Semi-Live from the Epic | Transatlantic from Orlando to Rome | April 7 to 19, 2024

[The Traveling Man]

@OrcaGirl

The one bright spot of having propulsion issues that slowed the ship and made you miss your port stop in Gibraltar is that you passed through the strait during daylight.  Every time we've sailed there it has been the wee hours of the night when it was too dark to see anything.  Thanks for the photos.

[OrcaGirl]

Last night’s recap…

 

The best plans are always made in hot tubs, and the new friends suggested meeting at the Manhattan Room in time for the Burn the Floor floor show. 

 

We juuuust made the first seating cut-off, but unfortunately the layout of the room meant peekaboo views of the dancing from our table. But it was still fun to watch.

 

Dinner was excellent. I had the unphotogenic but delicious lamb kofta, the upcharge surf and turf (too much food for me to finish) and the crème brûlée. 

 

 

 

 

After dinner, I headed to the karaoke superstar semi-finals, while my friends went to the Perfect Couple game show. They made the better choice. I don’t know if the audio was off or if there were just too many loud-talkers at the bar, but it was sooo hard to hear the hostess or the singers. And I’ve definitely heard better karaoke performances this cruise than most of the people who made the semi-finals.

 

Once karaoke wrapped, I ducked into Howl at the Moon for a drink and a random yet rousing performance of O Canada. 🇨🇦🤣 (Except she sang the old lyrics.)

 

I then headed in to the Spiegel Tent for the 10pm 80s Broadway revue. In hindsight, I wish I had done that at 8pm. It was very fun, and even this Broadway nerd learned a couple new songs. Awkward venue, though.

 

 

 

And then to bed to get ready for Alicante. 🤞 

 

 

Random observations

 

I’m genuinely surprised that Home for a Rest isn’t up there with Sweet Caroline as a cruise ship karaoke singalong standard.

 

I had no idea that One Night in Bangkok was from Chess: The Musical (written by the ABBA dudes).

 

The shorter of the male featured vocalists could be instantly cast as Elder McKinley in The Book of Mormon.

 

The taller of the male featured vocalists should be cast as General Zod in the Superman: The Musical, a new Broadway extravaganza that one exists in my head… for now.

 

The day 10 MDR menus:

 

 

 

 

 

[dmwnc1959]

On 4/12/2024 at 9:15 AM, OrcaGirl said:

Epic transatlantic day 5:

 

Epic-day5.pdf 1.61 MB · 21 downloads
 

 

Epic transatlantic day 6:

 

Epic-day6.pdf 1.61 MB · 19 downloads

 

THANK YOU!!!  for taking the time to post the Freestyle Daily and menus. Having never been on NCL this gives me sort of peek into what goes on during longer cruises. I'm now inclined to eat in the MDR every night and maybe only book additional specialty dining over the 2 free FAS once I get onboard.  

[cruiseny4life]

4 hours ago, OrcaGirl said:

Once karaoke wrapped, I ducked into Howl at the Moon for a drink and a random yet rousing performance of O Canada. 🇨🇦🤣 (Except she sang the old lyrics.)

I've learned two things from you in this one post. First, the lyrics changed. What!?! I tried singing the new lyrics (and I do understand the reasoning), but it just doesn't strike the feels as the old lyrics did. 

 

4 hours ago, OrcaGirl said:

 

And, secondly, apparently NCL believes Arancini make an entree? Huh?! I'd totally pick that as I love those little fried balls of rice, but an entree? Methinks not. 

 

Thanks for carrying on! I'm loving all the wonderful details and reports you're providing! I can't wait for "General Zod" to make its' debut on Broadway! 

[graphicguy]

Lots of people brought their cowboy hats on this cruise. 🤠 (Although I’m guessing some are all hat, no cattle.)

 

Stealing this.  This describes ½ the population of the area I live....boots and buckles, too.  Lots of pickup trucks with no scratches in the bed, and pop music blaring out their windows that is masquerading as country music.

 

 

[The Traveling Man]

7 hours ago, OrcaGirl said:

 

Once karaoke wrapped, I ducked into Howl at the Moon for a drink and a random yet rousing performance of O Canada. 🇨🇦🤣 (Except she sang the old lyrics.)

 

I learned it as "In all thy sons command" and that's the way I still sing it...mostly at Dallas Stars ice hockey games!

[Chocolate Teapot]

12 hours ago, OrcaGirl said:

 

Random observations

 

I had no idea that One Night in Bangkok was from Chess: The Musical (written by the ABBA dudes).

