Celebrity Cruise to Bermuda

In front of the Celebrity Silhouette
in Bermuda.

Several months ago, a YouTube personality who hosts an old-time movie review channel announced a classic movie-themed cruise on Celebrity to Bermuda. Of course I signed up right away and convinced my brother who is not a huge classic movie fan, but is a huge cruise fan, to accompany me. But not enough people signed up to meet the required minimum and so the classic movie portion of the cruise was cancelled. The travel agent volunteered to refund my deposit, but my brother and I decided to go anyway since the cruise was still going to take place, just no old movies. Besides, I had my own mini-classic film festival in our cabinet by watching two Betty Gable flicks on the video-on-demand channel. 

Day 1

My brother Jonathan drove us to Port Liberty in Bayonne, NJ (He lives in Delaware and drove up.) We got on the Celebrity Silhouette and watched the Statue of Liberty drift by. There was a LGBTQ passengers' get-together and we met several other gay travelers (I remember on my first cruise they called such meetings Friends of Dorothy so as not to upset the straights.) There was an "adult" comic who told sexually-oriented jokes. Mildly funny. She dressed in an orange housedress and sneakers. Her big claim to fame was she did a robot dance in front of Simon Cowell at a restaurant and it wound up in the National Enquirer when he gave her a thumbs-down.

Carole Landis, Robert Cummings, Jack Haley,
Betty Grable and Don Ameche in
Moon Over Miami (1941)

Before bed, I watched Moon Over Miami with Betty Grable, Don Ameche, Robert Cummings, Carole Landis, Charlotte Greenwood, and Jack Haley. The kind of movie where dirt-poor Betty, Carol and Charlotte pretend to be ultra-rich and go husband-hunting in Florida. Lots of silly musical numbers with titles like "Oh Me, Oh Miami." The highlights: Haley and Greenwood's comedy-relief number, "Is That Good?" and Betty breaking into an elaborate tap number at a party with two perfect strangers.

Day 2

Dinner at LePetit Chef at LaQuisine. The gimmick here is they show an animation on your plate related to each dish. A little cartoon chef explains the influences and ingredients. For dessert they had dancing strawberries. It was cute. We also played Trivia (cheap prizes) and attended a presentation on future cruises.

Cruise to the Mediterranean, Part 1: Malta, Dubrovnik

For the second year in a row, we booked a cruise on Oceania to the Mediterranean, visiting many ports we have never been to before (Last year's cruise to Greece and Turkey was so wonderful we booked again on the same line.) We started in Valletta, Malta which we didn't see much of because we were both so exhausted and jet-lagged from the flight from NYC with a stop-over in Rome, we took a long nap in the hotel. There was a cute small beach club just for hotel guests, but we didn't have time to take advantage of it. But we did go to dinner at a local restaurant called Gululu with a lovely waterfront view. I had rabbit and thought of Bugs Bunny. We strolled around. Malta was very nice but we didn't get more than a glimpse of it. The only thing I knew about it was The Maltese Falcon and the fact that Popeye was filmed there. We'll have to go back. 

Dubrovnik, Croatia

Day 1-2: Day at Sea and Dubrovnik, Croatia: We got on board our ship the Marina the next day and headed for our first port Dubrovnik, Croatia. We had a day at sea before reaching Dubrovnik. There was a sumptuous brunch buffet in Grand Dining Room with caviar, lobster tails, chocolates, custards, fruit cups, croissants, and endless other goodies. It was so nice to get away from the madness of our current awful Presidential election, but the insanity intrudes on this serene scene. At a table near us, two couples were discussing Trump and a man stated the truth: he's a convicted felon. A Trump supporter at the next table, shouted "You don't know what you're talking about. That's not the whole story." The first man replied, "I'm talking about this with my friends. Not with you." The irate second gentleman bellowed, "You're talking loud enough for me to hear and I don't have to listen to this" and he stormed off , soon followed by his silent wife. The anti-Trumpers laughed the incident off and continued with their brunch. 

The sumptuous brunch buffet

That night I played Team Trivia with five other passengers and we dubbed ourselves the Can-Am team since two of of players were from Canada. The entertainment that night was a musical revue featuring four singers and seven dancers. It was okay. The cast was talented and the material was familiar. Later in the week, the shows were similarly safe with a comedian and a vocalist alternating with the ship's ensemble. The best show was a revue emphasizing dance with numbers reminiscent of Gene Kelly in An American in Paris and Bob Fosse's bowler hats and white gloves.

Once in Croatia, we booked a tasty wine-tasting excursion out in the countryside followed by a fun boat ride. After the boat ride, we took the shuttle bus from the port to the Dubrovnik town center where discovered the common theme of this cruise: walled cities surrounded a charming "old town." Many of the ports where points of defense for countries constantly at risk for invasion. The region was a shifting map of borders and warring ethnicities--Yugoslavia, Croatia, Montenegro, Serbia, etc. etc. The walls provided protection and the interior towns became quaint tourist attractions. We wandered around the tourist-choked narrow streets and broad squares.

On board ship, the meals were excellent. During the course of the cruise, we dined at the four specialty restaurants--Jacques (French), Red Ginger (Asian Fusion), Toscana (Italian), and Polo Grill (steakhouse). All were first-rate. I think I enjoyed Toscana best where I had seafood linguine and filet mignon with spinach and gorgonzola cheese. The dessert was peaches in brown sugar sauce. 

