Eating our way around Europe

Sunday, 21 September 2014

At Sea - Tuesday 16th September

our first day at sea...

We attended a Detox seminar. Interesting information but we had come too far to start now...Hopefully we will do some detoxing when we get home!

Steps :7,793 + (5 kms on bike, on the boat at the gym)

Naples - Monday 15th September

Visited De Michele which is one of the first pizzeria's in Italy...founded in 1870..it must be written up on every travel site/book as we waited in line with 100 or so other pilgrims until our number was called. Inside the pizzeria the decor minimalist and the service was slick (overseen by a 93year old patriarch)...offering only 2 types of pizza (Napolitano-naturally & Marinara) it was worth the wait....

Steps :17,287...including hills

Civitavecchia - Sunday 14th September

Could have gone to Roma but feeling a smudge of tour fatigue, so we decided to stay on the boat and sit by the pool. We had all spent a lot of time in Roma on previous visits and felt like relaxing.

Had a very nice time. The returning passengers looked very tired from their Rome tours. We just ate and drank a bit more by the pool.

Steps :13,450 note you can still get your 10000 steps up going from the cabins to the food!

Livorno (Italy)- Saturday 13th September

Lovely Lucca...we visited the walled medieval city and cycled around the wall which gave a good orientation to the city (even Janine could have found her way around)

Went to a local market and walked through the city.

Picture perfect Pisa...

Made a quick visit to the tower and churches of Pisa. Loads of people and Steve took some pretty impressive photos.

There were plenty of people posing in front of the tower trying to hold it up. Very amusing but predictable. We didn't bother following the pack...Smithy stood on his head instead.

Observation: Whilst driving to the above locations we travelled on Italy's main highway SS1-it is the road that leads to Rome (as all roads do)...we saw some interesting sights...(& also seen on the last trip with Miss A) there are women every couple of kilometres, standing under umbrellas, wearing very revealing attire such as leopard skin cut away pantsuits (it's not for camouflage & some cutaway sections may have been in unusual places) they are selling their sexy skills...for up to €300 per hour!

Steps :14,915

Toulon - Friday 12th September

We hopped off the boat for a visit to Toulon (France). Nice little spot.

Walked around the local shops & market and had some moulles (mussels) which Toulon is famous for.

Very nice indeed.

Did a little shopping at the market...Janine bought a crappy hat (tony said it was nice at the time!) and Bern bought some new sunglasses. Returned to the boat to eat and drink some more....

Steps :14,012

Friday, 12 September 2014

Regal Princess...OMG!!!

Apologies for not having posted for several days but there has been a lot going on...we are now on a boat & OMG what a boat...as the taxi approached the dock in Barcelona & the ship was in view even the taxi driver's said 'wow'...it is like an apartment block on the water...17 stories plus, other vessels are dwarfed in comparison.

Once aboard, staff welcoming us all the way as the string quartet played...it is like being in a movie set in a swanky hotel, lots of glitzy bars, marble staircases, restaurants, shops...with much, much more!

First impressions of other passengers...we are young and fit despite not being near a gym in the past 2 weeks! There are another 3996 passengers on the ship, many highly functional seniors/retirees (which is inspiring for Janine after working in aged care for some years), lots of couples, some singles and a few children. There are approx.1500 Americans, 700 Australians & an assortment of other nationalities.

The staff are also diverse coming from all corners of the globe, all wear crisp uniforms symbolising their position & they are all labelled accordingly 'Simone Australia', 'Marco Serbia', 'Cherry Philippines', 'Helga Hungary'...the service has been consistently professional.

At brekky today we were discussing that even after 3 nights & days we are still feeling excited as there is so much to do and discover...both on and off the boat...

Onboard you can treat yourself in the spa, get your teeth whitened, take 8 inches off your stomach, buy diamonds or a piece of art, go to the gym, have a run or play mini golf. You can watch real crooners/bands and there is the biggest TV screen on the upper deck to watch a movie whilst lying in the sun, having a swim or drinking a beer or eating.

We (Tony & Janine) do feel blessed as Bern has again done the research & we gave great deals on meals & drinking. We do have lots of food choices (27 restaurants) & the main food area is like Smorgy's with a huge variety (not Michelin but nonetheless very tasty). As for drinking, we have a capped plan that includes all beverages... Cappucinos, herbal teas...then after champagne o'clock maybe a cocktail...a Bellini or two...Steve is working through the 007 Martini list!

Ciao for now!

Wednesday, 10 September 2014

AAAAAAAAAAAARZAK

Our first and only trip to a three Michelin star restaurant Arzak. What a pleasure it was. Quite a bit different to the two star Mugaritz but a sensational night was had by all. Great service, a wonderful setting, beautiful plates, great wine and of course sensational food…

We opted for the degustation/tasting menu which consisted of a variety of starters plus two different fish dishes and a lamb and a pigeon dish. This was followed by the many dessert dishes of chocolate, chocolate and more chocolate...Janine was done in at the big truffle…meringue chocolate which staff then poured sauce (chocolate) over…it was divine…but I can wait until Easter for my next piece of chocolate!!!What is it with these Michelin starred restaurants and the need to serve 5 desserts then petite fours of chocolate? Not that we were complaining just making an observation.

The food was like nothing we have ever eaten. Some of the flavours we had never experienced before and the lamb was the best we had ever tasted (& Tony is quite the connoisseur when it comes lamb). Bern absolutely loved the lamb cooked to perfection. By the end of the night we were very satisfied with our experience and we got to meet the big cheese Juan Mari Arzak as we were leaving which was a thrill.

When Janine went to the bathroom…she was escorted (she had not stolen anything) and in her absence our waitress impressed the others by folding the napkin without her hands…just using cutlery. Bern had to go to the bathroom so Janine could witness the folding of the napkins.

Before our restaurant adventure we headed to Bilbao to the Guggenheim museum which was a great day. We headed out on the bus from Donostia- San Sebastian to Bilbao around 11am and spent about 3 hours at the Guggenheim at the various exhibits.

It is a fantastic building with some very special displays but our favourite was Jeff Koons’s puppy shown below. This work is of an 18^th Century formal European garden in the shape of a puppy and is literally and figuratively still growing.

It has been great to experience the great contrasts in Donostia- San Sebastian – between the fine dining and the exciting and sometimes challenging bar food. It all seems to work so well and we have all had a blast.

This morning we are on the train to Barcelona to start our Mediterranean Cruise so we sadly farewell Donostia-San Sebastian until next time…

What a place!!