The Rhone River, Barcelona and Norwegian Epic’s Western Mediterranean

[4774Papa]

The Rhone River, Barcelona and Norwegian Epic’s Western Mediterranean

 

Part 1, AMA Waterways Paris to Barcelona

Our AMA Waterways tour of Provence and Spain started one day prior to departing Paris for Lyon and embarkation on the Amadagio

See link for information on this wonderful ship.

http://www.amawaterways.com/ships/amadagio

We wanted to arrive one day early to recover from jet lag and as insurance not to miss the cruise. Our flight from the US on Air France was good. Air France is a good airline. We arrived in Charles de Gaulle Airport in the morning, made our way through passport control, found an ATM, collected some Euros, then signed up for the Air France Bus number four that took us to the Montparnasse Rail station, which was across the street from the Hotel Pullman Paris Montparnasse, the hotel we had booked with AMA for the one night. The Air France bus is a great deal for us at 16.50 Euros per person.

http://videocdn.airfrance.com/cars-airfrance/index_en.html

The bus did take a little over two hours to arrive at the hotel, but Paris traffic was heavy.

We could have saved some money on booking our own hotel, but we had to be at the Hotel Pullman at 7am that morning. That would have let to a difficult morning, so we signed up for the one night at the Pullman. We didn’t want to do Paris, since we lived in Germany for four years and had been to Paris before.

We checked out of the hotel, and AMA’s busses took us all to the Gare de Lyon train station to board the TGV high-speed train. The train was nice and our second class tickets were not bad. The train goes up to 190 MPH, but we were able to see some of the countryside. After arriving in Lyon, we had lunch (our bags were put on the bus so we only had to carry our important light bags with us. We then met in the main square of Lyon (Place Bellecour) for a short walk for a cooking demonstration. The demonstration was interactive and we had to assist in the cooking. We enjoyed the event and were able to sample our dishes. We were transferred to the Amadagio, where we had a welcome dinner.

We found the ship to be more spacious than on our previous river cruise in Russia. The cabin was almost as large as some ocean cruise ship cabins. The ship looked very new, even though we knew it was built in 2006, but we discovered that it had been refurbished just two months ago. The Captains (Husband and Wife team), crew and staff were very nice and responsive. Many of the staff was from Hungary and Bulgaria. Service was excellent. The ship had a spacious dining area, separate, also spacious bar/lounge area, as well as the top deck. There was a beauty shop, small exercise room and small shop as well as a nice library.

One of the advantages of river cruising is meeting a lot of people. There were 150 passengers and we got to know quite a few of them, much better than we would have on an ocean cruise. On the train down from Paris, we met Sue and Gary from LA and enjoyed their company during the cruise, especially at meals. Sue and Gary had travelled quite a bit and we were able to compare notes on places. I became more familiar with one of Gary’s legs after he fainted during the cooking demonstration in Lyon and one of the passengers (a physician) told us to hold is legs up. Gary quickly recovered and seemed to have a good cruise.

We found the cuisine on the boat to exceed our expectations for a river cruise. We had three choices for an entree, but frequently a waiter brought around more of the entrees and vegetables if you wanted more. Dear Wife, Ginny indicated that we seemed to eat every half an hour. That was not quite true, but eat we did, and eat well. Also, AMA provides free wine with the dinner meal and a waitress was constantly making the rounds of all 150 passengers, filling up partially empty wine glasses.

On another point, this cruise should be called a wine cruise, not just due to the free dinner wine, but because we visited so many vineyards and wineries on our cruise. We enjoyed the wine; after all, it was France.

The next day we had a tour of Lyon that included a drive around the city and visit to the Basilica of Notre-Dame, as well as the ruins of a Roman theater. Lyon was called Lugdunum when controlled by the Romans. Emperor Claudius was actually born in Lyon. The views of the city below were worth the trip to the top of the hill alone. Lyon lies between the Saone and Rhone rivers (Saone is a tributary of the Rhone, but runs parallel to the Rhone for some distance. Lyon is the third largest city in France, and has spilled over both banks of both rivers. Also, walking we were taken to the “traboules” or houses in the old city that originally were workshops for silk workers. Later converted to homes, many of the homes (like interconnected townhouses with interior courtyards and passages) allowed resistance fighters to avoid capture by the Gestapo during WWII.

