August 13, 2011 Med - Mickey's Marauding Mates

[jd99]

Right now it's hotter in Sorrento than it is in DC, and it's nearly 8:30pm in Italy...
I think you're worrying is unjust about the weather...

I agree. Last year we had very hot weather in some ports that I wish would have been a few degrees cooler. When you are touring like crazy, I think low to mid 80s would be a welcome relief. Two hours in Carthage at temps near 100 was maybe just a wee bit much...

 

[west&east]

Where are you getting your weather info? Weather.com has Sorrento forecasted for high 70s to low 80s the next few days while it is in the 90s in DC. I am quite aware that it can be in the 90s on our cruise, but it doesn't seem that hot in Italy now at least according to the sites I've checked. What are the most accurate sites?

 

[luke]

Just my iPhone's weather, probably not the best but my point still stands. It will be pretty hot on the cruise when in most ports and still warm when at sea and in the more northerly stops

 

[Kels Sem]

LeeAnn -PLEASE DO NOT OVERPACK!!! Return the items you bought in Target today. I really don't think you will need them. Stick with your original plan for clothes. If you need to send some capri's out to be laundered it will be cheaper than buying new ones or having to pay excess baggage. I will be wearing shorts/skirts and sleeveless tops during the day and I need it to be hot to wear mine. I'm bringing only 1 pair of capri's. You will probably find that you won't wear some items you bring anyway. If you really think it's not warm enough when you get there you can always buy a cardigan. Do not panic about the weather!!

 

[janetfk]

Chill Annie You're stressing too much about the weather!
It's definitely not cold.
You'll be fine in whatever you bring - just add a cardigan/fleece so you can layer if you need to. You'll be having so much fun I bet you won't even notice the weather!

 

[MallenBeadle]

Jon - I don't have an international calling plan on our phone so I have only been communicating with rstransport by email. And that way I had (wrongly) figured I had written documentation as backup - but now I see that doesn't do me any good if they don't respond to me. They responded well before I PAID!! I am going to email them again today & express my concerns that nobody responded. If they don't answer this time I don't know what I'll do. When you call them do they have someone who speaks English??

Glad you are still planning to come to the DIS meet!! Good to know - glad you checked in with us!!

Evening, we have never had a problem with language and spoke to them a number of times to confirm details like child seats etc.

Jon

 

[MallenBeadle]

I agree. Last year we had very hot weather in some ports that I wish would have been a few degrees cooler. When you are touring like crazy, I think low to mid 80s would be a welcome relief. Two hours in Carthage at temps near 100 was maybe just a wee bit much...

+1 to temperatures not too high (low 80's max) although it can't be as bad as WDW in August for us Brit's

 

[Anal Annie]

Right now it's hotter in Sorrento than it is in DC, and it's nearly 8:30pm in Italy...
I think you're worrying is unjust about the weather...

I think when you posted that it was storming like mad here which brought the temperatures down. Today during the storms was the first time since last Wed. that the temp. here went below 80 - and even then it was still about 78. We are supposed to only be in the low 90's for Tues & Wed then back to 99 on Friday. Considering all that the idea of temps below our lowest temp. that as the daytime HIGH it sounds pretty chilly to me. Anyway, part of my point was I am usually cold below 80/82 so I typically dress differently than what I do when it's warmer. 70's is what I would call pleasant but not hot. The temps I saw for the next 2 weeks in Paris have nighttime temps in the 50's!! That's DEFINITELY cold and is NOT shorts weather for us at night. So that puts a kink in what I was planning to wear on the plane & in how I was planning to pack our carry-on bags (I'd hoped to have everything for Paris in our carry-ons). I have to watch our weight on those too.

Where are you getting your weather info? Weather.com has Sorrento forecasted for high 70s to low 80s the next few days while it is in the 90s in DC. I am quite aware that it can be in the 90s on our cruise, but it doesn't seem that hot in Italy now at least according to the sites I've checked. What are the most accurate sites?

I looked at the 15 day forecast on accuweather.com too...same chilly temps for most of our cities. Rome & Naples looked like in the further out days that it might be upper 80's - 90ish. La Spezia was cool (70's-low 80's) as was Paris, Barcelona & Nice/Villefranche. That is like late spring (May) weather around here.

(PS) NFL appears to have agreed to a settlement...I'll bet those stoooopid Redskins tix come while we're gone. They deliver them by Fed Ex so I guess DH will have to go get them after we get home as they won't leave them.

