KIMC, Week 2

Week two begins with us sailing out of Istanbul and making our way back through the Dardanelles (yep, we passed through twice, but the first time was at 4 in the morning...I was sleeping).  The weather continued to be GORGEOUS and it was kind of cool to see (from the ocean) many of the WWI places we've all heard so much about (Gallipoli, Suvla, etc). I have pictures of this, but since one bit of coastline looks much like another, I'll spare you those and just stick in a shot from the ship as we sailed away :-)

Valletta, Malta
Our next port of call was Valletta, Malta, which I fell in love with immediately (Irene was less enthusiastic...I think her heart was still back in Istanbul).  I think it was the wind that got me--reminded me so much of home, even though the buildings and plants were like something out of Pirates of the Caribbean.  The people were lovely, the streets winding and full of atmosphere, and the food...well, let's just say we skipped the two traditional meats, horse and rabbit, and headed for Maltese wine and sausage instead. Disclaimer: I forgot my camera on the ship, so all of the Malta shots are taken on Irene's camera, most by Irene.

Valletta's Port

Walking to the City Centre

Gardens looking out over the city

Moi, looking vaguely dazed...might have been the wind...or the steps

Our first stop upon arriving in the city centre was a phone booth, so that Irene could call home (we didn't have much contact with folks at home, as internet and phones on the ship were ridiculously expensive).  While she got the scoop on all the snow and news at home, I wandered around St. John's Co-Cathedral, headquarters of the Knights of Malta.  Words, and pictures, cannot do justice to the opulence, grandeur and amazingness of this place (especially since you can only take photos in the outer part of the co-cathedral, and not in the museum part, where I saw Caravaggio's "The Beheading of St. John the Baptist"), but I've included a few shots to try to give you all some indication:

St. John's Co-Cathedral

Altar

Chapel Ceiling (yep, every surface looks like this...walls...ceilings)

The floor consists of marble in-laid tomb markers

Chapel

Next we wandered, ducking into shops whenever there was a sudden torrential downpour.  We finally sought shelter in a lovely restaurant when a small thunderstorm started, and then headed back out into the sunshine for a last look around before heading back to the ship.

Back on the ship, looking out over the harbour

In training for a traditional boat race

Harbour View

Barcelona, Spain
Our ship stopped back into Barcelona to pick up new passengers, and drop off those souls who were finished travelling, so we hopped ashore and spent the day wandering Las Ramblas, enjoying the sun, eating in overpriced restaurants, and generally having a good time!  Not a lot to report from this particular trip to Barcelona (more at the end, when we spent a few days wandering), but here's a few pics!

Random tourist, being entertained by a street performer (she was a statue one--really good!)

View from where we ate lunch on Las Ramblas

Heading back to the port!

Casablanca, Morocco
Once again acting on advice from our absentee tour director, we booked a tour of Casablanca (and were glad we did!), but cheaped out a little and just went for the half-day version.  It was nice, actually.  It was another gloriously sunny day, and we visited the local market, Hassan II Mosque (it's HUGE), Casablanca's Imperial Residence, and a craft co-operative (where Irene loaded up on face cream and argon oil).  Our guide was really quite good, knowledgeable and friendly, and on the way we even passed a rally in support of the king.

Our guide, on the tour bus

The market

This little guy is determined NOT to be turtle soup

Hassan II Mosque (Capacity, 100 000 people!)

And so ends Week 2!  I actually had to consult both a calendar and my journal to figure that out :)

More coming your way in my third Cruise update, the excitingly named KIMC, Week 3!  Stay tuned for the rest of Morocco, Gran Canaria, Madeira (amazing), Malaga (also amazing) and post-cruise in Barcelona!

-K-