 

But then once you know it was composed by Benny and Bjorn, you can't not imagine the chorus being sung by Agnetha and Anni-Frid.

[OrcaGirl]

Recapping yesterday in Alicante:

 

Woke up, headed to Taste for more Eggs Benny.

 

 

Then up on deck for my first look at Alicante. Beautiful. Gorgeous. Wish you were here.

 

 

At 9:45am I met up with some friends and we headed off the ship. First step on land in 10 days? Weird.

 

 

We made the long walk down the pier, stopping for photos along the way.

 

 

 

 

 

Walked along the beachfront to the lift up to the Castillo de Santa Barbara. 

 

 

 

I didn’t track how long we waited, but it was longer than I expected. I thought I read that the lift capacity was 90 people, but I guess that was just for the tunnel? The elevator itself was small, maybe 10 people at a time?

 

We were popped out into one of the castle buildings. We poked around for a few minutes, but really we were here for the views.

 

 

 

 

So gorgeous, and perfect weather. Lots more pictures in my Instagram Stories (erin_braincandy).

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We stopped at one of the cafes for a ‘glass’ of wine, served in a paper cup because of wind? More people had their paper cup of wine blow over (including on me 🤣; my shorts now smell like a full-bodied red) than would have likely spilled in a heavier glass. At least it was funny.

 

 

And then what happened next was not so funny, as least to me, although I’m sure it appeared comical to others. On my way to the bathroom, my flip-flop caught on the stone steps and down I went. I hurt a couple toes and my ankle pretty bad, and scraped up my legs and arms. (At the time, I was more embarrassed than hurt, but as the day wore on, it really started to hurt.)

 

Those of you who followed my last semi-live from the Bliss should appreciate the sense of deja vu and irony I was experiencing. 🤣

 

So anyways, I cleaned myself up in the bathroom and thankfully my friend had a couple of band-aids in her purse, as I had left mine in my cabin.

 

We continued on our way down from the castillo into the city, albeit walking a bit slower.

 

We wandered our way through some beautiful pedestrian streets, until we found El Carrer dels Bolets, aka Mushroom Street.

 

 

 

 

It was so adorable.

 

 

 

We stopped at a little restaurant for some tapas and sangria. The food was soooooo good. I wish we had bigger appetites and could have tried more things, but as it was we couldn’t finish it all.

 

 

 

 

After stuffing ourselves, we wandered back to the ship via the lovely esplanada.

 

 

We got back to the ship around 3:45pm, and my excursion had a meeting time of 4pm. So I hustled up to my cabin, dropped off my shopping bag of souvenirs, re-cleaned and re-Band-Aided my wounds, and hobbled back off the ship to meet my group.

 

I was the last one on the bus and looking forward to just sitting for two hours of ‘Panaoramic Alicante’ sightseeing. But no. 🤣

 

The bus took us the length of the pier and then parked. We then had to walk ‘5 minutes’ back up the esplanada to a cafe for our complimentary horchata. So I was right back where I had just been.

 

Spanish horchata is made of tiger nuts, and is sweeter than the Mexican style of horchata that I’m more accustomed to.

 

 

And then the tour guide tells us we have an hour of free time to explore. Like me, most of the group had already been here and explored to their hearts’ content. I guess someone negotiated her down to 45 min, so we had instructions to meet back in this spot at 5:30pm.

 

I was so tired and my feet were really starting to hurt so I went up a block to the Starbucks I had seen earlier and just chilled there for 30 minutes.

 

Finally we reconvened and the guide led us back to the bus. Except the bus wasn’t there so we stood around for a bit waiting.

 

 

Finally the bus arrived, and we were on our way. The bus portion was… fine. But maybe the tour companies have a different understanding of the word ‘panoramic’ than I do. 🤷‍♀️ 

 

 

I was just glad to not have to walk anymore.

 

We got back to the ship around 7pm (all-aboard was 7:30) and I headed straight back to my room. I was so tired, I didn’t even make it up on deck to watch for pier runners. 🏃‍♂️ And there were a lot of names given when they made the ‘if you’re on board, please contact guest services’ announcement around 7:45pm.

 

I rested and elevated my poor feet for an hour, and then somehow mustered the energy to limp down to the theatre for the finals of Dance Fusion and Superstar Karaoke.

 

 

 

 

And I’m glad I did, it was a fantastic show. And the right contestants won. 🏆 

 

 

One standout of the show was the entertainment team administrator who was brought out to sing. Amazing voice.

