Here's a post from our 2008 trip to Europe. It was bloody fantastic! But hey.. of course I'm going to say that.. A few of my highlights would have to be Santorini, Dubrovnik and of course all of Italy! Enjoy...
I don't think this shot needs any introduction. It's still amazing to see in real life after seeing it time and time again on TV and in magazines. We did the tour through the complex the day before including the Roman forum - definitely something that has to be done.
This shot however I managed to convince Lena to head out late that night and wait for 20 mins whilst I fired off a few shots of the colosseum with some foreground traffic lights. I think she fell asleep at one stage :)
Any guesses? Yep, the instantly recognisable Santorini!
Taking into account the endless wait to tender from the cruise ship to the island, fighting the masses of smelly donkeys up the hillside to the top and the seething masses of tourists in every direction, this still has to be one of the most stunning places I've ever seen! Some say it's half way between heaven and earth and I'd have to agree..
Whilst there, we took a bus over to the far side of Santorini to a town called Oia which has all these pastel coloured houses delved into the porous volcanic rock along the cliffs. Just breathtaking!
My only regret is not being able to stay a few days and witness the famous sunsets which disappear below the caldera in front of you at dusk...
This was taken from Rialto Bridge in Venice one late afternoon. What a captivating city! Meandering up and over the various bridges, walking through markets selling fresh produce and typically italian delicacies and gazing into exquisitely dressed shop windows...
Lena posing near some Gondalas in the San Marco Square area
Us at the top of the Campanile in San Marco Square with 360 degree views of Venice. A must see! If there's an opportunity to scale a tower and get a birds eye view of a city in Italy.. Do it! You won't regret it..
and this is the view from the Campanile.. Nuff said.
Some fridge magnets from....
This is at the tip of Oia in Santorini overlooking the caldera and it's deep blue sea and equally impressive sky. It's still the the most impressive place I've ever seen...
Lapping up the sun and white washed houses in Oia, Santorini...
There's our ship.. waiting for us to tender back that afternoon and onward to our next port in the Med..
This is Ephesus library in Kusadasi, Turkey. Amazing ruins and worth checking out if you're in the area. It was an unexpected surprise visiting this town.
This was taken outside "Mary's House" which apparenlty Mary (Jesus's Mother) lived for many years. What you see behind me are notes and messages written on cloth and tied to the wall.. quite interesting..
This was taken from the bow of the ship overlooking the town of Kusadasi prior to disembarking. They even had some cheesy turkish belly dancers doing their thing as we stepped off the boat..
After spending a great day wondering around the greek island of Corfu, it was now late afternoon and we were waiting for a bus to take us back to the ship. Near the stop were a bunch of pigeons resting on the wall. I thought the shot might have a little more interest of they were leaping off the wall and flying off so Lena ran past waiving her arms and got them going...
Outside a bakery down some street alley in Corfu...
This is a shot of Corfu taken from the ship as we're entering the port ready to dock. A beautiful island...
Some of the local street architecture in Corfu
A friend we met on the ship at our dinner table. He's South African and him and his wife live in Durban (my home town) just down the road from my folks. Small world eh? He's a pilot for SAA and has more stories of his travels than any of us could ever dream of..
Dubrovnik
This is a view of Dubrovnik's old town with the fortified walls. You can pay to walk around top of the wall which surrounds the old town and has protected for hundreds of years from many invaders. It is a sublime city and can see why people nicknamed it the Pearl of the Adriatic.
Lena's parents flew into Dubrovnik from Russia for the week specially to catchup with us for the one day we had in Durbrovnik as part of our cruise. It was very special and great to catchup with them again. A great day! Here is Lena and her mom enroute to do the fortified wall walking tour.
This is one of many fantastic views you get to see from the wall surrounding the old town.
Group shot with Lenas folks on the wall surrounding Dubrovnik old town.
Lena recharging at one of the of the town square's fountains.
