VILLEFRANCHE (NICE), FRANCE

I've  been having some computer problems but I'm ok right now as I got a loaner. So, let me try to finish these cruise posts. I started off trying to write about two stops in one post but there really is just too much.

So, let me continue with our next stop on our Mediterranean Cruise after a lovely Wedding Anniversary looking at Marseilles from the ship. Lol. (You gotta read the last post to understand if you haven't already Barcelona-Marseilles) As I mentioned, we were going to be better prepared so we actually went to the Shore Excursions Desk and booked a tour for our next two stops. From home, I had only booked tours for Rome and Naples before leaving. After all, looking at the excursions book was like a menu and if you know me you know how I am with menus. lol

VILLEFRANCHE (NICE), FRANCE

We got up early to catch the tender boat ashore for our tour.

We didn't go into Nice or visit Cannes. Here is where we I chose for us to take a scenic ride along the French Riviera to Monaco & Monte Carlo.

It was my birthday! Happy Birthday!
What an awesome and beautiful place to spend it with my honey. I couldn't ask for anything more, but maybe to have my kids there too.
So to start our day we got on our tour bus and we were off...driving along the same route of the Monte Carlo Grand Prix.

View from the back of the bus driving along the French Riviera.

Our first stop was the Prince's Palace of Monaco.

It was a bit of a gloomy day and rained a bit but it was still beautiful. I wish I could share so many of the awesome photos we took.  

Such a beautiful view!

After our visit of the Prince's Palace we went for a stroll around Monaco and paid a visit into a local church where we took even more awesome photos. Such architecture and marvelous paintings.

                         

We even learned about the importance of Princess Grace to Monaco.

As it rained lightly, we head back for our next stop in Monte Carlo. You know, where they hold the Monaco Grand Prix. 

Who hasn`t heard of the Grand Prix?

Here, we stopped by the Casino for some photos too, although we didn`t go inside and tried to find some wi-fi while we waited for the others to gather so we could bus back to our starting point in Villefranche.

Following our tour, we took some time to walk around Villefranche. Got myself a Grand Prix t-shirt and we found a cute little spot to sit down and enjoy a French Crepe. After all, we were in France. lol  Again, we took some more awesome photos before heading back to the ship for another wonderful night. 

We had some more celebrating to do!!

44 Baby!!  It's my birthday! Happy Birthday!!

I am such a blessed woman and I definitely thank God for all my blessings and lessons I had to learn to get them. lol

I can't say France was the best birthday ever because that was 3 years ago when I got married the day before it - my husband is my best gift...but this was a close second.

Villefranche Sur Mer, France

Back at the ship, we sat at a different table in the dining room for dinner than we had the night before. Quickly, we learned to appreciate the service we had already previously received. Even though we thought our waiter of the night before seemed a bit stuck up, this nights service just wasn't the same. And, our previous servers made sure we knew it by remembering that I was celebrating a birthday. Although we weren't at their table, they made sure to come to our table to present me with a Happy Birthday dessert. It was soo nice. So, we made sure to request that for the rest of our cruise we get to sit in the same section served by our waiter Lynford and assistance waitress Dinah. They even had an assistant they were training named Perry who carefully watched our glasses of water to make sure they were never empty. It was too funny.

After dinner.....well, it was time to tour and have fun on the ship! Karaoke? LOL
Then, off to bed for another exciting day, in Italy!! La Spezia - (Florence/Pisa)

Another Panoramic shot - Villefranche Sur Mer

Best Bling Yet

Now....before I continue blogging about our Anniversary Cruise, let me tell you why I hadn't finished doing that already. lol I just finished running my last half marathon for the season and got my best bling yet.

                                       

Wanna see it closer?
                                     

I love it! And it's damn heavy too. Quite the weapon if needed i'd say. lol Hang it by the door for protection?

We had a wonderful weekend in Detroit running the Detroit International Half Marathon. What a beautiful route.












Seeing the sun rise as we ran across the Ambassador Bridge from Detroit to Canada was absolutely awesome.

