----- Original Message -----
From: Ice Queen
Newsgroups: rec.travel.cruises
Sent: Sunday, June 24, 2001 12:55 PM
Subject: Ren R5 Rome-Venice Review Part II

Following is a day by day discussion of our 6/3 Rome-Venice trip.
The Blow-By-Blow:

Day 1-Rome (Pre-cruise)
In Rome we stayed at the Hotel Condotti 29 Palo Bianco Suites on Via
Condotti,about a block from the Spanish Steps. I booked this on the internet from the Hotel Reservation Network (HRN) and it was a great find. It is a very small inn (6 rooms), more like a B & B. Breakfast was included as was a fruit basket in the room and wine in the early evening. The staff were very helpful and accommodating. The room itself was nicely appointed but compact. However the bathroom was very large and clean with nice amenities.

The first day in Rome we opted for a walking tour of ancient Rome offered by American Express (a block off the Spanish Steps). This was an excellent four-hour tour that took us through the Roman and Imperial Forums; visited a few very old churches, include San Pietro in Vincoli (the church that houses Michelangelo's "Moses" and the chains that held St. Peter; the Coliseum; and other sites in that area. The guide was an art historian by profession and was knowledgeable and spoke excellent English. That evening we walked along the Tiber River and crossed over and visited the Castel San Angelo.

Day 2 (Pre-cruise)
We took our own walking tour down around the Pantheon, visiting several of the churches along the way, the Piazza Navona and the Trevi Fountain and came back by way of the Spanish Steps just in time for even strolling ritual, called the passiegata, that Romans indulge in. There were so many people strolling the streets, sitting on the steps and piazzas that there could not have been too many people left any place else in Rome. The atmosphere was festive and people were friendly but we were still cautious of possible pickpockets and speeding motor scooters. My other observation is that no Roman women seem to be over a size 6! In general they dress better than we do and the clothes in shop windows were lovely-if you wear a 6. Maybe all this walking keeps them slim. The women also wore leather shoes with high narrow heels and often no backs. I have no clue how they manage on cobblestone streets but they do.

Day 3 (Embarkation)
The following morning we walked up to the Piazza del Popolo and strolled the Borghese Gardens. Very relaxing and it was fun to see Roman families at play. Around 1:00 our limo driver, Bob Francini (an American) and owner of Rome Limo Service picked us and took us to Civitavecchia to the ship. Cost was $150 and well worth it. I can highly recommend this company.

Check in was quick and painless and we boarded the R5 within 15 minutes of arriving. It was like coming home. We enjoyed our cabin from the last cruise 7000) so much we took it again. It is center, forward directly under the bridge and a great location for watching the ship pull into port. Unfortunately, this year for some reason we almost always backed in to dock so the people in the aft cabins ended up with the better view. The ship remains just as clean and lovely as she was in September. This just a beautiful ship and the perfect size for me.

Since we usually take the ship's tours because of the convenience, the first priority for the afternoon was picking our tours. They were offering $10 off each tour if you booked 7 or more up front so we were forced to make decisions based only on the short blurbs in the cruise literature. On the last trip, they ran a video (about 45 min long) that briefly detailed every tour so you had a sense of what was each was like before booking. This time they only ran the video for the immediate upcoming port the day before. This was frustrating and I wish they would go back to giving information on everything upfront, especially if they are encouraging you to book all at once.

Day 4 Rome-Vatican
We originally intended to take the all-day Private View of the Vatican tour but for some reason it was not available. We never did find out why. The tour desk personnel are pretty useless. They can rarely answer your questions except with guesses ("I think.", "usually.", "probably."). We opted for the Vatican Museum tour instead. Bus trip to Rome took about an hour and then there were rush hour delays in the city that took another 20 minutes. The line to get into the Vatican Museum was incredibly long; it went on for blocks! But it moved relatively fast and we got into the museum in about an hour. Many people were upset and complained, but we just rolled with the punches and used the time to talk to our tour guide, Nicola. The Vatican is a "must see". We barely scratched the surface in only a day but the painting and sculptures and architecture are amazing. The Sistine Chapel lives up to it's billing and is beautiful and the colors are rich. It almost looks 3-dimensional in places. We then went into St. Peter's Basilica. Be sure to wear clothing that covers your knees and shoulders. We opted for long sun dresses with jackets almost every day since we were in and out of churches and cathedrals all the time. Also found them cooler than shorts and pants. Lunch on our own near the Via Veneto and then ended with a driving tour through Rome.

One other reminder-public toilets generally cost 500-1000 lira (roughly 25-50 cents). Our bus made a pit stop at a roadside gas station/restaurant on the way to Rome. There was a matron handing out toilet paper. She did not speak English but tried to show the people ahead of us in line that she expected a tip. Most of the guests were not prepared for this and had no money on them. By the time I got up there she left in a huff because no one was tipping her and took the toilet paper with her! Fortunately I came prepared so no problem. I would recommend buying WC packets from Magellan's. They include toilet paper, wet-wipes and seat covers in flat sealed pouches that are easy to carry.
They come in packs of 10.

