Third day at sea - October 18

Forward looking photo taken from the golf course on Deck 19.

We’ve had an uneventful and relaxing three days at sea since leaving Ponta Delgada. The first day was sunny and calm. Yesterday we did some bouncing around and it was cloudy as we passed closer to Omar. We think we must have passed him during last night because we were doing some rocking and rolling. Today we’re back to partly cloudy skies and smooth seas. We’re halfway to Ft. Lauderdale now.

We’ve been playing Scrabble and participating in the trivia games on board. Yesterday we tied for first place but lost the tiebreaker. There’s a character on the ship we call “Ronnie the Ringer.” We’ve seen him on other cruises and he must do nothing but study trivia questions and read the encyclopedia. If he’s playing the game everybody else might as well quit.

Well, that’s all for now. Back to relaxing.

Looking aft from Deck 19:

Ponta Delgada - October 15

We arrived early this morning in Ponta Delgada on Sao Miguel in the Azores. Since our last visit, a new terminal has been built so we docked right downtown. The island has done a beautiful job of it with a large terminal with shops and an easy walk to the rest of the city. This year we decided to stay in town since we had taken a tour last year. The island itself is very lush and green. They raise lots of cows here and most of the land is being used for something. The downtown is a bustling place with lots of shops. The streets are reminiscent of those in mainland Portuguese towns with lots of wrought iron work. After wandering around and visiting the beautiful old chirch, we went shopping in a grocery store. The Azores are the only producer of tea in Europe. Last year we had bought some Azorean tea and liked it so we bought a new supply. We also decided to buy a local cheese to try at home.

As we were walking along the waterfront several vans passed us with loudspeakers blaring and signs on the sides. Crowds of people would gather and cheer. A vendor on the street told us that the island is holding an election on next Sunday and these were candidates riding around campaigning. When we boarded the ship and looked ashore we saw a political rally taking place. Darn, we can’t get away from politics even here.



We sailed mid-afternoon and are on our way home. This evening we put a message in a bottle and launched it off the stern. Maybe in a few years we’ll get a reply.

A day at sea - October 14

Today we’re sailing the Atlantic headed to Ponta Delgada in the Azores. This morning we had light rain which cleared off around lunchtime. The seas were very calm and the temperature mild. In the afternoon we continued our Scrabble tournament. We tried playing outside in the Sanctuary, a place with wonderful lounge chairs and soothing music. Unfortunately we were nearly blown away so we had to move indoors. Tonight was our second formal night and we noticed that people on the whole get very dressed up on this cruise. It’s nice to see everyone decked out!

All in all it’s been an uneventful but relaxing day. Below is a pretty good shot of a gull taken from our balcony.

Lisbon - October 13

We arrived in Lisbon before sunrise. As we sailed up the Tagus River we could see a large old fortress all lit up on our port side. We sailed under the 25th of April Bridge, the longest suspension bridge in Europe, which also looked beautiful with the strings of lights illuminating it.

After gathering our group together we set out for Sintra and the Palace of Pena, the first stop on our tour. Unlike last year when we had a bright sunny day, this morning the palace, which sits atop a mountain, was shrouded in mist. It looked very mysterious as if from some old fairy tale. Pena is a relatively modern castle built in the 19th century by the King of Portugal. Inside it has an incredibly eclectic assortment of things. The kings and queens who lived there were typical people of the Victorian age. They abhorred empty spaces so each room is filled to the brim with all sorts of knickknacks and furniture.

We descended from the mountain and spent a little while in the quaint town of Sintra below. After lunch there we drove to Cap da Roca, the westernmost point on the European continent. Next stop from there is the USA.

Our drive then took us through the towns of Cascais and Estoril, playgrounds to the rich and famous, back to Lisbon. On Mondays the Jeronimos Monastery is closed so we could only see the outside. But we were able to stop at the café that sells the famous Pasteis de Belem, the trademark pastry of Lisbon. On an average day the café sells 15,000 of the delicious little cakes.

As we passed our last stops at the Belem Tower and the Monument to the Discoverers along the river we saw probably the most unique sight of the trip so far. Several fire engines, police cars and an ambulance came roaring by. The road along the waterfront is broken up by little inlets going into marinas and people who don’t realize the road is not a continuous straight one frequently drive off the edge into the river. Evidently some confused person had done just that! Fortunately Antonio our driver knew the way so we made it back to the ship without mishap.

Lisbon is a beautiful city and well worth a visit!

