No. 34 – Homeward Bound

It’s a long way from Europe to Australia, both in space and time. Neither Pip nor Sailor Boy was looking forward to the seemingly endless flight. But going home, yes, it was time. At the Rome airport Check-in, they met FiFi, an Italian dog on her way to India… not that she knew!

Once through the gates, they found the boarding lounge filled with waiting passengers and familiar flat Australian accents.

Sitting beside Pip, a chatty Australian momentarily disinterested in her family smiled and struck up a conversation.

“Yes we did Europe. 16 cities, 20 days,” she appeared pleased with her efficiency.

You’ve got to be kidding, thought Pip.

“The kids had a ball. They’re great at that age, aren’t they? They’ve got no ‘inhibitations’ whatsoever.” Nearby her 10 and 8 year olds were absent-mindedly kicking the seats in front of them while engrossed in their i-pads.

“So where did you go?” Pip asked.

“Oh we did Italy. We did Rome and Venice and all that. Great shopping. And you?”

“Hmm, we went to lots of places”, Pip replied slowly, “It’s been quite a journey actually. I loved all the old ruins and Pompeii was amazing.”

“Yeh, what’s to see there?”

Momentarily taken back, Pip blinked before explaining, “It’s an archaeological site.”

“Oh! We’re not into all that stuff. We like shopping. We usually go to Bali. But it was nice. Jeff’s seen it before. He goes to Europe on business. And America, he’s been there. My sister wants to go to Vegas.” The lady studied her fingernails, “I might go with her.  She’d never come here. She’s not into culture and that. She likes action.”

“Yep it’s not for everyone” said Pip wondering, who said you can’t have action in Europe?

“Sis didn’t like school that’s for sure. Best off out of it, I said. So she left in Year 11. No need for mooore eddication. She got herself a job at Woolies”.

An overhead announcement broke into the conversation.

“She’s saving up for Vegas now” the lady added enthusiastically.

“I think that’s our boarding call” said a relieved Pip standing up. “Good luck in Vegas.”

Wow, talk about a reality check.

Escaping the lounge and stepping on board the flying kangaroo QF380 Sailor Boy and Pip were recognised by the air hostess as the characters from her favourite travel blog. After her warm welcome Pip found his way to his seat and looked around for Sailor Boy.

Sailor Boy had been invited to meet the Captain and check out the cockpit. All those instruments!

Impressed with his VIP passenger, the Captain suggested an upgrade to first class.

But what of poor Pip stranded in economy?

It was another test of their friendship. Surely this cant be the end of the travels of Pip and Sailor Boy.

No 31 – Sicilian Suprises

Not many people know that in central Sicily lies an archaeological site with the largest complex of Roman mosaics in the Mediterranean.  The Piazza Armerina, a Roman dwelling uncovered in excavations was revealed to be a hunting lodge for the Emperor Herculius.

On its painted walls and in detailed floor mosaics, stories from history and mythology are depicted. Pictures of animals, hunting, fishing and chariot racing reveal scenes of everyday life.

The hot and cold tubs in the bathing areas are features of envy and in one of the sleeping quarters, an extraordinary love scene reveals the timelessness of love.

Sadly the mosaic dubbed the Bikini Girls, depicting girls playing gymnastics, was under restoration and inaccessible, providing a good reason to return one day.

On the eastern side of the island, the ancient city of Syracuse is known for its impressive Greek Theatre which is used for performances of ancient plays and is still the only theatre in the city.

The legendary Renaissance artist Caravaggio lived and worked in Syracuse for a time, as did Archimedes, who was considered to be the greatest mathematician of antiquity. He was murdered by a Roman soldier on the beach during a siege. Nearby the famed Arethuse fountain has been celebrated in poetry through the ages, for according to Homeric legend the goddess Leto stopped here to give birth to the goddess Artemis.

No. 29 – Welcome to Sicily

Sicilia…Sicily. What does it bring to mind? Religion, food and danger, thought Pip. Even the mountains are dangerous. After all, Mt Etna is still an active volcano.

But the boys were not to be dissuaded from visiting the flat football-shaped island floating off the boot of Italy. Reportedly it had some of the best Greco Roman ruins in the entire Med, not to mention its Norman Castles and famous food markets and specialties.

Truthfully the first thing that comes to mind for the English speaking foreigner is… the mafia of course. “But don’t mention them.” said Pip looking sternly at Sailor Boy. “We don’t want any trouble… so you’re not to say anything.”

