Wednesday, December 10, 2014

A Caribbean Cruise will Add 4 Countries

My December 2014, 11-night Cruise will bring my nations visited total to 79!!!

I look forward to visiting 5 beautiful ports and relaxing on my balcony for 5 sea days!  I will also enjoy the holiday festivities in ports and on the tastefully decorated ship!

 

 

 
 
 



Sunday, October 5, 2014

Romania-my 75th country visited!

Romania


Country Background

This nation's history can be traced to the Roman colony of Dacia. However, there are both strong European and Turkish influences, as Romania was part of the Ottoman Empire until 1877. Romania's political history of the past century has been marked by instability, violent revolution, and a current move toward economic restructuring in hopes of joining the European Union. Between 1930 and 1940, there were more than 25 different administrations.
      
After World War II, newly crowned King Mihai was forced to abdicate, pressured by the Communists, and Romania became a "People's Republic." In the 1960s, Nicolae Ceausescu took over the Communist Party leadership and instituted increasingly oppressive measures. He was overthrown and executed in late 1989. Currently, the Social Democratic Party forms a nominally minority government, which governs with the support of the opposition Democratic Union of Hungarians.
Romania has a chain of resorts, a "string of pearls," along the Black Sea coast. The largest urban center and seaport is Constanta. The sun, air, Black Sea water, and thermal mud treatments at these resorts are said to have restorative powers.

My Visit on October 5, 2014

One of the two following Itineraries:


Guide 1: For Bucharest tour - 10pax group - the price is 125$ or 90euros per person. The tour is for 11 hours, starting as early as possible, 6.30-7am, 2.30-3h transfer on highway with comfort stop. Bucharest tour by minibus, visit the Palace of Parliament, stroll the streets from the old part of Bucharest where there are lunch opportunities, afternoon continues the tour of the city, reaching the north part and visit the Village Museum, 3-6pm return to the ship. The price includes: transportantion - 16 seater minibus with AC, english guiding, entrance fees to Parliament and Village Museum.


Guide #2 Bucharest City tour - 100 euros/ person or 140 $/ person
The schedule for the day would be the following:
half past 6 - half past 9 - drive from Constanta to Bucharest
10 - 15. - visit of capital of Romania which will include:
- visit to Ceausescu's Palace/ Parliament Palace
- tour of Bucharest to include all the important monuments (by our bus)
- short visit to the historical center of Bucharest - opportunities for lunch
- visit to Village museum - after lunch
15 - 18 - drive back to Constanta
Price includes: 11-hour trip with A/C minivan, English guiding, entrance to Parliament Palace and Village Museum in Bucharest.
Price does not include: photo tax inside Parliament Palace, lunch (around 10 - 15 $/ person - Romanian currency or credit card), incidentals and personal expenses.



Photos and complete post will follow......................

Bulgaria--my 74th country visited!

Bulgaria-my 74th country visited!

I spent time in several interesting cities in Bulgaria from the ports of Burgas and Varna.



Country Background

The Bulgars, a Central Asian Turkic tribe, formed the first Bulgarian state in the late 7th century. In 1389, Bulgaria was overrun by the Ottoman Turks and nearly 500 years later regained independence with Russia's help.
Bulgaria fell under the Soviet sphere of influence and became a People's Republic in 1946. Communist domination ended in 1990, when the country held its first multi-party election since World War II and began moving toward democracy. In 2001, Simeon Borisov Saxe-Coburg, the former king of Bulgaria who was forced from his throne after World War II, returned to power as prime minister.











 
Bulgaria has a lively mix of ethnic groups — Bulgars, Slavs, Thracians, Armenians, Greeks, Romans, and Turks. Some villages have a church, some have a mosque, and some have both. The former Soviet satellite is a peaceful nation — a rarity in the Balkans.

