Thursday 15^th May 2014

Woke this morning to another beautiful day in the Mediterranean. Clear blue sky no wind and temperature expected to be 22°, although it felt hotter than that during the day.

Had breakfast and returned to our Stateroom to get cameras and head up on deck to watch the approach into Ajaccio, the capital of Corsica.  The view of Ajaccio as we were docking was absolutely beautiful - picture postcard perfect!

Entering Ajaccio harbour

As our tour was not due to start until 1:30pm, and we were docked right in the heart of the old city, we decided to do some exploring by ourselves.

We walked up the main street to the Place Foch, where they have a produce market each morning selling locally grown & produced goods. 

Cured meats at the Market

We sampled some locally made nougat (apparently renowned throughout the Mediterranean) and bought ourselves two fantastic tasting pastries –but can not remember what they were called. There was also a statue of Napoleon at the top of the market square.

We continued walking to the Place de Gaulle, which is a big town square with another large statue of Napoleon, this time on horseback. We looked at the local beach, which is on the Gulf of Ajaccio, before then walking to the Cathedral (Cathédrale de l’ Assomption) where Napoleon Bonaparte was christened.

The Cathedral

More walking saw us pass the military Citadel and then back to the quay where we stopped at an open air café for a coffee (Lynne had tea). I was pleased as it was real coffee and much better than that served on board ship.

It was now time to return back on board for a quick freshen up before joining our bus tour at 1:30pm.

The bus drove a short distance along the coast to the Sanguinary islands. We also saw some lovely beaches and beautiful villa style houses with high-rise buildings built into the hillside. We then drove to the Grotte Napoleon, which is a huge monument built in honour of Napoleon. It records all his victories but none of his defeats.

Back on the bus for the last time, we were taken back into the old city for a walking tour. We were able to go inside the Cathedral where Napoleon Bonaparte was christened – the font that was used is still inside the front door.

We then walked a short distance to see the 18^th century house where Napoleon was born in 1769, Maison Bonaparte, which is now a museum.

Our tour finished in the Place Foch, so we made our way back on board ship for a well earned cuppa.

All in all a lovely day spent in a beautiful city – we enjoyed it immensely and would love to see more of Corsica. The ship set sail for Rome at about 6.30pm.

Statue of Napoleon

Wednesday 14^th 2014

Weather report: Fine and sunny with clear blue sky. Temperature expected to be about 21°.

Today sees us arrive in Barcelona, Spain, our first port of call on the cruise.

Barcelona Harbour

The ship docked at 11.30am and we disembarked at 1:30pm for our bus tour of the city which included a drive around the Las Ramblas (shopping district), the 1992 Olympic Stadium, and the Casa Mila, a lovely building designed by the famous Spanish architect Antoni Gaudi that features an ornate façade with undulating walls & iron art noveau balconies.

 We also visited the Church of La Sagrada Familia, also designed by Gaudi, and considered to be his greatest masterpiece. The church has been under construction since 1882 and is still not complete. The church was dedicated and declared a Basilica by Pope Benedict XVI on 7^th November 2010 at which time it became a holy place of worship, which can accommodate up to 8,000 worshippers at one time. The building is absolutely breathtaking, with tall ornate spires and gorgeous stained glass windows, although some are not finished and have temporary plain glass.

La Sagrada Familia

Our final stop of the tour was at the Mayor’s Balcony, a lookout high above the city with panoramic views of the city and harbour.

Barcelona is a beautiful city with some excellent architecture and the plan was also to have some time to look round the city ourselves, however as we docked late we were not able to do that.

View of Barcelona from Mayors Balcony

We returned on board ship at 5:30pm and the ship sailed out of Barcelona Harbour at 6:00pm heading for Corsica.

The Captain announced some rough weather is expected overnight with a 2.5 metre swell, so we can expect to be rocked to sleep tonight.

We had another wonderful meal in the dining room before going to the 9:30pm show in the theatre.