update

Well, I know it’s been quite a few days since posting, so I’ll try to figure out where we left off. We completely overslept our 2nd day in Venice, so didn’t even end up going to Murano. We’re saving it for our next trip....(in 15 years maybe).

The day after that we were at sea, then Sunday we were in Sicily. However, we had to be up by 7am, and the weather was crappy, so I decided to stay on board. We had an excursion arranged with 50 other people from cruise critic (an online message board), which was basically just bus transportation to Taormina. I wanted to go to the beach there, but it was rainy and windy. I ended up sending Eric with all the other peeps we’ve met here. He had a nice time, and I got to rest and chill for the day.

Yesterday we were at sea again, and boy was the weather windy and chilly. The seas were horrible, and they had barf bags laying all over the ship. Everyone kept asking me how I was, and if I was okay.....and the funny thing was....I was GREAT! I figured that since I puked for 20 straight weeks, God was giving me a break. I did feel quite sorry for all the other folks though; I understand relentless nausea quite well.

Today we were in Barcelona, and went up to Montserrat. It’s a Benedictine monastery up on a mountaintop, that’s been there for 1000 years. It was absolutely gorgeous! After that we came back into the city and went to Las Ramblas, which is a main street with restaurants and markets. And fabulous Sangria as well! We had a nice lunch with tapas and all the other standard spanish goodies, then came back to the boat in time to sail off again. Tomorrow we are in Monaco, and will spend the morning in Nice and Eze (France). After exploring those a little, we will head back into Monaco/Monte Carlo before sailing again tomorrow night. Thursday is our last full day, and we will port in Livorno. It’s essentially a gateway to Pisa, Florence, and Tuscany. Friday morning we arrive in Rome early, and debark to head to the airport.

We may have some travel issues, b/c our flight to Athens is on Alitalia. If anyone is watching world news, they are bankrupt and starting to cancel some flights, because they can’t pay for the fuel. We hope to make it to Santorini without any issues!!! We will be in Santorini on Saturday and Sunday, then fly out early Monday morning. We should be in Charlotte by 9pm Monday night, barring any travel complications. Things coming out here were so smooth, I almost expect it to be crazy getting home. We miss our doggies and can’t wait to see them! Shim is well, and kicking like crazy. It’s funny to feel him so often now. Eric finally got his ADHD under control for 5 minutes, and was able to lay still with his hand on my belly to feel him. That was exciting, b/c it makes it alot more real for him. I get to feel our little man constantly, and it’s easy to take that for granted. I’m off to bed, and have no idea when we’ll get to post again. Take care everyone!