Piraeus for Athens

We have lost track of how many times we have been to Athens but it is enough so that we no longer feel a need to visit ruins. It is enough to see them in the distance while we are enjoying the city. So without the pressure of sight seeing, we left the ship late in the morning and headed for the Piraeus Train Station. We can never remember exactly where the station is, but we know the general direction. We walked along the harbor past ferry terminals until the neighborhood began to look like an area where the train station would be. And then we asked a few people which way. It took about 30 minutes to reach the station and buy tickets. (And for those of you who know the story, we did it without screaming at each other in the middle of the street.)

In 17 minutes the train took us to Monastriaki  Square, which looked familiar right down to the fresh strawberries for sale at the first cart outside the Station’s entrance. We walked to the right toward the Acropolis and turned at the first street that took us past Hadrian’s Library and the Tower of the Winds. We strolled among the shops and restaurants in the Plaka for a while, sitting on a stone wall to watch a crew filming a scene on a side street. We ended up by the entrance to the new museum.

Our main purpose in visiting Athens was to return to Scholarhio Restaurant at 14 Tripidon Street for lunch in the Plaka and we easily found it. Lunch was even better this time even though it was too cold to sit on the outside balcony. We sat inside and chose six out of the 12 dishes on the vegetarian tray and enjoyed a wonderful feast.

Bodrum

Sometimes the best ports are those for which we have low expectations. Never having heard of Bodrum before seeing the name on the itinerary for this voyage, I expected very little. What we had was another wonderful day.

Expecting nothing, we took our time, had a leisurely breakfast, and slowly made our way ashore. Thom, the Cruise Director, had announced that there was a complimentary shuttle boat to the Castle of Saint Peter, an ancient fortress overlooking the harbor and we headed to the embarkation area. The ferry was just the right size for a 15-minute ride across the harbor from Prinsendam’s dock to the Castle dock. The sun was bright and temperatures were in the low 70s with a light breeze. We rode on the open deck on the upper level of the ferry.

At the Castle, we had intended to be diligent tourists and walk through the structure, admiring the history and archeology of the site. At the entrance, however, we found out that only Turkish Lira were accepted for the admission fee of around US$14. (Had we been properly motivated, we could have walked to the money changer and received the exact amount of money to pay in Turkish Lira.) So we were off the hook for the diligent tourist thing. Instead, we admired the scarves, jewelry and trinkets being sold along the dock beside the Castle. There was one tent filled with about eight women making thin bread, filling it with seasoned potatoes and cooking it on skillets heated by bottled gas.

At the end of the dock, the city center began. The city center shopping area is clean, safe, with wide sidewalks lined with shops selling more jewelry, leather goods, artwork – a variety of merchandise, as well as cafes and restaurants. The menus sounded appealing and the cooking food smelled really good. We looked at leather vests and jackets, rings, necklaces and had fun not buying anything.

We could have had lunch in Bodrum, but it is so much easier for me to eat on the ship that we walked back along the beaches and ate in the Lido. After a quick lunch, we were back in the City Center at a café with wi-fi, so Jerry had a cup of Turkish tea to get the password for the wi-fi. With the seven hour time difference, we had to wait until close to time to be back on board before we could start using Skype to call our kids. This time we were able to talk to the two we missed the last time and two others and my three grandsons. Talking to our family makes us very happy.

Now the ship is under way with an early arrival tomorrow in Kusadasi and Ephesus.

Alexandria

Egypt! What a great time to be here!  We are only the second ship to stop here in three months. Prinsendam docked in a cargo port beside a very new passenger terminal. There was a complimentary shuttle provided to take people not on tours into the center of the city. Since we have been to Egypt before and seen Cairo and the pyramids, we decided to take a ship’s tour of Alexandria in the morning and do whatever presented itself in the afternoon. In addition to having already been here, I was a bit anxious about the wisdom of our being here this time, wondering if the situation was stable enough so a ship’s tour seemed like a good idea.

Our tour took us to the main sights and sites in Alexandria, but the highlight of the tour was the spectacular library. This new one was built a few hundred yards from the first Alexandrian library, which was burned in antiquity, can’t look it up now. The new building is massive with space enough for 8 million books. Not to say that the library is not digital. Check out the website – just Google it.