Well that’s a bit hard, Sailor Boy thought, when one of the first signs he saw after leaving the airport were enormous hand painted letters on the side of a mountain clearly spelling two words “NO MAFIA”. Sailor Boy’s eyes widened, and while he said nothing, a strange noise escaped from his throat. They later learned the sign was placed where an Italian judge had been killed in the 1990s. He had been investigating the mafia and his car had been blown to pieces not long after leaving the airport.

It appeared the locals had learned to live with this aspect of their past. The concept of the mafia was jovially cultivated by tour guides and locals alike.  In tourist areas, Hollywood images of the Godfather were emblazoned on T shirts and T towels. One newsagent sold a “Quick Guide to Mafia History”.

The history was difficult to ignore. Even the lovely Opera House in Palermo had been used in a death scene in one of the Godfather movies.

From time to time little stories slipped out, such as, “By the way we’re just passing the village of X where two siblings of the original godfather still live. You know they got rid of their victims off one of the nearby mountains. One day a group of hikers found human skeletons at the bottom of a cliff and reported the finding to the police… but they didn’t do anything about it.”

Ironically one of the true pieces of high Renaissance art in Palermo, the glorious Fontana Pretoria had been dramatically nicknamed by the locals, ‘the fountain of shame’ because of its nude male statues. Subsequently most of them had their genitalia vandalised and castrated.

Thankfully the Sicilians weren’t let loose on the rest of Italy.

No 27 – A Colossal Clean?

Can anyone visit Rome without seeing the Colosseum? Pip was not as keen as Sailor Boy, as he had heard how cruel the Romans had been, especially to Christians and animals. So after some discussion, the boys went their separate ways. While Sailor Boy took the tour to one of the most famous monuments in the world, Pip travelled across town to see other significant landmarks. Each wished the other luck for their journeys through the anarchic Roman traffic.

Arriving at the Colosseum, Sailor Boy’s first impression was of an awe inspiring building, but on closer inspection he could see that the marble was severely blackened in parts. It appeared badly in need of conservation cleaning. Why do they just leave it to rot and waste away, he wondered? And what do they do with all the entrance fees? One section seemed to have a distinct lean. Despite the thousands of tourists and guides milling around, this iconic building was clearly neglected.

Still he was on a tour and he followed the group inside to see where the gladiators had lived and fought. He marvelled at the frescos depicting the fighting gladiators who lived brutal lives. They trained all year for one event when they would live or die.

Sailor Boy learnt that the Colosseum spectacles were advertised on billboards and were usually held twice a year for several days – unless it was a special occasion when they could continue for 100 days. The normal program was quite straightforward. The morning contests were billed as man vs animal, followed by beheadings of criminals before lunch. When the guide started speaking about what they did to the wild African animals even before the shows, Sailor Boy understood why Pip didn’t want to come. Pip may even have felt a little nervous.

The afternoon program consisted of the gladiatorial battles of man vs man. Even in those days there were food and drink stalls and souvenir shops selling gladiatorial figurines.

Like most Roman endeavours, the Colosseum had been very well organised. With 50,000 seats to fill, spectators had tickets and entered through numbered arches to specific areas. Sailor Boy could see the remains of complex passageways under the ground level where props and machinery were used to turn the arena into a jungle or once, a pool of water to stage a mock sea battle.

Here animals had been held captive and tortured to enrage them before events. At times thousands of wild animals had been killed on a single day. Many animal skeletons and artefacts had been uncovered in excavations and were on display in the Colosseum museum.

While the Ancient Greeks had revered intellect and athletic displays, the Romans had revelled in blood sports. On reflection, Sailor Boy realised that he preferred the athletic celebrations and theatre of the Greeks, where crowds had been entertained by dramatic plays of tragedies and comedies, interpreting the grand events of life. Coincidently before the boys were to leave Rome, the Italian Ministry of Culture announced that conservation and cleaning program on the Colosseum was to begin later in the year. Fingers crossed.

No. 25 – Life on Board

“Welcome Aboard” said each and every member of the smartly uniformed crew lined up to meet Pip and Sailor Boy when they stepped off the gangway and onto the ship for the first time. Like many guests, it made them feel, for a moment, very important. Combined with the magnificent foyer in which they found themselves, it was initially overwhelming, a vision of nautical splendour.

Finding their way around the fourteen decks took some time.

Passageways disappeared horizontally, lined with a profusion of artworks. Vertically there were six lifts and a central staircase which resembled those found in luxurious hotels.

Elegant foyers led into dining rooms and specialty restaurants, each with its own ambiance, highlighted with chandeliers and liveried waiters.

