Tuesday, April 22, 2023 - Barcelona Day 2

Yesterday I spur of the moment made plans for us to join a half day excursion through Spain Day Tours to go to Monserrat. The NJ folks mentioned this trip yesterday, and the GA folks had done it previously and loved it, so thought we’d give it a go.

After breakfast at the hotel we walked 15 minutes to meet up with our group. At 8:30 we were met by our guide, Marta, and there were only 6 total in our group.

It was an hour drive to Monserrat, eventually heading up the mountain on twisty roads. Monserrat is considered a holy spot, and the famous statue of the Black Madonna is located there.

Stunning location, with the basilica and monastery built right into the hillside. We had a chance for a quick visit inside the basilica, then an hour and a half to explore on our own. John and I opted to take the funicular to the top of the mountain. A super steep train ride, pretty much straight vertical ascent to the top.

Once on top we decided to walk a short trek to Saint Joan Chapel. Monserrat is a National Park, and there are loads of trails crisscrossing the terrain.

Back down to grape a sandwich, coffee and honey almonds, then back in the van. Marta was a nonstop wealth of info, and she swung by MontJuic on the way back.

At 1:45 we were dropped off by our hotel and decided to stop at the coffee shop next door to share a pastry, coffee and iced chai. We wanted to visit the Maritime Museum, so that was our next goal. 

What an amazing museum and well worth the visit. This was very different than the Lisbon Maritime Museum, working chronologically through the history of maritime travel. Great interactive exhibits and well presented, including a visit to a ship owned by the museum. 

By this time it was 5 and we decide to tour Casa Mila, one of the Gaudi houses. It was a 45 minute walk to the house, so just about 6 by the time we arrived.

The tour was fantastic, with a free audio guide included with admission. The man was a true visionary with nature-inspired designs and touches. We decided that we’d hit three perfect spots on our final day.

From there it was time for dinner and we found Restaurant Balula that looked good. I had a Hugo Spritz (delicious) and John had a beer, followed by bread, patates bravas, a pork cannelloni dish and a cod dish. All so good.

Monday, April 21, 2023 - Barcelona

The day has come to get off the ship. We got up early to make sure we had time for our final packing and to have breakfast before leaving. 

By 8 we were ready to debark and everything went smoothly, although we were sad to leave the ship behind! I’d lined up a tour of Barcelona through Spain Day Tours and the guide planned to meet us off the ship at 8:30.

We ended up being on the tour with three other couples we’d met (2 couples from GA and 1 from NJ), along with another couple from a different ship. Our guide was Jordi, who was half Dutch and half Spanish and spoke great English. We first drove to MontJuic for a tour of the Olympic facilities (1992) and a great view of the city.

We next drove through the city, stopping to see two houses designed by Antonin Gaudi at the turn of the 29th Century. So creative and different, somewhat reminiscent of Dr Seuss creations.

Then it was off in the opposite direction for a visit to Park Guel, also designed by Gaudi. What an amazing park, with so many whimsical and creative touches. Especially impressive was the long benches covered with mosaics. So very beautiful.

Next was a visit to La Sagrada Familia, also designed by Gaudi. I’d seen this magnificent building in 1979, and it was unfinished then. Here we are all these years later and it’s still unfinished! Jordi gave us the history and pointed out the symbolism in the different sides.

By this time the tour was over. We were dropped off near our hotel and Jordi recommended a spot near us for lunch. We checked in to our room at Cuatro Naciones Hotel on La Rambla and headed to Les Quinze Nits in Plaza Real for a late lunch. We enjoyed patates bravas, salads, fish soup and sangria sitting outside listening to live music. Perfect.

We then decided to wander through the twisty streets for a bit and ended up finding the history museum in the Gothic Quarter that Jordi recommended. Fascinating place that lets you walk on top of excavated ancient ruins and look below. So much history.

