Dubrovnik and Kotor

Dubrovnik,Kotor
We awoke early in Dubrovnik to an enormous buffet breakfast. This was a French boat, 80%Frenchies, with the lingua franca being French. Gina we need you! Actually they put up with us English and Germans on board, even with our lack of dress sense, no manners and crass behaviour. Our designated dining seats however leave something to be desired as we are stationed behind the Sous chef and adjacent to the hallway where everyone passes. Fellow passengers do tend to help themselves to our condiments and aperitefs as they pass, which I can quite understand considering our advantageous position allowing for self selection.
It seems we had been booked onto all tours going every day so hope we can keep up the pace. Dubrovnik first, its a 1,000 plus year old city which has managed to keep out of all conflicts which destroyed most of its contempories, apart from a destructive earthquake (wouldnt you know it) in 1667. Massive stone walls dating from the 13th Century surround the old city, which is full of grand houses plus gothic, renaissance and baroque churches and monasteries.
Not a great start however when we delay the bus by Denise not having her passport or photo ID with her, although who would have thought you needed photo ID to go from the port to the city! Made worse by another officious official insisting we go through 'proper channels' to get back on the bus. Everyone on the bus seemed to enjoy the delay (not) and I fear we now have a reputation to live down to. Mental note - must try to speak Aussie henceforth.
The French groups have their own Tour Guide, so we are left with a guide who must alternate between English and German to get the message across. Does well really.
It has kept its original character and stone work where it can, and has obviously made a huge effort to recreate everything as it was prior to the damage. I suspect the tourist trade now drives everything in Dubrovnik, its like a toy town with hordes of gee whiz and wow look at that tourists thronging the streets. There were three massive ( several thousand people each) ships in port disgorging onto a willing partner in Dubrovnik. Only 176 in our wee bateau so we dont really count.
Pretty warm here so we soon catch the bus back. Denise is not well so has a lie down whilst I wander around the port ( with passport).
Superb food for tea (whole fish! Denise does better with this one) and wine with everything. No NZ wines which was disappointing as the whites werent that great. I thought we might be in for a bit of a gastronomic delight when we found most days tours were fashioned around dejeuner and diner. Bon apetit !
Our Ship departed at 2330 for Kotor in Montenegro, duly arriving 10am next day. Noisy where we are however so I suspect the person who selected our dining spot also had a hand in cabin selection. Cest la vie. Slept OK after a late night previously.
Kotor is a town of 500 in fjord type country, so we wind our way in seeing some impressive scenery. Similar to Marlborough Sounds on a grander scale. Dotted along the seashore on each side are numerous villages dating from medieval times, each with its own church, now and then overlooked by an abandoned monastery. The neck of the inlet is only 250m wide so no superliners here. Unfortunately Denise must have picked up an infection with a sore throat and headache so has confined herself to bed, she is dizzy too so is unwilling to go up on top to look so I guess my videos will have to do for her.
We have a tour of the old town of Kotor at 10 - for which I am late! Reputation reinforced ! So I tell em slap another prawn on the barby and crack open a Castlemain XXXX. The town itself is a medieval gem with its churches and monasterys well preserved and a defending fortress perched 200 or 300m above it. Our guide does a good job double describing everything, although there were only four hardy individuals left at the end. Makes it a little difficult avoiding the semi-compulsory tip but I lost him in the Maritime Museum. Which was the greatest little museum ever - Kotor was practically impregnable and sported an intact maritime history as the Venetians gave Kotor a licence to free trade. Protected from pirates they did very well and it shows here.
Back on board and departee 1500 en direction de Sibenik. I wasnt late.

