DAY 15 - DAY 9 SERENITY

WELCOME TO ANTIBES

We enjoyed another wonderful evening on-board Crystal Serenity last night.  We had a pre-dinner drink at the Crystal Cove.  With the muster drill at 5:15 PM and knowing that the bars must stop service 15 minutes before the drill we got down to the Cove at around 4:45 PM.  Since it is embarkation day and the one lounge open it was very busy.  Shortly after the announcement was made about the drill everyone left except for one other guest who was on the previous voyage.  We pretty much had the entire venue for ourselves which was nice.  LOL.

In his quest to try every Gin drink (LOL) Keith tried the Elderflower Fizz.  This one included Hendrick's Gin, Splash of Elderflower Liqueur, Tonic Water.  This was one of Keith's favorites.  It makes a nice light drink. Anne Marie had an Italian Sparkling Wine.

---

These are the Crystal Dining Room menus from last evening.

​

---

---

Shortly after the muster drill, Crystal Serenity set sail for our next port of call; Antibes, Franc.

We enjoyed a wonderful dinner at the Prego Specialty Italian Restaurant with Hotel Director Hubert.

​Anne Marie had the Veal and Keith had the Lamb and we each had a Caesar Salad.  Tried some nice wine that is part of inclusive.  One of them was an Italian White Wine that was a Chardonnay.  Keith who normally switches to red after one glass had a little more as this one was delicious.  We will have to write down the name.  Keith tried the Chianti Red wine which went well with his entree.

 Great meal and service wonderful conversation.  
​

---

We began the morning as we often do which included an early morning workout for Keith and breakfast in our room.  We then got ready to visit Antibes, France which is our first visit to this port of call.  A few days ago we were speaking with another couple as we returned back to Serenity from Monaco.  We had just visited Eze and Nice on our tour and they told us that they visited Antibes which was on their bucket list.  We totally forgot that we would be sailing to Antibes on this voyage.  Ironically, from Antibes some of the tours offered include, Eze,Nice, and Monte Carlo.  

Antibes is located between Cannes and Nice.  Although larger than Eze like Eze it is beautiful and picturesque.  It features a maze of cobblestone lanes.  

The area includes a beautiful old town which was built over an ancient Greek town.  It is believed that Antibes was founded in the last 4th century.  The old town area includes many shops and cafes.

Other attractions include:  Fort Carte which was originally built in the 16th century; Musee Picasso which is a chateau built in the late 15th century and was the home for artist Pablo Picasso for six months in 1946; Marche Provencal which is a market that sells a variety of items including produce, cheese, spices and flowers; Cathedrale d'Antibes which is both a Roman Catholic Church and National Monument.

Our visit represented a maiden port of call stop for Crystal Cruises.  The weather was spectacular even though rain was in the original forecast.

We walked to the major attractions that we listed.  Unfortunately they are closed on Monday's between September and late May other than the Roman Catholic Church.  The walk around town was nice.  There are many restaurants, cafes, shops and places selling baked good.  We walked into a couple of the baked good shops and the aroma of bread, cakes and pastries was amazing.  It reminded us of those bakeries that our parent's shopped at when we were growing up.  

After a couple hour stroll around town we returned home to Serenity.

On the tender ride back to Serenity we could see the Fort Carre where Napoleon was imprisoned during the French Revolution.

We also viewed hundreds & hundreds of yachts of varying sizes along with other vessels.
​

We enjoyed lunch at the Lido Cafe and in the afternoon Keith played Paddle Tennis while Anne Marie walked outside on the Promenade Deck.  Keith also visited the Fitness Center a second time.  We read, wrote and spoke with fellow guests and members of the crew.

Anne Marie and Keith