Mediterranean Cruise Part 6 – Sorrento/Amalfi Coast Italy

Ahhh, Sorrento….it captured my heart and made my soul sing. I know that may sound a bit dramatic but you may have felt that same thrill before when you go somewhere new – yet if feels familiar, like you belong here. The energy of the place matches your own. You feel more alive, as well as, centered and content. It just feels like your happy place.

For me, Sorrento was my favorite place on the trip (Palma de Mallorca would be my second). Honestly, Sorrento might be my favorite place that I have ever been to – It resonated with me that much.

There are not many details that I can provide about Sorrento because our time here was pretty short (due to an accident delay on the way to Sorrento from Naples where our cruise ship was at port). The exursion we chose through Royal Caribbean was a few hours in Sorrento (A set lunch included at a specific restaurant), a short demonstration from a woodworking artisan, and then free time to stroll the streets near our meeting point location. I took the most photos here because everywhere I looked, I simply wanted a photo to remember it.

Sorrento is vibrant, full of color, flowers, breathtaking coastal views, an abundance of lemons (everything lemon flavored or lemon decorated), charm galore, and the best gelato we had on the entire trip (We tried gelato in every location even in Barcelona). They do not have a website but here are images and reviews on TripAdvisor: https://www.tripadvisor.com/Restaurant_Review-g187782-d3345257-Reviews-Gelateria_Il_Duomo_Sorrento-Sorrento_Province_of_Naples_Campania.html

The best gelato place, Bar – Il Duomo Gelateria in Sorrento

Seriously giant lemons in this part of Italy!

Since I have already sounded on the dramatic side with my love for Sorrento, I’ll go ahead and sound overly romantic as well (I am a romantic at heart). I don’t know anything about destination weddings or great honeymoon locales. However, if I were in that industry, I would put Sorrento top on my list of the most scenic, romantic, and beautiful places to have a wedding and/or honeymoon. It has a quaint and intimate feel to it, but also so much to explore and to do.

Next, our excursion plans were to drive along the Amalfi Coast until we arrived in the town of Amalfi where we would then board a boat to sail along the coastline to a town called Salerno where we would then board our bus back to Naples to return to the ship.

The beach town of Amalfi is only 19 miles away from Sorrento. However, on a good day, with no Friday afternoon of a holiday weekend (which ours happened to be) the 19 mile journey would take at least an hour because of the extremely narrow-very winding-soaring on a cliff overlooking the Mediterranean road needed to get there. For us, the journey took over 2 hours.

Because of the traffic delay earlier in the day, and the additional drive time to Amalfi, the part of the excursion we were looking forward to which included a walk around Amalfi and then boarding a boat to Salerno had to be canceled. Our guide blamed the disappointing news on choppy water but in reality, we think we were just running too behind schedule.

We did pass through multiple beautiful coastal towns on these steep cliffs which offered stunning views up close of this very famously photographed part of Italy.

View of Postiano from the bus

View of the road along the Amalfi Coast after leaving Postiano

Our view of Amalfi as we drove through it

Beautiful scene as we drove through Praiano

We wound up stopping in Maiori so that we could have about an hour to stretch our legs, get a bite to eat, and find some restrooms. Jerry and I would have loved to have had pizza or pasta on our last night in Italy. Unfortunately, we could not find anything nearby. With little time to eat before we got back on the bus and headed to Naples, we encountered a very kind bar and restaurant owner who promised us he would have fabulous hamburgers and fries made quickly with enough time to sit and eat them. He went out of his way to be very accommodating and hospitable so we, of course, decided this was going to be our last meal in Italy – burgers and fries (Which actually were indeed very yummy)!

Church in Maiori right next to the restaurant we ate our delicious burger and fries

We were back on the ship pretty late into the evening. The rest of our group had opted for another panoramic bus tour that day for Naples since they enjoyed the one in Rome so much. They said it was ok – not nearly as scenic or exciting as Rome had been. Jerry and I were so grateful to see the iconic Amalfi Coast but if we were to do it all over again, we would have opted to spend the entire day in Sorrento. I think the others in the group would have enjoyed that as well (and not done the Naples bus tour).

