Rome may 28, 2014

Rome May 28, 2014
 Ambitious day of sight seeing. After breakfast in our room we set off to tour the Coliseum. Our hotel receptionist said there would be no lines for tickets since on Wednesday the Pope would be giving his blessings at the Vatican. He either was out of the country or ill. We had big lines but still got in after about a half hour. Lots of restoration has been done and a very large temporary exhibition of archaeological articles is on display. Weather is perfect in the seventies with some broken clouds. Rick Steve's Podcast audio tour guide is a real aid, like having our own personal guide. Next stop was to the Roman Forum. Again the podcast was great for guiding us through what used to be the heart of Rome's golden era when the Empire ruled most of the civilized world. Our lunch break was taken at an outdoor pizza restaurant. Moving along we went to the Pantheon with its magnificent circular dome, used as the model for much later constructed projects including St. Peter's Cathedral and capital buildings throughout the world. A stop for gelato rejuvenated us enough to find our way to the Trevi  Fountain with masses of tourists shuffling to get their group photos and selfies Winding our

 way through many curved streets we decided to take the metro back to our hotel. Rushing to catch a departing train Wayne jumped in last only to have a pick pocket snatch his wallet out of his front pocket and dash out just as the train door closed. Needless the say it was not a highlight of our otherwise fabulous day. Returning to our hotel we made calls to our bank to cancel cards and transfer funds to Miriam's accounts in order to cover our travel expenses. A late dinner with a little wine helped to settle our nerves and prepare for the next day.

way through many curved streets we decided to take the metro back to our hotel. Rushing to catch a departing train Wayne jumped in last only to have a pick pocket snatch his wallet out of his front pocket and dash out just as the train door closed. Needless the say it was not a highlight of our otherwise fabulous day. Returning to our hotel we made calls to our bank to cancel cards and transfer funds to Miriam's accounts in order to cover our travel expenses. A late dinner with a little wine helped to settle our nerves and prepare for the next day.way through many curved streets we decided to take the metro back to our hotel. Rushing to catch a departing train Wayne jumped in last only to have a pick pocket snatch his wallet out of his front pocket and dash out just as the train door closed. Needless the say it was not a highlight of our otherwise fabulous day. Returning to our hotel we made calls to our bank to cancel cards and transfer funds to Miriam's accounts in order to cover our travel expenses. A late dinner with a little wine helped to settle our nerves and prepare for the next day.

Rome to Istanbul

Off to Rome May 26 2014
Took airporter to sfo airport. Due to heavy holiday traffic we travelled over San Rafael Bridge then over new Bay Bridge. Great view from elevated bus. Flight on United 747 -400 was packed with no  extra seats. Sat next to Austrian man and his 3 year old daughter of a Chinese mother and the Austrian father. Dinner was either barbecued chicken or Indian lentil and rice. No wine. Two movies. Small breakfast roll, melon, juice and coffee. Slept maybe an hour or two. Quick sandwich and coffee before long shuttle ride to our plane. Slept most of  the hour and forty five minute flight to Rome. Lengthy walk to train terminal ticket office. Caught the Leonardo train to termini Roma.
Walked about  8 blocks  to our Hotel Belle Suite, one of several in a multilevel
Building. After showering we ate at a local pasta restaurant, "Feel Good". Great fresh ly made pasta and egg plant.

Rome to Istanbul

Rome to Istanbul May 22, 2014
Final preparations for trip to Italy, Greek Isles, and Turkey. Four nights in Rome, three nights in Positano and boarding the Quest in Sorrento. Departing in Istanbul for four days. Returning on June 15th.

