Mediterranean Cruise – 50 days
October 30 – December 19, 2015
Holland America Cruise Ship - Maasdam
We left home Oct 20th to
arrive at Fort Lauderdale to begin our 50 day cruise to 26 ports of
call. Like we always do – we took our time driving to Florida as
one never knows what weather we may encounter at that time of year.
Our cruise left in Fort Lauderdale and
would return to that port so it was convenient to leave our car in a
hotel parking lot and pay the rent. The first 21 days were free
parking and the balance only cost about $3.50 a day. We stayed at
the Fairfield Inn and Suites.
The weather and the seas were excellent
except for one storm which we tried to avoid near Greece which caused
the Captain to skip the port of Olympia. Some days there was hardly
a swell on the Atlantic – we were very fortunate. We were
unable to tender into Half Moon Cay, Bahamas as the swells were too high to
safely enter the tender.
I will Highlight all ports and add a few
notes and pictures of interest. If you wish to see the pictures larger - just click on them.
 |
| Leaving Fort Lauderdale |
San Juan, Puerto Rico
 |
| Blue street tiles from iron slag which was used as ballast in the ships from England |
 |
| The Old Fort at sunset |
Philipsburg, St. Maarten
 |
| Nice beach but mainly duty free shops |
 |
| We are the smallest ship in port |
Tenerife, Canary Islands
 |
| Catching up on the internet! |
Las Palmas, Grand Canary Islands
 |
| Taking a Hop On-Hop Off bus tour |
 |
| The Old City and Plaza de Santa Ana with 15th Century Cathedral |
 |
| The view from the roof of the Cathedral |
Puerto Rosario, Canary Islands
 |
| Influential resident - professor and philosopher |
Tangier, Morocco
Trip to Tetouan, Morocco
 |
| Market along the street in Tetouan |
 |
| Men haggling for sweaters on the corner |
 |
| Government Building and protected by guards |
 |
| Market stall of nuts |
 |
| Our guide explaining the use of gold for weddings and celebrations |
 |
| Having tea inside a reception hall |
Almeria, Spain
 |
| View from top of old fort |
 |
| Another view from the old fort |
Valencia, Spain
 |
| Absolutely gorgeous Market, sparkling clean and great displays - the nicest we have ever seen. The dried pork is about $35 a pound. |
Barcelona, Spain
 |
| The view of traffic from our Hop On-Hop Off bus tour. A large bull ring on the right |
 |
| The famous Sagrada Familia designed by Gaudi. Work started in 1883 and still not finished |
 |
| Beautiful Spanish balconies |
 |
| Fish in the local market |
 |
| The dominate Sagrada Familia in Barcelona |
Palma de Mallorca
 |
| Vast Gothic Cathedral partly designed by Gaudi |
 |
| Hours could be spent learning about all the symbolism in this Cathedral |
 |
| The Cathedral dominates the skyline in Palma |
Civitavecchia, Italy
 |
| Medieval town walls right in town. These date back to near 1432 as this was part of the Papal State |
Naples and Pompeii, Italy
 |
| The entrance to Pompeii. The destruction of Pompeii happened in 79AD |
 |
| The ruins are now becoming covered with vegetation. Mt Vesuvius is in the background |
 |
| The central gathering area |
 |
| The baking ovens on the left and a grinding mill on the right for their bread |
 |
| Relics found from the excavations |
 |
| Our drive back into Naples |
 |
| Another church on the hillside on our return trip to Naples |
 |
| Norman Castle overlooking the port |
 |
| Our view of Naples from the ship |
Messina, Italy
 |
| The Cathedral of Messina. Every day at noon the mechanical figures and animals come to life. A lion roars, a bird flaps their wings, two historical figures ring the bell and then Jesus appears from the tomb. It also has an Astronomical clock on the side |
 | |
| This is how you park if there is no room at the curb |
Piraeus, Greece
 |
| A Bakery |
 |
| Breads look and smell very good!! |
 |
| A very well protected marina right inside the city |
 |
| Inside the Greek Orthodox Church |
Corfu, Greece
 |
| View from Byzantine Old Fortress |
 |
| Our walk back to the ship through the old city |
 |
| The old Byzantine Fortress on the left and the new Fortress on the right |
Valletta, Malta
 |
| Arriving in Valletta - the lower warehouses by the water are 250 years old |
 |
| Government Buildings on the top of the hill |
 |
| Driving out of Valletta to Mdina we see this old aquaduct is now used as a car port |
Mdina
 |
| Inside walled and moated city of Mdina |
 |
| Near Mdina. The dome is the second largest in the world. During the war an un-detonated bomb went through its roof and was found on the floor of the church. |
 |
| This does not show the time but the today's date |
 |
| Docked right in town |
 |
| Valletta at night |
Mgaar, Gozo,Malta
 |
| Azure Window |
 |
| Old city of Victoria |
 |
| Ggantija Temple - regarded as the oldest free standing building in the world. Built around 2000BC |
 |
| Ready to leave the island of Gozo |
Palermo, Sicily, Italy
 |
| Entering the harbor in Palermo |
 |
| A Convent with nude statues in the front |
 |
| Teatro Massimo - it has the second largest indoor stage after the Paris Opera House. |
 |
| These shops do not pay protection money to the Mafia (Cosa Nostra) |
 |
| The Beach area |
Cagliari, Sardinia, Italy
Cartagena, Spain
 |
| An old Roman Theatre right in the city |
 |
| Surveying his Kingdom |
 |
| Many marble tiled walking streets in excellent condition and surrounded with expensive shops |
Gibraltor, UK Territory
 |
| A different parking garage |
 |
| A different type of sign for pedestrian crossing |
Cadiz, Spain
 |
| This city had lines on the sidewalk (in different colors) for tourist to follow to see all the major sites |
Casablanca, Morocco
 |
| Hassan II Mosque This Mosque has room for 25,000 inside ad 80,000 worshipers outside. |
 |
| The carved wood ceiling of the mosque |
 |
| Street scene from our tour bus |
Funchal, Madeira, Portugal
 |
| Botanical Gardens high on the hill |
 |
| Historical Church |
 |
| Inside the church |
 |
| The basket runners are waiting for their clients. These toboggans are run down the street with the fellows in white guiding them down the street |
Back in Fort Lauderdale, USA
This was a very busy trip except for crossing the Atlantic. We stayed well except for a minor cold. We saw much history and wish we could remember all the details that we heard from our many guides. We met many fellow travellers and enjoyed their company.
