White Christmas 2009

The snow fell on Dec 19 and 20. In the city and parts of New Jersey up to 23 inches accumulated. We received no more that 9 inches.

What constitutes a White Christmas? Must it snow on Christmas Day or is it enough to have several inches on the ground beforehand?



Before the snow blower did its work,

Backyard BBQ.

View of the bridge & creek.

More Venice

On the Rialto Bridge.

The gondola tourist experience.

Discover some romance in Venice.

Views from The Campanile at St. Mark's Square.

St Mark's Campanile (Campanile di San Marco in Italian) is the bell tower of St Mark's Basilica in Venice, Italy, located in the square (piazza) of the same name. It is one of the most recognizable symbols of the city.
The tower is 98.6 metres (323 ft) tall, and stands alone in a corner of St Mark's Square, near the front of the basilica. It has a simple form, the bulk of which is a plain brick square shaft, 12 metres (39 ft) wide on each side and 50 metres (160 ft) tall, above which is the arched belfry, housing five bells. The belfry is topped by a cube, alternate faces of which show walking lions and the female representation of Venice (la Giustizia: Justice). The tower is capped by a pyramidal spire, at the top of which sits a golden weathervane in the form of the archangel Gabriel. The campanile reached its present form in 1514. As it stands today, however, the tower is a reconstruction, completed in 1912 after the collapse of 1902.

After a brief shower.

Venice, Italy, July 1,2,3, 2009

Arrivaderci, Ruby Princess. Diane views the Ruby from our water bus.

Three days left to explore Venice.

The Main Canal.

Lots of shops for masks, and glassware.

Venice, Italy, Day 13,14, June 30, 2009

As the Ruby Princess entered the main channel on the south side of Venice, 3000 passengers rushed to the starboard side of the ship to enjoy the view. Now this is a big ship but, 3000 well-feed passengers four deep on the rail can cause the ship to heel. The photograph is not an illusion. The ship is heeled over to starboard about 3-5 degrees. The swimming pool water on the eighteen deck was two inches deeper on the starboard side.

Piasano! Someone was glad to see us. I think that he was inviting us to dinner. We didn't get his address.
This is Saint Mark's Square. It is the heart of Venice. In evening, multiple restaurants stage fine orchestras on the square to attract patrons.

Hilton's Stucky Molino, formerly a factory, was where we stayed for the last three days of our journey. It is located an island on the south side of the channel.

Joe, Linda, Diane and George on the upper deck. Our last sunset on the Ruby Princess.

Katakolon, (Olympia,) Greece, Day 12, June 30, 2009

The original Olympics were staged here. The site was covered by sediments for several centuries which protected many of the mosaics and other building details. Unfortunately most of massive structures fell during earthquakes. Multiple buildings housed spas, gyms, and barracks for the athletes and spectators. Every four years, the athletes gathered to seek athletic fame.

The original starting lines and finish line are still in place. A marble threshold with groves provided footholds for the runners. The entire field is dead flat oval surface surrounded with a bowl shaped mount for spectators to sit. It is amazing how well the stadium is constructed. The builders even included drainage to divert run off away from the field of competition.

All were naked when competing. Married women were forbidden to witness the events for it was deemed immoral for a married woman to see a man, other than their husband, in the nude. However, virgins were welcome. Go figure?

Yes, that's me making Olympic fame in the moon walk competition.

This must have been a beautiful place. Gardens, spas, lodging, temples covered the property. It may have been the most elaborate resort in ancient history. No one, other than a few caretakers, resided here after the competitors left.

Athens, Greece, Day 11, June 29, 2009

After Egypt, Athens Greece is next most significant site in western civilization. The Acropolis sits on a high mount in the middle of it all. Just like all ancient structures, we moderns marvel at the size and magnificence of these structures.

Even though the building are fragments of the original, there is no doubt that these were overwhelmingly impressive structures in their day.

When you look at the building, you wonder just how much has been lost of the ancient world if this is what we find after 2500 years.

A visit to the museum reveals piece after piece of ancient art. These people had all all worked out. They were masters at sculpture. We have added very little to the art form since the Greeks.

Mykonos, Greece, Day 10, June 28, 2009

Mykonos was the next stop.
Mykonos is said to be the birthplace of the Greek civilization; however, we took off to the beach instead of exploring ancient ruins or museums.


