MPV Italie
(1908 - ????) : 2005 might not have been her last season after all ............................Although
the indications coming from the CGN headquarters in 2007 are that MPV Italie,
currently laid up at the Bellerive dockyard, may indeed be returned to service
sometime after 2010, there was far less optimism in 2005 when it was confirmed
that she would be withdrawn at the end of the year, with her sister MPV Vevey
following a year later. So, it was with some urgency that many paddler enthusiasts
got themselves down to Lake Geneva for what seemed a last chance for a sail
on a ship that had given sterling service for 97 years. The Paddle Steamer Resources
by Tramscape webmaster was one of those who took advantage of cheap flights
now available to Geneva from the UK to ensure that Italie was captured on "film"
for posterity as well as to contemplate the future of the vessel from the lakeside
at Geneva.
Maybe we shall see her again after all, but if she does return,
it will be as a fully refurbished ship and an interior similar to Montreux and
Savoie. In the meantime we can only hope and pray -and do what we can to ensure
that the CGN is a thriving business which can take on (with more enthusiast
financial support) the costs of Italie's refit.
Here are the photos taken
in September 2005 without further comment
Click on the links under each photo below to see the full set. Links to
larger photos do not operate on this on-line version of the report.