Bulgaria relies on the Black Sea for fishing, commerce, and tourism at major beach resorts. Varna is the country's largest seaport and second-largest city. Bourgas and Sozopol are the primary fishing ports

My October 2014 Visits

Burgas Port to Nessebar Pomorie Sozol, Ravadinovo

Today, I took a full day shore excursion from the port of Burgas, Bulgaria. Our visits included, 1. The more than 3,000-year-old site of Nessebar, Bulgaria, a UNESCO world heritage site, 2. The well-preserved old town of Sozopol, Bulgaria; 3. Traditional Bulgarian lunch at a seaside resort of Selena along Sozopol’s coast, 4. And 5. 2 sites in Pomorie:  a visit to the Thracian tomb and to the monastery St. George the Victorious and 6. A fun visit to a quirky mid evil castle Ravadinovo, near Burgas.
Nessebar, Bulgaria
Its cobbled streets, well-kept medieval churches, and iconic two-story timbered houses from the 19th century display evidence of the numerous cultural layers - from the second millennium BC, from Ancient Times, including the Thracians, and the Medieval period, until the present time.  Importantly, there remain structures and monuments from each era. 
One of the oldest towns in Europe , Nessebar, situated on a rocky peninsula and connected to the mainland by an isthmus, is a rich city museum who's architectural heritage is defined by more than three millennia of history including occupations by various groups including The Greeks, The Romans, the Byzantines, The Turks, the Ottomans, and of course the Bulgarians.  It had even been conquered by some of the Crusaders.
 
 
 
We began our visit by entering the imposing ancient city walls.
 
Our tour guide provided comprehensive descriptions of some of the following:
Monuments from the Middle Ages include the 5–6th century Stara Mitropoliya ("old bishopric"; also St Sophia), a basilica without a transept; the 6th century church of the Virgin; and the 11th century Nova Mitropoliya ("new bishopric"; also St Stephen) which continued to be embellished until the 18th century. In the 13th and 14th century a remarkable series of churches were built: St Theodore, St Paraskeva, St Michael St Gabriel, and St John Aliturgetos
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

 
Wooden houses built in the 19th century are typical of the Black Sea architecture of the period
 
Because we visited in October, we enjoyed the luxury of a visit with very few tourists.  The residents were serious yet friendly people playing the role of background actors.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 


Sozopol, Bulgaria

Ancient Sozopol, with its charming old town of meandering cobbled streets and pretty wooden houses, huddled together on a narrow peninsula, is a jewel along the coast.  Less crowded than Nessebar, it provides a welcoming canvas for a growing number of tourists for both its history and its coastal beauty.

Time in Sozopol has different dimensions - fishermen are still seen catching what the sea has to offer on wooden boats; older women sit in front of the picturesque houses, chatting, knitting, selling freshly picked figs, homemade jams and jellies, while almost everyone who decides to dig in the ground or to build something stumbles upon remnants from the past – clay vessels, ancient coins, wooden objects, little statues and much, much more.

Sozopol’s Old Town was declared a museum-reserve by Ministerial Decree № 320 on September 7, 1974. The reserve includes more than 180 residences, constructed from the middle of the 18th century to the beginning of the 19th century. Houses in the Old Town are built of stone and wood and conform to the so-called Black Sea school of architecture.

  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 



 
 
 
 
 
 



The tomb is known as the hollow hill and presents a corridor, burial chamber and ancillary facilities. Built according to the Roman building techniques, it is assumed that it belonged to a wealthy family and was used as a mausoleum and later on as a temple for providing Thracian religious rituals.

 
 
 
Karla and Nina, tour guide
The Monastery St. George the Victorious in Pomorie

The Monastery of St. George is the only functioning monastery in Southeast Bulgaria with a unique assortment of structures including an impressive 20-meter high belfry tower, holy spring, and a collection of paintings and frescos from the 18th and 19th century.

We even toured the mill where they produce their own distilled spirits.  Throughout our visit, we spotted monks and even a couple of woman engaged in their daily routines.

