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<\/a>Oceania’s Riviera<\/p><\/div>\n
I’ll be leaving this week to cavort, literally around Italy on Oceania Cruise Line\u2019s Riviera<\/em><\/strong>, <\/em>along with Chuck & Linda Sager, Jack & JJ Budd and wife, Linda . . . and of course you guys, vicariously. We\u2019ll be flying into Rome<\/strong> (You won\u2019t have to endure that part!) a couple of days early and staying at the Hotel Villa Delle Palme<\/strong>\u00a0which overlooks the Mediterranean<\/strong>\u00a0and is just a few miles from our port of debarkation,\u00a0Civitavecchia<\/strong>, where we will start our 11-day cruise.<\/p>\n Before I tell you the ports of call you\u2019ll be visiting, let me give you a short description of our ‘boat’, the Riviera<\/strong>. <\/em> It has 16 decks with a guest capacity of 1,250, served by a staff of 800. It is elegantly fashioned with interior architecture that features a spectacular spiral staircase (Don’t worry, you can take the elevator).\u00a0 One of the ship\u2019s specialties is food, and boy do they specialize! Aside from the Grand Dining Room<\/strong>, we will be eating at the Bistro<\/strong> and Jacques<\/strong>, both featuring quintessential French<\/strong> dishes, the Polo Grill<\/strong>, a classic steakhouse, Toscana<\/strong>, featuring traditional Italian cuisine and the popular\u00a0Red Ginger<\/strong>, featuring contemporary interpretations of Asian classics. These are in addition to the numerous Cafes and Grills spread throughout the ship. Additionally we will be taking a couple of cooking classes<\/strong> offered on board, so I hope you\u2019re hungry. Wow, I just gained four pounds writing about the food! And of course, we\u2019ll be participating in some sort of drink package<\/strong>, so we\u2019ll be needing a whole new wardrobe when we roll home.<\/p>\n Italy’s beautiful Amalfi Coast<\/p><\/div>\n The ship\u2019s first stop is just a short jaunt down the coast to Sorrento<\/strong> on the magnificent\u00a0Amalfi coast<\/strong>, where we will be taking a side trip to Pompeii<\/strong>, the city that was buried under more than 15 feet of volcanic ash and pumice from the eruption of Mount Vesuvius<\/strong> in 79 AD – it’s certainly taken a while to clean up, I guess the city workers have been on strike for a while. It’s just another short voyage to Catania, Sicily<\/strong>, where there has been recent activity of another volcano, Mt. Etna<\/strong>, we\u2019ll try to avoid the falling pumice. It\u2019s then another short trip to the island of Malta<\/strong>, known for . . . being a small island south of Italy. Not sure what kind of trouble we can find there, but we\u2019ll find some I\u2019m sure. We then motor over to Katakolon, Greece<\/strong>, where they held the very first Olympic Games, <\/strong>we don’t have tickets!\u00a0We will then have a day at sea, where I\u2019m sure I\u2019ll spend most of my time in the gym or doing laps in the pool . . . OK, maybe I’ll just be sitting by the pool lapping up a cold one.<\/p>\n Bay of Kotor<\/p><\/div>\n We will then be heading up the Adriatic Sea<\/strong> with our first stop being Kotor, Montenegro<\/strong>, a picturesque city tucked behind a series of fjords. Like many of the cities we have seen and will be seeing, it is filled with lots of ancient cathedrals and other old stuff.\u00a0 We will continue up the Adriatic to the country of Croatia<\/strong>, where we\u2019ll visit Dubrovnik<\/strong> and Split<\/strong>, then to Koper, Slovenia<\/strong> and finally into Venice<\/strong>, where we will have two days to check out the canals, St. Mark’s Square and the millions of tourists.<\/p>\n Then, you of course will be spared the long and winding road home, while I must endure delayed flights, transfers, uncomfortable seats, airline food and a heavyset, chatty neighbor telling me all about her trip through Italy. What I don\u2019t do for you guys!<\/p>\n That\u2019s the plan; I\u2019ll give you the real scoop as it happens, or at least a few days after it happens, depending on Internet availability. Hope you enjoy the trip.\u00a0 Arrivederci.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" by Bob Sparrow I’ll be leaving this week to cavort, literally around Italy on Oceania Cruise Line\u2019s Riviera, along with Chuck & Linda Sager, Jack & JJ Budd and wife, Linda . . . and of course you guys, vicariously. … read more![\"\"](\"https:\/\/fromabirdseyeview.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/Amalfi.jpeg\")
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