This was our first cruise ever, and it lived up to all of our hopes and dreams! We boarded the Regents Seven Seas Splendor at Civitavecchia, a port city an hour from Rome. Our suite was delightful, the ship was sparkling clean and the crew were welcoming, professional and paid attention to every detail. Here is the route we followed, with a day in each port and the ship whisking us to the next place as we slept. In the next few posts I will highlight our favorite ports of call.
Updated: Dec 29, 2023
We arrived in Madrid to visit with my brother John. The hotel I had booked was a disaster and we managed to find a better one (Thompson Madrid by Hyatt) after the first night. Right away we had to adjust to the dining schedule of Spain - never a dinner before 9pm 🙂- but John picked great restaurants so it was worth the wait each time.
A highlight of our stay was a “Historical Madrid Tuk Tuk Tour”: https://ecotuktuk.com/madrid/. These little scooter/golfcart hybrids zip around the city and our guide was excellent. Some of the sights that blew us away were the Basilica of San Fransisco El Grande with its dome, paintings and statues, and the botanical gardens with hundreds of varieties of roses. We saw several sights that were new to John, who has lived in Madrid for more than 30 years now.
Our visit to Madrid coincided with some major demonstrations against the government, one of which happened on the morning of November 12, just as we needed to leave for the airport. So taxis were blocked from the downtown area and the only way to the airport was on the metro. That sounds fine, but the route was on three metro lines with two changes - and the changes involved four long flights of stairs up and two long flights down. And we had to do all that with three suitcases and two backpacks. It was a relief to finally get to the airport in time for our next flight - to Rome!
The combined clans of Rogers, Lev, Eades, O’Brien and Stedman assembled in Felixstowe to honor my brother Nick, who tragically died at the age of 61. The funeral service was moving and then we spent the evening at The Mariners - Nick and Irene’s favorite pub. Nick was always the life and soul of any party he attended, and we felt him there with us that evening.
During that week, Laura and I drove to Carbrooke to see our friends Mike and Christina, to Cheadle Hume and Macclesfield to see Ric, Sally, Rob and Geoff and then to Oxford for some sightseeing before heading on to Madrid.
For this post, here are my favorite photos of Nick. Rest in peace, Bruv, we miss you so much.
