Mary Wells | 04/04/2008 4:05 pm

Gypsy’s Personal Guide to Doctors, Drivers, Taxis, Shippers and Helicopters in the Med

Credentials: My husband and I had a summer home in St. Jean Cap Ferrat for 30 years and brought our children up from one end of the Med to the other. We had all kinds and sizes of boats and after selling my home in France I now spend summers on a Feadship called “Strangelove”. I have had many, many, many guests through the years and I know how painful it is to need a dentist and not know one. I am giving you the names, telephone numbers of friends you will be glad to know.

If you have someone you would like to add to my list please let me know. We all need friends when we travel.

Doctors in Italy:
The Genius: Dr. Luigi Marasco — Head of Burn and Plastic Surgery in the Brindisi Hospital. When necessary, for serious emergencies, he will travel. He is a life saver – he is just possibly an angel.
Tel: 39 0185 283 645 Mobile phone: 39 338 688 1723

In Portofino:

Dr. Fati: Reliable, Responsible: Tel: 39 0185 283 645. Mobile: 39 338 688 1723

Dr Ramasco: Reliable, Responsible: Tel: 39 338 281 1046.

Doctors in Spain:
Reliable, responsible. In Palma de Mallorca: Dr. Marisa Diaz Polo Tel: 34 071 681518

Doctors in South of France:
Excellent: In St Jean Cap Ferrat: This has been my family doctor in summer! Dr. Philippe Lemione. Speaks English, Philippe is a very good internist who knows the right specialist. Tel: 33 (0) 4 93 76 16 16. Mobile: 33 (0) 609 090988.

Dr. Veronique Coissard in Beaulieu Sur Mer, lovely and smart dermatologist, speaks English, Tel: 33 (0) 493 01 19 40

Dr. Simblser in Beausoleil, highly respected dermatologist in that odd French area squeezed right above Monte Carlo; experienced, speaks English, knows American medications, I’ve known him for years. Tel: 33 (0) 4 93 78 57 25

I just have to add Dr. Eric Maugee, dermatologist attaché to the Hospital Saint Louis in Paris – a good man and a good name to have! Tel: 01 48 74 12 94

Dr. Gerald Demaneuf, my favorite dentist, his office is in Beaulieu Sur Mer, he is excellent and he doesn’t hurt! Speaks English. I’ve known him for years in Beaulieu Sur Mer, Tel: 33 (0) 4 93 011 940

Laboratory Blood tests: Mr. Edery, respected, reliable, in Beaulieu Sur Mer, Tel: 33 (0) 4 93 01 12 59.

Shipping Agents You Can Trust: I’ve tried them all, I have shipped houses full of precious items so often you would be shocked so I won’t tell you. I think these are the best by far.

Best shipper in the world in my opinion: Tony Daddone, Kamino International Transport, 145th Avenue, Valley Stream, New York 11581. Tel: 1 516 825 4774, ext 3100 for Tony Daddone. Fax 1 516 825 4669. He never – and I mean never – lets you down. Call from Europe, Greenland, or the moon – he is affiliated with the shippers of the world and knows who is who – he will arrange everything.

Another great shipper if you own or charter a boat: Catalano Shipping Services.

La Panorama, Bloc C/D, 57 Rue Grimaldi, Monaco 98000. No matter where you sail, Catalano will find you to deliver or to take away, the five star shipper for yachts. Tel: 377 93 50 86 86.

Taxis, Limos, Drivers, Helicopters

Limousines, Monaco based:

2 M Limousines

Owner: Marc Bazzano – the best on the French coast in my opinion – very pleasant, smart, speaks good English, utterly reliable
Mobile: 377 (0) 6 80 86 40 27
Tel: 377 93 50 69 69

Limousines, Barcelona based:
Abaser: Tel: 34 93 245 78 29 www.abaser.es

Limousines, St Tropez based:
Riviera Limousine (Francis Laprade) Tel: 33 (0) 611 533 856

Limousines, Rome
Salvatore Rapicavoli: Tel: 39 329 623 1954; mobile: 39 (0) 6 783 49 022
Maurizio Benfenati: Tel: 39 388 231 151 28; www.coopsar.it

Local taxis, Portofino
Claudio: Tel: 39 335 533 2307
Giovanni: Tel: 39 340 47 33 160

Local taxis, Porto Santo Stefeno
Lucio: Tel: 39 335 126 2906
Marco: Tel: 39 339 399 7132