After the Lyon tour, we returned to the ship and enjoyed a lecture on wine on our way to the small village of Trévoux. The city is on the East bank of the Saone, and was independent of France until recent centuries. We enjoyed going to a small village with its medieval ramparts and hillside Chateau. We were to discover several wonderful villages, towns and cities on our way down the Saone and Rhone to Arles. Also, in Trévoux we learned about the Provencal game of petanque (Bocce). The game is played with hollow balls the slightly smaller than a softball on a flat sandy surface. A player tries to place his balls close to the small target ball. I was one of the volunteers that played an abbreviated game.

The next day, our bus tour departed from the ship at Trévoux through the beautiful Beaujolais wine region, often called the land of golden stones, after the limestone of the houses and villages. After a visit to a winery, where we sampled the Beaujolais wine and learned more, first hand, about its wine, we wound through the hills to the medieval hilltop village of Oingt. Oingt was like a mini-Rothenberg (walled city in Germany). The city was one of many historical walled or not cities that we visited on this trip. We returned to the ship and continued downriver past Lyon toward Vienne.

Vienne was one of my favorite cities on this cruise. It was loaded with Roman history and medieval sites as well. We visited the Roman Temple of Augustus and Livia, the ruins of a Roman theater and the medieval churches of St. Andre-Le-Bas and Abbey St. Pierre (the ancient abbey was loaded with Roman sculptures, mosaics, amphorae, etc. ) and rode on the mini train to see a wonderful panorama of the city, river and surrounding areas.

After the Vienne tour, the ship departed for Tournon, where we visited another winery. The wine from this winery was better than what we had in Beaujolais. The wine from this region is named after the region: Côtes du Rhône. We had another wine lecture on this ship that helped us to understand the different regions of France.

The next morning we visited Tournon and its 16th Century castle, which is now the town hall. Tournon was another French town with character. We returned to the ship and sailed to Viviers. We had the choice of a nougat tour or the ghost tour of Viviers. The “ghost walk” through this the medieval town, was enjoyable, due to the setting and the acting of the Day 10. We learned of the story of Noël Albert, who was beheaded when he ran afoul of the authorities. His ghost still lives in Viviers. The tour was interesting, but we were not able to enjoy the city very much at night. Still, when you consider all the cities and villages that we visited, I can see why a night visit was in the works. Viviers was another remarkable stone medieval city. It only has about 3000 residents, one it had more than ten times that much. Still, we were told that the city fills up in the summer.

The next day, we visited a farm that cultivated truffles. We learned that truffles take over ten years to grow. Trees are planted with truffle seeds in the roots. Dogs are used to find the truffles (pigs were once used, but they ate the truffles). We sampled some shavings of truffle, which were very tasty and watched the dogs (two blonde labs) in action. Then we visited Grignan, a village perched upon a hill surrounded by lavender fields, including a Renaissance castle. Again, we had a great view of the beautiful countryside.

In the afternoon, our bus arrived in Avignon. After lunch, we visited the ancient Roman aqueduct of Pont du Gard, which is the highest in Europe and you can find its image on the five Euro bill. We chose the aqueduct rather than the walking tour of Avignon, since we were coming back to Avignon on an excursion from the Norwegian Epic (another cruise we were to take after the AMA tour ended in Barcelona). The aqueduct was awesome; it was made of stones fitted together. Apparently, it had survived some massive river flooding until modern times the river was controlled by a dam.

Later, the ship’s Captain took the ship past the partially destroyed bridge connected to Avignon’s walls on a short mini cruise. Avignon’s walls still surround the old city and are quite impressive, even though there are many modern building inside the walls.