Alexandria is a city of great diversity with 7 million people from many countries and religions living in harmony. It is relatively clean for an Egyptian city with very little trash on the ground. It is crowded though with an insane way of driving. There is one traffic light in the city and it didn’t seem to be working when we rode past. Pedestrians, buses, taxis, cars, trucks, horse drawn wagons, scooters, all seem to be in motion and somehow they work out right of way and the traffic moves. There is also a lot of horn honking and occasional yelling out the vehicle window.

The other site we liked seeing were the Roman Theater and baths. The theater was built by the same man who built Hadrian’s Wall separating Scotland from England. The tour guide said that there are so many layers of past cultures that every time there is digging for a construction project another new ruin is discovered.  

After the tour and lunch back on board, we shopped at the vendors just outside of the pier area. We bought postcards and papyrus paintings. With many hours still here in the port we decided about 4:30 pm to see if we could ride the complimentary shuttle into the center and town and then return to the ship. At first it appeared that we were too late, but we spoke to the person in charge of the shuttle and he said we could ride to the city center and back. We boarded a large tourist bus, the driver boarded, and a security guard with an enormous weapon in a holster on his hip joined us. We sat in the front seat with the best view and the four of us set out back into the city in our big bus. The streets were even busier because late in the afternoon the temperatures begin to drop and people are out and about at the markets, shopping and living their lives. (Last week the temperatures were well over 100 but today the high was about 70. Perfect weather for tourists.)

When the bus driver discovered that he could make Jerry laugh by using the bus’ horn, he made a point of doing it even more often, with all of us lacking a common language but having a great time. We reached a square where we stopped and a young man carrying small rugs ran over to the bus to try to sell his goods. Jerry decided he wanted one of them, so he negotiated a price and we ended up with two little rugs. Good thing we don’t have to fly home at the end of the cruise.

The people were so happy to have us here! A group of girls in uniforms of a private high school surrounded Jerry and me at the Alexandrian Library, bubbling with exuberance and ready to practice their English. Where are you from? What is your name? Have you been to Egypt before? Can you speak Arabic? What languages can you speak?

People on the streets stopped to wave and smile as we rode by in the bus. That did not happen on our bus when we were here in 2009.

I watched our tour guide put a few coins into a man’s hand and noticing that I observed her, she said, “They haven’t worked in three months so I do what I can.” With tourism their main industry and that eliminated, the people here have been struggling. I hope that our visit has also done a little bit to help them. The people we spoke with were guarded in what they said about the political situation, but the tour guide asked us all to keep the people of Egypt in our prayers.

Ravenna Italy

The ship docked about half an hour from the center of town but there was a complimentary shuttle provided from the ship into town. I took the shuttle after a leisurely morning letting everyone in a hurry get off the ship and into town.

The best thing to do in Ravenna was apparently being on the 7:30 am ship’s tour to San Marino to get passports stamped. That is what the passengers who are “collecting countries” opted to do. We are counting the countries we have been to but are not so into it that we would get up around 6 am to make the trip.

The shuttle dropped us off a couple of blocks from the train station in one direction and all of the main sites within walking distance in the other direction. I managed to find Dante’s tomb, the Duomo, Basilica, and most importantly a tourist information center. I looked everywhere as I walked for “WC” and found none. At the tourist info center there were much better maps and I was able to locate the nearest “WC.” In Venice all of the public toilets cost 1.5 Euros but in Ravenna, it cost only .25 Euro – a real bargain. Right now a US dollar is equal to .69 Euros at the bank exchange rate so we can ballpark the exchange by adding a third to the prices.

In each new port, it is always difficult to figure out the basics such as where there are public toilets and how much they cost, how the public transportation works, and how to mail postcards. I found the Poste Italia at Piazza Garibaldi without any trouble but then I couldn’t figure out how the lines worked. It seemed to never be my turn, so I asked and was told to go to the ticket machine, press “P” and get a number. Then it was quickly my turn and I was able to have postcards of Venice stamped to be mailed from Ravenna.

There were very nice clothing stores with very large Euro prices, many cafes, some produce markets where I almost bought a quart of strawberries for 6 Euros. It is a Saturday so many of the locals were walking around the town enjoying the nice weather just like the tourists.

