Buenvenuto in Italia (Welcome to Italy) Saturday, October 9, at about 5:00 pm local time, over 30 intrepid Mature Friends landed in Milan, Italy — tired, hungry, and a bit bedraggled. After recuperating in Milan and taking the subway to see the famous overly gothic Duomo Cathedral with its thousand spires, we hopped a bus for Savona, Italy, where we boarded the Costa Fortuna, our home for the next eight days.
Thanks to having some money left over in the kitty, Don M. declared a cocktail hour in the piano bar, starboard aft, on Deck 5, every afternoon around 5:00 pm. The extra money bought us each one drink, but many of us hung around for more conversation over another round or two. Along with the drinks came never-ending trio of hors-d’oeuvres — spicy Mexican corn chips, nuts, and some kind of other crunchy, unidentifiable treat.
Cocktail Hour Aboard the Costa Fortuna
We quickly got used to be pampered aboard ship. Cabin stewards would clean up our rooms at least twice a day, and the waiters in the dining-room went out of their way to make sure we had what we wanted.
The dinners were lavish and, for the most part, delicious. We could chose one dish for each of seven or eight courses. Once I tried ordering one dish from each course, and lived to regret it. Each night presented a feast truly fit for royalty!
One of the Dining Rooms Aboard the Costa Fortuna
Our ship made the following ports of call, one port per day:
- Oct. 11 — Naples, Italy
- Oct. 12 — Palmero, Sicily
- Oct. 13 — Tunis, Tunisia
- Oct. 14 — Palma de Mallorca, Spain
- Oct. 15 — Barcelona, Spain
- Oct. 16 — Marseilles, France
- Oct. 17 — Savona, Italy
- Oct. 18 – 22 — Rome, Italy
So, find your stateroom, order room service, and relax and enjoy the voyage. We set sail . . . NOW!
Milan
Although we arrived in Milan in the early evening, Jerry J. managed to find a nice Italian cafeteria where we had dinner and later relaxed with coffee on the terrace of a small café on the main square across from the train depot. On the way to the cafeteria, Jerry pointed out a much needed cash machine, a wonderous invention that turns money changing into child’s play.
The next morning, some of us took the subway into town to tour the magnificent Duomo Cathedral. Fortunately, we were a bit too early to hike up to the roof and get a close-up look of the spires. And I’m talking spires in spades! The architect obviously loved spires. Maybe he’d been dreaming of porcupines!
Before going up to the roof, we had some time to kill. So we went across the street to the huge glass covered shopping mall. Some of us were looking on the floor for a mosaic of a bull. Tradition has it that twirling on the bull’s balls with the heel of your shoe brings good luck for one year. I dryly commented that only tourists would fall for that, and sure enough!
After our quick tour of the city center, we headed back to the hotel, where we caught the bus to Savona, where our ship was waiting.
After the three-hour bus ride from Milan to Savona, which included some time when the driver got lost and had to ask directions, we arrived at the docks. Around 4:30 PM, we had all boarded the Fortuna . Finally, by 5:30, the main top gallants filled, a gentle breeze slapped the spanker, our spirits lifted, and off we sailed....
Naples
At each stop on our cruise, we could sign up for an organized tour, usually for about $50.00 per person per tour. Quickly realizing how this could jack up the bill, we were careful to schedule only tours we felt we couldn’t do without. For me, that meant seeing the ancient Roman city of Herculaneum during our first port of call in Naples. Others went on the tour of Pompeii, and still others took off on their own to see the museums of Naples.
For those who went to Pompeii, the haunting devastation was everywhere. But enough was preserved so that looking down one of the streets, you almost expected to see a chariot and horses coming at you, as you can see in the following shot:
Herculaneum
Since the tour of Herculaneum lasted most of the day, I didn’t see much of Naples except for harbor where the ship was docked. I wanted to see this little town of Ancient Rome because I had heard it was better preserved than Pompeii. I wasn’t disappointed.
Many houses in Herculaneum had their second floors intact, something not seen in Pompeii. Also, the mosaïcs were in some cases perfectly preserved, as this one:
We always reboarded the ship in time for the cocktail hour in the piano bar. Then it was on to dinner. How convenient!
