Adventure On Our Return from The Island of Capri

On the return trip to Naples (from the Island of Capri), we chose the "fast" vs. the "slow" ferry with approximately 300 passengers on board. We paid extra for the "fast" ferry. We were not necessarily in a hurry, but we wanted to arrive in plenty of time so as not to miss our ship...maybe even explore a bit of Naples. Yet halfway across the channel, the "fast" ferry went slower and slower and slower. Looking over the edge, I saw several Italian men standing in a circle smoking and adding what looked like "oil" onto an engine. I asked if there was a problem. They just smiled. They didn't speak English and I didn't speak Italian...so it seemed we had a communication problem. Several other passengers started to notice and began discussing the possibility of sinking in the middle of the channel. Trying not to become alarmed, I asked my traveling friend, Diana if she could swim. and she said yes. We looked around for life jackets, but found none. Then a couple of the Italian guys ran to the top level with a hand-pump and blew up this raft. Now I was alarmed. I saw no other lifeboats, located no life jackets, and this raft was not going to hold 300 passengers. We eventually chugged our way back to Naples and docked safely...an hour and a half later than planned, but in plenty of time to board our cruise ship. When I showed John this picture, his comment was, "they weren't preparing the raft for the passengers...it was for the crew...you were screwed!"