Travel
Author KATHY LETTE grabs her closest friends for an adventure on the high seas
Kathy Lette’s Med
The plan was to have a holiday in Europe. Just we four girlfriends. Racquel wanted to drive. But whoever said that the point of a journey was to “travel hopefully but not to arrive”, has obviously never tried to navigate around a seven-lane sub-orbital ring road. Michelle wanted to go by train. But who wants to share one toilet with 20 nationalities with varying and sometimes idiosyncratic approaches to personal hygiene? Ori wanted to fly. But there’s nothing like feeling the warm cellulite of a lecherous stranger pressed into your thigh during a turbulent take-off to make you truly appreciate sea travel. And so I booked us onto the Viking Sun.
SLEEK & SPACIOUS
My girlfriends were dubious about cruising the Mediterranean. They imagined cabins so cramped even a sardine would feel claustrophobic. But our spacious rooms, designed with Nordic ingenuity, were economic, yet elegant. The sea beneath our private balconies fizzed like the champagne our butler was handing to us with a welcoming smile. Staff are so attentively enthusiastic they make Pollyanna look depressed.
Our horizontal hotel left Venice at dusk. We girls sipped champagne on deck, admiring the pink and blue marbled sky.
We awoke refreshed, docked in the historic, UNESCO World Heritage-listed city of Ravenna. Famous for its Byzantine basilicas, we spent the day agog at the golden mosaics that adorn this cobbled, coastal haven.
It was a satisfyingly simple routine we repeated in each Adriatic port. We’d pop ashore to look at a few ancient relics (besides each other), then sashay back on board for a dip in the outdoor whirlpool as the boat glided off to our next exotic anchorage.
DAILY DISCOVERIES
No matter how adventurous our sightseeing, there was always the safety of the mothership, to which we felt umbilically attached.
Cruising also allows you to discover geographical gems you would never reach by car.
Off the coast of Montenegro, our ship suddenly veered into Europe’s southernmost fjord. Sheer limestone cliffs dropped dramatically into the sea. We snaked around a final bend to the ancient port of Kotor. Ringed by Venetian fortifications, walking through the city’s ancient gates is like taking a Tardis back in time.
Every day brought similar delights. In Sibenik we clambered over its four fortresses. In Rijeka’s grand palazzos we were amazed at ceilings painted by Klimt. In Slovenia we climbed Koper’s 12th-century cathedral campanile to drink in the sweeping bay views.
The Mediterranean’s dramatic coastline and sinuous rivers, the wave-worn fishing boats jostling at jetties, the gourmet feasts, the daily dose of culture as you’re whisked from museum to monument, fountain f i to forum – and, of course, the chance for mouth-to-mouth resuscitation with a tautly posteriored sailor with pecs-appeal during lifeboat drill – means my girlfriends were soon addicted to cruising. (It’s given new meaning to “navel-gazing”.)
HAPPILY HOOKED
We ended the cruise back in Venice. Gliding through the magical archipelago, we marvelled at this miraculous city, which shimmers on the water like a mirage. My ladies disembarked as contented as canary–fed cats... and have already booked another cruise for next year. Their new motto? When your ship comes in, don’t be at the airport.