Introduction

This is a blog of the Jazzbeaux trip to Italy and Greece from May 25 – June 15, 2016. We flew to Rome, spent five nights there at Residenza Cellini visiting churches in East Rome; the Colosseum; the Vatican Museums (at night); Tivoli (including Hadrian’s Villa and the Villa d’Este); the Borghese Gallery and North Rome; and Trastevere and the Catacombs of San Domitilla.  Then we took a cab to Civitavecchia and boarded Celebrity Constellation for a 12-night cruise to Naples and Pompeii; Valetta, Malta; Mykonos and Delos; Santorini; Rhodes; Ephesus, Turkey; Athens; Chania, Crete; and a beautiful sail-in to Venice.  We spent a total of four nights in Venice visiting museums, churches (especially a return to Saint Mark’s at night); a Canal Tour through all six sestieres of Venice; a vaporetto trip to Murano and Burano islands in the lagoon; and a wander through some less-touristy parts as a Real Venetian.

During the trip, Jazzbelle kept detailed notes and I [Jazzbeau] took lots of pictures.  After returning home, I revised the notes to remove names [to protect the guilty, as they say…] and put it in my voice to avoid confusion.  Jazzbelle became “DW” in internet parlance [“Dear Wife”], and our Son became “DS.”

My planning bible for sightseeing on this trip, as usual, was Rick Steves – supplemented by Fodor’s for those ports that Rick doesn’t cover.  I also rely more on Fodor’s and Frommer’s for restaurants.  The complete library consulted for this trip included Fodor’s European Ports of Call, Rick Steves’ Greece, Rick Steves’ Italy, Rick Steves’ Mediterranean Cruise Ports, Rick Steves’ Rome, Rick Steves’ Venice; and Fodor’s Rome, Fodor’s Venice, Frommer’s Rome, and Frommer’s Venice for restaurants.  [Did someone say OCD?  I prefer to call it CDO – because I like to keep it in alphabetical order!]

Note that this blog is 3 pages.  When you get to the bottom, there’s a button marked “Older Posts.”  That contains the newer posts [I tricked the blog software to let me post from start to finish, the way I like to read blogs.]

I added a few pictures here – but if you want to see the complete photo gallery, just hop over to shutterfly:

https://jazzbeauxitalygreececruise2016.shutterfly.com/pictures/5

102 Chef’s Table

103 Second Formal Night

104 VIP Meet & Greet

105 Celebrity Constellation Suite 6104

106 Third Formal Night

Wed 5/25 – On the Road Again

We left home at the beginning of a heat wave. It was over 85 in NY. DW drove to JFK in horrendous traffic. It took an hour and a half, and we felt for DS who had to take the van back to our house. We breezed through security and found the Delta Sky Lounge which was very crowded. After circling it, we found a couple leaving their table so we pounced. We found enough to eat to tide us over to boarding.

This was our first time in Business Class. We are what one might call BC virgins, which I’m sure the flight attendants knew immediately as we tried every button, checked out the many positions of our seats, etc. Barely at our places, they came around offering food, drinks, warm washcloths…

To DW the menu was over the top. She doesn’t fly to eat. In fact, she prefers to eat simple, light fare at times like this. So when they placed smoked salmon on a spicy concoction as the first course in front of her, she knew it might be a rough ride. A taste of it was enough. She waited for a roll and butter. [Of course, I ate all of mine!] Drinks were offered. Beer, wine, cocktails, you name it. Then the salad course came which was greens with marinated feta cheese. The entrée we both chose was crusted rack of lamb. Tasty, but a bit chewy and rich! Have to give them credit for attempting such a dish! DW opted out on dessert. I had the lemon tart. DW watched an amusing French language movie [she prefers foreign movies on airplanes because it’s easier to read the subtitles than hear the dialog with all the ambient noise] and I listened to music. Delta had a really good selection of entertainment options.

Cabin lights went out and so did most of the passengers, except for us. DW read the WSJ from cover to cover, practically line by line. She thought I was sound asleep, lying perfectly flat on my seat, but I think I was awake for most of the time despite my best efforts. Then they brought around breakfast.

We landed on time and we were allowed to exit before coach. Surprise! No jet way! An old fashioned staircase down which you had to schlep your heavy carry-ons! Then a bus to the terminal to retrieve luggage, which did arrive quickly because of our priority status. From now on we will stick to Economy Plus, which provides enough room and amenities to suit our parvenu tastes.

