Cruising the Mediterranean-Day 8 Barcelona

We have officially arrived to the final day of our cruise! Everything was packed up the night before, and someone from the cruise came and got our checked luggage. Really, this day was just making sure we didn't leave anything behind, getting on a bus, then to the airport, and finally arriving home.

Josh signed us up for a bus tour of Barcelona before we headed to the airport. When I think bus tour, I think it's going to consist of us sitting on a bus the whole time. I didn't realize we would be doing a bit of walking. It's not bad, we were able to see a lot more because of it, but I did not wear the correct shoes for city hiking. Lesson learned.

We saw Barcelona Olympic Park, Casa Batllo, Gaudi Cathedral, Catedral de Barcelona, and I mustn't forget Cole's favorite part: the pigeons.

 A Barcelona Landscape. You can see the Gaudi Cathedral, right in the middle!

 One last look at the Mediterranean and The Norwegian Epic.

 Cole decided he wanted to wear footies this day, we rolled with it.

 These three photos were taken at Olympic park.

 Arenas de Barcelona. This used to be where the bullfighting happened, now, it's a recreational complex.

 Okay, this is one of the coolest things about this city. They connect benches to their beautiful street lights.

 One of Gaudi's masterpieces, the Casa Batllo is absolutely amazing!

Did you know this building isn't actually called the Gaudi Cathedral? I didn't. Our tour guide kept going on about Sagrada Familia, and I had no idea what he was talking about. I also didn't realize that this building has been under construction since 1882, and probably won't be finished for another 12-15 years. 

I love everything about this church. We didn't have time to go inside, and we weren't properly attired. I say "we," but Josh and Cole were fine, my shoulders were exposed and I didn't have a wrap or scarf. Darn it. Maybe another time.

 Cole is a pacifier ninja, he can find one anywhere (this one is his by the way, he didn't just find it on a street somewhere).

 I love these two so much!

 The Catedral de Barcelona is a gothic-style chuch, that once again we didn't go in because of my scandalous shoulders. 

Do you know what's super fun? Chasing after pigeons. 'Nuff said.

The end!

Cruising the Mediterranean-Day 7 Palma Majorca

Can we finish this cruise already?! I really had hoped I'd be done sharing our cruise adventures by now, but life keeps on happening over here, along with some awesome (not really) heat. It's a cooler day so I'm ready to share our last couple of days from the cruise.

I had no idea what to expect from Palma Majorca, Spain. When we were planning our trip, we found an excursion that included a tour of a cave and a day at the beach. We knew the rest of our trip was going to be busy, so it was easy to pick a more laid back trip for this day.

Our first stop was to a pearl factory. I had no idea Majorica Pearls (that's the company) were so popular. When we walked in, what they said was a factory just looked like an upscale jewelry store to me. They said there was a concession stand on the upper floor, so that's where we headed immediately. What do we need pricey pearls for? After we got Cole settled with a sandwich, Josh encouraged me to go look around.

The lady behind the counter was very persistent in wanting to show me several different items. I finally told her I'd need to speak with my husband (which is code for I'm going to back away slowly, please don't stink eye me too much for wasting your time). Josh asked if I had seen anything I liked, I told him there was a very pretty, very simple (it was a chain with one pearl, if you're interested) bracelet that caught my eye. What I hadn't expected was for Josh to lead me back to the sales lady and surprise me with not only a full string bracelet, but a necklace and earrings to match. Is he a keeper or what?

Our next stop was to the Caves of Drach (Caves of the Dragon). Even though we were in queue for about 30 minutes just to enter the caves, it was definitely worth the wait. With the exception of a few rails for safety the cave is still very much like it was a long time ago. It really was a beautiful site. There was even an underground lake. The closest I've ever come to seeing caves, stalactites, and stalagmites is at the Henry Doorly Zoo. Speaking of one of Omaha's greatest attractions, if anyone is interested to know, it smelled more like the Lied Jungle, than Kingdom's of the Night inside the cave. If you haven't been, sorry I have no other way of describing it.

After the caves, we headed to Porto Cristo for some beach time. I really wish we would've taken more photos, but I'm happy that we were making beautiful memories instead. Cole LOVED the water, the waves, the sand. It is safe to say that my kid is a beach lover; just like his mom and dad! I wish we would've had more time on the beach, it really was a lot of fun.

 I love this picture Josh took, it really shows just how large the Norwegian Epic is, especially compared to yachts and boats.

 Taking the routine nap on the way to the first stop.

 Family picture featuring Josh, Lindsey, and Cole's butt.

