Photos from the sixth day of the cruise are now online. A sample of the set is listed below. You can see the photos either at Flickr or Facebook (assuming we’re friends on FB).

We arrived at Istanbul for the first of two days there. This was our first time overnighting at any port, and it was great to know we had all day and night to see the city (as well as the next morning).   An added bonus of this trip was a Ladewig family reunion. My cousin Jeff and his wife, Oksan, are professors at UConn and were in Istanbul (Oksan’s hometown) for the semester on sabbatical.  We met up with him and toured some of the big tourist sites – Blue Mosque, Hagia Sophia, and the Basilica Cistern. We then walked over to Galata Tower where we met the rest of the family for dinner.  It was a great way to spend a day in an amazing city.

Photos from the fifth day of the cruise are now online. A sample of the set is listed below. You can see the photos either at Flickr or Facebook (assuming we’re friends on FB).

The fifth day was our second sea day.  We spent the day cruising north towards Istanbul, through the Dardanelles and Sea of Marma. As we entered the Dardanelles, we passed Gallipolli and observed some of the memorials from World War I. On eht opposite shore was near the site of ancient Troy. One of the lecturers onboard gave a running commentary as the day went on and the ship sailed past various landmarks, but it was so cold and windy up on deck, that I didn’t spend much time outside.  So only a few photos for this day.

Our Magical Express vouchers arrived today for our Disney cruise trip later this month!

Photos from the fourth day of the cruise are now online. A sample of the set is listed below. You can see the photos either at Flickr or Facebook (assuming we’re friends on FB).

Port stop number two was also country and continent number two.  We said good bye to Greece and Europe and hello to Turkey and Asia. We docked in Kusadasi and headed out with a private tour we had setup with some fellow passengers via Cruise Critic.  First we stopped at the House of the Virgin Mary. Whether Mary actually spent her final days in this area is up for debate, but it was a very peaceful place.

Afterwards it was time for the main part of the tour, the ancient city of Ephesus.  Simply amazing.  The site is huge, and as incredible as the ruins are, much of it remains unexcavated.  Who knows what they might find as time goes by.  After Ephesus, we made the obligatory stops at a carpet vendor as well as a leather shop.  The carpets were impressive, and I don’t doubt that there were deals to be had, but we weren’t in the market for anything like that. Our wallets and charge cards safe from an impromptu purchase, we headed back to the ship.

Photos from the third day of the cruise are now online. A sample of the set is listed below. You can see the photos either at Flickr or Facebook (assuming we’re friends on FB).

Time for our first port stop… Mykonos! The day was quite windy and cool, so any thoughts of visiting the beach were dashed. Instead we just wandered around Mykonos town, through the alleys and sidewalks that they call roads.  We visited the windmills, had lunch, and even met the pelican mascot of the island, Petros II (Petros I met his end after an unfortunate encounter with a car).

Photos from our second day of the cruise are now online. A sample of the set is listed below. You can see the photos either at Flickr or Facebook (assuming we’re friends on FB).

This was the first full day at sea.  We sailed through the Strait of Messina which separates the mainland from Sicily. Then it was on towards Mykonos, our port stop the next day.

Photos from our first day of the cruise are now online. A sample of the set is listed below. You can see the photos either at Flickr or Facebook (assuming we’re friends on FB).

We travelled to Civitavecchia by train, walked a short distance to the port, and then it was time to board the Celebrity Equinox.

Photos from our third (and last) day in Rome are now online. A sample of the set is listed below. You can see the photos either at Flickr or Facebook (assuming we’re friends on FB).

Today was our day to hit some of the major tourist sites. We managed to visit (in order) the Spanish Steps, Trevi Fountain, the Pantheon, the Ara Pacis museum, the Mausoleum of Augustus, and the shopping along Via del Corso.

Photos from our second day in Rome are now online. A sample of the set is listed below. You can see the photos either at Flickr or Facebook (assuming we’re friends on FB).

We spent most of the day at Vatican City.  We toured the Vatican Museums in the morning and then headed over to St. Peter’s to see the square and the basilica.  After touring the interior, we headed out and up to see the view from the cupola on the dome.  Amazing views!  That evening we wound up at Piazza Navona for gelato and to see the fountains.

I’m finally getting around to captioning and uploading photos from the October trip. Not sure I can keep to uploading one day’s photos each day, but I’m going to try. Have two weeks to get through!

The first day in Rome was spent visiting the Roman Forum and Colosseum. Enjoy. If we’re friends on Facebook, you can also view the photos there if you prefer.