Athens to Rome on Azamara

Yes, I know it's February, and I am just getting around to writing this blog about our October cruise from Athens to Rome on the Azamara Pursuit.  Since my heart attack last June, we have been on four cruises, not to mention trips to West Virginia and Virginia for Thanksgiving and Christmas, respectively.  We are traveling faster than I can write blogs!!

Our 8-night cruise on the Pursuit, Azamara's newest ship, was a seminar at sea for travel agents.  We were invited to take this trip so we could gain knowledge of the product and sell it to others.  We did have to attend a couple of training sessions, but actually experiencing the ship and Azamara service and amenities was much more valuable.

Azamara is Royal Caribbean's luxury brand, and is an all-inclusive product, which means the fare includes a standard beverage package, bottled water, soft drinks, specialty coffee and teas, gratuities, and one free excursion they call the AzaAmazing Evening.  There is an extra charge for dining in their two specialty restaurants and we chose to upgrade to the premium beverage package, which provided a variety of better wines, beer and spirits than the standard package.  The Pursuit is almost identical to Azamara's other two ships, the Journey and the Quest.  The Boss and I cruised on the Journey back in 2015, on an itinerary from Barcelona to Nice, with stops in Palamos, Spain,; Sete, St. Tropez and Villefranche in France, and Cinque Terre in Italy.  My blog about that trip can be found here:  http://placestosea.blogspot.com/2015/06/

About 6 weeks after leaving at the end of our Windstar cruise, we returned to Athens to board the ship.  We went in a day early, and stayed at the same hotel, the Royal Olympic. We highly recommend this hotel for its nice rooms, great location, and wonderful rooftop bar and restaurant with amazing views of the Acropolis.  Since we arrived early in the morning, we took a walk through the Plaka neighborhood to get breakfast and coffee and see a few sights.

You never have to go very far in Athens to see ancient ruins.

The Metropolitan Cathedral of Athens.

We boarded the ship the next day.  The Pursuit was built in 2001, and was purchased by Azamara and completely refurbished in 2018 to match its other two ships.  We love the size of the ship, 684 passengers, which means rarely if ever having to wait in line for anything.  Getting on and off the ship is a breeze, even in tender ports, and the service is very personal and attentive.  The passenger-to-crew ratio is just under 1.7 to 1, and anytime you fall under 2:1, you can expect an upgrade in service.  As a comparison, a huge ship like Royal Caribbean's Oasis of the Seas has a passenger-to-crew ratio of over 3.2 to 1.

You won't have complimentary gelato samples brought to you poolside on Carnival.

I generally don't walk around the ship taking photos, so I borrowed a few from the internet just to provide an idea of the look and feel of the ship.  I can say that it felt like a new ship with the recent refurbishment.

This is a typical balcony stateroom, which we had.

The pool deck and walking track above.

We ate several meals at The Patio, an outdoor venue adjacent to the Windows Cafe (buffet) on Deck 9. 

This is the Sunset Veranda, an outdoor area at the back of the ship next to Windows Cafe.

On our first night on board, Esther and I attended a welcome reception for the travel agents and met our Business Development Manager from Azamara, Wendi, who was hosting the Seminar at Sea.  We also met her traveling companion, Terry, one of her best friends from way back when.  For some reason, the four of us hit it off right away, and we all had dinner together with a few other agents that night.  

Our first port was Chania, Crete, the only Greek island on this itinerary.  On our Windstar cruise in September, we visited Crete, but the eastern end of the island.  Chania is on the northwest coast and is known for its 14th century Venetian harbor with a lighthouse at the entrance.  Esther and I booked a 4-wheel drive excursion into the mountains and to a winery, and then walked through the narrow streets of the town.  While strolling through town after our excursion, we happened to walk by a small cafe on a narrow street, and there sat Wendi and Terry having lunch.  We didn't know it yet, but some kind of karma made sure we crossed paths with them again and again.

The lighthouse at the entrance to the harbor, built in the 16th century.

The jeeps took us way up into the mountains, but on very uncomfortable, bouncy roads.  Views were pretty nice, if a little hazy. 

The winery also had lemon trees. The winery itself was nothing special - been there, done that, and we have learned on our last two trips to Geece that we are not fans of Greek wines. 

The waterfront is lined with shops and restaurants.  

This is the former Kucuk Hasan Mosque, named after the first Turkish commandant of the city.  Now it is used as an exhibition hall.