The next morning, we arrived in Arles, our final port. Our morning excursion first visited an olive farm, where we learned about how olive oil is made, as well as how it once was made. Then we proceeded to the village of Les Baux de Provence. This village was a fortress and Protestant stronghold during the French Wars of Religion until destroyed by Louis XIII and Cardinal Richelieu in 1633. Some took the “Van Gogh” tour which took them to the Saint Paul de Mausole Asylum. Later in the afternoon, took a walking tour of Arles that started with the Roman Amphitheater that is still used for many events, including occasional bullfighting. Also, we saw the Romanesque cathedral, site of the old Roman Forum and places frequented by Van Gogh, including the site of the house in which he once lived. The house was destroyed by bombing in WWII.

I haven’t mentioned much about the entertainment on the ship. AMA provided entertainment every night. We had a piano player in the bar/lounge area that provided entertainment, but we also had special shows most every night. We had a classical trio; French cabaret singer; 50s/60s music with got us all dancing; and a Latin singer with a limbo contest, which Ginny won

The next day, Thursday, we disembarked the ship in Arles and loaded up on three busses for Barcelona. About three-fourths of those on the cruise were along for the post-cruise three day trip to Barcelona. We had a guide on the bus, on our way to Perpignan, France (near the border with Spain). We left the bus and our luggage, carrying our important hand baggage (not suitcases) and had a nice lunch in Perpignan. We did not see much of the city, but an old gate, built by the Count of Catalonia. At one time this small part of SE France was a part of Catalonia. The people there still speak Catalonian (a Romance language similar to Spanish and Italian). Some persons sat nearby and did not get their food into to meet the busses. We just had time to eat and pay our check in a two hour time period. The food was great, but eating in this part of the world is not a fast food exercise. Our trip to Barcelona brings us another interesting item. Our busses from Arles switched our luggage with the busses from Barcelona that brought up the next river cruisers from Barcelona. We switched busses. It seemed a bit strange that our French busses did not take us all the way to Barcelona, but I suppose it was a cheaper for AMA to switch. It could be something to do with paying overtime for the bus drivers for an overnight. The trip to Barcelona was somewhat interesting, since we could see a little of the Pyrenees mountains in the distance. We saw the high speed train line that was partially complete from France to Barcelona, but also the incomplete portion. Our Spanish guide told us that the new Government in Spain said there was no more money to complete the project.

Upon arrival in Barcelona, we checked in to the Grand Marina Hotel, which was a five star hotel close to the cruise port, Las Ramblas and the Bari Gothic area (old town).

The next day, we had the option of a full city tour, or a short tour that included a tapas and boqueria excursion. We chose the tapas excursion, since we had been to Barcelona in March 2011 and seen all the sites on the city tour. The tapas excursion took us back to the Bari Gothic area, which included the old Roman area, Cathedral, palace and historical area. Closer to lunch, we visited two tapas restaurants for tasty dishes. We had 3 or 4 tapas at each restaurant, as well as wine. One of the restaurants is located on the corner of a large market about 100 yards east of the Cathedral Square, across the street from the Gothic area. The name of the restaurant was Cuines Santa Caterina.

After our tapas excursion, we left the group and found the hotel where my Son Jack and his friend, Jason were staying, while in Barcelona, prior to our next cruise on the Norwegian Epic in a couple of days. They had just checked into the hotel and we arranged to meet them at a restaurant later than evening. They wanted to nap, due to jet lag, so we departed and visited the City Museum in the Bari Gothic area prior to walking back to our hotel to change clothes.

The City Museum is a must see in Barcelona. It is located close to the Palace and Cathedral. The museum largely displays underground ruins from the Roman era, along with some centuries later. The museum had an audio hand set that opens up the history for visitors, as well as a show movie that rotates in several languages. After walking back to our hotel, we had to hurry to meet the guys for dinner, so we took a cab, even though it was a short distance. The cab ran about 8 euros, due to all the red lights and circuitous manner of getting to a hotel on Las Ramblas.

Jason had been in Barcelona on business for 9 days within the last year and was familiar with restaurants there. We had dinner at ATN, which was located close to a Roman excavation of tombs just off Las Ramblas on Canuda Street. The restaurant was open, even though it was about early by Spanish dinner standards. We had a wonderful meal with great service. Separate checks were not a problem with a party of six and credit cards were accepted. The next day, we had dinner at small tapas restaurant near the Plaza Sant Just on Palma De Sant Just. That restaurant, Bodega LaPalma, was not modern like ATN, but small and rustic. The tapas were excellent, with large servings for very reasonable prices. I highly recommend both restaurants.

