Wednesday, August 22, 2007
Another completed mass posting!!
I'm sitting in the terminal at Lisbon right now and have just completed the 3 weeks of posts I owed everyone. I get free WiFi here, so it's great to catch up on everything. These are posted in order and similar to the last time I made a mass posting, the link the the pics is posted directly above the city post, except for one instance that I point out. The cruise is going great though! Saturday we'll be back to Southampton to get ready for our short cruise to Cork Ireland. Following that, we begin our Baltic cruise. This means, for the next 2 or 3 weeks, I'm unsure of when I'll be able to get online, so don't be expecting any real posts till a week or so into september. Otherwise, keep sending emails, I will still get those on a daily basis, and it's great hearing from everyone at home. Keep in touch and have a great day!!
Malaga
Aug 20th and 21st
Sea/Malaga
The 20th was a sea day, so nothing really special happened. I had a show with Antonio Salci, a pianist, which was ok. The music was kind of lame, like really commercial with cheesy arrangements, but at least I had a few solos. But I guess that’s all there really was to the sea day. Then for the 21st, we were in Malaga for the day. After an early boat drill, I made it out to the beach for a little while. It was a great day to get some sun, and being in the Mediterranean at an amazing beach just made it that much better. Today was a day off as well, so it was nice not having a show tonight. Tomorrow is Lisbon from noon till 6. I passed on a tour offer to get online to make these posts, so hopefully this internet thing will work better than in Villefranche.
No pics for this time at Malaga, check the last Malaga post if you'd like a reminder
Sea/Malaga
The 20th was a sea day, so nothing really special happened. I had a show with Antonio Salci, a pianist, which was ok. The music was kind of lame, like really commercial with cheesy arrangements, but at least I had a few solos. But I guess that’s all there really was to the sea day. Then for the 21st, we were in Malaga for the day. After an early boat drill, I made it out to the beach for a little while. It was a great day to get some sun, and being in the Mediterranean at an amazing beach just made it that much better. Today was a day off as well, so it was nice not having a show tonight. Tomorrow is Lisbon from noon till 6. I passed on a tour offer to get online to make these posts, so hopefully this internet thing will work better than in Villefranche.
No pics for this time at Malaga, check the last Malaga post if you'd like a reminder
Cagliari
Aug 19th
Cagliari
For my third time at this island off the Italian coast, I signed up for a tour entitled flavors and sounds of Sardinia. Let me say, this was the most amazing tour I’ve been on yet. We took a bus from the ship an hour inland till we were in this smaller village, completely detached from the tourist attractions. The tour was supposed to introduce us to a traditional Sardinian lunch, along with music and instruments native to the region. Well the food was unbelievable!! From the unlimited wine on the tables, to the sausage starter, the homemade pasta, and main course of Piglet (terrible as it may sound), it was just amazing. Everything was delicious, and the song and dance going on in the background just made it perfect. We were there for probably 2 or 3 hours, just eating and watching the entertainment. They also had traditional desserts and pastries, along with wines and other drinks to match. All free for the tour escort, $125 for everyone else. But this s a tour I’m going to try to do again, is was just that good. That aside, we had a production show that night, and I went to a crew party afterwards for a while. But wow, what a lunch!!
Cagliari
For my third time at this island off the Italian coast, I signed up for a tour entitled flavors and sounds of Sardinia. Let me say, this was the most amazing tour I’ve been on yet. We took a bus from the ship an hour inland till we were in this smaller village, completely detached from the tourist attractions. The tour was supposed to introduce us to a traditional Sardinian lunch, along with music and instruments native to the region. Well the food was unbelievable!! From the unlimited wine on the tables, to the sausage starter, the homemade pasta, and main course of Piglet (terrible as it may sound), it was just amazing. Everything was delicious, and the song and dance going on in the background just made it perfect. We were there for probably 2 or 3 hours, just eating and watching the entertainment. They also had traditional desserts and pastries, along with wines and other drinks to match. All free for the tour escort, $125 for everyone else. But this s a tour I’m going to try to do again, is was just that good. That aside, we had a production show that night, and I went to a crew party afterwards for a while. But wow, what a lunch!!
