From Poland to Italy

Tonight is the Captain’s farewell dinner but M and I have been trying to secure a reservation in the Yacht Club which has been turned into an Italian restaurant for our return trip (it was Oriental on the way out and we weren’t so interested in that) so we forgo the formal meal for a bit of Italian. Being new to this cruising lark we hadn’t realised that reservations for the finer dining are sought after and you need to jump in early. However fortunately there was a cancellation and we were able to try it for ourselves tonight. It was slightly incongruous being in the full finery and sparkle in a place bedecked with red and white checked tablecloths, Chianti bottles and other Italian trattoria touches but it was all about the food so we didn’t mind.

We started with Carpaccio al Pesto – Thinly Sliced Fillet of Beef, Dressed with a Light Lime-Basil Pesto and Grana Padano Cheese. This was very good and such a pleasure to enjoy some beautiful really tasty food. This was definitely not mass-catered but produced with care.
Then there was a bowl of Zuppa di Minestrone, they knew of my aversion to the dreaded tomato and warned me of it in the minestrone soup, it’s never been my favourite but I had a few spoonfuls and it had a rounded flavour.

Next it was the pasta. I’ve had a couple of pasta dishes whilst on this cruise and they haven’t really worked. I’ve found them to be a little stodgy and claggy and haven’t been able to finish them. But the difference with his Primo Piatto Pasta dish was the phrase “One of our Chefs will prepare a Pasta Dish for you in the Restaurant” and I tuck into a freshly cooked pasta bows in a pesto sauce and they do indeed prepare it in front of you. I could then scrutinise the dish to ensure no tomato slipped in whilst I wasn’t looking, it didn’t. M had the tomato version, how am I related again?

There was a choice of two mains, M had the Salmon and Tiger Prawns with Lemon Sauce, Stuffed Eggplant Rolls and Garlic Flavoured Mashed Potatoes whilst I relished the Saltimbocca alla Romana – Grilled Veal Scaloppine with Sage and Parma Ham, Served with Barolo Sauce, Romanesco with Pine Butter and Risotto. It was succulent and delicious and well worth the wait.

For dessert there was either Tiramisu for those who like coffee – M, and for those who don’t – me, there was plate of Formaggio – a selection of Cheese with Sweet Red onion Marmalade. Oscar proudly told me that he had beautifully decorated the Tiramisu plates with forks so I had to ensure a photograph for posterity.

This was the tastiest meal we'd had on our cruise! I will say that they do try ever so hard in the Six Continents restaurant but there's too many of us, they have to cater for many with not very adventurous taste buds and a predilection for overcooked meat. So this was all considerably more to our liking, viva Italia!

A little taste of Poland

We dock into our penultimate port and look forward our visit to Poland. All thoughts of eggs have been banished as now it’s all about amber. Apparently the streets are positively paved with amber, I am not as excited about amber but the whole Jurassic Park bit intrigues me. We are told various techniques that can aid us in identifying fake amber. And you can’t go by the weight as everyone suspects as real amber and the various generally plastic copies are as light as each other. Apparently you can rub real amber and smell the pine resin and are able to pick up little bits of tissue with the real one. We have three towns to visit Gdansk, famous for the birth of the Solidarity movement and Lech Walesa, Gdynia where there are amber shops aplenty and Soport the local seaside and a famous wooden pier.
Our first stop is Gyinia, a charming little place with stylish architecture and yes, an abundance of amber shops. But unfortunately it is quite early when we visit and many of the other shops and the market stalls are not open yet. There are a lot of us tourists and in such a small place it is slightly like a plague of locusts have briefly descended upon them all being marshalled by guides with large white numbered lollipops. It's the first time I've been so aware of the cult of the tourist. I would have liked to linger longer especially when Gdynia had woken up and diluted the visitors a little but we were on a schedule.
We didn't get out at the Gdansk (formerly Lenin) Shipyards but saw the memorial erected to honour the fallen shipyard workers during the brutal strikes of the 70's.
Soport was the only beach we saw on this trip and seemed quite popular, it was our last stop. We were marched down to the sea edge along a wooden walkway and then led back. Again it was very apparent who was sightseer and we seem to overwhelm the seashore for a moment. Personally I would have liked to have visited here first, when it was at its quietest and then finish with Gdynia so we could have appreciated it when it was a little livelier.
We had a stop at a hotel to enjoy some tea and cake and in my case secure my penultimate Polish fridge magnet.
I really enjoyed our little taste of Poland but I definitely would have enjoyed a less curtailed visit but the tides were against us or something and we had to get to Germany.