On the Saturday prior to our Sunday embarkation on the Epic, we had a free day of tours from AMA. We decided to take the train to Tarragona. That city was once the Roman capitol of Eastern Spain. I could have purchased the rail tickets prior to leaving the US, but was not sure which train we would take and different trains had different prices. We took the Metro to the rail station and on arrival there located several ticket booths serving those buying tickets. We waited about half an hour get to a booth and were told we were at the wrong counters and to go to ticket counters 1-7 at the other end of the station. We did so and found a line twice as long as the one we had waited for half an hour. We decided to give up our plans and walk back to Las Ramblas, which was about 3 miles away. We walked off our frustration. We had lived in Germany for four years and ridden European trains in Germany, Italy, Austria, etc. encountering nothing like this kind of delay. I love Spain, but this kind of thing would not happen in Germany. After reaching Las Ramblas, we walked down to the sea coast and found another great museum, The Museum d' Història de Catalunya. It provided artifacts from different periods of Catalonian history with explanations in some depth. We spent about 2.5 hours there and only got up to the late 18th Century.

The next day was Sunday, May 27th and time to check out of our hotel and board the Norwegian Epic with Jack, Jason, Nick and Joel for our seven day cruise of the Western Med. That story to follow.

 

Part 2, Norwegian Epic, Western Med

Ports of Call: Barcelona, Spain, Naples, Italy, Rome (Civitavecchia), Italy, Florence/Pisa (Livorno), Italy, Cannes, France, Provence (Marseille), France

We checked in just before noon, and were on the ship in no time. Our cabin was ready by 1:30 pm and we unpacked ASAP. Ginny and I were cruising with my Son Jack and his friends Jason, Nick and Joel. The Epic is a huge vessel housing 4200 or more passengers, but we understood that about 3800 were on board our cruise. Still, some cruises starting in Civitavecchia overlapped ours.

 

The Epic seemed to have the youngest age median of passengers that we had seen four ocean cruises and two river cruises. The entertainment is quite good and the casino is very large and seemed very busy most of the time. The ship has a lot of activities, from a rock climbing wall to huge water slide. There is an interesting pool area at the stern of the ship, deck 15 (Spice H20), where a small pool can be covered for dancing, just below a huge TV screen. Hot tubs are around the area as well, with bars. We enjoyed staying in Spice H20 instead of the main pool area, which always seemed to have music blaring away. The Epic is laid out very differently from the four other cruise ships on which we have cruised. When you first see the Epic is looks like someone took a cruise ship and stacked several more decks on top. The interior of the ship is attractive and looks new. There is a huge shopping area and gigantic chandler suspended over an interior atrium at decks 5 and 6. The fitness center is a bit hard to find and get to, but is adequate, even though it could have had more stationary bike machines.

 

Our cabin was a mini-suite on deck 11, which we acquired as an upgrade from a balcony. The suite was nice, with lots of storage space, but we did not care for the configuration of the toilet, shower and sink. The toilet and shower are enclosed in a translucent sliding glass door that makes it very uncomfortable for a person in either of those places when a visitor is in the cabin. Also, not having the sink in an enclosed area meant that if I awakened before my Wife, that I could not shave without turning on the light and waking her up.

 

There are several restaurants on board, two main dining rooms, six specialty restaurants, the buffet and other short order restaurants that don’t charge a fee. The food on the Epic was the best we had found for NCL (we had been on the Gem and Jade). The Manhattan Room is the main dining room, which we had all our dinners except when we did Cirque du Soleil or three of the specialty restaurants. The food was almost as good as we found on Celebrity. However, the desserts were still not Celebrity level. The food at Cirque du Soleil was average. The specialty restaurants we visited were Le Bistro (French), Modern Churrascaria (Brazilian steak) and La Cucina (Italian). All were quite good and worth the extra. Note, at Churrascaria, don’t load up on the beef, save some room for the chicken and sausage, which are the best.

