AmoMondo

Hi sbtw13

I've just checked one of the photos i took of the Fantasia and the lifeboats are all supspended from decks lower down than where the blacony cabins are situated. It is normally the oceanview staterooms on the lower decks that can be obstructed. On the fantasia, i'd expect deck 7 and lowere to be affected (based on where the muster drills were being held)

I just got back from venice at the weekend. We had vaporetto passes so went to Murano one morning. There was a glass factory close to the stop and whilst we had originally intended to pay it a visit we gave up as there was a long queue to get in and it was far too hot waiting out in the sun with no shade. Not sure if we missed much or not but loved our visit to the Island and had a great lunch there and a wander along the main street. we found it very beautiful and very peaceful and relaxing after all the hustle and bustle in venice.

There is also a quite nice promenade walk along the sea front and it is right beside where the ship docks

I also had a fantastic pizza in Sorrento. I really don't think you need a restaurant recommendation - the food is great ina lot of places in Italy

many thanks Hank for your advice on Palermo and Marseille. It is greatly appreciated.

Hank, I'm really glad someone resurrected this thread otherwise I would never have spotted it. You are a man after my own heart. I loathe organized excursions - I'm just too independent and also I think they focus too much on seeing the sights and not feeling the place and atmosphere.

I noticed that you mentioned Aix en provence is easy to do by train from marseille, can you tell me roughly how long the journey takes?

Also have you ever called at palermo? I'm doing the W med again in about 7 weeks and am in research mode but am not having a lot of luck with ideas for Palermo.

Thank you

Definitely not - more like a scatter cash cruiser!

Seriously though, I can't get the great prices on cruises you lucky Americans get, the cruise companies charge us so much more. I do however get my discount (now on Gold status) and sometimes go for the repositioning voyages too. They are great value but my main reason is that I love the long ocean voyages and because they are so cheap, can afford the top category cabin,

However when it comes to my cruise card bill at the end 0 it's always huge, The only thing I don't buy are shore excursions but I like to have several 9sometimes many) spa treatments, get my hair done and photos taken on the gala evenings. Whilst I'll often try the cocktails of the day, i don't buy any drinks packages I just choose whichever wine I want that day from the list. I work very hard all year and have very little spare time, so when I'm on a cruise, I refuse to count pennies and like to pamper myself.

However the way the Credit crunch is biting (not just media talk although they are making it worse), it will be a while before I can afford to sell shares when I return to pay off my cruise card bill, so may have to start taking tips from you on how to be a tightwad!