Days 1-3: Travels, "Voyager of the Seas" and a Day at Sea

Well, gentle readers, here I sit, in our den, to begin the tale of our Mediterranean adventure.  To do our story justice, I have decided to tell you of our journey in chapters, so let us begin!

(Editor's Note: I finished writing this post and I realized I might have gotten a bit wordy, however, for those of you with shorter attention spans, or busy lives, feel free to just scan the pictures - we took almost 500, so there should be lots to see each post!)

Day 1: Travels

We left on Friday, June 18, on a 12:30 flight to Dallas, which left us plenty of time in the morning for some last minute errands to pick up some Euros, buy a few more tour books, clean up the house, etc. Our flights to Dallas and Madrid were pain free, albeit long. Here is David, waiting at the gate in Dallas:

Unfortunately, we missed our connection from Madrid to Barcelona, and after being shuffled from the American Airlines counter, to the Iberia (local operator's) counter, and trekking around the Madrid airport with all of our luggage, we managed to get booked on a later flight.  We had planned to arrive in Barcelona on Saturday morning and have a full day to tour, before leaving on the ship, Sunday morning, however, our earlier flights were ultimately to ensure we made it on the ship in time, which we did, so mission accomplished.  With the delays we got to our hotel in central Barcelona around 5:30 in the afternoon.  We dropped our bags, and did some sight-seeing near our hotel.

A few months ago, I had read this book (which is a fantastic, fun, fast read):

(Editor's Note: So I have taken to re-reading my posts before I post them to fix typos, spelling errors, etc., and I just realized that the above statement is overtly alliterative - but I feel that all three adjectives properly describe the book, and thus felt compelled to leave it unchanged.)

Which describes the antics of a gentleman by the name of Michael Tonello, who moves to Barcelona and buys and sells Hermes products on eBay.  As we wandered the city streets, we came upon the Hermes store often mentioned in the book.  Unfortunately it was closed both this evening and when we returned a week later, but here I am:

Interestingly, we happened upon at least three more Hermes stores in various cities, most of which were frequented by Michael Tonello!

After a quiet dinner at a lovely restaurant, complete with a fantastic bottle of wine, we called it a night.

Day 2: Voyager of the Seas

The next morning we had breakfast at the hotel, which included chocolate croissants (my favorite!) and various cured meats and cheeses (along with more traditional American breakfast items such as toast, eggs, sausage, etc.)  We then took a cab to the port, where we saw our ship for the first time:

(Editors Note: This picture was actually taken several days later in France, but seemed to fit well here for story-telling purposes, so please forgive my lack of sequential order.)

We boarded the ship (a much simpler process than we had feared) and had a delicious lunch in the "Windjammer Cafe" - the main buffet dining room on board.  We spent the rest of the day exploring the ship, booking a spa appointment for our Day at Sea, and settling into our state room.  The following is a picture looking from the ship's deck out onto the city of Barcelona before our departure:

For those of you who have cruised, we were in a standard interior stateroom with a king sized bed.  We had both been concerned that the room would feel too cramped - but it was really quite nice and well set up.  We had a delightful stateroom attendant in our hall, Eniko, who made up our room each day and did the most wonderful towel-animal creations such as this elephant:

Here I am, frightened (or perhaps preparing to attack) either a bat or a pterodactyl (a debate between David and I that still continues):

A pig:

David posing with a monkey on his shoulder:

Lounging with a pensive pig:

For dinner each night, we ate at the second seating (9:00) in the main dining room with two other couples, a British couple in their late 30s or early 40s who we enjoyed quite a bit, and an older couple (late 50s perhaps) from California.  In the interest of full disclosure, I will tell you that on more than one occasion we went to the buffet dining room at 6:30 when it opened to have a pre-dinner or early dessert.  Seriously guys, the food was awesome.

The first night had very high seas, but fortunately both David and I did just fine (the same sadly cannot be said for a good deal of the ship).  Other than rolling around a bit in bed - we slept wonderfully each night - since we had an interior stateroom, there was absolutely no light in the mornings.