Day 5 Cannes
Another gorgeous day (sunny, upper 70's, slight breeze). We chose the half day St. Paul de Vence/Grasse tour. St. Paul de Vence is a walled medieval city on a high cliff looking out over the Med about 20 miles from Cannes. This is a great stop! Charming city, fun to stroll around in, full of history. Most of the old buildings now house boutiques and a lot of art galleries. I would have loved more time here. The visit to the perfume factory at Grasse is a total waste. Grasse is the known for making 75% of the essences used to make perfume but the "factory" on the tour is nothing more than a sales job, to get you to buy their products. It was like watching QVC. Would have much preferred spending the additional time in St. Paul. Spent the afternoon strolling Cannes and took a little tourist train ride through town seeing how the rich people live.

Recommendation: There are two tourist trains (little linked trolley cars)-about $5. One goes up to the old city on the hill. The other goes by the luxury homes and hotels. We didn't know this and ended up getting on the wrong train. We wanted to visit the historic city but saw the ritzy part of town instead.

Many people opted for the trip to Monte Carlo but were not happy. The roads were under construction and the delays to get there were so long that they had to hurry through town and didn't get to spend much time there. Other people were denied entry into the Grand Casino because they wanted to see your passport. The ship announced this but some people either never heard it or ignored it.

Day 6 Portofino
We signed up for the Dreamboating on the Riveria tour, a boat trip along the coast to a few small towns and monestery. Unfortunately, it rained in the morning and the trip was canceled. By 11:00 am, however the sun came out and it turned into a gorgeous day. We tendered into Portofino and strolled around. This is my favorite stop! It is beautiful and charming. Very small and easy to walk around and post-card pretty. In fact, it lives up to all the pictures I've ever seen. And surprisingly it looks just like the Universal Studio's Portofino Resort Hotel in Orlando, FL. J. We ended up walking up a path that took us to the Hotel Splendido high up on the hill overlooking the yacht harbor. If we had realized how high up we were going, we probably never would have made the hike but it turned out to be a relatively easy walk. Got to the hotel and sat on the balcony café sipping a Bellini, eating olives and pretending we could afford the $600 a night room rates. I'm sure the fanny packs, sun hats, cameras and tennis shoes were dead giveaways tho.

Day 7 Siena & San Gemignano
We opted for the all day tour of Siena and San Gemignano, two medieval walled towns that are very well preserved. A great day strolling the towns. The basilica in Siena is beautiful and piazza is a great place to sip a cappucino and people watch. Very historic area and we heard a lot about the Palio, a tradition that goes back hundreds of years. The city is broken into districts (contrade) and they compete in a horse race around the piazza twice a year. The next Palio is in mid-July so the city was already getting excited and festive.
San Gemignano is smaller and more laid-back but again, a beautiful place to stroll and soak up the atmosphere. Great views overlooking the Tuscan landscape too. A gorgeous drive back through the Tuscan countryside.

Day 8 Florence
We booked tickets to the Accademia in advance over the internet (www.selectitaly.com) so we took the Ren bus in and did Florence on our own. The bus lets you off near the Santa Croce church. We went straight to the Accademia to pick up the tickets (it was about 9:30 am and tickets were for 11:15 but you must pick them up at least a half-hour before time). Instead of telling us to come back, they just let us right in then. This was great since the regular line for those without tickets was already very long. Spent most of our time here looking at Michaelangelo's sculputures, "The Slaves" and of course "The David". This is something else that lives up to its reputation. It is almost alive. There is a vitality in this piece that the copies elsewhere in Florence lack. A true masterpiece worth seeing. We then wandered around, visited some of the churches and markets and spent time at the Duomo and Baptistry. Again, these are incredible works of art and architecture and words do not describe their beauty.

Continued down to the Palazzo Vecchio and by the Uffizi Gallery. Would have dearly loved to visit the Uffizi (you can also buy tickets in advance on-line) but if you got me in, you wouldn't get me out. That is an all-day visit in itself and since I had never been to Florence before, we decided to skip it this time. Strolled down to the Ponte Vecchio and lusted after the jewelry in the stores lining the bridge. Had lunch on the Piazza Santa Croce, and gelati at Vivoli near by. Too die for. I had the riso (rice) gelato. It was like eating rice pudding. Great!. Ended the day in the Santa Croce Church, a sort of pantheon. Michaelangelo, Machiavelli, Galileo, Rossini and others are buried here. Too much to see, too little time.