I wandered back to the shuttle pick-up point and stumbled upon the 5^th century Battistero degli Ariani and its mosaic ceiling. From the shuttle I was able to get some photos of these unusual fishing shacks with nets that drop into the water and fill up with fish.

Siracusa

Although we had been scheduled to tender at this port, we were able to dock right beside the old town. Docking in the tight space here is apparently impossible for a ship the size of ours if there is wind, so we were lucky to have a light breeze enabling the favorable situation. I expect that the Captain will have an interesting post on his blog about it.

The peninsula of the old area is quite small so we easily walked to many of the sites, including the Duomo, the Fountain of Artemsia, the Museum, and the ruins of the Temple of Apollo. The Baroque façade of the Duomo masks the façade of the 5^th century BCE Temple of Athena, which can be seen quite clearly from the side street.

One of the shops had Easter sweets on display in the window – quite elaborate. Again turning each corner brought another charming street into view. Many passengers had lunch in the restaurants, but we were back onboard in time for lunch.

On one of the ship’s tours, they were not far from Mt. Etna and heard it rumble, saw it spew steam and then felt a sprinkle of ash fall on them. Very exciting experience.

Right now we are delayed in our departure from Siracusa. The second time we have been delayed in leaving a port because a lifeboat required repairs. And this time it is our lifeboat, number 2, so I want them to take their time and fix it right. I don’t know what the problem was either time, but on one of the tender trips I took a photo of some kind of a device on the windshield of the tender that had a missing screw and was hanging down with wires exposed.

Two days at sea as we make our way up the Adriatic toward Venice.

Lipari, Italy

It took us until 1:00 this afternoon to reach Lipari so we took advantage of the time to do the laundry again. The Laundromat was not crowded and we quickly finished so we could enjoy Lipari. Off the coast of Sicily, it is the largest of the Aeolian Islands, all of which are volcanic in origin. Most of the volcanoes are nearly extinct, but Stromboli has an active vent releasing steamy clouds and sometimes glows red. 

Lipari has a pretty port, charming houses set into the hillside, a medieval castle, an old Norman palace, and ancient Roman and Greek ruins. Prinsendam anchored and we used the tenders to reach the dock at the center of town. There are restaurants right at the port serving delicious looking fish, brought in fresh this morning. Along the streets from the town center to the Basilica are more restaurants and shops offering jewelry, clothing, tourist treasures, and wine. I tried on a dress in one of the shops. In a jewelry store, I talked with the designer and tried on a necklace of pink coral carved into an octopus and starfishes wrapped in strands of black coral.

We walked many of the winding streets admiring the charming architecture, orange and lemon trees, and small gardens. Then we walked up an old stone stairway leading from the town center to the 11^th century Basilica Cattedrale de San Bartolomeo. The church does not look like much from the bottom but inside are awesome frescoes on the walls and the ceiling.

In a couple of hours, we will be in the Straits of Messina. The last time we were in that water there were large waves and we were bouncing off the walls as we walked to our cabin after dinner. The weather forecast for this evening sounds like smooth sailing and a pleasant passage. We might even see a volcano glowing red as we pass by.

Rome

Thanks to our travel agent, Ken, we had a complimentary tour yesterday in Rome: Roman Holiday, a tour which ook us to the places in the movie. We sat at the Spanish Steps, tossed a coin in the Trevi Fountain, toured the Palazzo Brancaccio, drove by the Coliseum, and had tiramisu gelato at La Plama Gelateria. Lunch was at Cecilla Metella, the restaurant where the Hepburn and Peck characters hid away trying to avoid photographers. I have to admit that I do not remember the movie “Roman Holiday” at all, but it will be shown onboard soon to the group of 40 who shared the tour.

Since we have been to Rome several times, we did not feel the need to visit the usual tourist places and were delighted to be on the tour. The sites of Rome were interesting, what a history! The highlight of the day, and probably of the cruise, was the lunch at Cecilla Metella. First, both the setting and weather were perfect. We ate outdoors on a patio under vine-covered trellises at tables covered with bottles of red and white wines, still and fizzy water, and baskets of fresh bread.

