Finally moving again!

[ScottC]

San Remo, Italy & Port. Excellent -- and very large -- port and an interesting place to walk around. Click on picture to enlarge.

 

[bowball]

Ok - something to soothe your offended eyes...
About a dozen Rivas on the other side of our dock

My friend has a vintage Aquarama he uses off the coast of Maine. Beautiful boat, and I much prefer the vintage ones.

 

[La Mer]

Wifey B: Yes, one doesn't go to Monaco to get away from it all. Still, it sure is fun and Hercule is very nice and convenient.

I in no way intend to cause controversy here but "one doesn't go to Monaco to get away from it all" made me laugh; you should be aware that the country of Monaco is approximately half the size of Central Park in NYC; it just take a 45-minutes walk from the western border of the country to the eastern border.


By the way Monaco is the name of the entire country - better to say the Principality; Monte Carlo is not a harbor, it’s one of the ten districts - better to say quarters or wards - of the country of Monaco; Monte Carlo is a plateau located at the elevated top of «Mount Charles» - in Italian «Monte Carlo» - which contains now the biggest concentration of high-luxury shops in Europe, where stands at its hearth the Hotel de Paris, the Café de Paris, and the famous Monte Carlo Casino designed by French architect Charles Garnier who was also the master behind the Palais Garnier in Paris - better known as the «Opera de Paris».


From Quai Antoine Premier in Port Hercule, where ScottC’s vessel was moored, to the Prince’s Palace at the top of the famous Rock is a 15-minutes walk. From Port of Fontvieille to same destination is a 20-minutes walk. From Quai Antoine Premier or Port of Fontvieille to the Monte Carlo ward is a 25 minutes walk; Everywhere in Monaco is just a matter of minutes; the country is so small that getting around by taxi everywhere in Monaco is a single fare of 20€ day and night.


To ScottC: in case of strong East wind - which is quite common between Nice and Viareggio at that time of autumnal equinox - and the resulting swell, Port Hercules, much exposed to easterly winds, is uncomfortable even for vessels of up to 120’; all size vessels may have to double-line; furthermore the noise of ongoing construction activity; not to forget the noise generated by town traffic during both day night on Boulevard Albert Premier which is moreover reverberated by the close buildings.


I guess that in San Remo your choice was Porto-Solé - great marina - instead of the smaller municipal harbor.

 

[BandB]

I in no way intend to cause controversy here but "one doesn't go to Monaco to get away from it all" made me laugh; you should be aware that the country of Monaco is approximately half the size of Central Park in NYC; it just take a 45-minutes walk from the western border of the country to the eastern border.

Wifey B: Fully aware as we were there in June and September. 3/4 square mile. We own bigger parcels of land but they have $0 GDP (and cost $200 per acre) vs. Monaco's $7-8 billion which makes Monaco the highest GDP per capita in the world I think. Still, we enjoy it for a day or so, but then we like casinos.

 

[La Mer]

Ok - something to soothe your offended eyes...
About a dozen Rivas on the other side of our dock

The Monaco Boat Service company based Quai Antoine Premier in Port Hercule is the Riva station in Monaco since more than 60 years; the company also run Riva bases in Cannes and Saint Tropez; Mrs Lia Riva - Carlo Riva’s daughter - a very nice person, is CEO of Monaco Boat Service;


To date more than 60 antique Riva runabouts are still dry-stored in a special tunnel Quai Antoine Premier which was dug in 1962 into the Rock under Prince’s Palace;


1. Carlo Riva

2. Lia Riva CEO of Monaco Boat Service

3 & 4. Tunnel of Monaco Boat Service Quai Antoine Premier

5. Gala dinner inside tunnel of Monaco Boat Service

 

[ScottC]

I guess that in San Remo your choice was Porto-Solé - great marina - instead of the smaller municipal harbor.

Indeed, we were in Porto Solé. I agree - it was an excellent marina!!

 

[ScottC]

The Monaco Boat Service company based Quai Antoine Premier in Port Hercule is the Riva station in Monaco since more than 60 years; the company also run Riva bases in Cannes and Saint Tropez; Mrs Lia Riva - Carlo Riva’s daughter - a very nice person, is CEO of Monaco Boat Service;


To date more than 60 antique Riva runabouts are still dry-stored in a special tunnel Quai Antoine Premier which was dug in 1962 into the Rock under Prince’s Palace;


1. Carlo Riva

2. Lia Riva CEO of Monaco Boat Service

3 & 4. Tunnel of Monaco Boat Service Quai Antoine Premier

5. Gala dinner inside tunnel of Monaco Boat Service

Yes - Monaco Boat Service was all over the area we were docked in. An impressive operation. I am astounded at the tunnel for vintage Rivas. I guess it must be by invitation only. Had no clue it was there.


