Postcard from Minerva - September-October 2010

On Thursday 9th September I had a good BA flight from Gatwick to Naples, and had only been on board half an hour when some old friends rang me to invite me to drinks, so life on board started promptly! It was a good evening which started with drinks in my friends’ cabin and then I dined with them and finally over a nightcap or two met up with Captain Giovanni. A rather heavy evening!

The first morning I went off to see an amazing Roman villa called Villa Oplontis. The whole place is in remarkable condition and has some wonderful frescoes. At 2 o’clock we sailed for Taormina, passing Sorrento and Capri after a short while. The weather was not that good so I didn’t stay long on the outside deck that afternoon. The Welcome Party was that evening and I dined with two Swan staff and some other friends, followed by a nightcap! The next morning we anchored off Sicily at Naxos to visit Taormina, but having been there before decided to lie out on deck – but not for long the rains came! We had a few showers for the next twelve hours, but after that the sun came out and I spent much of the next couple of days on the top deck.

On the afternoon of Monday 13 September we began our wonderful approach to Venice albeit in rather grey weather. After a lovely morning on the top deck the clouds came up for our approach and stayed until we had berthed! Then a glorious evening! The following morning I set off on a visit to Murano and Torcello islands. A beautiful morning so a good sail to the islands. It was a relaxing visit to both islands and at the end many of us stopped at a local bar for a drink. I ordered an ‘Aperol Spritzer’, a great Italian drink. As so many people copied me, it is now called ‘Annie’s drink’! Then back to the ship for a quick lunch after which I walked Venice for three hours! Back exhausted to watch us sail with a glorious sunset. Then dined and had a nightcap with old friends.

On Wednesday I was up very early to watch Captain Giovanni bring us into his home port of Trieste on another glorious morning. On departure from the ship that day we were greeted with flowers and a Trieste goody bag, and then went off on a wonderful tour, albeit with a bad guide, of Miramare Castle - a beautiful castle right on the sea in lovely gardens. Back to the ship for a quick bite of lunch and then I went ashore again and walked Trieste for two hours – an absolutely wonderful city. I finished my walk with an aperol spritzer in the sunshine, then back to the ship for the most extraordinary departure! We had a band playing, we had the captain’s family all watching and some in their sailing boats escorting us, we had the tugs spraying water fountains – everyone was on deck to watch this amazing departure given to Giovanni – just fantastic to watch. In the evening I dined with one of my Swan friends, and we then we joined everyone out on deck for a ‘Deck Dance’. Rather a chilly one but good fun.

On Thursday morning we arrived in the Croatian port of Zadar. Having been there before I just had a walk around the little town for an hour and then returned to the ship to spend the rest of the day on the top deck! At 3pm we sailed for Split – a new port for me. That evening I joined a table who were celebrating a birthday and then went to the Crew Show. Early on Friday we arrived in Split and I went on a short tour of the fascinating city before driving out along the Riviera to a local restaurant for a glass or two of wine and some local food. At 2pm we sailed for Dubrovnik, but sadly the weather was not so good so the afternoon was a ‘catch-up’ one in my cabin, with the odd walk up on deck to see some marvellous scenery. In the evening I went to drinks in one of the Suites where I met and chatted to Peter O’Toole and then eight of us dined together. We arrived in Dubrovnik at midnight when I was in the land of nod, so had a lovely view of the delightful town when I drew my cabin curtains the next morning. Having visited this Town many times before I went on an excursion to Lokrum Island and had a relaxing morning there. The afternoon was spent relaxing on the top deck. The following day was ‘at sea’ so I spent it quietly on the top deck, and in the evening had drinks with friends in their suite. Captain Giovanni then invited me to join his table for dinner so we had a great fun evening, finishing with a few nightcaps at the bar!

On Monday 20th we arrived in Albania – my first visit. We anchored off Sarande and from there I took a bus journey to Gjirokaster. We drove through the most wonderful scenery for an hour and a half, although it was rather spoilt by seeing rubbish everywhere, a bit like Libya. On arrival in Gjirokaster we had a great tour of the old Castle, then we walked through the old Bazaar to a local restaurant where we were offered a drink. This was followed by a visit to a local museum which was a mock-up of an old Albanian house – really fascinating. Then the long journey back to the ship but once again we were able to enjoy the beautiful scenery. That evening was the Farewell dinner, and I dined with some new friends.

Early on Tuesday morning we arrived at the Greek island of Itea, but having been there before I decided to take a short walk around the town before heading for the top deck to enjoy the beautiful weather. Later that afternoon, Giovanni invited me on to the Bridge to watch us transit the Corinth Canal. Although I have been through the Canal a few times before, this was special as I have never watched it from the Bridge before – it really was an amazing experience watching such a large ship go through such a narrow canal! We could literally touch the plants growing on the side of the canal! Some of us then celebrated with a glass of Ouso! Early on Wednesday morning I took an excursion to see the Acropolis – it was good to visit again, but rather spoilt by the crowds of a large ship that was in port and by the fact that we did not have a very good guide. Then back to the ship for an afternoon on the top deck. Thursday was ‘change-over’ day on the ship, so after a quick visit to the Athens Passenger Terminal to use their WiFi facilities to update my computer, I went up to the Top Deck for the day and relaxed in glorious sunshine. That evening was rather chaotic as the outward/inward flights for the ‘change-over’ passengers were very delayed so I had a quiet dinner and was early to bed!

