Rome - Day 1

Rome – Day 1

Our ship docks at 6am on Sunday morning.  Earlier that week I had decided to book an additional tour with the ship.  This tour will take us from the ship today at 7am and drop us in Rome at 1pm.  This saves us the hassle of finding our own transport back into the city then wondering what to do all day on a Sunday (remembering that this is the religious capital of the world and most places are shut) until we can check in at our hotel at 2pm.

After a hurried early breakfast in the café I round up the teenager and we meet in the dining room for a 7am start.  Bleary eyed – the teenager, not me – we make our way down to the bus.  I had left my bag outside my room the night before and was pleased to find it waiting downstairs for me, all numbered with my tour on it.  The teenager had decided to carry his own bag so I left him to it as we headed downstairs.

Once on the bus, we had a scenic drive from the port of Civitavecchia to the city of Rome.  It was nice to sit back and relax and take in the surrounding countryside while the teenager slept!  Once again, I was reminded how like Marlborough the Roman countryside was.  When we flew into Rome a week earlier we had both commented on how it looked like flying into Blenheim airport.  The surrounding farms and vineyards lent an air of prosperity to the area and it was refreshing to see all the horticulture along with the familiar viticulture. 

I was able to glimpse everyday life from the comfort of the bus and watched hay being mown, vegetables harvested by hand in fields (reminding me of the pumpkin and garlic picking in Marlborough), fields being plowed and other everyday farm tasks taking place.

One ghastly detraction from the idyllic scene was the graffiti that littered the roadside and railway tracks.  This was a recurring theme throughout Rome and got worse in the city itself.

Arriving in the city of Rome for the first time was amazing.  First  stop for us was St Mark’s Square and St Peter’s Basilica.

Then inside St Peter’s Basilica.  As it is Sunday it is very quiet, a great time to visit.  Wrapping my shoulders in my silk scarf I head into one of the most magnificent churches I have ever experienced.  Words cannot do it justice, as anyone who has been there will know.  

Viewing Michelangelo's statute of Pieta and Donatello's Tabernacle was amazing.

Mass was taking place while we strolled around the church so we were privileged to experience that.  I had earlier tried to book an audience with the Pope but couldn’t and was pleased that I hadn’t when I found out that the Pope was off holidaying at his summer home!   It was difficult to look at everything and everywhere was another amazing sarcophagus, statute or artwork to view.  Meanwhile priests took confession throughout the church in traditional confessionals.

Strolling through St Peter’s square we viewed the window where the Pope makes his appearances.  As he was away it was all shuttered up.  

We admired the mosaic work of Mary, the only image of Mary outside in the Vatican grounds.  Pope John Paul II commissioned this artwork after he was shot in St Peter's Square in on 13^th May 1981.

The Vatican was an amazing spectacle and I was pleased to have a guide the first day to explain it all, including the history behind the Swiss Guards who still guard the Pope dressed in traditional uniforms.  

I purchased some postcards and stamps to send home.  As the Vatican is a country in its own right, stamps purchased there can only be sent from there.  If you post them in Rome they don’t get sent!  So knowing I was returning the next day I bought half a dozen more postcards and took them home to write that night.

The bus took us to see many sights around Rome including the famous balcony that Mussolini made his speeches from although I didn’t get any photos of that.  We saw the Temple of Zeus, the Memorial, and many other buildings.  Driving by the Palatine Hill and viewing the Circus Maximus where chariot races were once held and being able to clearly see the course was like stepping back in time.

Next stop on our bus tour was the Colosseum.  

When we saw the crowds lining the street to get in I was pleased that we were on a tour.  It was hot by now, well into the 30’s so sunhats and water were a must along with sunscreen.  We were warned repeatedly about professional pickpockets so constantly had an awareness of anyone brushing up too close alongside you.  

The Colosseum is a sight to behold and a marvel of engineering.  How those early builders could produce such structures with limited technology is a wonder. 

