Well, today George is 66! No cake with candles, no fanfare or brass band but I guess a win by Geelong will make up for all of that!! He is keeping a check on score on another computer.
We have a late check out & our flight to Bangkok is at 9pm. This will be the last of my comments so hope you have enjoyed reading the trivia over the past 6 weeks. Maureen Go Pies!

Dinner with the Bowes was really lovely. David picked us up from our hotel & took a scenic route to Chiswick where they live. Colin Firth is just around the corner! Had a bit of a hangover the next day after David served French champagne & wines from France, Spain & Italy!
Yesterday we got off to a late start, took a bus to Heathrow airport then the tube to London. Had coffee with the lovely Sarah Farace (Willersdorf) who kindly let us leave a bundle of things at reception while we toured for a couple of hours. Then back on the tube to Pimlico. Problem though as some trains had delays etc & you have no idea how crowded it was - and HOT! If I ever come to London again I'm calling the Queen to ask for a carriage or at least an air conditioned Rolls to take me around!
Dinner with the Kettles was fun. They live in St George's Sq at Pimlico, just up the road from the Pimlico Kindergarten where Princess Diana worked & where that famous photo of her in her see through skirt was taken. John & Susan have a six week old baby Andrew & little George is nearly 3.
After a fabulous BBQ we again took the tube back to Heathrow.

Congratulations to John Philbrick on his retirement and hope the retirement dinner will be fun tomorrow night.

Back on the ship and attempting to pack when George discovered he'd lost his wallet. Turns out he last remembered having it as we got in the mini cab to return to the ship from Bruges. Panic! Cancelled the credit cards and sent an email to the cab company but no word until we checked into the Sheraton here at Heathrow. The message was 'someone has found your wallet'!! The very honest cab driver found it on the front seat. Many calls and much frustration later we think it is being sent here to London! Dear friends to the rescue again!
Very hot in London and will be 28C tomorrow. The air con doesn't seem to be as effective as in Aus or the US. Waiting to be picked up by our English friends & Hallmark summer neighbours Kate & David Bowes. Beverley, you will remember them from the Aus Day luncheon at the MCG.
Had a chat with both Caroline and Diana today, nice to hear that Happy Philbrick is expecting a new playmate soon, will keep him content when J & A are at work.

Went to an Impressionist exhibition in Rouen with many paintings by Monet, Pissarro and Gauguin, mostly painted around Rouen and the Cathedral in particular. Not a lot of emphasis on Joan of Arc except for an archway and a statue in the Town Hall.
Everyone is winding down now that we are on our last day of touring. We came to the beautiful city of Bruges by taxi this morning and have to be back on board at 3.30pm for sailing to Southampton.
Bruges is amazing, such lovely buildings and the chocolate shops make us drool.
Overall, we have been to and seen some wonderful places and for me Italy would be top of the list. Loved the food and the people but too many tourists- would be nicer in cooler months. Lyn W - thought of you as we came here today as there is a Dali exhibition on and banners everywhere!
Love to everyone, will maybe add a bit more from London

The Pritchards send love to Beverley Smith and will see us all when they come to Melb in Oct:
Yesterday at sea and today in LeHarve: Have been to Rouen and now in Honfleur: Really beautiful: Time on internet running out: More later

Had a lovely day in Ireland then the next day in Scotland: Were piped off the ship and scotsmen everywhere: They even had a wee dram for us to sample as we left the terminal: Kenneth and Gretta Pritchard were waiting for us and then drove us to Loch Lomond with morning coffee at the Cameron House Hotel. Then on to Stirling Castle and back to Edinburgh for lunch at their house: Very hospitable and anxious to hear about all their friends in OZ.

Arrived in Dublin at 6am & left the ship after breakfast. We are meeting up with our friend John Kettle for an early lunch. He & Susan now live in London so will be having dinner with them when there. Cool here, only 59C but that suits us!!
Enjoyed an hour or so with John, we had coffee then walked to the Dublin Castle & on to Christ Church Cathedral which to our surprise is Anglican! George & I had lunch at the Dubliner - guiness beef casserole and a pint of guiness each. Another hour or so in the shops & I'm ready to return to the ship as last shuttle from town is at 4.30. Looking forward to Scotland tomorrow. Go Pies.

