Athens, Greece

I will admit that at the beginning of our day in Athens, we were very tired. We were looking forward to seeing Athens, however with this being the fifth day in a row of excursions, we were looking forward to the day at sea on Wednesday (actually today as I write this).  We began the day as usual with a quick breakfast. Going to the formal dining room was also an option, but we chose to sleep a bit later rather than take the time out for an “ordered” breakfast.

Once locating our bus at the dock, we began tour through a town called Pireaus. A very large shipping port in Greece, it was about a half hour drive to Athens and the Parthenon where our first stop was planned. The trip description warned that it was about 2-300 steps up to the Parthenon, and while it was a substantial walk, it did not seem quite that far. One of the interesting things we found at a number of the stops in Greece on both days was the number of dogs just hanging out at sites. They had the temperament of house dogs and were clearly unattended. We found out later that the city actually cares for them, including daily feeding and veterinarian care.  I did not understand it, but I did get a brief  “dog fix” since I could not pet my own.

Regarding the Parthenon, I am not even sure where to begin, so I may just post a number of pictures for you to see. Like the pyramids and Sphinx, you can read all you like about it from home. Being here and standing next to it is another story. To consider who was here and what went on here several thousand years ago is overwhelming. I hope each of you are able to travel here some day and see these magnificent cities and structures for yourself.

Building that the Apostle Paul preached in

As we left the Parthenon and toured part of Athens on the way back to the ship, we stopped at an amphitheater that was built in 1892. A British gentleman came to Athens and inspired them to build one for the Olympics. At the games held this year, only men were allowed to participate, and they had to be naked. Hence, the number of statues of naked men that are scattered around the area. Notice the Parthenon sitting atop the Acropolis in the background.

Rhodes, Greece

We began our day in Rhodes as all other days in a port began with grabbing some breakfast in the Windjammer, a large cafeteria where there are many buffet stations with varieties of food. Pastries and breads; scrambled eggs; pancakes, waffles and French toast; a station for eggs to order such as fried eggs or eggs Benedict; a station for fruit; another for juices and drinks. On a cruise there is no excuse for ever being hungry.

We gathered in the auditorium as we did each morning and waited for the staff to call our excursion number. As we heard our number called, we filed out like a herd of cattle as we made our way from deck five down to deck two where our pass cards were punched, showing we were leaving the ship. From there we located the bus for our tour and found seats. Our guide in Rhodes was named Olga. It happens that it was only in Egypt that we had a security officer on each bus. They were always very nice, and as I understood it, always armed. One passenger told us that they got a glimpse of the guard’s gun. When they asked about it, he showed them that it was a very small machine gun in a holster under his suit.

We passed the medieval city of Rhodes as we made our way to the village of Kamiros. Dating back to about 200 BC, it was amazing how much of the structures were still intact; homes that were all interconnected; baths; meeting areas; cisterns for water; even the temple to worship Apollo including platforms for their offerings. As I recall, this was one of the places that the Apostle Paul visited during his journeys.

Leaving Kamiros we drove through the countryside, noting many fruit and olive trees. Our next stop was at the medieval city of Rhodes. Having withstood the attack of the Romans for three years before they gave up and went home, the structure was amazing. Three series of substantial walls, three separate moats in front of each entrance, and that was before actually getting to the city in the center of the structure. Within one picture below can be seen cannons protruding from an outer wall. These cannons were actually placed there for the production of the movie, The Guns of Navarone, and not part of the original structure.

After following our guide through a significant portion of the city while she explained more about the city than I could remember, we had some free time to look around and shop at any of the substantial number of shops that lined the streets. While we were given the option of walking back to the ship after our free time, about a 20 minute walk, we chose to meet and take the bus. We had gotten enough exercise today.

Sunday - a short day in Limossol, Cyprus

The day in Cyprus began with a steady rain. While it would have been easy to be less than thrilled, our tour guide for our excursion explained to us that Cyprus had been experiencing drought conditions for several years. Therefore they considered it a blessing. It was hard to argue with that. It also was a little chilly (for here) but the tour and the day were very nice, even with the rain.

Our first stop was at the village of Omodos, originally a Greek Orthodox monastery. Within the village, the streets were quite narrow, paved with natural cobble stones that had been there for centuries. It was described as a walking village because the “streets” were so narrow that even the “smart cars” that were everywhere would have been far too wide. It continued to rain during our tour. As there were no drainage systems, other than the streets, the water flowing freely all along the way. Our first pause was at a bakery, with a wonderful smell you can just imagine.

We stopped next at one of the local wine press that the entire community used. A basket was hung on the wall, typical of the ones used as villagers brought in their grapes to be pressed. The wine press consisted of a very large wooden “screw” and attached mechanism that when turned, pressed the grapes and deposited the juice in very large clay jars. Of course we had an opportunity to taste a couple of the local wines. Yes I did, and it definitely took the chill off from being in the rain.

Our next stop was at the village Greek Orthodox Church. Though it was noon, there was a service still going on in the church. The guide said it was a special day for one of the saints. She also said worshippers were not bothered by tours as it happens all the time. I was quite uncomfortable with our presence in the back of the sanctuary, even as quiet as we tried to be.