Had the bus trip through the coastal towns not been so arduous and taken longer than anticipated as well as having been able to do the scenic boat ride along the coast, the Amalfi Coast part of the excursion would have been very much worth it, however, all of this is subject to traffic, weather and water conditions, etc.

So, my recommendation for this part of the itinerary (Naples port) would be to choose any of the excursions that allow for a day in Sorrento. I don’t think you would be disappointed with that choice at all.

My final installment for this series will highlight some of the things we did on the Symphony of the Seas. Additionally, I will mention a few tips on what to expect when doing a cruise overseas, in particular, the Mediterranean.

Thank you for sailing along with me!

View of the Mediterranean from Amalfi

Store in Sorrento

Sorrento

Sorrento

Sorrento

Sorrento

Sorrento

Mediterranean Cruise Part 5 – Rome, Italy

Italian countryside on our way to Rome for the day

Jerry and I have traveled extensively together over the years. If we do not have set plans, we very likely have an outline or an idea of potential plans. In other words, we rarely have found ourselves just winging it, especially somewhere significant like Rome. Some level of research is always done!

However, due to last minute changes the evening before our day in Rome, we found ourselves on a Royal Caribbean excusion (Pretty much the only one left) that was a bus ride to Rome with 5 hours of free time to explore. We did not have a lot of time to research much of anything regarding distances between must-see tourist spots, waiting time to get into St. Peter’s Basillica and/or the museum in Vatican City, places to eat, etc.

We were fortunate that the the other 3 in our group secured spots on a panoramic bus tour around Rome with options to get off at certain points of interest (Again, another Royal Caribbean excursion). Jerry and I would have done this but there were not enough available seats. His parents and friend gushed about how much they thoroughly enjoyed this excursion and they felt they got to see all the highlights of Rome – They would definitely recommend that excursion especially if you want to limit your walking time and be able to see most of the tourist destinations Rome offers.

Partial view of The Vatican in St. Peter’s Square

View of the Basillica

Our bus dropped us off near Vatican City and our guide walked us to a gift shop inside St. Peter’s Square. This was our meeting point 5 hours later to return back to the ship. Jerry and I decided that we would purchase Hop On and Hop Off bus tickets and see what we could that way.

Since we were already at St. Peter’s Square we debated getting in line to at least see the Basillica. While mulling over the time situation (We knew the Hop On and Hop Off would take at least 90 minutes to get around the city even if we just stayed on board the whole time. We were warned though with Rome traffic prepare for at least 2-2 1/2 hours).

Stunning view of the Vatican gardens

As we were quickly trying to factor in a nice lunch in Rome, the possibility of standing in line at the Vatican, and when we should get on the Hop On and Hop Off bus, we were approached by a gentleman with a nametag that said they do private tours and can get us into the museum and Basillica within the next 30 minutes and the tour would take 2 hours. He said the current waittime for these locations was at least 2 hours so if we did the private tour, we would be out before this line even got to the entrance.

We told the guy we needed a minute to think this through. He pressured us a little bit but not enough to be a turn-off. We crunched the time numbers and decided we would take the risk with the private tour. Seeing the Sistene Chapel and the Basillica would be wonderful and we were already right there. We weren’t sure if we were making the best judgment call, but we decided neither of us was getting warning bells so we went for it.

Hall of Maps in the Vatican museum

Turned out, thankfully, that the tour was legit. There were at least 12-16 other people in our group including a young couple who happened to be on our ship as well. We did walk a few blocks away and then went in “the backdoor” of the museum. This took a bit of time because of security measures and then outfitting everyone with headsets. Once inside, it was relatively smooth sailing. We were among the masses for sure so staying together with our guide was the only challenging part.

The tour guide took us through many hallways that showcased artifacts, artwork, hall of maps, and the big finale of the Sistene Chapel. You can take your time in the Sistene Chapel but it is very strict, organized, and a bit intimidating with all of the security handlers managing the crowd. While it was beautiful to see, neither of us felt the need to sit and gaze at it since we wanted to also see the Basillica and time was ticking. By the way, no photos allowed in the chapel.