We took a city "Hop-on; Hop-off" bus tour that was worth it just to experience the amazing, extensive and complex underground tunnel network cut into the rock.

 

[ScottC]

Departing Cannes. One of the finest and best-managed ports we encountered this year. Only one we've ever encountered with a high-volume filtered and bubble water maker on the pier!

 

[La Mer]

Yes - Monaco Boat Service was all over the area we were docked in. An impressive operation.

The pontoon Quai Antoine Premier in Port Hercule where your vessel was moored


1. In 1996


2. More recently

 

[BandB]

The pontoon Quai Antoine Premier in Port Hercule where your vessel was moored


1. In 1996


2. More recently

Wifey B: Notice how the 2013 Rivarama shown in our posts as our avatar is so much like the 1996 photo. While that model is discontinued, several of their smaller boats do still have the Mahogany decks.

None of the boats 50' or above have it though. They all look like the bottom picture. Great boats, classic design and build, but none of the classic materials and appearance.

 

[La Mer]

Wifey B: Notice how the 2013 Rivarama shown in our posts as our avatar is so much like the 1996 photo. While that model is discontinued, several of their smaller boats do still have the Mahogany decks.

None of the boats 50' or above have it though. They all look like the bottom picture. Great boats, classic design and build, but none of the classic materials and appearance.

Indeed Madame the Riva of your avatar is a pleasant blend of modernity and Carlo Riva's tradition, she well pays tribute to the iconic Ariston, Aquarama and Aquarama Special ; as you know better than me today the business is owned by the Ferretti Group; through embracing and combining new methods where technology is still meeting tradition Riva is now once again a luxury marque with a wide range of models;


At his very early age, the previous owner or my previous Grand Banks 42 Classic got the chance to take the helm of his grand-father's mahogany runabout, which was built in 1935 in Sarnico by Serafino Riva's yard - Serafino was Carlo Riva’s father - at a time when Riva was not yet Riva; sadly he didn't allowed me to post here a picture of his grand-father's boat ;

 

[La Mer]

ScottC, have you seen SS Delphine when you were recently in Monaco ? If not, and if I correctly did read your posts my understanding is that you will winterize your vessel at St Mandrier marina in the southeast France, you should take the opportunity to see SS Delphine – SS stands for Steam Ship – currently moored in La Seyne Sur Mer very close to St Mandrier after a voyage of 2 days, 21 hours originating from Port Hercule, Monaco;


This morning I drove from Montpellier to Toulon to attend a medical seminar then stopped off La Seyne Sur Mer to admire SS Delphine; I am not into old boats but Delphine must be described as extraordinary; an icon of the USA's yacht building heritage, the yacht of all historic superlatives; indeed she is the world’s most historic superyacht, the world’s only surviving steam-driven private yacht, ranked #3 of the largest yachts – 257’ - ever built in the US still in operation ;


Launched in 1921 Delphine was built in steel and aluminum by US yard Great Lakes Engineering Works in Ecorse, MI, for Horace Dodge ; After a rather troubled history and after changing hands on several occasions , in 1968 Delphine was donated to the Lundeberg Maryland Seamanship School where for the next 20 years she was to serve as a training ship for US merchant seamen ;


In 1997 Belgian tycoon Jacques Bruynooghe fell in love with the concept of reviving a historic yacht that he could enjoy rebuilding and sailing in; That same year Delphine was towed to Belgium at the Scheepswerf Zeebrugge Yard where she underwent a full restorative rebuild at great expense of five or six years to the original 1921 condition including interior decor and the original steam engines for which Jacques Bruynooghe spent over €35 million; then in 2003 she was rechristened SS Delphine by Princess Stéphanie of Monaco


According to legend the yacht went down in history as the yacht of Yalta, where the rulers of the world at that time, Churchill, Truman, Stalin, prepared the Yalta convention


SS Delphine today in La Seyne Sur Mer :

 

[OldDan1943]

This video gives you an idea about the SS Delphine. The interior as been, sadly, modernized.

Dodge's widow refused to sell while she was alive because it gave her great comfort to look out her window and see her husband's dream.
Horace and Henry Ford were great friends.
If you drove up Lake Shore Dr, you could see it at the end of a very long dock. Alas, the dock was in disrepair so sneaking on the Dodge property and walking the dock was not a possibility.
Even though the boat was "out there" and unattended no one attempted to board it.