Thurs 5/26 – All Roads Lead to Rome

The driver from our pre-arranged car service [Stefano’s RomeCabs – recommended!] was waiting for us at the terminal. She took all our luggage and led us to the garage where her van was parked. The ride to the hotel took almost as long as our ride to JFK but we think it might have had to do with the route she chose. [All roads lead to Rome, but some take longer than others!] She deposited us and our bags at the hotel door and promised to be right back [it was a very narrow street, so she couldn’t block traffic]. And she was. I paid her the agreed fare and offered her a tip – which she declined – and she ran off.

We stayed at the Residenza Cellini [will refer to it as RC from now on] a small boutique hotel with only 11 rooms. We had a junior suite, which was spacious and quiet and nicely appointed. This hotel was like being on a cruise ship, because all of the employees are Filipino. They are trained for hospitality. A delight! Weather in Rome is like what we left in NY.

We freshened up and set out to see a few sights. 6 miles later… In Amsterdam you have to beware of the bicyclists. Here it is the Vespa or scooter! I can see why they are popular. They are small enough to maneuver around traffic and they can park where even the ubiquitous Smart Car can’t. Crossing the street in Rome is right up there with driving in Ireland!

Our first stop: the Baths of Diocletian, part of which is the Basilica di Santa Maria degli Angeli e dei Martiri. Then we walked to see The Fountain of Moses, Bernini’s Saint Teresa in Ecstasy at Santa Maria della Vittoria, past Santa Susanna [closed for renovation], and the dueling churches of Borromini [San Carlo] and Bernini [Sant’Andrea]. We headed to Santa Maria Maggiore but it was closed to the public as was San Giovanni in Laterano because Pope Francis was leading a Corpus Domini [aka Corpus Christi] procession between the two. Bad timing for us! We couldn’t get into the churches nor did we see him! We did see Santa Prassede and San Clemente and went inside the church with the Scala Santa but watched other people ascend the sacred steps on their knees. We walked through the City Wall gate to the Metro stop before returning to RC.

We had our first dinner at Da Danilo. We shared Tonnarelli Cacio e Pepe which is fat spaghetti tossed in a wheel of parmesan cheese and has cracked black pepper added to it. Delicioso!!! I had a rare filet with porcini mushrooms and DW had lamb chunks. DW could not get the waiter to bring her a plain salad – he finally brought hot spinach which was very good, just not what she ordered.

We walked 6 miles. We slept well.

 

Fri 5/27 – Rome: Colosseum and Vatican Museums

After a light breakfast [included] we hiked over to Santa Maria Maggiore and walked through the Holy Doors and in to see all the mosaics. We went on to St. Peter-in-Chains which has Michelangelo’s sculpture of Moses. Our destination was within minutes away and we could see the Colosseum looming up. We found our way down and a helpful independent tour guide pointed us to the proper queue. We had reserved a tour and had plenty of time before it began. DW got on the line for the Ladies’ room and thought, “If I were home, I could just go over to the empty Men’s room!”

The Coopculture Colosseum, Underground and Third Ring Tour was very interesting, as it took us out onto the reconstructed part of the arena floor and then down below to where the animals would have been kept before being put on elevators to bring them up to the arena level – we also saw a reconstructed elevator to show how they could manually raise heavy animals with a wooden screw mechanism [and strong slaves] – and finally to the top ring for great views of the Roman Forum and Palatine Hill. The Colosseum is the most famous of the stadia from that time. There were a number of others sprinkled around Rome.

We headed over to La Taverna dei Quaranta for a filling lunch. We both ordered pizza—with thin crust, minimal thin tomato sauce and skimpy toppings but we enjoyed them immensely. We were starving and happy to sitting away from the sun.

Fortified, we moved on to the Palatine Hill. We have OCD! We climbed more steps this day…

Thanks to one of my smart ideas, we decided to scout out the place we had to meet the next day for a tour to Tivoli. Upon finding the address, there was a note taped to the door informing us that the business had moved to the other side of Rome!

That night we took the DarkRome Vatican Night Tour of the Vatican Museum [with a guide one could not describe as being pro-Catholic!] because we hadn’t climbed enough steps… We had to go through the entire museum in more detail than we really wanted and then we were finally admitted to the Sistine Chapel. I was surprised that the number of tourists was still pretty high [this is a special tour after the museums close, and is supposed to be crowd-free], and the professional Shusher was still at his microphone making more noise than all of us, but there was just enough room to be able to crane your neck and experience the marvelous ceiling. It is not beautiful – it is amazing!

We left there around 10:30 and DW led us to a gelato shop for our reward. We had walked 10 miles and our feet knew it!