Then it was back to the room for a siesta, followed by venturing out for dinner. We wandered once again with the goal of finding La Ciudadella Restaurant, another Jordi rec. Great rec once again, with too much delicious pizza. Back to the hotel to crash.

Sunday, April 20, 2023 - Mallorca

Easter in Palma, Mallorca! Our ship arrived in Palma at 7:30 this morning. Another blue sky and sunny day. We’ve been lucky with the weather…. breezy and a bit cooler than anticipated, but clear and sunny so no complaints.

We headed into town via the shuttle, since we’re docked a 45 minute walk from the city center. We’d decided to try a Hop On, Hop Off bus tour today, so we wandered into town until we found the bus stop. Our pass included a visit to the Spanish Village, so that was our first goal. The Spanish Village was billed as “Spain’s Largest Architectural Museum”, and it was a fun meander through the re-created village representing different genres of architecture.

Back on the bus for a stop at the Castillo, which wasn’t open today due to Easter, but the driver stopped at a panoramic overlook from the castle for pictures. Then it was onward to a stop in the city center, where we got off.

We set Plaza d’Espayna as our goal on Google maps and started walking. We kept finding cool streets, however, so twisted and turned throughout the historic city. We found the Moorish Baths, the last remaining vestige of the Muslims, dating back to 1,000 BC. Well worth a look.

We also loved the sycamore lined streets. So beautiful, especially Passeig del Born, with lion statues at both ends. Lots of flowers, cafes, and people out and about. We saw reference to an iconic pastry in the city, and stopped at a bakery for coffee/tea and a shared pastry. They’re called ensamaidas, and they’re reminiscent of the Portuguese pastels de natas, but with the custard filling inside. Delicious!

On to the big plaza, then a walk through a large park. We also checked out the local train hub, which we learned contained a comprehensive network of public transportation throughout the island.

We eventually made it back to our shuttle stop and were back on the boat by 3. First stop was Mosaic Cafe for tea, coffee and finger sandwiches, then on to the pool deck for hot tub, swimming and beer (John) and Pima colada (me). Pretty rough life.

We met Pam and John at 6:30 in Discoveries Restaurant for our final cruise dinner. Great food and company once again.

After dinner it was back to our rooms for final packing, and then we all went to the final 9 pm performance by the entertainers. Following coffees and tea after, we called it a night and said our goodbyes to our new friends.

Saturday April 19, 2025 - Valencia

 Our ship (not boat..) pulled in this morning around 7am and we caught some nice pink sky over breakfast. We usually go to “Windows” cafe which is the buffet style dining room on level 9. The ship leaves tonight at 6:00 or so so we have to be back on board by 5:45 pm.

We say the professors talk on Valencia so we knew about what to expect. Valencia has these ultra-modern buildings they build for an enourmous amount of money and it seems they are paying off with all the tourists it attracts and all the local concerts they hold there. The city had a river running through i t that flooded from time to time so they built a canal that bypassed the river. They were originally going to build a highway on the now empty river front but instead they built a very long park with all kinds of public spaces. Part 2 of our adventure was walking from the modern buildings, up the river/park and on to the old town where the thouan d year old stuff is. The walk from the ship to the zoomy buildings was about 45 minutes. The first thing we came on was what looked like a bio-dome kind of amusement park, aquarium, animal ark which was very busy with families and kids. There was a fee for admission but we realized that what we wanted to see was the zoomy science center and other structures next door (no fee). Wow was it beautiful. Hats off to the artitects.

Next we walk to the old town which took another 45 minutes or so. They of course had the required giany cathedral (we have seen a lot of cathedrals..) but we searched for the “Mercado” which is giant warehouse type building (old and classy warehouse) which was really busy. The locals buy all their meat, veggies and fruit there and then you add the tourists and the place gets packed. We escaped and found a small cafe which sold piaia. So beer (I ordered a half liter by mistake, oh well) and we got seafood and chicken piaia which we shared.

