Looking back...

It’s time to reflect on our time away – and what better time than when the weather outside is truly vile.  The sun has barely shone here, it’s bitterly cold and the rain just keeps coming.  Now remind me again why I was keen to come home last week?  Ah yes, it’s the ‘time to go home’ blues that hit in the last few days, regardless of how long you’ve been away.

I’m finding that some memories are fading already, especially those from the beginning of the trip, but revisiting the blog and looking over the postcard album I put together yesterday is helping to fill in some of the hazy bits.

The Highlights

Three magic moments

Our Dawn service onboard ship on Anzac Day.   At least 500 people attended the Dawn Service on the pool deck, the bugler played the last post from the highest point of the ship just as dawn broke.  It was a very special moment.

Finding the grave of my grandmother’s second cousin who died towards the end of the Gallipoli campaign.  I’d been given the wrong location, but found the grave anyway- purely  by accident.  That was pretty magic too.

Hearing the ‘shout' at the Baptistry in Pisa - definitely goose bumps time.  Here is the link

The Shout at Pisa Baptistry

Three most memorable meals ashore

Our most memorable meal, hands down, was the Greek style calamari in Corfu.  A whole squid grilled and served on  a platter with lemon and salad is not for the faint hearted.  Once the initial shock wore off, we really enjoyed it – and the tomatoes were delicious.  Almost as good as home grown.

Then there was our Saturday lunch in Cadiz where we were served freshly caught grilled fish and salad – accompanied by a cold beer, some guitar music and a spot of people watching.  Great fun.

We had another delightful seafood experience.  This time it was in Syracuse, Sicily and we tried some Pasta Nero ie black pasta with cuttlefish, in a small, out of the way restaurant with our good friends, John and Jimmy and their wives Rita and Anna.  It was thick and creamy and remarkably tasty.  Yum.

Food on the ship.

OMG.  There was just so much of it.  At first everyone goes a little crazy at the buffet and comes back with plates piled high with a little bit of everything.  But after a while, people settled down, otherwise none of our clothes were ever going to fit again.

 It took us a few days, but we realised that the buffet was not our friend, and we started to go to the a la carte restaurant instead for dinner, where the meals were a standard size (although the bread basket on the table could still get you into trouble).  The quality of the food was always high and Vaughan had one of the nicest desserts he’s ever had – a champagne and grapefruit jelly and sorbet -  there.  They also did a mean surf and turf with lobster tails.  Mmmm.

However the breakfasts were truly standout with hot and cold dishes, cereal and fruit and fresh made pastries constantly being replenished.  We really enjoyed the energiser shots made with freshly squeezed juices and ginger, not to mention the delicious pink grapefruit juice available every day, which made up for the indifferent coffee there  (We learned the only drinkable coffee was made by the barista in the Mosaic Lounge, so that became a popular hangout.)

What we’ll miss

Waking up with a different view every day, especially when sailing into port.  The Mediterranean Sea is as flat as a millpond (except when sailing around the foot of Italy) and it is always blue. 

Having our very own cabin steward, Bengie, who, ably assisted by Julian, looked after our cabin so well.  It was nice not having to make your own bed everyday, not to mention only having to unpack once.

Not having to make any decisions more urgent than where to have lunch or which shipboard activity to attend.

Who we’ll miss

John, Jimmy, Rita and Anna from WA, Jenni from Sydney, Len and Melina, who included us in Melina’s birthday celebrations aboard, Adrian from WA and Josh and Wendy, former expats now back in Tasmania. 

We’ll also miss the Cruise Activities staff/ performers: Austin, Taylor, Sascha and Dimitri and DJ Alex who took turns to run the Trivia competitions we attended most days.  We’ll especially miss Dimmy’s attempts at pronouncing some of the trickier English words.  He certainly increased the level of difficulty of some questions.

We’ll miss the many delightful dinner companions we met along the way.  At first conversation tended to focus on  ‘So what attracted you to this cruise?’, followed by  ‘What’s been your favourite port so far?’ and finally, ‘Where do you go from here?’  About 80 of the 650 passengers had signed on for a further  five week cruise, so they were only half way through their trip when we left them in Nice.  For us ten weeks would have been too long, but if time and money were no object, I can see the appeal.

