7 October At Sea/Suez

We are at anchor somewhere near the entrance to the Suez Canal - arrived here at 7pm and had to go through extensive ship testing by the Suez Patrol Authorities.  This took ages and we now wait to be told when the convoy of ships will begin the journey. It seems we may leave around 4 am but who knows!  We'll set the alarm & try & see as much as possible in the early stages - apparently it takes around 8 hours and costs Princess $400,000!   It's been a lovely night weather-wise but will be hot tomorrow.  Lots of people out on deck enjoying a drink or a chat or just looking at the 7-8 ships in our vicinity waiting to proceed.  

Not much excitement earlier in the day - again it was mahjong for me before lunch then I sat by the 'whale' pool for a while.  Very interesting to see what people will wear at the pool, they don't care one bit about whether it fits or it doesn't!!!!! And as for bikinis - surely they should be for the likes of Elle McPherson but not on this ship!!! 

Am also intrigued at how many couples walk around hand in hand. Perhaps it's to keep them both in the upright position - they can't all be newlyweds at that age!!! (Not jealous, mind you). Quite the opposite, in fact, I'm being corrected every time I open my mouth! 

One of the pilot boats before we entered the suez Canal

6 October At Sea

Well, back to sea for us after 3 lovely days in Italy.  My appetite  for Italy has  been whetted - it would be so good to go back one day, age permitting!!!!!!!

Not a lot to report today, we went to the port destination lecture for Aqaba and were pleased to hear it would only be 24C at Petra and 35C when we arrive in Aqaba.  Too hot for me but guess you only get one opportunity to visit these wonders  of the world.  

We haven't seen any wildlife at all, just a few seagulls following us after leaving Messina.  Passed by the island if Crete, Greece, this afternoon and expect to be at Port Said tomorrow night around 7pm.  

I played mahjong again this afternoon, missed the art auction which I have enjoyed on previous cruises.  Canapes in our room (part of the elite deal!!!) with a couple of home-made gin & tonics and now dressed for a formal night.  Low key of course!!!!! 

Joined a couple, Dale & John, from Bendigo at dinner, they previously lived in Merimbula but she is a Melbourne girl & he is Scottish.  

5 October Messina Italy

Messina, Sicily

Another terrific day today - we did a private tour, again,  with 'Joe Bananas', a company that specialises in smaller groups and which costs a whole lot less than using the Princess tours which cram 45 people into one large bus!  

We started with the Godfather tour where we were driven along the coast to a small town up in the hills called Savoca.  Here we saw Bar Vitelli (where Michael speaks with Apollonia's father in the movie) as well as the church where they were married.  But there is a twist - this church was only used externally - they were married in another church in the next town we visited, called Agostiniana.  The interior of the church was beautiful and it will be worth watching the film again as it was made in 1972 and hard to remember all the details. This town was quite medieval with narrow winding cobblestone streets. The views from all there these towns were amazing, every bit as lovely as the Amalfi coast.  

We then drove on to the beautiful town of Taormina - wow!  Fantastic!  What a gem!  We had 3 hours to wander the narrow streets, browse in the many and varied shops and have lunch with our new friends from California, Pattie & Gaylord.  Also enjoyed a bottle of Sicilian Syrah, as nice as anything we've had on this trip.  Tried to buy a bottle  to bring on board but couldn't find any.  

After having a rest and a gin & tonic we ate quite late and shared a table with a couple from Perth.  Was a most amusing dinner - this couple, Dot & Jeff, still haven't got their luggage!!!!!  And this is day 9!  Turns out they were on board a flight at Dublin airport when the Captain announced that due to having too much fuel loaded the night before, the plane was overloaded & all the luggage would need to be offloaded.  Long story short, they made it onto the ship but not their luggage.  It seems that for the first 4 sea days he would don a cabin dressing gown and wander down to the laundromat to do their washing.  (They only had what they were wearing).  So Dot, being a rather large lady, went shopping in Civitavecchia but couldn't find anything to fit her!  Next day in Naples he went shopping for the both of them and finally, at the last minute, he was able to buy her some shirts, four, in fact, & would have bought more but they didn't have any more in the size!!!, still couldn't find any knickers to fit her but did find some for himself & ended up paying $150 for 6 pair!!!  By now we were in stitches!  As to the luggage, it was meant to be waiting for them in Rome but no show!  Now expected to be in Dubai so will be interesting to see if it turns up.  All her medications, jewellery are in her case & she's had to get medications from the ship's doctor & they are obviously not the same & she's having issues with that.  

We set sail at 5 pm, Calabria is just across the water, only 2 miles separating Sicily from the mainland.  We will be in Aqaba in 5 days. 

4 October Naples

4 October Naples

An early start this morning, met our group of 8 on the wharf for our gastronomic tour of Naples/Sorrento.  From the outset we knew it would be a good day as our driver, Nuncio was most pleasant and accommodating particularly since I mentioned that I would like to meet up with Toni (niece) and Roger for a few minutes in Sorrento!  