What we enjoy most of all is just walking up the narrow, ancient back streets. Deb found the Bario Carmen which was quiet and more “local”. We found coffee and tea on a small back street (everyone sells coffee and pastries) and then wiggled our way back through town to the river-walk. It took an hour and a half to walk back to the ship. We met our friends John & Pam from England and had a nice long dinner. The assistant cruise director put on an hour “70’s” show. They have a lot of very talented people here to entertain us. The house band is great and after talking to the cruise director after the show, he said all their entertainment is designed by and outfitin California, so this is big time stuff and it shows.

We walked about 20,000 steps today so bed felt really good

Friday, April 18, 2023 - Catagena

The ship docked early today in Cartagena. Our docking location was literally in the city, making it easy to navigate our off-ship time.

Today I’d booked a tour through Spain Day Tours to visit Murcia and Cartagena with a guide. After breakfast we met up with Kim from Atlanta, who’d organized the trip. We walked down to meet our guide and we ended up being a group of 14, all Azamara guests.

Our guide, Pedro, was awesome and the tour was great. We first traveled by bus to Murcia, the largest city in the region. As we approached Murcia we stopped at a beautiful church with a super lookout over the area.

Following that we headed into town, and Pedro let us know that due to Holy Week he wasn’t sure what we’d find. We were lucky that a procession was taking place, but since this was happening we could sneak in the side door of the cathedral. Nice to have a guide who could point out many of the features. 

From there he walked us around a bit and we had a few minutes to explore on our own. Murcia is known as a city of flowers, and the flowers in the parks were spectacular.

After our Murcia tour it was back on the bus for travel back to Cartagena (about 30 miles). Once there Pedro gave us all a great tour of the old town, pointing out historic buildings along the way. He took us in a back way to see the Roman Theater, built between 7 and 2 BC. Hard to fathom the depth of history here.

He then discovered that it was open access to see floats being prepped for a procession the next day. What a highlight to see people working on the huge floats and get an up close glimpse.

Eventually our tour ended and we stayed in the city for some time on our own. Kim and her group of 4 invited us to join them for a glass of wine, but after sitting in a cafe for a long time and not being waited on we packed it in.

John and I tried a second cafe but had the same experience so left once more. We finally located a friendly place and split a delicious chicken paella. John also tried a cafe asiático, a specialty in the region, which includes liquor 43, cinnamon and condensed milk. He thought it was a winner.

By this time it was 3:30 or so and we walked back to the ship. We both ended up napping, then went up to the Living Room for a drink. We ran into Pam and John there, and all ate dinner together at Windows Cafe, nabbing a window table as we pulled out of port.

Following dinner we all trooped down to the Cabaret Theater for an 8 pm talk by the professor, and then stayed for a musical show at 9. After this we went to Mosaic Cafe and enjoyed coffee, cocoa and conversation before bed.

Thursday, April 17, 2025 - Malaga

Overnight we cruised, docking this morning in Malaga. We docked right near the Princess Sky, a cruise ship that totally dwarfed ours. John looked it up and found that it carries 3,800 passengers as opposed to our 660, so there you have it!

We had breakfast at Windows Restaurant once again, and then got ready to head into Malaga. Because of Holy Week, our ship had to dock further away than usual, so it was a bit of a process to board a shuttle to take us to the port terminal, but once there an easy walk into the city.

We’ve now rounded the southern tip of Spain and are on the Mediterranean Sea. This part of Spain is known as Costa del Sol, so lots of beaches and resorts. As we walked into the city we could see beaches and high rises on either side.

Because of the holiday week a Royal Navy ship was arriving as we entered the city. Lots of fanfare, with a military band playing on deck, soldiers, and huge crowds waiting for the ship’s arrival.

Our first goal was the Alcabaza, which the professor had shown up pictures of in his talk. From below we could see the Alcabaza part way up the hill, and then the Castillo at the top. In our walking we somehow overshot the Alcabaza, and realized we were on our way to the Castillo. A long uphill but we made it, enjoying the great views from the top.