The present-day church was built in 1856 over the foundations of the preceding one

 

 
 
 
 
 
 


 
The Castle of Ravadinovo, near Sozopol

Here is the websites description which I cannot improve upon:

The Castle of Ravadinovo combines various building and decorating styles and materials and it is definitely interesting to see what some ancient castles must have looked like when they were new. If you are driving from Burgas down south the Black Sea coast of Bulgaria, there is no chance of missing the impressive construction of picturesque steeples and towers with some of the roof trusses still bare- a sight to behold. Many visitors perceive The Castle of Ravadinovo as an utterly mystical and romantic place, for others, it is the closest to a Disneyland or fairy tale adventure which they can experience in this part of the Balkans. The best way to describe the Castle of Ravadinovo is probably in a statement made by one of its visitors - 'this is the most unusual building in the most unusual location'. Indeed, the castle bizarrely stands in the middle of a farm field, just a stone-throw from the highway. Its architectural design is unusual, a bit extravagant and exotic for this country.

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

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I found the country to be a very beautiful, the people were hauntingly sweet navigating their conflict with the past present and future.  The generation gap is huge as the younger generation is comfortable with and excited about having life choices---which is unchartered territory for their parents and grandparents from this former Soviet satellite.

 

Our ship was also supposed to dock in Varna, a little farther north in Bulgaria but very choppy seas prevented us from doing so.

 

I would definitely return and visit the capital of Sofia in the west.


 



Places Where I Have Traveled *=more than once

  • India
  • China
  • Dubai
  • Israel
  • Russia*
  • Iceland
  • Cuba Aug 2016
  • Egypt*
  • Indonesia
  • Tahiti Feb 2016
  • Northern Ireland
  • Cook Islands Feb 2016
  • New Zealand Feb 2016
  • Australia Feb 2016
  • Belize
  • French Polynesia Jan 2016
  • Mallorca
  • Shetland Islands
  • Faroe Islands
  • Brunei
  • Morocco*
  • Brazil*
  • Philippines
  • North Borneo
  • Crete*
  • Ionian Islands*
  • Singapore
  • Hong Kong
  • Azores*
  • Norway
  • Dodecanese Islands (Rhodes)
  • Bosnia
  • Palestein
  • Croatia
  • Romania
  • Argentina
  • Ecuador
  • Tunisia
  • Corsica
  • Bulgaria
  • Columbia
  • Peru
  • Montenegro
  • Columbia
  • Chile*
  • United Arab Emirates
  • Uruguay
  • Jordan
  • Gibraltar
  • Turkey*
  • Bermuda
  • Estonia*
  • Viet Nam
  • Finland*
  • Malta*
  • Thailand
  • Guatemala
  • Crete*
  • Jamaica*
  • Panama*
  • Grand Canyon
  • Scotland
  • Niagara Falls
  • Greece*
  • France* lived there
  • Japan*
  • Bilbao, Spain*
  • Canada*
  • Costa Rica
  • Bahamas*
  • Banff Hot Springs
  • Hawaii*
  • Italy*
  • Catalina Island
  • Luxembourg*
  • St Johns
  • St Marteen/St Martin
  • St Thomas
  • South Padre Island Texas
  • Mexico*
  • Vatican City*
  • Austria*
  • Denmark*
  • Monaco
  • Portugal*
  • Belgium*
  • Holland*
  • Ireland*
  • Alaska
  • England*
  • Sweden*
  • Switzerland*
  • Spain*
  • Germany*
  • Madeira