Layers of beauty on the ceiling of the Basillica

Getting into the Basillica was quick and easy since we had already by-passed the main line waiting outside. Jerry and I were in awe. The magnitude of this place left us speechless. Photos cannot capture the scope, detail, or feel of its presence but we both decided that it was well worth the risk we took with the private tour to see all of what we did (especially the Basillica) and still have some time left to do something else.

Our biggest decision now was, do we grab a snack and dash for the Hop On and Hop Off? We would have just enough time to safey do it with our time constraints but that means no enjoying a leisurely lunch. Or do we choose to do something we have not had a chance to do in any of the previous locations yet – just be….sit, eat, relax, take it all in for a while. We opted to do just that.

Just inside the Basillica – This is a mere fraction of its size

Now, where to go? We did not have a clue what was around us and did not want to risk going too far since we had a strict time to be back in this area. We started walking outside of the Vatican. Jerry decided to ask one of the security members (Not the Swiss guards – haha!) if they had a recommendation for something nearby. They nodded and then flagged down another man. They told us to follow him. We did.

We were taken a few blocks away to a little hole in the wall family restaurant. Perfecto – Exactly what we wanted! We were able to decompress, linger over red wine, scrumptious pasta, bruschetta, and dessert. We were pleased and relieved with how our day was unfolding.

Jerry savoring the Italian cuisine

We had about 45 minutes left before meet-up time, so we chose to walk around outside and see a little bit of Rome by foot. We both really enjoyed the feel of the city and soaked in as much as we could before heading back to the gift shop to reconnect with our guide back to the bus.

Jerry and I thought it was an ideal way to spend the day and we were grateful that we did not try to cram the Hop On and Hop Off tour in lieu of slowing down and enjoying a good meal and the experience that came with it. We also decided that hopefully we would be back in Rome someday since we were loving the city so far, and we could always check out the things we were unable to see this time around.

Neighborhood near the Vatican

Sidenote: When you take a cruise, there may not be enough time to see all points of interest of any given place. You are simply given an opportunity to get a taste of it. In retrospect, beginning the cruise in Rome instead of Barcelona would have been ideal. This would have given us an additional day to explore Rome. Royal Caribbean does offer that option of boarding the ship in Rome for the same itinerary we were on. Ours happened to start in Barcelona.

When our group reconvened on the ship, everyone expressed their gratitude for having a wonderful day in Rome and were delighted with how “plans/not having plans” worked out. While Jerry and I did not make it to Trevi Fountain to toss a coin in, we most definitely wish to go back to Rome someday.

Last stop in Italy, Naples/Sorrento/Amalfi Coast. Tony Bennett may have left his heart in San Francisco, but I left mine in Sorrento…

Janice in St. Peter’s Square

Lovely little area outside of the Vatican

Mediterranean Cruise Part 4 – Pisa, Italy

We arrived in Italy to the charming town of La Spezia – In hindsight, I think I would have opted to explore this port town.  It was stunning and looked idyllic, not only from the ship, but also as we drove through it via bus on our way to and from Pisa. 

La Spezia, Italy. View from our ship at port.

Instead, all five of us opted to go see the leaning tower of Pisa.  The weather put a chilly and rainy damper on the day,   However, even if the weather had been lovely, this famous tourist destination probably would have still felt a bit anticlimatic.

Our excursion sounded lovely and exciting (booked through Royal Caribbean). However, the boat ride up the Arno River to Pisa was not very picturesque or scenic.  It only got interesting near the end as we entered Pisa and could see the architecture of the town. I would have a hard time recommending this part of the excursion. A lot of it certainly had to do with the dampness of the day but there was a very long walk from the bus to the boat through a desolate park. It was odd and a little daunting for anyone that may have trouble walking, especially having to dodge pooling water and mud.

View from our river boat as we enter Pisa, Italy

When we disembarked in Pisa, we took a trolley to the plaza where the tower is. Our trolley was like nothing we had ever seen before – there were at least 4 to 5 “cars” with bench row seating (like a tram) in each car. The individual cars were connected together essentially via bungee cords! I tried to get a photo of this but due to the steamy windows and rain, it is hard to make out how we were joined. I had an image in my head of the beloved movies featuring Herbie the Love Bug sailing through streets out of control if our bungee cords somehow came loose on our ride!

