Traveling with the Jones

I took a Princess Cruises 7-Day California Coastal cruise on the Star Princess last month, sailing round-trip from San Francisco.

I enjoyed all of the ports, but Santa Barbara, California was my favorite, despite the fact that it is a tender port, and there was about a 45-minute wait to get into a tender. HINT: if you cruise to Santa Barbara, go ashore early, between 8-9 am. Everyone wants to go into port between 9:30 -11:30 am.

I had three goals for my day in Santa Barbara:

1) Walk at least 5 miles.

2) Find the library or other location with free Wi-Fi so I could get some work done on my laptop.

3) Locate the great wine bar on State Street that Mr. Jones and I enjoyed on a prior visit.

The tenders drop cruise ship passengers off along West Cabrillo Blvd. There is a shuttle that takes you to State Street, or you can walk along the waterfront. There were a number of helpful volunteers; one told me that the library was just one block off of State Street, but quite a walk. Despite carrying my computer bag, I was up for the hike.

I took a different route away from the waterfront, and passed by the Santa Barbara Amtrak train station.

I also passed by the beautiful Santa Barbara Court House.

Eventually, I made it to the Public Library on Anapamu Street.

Before I went into the library, I had to check out this artwork on the side of the building. It is a tympanum over the original an entrance, with Plato and Aristotle flanking the City of Santa Barbara’s Coat-of-Arms.

The wood carving also includes the shields of four famous libraries: The University of Bologna, the Bibliotheque Nationale in Paris, The University of Salamanca and the Bodleian Library at Oxford University.

You can’t go in this entrance but a sign explains the tympanum.

Inside the library I found a spacious table and free high-speed Wi-Fi. I worked a couple of hours until my computer battery went dead.

Enough work, time to enjoy State Street and find some wine. This art museum looked interesting, but I decided I didn’t have enough time for art and wine. I did pop into the museum’s very nice gift shop, however.

State Street is the perfect place to walk on a sunny day: shopping, cafes, restaurants of all kinds, and the Wine Bistro that I was looking for.

I ordered the chicken club with avocado on grilled sourdough with a side salad. Now this made me miss living in California more than anything on my trip. Crisp fresh lettuce, ripe tomatoes, creamy slices of avocado – yum!

And, this is the white wine flight at the Wine Bistro (not 3 full glasses of wine, like it appears.)  The Wine Bistro, I learned from my friendly bartender, has been owned by the owner of the Santa Barbara Winery, but has recently been sold and will be re-opening under new ownership soon.

After all of that food and wine, I started worrying about making the last tender, so I headed down State Street, and made the walk along the waterfront to the tender port.

One last look at Santa Barbara, California, from the tender to back to the Star Princess.

Have you visited Santa Barbara by cruise ship? If so, please share how you spent your day ashore in comments below. 

Check out these other posts on my recent California Coastal Cruise on the Star Princess:

• Trying Out San Francisco’s New Cruise Ship Terminal at Pier 27
• Dining at the Crab Shack on the Star Princess Cruise Ship
• Exploring San Diego’s USS Midway Museum
• A Look at the Sabatini’s Menu on Princess Cruises’ Star Princess
• A Look Inside Interior Cabin B-625 on the Star Princess Cruise Ship
• A Quick Visit to Ensenada, Mexico via the Star Princess Cruise Ship
• How Joining a Roll Call on Cruise Critic Made My Solo Cruise a Blast
• Touring Los Angeles and Hollywood on a Princess Cruises’ Excursion from Long Beach

Follow us on Twitter or interact with us on Facebook

Or, check out our boards on Pinterest and/or our photos on Instagram.

I am a Florida girl, and therefore have easy access to so many cruises.  I actually live no more than 30 minutes from a rather large port.  However I’ve never had any real interest in taking a cruise.  I have friends who take cruises almost religiously, and they are always asking me why I don’t give one a try.

Here are my top 4 reasons on why I’ve never been interested in taking a cruise:

1. There’s no sail.

I’m a sailor, I always have been.  The idea of paying to ride a boat without a sail makes me feel uncomfortable.   Sure I’ll go on boats without sails when I need to, but I’d rather be on something that I’m controlling with the wind’s help.

Speaking of control,

2. I can’t drive the boat.

Or at least I’m sure they won’t let me.  I have a weird issue with control, meaning that I always like to be in control.  For example, I feel extremely uncomfortable in a car with anyone else driving besides me or my family.  When I go sailing, I usually don’t even let my own father steer the boat.  So on a giant cruise ship, which I don’t know how to drive anyways, the idea that I’m not in control of it completely freaks me out.

3. I like to stay a little longer while traveling.

Especially when it comes to traveling to a foreign country, I like to stay at least a week.  I’m from Florida, so I’m always surrounded by plenty of beaches so that’s not super exciting for me.  When I travel I want to experience the culture and the history of an area, so I like to give myself ample time to truly explore.

4. As a college student, I don’t see a cruise fitting into my budget.

As much as I dislike this photo, it clearly shows that I’m a USF Bull, and I’m proud to be one! However that bit about myself means that I don’t have a very large budget.  I support myself, and after classes, books, rent, and my car, I don’t have a whole lot of extra money to spend things on.  I’ve recently fallen in love with Obstacle Course Racing (as you can see by this picture), and that’s where a majority of my money has gone.  I work, so I always have spending money, but I can’t justify spending the large amount of money a cruise requires for basically what I see in my mind as a “moving hotel on the water”.