Athens to Dubrovnik

Athens to Dubrovnik.
We arrived back in the Port of Pireus surrounded by heaps of ferries going to every Greek island and then some. Eventually found our dock, backed in and whammo everyone scrambles off. Amazingly quick turnaround for these big ships, they would have 3 car decks plus a couple of passenger decks.
Our man with a sign was waiting in a yellow taxi, Mercedes as they all seem to be. Passed only one smash up between a couple of the taxis they seemed pretty calm about it. Common occurence no doubt with lanes being irrelevent to most drivers.
Arrived at the Herodion Hotel around 3pm. Nice hotel although you could be anywhere in the world, there must be a universal template. We found it was only 10 minutes walk to the Acropolis so after a short break ( it was 29C out there) out we went. First right first left and there it was towering above us. Walked to the front gate by 4.30pm arrived in time for a couple of hours wandering around, although eating an ice cream delayed us as no food inside. I can see the headlines now - "Ice Cream Assault on Acropolis" Just as well they stopped us really.
Good time to go we thought as the crowds would have abated somewhat and the temperature cooler. The first thing we noticed was the glaze on the rock and marble paths around the Parthenon. Slippery beyond belief due to the uncountable tourist (millions?) over the millenia who have come to see the sights. There are half a dozen buildings there, the Parthenon was built about 438BC, by Pericles. The entance gate, the Propylaia, is pretty massive as well. The Caryatids (maiden types) in the Erechtheion showed us how skilled the Greeks were even in such monumental scale. Big cranes and railways to cart the massive blocks of marble around were all around the site but that didnt seem to detract from the inspiring sight.
Denise was getting a bored by all the masonery so we left at 6pm for a top up of Bourbon and Coke. Checked out the roof bar, lo and behold there was a fantastic view of the Acropolis and Parthenon from the roof garden with a jacuzzi. Excellent so got that sorted towel togs on etc only to find there was a 5 euro price tag. Not for us so we sat around the jacuzzi and enjoyed the vista. Plenty of pics you will be pleased to know, even a few of the Acropolis.
With inside information on the best place to eat (from the souvenir shop man), we tramped around the corner to the ultimate tourist trap! Still he said it was good food so we stayed and actually had a pretty good meal. We were the old hands now so it was nice to know what it was we were eating.
Next day slept in, had a bit of a txt chat with Gina and out for a cloudy day to The National Archeological Museum via the Underground/Metro. Denise does insist on asking all and sundry where everything is - I think she has lost her trust in my sense of direction somehow. Still we managed to negotiate the Metro, out Omonia Square into the chaos of big city small time venders and general hub-bub, along to the Museum. Wonderful collection of Archaic to early Roman artifacts, sculpture mostly, much of it orginal. The statue of Zues was made all the more relevent with loud thunderclaps and lightning immediately above us, made us both jump!
Back to our Hotel to pick up our bags and catch our drive to Athens Airport. Two flights, initially to Zagreb, capital of Croatia, then back down again to Dubrovnik. Arrived about 11.30pm. Interesting detente at the Croatian border with a little French madam who got into the wrong queue then decided to stamp her pretty little french sandals and push in ahead. The customs lady made her apologise then made her ask (in English) if she could please be let in. Which she did - then had to wait for her husband who respectfully waited in line. Ha.
Anyway once out we had to ask a taxi to take us to Dubrovnik Port where La Belle d'Adriatique was waiting for us. So after midnight, 40 euro and a security check later we had checked in and were being waited on hand and foot by a Filipino waiter with a cold meal and wine. I can see over-eaters anonymous will be lining up a couple of new members shortly. Shown to our cabin; more compact than Odyssey, hard beds, no champagne, and showing some signs of wear. 3 star rather than 5 star, but comfortable enough. Bed and sleep.

Paros to Athens

Paros
This is a similar sized island enroute to Athens.
From our Naxos Resort Hotel we were picked up and caught the slow ferry to Paros. Its about an hour so we managed to nab some first class seats to ride in some comfort. Stowed our packs and settled in for the ride.
These island are really quite close and the weather great so the passage was smooth until we reached Parikia, port of Paros. Another placard waving ( the only one on show) tourist guide caught our attention with our name so off we hopped into another large bus to our hotel in Naoussa, half an hours drive away. We had the bus to ourselves so I thought we were extra special, however we were soon brought to earth.
Kanali Hotel, is built into the side of the hill and naturally faces a nice beach and harbour, unless you get the cave room. Now did someone tell them we enjoyed Cappadocia or what because we got the worst room in the hotel. No sunlight, dark and (if its possible in Greece) damp. Reminds me a little of Port Douglas - Kerryn will know what I mean.
Naxos had its shortcomings ( e.g. a portable, takehome safe) but this is not up to standard. Living off past glories I suspect. Not sure how much we paid as it was 'all inclusive' but I will write a short note to the architects of our Odyssey Abroad.
Anyway we accepted our fate and took off for centreville. We wandered around town, its wee port crammed with dozens of small fishing boats tied up. Couldnt believe the number of cafes with acres of chairs/seats/sofas displayed in front to entice the odd stroller by into their web. Yes and we fell headlong, ours though only with a dozen or so exceptionally hard chairs and scruffy tables, so sort of authentic. No spiv trying to corral us in either so that was a bonus. Actually we had only sat down for a drink, and out comes the tablecloth, bread and olive oil plonked down in front of us. So I guess it was tea at 3pm, although there were a few Greek speaking people around us doing the same thing so maybe we are getting into the local swing of things here.
We ordered Greek salad and local fish; great salad as usual, fish was dried, salted, pan fried and served whole. Pretty good really but Denise didnt enjoy the eye of the fish watching her while we ate it I have to say. The local cats forever hanging around did well out of the scraps though.
Next day was a beaut again. After catching up with the family via skype, we caught the bus to Crysi Arkti 'Golden Beach'. Lovely beach, relatively deserted probably due to the wind whipping off shore. A couple of wind surfers going, plus some brave swimmers (Germans no doubt) doing some laps. Actually its better than 90% of Canterbury beaches 90% of the time so mustnt grumble.
Strolled back to out hotel and found a wee patch of sunshine in a landing above our level. No one staying here so we hung up a line for our washing, found a chair and watched the washing dry, all while keeping an eye on the setting sun. Seems a suitable Grecian activity. We opened our bottle of Champagne (real thing) from our Odyssey Cruise so decided to watch the washing dry in style, sipping on expensive Champers. Had a dip in their picturesque pool too, which was pretty cold. It was deep and mostly in shadow so didnt warm up much.