Sat 5/28 – Tivoli Day Trip

We took the Metro and then walked to the relocated EnjoyRome tour office for the Tivoli Day Trip. Many people went to the old address so we waited for them. Our guide was sweet but she hadn’t quite finished training and it showed. We had a pretty full coach. We first visited the ruins of Hadrian’s Villa, had lunch at Taverna del Cardinale [the guide’s aunt’s restaurant] with two other couples [from L.A. and Victoria, Australia] and then toured the Villa d’Este. The grounds of the latter are stunning. [We had a friendly escapade with a lovely young woman from Oxford, MS who was with an evangelizing Christian youth ministry. Gives one hope!]

Our return to RC after the tour was a little unnerving. DW had her pocket picked. Two teen girls hemmed her in as we boarded a Metro car and took what they thought was her wallet — it was only her makeup case with a couple of old lipsticks… Mercifully they didn’t get her cards and she wasn’t carrying her iPhone. But she felt violated. Then we had a heck of a time finding an ATM. It was much easier in Spain and France. We zoomed to the Basilica of Santa Maria degli Angeli for 5:45 Mass in English.

Dinner was at a local restaurant recommended by the hotel concierge. What a find! Ristorante La Pentolaccia was about a ten minute walk. It was inviting, as was its wait staff. We shared a pear/soft cheese salad, and spaghetti with garlic/oil/clams. The I had whole sea bass with zucchini [a very different preparation than I’m used to, but very nice] and DW had saltimbocca alla Romano [tender and tasty].

Today we walked 8 miles, but we both napped on the bus.

Sun 5/29 – Rome: Borghese Gallery

A cooler, cloudy day with some sprinkles of rain! I had developed a cold [must have been from the airplane] and started taking Zicam. We walked to the bus and took it to Villa Borghese for our prepaid entry to the Borghese Gallery. We started at 11:00 with the Pinacoteca and were immediately wowed by Room XIV [Rick Steves advised starting upstairs to avoid the crowds, then going down to Room I after they had moved on – it worked great]. And the best was yet to come on the floor below. The sculptures were truly beautiful. DW had to pull herself away from Canova’s Paolina Borghese… and Bernini’s Apollo and Daphne… and his Rape of Proserpina [which he completed at age 24!]

We walked through the extensive grounds passing, an equestrian competition, on our way to Santa Maria del Popolo where we attended the last 2/3 of the Sunday Mass and then had a few minutes to see the side chapels with works by Bernini and Caravaggio.

An interesting conclusion to our sightseeing today was the ossuary [yes, a collection of thousands of bones used to form decorations on ceilings, etc.] at Convento dei Frati Cappuccini. [When we asked for senior discount rate, the cashier wanted proof. Made our day!]

At the only reliable ATM near RC we had a friendly escapade with a couple from southern NJ [we were the pros from Dover who had already figured out how to work the ATMs in Rome]. Back at RC, I took a real nap and DW started working on this blog.

We headed back to the same neighborhood as last night for dinner and tried Taverna Flavia. We shared Penne all’arrabiata, then I had Saltimbocca alla Romana with asparagus and DW had salmon steak plus salad. A nice meal but more expensive than the previous night. There was a double “floor show”: a guitarist serenaded us, while a woman at another table used a scrub brush on her teen son’s shorts and then sprayed him with some kind of stain remover perfuming the dining area!

Mon 5/30 – Rome: Trastevere and Catacombs

A good day weather-wise for walking and we did walk almost 8 miles. We started out taking a bus to see the Bocca Della Verita, a big ugly face on the wall with a mouth into which you are dared to place your hand. It was fun watching children approach it. We then crossed the river Tiber and explored the neighborhood called Trastevere. We strolled the back lanes admiring roof gardens, flowering vines that crept up buildings, unusual doorways… We visited two churches—St. Cecilia which was open and airy with a beautiful sculpture of her in death following her martyrdom, and Santa Maria with artistic mosaics in the apse [had to pay to have the lights come on so you could see them]. We then moved along to Villa Farnesina where the walls and ceilings were decorated with frescoes by the artist/Teenage MNT Raffaello. [There we bumped into two ladies from London whom we had met on our Tivoli tour.]

