Mount Vernon (AP 22) - Naval Cruise Book

Page 96 text:

«o .Marseille .Notre Dame dela Garde The very name ORAN whispered the mysteries which hovered behind the closed doors of the Casbah, of dancing girls and tinkling cymbals. Above the ageless native clay buildings rises a modern city whose sky- scrapers silhouette themselves against the desert sunsets. Oran, originally the largest French Naval Base had become the Allied Base for operations against Sicily. On none of the ship ' s three visits to the port, however, was any of the Mount Vernon ' s travelers allowed ashore. The city remained a mystery to them all. 171 -MARstiLLt. Uuc General a d ' Ehdoume et les lies.

Page 95 text:

p MARSEILLES was France reborn. The fountains of the Palais Long- champs played again. The Pink Ele- phant and Madame Clarey ' s did a thriving business. The women were stylish in whatever they wore, re- modeled drapes, or cast-off suits. The French Look had survived the war. Less than a month before the arrival of the Mount Vernon , the Rue de Canebiere had felt the marching of German boots. Now the street was a cosmopolitan pa- rade. The foe left their su bmarine pens and scuttled ships as tokens of their departure. Also the rubble. Fear of the Mistral prevented pas- sage to the Chateau d ' lf, scene of Dumas ' Count of Monte Cristo . The best substitute, a view of the island castle and the harbor was ob- tained from the Cathedral of Notre Dame de la Garde.

Page 97 text:

At some time or other in the career of a Navy ship, she must visit each of two places: Pearl Harbor and Norfolk. The Mount Vernon had been in the past to Pearl . Earlier in her life, too, she had been in Norfolk. Cruises of late 1945 led the ship there more often. As the city was All- Navy, any recreation was Navy- sponsored: golfing, swimming, movie going. Visits were also made to nearby Williamsburg, scene of colonial restoration. A farewell to Norfolk was the ship ' s dance at the Palomar Ballroom.