 All photos in the cave were shot without flash, I'm very happy we were able to get as many good photos as we did, it wasn't easy.

 You can tell Cole was still sleepy, he puts his hand under his armpit when he's tired. 

Family selfie on the beach, Cole had no desire to take photos, he was too busy checking out the cool beach, or maybe there was a topless lady he was checking out, who knows.

Cruising the Mediterranean-Day 6 Monaco & Monte Carlo

I should say up front that this was by far my favorite excursion of the cruise. It was a beautiful day from start to finish. We started in Cannes and took a scenic drive through Nice to our first stop in Monaco. Our tour guide, Ana, walked us to the Palace of Monaco, where we watched the Changing of the Guard. After that, we were free for a few hours to roam around.

When we stopped for some lunch, I was able to use my very limited knowledge of the French language. Side note: you hear about how snobby French people are, and I wouldn't disagree with you when it comes to the Parisians; but I have to say, the people of the French Riviera could not have been nicer.

Okay, back to Monaco. After lunch, we strolled through the most beautiful park I've ever been in. There were amazing pieces of artwork set in various places as you walked through. The foliage was so diverse, I couldn't help but be amazed at what was around me. There were cacti, eucalyptus trees, lemon trees; one things for sure: it smelled great!

Once we met back up with the rest of our group, we took the 5 minute drive down the hill to Monte Carlo. Monte Carlo, man. We were in Monte Carlo. When Josh and I first found out we were coming to Germany, Monte Carlo was at the top of our list of places we wanted to visit, and it didn't let us down.

We stood in front of the Hotel de Paris and Casino de Monte-Carlo, and one-by-one, expensive cars kept rolling out. Josh was in heaven. Fun fact: the nicest cars get parked in front of the casino. It's almost like a competition to see how long your car can stay out front. If you watch "Top Gear" (the real one, not the American one), you'll know that a Model T was able to stay out front all night-that's unheard of! Also, the valets couldn't drive it, so that helps.

Our afternoon was mostly spent checking out cars, and eating gelato. Not a bad afternoon at all! Since I have no idea what these cars are, they started looking the same to me; but Josh sat there naming them off with ease. He was definitely in his element here, and it was fun to see him so excited.

I won't waste any more time telling you about this great day. Here are our favorite pictures from our Monaco & Monte Carlo excursion:

 

We woke up to this fabulous view of Cannes from our balcony.

  This is our ship, the Norwegian Epic! For this excursion, we actually had to take lifeboats to shore.

Sneaking in a nap on the way to Monaco. He can sleep anywhere!

It's amazing how many yachts and sailboats we saw this day, but if you live here, why wouldn't you have a boat?!

That monument carved into the mountain was originally a World War I tribute, but is now dedicated to all fallen soldiers of both world wars.

Is this even real?! I have never seen such beautiful water before!

Can you imagine living here all the time?!

This was the alley we walked down to get to the Changing of the Guard. So clean, and quiet, it was almost unnatural.

Josh and Cole waiting for the Changing of the Guard to begin outside the Prince's Palace.

Gosh, I love this kid so much!

Me in front of the palace, after the Changing of the Guard. People don't waste time getting out of there!

This is the view from next to the Palace of Monaco.

Cole didn't want to take pictures, but that didn't stop me, Josh, and Josh's goofy hat.

There were police boxes! No sign of the Doctor though, shoot!

 Our stroll through the park.

 This was my favorite statue. Josh thinks its a goodbye hug, while I believe it's a welcome home embrace. You be the judge.

The birds come so close to you!

Selfie from the park.

In Monte Carlo there are a few statues celebrating the Grand Prix.

The best way to get the whole view of the Casino de Monte-Carlo is to use this fountain's mirror!

Another statue in honor of the Grand Prix.

Now Josh's favorite part...the cars!

This was taken by the Prince's Palace, it's an Aston Martin Rapide. All the other car pictures are from Monte Carlo.

If this isn't the epitome of the living here I don't know what is. A bright red Ferrari (cruising down Princess Grace Avenue), a beautiful yacht sailing the Mediterranean, and you see those red and white stripes in the bottom-right of the picture? Those mark out the course for the Grand Prix.

I think Josh told me this is a vintage Ferrari, don't quote me on that though.

Pagani Zonda Tricolore.
Take a good look at this car. We didn't realize it at the time, but we were looking at a car with a $2 million price tag that is capable of doing 220 miles per hour. If that wasn't cool enough, we found out later that it is one of three in existence. Now that is pretty cool!

A McLaren P4.

On our way back to the ship, we saw this restaurant's sign, I like their vibe!