The island is populated with white buildings. Apparently, a plague struck the island over a hundred years ago and white was considered to be sterile and therefore believed to ward off contagious disease. The sand was courser than we see in New Jersey and brown. The water was cool but tolerable.
It was a good rest stop.

Ephesus, Turkey, Day 9, June 27, 2009

Ephesus was once the eastern capital city of the Roman Empire. Unlike Rome, many of the ruins are in better condition due to its remoteness. The city was originally a seaport town; but over time slit closed the harbor and killed the economy. The mosquitoes from the developing marsh chased all remaining stragglers.

Much of this structure was reconstructed by archaeologists.

Since Home Depot or Lowes were not in business at the time, many of these ancient cities became sources of building materials. All of the fine marble and statuary have been removed by others over time. I guess they didn't care about our touring pleasure. Earthquakes have done their damage as well. Nevertheless, the splendor of the city can be envisioned through the remnants. The amphitheater sat 25,000 people which was about 10% of the population. Plays and public meetings were held here. St. John spoke here around 50 AD. Imagine, they did this without any construction equipment. Even here the marble for the seats have been quarried and carried off to other cities.

Early Christians were underground in the first century. The stone above shows ancient Christian graffiti. The Greek letters Iota-Chi-Theta-Psi-Sigma spells the Greek word for "fish". The pie circle is a composite of the five letters. OK, Why Fish? It's an acronym for Jesus Christ Son (of) God - Savior. Cool, eh? So the next time you see one of those bumper stickers, you know why its a fish.

Romans were pros at plumbing. Many of their storm water systems are still in use today. The above multi-seat toilet is built directly over a trough with running water. This public "sit" station was part of a transit station for travelers.

Cruising-Santorini, Greece, Day 7,8, June 25,26,2009

Today was the day off that we welcomed. It's nice to have nothing to do except for pool side drinks and an evening of dining and dancing. Today, I also consumed about two hours just walking the decks and taking photographs of this incredible ship. 4 large swimming pools and about 5 hot tubs decorated the upper decks. Food of various cuisines available everywhere. The pizza near the pool was a good as home.

Notice the perfect weather. Everyday was like this. Bring your sun block.
Our favorite pool on the eighteen deck looking down from the 19th deck

Santorini is a Greek Island that just littered with splendid elevated views. The cliffs fall into a harbor that is so deep that the ships can't anchor. Instead they use their thrusters to hold a GPS position.

To the top of the island, we rode cable car to the top of the island where 98% of the buildings are. We did brave walking down the switchback to the dock. The primary hazard is the Donkey poop.

Many of the buildings are stucco painted in beautiful pastels. Santorini, beautiful for one day, time to move on to more ancient ruins.

Naples, Italy, DAY 6, June 24, 2009

On this day we made three stops, Isle of Capri, Sorrento, and Pompeii. Even though we were at the port of Naples, we didn't tour there. Naples is a working man' s town much like Detroit. It has a higher unemployment rate than many other cities in Italy and more social problems than most.

We started with a boat ride. It was a high speed catamaran that slowly rode up and down with the waves. The cabin was like sitting in a theater. The lack of windows amplified the motion's effect on the brain and stomach. For a least a half an hour, the crew passed out plastic catch bags for the lesser heeled sailors amongst the passengers. Many were glad to place their feet on solid land again.

At Capri, the show was the scenery. You must take an inclined plane car to the top of the island. This is a very upscale place. Gucchi, Rolex, and other notables were represented on store fronts.
Perfumes, jewelry, high end fashion were available. We bought three postcards.
On to Sorrento, an excellent lunch which was included in the tour, window shopping, and back on the bus to Pompeii.

Pompeii is the legendary city that was covered with volcanic ash from Mount Vesuvius around 95 AD. It was rediscovered in the 1800's. (If I recall correctly.) Frozen in time it is a very interesting place. Unlike Rome, the ruins have not been abused by centuries of pillaging and weathering. In one ancient residence, the murals on the walls and tile work on the floors were nearly perfect. You really got a feel for the daily life of these people. This was the highlight of the trip so far.

Leave it to me to have an uncharged battery in my camera. Fortunately, Linda brought her camera. I'll post some photos later.