Events/Experiences

  • Pyramids at Giza
  • Taj Mahal
  • Climbed Great Wall of China
  • Western Wall-Jerusalem
  • Transited Panama Canal 3X
  • Rode Camel in Tunisia
  • fathom Adonia--1st US cruise ship to Cuba--Aug 2016
  • Old Town in Havana
  • Burj Kalifa in Dubai
  • Saw Kangeroos, Wallabees, and Koalas in Australia
  • Kayaked in Bay of Islands, New Zealand
  • Vaparreto # 1 in Venice
  • National Museum in Brunei
  • Saw Geysers Erupt in Iceland
  • Drink at Raffles Hotel-Singapore
  • Fish Spa in Greece and Philippines
  • The Peak in Hong Kong
  • Pedicab Tour in Manilla Philippines
  • Road Amalfi Coast, Italy
  • Chewed Gum in Singapore
  • Marched in St Pat's Day Parade in Dublin
  • Sailed Kotor Bay
  • Old Bridge in Mostar, Bosnia
  • Smithsonian Museums-DC
  • Toured Ancient City of Petra, Jordan
  • Transited Suez Canal
  • Rio for Carnivale 2X
  • Cruised along Cinque Terre, Italy
  • Fish Spa in Corfu, Greece (teeny fish scrubbed my feet!)
  • Subway in Russia
  • Flash Mob (dance) on stage on several cruises
  • Visted 21 Countries on 5 long cruises in 2012
  • Ceviche in Peru
  • Cremation Service in Bali
  • Saw Lamas in Lima
  • Vasa Museum-Stockholm
  • Buddhist Monastery in Viet Nam
  • Drove Amalfi Coast
  • Queen Mary 2
  • Berlin Wall
  • Mummies In Cairo Museum
  • Jordan River; Sea of Galilee
  • Hot Air Balloon Ride Over Luxor at Sunrise
  • Transited the Pirate-Infested Gulf of Aden
  • Ski Dubai
  • Fellucca Ride on the Nile at Sunset
  • 16-day Europe/Transatlantic on Queen Victoria
  • Tahrir Square-Cairo
  • Toured Pompeii
  • In Fashion Show Aboard Queen Victoria
  • Rode Elephants in Thailand and India
  • 7-Country Baltic Cruise
  • Hermitage Museum
  • Checkpoint Charlie
  • Transatlantic Crossing on QM2
  • Climbed Tikal in Guatemala
  • Mediterranean Cruise 6 countries
  • Audience with Swami in Rishikesh, India
  • Poetry Class in France
  • Kissed Blarney Stone
  • Pike's Fish Market in Seattle
  • Photo with Snake Charmer in India
  • Dacau near Munich
  • Hitchhiked from France to Scotland
  • Climbed Washington Monument in DC
  • Oktoberfest in Bavaria
  • Toured Panama Canal
  • Wine Country in France, California and many others
  • Guest of Placido Domingo in Chicago
  • The Alamo
  • United Nations
  • San Diego Zoo
  • Helicopter over Grand Canyon
  • Club Med in Cancun
  • Eurailpassed Twice Thru Europe
  • Hollywood
  • Albuquerque Hot-Air Balloon Festival
  • Rodeo in Dallas/Ft Worth
  • NCAA Playoffs in Charlotte and New Orleans
  • Cucchi Tunnels in Viet Nam
  • Grammys in New York
  • Paella in Spain
  • Rain Forest in Costa Rica
  • Xmas Tree Lighting Ceremony on 5th Avenue
  • Niagara Falls
  • Disney Land & Disney World
  • Voodoo Museum New Orleans
  • Cancun Jazz Festival
  • Reggae Sunsplash in Jamaica
  • Las Vegas for Trade Shows
  • Key West for Hemmingway Festival
  • Art Classes in Louvre
  • Black Ski Summit in Vail and Colorado Springs
  • Texas State Fair
  • Mardi Gras in New Orleans
  • Italian Class in France
  • Nude Sunbathing in St Marteen
  • Danish Pastry in Denmark
  • Palace of Knossos Crete
  • Anne Frank House Amsterdam
  • Karaoke in Japan
  • Leaning Tower of Pisa
  • Lobster in Maine
  • Belfast Black Cab Tour
  • Dozens of Transatlantic Sailings