Cadiz - October 12

Today we arrived in Cadiz under dark clouds and threatening skies. It’s Sunday and Columbus Day to boot. We originally wanted to go to Jerez de la Frontera, home of the sherry industry and the Spanish Riding School, but everything is closed on Sunday. Instead we decided to wander around Cadiz. The ship was docked right downtown, so we set out with our rain gear. Despite the steady rain which began to fall, we walked through the narrow cobbled streets to the Cathedral which is quite pretty and to the sea wall that extends around the city on the opposite side from the harbor. Some of the streets were very picturesque with the typical Spanish wrought iron balconies, many with flowers and plants. We stumbled upon the area around the market , which was closed of course, but the area around it was bustling with people going into Tapas bars for lunch. As the rain was coming down pretty hard we headed back to the ship. Along the way a beautifully restored old car pulled up to a building in front of us. The car was decked out with tulle bows on the doorknobs and inside were a bride and groom going to their reception I suppose. Later in the day the rain stopped and we walked ashore again for a little while and took a picture of the old car. Late in the afternoon, just before we left, the sun came out and we had a lovely sailaway.

At sea off the eastern coast of Spain - October 11

Today we sailed through the Mediterranean on our way to the Strait of Gibraltar and our transit into the Atlantic. It was cloudy all day with whitecaps. Because we were running with the seas we didn’t experience any rocking and rolling to speak of. Despite the clouds it was warm outside so a lot of people used the pools. We slept late and continued our Scrabble tournament. We need Katie’s list of two letter words to help us out with our playing.

This evening we ate dinner at the restaurant on the Sun Deck again so we could look out the windows as we passed throught the Strait of Gibraltar. It was around 9 PM and we could see the lights of Africa off our port and the lights of Gibraltar and Spain to our starboard. They weren’t as close as the other night in the Strait of Messina but a good show nevertheless.

Tomorrow we’ll make our final stop in Spain at Cadiz.

Hasta Manana and Buenas Noches everyone!

Barcelona - October 10

Today we arrived in Barcelona and found the port full of cruise ships. From our vantage point we could see 6 large ones. We had to tie up next to a dirt road because all the terminal space was full. We had arranged for a car and driver to pick us up and take us to Montserrat, a monastery in the mountains outside of Barcelona. When we went there last year we had noticed that there was a funicular to take you all the way to the top of the mountain and a cog railway to take you down the mountain. We didn’t have time to try those then so we decided to do it this year. Mark, our driver drove us on a winding road up to the monastery and dropped us off. We bought our tickets and lined up for the funicular. The ride up was awesome. The funicular goes up a couple of thousand feet almost vertically. It was a bright sunny day so we had a gorgeous view of the surrounding area. After going back down to the monastery level, we bought some local sheep’s milk cheese from a vendor. The cheese is sliced in wedges and placed in a jar with olive oil. We had bought some last year and thought it was delicious.

For our ride down the mountain we took the Cremallera (the cog railway). It winds down the side of the mountain affording views that you don’t get from a car. At the bottom we met our driver who took us back into Barcelona. Today was not a very tiring day like some of the others we’ve had, but still very interesting. Some of our shipmates went into downtown Barcelona and were unable to get around too well because there was some sort of demonstration blocking streets and traffic. They seem to have a lot of those here.

The Emerald Princess was the last ship to sail and as we made our way out of the channel, we could see the sea outside dotted with cruise ships on their way to their next destinations.

Tomorrow will be a day at sea as we sail down the coast of Spain and through the Strait of Gibraltar to the Atlantic.

Cannes - October 9

This morning we tendered ashore to Cannes. We had arranged with some other people for a private tour and we were off shortly thereafter. Our first stop was the market in Antibes. We love markets because they give such a picture of the place you are visiting. This one had the freshest vegetables and fruits we had ever seen and something truly different from anything we’ve encountered. They had a number of vendors who sold nothing but spices and herbs. You could buy a few grams of tarragon or rosemary or thyme or whatever. The aromas around those tables were incredible.

We drove next to Tourettes sur Loup, a town on the gorge of the river Loup. The area is noted for perfume production and Tourettes is famous for violet fields. The town is a medieval one perched on the top of a hill. The houses form the ramparts and it’s very picturesque.

Next we drove to my favorite place in this part of Provence, St. Paul de Vence. St. Paul is a medieval walled city perched on a hill overlooking fields of lavender and other flowers. The town is full of interesting art galleries along cobbled streets – no cars allowed. We had lunch in a lovely place on a terrace overlooking the inner town well and fountain. We sat under the umbrellas with friends and tried some of the Cotes de Provence dry rose wine. We’ve never been fans of rose but this was great. After lunch we explored a little but didn’t find anything that struck our fancy. I guess I’m in ceramic mode this year.