On Friday 24th I took an excursion to the new Acropolis Museum, which – unusually for me – I really enjoyed. An amazing place with glass floors, excavation work underneath the ground floor and fantastic views, and luckily I had a very good guide. At 3 o’clock that day we sailed for Nauplia and that evening was the Singles party. By the time we arrived in Nauplia the next morning, it was sadly rather damp and rainy. I had not planned any excursions so I wandered ashore and walked around Nauplia for an hour and then returned to the ship to relax on deck in spite of not much sunshine! We sailed for Santorini at 3 o’clock that afternoon, and in the evening I was on the Captain’s table at the Welcome Party. Was placed between the Captain and a very cheerful gentleman so we had a lot of fun! Early next morning we arrived at Santorini, which is high up on top of a volcanic rock. I was up to watch the Captain bring Minerva into the caldera and see the tugs tie us up to buoys. I then went off by boat and bus to Oia, a delightful little Greek town, and walked around there for an hour or so. Met up with a new friend, Barbara, and we had a quick drink before getting back on the bus and driving to the capital of Sardinia, Thera. Barbara and I found a delightful little bar called Franco’s, which I had read about, and had a lovely drink and light lunch overlooking the Aegean Sea with classical music in the background. I then walked around Thera in the scorching sunshine for a couple of hours before walking [for 30 minutes!] all the way down to the tender, passed the donkeys, and back to the ship. After a quick change I met up with Barbara and we set off back up to Thera where we enjoyed sundowners watching a beautiful sunset, and then moved on to have some dinner in a delightful little restaurant overlooking Minerva. Afterwards we took the cable car back down and joined some crew for a nightcap before taking the tender back to the ship to watch us sail for Patmos.

Early on Monday 27th September we arrived at the island of Patmos - my first visit there. It was a delightful place and we had glorious weather so all the little white houses glittered in the sunshine. I joined a tour around Chora and then walked around the port of Skala for a while. I met up with some friends for a drink before returning to the ship for a lovely afternoon on the top deck. We set sail for Canakkle in Turkey that afternoon. I spent most of the following morning watching us cruise past the Gallipoli memorials, and then spent the afternoon on the top deck having visited Canakkale many times before. In the evening Barbara and I invited the Swan team plus the Captain and Hotel Director to join us for a drink and then most of us dined together. Early on a rather grey Wednesday morning we cruised past Istanbul with all its mosques and palaces and bridges, and then, fortunately, the sun came back and so it was up to the top deck for the rest of the day. We arrived at Nessebur in Bulgaria at 6pm and the wind was kind so we were able to berth that evening. After watching us arrive I went to drinks with some friends and then Captain Giovanni and I decided to go back to the restaurant that we found in Nessebur last year, and had a most enjoyable and fun dinner. In the morning I went on an excursion into the countryside to visit Goritza – a lovely little Bulgarian village – and we were invited into a house for homemade ‘treats’ including some very strong alcoholic ‘treats’! We then visited a church and called on the Mayor before returning to the ship. I did a short walk around Nessebur town and then I was invited to the Bridge to watch us sail. However the wind had picked up and we couldn’t leave our berth, so our departure was delayed by three hours. It was a very very tricky manoeuvre to get us off our berth but our expert Captain managed it, not without a few nerve-wracking moments, to the applause of the passengers.

On Friday 1 October we arrived at Odessa on a very cold grey evening. I had a quiet dinner and a few nightcaps while many passengers went to the ballet. The next morning was glorious sunshine but a chill wind, so I took off and went for a brief walk around some of the sights of Odessa, and then returned to read my book in a sheltered place on deck, and at 2pm we sailed for Sevastopol. That evening I was invited to a party for all ‘back-to-back’ passengers after which I had a very nice dinner with one of my Swan friends. Next morning we arrived at a very chilly and windy Sevastopol, practically got blown away as I watched us arrive and we had a tricky time securing the springs [ropes]. Having been here before I took myself off on a walk around Sevastopol – walked for two hours around the city in a chill wind but it was very enjoyable, and being a Sunday very quiet. In the afternoon I went out to visit the ancient Greek city of Chersonesos and the wonderful St Vladmir’s Cathedral. Although grey and cold, it was a peaceful afternoon as we walked around this site, which is right on the sea. In the evening I had a slightly difficult dinner table and then the Black Sea Fleet Ensemble came on board, but having watched it last year, I took to the bar instead!

Very early on Monday 4th October we sailed into a grey and cold Yalta. In the morning I took myself off to walk around the little town of Yalta, visiting the beautiful cathedral among other things. In the afternoon I went on an excursion to the Alupka Palace, where the British stayed for the Yalta Conference; an impressive place. We then stopped en route back to ship to take a look at the stunning Swallow’s Nest, built on the cliff edge. In the evening I had a wonderful dinner with the Hotel Director, before watching us sail for Istanbul at 23.00 hours. The next day was ‘at sea’ on a sunny but chilly day. I did manage to read on the top deck for a short while in the morning and afternoon, but was warmed up by joining some friends for drinks and lunch. In the evening it was the Farewell Party and I joined quite a good table for dinner which included Douglas Hurd, my old boss!

Early on Wednesday morning, 6th October we sailed up the Bosphorus, and berthed in Istanbul at 8am. Breakfast that day was only my second indoors since I had been on board! I spent that day catching up with myself and with my friends on board as well as packing up. Istanbul was very full of people and it was very grey and wet so it was better on board than ashore, especially as it was my fifth visit! The following day I flew back to Heathrow, and was back home by 5.15pm after another great cruise.