Really enjoyed our tour in Lisbon. The village of Sintra was lovely, we then drove around mountains to the most westerly place in continental Europe called Point Roca. Windy as hell, in fact toupees and wigs would certainly have blown off had we been wearing ours!!! But rugged and beautiful. Back to Lisbon along the coast and absolutely packed with great beaches unlike most we have seen so far in Europe. Some people left the ship in Lisbon & after an hour walking around town decided to go back to the ship as they were constantly pestered about drugs. We didn't see anything like that but guess they think we are too old to bother.
Have had two days at sea and as usual we didn't do a lot. Actually played bingo one day. There are some very interesting people aboard, it's interesting watching the passing traffic. All shapes & sizes & next to some I look like Elle McPherson!!! haha
Had another formal night & actually met the Captain this time. He is leaving the ship in Scotland and will be replaced by the original Captain Andy Proctor who was in command on our last cruise. The current captain is a bit odd - in his holiday time he drives a bus (the number 74A & 74C route!!) in Penzance!!
We went to the Cocktail party on formal night (again) & won a bottle of champagne so enjoyed that with our table mates at dinner.
Invited 8 people to our room for drinks at 5pm yesterday. 2 Couples from Melbourne, 1 from Sydney & a couple of Americans. Had to make an impression on all the grog George has stockpiled since leaving Venice.

Nice to have another day at sea as the pace has been full on. Never much to report though as we do the usual ie eat drink & sleep! Was formal again tonight & the Captain,s Cocktail party. Meeting some really nice people.

GIBRALTAR
Left the ship after breakfast & shared a mini cab with others for 2 hours. Was great value as we drove to the top of the Rock, viewing beautiful caves along the way and many tunnels used during the wars. Such history here. The rock is like a honeycomb, not as solid as it looks~.
Loved the monkeys which seem to be all over the Rock. Some had babies as new as a few days. All look to be in great condition as are well cared for. Strolled along the main shopping area and all the British shops represented.

LISBON
Internet on the ship still awful so making a quick call to an internet centre in Sintra, Lisbon. Lisbon is lovely, should be here for longer. Will add more later.
Happy Birthday to Jan W tomorrow and Happy Birthday to Gill B on 17th. Hope you both have a great day & we,ll toast your health appropriately.

The rain is not in Spain today! Cooler this morning as we docked in Barcelona which made it more comfortable to ride the HoHo bus. In fact, I had to sit inside it was so cool. Barcelona is such a beautiful city and the architecture is amazing. We had lunch after a couple of hours sightseeing and will shortly make our way back to the ship. Will be at sea tomorrow so may have limited communication. Heard that the Hawks won - what a come back. Also Geelong had a good win so I hear. Contratulations to the Rappaport boys on graduation. Boston - here we come, eh, Harrison? Love to all my family, hope Molly is getting some details of our holiday.

Didn,t go to dinner as felt like something easy from the buffet but George went and ended up sitting alone. Seems the only other couple to turn up didn,t like the menu so left early!

GENOA
Up early to take our tour of Cinque Terre. What a day. 1 1/2 hours on the bus then a very long walk to a ferry which took us along the little towns and bays; very rough but really beautiful. Then walked what seemed like miles back to catch a train 2 stops with an hour break. Then back on the train two more stops and home on the bus. Would have been easier to make our own arrangements but Princess aren,t known for being the best tour organisers.
Our new table mates at dinner are a couple from Orange County CA and a couple from Wilmington, North Carolina!

CANNES
Today we are in Cannes. The ship is anchored right opposite the Majestic Hotel where we stayed for a week in 1992 for the IBA. Still looks the same. Have come across on the tender boat for a look around and just seeing all the VERY expensive boats in the marina speaks for itself: I guess there are some ordinary people like us somewhere around though! Will be in Barcelona tomorrow, haven,t been there before so looking forward to that.