Day 9 Sea
A very welcome down day. Walked two miles on the fitness track after breakfast and then settled into a lounge chair with a thick book and a pina colada every once in a while. Also did a few loads of laundry ($6 a load to wash and dry).
Had lunch at the BBQ grill-very popular. Burgers were good, but over-cooked. It's impossible to get them to make them medium rare. The pool and hot tubs got a lot of use. The pool water was never cold but by late afternoon, it got really warm. Lounge chairs became a hot commodity by noon time and for a brief period there were none to be had. Although Ren announced that they would clear any chairs left vacant more than 20 minutes and put the stuff in lost and found, we never saw it happen.

Day 10 Sorrento and Pompeii
Spent a lovely morning in Sorrento, a beautiful seaside resort. It was Sunday so the streets weren't very crowded. While a number of shops were closed, a surprising number were open. Sorrento is known for its inlaid wood furniture and boxes. I wanted to buy everything in sight. And did end up buying a beautiful tea cart but will have to wait another three weeks before it's shipped. Sigh. In the afternoon we went to Pompeii. This turned out to be the hottest day of the trip. A lot of people had trouble keeping up because of the heat. They guide kept saying, "Today is not bad. Now July and August, that's when it's hot!" I would STRONGLY recommend taking a hat and lots of water.

Pompeii is just amazing. There is so much still standing that you can almost visualize it as a thriving city. It is also far larger than I imagined. The plaster casts of people who died in the eruption are startling and somewhat disturbing. It's hard to describe the feeling that came over me when looking at them. I also found the bordello fascinating, especially the paintings over the doors of the rooms that show the "speciality" of the woman in that room. The guide compared it to the picture menus at MacDonalds. You don't have to know the language to understand what they mean. I can see it now. "You want fries with that? Is that for here or to go?"

A lot of other people opted for Capri/Anacapri. It was a tough decision between that and Pompeii but we heard that due to the damage caused by visitors, they are thinking of closing portions of the Pompeii and limiting the number of people who can visit at any one time so we decided this was our best choice.
Reports from the Capri group were very positive however.

Day 11 Sea
Another beautiful day to relax. I did exactly what I did the previous sea day and enjoyed it just as much. I guess I never get tired of doing nothing. One of the highlights was when the Ren Orchestra did a country and western set around noon. The two lead dancers from the Paramount Performers led people in a few line dances. Then one of the cruise staff started showing the two dancers steps to dances they did not know. This was the first time the band had done the C & W set. It was really interesting watching the two dancers learn the steps. It only took a couple of repetitions before the dancers got the hang of it and began improvising their own moves. I know they dance for a living but it was still astonishing to watch them pick it up so fast. In the afternoon we did the wine tasting. If I recall correctly it was $5 per person and we tried four wines and champagne. However, what you taste are the least expensive wines the ship offers and while the sommelier generally tried to be positive about them, you can tell he really wasn't impressed with any of them. Seems to me that this would the opportunity for them to push some of the better wines by allowing people to taste the difference between the lesser wines and the better ones. I for one would have gladly paid more to try their better wines.

Day 12 Corfu
Corfu is a lovely Greek Island, a very pretty resort with a beautiful esplanade for strolling, dining and shopping. Old Corfu Town is fun with a lot of winding streets. All the usual tourist shops but some absolutely beautiful jewelry stores as well. Grecian gold work is outstanding. We also visited the Achilleon Palace, a winter home for Empress Elizabeth of Bavaria. Very pretty garden with beautiful sculptures and a fabulous view. I could live there.

Day 13 Dubrovnik
What can I say? Another fascinating city, a step back in time. The old walled city was very badly damaged by the war for Croatian independence in 1991. There is a map showing where the bombing and damage was and the map is just covered with red marks. And yet they have managed to do an incredible restoration. I never saw the city before but there is no evidence of vacant lots or bombed out buildings or other rubble. It looks to me just like it would have looked in the mid 17th century (if you forget about the T-shirt shops). By all means take a walk along the city walls. The views are great from up there and you have an even better appreciation of the city. This was a short half-day stop so we had the afternoon to relax shipboard.

Day 14 Venice
Our last stop. Where did the time go? Arriving in Venice is a photographer's dream. The ship goes up the wide part of the Grand Canal and you have a wonderful view of the Lido, the city, Piazza San Marco, the Campanile, and all the wonderful Venetian palazzos, canals and gondolas. I shot an entire roll of film while standing on the railing by the fitness track as we made our approach to the port. Since we planned on staying over in Venice and could see it on our own we elected to take the tour to the islands of Murano and Burano. Unfortunately, not enough people shared our interest and the trip was canceled due to lack of participants. Instead we took the "Hidden Streets of Venice" a boat tour up the Grand Canal to the Rialto Bridge and then a walking tour from there. Venice is magical. The architecture is fanciful and the whole city has an air of unreality. It is hard for me to imagine that people actually live and work here. It just seems so much like a stage set.

