It seems a lot of people have trouble pronouncing our next port of call. Civitavecchia. It is pronounced (chiv-vita-veck-ia), it just rolls off the tongue once you know how. Again as with a lot of these ports it is not that picturesque and is filled with lots of container ships and tankers. That's said it's a beautiful morning although that dogged northerly wind seems intent on hanging around and pegging the temperatures back a few degrees.I emerge out on...

The port where we dock in La Spezia is nowhere near as glamorous as Villefranche. I open the curtains to a working port full of large ship containers and tall cranes. There is a lot of clanging and banging going on but we are not hanging around the ship today so we don't mind. We have breakfast in the Windjammer before heading ashore.La Spezia is mainly used as a port to enable people to visit Florence and Pisa. We had visited there on a previous cruise and t...

Liberty sails into the small bay at Villefranche just as the rising sun lifts above the horizon and throws its light over the pine clad hills that surround the small town. The bay is dotted with small fishing boats that bob gently as Liberty's bow thrusters churn up the tranquil waters. We are soon anchored in place and tender boats are quickly alongside and taking guests ashore for their excursions.We breakfast again in the main dining room before returning ...