Friday, April 10, 2015
Tonight starts the fifth segment of
the World Cruise, but today finds us in the gateway to the Eternal City (Rome),
Civitavecchia. Civitavecchia has served
as Rome's seaport since the 13th century.
The port has a long and venerable history. The emperor Trajan built a pleasure villa
near, while Bernini and Michelangelo designed the harbor fortifications.
The ancient capital of the Western
World and the center of Christianity for nearly 2,000 years, Rome provides an
inexhaustible feast of things to do and see.
Nowhere on earth is there more art.
Rome gives us the magnificent Sistine Chapel and the largest church in
the world, St. Peter's Basilica. And we
can't forget the Piazza's and fountains, especially the Trevi Fountain, one of
the most famous in the world. Throwing a
coin in the fountain brings "luck".
Every night, workers collect about 3,000 euros and dollars from
well-wishers. The money is donated to
charity.
And we can't forget the food. It is said that Italians eat about 60 pounds
of pasta per person per year - we can understand why - delicious!
Today was a "housekeeping"
day for us and we did not venture into Rome having spent time here before. Several new passengers joined the ship to do
the transatlantic crossing to Ft. Lauderdale with us.
At close to 6PM, we lifted the lines
and set sail towards the Ligurian Sea and our next port, beautiful, scenic
Portofino.
