Exploring the French Riviera, Rome, and The Amalfi Coast: A Luxurious Journey
Another one of my favorite vacations was a two-week trip with my girlfriend, Linda. We cruised the French Riviera from Nice to Civitavecchia on the Wind Surf small sailing yacht, which is on Windstar Cruise Lines. They pride themselves for their small yachts and superior service — and they did not disappoint. Wind Surf is a 300-passenger yacht with about 150 staterooms. The ship was beautiful with huge sails, and the food and service were outstanding. The stateroom was spacious, and the amenities were generous. I really liked that the tips were all included in the price of the state room. What I loved most about this cruise is that we would disembark every day, except for one, to see a new port of call, including Monte Carlo and Porto-Vecchio, on the French island of Corsica. We were anxious to see what these new destinations and interesting towns had to offer, including the local food, culture, and people. It was sad to say goodbye to our lovely yacht but we had more adventures planned for the next week in Italy.
After our wonderful sailing adventure, we spent three days in Rome, exploring the ancient ruins of the Forum and the Colosseum, not to mention roaming the streets in search of wonderful food, wine and shopping experiences. Although it’s a huge city, it was truly an amazing place and I have wonderful memories of some lovely pieces of jewelry to remember from it.
Our next stop was Sorrento and the Amalfi Coast. We took a train from Rome to Sorrento, which was an experience all by itself! This experience alone made me appreciate the options we have today for having a private guide to get you to your destination safely, and share the local secrets of any particular town in Europe! It can be a bit scary and tricky when you don’t know the language.
We spent five fabulous days in Sorrento, exploring the Amalfi Coast, with memories I will cherish for the rest of my life. One word can describe our experience - gelato! I love gelato, but the gelato in Italy is indescribable! And it didn’t hurt that every stop had a hazelnut flavor. My absolute favorite. And some days we had gelato twice in a day.
I guess I need more than one word to describe this portion of our trip, because the scenery - with the awe-inspiring sunsets and coastline, the wine and the food —especially the pizza — were all amazing. Being from New York, with a step dad who is Italian, I’m a huge fan of pizza. And the pizza in Italy was even better than the pizza in NY — which is saying a lot for a New Yorker!
We took a bus ride down (and up) the Amalfi Coast exploring each town to see what they had to offer, besides the gelato of course! The water, the coastline views, the homes, the fruit and vegetable stands, the flower stands, the small shops, and the people were all magnificent. The bus ride was also an experience in and of itself. The roads are narrow and the cliffs of the coastline were scary close! But the views were worth it! On my next trip, we will hire a private guide to take us to his favorite stops along the Amalfi Coast.
One night in Sorrento, Linda decided to stay in the hotel with a book, a loaf of bread with some cheese, and a bottle of wine. I decided to explore Sorrento on my own that night and see where the evening took me for dinner. I went walking in the quaint town, and ended up at an amazing restaurant with a quiet, dark and romantic ambiance. Yes, I was alone, but I had the most amazing Italian meal I ever had — a little pricey and worth every penny. I took recommendations from my waiter for everything from the zucchini flower appetizer to the pasta and the entire, to the red wine, to the dessert and the espresso — which was all over the course of over two hours. Cherishing every minute, it was truly amazing and a memory I will have for the rest of my life.
I look forward to the day of returning with my husband to explore so much more of Italy and all it has to offer.