Spent a few hours in Rome yesterday & took two hop on hop off buses around the city. As it turns out we should only have taken one tour as didn.t leave us much time to get the train back to Cittivechia. However, we had been to Rome before & were really just refreshing our memories!!! Actually very impressive but far too much traffic and really hot. I have caught one of the many colds around the ship so decided to give Florence-Pisa a miss. Sad, but I need to be OK as still have a lot of things to see tomorrow in Genoa. Instead of docking at Lavorno we are in La Spezia which is near to Lavorno but still 2 hours away from Florence. The town is beautiful, in fact not to be missed and the shops very elegant. Great news about the Pies win and nice that we are still up there on the ladder. Need to give the Cats a nudge!!! Right Beverley?
We have a new bunch of people on the ship, haven,t met many yet but will no doubt do so at dinner tonight. Will have to tell all the same old stories again.

Had a really nice day at sea yesterday, very relaxing after alll the ports we have visited. Last night was formal and we had the Captain,s Circle cocktail party to attend before dinner. We cruised around the boot of Italy from around 5pm and it was amazing with Sicily on one side of the boat and the beautiful coastline theother.wig
Today we are in Naples so left the ship at around 8.4 am with Jenny & Angus & took 3 Hop on Hop off buses around the city. Really interesting and much better than we expected really. This coastline is certainly worth a visit. It is quite hot so we are heading back to the ship for a late lunch and mabe a swim. Tomorrow it,s Rome and we will be saying goodbye to our NZ friends,Most people are getting off the ship in Rome I think only about 300 going through to Southhampton. - Lyn S - hope you had a nice birthday.

Santorini, Greece, is really beautiful. We arrived at around 7am & left the boat shortly afterwards by tender. Thought there would be crowds trying to get the cable car or donkeys or whatever but in fact it was rather quiet as we are the only cruise ship here today. Took a bus straight away to the town of Oia which was absolutely stunning. But is seems to be overridden with dogs! In fact they seem to adopt you and one actually accompanied us all the way around the village. We couldn't shake him & the only time he lost contact was when he chased a cat up a tree!!! Back in Porto Fira we had coffee overlooking the stunning bay, Caldera Volcano & of course the Crown Princess. Then along the narrow streets full of things we don't need to buy, followed by souvlaki & a beer at a restaurant with a fabulous view.
We have a day at sea tomorrow so probably no news until the Monday. Did hear from Diana today & she is in seventh heaven. Also heard from Caro & Jane.

Today we are in Rhodes. It's hot, around 29C and not much breeze in the streets. Had an email this morning from Diana who has arrived safely in Barcelona and was about to do her first training session - a jump into the pool fully clothed. Also heard from Caroline & Jane & all well there.
We have looked around the town, went to the Grand Palace then sat in a restaurant to have a beer, some gyros & to watch the passing traffic. After all, we are on holiday!!!

Kusadasi/Ephesus, Turkey
Up early as we had a tour arranged. Just 9 of us in a mini bus which was the way to go as most tours were of huge groups. Left the ship at 8am, our first stop was at Mary's (Jesus Mother) house at Ephesus - generally believed to be the house where she lived out the last years of her life. All very interesting & beautifully restored, of course lots of rosaries & things for sale. Angus has had a terrible bout of bronchitis & I think it improved after he filled his water bottle at the fountain!!!!! Not sure he was convinced but then I said 'ye of little faith'!! Next stop was at the ruins of Ephesus. Really interesting and partially restored although that will all take another 100 years! Lots of walking and we were certainly glad to see the exit gate! Many steps and uneven walking tracks. The Terraces are being restored, about 7 houses of the era complete with marble, mosaics, frescos. Probably the best ruins we've ever seen. In fact, George says we have a lifetime exemption now from ruins - the only ruin I want to look at in future is in the mirror each day!!
Stopped for lunch at a Carpet Factory - absolutely lovely, tables set up in a beautiful garden & excellent food served the Turkish way. Next stop was at the museum but only for 20 minutes then we called in to a leather factory. Didn't buy anything but J & A did.
Cocktails in the Skywalkers Bar followed by dinner and an early night.

