Destination MedCruise-15 19/2/07 15:19 Page 1 QUARTERLY MARCH 2007 ISSUE 15 Via Ravenna A sneak preview of Ravenna’s new terminal onstruction work has begun for the World Heritage sites. As a matter of fact, in the San Marino, capital of the tiny homonymous realisation of the port of Ravenna’s summer with the Mosaics by Night programme Republic, a monument in itself and a great duty Cnew Passenger Terminal at Porto the treasures of Ravenna come alive in the free shopping district. Other neighbouring cities Corsini. In view of its position i.e. on the evening with guided tours and special itineraries worth visiting include Ferrara and Pomposa, Faenza right side of the breakwater entrance, this for tourists. and Brisighella, the River Po Delta Park, Bologna new Terminal will result in reduced However, Ravenna is also well known for its and Maranello (seat of the Ferrari racing car team). berthing times, possibility to host larger numerous cultural and internationally prestigious and longer vessels and will constitute ideal events that take place during the year, and surroundings for its cruise passengers. particularly Ravenna Festival, an international The new Terminal which is expected to be musical appointment, offering in the summer high completed in 2010, will offer up to four berths, level events of symphony, opera, chamber and two of which will be able to accommodate cruise ethnic music. ships with a length of up to 300mtr and draught There are plenty of opportunities for more of 10.5mtr. The adjacent area, to be urbanised, lively fun at the discos by the beach and there is and measuring 14 hectares will host a new no end to the equipment and services offered for Maritime Station, office space, an ample parking all types of sport and fitness. area, residences and parks. What’s more, there are excellent shopping Ravenna is a treasure chest of art, history and facilities in the city centre, buying hand-made culture of the first order. Within its ancient walls mosaics or looking around the markets, trying out it keeps the richest heritage of mosaics dating the delicious local dishes and the first-rate wines from the 5th and 6th centuries. For this reason 8 of the Emilia-Romagna region. of its early Christian and Byzantine religious From Ravenna and in less than an hour, one buildings have been acknowledged as UNESCO may easily visit the Mirabilandia Theme Park and Basilica di San Vitale by Nicola Strocchi Destination MedCruise-15 19/2/07 16:46 Page 2 DESTINATION MEDCRUISE – GEORGIA/ITALY Via Batumi Black Sea beauty djara is situated in the southwest Phichvnari, Bobokvati, part of Georgia on the Black Sea. Chakvi, Gonio, Kvariati APopulation is more than 400,000 and Sarpi. and the administrative centre is The pleasant city of Batumi. There are a number of resorts Batumi with its beach, has a along this coastline including: Kobuleti, subtropical flair where Tsikhisdziri, Green Cape, Makhinjauri, palms, cypresses, Batumi and pleasure resorts such as: magnolias, oleanders, lemons and oranges Gonio Fortress, previously known as Apsarun, grow. Lying on the is located 12km south of Batumi on the Black shore of a deep bay, Sea shore. This fortress of a rectangular plan has Batumi has the most gates at each of its four sides. The wall is convenient harbour on reinforced with eighteen turrets. The earliest the Black Sea coast of record of the fortress is found in Greek-Roman the Caucasus. sources from the 1st century. The Roman Besides museums Empire, Byzantium, and later the city-republics and theatres, sites to of Italy displayed great interest in the fortress. In visit include the the 16th century it was seized by the Ottomans boulevard along the and now stands as a ruin. coast, the nearby Gonio The Botanical Gardens of Batumi lay 9km fortress (pictured left) from the centre of the town. The Gardens and the botanical consist of nine phytogeographical parts and two gardens rich with parks. There are more than 4,000 kinds of tree subtropical vegetation. and bush from all continents of the world. Via Bari UNESCO World Heritage site wo of the most popular tours undertaken by passengers visiting Bari are San Nicola’s TCathedral (pictured right) and Alberobello, the city made of trulli. The trulli are limestone dwellings found in the southern region of Puglia. They are remarkable examples of drywall (mortarless) constuction, a prehistoric building technique still in use in this region. The trulli are made of roughly worked limestone boulders collected from neighbouring fields. Characteristically, they feature pyramidal, domed or conical roofs built up of limestone slabs. Today there are approximately a thousand trulli in Alberobello which has been inhabited since the 15th century and was designated a national monument in 1930 and also an UNESCO World Heritage site. San Nicola’s Cathedral is located in Bari itself. In May each year the feast of San Nicola is celebrated here. A procession of some three hundred persons in the costumes of the Norman era leaves the Swabian castle to reach the church of San Nicola. There they re-enact the delivery of San Nicola’s bones to the Dominican friars, recalling the events of 1087, when some merchants of Bari managed to steal the saint’s relics from their resting place in Myra. The saint’s statue also has a place of honour in a procession of boats that makes its way along the coast. 