Just my iPhone's weather, probably not the best but my point still stands. It will be pretty hot on the cruise when in most ports and still warm when at sea and in the more northerly stops

We must agree now that you and I have different ideas of what is warm!! We also have a lot of high dew points / humidity here so the "feel like" temperature lately has been well over 100.

LeeAnn -PLEASE DO NOT OVERPACK!!! Return the items you bought in Target today. I really don't think you will need them. Stick with your original plan for clothes. If you need to send some capri's out to be laundered it will be cheaper than buying new ones or having to pay excess baggage. I will be wearing shorts/skirts and sleeveless tops during the day and I need it to be hot to wear mine. I'm bringing only 1 pair of capri's. You will probably find that you won't wear some items you bring anyway. If you really think it's not warm enough when you get there you can always buy a cardigan. Do not panic about the weather!!

I'll TRY not to overpack but I do think I need to rethink how I was planning to pack & what I am bringing a little bit. It does not sound like I am going to need tank tops & shorts every day - and it sounds like I may have to change for the evenings if it's in the 50's (don't forget we have 4 nights in chilly Paris too). I will have to think more in layers I guess & maybe bring just a few things with like 3/4 length sleeves. I also went out when I picked DS up from camp & picked up more capris at Kohls. My thought process was that I could leave the tags on some of this stuff & return it if I don't end up wearing it. I had one thin white scarf hemmed cardigan that I was bringing for the dining rooms but I don't want to risk it getting dirty during the day so I found another cheapy one at Target that I can bring for something light so I'll have 2. I will also bring a lightweight zip up something or other too (I was not intending to bring any jackets but now I think maybe I should). I am weighing everything! LOL...I even bought a new pair of PJ's because they were a couple of ounces lighter than my old ones. This is really going to be tricky. I had bought some snacks to bring too (trail mix & crackers) but they may weigh too much now with the heavier clothes & may end up staying home (along with the collapsible cooler & over the door shoe holder thingy). Not sure what my plan will be if I can't get everything into 2 duffles & the garment bag.

Chill Annie You're stressing too much about the weather!
It's definitely not cold. You'll be fine in whatever you bring - just add a cardigan/fleece so you can layer if you need to. You'll be having so much fun I bet you won't even notice the weather!

There goes that FLEECE word again!! I am hoping that the forecast closer to our trip is not as scary & I can repack back to my original plan again!!

 

[Anal Annie]

Evening, we have never had a problem with language and spoke to them a number of times to confirm details like child seats etc.

Jon

Hummmm. Well they really have me worried now as I emailed them again today & they still haven't answered. I also used the Bing translator to translate the message to French so it was in both languages. It's odd because before I paid (months ago now) they were very responsive to my emails. Have you ever pre-paid??

 

[mikki.young]

Annie OK, so if you were planning on shorts for days and nights and flights then maybe you do need something more! Not sure about Air France but some other transatlantic flights can get pretty cold. And Paris at night, if clear, can have big temperature drops.

 

[SailingSeas]

I am packing light and layers; no one cares if you wear the same shorts twice in a week, and your smile will outshine any outfit you have on. I always remember my dad's tip that a European can not only spot an American a mile away by how much luggage they bring, but where they are located in the US by what they pack. He used to frown on my packing jeans to go anywhere outside of the US, and if I didn't bring one convertible black dress that could go anywhere all week, i was not packed right. Took me a while to learn that jeans weigh much more than most of my slacks and skirts, and take up more room. The one thing i do pack more than i think i will be using are socks; the staterooms and theatres can get chilly, and they are nice to have to stay warm, and take up very little room.

There's a neat site at http://www.virtualtourist.com/travel/Europe/Packing_Lists-Europe-TG-C-1.html that gives feedback on what travelers had packed and what they learned for each of the ports. It's really helpful.

Bear in mind that when we are on the ship, there are extra blankets/towels you can ask for to keep warm. We'll be fine, this is a vacation, right?

I finally got my dress for the dress up nights; my daughter and I had so much fun accessorizing both hers and mine. She's upset that she has "no room, mom, no room!"

 

[mikki.young]

I know it doesn't help Annie but I am pleased to say that our transfer /tour company for Barcelona have got back in touch again today to confirm everything. Have they replied to you yet Annie for Paris?

