Ocean princess venice to rome

[Bimmer09]

Oh norris you are singing my tune....I intend to have my lunch in the same lovely place after a dip in the sea

....my true goal....will take a small private tour that day so I may linger in the water....not a very good walker but I can swim like a fish in the very cold maine ocean.....this shall feel balmy to me! .....my husband is a saint.....he will take your cue and have a wet cappichino and a pipe while I frolic......I will never see any of these people again so I shall do what I want....a short,round, special goggle wearing so I can see my hand in front of my face grandmother taking in the sun and experiencing joy.....seems more real with every page....thank you

 

Your plan for Positano sounds great. It's the sort of place where I could no pretty much nothing all day- beach/eat/nap/beach/eat/nap and so on with good company on hand and plenty of refreshments. If you can swim in the waters of Maine you are pretty hardy and this Italian water would feel like a hot-tub.

Maybe you have lobsters in your family tree?

 

Everything starts with a dream and without that, life can pass you by.

Same old, same old...man when people say that it's a real spirit crusher. Keep putting the dreams off and you wake up one day to find it is too late.

 

I like the image of your husband with a "wet cappuccino and a pipe". Whatever a person finds that contents them most is alright by me. Italy is very smoke-tolerant (outdoors which includes cafes) as is Germany and France.

 

Whenever you get there enjoy your swim. I will be cheering you on from wherever I am.

 

Norris

[Bimmer09]

I love the ocean princess, but now that she may be sold, and you have talked me into a cruise to Italy, guess I will look for another ship. thanks guy, for making me spend more $$$$$$$$ that I will love spending..... :D

 

I hope you WILL book a cruise from an Italian port or to an Italian port. Italy needs as many $$$$ as you can spare!

 

We had waited for this cruise for long and it surpassed our expectations. Much of what I read referred to Italians (service people) being disinterested in customers and rude etc but there was NONE of that. Exemplary professionals all the way. Fun witty people. It helped that we always started off speaking our version of Italian- I think that mark of respect was an ice-breaker and made them go out of their way to impress us. I've never had so many "on the house" offers as we had in Italy.

 

Norris

[Bimmer09]

The sign on the security board at the gangway said "next port Civittavecchia" and that could only mean one thing. The cruise was coming to an end.

 

One last look (or two ) behind as the anchor was weighed ( maybe 2 tons or so?) and the ship fired up the Little Engines that Could and headed out to sea.

 

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One last opportunity, once Sorrento faded into the distance, to visit the Pool Bar and have a beer served by Marisol and say my goodbyes. Fellow smokers came and went and told me of their plans for the morning. Many were staying on to sail to Athens on another cruise. Not us and we didn't mind. We are realists and we realized that tomorrow we would see ROME for the first time in our lives.

 

While I was up by the pool drinking Grolsch, Carol the organized, was packing up her suitcases. I would get to that much later, certainly after our last MDR dinner of the week.

 

Norris

[homeinboca]

we realized that tomorrow we would see ROME for the first time in our lives.

 

Norris

 

Rome is the first European city we ever visited on our first ever Med Cruise in 2011. We spent 3 days there pre-cruise and had such an amazing time. We'll always have a special place in our hearts for Rome. You know what they say about the first time...

 

I can't wait to see your pictures and your review of your time there.

[Bimmer09]

Before I forget here are some of the rooms I didn't use on the ship but they were there for all.

 

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Just how classy is this ship??

 

 

More rooms later...

 

Norris

[SpinnerCOyyy]

I thought the ship to port tender was a lot more choppy than the return trip. Perhaps it was because of the direction of the tide. Certainly not a white knuckle ride on the way to port, but noticed the difference on the return trip. Or maybe it was the tender operator.

 

LoriPompei349 by rollingspinner, on Flickr

[Jasperdo]

You should just cost such a trip out on paper and if the number is not doable under any circumstances then it is off the drawing board. But you need to see the number first and decide where you can cut corners.