What we won’t miss:

The coffee.    Nuff said.

Paying for the internet by the minute.    Sometimes a blog would take multiple tries to upload – but the internet minute timer didn’t care about that and counted down anyway. 

Wifi strength was patchy around the ship.  I made it my business to find the strongest locations and must have looked a sight standing  next to a particular lamp waiting to upload a blog,  or prowling up and down the stairwell trying to zero in on the best signal.

Lining up for the laundry.  There were only three washing machines for passengers on the whole ship.  Thank heavens I brought our Scrubba bag which was brilliant for washing underwear and t shirts, which we hung out on the balcony.  Best buy ever.

Three coincidences - or it’s a small world after all.

The best was when Vaughan realised that our guide in Turkey was the same guide who’d assisted his friend who’d had a very bad accident in Turkey five years ago while on a motorcycling tour, and spent three weeks in hospital over there.  It was hard to say who was more shocked: Vaughan, the guide Baresh, or the friend back home, Chris when he saw the photo on Facebook.

Two of Vaughan’s bank customers were also on the cruise, who exclaimed when he greeted them. 'What are you doing here? You’re our emergency contact person if we have money trouble!’

The third was on our last day in France, while Vaughan was sitting on a bench  eating an icecream in St Paul de Vence in the shade of the church tower, avoiding the heat of the day, when one of his old Commonwealth Bank colleagues walked past with his wife.  Again it was hard to tell who was more shocked. Vaughan or David 

Three most beautiful places.

Santorini is famous for iconic views over white buildings with  blue domed rooves into the crater lake.  The island has no historical or strategic importance.  It is simply lovely.

Kotor in Montenegro is a walled town tucked away at the end of a fjord, fronted by a protected bay and backed by a range of limestone mountains.    The village is full of winding narrow streets inside the walls and the sailaway from the bay is simply beautiful.

Tourette sur Loup is the tiny medieval village in the Provence hinterland.  Not only were the stone houses with interesting windows and doors beautifully enhanced with pot plants, but the views out over the valley were breathtaking.  Then there was the scent of violets from the gorgeous soaps made there (with violet petals) pervading the whole village.  A special place indeed.

Corsica earns an honorable mention.  It is full of vivid contrasts: mountains and beaches,  palm trees and pine trees side by side, hairpin bends in mountain roads and flat roads in the wetlands.  It has a wildness that really appealed.  They make the best lemon juice drink there too.  Served freshly squeezed with no sugar and a dash of water.  It was really refreshing - after you stopped shuddering.

Three best tours/most interesting places

If I had any doubts that having a good guide can make or break a visit, Mathilde, our guide in Pompeii put them to rest.  Her efforts more than made up for a lousy guided tour there 5 years ago.

   

I also have to give credit to Baresh from Istanbul; our very knowledgeable guide in Ephesus; the ex-pat Brit, Adrian in Jerusalem, whose knowledge of the area and comparative religion was second to none; and Andrea, our dryly humorous guide in Korkula (Croatia) who managed the leaven the facts with a few laughs

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Some of our other guides could heave learned a thing or two from them.  I’m looking at you, guides from  Athens, Amalfi Coast,  Tangiers, Marseille and Syracuse!

Three places NOT suited to visiting by ship – and not on a weekend either, thanks.

Athens, Rome and Florence are quite some distance from their ports so it takes time to get into these cities – and when it’s a weekend and the crowds are thick, all of the major tourist sites have long, long queues.   It’s not the best way to see these historical cities.  We’d happily go back there but we’d do it differently.

Three places we’d revisit in a flash

I don’t think we would necessarily go back to the most picturesque towns, the cities with the most interesting histories or the places we felt short changed by.  I don’t think we would even try to revisit the places that wowed us, because you can’t recapture magic like that.

The three places that spring into my mind are Malta, Corsica and Corfu.  I don’t think it’s any coincidence that they’re all islands, and that they have long, complex histories and beautiful architecture.  I’d be happy to go back to any of these places to explore them in more detail, perhaps even hire a car – only not at peak tourist time! 

Vaughan would add Sorrento to that list, mainly because our time was cut short there.

So what’s next?  Plans are well underway for a Baltic cruise in August 2016 with a side trip to Ireland and London. 

Arrivederci  for now.