 

 Following this stop we walked down one very narrow street where some of the local villagers had shops in which they sold many things, including a number of crafts they made themselves. We actually purchased very intricate doilies from two different ladies. One owner told us that the younger people are not interested in learning the crafts and that when this generation is gone, so will the knowledge to make such things.

The Sanctuary of Kourion was our next stop, the oldest structures reaching back to 325BC. The most recent being with the Late Roman Period as recent as 7^th century AD.  Interesting, the oldest pottery fragments found within the

community dated back to about 2000BC. Within the village we toured the remnants of one home, with a surviving mosaics that was quite beautiful; temples, (one being the Temple of Athena); a Roman bath within the home, complete with clay pipes to provide the water; and even the village amphitheater that overlooked the Aegean Sea.  Staged in many old Roman movies, the open theater hosted regular combat with both human and animal combatants. 

From here we headed back to the ship. All along the way back, the principle industry was evident everywhere, that being hundreds of thousands of citrus trees: orange, grapefruit, lemons, Mandarin oranges and Clementine.

 

 

 

Saturday – the 2nd day in Egypt – Alexandria

 To say that the last few days have been hectic would be an understatement. It is actually Monday as I jot a few notes – with the help of Jan, I am trying to remember all that we have seen. I am going to post more pictures for Saturday than comment. The reason for this is both time, and to some degree memory. Suffice it to say that Alexandria is a beautiful city. Like most cities it has areas that are quite elegant, while others are amazingly poor. One such area of poverty was evident around the catacombs, one of our stops. I have no pictures of our walk down into the catacombs, because we were required to leave the cameras in the bus. It was interesting that these catacombs were entirely pagan – no religious influence at all. I hope you enjoy the pictures. I may try to comment more later as time permits.

As I sit here waiting for the ship internet to come back up, one of the interesting things about the catacombs was that there were also spaces for horses. When someone’s horse was exceptional, they also were lowered through a hole down into the catacombs, where a specific section was designated for horses. (It never did come back up this morning before we went into Rhodes, Greece – so here is what I wrote this morning.  It is Monday afternoon here – we’ll be in Athens tomorrow and will catch up on Wednesday – a day of just cruising.

 

 

 

 

Cairo trip continued

Our next stop with the tour was on a riverboat on the Nile. We enjoyed a nice buffet lunch, not unlike something we would have in the states. But, we also had some great entertainment. We first enjoyed a traditional belly dancer. Next we watched a male dancer in a spectacular costume do a dance that involved constant spinning and twirling the layers of colorful fabric of which his outfit was made Following the dance and lunch, we went out on deck and enjoyed the scenery as we cruised the Nile for about an hour. One of the things I found so interesting both within site of the Nile and all over both Cairo and Alexandria was the large number of mosques. Distinctive by the dome and minarets adorning each one, the size varied from quite small to amazingly large, and the amount of decoration from minimal to quite vast.

 

One of our next stops was the largest mosque in Cairo, the Mohammed Ali Pasha Mosque and castle. The inside of the mosque was huge, ornate, and consisted of multiple domes and minarets. While it is no longer used on a daily basis as a place of prayer, it is closed for tours on Friday afternoon’s for holy day prayers. Distinctive of the mosque is that as the last in the line of Egyptian kings, his tomb is there in the mosque.

The final stop on within our trip to Cairo was a stop at a Papyrus Institute where the process of making papyrus thousands of years ago was explained, and how real papyrus is still made today. Then we had an opportunity to buy a piece of papyrus with artwork from the very simple and inexpensive to some very intricate and pricey. Following this stop, we fell back into the bus for the two and a half hour ride back to our ship in Alexandria. What an amazing day!

Our stay in Egypt – Pyramids and the Sphinx

To say the least, the last two days have been amazing…and full. It is Saturday afternoon here in Alexandria as I type, and we just got back from the tour today. I will give some highlights of yesterday first.

We left the port at about 0830 in a big fancy bus and headed for Cairo, a 2-3 hours ride. Our first stop there brought us to the base of the Great Pyramid. I do not think I can do it justice in words at this point.

The entire environment around the Great Pyramid and a lesser one was chaos. Buses, tourists, men on camels wanting us to take a ride. We were warned beforehand that it would be cheap to get ON a camel – “only one dollar” – but we would not be able to get OFF until the price was right. We chose not to ride a camel here. In addition there were children, men and women aggressively hawking things from necklaces, bags and carvings to postcards and scarves. I will admit that the atmosphere took away a bit from the experience, but I also wonder if a bazaar in the part of the world is often like this any time. From there we boarded the bus and drove up the road a bit to a place with a better vantage point. It also was a place where tour operators had already negotiated with camel owners to give rides for a set fee. Jan decided to take advantage of that. I chose to take the pics.

 

From here we could see the three main pyramids clearly, as well as quite a few unfinished ones and a number of smaller ones in the distance. All of this was with Cairo in the background.

We boarded the bus again for a short ride down the hill a ways to the Sphinx. Again, the “bazaar” atmosphere was in full force. We had to be assertive at a new level in order to move around the area. It was hard to take in that we were in the presence of structures that had been about 4500 years ago. As we drove around Cairo after seeing the pyramids, their presence could be both seen and felt from quite a distance.

More later....