Now I’m not in any way trying to upset the avid cruiser, I am just sharing my opinions as to why I’ve never been interested in one.  Am I wrong? Why should I want to go on a cruise? Scroll down and leave your answer in the comments below!

This post was written by Lauren Youngerman, a student at the University of South Florida studying international business with a focus on Spanish and Info Systems.

She is a member of her school’s sailing team, and also works as a sailing coach at a nearby club.

Lauren is an adventure seeker who has had the opportunity to live abroad in both Brazil and Nicaragua, as well as to being a part of the U.S. Army.

Currently completing a social media internship for VentureTime Travel, Lauren seeks a career in marketing after graduation. Learn more about Lauren’s work experience via her LinkedIn profile. 

Perhaps some reading about life on cruise ships will help Lauren change her mind about cruising? Check out these books: 
The Truth About Cruise Ships – Jay Herring

Ship for Brains – Brian David Bruns

Permanent Passenger – Micha Berman

Follow us on Twitter or interact with us on Facebook

Or, check out our boards on Pinterest and/or our photos on Instagram.

While we’ve been lucky to visit most cruise ports in Europe, we have not yet been able to visit Sardinia, the second largest island in the Mediterranean Sea that is an autonomous region of Italy, and is located just south of the French island of Corsica.  European blogger Italo Rizzo did visit the Gallura region in Sardinia recently, and shares his insights on the destination. 

Sardinia is a popular destination for cruiser tourists: this is the land of clear crystal waters, unpolluted nature and ancient traditions still followed by Sardinian people. 

I recently went to Gallura, the region of northern Sardinia worldwide renowned for Costa Smeralda (the Emerald Coast), where the VIP’s favorite beaches are located.

I wanted to explore the heart of this island and I found many attractions and activities which I recommend to everyone who likes genuineness and luxury; Sardinia is one of the few destinations in Italy where these two sides are in harmony.

Mini-Cruise across the Strait of Bonifacio

Once arrived at the port of Santa Teresa Gallura I booked a mini-cruise planned by my hotel: everyday they offer boat trips with fast motorboats for a maximum of 12 guests per boat, so I suggest to book in advance.

The excursion goes along Capo Testa, a small peninsula where the long band of sand is surrounded by rocky coves: here the waves lap the shore and the wind shapes the rugged granite coast, an ideal place where to let my mind wander.

I crossed the Strait of Bonifacio onboard a motorboat and I was amazed by the panoramic view; the French island Corsica is only 11 kilometers away.

I visited the small town of Bonifacio, located at the southern tip of Corsica, a sort of labyrinth crowded with historic buildings and fashionable bars and restaurants.

The mini-cruise continued towards the island of Lavezzi, a destination that I recommend for a swim stop and for sailing. This area is well-preserved because is classified as natural reserve; in fact I didn’t meet large groups of tourists because Lavezzi island is considered a paradise for scuba divers, hikers and swimmers.

I chose to stay at Capo d’Orso (part of Delphina Hotels, a group of resorts located in Gallura) because I found a lot of activities to do while I was on vacation, above all the sea routes onboard a classy boat. The Delphina Hotel staff offers a wide range of mini-cruises, such as Cala Corsara tour, a cove included in the La Maddalena National Park area. The soft hues of the blue sea, the perfume of juniper, rose and broom, the fine grains of sand describe the uniqueness of this dreamy corner in Sardinia.

I spent an entire day walk around Cala Corsara, it was very exhausting but exciting at the same time.

Play Golf in a club overlooking the sea

I played golf for the first time in my life in Sardinia, at Pevero Golf Club, a popular venue among golf players because the course was designed by Robert Trent Jones in 1972.

This Golf Club allows to amateurs like me to take lesson from a golf master, so I started a beginner lesson surrounded by a truly amazing setting.
Discovering Nuraghe, the symbol of Sardinia

Visit Sardinia and ignore Nuraghe is a mistake, because the Nuragic civilization (developed during 1900 and 730 B.C.) it’s a distinctive culture of this island and a tour to discover Nuraghe it’s an unmissable chance to know more about these mysterious buildings.

Sardinian people explain me that Nuraghes are megalithic edifices and they could have been religious temples, graves, dwellings or military strongholds.

I went to Nuraghe La Prisgiona, located near to Arzachena and comprising 100 buildings. The guided tours are available every day from 10:00 am to 4:00 pm and I took the opportunity to see the excavations conducted by expert archaeologists that are looking for traces from the past centuries to discover the real function of Nuraghes.

Taste Sardinian typical dishes

Sardinia boasts a wide range of savory dishes like malloreddus (a kind of pasta made with semolina, water and saffron) paired with a slow cooked meat sauce, suckling pig (they called “porceddu” a typical recipe of the sheepherder tradition) and mirto liqueur.
Maybe mirto is the most famous Sardinian liqueur outside the island: is made from the myrtle berries (in fact, the myrtle grows freely in Sardinia) and is served chilled, I recommended it as an aperitif or an after dinner.

Would you like to go on vacation in Sardinia? Which are the best activities to do in your opinion? Please leave your comment!

This post was written by Italo Rizzo, a blogger who helps businesses to improve their relationships with customers through social media and digital marketing strategies. He likes travel, listening to music, reading books and comics. He also collaborated with Delphina Hotels in Sardinia.

To learn more about Sardinia, consider these books:

 Sardinia Travel Guide – Lonely Planet

The Rough Guide to Sardinia – Robert Andrews

Sea And Sardinia – D.H. Lawrence

Follow us on Twitter or interact with us on Facebook

Or, check out our boards on Pinterest and/or our photos on Instagram.