From there it was down to the Alcazaba, which was jam packed with tourists by the time we arrived. We’d fortunately purchased tickets for both spots at the Castillo, so we were able to bypass the long lines.

The Alcazaba was stunning inside, with beautiful gardens and water features, but it was so, so busy. After a bit we made our way out and walked by the Roman Theater ruins in the city, then headed into the main square to have drinks at a cafe. We managed to catch the act of some gymnast street performers who were really good.

We then wandered to the Mercado, which was unfortunately shut down for the day. By this time we’d had enough of crowds and made our way back to the ship. We went in the hot tub and pool, which felt great.

We’d made plans to meet Pam and John for dinner at Discoveries Restaurant (the sit down option) at 6:30. We had a delicious long dinner with them, finally ending our evening at 10 pm.

Wednesday, April 16, 2025 - Gibraltar

Gibraltar today! We were still cruising this morning when we woke up. We had breakfast at Windows, then walked up to the Living Room to look out. I was pulled into a half hour Zumba class while there, which was fun.

At 9:30 am we went to the Cabaret Lounge to listen to the Professor (Martin) do a presentation on Malaga and Cartagena. Very helpful and informative… his 45 minute talks hit the highlights of what to see and do.

Gibraltar was the one place that I’d booked a shore excursion through Azamara, and we had to meet our group at 12:15. We had some coffee/tea and small bites at Mosaic Cafe before we left.

The tour was called “City Under Siege” and was excellent. 19 of us and a British tour guide (Mark) on a small bus. We first stopped at the small Gibraltar Museum, then traveled to the Hundred Ton Gun. From there it was off to ride the cable car to the top of the rock. We were so lucky that we could bypass the 2 hour line since we already had tix. Spectacular views in every direction from on high, and even a photogenic monkey!

We eventually returned halfway down via cable car. We boarded our bus from there and traveled to tour the Siege Tunnels. Pretty amazing place; tunnels hand dug in the late 1700’s to fight when the city was under siege by the Spanish. There are 35 miles of tunnels throughout the Rock, and we saw the oldest and highest one.

The tour ended at 4:30 and we were dropped off in town. Our guide had recommended eating fish and chips at Roy’s, so that was our first stop. Great fish and chips served by Spanish speaking waitstaff!

From there we wandered the streets a bit before making our way back to the ship. We arrived at 6 or so and got ready for the White Nights party. Windows was packed by the time we made it up to the dining room, but we scored 2 seats next to Bob and Sharman, a lovely couple from FL (retired United pilot and American Airlines flight attendant).

Following dinner we made our way to the Cabaret Theater, sitting with Jerry and Marty from Madison, WI. All of the entertainers sang, band played, and lots of dancing. Fun night!

Tuesday Apr 15, 2025 Day 2 in Seville

 

  Milo slept like a baby until 8:00. Deb signed us up for a food tour in Sevilla And Milo got invited for a private tour of the ship mechanical workings. The plan is to start the food tour at 12:00 and then Milo will peel off and head back to the ship for the 3:30 engine room tour.

We walked into town to “the mushroom”, the big sculpture we have been to before and met Aysa who led the tour. She is from turkey but landed in Seville and fell in love with the city. She studied theater and makes her living leading these food tours until he acting carrer gets established. There were 12 of us and we had 4 stops, each with some kind of drink and food. The food helps you from getting drunk.

Milo cut our early and got to see one of the Easter floats on the way back to the ship. He had to kind of melt into the procession to get across the road. Nobody seemed to mind.

Milo and two other passengers got a tour of the engine control room below deck. The ship engineer spent and hour or more going over how the engines, generators, motors, how they turn the boat, how fast they can go (21 knots). Very impressed that they did this special tour.

Monday, April 14, 2025 - Seville Spain

Wow, sleeping is easy on board! John finally woke up at 8:30 am and we headed up to Windows Restaurant for breakfast. They really do a good job with their buffets and choices.