We were then offered the choice of wandering down to the Roman Forum in about 38 degree heat or sitting in the shade and waiting.  Of course I elected to do the walk.  Being from the Middle East I had carried my trusty umbrella with me for shade so made full use of it during my trip.  Many others bought ones from street vendors at various sites as it was so hot and sunny.

The Roman Forum was spectacular and I was glad I’d made the effort to go there.  You could imagine yourself back in time as you wandered around the places where so much has taken place in the past.  We viewed the only brass door left in Rome from the time of the Roman Empire.  Most brass was melted down to make other things.  This area was so well preserved due to the fact that it sits in a natural hollow and time and erosion filled it up with sand so the buildings were completely covered up.  History came to life!  And I loved it!

Eventually we were dropped off at a train station to find our way back to our hotels.  I had ordered a taxi through our guide and we loaded our bags into it and raced off!  Only to find the meter already had 12 euros on it!  I had known to take care of the taxis but the driver wasn’t having any of it.  I had asked the guide what a taxi would cost and it was around 10 euros so knew we were being ripped off.  The driver’s response was he put the meter on when I ordered the taxi!  You have no chance with them so as we roared through the Roman traffic to our hotel Rome lost some of its appeal.

The taxi driver warned us to take care in the area at night when he dropped us at the hotel.  Perhaps a caring guy after all?  Our hotel was a block from the Termina, the main train station and was a busy area surrounded by many hotels and restaurants.  We were given our room keys and took the ancient lift to our room.  To find two of the most uncomfortable smallest single beds I have ever known.  They were like rock!  On asking downstairs for a topper pad to soften them I was told they didn’t have anything like that.  The teenager rebelled at this unaccustomed hardship while I set off out to find another hotel.  This proved more difficult as most were full and I was back on a budget of what was left in my wallet now.  So we stayed.  The positives were the included breakfast which we ate each morning and the locality next to the train station. 

I found a great pizza place and dined there lots.  So we ate and drank in our neighbourhood, next to the sex shops outside our hotel and the seedy prostitutes and the seedy black men setting up shop on their blankets on the footpath then hanging out at the money exchanges or internet places.

Cruising Day 7 - At Sea

Today is our second day of the cruise ‘At Sea’.   This means that we are in the most exciting place to be in the Mediterranean right now, on board The Navigator of the Seas!  Built in 2002, it is one of the most innovative ships around, with features like an ice-skating rink, rock climbing wall, full size basketball court and much more.  What to do?  Nothing?  Or everything that I’ve wanted to do all week but never got around to?

Today we are able to collect our passports.  As I have this dread of handing them over to anyone, knowing that NZ passports particularly are highly sought after by terrorists, I hurry along at the appointed time to retrieve ours, only to arrive an hour early.  Oops!  We passed another time zone and I forgot to change my watch.  An hour later I’m back again and readily receive the valued passports.

Paying for goods and services used onboard is painless if you register your credit card.  I pick up a copy of my account to date to check it off (ever the budgeting mistress).  Our sea card has been able to be used as a credit card throughout the voyage which makes spending effortless.  Only trouble arises when you have to tally up the amount against your credit card limit.  We have kept well within our budget, pre-paying for trips and beverages was a godsend. 

Today is more relaxed and there is time to catch a movie.  Then some reading on the outside deck, sipping a beverage, while I watch Mt Stromboli drift by.  Stromboli is another active volcano and rewards us with a burst of black smoke.

I watch the teenager win the Adult Dodgeball Tournament and receive a medal for being the last man standing.  Nearby at the pool is the sexiest man competition while both towel and napkin folding demonstrations take place indoors.  Ice carving is poolside along with dancing and games.  There is plenty to do, in fact, too much to choose at times.

After all this sun perhaps I should take in the Sun Glow demonstration in the spa or the seminar on Wrinkle Remedies!  There is wine tasting, art auctions, plenty of bingo or gambling and even a jewellery making class. 

