CRUISE VIGNETTES 59, Ferry Boats

STOCKHOLM TO HELSINKI
We wandered all over Stockholm, sightseeing and looking for the ticket office for the ferry to Helsinki. Funny thing, we remember buying some very, very tasty items at a bakery near the ferry office. The next time we were in Stockholm we purposely again found the same bakery, but the goodies were not near as goodie as we remembered.

Boarded the ferryboat to Helsinki (along with the camper) at sunset. Had a room with a bath, and ate dinner in the ship’s dining room. A beautiful sunset, a reasonable ship, and a pleasing trip.

CROSS BETWEEN SICILY AND ITALY, FIRST TIME
On our first trip across the Straits of Messina, we drove right on to the ferryboat for the 1/2 hour ride to Villa San Giovanni, on the mainland. Trains were also being rolled right onto the ferryboat.

The water in the harbor was such a mess, with paper and trash floating all over. A sign said “do not throw cigarettes overboard,” and we figured the reason for the sign was they were afraid the trash and oil in the water might catch on fire.

There were several large trucks onboard, including a large dump truck that promptly had a flat tire. A flat tire on an old, old truck that was heavily loaded with gravel, was not the easiest thing to change. Since none of them could leave until that truck left, the other truckers helped. They borrowed a couple of jacks and a spare tire from another truck, and before we arrived at the dock the tire was changed, and all ready to go.

SECOND VISIT TO SICILY, AND RETURN TO ITALY
For our second visit to Sicily, we bought our ferryboat ticket (22,600L less than $20) from Villa San Giovanni to Messina, Sicily, and had to wait 35 minutes. The ship’s loading ramp curved round and round, and when we got to the top, we found the main parking area on the ship was 1.9 meters high, and we are 2.65! Thank goodness there was room for a couple of vehicles on the open deck — for us and a military officer in a chauffeur-driven van.

On both trips from Sicily to the mainland, I bought Emmy some breakfast — a ball of pasta, deep fried, and coated with fine bread crumbs. Inside was rice with a spoonful of tomato-based stew. On the ferry from Sicily to the mainland, is the only place we have seen this food item.

As we returned from Sicily to the mainland, in front of us were two very hefty ladies with large bundles — maybe three feet in diameter (the bundles, not the ladies!), but they didn’t appear to be very heavy (again the bundles, not the ladies!). It looked like several smaller packages gathered together in a large cloth like a knapsack. When we arrived at Villa San Giovanni, they put the largest bundle on their heads, picked up the others and gracefully waltzed off the ferry. Amazing!

ITALY’S BALLERINA ON THE BORDER
Lake Como is called a “Ballerina” on Italy’s border, and the city of Bellagio is located on the portion of the Lake Como ballerina’s anatomy, where decorum usually calls for a fig leaf. Tourists’ boats, including ferries and hydrofoils, are available for tourist rides. Three times we have driven our RV onto the ferries that cross a portion of the lake, and from the ferry, the lake views and mountain scenery are exceptional.