Our trolley in Pisa

Beautiful residential building in Pisa

Had it been a clear day, we could have seen the town of Pisa better via trolley but it was raining.  However, I did see some very pretty buildings near the plaza (Square of Miracles). 

As for the actual experience of seeing Duomo di Pisa and its famous leaning tower, if it wasn’t leaning, I’m not sure people would flock to it.  Both the church and tower are beautiful pieces of architecture and history for sure.

Part of our excursion included gelato from a nice restaurant and gift shop in the plaza. We also indulged in our one and only time of having slices of pizza while it Italy – it was yummy! Jerry’s father is an expert deal finder/negotiator so we also picked up some nice sweatshirts as souvenirs from the line of vendors in the plaza.

As I said, this was an overall good experience to see an iconic landmark. It just felt anti-climatic. You cannot control the weather so that certainly hampered our ability to fully take in the sights of Pisa from both boat and trolley rides.

Am I glad we saw a famous landmark – yes – would I like to revisit it – no.  Do I wish I had seen/experienced a bit of La Spezia – yes. 

The next day in Italy finds us having last minute changes in our plans. So now we are unexpectedly roaming around Rome. It turned out to be a great day for all of us. I will fill you in on that day in the next post. Arrivederci!

Duomo di Pisa

La Spezia port

Mediterranean Cruise Part 3 – Luberon Villages in France

Our next destination on the cruise itinerary was Marseille, France. We opted to take an excursion that went to 3 small villages in the Luberon Provence region of France as well as touring a lavender essential oil factory. 

Even though this meant quite a bit of bus time, it was well worth it.  These villages are beyond charming and it felt like being on a movie set!  Each one was more delightful than the next.  To get an idea of how lovely these 17 villages are throughout the Luberon region of Provence, check out this brief overview of each village: https://www.theluberon.com/journal/the-best-villages-of-the-luberon.

Janice enjoying the village of Lourmarin

These villages provided a great cultural experience. We found most of the shop owners and residents friendly to and accommdating of the influx of touists to their quaint and idyllic villages.

None of these villages were constructed to have tour buses descending upon them. In fact, there were quite a few hair-raising moments navigating the impossibly narrow streets of these cliff dwelling villages. One woman instictively screamed in fear nearly scaring our bus driver, Frederick, to death while he seemingly did the improbable manuevering of our bus. Frederick, deservedly received applause from us numerous times for his expertise and quite possibly magic he was performing behind the wheel.

In between the villages, we were able to experience the beautiful French countryside with its abundance of poppy fields – It was all so picturesque everywhere you looked.

One of the many fields of poppies

Our last stop of the day was to Le Chateau Du Bois, which is a fine lavender farm and factory making essential oil and various products from the fine lavender that only grows in this region of the world. (https://www.lechateaudubois.fr/en).

The presentation and tour were both very interesting. In the presentation, our guide shared how healing this fine lavender is so when we had a chance to peruse the gift shop, I bought several souvenirs containing the essential oil, as well as a small bottle of the essential oil itself. I can attest it actually cleared up something on my skin within a day or two that wasn’t responding to a medicinal cream – I highly recommend their products – the scent and the quality of the essential oil properties are outstanding.

Lush beauty of the French countryside

The bus ride to and from Marseille and the Luberon region was under 2 hours each way which makes for an all day excursion.

The opportunity to see these charming quintessential French villages and to learn about the fine lavender, unique only to this area, made for an incredible day.

We agreed we were two for two on picking excellent excursions with Royal Caribbean thus far – We were having the cultural experience we were hoping to have all while being immersed in scenic beauty.

Our next day would bring us to Italy – pretty much everyone in our group’s favorite country – Ciao for now!

Jerry and his mom, Janice, in the village of Roussillon

Jerry in front of a darling residence in the village of Roussillon

Jerry and I at a picture-perfect overlook onto the French countryside

Mediterranean Cruise Part 2 – Palma de Mallorca

View from our ship of Bellver Castle

Palma de Mallorca – Such a surprise!  I didn’t know what to expect but in a nutshell it is a beautiful island with an abundance of personality and charm.  (https://spainguides.com/top-destinations/palma-de-mallorca) We absolutely loved our day on the island and could not have been happier with the Royal Caribbean excursion we chose.

