Category: Port of Call

Midway into our cruise, we participated in an excursion that remains our favourite.  It did not offer the iconic landmarks or symbols of this diverse society or definitively explain its history and culture as most of our other excursions did.  What it did was allow us to really interact with the people of this island….

Before setting off on our Indonesian adventure I did a fair amount of research, as I usually do, about our destination.  Ken however, relied on his existing knowledge of the region and helped direct our choices to ensure that we hit all of the important sites.  Following are two of his favourites. The most visited…

We spent a mere two days on the island of Bali in December.  Although the lure of beautiful beaches and calm resorts was strong, we chose instead to discover more about the history of this island during two full-day excursions. Our first day explored the eastern side of the island from the port of Denpasar,…

Located on the island of Java, Jakarta is the capital city of Indonesia.  In 2025 the population was estimated at 11,634,100.  I’m sure we met most of them on the road during our tour. We arrived in the crowded, dirty, wet and impoverished port.  By our standards the area surrounding it would be considered slums….

We have all seen pictures of Komodo dragons.  They are the stuff of legends – dinosaurs that still walk among us!  When we had the opportunity to visit Komodo National Park, and perhaps see a dragon or two in person, we leapt at the chance. The only way to access the park is on a…

From Tuscany it is a short drive into the neighbouring  Umbria, a region characterized by hills, mountains, valleys and historical towns.  Our day trip there included a visit to two of these towns; Orvieta and Assisi, along with stunning vistas of the Italian countryside. This 11 hour excursion was also booked with Ciao Florence tours. Our…

Our second foray into the countryside around Florence was a visit to the Val D’Orcia, a region of Tuscany in central Italy, and the medieval towns of Montalcino, Pienza and Montepulcino.   The Val d’Orcia was added to the UNESCO list of World Heritage Sites in 2004.  Its landscape has been depicted in works of art…

Even with all of amazing and iconic sites to see in Florence alone, a two week stay gave us plenty of opportunity to explore all of Tuscany and even into neighbouring Umbria.  These days trips were highlights of our time in Italy. We used Viator to book our excursions for no reason other than I…

Being so close to the second largest city in Italy and not at least spending a day visiting its most iconic sites seemed a waste, so we planned a day trip to Milan from our home base in Florence.  Two sites topped our list of must sees; Da Vinci’s The Last Supper and the Milan…