                                       

Catie got this awesome shot of me giving a high five to the Canadian Border Guard....cause you know the Americans would never!!  hahaha


















Then running through the underwater tunnel from Windsor back to Detroit is where this shot was taken - coming out of the tunnel that is!
                                       
We weren`t running for time. The route was too nice to not try to take photos along the way. hahaha So, that`s what we did as you can see.


But let me back up for a bit - Catie came over Friday night so that we could head out early in the morning. And that we did!
We found our way to the Cobo Center in Detroit where they were having the Expo and Race Kit pickup. Check out the Bibs to the right. Yup! And guess which one is Furman`s. lol The lady handing us the Bibs had a good laugh as she caught wind of it`s message.
Oh, and I found the perfect charm I`ve been looking for, for my bracelet. Something that says that I`ve been busting my butt....this certainly was what I just had to get.  13.1 Baby!!


After the Expo we found our way to meet up with an awesome friend who helped with our overnight arrangements. As expected, the place was booked with many marathoners I`m sure. But, we got A BED. hahaha And, knew how to make the best of it. We had an awesome laugh and made plenty of jokes after checking in. Gee...guess where Furman slept. lol

Of course, we ended our evening with an awesome Italian meal at a place in Windsor called Franco`s. I`d definitely recommend and said as much on TripAdvisor where I often share my two cents. lol

Race day.....was a bit chilly but we were prepared with dollar store hats and gloves we could throw away when not needed. Clearly everyone else seemed to be prepared also, based on the amount of clothing items we saw tossed on the sides of the route. I`m sure they were collected and donated to those in need. Jumping over clothes didn`t slow us down though, it was the picture taking along the route. haha I was doing great until I just about finished the running through the tunnel. That`s when I started to lose Furman and Catie, as usual. I was soo frustrated that I wanted to cry. I did my best to encourage myself to keep going. At one point I even said SCREW IT! But then I kept running and kept taking photos. It didn't help that I was still kind of sick either. At one point we ran past a spectator sharing a box of kleenex and I spent the rest of the race regretting not grabbing a few. I think my nose was running faster than I was. lol Anyways, I hit the finish line about 10 minutes after Catie and Furman did. I finished..that's what's important. Definitely need to keep training so I don't fall behind and have to finish alone. I absolutely hate that.

Photo taken to give you a good look at our nice race shirts too.

                     

It was a great race though. Perhaps I will do it again someday soon. Now that I have already taken photos, I can run for time. For now, I am done racing for the season. Yup! That's it for me, for us. Now, to think about next year, and you can bet that Catie is already way ahead of me on that. lol  She has already registered for the Nashville RocknRoll Half Marathon. hahaha We might end up pulling a Thelma and Louise if Furman can't make it. But, more to come on that.

I gotta stop blogging here for now. Spend a little time with my husband before he is off to Jamaica once again. I think I already said that I think I got into the wrong line of work. Gheez!! I am soo serious!

While home alone, I will get back to my cruise posts about a most wonderful vacation. I can't leave you high and dry when there is so much to tell and photos to share.

Oh....and before I forget, let me just give a shout out and a big thank you to our wonderful friends in Windsor who made time for us, helped us out and even fed us. Love you guys. It was a great weekend and look forward to seeing you all again soon.

Barcelona - Marseilles

To start my posts about our amazing trip I thought I would break up the days to make it easier.

Starting with the airport, we were immediately amazed by a terminal we weren`t used to flying out of. Let me tell you, International Flyers certainly seem to get the perks. We walked through hallways of seats with iPads in front of them. It was awesome. You didn`t have to make a purchase to kill your time. Just have a seat and the wifi was available to you. And, if you wanted to order, you did it right from the iPad which also kept track of your flight to notify you of boarding. It was soo cool. My advice though, eat before you go to the airport because everything there is hella expensive!! LOL

Off to Barcelona Spain we were.