 

[kthoennes]

Boy I love that sharp bow, kind of like the old USS Olympia (I know, not quite the same, but that raked, sharp bow is so elegant).

 

[La Mer]

The interior as been, sadly, modernized.

What do you mean by sadly modernized

 

[OldDan1943]

What do you mean by sadly modernized

Compare the 'smoking lounge' to the dining area.
More light covered surfaces.....

 

[La Mer]

Compare the 'smoking lounge' to the dining area.
More light covered surfaces.....

From all the recent the pictures of SS Delphine I have looked at, I see the word "fortunately" instead of "sadly" ; indeed the ship had more than it's fair share of misfortune; she has been damaged while she was in Maryland; the name also changed time and again; in 1997 in horrible shape she was sold for scrap metal value and this is where the story ends many times but it didn't; Fortunately some Detroit pride was saved from the scrapper when she was bought by European businessman Jacques Bruynooge and now she's an awesome sight to see ;


The US Navy siren still remains as a reminder of Delphine's wartime duty

 

[moparharn]

My friend grabbed a trash can full of the Dodge family home movies before Rose Terrace (the second one built by Anna Thompson Dodge and Hugh Dillman) was torn down. The movies are incredible and the Delphine is featured prominently in many of them. Horace and Anna's daughter was named Delphine and thus the name for his last boat. Sadly, Horace died before the boat was finished. The daughter Delphine is married in one of the videos to
Mr. Petz. After the wedding they sail off on Nokomis II, the dodge family's second yacht. They sailed to Chicago and then by train to San Francisco and boat again to Hawaii. There are videos of the Delphine being taken away by the US Navy for WWII service. Two tug boats break ice from the freighter channel into the Delphine channel and Mrs. Dodge's second was at the dock to hand off the yacht to the navy. There are movies of the Delphine being launched at GL Engineering, and of Mrs. Dodge and her friends leaving a riverside launch to go and watch the boat races. Gar Wood and Horace were racing their boats on the Detroit River. Henry and Clara Ford at Delphines wedding where the Nokomis waited out front by the lawn covered in hardwood for dancing to music by the Detroit Symphony Orchestra. I could go on and on. I have a CD of all the movies and passed it along to the Detroit Historical Society. The Delphine was an incredible ship, and still is. Did you know that Horace loved the pipe organ? So much so that the Delphine had one installed on it. Can you imagine a private yacht so magnificent that it had its own pipe organ. The golden age of the automobile industry. Horace and John Dodge were considered nouveau riche by the Grosse Pointe society people. The Country Club of Detroit was next door to the Dodge property. When they would not let Horace into the club he built a house that eclipsed their clubhouse, and a yacht that obscured their harbor full of boats. John and Horace were close and they came from a boat engine background and loved their boats. John even went to the trouble of having a tunnel run from his new house (under construction during his death) down to the lakeside dock so Horace could visit with out crossing Lakeshore Road and being exposed to the elements. I have been told that it was really for moving liquor, but what do I know. The tunnel blew up from a gas leak during construction of houses on a street now called Harbor Hill. After John's death (just before Horace in 1921) his wife moved her home from Grosse Pointe out to the northwest of Detroit and called her home Meadowbrook. It still stands today. Maybe I will post a video of some of this stuff. Not sure if TF allows videos. Bill

 

[La Mer]

Thank you Sir for your fascinating post

 

[La Mer]

Wifey B: Notice how the 2013 Rivarama shown in our posts as our avatar is so much like the 1996 photo. While that model is discontinued, several of their smaller boats do still have the Mahogany decks.

None of the boats 50' or above have it though. They all look like the bottom picture. Great boats, classic design and build, but none of the classic materials and appearance.

At his very early age, the previous owner or my previous Grand Banks 42 Classic got the chance to take the helm of his grand-father's mahogany runabout, which was built in 1935 in Sarnico by Serafino Riva's yard - Serafino was Carlo Riva’s father - at a time when Riva was not yet Riva; sadly he didn't allowed me to post here a picture of his grand-father's boat ;

my friend finally allowed me to post a picture of his grandfater's mahogany runabout built in 1934/1935 in Sarnico by Serafino Riva; Serafino went on to transform the family's yard which was soon taken over by Carlo Riva, son of Serafino , who created wooden boats of such exceptional style and elegance where Riva genuine brand became ;


In this picture taken in 1965 or so, among the three persons on board my friend about 7 years old was at the helm; the curvaceous lines of the boat already foreshadowed the Riva runabouts' coming generations;


ScottC I apologize if that has caused any inconvenience in your thread