Palermo
Our next stop was Palermo, Sicily.As dawn came up on the sea, we approached Palermo, Sicily. Several groups decided to take short walking tours of the city and were impressed by the swarthy good looks of the Sicilian men. The group I went with headed for the city’s huge cathedral, which didn’t fail to impress us. This one was fronted with extravagant gardens and a large stone-and-cement patio inviting you up to the main entrance.
Later in the afternoon, we made our way back to the ship. Here’s a picture of Don K., who has kindly made his photos available for this article. Don is relaxing on the balcony of his elegant stateroom before the ship raised anchor and set sail for the next stop — Tunis, Tunisia.
Don Relaxing on His Stateroom Balcony Aboard the Fortuna
Tunis
In Tunis many of us took the tour of ancient Carthage, the city that competed with Rome for dominance of the Mediterranean. In about 300 B.C. after three Punic Wars, Rome razed Carthage to the ground. All that’s left are ruins of the city Rome built on the rubble about 100 years later.
We also saw a wonderful part of the city known for its white buildings and Mediterranean blue doors and trim. Here’s an example of one of the doors:
Later, we visited a museum in the city of Tunis. The museum used to be the palace of the Bey of Tunisia. The most remarkable pieces of art in this museum were the many beautifully preserved mosaics. The guide was careful to point out that all the varied colors came directly from the stones used in the mosaic itself. Nothing was painted on.
After our long day of sight seeing, we returned to the ship in time for . . . yup, you guessed it — our cocktail hour in the piano bar, and then on to dinner! We sailed right away after boarding because our next stop was back across the Mediterrean to Mallorca.
Mallorca
After crossing the Mediterranean back to Europe, we landed in Palma de Mallorca, an island resort get-away for Europeans chasing the sun. Owned by Spain, Mallorca presented us with a crescent-shaped bay with a walkway, shops, and restaurants. I walked the half circle of the bay to the main cathedral on the island.
Restored by the famous architect Antonio Gaudi, this huge edifice is best known for its rosette of stained glass, one of the largest rosettes in the world. Although the church shows a façade in Gothic style, it’s nowhere near as ornate and over-the-top as the Duomo in Milan.
Cathedrale of Palma de Mallorca
As breath-taking as this cathedral is, it was only the beginning of our sample of Antonio Gaudi’s work. In Barcelona, we’d see much more.
On my way back to the ship, I bumped into this group of suspicious characters who were taking a break during their walking tour of the city.
After our cocktail hour, the ship set sail for our next stop, Barcelona.
Barcelona
In Barcelona, several of us took a city tour bus. The bus made several stops at various sites, and you could get off and stay as long as you liked. Buses came at about 10 minute intervals.
Building Showing Gaudi’s influence
Further along on the tour, we discovered this cathedral with it’s curved spires. I’d never seen anything like it, and got off the bus to get a closer look.
But the tour wasn’t all sight-seeing, which can get rather tiring after a while. Some of us were smart enough to relax along the way and pace themselves.
Stopping for Refreshments on the La Rambla
Marseilles
As soon as we got off the shuttle bus from the ship, we ran to the pier where shuttle boats sailed to (and from, one would hope!) the notorious Château d’If, where the Count of Monte Cristo and the Man in the Iron Mask spent many long years. Unfortunately, the entire day had been booked. Disappointed, we switch to our back-up plan.
Old Marseilles is hilly, and there’s lots to see. You had two choices. You could take a little train up to the huge Notre Dame Cathedral, which overlooks the old harbor and the city, or if you were up to a good hike, you could go on a walking tour marked with a red line on the sidewalk and also on the city map. The day was cloudy, but with all the food we’d eaten on the ship, a few of us took the red line tour.
We finished the tour where we started, down by the harbor. After checking out a few cafes, we settled on one that had some nice salads on the menu. Portions were ample and the waitress was congenial. After a pleasant lunch, we took off on the climb up the big hill on the other side of the harbor to see the huge Notre Dame Cathedral.
After the envigorating climb, we wandered back down to the docks to catch the shuttle bus back to the ship. As we got to the bus, the rain started. It had miraculously held off till the last minute.
Pisa
The next morning, we docked in Savona, where we’d started so many days ago. Disembarking went more smoothly than embarking, and soon we were on the bus to Rome. The trip would take about eight to ten hours, so we needed to stop along the way for lunch.