Next day up early to catch the bus to Levkas via Parikia up into the hills. The plan was to walk the Byzantine Trail Levkas to Prodromas about 5km. First bus 8.30am, no bus. Next bus 9.30, no bus. Next bus 11am, no taking chance ! Walked to town to central bus depot and caught the bus there. Hobby farming countryside with rectangular haybales, stone walls the odd windmill, however derelict farms and paddocks abound. Tourism is definitely no 1.

View over Levkas

Walking the Byzantine Trail

Bus to Parikia, then next bus to Levkas. Fortunately there is a second bus so we get there OK. Wonderful countryside, pulling into another picture postcard white washed village clinging to the hillside. Perfectly positioned to catch the view, and breeze, up the valley. We catch our breath, then after a coke and OJ in the cool of the tree shaded town centre, we set off down the trail. Levkas was the ancient capital and the trail served as a means of communication between town and port. Well signposted (yes!) we quickly made time over the rough shod road, turning now and then to see cute'n'quaint Levkas recede behind us. Reached Prodromas well before time, so set off down the Main Road to Marpissa then the beach resort of Piso Livadi. Narrow roads cars, bikes and off roaders all over the show. Scary enough but then you realise they are probably chain smoking and talking on the cellphone at the same time as driving. At least I havnt seen anyone texting whilst driving yet. Well deserved ice cream then caught the last bus to Naoussa. Another refreshing dip in the cool pool and a sit in the sun to make sure our washing is drying correctly to finish off an eventually satisfying day.

Paros Harbour

Thunderclaps and rain awoke us, time to get going. Talk about Karma, I snaffled a boiled egg from breakfast, only to find the yolk was runny as I found out to my cost with a crushed egg in my pocket! Aboard Blue Star Ferry to Pireaus, a 5 hour trip. What a commotion, there is a Greek party all around us people shouting nineteen to the dozen, old mamas and papas, young bambinos all having a go. No goats, though one canary in a bamboo cage. You dont have to shout you know - loudness isnt a sign of effective communication. A guy behinds us stands to excitedly yap into his cellphone, obviously gesticulating whilst sitting just doesnt get the message through.

Afters 4 and a half hours we are in Athens !