Thanks for your thoughtful suggestions. I've been pricing out European cruise for years now. We always travel cheap anyway: inside cabins, public transportation, cheap meal, economy class on airplanes, etc. Even with all that a Mediterranean or Baltic cruise is pretty much out of our price range now. Even local cruises that we can drive to can only be done if I can get an "offer I can't refuse" type of last minute deal. But who knows, maybe someday the stars will line up, and we'll get to take a European cruise. I know I would love it. I'm a huge history buff, and the history in Europe is mind boggling.

[perfect match]

Positano certainly looks like a beautiful place. I'm not sure how I'd like those hills, but I would be in better shape than I am if I had to walk them all the time.

 

I am sad to see your cruise coming to an end because I have enjoyed getting acquainted with the OP. She is a beautiful ship. I am sorry that Princess has decided to put her on the market. I hope whoever buys her keeps her looking as good as she does now.

 

Looking forward to Rome!

 

Nancy

[Bimmer09]

I have been off-line since late Monday night. I spent 80 minutes on the phone Tuesday with Apple Help as I couldn't get a wi-fi signal. Since then with Carol's help via text and experimenting with a PC we have established that our wi-fi router is kaput and so the Mac is OK. I am hooked up through an Ethernet cable

to bring you this "late breaking news". If my post suddenly stops in mid-sentence then pray for me.

 

OK-back to the story and another room on the Ocean P that shows her class and a room that again I didn't spend any time in, but I am sure come enjoyed.

 

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Even the public restrooms look rich...

 

 

The Lotus Spa and the Gym I cannot show you. As I take these photos in the early hours the Spa was locked. The Gym is accessed through the spa. I found this out at 6 a.m on disembarkation day so it was too late to correct.

 

I think that is it for Interior ship photos.

 

Now our last night at sea...

[Bimmer09]

I used the camcorder on our last MDR meal at sea and although it is a nothing video it shows our waiter Oleg and a couple of plates of food. There was no plan and I will address that going forward. I need to meet with the Maitre 'd on day one and tell him what I need from my actors (waiters, busboys etc). Either that or I need to drink less wine and not juggle a camera at the same time.

 

This was our 6th cruise with Princess in 3 years and yet we are still not prepared for the slap in the face of having to get our bags into the hallway by 9pm on the last night.

 

That was a WEEK? It went so fast. We just got on the boat! Is there some mistake?

 

Alas, no. A week that might drag on land takes wings and flies by on the water.

 

Here's the video of a couple of minutes spent in the MDR on the Ocean Princess.

 

 

Norris

[SpinnerCOyyy]

I have been off-line since late Monday night. I spent 80 minutes on the phone Tuesday with Apple Help as I couldn't get a wi-fi signal. Since then with Carol's help via text and experimenting with a PC we have established that our wi-fi router is kaput and so the Mac is OK. I am hooked up through an Ethernet cable

to bring you this "late breaking news". If my post suddenly stops in mid-sentence then pray for me.

 

The Lotus Spa and the Gym I cannot show you. As I take these photos in the early hours the Spa was locked. The Gym is accessed through the spa. I found this out at 6 a.m on disembarkation day so it was too late to correct.

 

I think that is it for Interior ship photos.

 

Now our last night at sea...

 

Oh the trials and tribulations of broken wifi! I'm one of those anti-Mac, anti-turtle neck people. I was convinced when I first began to read why you had abandon us that it was because of those cursed machines. I'd bed that the electrical cooties of your Mac, took out your router! :p

 

We went to the card room and played 3-13 just once. It was fun to discover small drink holders at each position on the card tables. They are the little drawers on the left. And those cabinets were full of games! It was also interesting to find so many pictures of US presidents in both the card room, and the Internet cafe.

 

Loving Carol's necklaces. She's got some beautiful pieces!

[Bimmer09]

Eating is such a big part of cruise life and indeed life of Earth as we know it.

When you don't have to shop for it, peel it, cook it and wash up pans afterwards it takes on a whole new meaning. To us the buffet is not an alternative for our evening meal, even though I know the food there to be worthy.

 

A white linen tablecloth, some flowers on the table and uniformed and eager servers all raise the level of enjoyment for us. It's not just a matter of putting food in our stomachs. It's an occasion and of course there must be wine, so my last bottle had to be drained.

 

Now our note keeping on this last night wasn't the best. Blame it on a long excursion, packing for Carol and future packing for me (always late with that).