 

We did take a six bottle wine package, as Jason did a seven bottle package and we all six shared with each other and split the costs. There is a saving on buying a wine package.

 

The Epic is known for its great entertainment. We did Cirque du Soleil, Legends and the Blue Man Group, as well as enjoy some of the bar singing. The Cirque show on Epic is the best show we have ever seen on a cruise ship. It was great. Legends was excellent as well, of course, I was the guy pulled out of the audience by the Madonna impersonator. If you go to that show, be prepared to become part of the show. The Blue Man Group was a disappointment. We did not care much for the show. It seemed to be designed for adolescent tastes. There were several parts of the show that involved spitting up. The group did show some talent, such as how to grab up to 20 gumballs out of the air and keep them in his mouth, later regurgitating it into a pile. The group actually took a camera and stuck it down a member of the audience’s throat, which projected on the screen. We could almost see his stomach. At the finale of the show, the audience got rolled by toilet paper, like teens would do to someone’s yard. Several people walked out of the show. We didn’t but wish we had. Still, some people seemed to enjoy the show. The group of six usually met at Spice H20 for beer after our shore excursions. One day, we called it the Blue Moon Group, which was more fun than the Blue Man Group show.

 

The Epic has bowling and all six of us tried our hands. We did very poorly, our balls kept avoiding the pins for the left gutter. I think either the ship or lane was tilted to the left. Still, we had fun with bowling.

 

The cruise is very port intensive, so I only hit the fitness center on one day. The way I was eating, I knew that I would pay for it later. Upon returning home, I discovered that I gained two pounds in 18 days. It was fun all the eating and eating and eating.

 

Our first port on Tuesday was Naples. We did the NCL tour of the Amalfi Coast and Pompeii. I had been to Pompeii before, but not Amalfi. Ginny had not been to Pompeii or Amalfi before. NCL describes the tour:

Amalfi Coast & Pompeii

After a scenic drive, you’ll arrive in Pompeii, where you’ll visit the Roman resort buried by volcanic ash. Your tour will take you to the city’s baths, villas and theaters. See the well-preserved frescoes and mosaic-inlaid floors. Plaster casts mark the positions of the fallen who were swiftly overcome by the ashes. After lunch, if time permits, you’ll visit a cameo factory to see how the jewelry is made. Continue along the mountain road, which takes you to one of the picturesque villages of this famous area to explore its quaint streets. Continue along the coast, and take in stunning views at every turn of the winding road. When the Amalfi road closes to traffic (during Holidays), this part of the tour is done by motor boat. The views from the water are simply spectacular. In case of inclement weather and rough seas, the cruise to Amalfi will be substituted by a visit to Sorrento. Note: Tour is not available on the Norwegian Epic April 29th, 2012 sailing or on the Norwegian Spirit October 25th, 2012 sailing. During summer months expect extreme heat, crowded venues and long lines. We recommend that you dress in layers and bring bottled water.

 

My review of this tour

Great tour, but they should cut out the shopping

Luigi was a great tour guide. He spoke well and provided great background on both the Amalfi Coast and Pompeii. We first drove along the coast road of the Amalfi Coast, which was marvelous. The drive was a bit of a stressor, with the narrow and twisty roads. If you are prone to car sickness, you might not want to take this tour. Still, we loved the tour. We stopped for a washroom break and then at Amalfi. The coast is just amazing. After Amalfi, we proceeded on the autostrada to Pompeii and an included lunch, which was pretty good for a tour lunch. Our Pompeii tour was good, but could have been a bit longer. I had been to Pompeii once before and did the site on my own for three hours. We spent a bit more than one hour there, but still saw a lot. We could have seen more, except for the half hour wasted at the cameo shop. The cameos were very expensive and I don't think anyone in our group purchased any. Still, the tour was great in that we enjoyed both the coast and Pompeii.

