Naples, Italy

Tunis, Tunisia

Palma de Mallorca, Spain

Barcelona, Spain (May 2007)

Lucca, Italy

Located in northern central Italy, in the region of Tuscany, Lucca is an ancient walled-city, dating back to centuries before Christ.

Tuscan Countryside

Villa Torrigian (Camigliano, Italy)

Mt. Etna (near Catania, Sicily, Italy)

The Acropolis (Athens, Greece)

Best Birthday Ever!!!

Ephesus, Turkey

House of the Virgin Mary (on Mt. Koressos, near Selcuk, Turkey)

Basilica of Saint John (near Ephesus, Turkey)

Corfu, Greece

Dubrovnik, Croatia

Flying Over Greenland!

Heading Out Again...

After being home in Seattle for a few weeks, I'm flying out on May 5th to rejoin my ship in Palermo. I'll keep you posted on all the amazing sights and sounds as we cruise through the Mediterranean Sea! (For a full itinerary of my upcoming route, see the post dated March 31, 2007 titled "What's Next For Me...").

Monaco

Measuring just under one square mile in size, the Principality of Monaco is the world's second-smallest independent country. Famous for its casino, Grace Kelly, and Prince Ranier, Monaco commands fantastic views of the Mediterranean Sea, and neighboring France. Subdivided into ten wards (instead of cities), Monaco can further be divided into city blocks -- it has 173 of them! Monte Carlo, probably the most famous of its wards, houses the world-famous casino.

I've been obsessed with Monaco ever since reading Thomas Eccardt's Secrets of the Seven Smallest States of Europe. I longed to visit -- and it sure didn't disappoint -- perfectly clean and orderly in every way, a place where medieval meets cafe culture, Monaco is one of my favorite places in the world to date. Hope you enjoy the following snapshots of this tiny country on the Riviera.

Eze, France