 

Here's an appetizer which may have been a crab cake...anyone shed some light here?

 

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This I know is a New York Strip steak, with onion straws and although not a Sterling Steakhouse cut, hit the mark for flavor.

 

 

Carol had a nice plate of succulent scallops with orzo

 

 

The waiters , with much ceremony, did that goofy parade with Baked Alaska, with a flameless battery candle for effect. This is some kind of Cruising tradition and I recall it from way back in the mid 80s when the flame and the cake was real.

Still I don't want the ship to catch fire so I am OK with the pretense, just as I have to be with Bananas Foster Flambe and Cherries Jubilee not giving off any flame.

 

 

Carol elected to have a tart rather than the Baked Alaska and I am sure (notes or not) that I had a Sambuca and espresso.

 

 

Goodbyes were said to our waitstaff but we weren't best buds as we had been on some other ships (Diamond and Ruby). We had Anytime Dining on those and so our staff were less in serve-mode and had fewer guests and more time to hang out with us as we ate around 9 pm. No such luxury in Traditional Dining on the Ocean.

 

The only show that night was an 8.15 show with sax player Oli Nez so no need to attend that.

 

So the night is a blur during which I met up with some buddies as I walked thought the Casino. Spoke of our plans for the morning-some staying in Rome for a day or two, like us.

 

I had to pack and when I got to the cabin all the cases that had been in the hallway before dinner were gone.

 

I packed anyway and had the one suitcase out by midnight. I awoke to go to the bathroom around 3 a.m and it was till there....oops! By morning though, at 5.30 when I went on deck for coffee it was gone. What a relief!

 

When I went to sleep just after midnight I did not have the "oh, well-that's the end of our cruise" mantra running through my mind. I was thinking "Civitavecchia-gateway to Rome" would greet me in the morning. That can't be bad!!!

 

Norris

Edited November 5, 2014 by Bimmer09
spelling

[Bimmer09]

Oh the trials and tribulations of broken wifi! I'm one of those anti-Mac, anti-turtle neck people. I was convinced when I first began to read why you had abandon us that it was because of those cursed machines. I'd bed that the electrical cooties of your Mac, took out your router! :p

 

We went to the card room and played 3-13 just once. It was fun to discover small drink holders at each position on the card tables. They are the little drawers on the left. And those cabinets were full of games! It was also interesting to find so many pictures of US presidents in both the card room, and the Internet cafe.

 

Loving Carol's necklaces. She's got some beautiful pieces!

 

Carol loves turquoise and as we have been to Santa Fe NM 7 times she finds these gems at the Indian Market. Indeed they are classy. I don't wear jewelry of any kind so you won't find me in Diamonds International any day soon. I wear a watch (several but not all at once) to tell the time and remind me which hand is my left. Once I know that I can figure out that the other must be my right.

 

I think the card room is beautiful and speaks to Renaissance Cruises' style.

 

Those were US Presidents? I thought they were ship's captains from the (very) early days of Princess. LOL. That reminds me I must watch "Master and Commander" again.

 

I did check the MDR menus for "Bole weevils a la mode" and "Grog" was not on the wine list, come to think of it.

 

OK- let's get on to ROME

 

Norris

[Bimmer09]

Civitavecchia isn't Rome. It's the nearest port and in our case the place where we would leave the ship and meet a driver who would take us to Rome to begin the last phase of our Mediterranean Journey.

 

This had already been planned out almost a year before with countless visits to the Rome in Limo website and then, once we had decided on the "package" that would best suit us, a lot of e mails twixt myself and Jany who runs the office for RIL. I had emailed her from the ship a day or two before we landed to let her know all was going according to plan.

 

When we woke on the morning of September 27 th the ship was, as hoped, in the port of Civitavecchia.

 

Instantly recognizable, no?

 

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Obviously very early in the morning but we had prayed to the gods that the sun would come up eventually and the gods heard our pleas!! Oh merciful gods we are not worthy!

 

Room service came with a hot breakfast around 6 a.m and I scaled back my expectations by just ordering toast and bacon and coffee to get me awake. We were scheduled to meet our driver at 8.am and so I had asked for an embarkation at 7, not knowing how long customs would take.