 

The Amalfi coast is spectacular. The rocky shore against the sea, with villages and homes perched on those hills. Luigi, our tour guide told us that the local people there cannot afford to buy a home there, since the prices are so inflated with wealthy people wanting to live there or have vacation homes there. Amalfi city was smaller than I thought it would be, but still loaded with history. We didn’t have time to visit the impressive cathedral.

 

Pompeii is interesting since you can seem to get a feel of how the Romans lived 2000 years ago. There are still portions of the city left to be excavated. Looking at the plaster casts made from the voids of people that died in the disaster, you can get a sense of the fear and desperation of those people. The streets still show the ruts worn by the wagons and carriages of those days.

 

Ginny and I decided to skip the marathon trip to Rome since we had been there before and take in something closer. Since we bike quite a bit at home, we took the Taraquinia Biking Adventure, to see that city that goes back to the Etruscans. NCL describes the tour:

 

Tarquinia Biking Adventure

Upon arrival at Tarquinia Porta Clementina, you’ll collect your bicycles and meet the group leader. Then, proceed through the medieval historic center of Tarquinia passing by some of the most important monuments in this historic village. Visit the main palazzo and the National Etruscan Museum. Continue towards Santa Maria in Castello until you arrive at the typical farmhouse for a wine tasting session. From here, you’ll return to your ship by coach. Note: Participants must be at least 10 years of age. The bike ride is approximately 3 miles, mainly downhill or level ground.

 

My review of the tour:

Tour good, Bikes not

My Wife and I are avid cyclists and had been to Rome before, so we signed up for this tour. The guide and tour were good, except we had little time to visit the museum. However, the mountain bikes that were provided were near junk. There were no bikes sized for taller persons and the bikes are typical of what you could buy at a yard sale for $25. They appeared to be quite old. I was able to change gears, even though I really didn't need to do so. There was only one modest hill that we had to climb. Also, we had one participant that probably should not have been on the ride. He had trouble keeping up with the very modest pace. Still, we enjoyed the sites of the quaint little city of Tarquinia.

 

The next day we arrived at Livorno. When I opened the curtains to the balcony and looked out at the dock area, I saw scores of MRAP military vehicles parked on the dock. I knew that Camp Darby, a US Army post was near, still I wondered why the vehicles were there. On departing the dock area in our tour bus, I could see some of the vehicles more closely. They appeared to be vehicles that had been in the desert.

 

Our tour from Livorno was Lucca and Pisa, and NCL described the excursion:

 

Combine two of the most famous Tuscan towns: Lucca, with a colorful history that stretches back to the days of the ancient Etruscans, and Pisa with its famous Field of Miracles with the cathedral, baptistery, and of course, the Leaning Tower. Arriving in Lucca, take a guided walk through the old town, which retains its Renaissance-vintage fortified walls. Stroll from piazza to piazza and learn the city’s history through its architecture. The Duomo, Lucca’s Romanesque cathedral dates from the 12th century and features a facade with elaborate relieves and columns. The Gothic interior features an image of Christ on the cross, supposedly carved by Nicodemus, a purported witness of the crucifixion. The Duomo also boasts Tintoretto's magnificent painting of the Last Supper. You’ll have free time in Lucca to enjoy your activity of choice; explore, eat or shop! Once a powerful maritime republic and a rival to Genoa and Venice, Pisa offers Renaissance splendor of its own. A short guided walk leads to the Field of Miracles where you’ll receive a brief orientation on Pisan history. The Piazza is the site of Pisa’s Duomo, baptistery, Campo Santo, and of course, the campanile – the famous Leaning Tower. Galileo is said to have used the 180-foot campanile during his experiments with gravity. Today, the tower leans 14-degrees from perpendicular. Recently reopened, admittance to the tower is limited and is not included in the excursion. Pisa’s Duomo is a mixture of Tuscan and Romanesque styles and the black and white interior marble arches are thought to have been inspired by Islamic architecture.

