An artistic journey of the
MEDITERRANEAN Kate Armstrong uncovers her sense of curiosity on an artistic journey of discovery through the Mediterranean from ancient Rome to Barcelona that brims with vibrant Catalonian culture.
I am neither especially clever nor especially gifted. I am only very, very curious. – Albert Einstein Three decades ago, with the ink barely dry on my university degree and a passion for history and fine arts, I bought a one-way ticket to Europe and headed off on an extended backpacking trip. Looking back, the journey was an unglamorous version of the Grand Tours of the 18th century, when 34
impressionable Brits would venture to Italy with knowledgeable chaperones to learn about the classics and antiquities, from ancient ruins in Rome to architecture in Florence. In my case, I was travelling alone. But what I lacked in companions, I made up for in curiosity: I vowed to get up close and personal with those Italian Renaissance artworks that I’d only ever seen via slides projected onto the wall of a university lecture hall. I was a girl obsessed. And it was thrilling. I think of this as I board the Viking Sky, delighted that my itinerary – an eight-day Mediterranean cruise from
Rome to Barcelona – includes many of the locales of my backpacking adventure. This time, I’m about to luxuriate in Viking style. But that’s not all. What tickles my neurons is that Viking promotes their trips as a “thinking person’s cruise”. I’m intrigued by what that means in practice. After all, my cruising wish list is long: I fancy learning new things and I want to polish up a few facts that have long gone rusty in my memory bank. By nature an inquisitive soul, I want my curiosity both aroused and sated. Can Viking deliver my tall order? It doesn’t take long to find out. On my first evening, I relax in the ship’s smart theatre and soak up VIKING