We paid extra for something called Option Plus that Air Transat offered. It was recommended by our travel agent (Lisa at Valente Travel-Windsor) and we were happy we took advantage of it because it offered perks such as priority boarding, a comfort package, free earbuds, an extra 10kgs, complimentary drink from the bar as well as a bottle of wine with your meal AND a bottle of champagne. You know I had mine as well as Furman`s since he doesn`t drink. haha (Little hiccup at the start of the flight because they had me down as an Option Plus traveller and not Furman, WTH?, but we sorted that out quick)
       
We had a hot meal as well as airplane style continental breakfast too. lol

BARCELONA, SPAIN

Arriving in Barcelona, there really was no wifi for us to take advantage of. Unlike our city airport, they offered 15 minutes free wifi over a period of 24 hours. So, I logged in and checked in on Facebook and iMessage for all to know we arrived at our destination safely.

                                   

Once we located our transfer, we were off to the port to meet the ship. Liberty of the Seas. No time to see Barcelona. Smh. Check out the YouTube Tour I found so you can really see what we got to enjoy. Saves me from posting many photos of the ship we took.

                                    

As there is a 6 hour time difference, you can imagine how tired we were. So, after touring the ship and our quarters for the week we took part in the mandatory guest assembly drill (where you learn what to do in an emergency that might require evacuating the ship) and then had our first meal in the Botticelli Dining Room. This, is where we met Lynford, Dinah and Perry. Will tell you about them in a later post. What I will say is that our first impression of Lynford wasn't the greatest, as when he spoke to us he didn't make much eye contact and tended to have an air of bougie to him. For example, when Furman let him know we weren't going to order from the wine menu Furman saw his reaction as he walked away which was a bit of the roll of the eyes. hahaha He made me feel like we weren't good enough to wait on. But, as I will tell you, he changed our view of him by weeks end. Like I said, i'll tell you more about this as there is a bit of a story there.

After an awesome dinner, we checked out a bit of the onboard entertainment in the Platinum Theatre - Welcome Aboard Show. Excellent aerial show. I think this might have been our first night checking out the On Air Lounge where they held the Karaoke too, although we didn't participate.  We were tired. Long day - time difference, we weren't up too too late from what I remember. lol Then again, I could be wrong. I've shared a photo of our cabin. Let me tell you, the bed was sooo comfortable! And, Furman brought his laptop so for the little bit of time we did take a break in the cabin, we were able to watch a show or two that he had downloaded before we left. Love him! Always prepared!!

MARSEILLES (PROVENCE), FRANCE

Our first stop in France, but by the time we woke up and got ready, had breakfast and was ready to start our day it was too late to catch the transfers to town so we could look around and shop. Smh. The city centre was about 20-40 min drive from the pier. So, the ship had arranged a return Scenic Boat transfer to Marseille Downtown, but we completely missed out because we didn't plan ahead. Like Furman usually says, we didn't practice the 6 P's. (Prior Planning Prevents Piss Poor Performance) At first I was upset because it was our Anniversary, but it is what it is. We were still in France and together. lol So, we found other things to do. As those of you who have cruised before know, the ship always has soo much going on. 

We found the gym and got a good workout overlooking a wonderful view of the water. 

 Then, we farted around a bit, played some mini golf, etc. 

                                 

I started doing something that I made a habit of doing at every stop. Stood on deck and either took or had taken a nice panoramic shot of our view.  Here, is Marseilles...since it's all we saw that day, from a distance. hahahaha You can't see a lot, but you can see me trying to see what I can. Anniversary in France! We had each other! lol

It was Formal night which suited me just fine. After all, it was our Wedding Anniversary, of course I wanted to get dressed up. So, that's what we did and headed back to the Botticelli Dining Room for dinner. We had what was called My Time Dining which meant that we weren't stuck eating at the same time every night. And, it was a nice surprise to have the dining staff present us with this:  (Ok, it was really for me. lol)

Happy 3rd Anniversary my love!!

                                 

Anyways, before I get carried away and keep writing...as you know I can, I will bring this post to a close. Who wants to keep reading, and reading?  Gotta keep you coming back so check back for the update on the next stops - Villefranche (Nice) and La Spezia (Florence/Pisa). I will tell you this, after missing out on Marseilles, we made sure not to miss out on anything else. lol

Stay tuned....there is sooo much more.

