Aboard the Wind

[duct tape]

Well, we had 21 in transit and we are chock-a-block full. I have never seen so many people on these small ships...301!! The trip is only 9 days and very port intensive so will keep you posted. Ibizia today - charming and intimate. Off to lunch with friend. More later.

[DebbieH103]

Thanks for posting, Duct Tape. I'll be checking for more posts. Have a great time.

[duct tape]

After Barcelona we stopped in Ibiza and took a ferry ride over to Formentara to have lunch with a friend. Another feast on the coast in the old fishing harbor! I am really going to have to expand my vocabulary since "charming" keeps surfacing. @sea yesterday and Cassis, France, today. Interestingly enough, cassis, the liquer, is not made here but in Dijon. That was for you Trivia folks, it came up yesterday. 301 is REALLY full and not always pleasant. The pool looks like a kindergarten & Tiki bar if you don't get in in the AM while everyone is ashore. Lots of young people at the bar drinking shots and beers. Lots of family units and most of them are quite pleasant. St Tropez tomorrow. All in all, I can't complain - how could I on a SS ship?

[DebbieH103]

I'm hoping we will have a different demographic next month - aka a few less people and family units. It's all good. Can't wait to board Wind.

[duct tape]

A hot day in St Tropez with lots of hot bodies, boats, etc in the harbor! Dinner at the Pool Grill so we can watch the town light up. Ajaccio tomorrow and a Virtuoso excursion. There is a wonderful market there with lots of different dried sausages and meats. I imagine it will be as crowded as the rest of the Med.

[WinWin]

Wow, duct tape - that is a LOT of people on board! Isn't that over-capacity? Enjoy your cruise, though - you're right, it's SS and the itenerary sounds amazing!

[duct tape]

We went north out of Ajaccio yesterday and had a lovely day. The scenery is spectcular in the calanques and the bus ride hairy! Lunch in Porto on the water...ah, the Med! Portovenere, Italy, today and new port for us. From here it looks very interesting with churches and forts high on the cliffs and out on the harbor entry bluff. Pizza!!! BBQ tonight. Livorno tomorrow and we go O/N to Florence, so see you in a few days. Met retriever and their family, maybe retriever will update you. BTW, some of these children are out of control and so are their parents. In the afternoon it is a kiddy pool and adults need not apply!

[daddyo]

Thanks for your update. This is the kind of input that helps CC'ers make decisions. We would never consider a cruise in the Med during the summer months. We don't do the kiddy pools.

[duct tape]

Thanx, daddyo, we don't usually either but liked the itinerary. There is some comfort in knowing that they are leaving and I am not! Had a great time in Florence - city practically empty, no lines at monuments and churches and good food even! Helvetica & Bristol was a lovely hotel with old fashioned European sevice. So, Civitivecchia today and all those children and their parents are gone! 16 in transit, ship to hold 288 this segment and NO humans under 21 years of age! I get the pool back! Sorrento tomorrow and lunch @ the Excelsior. Another great idea.

[Goldens4]

Glad to hear that things are returning to normal. Enjoy the rest of your cruise.

[duct tape]

Nice quiet group except for the 36 in one travel group. Hopefully they will calm down shortly after the initial thrill of it all. Haven't found the other CC folks yet but it is harder on port intensive cruises such as this. Lovely 3 hour lunch at the Excelsior in Sorrento, missed the in-transit cocktail party but hear there was a good crowd. Also good attendance at the 1st Timers party. Things are looking up! Back to Trapani today and had a nice excursion to tour the town and then to an agrotourism farm for olive oil tastings and a lovely "snack buffet" (lunch) of local foods...olives many ways, camponata, fritatta, local pasta and pesto, wonderful melon, beers and wines. Lots of positive feedback on the trip. Alan King has arrived for re-orientation with Colin and things may work out well for him. Some staff turnover in Rome, but minimal. Power is back on in our part of the east coast so the computers are up and humming good reports. Malta tomorrow! Back to the empty pool for me!

[DebbieH103]

Thanks for the update, duct tape. Three more weeks for us!

[linda_22003]

Helvetica & Bristol was a lovely hotel with old fashioned European sevice.

