RachelG

April 23, 2024–Valencia, Spain When I awoke, we were just sailing into a large port. It was bright and sunny, but distinctly colder than yesterday, with the temp in the low 50’s. There was a large city sprawled out in from of the ship. Our tour for the day was to visit L’Oceanografic (largest aquarium in Europe) and the old town. I am not really particularly super interested in aquariums unless I am taking my grandkids, but the architecture was supposed to be really impressive. We set off by bus, stopping first to look at the fabulous architecture of the City of Arts and sciences. It is really other worldly, very creative. Then on the to aquarium. We had about 2 hours there but could have spent much longer. There are all sorts of exhibits and not just fish. They have penguins, several aquatic mammals, and a lot of birds. Unfortunately I apparently am terribly allergic to something there and started sneezing non stop. But it was very interesting. We then drove to the old town alongside what used to the the channel of a river, but now is a huge park. Valencia really is a lovely city with lots of history. The buildings in the old town are well preserved and impressive. We broke away from the group as we were having lunch at a place I had found called Santa Rita. Wonderful fresh food—salad, burrata, pasta, pizza. We were stuffed. We walked back to the shuttle bus stop. Back on the ship, it was time for packing then a terrible showing at trivia. Final farewells with lots of friends. We were still full from lunch so had a light meal in Compass Rose. The Beatles show was to follow, but we have to be up at 5 am as we have a pretty early flight—so we finished packing and we’re off to sleep.

No Eason given that I know of, but I could have missed it.

The ship

Downtown Cartagena

Bull in the last tapas place

Cartagena theater kitties

Roman theater in Cartagena

April 22, 2024–Cartagena, Spain We awoke to a bright sunny day. We were just pulling up to the dock in Cartagena. Temperature again mid 60s. The port is quite a lot smaller than Malaga, and the ship is docked right down town. I appears much drier than Malaga too, with the hills surrounding being covered with short dry looking bushes. Our tour for the day was a walking tapas tour which didn’t start until 10:50, so we had a leisurely morning. Our walking tour took off from the ship right into town, walking along a long esplanade with beautiful palm trees. The walkway as well as the sidewalks in the city was marble. Very beautiful, and there was a really cool map of the world embossed in the pavement. We walked past several historic buildings then went to 3 totally different tapas places,one a very old traditional one, the next more of a sidewalk cafe, and the third more modern. The best of them was the last with a potato omelet. We then went to the Roman theater, interesting as it was only discovered in 1986, but has now been excavated and is in good shape. We then broke off from the group and went for lunch at Tagliatelle which is a great restaurant with probably the best pizza I have had outside of Naples and a huge salad. Back on board, we won at trivia. Dinner at Compass Rose was great though I wasn’t really that hungry given the huge lunch. I had falafel, mushroom soup and a asparagus ravioli. The soup should have been hotter, but otherwise everything was perfect. The show was another by Duo Esencias, the violin and dance duo. Again, very good. I mainly go to see her costumes which are fabulous.

Market with local products

A tight spot on the trail

After the sun came out and the fog lifted

Foggy start of the hike in El Torcal

We haven’t heard anything from our neighbors or the hall for that matter. So either they are really quiet neighbors or the insulation is adequate.

April 21, 2024–Malaga, Spain Another good nights sleep, and we awoke at the pier in a huge port, Malaga. For the first time there was another cruise ship in port, Carnival Glory, a monster of a ship. It was very overcast with temperatures in the mid 60s. It looked like rain would pour at any minute, though the forecast said only a 3% chance. We had originally been signed up to do the King’s Gaze Hike, a hike we had done several years ago on a land trip. It is a very steep mountain trail, and we received notice 2 days ago that the trail was closed due to maintenance issues. We looked at the remaining excursions, and none really appealed. We had been to Granda and the Alhambra, and to Ronda previously, as well as to Malaga itself. So I got online and found a guide to take us on a different hiking tour. I was a little worried as this was very last minute, and I usually spend hours researching before booking. We were to meet our driver outside the terminal at 11 am, and he was there right on time in a nice big van. We set off through town with him pointing out various sites—a beautiful park, the bullfight ring, the old market, a new soccer stadium. Soon we were out of town and driving into the countryside on a very nice freeway. It started raining a little, and I was worried. Fortunately the rain stopped quickly. We got off the freeway onto a narrow winding road which went up and up with olive groves on each side. Thousands of trees. As we went higher, we drove into a thick bank of fog. Finally we reached El Torcal, a world heritage site, 3500 ft above sea level. We couldn’t see more than about 2 ft in front of our faces. We met our hiking guide. He was worried by the dense fog, but we set off. The trail was VERY rocky and steep in some places. He was trying to tell us what we would have seen had the fog not been so dense. After about an hour of hiking, all of a sudden the fog lifted and the sun came out. It was spectacular with huge rock formations all around, reminding me of places in Utah. The remainder of the hike was wonderful, with magnificent views in all directions. Our guide did tell us that the trail for the hike we had originally booked through the ship was just fine. He had been on it a day prior as he normally guides there.. He said either not enough people signed up for the hike, or the operator failed to buy the tickets ahead of time, and it was totally sold out for today. On the way back to the ship, our driver stopped by a place that sells local products. We bought a couple of bottles of really good olive oil and some great cheese. Back to the ship, we came in 2nd at trivia. George’s Apple Watch heard one of the questions and announced the answer to the room. We were NOT cheating. No idea why his watch did that. Since we didn’t have lunch, we broke out the cheese and some wine for a nice snack. Dinner was in Compass Rose. I had a great salmon dish while George had spaghetti bolognese. Both perfect. The show was the grand finale as it is the end of the 6 month contract for the singers and dancers. They did a great performance, and had a well deserved standing ovation.

Love the Navigator. Not as flashy as the newer ships, but we like knowing everyone on board. Hands down, the best view from a gym on sea anywhere.