The Avid Cruiser - Fall 2007 - (Page 9)

ship review as fresh fruit tarts, Swiss chocolate cake, carrot cake — and others for nominal charges: fruit with chocolate fondue, $5; apples dipped in chocolate or caramel, $4. Seven flavors of gelato are served, including my favorite, stracciatella, and for $1.50, you get three scoops. Cold milk and hot cookies are served each afternoon from 3:30 until 4:30 free of charge both at the International Cafe and on the pool deck as well. Across the piazza is Vines, which specializes in wine, sushi, raclette. The latter is dish whereby the eponymous cheese is heated, then scraped onto potatoes and served with gherkins, pickled onions and prosciutto. Flights of wine are available so that you can sample three wines for a fixed price (beginning at $7.50 for a flight on my cruise this past spring). Or leave the choice to Stefano Bart (pictured pouring wine), the excellent sommelier on Emerald Princess. We are on a star-studded, make that “emerald”-studded, cruise. I spot Marion Ross, the actress who is perhaps best known for her role as Mrs. Cunningham in the television classic “Happy Days.” Ross is one of four godmothers of Emerald Princess. The others: Florence Henderson, remembered for her role as Carol Brady in “The Brady Bunch”; Susan Olsen, who played Cindy Brady; and Erin Moran, Ross’ daughter Joannie in the “Happy Days” series (see their photos on page 2). Gavin MacLeod walks the decks. The actor who played Captain Stubing on the popular television series “The Love Boat,” will be on for the entire 12-day inaugural cruise. He serves as emcee of the ship’s christening ceremonies in Piraeus (for videos of the inaugural, click on www.avidcruisertv.com and search “Princess Cruises.”) Each morning at the International Café, situated in the piazza, long-time friends Ross and MacLeod have breakfast with their spouses. Though breakfast is served throughout the ship, the piazza encourages patrons to linger over long coffees and freshly baked croissants or beignets. Italian Born Emerald Princess comes by her Italian style honestly. “Princess is Italian born,” says Corporate Executive Chef Alfredo Marzi (pictured above). Italian by birth, Marzi has worked for Princess since 1974. “There’s more of an international flavor now than there was then,” he says. “But we’re still very Italian.” And perhaps nowhere is Princess more Italian than in the kitchen. The pizza at poolside Prego is as good as what you might get in Rome. The Italian dishes are inspired by family recipes. Sabatini’s, deck 16 aft, has the feel of an Italian trattoria, with beautiful views of the sea and an ever-changing landscape. And Chef Marzi’s lemoncello, the popular Italian liqueur made from fresh Sorrento lemons and vodka, is about as authentic as it gets. In fact, Princess Cruises makes its own lemoncello. And it’s served free of charge. There’s a catch, however. You must pay $5 for the glass. The lemoncello is as bright as the sunshine of the Amalfi Coast. It’s healthy too, Chef Marzi says, aiding digestion while refreshing the mouth. The piazza is so pleasant and so convincingly Italian that you may not want to get off the ship, even as you call at Italian ports on your Mediterranean cruise. You don’t need to. Experience Italy at its best — at the piazza on Princess. For videos from Emerald Princess, click on www.avidcruisertv.com FALL 2007 Avid Cruiser http://www.avidcruisertv.com http://www.avidcruisertv.com

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of The Avid Cruiser - Fall 2007

The Avid Cruiser - Fall 2007 Contents The Poop Deck Cruising, Back to Back At The Piazza SeaDream Yacht Club Regent’s Seven Seas Voyager The ‘New’ Crystal Symphony Bay of FUNdy Long Weekend Getaway Silversea Cruises: Silver Whisper Cruising Southeast Asia ‘Awesome’ Alaska Sacred Moments In South Georgia Two Years With A Princess Of Days Gone By

The Avid Cruiser - Fall 2007

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