Livorno
Aug 18th
Livorno
For my second time in Livorno (not counting the detour to La Spezia last cruise), I was able to get on a tour that took me through the Tuscan countryside to a bed and breakfast for wine tasting. This estate produced their own wine on site, so the tour included us a showing of the facilities in addition to the tasting. It was a nice relaxed tour with a great drive to the area, taking us by Pisa where I could see the tower again, and the opportunity to sample wines with traditional Italian cheeses, breads, and cold cuts was great. The Tuscany region was absolutely beautiful as well, not to mention it was nice getting away from a major city and going into the more traditional rural areas. Then we had two shows to play for the American Drifters, which were OK, nothing too exciting.
On a different note, today was my one month anniversary of signing onto the ship. This means that the contract I’d negotiated now goes into full effect and I no longer have the option to leave without being penalized. So a quick reflection after a month: It’s been a lot of fun. I don’t know that the novelty of living on a ship has worn out yet or if it was even there to begin with, I’ve just simply been having a great time. It’s a different way of living though, I’m so over stimulated with experiencing these different cultures and trying to absorb as much as possible that much of my energy gets expended on processing this info. The shows are generally simple, to an extent mindless sight-reading, but not so easy that I can zone out. The big band/combo sets are a nice departure from the shows, but there’s enough variety from day to day to maintain some level of interest. And the 2 week cruises means nothing gets repeated till the next 2 week period. But the cruise, like most things, is what you make of it. I make sure to have fun during the shows and get off the ship every chance I can, I’ve been meeting a lot of people and coming in contact with cultures I’d never find at home. So the excitement remains after the first month, and the next 5 I’m sure will be great as well. In a week, we cruise to Ireland, and then start our Scandinavian cruise after that. There’s a lot to be excited for, and as long as I keep sight of that, this contract will fly by. Thanks for reading and keep in touch!
Livorno
For my second time in Livorno (not counting the detour to La Spezia last cruise), I was able to get on a tour that took me through the Tuscan countryside to a bed and breakfast for wine tasting. This estate produced their own wine on site, so the tour included us a showing of the facilities in addition to the tasting. It was a nice relaxed tour with a great drive to the area, taking us by Pisa where I could see the tower again, and the opportunity to sample wines with traditional Italian cheeses, breads, and cold cuts was great. The Tuscany region was absolutely beautiful as well, not to mention it was nice getting away from a major city and going into the more traditional rural areas. Then we had two shows to play for the American Drifters, which were OK, nothing too exciting.
On a different note, today was my one month anniversary of signing onto the ship. This means that the contract I’d negotiated now goes into full effect and I no longer have the option to leave without being penalized. So a quick reflection after a month: It’s been a lot of fun. I don’t know that the novelty of living on a ship has worn out yet or if it was even there to begin with, I’ve just simply been having a great time. It’s a different way of living though, I’m so over stimulated with experiencing these different cultures and trying to absorb as much as possible that much of my energy gets expended on processing this info. The shows are generally simple, to an extent mindless sight-reading, but not so easy that I can zone out. The big band/combo sets are a nice departure from the shows, but there’s enough variety from day to day to maintain some level of interest. And the 2 week cruises means nothing gets repeated till the next 2 week period. But the cruise, like most things, is what you make of it. I make sure to have fun during the shows and get off the ship every chance I can, I’ve been meeting a lot of people and coming in contact with cultures I’d never find at home. So the excitement remains after the first month, and the next 5 I’m sure will be great as well. In a week, we cruise to Ireland, and then start our Scandinavian cruise after that. There’s a lot to be excited for, and as long as I keep sight of that, this contract will fly by. Thanks for reading and keep in touch!