The first part of our day began with a sightseeing bus tour through the city of Palma on the island of Mallorca off the coast of Spain. We drove around the city and saw points of interest. Our tour guide pointed out (actually gushed about) that Rafael Nadal, the famous tennis player, is from Mallorca.

View from the grounds at Bellver Castle overlooking the port

Our first stop that morning was to the 14th century built castle and fortress which was a royal residence and safe place named, Bellver Castle (www.spottinghistory.com/view/8394/bellver-castle). It was not open for tours that day but we were able to walk the grounds which provided stunning views. The 700 year old structure was very impressive.

Impressive doesn’t even come close to describing the Cathedral in the heart of the capital. (https://xmallorca.com/mallorca-churches-cathedrals/cathedral-palma-catedral-de-mallorca). It is another 14th century marvel in Palma and is one of the tallest gothic structures in all of Europe. It’s presence is simply magnificent along the waterfront.

14th Century Catheral in Palma de Mallorca

We then headed just outside of the city past groves of 1,000 year old olive trees on our way to House of Son Amar. (https://sonamar.com). This venue is a must see/must do if you ever travel to Palma de Mallorca. It is a destination location on a 16th century estate. This venue hosts performances, outdoor concerts, events, features haute cuisine, and gorgeous scenery. I agree with their description of the place – it is spectacular!

Part of the estate at Son Amar

16th Century Son Amar Estate Architecture

Our experience there included a fabulous authentic Spanish meal which contained olives from the ancient olive trees nearby. I am personally not an olive fan, but I found myself not sharing my olives because they were simply delicious! The 3 of us could not stop raving about (or drinking) the sangria – We wished we could have bought bottles of it. The tapas were wonderful as well. We were pleasantly surprised with how tasty everything was.

The flamenco show was a whole other level of spectacular – the performers were incredible and they gave it their all for well over an hour. We walked out of the venue stunned by the quality and beauty of the show, the estate and the aesthetics, and the delicous food. It was a 4 star event and experience for all of us (and not even close to 4 star prices). The 3 of us gave that excursion an 11 out of 10 – well worth it since it certainly exceeded our expectations.

We were back on the ship in the mid to late afternoon which allowed us to rest a bit and enjoy the ship for a while. We raved about our excursion to our other 2 group members who chose to explore Palma on their own. After seeing our photos and hearing about our day, they remarked that they should have joined us on that trip. We wholeheartedly agreed!

Next up, day 3 takes us to Provence, France, exploring darling storybook French villages and a lavender essential oil farm and mill. See you in Provence!

Leaving Palma Port (Looking at the massive Cathedral) and heading for France

Mediterranean Cruise Part 1 – A day in Spain

My year started off in January with an unexpected invite from family friends to join them on a Mediterranean cruise (which had always been top on my dream vacation list) and I did not think twice about shouting a resounding YES!

The itinerary was exciting to me except for the port where the cruise began and ended – Barcelona, Spain. Having had the great fortune of previously visiting many swoon-worthy places in Spain 3 decades ago, Barcelona was not a city that enchanted me in 1988. However, I was optimistic that my memory of it would possibly change seeing it 35 years later in a new perspective. At the time (and currently), I really did not think anything was all that special about Barcelona. I did not understand all the buzz about it, especialy remembering how magnificent the Andalusia region in southern Spain is, as well as Madrid.  So, I’m going to be honest that for me (and our group) that not-so-enchanted feeling still holds true at 52. 

Beautiful former bullfighting arena but not the best location to be dropped off with all of our luggage searching for our hotel…

Part of it stems from getting off on the wrong foot with the transportation from the airport to our hotel right after a long day and night of traveling overseas. We had pre-bought our tickets with Auerobus (https://aerobusbarcelona.es) that advertises a bus shuttle from the airport to your hotel. Needless to say, this was not the straightforward scenario we anticipated and expected (and I wholeheartedly do not recommend this service/company).

The bus workers at the airport refused to look at my ticket and the address of our hotel and hurriedly ushered us onto the bus assuring us they will get us there. I wrongly assumed they would ask everyone for their hotel destination once seated. When that did not happen, I talked to the driver and he said for me to come back up after the first stop and he would show me which bus to switch to for our hotel. This was frustrating (being tired from jetlag) but it didn’t seem terrible until we realized he was dropping us off on a busy street and told us to cross it to catch a public transportation bus (not a bus with the company for which we had our tickets)!