Chania has a charming downtown area with narrow streets and lots of shops and restauarants.

I always like to photograph a local with a lot of character in their face - this guy fit the bill.

The following day was scheduled to be at sea.  However, a weather forecast of high winds in Malta on our scheduled arrival the following day concerned our captain, and he decided to to leave Chania a little early so that we could dock in Valetta the next evening, which gave us an unscheduled overnight in Malta.  We were really glad for the itinerary change, because Valetta is a stunning port, made all the more gorgeous by the evening arrival.  I took a boatload of pictures (pun intended) and I'm including some of the best ones.

That evening, the Boss and I had signed up for the Chef's Table on the ship, a private dinner for no more than 12 people with a special menu and wine pairings. Turns out we were seated next to - guess who - Wendi and Terry!  Two days into this cruise, and by the end of dinner we felt like we had known them for years.  We also found out that Terry owns a wine, beer and spirits distributorship, and has to travel the world looking for wines and other alcohol.  Sounds kinda like being a travel agent, but with more drinking! (Maybe...)

We sailed into Valetta as the sun began to set.

The beauty of the city was enhanced by the perfect weather and lights along the waterfront.

A nearly-full moon hung over the city like a spotlight.

I'm not sure I've seen a prettier harbor on all our cruises!

Had to take advantage of that 40X zoom on the camera.

We didn't get off the ship that evening, because we had a reservation at Prime C, one of the Pursuit's two specialty restaurants.  This is their steakhouse, and we had the chateaubriand for two, carved at the table.  Food presentation and service were all outstanding.  I chatted with the headwaiter, Monico, about my favorite Filipino food, and he told me he would have some made for me later in the week.

Like many other cruise ships, a lot of the crew are Filipinos, which I love.
She was delightful!

We had never been to Malta, and knew very little about it, so we especially looked forward to this port. We were not disappointed.  It's a great walking port, and we spent all day wandering the city.

From the dock, it was a short walk to this elevator, which takes you up to the
Upper Barrakka Gardens and main town area above the city walls.

This is the Saluting Battery, overlooking the harbor. 

The view from the upper city across the entrance to the port.

A good look at the tiers of the city and city walls as you go up from the waterfront.

The Auberge de Castille houses the Office of the Prime Minister.  The present building dates back to the 1740s.

In all our travels, we had never seen this sign before.......

St. John's Co-Cathedral, dedicated to John the Baptist.

This is one of a number of sculptures in an exhibition that is supposed to represent adaptations of  Maltese proverbs.  That's a long finger....

I took this picture because I love to see kids being kids no matter where you are.

The colorful enclosed balconies are famous in Malta, and are an architectural feature derived from Morocco.  They allow women in Arab culture to have a view outside while still remaining hidden from view to remain modest.

This is my Maltese entry in my "local faces" feature.

Each Azamara cruise of seven nights or longer includes  a special complimentary excursion called an AzAmazing Evening, which is supposed to be a unique event that "delivers authentic travel moments that bring you closer to your destination, its culture and its people."  For this cruise, the AzAmazing Evening was in Malta.  The venue was the Mediterranean Conference Center, which resulted from the restoration of the Holy Infirmary of the Order of the Knights of St. John, originally built in the 16th century.  Unfortunately, transporting the several hundred passengers on large coaches through the narrow streets of Valletta was further complicated by a tremendous downpour.  Since we were one of the later coaches, we arrived at the pre-concert reception fairly late.

The old stone building was impressive and we were greeted by costumed Maltese Knights of St. John.  We had photo opportunities with the knights and with the Captain of the Pursuit.  After that, we milled around a crowded reception room where minimal hors d'oeuvres and almost undrinkable wine were passed.  Before we could finish one glass of wine, it was time to go into the theater for the show.  The show was a disappointment - it was a 6-piece band that played a surprisingly discordant type of music around a stage where a dancer performed some flamenco-like folk dances. Very little culture or Maltese folklore came across.  We have heard wonderful things about other AzAmazing Evenings from Azamara cruisers, but this one was less than amazing.

Me and the Boss with Captain Antonio Toledo. 

Forget the Captain - more important are Esther with new friends Terry (L) and Wendi (R).

The reception hall was cool and nicely decorated.

This was the band - no costumes, strange music, no stage decorations of any kind.
We did not wave our arms or cell phones in the air demanding more.

The dancing was not particularly exciting either.