 

I took a few shots of other ships in port or arriving as I stood on Promenade deck.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Five of the masts (the white ones) in this last photo belong to the Windsurf we had seen in Venice.

[Bimmer09]

One thing great about a small ship, especially one where a lot of passengers are doing a B2B, is that getting off is so easy we thought-there has to be a catch here.

 

There were maybe 5 people ahead of us in the baggage hall and our bags were color coded so it maybe took a minute to retrieve them. There were a few Princess staffers there who offered help but none was needed.

 

Customs? The one officer was talking to someone and I had to attract his attention by holding my passport up. He looked at us and just waved us through and went on talking.

 

That's fine by us!

 

We wheeled our luggage outside into the warm sweet Italian air (it's actually the same air as pretty much any other port) and lined it up against the wall.

There were a couple of limo drivers across the road holding up names. We were over half an hour early for our pick-up so Carol took a seat inside the Terminal while I had a cigarette outside and watched the limos loading up. Our limo was due at 8 a.m.

 

It was not a busy scene-half a dozen people waiting for their ride in the sunshine.

 

At 7.45 a black Mercedes mini-bus pulled up. The driver, a smooth looking guy about 50 years old with a sharp suit and sunglasses got out and stood on the other side of the narrow road. He held up a sign. ADAIR. Hey-that's me!

 

"Carol-Rome in Limo is here" I called inside. I went over and introduced myself in Italian and he introduced himself as Franco and said he speaks English. Just as requested for an 8 hour tour! (otherwise it could have been a very long day) I offered to help carry our luggage across to the Mercedes but he wouldn't let me, telling me I was on vacation. I liked this guy already.

 

Carol came and greeted him in Italian and he said "ah you speak Italian?" so she was very chuffed (elated) to hear that the Berlitz tapes had paid off.

 

I shot some random video as we drove out of the port area, all the time Franco giving us it's history, mingled with his life at home with his wife- a loving husband with a gift for the gab and a pleasure to be with-for 8 hours (minus 2 while we were in the Vatican.)

 

The drive in was on a fast road through beautiful rural countryside and any signs that said ROMA were another quickening of the pulse.

 

No post-partum pangs for the Ocean Princess as we were on another exciting leg of this adventure. The Final Leg for sure and Chicago was coming closer by the day but for now we were genuinely excited at the prospect of what lay ahead.

 

We had seen movies and travel shows and our appetite was whetted. Now we would see how the Legend stacked up against reality....

 

Would I really be standing in the Colosseum 90 minutes from now?

 

 

Norris

[SpinnerCOyyy]

Carol loves turquoise and as we have been to Santa Fe NM 7 times she finds these gems at the Indian Market. Indeed they are classy. I don't wear jewelry of any kind so you won't find me in Diamonds International any day soon. I wear a watch (several but not all at once) to tell the time and remind me which hand is my left. Once I know that I can figure out that the other must be my right.

 

I think the card room is beautiful and speaks to Renaissance Cruises' style.

 

Those were US Presidents? I thought they were ship's captains from the (very) early days of Princess. LOL. That reminds me I must watch "Master and Commander" again.

 

I did check the MDR menus for "Bole weevils a la mode" and "Grog" was not on the wine list, come to think of it.

 

OK- let's get on to ROME

 

Norris

 

One must always choose the lesser of two weevils! I love that movie.

 

Yes, that's the crab cake on your plate.

 

I can't believe how easy boarding and di-boarding (er ..um....un-board... de-board...dis-board...de-boat...di-ship....da-plane! da-plane!) were on this trip either. We were like you, waiting for the other shoe to drop.... or SOMETHING to happen. When you are used to looking through a sea of luggage for your own, and there is this small little section it can be a strange feeling. I had bright neon duct tape on my bags that you could see from yards away and had to laugh when we walked into the room and discovered I needed to find my own luggage from a field of 20 other pieces.

 

We had planned on a more complicated disembarkation and customs journey. Had we known it was going to take us all of 10 minutes, we would have arranged to disembark earlier.

