Western Med 2022 - Day 3

We rise with full anticipation of an exciting day ahead - the day we join the ship - enjoy breakfast and then pack our bags. An hour to spare, we wander around the neighbourhood. We’d noticed the hideous sixties concrete carbuncle opposite The Guardian but not actually walked past it’s entrance - imagine our surprise (or not really) to learn that this is the British Embassy! We try not to take offence at the adverts for lesbianism plastered on the gates - so much for equality!!

We follow the old C4 city wall as it meanders round and then turn back to the railway station and thence to our hotel for the last time. We pay up and expect the taxi to arrive promptly - except it doesn’t. Calling the company lends credence to the problem - it isnt answered and just rings out. The booking agency is also on the document so we call them, to learn that they cancelled our booking. Later on we check back with our travel agent and to our embarrassment discover that we missed this message amongst an email full of other stuff.

Fortunately the concierge has a taxi with us in less than a minute and we’re on our way to the port of Civitavecchia. The journey is only eighty minutes, so we arrive before our allocated embarkation time-slot but nobody worries, we’re processed very quickly and just about to board when the dockside X-ray scanner decides to break down. Some follow passengers seem to get a bit fratchy but we just sit down with a nice drink and relax.

It doesn’t take long before we’re directed to board, and we pass our rucksack through the shipboard scanner instead, just like we would in any other port.

Five minutes later we’re at the grill ordering burgers and being plied with champagne - just how it should be!!

We get all the safety stuff done first - it used to be a lifeboat drill, but these days it’s just a visit to our muster-station to confirm we know where we should go in an emergency, followed by a requirement to watch the safety briefing on the telly. Once that’s done, and hubby has unpacked, we’re down to our favourite spot on deck five aft to relax a bit with a raspberry daiquiri and write.

We spend a couple of hours on five aft, meanwhile the last part of the safety drill is broadcast. Captain also tells us we’re delayed because a group of arriving passengers are stuck on a train - this must be a Seabourn arrangement or we’d have left them stranded.

Before too long the local pilot arrives to drive us out, and we’re reversing past Seaside, Odyssey of the Seas, Mein Shiff II and others to get out of the port. These megaliths tower over little ole’ us!

We head up to the party on deck eight for a while, enjoy some cocktail of the day that we don’t recognise, as we finally emerge from this huge harbour and sail out to sea.