Forty years of friendship. Four friends. One Epic ship. A Mediterranean dream that finally caught up with us.
A Mediterranean Cruise That Took Forty Years to Plan
Italy: Where Friendship Met Fresh Pasta and Lemon Everything
Rome * Civitavecchia * Messina * Taormina * Naples-Pompeii * Pisa…
After landing in NY, discovering at JFK that we were named America’s Favorite Couple, our arrival in Rome felt even more magical. It was as if the universe was lighting the way for us, adding a special glow to a journey that took forty years to come together.
After landing in Rome, we were off to Civitavecchia and kicked everything off with Bryan’s birthday and with handcrafted pizza by the masters! The flour in Italy is lighter. You can eat half a pizza, look down at your plate, and still feel like taking a long walk instead of a long nap. Italians sit when they eat, sip drinks from real glasses, and add lemon slices to pretty much everything.
My cute daughter had gifted me a lemon scarf from her trip to Italy the year before, and it became my good luck charm. As soon as I started noticing lemon designs everywhere—on dresses, blouses, and home décor—I was hooked. Being a lemon lover, I couldn’t resist indulging: lemon gelato, lemon fans, lemon chocolate, lemon shops—the whole experience was pure citrus delight. When life gives you Italy, you say yes to every lemon.
PISA- We posed with the Leaning Tower, holding it up like kids on a class trip, and then found ourselves in McDonald’s — laughing, remembering, and choosing familiarity over fine dining for old times’ sake. It wasn’t the best food in Italy, but it was a moment that felt warm and familiar before the long drive back to the ship.
NAPLES- elevated our adventure even further, treating us to authentic pizza in the very city where this delicious classic was first created—home to the world’s first pizzeria, Antica Pizzeria Port’Alba, which opened its doors in Naples back in 1738.
We had a private tour of Pompeii that will go down as one of the best tours of my life. No lines. The perfect pace. A guide who knew exactly where to go and lessons about history that educated us. For three hours we moved through streets that had been frozen in time. Mount Vesuvius towered above, its missing peak a quiet reminder of the day everything changed.
Time flew.
My Favorites: Florence, Taormina, and Italian Style
Florence and Taormina stole my heart. Both cities felt warm and welcoming, as if they had been waiting for us. Narrow streets, tiny cafés, blooming balconies, and architecture that looked like it had been sketched by someone in love. The pasta and salads tasted fresh and soulful, like they came straight from a garden tended with care.
Taormina! Can we just move there already? This cliffside Sicilian town feels like a postcard come alive. Cobblestone streets twist past bougainvillea and little cafés with two tiny tables set out like an invitation. The ancient Greek Theatre sits at the center, serving an unreal backdrop of the coastline and Mount Etna. Old churches, cozy restaurants, antique shops, and colorful corners make it feel romantic, historic, and calm all at once. It’s the kind of place you visit for an afternoon and instantly think, What if we stayed?
Florence! wrapped me up in its art scene. Artists lined the piazzas painting the Ponte Vecchio, the iconic bridge with its tiny shops. I stopped to watch one artist, Daoudi, bring a watercolor to life. I was so mesmerized I fell behind our tour group. He invited me to sit beside him, and with broken English and hand gestures, we talked like fast friends. Watching the colors bloom across his paper felt like Florence whispering, “slow down and stay awhile.”
Rome was its own universe. The Vatican was crowded beyond belief, with tens of thousands of visitors flowing through halls of statues, frescoes, and marble everything. By the end, we were exhausted, overwhelmed, and full in the best way. Then came the Colosseum—beautiful, brutal, and heavy. You can feel history there.
One stop brought something softer. At the Rome Italy LDS Temple visitors center, light poured through Tom Holdman’s stained-glass windows, each panel telling a story of Christ. Sitting in front of the Christus statue, I felt the peace that I needed.
Rome also gave us some of our best laughs. Figuring out Ubers, taxis, and busses, became its own comedy show. Trevi Fountain was chaotic but magical. We tossed our coins, made our wishes, and went straight to gelato because we could! We even shopped for cocktail attire for an LA event—my black Italian heels cost more than my dress, but now I get to say “I bought these in Rome.” Worth it. Bryan found a suit and shoes that made him look like he walked out of a magazine.
And at night, we ended up at Carrots Cafe, our little home base down the street. Debbie and Jerry would meet us there, and the carbonara became our favorite ritual.
Italy felt like living inside our own movie.
Life On the Norwegian Epic: Nachos, Laughs, And A Not So Newlywed Moment
Ship life came with its own kind of magic. Days were all about ports and tours. Nights were about being teenagers again. The four of us found our way to the twenty-four-hour restaurant more often than we will ever publicly admit. Nachos, carrot cake, and every bad decision that tastes exactly right at midnight.
The highlight was the Not So Newlywed Game. We slipped Debbie and Jerry’s names into the drawing along with ours and pretended we were not manifesting anything. The host called their names, not ours. Eek. Debbie shot us that “I know exactly what you did” look. Jerry just sighed and headed to the stage.
As they walked up, a guy behind us leaned forward and said, “You know you are not going to be friends after this.” We laughed so hard I almost cried off my lashes.
Watching them answer relationship questions under bright lights in front of a room full of strangers was pure comedy. They were honest, funny, a little spicy, and good sports. When they came back to their seats, they looked like survivors returning from battle. We tried to look innocent. They did not buy it for a second.
One night we wandered into the dance club and the DJ started playing 80s music. In a heartbeat, we were back in 1985. Same songs. Same people. Same feeling in our chests. No chaperones. Only now we had forty years of real life layered on top. It felt like a time warp in the best possible way. Four mid fifty somethings singing along and dancing like teens that never left the gym.
