Love The Mediterranean

Mediterranean

There are so many amazing Countries of culture and historical beauty bordering the Mediterranean sea , its hard to know where to begin.For me, what defines the Mediterranean is the great abundance of local food and wine found here at reasonable prices. The smell of garlic and fresh fish being fried. The sound of a cork popping on a bottle of local house wine. The never ending bustle of the Mediterranean people and restaurateurs enticing you onto there terraces with the promise of the best food on the coast using Momas secret recipe. The laid back approach to life in general. It´s a must see and be seen mentality. Eat, drink and be merry. I personally love it and am getting fat with a smile.What I am going to do is list some popular Mediterranean ports for you to check to make your choice a little easier when choosing your cruise. Enjoy....

Almeria for Granada (Granada is one of my favourite cities in the world. Old, rustic with plenty of shops, restaurants and tapas bars.Its stunning. Get on a ships tour from Almeria the home port to the Alhambra palace in Granada.

Barcelona (Great for shopping, eating and wondering around in. Plenty to do for example visit the museums,art galleries, Cathederals and town squares. Hint, if you are thinking about lunching well, go where the local Spanish are seated)

Cannes (Cafes, terraces and lots of yachts, see and be seen here)

Corfu (Great for exploring the old streets and markets)
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Corsica (Dramatic scenery, might be worth renting a car for the day to explore the island)

Civitavecchia - for Rome (Get on a tour for Rome, otherwise a train goes every hour,it will be worth every minute. Nothing much in Civitaecchia the port to Rome)

Dubrovnik(Wonder around the pretty town, beautiful streets, houses and cathederals. Currency can be a little tricky)

Genova (Take a tour here to museums Strada Nuova,or wonder around the old town. Plenty of shipping history here about Colombus)
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Gibratar (Shopping and more shopping,,, ohh and dont forget to see the monkeys on the rock of. Personally my least favourite but there again I don´t shop)

Istanbul (East meets West. Take a trip to the blue mosque, otherwise take a ships tour as is a huge city just to stroll around in)

Kusadasi (Great place for haggling, leather goods here very good quality, also tours to Epheseus and cheap fish lunches and local wines)
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Lisbon (A fish lovers paradise with a bottle of vino verde. Take a trip down town and wonder around there.Great for lovers of port wine. You can find all vintages)

Livorno for Pisa (However you can get to it, go and see the tower and spend the day in pisa. Trust me! worth the visit. Trains go direct from Livorno but make sure you save plenty of time for the returning trip)

Lesbos (Pretty sea side towns, great food and beaches, fish and wines and of course the Greek salad)
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Malaga (Great tapas and shopping, everything central, not far off the ship within walking distance. Even has a Mc.donalds smack bang in the middle, YUMMY.)

Menorca-Mahon (Good little town for wondering around in. Plenty of terraces and bars. Beautiful sailing into Mahon the capital)

Nice (I recommend the old town rather than the new. I personally like cobbly streets and old shops and here you will find plenty )

Santorini (Great views, cable cars, donkeys, feta cheese and great wine, oh , and shopping)
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Sorrento-Capri (Great little town for its old charm, views, pizza and shopping) Also from here if you are docked all day, you might want to take a hydro ferry to Capri (below), which is 20 minutes away. A favorite for the Brits.

St.Tropez (An expensive paradise for the jet setters, though well worth the visit)
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Venice (Go, words cannot describe this city, just make sure you´re itenerary allows 3 days here, and thats just to skim the surface of what this incredible city has to offer. Makes me want to sing opera. 'O SoLe Mio')
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