 

Glad to see this; we're not on Silversea but will be at the H&B in a couple of weeks as part of a land vacation. Our travel agent wanted to put us at the Villa San Michele outside of town (Fiesole), but it's our first time in Florence so I wanted to be right in the city. :)

[duct tape]

This is a really great itinerary...Rome, Sorrento, Trapani, Malta, Taormina (very hot today), sea day then Kotor, Zadar and into Venice. WOW! There was an Oceania in today, the new one, and the town was very crowded but they left early and all calmed down. BBQ tonight with Taormina on the hill and Etna smoking, ahh...Italy!

[LOVE@CRUISE]

Ferrari says Viva Italia!

[harbormaster]

So happy you're enjoying your cruise on the beautiful Wind ductape. If Rudi is waiting in the dining room and Faye is in the bar, please say hello to them from the Ronalds.

[duct tape]

Fay was very happy to hear from you. I posted about the ports again the other day but the computer crashed...aargh! So, Kotor was as spectacular as usual. The sail in and the sail out are magic. The only fjord in southern Europe that ends at the town that is surrounded by mountains on 3 sides. When we left last evening, it was twilight and the photography should have been perfect. We were on the bridge with some other people and everyone took turns tooting the horn, even the pilot as we sailed past his house. The Captain pulled a trick on me and put me on the open mike to do some narrating. Thankfully that didn't last too long! Zadar, Croatia, today. Another picturesque town with quite a unique installation...the sea organ. Under the paved/landscaped park where the ship docks, there are special pipes in the seawall that produce vibrations as the sea ebbs and flows and changes. It actually sounds like music! Into Venice tomorrow but thank goodness it is not disembarcation day. There is a general transportaion strike tomorrow and there will be no traghetti, vaporeti nor water taxis until 5PM. This is a potential mess. I think everyone plans to put on the trainers/sneakers and hit the pavement!

[Beanjar]

Hi Duct Tape,

 

It is a most beautiful part of the world isn't it?

I would have enjoyed to hear your commentary - who was the Captain?

It sounds as if it could be even more chaotic in Venice than usual - good luck!

We are on the Whisper in the Caribbean at the end of October and on the Wind in July next year. Might you be aboard?

 

Best wishes

 

Beanjar

[duct tape]

It was Palmieri. Not sure of the schedule at the moment but will check. 3 glorious days in Venice...tired...exhilirated...stuffed with great food...sea day tomorrow. More later.

[Jacko]

Duck Tape, we've left Iceland and Greenland and are headed for Canada as I compose this on the Explorer. Look forward to telling you about it when we next meet.

[DebbieH103]

I'm still reading, duct tape. I'm glad you are having a great time.

[duct tape]

Hi, all. Catch-up time. A day @sea to recover from glorious Venice. We had 35 in -transit and we are full at 286. No empty cabins, oops, suites. Very nice crowd, 1/2 and 1/2, new kids and Venetians. Dubrovnik yesterday. 7 ships in port, yes, 7. FULL. It is still beautiful and some people got up onto the walls but it was very hot. Excursions for lunch in the countryside; Cavtat, a seaside town; coastal cruises; visit to a chocolate shoppe and local art tour. Bari today and it is really old fashioned Italy but the character is amazing. Some folks complained that it is dirty so I told them to try Naplesif they wanted to see dirty! The Cathedral and St Nicholas' Church are both fully restored now and open. They are excellent models of pure Romanesque splendor. The ceiling in St Nick's is misplaced but interesting slice of baroque. I send folks over there and tell them Santa Claus is buried in the basement. Excursions to the Castel Monte Monastery (UNESCO). We were to go an Apulian Cooking Class but cancelled due to lack of interest. Off to the pool and Corfu tomorrow.

[duct tape]

jacko, start a thread.

[duct tape]

Corfu was very crowded (6 ships) and very hot. It is a beautiful town but all people did was complain about the crowds and the heat. Oh well. In Itea today. Not much here but nice seaside cafes and a starting point to get to Delphi to visit the Oracle. BBQ this evening. @sea tomorrow.

[duct tape]

Canakkale today. I am not sure SS ever stopped here before. I will have to ask the Captain. Excursions to Troy & Gallipoli monuments and battlefields. Lots of Aussies aboard for that stop. We will sail by the ANZAC monument this evening on our way into Istanbul. It has been a terrific cruise, great weather, good ports, nice people and, of course, the best crew afloat. Everyone off tomorrow for a boarding charter. See you all in Dec. from the Wind.