CruisJack

:rolleyes: The Girl From Yorba Linda Goes Cruising.

Tall and tan

And young and lovely

The girl...

Oh, wait..

That was, 'The Girl From Ipanema'

I'm sorry, I got carried away.

Lanie, your cruise review was absolutely the best I have ever read!

You are a gifted writer who takes us all along on your terrific

cruise adventures and shore excursions. I feel as though I know

you and 'husband', who likes to be the center of attentions. LOL.

You and husband make a lovely couple! I can understand that you

both entertain your dinner table companions as well as those who

are with you at trivia. Because you entertain all who of us read this review.

Your pictures enhance the whole cruise experience. You have both

had some marvelous meals and those desert photos make me hungry.

However, I have to admit that I'm a little sad knowing that you are

almost finished with your cruise review. It has been one of the

highlights of my day for the past several days.

I hope you are prepared for those inevitable cruise withdrawals

once you return home to your usual lifestyle. The best cure is to

book another cruise as soon as posible.

Now, back to reading the rest of your wonderful review.

Ahoy Mates :-)

Does anyone remember the tonnage of the Flavia? It was very small by today's standard cruise ships.

Our first cruise was on the Flavia in 1980 and our second cruise was in

1982 to Alaska on the 17,000 ton Cunard Princess. As I recall, it was

larger than the Costa Flavia.

The personable Italian crew made our cruise on the Flavia special. It was

a fun cruise.

Bruce and I honeymooned on the Flavia in 1976 ! We had the "largest" cabin on the ship and you still had to stand on the bed to look out the tiny porthole, but we loved it !! I can remember the announcements made in Italian as well as English on the loud speaker ! And all the PASTA they served before your entree! But most of all I remember and miss the FLAVIA BAND ! I would LOVE to have a CD of their Italian music.I used to have the 8-track ,but it's long gone, unfortunately !! If anyone knows where I could get one please let me know.Anyway, The FLAVIA was wonderful.She and the NORWAY will always be my favorite ships.Going on # 24 next month! Thanks for the memories !! GINA

Ahoy Mates :-)

My wife and I took our first cruise on the Flavia in 1980. It was a 4 day cruise to the Bahamas and we didn't know what to expect but had a wonderful time. We had an inside cabin on the same deck as the dining room. Passengers would line up past our door for each meal presenting a small problem for us to leave our cabin. The Italian cuisine was outstanding especially the deserts. Our waiter, Antonio, did an excellent job of serving our table with pride and dedication. He was homesick for his wife and children back in Italy. Our room stewart was Rocco, also from Italy, who would sing opera while cleaning the cabins. We had great entertainment for free.

Our beds were like small bunks and so close together that my knees would touch the other bed when I sat on the side of my bed. I'm not quite 6 feet tall but my feet almost hung off the foot of the bed. The shower was in the middle of the bathroom with a circular ring on the ceiling. The shower curtain hung from that ring and when you turned the water on, the shower curtain

became very close and personal with your body. LOL.

The small ship floated around the ocean like a cork. When we got up on the dance floor the motion of the ship joustled us into the other dancers. We met the niciest people on that dance floor. We all just went back and forth with the ship's motion and had a blast.

We had a lot of laughs when the crew had to lower the lifeboats into the

ocean for their drill. It reminded me of an old keystone kops routine. Especially when the crew tried to attach the cables to the lifeboats to hoist them back onto the ship. The currents made it difficult and it took several tries before they were able to bring them back on board the Flavia.

When the ship was in port, young kids would come on board and dive off of the deck for coins the passengers would toss into the ocean. It was amazing because it was quite a dive from the deck but they were able to grab the coins. What a way to make a few bucks.

On the last night of our cruise, the crew put on the show and it was better than the previous ones by professional entertainers. It was an opera and our room stewart, Rocco, had the lead. He wore a dual purpose costume with the male part as a profile on one side and the female part a profile on the other side. When he sang the male part of the opera, he had the male profile facing the audience. He would turn around so the female profile would face the audience when he sang the female part. It was hilarious and he was outstanding.

I would like to thank all who contributed to this thread for bringing back so many fond memories our our first cruise on the fabulous Flavia.