Our group consisted of a couple from Scotland, another from the US and a couple from Waikerie in SA.  Our first stop was at an olive oil factory where we were taken  across the road to a lone olive tree!!! But when I asked how big the plantation was she said 1500 acres so was some orchard!!! The picking season starts mid October so was too early for us to see the plant in operation but we did have an explanation of the process and got to taste as many as 35 different oils!  Some were infused with orange,

lemon, garlic, rosemary, thyme, chilli, ginger, truffle,  etc etc etc.  

On then to the next stop, a mozarella cheese place.  Must admit I thought we were going to a cheese factory but turns out it was a deli - a typical Italian deli, of course, with a couple of tables in the back room.  Our host, Nello, was buzzing around, setting the table for the 8 of us, bringing wine and water to the table for starters.  Remember, this was not lunch.  He explained that he  lived in Melbourne when he was younger but came back to Italy to marry.  First he brought bread to the table, wonderful freshly baked crusty bread, followed by a massive plate of tomatoes, sliced and drizzled with extra virgin olive oil (remember we'd been to the olive oil place!!!!!) and basil.  So fresh and delicious.  We also had a plate of lettuce with sliced ham.  Then he came to the table with the starter for the mozzarella and proceeded to make it in front of us.  Next, a platter of salami was delivered along with some super freshly baked bread which he could barely slice as was too hot!!! We were pretty much stuffed by now as you can imagine.  

So the next stop was, yes you've guessed, lunch.  Fortunately we had about a half hour drive before  arriving at the restaurant on the southern side of Sorrento.  This was all a bit of fun as four people at a time donned aprons and worked with their own ball of dough to create a disc for their own pizza!  But first we had to throw to each other, catch and throw back.  We added toppings and they were cooked to perfection!  The only problem was we could only eat a small portion because of Nello's genosity at the deli!!!!!

After several facetime calls and messages, I was finally able to let Toni know we would be in Sorrento by 2 pm - Nuncio really wanted us to meet up and very kindly gave us 30 minutes free time in Sorrento.  He dropped us off in the town square right opposite the restaurant Fourno where Toni said they would be.  

How lovely to be in a city in Italy and be able to meet up with relatives!!! Toni and Roger both looked very relaxed, as did their friends Dal & Dave and other than photographing and kissing every cat since leaving home (her words) I don't think they are missing anything!!

Back in the car we drove a bit before stopping at a Limoncello place for tastings.  Then on towards Naples but not before stopping for gelato on the way!!  This was all included in our tour and we all agreed it was such a fun day.  

An early night after a light dinner as up early again tomorrow for a tour in Messina, Sicily.  

4 October Civitavecchia.

Finally a day on land.   We took a shuttle into the town of Civitavecchia  and strolled around for a few hours. A pity the museum and the Michaelangelo Fort were closed being Monday and most of the stores were closed for siesta so we stopped for pizza and a beer! It was really hot and muggy, not my kind of weather. A good number of people went into Rome on tours or independently on the train - we did that on a previous cruise and is a long day!!!  

An early dinner as we set sail for Naples. Was a relief to hit the pillow!!!!!

3 October At Sea

We are in the Med, off the coast of Spain/Corsica.  Lots of ship traffic now, passing cruise and cargo ships all the time.  Plenty of people catching the sun, particularly those from the UK.  

Not a lot different from other days, I did play bingo after mahjong (getting ready for the nursing home) but didn't win anything.  We ate in the buffet as George wanted to take Craps lessons (!!!) in the casino. 

I went to the late show as the earlier one was full, Phillip Browne was singing again and didn't disappoint.  

I enjoyed laying in bed with the door open and watching the lights of Italy as we cruised by.  Tomorrow we are in Civitavecchia and the next day Sorrento!!!!  Hoping to catch up with Toni & Roger, Dal & Dave.  

2 October At Sea

Up early, threw on some clothes to be up on deck for the first bounce to be told the Grand Final wasn't starting until 6.30. Some had coffee, others bacon & eggs, & everyone huddled under pool towels as was a bit breezy. I watched until 1/4 time then moved to the Fusion Lounge for the rest of the game.  Nice being with others rather than in the room as was a great atmosphere.  How thrilling for the Bulldogs to have such a great win.  They will be a force to be reckoned with next season and the likes of Bucks will need to pull up their socks!!!!

Mahjong again for me after lunch.  We have a good little group going and there are others playing the US and Chinese versions.  

Took a scrabble board back to the room and had a game before dinner.  I had forgotten how important it is to win and as I had quite a comfortable lead the game was abandoned early.  Ho hum.   

Met some Americans for dinner - we will be sharing a tour with them in Messina - they were so lovely, she drop dead gorgeous & he pretty handsome for an old bloke.  Turns out she had her 70th just recently, could pass for a 50 year old!!!  They are disambarking in Singapore as he will be giving lectures in Malaysia.  When George asked what subject he said 'I am a Minister of Religion and my subject is 'Jesus loves everyone'!  So we had a great night and will enjoy their company in 2 days time. 

The show was appalling - a dud comedian.