that night and just enjoyed being the two of us again.
The next day was Florence which was incredibly beautiful. Pisa was pretty as well. I could not soak up the experience in Florence enough. All the history, architecture, and art was just breath-taking. We came back and had another nice meal with a group from New York and England. They were lovely and a pleasure to meet. See I really don’t dislike everyone from New York. I am not a south vs north guy or anything. It is just that certain people just rub me the wrong way. The table was full of nice people and it was lovely. That night we saw a comedian from Wales who was rather funny. She kept poking fun at America and we laughed because it was pretty spot on.
The following day was Rome. I again could not take it in enough. I was blown away by the beauty and history of the city. The Pantheon was incredible. I had always wanted to see it, and it did not disappoint. The dome was so neat and the tombs and sculptures were beautiful. The Vatican was also a lifetime goal of mine to visit. The view from the top of St. Peters was simply amazing. Rome was so beautiful from that high up. The inside of St Peters was unbelievably big. I could not believe the height of the ceiling and dome. The scale of the place was incredible. I have been in many cathedrals now and this one easily wins. If I had to list my personal favorite religious houses I have visited it would be the following order: St. Peters, Westminster Abbey, Winchester England, and Basilica di Santa Maria del Fiore (Florence).
That night we had dinner with some more people. One of the couples was from Houston. I have never been more ashamed to be a fellow Texan. This couple was going on about the mid-term elections and how great it was. A couple from California that we had gotten to know kept saying politely, “No politics at dinner.” The Houston couple would not shut up. They went on and on about themselves, and what they had seen and how much they knew. They also said that Texas should secede from the union. I said that Oklahoma better improve their border for the incoming refugees. They claimed that Houston was being used for energy too much and that it was not fair. They also told us that they were sorry that we were from Fort Worth. Which we responded by saying, “We were trying to be nice, but that is usually what people say to residence of Houston.” Now my sister and brother-in-law are from Houston so I am not trying to be mean. I just don’t really like the climate there. There are many nice people from Houston, we were just not lucky enough to have those people on the cruise. We gladly left dinner remembering why we wanted a change of surroundings when we moved.
The next day was Naples. The Volcano was eye opening with it’s views and crater. Pompeii was fascinating. I must have taken 1000 pictures. You could still see the ruts in road from the chariots from 2000 years ago. We saw the plaster moldings of dogs and people that were frozen in place by the pyroclastic flow. We also saw a prostitution house with frescos of sexual positions. It was a menu for foreigners visiting Pompeii when it was still populated. We definitely laughed about it. We also had great tasting pizza and Gelato one last time before leaving Italy for a while. That night we ate lobster at a table for two and loved it.
The final day was at sea and it was very relaxing. That night we decided to try and eat in a group one last time. Boy did we ever regret it. So we sat with a group of much older people from all over the states. There were at least 3 conversations at one time loudly happening at the table because they couldn’t hear one another. Then they finally shut up long enough for us to be part of the conversation. However, they were just waiting to listen for a piece of anyones comment to relate to themselves so they could talk about themselves. The couple next to me was another couple from Houston (and I just thought the last Houston couple was bad). The old man next to me liked to talk with his hands and got about 3 inched from slapping me the whole night. He hit my menu 2 times, and my knife 4 times while talking about God knows what. Dana said that she could tell I was about to explode and she was a little worried. Then they all went into extreme conservative mode. Telling me that it shouldn’t matter if there are 100 kids in a classroom if the teacher is good. I simply responded “There is just a little more to it than that.” They said that they had to “Memorize the Gettysburg Address when they were in school,” yet they didn’t know where Hungary was on a map (somewhere in Eastern Europe?). They asked me if I liked Newt Gingrich which I responded with a firm “No.” I think that he is in my list of Bush, Delay, Rumsfeld, Palin, Gohmert, and Rove for most hated modern politicians. They said that they liked past Newt which I replied that I have never liked Newt. I literally was about to snap, but Dana kept calming down with a hand on my leg. We survived further conversations about Mormons, Muslims, and where exactly was Budapest and wasn’t Budapest the capital of Slovakia? We excused ourselves--happy to finally leave the table!
So in summary. The British were far more pleasant to be around than the Americans, for the most part. If you have the option to sit at a table for 2 it might be a good idea. The trip was incredible and the ship’s rooms and services were outstanding. I had a wonderful time and I don’t want my ranting to persuade otherwise. I also want to apologize to my sister and brother-in-law. I love visiting you in Houston and I hope I did not offend you. I know I met a “short bus” group of people and they don’t represent all of the Houston area. Just like Bush does not represent all Texas, we do have normal people I promise. :)
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