Home Sick

The title of my post today does not mean that I am still away and am homesick, but quite the contrary.....I am home and now sick. Sound like a frog actually. Lol. One thing I can say is that I am happy that I didn`t get sick while still on vacation, so I certainly Thank God for that. It`s not Ebola or anything serious...it`s just a cold. Throat started to feel a bit scratchy on the flight home...I knew then I was going to be in trouble. Lucky for me I had already arranged to have today off work. So, I`m chillaxin while Furman is already in Jamaica for work. Like I always say... Must be nice!  But he gets that response all the time. Lol. He says people just don't understand that work is no vacation. Uh huh!

Sniff. Sniff.

Soooo much to tell you about the most awesome vacation I`ve ever had (aside from my Weddingmoon that is)! This will take a few posts to do. And, since I am so totally without energy I will promise to return with a breakdown of our trip and share some of the many many photos we took on our stops.

Right now, I'm just trying to get better. We've got a half marathon to run this weekend in Detroit remember? Without having been able to train since our last run, I feel confident in saying that this run will be the death of me. lol. But, I'll get it done! We'll get it done!!

Cough. Cough. 

Oh. And Happy Belated Thanksgiving to my Canadian peeps. :)

We were blessed to return to an invite to share Thanksgiving dinner with our awesome friends or perhaps it's best to say our Family. Love this family! Timing was perfect because we had come home to nothing to cook and our original plans were cancelled for us. We turned out to be the surprise guests at our friends` dinner and let me tell you that we were definitely welcomed with open arms and felt the love.  And the food...The food was awesome as usual.  It was a great night of fellowship and it always amazes me how God works. Truly a reminder of how much we have to be thankful for of which there is too much to list.  At the top of the list though, I am most thankful for the grace of God. For God loving us more than we deserve. Thank you Jesus.

Achoo!!!

So, as I rest up for possible work tomorrow, (need ALL my energy for that because some things haven`t changed) I have a task of going through the many photos we've taken as well as getting myself unpacked. I'll miss my Furman but happy he is not around to catch whatever I caught because he has a busy month of travelling ahead.

I'll check in with my kids as well as my mom who hasn't been well since prior to my departure. Just something else for me to deal with in the next several weeks. Smh.

Thank you to all those who took a moment to wish Furman and I a Happy Anniversary as well as wishing me a Happy Birthday.  It certainly was that!  Now, to think about plans for next year....  Where oh where...?

Buen Viaje

buen viaje

bon voyage

buon viaggio

I thought I would take a break from packing to blog just one more time before I left on a most anticipated trip. Furman and I will be Cruising the Mediterranean on Royal Caribbean`s Liberty of the Seas Sunday, so we fly to Barcelona Spain tomorrow to meet our ship. I am soo excited. We are catching the Red Eye!

This is a much much needed vacation, for me anyways.
I`m not sure if Furman is as excited as I am. He doesn`t really show it. (No, I don`t expect him to be jumping up and down acting a fool. I know he`s a man. lol. I`m just saying!) He already travels all kinds of places already, and has been to many destinations from his time in the military, so this probably is nothing for him. Another flight, another destination. And when he returns, he will be flying off again and again - for work. But, I can say that this will be a first for him as well....so maybe he is as secretly excited as I am. hahaha
Me.....oh man, I love to travel and certainly don`t see as much as I would love to. So.....here we come baby!!!  One more sleep!!

I`m just about finished my packing, I think. I`m sure I packed too much but as long as I am not overweight at the airport, who cares. I`ll throw stuff out of my bag if I have to...lol I`m NOT missing that flight.  :)

                             

The Special Occasion - Our Third Wedding Anniversary!!!  Woo Hoo  And...my 44th Birthday!! 
Yup, day after the anniversary. I was strategic in my thinking when putting that together. He will NEVER forget. lol So, we`ll be in Provence for the Anniversary and Nice for the Birthday. Oui Oui! Let`s see if my French comes back to me. hahaha  Been so long since I`ve spoken any.

In remembrance of my Wedding three years ago at Beaches, Negril, I thought I`d share this photo of Furman singing to me during our first dance. And if you click just below it, you can hear the song he was singing.  Love you soo soo much Furman.

Happy Anniversary to my most wonderful husband. 