I like Oceania because they include almost everything upfront as opposed to other cruise lines which nickel and dime you to death. Our package included the four specialty restaurants, four shore excursions, a drinks package for wine and champagne (but not cocktails), and a concierge-level room with a balcony.

Our ship the Marina

My Cruise to Greece and Turkey: Part 5: Istanbul and Frankfurt Airport

Mon. July 17--Istanbul

The elegant lobby of the Intercontinental
Hotel in Istanbul

We regretfully checked out of the Sirena cruise ship this morning--though ten days is about enough for a cruise--and after a loooong walk through passport control, got on our transfer bus to the Intercontinental Hotel in Istanbul. The cruise was wonderful and I highly recommend Oceania Cruise Lines which organized everything with helpful staff pointing us in the right direction otherwise we would have been totally lost. The Intercontinental is a gorgeous, elegant, modern hotel with a spacious lobby out of a science fiction movie. The stairway alone is worth the high price of a room. It looks like Mame or Dolly should be walking down its steps for the big production number.

We had one full day in the Turkish capital and decided to take a cruise of the bosphorus (where Vickie Edyie gets preposterous, if recall that bit from Bette Midler's Live album). Our guide Mehmet was fun and informative. We stopped at the Spice Market, sampling Turkish taffy and candy. This crowded bazaar was not as chaotic and overwhelming as the

Spice Market

Grand Bazaar we had been to on our last visit. It was remarkable for its colorful displays and non-aggressive salesmen. Then we took our cruise on the bosphorus with Mehmet providing commentary. At one point, I had a picture taken as we approached a bridge to show we were between Europe and Asia. 

Back at the hotel, we got a dinner recommendation from the concierge for a local place that had authentic food. The cuisine was adequate, but the views of the river were spectacular with seagulls hovering nearby. We went to bed after watching CNN International and EuroNews. It was so refreshing not to be bombarded with internal US political news and the ongoing Trump shit show. The main story was the heat wave engulfing Europe and the United States. Pavements and streets were actually burning people and forest fires continued to blaze. Heat domes and pizza ovens were used to describe the effect. This staggering heat is becoming the new normal and will continue to create crises as parts of the world become uninhabitable.

My Cruise to Greece and Turkey: Part 4: Kavala, Limnos

Sat., July 15--Kavala

Kavala's idea of public transportation.
At least it was free.

This was a down day, meaning no strenuous activity. It was just too hot as all of Europe became a pizza oven. All the news reports gave the temperature in celsius so it doesn't sound too bad. But when you convert it, the mercury reaches triple digits and to quote Cole Porter, it's too darned hot. We went shopping in the town of Kavala and bought several shirts, then had a snack at a coffee place of which there are hundreds. Jerry went back to the ship and I wandered around the seafront, eventually finding a cute little train for free. There is not narration or tourist information, it just climbs the steep, narrow streets up the mountain. Locals use it for public transportation to get to their home high up. I caught the last one at 1300 or 1 pm in American time. The whole ride was 20 minutes up the hills and back to the town square, with stops at the usual castle, fort, amphitheater, etc. No guide, no context, just up the winding, twisting streets not much wider than alleyways. It was something to do and I saw some great views but too may other people blocked me for a good picture.

My Cruise to Greece and Turkey: Part 2: Crete, Marmaris, Bodrum

Mon. July 10--Crete

Our guide Karen at the Phaestos Palace site

We rose at 6am to get to our excursion for the archeological site at Phaestos from the Minoan era (12th century BC). The trip to the number one ancient palace Knossos was full, so we had to take number two, Phaestos. We docked and took abus for 1 hour and 15 mins. to the site. Our guide Karen was very informative. She is originally from the Netherlands and has lived on Crete for 30 years. She gave us lots of information about Crete and its occupation by the Romans, the Byzantines, the Venetians, the Ottoman Turks and finally their union with Greece. She also gave us her thoughts on the current Greek economy, the European Union, etc. 

We were too tired to do anything after the four-hour tour including the long drive back to the boat. After lunch and lounging on the pool deck, I played Team Trivia, scoring 12 out of 15 (I correctly guessed that Elizabeth Taylor had been married 8 times to 7 different husbands). Then high tea on the Horizons deck. The string quartet played unusual selections like "Three Little Maids from School" from The Mikado and The Beatles' Yellow Submarine as I sipped Earl Grey and munched little salami sandwiches and sweet pastries, just like at Harrod's. 

My Cruise to Greece and Turkey: Part 1: Athens, Santorini

The view of the parthenon from
our hotel in Athens

For my fourth cruise trip, we decided to go with Oceania Cruises, based on a recommendation of a friend who said the intimate, medium-sized ships allowed for better service and less crazy crowding getting on and off the ship. A ten-day cruise of the Greek islands and Turkish seaside cities worked out best for our schedule during the summer. It's been a delightful and relaxed trip. I haven't felt pressure to rush around and see ruins or historical sites. The important thing is to escape and take it easy. Here's a rundown of the trip:

Thurs. July 6--Athens
After our flight from JFK to Zurich to Athens, we checked into our hotel at the Greek capital, the Great Bretaigne (overlooking the Acropolis and the Parthenon) and had dinner at a local restaurant (very good). The flight was SwissAir--watched the first episode of Season 2 of The White Lotus (what's all the fuss about with the entire cast nominated for Emmys?) and Season 5 of The Handmaid's Tale (I'd lost interest after the first four seasons, but thought I would catch up.)