 

My review of this tour

Two Gems in a crown

We had been to Florence recently and took this tour, primarily to see Lucca, which we had not visited. Lucca was great. Another walled Italian city with ancient roots and loaded with history. The city still has its walls, medieval churches and a Roman arena turned into homes. Our tour guide, Antonella (sp?) was excellent, informed and with a good sense of humor. After Lucca, we visited Field of Miracles at Pisa that included the leaning tower, Cathedral and Baptistery. We had been there before and only went through the Cathedral, which cost two euros each. The tower was 15 euros and we had not made reservations. This was a great tour and I strongly recommend it to others.

 

This tour was taken by all six of our group, and perhaps our favorite of all the excursions. Lucca is a city not to miss if you porting in Livorno. Tuscany has so many great cites. Florence and Siena get top billing, but don’t forget to see Lucca. Pisa was the Field of Miracles with the leaning tower as the top item. Ginny and I had been there in 1990 and gone to the top of the tower. We didn’t try to go up since there was a waiting list and it cost 15Euros per person. If you go to Pisa, I suggest making the reservation to go up in the leaning tower. One point of humor, Ginny collects small cups and saucers of places we visit. She scores of these cups and saucers. However, none of them lean like the one she purchased in Pisa. I discovered after I returned to the USA that an attractive coffee mug that I purchased in Lucca had a glued on design, not integrated into the mug. When I ran the mug through the dishwasher, half of the design came off, making the mug worthless. I should have examined the mug more closely.

 

The next day we arrived in Cannes, France and our first and only tender port. NCL handled the tendering process very well. We had no waiting for our tender boat. We had some time in Cannes prior to meeting for our excursion, so we walked to a small castle at the top of a hill in the old section of the city. It turned out to be a museum with a collection of artifacts from ancient Egypt, Greece, pre-Columbian South America, Polynesia, Indonesia and more. I climbed to the top of the tower and took photos. We moved down the hill and met our guide for the NCL excursion described as follows:

 

Grasse & St. Paul De Vence

Leaving Cannes, you turn inland to Grasse, birthplace of the French perfume industry. Here you’ll visit a perfume factory for a tour and to learn how flowers are boiled and the essence is condensed in one of the world’s oldest distillation processes. Your coach then crosses the Loup River canyon before entering Saint Paul de Vence, the meeting place of artists and stars. Your exploration of this 16th century walled village begins when you enter the village by the main gate. Discover that this village, typical of other fortified villages guarding the frontier, has retained much of its medieval appearance, its ramparts remaining remarkably intact to this day. Here you’ll have an opportunity to stroll through the narrow, cobblestone lanes exploring the many wonderful boutiques and art galleries before returning to your ship. Note: Tour constitutes 1 ½ miles of walking on cobblestone and uphill terrain in St. Paul. There is an approximate 500 meter walk from the bus park to the village.

 

We stopped at the perfume shop of Fragonard. It was not just a shop, as some work was being done there, but primarily to show tourist how perfume is made. The tour was instructive, but for most of the men it was too long. Ginny purchased some soap, but some women purchased several bottles of expensive perfume. The highlight of the tour was our visit to Saint Paul de Vence. It was another historical French walled city on the top of a hill. Again it was a mini Rothenberg on the Tauber. The village did not allow cars, since the streets were very narrow. There were many shops selling art and mini art museums. Apparently, many artists live there. Marc Chagall once made his home there.

 

Our final port was Marseilles, which does not offer much in the way of tourism. It is an ancient city founded by Greeks in the 6th Century BC and retained its Greek character during Roman times. Not much is left of that history. Our NCL took us inland to visit two cities and was described as follows:

 

Avignon & Aix en Provence

Drive to Avignon and fall in love with this fortified city, famous for its theater festival and remarkable for its history. Passing through any of the seven gates of the superbly preserved walls, one discovers the city of the Popes. You’ll have plenty of free time to do whatever you want. Stroll through the enchanting pedestrian shopping area, enjoy lunch at one of its many great restaurants or perhaps visit the impressive Palace of the Popes, built in the 14th century. After time at leisure, drive to Aix en Provence. This was the capital of the Provence region and its attractions are many. First you’ll embark on a walking tour of the Cours Mirabeau. This wide avenue is shaded by trees and was built in the 1600s on the site of the city’s medieval ramparts. Its verdant tunnel of foliage protects pedestrians from the heat of the Provencal sun. Aristocratic facades of the old hotels line the Cours and their wrought iron balconies and finely carved doorways invite the visitor to explore. The drive back to Marseille lets you enjoy the scenery of Provence. Note: Tour involves walking for approximately 3 hours on uneven ground and cobblestone, with a few steps in Avignon. Not recommended for guests who are wheelchair confined. Public restrooms are available at both Avignon and Aix.

