Today we had a sunny day and everybody at the yard perked up. Our Italian friends are normally already quite noisy but the ships corridors noise level has now returned to normal levels. If there are two Italians arguing about why something is not the way it should be, then it is not advisable to…   read more of “31 October 2018;…”

I mentioned the bad weather yesterday and it was even worse than expected. Water level reached the 4th. highest level ever seen in Venice (according to experts in the shipyard) and it resulted in a lot of damage and some very wet tourists. As in this case the water did not only come from above…   read more of “30 October 2018;…”

Here I am at the shipyard and ready to help out with finishing the ship. I have been parked in a hotel just outside the town of Mestre and everyday there is a whole Armada of Buses and cars moving towards the ship in the morning and back again in the late afternoon. Mestre is…   read more of “29 October 2018;…”

Today we are in Livorno and for me this is a crazy port. It is a large and very modern port but then they have a medieval entrance which requires a 90o degree turn to get into the port. All the ships go via the south break water opening. There are two openings and I…   read more of “17 October 2018;…”

The ship supposedly docked at the pier was not a ship but a number of barges carrying out maintenance to this floating dock. (The Monte Carlo Pier is a floating pier, connected with a hinge system to the shore and with several strong anchors to the seabed) And of course those barges were today not…   read more of “16 October 2018;…”

Although the Mediterranean is known for its beautiful weather, it is also a very windy area. In the winter the winds can blow from the north (Generated by the landmass of Western and Eastern Europe) and in the winter from the south (generated by the Sahara). In autumn and Spring with the change of the…   read more of “15 October 2018:…”

Also for today the weather gurus had indicated that there might be rain during but as in previous ports not much happened in that direction. Local influences such as wind and mountain ranges kept the rain away and we all benefited from it. Sightseeing in the rain is less enjoyable than when it is dry….   read more of “14 October 2018;…”

As was to be expected with three cruise ships in port, some our buses were delayed in returning from their tour and thus the ship patiently waited until everybody was safely back on board. That is of course one of the big advantageous of taking a ships operated tour; the ship will wait until you…   read more of “13 October 2018; At…”