 

 

And then I headed to bed.

 

 

Random observations 

 

I couldn’t use my Starbucks app at the Alicante Starbucks. And they were out of the caramelized macadamia macchiato, which sounds amazing.

 

If I had paid full price for the ‘Panoramic Alicante’, I might have been upset at what we actually got out of it. But with the FAS discount, it was fine for the price.

 

Apparently you can get a beachfront condo north of Alicante for 200,000 euros? Tempting.

 

Bridge officer Enzo (one of the Dance Fusion judges) looks soooo much like the most recent Bachelor, Joey, that it was really creeping me out.

 

 

I was telling someone about the themed cruises that are often on NCL ships, and in going through the list, I discovered this cruise that I desperately want to do. 🎄 

 

[cruiseny4life]

Thanks for taking us along on your day trip to Alicante - scratches, doubling back, and all! It was exciting to see the place through your eyes and experience. Much appreciated!

[graphicguy]

A themed Hallmark Channel Christmas cruise?  I love me some Christmas.  But, the schmaltzy Hallmark Channel sponsor?  

 

I'd drink.....HEAVILY on that cruise! 😉

 

Loving very bit of your review, by the way!

Edited April 18 by graphicguy

[Lisa353]

4 hours ago, OrcaGirl said:

Recapping yesterday in Alicante:

 

Woke up, headed to Taste for more Eggs Benny.

 

 

Then up on deck for my first look at Alicante. Beautiful. Gorgeous. Wish you were here.

 

 

At 9:45am I met up with some friends and we headed off the ship. First step on land in 10 days? Weird.

 

 

We made the long walk down the pier, stopping for photos along the way.

 

 

 

 

 

Walked along the beachfront to the lift up to the Castillo de Santa Barbara. 

 

 

 

I didn’t track how long we waited, but it was longer than I expected. I thought I read that the lift capacity was 90 people, but I guess that was just for the tunnel? The elevator itself was small, maybe 10 people at a time?

 

We were popped out into one of the castle buildings. We poked around for a few minutes, but really we were here for the views.

 

 

 

 

So gorgeous, and perfect weather. Lots more pictures in my Instagram Stories (erin_braincandy).

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We stopped at one of the cafes for a ‘glass’ of wine, served in a paper cup because of wind? More people had their paper cup of wine blow over (including on me 🤣; my shorts now smell like a full-bodied red) than would have likely spilled in a heavier glass. At least it was funny.

 

 

And then what happened next was not so funny, as least to me, although I’m sure it appeared comical to others. On my way to the bathroom, my flip-flop caught on the stone steps and down I went. I hurt a couple toes and my ankle pretty bad, and scraped up my legs and arms. (At the time, I was more embarrassed than hurt, but as the day wore on, it really started to hurt.)

 

Those of you who followed my last semi-live from the Bliss should appreciate the sense of deja vu and irony I was experiencing. 🤣

 

So anyways, I cleaned myself up in the bathroom and thankfully my friend had a couple of band-aids in her purse, as I had left mine in my cabin.

 

We continued on our way down from the castillo into the city, albeit walking a bit slower.

 

We wandered our way through some beautiful pedestrian streets, until we found El Carrer dels Bolets, aka Mushroom Street.

 

 

 

 

It was so adorable.

 

 

 

We stopped at a little restaurant for some tapas and sangria. The food was soooooo good. I wish we had bigger appetites and could have tried more things, but as it was we couldn’t finish it all.

 

 

 

 

After stuffing ourselves, we wandered back to the ship via the lovely esplanada.

 

 

We got back to the ship around 3:45pm, and my excursion had a meeting time of 4pm. So I hustled up to my cabin, dropped off my shopping bag of souvenirs, re-cleaned and re-Band-Aided my wounds, and hobbled back off the ship to meet my group.

 

I was the last one on the bus and looking forward to just sitting for two hours of ‘Panaoramic Alicante’ sightseeing. But no. 🤣

 

The bus took us the length of the pier and then parked. We then had to walk ‘5 minutes’ back up the esplanada to a cafe for our complimentary horchata. So I was right back where I had just been.

 

Spanish horchata is made of tiger nuts, and is sweeter than the Mexican style of horchata that I’m more accustomed to.

 

 

And then the tour guide tells us we have an hour of free time to explore. Like me, most of the group had already been here and explored to their hearts’ content. I guess someone negotiated her down to 45 min, so we had instructions to meet back in this spot at 5:30pm.