May God continue to bless us with many many more!!

And I have already received the best Birthday Gift in having my husband - and celebrating in France. Not sure he can top that although I`m certainly open to him trying. hahaha

On that note, I`ll get back to my packing and making sure I`ve got everything I need. I don`t want that feeling on the plane that I`ve forgotten something because that would totally be me.

When I get back, everything gets back to normal.
Back to being miserable at work.
Back to my Spinbuddies classes.
Back to running.  Got a half marathon to run in Detroit, Detroit Free Press Talmer Bank International Half Marathon, and it`s going to be a tough one considering I haven`t really had time to run since my last half marathon a couple weeks ago. Ottawa Two Times It`s all good though. I`ll it get done and then retire for the season. Catie is already talking about planning to do the Rock N Roll Half Marathon in Nashville. lol Gotta love her...she knows I love to travel. So....let`s see if we make this one happen.

Anyways...I was trying to get back to my packing. So, I`ll stop writing here and end by sharing a video of me `Dancing it out` in class. Something we do at the end of every class before we do our cool down exercises and stretches. A great way to review stuff we`ve already learned so we don`t forget the moves while working on new stuff.

Notice the splits. lol Who would have thought it would have taken me 43 years to learn how to do them. 

hahahahahahahaha

God Bless and have an awesome week.

Ottawa Two Times!

My last post was about some new inspiration for my running. IRun4...Anthony  Be sure to check it out as this is a group that I definitely want you all to know about and possibly get involved in. I had to tell you about the group before I tell you about the run so you have a little background on what helped keep me going.

Canada Army Run Half Marathon!!

Yes....we were back in Ottawa after running the Ottawa Half Marathon in May but this time running a slightly different route which included going through the grounds of the Rideau House. I was kinda tired by the time we got around there so I can`t tell you much about it. hahahaha

Here is a shot we took prior to the run which was, as you can see, before the rainfall. 

                     

About an hour into the run it started pouring.....but, we got it done!
Mind you, I was miserable as hell by the time it was over.I let Furman and Catie run ahead of me as I started getting into the`` %$"! this shit`` kinda mood as the rain started to come down and I was tired of trying to keep up. lol

Got an extra one for my buddy Amazing Anthony

                                               
2:31 for me!  Not my best time but considering the downpour of rain I ended up having to finish in I can say that I'm proud of myself to an extent. I definitely did better than I thought I was doing at the time. Now, while I am more determined to make some improvements, I am just not sure how much time I have before the next race. Detroit International Half Marathon Time is running out as I prepare for the trip of a lifetime, just around the corner. Stay tuned!!

                         

I was hoping to blog just this past weekend and tell you about our run while back in Ottawa with Furman as he returned for work. But, we were slumming it this time, and the hotel we stayed at only seemed to offer Wi-Fi in the lobby which wasn`t working out for me.  I wasn`t about to stand by the window of the room trying to hold a signal. lol  So....I`m taking a moment now before bed to catch you up just a bit before I have too too many things to share and really no time to tell you everything.

But yeah, the race was a new experience. Running in the pouring rain that is. What was very meaningful to me as well, is the fact that when I made it to the finish line I ran into a cousin standing there in the pouring rain with her umbrella looking for us. She came just to support us and it was a great surprise and very much appreciated.

As I mentioned though, the weekend after the race, Furman and I returned to Ottawa while my friend and running buddy Catie travelled to go meet her buddy Garrett that she was paired with through WhoIRun4. All I can say is check out the article written about her visit: Super Woman Goes Distance for Boy with Muscular Dystrophy.  She is quite the gal that Catie!

As for Furman and I, I finally got to take a photo in front of the Terry Fox statue we missed on previous occasions. We did this while waiting to watch a memorial ceremony that was recommended we watch while in town. What a ceremony it was. Hundreds and hundreds of police officers from all over Canada marching to Pariliament Hill to remember the fallen. It was quite an amazing site!

Canadian Police & Peace Officers Memorial

It was a wonderful weekend but not as wonderful  as wonderful as the weekend that is to come.

On that note, I`m about to retire for the night but will definitely try to write again before my ship sails.

God Bless