How can I choose just one?

When someone asks me, “What was your favorite port of call on your Mediterranean cruise?” This is my response. How do I pick just one? It’s like asking me to pick out just one book from the fabulous list of books available through the Addictive Summer reads book sale!

Mediterranean cruise 2011 182 (2013_02_16 18_14_38 UTC)

Gaudi’s Cathedral, Sagrada Familia. Barcelona, Spain.

Yes, it’s true. I went on a Mediterranean cruise back in 2011. I know…lucky me! Seventeen days of beautiful weather and fourteen amazing ports. The sights, the history, the art, the culture, and the people were all amazing! I don’t think I can actually name an absolute favorite locale, but Dubrovnik, Croatia; Barcelona, Spain; and the Greek Islands were all magnificent. Portofino, Italy, I have to say, is a little slice of heaven!
Mediterranean cruise 2011 013 (2013_06_07 00_53_00 UTC)I was glad I took notes and kept travel brochures from the different excursions. And I took a zillion pictures—more than I’ll ever keep track of.

In any event, the trip turned out to be a great backdrop for my latest release, PIECES of LOVE, a Contemporary YA Romance. Here’s the scoop on the story that came about after my trip:

PJSharon_PiecesOfLove_800pxSixteen year-old Alexis Hartman wants nothing more than to play her guitar and get high, hoping to escape the pain of losing her sister. But when her second arrest for pot possession leads to her mother’s breakdown, Lexi is sent to stay with her grandmother for the summer. While embarking on a Mediterranean cruise hardly sounds like punishment, being forced to face her demons and falling for a guy she may never see again gives Lexi a chance to discover what it means to love someone—even when you have to let them go.

 

AddictiveSummerReadsBannerYou can pick it up for $2.99 only during the AR Summer Reads sale from June 27-30th. Then the price returns to $4.99. Price goes up July 1st so don’t miss out on this opportunity.

The ebook version includes the theme song, PIECES of LOVE, written and performed by yours truly! (Not all devices play audio, but the link is there.) You can hear part of the song in the POL book traileror download a copy from i-Tunes.

med cruise-Dubrovnik-Old TownNow, back to my favorite place on the Mediterranean coast. If I were to return to one location with my honey, it would be Dubrovnik, Croatia, so we could walk the ancient twenty foot thick, mile long wall around Old Town, and look out at the blue green waters of the Aegean Sea. Heaven!

 

 

What has been your favorite vacation location?

26 Comments:

  1. Wow, that Mediterranian vacation sounds amazing. Seventeen days? That’s proper!
    My favorite vacation to date was just last year, when my wife and I went to London for the 1st time. We are both big-time anglophiles, so it was something had wanted to do for a long time.
    Cheers!

    • England, Ireland, and Scotland are on my bucket list, Greg!Glad you and the Mrs. got to get away for a bit:-) Thanks for stopping by.

  2. That cruise sounds amazing! My favourite place was Venice, Italy. I fell in love with it and have been dying to go back ever since *hint hint, hubby* 😉
    Good luck with your newest release! 🙂

  3. What a fantastic sounding vacation. My favorite vacation, though many years ago, is a visit to Norway to connect with relatives from my father’s side.

    • My in-laws cruised Norway and shared all their pics from going through the fjords. It looked amazing! Thanks for stopping in, Jean. You’re in the running for my swag bag!

  4. What a great vacation! I went on a Caribbean cruise a few years back. It was amazing. Loved the song, PJ! You have a wonderful voice. 🙂

    • Thanks, Rhonda. Just glad i was able to finally put those four years of voice lessons to good use. Not much call for opera singing in the romance writing world:-)

  5. Anna Erishkigal

    My favorite vacation was the year I went to Aruba. It was my first big vacation where I had to get on an airplane, and while on the island we rented a 4 wheel drive to tour the remote north side of the island, a pirate fort, took a horse-back tour of the interior of the island, went snorkeling in a sunken ship, took a sail on a 3-masted schooner, attended a local carnivale festival, and … oh … some terrorists hijacked an airplane and landed it on the only runway out, so we got to spend a few extra days. Other than the terrorist bit (they took off again, landed in Venezuela, and the bad guys were all killed) I think it’s my most memorable vacation.