From Malta, we sailed north to Italy, arriving the next morning in Siracusa, or Syracuse, once one of the largest and most important cities in western civilization.  Siracusa is noted for its rich Greek history and culture, numerous ruins, and as the birthplace of the famous mathematician Archimedes. This was another first-time port for us, and once again we spent the day walking the city on our own.  

Ruins of the Temple of Apollo (he had a lot of temples).  This dates back to the 6th centrury BC, and is the most ancient
Doric temple in Sicily.

The Fountain of Diana (or Artemis), goddess of the hunt, located in the Piazza Archimede.

Had to add a guy from Siracusa.  

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Charming outdoor cafe off one of the main squares.

The Boss in the Piazza Doumo, the main plaza in Siracusa, surrounded by the Bishop's Palace, the Town Hall, and private residences, all reconstructed after the earthquake of 1693.

This is the Cathedral of Syracuse, built in the 7th century.  It utilizes some of the Doric
columns that were part of the original Temple of Athena built on this site in the 5th century.  

This certainly qualifies as an ABC - Another Beautiful Church.

The Fountain of Arethusa, a freshwater spring in use for the last 3,000 years.  According to Greek mythology, this is
where the nymph Arethusa returned to the earth's surface after escaping from her undersea home.

We strolled along the sea wall on the island of Ortygia, the historical center of Siracusa. 

The Castello Maniace on the tip of Ortygia island, built in the 1200s.

Another castle view.  Weather brought to you by Dream Vacations.

Personally, I think Wilmington has better beaches, but this looked like a popular place.

Probably one of my favorite shop displays in town - #fishhouseart, or www.fishhouseart.it

We DON"T have this in Wilmington - maybe in Colorado?

The Boss thought I might be able to sell a few shore excursions.

A look back at the city from the ship.

Sunset over Siracusa.

Back on the ship, we had to get ready for one of Azamara's premiere shipboard events, the White Night.  All passengers are asked to dress in white from head to toe for an outdoor barbeque buffet on the top deck.  This was much more amazing than the AzAmazing Evening, with outstanding food, and great music and perfomances from the on board entertainers.  The Captain himself worked the buffet line serving guests grilled lobsters.

The full moon over Siracusa lit up our White Night party.

The entire pool deck was set up with for the buffet dinner and entertainment.

Grilled lobsters were one of the highlights of an amazing feast laid out for the guests.

I followed up my lobster with some squid ink pasta at the pasta station, and....

...could not resist having some fresh swordfish, cooked in front of me.

Amanda, our cruise director, joined the band on stage to belt out a few numbers. 

We also had the Crew Parade, many proudly displaying their national flags. They do a fantastic job!

You knew it was a good party when almost everyone was out on the dance floor - I don't remember is this was
 "YMCA" or "Shout!"

After the White Night Party, we went up to the Living Room with Wendi and Terry to do a little more dancing and drinking.  The Living Room had a live band most nights, and was a fun place to end our evenings.

Our next port was Giardini Naxos, in Sicily. Taormina is the town perched on the cliff above the port.  We had no excursions planned, so we went ashore.  We negotiated with a taxi driver to take us to Taormina, and he asked if we also wanted to go to Castelmola, a small mountain-top town above Taormina, and we agreed.

Castelmola has the ruins of a 13th-century castle, and is a picturesque little town with some amazing views.  Our taxi driver dropped us off in the main square and said he would be back in an hour, which we spent climbing the steps to the top of the castle, then strolling the narrow streets and looking at shops.

From the ship, we had a nice view of Mt. Etna.

Our taxi brought us up to the main square of Castelmola, 

The views from Castelmola were beautiful - did I mention the weather brought to you by Dream Vacations?

A view of Taormina from above.

Not much remains of the old castle.

A better view of Mt. Etna, a still active volcano that rises to 10,900 feet.

We strolled up and down the narrow streets through town.

The driver was back at the appointed time and took us down to Taormina.  We walked through town, went into the Cathedral, shopped along the streets, and had lunch at a nice outdoor cafe, with a view of the Pursuit in the harbor below.  Terry selected the wine, and a good time was had by all.  After lunch, we headed off to see the Greek Theater, one of the primary attractions in town, but there was a line to get in, and we decided had done enough for the day.

The Excelsior Palace Hotel is a beautiful building overlooking the sea.

The gate to the town through the old walls.

The Cathedral of Taormina, built in the 1200s, looks more like a fort than a church.

A lovely day for lunch with my sweetie, in one of the main squares in town, overlooking the water.