I relax and do whatever takes my fancy and cross off a few more things I’ve circled on my programme.  I’ve decided that being at sea can be the best part of a cruise as there are no time restraints or hurrying to get somewhere.  You can take time out and really relax.

Later that night I go to return my two swimming towels that had a 25 euro deposit on them to find the line so long that I don’t bother at that time.   Much later that evening I head to the pool to finish this job to find it all shut up and no-one there so I end up taking them downstairs to the guest desk where a nice man takes them from me without my card.  Needless to say they don’t get credited so next morning when we are about to leave I find a charge for 50 euros for two swimming towels!  Obviously I head down to guest relations to have this charge reversed and hope it is.

At dinner tonight I am joined by a well-dressed teenager who has come to bid our fellow diners farewell.  They are very impressed by his manners!  Dinner tonight is a quiet affair until towards the end when the chefs appear on the stairs accompanied by bad music.  We have a repeat performance of the napkin waving and parading around the dining room.  It turns out the head chef is from little ole NZ!  The teenager departs for parts unknown and is not seen until 6am after some heated texts from me! 

As we sail back towards Italy I am filled with mixed feelings.  I have thoroughly enjoyed my time aboard the ship and the various excursions onto foreign soil.  Yet the thrill of discovering Rome awaits me onshore.

Cruising Day 6 - Chania, Crete

Today we arrive at the ancient port of Chania located on the northwest coast of Crete.   This picturesque city has been restored and rebuilt to its Venetian charm.  Since ancient times Crete has been an important hub linking the three continents which surround the Eastern Mediterranean.  On this island an amazing culture, Minoan civilization, thrived only to disappear for thousands of years.  Since then Crete has been subjected to ongoing bloodshed and invasion by those who wished to control the island eventually returning to Greek rule in 1913.

On the morning of May 20^th, 1941 German paratroopers filled the sky over northern Crete as history’s first major airborne assault took place.  Allied troops from New Zealand, Australia and Britain together with Greek military units and the Cretan Gendarmerie (police and cadets) defended the island as best they could.  They were supplied and supported by the British Royal Navy.  Many brave civilian men and women of Crete came to the aid of the Allies.  They paid a terrible price as the Germans took their revenge out on the local population after soundly defeating the poorly equipped Allies.  Guerilla groups comprised of astoundingly courageous Cretans with the support of British commandos operated on the island throughout the German occupation.

The battle for Crete, although a costly defeat, taught Allied commanders valuable lessons which proved vital to the eventual and ultimately successful invasion and conquest of Hitler’s Fortress Europe.

Today visitors from around the world are welcomed to share in the rich culture and ancient history that is Crete.  However, I was more interested in a day at the beach as I had been cruising round the Mediterranean for a week and hadn’t yet swum in the sea.  I toyed with the idea of visiting the Allied monument and would have liked to do that but our time on Crete was limited to half a day so the swim won out.

So with no organised tour I joined many others and hopped on a local bus.  I must say that Crete was the first place that had locals at the wharf handing out maps and freely giving information.  Alongside the numerous taxis waiting to take visitors to the town or beach were local buses which left when they were full.  Armed with my map I got off at the appointed stop only to discover that I couldn’t find the next bus I should catch or the stop!  No-one seemed to have much English or be able to help so I began to walk in the general direction of where I thought the bus might be.  As I was in the centre of town I browsed the high-end shops, all of which had good sales.  I would recommend Crete for clothes shopping!

After strolling in the heat for a while I orientated my map and headed down a long street towards what I decided must be the water.  Keeping to the shady side of the street I glimpsed snippets of daily life on this island while locals washed their cars, talked to their neighbours and went about their normal daily lives.

Reaching the end of the street I was pleased to see water and headed around the old wharf until I came to the first beach, passing many local restaurants.  The entire walk was around half an hour and was pleasant, if hot.  An nearby restaurant offered breakfast and a private swimming spot with deck chairs, a nice option which I nearly took.

