We needed a way to get home. On the outbound trip we used Chase Ultimate Reward points to book one way Virgin Atlantic flights. We then traveled around the Middle East and Europe: to Gdansk on Ryan Air, Tirana on LOT Polish Airlines, Cairo on Aegean Airlines, around Egypt and to Athens on EgyptAir, and finally to Barcelona on Ryan Air. We decided a repositioning cruise would be a perfect way to get home – a finale to our 4-month journey. Repositioning cruises start in one port and end in a different port, repositioning the fleet for different itineraries. In the Spring, cruise lines move their ..read more

Why go to Bologna, a city named for deli meat? To eat, of course! A mortadella (aka bologna), provolone and pistachio sauce sandwich.Buongiorno from Bologna, Italy. Two croissants and coffees for about $8. Bologna is nicknamed “La Grassa” The Fat One because of its rich cuisine. The Emilia-Romagna cities of Parma, Modena and Bologna are famous for production of Parma ham, Parmesan and Grana Padano cheeses, balsamic vinegar, mortadella, sausages, other cheese and dairy products, fruit and vegetable conserves and stuffed pasta.Italian regions are known for a particular specialty pasta. Bologna’s ..read more

What it Cost to Travel: Athens, Aegina, plus a Greek Island Cruise Athens: After the busyness of our Egypt Adventure we traveled to Athens, a city we’ve enjoyed spending time in before. We especially looked forward to eating Greek food. There wasn’t anything on our To See or Do list, except wander, do laundry, eat and write the Egypt posts. Still, 8 nights really wasn’t enough time. We chose to stay in the Koukaki neighborhood again, an excellent choice away from the crowds, but with excellent eateries. Aegina: We decided to visit a Greek Island and Aegina is the closest one to Pireaus, only ..read more

While in Albania I entered every expense on the Travel Wallet app in order to track each single Lek (the Albanian currency) we spent. Conversion rate is roughly 100 Lek to $1 USD. One fresh local tuna dinner cost $12 at Taverna Fish Filipi in Sarande. Expenses are for both of us for 28 nights/29 days. I include airport transfers, but not the cost of travel to and from Albania, or overhead expenses from home like cell phone service and insurance. We stayed 2 weeks in both Tiranë and Sarandë, but we had two one-week stays in different neighborhoods in Tiranë. I will both report the average for t ..read more

Sarandë, pronounced Saranda, is a southern Albanian city hugging the hills surrounding beautiful Sarandë Bay on the Ionian Sea. It has the Mediterranean climate and diet and 300 days of sunshine a year! There is a wide mile-long promenade.There are several public beaches. We brought “water shoes” specifically because of rocky beaches (with bits of broken glass) like this one and have enjoyed the refreshing waters. There are no waves unless it’s windy, then it gets a bit choppy.Directly across the bay is the Greek island of Corfu. There are fast, slow and car ferries to Corfu and Bari, Italy ..read more

Albania is a developing country. It is a challenge to travel. The manmade lake in Tirana. There is no Tourist Information Booth, nor Tourist Map. City bus routes don’t show up on Google maps and most taxi drivers don’t speak English. Older citizens know some Italian. We have come across some people working in coffee shops that have been conversant in English. In the evenings and after dark in Tirana we see people out for a stroll, couples pushing strollers, children playing in squares, gatherings at sidewalk cafes. It feels very safe. Every evening we walk past two small markets with a fresh p ..read more

Good Morning! I’m so happy to have you meet me in Albania for coffee. Espresso, Macchiato, Doppio Macchiato, Cappuccino, Americano, Cafe Freddo, or Turkish. What would you like to drink? Albania is known for its beaches, mountains, lakes, and history. We came for Albanian culture! The coffee culture! According to Breathe in Travel website, Albania is the “world leader in the number of coffeehouses per capita…with 654 coffeehouses per 100,000 inhabitants” an estimated total of at 18,000 shops.” Albanians love their coffee, but there isn’t a Starbucks in Albania! We really were surprised by the ..read more

We are in Tirana, the capital city of Republika E Shqipërisë, or just Shqipëria, which is what they call their country and translates as “Land of the Eagles.” We know it as Albania. The term Albania is the medieval Latin name of the country. It’s hot! High 90s. We’re getting mosquito bites. They itch. It’s different from European Poland. It’s different from the Middle Eastern country of Jordan. Maybe in some ways more similar to Mexico. There are lots of construction projects underway. Communication is harder. English is not as prevalent except among the young people. With older people their ..read more

Let’s have fun and read the title again. It’s easy when you remember the W sounds like a V. I will write it out phonetically. Vaht? Vhair? Veal-EETSH-kah! What made these unique markings?Stacked log walls?Walkways over pools of water?We are deep underground where every thing – the tunnels, walls, floors, roofs have been chiseled by hand through solid rock salt. The wooden supports are stronger than metals that corrode.At Wieliczka they mined salt, sodium chloride, which is called White Gold.Solid salt is translucent. Welcome to Wieliczka Salt Mine Originally water collected from local springs ..read more

Visiting Warsaw, one cannot miss signs from its tumultuous history especially in regards to World War II and Communism. There are many somber reminders and memorials as well as several excellent museums. We visited two. Life Under Communism Museum portrayed the struggles, follies and absurdities of communist life under the Soviets after World War II. It was especially moving to me since some – and especially the end of this period occurred in my lifetime! The exhibits explained some of what the Polish people endured under Soviet occupation including: Any sign of Polish nationalism, even spea ..read more