Those ship nights stitched all the big Mediterranean sights together. Simple moments. Big laughs. The kind of memories you feel in your cheeks from smiling so hard.
Greece: Blue Seas, White Walls, and Memorable Donuts
In Greece, you can’t help but feel a little mythical yourself, like the history in the air rubs off on you.
Athens Piraeus, the port for Athens, felt like stepping straight into a history book. We climbed to the Acropolis, stared up at the Parthenon, and stood in the Odeon of Herodes Atticus, imagining plays and music echoing off the stone centuries ago. Greek mythology stops feeling like a story when you are standing where it all happened.
Four friends. Forty years of memories, once cheering in small town Alaska, now wandering where legends and philosophers once stood.
Santorini: A Postcard That Moves
Santorini felt like stepping into a postcard. Fans of “The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants” might recognize these stunning views—the movie was partly filmed right here, giving every corner a sense of cinematic magic. Instead of braving the 600 sun-soaked steps or riding donkeys like in the movies, we went up by tour bus—wild switchbacks and roller-coaster turns, all of us clutching our seats and laughing nervously the whole way. It’s the kind of climb we’ll remember for years.
The way down, thankfully, was a different story. The tram glided smoothly toward the port, giving us just enough calm to breathe again. We made it back to the ship just in time before it sailed without us. Opa to perfect timing.
Santorini swept us up in its charm—white buildings stacked on the hillside, blue domes made for snapshots, and winding paths full of Greek treasures. At Perivolas Beach, lemon-mint water tasted like sunshine, the Greek salad was impossibly fresh, and the famous black sand shimmered like a movie prop. Greek evil eyes sparkled from every shop, tempting with a bit of magic as we wandered, and took some of it home- we were so caught up in the postcard-perfected beauty at every turn.
Mykonos: Wind, Laughter, And Chanel
Mykonos showed up in full force. The wind nearly knocked us over as we walked from the pier, hair flying, hands clamped down on our hats. Once we slipped into the tight little streets of town, the buildings blocked the gusts, and everything turned calm and charming.
Debbie bought me a T-shirt, “Need Money for Chanel,” which I absolutely wear with pride. We found a bakery where the donuts tasted like they were hugging us from the inside. Bryan ordered baklava and smiled like he had just had a spiritual experience. We ate at Jackie O’s, strolled through shops, and took pictures that I will treasure forever.
Greece gave us the blues and whites you see on screensavers, but it also gave us the little things. Sticky fingers from donuts. Sand between our toes. Shared looks that said, “Can you believe we are actually here?”
Malta And France: Sun, Stories, Lavender, And A Sailboat Birthday
Valletta, Malta: A City Wrapped in Sun, Stories, and a Little Rock-and-Roll Magic
Malta felt like stepping straight onto a movie set — because honestly, it kind of was. Valletta greeted us with blindingly blue water, honey-colored stone walls, and heat so intense it felt like Arizona decided to take its own Mediterranean vacation. I was living my best island-girl fantasy, soaking up every ray of sunshine… while Bryan searched desperately for shade. My poor Alaska boy didn’t stand a chance.
We met Joe at the harbor — a local tattoo artist, former rock guitarist, and now our unexpected captain for the cutest little wooden boat ride ever. We asked if he did private tours. He shrugged, smiled, and said yes in that casual way that tells you the day is about to get fun.
And it was. That morning with Joe is one of those forever memories.
He showed us where he used to jump from the city walls into the sea as a kid.
He traced the scars from WWII bombings along the shoreline.
He told us about his band that almost made it big before life shifted in a way no one expected.
We made a new friend and stepped into someone else’s story for a while and slipped into a version of Malta that tourists on giant buses never see — the one that lives in the stories of the people who call it home.
And speaking of movies… Malta is basically a celebrity.
Films shot here include Gladiator, Troy, The Count of Monte Cristo, Popeye, and even scenes from Game of Thrones. and more.
So yes — cruising those waters with Joe felt like living in our own epic film.
We wrapped up the day at Hard Rock Café Malta, because obviously.
And thankfully, we have the photos to prove we didn’t just dream the whole thing.
Cannes, France: A Birthday the Riviera Will Remember
Our last big port was Cannes, and it arrived with a party. Debbie’s birthday on the French Riviera deserves to be written in sparkles. We rented a sailboat with a local captain and spent three hours cruising along the coast. The boys jumped into the water “…while Debbie and I stretched out on deck, sun on our faces, feeling like we had slipped into one of those perfect moments you wish you could bottle forever.”
After we docked, we wandered the streets of Cannes and had lunch before heading back to the ship. I bought French lavender from a tiny shop, a small bundle of calm to tuck into my suitcase and carry home. It still smells like that day.
Conclusion: A Trip Forty Years in the Making
From late night carrot cake on the ship to wandering old streets in Rome, to standing under the Parthenon and eating donuts in Mykonos, every mile of this Mediterranean cruise reminded us that friendship can stretch across decades and still feel brand new. We started this story in September 1985 and added this chapter in September 2025.
The Mediterranean gave us lemon gelato, epic tours, sunshine, tans, sea water, and more laughs than we could ever count. What it really gave us was a reminder that the best adventures happen with the people who knew you before life got complicated.
This is more than just a recap. It is an invitation. If you have friends you love, friends you miss, friends who once danced beside you on a sticky high school floor, start dreaming. Plan the reunion your way. Book the cruise. Pick the city. Choose the adventure that feels a little too big and say yes anyway.
Even if it takes forty years to get there, the memories will be worth every single mile.