There were so many on board activities that it was impossible to experience them all. If it was too cold to jump in the outside pool, there was the jacuzzi to try, a spa club and even a cooking school. On one of the upper decks guests could try their hands at mini putt-putt or improve their golf ‘swings’ on the solitary driving tee.  Then there were port visits and on shore excursions to plan. To assist with this, destination services provided extensive information on ports. In addition, the theatre could be transformed into a lecture hall for various talks by guest speakers on matters of interest, such as Greek mythology, shopping or world financial woes.

As it was a holiday, most people wanted to lie around the pool and forget about all that and eat delectable meals.  Pip’s favourite activity area was the Art workshop where he went each day to assist with collage classes.

He had been on board for some days before he discovered the ship’s library, but once found he adored it. Comfortable lounge chairs were surrounded by an impressive collection including a reference section, travel, paperbacks and classics.

Unlike most guests, the boys actually made it to the well-appointed gym – more than once. Around 5pm the bars and games rooms came alive, sometimes spontaneously with an arrival or an event and everyone knew it was the place to be. The after dinner theatre shows were varied but somewhat predictable, designed for an older audience with waiters serving drinks.  Nevertheless performance standards could be high and one night they saw an outstanding tribute band.

On board, all of the crew went out of their way to make everyone feel welcome and overall Pip and Sailor Boy treasured the experience.

Meeting Patsy on board, Pip was glad to discover that cruising at sea was not a barrier for determined people with a disability, if they could find the means to make the journey. It’s still possible to see the wonderful planet which we all share.

“Land ahoy” called Pip. As delightful and as entertaining as cruising was, everyone has to disembark sometime.

No. 24 – Ravishing Ravello

Unfortunately the sky was quite overcast when the ship moored not far from the town of Positano. Both Pip and Sailor Boy had been looking forward to seeing this part of the Amalfi coast. The grey cliffs were spectacular, but where was the light, the colour, the sparkling water?

After taking the ship’s tender to shore, a short ride in a local ferry took them along the coast to the tiny town of Positano, with a population of 2,500, still barely larger than a village.

Many decades ago, the musings of American writer John Steinbeck on Positano were published in Harper’s Bazaar magazine, and are credited with expanding the tourist influx to the whole region.

“Positano bites deep,” he wrote, “It is a dream place that isn’t quite real when you are there and becomes beckoningly real after you have gone.”

Expectations had been raised to lofty heights.

“Well the stones on the beach bite deep,” said Sailor Boy shifting uncomfortably on the grey pebbles. For two Australians accustomed to golden sands, it wasn’t much of a beach.

More enticing was the nearby town of Ravello. The tourist literature states the town has long been a destination for writers, artists and notables; including Virginia Woolf, Joan Miro, Truman Capote, M.C. Escher, Tennessee Williams, Graham Green, Leonard Bernstein and Hilary Clinton among many others. What a roll call !

This was a location not to be missed. To access the town, the local bus winds up a steep precipice negotiating a nerve jarring series of road bends before depositing its passengers on the village outskirts. Ravello’s heritage listed streets are for walking only.

Within the historic centre, the Villa Rufolo dates from the thirteenth century. Its flower gardens, overlooking the Gulf of Salerno and the Amalfi coast, must be among the most spectacular in the world.

The German opera composer Richard Wagner stayed in the villa. He was so moved by its beauty that he composed there, imagining the setting as the garden in the second act of ‘Parsifal’.

Every year the lower gardens of the Villa Rufolo host a Wagnerian concert to celebrate his visit.

Looking out across the bay, even on a dull day, it was ravishing.

No. 23 – Portofino – Jewel in the Crown

A vision of heaven on earth awaits those who discover the Italian Riveria. Along the north west coast of Italy lie aqua marine bays, elegant villas and picture postcard towns.

In Portofino the pristine waters were so translucent that it seemed as if the boats were floating on air.

From the stately villas dotted around the shoreline, yellow, white, cream and russet brown houses receded up the hillside in a symphony of colour.

The green landscaped terraces created a play of geometric steps and angles, composing the exquisite, horse-shoe shaped inlet that was Portofino.

Pip was on his best behaviour as there were several signs about dogs.

Some of the most stately villas had castellated medieval walls and turrets and were guarded by working dogs.

They were told the two villas with the most commanding positions belonged to the world famous designers, Gabana and Dolce.

 Pip tried to look his best, in the hope of being noticed. Sailor Boy looked hard but couldn’t see either of the well-dressed fellows.