Woke this morning to see beautiful white houses dotting the fairly barren hills of Mykonos. Finished a game of scrabble (don't laugh) before taking the shuttle into town. Walked around the narrow little streets, went to see the Windmills, stopped for lunch at a nice taverna on the main drag then did a bit of window shopping. Was walking past a shop wall & saw the name 'Margot 1969' carved into the stone. Wonder if it was my old flatmate????? Mykonos is really lovely, not much to do in 1 day but you need a relaxing day every now & then. Bought some earrings to match a pendant we bought in Olympia. Dinner tonight was really nice as generally the food on board hasn't been as nice as in previous cruises. But there are lots of options & we always go to the late sitting at 8.15pm and sit with the same people. Watched the crew show which was terrific. Usually a highlight of any cruise.

Today we are in Athens, arrived early this morning. Several large ships in port and the port is about 10 miles from Athens central. Have decided to have a lazy day as we were in Athens several years ago & I have seen the Acropolis etc and the Hilton Hotel so decided to save the energy for tomorrow on Mykonos! George has gone exploring for a few hours - I did a 'pink' job - the laundry then wandered down to the terminal where I found this internet cafe.
Diana will be in the air by now on her way to Barcelona. I gather it was rushed for her in the end and have to thank everyone who helped her get away. Crazy that she should get the call in our absence.
It is very hot now, and will probably remain that way while we are in the Greek Isles & Turkey. Looking forward to Mykonos and Santorini. I think we expected all the islands to have whitewashed houses & blue roofs but so far not the case. That will change!

Sailing out of Dubrovnik was beautiful, we try & sit in the Skywalkers Bar as it is the tallest bar on the ship and at the back so the panorama is great. Also as frequent sailors!!! we have complimentary drinks & savouries for a couple of hours so a good way to socialise! Dinner at night is fun, we are at a table for 8 which includes our friends from NZ and two couples from Macclesfield in Cheshire. Have talked about our few days staying with the Grahams in Prestbury back in the early '
90's. Also discovered the Crooners lounge and the entertainment is by a fantastic singer from Manchester. There is never a dull moment, just not enough time to take it all in and of course this cruise is full on with many exciting places to visit each day.
Yesterday (Sunday) we were in Corfu. Jenny & Angus shared a taxi with us for 3 hours to travel around part of the island. Lots of gorgeous beaches, deep blue water & amazing views from the mountains. We have met some terrific people from all over and have invited a couple from Missouri to our stateroom for a drink tonight. George has enough grog on the shelf to supply the ship - but then guess it has to last another 3 weeks!!
Today we are in Olympia - have just walked all around the ancient site of the first Olympics. Quite amazing to think it is all so old & even though we all know the original games were for men only, I hadn't realised that they performed in the nude!!! George is visiting a couple of museums while I write this and it an opportunity for a quick rest.
Beverley, seriously, you are just not doing enough for out team!!! How dare those BNE thugs beat us by 8 points??? And I have to suffer the smirks of the Geelong supporters on this trip!
Hope all my family are well. Patricia, please tell Molly we are fine and my foot not giving me any trouble.

boarded ship and had a lazy day and nice dinner at night. Sailed from Venice 1pm yesterday, Venice looked stunning as we left, picked out our hotel along the canal. Lots of people everywhere, can,t imagine how it would be in the summer. Hope you had a great birthday JAN K. Arrived here in Dubrovnik this morning & now at an internet cafe so time limited. It was raining but now quite warm & steamy. Dubrovnik just as picturesque as we remember it from 1984. Will be in Corfu tomorrow. Everything on the ship is really nice, but too much food as you would expect. Will update when possible.