 

[Anal Annie]

I am packing light and layers; no one cares if you wear the same shorts twice in a week, and your smile will outshine any outfit you have on. I always remember my dad's tip that a European can not only spot an American a mile away by how much luggage they bring, but where they are located in the US by what they pack. He used to frown on my packing jeans to go anywhere outside of the US, and if I didn't bring one convertible black dress that could go anywhere all week, i was not packed right. Took me a while to learn that jeans weigh much more than most of my slacks and skirts, and take up more room. The one thing i do pack more than i think i will be using are socks; the staterooms and theatres can get chilly, and they are nice to have to stay warm, and take up very little room.

There's a neat site at http://www.virtualtourist.com/travel/Europe/Packing_Lists-Europe-TG-C-1.html that gives feedback on what travelers had packed and what they learned for each of the ports. It's really helpful.

Bear in mind that when we are on the ship, there are extra blankets/towels you can ask for to keep warm. We'll be fine, this is a vacation, right?

I finally got my dress for the dress up nights; my daughter and I had so much fun accessorizing both hers and mine. She's upset that she has "no room, mom, no room!"

I will check out the link in awhile. NO worries about JEANS for us. I don't even like to pack those in the WINTER. They are too heavy & bulky. Already planning on all bottoms being worn 2x. I wasn't planning on bringing socks for myself (not bringing any shoes that I would wear them with). Well, actually, I was thinking of bringing 1 or 2 pair of ankle socks for myself to use instead of slippers...and a few pair for DS in case he wears his sneakers. Glad you found dresses!! I ended up back in TJMaxx last week to look for a necklace to go with one of mine... spent more on that than I did the dress!

I know it doesn't help Annie but I am pleased to say that our transfer /tour company for Barcelona have got back in touch again today to confirm everything. Have they replied to you yet Annie for Paris?

They answered me back this morning with two words only. "you're confirmed". They totally ignored that I'd asked to schedule a time for the 2nd transfer. Glad to hear Autovilars is on the ball. Maybe I should contact them for our ride back to the airport when we leave. I was debating if we should just use a taxi?! It will be like 5:00 am.

 

[Anal Annie]

I had a TOTALLY frustrating day. I had a meeting at 10:00 this morning with the other 2 girls who have been taking swim meet pics & working on the DVD presentation for the Swim Team Banquet tomorrow night. It is crunch time!! Should've been a 90 min. max thing that turned into over 4 hours!! The girl who volunteered to put the thing together didn't attend but a couple of the meets. So she doesn't KNOW the kids. We had probably 1,500 pics + of 130 kids. Some kids were in more pics than others simply because they swim more meets or whatever or they're more social. Some kids we had a hard time identifying. Some kids are just never around or they come & stay to themselves. Anyway, the girl doing the slide show tried but really wasn't the best person to do this. And we'd told her WAIT to put the music to it until it's DONE. So now today we found duplicate pictures & moved things around & took the over represented kids out here & there & inserted others blah, blah & then she's upset 'cuz it messed up her music. DOH!! It is a LOT of work. And they want it to be about 20-25 minutes or so. So it's just a huge thing and some of it has to wait for the last minute because of including Divisionals. The banquet is tomorrow night & we show the slideshow at the end of the awards and they like to burn about 50 DVD's to sell at the banquet...well so that takes a long time too. I have sooo much else to do and did NOT plan on spending 4 1/2 hours working on this today. OH, and then when I got there she told me that her program couldn't open or read the videos that I'd shot. The Kodak program I used wasn't compatible or something. Well, DUH, if she'd have told me we could've converted them into something else. Now it's too late. And I spent about 90 min. the other day identifiying a different video from each meet to represent all the different cheers they do so there wouldn't be any repeats. I am on the verge of screaming just a little bit. Might be a Captain Morgan kind of evening!! I am realllly rambling aren't I?!

OH, and after I left her house I was STARVING so I ran by McDonald's and ate like 800 calories then I went to the bank to order our euros (decided to order 450 worth) and the rate had gone up from the 1.51 that Hope paid to 1.55. It was just NOT my day today.

It is almost 5:00. WHEW! Then I may have a cold one!!

Mikki - when do you leave for Bermuda? How was your weekend trip??

Jeff - when do you guys head out for Greece??

My stomach is turning flips!!!