REGIONMediterranean & Black Sea	DEPARTINGJune 2, 2014	DURATION10 Nights	SHIPAzamara Quest
CRUISE PORTSCivitavecchia (Rome), Italy - Sorrento, Italy - Siracusa, Sicily, Italy - Chania, Crete, Greece - Santorini, Greece - Patmos, Greece - Kusadasi (Ephesus), Turkey - Dikili (Pergamum), Turkey - Istanbul, Turkey

Train to Rouen September 10, 2013

France September 10, 2013

We took taxi,on rainy morning, to train station, then on to Lille(lee-eel). Could not locate our train to Rouen. Learned that there is a train strike so we scrambled to find alternate route or book a car from here. Only feasible train is leaving at 5pm, too late to pick up our car. Decided to book a room in Rouen and get car in the morning. Having to change car reservation but getting higher price. Celine managed to keep our reservation and price through the Rouen Hertz office. Still quite rainy. After booking a hotel reservation at the Ibis hotel for Rouen we got the train. Arrived before the sunset. Took short walk to see the Notre Dame Cathedral. Hotel staff recommended Shabada restaurant a block from us. Very French food with emphasis on presentation. Slow service but worth the wait, drank wine to pass the time (Montagne Saint-Emilion)

France - Edam, Volemdam and Markem

September 6, 2013
We grabbed two coffees and croissants from local bakery and took the half hour bus ride from central station to Edam, a picturesque town of 7000 residents known for it cheese market. Spoke to sales lady at cheese store to learn about the history. Based on her guidance we went to see the town's lone windmill, sought out Rick Steve's recommended lunch time cafe only to learn that it doesn't open till 2pm. Went instead to his other recommendation De  Fortuna.  This was a great choice with outdoor garden setting and great salads. Toured the city's history museum including a preserved merchant house typical of the early 1400s. Caught the bus to Volendam where a large fair and festival is going on. Lots of carnival rides and beer concessions. This was a former fishing village but is now more of a tourist attraction with a boat service to Markem, a quaint village where wooden shoes are made. Witnesses the making of them from wooden blocks. had a healthy rain shower and caught bus back to Amsterdam in time for dinner again at de Fortuna.

Netherlands - Arrived in Amsterdam

 September 3, 2013
After 10 hour flight we arrived in Amsterdam around 9am.  Discovered several miscues, U.S. credit cards (without security chips) are not accepted in many establishment in Europe, many businesses here only accept euros, and most disconcerting was that Wayne did not recall his password for his Schwab ATM card. Needless to say this was a problem since bank cards other than Schwab charge 3% on all transactions. We took our lumps in order to get euros for train ride from airport to Amsterdam Central. A short walk took us to the rental office for our apartment.The second floor unit has steep steps and a bedroom plagued by a low calling. Decided to sleep on the foldout couch on lower floor. Otherwise the unit is fine. We ventured out for Spanish sandwiches and sangria-like wine. Back to our apartment for a short nap. Called Schwab and reset ATM password. Ready to spend many euros.
Walked around the area and had dinner at a nice boutique restaurant Bistro Neuf.  Walked along Damrak around the centrum and passed by several window with red light ladies on display. Called it after a long day.

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September 5,2013
Today after coffee and baguettes we set off on the city walk as outlined in Rick Steve's book on Amsterdam (new church, Royal Palace, Amsterdam museum, Benjihof widows housing, flower market, Vondel city park). We ended this with our lunch atop the Kalvertoren shopping mall which provided a great panoramic  view of the city and then a tour of the renovated Eijksmuseum. The modernized building puts emphasis on Rembrandt's "The Night Watch". The outside gardens are dedicated to Henry Moore' sculptures. Next, was a 90 minute canal boat tour featuring many large and small canals, houseboats of all description.  We took a trolley back to the Jordan area for an Italian dinner and a short walk to our apartment.

Black Sand Basin and Yellowstone Canyon

July 25 

After breakfast at the grill we drove back to up to view Black 
Sands Basin and a tour by a very knowledgable lady ranger, highlight was the Emerald Pool. We next drove on the  Fire River road past the bubbling caldron.

Drove through Madison and down to Grand Canyon of Yellowstone to get a more extensive view of the river, lower and upper falls.

Travelled through Hayden Valley to view many Bison.

Back home to Grant for dinner at the grill. Wayne went to ranger presentation on bears. Interesting that up through 1974 the park service  provided waste food to the bears. No longer is feeding condoned and bears are less visible. Mothers with cubs are seen close to humans only as protection from males looking to mate. Half of new cubs only live through first year largely due to killings by the males.