 

Good tour but limited

This tour hit two places that we wanted to see and that was good, but the guided portion of the tour was not extensive. This was not a huge surprise, since the tour description indicated as much. Still, the tour of Avignon didn't include the Papal Palace, which would have been nice. Some say that the inside of the palace is empty and not so impressive. I can see why free time was the order of the day.

Both cities are interesting and deserve a visit. Aix is a great place for ambiance, since it lacks many historical wow places.

 

Going back to Avignon was like connecting back to our river cruise, however, we had not gone into the city itself. Our tour took us to see the Papal Palace and a few other notable sites, but not inside the palace. My Son, Jack twisted his ankle coming down the stairs at McDonald’s after at pit stop upstairs. Jason and I found a grocery store close by and acquired a bag of frozen French Fries (after all this was France) to assist him in reducing the swelling. Ginny found a pharmacy and a wrap for his ankle. Jack was able to walk after this and the injury was as bad as it could have been. Our tour then proceeded to Aix en Provence, which was the capital of Provence and a university town. While no major historical sites are in Aix, the city had an ambience that was pleasant. We saw two markets in squares within 50 yards of each other that shut down about lunch time. We had lunch at a great Lebanese restaurant, Divan d’ Antioche.

Returning to our ship, we headed back to Barcelona for our disembarkation and return home. Disembarkation went well and the flight was good. It is always easier flying across the pond from Europe to North America. Upon arrival at home our three cats just would not leave us alone. They are still following us everywhere. It is good to be home, but we really enjoyed our trip.

[cruisemom42]

Wow, sounds like you had a great trip overall. I also just returned from a land trip to some of the best Roman sites in Provence, visiting Marseilles, Arles, Avignon, and Lyon as well as daytrips to Glanum, Orange, and Vienne. I ended up doing this because I was looking at a river cruise similar to yours, but the prices were very high for a solo (very few deals/discounts).

 

I loved Avignon, although there is little visible of its Roman past. It's a charming city and I really enjoyed the 2 nights spent there. And Arles was a treat also -- so many great Roman sites around, including the Pont du Gard.

 

At Vienne, it sounds like you didn't get to see the extensive Roman site on the opposite side of the river (St. Romain en Gal) where there are ruins of several huge villas and a museum with many fine mosaics...... It's hard to do it all, right?

[4774Papa]

Wow, sounds like you had a great trip overall. I also just returned from a land trip to some of the best Roman sites in Provence, visiting Marseilles, Arles, Avignon, and Lyon as well as daytrips to Glanum, Orange, and Vienne. I ended up doing this because I was looking at a river cruise similar to yours, but the prices were very high for a solo (very few deals/discounts).

 

I loved Avignon, although there is little visible of its Roman past. It's a charming city and I really enjoyed the 2 nights spent there. And Arles was a treat also -- so many great Roman sites around, including the Pont du Gard.

 

At Vienne, it sounds like you didn't get to see the extensive Roman site on the opposite side of the river (St. Romain en Gal) where there are ruins of several huge villas and a museum with many fine mosaics...... It's hard to do it all, right?

Hello, from a fellow ancient history buff. Yes, our tour guide did mention those sites and we had no more time to visit them. However, some of the contents of the wonderful museum at St. Andre-Le-Bas in Vienne came from across the river.

[cruisemom42]

Hello, from a fellow ancient history buff. Yes, our tour guide did mention those sites and we had no more time to visit them. However, some of the contents of the wonderful museum at St. Andre-Le-Bas in Vienne came from across the river.

 

We didn't get to that museum, unfortunately. :( The whole area is just really rich in remains for those who are interested.