Friday 26th June 2015 (continued)
This is the last day of my holiday and I planned to make the most of it, by enjoying this first ferry ride to Ischia and then sailing on another one back to Naples.
My travelling companion will be sailing part of the way back but will disembark at Procida for an overnight stay before he flies home tomorrow. It is a small island, with ruined remains of its founding in the 8th Century BC, as well as more modern delights and ferries.
The harbour entrance to the port of Ischia is narrow and it was easy to see when our next ferry came sailing in: it was ROSA D'ABUNDO, sailing for Medmar. Medmar changed its name in 2002 from Linee Lauro, and this was one of the ships in their fleet at the time. She was built in 1981 as the ANGELINA LAURO, at 851 gross tons.
There was a very efficient man on the quayside telling us all where to stand, please, so that the disembarking passengers and vehicles could get off the ship safely - some people tried to ignore him, at their peril, as he wanted the ship cleared quickly! It was interesting to watch his style of working, which he has obviously perfected over the years.
Soon we were allowed to walk on board and look around this little ship which had blue furnishings and was cool and welcoming on board. Many of us chose to sit up on one of the canvas-roofed open decks to benefit from the sea breeze. The sun shone, the sea sparkled and there was lots to look at as we sailed at 10.35 a.m. from Ischia towards Procida and Naples. We seem to have done a lot today already, in a comfortable and leisurely way, after the early race from SNAV SARDEGNA.
We arrived at Procida and there were fond farewells between the two of us, as passengers left the ROSA D'ABUNDO and others came on board.
I waved at the quayside and then sat back on the top deck under cover, to continue to enjoy the delights of being at sea.
Back in Naples I disembarked with everyone else, went through the passenger terminal and was glad to see a free blue shuttle bus waiting to take us all to the Maritime Molo. Then I did a hot little walk to the Pic Nic cafe, which I'd located on the internet. Not only did they make and sell fresh salads and other food and drink, but they also sold Airbus tickets at a discount; I could sit in the shaded comfort of the cafe and enjoy my lunch before I had to catch the bus to Naples Airport from a nearby stop. I waited beside the bus stop in the shade of a very wide advertising pole (inspired positioning on my part) and was surprised at the number of taxis that pulled up and offered to take nearby bus passengers to the airport for some expensive fare. The bus arrived and I was soon at the airport, ready to fly home to the UK and resume my other life.
Ships seen: Rosa d'Abundo, Catania, Driade, Don Peppino, Allure of the Seas, Laurana, Vincenzo Florio, Rhapsody, Capri, MSC Divina, Giove Jet, Benedetta II, Isola di Capri, Island Escape, Aldebaran, Macaiva, Fauno, Naiade, Tourist Boat Secondo, Agata
It was a long time since that e-mail arrived on Christmas Day 2014 inviting me to join two of my friends for ferrying in June and we had all been looking forward to it as the plans were made by them. My holiday had been fascinating, travelling on many interesting ships, in good company, and I felt so lucky to have been Ferrying in '15.
THE END