Villefranche
Aug 17th
Villefranche
This was now my third time in Villefranche, and it really just gets more amazing each time. I was signed up to get on a tour of Monaco and Monte Carlo, the same one as last time I was here, except this time everything worked out. Before the tour, however, I tried to get online for a few hours to make my posts. Well, that failed. For whatever reason, I just couldn’t connect and stay online for more than 4 minutes at a time, and after fighting with it for 2+ hours, I eventually had to get to my tour group. The tour was amazing though, Monaco is beautiful, and seeing the Monte Carlo race track and Casino was unbelievable. Even more so, all the money that was in this area was unbelievable. Out front the casino, I saw three Ferraris driving in a line down the street, in addition to the couple parked out front the casino. The boats were gigantic as well, just an amazing area. I got into the casino for free because of being a tour escort (saving me 10 euros or $13-14), and then proceeded to blow 20 euros on a couple slot machines. But whatever, I’ve never been inside a real casino, so I figured Monte Carlo wasn’t a bad place to start. I wanted to play poker, but the tables had a 50 euro minimum, if not more. I saw a guy playing blackjack at a 200 euro minimum table. After 40 minutes there, we drove back to the ship, going by Nice as well, and it was probably the most beautiful 30 minutes of driving I’ve ever seen, it was just amazing. Upon arriving back to Villefrache, I tried the online thing again, and again failed, so I came back to the ship, got dinner, and watched “Pursuit of Happyness”.
Villefranche
This was now my third time in Villefranche, and it really just gets more amazing each time. I was signed up to get on a tour of Monaco and Monte Carlo, the same one as last time I was here, except this time everything worked out. Before the tour, however, I tried to get online for a few hours to make my posts. Well, that failed. For whatever reason, I just couldn’t connect and stay online for more than 4 minutes at a time, and after fighting with it for 2+ hours, I eventually had to get to my tour group. The tour was amazing though, Monaco is beautiful, and seeing the Monte Carlo race track and Casino was unbelievable. Even more so, all the money that was in this area was unbelievable. Out front the casino, I saw three Ferraris driving in a line down the street, in addition to the couple parked out front the casino. The boats were gigantic as well, just an amazing area. I got into the casino for free because of being a tour escort (saving me 10 euros or $13-14), and then proceeded to blow 20 euros on a couple slot machines. But whatever, I’ve never been inside a real casino, so I figured Monte Carlo wasn’t a bad place to start. I wanted to play poker, but the tables had a 50 euro minimum, if not more. I saw a guy playing blackjack at a 200 euro minimum table. After 40 minutes there, we drove back to the ship, going by Nice as well, and it was probably the most beautiful 30 minutes of driving I’ve ever seen, it was just amazing. Upon arriving back to Villefrache, I tried the online thing again, and again failed, so I came back to the ship, got dinner, and watched “Pursuit of Happyness”.
Barcelona
Aug 15th and 16th
Barcelona
We made our way to Barcelona the 15th, my first time back since I signed on the ship 4 weeks ago. We got into the port around 7:00 pm, but I had to play a couple shows that night, so by the time I was done around midnight, it was too late to get off the ship and make my way into the city. But I had a bike tour to do the next morning, so maye it was for the better.
The Bike tour wasn’t bad. We took a bus into the middle of the city where we picked up or bikes. The group then rode around the city for about 3 hours. It was a nice ride, aside from the mass of bikes 40 people strong, constant rain for the final hour, and the lovely sound of squeaky brakes that made there presence known on every hill. But really, it was alright, it was a nice ride through the city. Following that, I just came back to the ship and played a big band set at night. Tomorrow is Villefranche, and I’ll be going to Monaco and Monte Carlo on another tour. Also, this is my internet port, so I’m excited to get all my posts up again.
Barcelona
We made our way to Barcelona the 15th, my first time back since I signed on the ship 4 weeks ago. We got into the port around 7:00 pm, but I had to play a couple shows that night, so by the time I was done around midnight, it was too late to get off the ship and make my way into the city. But I had a bike tour to do the next morning, so maye it was for the better.
The Bike tour wasn’t bad. We took a bus into the middle of the city where we picked up or bikes. The group then rode around the city for about 3 hours. It was a nice ride, aside from the mass of bikes 40 people strong, constant rain for the final hour, and the lovely sound of squeaky brakes that made there presence known on every hill. But really, it was alright, it was a nice ride through the city. Following that, I just came back to the ship and played a big band set at night. Tomorrow is Villefranche, and I’ll be going to Monaco and Monte Carlo on another tour. Also, this is my internet port, so I’m excited to get all my posts up again.
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