 

[jd99]

I had a TOTALLY frustrating day. I had a meeting at 10:00 this morning with the other 2 girls who have been taking swim meet pics & working on the DVD presentation for the Swim Team Banquet tomorrow night. It is crunch time!! Should've been a 90 min. max thing that turned into over 4 hours!! The girl who volunteered to put the thing together didn't attend but a couple of the meets. So she doesn't KNOW the kids. We had probably 1,500 pics + of 130 kids. Some kids were in more pics than others simply because they swim more meets or whatever or they're more social. Some kids we had a hard time identifying. Some kids are just never around or they come & stay to themselves. Anyway, the girl doing the slide show tried but really wasn't the best person to do this. And we'd told her WAIT to put the music to it until it's DONE. So now today we found duplicate pictures & moved things around & took the over represented kids out here & there & inserted others blah, blah & then she's upset 'cuz it messed up her music. DOH!! It is a LOT of work. And they want it to be about 20-25 minutes or so. So it's just a huge thing and some of it has to wait for the last minute because of including Divisionals. The banquet is tomorrow night & we show the slideshow at the end of the awards and they like to burn about 50 DVD's to sell at the banquet...well so that takes a long time too. I have sooo much else to do and did NOT plan on spending 4 1/2 hours working on this today. OH, and then when I got there she told me that her program couldn't open or read the videos that I'd shot. The Kodak program I used wasn't compatible or something. Well, DUH, if she'd have told me we could've converted them into something else. Now it's too late. And I spent about 90 min. the other day identifiying a different video from each meet to represent all the different cheers they do so there wouldn't be any repeats. I am on the verge of screaming just a little bit. Might be a Captain Morgan kind of evening!! I am realllly rambling aren't I?!

OH, and after I left her house I was STARVING so I ran by McDonald's and ate like 800 calories then I went to the bank to order our euros (decided to order 450 worth) and the rate had gone up from the 1.51 that Hope paid to 1.55. It was just NOT my day today.

It is almost 5:00. WHEW! Then I may have a cold one!!

Mikki - when do you leave for Bermuda? How was your weekend trip??

Jeff - when do you guys head out for Greece??

My stomach is turning flips!!!

Lee Ann- It sounds like you need a big dose of Captain Morgan and some serenity now too. I think I mentioned here that we decided to refloor our entire house in between our trips to Disney in June and this one. They finished last Friday and we are still unpacking boxes. I fear that some of the boxes left may never be unpacked - which would be okay if I could just chuck all the stuff in them...but doubt that can happen. This truly goes into the file of "what were we thinking" to do it when we did. But now sooooooo happy it is done. Everything looks incredible.

We leave next week and are very excited and anxious about it. DW is seeing her extended family for the first time in almost 30 years and the girls and I have never met any of them. We are trying to do a bit of planning on what we want to see in Athens - as well as our days in Barcelona and Florence, but I just haven't had the time to REALLY plan it. So I'd love to hear what everyone else is doing in Barcelona for sure. We saw La Familia Sagrada last year - may go back again - but we definitely want to just explore Las Ramblas and Placa Cataluyna. Florence we are planning to stroll all over - from the Duomo to the Pitti Palace to the Ponte Vecchio, see the David replicas all over the city (since the Museum where the real one is located is closed), hit a few leather shops, have a great lunch and just really "see" the city since we didn't see much last year. I have relatives in Florence and was hoping to get to meet one of them but alas due to the holiday he is away.

So tell me cruise friends, what's new in your planning?

 

[mkmommy]

Anal Annie- not sure if you saw this trip report, they did both Pisa and Cinque Terre in a day.

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?p=41996601&posted=1#post41996601

If possible when you return can you PM me the highlights of Disney Land Paris, I am doing a similar trip leaving Aug 25 and I have done zero planning for Disney Land Paris beside book the TGV to and from CGD.

 

[criscoloo]

Hey Annie,

DH Martin, me (Chris), DD Aisling (13) and DD Ciara (8) from NYC on our 4th DCL! Has anyone come across Personal Navigators for our 7-night Mediterranean?

Thanks!

 

[Kels Sem]

My lose plan for Barcelona is to see La Ramblas & Playa Catalunya probably on arrival day. We want to do the HOHO sightseeing tour, the aquarium. This one might sound a bit odd but my DS really likes different modes of transport so he wants to ride on the metro, a tram and if we have time we will take the cable car as well.

I'm going to buy the kids school shoes today as I need to be organised before we leave as the kids start back to school 2 days after we get back from holiday

 

[Cumbley]

Looks like eldest DD has chickenpox. She will be clear before the 13th but now worried that youngest DD or I will get it. Not feeling very hopeful at the moment.

 

[Goofygoof]

Looks like eldest DD has chickenpox. She will be clear before the 13th but now worried that youngest DD or I will get it. Not feeling very hopeful at the moment.

Ohh hope year dd is better soon I feel for you my ds caught it from nursery when he was 2 and its not pleasant but still some kids pick it up and some don't so keep yr fingers crossed xx