We returned to the hotel for lunch and to regroup before setting out for the Catacombs. This was the first time the transit system did not seem to be on our side. With only one bus route to the area, we took the subway to the bus stop only to have just missed the no. 218. Turned out they only run every 30 minutes. We finally got onto the crowded bus [filled with foreign, visiting clerics] and got off with them at Domine Quo Vadis where the two of us stopped into the tiny church with that name. It had Christ’s footprints in a slab of marble??? We then walked a long country path towards the San Callisto catacomb [which we did not intend to see] as a less-dangerous route than the Appian Way which has no sidewalks. We asked someone if the exit a few hundred feet on our right would lead us to the San Domitilla catacombs, and he gave us bad advice that led to a long detour. [This is why men don’t like to ask directions – I can get lost just fine on my own!] We arrived at San Domitilla just in time for the last tour, led by a sweet guide who knew her English script but could not really understand our questions. It was interesting none the less and we agreed that one catacomb visit was sufficient. We then had to find our way to a different bus line, another infrequent one, which required standing on the side of a busy road.

We attempted to reach St. Paul Outside the Walls but arrived at that Metro stop 10 minutes before closing. The best laid plans…

We returned to RC and decided to try another restaurant within walking distance. Fuocolento is not only the sister restaurant of La Pentolacchia, they have the identical menu. We sat at a table next to a couple from England. We had a lively conversation re politics while waiting a long time for our dinners to arrive. DW had Tonnarelli Cacio e Pepe—good but not quite the delight of Da Danilo’s. She asked for half portion but seemed to get a lot and was charged for full. I had fried octopus and anchovies, and discovered that I now like anchovies [also olives and other bitter things – the benefits of age!]. For our entrées, DW had sea bass [very good despite a mess of baby bones] and I had Filet de Manzo [sliced steak – disappointing]. Our sides were mixed salad and artichoke Romana [another thing I learned to eat on this trip].

We headed back to RC and began packing. Arrivederci Roma!

Tue 5/31 – Down to the Sea in Ships

Stefano’s RomeCabs picked us up at 11 am and drove us to Civitavecchia, which is the port for Rome. [They were 5 minutes late, and the office called the driver to offer me a 10 Euro discount for the inconvenience. Five minutes in a busy city with unpredictable traffic jams is nothing! I was very pleased at this gesture, but gave the driver the full amount anyway.] The ride took almost an hour and a half as just getting out of Rome took a half hour with all the traffic. We did get to pass the Pyramid of Gaius Cestius which we had missed the day before and saw St. Paul Outside the Walls from the other side [he’s still outside the walls, even from this side!] The drive was smooth but about 2/3 of the way there, one of the idiot bells dinged – the driver pulled over at the next service area and topped his radiator with water. [Again nearer the port it dinged again but the driver ignored it. Hope the fellow made it home safely.]

We had arrived at Celebrity Constellation! Checking luggage and boarding took minimal time and as suite guests we were treated royally. We stopped by our Celebrity Suite and took a tour of the bedroom, LR, DR and balcony [so much space!] before heading to lunch in the suites’ private dining room Luminae. DW had heirloom tomato salad with goat cheese, lobster bisque and seafood brochette; I had the lobster bisque, too, and a bacon burger.

[I should mention that this was our first suite experience, thanks to the repeated price cuts on this cruise as people were scared away from the eastern Mediterranean this year. We started out in an A1 [wanting to try the upscale Blu dining room], then upgraded to an S2 [with the suites dining room Luminae], then an S1, and finally to a CS – for the same price we had initially booked the A1.  Otherwise we would never have tried such an upscale location, but the joys of a Celebrity Suite may have corrupted us [just as our first Veranda cabin put an end to Insides!]

We returned to our cabin to unpack [so much storage space!] and get ready for the Roll Call sail away party to meet all the folks I had been chatted with on Cruise Critic for months – and especially to meet up with our fellow shore excursion mates. It was a bit breezy and cool on deck so people didn’t linger. [DW got herself a cup of tea to stay warm.]

We regrouped and before we knew it we were up in Reflections Lounge for the Cruise Critic Critic meet and greet with the senior officers. I handed out CC pins and luggage tags, and people were delighted to receive these tokens. After chatting with New Yorker Tina who now lives near San Francisco, we headed down to Luminae for dinner.

I had another chat with the sommelier who suggested two white wines to accompany my meal of pork belly appetizer and turbot entrée. DW went for a garden salad and duck which turned out to be on the chewy side [first time she ever had chewy duck]. Dessert redeemed it all: DW had a delicious, moist almond cake with buttermilk ice cream, and I had a bowl of several scoops of pistachio gelato. DW walked almost a mile and a half around our corridor before thinking about bedtime [as she did each night of the cruise].