Waiters delivered plates of sliced prosciutto and other meats to most people. We vegetarians were asked to go inside to fill our own plates from a large selection of grilled vegetables, olives, artichoke hearts, eggplant parmesan, and more. We all thought that was to be our meal, but the waiter, looking at our very full plates, explained it was only antipasto. We looked like a bunch of gluttons and then we behaved like gluttons too.

After the antipasto, the table was served an incredible pasta dish made with green linguini in a very rich cream sauce. For vegans, they served pasta with marinara sauce, which I could not eat because I was already so full. Then the entrée was served. I couldn’t tell if it was veal or pork with sliced roasted potatoes, but everyone said it was outstanding. We had sliced tomatoes. By then, the eight at our table had become the rowdy bunch, drinking wine and laughing so much that other people told us we were having too much fun.

Then dessert was served. Not vegan, but when in Rome, do as the Romans do. It might be the best dessert of my life. On the plate was a cream puff filled with gelato and covered with a lighter lemon cream sauce, a bit like a sauce Anglaise. Words cannot begin to describe the tastes and mouth feel of this dessert. I wanted to eat two or three of them!

The owner of the travel company in Rome also owns the Vespa used in the movie, so we all had our photos taken on the scooter before heading to the “Mouth of Truth” for photos with a hand inside the mouth. Legend says if you lie, it will bite your hand off. Fortunately no one lost any appendages and we snoozed our way back to the port of Civitaveccia to the ship.

Cinque Terre

 I am including specifics of travel to help others trying to make one-day visits to Cinque Terre from a cruise ship anchoring and tendering at La Spezia. It may not be so interesting to our families and friends!

On the northwest coast of Italy, east of Genoa in the Ligurian region, is the picturesque and popular area known as the Cinque Terre, The Five Lands. La Spezia is a lovely town on its own but for us it was the gateway to the Cinque Terre. These five villages hang on the cliffs, connected by an ancient footpath. Much to our delight we were able to travel to all five villages and return to the ship well before the last tender, which was scheduled for 4:30 pm. At first it looked as if it would not be possible to do it on our own at all, but it turned out that the information on the Internet was not quite accurate – surprise! Nevertheless, I am putting this information on the Internet, but if you plan to use these details, be sure to check the train schedules to be certain when trains will operate during your visit.

We were off the ship on Tender 1 and asked the way to walk to the train station. There we were able to get a complete train schedule, train tickets valid for 6 hours of on and off in villages (11.80 Euros for both of us roundtrip) and a ticket for the park so we would be able to walk between the villages (5 Euros for two people.) We had only a short wait to get on the 10:01 train from La Spezia. We arrived a very quick seven minutes later in Riomaggiore, the first of the villages heading west.  This was the place we made our only bad move. We missed the signs that pointed the way to Via dell’Amore so we walked a little bit out of our way before we realized our mistake and retraced our steps back to the Station. From there we followed the signs. We walked the Via dell’Amore, Lovers’ Lane about 20 minutes to Manarola. Back on another train at 11:23 for a four minute ride to Corniglia, the only village that is not seaside. There was a little bus waiting for people who wanted to ride rather than walk the 600 steps up the cliff. We hadn’t known it, but the bus fare was included in the park ticket we purchased to walk between the villages. We rode. Corniglia was also very old with narrow cobblestone streets and houses perched on cliffs. Back on the little bus to the station to board the 12:15 train for a five minute ride to Vernazza.  We spent more than an hour in Vernazza, enjoying the busy little streets, the very best foccacia, and just people watching. There were restaurants there that had pizza and lovely looking seafood for anyone interested in eating there. The train left Vernazza at 1:38 for the four-minute ride to Monterosso, the last of the five villages, where we spent about 40 minutes. Once in Monterosso, walk out of the station to the street facing the beach and turn to the left. Walk along the beach until you can see the tunnel and walk through it. This will take you to the old section and many shops and restaurants.

I follow a healthy vegan diet except when there is tiramisu. The gelateria at the beach in Monterosso had tiramisu gelati that tasted exactly like tiramisu. I ate about half of one scoop and shared the rest with you know who.

For the return trip, we boarded the 2:44 express, which stopped only at Riomaggiore, and arrived at the station in La Spezia at 3 pm. The walk back to the ship took us about 40 minutes, but we walked slowly just soaking up the perfect weather and a perfect visit to a UNESCO World Heritage Site.