They spent a pleasant day walking the hillsides and narrow streets. In the town, they were surprised to discover, that much like an attractive woman, some of the beauty had been applied with paint. To portray an image of well-proportioned houses, ‘windows’ had been carefully painted onto the walls of some buildings creating a realistic effect called “trompe d’oeil”. It was very deceptive.

Pip was thrilled to find plaques recognising writers who had stayed in the town. Guy de Maupassant who was a master of short story writing, frequently sailed his yacht “Belle Ami” around that coast calling in at Portofino.

The great early Renaissance writer Petrarch had also visited, traveling by donkey. Petrarch is sometimes referred to as the world’s first tourist, as he was the first to climb a mountain in southern France for the pure enjoyment of the experience.

Pip thought, that in his travels, Petrarch would have dreamed of exquisite beauty and unrequited love, because he was famous for his love sonnets, even inventing his own poetic structure.

A jewel in the crown of the Italian Riveria, Portofino was certainly the place to do it.

No. 20 – A Slice of Provence

Behind the French port of Marseilles lies the town of Aix-en-Provence. Pip and Sailor Boy loved exploring everything, even the pebble stones on the street paving which showed how medieval towns dealt with rain water before the invention of gutters.

They tasted fruit in the local markets and admired the cathedral. Most of all they were charmed by their guide’s stories of its famous son, the artist Cezanne who grew up there in the late 1800s.

It would seem that Cezanne had never truly been accepted by his own people. In fact his work was misunderstood, to the extent that his proposed bequest of paintings to the local museum wasn’t accepted. The townsfolk didn’t understand his “plein air” style. These days, the guide explained, it was a matter of regret, that their forebears were so misguided. Now if they wanted to see work of Cezanne, they have to wait for a travelling exhibition to visit the town of his birth.

Here was Cezanne’s school, the Lycee Bourbon which he attended with his friend, Emile Zola. Zola who later would become a famous writer, ironically won the school’s art prize over Cezanne. After graduating, Cezanne tried to enter a Paris art school but was rejected. Later, his work was again rejected from the annual Paris Salon exhibition. The story of his career was one of persistence against many odds.

Beyond the coastal towns of the Cote d’Azur lies the farming country of Provence. Hundreds of vineyards produce the region’s famous rosė wine. High above the regimental rows of vines are a series of quaint mountain villages.

Some have medieval fortifications, watchtowers, the remains of dungeons and tiny laneways. In the 10^th century town of Gassin, Pip found a passageway so narrow that people were obliged to turn sideways to pass through.

From the 11^th century castle battlements of Grimald there are commanding views. Pip imagined that if called upon, he’d be brave in defending the castle. But rather than seeing hordes of invading Saracen pirates, all he could see in the distance was his own ship in the mirror-like bay of Saint Tropez.

For all its renowned celebrity, the town of Saint Tropez is still very small. But unlike so many locations that are magnets for tourists, it wasn’t at all disappointing. Its port was filled with friendly cafes and artists displaying their colourful wares.

The yachts and cruisers around the foreshore were expensive and sleek, and Sailor Boy closely examined each one berthed along the marina. Pip checked out himself on a motor bike.

When Sailor Boy could finally drag his eyes away from the smooth polish, he joined Pip for lunch in a famous café with front row seats, perfect for dog and people watching.

With their engaging personalities, Pip and Sailor Boy had no trouble making friends with the local policeman, or rather an actor dressed as a policeman, who soon had a crowd watching and laughing at his masterly imitations and comic performance.

To top the afternoon off, Pip met someone special, Misty, and once again temptation raised its head. Attractive and female, Misty had an unforgettable Saint Tropez cut with a pink ribbon and purple highlights through her carefully clipped fur. They hit it off instantly and on parting she gave him a lovely wet lick.

No. 12 – Leaving Venice

As Pip and Sailor Boy walked along the dock to board for the first time, the huge bow of the ship soared above them.

How exciting it was! They soon settled into their own stateroom and looked out their very own window to admire the passenger liner berthed beside them.

“Musta costa fortune” said Pip to Sailor Boy, recalling that line’s recent misfortunes.

But it wasn’t long until their departure and the ship’s horn was sounding. The boy’s couldn’t wait to get on deck to watch Venice slip away. Out on deck the early evening light was fading and it was windy and cold. But they stayed as long as they could for their last glimpses of the beautiful Grand Canal and iconic San Marco Square.

Then they were underway, on route for Dubrovnick.