2 www.medcruise.com Destination MedCruise-15 19/2/07 12:00 Page 3 DESTINATION MEDCRUISE –ITALY Via Livorno to stories of a miraculous sea rescue. The Monumento dei Quattro Mori New pier for 2008 (Monument of the Four Turks), dedicated to Grand Duke Ferdinando II de' Medici of ivorno has had an increase in Livorno has a wide range of historical Tuscany, is one of the most important cruise traffic in the last year. In sites and attractions for the visitor: The monuments of Livorno. L2006, 445 cruise ships called Museo Mascagnano houses memorabilia, Livorno Municipality is in the process of bringing in 607,848 passengers. For documents and operas by the great completing the embellishment of the seaside 2007, 503 cruise calls have been composer Pietro Mascagni, the author of promenade adjacent to Terrazza Mascagni booked carrying about 660,000 famous opera Cavalleria Rusticana. Every and the restructuring of the new Seaquarium passengers, an increase of 13%. year some of his operas are traditionally – where you will find beautiful views of the There will be five ships making their played during the lyric music season, which Tuscan Archipelago. maiden calls to Livorno this year: is organised by the Carnival Freedom, Navigator of the Traditional Theatre of Seas, Emerald Princess, Norwegian Livorno, the recently Gem and Legend of the Seas. restructured Teatro The port is investing a12m in a Goldoni. Up in the hills the commercial pier suitable for cruise ships over Sanctuary of Montenero, 300mtr in length. It will be ready for use, which is dedicated to Our after dredging has been completed, at the Lady of the Graces, the beginning of 2008. The Cruise Terminal at pathron of Tuscany, is a Livorno, currently used by MSC Cruises for a fixed destination for weekly turnaround, will be restructured to pilgrims. It is famous for offer new services to the passengers: retail the adjacent gallery, shops, cafeteria and ticket office. The decorated with ancient prospected investment costs will be a2.2m. ex-voti mainly connected Via Venice he Moors’ Clock Tower, hundred years, they have measured out one of the most the flow of life and history within the city. Standing tall Tfamous architectural Venice continues to break all records landmarks in Venice’s St with over 470 cruise calls from 81 ships Mark’s Square, has recently expected in 2007, up from 425 last year. re-opened to tourists. Tours A new cruise terminal was inaugurated have to be booked in last year and a fifth terminal is planned. A advance. new two-storey terminal of 13,000sq mtr The Moors’ Clock Tower will be located along the Isonzo quay and stands over an arch that leads will enable simultaneous berthing of two into what is the main shopping high-tonnage ships. street of the city, the old Merceria. It marks both a juncture and a division between the various architectural components of St. Mark’s Square, which was not only the seat of political and religious power but also a public space and an area of economic activity, a zone that looked out towards the sea and also played a functional role as a hub for the entire layout of the city. The Tower and its large Astronomical Clock, a masterpiece of technology and engineering, form an essential part of the very image of Venice. For more than five www.medcruise.com 3 Destination MedCruise-15 19/2/07 16:46 Page 4 DESTINATION MEDCRUISE – MALTA/MONACO Via Valletta Grand façade he Valletta Waterfront, the first waiting just up the hill sight to greet passengers arriving at the heart of Tin Malta by cruise ship, is a tourist Valletta’s city centre. attraction in its own right. The Valletta Valletta is due to Waterfront project is leading to the welcome over 335 regeneration of the historic Grand cruise ships bringing Harbour. When finished it will be a around 434,000 landmark for all tourists visiting Malta passengers in 2007. and will also offer entertainment This will represent alternatives to the local community. around 10% growth With the option to shop, dine or enjoy a compared to last year. stroll along the water’s edge, the Valletta The new Sea Waterfront gives the tourist a state of what’s Passenger Terminal has been inaugurated alongside the magnificent bastions.