We didn't know what hotel this was, but were impressed by the pool.

The Church of St. Joseph, or San Giuseppe, built in Baroque style between the late 1600s and early 1700s.

Some pictures I take for no reason other than the colors.

Since we didn't bother to stand in line to see the theater, I used a picture from the internet to show
that it is a pretty cool sight.

Back on the ship, we dined in the Prime C steakhouse with Wendi, Terry, Jessica (L) and her mother (R). 
We really love our job.

After dinner, the Captain announced that our route to Amalfi would take us through the Strait of Messina, the narrowest waterway between Sicily and southern Italy.  He informed us that we would then sail past Stromboli, a small island off the north coast of Sicily containing one of the three active volcanoes in Italy.  As we approached the island, the ship slowed and maneuvered to provide the passengers with the best view possible of the crater.  Although not particularly active that night, we did catch a glimpse of some red glows from lava in the crater.

We arrived in Amalfi the next morning, and the Boss and I tendered ashore to have a look around. We had a tour of a lemon farm scheduled for the afternoon, so we spent the morning walking through town and amassing FitBit steps. Amalfi was once a town with great naval power, but is now actually one of the smaller and lesser visited towns compared to Sorrento and Positano.  Not quite as much to see, but we did check out the cathedral, the waterfront and the shops along the one main drag.

The town of Amalfi seen from the ship.

A view of the beach along the waterfront.

The Amalfi Cathedral, dedicated to St. Andrew, whose remains are reportedly kept here.   Original construction was in the 9th and 10th centuries, but additions and redecorations have occurred in Arab-Norman, Gothic, Rennaissance and Baroque styles. The current facade is considered Norman-Arab-Byzantine in style. 

Adjacent to the Cathedral is the Cloister of Paradise, where members of noble
families were buried.

The inside is magnificent, like all cathedrals in Europe.

There is really only one main drag in town that leads from the waterfront back up the valley.

We decided to have lunch in one of the outdoor cafes along the waterfront. Because it had been probably more than 12 hours since we last saw them, Esther spotted Wendi and Terry on the upper deck of a Hop-On, Hop-Off bus about 50 yards away.  She texted them to look to their left, we waved and had a good laugh before they drove off.

Our waitress convinced me to have the "boob cake," a delicious lemon cake, for dessert.

Our tour in the afternoon was to a lemon farm, which required a walk up the main drag to catch golf carts that took us further uphill to the farm entrance.  This is not like a farm in Nebraska - the farm essentially runs straight up the side of the hills, and we walked a steep uphill road for the tour.  Hard to complain though - our guide appeared to be about 8 months pregnant and didn't break a sweat.

In Amalfi, the lemon farms are on pretty steep slopes.  As you can imagine, harvesting the lemons is very labor intensive.

The tour started in a small museum filled with tools used on the farm.

Our guide, who had no trouble walking uphill for about a half a mile, explains all about lemons.

The lemons and flowers combined for a colorful picture.

The final part of the tour was a demonstration of how to make limoncello, and we got a piece of lemon cake.

We saw several spots in town that had these little miniature towns carved and built into the rocks.

Naturally, when we got back to the pier to wait for the next tender out to the ship, Wendi and Terry were there, too.  By this time, we were fairly certain they were stalking us.  But they probably thought the same about us.  So we ended up having dinner together up at the Patio.

According to our itinerary, the next port was Sorrento, but due to weather conditions, the captain announced that the Pursuit  would not be able to anchor there.  He bypassed Sorrento and took the ship to Naples, where we could dock.  On many lines, this would have caused a lot of problems for people with booked shore excursions out of Sorrento.  However, Azamara promptly announced they would provide free round-trip shuttle service from Naples to Sorrento.  Not only that, we received a daily program for Naples in our room that night, which meant they had to prepare and print a brand new program that evening.  We were very impressed with how Azamara handled the entire situation.  We had a private excursion scheduled, and it only took a phone call to have the guide pick us up in Naples instead of Sorrento.

Our excursion included the scenic drive along the Amalfi Coast, a stop at a limoncello "factory," lunch at a restaurant in Sorrento, and some free time before returning to Naples.  The limoncello factory was just a huge tourist trap store, with big buses in the lot and people elbow to elbow inside.  The rest of the day was good - we had been to Sorrento, before, but it is worth seeing more than once, and we had a delicious lunch. Had to walk down to the beach and back up, for FitBit steps.

