Travel Maven Blog ...... David Molyneaux posts from TheTravelMavens.com

Post-cruise, How 2 people vacationed on the Amalfi Coast and were the only Americans in town

MINORI, ITALY

Lemons, grapes and vegetables fill the terraced slopes behind the town of Minori, Italy (Photos by David G. Molyneaux, TheTravelMavens.com)

A week into our off-season trip to the ancient Amalfi Coast beach town of Minori, my wife and I heard whispers from a doorstep as we walked along a cobbled lane.

“Here come the Americans,” (or something close to that), said one woman to another in Italian. We were making our usual late afternoon shopping jaunt to buy fresh bread, a sack of delightful baby artichokes, a big scoop from a barrel of ripe broccoli rabe, fresh pasta, and a bottle of local wine for dinner.

Unlike the summer vacation season when Amalfi’s seaside resorts, restaurants and streets often are packed with travelers, February was quiet and residential. We were the only Americans in town. We were met with welcoming smiles.

Most vacation travelers tend to follow the sun, perhaps heading to the Caribbean in winter or the Mediterranean in summer. Sometimes a holiday destination offers a different vibe when you move in a direction opposite from the crowd; off-season time is all the better when you rent an apartment and live among the locals.

Our Minori, Italy, seaside apartment, first building in the center.

 

On a luxury cruise in the Arabian Sea, on the lookout for pirates

Pirates seldom dominate our thoughts beyond movie myths and Halloween costumes, but real pirates still threaten danger for the unwary.

As my ship, the 600-passenger luxury Seabourn Encore, cruised recently on the Gulf of Aden, with Yemen to the north and Somalia to the south, the ship’s crew prepared for a pirate attack.

Container ships and tankers in a convoy heading north in the Suez Canal. (photos by David G. Molyneaux, TheTravelMavens.com)

Passengers, too, were ready, with a set of instructions about when and where to go to hide if the captain sent us a signal.

As expected, the signal never came.

No matter what anyone tells you about the dangers of pirates boarding a cruise ship in this part of the world, keep in mind two competing realities:

Carnival Corporation makes major donation to support excellence in travel journalism, SATW Foundation's Lowell Thomas competition

Video, judges comments on winning entries online at SATWF.com

Lovers of travel stories and images will find quality journalism in writing, pictures, broadcasts and Internet posts among the winners in the annual Lowell Thomas Travel Journalism Competition.

Best entries in 24 categories for the year ending March 31, 2017, were announced recently by the non-profit Society of American Travel Writers (SATW) Foundation (www.satwf.com).

On the website (look left), you will find links to videos and lists of Lowell Thomas winners who produce excellent reports, reviews, and stories about their adventures and exciting discoveries all over the world.

For 34 years, the Lowell Thomas competition has focused on the best of travel journalism, paying faculty at top college journalism schools to judge the contest and rewarding winners with cash prizes that total about $20,000 each year.

As president of the SATW Foundation, I am pleased to report that the Foundation and its Lowell Thomas contest are stronger than ever, thanks to major contributions from Carnival Corporation, the world's largest leisure travel company with 10 cruise brands, including Carnival Cruise Line, Cunard, Holland America Line, Princess Cruises and Seabourn.

Bringing people together from around the world

The Foundation is grateful for Carnival Corporation’s financial support, which will total $240,000 over the six years, 2015-2020, and also for its recognition of the value of excellent journalists whose work has a huge impact on the millions of people who aspire to travel. Many Americans rate travel at the top of their dream list, saving as much as possible of their precious disposable income and disposable time to travel.

 “Travel helps bring people together from around the world, and the media play an essential role in helping to inspire travelers to experience new and interesting people, cultures and places,” said Roger Frizzell, chief communications officer for Carnival Corporation.