Whereonearthisjojo

 Well who hasn’t heard of Monte Carlo,  the playground of the rich and famous.  Names like Grace Kelly,  Aristotle Onassis, Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, Prince Rainier III, Olivier Beretta (Professional race car driver), backdrop for James Bond movies, and so on come to mind.   Monte Carlo, situated on the French Riviera,  is officially an administrative areas of the Principality of Monaco.  It is  the second smallest City/State in the world with Vatican City being the smallest.  It is surrounded by France on three sides and faces the Mediterranean.  It population is around 39,000 with only 8,000 being actual citizens of Monaco.  It is not easy to become a Monacan,  you must either be born in Monaco and both parents are Monacans, or after having been a resident for a period of time you can ask for an appointment with the Prince,  Prince Alberta II, at this time and make a request.  These are usually denied, though you ...

 Livorno is the actual port town where  we docked.  Although it had rained the days before we were again lucky and the rains had passed and we had wonderfully sunny weather and temps reached 70s.  Margit’s 10 hour tour to Florence and Pisa started early in the morning as did mine and we once again enjoyed breakfast in our cabin.  She had a wonderful and also adventures and misadventures time and you will have to read her blog to learn of her experiences.   I had been to Florence and Pisa twice before and opted to go on an 8 hour countryside  tour of Tuscany. The beauty of the rolling hills, covered in every shade of green imaginable was truly a piece of heaven.   I just soaked it in, after having seen so many cities this was a treat.  Wheat fields, vineyards, olive groves, cypress, pines, hazelnut, poplar and many more trees.  The poplars are planted in a managed forestry practice and used for making furniture.  Many medieval towns ...

 Rain was forecasted and to our pleasure the sun was shining as we arrived at 8 am.  Though the temperature will only reach 65.    I have been to Rome on several occasions, hence have seen most of the wonderful sites it has to offer.  Margit went on the 10 1/2 hour tour which she will undoubtably enjoy more than when she last visited at it was 102 degrees.  Not the kind of weather you want to be touring hot Colosseum.   The port town is a 2 hour drive from Rome, so no matter which tour you select you will spend at least 4 to 5 hours on the bus.  While I had booked one of the shorter and scenic drive tours of Rome, I ended up not going for various reason.  Instead I enjoyed a leisurely day on board.   I did end up taking the shuttle to town in the afternoon,  not that much to see, though I did enjoy watching the fishing boats come in and sell their catches to the locals.  Always a very exciting and buzzing event.  Bob and I...