I could write paragraphs about how nutty it was navigating this debacle with 5 people, a lot of luggage, only one person (me) with limited Spanish trying to talk to the public bus driver about where we needed to go, etc. A kind Spanish woman could see my distress and devised a plan to alert me when my stop would be nearest to our hotel Without her, we would have been riding the bus indefinitely. We still had to walk at least a half mile to our hotel from the bus drop off point.

View from our hotel room

Once at the hotel, Porta Fira, https://www.hotelbarcelonaportafira.com, things did not go any smoother with trying to check in. Hours went by before they gave us rooms despite others being checked in (They said they were trying to get all of our rooms next to each other which we did not request – we just wanted rooms as they became available). The staff was overall not very hospitable no matter when we interacted with them.

At this point, we are very tired, hungry, and a bit frustrated. Sidenote: The hotel is a one of a kind – architecturally speaking. It is a deep red color and shaped somewhat like a cyclinder (the website says it is lotus shaped which I’m not really sure about that…).

You should check out the link above just to see how uniquely modern it is. Their breakfast was outstanding – we could not get over the high quality, quantity, and exceptional taste of everything they offered. As Jerry’s father remarked, “It was first rate and world class!”

We decided that while waiting for our rooms to be ready, 4 of wanted to do the Hop Off and Hop Off bus tour. We had to take a taxi to La Rambla area since that was a starting point for the bus tour. Another sidenote: the taxi driver purposely turned off the meter so he could charge us more – our exact route home via taxi was substantially less expensive and he left the meter on. These things happen on occasion while traveling but it just added to a feeling of the city not being very friendly to foreign tourists.

Enjoying the beauty and points of interest at La Rambla

Colorful candy as far as you could see at the market at La Rambla

We wandered around La Ramba which is very inviting with the different shops and eateries. We spent the bulk of our time in the massive market taking in the sights and sampling some food. 

While this was very interesting, it was incredibly packed and a bit chaotic.  This is also where pickpockets thrive.  Barcelona, we were warned, has a terrible problem with pickpockets (even at our hotel, the concierge told us to watch a certain guy that was loitering where we were resting saying he was a con man). 

We were grateful for the warm weather and sunny skies on our bus tour which took about an hour to see a fair amount of Barcelona. Even though it was hard to hear the tour through our earbuds, we could easily relax and take in the scenery.

By the time our wandering around and bus tour were over, we headed back to the hotel to get in our rooms and crash early knowing we wanted to be well-rested for the next day. Everyone seemed to adjust pretty quickly to the time change after the first day.

Our hotel was situated near both the airport and seaport so our taxi ride was pretty quick. We had 2 taxis due to having 5 in our group and luggage – cars are smaller in Europe!

View of the Barcelona Seaport

While cars may be smaller in Europe, we were getting on the second largest cruise ship in the world, Royal Caribbean’s Symphony of the Seas. It was nothing short of spectacular! If you ever get a chance to sail on this ship, take it! (www.royalcaribbean.com/cruise-ships/symphony-of-the-seas). I could have spent a week on this ship and never gotten off – there was so much to explore and to do.

Symphony of the Seas

Boardwalk

Once on board (boarding was actually swift and easy), all of us were ready to enjoy the ship’s many amenities which included hanging out on the Boardwalk taking in the ambiance and riding the carousel. Jerry had purchased the Key program which allowed us to check in early, have 2 fabulous meals at Chops Grille, and gave us access to other perks and venues during our weeklong cruise.

Jerry and his mom enjoying the ride!

We capped off our first day on the ship with a Broadway worthy production of Hairspray. It was truly a great day and it set the tone for a fun and amazing week on the ship and seeing Palma de Mallorca, Provence in France, Pisa, Rome and Naples region in Italy. Suffice it to say, I did NOT want to come home!

I’ll provide more information on each day of the cruise and the excursions we chose at each port of call in forthcoming installments. Hasta luega!

Hard not to be happy on a carousel
on a beautiful cruise ship!