 

Did Franco lead you through the Colosseum? Did you get to see underground at the Colosseum and the view from the 4th level? Our tour of the Colosseum was set for Sunday. It would include Palentine Hill, and Colosseum Underground. If we would have gone to Tunisia, we would have booked a tour of El Djem. It would have been interesting to see the differences in the two "Colosseums".

[rdsqrl]

I particularly enjoyed the close-up of Carol's scallop entree (which looked delish) and I must apologize to her for having my face in her plate.

 

Excited you're finally in Rome now. Waiting eagerly to hear if you liked the del Senato as much as I did.

[Bimmer09]

One must always choose the lesser of two weevils! I love that movie.

 

Yes, that's the crab cake on your plate.

 

I can't believe how easy boarding and di-boarding (er ..um....un-board... de-board...dis-board...de-boat...di-ship....da-plane! da-plane!) were on this trip either. We were like you, waiting for the other shoe to drop.... or SOMETHING to happen. When you are used to looking through a sea of luggage for your own, and there is this small little section it can be a strange feeling. I had bright neon duct tape on my bags that you could see from yards away and had to laugh when we walked into the room and discovered I needed to find my own luggage from a field of 20 other pieces.

 

We had planned on a more complicated disembarkation and customs journey. Had we known it was going to take us all of 10 minutes, we would have arranged to disembark earlier.

 

Did Franco lead you through the Colosseum? Did you get to see underground at the Colosseum and the view from the 4th level? Our tour of the Colosseum was set for Sunday. It would include Palentine Hill, and Colosseum Underground. If we would have gone to Tunisia, we would have booked a tour of El Djem. It would have been interesting to see the differences in the two "Colosseums".

 

We did not go to the highest level in the Colosseum and we didn't have tickets for the underground portion-nor the time. The Colosseum was so big and there were so many people in there, constantly shifting and moving, that our main concern was not to lose sight of each other or split up. We had a 2 pm Vatican appointment and everything was timed around that and the clock was getting eaten up fast.

 

Norris

[Bimmer09]

I particularly enjoyed the close-up of Carol's scallop entree (which looked delish) and I must apologize to her for having my face in her plate.

 

Excited you're finally in Rome now. Waiting eagerly to hear if you liked the del Senato as much as I did.

 

Albergo (part 1) coming up later.

 

Norris

[Bimmer09]

Here is an hour of driving condensed into 7 minutes or so just to give you the flavor of the trip with Rome in Limo.

 

I was surprised at how pretty the entrance is to Rome. Often you approach cities through an ugly industrial corridor (like Manhattan via the NJ Turnpike) or a mess of highways but I guess the only industry here is tourism and so it looks very clean and welcoming. Great first impression.

 

Heads on swivels as we drove past sites we would stop at later in the day-Circus Maximus for example. Franco did take us past the Baths of Caracalla which was a request we had made when talking to Jany.

 

Franco's plan was to take us to the hotel first to drop off our bags so that they wouldn't be sitting in the "car" all day and be a temptation to thieves.

 

Our hotel was by the Pantheon in a cobbled square called Piazza della Rotunda.

 

Here's the video which stops before we get into the tight streets near the hotel.

 

 

Franco is talking about Vesuvius when the video starts in Civitavecchia.

[HRPro]

Great video, Norris. Looks like your weather was beautiful for your first day in Rome. it's a beautiful city! We've been three times and there is still much to discover.

 

Susan

[Bimmer09]

Rome

 

Here is the Mercedes mini-bus which we were driven around in by Franco from Rome in Limo. I will refer to it as "car" as it is much shorter to write.

In tight streets like this (near Trevi Fountain) he had to stop and drop us off as there was nowhere to fit such a long vehicle.

 

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The car had a cooler in it and Franco was always trying to keep us hydrated with water. Very thoughtful and it always had to be a fresh cool bottle.

 

I am glad he was driving as on some of the big wide Mussolini-inspired streets cars come at you from all angles. Then you turn down ancient narrow streets with roaming pedestrians and blind corners, watching your wing mirrors to make sure you have clearance. Some of these narrow lanes have restaurant tables to add to the melee.

