One more week to go and we are in full planning mode! Jackson and I will be logging our adventures for all who’d like to follow along. I’ll be covering the adult perspective while Jackson will share the teenagers point of view.

We are a few days from our flight and I am very excited for this trip. This is my first time leaving the continent and probably the longest trip I’ve gone on. I am a little nervous because everything is so unfamiliar and strange to me, but I hope it will be an enjoyable experience in the end

-Jackson

The big day has finally arrived! I’ve put so much time into research and planning and spreadsheets all to ensure that everyone has the perfect trip. \240Of course there is no such thing as perfect and there is always a fine line with over planning. \240However, I know my family pretty well by now and it is always better to go in with a rough plan and be flexible than to find ourselves in a new place tired, hungry, and overwhelmed by too many choices. \240That is a recipe for disaster right there!

We are now at the airport getting Jackson his last minute Chick Fil A fix. Hopefully there are more interesting culinary adventures ahead!

That first leg was pretty painless. \240We’ve been flying Southwest so long I forgot what it is like to actually have new release movies, charging stations, and a little bit of leg room! Now the wait for the next one...

We have just landed after our first flight to New York, I am not sure if I will be able to sleep on the next flight. This is my first experience with a flight this long, so hopefully it goes smoothly.

-Jackson

We are finally checked in to the Apartments Sixty Four here in the Eixample neighborhood of Barcelona. \240We couldn’t check in until nearly 3 so we spent a few hours getting some fresh air and exploring Las Ramblas. It was all a blur we are so tired so I’m sure we will be back there again another day. \240We’ve all agreed on a short nap and then an attempt at a late dinner later on....we’ll see!

Those jet lagged kids are sleeping through dinner. More tapas for us!

Our flight was a interesting experience, I had trouble sleeping and It was a very difficult flight. But besides that, Barcelona is extremely beautiful and our hotel is very nice. We are in the middle of the city and can access a lot. We are staying at SixtyFour apartments. I am so far happy with our experience in Barcelona.

After a good nights rest I woke up at 6AM today to find Braden had been up already for 3 hours. He was alert and talking and ready to take on the day! \240He had also raided the fridge in the night of all the snacks we had bought the night before including the Milka cookies (like Kit Kats) and the bikini sandwiches (pressed ham & cheese croissants). Oh well, at least he’s recovered. \240I asked him for a few more hours of sleep and then we grabbed some cappuccino together in the cafe on the corner. \240It was nice having some one on one time with him and we planned our day to include a trip to the mall for some “fancy European threads”.

After we got the rest of the gang up and out, we took a cab over to Diagonal Del Mar in search of clothing with English phrases that make no sense. \240This seems to be a popular trend we have observed in our people watching....

We did a Gaudi tour this afternoon that included both La Sagrada Familia and Park Güell. The tour guide for Sagrada was very informative and I loved it. I think the kids put up with it for my sake but hopefully some of those interesting facts sunk in. It was a truly amazing place and I can’t wait to see it finished some day.

We are all finally on Barcelona time and slept in until noon today. \240We decided on a lunch spot near the apartment called CocoVail Beer Hall which was an American pub type place. \240Not the most adventurous choice but it had something for everyone on the menu. It had a cool vibe with soccer on the TV’s and trivia to pass the time while we waited for our food. \240

Our tour yesterday was an interesting experience. The Sagrada Familia was spectacular and amazing, but our tour wasn’t. We put on headphones and a guy told us every single fact about the building. I was incredibly bored and didn’t pay too much attention to the facts. This type of thing would only appeal to people who would like to know every little fact about the place but for others not so much. I reccommend just going to see the place and take your own time with it.

We had an amazing final night dinner at 9 Reinas.

It’s time to say farewell to Barcelona and board the Disney Magic for our Mediterranean cruise! The ship feels like a little bit of home as we know the routine and the familiar food (Mickey waffles!).

After a long day of wine tasting we opted to enjoy sail away with our favorite room service \240“All Hands on Deck” cheese plate on the balcony.

What better way is there to spend Fathers Day then wine tasting in the south of France? The kids are enjoying the ship and their sleep while Chris and I spend the day \240with Provence Wine Tours. Our first stop was Chateu Vignelaure near Aix en Provence.

Next stop was lunch. Amazing crepes and wraps in Aix en Provence...

A final stop of wine tasting

Bonjour! Today is a highlights tour of Monaco and Monte Carlo so gotta load up on those Mickey waffles ; )

This is the first time Disney is stopping at the port of Genoa. There were not many excursion options and not even a mention in the Rick Steves travel guide. Given all this, we decided to just sleep in and explore the port on our own for lunch.

I used the morning to visit the spa for a Fire & Ice mani/pedi and then wrangled the troops off the boat for Genoa.

For anyone considering this port in the future I have two words, DONT BOTHER!

It was the most scared I have ever been for my safety and belongings! It was dirty, sketchy, and smelly. We found a place for lunch and realized we needed to get back on the boat ASAP. Oh well, at least we have a good vacation story about how daddy led us down dangerous alleys filled with drug dealers and hookers!

We enjoyed the rest of the day on the ship. We loved the Tangled musical - absolutely Broadway quality!