Reaching the beach I threw down my towel and bag and headed into the crystal clear water of the Mediterranean.  I was surprised by the numerous fish as I entered the shallows and was later to learn that these are the feet nibbling type that you could pay to sit with your feet in a tank while the fish nibbled off your dead skin!  I decided to forgo paying for a chair and umbrella instead opting to lie in the shade of the pine trees lining the roadside.

The water was much cooler than I’d anticipated.  In fact it took my breath away.  Perhaps I’ve become too accustomed to very warm water here in the UAE.  The water was dotted with rocks, much like swimming in the Marlborough Sounds except for the amount of people on the beach and in the water.  Once fully immersed the water seemed to warm up and I spent an hour or two just drifting there, enjoying the spectacular surroundings.

My beach was the first of several swimming beaches close to town.  Many others went further but I was happy with my choice.  Shops and apartments lined the roadway across from the beach giving it a pleasant holiday atmosphere.

Once again, I was one of only three women on the beach not in a bikini!  And the other two were 80 at least!  It didn’t matter what size you were or what age or what skin colour, all wore bikinis.  Some were even topless while sunbathing!  A piece of advice though if you are considering a beach excursion: if you are going to wear bikini pants hitched up to your waist like a thong, get a wax first!  OMG!!!  Especially if your pants are peach coloured and see-through once wet.  We are obviously too self-conscious in NZ as you just don’t see sights like I saw.

As I floated in the water I felt at peace and knew this was a place I’d like to return to and stay for a length of time. 

Eventually it was time to return to the ship and even though the buses passed by I decided to walk back.  Another tip: don’t put your cotton shorts over top of your wet togs then walk through town.  Unless, of course, you want to get stared at by all the men as you look like you’ve wet yourself!  So off I go and when I realise why I’m getting these funny looks, I stop at the old wharf and take off my shorts and sit and enjoy the view while they dry a bit before donning them for the rest of the walk back to the town centre.  I admit to getting lost and finding my way into the ‘old’ town which was wonderful.  Set right on the waterfront it was a mass of tiny shops selling every imaginable item.  Once again, thoughts of my ‘browsing’ friend came to mind and knew she’d love it here, in fact, she’d have missed the boat!  There were numerous rooms to rent but I have to admit that I preferred the beach area. 

Finding the bus stop again I jump on a bus back to the port, lucky to get a seat (even in my wet shorts).  The bus is filled with fellow cruisers all returning after a rousing day in town or swimming.  We are entertained, and I use the word loosely, by an Italian Papa and his family of daughters who all start to sing.  I thought I’d got on a tour bus going to the Opera.  Then I thought I was headed to and Italian football match when they started singing some Italian football song.  Even I, without any Italian, could pick that one up.  Other passengers looked aghast at the shenanigans but I thought it amusing how the Italians are so conceited that they wouldn’t care what anyone else thought.

Back on board after a well-earned shower I rest on deck with a book and cool drink while I marvel at how like the Marlborough Sounds Crete is. 

I enjoy the scenery while a tug helps us leave this jewel in the Mediterranean. 

I ponder the rugged terrain and spare a thought for those brave young men who fought here, once again wishing I’d visited the memorial.  Perhaps next time?

I change for our second formal night at dinner.  Tonight I’m not joined by the teenager as he has his own friends to hang out with.  In fact, I’ve not seen him all day.

Before dinner we’re treated to a circus parade on the Royal Promenade.  After dinner is a special treat for me, The Beatle Maniacs show.  I sang and danced my way through it, you’d have been proud of me.

To round the night off I head with a fellow diner to a late night game show, The Quest, in which hot young people are asked to do ridiculous stunts supported by us, their teams.  It was hilarious and I must say the oldies were the quickest to get their bras or pants off! 

Back at my room I switch on the light to find I have a friend waiting for me!  Sweet dreams everyone.