Geo: 48.8566, 2.35097Finally, Natalie has been delivered safely to Paris, our last planned solo destination. The safe part is a relief, given our choice of airline; Transavia. Yeah, who? They are a Dutch based airline operating independently under the Air France-KLM Group. Getting to Marco Polo airport was no problem. We hiked from our room to checkout, grabbed our packs and boarded a pre booked coach to the airport. The flight went smoothly, again after an expected frisking heading through security.Upon arrival in Paris Orly, we finally got to use some wifi. We found our planned cruise hopes dashed, as the tour agent had now sold out the tickets. Great, more rescheduling.Getting to Paris from Orly took a while, but was relatively straight forward, apart from a stupid lack of ticketing for metro trains? Our hotel ... read more

Geo: 45.4345, 12.3384Tonight will be our last aboard the Carnival Sunshine. 9 nights have flown by. Arrival at our cruises final destination in Venice was spectacular in itself, sailing by islands and enjoying a beautiful view of the city. For me, Venice was clearly my favourite of Italian cities visited, pretty and unique in its setting. A noon arrival today allowed for a sleep in and slow start, including a breakfast in bed from Natalie. Lucky me! Once the gangway was finally organised, we set out to explore Venice by foot on our own. It proved to be a long hot day of walking. Tragically, we were one of six large cruise ships here, and as a result the city streets were befouled by excessive hoardes of tourists.The walk from the ship took us through Roma ... read more

Geo: 38.1922, 15.5566This morning we docked by Messina, on the island of Sicily. Today was to be our last organized tour with Carnival cruises. It was to be the cheapest and simplest of tours, but a worthwhile and enjoyable one to Mount Edna, the tallest active volcano in Europe. We set off at around 8.30am, on a good two hour drive. We first were pointed out some sights of Messina before getting out on the freeway. After the disappointment of yesterday, I enjoyed todays pretty drive, touring the scenic Sicilian countryside. It was at least as pretty as Tuscany, if not more so. The drive took us along the coastline, through tunnels and small villages to the base of Mount Edna. Our experience here was far superior to yesterdays Mount Vesuvius. There was plenty of volcanic ... read more

Geo: 41.8955, 12.4823Is it impossible to see Rome and Vatican City in just one day? Yes. Having said that, todays tour had a fair whack at it. Our 10 hour expedition felt like enough by the time we were done. We started off at 7am at the port of Civitavecchia around 90 minutes drive from the Eternal City. The drive through a dusty desolate countryside was hardly breathtaking. We stopped off for a thrilling bathroom stop including an intense public affection display outside the toilets, and forced adventure into the mens room for Natalie. From there, time to marvel at the history of Rome. What symbolizes Rome better than the Colosseum? This was our first stop passing the Circus Maximus and Constatines Arch along the way. It was actually a great guided tour here, taking us ... read more

Geo: 43.2983, 5.38322First stop, Marseille. We woke around 8, enjoyed a buffet breakfast, and headed out to explore the city. It was a beautiful sunny day, not a cloud in the sky. What wasn't beautiful was 14€ each (return) for the shuttle from the ship to the city. With no option, we had to take it. We spent a few hours exploring on foot. The city is really pretty, with a Mediterranean feel, white stone buildings by the seaside with plenty of yachts docked. We were pleased to find entry to the cathedrals here was free, as we visited three. The first, and my favorite was the Les Cathedrales de la Major. It was grand, huge and ornate, with a large dome. The interior and stained glass windows took on a more pastel, soft colour than ... read more