Day 3: Day at Sea

On our day at sea, I got up early for a spa appointment consisting of a facial, eye and neck firming treatment and massage - it was HEAVENLY.

We did end up switching to swim suits and visiting the hot tubs and lounge chairs again in the afternoon.

I also tried my hand at $1 Single-Deck Black Jack and managed to double my initial investment the first time at the table (sadly a few nights later, I lost about 75% of my previous winnings - and then decided to call it quits while I was still mildly ahead).

And that is were we shall leave our story until tomorrow, but I will leave you with a little teaser for tomorrow's tale.

The Isle of Capri...

Bon Voyage...

Wait..Which Ones are Cranberries?!?

So this weekend, I attended a FABULOUS get-together in Tulsa with all my Phi Mu ladies!  We all agreed the event would be potluck,and I volunteered to do a salad and dessert.

I used a standard Greek Pasta Salad recipe from a healthy cookbook (I know what you are thinking - and trust me, I normally agree, but this has some really yummy recipes).  This particular recipe I have made a dozen times, and it is usually a hit at parties:

For the dessert I decided to go with a new recipe from a wonderful cookbook my mom gave me a few years ago from William Sonoma.

The book is divided into various sections based on the prep time required.  I chose to make Cranberry Upside-Down Cake.  The recipe seemed fairly straight forward, and seemed like the perfect dish to take to a party.

I made my list and headed out to the grocery store.  It was a Friday afternoon, at 5:00, and, let me tell you, it was PACKED!  I started in the produce section, grabbed a variety of veggies for the pasta salad, and then headed to the berry aisle. 

The aisle was totally packed full of people including a bundle of kids, shopping carts, even the stock-boy was there with a cart full of more berries.  Well I grabbed a package and checked the weight (I needed 8 oz for my recipe) - noting it was only 6 ounces, I briefly considered buying a second package, but opted not to after checking the price.

I then did the rest of my shopping and headed home to start cooking.  D was working late, so I had the evening to myself to be as messy as I wanted in the kitchen!  I put on an apron, turned up the volume on the radio, grabbed a Diet Coke from the fridge, and cooked up a storm.

Later in the evening, D came home and we went out to get dinner, and came home for a movie on the couch.  Before bed, I went in the kitchen to cover the cake, and D remarked how yummy it looked.  I mentioned that recipe called for more berries, but that I didn't buy quite enough - I also suggested that next time, I might mix some blueberries in with the cranberries.

D looked at me and asked: 

"What was this recipe called again?" 

I responded plainly:

"Cranberry Upside-Down Cake, ya know, like Pineapple Upside-Down Cake, but with cranberries."

He then laughed and said,:

"Sweetie, surely you know the difference between a cranberry and a raspberry!"

Well you guessed it, I used raspberries instead of cranberries.  For the record I do know that cranberries are a winter berry, often strung on string with popcorn at Christmas time.

Raspberries on the other hand a sweet summer berry, which make for yummy baked goods,yogurt toppings, and more.

Silly me!  Oh well, the cake turned out fine, and the party was a blast!  Also, thanks so much to Heather (and Michael) for graciously hosting, and Torri for driving us OKC girls!

About me...

Well here I am, starting my very own blog.  I thought I would make my first post an introduction to me.  I have a friend who likes to stay in contact via "Top 10" lists, so I thought I would start out with a "Top 10 Things About Me" list, so here goes...

1. As you can tell from my title, I consider myself "An Oklahoma Girl."  I was actually born in Maryland, right outside of Washington, D.C., and while I love my east-coast heritage (and visit as often as I can), I have been in OK far too long to have not planted some roots here too!

2.  When I was a sophomore in high school, I met a boy in Mrs. Rooks' Trig class.  We did an outside activity one day (something about shadows and angles - who knows - I never did see the life-applications of Trig) and he loaned me his jacket because I was cold.  Over the next three years, we grew to be great friends, and finally (just in time for Senior Prom) we started dating.  Here we are 6 years later, and I am happily married to that sweet boy from Trig class (and sadly, I must admit, he still owns the jacket!)

