Monte Carlo, Monaco - Monday, April 28th

We were absolutely thrilled to spend the day with Misha and Naoki.  They had a bit of trouble being admitted through the port security gate, but a representative from our ship went to help and they got in just in time to take the tour with us!!  Misha never looks a day older.  She still looks like she's in her early 20's.  She just gets more and more beautiful.  We had so much fun with them.  Since Naoki and I had never been to Monte Carlo, we toured the Old Town and Casino Square.  After riding a series of escalators and elevators to the top of the "Rock" we strolled through the gorgeous St. Martin's Gardens.  Evidently, Princess Grace was a huge lover of flowers and plants and these gardens reflect her elegance and beauty.  There was even an "exotic" garden which was composed of cactus.  Those of us from the southwestern U.S. might not have classified cactus as exotic, but it was part of a gorgeous garden.

We took our time strolling through the beautiful flowers, then we walked up to St. Nicholas Cathedral where Grace Kelly and Prince Rainier III were married.  I was a little girl when they married but I remember how beautiful she looked in her silk taffeta, tulle and lace gown.  She truly looked like a royal!  Today, the cathedral houses the tombs of Princess Grace and Prince Rainier.  There were beautiful fresh flowers on both of their graves.  It was obvious they were loved very much.

After visiting the cathedral we walked to the Prince's Palace where Prince Albert, eldest son of Prince Rainier and Princess Grade resides.  It's amazing to me that houses (palaces) of the royals are right in the center of the community.  Our guide told us that when they are in town the royal families can often be spotted in the community!  They seem so accessible.  Very different than in the U.S.

Our next visit was to Casino Square to see the famous Monte Carlo Casino.  We walked into the gorgeous and very ornately decorated lobby but they were charging about $15.00 for a 10 minute tour so we decided we didn't need to go in and see the tables!  We walked past the high end shops on the square complete with Gucci, Cartier, etc.  We decided to pass up the shopping opportunity and head for the Cafe de Paris to have drinks on the square since it was such a beautiful day.  We sat there sipping our cappuccino, tea and beer watching the Maserati's, Ferrari's, and Rolls Royce cars parade through the square.  What a treat!!!

We returned to the ship for an afternoon lunch with the kids and to tour the ship.  Then, we had some time to relax in our stateroom and just enjoy some family time.  It was so wonderful to be with Misha and Naoki.  However, the time passed quickly and soon it was time to say goodbye and for our ship to sail to Barcelona, our final port of the world cruise.  We walked them to the gangway and watched as they made their way back through the port entrance - so sad.  Thankful for the time we had together and hopefully will have a chance to see them again soon.  I'll try to write a blog entry when we arrive on land.  I'll write when we have internet access.  I'll be as diligent as possible.  We are leaving our very structured life on the ship, where we NEVER have to make any decisions beyond what we want to eat, to being completely on our own schedule.  No tour buses waiting for us at 8:00a.m.  Also no butlers and housekeepers to clean our room while we're out enjoying day or to bring us breakfast in our room when it's too early, or we're too tired, to go to the restaurant.  No waiters to carry our plates or keep refilling our wine/champagne glasses.  Reality suddenly hits!!!  Another interesting set of adventures await!!!!