 

I was so tired and my feet were really starting to hurt so I went up a block to the Starbucks I had seen earlier and just chilled there for 30 minutes.

 

Finally we reconvened and the guide led us back to the bus. Except the bus wasn’t there so we stood around for a bit waiting.

 

 

Finally the bus arrived, and we were on our way. The bus portion was… fine. But maybe the tour companies have a different understanding of the word ‘panoramic’ than I do. 🤷‍♀️ 

 

 

I was just glad to not have to walk anymore.

 

We got back to the ship around 7pm (all-aboard was 7:30) and I headed straight back to my room. I was so tired, I didn’t even make it up on deck to watch for pier runners. 🏃‍♂️ And there were a lot of names given when they made the ‘if you’re on board, please contact guest services’ announcement around 7:45pm.

 

I rested and elevated my poor feet for an hour, and then somehow mustered the energy to limp down to the theatre for the finals of Dance Fusion and Superstar Karaoke.

 

 

 

 

And I’m glad I did, it was a fantastic show. And the right contestants won. 🏆 

 

 

One standout of the show was the entertainment team administrator who was brought out to sing. Amazing voice.

 

 

And then I headed to bed.

 

 

Random observations 

 

I couldn’t use my Starbucks app at the Alicante Starbucks. And they were out of the caramelized macadamia macchiato, which sounds amazing.

 

If I had paid full price for the ‘Panoramic Alicante’, I might have been upset at what we actually got out of it. But with the FAS discount, it was fine for the price.

 

Apparently you can get a beachfront condo north of Alicante for 200,000 euros? Tempting.

 

Bridge officer Enzo (one of the Dance Fusion judges) looks soooo much like the most recent Bachelor, Joey, that it was really creeping me out.

 

 

I was telling someone about the themed cruises that are often on NCL ships, and in going through the list, I discovered this cruise that I desperately want to do. 🎄 

 

We have done a couple of Panoramic tours with NCL and each time it has just involved being on a bus for 2 to 4 hours and only having 1 or 2 stops to get off to take photos.  I think both times, we complained once we were back on the ship because of how bad they were.

[OrcaGirl]

Good morning from the very grey and choppy Mediterranean.

 

I slept in a bit (yay sleeping pills), and was very happy to see the swelling in my feet had gone down, also the bruises developing are pretty epic. 😂

 

I headed down for Starbucks and a final Eggs Benny. Yum.

 

 

After breakfast, I popped up to the pool deck to check the weather, but it was cold and windy (even compared to earlier in the cruise), so I gave up on my plans to sit out with my laptop and a BBC.

 

Instead I headed to the Atrium for a Miami Vice and some music trivia.

 

Headed to Taste for lunch. The mushroom soup was really good, as was the monte cristo sandwich and the tiramisu. 

 

 

 

 

During our meal, the entire dining room would shudder and make unusual noises as big waves hit us. I’ve cruised in rough seas before, but never heard anything like that. 

After lunch, I went back to my cabin for some organization and pre-packing. 
 

 

Random observations 

 

Do boomers know who DJ Khaled is? That seemed like an unfair musical celebrity to have to name.

 

Apparently the progressive trivia team that I joined midway for a few sessions finished third, and they found me to give me my certificate and prize. 🏆 

 

 

But I don’t actually know what the prize is supposed to be? Tell me!

 

 

[graphicguy]

A dirty sock holder?

[Ramblin and Gamblin]

I "think" it may be a phone/tablet stand.  If you turn it around, you set the bottom of the tablet in that curved area and it rests against the dark strip.

[OrcaGirl]

Went to the final bingo and raffle; no luck. But fun was had.

 

 

 

And then. I lived out my literal nightmares. My new friends entered a team in Music Mania trivia, and we were selected. We had to identify songs by just a few notes played on a drum (we sucked), play ‘name the song’ musical Pictionary (we were scary good), lead the audience in a Sweet Caroline singalong (we were decent), sing the missing lyrics of Call Me Maybe (we realllllly sucked), and then after somehow still making the finals based on our mad Pictionary skillz, we had to dance a dance I’d never heard of. In front of people. It was the worst. 🤣

 

 

After that I needed a drink. And then another. 🍸 

 

 

Once I’d mostly recovered from the embarrassment, we headed up on deck from fresh air. The ship continued to rock and roll all day, but we were surprised to see that the sun was out.

 

 

If I didn’t have a dinner reservation and didn’t want to pack a wet swimsuit in the morning, I would have been tempted to hop into the hot tub.