Local taxi, Viareggio
Alessandro: Tel: 39 339 61 58 852

Private Driver – Amalfi Coast plus

ALFREDO THE WONDERFUL

This intelligent, experienced and elegant driver and guide will pick you up and drive you anywhere in Italy. He is the very top of the line. Very good English. Tel: 39 334 330 21 92

Private Driver – La Spezia, Forte dei Marmi area
Massimo Gianfaldoni of Tuscany Dream Limo Service: lives in the area and knows it intimately – lots of shops in that area and he knows them all. I looked at houses in Forte dei Marmi, he has been sending me pictures of possibilities ever since! Speaks good English. Tel: 39 347 461 4390

Private Driver – Porto Cervo
Alessandro Tedde, Tel: 39 368 351 9386 or 39 333 935 5492

The Delightful Drivers of Capri
They sing, they gossip, they bring out the sun, they all know each other, in fact some of them are brothers, they tell funny stories – they should be on radio. They grew up in Capri where everybody knows too much about everybody else but they would never live anywhere else and they drive amazing cars. You are always a star in those cars. Very easy to find them up near the piazzetta in town, here are just a few telephone numbers:

The two, swinging, singing brothers: Nello and Antonio Federico, hilarious, great guys, speak very good English, Tel: 39 335 81 44 771

Another good one, doesn’t sing that I know of but speaks good English: Paolo de Gregorio, Tel: 39 338 284 7638

Private drivers n Brindisi (Italy)
Better than an ambulance if you have an accident in my opinion. Angelo, Tel: 39 338 373 7442 and Roberto, 39 30 939 820

Helicopters
Nice-Monaco: Heli Air Monaco: Tel: 377 92 05 00 50

Italy from Rome: Captain Ricciuto Tel: 39 347 354 9648

72 Reader Comments (so far…) Sign In or Register to comment

Brava!

By Mugsy Peabody on 04/07/2008 1:22 am

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Mammacita and Iris - thanks. When I read this post a couple of days ago, I had the same feeling I get when I read the Sunday Times and see the adds for $3000 blouses and $5000 purses, and think “who is thier audience? do people really buy that stuff”. I was actually sick to my stomach because I love this site, and thought, “boy, if this is the Wowow audience, I am in the wrong place!! Mama you expressed my feelings so well! Thanks again.

By Roberta G on 04/06/2008 1:53 pm

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Roberta G: You’re welcome. I am enjoying this site also. The valuable and learned information I am being given is priceless. When I first read Ms. Wells tips, I was reminded that though we are all in the same boat, some are steerage and others sit at the captain’s table. In the end, if the boat sinks, none of that matters. We all contribute and we all help with what we have and where we are. It is a pleasure to be among such a garden of beauty.

By iris odonata on 04/06/2008 3:42 pm

Thank you, Roberta. I hope I don’t come across as some kind of pathetic bag lady. I honestly love this site; I just can’t relate to the articles that are obviously meant for rich people. And by “rich people” I include anyone who makes more than $16,000 a year.

By Jane Goodwin on 04/06/2008 4:07 pm

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Mamacita, You come across as a cool, intelligent, with it lady who put together a great blog. Hopefully we are all here to learn, help and support each other, be entertained and grow. And as Mary said, collaborate. There’s a ton of life experience here for brainstorming. I would love to have your technical abilities. I liked it when read Donald Trump’s book and he said he even compares the prices of toothpaste and they go to Costco…or the comparative warehouse place in their neck of the woods. I don’t think need to actually relate to everything. It’s all material, never know when you might use the info. BTW a lady I know was living pretty darned high but all gratis her ex-husband’s monthy checks. She used to say she feared he’d pull the plug and she’d be a Beverly Hills bag lady….she never worked and absolutely didn’t have a clue about what to do. There’s a lot more of that stark fear going around in what looks like very cushy circumstances than most would imagine. So it’s very admirable that you are so self-sufficient and can run rings around people online. Some of those online niches do mighty fine. I reallyu respect your honestly and openness.