Naxos

Naxos

Temple of Apollo, Naxos

Had the morning to relax in Santorini then trailed up to where our bus picked us up. Our very earnest Bell Boy carried all our heavy luggage up on his shoulders. Admirable seeing as a fellow camper/tourist was videoing every single step down to the hotel!
The large bus then took off for Thira Port via cliff edge roadway that is very reminiscent of the roads around Akaroa, which is also a caldera although much older than the 1650BC Santorini caldera. I didnt tell Denise there was a 7.8 earthquake in 1956 which devastated much of Oia, but you wouldnt know it today. It looks old without even trying which I guess is the sign of an excellent rebuild. Picking up a few ideas for our own Mediterranean rebuild !
Zigzagged down to the Port where we had a fast Vodafone ferry to take us to Naxos,which is a large island an hour by ferry heading back towards Athens.
Much like an areoplane service without the interesting bits. Great announcments over the loudspeaker system, the Greek is spoken very fast and the announcer thought English should be too. She would make a great horse race announcer and Im sure I heard Kiwi winning by a nose (again)
I had a cold by this time so wasnt feeling 100%. Toilet paper is a very useful multipurpose product though perhaps not in the way intended, bit rough on the snoz. We were met at Naxos and taken to our standard room in a resort style hotel. Package tours from colder climes would be the go here. We were spoilt indeed at Santorini. Everything worked though, including a hot shower which is No. 1 in my book. The 'queen' bed was 2 seperate single beds pushed together which was ok.
Next day we had an enormous breakfast (hotel standard) and wandered around town. Naxos has an impressively abandoned Temple of Apollo on a peninsula adjacent to the downtown hubbub. It also has an old Venetian Kastro or castle, they ruled the Islands hereabouts from around 1200 to 1500AD. Its almost medieval within Kastro walls with a Venetian Museum describing life in those days. Amazing seeing how an enclave of Italian nobility lived in those days, very different to the Greek civilisation. Actually they bombarded the place with Cathedrals and Basilicas, many of which were converted from the multi god and godess temples of the previous rulers.

Octopus for tea tonight.

Oasis Restaurant was our stop next, eating outside underneath the grape vines enveloping the pergola above. We had stuffed aubergine and souvlaki, plus a bonus ouzo with ice afterwards which we had inside as smoking at adjacent tables was getting an issue - I just want to eat my meal in peace! I am sure smokers thruout the world have united to force a last stand in Greece. Denise is very impressed with the amount of pink and purple the Greek men wear here, which I hadnt noticed at all, but then a local guy walks along in a bright purple tracksuit. Must be true - they are obviously very comfortable in their masculinity, or maybe pink/purple is the colour of the real man in Greece.

Next day was good weather again so we after all the food we decided to have an active day to counteract the flab rapidly forming and threatening to bust out. We took a local bus up to Mili a village 30 minutes up into the hills. The bus driver looked at us funny and even checked with the ticket seller when we told him where we were going as there were no return buses that day, but we had a plan. Once there via usual hairpin turns we checked out the local 'kouros' a 2m high marble male statue, made in 500BC but abandoned, possibly because it broke as they were transporting it out of the quarry. After that it was a 40 minute walk over a very old trail to Ano Potamia (Mesi Potamia was an adjacent village - for real). ; goats, stone walls and ancient olive trees made agreeable company. At one stage a goat popped his head over the stone wall to see us, so I went over to see him.We eye balled each other from a couple of inches then he made a quick movement towards me and I swear he was either going to kiss me,hongi me, or bite my nose off. I thought disrection the better part of valour and jumped off, allowing him to be king of that particular stone wall.

Mangaged very succesfully to lose the trail within Ano Potami, a village consisting of about 40 people, for an hour but eventually located the entrance way and head up hill to bypass the local castle 'apano kastro'. A real castle built by the Venetians on a craggy point commanding the local area. It was now a desolate area of marble and granite, one could imagine a Minotaur waiting to pounce around the next bend. Felt a bit like a Labyrinthe at times too as the trail had vanished into thin air. We plugged on valiently especially as we had a bus to catch at the other end!

Heaven in Halki

Came out to a village by following a goat which had adopted us, then refound the trail to our destination, Halki. This trail seemed to be a couple of metres below the surrounding country side so it was a great relief to turn a corner to see whitewash houses and a friendly taverna owner awaiting us with a cold beer and an adjacent bus stop with 20 minutes to spare.

After an uneventful bus journey back we headed out for tea. Denise had spotted a 'meal deal' which included bread and dip, 2 moussakas, wine and greek salad. This meal was enormous, after finishing it all we really did feel sick. Seemed like nice food at the time. When will we learn.