3.  We are AVID Oklahoma State University fans.  I love all things Pokes - tailgating, football season, the Strip, basketball games, the Greatest Homecoming Celebration in America, Stillwater, Barn cokes, Joes' and of course, Country music.

4.  I went to college with the intention of being a poly-sci, economics double major, and about a dozen majors later, my parents sat me down and said "pick something." I thought it through and decided: "Hey, accountants always have jobs, right?" so thus, a major was declared.  Well, as graduation got closer, I really I was not sure what I wanted to do with the rest of my life, so I thought, "I guess a masters' degree never hurt anyone."  Finally, still not positive that being an accountant was going to be it for me for life, I decided to finish things up by sitting for the CPA exam, again, to make sure I was note closing any doors.  After graduation, I took a job with an international public accounting firm, as an auditor.

5.  I have a crazy dog named Maggie.  She is a 2.5 year old shih tzu, who at about 7 pounds (shih tzus mind you should be 15-20), just decided to stop growing.

6.  I love to cook - unfortunately my work schedule has me out of town quite a bit - so this hobby has been put to the back burner quite a bit lately, but baking, and making dinners, especially when D and I get to cook together is one of my favorite activities.

7.  I adore my family - despite our craziness and frequent distance from one another, we all love each other and try to see each other as much as possible.  My parents moved us out to Oklahoma in 1996, but are definitely native east-coasters, and look forward to moving back to MD some day.  I have an older brother, who is some-what of a vagabond (or nomad if you prefer).  He is currently off in Europe attending the Rainbow Gathering.  I also have a little sister (I probably should stop calling her that, as she's not that little anymore).  Biz (as I have affectionately called her most of my life), just graduated from OSU, and has moved to Alabama for two years to be a member of Teach for America (I could not be more proud of her!)  In addition to my immediate family, I married into a wonderful family with two great in-laws and a "little brother" who is at OSU studying Accounting (I am very excited he'll be working at my firm next spring!)

8.  I have terrible luck with all things having 4-wheels.  My high-school car (affectionately referred to as the Bat Mobile) was a 1996 4-door Dodge Neon in bright teal.  She was a wonderful car, right up until the end, when the doors wouldn't open (yes, I got in the one functioning door behind the driver's seat and then climbed over the console - and yes, it was as funny as you are picturing in your head), the gauges often all quit working, the front driver's window would not unroll, you had to hold the steering wheel at approximately 2:00 in order to drive straight down the road, the stereo was stolen, and the passenger side window was shot out with a BB gun, and then finally, the kill shot - the power steering went out.  All the rest I could handle, but no power steering made it almost impossible to drive.  My sweet dad did let me take it for one last joy ride down our street (made all the more thoughtful as he then had to muscle it around the block to get it back home).  We ended up donating the car to charity, and I inherited my little sister's Chevy Cavalier.  After starting my "big-kid" job and learning about the frequent drives I would be making to Tulsa and Wichita, D and I decided I needed something a little more reliable.  We went out and bought a 2009 Honda CR-V.  Two days later (while driving my co-workers to lunch) I was rear-ended on the highway in Wichita, KS.  The car was in the shop for a month.  Then just a few weeks ago, OKC was hit by a very severe hail storm.  The car is now back in the shop for ANOTHER month.

9.  I love to craft - I am not very good, but I give it my best attempt.  I really enjoy scrap booking, and decorating, as well as quilting and making curtains.  My newest project is an attempt at re-upholstering a chair D and I found at an estate sale (I'll try to post some before and after pics, though no promises, I always seem to get half-way through a project before it occurs to me I should have taken "before" pictures.)

10.  Oh, and also, I am very clumsy. I mean I fall down...a lot...and I get random bruises...probably from running into things...or people...just thought you should know.

Well I guess that is about all, I make absolutely no guarantees about the frequency with which I will update this thing.  And hopefully, I'll start to figure out how to do pictures, and prettier posts, but for now, I hope wish ya'll a fabulous, wonderful weekend!

Peace,

Katie M.