The rest of the day we spent on our own. We used the local water bus system, the vaporetti, to get around. Very inexpensive, very reliable and a lot of fun. Also crowded during rush hour and on the tourist routes, like the one that goes up the Grand Canal. Unfortunately, the nearest vaporetto stop is NOT near the ship.
It is a good 20-minute walk along a not very clear route. The ship personnel were not helpful in giving good information about how to get around. The maps they gave out were vague and they shore excursion staff just pointed in the general direction and said it was a 5-10 minute walk "that way". Fortunately, there were enough of us going the same way that the blind led the blind and we found our way. The cruise ships should get together and set up a shuttle bus system from the port to the vaporetto.

The Rotterdam and Golden Princess were in port with us. The Rotterdam evidently suffered some propeller damage and swapped out prop blades while we were there. One was chewed up pretty badly. The Golden Princess is immense and dwarfed us. Even dwarfed the Rotterdam. While I like Princess as a cruise line, I think that is too large a ship for me and I didn't really like her lines. Too top heavy looking. The other thing I noticed was that it appeared to take a long time to load passengers for tours since only one tour boat could dock at a time. That may not be a problem in other ports but it looked like an issue in Venice.

That evening we were scheduled for the Gondola by Night tour. But about 6:00pm thunderstorms moved in and they ended up canceling that excursion as well. We had almost no rain on this trip but the two brief periods coincided with boat trips that had to be canceled as a result. How lucky can you get?

Day 15 Disembarkation
Here is where things got ugly. Ren basically washed their hands of people who elected to use their own air transportation. We received virtually no guidance about when we could get off the ship and how to get to town or the airport. If you were leaving for the airport immediately you could buy ship's airport transfers for $29 but other than that you were on your own. They advised us that water taxis would be available after 8:00 am and you did not need to reserve unless you were leaving before then. When we got off the ship at 8:15 there was a long line (pile) of passengers and luggage waiting for water taxis.and waiting.and waiting.and waiting. Some people went to pay phones to call them but it appeared to me that the shore excursion staff just stood on the pier and watched the pandemonium. The made no move to quiet folks down or to volunteer to call taxis. There was an Italian woman at the front of the line who had a cell phone and was making calls. She may have been a dispatcher. I never found out.

In any event, taxis started showing up about 9:00 am. Then confusion really broke lose and people tried to get on the boats and the dispatcher tried to get people going to the same area in the same boats which meant some folks further back in the line go to go ahead of other people who had been waiting. It was ugly. Fortunately, we heard a man say he was going to the Danieli and we were at the Savoia e Jolanda next door so we hitched a ride with him. This could have been handled much better if Ren had provided clearer information or made effort to pre-arrange for taxis to be there. I know they have no obligation to those who book their own air, but they could have faciliated this at little or no cost and passengers would have left feeling better about Ren than they did. I think they should have at least offered a way for passengers to sign a list saying where they were going and either Ren could have put groups together to share a water taxi or the passengers themselves could have connected others going to the same place or nearby.

The water taxis are EXPENSIVE. It cost us 100,000 lira per couple (around $50) to share the taxi to town. There were three couples on the boat so the guy made $150 + tips to go less than two miles. It cost us another 150,000 lira (around $75) to go from the hotel to the airport the next day. If you have big, heavy or a lot of luggage this is really the best way to go. The vaporetti are too crowded to accommodate people toting more than a carry-on size bag. Plus you will have a great deal of difficulty getting you and your luggage on and off the boat since there is no one to help you unless another passenger is feeling generous. At least on the water taxis they do handle your luggage and it the route is direct tho costly.

We also booked the Savoia e Jolanda on the web through HRN. Terrific location on the Riva degli Schiavoni right on the Grand Canal and just a block from the Doge's Palace and the Piazza San Marco. It is right between the Danieli and the Londra Palace tho not nearly as expensive. It is a three star hotel. Lovely lobby, excellent, friendly staff especially the bellman. The rooms again are modest but adequate. Since we had a deeply discounted rate, we did not have a view but if you get higher room you would have a great view. Breakfast is included in the price.

We spent that day visiting the Doge's Palace, the Cathedral and just wandering around getting lost and people watching. In the evening we went next door to the Danieli and had drinks on their rooftop terrace restaurant. Incredible view over the canal to the Church of San Giorgio by Palladio across the way. Bring lots of money. The drinks were $13 dollars each. We had dinner at the restaurant in front of our hotel and watched the people, gondolas and boats go by. A special treat was sitting there when the Rotterdam left port and waving at all the people starting their trip.

Day 16 Home
This was one of those plane trips from hell due to flight delays, missed connections and lost baggage but you don't need to hear the gory details. Besides we were going home. It didn't matter all that much.