What a great time we had visiting so many countries in Europe. We were so fortunate to have had really great weather during the whole trip. Looking back on our Spring 2013 Adventure we would summarize our trip with these thoughts:
This was the longest cruise in our lifetime with 36 days of sailing.
This was our longest cruise at sea with nine straight days on Holland America's Noordam.
Lisbon, Portugal was the most affordable city.
Cadiz, Spain had the most compact city with old refurbished structures looking oh so modern inside.
The Colliseum in Rome and the Acropolis in Greece were the most incedible structures.
Alanya, Turkey had the most beautiful waterfront views.
Olympia, Greece had the most beautiful blooming red bud trees.
Athens, Greece had the easiest to follow and most modern metro systems. It was wonderful how they preserved the ancient stone carvings as displays for Athenians to enjoy each day in the underground metro hallways.
Jerusalem, Israel was the most unique city. So many observable cultures living and working in this city.
Haifa, Israel had the best bus service around the city.
The Dead Sea, lowest point on Earth, had the best floating experience of our lifetime.
Limossol, Cyprus was the prettiest island visited.
Knossos, Greece was the oldest civilization visited.
We met the friendliest people in Iraklion, Greece.
Most beautiful snow covered mountains were in Iraklion, Greece and Lake Garda, Italy.
Obidos, Portugal and Sirmione, Italy had the most interesting castles.
Mount Vesuvius was the largest volcano encountered.
Venice was the priciest place of our visit. It also had the most tourist and the most small boats traffic....with no cars on the island, boats made up for the car traffic.
Berlin was an amazing city....a grand mixture of modern and historical architecture with a fascinating history. Berlin ranks highly for being able to ride bicycles so freely throughout the city...just as nice as in Holland. Larry and I are not real city lovers, but we sure did enjoy all of our time visiting Berlin.
Germany had the most English speaker while Italy had the least.
Ted by Ted Turner was our favorite book that we read during this trip.
Skyfall was our favorite movie ....celebrating 50 years of James Bond films this year.
Our favorite train ride was through Tuscany, Italy. Our favorite car ride was going north on Lake Garda. Our favorite cruise line was the Holland America Noordam. Our favorite boat ride was crossing Lake Garda on the ferry.
The best sunsets were viewed on the Mediterranean.
Our Spring Adventure in Europe and on the Mediterranean created some wonderful memories of seeing some of the most remarkable ancient historical sights...some of the oldest that Larry and I have ever experienced. We enjoyed every minute of our journey and it certainly was a trip worth taking....at least once in our lifetime.