    • Sounds like my Aruba vacation many moons ago…sans terrorist emergency landing, LOL. Thanks for sharing Anna!I’d love to get back there again. You can’t beat the weather, the beaches, or the wonderful Dutch island cuisine!

  6. Vacation sounds fabulous and how wonderful to get a book out of it. 🙂 I don’t go many places, my favorite so far was visiting Forks, WA b/c I’m a Twilight mom, lol. Mostly I’ve been busy raisin and homeschooling kids. And now I seem to have turned into the animal lady, taking in rescues, so I’m not even sure how I would go anywhere. So I have to stick with my imagination for now. sigh.

    • Staycations can be fun too, Diana. I loved day tripping with the kids when they were small. Coincidentally, I’ll be taking a road trip up the pacific coast in a couple of weeks. Hoping to stop in Forks. I’m a Twilight lover too! Any tips on where to stop?

  7. What a fabulous time you must have had on your cruise! My favorite vacation location was also on a cruise. It took us to several great southern Caribbean islands, and my favorite was St. Thomas, Virgin Islands. So beautiful!

    • Ooooh, I’ve never cruised the Virgin Islands. Would love to visit St. Thomas. I hear it’s lovely, Dean! As far as the wonderful time on my cruise, it was definitely filled with mixed blessings. Although it was amazing seeing all of those beautiful places, I have such pesky travel issues as motion sickness (much like the character in my book), fragrance sensitivity (which is a serious problem on airplanes and crowded places), an allergy to cigarette smoke (everyone in Europe smokes and has never heard of a non-smoking section), and my mother in-law, although sweet, is in her eighties. Seventeen days alone on a cruise ship with her had its…um…challenges:-)

  8. Wow that sounds like an amazing trip! I’ve never been out of the States, but i’d love to visit Italy some day!

    My favorite place to visit was Los Angeles area & Santa Barbara Cali! The beaches were pretty awesome there =)

    Brandi
    BLeigh1130 at yahoo dot com

    • Hi Brandi, thanks for stopping by. I love the California coast. My son lives outside of San Francisco and I’ve been out to wine country a couple of times. It’s absolutely gorgeous! I’m happy to say I’ll be heading out that way again in a week or so and can’t wait.

  9. I sometimes think I’d love to do a cruise then I think about being on ship for days and freak out. But if we’re doing regular stops every other day then perhaps it won’t be so bad. 😀

    • I hear you Kiru. I’m a land dweller myself. I love the ocean, but considering I’ve had several very bad motion sickness experiences, living on a boat is not my first choice for vacations. Cruising the Mediterranean, however was an amazing opportunity I couldn’t refuse, and the calm seas and daily dose of motion sickness medicine made the trip very doable. I might consider another cruise–perhaps an Alaskan cruise would be worth the risk–but I definitely prefer destination vacations.

  10. Gorgeous pictures, PJ. I would love to check out the scenery and their lovely temperatures. 🙂 My fav vacation spot is the Rocky Mountains in Alberta (or probably any mountain in the world!).

    • A mountain girl, eh? I’m hoping to one day take a train across Canada from Nova Scotia to Vancouver, BC. I hear the Canadian countryside is not to be missed! Thanks for popping in:-)

  11. Living here in the desert of Arizona , I always escape the summer heat by going to the beach in San Diego

    • Hi Joye! I’ve never been to Arizona but I hear the desert has its own special beauty. Sedona is on my travel list for sure. I’ve been to San Diego and who wouldn’t love the beaches?

  12. any beach

    bn100candg at hotmail dot com

  13. Colorado–or anywhere with mountains. I love hiking in the rugged wilderness. Your vacation sounds awesome. I’d love to take a cruise someday, but about the only place I might get my husband on a boat would be in Alaska. Which would be fine with me. 🙂

    • Hi Stacey! Thanks for paying me a visit. Colorado is beautiful. Pike’s Peak was a highlight of a trip I took there several years ago. The wildlife and hiking were amazing!

I love hearing from readers!