It is always exciting when you visit a port for the first time, and Elba was one of the few we have on this trip…
What makes Elba famous around the world, is that it is where French
Emperor, Napoleon spent his time during his 1814 exile. Well, I can think of the worst places to be. Elba is part of the National Park of the
Tuscan Archipelago.
Connected to mainland Italy by a bridge, this island is a popular holiday spot for many Italians. They obviously choose Elba for its extraordinary landscape and beautiful crystal-clear blue waters that surround it.
We anchored just off the port of Portoferraio and it was just a short tender ride into the little harbour.
Like most Italian villages you enter the town through massive gates that
form part of the wall that protected it in earlier times.
On entering our first stop was the Duomo, a simple design both inside
and out, missing the grand ornate walls of the much richer churches.
We followed the stairs and back alleys that led us up to Fort Stella… a little misled in believing that it opened and 9am and many of us had gathered waiting until 10 am before we could get in.
Next door was the Villa Dei Mulini, the summer residence of Napolean
during his time on the island. Unfortunately,
it is closed on a Tuesday, not one of their cleverest moves on a ship day,
as it lost a lot of income as many of us from the Coral Princess walked on by.
Heading across we seemed to skirt the town from above and next we walked
up to even greater heights to Fort Falcone, we decided not to enter, but
enjoyed the spectacular views from its entrance.
Weaving our way back down through the many lanes until we were back down
near the entrance to where we entered.
Having lost a couple from our group along the way, we stopped in one
position and sent out a May Day… once we were all reunited, we went out for a
walk along the water front.
Stumbling into a small restaurant we decided to enjoy a seafood lunch
before heading back to the ship.
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