Category: Port of Call

There is an old saying, “timing is everything”, an expression which means that the “consideration of other events can greatly influence some desired outcome”.  This sums up our stop in Salalah, Oman perfectly. Our arrival in this port was on a Friday, the holy day of the week for Muslims.  As a result many of…

Fujairah is the fourth largest of the emirates.  It does not have the wealth or tourism appeal that Abu Dhabi or Dubai have, but it allowed us to see the “other” side of the United Arab Emirates.  Our drive took us through lush green landscapes along the scenic coastline, up  mountainous terrains and through villages…

Stunning architecture under brilliant blue skies, colourful foliage surrounded by encroaching desert sands and a diverse population of friendly welcoming people; this is Abu Dhabi. When the Arab countries were united in 1971 by Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan Abu Dhabi was made its capital. It is remains the largest and wealthiest of the emirates….

One of the most common concerns I hear from fellow travelers is that a cruise really doesn’t give you enough time in any one port, and they are not wrong.  We started cruising in Europe in order to get a sense of what we liked and didn’t; a kind of sampler plate if you will….

Most Baltic itineraries offer stops along the north shore of Germany.  The ports themselves are summer resort destinations for German vacationers full of beaches, shops and restaurants but offer little to the adventurous traveler.  Luckily they are gateways to two of Germany’s major cities. The port of Warnemunde is a 3 hour train ride from Berlin, the…

During our Baltic adventure our cruise director Marziana  was from a small town in the southern part of Poland.  She was as excited to welcome us to her country as we were to visit it.  Before the port stop Marziana hosted an hour long introduction to common Polish words and phrases and her favourite polish food…

Like Riga before, Klaipeda is a port that is not often found on Baltic itineraries. Lithuania is a relatively small country on the eastern shore of the Baltic Sea, and is surrounded by  Latvia, Belarus, Poland and Russia.  The country was occupied by the Soviet Union after WWII before proclaiming its freedom and independence in…

Although there were lots of really interesting excursions for Riga a travel friend had told us that this was a walk-able city with an attractive Old Town and lots to do on your own.  He was right.  We spent our day wandering Riga and had an amazing time in this port city. It was a…

On our last Baltic Cruise in 2014 we were unable to stop at the port in Stockholm due to a storm.  We spent the day at sea instead and I spent the day dealing with my first real case of sea sickness.  It didn’t stop me from cruising and my desire to visit this Scandinavian…