 

But instead I headed back to the cabin to pack a bit more, shower and get dressed for dinner.

 

But first: a final espresso martini.

 

 

Tonight’s dinner was at La Cucina, using up my final FAS specialty dinner.

 

I had the pear-Gorgonzola salad, mushroom risotto, filet with blue cheese ravioli (alas not as good as the Le Bistro steak), and my second tiramisu of the day. (When in Rome… or almost in Rome.)

 

 

 

 

 

I wanted to sneak in one final karaoke session, but dinner took a loooooong time and I’ve got to disembark early tomorrow in order to make my flight, so to bed I went.

 

 

Random Observations

 

The Epic Theatre really needs handrails on the aisle staircases. Maybe during the dry dock?

 

Surprisingly, Bruno Mars’ Grenade as a piano lounge song actually kinda works.

 

On the Escape last fall, I was pleasantly surprised by how much ‘new’ music was sung at karaoke. Taylor Swift, Billie Eilish, Adele… On this cruise, not so much. Lots of the usual suspects. If I never hear My Way or These Boots are Made for Walkin’ again, it’ll be too soon.

 

On the final day of the cruise, I finally heard a song from The Greatest Showman played in the Atrium.

 

 

I know a few people tagged me in to that other thread with someone on this same cruise who thought the food was ‘inedible’, the crew ‘rude’, and the ship ‘dirty’, but that certainly hasn’t been my experience. I think barring extraordinary circumstances, you set the tone for your own cruise. There have certainly been a few things that have annoyed me, but honestly it’s usually other passengers’ behaviour rather than anything that the cruise line can control. 🤣

 

But speaking of things that are within the cruise ship’s control that annoy me: it’s total ******** that NCL branded merchandise in the photo gallery doesn’t get the same Latitudes discount that it would get if it were sold in the main shop. I didn’t see any Christmas ornaments in the main shop, but spotted this one in the photo gallery. Why should it not qualify for the discount?!?!

 

 

And while I’m in a complainy mood: If the shops are set to close at 7pm, they should not already be closed at 6:51pm. 😡

 

[depplep]

Too bad you aren't spending some time in Rome. That has to be a killer flight back to Vancouver. Loved the review. Can't wait to sail with you again.

[mking8288]

Love this review, photos, descriptions, random observations and the humor.  

 

Agreed 100% about lunch served in the MDR ... trio of mushroom soup, was the monte cristo sandwich and tiramisu.  Seemed like NCL only put that out once on a given cruise, typically toward the end.  Towel animal are back, randomly from the kindness of the housekeeping team ?  asking for a curious friend that like to know.  Seemed like pillows are arranged different on a daily basis.  Safe and smooth travel going home.  

[OrcaGirl]

Buongiorno from Civitavecchia!

 

My alarm went off at 6:30am, and by the time I was brushing my teeth, they were making the call that disembarkation had started.

 

Threw the last few things into my backpack and said goodbye to my adorable little solo cabin.

 

It took a few minutes to get space in an elevator (but nowhere near as bad as that last cruise on the Bliss.) I normally would have hoofed it down the four flights to deck 7, but I didn’t trust my ankle. The dancing last night was a bad idea.

 

Within minutes I was outside, beeping out for the last time and onto the gangway.

 

 

 

It was still early so I’m guessing the baggage hall will be more chaotic as more bags are unloaded and more people disembark.

 

 

There was no customs or immigration to speak of, and I followed the signs to the port to train station shuttle bus.

 

 

It was six euros, and the shuttles were running every ~20 mins. I think I got on the second shuttle of the day? Some people further back in line would probably be better off taking one of the private vans, who were yelling about it being the same price. 🤷‍♀️ 

 

 

The drive to the station took about 10 min.

 

Edited April 19 by OrcaGirl
Too early, not enough coffee

[Maleficent's Dad]

Safe travels; thanks for the fun live report!  Hope the ankle is okay!

[OrcaGirl]

Made it to FCO in plenty of time for my flight, though not without some misadventures.

 

The train from Civitavecchia to Rome Trastevere was arriving just as I made it to the platform, and I just jumped on. I didn’t even have a chance to look for a ticket booth, and no one asked me for a ticket. Sorry TrenItalia, I owe you one.

 

 

I turned on the data roaming on my phone to help me navigate and make sure I was going the right way. Which was especially handy on that first leg because there were no ‘the next station is…’ type announcements on that first train.