Today we are boarding the ship - hooray - though it will be sad to leave Venice in a way. We do stay the night but on the ship so could really still do some exploring but I think that is a dream.
Last night G & I found a lovely little restaurant & afterwards walked into St Marks square as we'd heard that it had flooded the night before. Sure enough it was flooding again. Apparently this happens very infrequently but in certain conditions like weather & high tide. We stood there watching people walk through the water & an elderly couple were approaching us both with their pants rolled up, she with her stockings still on! We smiled at them then I said 'you are brave, and still wearing your hose'. She laughed & said 'we've been to Venice 5 times & never seen this & we always wanted to walk through the water'. After talking for a while she told us she'd worked for Qantas years ago in Frankfurt, (is German), married to a Swiss & they live in Zurich. Then we discovered they'd been to almost all the IBA conference we had attended, including Melbourne! How coincidental. Their names are Charlotte & Andreas Froriep, he is a tax lawyer, & at early 80's still goes to the office everyday. Beverley & the Goldsteins may recall the name.

Another lovely day in Venice. Weather is really warm but always a breeze when you get near the open canal. We had a tour of the Astronomical Clock today - Michael S you would have been impressed! This clock tower was consructed in the 13th century & has had a few changes over the years but the mechanism is amazing. At the very top we had a beautiful view over Venice. I enjoyed the afternoon browsing through the shops in all the little alleyways - there is so much to look at and things seem very expensive generally. I spent an hour travelling around the canal in the vaporetto (water bus) which was fun then joined the queue to go into St Mark's Basilica. At 10am the queue was hundreds of metres long but later in the day it is quite short. The Basilica is grand but probably not as nice as some we have seen in other countries. Jenny & Angus joined us on our balcony for a drink as we watched the Chrystal Serenity sail past, and they have now gone to a Vivaldi concert. We will have dinner then hopefully catch up with Margaret & Graeme Henshaw who are flying in from Berlin tonight. Their hotel is just along from our hotel. Tomorrow we board our ship, the Crown Princess but we don't sail until 1pm the next day so still have another 24 hours in Venice. We can't wait to hang our clothes for 27 nights.

Forgot to mention yesterday that the old priest at Mass in the Cathedral in Amalfi made Fr Bob Maguire look like a young lad!!! He must have been Molly's age!!!
We had a long trip by train yesterday - After a stunning bus trip from Amalfi to Salerno we were to leave for Rome shortly afterwards but our train was about an hour late. As a result we only had a few minutes to make our connection in Rome and you've never seen four people run so fast - of course we were in the last carriage and had to go to the last carriage on a different platform. Have decided train travel is really lovely but difficult with a lot of luggage. And we always carry too much. The trip itself was fabulous, enjoyed the rolling hills of Tuscany, had my first and quickest visit to Florence, Bologna & Padua then arrived into Venice around 6pm. After a quick freshen up we walked along the canal to a nice restaurant then had an early night.
Today we have been to the Ducale Palace, had a trip called the 'Secret Tour' which was interesting - we even saw where Casanova spen several years in prison & from which he escaped eventually. Then a boat ride along the grand canal & a nice lunch. George continued on to a few more museums but I took the easy way home along the port area - saw lots of cruise ships. Tomorrow we go to the Astronomical Clock - apparently you can see the whole of Venice from the tower.

The Amalfi Coast still continues to amaze with it,s beauty. This morning G & I left the hotel at 8.45 & decided to call in to the Duomo but no service on until 10am so we sat there for a while & then heard singing from somewhere so went down stairs & found all the locals (about 30 of them!) at Mass. So, of course we joined in & it was really nice. Then went to Positano on the bus, what a fabulous trip. Walked down many steps to the beach & found had lunch at a terrific restaurant. Came back via Sorrento. I think G is very tired tonight - maybe jet lag is still around! Or a black cat walked in front of him.
Tomorrow we leave for Venice - taking the bus from Amalfi to Salerno then train to Rome and on to Venice. A long day but trains are quite comfortable & at least we don,t have to back via Sorrento and Naples.