Santorini

Athens to Santorini
Early docking in Athens saw us in port and tied up by 7am. Plenty of activity as the 'past their use by date' passengers were efficiently off loaded ( our group being 'pink 4') in strict sequence. We delayed our departure by as much as possible so found some LaZeBoys to stretch out in, and loaded up on the last of the free croissants and cappachinos. The packs had been picked up the night before so when the loudspeaker announcements were getting a little too insistent we wandered down, surrendered our pass cards and out of the gilded cage into the real world.
The vultures (disguised as taxi drivers) were waiting. We grabbed one to the nearest express bus stop then an hour or so on a bus through Athens to the airport. Tried checking our bags in early, however because of glass bottles containing > 100ml liquid, ( defintely not Jim Beam,Champagne or Wine from the ship) our baggage went as especially fragile at the outsize counter. Fingers crossed it arrives in one piece - can Greek freight handlers read 'fragile' - would they know or care? time will tell.
The flight wasnt until 5pm so we had a day up our sleeve in another big Airport. Not my favourite occupation but interesting watching people. Eventually I fell asleep in a plastic chair ( Denise said I snored but I doubt that). Flew out 10 minutes late (high level of security-Denise had her half used tube of toothpaste confiscated) to Santorini Aiport in a big 300 seater aircraft - tourism is big time here. Half an hour later we were in Santorini, our bags arrived quickly and thankfully intact. Our name was on our drivers board (spelt correctly which was a first) and off we sped to Esperas Hotel at the town of Oia arriving at sunset. We walked down several zig zags to our room perched on the edge of the cliff. Think eagles nest and luxury resort. Vertigo sufferers need not apply.
What a hotel and what a position. Special thanks to Andrea and Larry for letting us in on this one - fantastic. Took a few pics of the setting sun then off to bed.
Oia
Pronounced eea. We had a late start then took plenty of pictures of the Hotel and surrounding scenery. Toilet facilities are interesting however- used paper is placed in a basket beside the toilet, fortunately diarrhoea was not an issue at the moment.

Breakfast on till 11am so that was a break. Wandered along the Tourist Blvd looking at strategically placed postcard shops and cafes/restaurants, from 2pm everything slows down except for the gangs of tourist mafia tightly bunched behind a placard waving guide. Had a stop at a cafe and tried out a Spanokapita. I dont believe there was rubber added to the recipe but it sure tasted so. Merely blasted to oblivion in a microwave I suspect. Actually the view made up for any shortcomings in the fare.
I walked down to the port and up the zigzag for a look around. 300 steps, except they dont tell you every step up requires 3 extra steps to reach it. In short a long hard walk for someone who had eaten far too much whilst on voyage. Refreshed in the pool then scoffed our secreted away goodies from breakfast for tea. Denise is a whiz on sorting out ways and means to extend breakfast to all day sustenance. (pls dont tell hotel management)
Next day in Oia dawned clear and beautiful. Late start again, then off to the local beach, Kathyros. Headed down to the bottom of the Hotel, then through the Blue Door, track continues down the road and to a rocky beach. A bit like Gore Bay on a bad day. However this one had its own Greek Restaurant ! So we had something here, then off to the Ammoudi Port, directly below Esperas Villas. The scoria and ash cliffs towering above us were quite intimidating, an earthquake just now would be most inconvenient.
Seafood speciality here as all the eateries had live aquatic fare waiting to be chosen to meet their fate. The Crays were pretty small compared to Kaikouras finest I thought. Just around the corner is a swimming beach, quite sheltered, deep deep water. Fantastic swimming if a little warmer. Actually there seems to be quite a large proportion of same sex couples around the place, maybe not having the upkeep of a family allows them some discretionary income to escape the cold climate.

View from our Balcony

Back up to the Hotel, 900 steps this time especially as it was hotter than yesterday. Out to tea to a real Greek taverna, none of this plastic food. Set off round the back roads, via another stunning sunset, to travel the lesser known trails. Past the bus stop, diesel fumes et al along to a run down cafe serving what seemed the real deal. Ordered Moussaka, dolmades and tomato soup. The real deal I reckon - it was loaded with olive oil but great. Finished off with what we think was raki - a sort of wine liquor. Tasted good anyway.

Rhodes Patmos Milos

St Johns Monastory Patmos

Milos

Patmos



Another tough day on board the good ship 'Odyssey'

