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In 2003, the Harris's specifically bought an ocean capable boat with a plan to cross the Atlantic and visit the Mediterranean.

During their Great Loop travels and throughout the last two years, John has written and illustrated a (nearly) daily log. Some of their experiences in the Mediterranean and along the Italian coast are described in the following paragraphs.

Friday, May 20th - Porto Santo Stefano, Tuscany Italy

Stefano is what I would consider the first serious fishing city we have visited. Other ports had fishing boats but this one has a fleet of 50 to 65’ long-netters intended to do major catching. With the large fleet, the offerings of fresh fish were extensive but the prices were astronomical. At between 15 and 30 Euros per kilo for whole fish, the price of a fish meal is beyond all but the most lavish spenders. There was a modern and very efficient sorting, icing, and loading facility for waiting trucks to take the catch to market in the surrounding cities and beyond.

There is a nice small aquarium in Stefano that focuses on diving, coral, and fish. There are several prime diving areas nearby, although some are in very deep water for most divers to explore at several hundred meters. Much of the diving areas are now protected by National Park status with very controlled access.

Sunday, May 22nd - This must be Roma!

We traveled overnight to arrive at the New Rome Marina in the early morning fog. We had a good map of the marina so as the fog lifted we slid into the fuel dock at about 8:15 in the morning. The fuel dock opened at 9:00 AM but shortly after we arrived the night watchmen arrived and arranged a slip for us and a dock hand to assist us. The new marina is large, modern and accommodating. It turns out to be a major tourist attraction comparable to the streets of central Rome on a Sunday, but the docks and the marina in general have good security and very restricted traffic. The marina accommodates 800 boats from small to large and has about 50 or 75 very nice shops that appeal to boaters and city shoppers alike evidently.

After docking and settling in, we got information to get us into Rome for the day by bus, train, and metro: a combined trip of about 45 minutes if you do it right the first time. The 1 Euro ticket is good for 75 minutes and we pushed the envelope on our time because of not understanding the Italian signs and system very well. We made it to the Coliseum Metro station before lunch and in time to visit the sights along the south side of the River (Tiber) from the Coliseum to the Forum, the Pantheon, the Colonade, the Tivili and many things along the way.

Rome is an amazing city, with its mammoth structures and monuments. The convergence of the desire and ability to build such huge things is unique in the western world.

Along a wall near the Coliseum are several murals that depict the extent of the Roman Empire at various times. Starting from about 200 BC the Empire grew to include everything on the perimeter of the Mediterranean for several hundred miles inland, and all of France, the western parts of Germany and southern parts of England up to Hadrian's Wall. It was like the EU with the middle east and northern parts of Africa with a dictator. We’ll see if the EU can last as long.

There were boats in the area unlike any I had seen before. This boat is for sword fishing in the Messina Straits between Sicily and Italy mainland. Note that there are 3 men standing at the top of the "mast" looking for sword fish. If they spot one they will inform the man on deck who will attempt to harpoon it while standing on the tip of the long bow sprit. Does this make the point that not all boats are the same?

May 27th & 28th - The islands of Ischia and Capri

For those not familiar with navigation rules the marking of ALL harbor entries in North America place the RED mark on the right as you enter the harbor. In the rest of the world it is the opposite (most of the time). Below is a picture of a red light house (with a white light - at night) that must be passed with the light house on the RIGHT in order to enter the harbor at Ischia. There is a red light and a green light (properly placed for Europe) about 1/8 mile further in but they are invisible until passing the light house on the wrong side during a normal approach. Who says charts aren’t worth their prices?

Editor's Note: We really appreciate the great response that we received from the Nordhavn Atlantic Rally participants when we asked them to share their stories! These are some incredible boats and some incredible people, and we hope they'll remember to stop by and see us when they're in Fort Lauderdale or Newport.

For the area mentioned, we recommend Rod Heikell's Italian Waters Pilot for a cruising guide and Imray or British Admiralty charts.