Four in a Row:

Cannes, Florence,
Rome, and Sardinia.

By Ron Fritze
DATELINE: The Mediterranean off the coast of Italy
June 23, 2008

I am a historian. I look for the history in everything. Our cruise has taken us to four different places in four days, two indubitably historical and two not so much.

You are all aware that Cannes is the site of the famous film festival. It took place just a few weeks before our arrival, but we did not manage to see any laggard stars on the streets of the city. We were warned that Cannes is expensive — and with the Euro especially strong compared to the dollar, I was in a cautious mood.

The Steep Climb to Le Sucret.

The Independence of the Seas dropped anchor in the Cannes harbor, which is a rather large bay — larger, but not as picturesque, as the harbor at Villefranche we saw on last summer's cruise. Taking a tender to shore, we made our way to the castle and monastery of Le Sucret, which houses a small art and anthropology museum. The path to Le Sucret follows a challenging slope up narrow streets and steep stairways.

Le Sucret features a medieval tower — the highest point in Cannes and a great location for photographs. The two Frenchman manning the ticket booth were quite friendly, so I asked them to suggest where we might sit down for a nice glass of wine. They drew me a good map. We went back to a bakery we had passed on the upward climb, picked up a loaf of French bread, and followed the map to the café.

The place proved to be a native hang-out situated next to a market selling fruit, fish, cheese, and sausages. Our fellow patrons at the café were friendly and relaxed. I noticed that many of them worked in the market. After finishing our wine, we strolled over to the market stalls and found some wonderful chorizo and hot sopprosetta. Our lunch in a little park nearby was delicious and delightful.

On our way down the slope to the tender's docking berth, we picked up a sample of Cannes beach sand for George Williams's students back home in Alabama. Listening to our fellow passengers aboard the Independence of the Seas, we rejoiced quietly in our simple good fortune. They regaled us with horror stories of fifty-dollar sandwiches ("mediocre"), twenty-dollar glasses of wine ("tiny"), and fifty-dollar chair rentals on the Cannes beach ("crowded").

An Excursion in Search of Beauty.

At Florence, our next stop, Twylia stayed on the ship, so I did the Florence-on-your-own excursion, having taken a guided tour last summer. Unfortunately, I was not able to get advance tickets to the Uffizi Gallery and so, for the second time, I missed getting in there.

At the Plaza della Vecchio I got pictures of the copies of Michelangelo's David and Baccio Bandinelli's Hercules. Standing next to one another, the statues reveal the difference between a genius in stone and a painfully average sculptor. Florentines of the age liked to make fun of Bandinelli's ability. One time a load of marble in route to Bandinelli's studio was travelling on a barge in the Arno River. The barge tipped and the marble was lost when it fell into the river. The joke among the Florentines was that the marble preferred suicide by drowning to being mutilated by Bandinelli's hammer and chisel.

A Dome, a Crypt, and Cosimo.

A little later I got in line to enter the Duomo, one of the greatest domed buildings in the world, a truly awesome place of grandeur and majesty. My next stop was the Church of San Lorenzo, the church patronized by the Medici family. Cosimo the Great is buried there, and I was able to walk past his crypt. The sanctuary has a section designed by Brunelleschi and another by Michelangelo. While its exterior looks oddly unfinished, it has a lovely cloister and an interior that is even lovelier than the Duomo.

By the way, Donatello is also buried in the San Lorenzo crypt. I highly recommend the church for a tourist with choices to make. The shops in the San Lorenzo square are the least expensive in Florence but sell the same trinkets as everyone else.

Next I made my way toward Dante's house, now a museum. Unfortunately, the maps provided by the excursion company lacked sufficient detail, and even though I had seen Dante's house the year before, I couldn't find it this time. The problem, however, opened the way to an opportunity. Hot and thirsty, I spied a little café on a side street. The i'Mangiario was run by an older man and his daughter, both very friendly, who spoke little English but served rather large bottles of Birra Moretti, a lifesaver in the heat of the day. Fortified, I ordered some burschetta. It was excellent — and I got directions to Dante's house. Remember, the i'Mangiario sits on the Via delle Studio. I highly recommend it.

Rome on Your Own Reveals
Grand Scenes and Simple Pleasures.