Our last stop of the day was a visit to Eze, on the French Riviera. Riviera means the place where the mountains meet the sea and in Eze they do so in dramatic fashion with steep cliffs and tremendous views everywhere we looked. Today was an absolutely beautiful dayt The sun, the scenery and the ambiance on this coast are truly relaxing and Interesting, The French we have encountered today have been very gracious and pleasant. I can see why people would want to move here.

Firenza (Florence) and Pisa - October 8

Very early this morning we docked in Livorno and boarded a bus for our visit to Firenza and Pisa. After leaving the plain near the coast we entered beautiful Tuscany. In the distance we could see low mountains with white patches which are not snow but rather marble quarries. Firenza was packed with tourists. We first visited the Accademia Gallery and saw Michelangelo’s David. What a magnificent sculpture! The detail is absolutely breathtaking. We then walked through a lot of the downtown to the Duomo (the cathedral), past the Ponte Vecchio (the bridge in the picture) and other sights.



After lunch in a lovely old hotel in the countryside outside the city, we drove to Pisa. The walk to the Tower and Cathedral was like running the gauntlet between the vendors. Most of them were from someplace in Africa and they were extremely pushy. The area around the Cathedral and Tower had a carnival-like atmosphere between the crowds and the booths selling all kinds of souvenir trinkets. Some of our group climbed to the top of the Leaning Tower. I didn’t even try. Al went part of the way. The climb is inside the building in semi-darkness with no railing. Not for people like me who don’t like heights!

After another short ride we were back on the ship and happy to be there because we were pooped. This vacation business is tiring work!

Orvieto - October 7

After arriving in Civitavecchia (the port for the city of Rome) we set out on a different journey. We traveled with a group of 20 of our fellow voyagers into Umbria to the medieval fortified city of Orvieto. Orvieto is an ancient city (predating even the Romans) built on a volcanic plain and rising to a couple of thousand feet. Following a miracle performed by a certain St. Peter of Prague in the 14th century, a Pope ordered that a magnificent Gothic cathedral be built to commemorate the miracle. It took 300 years, but the Duomo stands now as one of the most beautiful Gothic cathedrals. The outer walls are covered with splendid mosaics and bas relief sculpture. In addition to stained glass windows there are many made of thinly sliced alabaster. It is truly a masterpiece! The town is also known for its fine pottery and once again a pasta bowl and platter caught our eyes so our collection is growing.

We had lunch in a traditional Umbrian trattoria and dined on the world-famous specialty of the area – coniglio a la estruscano. It was a delicious spiced rabbit braised with lots of herbs, black olives and some sausage. It was very tasty. After a long walk down the hill we boarded our bus to return to the ship. Along the way as we passed through the countryside of Umbria and Lazio we saw other medieval towns perched on hillsides and old farmhouses. We also saw the very intact remains of old Roman aqueducts. The country is alive with history!

The top picture is of a pile of cheese in Orvieto, and the bottom picture is the façade of the Duomo in Orvieto.

The beautiful Amalfi coast - October 6

We arrived in Naples early this morning and met our tour group for our trip down the coast. There were only 14 of us in a comfortable bus with a happy guide named Allessandro. We stopped first in the lovely little town of Amalfi with its splendid church dedicated to St. Andrew, the first of the Apostles. Amalfi lies on a beautiful bay with brilliant turquoise water. We wandered around the cobblestone streets and bought the requisite postcards before coming to a store with lovely majolica ceramic pottery. A pasta bowl was calling our name so it’s on its way to Newport News.

We moved on to Positano, probably the prettiest of the towns along the coast. The ride alone is spectacular with hairpin turns, each of them revealing new gorgeous vistas. It’s truly amazing to see these towns which have been built from the shoreline up basically sheer cliffs that have been terraced.

You don’t see overweight people here presumably because they eat sensibly and they do a great deal of walking up and down hills. Speaking of eating, we had a wonderful lunch in the Hotel Le Sireneuse. The food was excellent and the wine was even better. After lunch we could have used a siesta. In Italy it’s the custom for shops to close from 1 PM to 5 PM. It’s a different way of life!

After finishing our visit to Positano we continued on to Sorrento, which lies across the bay from Naples. Sorrento is a center for manufacture of inlaid wood furniture and boxes of all sizes. It’s surrounded by groves of lemon, orange and olive trees. In the little shopping streets we found some delicious limoncello and that too will make it to America.

Well, tomorrow we”ll be in Civitavecchia and we have an early morning. Good night everyone.

