Recently, I spent 14 days on a Mediterranean cruise with a local group of 39 wanderlusts! We were gone for a total of 18 days, including travel time, and time spent in Rome, Italy.
In Rome, we had leisure time. We explored the beautiful city, being careful not to venture too far from our hotel. The next day, we went on a city tour with a local guide, visited the Vatican and Colosseum. This giant amphitheater was built as a venue for public spectacles and gladiator games. It held roughly 50, 000 to 80,000 spectators. It was listed as one of the New 7 Wonders of the World and is one of Rome’s most popular tourist attractions. To me, it was just an ancient stone and concrete building built by slaves. I quickly lost interest in its history.
The beautiful new Sun Princess Cruise Ship would be our home for the next 14 days. It’s the largest cruise ship in the fleet and the first in their innovate Sphere-Class. It has the capacity for 4,300 guests and 1,600 crew members. After visiting various ports in Italy, Greece, and Turkey, at the end of our cruise, we sailed to Barcelona, Spain to depart for home.
After returning home, my special friend surprised me with a beautiful bouquet of fresh flowers! I can’t identify many flowers but knew these were special. These living blooms represent new beginnings, appreciation, and sincere emotion. Flowers provide different forms of communication and emotions. They have a language of their own.
Receiving those flowers caused many emotions. It is a great feeling to know my friend missed me and was not afraid to display affection. He’s a special man!
Francie Mae. August 25, 2026