Get ready for a long post. I'd like to share with you of the four counties we've stopped by on a European cruise and hopefully inspire those who have a trip planned ahead.
MSC Preziosa cruise
We took a seven day MSC Preziosa, European cruise, while on our trip to Europe. Cruises are our favorites, since we don't have to worry about food or ways to move about to the next location. If you'd like to know more about cruises, check out my other review of the Alaskan or Bahamas Cruise.
There's an advantage when you get on a newer ship. Having being built in 2013, the ship was absolutely beautiful, it felt new and clean. It made stops in four different countries, and out of the seven days of travel, only had one day at the sea, which was awesome. But as new as the ship was, out of the four ships that we've traveled on, MSC was our least favorite. I'd never thought that a bigger ship can be a hassle, but it did take us five minutes to get from one side to another. Many amenities of the ship, like sauna, were not free, so people flooded the pool area, like the pink flamingos on African beaches. As a result, the hot tubs and buffets were jammed with people.
Everyday the entertainment shows repeated, the same people got up and made the same tricks, it quickly became tedious. Workers looked like they were a dying out species, they've never talked and if you ask the wrong person to clean your table, they would steam out some attitude; on a contrast, we've made some awesome friends with workers on other ships. On top of that, the ship limited complimentary drinks to water, of which was not complimentary during dinners. I would not go on MSC cruises again and wouldn't recommend it to others.
The buffet was limited in choices, although a few Italian dishes were great.
Turkey
My brother-in-law's family stayed in Turkey at the time. Once our ship hit the dock of Izmir, Turkey, they were nice enough to take us beyond the tourist area and gave us a great tour of the city. We had a blast with them, daring and trying all kinds of weird Turkish foods, drinking salt-flavored sour cream, called Ayran, (a popular drink in Turkey) and tasting cooked mussels stuffed with rice; my husband, Tim, even tried lamb brain, supposedly an expensive Turkish dish.
Driving around town.
Seeing the city from high up, was breathtaking. It reminded me of Miami, Florida in so many ways, although different by culture.
We also had a stop in Istanbul, Turkey, it's a beautiful city with a Grand Bazar and a mosque on every block. We didn't take pictures with our camera, because the place didn't feel safe. We've even gotten a show from a taxi-driver, who tricked us out of a few extra bucks, giving us a sign that we need to be a bit extra careful.
Katakolo, Greece
Katakolo was a small town, right next to Olympia, where Olympics were started. It was very green, but didn't look anything like I've seen in pictures. We didn't explore much, just did some shopping at their market and mostly just stayed in the sun.
Dubrovnik, Croatia
Dubrovnik is one of the most stunning places I have seen in my life. It's surrounded by clear water, beautiful beaches and the city has an ancient wall built, which you can walk on. For a moment, I felt like I was part of history, from biblical times. I dream of going back to Croatia for a longer vacation. Definitely over-sharing pictures on this one, but don't want you to miss out :)
Venice, Italy
We got to spend our last day in Venice, Italy, and it sure was the best way to wrap this fun trip. It was so cool to walk on those tiny streets, behind people's homes, under clotheslines; it felt like we were in maze. The city was very historic and really beautiful.
There was a very neat farmers market in the middle of a street and people would buy their produce there. Keep in mind they bring all these products boats, there are no cars on the streets of Venice, even the city bus is replaced by a city boat.
It was nice being able to feed the birds from the palm of the hand, they all showed up out of nowhere and did not seem afraid of the people.
Do you have a trip planned to Europe, or have already been there? Let me know what places you like the most.