Madison Ave Musings: Honeymoon Part 1: Amazing Vacation

Josh and I were lucky enough to take a once in a lifetime honeymoon after our wedding. It was a memorable and unbelievable vacation that is easily broken into two parts- 1 amazing relaxing vacation and 1 travel nightmare. Here is a recap of our amazing relaxing vacation. The recap of the the travel debacle will have to wait for this weekend.

Going to the Mediterranean, specifically the Greek Isles, has always been a dream of mine. To me, that part of the world is all about the bright sun, clear blue water, delicious food, and breathtaking scenery. Finally being there and seeing everything I had been reading about for years was even better than I imagined it. Getting to experience it for the first time with Josh was perfect.

We arrived in Venice with just enough time to catch our cruise ship. Thanks to my Aunt and Uncle, everything on the ship was all set up for us. We had a great room with a spectacular balcony. We spent a lot of time out on that balcony just looking at the ocean and coast line as we whizzed by, talking about all of the things we wanted for our future.There is no better place on earth, than being in the middle of the ocean with your new husband and your whole life ahead of you, imagining what it is going to be like. It was a truly remarkable gift.

Our first stop was Dubrovnik, Croatia. Having been there before and loving it, I couldn't wait to show Josh everything! It was just how a remembered it, gorgeous coast line, beautiful water, and super dreary. There is something about certain Eastern European cities that just seem to work better for me when they are dreary. Since the rest of our trip was HOT HOT HOT, it was nice to have a little break from the sun. We took a boat around the coast, toured the walled city, ate gelato, and shopped a bit. It was a great first day!

The next day we spent relaxing by the pool on the ship, eating way too much, and dancing the night away. We woke up in Kusadasi, Turkey for a tour of Ephesus. Neither one of us knew a whole lot about Ephesus so it was interesting to hear all about the ancient city while looking at ruins. It was also cool to be around so many people having religious experiences. It was a long and hot day with a ton of walking, but well worth it!

The following morning we went to Santorini, Greece and fell in love. After a boat ride, hiking a volcano, swimming in the Aegean Sea, eating amazing Greek Salad, and seeing the most beautiful landscape and buildings we have ever seen, we had many conversations about when/how we were getting back. Santorini was hands down the highlight of our trip.

After Santorini was Corfu, Greece. Corfu was beautiful, but very different from Santorini. It is lush and green with olive trees everywhere. We toured a palace and took some great panoramic shots before once again eating Greek Salad (Hey, we were in Greece!) and gelato.

Our cruise wrapped up with a day at sea where Josh rock climbed, we ran 'on the ocean', once again ate too much, read a lot, danced, and continued digesting the amazing experiences we were having. After getting off the boat in Venice, we had a day to tour the city. It was insanely hot, so our site seeing was limited to Murano to see glass blowing (and shopping!), Piazza San Marco, more shopping, wandering around small streets and canal bridges, and of course, eating pizza. Our amazing vacation wrapped up with a water taxi ride to the airport, making Josh's James Bond dreams come true.

Our trip was truly wonderful. We loved every minute of it and were very sad to have to go home. Luckily, we took 600 pictures to remember it by. Below are just a few of our favorites.