Nice, France

Sunday, April 12, 2015

During the night we made the short, quick and easy trip from Genoa to Nice.  We approached "Cap de Nice" boarded the local pilot and entered the beautiful harbor of Nice and the French Riviera.

Mediterranean coast.  How do you decide to spend your time?!?

If you decide to venture out of the city, you can visit Monaco and see St. Nicholas Cathedral, built on the site of a 13th century church, or visit the Palais Du Princes (Royal Palace), Old Monaco, or Monte Carlo and try your luck at the Casino.

Then there is Cannes, best known as the home of the film festivals, lively nightlife and beaches.  If you are in great shape, touring the medieval village of Eze is not to be missed.  It is like being in an eagle's next perched on a rocky peak overlooking the Mediterranean Sea.  But you might not want to miss Menton, called the Pearl of France.

However, our choice of the day was the narrow curving streets of the Vieille Ville "Old Town", a historic part of Nice.  We spent time at the colorful flower market which is actually a full blown market with vegetables, flowers, meat, fish and souvenirs, etc.  The "Old Town" is ringed with numerous restaurants and cafes, old buildings with red-tiled roofs, piazza's, cathedrals and numerous places to buy the famous Nice bread Socca:  made from olive oil and chickpea flour, served hot from the pan and seasoned generously with black pepper - scrumptious!

At 4PM we set sail, BACKING!, out of the harbor and into the Gulf of Lion for our next port of call, Barcelona.

Portofino, Italy (aborted to Genoa, Italy)

Saturday, April 11, 2015

Today we began the first day of the 5th segment, 18 days, of the World Cruise from Rome to Ft. Lauderdale.  Our first stop was Portofino, located in the beautiful area of the Italian Riviera not far from the French border.  We choose to again visit the UNESCO World Heritage Site of Cinque Terre, a national park comprised of five unique villages.

Upon arriving in Portofino, we encountered very big swells, not allowing for the ships tenders to safely transport passengers shore side.   Unfortunately, the Captain made the decision to abort our call to Portofino and instead relocate to Genoa, about 25 miles west of Portofino.  He will also extend our all aboard time to 7:30pm.  Most of the tours will operate but certainly with revisions.

Genoa is a metropolitan area with nearly 1 million people.  Here you find the San Lorenzo Cathedral, dedicated nearly 1,000 years ago and Chelsea del Gesu (Church of Jesus) containing priceless relics and artwork by Reubens.  The city has old boulevards with many palaces.  Also Genoa has museums, the largest aquarium in Italy, countless galleries and opera!

As promised, the Captain extended our stay to allow the excursions to complete as much of their visits as possible and at approximately 8:15PM we slipped the lines, blew the whistle and headed for Nice, France.

Rome (Civitavecchia), Italy

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.

Sorrento, Italy

Thursday, April 9, 2015

Setting sail from Messina through the Tirrenian Sea, we headed towards the Gulf of Naples and our expected anchorage of Sorrento.

Aahhh, the sunny Bay of Naples is one of Italy's most beautiful sights, and the doorway to the scenic drive down the Amalfi Coast.  Mount Vesuvius dominates the skyline and the lovely peninsula of Sorrento juts out into the sea.

The choices of what to do with a day in Sorrento are mind boggling!  From Sorrento, it is only a 20 minute trip by hydrofoil to Capri, one of the world's most beloved islands.  Or perhaps a visit to Pompeii to teach you about the ancient Roman coastal resort buried under a blanket of volcanic ash during the 79 AD eruption of Mt. Vesuvius.

Many people choose to travel the stunning coast of Amalfi, one of the most beautiful drives in the world.  This drive stretches from Sorrento to Salerno.  The most popular stops are Positano, where pastel houses tumble down the cliffside and the romantic town of Amalfi, very elegant and chic.

But just spending time walking the streets of Sorrento can't be beat!

At 6PM we set sail back out of the Bay of Naples for Civitavecchia, the port for Rome and our last stop on this segment.