Then came Rome. Once again, Twylia and I did Rome on Your Own, deciding to pursue a personal adventure as soon as the tour bus made its first stop in the city. On the way in, the tour bus guide, a lovely Australian woman named Erma, listened patiently to our plan to see the Vatican Museum, then the Sistine Chapel, and finally St. Peter's basilica. Erma suggested holding off on getting into the line for Sistine Chapel.

Stopping to buy a bottle of water outside the gates of Castle San Angelo, we checked the map, got our bearings, and walked toward the Treve Fountain. Or so we thought. Once again, the map was poorly drawn — once again, we found the silver lining.

We came across a nice little cafe-restaurant called Snack Bar AI 4 Scalini. A friendly, blonde Italian woman sold us another bottle of water. We got directions to the Treve, and soon were dutifully throwing our coins into the fountain. I also got a drink of Treve water — it bestows good luck, I am told — and filled my bottle from the Treve fountain. On a hot day in Rome, doing so was a matter of survival.

Pagans, Christians, and an Oculus.

Back to the café for a big bottle of water — and a sandwich, very reasonably priced — not a tourist place at all. Sustained, we strolled on over to the Pantheon, built in its time as a temple for all of the gods, but now a Christian church. It featured the biggest dome in the ancient world, crowned by an oculus of stunning beauty. Open to the elements, the Pantheon's oculus allows rain to fall into the church. More importantly, it provides natural light for the interior. A truly beautiful building, the Pantheon provided inspiration for the design of the Duomo.

It is a long walk from there to the Vatican wall. Along the way we could see the causeway leading from the Vatican to the Castle San Angelo — the very causeway that Pope Clement VII entered when he ran for his life to escape the rampaging Imperial soldiers who stormed Rome in 1527.

The way to the wall and the entrance to the Vatican Museum is strewn with gypsy beggars and hucksters, enjoining you to sign-up for their guided tours through the museum. The price is rip-off, so don't do it.

By waiting until later in the day to visit the Sistine Chapel, we were able to avoid the long lines. But the place was still crowded, and all we were able to see was the chapel and the exhibits located along the way. By the way, it is a long walk from the gate to the Sistine Chapel. The chapel itself is very wonderful, but the wonder is marred by the crush of so many people and grumpy guards continually shushing the tourists.

Back at St. Peter's Square, we planned to visit the basilica, but to our misfortune, the line was enormous. With less than ninety minutes to spare, we gave up the quest. Anyway, it was an inferno out there. I wanted something cool to drink and a few minutes to shop for a souvenir. Usually there are no bargains to be found near the Vatican, but I did manage to buy a figurine of the She-Wolf of Rome with Romulus and Remus. I haggled down the price to half of what was asked and felt like I got my money's worth.

Not Much History,
but Great Wine and Cheese.

From Rome the ship sailed to Cagliari on Sardinia. Compared to Rome and Florence, Cagliari has a long but undistinguished history. The path from the dock to our destination followed another steep hill to another medieval fortress, where I climbed a watch-tower and took some pictures. Going back down the hill, we boarded a bus to the beach. It was a Sunday, so half of everyone on Sardinia, plus an assortment of mainland Italians, had come to the beach to sun and swim. Nice calm water.

Making our way back toward the ship, we discovered that vendors were selling Sardinian wine, chorizo, and cheese. They had samples laid out, all wonderful, but the chorizo was huge, and being a meat product, it cannot be brought to the United States. I thought about a bottle of wine, but decided it might not be a sensible addition to checked luggage. I did buy the aged version of a cheese which is called Michelo.

In reflection, with the sea all about us now, I decide: four good days are done and fondly remembered. I don't much care if I ever go back to Cannes, but otherwise we saw many wonderful things, especially the Duomo and the Pantheon. I got to see two of the great domes of Europe. I've already seen St. Paul's, and unfortunately, I missed the dome at St. Peters. I also need to see the dome of the Haggia Sophia at Istanbul. Perhaps on another cruise on a future summer's day. For now, I can look ahead to the next few days and visits to Cadiz, Lisbon, and Vigo.

Click on the black panther to read Ron Fritze's second report from his sea cruise, "Of Mountains, Monkeys, and Men: Gibraltar."