By Buh-Bye Hillary Hillary Buh-Bye on 04/06/2008 8:51 pm

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Oh come on Marmacita, I am telling you about doctors and dentists you can trust if you find yourself needing one in France or Italy. Alot of Americans vacation in France and Italy and it takes a little doing to persuade good doctors and dentists to give out their names publically like this. Yes I love to travel. I have had a difficult life, ladies, and I am older now and have made my own money and i love the freedom. so would you. give me a break. Is it more fun to know which table gets the fastest service at McDonalds? You can go to Europe. Or Mexico. or the Caribbean. There are great deals now. I check them all. And it is good for your health not to mention your spirit to find a way to spend a little time in a pretty new place feeling carefree. Why do you pick on on the cost of a poor dentist as if going to a dentist is buying a diamond bracelet. If you are in France on vacation or working it is worth every dime of the cost of a dentist who knows what he is doing. When was your last vacation? When I was a kid selling hats in McKelveys I used to have lunch some place I had never been to before, a park, a lake, a diner, a bench near the railway where I could watch the trains come and go, you sound like such a vibrant and fun woman - where do you go to get away, to be yourself, to do nothing in a better place? Mary

By Mary Wells on 04/07/2008 1:16 pm

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Singer and Iris,you are quite wonderful!

By Charles Dance on 04/06/2008 6:33 pm

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Perfect timing. I just received an email from an old friend that she just closed on a house in the south of France (La Garde Frenet ?) So I am sending along your list as well as printing it out for a future trip. And having just spent the month of February traveling through India I never travel without peanut butter crackers !

By Liz Verney on 04/06/2008 10:19 pm

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La Garde de Frenet is a wonderful little town, lucky friend, you should visit her soon.

By Sandra Robinson on 04/13/2008 12:49 pm

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Like Mamacita I was wondering if I am out of my league with this site, then I gave it a longer thought and decided that I love this site. The women are smart, professionals, and so am I. Only my check balance is very different and that is OK too. I know no envy. The only luxury that we actually do have is our health, if it is great then we are billionaires.

By Jeannot Kensinger on 04/07/2008 10:57 am

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I love this site, too. It just seems to cater to people who are a lot richer than I am. As a family, we have had exactly four vacations: one to Disney World, which took me nine years to pay off (Discover Card - NEVER use it!) and three to Ocracoke Island, NC, the most beautiful and inexpensive place on the planet. (I just finished paying off the third trip there two months ago, and the trip was in 2003.) It was worth it, but I was working full time then and now I only have four part-time jobs. I’m happy for all of you who can afford to travel, though. I used to dream of going to Greece. I know there are great deals, Mary, but even a “deal” requires money. My circumstances are such that money is something I do not have enough of, let along a surplus of some kind that I could ever use for traveling. I apologize if I sounded bitter or condemning in any way; that was certainly not my intention. I think it’s wonderful that some of you are able to travel and buy things. I’m mostly envious, I suppose. We are in our fifties and beginning again, due to circumstances beyond our control, and our income is miniscule. Bills and obligations come before pleasure, and there is nothing left for pleasure. However, all of you who are able to do these wonderful things, go for it! I hope you all appreciate how lucky you are.

By Jane Goodwin on 04/07/2008 5:04 pm

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Mamacita: I thoroughly enjoy your posts. And I may not have some of the credentials after my name as others or as many zeroes to the left of the decimal point, yet I do know that if I want to improve my tennis game, to play with someone more skilled than myself. And NOW, wow, we get more of the world joining the match.

By iris odonata on 04/09/2008 1:34 am

So, I found a used feadship for only $40,000,000 on the net. You want to buy it with me mamacita?

By Susan S on 04/07/2008 9:01 pm

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Guys, don’t forget to factor in running costs: crew, captain and chef, fuel if we want to go travel and mooring costs if we don’t! Want to do third shares? Can I pick the uniforms? :-)

By Michelle M on 04/08/2008 6:53 am

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I understand what Mary is saying…there was a time in my life when I really thought I would be in “that place” forever. I could not imagine my life getting easier, better etc. But it happens. It took hard work, a lot of sacrifice, but it has all been worth it. Looking back, I would not change a thing, because each bump in the road brought me to be the woman I am today. When I can’t get away on a “real” vacation…I take a “Me Day”…I grab lunch from my favorite deli, get in my car and drive to a favorite spot, spend some time sitting in the sun, etc. Another favorite of mine is opening a bottle of wine and putting on a good classic movie…especially if its a rainy day and I can build a fire. I am blessed to have married into a family with three vacation homes, and yes, at least twice a year I do a week long “getaway” at one of them. Sometimes I take my husband, sometimes its just me and a couple of my girlfriends. These trips re-charge my batteries and feed my soul. We should all try to find time to take care of ourselves…I think women have a tendency to put themselves last, taking care of everyone and everything around them first. It’s essential that you find time for yourself, no matter where it is or how you do it.

By J B on 04/08/2008 7:03 am