As we lazed around on our balcony, we couldn't help but notice a couple of the truly huge adjacent cruise ships as they backed out and headed up the Giudecca Canal past the Hilton Molino Stucky for a final view of Venice before departing.
MSC Divina in particular is hard to overlook. It is as new as Riviera, entering service in May 2012. It is just over 1000 feet long and has a capacity of about 4000 passengers.
In comparison, or should we say contrast, Riviera is 750 feet long and holds 1250 passengers with double occupancy, although our cruise apparently carried about 1270 passengers due to an unusually large number of family groups.
It would be our turn to sail the next day, but now was the time to relax, unpack, and iron our clothes.
Kathy and Brian
Two retired educators alternating joyfully between seeing the world and enjoying our eight grandchildren (in order of birth), Jake, Avery, Taegan, Lily, Peyton, Riley, Blane, and Jace.
Kathy and Brian met in the clarinet section of the University of California (Santa Barbara) Symphony Orchestra several decades ago.
Brian's Western Canadian roots and Kathy's Colorado ties resulted in their making beautiful music together along with producing a cross-border crop of descendants.
Kathy spent a year studying in Vienna at the Institute for European Studies and the University of Vienna.
Brian started the school band program in Hope, British Columbia, and later became the high school's vice-principal for 6 years and subsequently principal for 15 years before retiring in 2001.
Kathy, in between raising our three children, taught kindergarten and first grade, middle school, and high school - mathematics, computer studies, ESL, and her first love, band, before retiring in 2001.
We enjoy sharing our travel experiences and providing the odd travel tip to friends, relatives, and visitors.