I had spoken to other cruisers about Tunisia and some were deferred with 2 prior cruises also? Too bad cause the tour I had pre-paid for Tunisia sounded very interesting with their unique history.
I am now quite intrigued knowing the apparent challenges that seem to exist in getting into port...gotta check out Tunisia more when I get home.
So given the short notice I booked one of 3 Olbia excursions offered by Holland America and today was my reminder why I avoid ship tours...they are certainly overpriced but also over flooded with people.
Our large bus was full and 3 others besides so the tour guide has to be extraordinary with a very large group and thankfully I got placed in the best bus as our guide was a native Sardinian and he was excellent with his knowledge and history of the region!
I was told after by other friends that the guide on their bus seemed angry and shared only the basics...our guide even sang a classic ballad in the unique language of Sardinian and had us later sing Volare in Italian.
The tour guide is quite crucial to the tour as he or she can make or break the day for you...very grateful my tours thus far have been very good and I have learned lots and likely more than any audio guide book, and being able to ask key questions, is very helpful!
So whilst we enjoyed the scenic drive and short ferry ride to the Maddalena Archipelago, we learned that this oppoulent Maddalena Island is built on granite and their are small mountains of it everywhere with wild olive trees that grow next to the winding coastal road. They mine and quarry some of the Sardinian granite and of course it is the best quality in the world and still dunno why our contertops are so crazy expensive.
The Sardinian language is still spoken by locals and I was appalled when our guide shared the region many years ago had a severe malaria outbreak, and they were selected by the USA to be a test site for the chemical DDT. Apparently many thousands of residents were commissioned to spary this nasty chemical everywhere including the waters and that knocked out the spread of malaria...I wonder how many of those residents are healthy enough to tell that story today?
Also most interesting is that this region of 1.6 million residents, icluding oppoulent villas for the rich and famous, was a very undesireable island until Prince Karim Khan founded his consortium and invested his money into the area that it became very desireable, and that was only 52 years ago in 1962! This is now the heart of the Emerald Coast with crystal clear waters, windblown granite coastline, and a National park for wildlife...amazing turnaround story.
The town of Maddelena and the quaint stores in Garibaldi Square were not unlike all the other amazing Italian towns I have previously visted...grabbed another great cappucino and gelato and boarded the ferry to return back for the hour long bus ride to Olbia. Olbia was another bigger version of the same with markets, qualint shops and cafes...however they had a large section where the wifi actually was working.
It was hilarious to watch as everyone was activating their phones and mobile devices and ordering some simple lunch or coffee to tap into the free internet...of course me too, and things were slow with all the internet users but I was able to download a few pics, which takes forever on the ship and costs a small fortune.
All in all a good tour day with a great tour guide that shared his passion and knowledge and made it positive and memorable for me.
Dinner in the dining room tonight had me sit with some great couples again from the USA, Australia, and Victoria...made a great empathetic connection with the Victoria couple and its so great when that happens without any planning!
Tomorrow is a very big day with an 8 to 9 hour deluxe tour of fantastic Florence and Pisa...cant wait to vist these cities, so stay tuned!
...Happy Mothers Day Mom! It was great to chat with you briefly by phone today, and hope your day was as special as you are...love you mom! :-)
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