DAY 18 DAY 12 SERENITY

OLBIA, ITALY

These are last evening's menus from the Crystal Dining Room.

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We have included today's Reflections Program below.

Serenity departed Porto Venere at 5:00 PM last evening.  Porto Venere is one of those very special towns that if you have the opportunity to visit we highly recommend it.  It is charming, quaint with absolutely breathtaking scenery.

We enjoyed last evening at an Exclusive Vintage Room which we hosted.  As part of the dinner you can host up to 14 people in the room including the hosts for a set price regardless of how many people attend.  We prefer keeping the dinner to fewer people allowing for one conversation.

We met with Head Sommelier Tilmar on the first voyage to plan the evening.  We selected each entree with input from Tilmar.  We left the wine selection to Tilmar and he did a wonderful job selecting and pairing the wines with each course.

In addition to the incredible wines and food Tilmar provided information on each wine along with the vineyards that they come from and other aspects about the wine.  We love to learn about wine and find the Vintage Room a perfect opportunity to do just that.

The theme of the dinner was A Tour of the Great Estates.  Wines selected represented the Mediterranean including wine from Israel, France, Italy and Spain.  

For those who follow our blogs you know we  take photos of all of the food. We chose not to last evening so we could focus entirely on the experience.

We began with 2009 Moet et Chandon, Cuvee Dom Perignon, Brut, Epernay Champagne for a toast to a wonderful evening.

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The menu included:

Pan Seared Sea Scallops paired with a White wine of Recanati "Special Reserve" Roussanne and Marsanne, Israel 2015.

Butternut Squash Ravioli paired with a white wine of Dubreuil, Chardonnay Benoit Trocard France 2016.

Sea Bass paired with a red wine of Pieve Santa Restituta by Gaja, Brunello di Montalcino, Sugarille, Tuscany, Italy 2004.  The sea bass is accompanied by a porcini-red wine gastrique and artichokes and the combination with the red wine worked very well.  

A sherbet to clean the pallet and to take a short break.

Grilled Filet Mignon with Gorgonzola Crust paired with a red wine Vega Sicilia, Unico, Ribera del Duero, Spain 2006 which was a hit with many including Keith.  

Selection of artisanal cheeses paired with a red wine Chateau Hosanna, Pomerol, Bordeaux, France 2005.

Chocolate & Berries (very rich chocolate taste) of Chocolate Fondant, Dark Berry Mousse, Cassis Sorbet paired with a dessert wine Chateau d'Yquem, Premier Cru Superieur, Sauternes, Bordeaux, France 2005.

As if that was not enough Anne Marie had surprised Keith with a Birthday Cake.  Keith's actual birthday is on the next cruise butt on turn around day which we felt would not be a good day for the Vintage Room.  Harald the executive Pastry Chef was kind enough to take a few minutes from a very busy evening in the Crystal Dining Room to present the cake.

All in all this was a wonderful evening learning about wine and enjoying amazing cuisine and conversation in a very beautiful room.

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We saw interesting art work on a vessel in port with us.

We kept to the same morning routine.  Workout for Keith and breakfast in our room.  We both walked together both outside and inside the ship.  

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Although this is our first visit to this port of called decided to make it a sea day for a few reasons.  Feedback from a few people we know was not positive about the nearby town and rain was in the forecast.  

Olbia, Italy has a population of 60,000 people.  It is located on the northeastern shore of the island of Sardinia.  It has a historic port dating to pre-Roman times.  
 
Major attractions include:
 
Museum Civiatense Basilica di San Simplicio, built in the late 11thcentury.
 
Porto Istana Beach located eight miles east of Olbia providing beautiful views of the nearby area.
 
Porto Cervo Resorts that are known for the pubs, restaurants and yachts.
 
Museo Archeologico which houses artifacts from Roman amulets and pottery  to nuraghic finds.
 
Parco Pubblico di Olbia a park established in 2011.

On-board Serenity Keith worked out again in the Fitness Center to burn off those extra calories from last evening.  LOL, but..........very true.  Anne Marie packed up some items we won't need for the next cruise recognizing that we will be moving rooms on turn-around day this Sunday.  

We enjoyed lunch at the Lido Cafe.  The selection for lunch has been terrific but we have kept to our regular routine of salad, vegetables and protein.  

After lunch Keith was going to play Paddle Tennis but it started to rain cats and dogs (hard rain) so we both ended up walking inside the ship.  We ended up seeing many guests as we walked so we walked and talked and walked and talked.  We did get our full walk in.  It just took a little extra time.  
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​This evening we attend to the Crystal Dining Room for dinner.
 
Anne Marie & Keith