A look back at Mt. Vesuvius, a still active volcano known for the destruction of Pompeii in AD 79.  People continue
to live on the sides and base of the volcano.

The drive along the Amalfi Coast is quite scenic, even on what was a pretty cloudy day.

One of the many fruit stands along the coastal road - everything looks so good.

This is the "factory" which is really just a mega gift shop crowded with so many tourists
that I waited outside.

The view of Sorrento from above the town on the coastal road.

We took the winding streets and stairs all the way down to the black sand beach.

With limited beachfront, this is an enterprising alternative.

This is the main square - the Boss and I had a drink in the cafe under the palms while we waited for our van to return.

My attempt at a more artistic shot across the square in the other direction.

We had reservations at Aqualina, the Italian specialty restaurant on the ship that evening.  The head waiter, Monico, came by to ask me where I had been as he had planned to make Filipino food for me.  I told him I wasn't sure where I was supposed to go, and he said never mind, would I like it tonight?  We had already ordered, but who can pass up an offer like that?  Sure enough, a short time later they brought out a dozen lumpia (which are the Filipino equivalent of spring rolls, but better), followed by a beautiful plate of pancit (similar to lo mein, but better).  I was blown away - they did this especially for me, a level of service you would never find on other cruise lines!  And it was awesome.  We had way too much to eat by the time our Italian food came, but I told them the Filipino pasta was better than the Italian pasta and they should change the restaurant to Filipino food.  We couldn't eat all the lumpia, so we asked them to give it to Wendi and Terry, who we knew were having dinner there later that evening.  The next day they reported that they were served a fresh plate and they loved it.

Filipino pancit, served especially for the Boss and I because of my Philippines upbringing.

Me and Monico, the awessome Head Waiter.  You can't beat service like this, and you never forget
this kind of special treatment! 

Our cruise ended in Civitavecchia (the port serving Rome) the next morning.  Wendi and Terry were also headed to Rome for a couple of nights, and believe it or not, it turned out their hotel was literally a five minute walk from our hotel.  So we hitched a ride with them to Rome, and after checking in to our respective hotels, we walked around and saw the Spanish Steps and the Pantheon.

The cruise was over, but our adventures were not!

Our floor selfie in the Pantheon.

That evening, they had plans to meet up with an old friend of theirs from their Up With People days, and invited us along. What an amazing evening we had.  Their friend Leonardo is a well-known archaeologist and also a tour guide (sometimes) to the rich and famous.  He has guided George and Laura Bush, Michelle Obama, and others at the request of the government.  That night, Leonardo picked us up in his little car for an incredible tour of Rome by night.  We got out and walked around at some spots, and he provided fascinating guidance on Roman history and culture.  Needless to say, this was the best excursion of our trip, and we finished off the evening with a fabulous dinner at a wonderful restaurant on the outskirts of the city.

Leonardo explains what the excavations below street level have revealed about Rome's past.

Leonardo knew all the best spots to observe the beauty of the city at night.

We had to have the obligatory toin coss into the Trevi Fountain, left handed in keeping with tradition!

Leonardo drove us up a hill and into a parking lot, to see the "key hole" in a gate.  When you put your eye
to the key hole, you saw St. Peter's Basilica at the Vatican, all it up, perfectly aligned through the arched
window at the end of the courtyard. This is a cool picture, but it was truly breathtaking to see it in person.

This is the wine cellar, reached by a going down an old spiral staircase, at L'Archeologia,  the restaurant where we had dinner.  The cellar had cobwebs and bottles of wine 40 and 50 years old.  Very cool.

The antipasto, bread, wine, pasta, and main dishes were all delicious.....

....and then there was dessert, a LARGE hunk of chocolate with a shaving blade and biscuits.

I'm not sure we could ever have as great an evening in Rome if we went back many times.  This was such a great end to our trip.  Meeting and traveling with Wendi and Terry made it a truly unforgettable experience.   Azamara is a great brand if you want a smaller ship experience, outstanding service from the entire crew, and some great itineraries and immersion experiences.  We wouldn't hesitate to cruise on Azamara again!  In fact, we have already booked our next sailing from Barcelona to Miami (stopping in Cuba) in November of 2019 -- would love for you to join us!

Esther received this photo by text after we left Rome - the ladies are displaying the same jewelry Esther bought, and an empty bottle of wine that we gave the before we left.  Good times!

You can leave comments or questions below.  They help demonstrate the minimal value I bring to the business to my very critical Boss.  Thanks!