We enjoyed Funchal as it was a Holiday and the Festival of the Flowers was taking place. We took a tour of a large private garden and then stopped at the Old Blandy Tasting Room for samples of their famous Madeira wine .  They had a variety pack of small bottles of the wine which was a popular purchase by our group. We walked  around the town briefly  and the main streets are right by the harbor so after you take a courtesy shuttle bus from the dock ,you could have a good time sight seeing. 


Madeira (Funchal)

Being able to stand at the observation point on Gibraltar and look across to Africa on one side and Spain on the other was something., The first part of the tour going up the rock on narrow winding roads in a minibus was not helped by a guide that we all had trouble understanding but the views made up for that . When we got into the WW2 tunnels that were dug into the rock , that guide was much better and it was fascinating how the troops and their support staff lived and worked underground  We also stopped to see the apeslarge monkeys-which inhabit part of the rock ,. They were regarded by the British troops as good luck charms during the war and now  are tourist attractions. Keep your distance as they can be pests and will jump on you looking for food .  


Gibraltar

Here again the ship is within easy walking distance of a main street . You should go to the Port Talks to get some ides of the layout of the city and also pick up a map from the local tourist people on the dock to help you find your way around .We like to walk around the side streets to see how the residents live and shop . We found the main shopping streets several blocks up from the dock and did our window shopping and picture taking along the way. When we got back to the main street near the dock we stopped in a Gelateria for some Gelato and it was superb.  


Sardinia

The port is over an hour away from Rome and since we have never been to Italy we chose to take the Princess Shore Tour. They arranged for some very comfortable buses and our local guide who traveled with us was very informative along the way , When we got to Rome , the City guide joined us . The busses park away form the Roman ruins and Vatican city so we did a lot of walking which was fine as the temp was in the 60s . It was very crowded as this was May first which is a National Holiday , Labor Day . Our guides were outstanding and did a great job of keeping us together . The tour guides have a transmitter and a mike and you wear a small receiver and headphones so you can hear her despite all the crowd and traffic noise and your distance from her as the group walks along ., This is a great innovation . She had  an extensive knowledge of the history of the CIty  , the Roman empire and Vatican city . We stood there in awe and could not believe that we were seeing all of this in person .  The only thing we missed was the Vatican Museum with the Sistine Chapel as that was closed because of Labor day .  We will go back again some day . 


Rome (Civitavecchia)

Again we were over an hour from Florence but it was worth the trip . The crowds were enormous because it was a Saturday after the Holiday . This again is a lot of walking from the buses but that fine as you get to see all the amazing 1500s buildings as you walk along and the many marble statues  around the squares . The huge Cathedral with its elaborate marble exterior is great . Because of the crowds we could not get inside some of the buildings. 
   We then went on to Pisa to see the leaning tower. That was not up to the quality of Florence as besides the tower which was the bell tower for the Church - there is only the Cathedral( which is nice ) and the Baptistry . And then many souvenir shops and places to eat . I would skip Pisa.


Florence (Livorno)

The cabin is good size with lots of storage area , While the bathroom is small it is certainly functional . We invest in the balcony cabin as we like the added space  and the quiet ,private area for reading and sunning . We also like watching the arrival and leaving from a port , And , if your traveling companions are in the cabin next door you can have the room steward open the partition so you can share the balconies .   We like the Baja Deck and the 600 block as it is easy to get to the Horizon court and the polls on the 15th deck and for getting snacks,etc to take back to the cabin .  

Our Balcony cabin on the Baja deck was as nice as usual but this time even better .That was complete with German beer , many types of sausages and even a roasted young pig which the chef would slice for you ,  Then at 11:30 , they switch to their all night buffet with pizza, rotisserie chicken, sub sandwiches and good desserts and of course peanut butter cookies, We made that our stop every night after the entertainment for our Midnight snack.

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