A leisurely day at sea - October 5

But first one more picture of Venice – the Leaning Tower of Venice

Today we sailed down the Adriatic Sea with the Italian coast on one side and Croatian and Albania on the other. While there were whitecaps, we ran with the seas so the ride was smooth. Around 9 PM we sailed through the Strait of Messina which separates the mainland of Italy and Sicily. We were eating in one of the restaurants on an upper deck and had windows on both sides of the ship. There were many lights ashore and at times it appeared you could reach out and touch them we were so close. Last year when we made the transit we ran into a tremendous lightning storm and Mother Nature gave us a magnificent light and sound show. This year was a starry night but as we passed, on the starboard or Italian shore there was a spectacular fireworks display. It must have been commemorating a local festival but we decided it was for us.

Tomorrow we’ll be in one of the most beautiful spots on the cruise, the Amalfi Coast.

Oct. 4 - Ciao Venice!

This morning is our last in Venice. It’s a cold and blustery day. People are bundled up. In the distance we noticed for the first time the range of mountains which had quite a bit of snow on them. We didn’t remember seeing them last year so we’re guessing there wasn’t snow then.
Around 1 PM we let go the lines and began the voyage. Sailing away from Venice is absolutely magnificent. The ship makes its way up the lagoon to the juncture with the Grand Canal near St. Mark’s and the Doge’s Palace. From our balcony we could overlook the entire city with its many spires and domes. Some of the church towers were leaning, Venice’s own versions of the Leaning Tower of Pisa.

We made our way past the massive flood gate project and out into the Adriatic. Tomorrow we’ll be making our way down the length of the boot of Italy and past to our port the coastline of Croatia and Albania.

Oct. 3 - The Emerald Princess is here!

This morning we awoke to sunny skies and warm temperatures. After a leisurely breakfast and more time watching the world go by on the Canal, our watertaxi arrived to take us to the ship. Embarkation was easy and after checking out our cabin we went back ashore for a long Vaporetto ride the length of the Grand Canal. One of the best ways to see the city is on the Vaporetto. We boarded it at the first stop, Piazzale Roma, and got seats up at the bow. We took the local which makes lots of stops along the way. As we traveled up the Canal we could truly appreciate the varying styles of architecture, the colors and the sounds of the city. Some of the buildings have been beautifully restored, others look more down on their luck, waiting for someone with vision and lots of euros to fix them up. Along the way we passed under the new bridge (subject of much controversy because of its modern style) and the older ones. We passed San Marco and the Doge’s Palace (still brimming with people and birds) and made our way across the lagoon to Lido, the end of the line. On the ride back we saw things from a differenr perspective and in different light.

Venice and Murano - Oct. 2

This morning we woke up to a warm day with some overcast. As we got ready to go up for breakfast, we watched the water traffic. Everything in Venice arrives by boat. In the morning the canal is full of “trucks” bringing in all manner of things. There are refrigerator boats, beer and wine boats, laundry boats etc. Conversely, the outgoing traffic included ones carrying hundreds of sacks of dirty laundry, trash, empty kegs and every other thing consumed during the previoius day. The FedEx boat went by as well as several Poilizia Penitenzaria boats carrying presumably some miscreants.

After having a very nice breakfast on the terrace on the second level of the Hotel we were off to the market across the Canal. What a glorious assortment of produce and seafood. The Venetians eat lots of seafood (no surprise there) and the market was brimming with all manner of sea creatures. There were hundreds of kinds of fish, clams, crabs, eels, squid and octopi. Amazingly, probably because it was all so fresh, there was no smell. The produce was likewise spectacular with luscious fruits, mushrooms of all shapes and colors, bins of olives and artichokes and many things we didn’t recognize.

Having soaking up the sights and smells of the market we headed to the Vaporetto (waterbus) to Murano, a nearby island known for its glassware. There are literally hundreds of shops there selling all kinds of glass. Some had what can only be called works of art. We fell in love with a glass sculpture called Venezia by a master glass blower. So I got to practice using the four handiest words when traveling – Charge it, ship it.

After a late lunch along a little canal we headed back across to Venice and our last evening ashore.

Ah, Venice again!

Following an uneventful flight we arrived by water taxi at our Hotel Al Ponte Antico, practically next door to the Rialto Bridge. We’ll say more about the hotel later. After freshening up we were off for lunch at a local Osteria (inn) and a walk about Piazza San Marco. The place was packed with tourists and pigeons, but the Basilica and the Doge’s Palace are so beautiful that it makes fighting the crowd worth it. Unfortunately after that the lack of sleep caught up with us and we had to go back for a nap.

In the late afternoon, we opened the two large windows in our room and sat overlooking the Grand Canal. Our room was nearly at water level so we had a spectacular view of the city passing by conducting its various businesses.

After a lovely dinner at a small restaurant we had discovered last year, we made it an early night.