The port of Livorno is about 75 minutes from Florence so it was an early start for us in the morning. \240I ordered some room service coffee and bagels and set our Mickey wake up call for 7. \240Everyone was surprisingly chipper and we were ready at 8 on the dot (even Braden!). \240The private transportation I had booked worked out perfectly as our driver was ready and waiting with a sign and we were on our way quickly. \240We had our tour booked to climb the Duomo for 10am so it was a tight schedule to begin with but unfortunately there was an accident on the highway which had delayed us even further. \240The driver handled it perfectly and insisted on calling our tour company to make sure they did not leave without us. \240After an animated exchange in Italian, the driver said we were all set and the tour guide was there waiting for us as soon as we pulled up.

I had done some research a few weeks before the trip and realized a bit too late what we were in for in terms of climbing the 463 steps to the top of the Duomo. \240You Tube was filled with clips of people huffing and puffing giving strong advisories of the steep climb and claustrophobic conditions. \240This one in particular nearly scared me off.

Chris opted to spend some time exploring while the kids and I decided to brave it - despite the warnings. \240We were so glad we did! \240The first flight was pretty rough but the guide was good at distracting us and stopped just enough to let us (me) catch our breath and prepare for the next set. \240The view at the top was worth all the hard work and we got some great photos and memories from the experience. \240Others were not so lucky as on the way down we passed a woman crying in full panic attack mode..I guess she didn’t research what she was getting into ahead of time!

Sea Day

The plan was to sleep as late and as much as possible, read some books, and get some pampering.

Mission accomplished! I got 1/3 of the way into the new Steven King book the Outsider and enjoyed the beautiful sunshine in the adult pool area. Chris and I got hot stone massages at the spa and let the “Drink of the Day” work it’s magic.

We didn’t see the kids much this day but we caught up for dinner and planned our final stop in Naples. Another amazing day...

Today was a stop in the port of Naples. Here I arranged for private transport which would take us to Pompeii, Sorrento, and Positano.

We had a little trouble finding the driver (who spoke only a little English) but once we did, it was a fairly short ride to Pompeii where we picked up our tour guide Mariella. Mariella spoke fluent English and provided so much great detail about what we were seeing but at just the right level to keep the kids attention.

I found it interesting that of 20,000 people, actually 18k fled by boat before the eruption. I couldn’t help but think about how those families must have struggled with that decision the way we did with hurricane Irma. What if it’s nothing? What if it gets worse? Evacuate or not? I also marveled at how much they have been able to uncover and preserve. Truly an amazing opportunity to see this in person...

After Pompeii, we headed toward Sorrento. Traffic was terrible and I already had a sense it might be more relaxing to spend more time in Sorrento then battle traffic all day trying to see a third location as well. We took a quick photo stop along the way to catch a shot of the beautiful coastline.

Entry by Jackson (lost my free trial account):

We had a tour of Pompeii today with a wonderful tour guide I would recommend. I also recommend not going with a large group of people but just going with your family. Our tour was perfect because it was at whatever pace we wanted and could personalize it with our tour guide. After our share of information we decided to go to Serento. This was also a wonderful city with plenty of shops and places to eat. After a while of wandering we headed down to the beach and went in the water. The water was very nice because it was initially very cold and that felt nice on a hot day. I went deeper into the water and it was so clear and nice it felt amazing. I definitely recommend adding this into your plans for a trip immediately, But make sure to bring towels and enough euros to use the lift(1 per person). After this we went with our tour guide and driver back to the ship in a >1 hour car ride. This excursion was one of my favorites if not my favorite to do in Italy. It is good for all ages as the city is packed with everything. I really enjoyed my time here and wish to come back one day.

Sadly, today was the day for us to leave the Disney Magic. \240It can be a shock to the system as they want you out of your room by 8AM. \240We know the routine by now and carried our bags up to the breakfast buffet one last time before meeting our driver for the trip from port to Rome.

It was about an hour car ride past some beautiful farms and sunflower fields.

Besides the charm, the suite also had comfy beds and we all slept in and got some much needed rest. \240Jackson was kind enough to run next door for some croissants and we had a nice breakfast on the patio. I planned our meals for the day and plotted our course across town for our afternoon bike tour.

For lunch we headed over a few blocks to a sandwich shop called Bread In. I honestly have never had a better sandwich in my life! \240I would come back to Rome just for this. \240We ate so fast I didn’t get pics but here is an idea of the menu..

For our final day in Rome, I had booked a VIP tour of the Colosseum, Roman Forum, and Palantine Hill. \240It included a tour of the arena floor and areas below where the animals were kept. \240I intentionally booked all our tours in the afternoon knowing that we tend to like a more leisurely morning and sleep late on vacation. \240This was a good plan for this day in particular as we were quite sore from all the bike riding the day before!

Chris and I explored a bit on our own in the late morning and grabbed some Bread In take out for kids lunch. \240Around 2, we ventured over to our meeting spot near the Colosseum. \240The weather had been beautiful our entire trip with perfect temperatures and nothing but sunshine but for our final activity we had some storms rolling in. \240It was funny to see the street vendors coming out of the woodwork to sell umbrellas and ponchos.

Our guide through Walks of Italy was very entertaining and did his best to keep our spirits up through the occasional downpours. \240We didn’t mind the rain as it kept the temperature cool and it made the experience a bit more cozy. \240The only negative is that we didn’t see many of the stray cats that typically roam around the area.