By 9:45 or so we got off the boat. It’s all so easy since our ship is docked right in the heart of the city. We set Google maps with directions to Las Setas (aka The Mushrooms) and started walking. We first passed through the big park that was developed for the 1929 World Exposition, and admired all of the lovely buildings built for the expo at the same time.

We then passed through Barrio Santa Cruz, a stunning warren of narrow streets with all kinds of shops, cafes and homes. Seville has got to be one of the prettiest cities I’ve been to, and so fun to get lost in its streets.

We eventually reached Las Setas, and ogled the wood structure above us. Quite an engineering feat for sure.

We then walked to Triana Quarter and went into Mercado Triana. We wandered around looking for something to eat and settled on a ham and cheese baguette to share with a beer for John. Because of Holy Week, there are so many people out and about everywhere.

We then wandered some more, stopping for ice cream along the way. Eventually we found a replica ship on the river, and learned that it was the Victoria, a ship in the Magellan expedition of 1518. There was an Explorer’s Museum across from the ship, so we toured that and learned about the expedition.

After all our wandering it was after 4 by the time we got back to our ship. We first headed to Mosaic Cafe for coffee, tea and a snack, then up to the Living Room for a drink. At 6:15 we went to the Flamenco Show, which was excellent, then dinner after at Windows Restaurant.

By that time it was after 9 and we were ready to call it a night!

Sunday, April 13, 2025 Our day at sea (Lisbon to Seville)

Today is our one day “at sea”. We’re already learning there’s a huge schedule of possible things to do every day along with so many people to meet! 662 passengers and we’re meeting really nice people.

Last night we ate at Windows Restaurant, the main dining area with a beautiful themed buffet (seafood last night), so thought we’d try Discoveries Restaurant this morning. This is an order off the menu restaurant and it was a perfect breakfast.

We’d looked at our daily copy of “The insider” and wanted to attend a morning and afternoon talk by a history professor about the part of Spain we’re in. We went to his talk at 10 and the other one at 2, giving us a preview of Seville, our first port.

Let’s see… the rest of the day was filled with laundry, eating lunch, trying to get oriented on the boat, meeting lots of people and reading on the outside pool deck. 

We had 70 miles to travel up the river before coming to the lock into Seville. We had a great time hanging out on the 11th level deck watching our ship squeak through the lock and under a bridge. We watched all this with Pam and John from England, Sally and Griff from Australia, the professor from the talks and Susan and Richard from Maryland. 

By 7:30 we were hungry and headed to Windows for the French buffet. After dinner and more chatting we decided to check out the entertainment. 4 singers and 2 dancers and a band, with all kinds of familiar songs. All silly fun!

By 9:45 we were beat and ready for bed. 

Saturday, April 12, 2025 - Lisbon day 2

We slept in after last night’s late Fado adventure. Started with coffee/tea at Copenhagen Coffee Lab, then walked to breakfast Augusto Lisboa, a restaurant nearby that turned out to have a great breakfast.

We walked back to the apartment and finished packing up. By 11:45 am we checked out and started meandering down the hill with our bags to find our ship, Azamara Journey.

Check in for the ship started at 12:30 and there was already a line when we arrived at 12:15. I was impressed with the organization, checking passports, getting our keycards, taking our luggage, and ultimately getting us on the boat. We ended up in line with Pam and John, a lovely couple from northern England. 

The Azamara Journey is a gorgeous boat. Our stateroom is on the 4th deck, and there are a total of 11. So many places to hang out, eat and drink, and a pool and hot tub area as well. Super friendly staff and most everything is included so no need to bring wallets with you on the boat.

We wandered, eventually checking in to our room, and at 4 we’re organized for a safety briefing. The day kind of went by, with cast off from port, dinner, a welcome toast by the captain, intro of the top crew, and entertainment. Looking like it’ll be a great week!

