This morning the French captain wished us a happy 4th of July. The French can appreciate Independence Day perhaps more than most and it was sweet that the entire French crew went out of their way to wish us a happy day. They even made a 4th of July American feast for lunch and teatime (though we skipped both to indulge in local specialties instead).
We arrived to Syracuse and opted to explore on our own, something I would recommend on every trip as you never know what you might discover. This was a particularly great day for exploration as Syracuse has an old town laid out on the island of Ortygia that has beautiful pedestrian walkways, marketplaces and narrow winding streets.
Ortygia, Syracuse Sicily (Mary Curry)Fountain in Ortygia (Syracuse) (Mary Curry)
We did a bit of shopping and saw the fountain of Diana before taking a break from the heat for a refreshing lemon ice (granita).
Cooling off with a drink in Ortygia (Mary Curry)Cooling off with a drink in Ortygia (Mary Curry)
From there we continued on to the Duomo. This cathedral impressed me more than nearly any of the European churches I've visited, simply for its immense history. Originally a Doric temple built in the 5th century BC, it was converted to a Catholic church nearly 1,000 years later, incorporating the original columns of the temple. In later years, it was conquered by the Arabs and used for a mosque before being retaken by the Normans in the 11th century and converted back to a Catholic church. It's one of the only Catholic churches in the world initially constructed nearly 2,500 years ago, before the time of Christ. The Doric columns are still clearly visible and appear to be a critical structural element to this day!
Cathedral in Syracuse (built on prehistoric temple using existing Doric columns) (Mary Curry)Syracuse Cathedral (Mary Curry)
After our visit, we did a bit more shopping and asked one of the local shopkeepers for advice on a place to eat. He recommended a great little restaurant that had only Italians when we entered. We ordered the same pasta with swordfish, salad and wine. After lunch, we spent about an hour looking for somewhere my mom could exchange money including several banks. The last one finally told us that there is no money exchange on Ortygia and my mom thought it important to mention this here - travelers will find an ATM card much easier in Sicily in general!
Once we returned to the ship, I headed to the pool for a water aerobics class. In this heat, it seems like water based activities are the best choice for exercise! Then we changed for our 4th of July Farewell Gala with the captain.
Farewell dinner with captain on Le Bougainville (Mary Curry)Farewell dinner with captain on Le Bougainville (Mary Curry)
Excellent travel advice and service
This is my second experience working with Adventure Life. I’m sold. Jess Heuermann is an experienced traveler and provides a lot of useful information when planning a trip. These are the questions I like to ask at the outset - What’s it like to go here, there, what would you suggest, what do people report, can we add any additional side trips? Jess took the time to answer my questions and seek additional information to share with me. Petchie Colina is outstanding in helping with travel logistics and final preparations. Adventure Life has excellent guides and offers private guides and small group adventures. We enjoyed the opportunity to talk with the guides and drivers to learn more about their countries, cultures and histories. A highlight was having the guides pick local restaurants where we could share meals together. Highly recommend.
Claire Cordon
3 days ago
Our six-day tour in Iceland went smoothly with one exception. We had asked for two rooms each night. Somehow we were booked with one room with three beds. It could not be fixed at the first hotel in Reykjavik because the hotel was fully booked. Once informed of the problem, however, Adventure Life rebooked for two rooms for the remainder of the trip. As an 85-year-old traveler, I appreciated that one could participate at different physical levels at many of the stops. Iceland is a great place to visit but on the expensive side.
Mary Warren
4 days ago
Jess was very easy going and answered all our questions. It’s not easy dealing with 6 people at once but she did an outstanding job!
Diane Foster
6 days ago
Kassandra and the Adventure Life team have been incredible! Kassandra was very knowledgeable and attentive to our asks while making sure we kept within our budget. This was our first experience with a travel agent and we were blown away by the booking/initial exploration service. We will use Adventure Life again.