HISTORIC CRUISING
and he purchased the island to preserve it. the Phoenicians were the first to ‘farm’ salt from the shallow waters of the beaches nearby, a thriving industry that still exists today, with windmills used to pump the water out of the shallow ‘pans,’ ready for the salt harvest in August. We sail on to Palermo, the vibrant
knowledge but also his dry sense of humour (although it
capital of Sicily, for the opportunity to visit the Norman Palantine Chapel and the Monreal Cathedral – absolute ‘must do’ tours for this important city.
or an extra charge, we visited the pri- vately owned Palazzo gangi in Piazza Corce dei Vespri. Though normally not open to the public, a special tour was arranged with one of the family members, the current Principessa gangi. the personal touch was charming, and the palace is a splendid Baroque specimen to rival Versailles. Lectures were, on the whole, interesting, but the Mediterranean wine tasting session was a HUGE success. Brian Wheton, the presenter, proved to be a hit not only for his
F FACT FILE Voyages To Antiquity
MS Aegean Odyssey – Built:
Tonnage: Length: Beam: Draft:
Speed:
Passengers: Crew:
1975, rebuilt 2010 11,563 461ft 67ft 20ft
18 knots 378 200
Passenger decks: 7 Registered:
Malta
Itineraries: spring and summer –Mediterranean, Aegean and Adriatic; autumn, North Africa, Red Sea and East Med. The ‘Sicily is the Key to Everything’ cruise includes Athens (overnight stay on first two cruises of season), Nauplia, Taormina (Sicily), Syracuse, Agrigento, Trapani, Palermo, Cefalú, Salerno (for Paestum), Sorrento (for Pompeii), Capri and Rome.
Prices start from £2195/person for 14 nights, based on double occupancy, including daily shore excursions, gratuities, wine with dinner, pre-cruise stay in Athens (where applicable) and scheduled flights on British Airways.
More info: call 0845 437 9737, visit
www.voyagestoantiquity.com or email
reservations@voyagestoantiquity.com.
helped that the quality of the tipple was quite good – the Sicilian Syrah was my favourite). This lecture was followed by an impressive concert with the resident piano, violin and bass trio Cafe Concert Springs. The early archaeological lectures were more interesting if you already had some background or had read John Julius Norwich’s book but they did help bring everyone up to speed.
Cuisine is an important part of Sicily and of this cruise. Chateaubriand was an excellent choice on the final night while there was fresh seafood nearly every day. though my first impression wasn’t the best (initial lunch in the Marco Polo restaurant was a slightly disappointing sandwich), it
subsequently changed. On the sailing from agropolis to amalfi,
the lunch was an entire lamb, sliced up at the terrace Cafe & grill and served with mint sauce and the local buffalo mozza- rella. Exquisite. I even heard that on the night grilled crab and lobster was offered in the Terrace Cafe, passengers ate the formal dinner in the Marco Polo, then came upstairs for a crustacean feast! As seems nearly always the case on cruises these days, the serving staff is impeccable and forever accommodating. I nicknamed Randolph, our waiter on several occasions, the ‘Magic Man’ not only because he did magic tricks but because he had a subtle and intuitive serving manner. He even sang, unprompted, a Filipino love song one evening. Without sounding soppy that, too, was magical. I was surprised at how much I enjoyed the few spare hours just lazing on the deck when we were moored off beautiful Mediterranean ports such as amalfi and Cefalú. Even the Stromboli sail-by – when we were all hanging over the railing straining to see if the volcano would produce some fireworks – was fun and relaxing.
T 34 WORLD OF CRUISING I Autumn 2010
he Mediterranean is, for many, a place to return to again and again. But for those travellers with
a fascination for archaeology and an interest in ancient civilisations, Voyages to Antiquity offers an in-depth way of experiencing these great destinations. It also turned out our lone sailor was none other than Gerry Herrod himself, owner of our vessel and creator of Voyages to Antiquity. He was shadowing us to make sure his latest brainchild was not having any hiccups – but probably enjoying the beautiful Mediterranean himself.
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