 

So as we pulled into Rome Trastevere, I knew it was my stop and I stood up and grabbed my bag. Unfortunately, because I am a polite Canadian, I let an older couple I recognized from the cruise ship get into the aisle ahead of me. Big mistake. Big. Huge. 😂 

 

They each had a large suitcase, and when the train stopped and the door opened, they paused right in the doorway while they tried to confirm that it was their stop. I was completely blocked, and despite me asking increasingly urgently to let me pass, they just…

didn't. 🤷‍♀️ 

 

So yay, I got to take the train an extra stop while trying to figure out on my phone how this might change my route or arrival time to the airport.

 

 

 

Fortunately, all’s well that ends well, and I was able to catch the right train at the next station, albeit with a much longer walk between platforms and having to carry my bag up and down a couple of flights of stairs.

 

This time I had enough time to find a ticket booth and pay my €8 fare for the train trip to the airport.

 

I arrived at FCO around 9:20am, so it ended up being just a little over two hours from the port to the airport.

 

I dropped off my bag, went through security, resisted the temptation to buy Italian gin packaged as motor oil, and headed to the Premium Plaza Lounge.

 

 

A lovely cappuccino, croissant and donut were my breakfast of champions, followed by some blood orange juice and a prosciutto and sun-dried tomato sandwich. Yum.

 

 

Heading to my gate now.

 

 

Random observations

 

Looks like everyone still smokes in Italy.

 

An Uber from the port to the airport would have been €170.

I’ll have a two-hour layover in Montreal, with time to answer questions about the cruise if you have any.

[JIMESOPUS]

Safe Travels Home enjoyed your review and humor, thanks for taking time out of your vacation.

[depplep]

We were in Rome 2yrs ago and were amazed at how many were smoking everywhere. Also, they wear a LOT of Levi's. 🤣

[Panhandle Couple]

Thanks for the travel log. Enjoy your outlook on cruising and life.

 

I generally find the couples stop in front of me after going through a door, leaving me with elevator or train doors closing on me.

[tcmagnum]

3 hours ago, OrcaGirl said:

Made it to FCO in plenty of time for my flight, though not without some misadventures.

 

The train from Civitavecchia to Rome Trastevere was arriving just as I made it to the platform, and I just jumped on. I didn’t even have a chance to look for a ticket booth, and no one asked me for a ticket. Sorry TrenItalia, I owe you one.

 

 

I turned on the data roaming on my phone to help me navigate and make sure I was going the right way. Which was especially handy on that first leg because there were no ‘the next station is…’ type announcements on that first train.

 

So as we pulled into Rome Trastevere, I knew it was my stop and I stood up and grabbed my bag. Unfortunately, because I am a polite Canadian, I let an older couple I recognized from the cruise ship get into the aisle ahead of me. Big mistake. Big. Huge. 😂 

 

They each had a large suitcase, and when the train stopped and the door opened, they paused right in the doorway while they tried to confirm that it was their stop. I was completely blocked, and despite me asking increasingly urgently to let me pass, they just…

didn't. 🤷‍♀️ 

 

So yay, I got to take the train an extra stop while trying to figure out on my phone how this might change my route or arrival time to the airport.

 

 

 

Fortunately, all’s well that ends well, and I was able to catch the right train at the next station, albeit with a much longer walk between platforms and having to carry my bag up and down a couple of flights of stairs.

 

This time I had enough time to find a ticket booth and pay my €8 fare for the train trip to the airport.

 

I arrived at FCO around 9:20am, so it ended up being just a little over two hours from the port to the airport.

 

I dropped off my bag, went through security, resisted the temptation to buy Italian gin packaged as motor oil, and headed to the Premium Plaza Lounge.

 

 

A lovely cappuccino, croissant and donut were my breakfast of champions, followed by some blood orange juice and a prosciutto and sun-dried tomato sandwich. Yum.

 

 

Heading to my gate now.

 

 

Random observations

 

Looks like everyone still smokes in Italy.

 

An Uber from the port to the airport would have been €170.

I’ll have a two-hour layover in Montreal, with time to answer questions about the cruise if you have any.

Glad your train adventure didn't turn into too much of an adventure.

Hope you have a safe journey home.

I'm a little sad your trip report is ending, but it has gotten me excited for my cruise.

Thank you!!!!

[GALSews]

Thanks for documenting your cruise and letting us follow along.

Wishing you uneventful flights. 

We will be in Vancouver in 3 weeks from tomorrow as we'll board the Jewel there on Monday.