Friday April 11, 2025 Lisbon

 We decided to have breakfast at Copenhagen Coffee Lab and headed there by 8 am. By 9 we were back at our apartment and Nancy called an uber to take her to the airport.

We walked with her to the pickup spot and said our goodbyes. Once the uber came we headed in the opposite direction to visit the castle (Castelo de Sao Jorge). We arrived at the castle with no line and headed in to wander. This time around we found the museum (missed it the first time around) and scrambled up and down all over. We also signed on to an 11 am tour, so we sat and had a cup of coffee and tea before we met the group.

The tour was wonderful and filled in lots of missing history. As part of the tour we also got to see inside the archaeological ruins. All very interesting.

By the time we finished it was 12:30 and we were ready for lunch. We called an uber to take us to Belem. Once there we ate at the maritime museum cafe (bowls of veggie soup, roll, pastel de natas and beer/soda for 15.5 Euros) and then headed inside to tour the museum. I enjoyed re-visiting the museum, especially after getting a broad history lesson of Lisbon from our guide at the castle.

Once we reached the military naval display area, however, I’d had enough and returned to the cafe for a cup of tea while John finished up the museum.

By 3:30 we were ready to head back to the apartment, so called an uber. Back for a rest and some downtime before our booked dinner at a Fado restaurant at 8.

I’d booked us reservations at Tasca da Bela - Casa de Fados on the recommendation of someone Nancy and I had met at our other Fado dinner. It was only a 5 minute walk from our hotel, but in a neighborhood we hadn’t wandered through before.

Once again, lots of wine, many starters and bread, and then smaller plates of main dishes (bachalau with spinach, veal stew), followed by mango mousse and chocolate cake at the end. A very small and cozy restaurant, and we were seated next to a lovely Danish couple and right near 5 Irish women all celebrating their 50th birthdays.

Dinner was paused and lights were turned down 4 times for 3 different fado singers. All wonderful and we finally stumbled out of there and up the hill to bed at midnight.

Thursday April 10, 2025 - Bisbee to Lisbon Portugal

 I got up at 2 am to get to the cheap ($3.99/day) parking lot and get to the Tucson airport for the 5:45 am flight. Tucson to Los Angeles with a shot stop. Then Los Angeles to Philadelphia with a long layover, then Philly to Lisbon Portugal. All in all about a 20 hour travel day.

I took an Uber to the hotel that Nancy had set up for the three of us. Deb and Nancy have been hiking on the Fishermans Trail for the last couple weeks and we meet here for one night and then Nancy flies back to Vermont and Deb & I get on the Azamara Journey ship for a 9 night cruise around the coast of Spain. 

I little sleep on the planes so I took a shower and crashed for an hour. Deb & Nancy showed up. I'll let Deb tell her adventure today.

It rained a bit overnight but the sun was shining weakly when we got up. We hit the breakfast at 8, wanting to eat before our 8:45 am bus ride.

The hotel was located only a few minutes from the bus stop, so we made it there by 8:30. By 8:45 we were loaded on and on our way.

The bus made several stops along the way, and then finally we were on the A-2 toll road to Lisbon. Pretty uneventful ride, and by 1:15 we pulled into the Lisbon bus station. From there it was an Uber to Alfama- Lisbon Lounge Suites and our River View Apt where John was waiting. The apartment was ready when he arrived, so he’d had a chance to shower and nap before we got there.

We hadn’t had lunch, so we all went 2 doors up the street to the Copenhagen Coffee Lab for sandwiches and coffee/tea drinks. From there we walked around the Alfama district for a while, finally stopping for people watching and drinks at an outdoor cafe.

By this time we were ready for a break, so headed back to the apartment for some down time.

At 6:30 we walked to dinner at Gosta de Castelo Restaurant and it was so good! Pasta with tomato sauce, shrimp and spinach for Nancy and I and a cod dish for John. We split a bottle of vinho verde and a piece of pistachio tiramisu for dessert.

Back to our apartment to crash by 8:45.