Fortunately, we had our own personal gay guide (Amadeo), and he called ahead to a restaurant he knew in Pisa. (Thank heavens for cell phones!) Around 1:00 pm, we ended up in a comfortable room to ourselves with a very tasty and generous lunch consisting of a mixed green salad, pesto gnocchi, and chicken pasta for the main course. Accompanying the lunch was our choice of red or white wine and some bottled water. All of this cost us only 20 euros apiece.
After lunch we were given some free time to wander around the site of the Leaning Tower and take pictures. The tower doesn’t look very old because it’s been refurbished so much that very little of the original remains. Some of our group stopped for a quick snapshot just outside the old city gate. If you look hard, you can see the leaning tower in the background
Well filled and rested, we continued out journey to Rome, passing by some spectacular mountains where famous Italian marbles have been quarried for centuries.
Rome
We finally arrived in Rome late, about 8:30 pm. After some fancy maneuvering of the bus, we finally pulled up to the Hotel Champagne and checked in. As soon as we were settled, we set off in groups to find a place to eat dinner. After an unremarkable dinner at a cheap cafe, we came back to the hotel for some much needed sleep.
The next day, we were up bright and early having breakfast on the 7th floor of the hotel. We had to finish and get ready to meet another gay tour guide who would give us a tour of the city.
We met our tour guide, Massimilliano (Max), for what was to be a bus tour of Rome. Instead it turned out to be a walking tour. Since it was a nice day, the walking tour was invigorating, after sitting on a bus for 10 hours the day before. We started out at the Colosseum. Max got to show us a few things he couldn’t show his straight tour groups, such as some ancient graffiti carved into the walls of the arena. Here’s an example:
Uh-hum! Back to business! Here’s Max telling us about this amazing wonder of the world. He said it’s doubtful that any Christians were martyred here, but quite a few criminals were put to death in various creative ways.
Max Talking about the Colosseum
Later we walked through the ancient Roman forum. Obviously, no bus could have given us this tour. Here’s a picture of the forum looking from the Capitoline Hill toward the Palatine Hill (where the emperors’ palaces once stood).
From there, we ventured over to the famous Pantheon, a huge temple with a dome that has never been duplicated. Although Michelangelo’s dome in St. Peter’s Basilica borrowed from the Pantheon’s, the dimensions don’t quite measure up. Here’s a picture of a few of us gathering at our post-luncheon meeting spot in front of this fabulous structure.
After lunch, we moved on to more recent Roman sites, such as the famous Trevi Fountain. Of course, some of our members couldn’t resist tossing coins into the fountain. But considering the unfavorable exchange rate, many of us thought better of that idea.
At the end of the tour, we were so satisfied with Max that we hired him to take us through the Vatican Museum, the Sistine Chapel, and St. Peter’s Basilica the next day. We arranged to meet him at 1:00 pm to avoid the majority of tourists, who crowd the chapel and Vatican in the morning.
Tiber River with Vatican in Background
Max pointed out that it is wise to have a guided tour of the Vatican Museum to give your visit a focus. Otherwise, if you just wandered through, trying to see all of the museum, it would take you 10 years! Here’s a statue that fascinated Michelangelo. He loved studying this ancient scupture, especially the musculature of this dying king and his sons.
Laocoon Dying in the Vatican Museum
The last two days we were on our own. Most of us broke up into small groups to visit specific sites not on the tour. For example, a few guys took the train up to Florence.
The Famous Bridge Ponte Vecchio
As for me, I wandered back to the Vatican to take a closer look at some of the beautiful artwork and architecture that I’d missed or didn’t get a chance to really study.
Michelangelo’s Pieta in St. Peter’s Basilica
Being truly interested in Ancient Rome, I visited the Foro Traiano (Emperor Trajan’s forum) with its famous column depicting the accomplishments of Trajan. From there, I went up onto the Palatine Hill to wander through the remnants of the formerly gorgeous palaces of the emperors, the men who ruled the known civilized world. I walked through the rooms, looked down on the forum, and gazed across to the Capitoline Hill wondering what it must have been like 2,000 years ago.
All too soon it was time to leave the Eternal City. Plans are already in the works for the next big tour, which will take us back to the Mediterrean. The next time, however, we’ll cruise the Eastern Mediterranean, with Athens being the main focus. So, keep an eye on the upcoming newsletters for more information as plans come together. Then sign up! Come and join us!
— Curt Johnson