5 Things to Consider when Picking a Cruise

Interested in a cruise this fall or winter?  Lots of people will be cruising to Alaska, the Carribean and even the rivers of Europe.  So, what should you look for in a cruise.  Here are some thoughts based on a  number of cruises we have taken on several different cruise lines:

1. Get the best price by waiting. Cruise lines are always looking to fill up their ships. If you have the freedom to wait to the last minute to book your cruise, you will probably save the most money. On one of our cruises, a Canadian couple paid $98 per person for a three day Caribbean cruise which they booked at the last minute.

2. Look for open seating for your meals.  While it can be interesting to sit with the same people every day of the cruise, why not sit with different people instead. It will make the cruise more enjoyable (particularly if the people you are stuck with are boring or bores).

3. Try to book a stateroom midship. You want to be close to the stairs and elevators (of course, not right next to them) because you will be moving from deck to deck all day and you will avoid unnecessary walking.

4. Stake out your chair at the pool early in the day. Most deck chairs fill up fast, so get there early.

5. Consider booking your own excursions. The ship excursions are usually fairly pricey. You may be surprised how much you can save if you do an internet search on your destination and find a guide who will basically do the same thing as the ship's provider. We did this on a cruise to Ephesus in Turkey and we had a terrific guide, who showed us much more than we would have seen with the ship's guide.  Shop around!

I hope these tips are helpful.  Let me know what you think. Bon Voyage!

Home Free Adventures

In today's Wall Street Journal is an interesting story about the Martins.  They are a retired couple who sold their home in California and are now living around the world in various countries. They have visited a number of places I have written about in this blog, including Florence and Ephesus.I think that you will enjoy reading their blog that details their world travels. I know I enjoyed it very much. www.homefreeadventures.com.

On the Road to Ephesus

 Located about 200 miles miles from Istanbul is the Turkish town of Ephesus, Turkey.  It is the place where, according to the Bible, St. Paul was imprisoned and where Mary, the Mother of Jesus is reputed to have lived when she was brought there by  St. John the Evangelist following the Crucifixion..  Some twenty-nine years of excavations have revealed one of the most intact Roman and Greek ruins in the world.. At one time it was the second largest city in the Eastern Mediterranean and the capital of the Roman province of Asia.  Originally a Greek city first built around 1000 BC, it became the chief port on the Aegean Sea with a population of around 290,000. 

Today, the ruins of those ancient civilizations can be seen in a mile-long corridor of a marble road rutted with the wheels of chariots.One of the most impressive of these ruins is the  Library of Celsus. The library was built in honor of the Governor  of the Roman province of Asia between 117 and 125 A.D. Much of the facade of the library remains. Plaster copies of statues which represented the intellectual virtues of wisdom , goodness , thought and knowledge adorn  the niches .

                                                          Library of Celsus
Located nearby is the house of the Virgin Mary. It was discovered by a German nun, Katharina Emmerich in the 19th century. In 1891 the Lazarian priests established   a shrine in honor of the Virgin Mary. It has now become a pilgrimage site for both Muslims and Christians alike. While we were there, we met a nun who was going to come to the United States for a retreat not far from our home. Quite a remarkable coincidence !

                                                         Shrine of the Home of the Virgin Mary - 98C21003B9A74C1E063E7AD9BF9A0C7C