 

First stop though, even before the Colosseum was to our hotel-Albergo del Senato. (Albergo means hotel in Italian). I had chosen it from reading Tripadvisor reviews and had been corresponding with them via e mail. They were always quick to reply in good English.

 

Reviews did mention how lively the square was during the day as apparently it was a hot spot for buskers who would set up their drums and amplifiers (yikes!)

and blast away. I loved what a saw of the hotel though and on Google maps I could see it was well placed for walking and exploring. There were restaurants all around the square which was a plus and there was the Pantheon which was something we wanted to see anyway. So we chose a suite as high as we could get and it had an outdoor terrace that appealed. Above our level-we were on the 6th floor- was an open-air bar. Now that was certainly an attraction for me.

 

The hotel cost exactly half as much as the one in Venice so that was a relief.

Via e mail they had told me that dropping off our luggage well before check-in was not a problem otherwise it would have to have remained with us.

 

This is the hotel. We would be located (later) on the top left corner of the photo. That little bush up there is on our terrace. The higher bushes in the center for the shot are roof-top bar bushes.

 

 

Across from it sat this-the Pantheon.

 

 

Narrow streets lead to the square

 

 



 

You'll notice restaurant umbrellas just outside the hotel. They belong to an independent restaurant.

 

 

I went into the lobby to announce our presence

 

 

 

Franco brought our luggage in while I spoke to the front desk clerk. A smile when I spoke Italian (or as close as I could get). No problem to check the luggage and he wished us a good day.

 

Having been in the car for over an hour I was ready for a cigarette and indeed the perfect lift for the long day ahead-an espresso. Franco had pointed out "the best coffee in Rome " as we passed it on a narrow alley a few streets back but I settled for somewhere 10 yards away with no line out the door.

 

I went in and it was busy. I thought it was like Starbucks where you line up to give your order and pay but there didn't seem to be a logical line. Two guys were making coffee as fast as they could and avoiding eye contact. Franco came in and saw the situation and disappeared into a corner of the cafe out of view. He came back with a ticket and handed it over, speaking Italian. I offered to pay him the 5E for a couple of doppios (doubles) but he waved the money away.

 

Ahhh- you pay first, get a receipt and then hand that to the barista.

 

We now had two delicious cups of espresso and Carol joined us outside while I had a cigarette. Suitably recharged we were now ready to begin our tour!

 

To the Colosseum, Franco!

[Jasperdo]

Another excellent "Road Trip" video. Thank you so much for including them in your review. My eyes are always glued to the window when driving around in a place I've never been. Nice to see I'm not the only one that thinks like this. To me, the everyday world of a location is just as fascinating as the tourist icons.

Edited November 6, 2014 by Jasperdo

[Bimmer09]

Great video, Norris. Looks like your weather was beautiful for your first day in Rome. it's a beautiful city! We've been three times and there is still much to discover.

 

Susan

 

Thanks for the kind words re the video which of course for me is brutally flawed and I promise it won't happen again! Just too much going on all at once and as I don't know where I am going I sometimes turn the camera off just as the driver would be saying-oh and here is the most famous building on Earth-or-oh there's Elvis pumping gas at that gas station. I need a route map and a pre-briefing and if possible a written script of what the driver will say next. Then a couple of hours rehearsal.

 

The weather, Susan, was sublime both days. Maybe 77 deg, no wind.

 

Two days was a ridiculously short time to spend there-but all we had. We didn't know we were going to like it so much. Even if we hadn't gone to historic buildings I could have been happy just moving from one great cafe to the next, people watching and enjoying the hospitality from all we met. But we did go to a lot of wonderful places and now that I am back in Chicago and have wi-fi on tap I can continue with my tale and show you some .

 

Norris

[Bimmer09]

Another excellent "Road Trip" video. Thank you so much for including them in your review. My eyes are always glued to the window when driving around in a place I've never been. Nice to see I'm not the only one that thinks like this. To me, the everyday world of a location is just as fascinating as the tourist icons.

 

 

Thanks Jasperdo. I thought I'd just give people a brief idea of the trip in from the ship. Not a time for taking a quick nap!!

 

Norris, who hasn't seen any video beyond that so I don't know exactly what's next but assuming Colosseum