One of the best things about cruises is the chance to see different places in a short amount of time. The downside is seeing only a little bit of a country, usually the parts frequented by other tourists. I recently cruised in the Mediterranean on the Norwegian Escape. My husband and I had cruised that part of the world a few times on both Norwegian and Carnival cruise lines. This was my sister’s first trip to Europe and her first cruise. As older folks (65, 71 and 72) an 11-day cruise can be a challenge. Before we even boarded the ship we spent three glorious days in Venice, Italy.

The cruise was listed on the Norwegian website as departing from Venice (Trieste). Well, it actually does depart from Trieste. What Norwegian doesn’t make clear is the distance from Venice to Trieste. The fastest way to get from Venice to Port of Trieste is to drive which takes about one and a half to two hours. There’s a direct bus departing from Venezia, Tronchetto and arriving at Trieste. Services depart every four hours, and operate every day. There is also a direct train departing from Venezia S. Lucia and arriving at Trieste Centrale. Services depart hourly, and operate every day. The journey takes about 3h 49m. I’ve heard there’s a ferry between these cities, but I never investigated that possibility. We opted to take a water taxi to a dock on the Grand Canal at Piazzale Roma where we transferred to a private car for the two hour drive to the port in Trieste. This actually was a delightful, if costly, way to travel. Our journey on the water taxi gave us the opportunity to see more of the amazing architecture in Venice. Our driver was fabulous, transferring our luggage to the comfortable Mercedes SUV that carried us to the port in Trieste.

We didn’t see a lot of Trieste, but the houses and streets we passed were lovely. It appears to be a vibrant city. The port was bustling and as our driver unloaded our luggage we were approached by a young man who offered to help us to the entrance to the gate. He loaded onto a large cart and as he guided us through the parking lot he told us about the city, the port, and our ship. He said the Norwegian Escape was the largest ship he’d seen at the port. We were soon to see just how big this ship is!

Once our luggage was turned over to the men who would load it onto the ship, we bid farewell to our friendly and informative helper. The next step was finding the wheelchair entrance to the building. After a couple of wrong turns, a port attendant took us to the correct entrance and the elevator that would bring us to our check in point. This was the first minor mishap. Although the young woman pressed the button for the required floor repeatedly the doors would not close. Finally, she went to get assistance and the next woman was able to get the elevator moving. Because I had arranged priority status in advance we got through the check in process quickly. Our second disappointment awaited us. We would usually rent a wheelchair from the cruise line on our trips. On this trip we opted to bring my small transport wheelchair since we were spending a few days in Venice pre-cruise and a few days in Barcelona post-cruise. In the past a member of the ship’s crew would assist us onboard with our carry on luggage and a rented chair. This time we were left to our own devices. As I said, we are not young people and it was something of a struggle to get onboard. No one offered assistance.

Our first stop onboard was our room. We needed to drop off our carry ons and freshen up before grabbing lunch and exploring the very large ship.

Yes, we had nachos in an Irish themed pub! I had my always loved Margarita (it was excellent). Kathy was traditional with her Irish Coffee. Neil had his first of many martinis. We also shared chicken wings. I chose the Caesar Salad, Kathy had the fish sandwich, and Neil opted for the Lechon Asado which is a Cuban pulled pork dish. Tasty!

After lunch we wandered around the ship for a short time before retiring to our stateroom for an afternoon nap. But, instead of sleeping we gathered on our balcony to wave farewell to Trieste.

Our first stop on the cruise was Split in Croatia. We decided to remain onboard. We did video sunrise over the Adriatic Sea as we approached the harbor.

Neil and I had been to Dubrovnik on an earlier cruise and were excited to visit again. Kathy loved seeing the lights on the houses as we entered the port at sunrise. It was incredibly hot that day. After a quick breakfast at the Garden Cafe we ventured off the ship. The day was so hot we spent our short visit dashing in and out of shops shopping for souvenirs for the folks back home. One shopkeeper told us it was the hottest summer they’d ever had. We had no trouble believing her!

Having survived the blistering temperatures, we returned to the ship. After a leisurely lunch and a couple of drinks we retired to our cabin and lounged on the balcony. That evening we waved farewell to beautiful Dubrovnik and set sail for the island of Corfu.

I knew nothing about the Greek island of Corfu prior to our visit. We arrived on another blistering hot day.

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We enjoyed ice cream and cold drinks before heading to the souvenir shop next door. Then it was back on the bus to go to our next stop.

Corfu has an amazing and rich history. It’s become quite a hot location for wealthy tourists. One of the places we visited was a factory where they make products from figs, olive oil and kumquats!

We visited one of the factories where they offered a brief tour. We were shown a short movie about the history of kumquats in Corfu, how they are distilled and bottled, and the different products available. Then we were given a tasting of a variety of them. I particularly enjoyed the flavor of the liqueur. They had jelly candies and even olive oil and a fig cake. I couldn’t resist buying a small bottle of the kumquat liqueur, a small bottle of extra virgin olive oil, and some of the candies.

Driving up the very narrow road our bus had to stop at as a line of vehicles was in front of us. Apparently there are rules about vehicles passing each other. There were moments when we so close to the side of the road I held my breath.

After our exciting day learning about Corfu we headed back to the Escape. We were greeted at the pier by crew members passing out cool, wet washcloths and cups of ice water. We gratefully accepted these refreshing offerings. Back onboard we took our booty to our cabin and once again sat on the balcony to bid farewell to Corfu.

That evening we decided to grab a quick dinner at the Garden Cafe. Apparently everyone onboard had the same idea. It was almost impossible to get to the various food selections. We hunted and finally found a table. The food looked tasty but the flavors were mediocre. The hot foods were very disappointing. I settled for a large salad and fresh fruit. I have to give the kitchen credit for a wide variety of fresh vegetables and fruits. After dinner we visited the various shops onboard. My husband usually buys me a pricy bauble but I was disappointed not finding anything extraordinary. We thought about attending one of the entertainment venues but they were all overcrowded. My sister and I retired to sit on the balcony while my husband went in search of a bar and socialization. Knowing we’d be in Malta the next day we turned in early.

See Part 2 of Cruisin’ to follow the adventures of 3 older folks on their journey.