We left our requests for breakfast room service on our door handle. [One of the benefits of a Celebrity Suite is a large round table that makes in-room dining very comfortable.]

Wed 6/1 – Pompeii and Naples

At 7:10 am our butler Wilfred called say he was on his way with DW’s breakfast. Every special order was there on the tray! Mine arrived an hour later, as requested. We left the Constellation at 9 am looking for a news stand to buy tickets for the local Napoli tram. It took a bit of searching but we found the place and then with the help of a policewoman we found the tram stop. The tram brought us to the train station where we boarded the 9:39 for Pompeii scavi [excavations]. The young man sitting across from us was very pleasant and engaged us in conversation. Meanwhile Romanian immigrants playing a boom box moved through the cars begging.

We arrived at Pompeii with more than enough time to meet and pay MondoTours guide for a 2+ hour Rick Steves Shared Tour of the site. Barbara was personable, knowledgeable and easy to understand.

We took the train back to Naples and had quite a time finding Trianon Pizzeria [recommended by Rick Steves]. We ordered one Margherita pie with mozzarella di bufala and shared it. It was ok, but my conclusion is that Napoli may have invented pizza, but New Yorkers perfected it.

Then we walked down narrow lanes through which cars actually zoom – in search of churches recommended by RS. We finally stumbled upon Pio Monte della Misericordia with a Caravaggio painting of the cardinal virtues. Then we visited the Duomo and its two famous chapels: Restituto and San Gennaro.

DW said she was churched out, so we headed back toward the port. We came across the tram line and took the next one to the end of the line and the dock where our ship was. We had walked approximately 6 miles.

Upon entering our cabin we saw a plate of hors d’oeuvres and pastries awaiting us. We had missed high tea! We could have used a cup at that point, but Evian sufficed.

We went to the 7 pm show in the theatre which featured classically trained Polish violinist Izabella Zebrowska. There was not a big crowd but she was very talented and entertaining and received a standing ovation at the end. We then hung out in the Grand Foyer to watch a game show, You’ve Got Yourself a Deal. We were happy to be in the audience and not the contestant, as none of the prizes appealed [he ended up with a free meal for two at Bistro on Five, which we have never liked].

We headed to Luminae for dinner and both had the green curry soup, which had a delightful kick to it. DW had a baby Kale and shaved Parmesan salad with lemon dressing [just right!] followed by a NY strip steak [from the MDR menu] and I had veal cannelloni. Good choices! For dessert DW had chocolate Napoleon and I special ordered a crème brûlée from the MDR. [Being able to supplement the Luminae menu with MDR offerings really opens up the range.]

Thu 6/2 – The Maltese Falcon [or Bus, anyway]

This morning we could sleep in as Constellation would not be docking in Valletta, Malta until 2 pm. DW ordered room service breakfast for 9 am. I went to Luminae later and began my day with lunch. Then I went to the “invitation only” Heliport to watch the sail-in. DW opted out and saw our arrival from the 11th deck railing and then proceeded to Oceanview Café for buffet lunch of salad and Goan curryied fish.

We explored the town on our own, walking to the outdoor lift which cost a Euro apiece to ride up to the Upper Barrakka Gardens [not much as a garden, but it has a great view of the harbor]. We walked over to St. John’s Co-Cathedral [Knights of Malta] which is filled with self-honoring monuments to past Grand Knights and gold decorations everywhere; beautiful marble tombstones make up most of the floor paving. We then rushed downhill to another area of the waterfront for the last showing of The Malta Experience, a movie depicting the turbulent history of this island – which was under the Knights of Malta, then the Turks, then the French, then the English, etc. until the second half of the 20th century. The ticket also included an excellent guided tour of the Knights’ Infirmary. We then walked quickly back uphill to see the Church of St. Paul of the Shipwreck. On the way back to Upper Barrakka Gardens we saw an old Bus gaily decorated and turned into a souvenir stand. When we got to the gardens a new bride was posing for pictures, and another unexpected treat was the six-cannon salute being fired off the parapet into the harbor. We took the elevator back to sea level and returned to our ship to freshen up.

The 7 pm show, The Ultimate Beatles Celebration, was very good. We then proceeded to Luminae where DW had crab cake, snap pea salad, lamb and chocolate Napoleon. I chose tuna tartare, snap pea…, and black bass. [This was our pattern throughout the cruise: early show followed by dinner. We always like to dine late and on previous cruises we were never finished in time for the late show, so after 12 cruises we have finally got our rhythm going!]

We set the clocks ahead one hour to Greece time [but they promised to give it back before the end of the cruise!]