Goth Cruise 5 - DONE
Well, that was fun. Here's a quick synopsis of the places we went to on Goth Cruise 5 (ask me in person for specifics if you're interested):
Venice, Italy:
Venice and the people inhabiting it were gorgeous. Basilica di San Marco was breathtaking - no words, nor pictures can really do the place justice, really.
The hotel we stayed at, Hotel Arlecchino, was very cozy, and the continental breakfast had some of the best coffee (espresso) and pastries I've ever had. I also like it was a stone's throw away from where the busses from the airport and the shuttle to the port pickup was.
Apparently we missed a major flood by a day or two.
Dubrovnik, Croatia:
Nice place. Friendly folk. Too bad it was Sunday and most shops were closed. Ate grapes right off the vine and drank grappa at folk painter Miho Sisa's house.
Santorini, Greece:
Another just-like-the-postcards locale. Keith and Kendra set up a private tour of the island for us, which finished off with lunch (tapas-style Greek) at a cafe by the beach. Ouzo, wine and great food was not in short supply.
Notables: It was very windy. Lots of fun throwing pumice stones into the air (did I forget to mention Santorini is essentially a caldera?) and watching the wind carry them away. Near dock there was a Mexican food place called Senior Zorba's (closed) which included a 15' fiberglass cactus (that sadly had been blown over). My camera skills were unfortunately not fast enough catch this amusing curiosity.
Tunis, Tunisia:
Went on the Trid and Christal cab tour. Kinda scary. Thought we were gonna get trafficked. They didn't want to let us near the Roman ruins, but were eager to sell us Roman coins for a steep premium.
Malaga, Spain:
Charming old-world looking city. Saw the birth place of Pablo Picasso along the way of the tapas and wine-tasting tour.
Casablanca, Morocco:
Saw the largest Mosque in the world. Went through the old Medina. Had a tasty lunch and tea for about $2.50
Lisbon, Portugal:
Ended the cruise here. Not terribly impressed. Then again, stayed in a shit-hole hostel/hotel where the room key had to be docked to turn on the power to the room - including the heater. That last point irked me because the place was ungodly cold. Lots more issues with the place, but that's enough ranting. Stayed long enough to eat dinner, sleep, and get to the airport.
The trip home:
Rather grueling. Started by waking at 5:30am in Lisbon, flew to Madrid (2h), ran like crazy to catch the next leg of the journey to Chicago (9.5h), my luggage ended up not making out of Madrid, and finally to San Diego (4.5h) around 7:30pm. My luggage made it back the next day around the same time.
Next Goth Cruise is going to Belize City and Cozumel - I think I prefer the shorter 5 day cruises. Don't get me wrong; I loved this one, but it was hard on the vacation time and the pocket book.