Another perfect day in Amalfi - George has finally gone off to Pompeii having attempted to do so 2 days ago and then getting lost!!! Jenny & Angus are in Positano & I,m holding the fort, having a day in the sun. Yesterday we went to Capri. Thought it a bit jaded, too many tourists like ourselves & very expensive shops. Of course the boat ride over there was fun & we had a storm on the way back so got a tad wet sitting on the top deck.
Eating out has been great, no doubt the Italians know how to dish up a good pasta!
Now, Beverley, what happened to our team? Weren,t you there barracking? I was sure you wouldn,t let me down. Wonder if we are still on top of the ladder.
Great news from Diana - she has been called to Disney & will leave Aust June 1 and start training in Barcelona. She boards the Disney Magic on June 5, her birthday, so a nice little present!!! Great for her but we won,t get to see her before she leaves.

Arrived in Amalfi yesterday by ferry from Sorrento via Positano. Absolutely beautiful scenery & most enjoyable way to travel. Our hotel in Amalfi is right on the water & we have a very large balcony with great views. Spent the day relaxing, lunching, checking out the little alleyways etc. Dinner was at a very nice fish restaurant. Went to Ravello on the hop-on hop-off bus today, went to amazing gardens and had coffee in the square before returning to take another little trip to Minori & Maiori. All just too spectacular for words - the winding roads have to be seen to be believed! May go to Capri tomorrow and will definitely take a trip to Positano. More later.

I,ts Tuesday here in Sorrento and we,ve had a fantastic day. Weather perfect, around 24C. We decided to take a tour on the Hop on Hop off bus and it turned out to be a great idea. The tour was for one and half hours and we went to Sant, Agnello, Massa Lubrense, Termini, Sant, Agata sui due Golfi etc. Viewed the Isle of Capri and Vesuvius and all the orange and olive groves. Absolutely worth while. Back in town we had lunch at the port of Sorrento then took a little trolley ride around all the laneways. We just love Sorrento and can,t imagine a nicer place to be. This keyboard is Italian and everything is in the wrong place including apostrophes! Tomorrow we leave for Amalfi and have decided to go by ferry. It should be a great way to arrive.
Welcome home from Fiji Caro, hope all went well.

Arrived Rome airport on time after very nice flight from BKK. Managed quite a few hours sleep and felt refreshed after the heat of Thailand. Now in Sorrento after a three train journey - quite a feat wheeling all that luggage from train to train, up and down stairs and escalators. Not a trip for the faint hearted. Rona, you would have hated it and needed a limo!!!!! The train journey was really terrific, though, and provided us with a very beautiful view of the countryside. Some of you will have been to Sorrento and I have to say, it lives up to expectations. We are all pretty tired after having lunch then a long walk along the narrow laneways of fabulous shops, stopping for the odd tasting of Limonchillo. Weather is perfect, sunny and about 21C.
I am having trouble accessing my email at adam.com.au so if anyone needs to send an email I do have another address which is mjswinburne@gmail.com Not sure why it doesn,t work but I think I had a problem last time we were overseas.

Spent today in at the Novotel in Bangkok. Met up with Jenny & Angus from NZ who are travelling with us for the next 3 weeks. It's very hot so after a sleep we spent most of the day by the pool then had a beautiful seafood buffet at the hotel before coming to the airport for our flight to Rome. It leaves just after midnight so by the time we get to Sorrento by train from Rome we'll be well & truly you know what!
The city of Bangkok is in turmoil so just as well we weren't planning a big shopping expedition!
For some reason I'm unable to access my Adam internet site but should be able to do so in the next couple of days. Am using the computer in the Thai lounge so can't do much about it.
Hope all is well at home.

Now at the airport enjoying a snack in the Air NZ lounge which caters for Thai passengers. George glued to the TV as Geelong are playing Brisbane & winning comfortably. Hope they wear themselves out for the big game next week. Flight departs at 11.30 so quite a while to wait. More later, M.

Haven't left yet but just had to comment on the fantastic win by the mighty Pies tonight. 'Some of little faith' in this household mentioned a walkover by Freo and something about snakes eating the Pies alive but as I noted after the game the Freo boys (in the locker room) were actually eating coloured snakes. This will mean zilch to non football followers and for that I apologise. But a win is a win!!

Looking forward to our week on the Amalfi Coast followed by a 27 night cruise