The cruise had only just begun.
A typical Crystal Symphony voyage takes about 6-18 days but we were on a shorter one-week version, perfect for brief escapes. At the Gala Welcome reception we were ushered into the stylish Starlight Club for medleys, hors d’oeuvres and flutes of champagne as guests donned tuxedos, pearls and sky-high Manolo Blahniks. Darwin, our server, mysteriously knew my name. And so it went for the rest of our journey.
We dined in the Crystal Dining Room amid Riedel crystal and fine Villeroy and Boch china. I enjoyed the chef’s suggestion of sautéed jumbo shrimp, northern crab soup with brie cheese, followed by broiled fresh Norwegian salmon fillets, a homage to our Norwegian captain. As we dined we sailed past the isle of Corsica, Napoleon’s birthÂplace to the Ligurian Sea.
Our first stop was the picturesque seaside village of Portofino. Weathered buildings in sunflower, peach and pale blue hues enveloped the brightly bobbing fishing boats or gozzi. The Romans named this coastal sanctuary Portus Delphini, “the Port of the Dolphins.” These days it is an excluÂsive stomping ground for wealthy and arisÂtocratic Italians. Shore excursions are available but we ventured on our own to tour the town and its neighbouring city, Santa Margherita. We hiked the promontoÂry laden with canopies of aromatic jasmine and ascended the cobbled stone steps to visit the Castello Brown, a medieval castle overlooking the harbour then finished our tour with a gelato at the lighthouse.
Life along the Italian Riviera is pure La dolce vita from the cuisine to the spectacuÂlar scenery to the azure blue Mediterranean Sea. The piazzas are filled with sun-glassed patrons of Prada sipping cappuccinos. Their only burden was lugging shopping bags from Pucci, Gucci and Ferragamo. It’s a cocktail of elegant social life and supreme privacy behind luxe villas that cling to the cliff tops.
The Symphony then sailed effortlessly to our next stop Monaco where fairytales really do come true. The world’s second smallest kingdom after the Vatican was made famous by starlet Grace Kelley who stole Prince Rainier’s heart in 1955 on a visit to Cannes during the premier of the Hitchcock classic, To Catch A Thief. With the Cannes Film Festival in full swing and the Monte Carlo Grand Prix a few days away we chose to avoid the crowds and took a group shore excursion along the famous Cote D’Azur to Nice, France.
Considered the capital and queen of the Riviera, Nice sits on a stage surrounded by a natural amphitheatre of mountains that reign over the Baie des Anges (Bay of Angels). Lavish hotels and a casino erected during the Belle Epoque period make Nice a constant rival to Monaco. You can still see vestiges of the old days along the famous Promenade Anglais that skirts the famous pebble beachfront.
Matisse’s studio was here and overlooked the frenzied street market in the old city. There’s a caricature statue of Miles Davis outside the exclusive Hotel Negresco. Bono, Elton John, Tina Turner and Bill Gates all have heavenly pads between Monte Carlo and this exclusive seaside resort town.
