Ovid, we have arrived.
We had low expectations for our visit to Constanta. On our Black Sea cruise of 2014, when I asked why there was no stop in Romania, the group leader declared “There is nothing much to see in Constanta.” Wrong. We had a thoroughly excellent visit to this, the largest Black Sea port. (In fact, several score ships were loitering off the port, loaded with Ukrainian grain and waiting to unload).
It was a 90 minute drive from Fetesti, where our ship was docked for the day (and the coming night), to Constanta. Our guide was superb. This was particularly good news as he is to be our guide for the remainder of our time in Romania.
An aside on how we are organized for our day tours: The twelve graduate associations with participants on this cruise have been divided into four groups, a separation that has been maintained throughout the trip. We (West Point Association of Graduates) have been paired with the “National Trust” group as the “blue group”, with, for each tour, an assigned guide and bus. While evening meals have open seating, most tables tend to be occupied by birds of a feather. I know, TMI.
We finished our visit to Constanta with a late lunch at a restaurant on the Black Sea. Salad, soup, pork ribs, two types of chicken, dessert, and a steady flow of wine. Yet another light lunch.
Some added tidbits: In an early blog posting I said that I knew none of the other West Point grandfathers on the trip. That proved not to be the case. Sam Wilson, a graduate of 1966, and I were in the same cadet company his last two years and my first two. Neither of us remembers the other. Obviously I kept a satisfactorily low profile my plebe year and his senior year he was on battalion staff, hence not in the company area. Still, I should have remembered an upperclassman. It was a requirement that plebes know the names of all upperclassmen in one’s company. He (and his wife) became doctors.
We have been really, really lucky with our weather. At almost every cruise stop, the previous day had been rainy and even windy. By our arrival, the weather was clear and, for the last several days, unseasonably warm. I’ve even broken out my short sleeve shirts. I only hope I haven’t jinxed our luck for the rest of the trip.
With Constanta, our time on the Amadeus Mozart has come to an end. The last two days of the standard trip are to be spent in Romania’s capital, Bucharest. Then a subset of the group, including us, will be traveling the Transylvania for several days. Dracula, here we come.