Rhodes Central

Rhodes, Patmos,Mylos
We woke in the morning to find us in the process of docking at Rhodes. It was quite neat to see us cruising past where the Colosus of Rhodes once stood. We docked just where the old Greek Triemes once lay poised for battle. The Rhodians did a pretty good job aligning themselves with whover they thought might win the current battle. Invaded by all and sundry incl. the Crusaders who arrived in 1309 and stayed for 200 years.
From up high we could see the outline of the old fort the Crusaders built. They did a grand job keeping the Ottomans out for a while who eventually gave way to the Greeks in 1947.
After another lets -eat- enuf-breakfast to last all day kind of meal we toured around the old city. We found a non-tourist entrance and promptly got lost down some quiet back street alleys, but found some interesting stuff. The Jewish Synogogue we found had 4000 Jews originally but the Nazis carted them off to Germany, with only 30 left now.
We found cats too, in need of some TLC - They are everywhere but quite often someone is feeding them left overs etc. Got back to the commercial areas then climbed a clock tower to get a view over town. Free drink with every entry! Checked the local museum ( Aphrodite of Rhodes plus inumerable other Greek & Roman artifacts. Its getting like 'another 2500 yr old statue'
Headed back for lunch, after which I shot out to get a couple of photos before the Ship departed for Patmos.
Patmos
After cruising all night, a little rocky due to the wind, we anchored off Skala,chief town of Patmos. St John was banished to here from Ephesus in AD95, stayed in a cave up the hill and had a revelation from God (via 3 cracks in the roof representing something significant that comes in 3's to you religious types) and wrote a book about his adventures. About 1000 years later an Abbott built a monastory on the hilltop above to celebrate the fact.
We decided to climb up ourselves to the Monastery via the Byzantine path. Pretty rough path really, I reckon the Romans could have done better (with 10000 slaves) to finish the job.
Anyway we found ourselves hiking up with a couple from Perth - a Pharmacist. We had plenty in common to talk about, bad and good. After constantly hearing the nasal drawl of a lot of loud Americans the Aussies sounded almost human! Best not get too carried away tho.
A howling gale at the top so quickly ducked inside the Monastery - to find peace, tranquiilty and half priced trinkets. Excellent little white washed village surrounding the main building, which had an amazing Treasury/Museum with priceless ecclesiastical treasures, incl. a hand written book (parchment?) from 941, beautifully decorated.
Back to the wind blown path down to see St Johns Cave The cave itself is a real shrine to St John, so big time earner for them. Full of god fearing italians or spaniards so we moved on.
Returned to the good ship to find a Spa we could use. We found an almost empty deck with 2 free spas ( one each) so grabbed a couple of cocktails and watched the sun go down. Magic
Fine Dining that night again, altho I was a little disappointed they managed to mix up our meals, big faux pax for these guys. Fantastic food yet again. Must get the recipes for Denise.
Mylos
Venus de Milo here we come. Actually the 4th Century Greek Statue was nicked by the French who apparently broke her arms en route to the Louvre!
Anchored offshore again and caught the Tender (ugliest boat in creation)to take us from the Odyssey to the port of Adamas. Taxied 5km with the Aussie Chemist to Plaka the original Greek town where the Athenians slaughtered the locals for siding with the Spartans. Fun fun fun. Its another labrynthe of white houses and laneways which is great unless you actually want to get somewhere.
There was an old church high on a hill above Plaka so we made our way up there for 360 degree views. You will see it on the video. Nice beaches with crystal clear bright blue water miles below. Real Greece ( postcard anyway)
Managed to fluke the bus going back down to the Port then back to the Ship for a well deserved rest. Managed to find our favourite spa spot again, grabbed a couple of drinks to enjoy watch the Island departing behind us in the setting sun.
We had booked a very special meal out at Restaurant 2. Classy nouvelle cuisine, matched wine and forbidden flavours. For once we may eat out without having to feel slightly nauseous from overeating! ( not to mention over-drinking)
I knew we were in for something interesting when a fellow diner was taking pictures (macrozoom) of each dish as it arrived. I think I would give a miss seeing his film evening of 'My Adventures in Europe'
Anyway the very nice waitress presented with a flourish long thin plates with several tiny tastes on each ( eating left to right of course). Cant remember any of them ( maybe a camera was a good idea) and before you know it we were having dessert. Main course non-existent, altho our waitress did stress we could re-order dishes we enjoyed if we were hungry still. Interesting Experience would sum up that one.
Wandered up to the evening Cabaret, which was formulaic again so left early to bed.

Ephesus and Mykonos



Library at Ephesus



Denise and the Greek Goddess Nike





Ephesus @Kusadasi, Turkey
Well back to Turkey for one more time. Arrived at 8am in the busy port of Kusadasi, hopped on a pre-arranged tour ( extra) and took off with our guide jan (pronounced John whichmade life easy) to Ephesus. We were group 10 so its big business, although I didnt realise how big until we toured the site with 11,000 people a day craming into the ruins.
Ephesus was an ancient Greek then Roman port town which silted up then was finally destroyed by an earthquake and covered up by landslides from the surrounding hills. Frozen in time until found in 1850something. Wonderful mosaics, freizes and extremely sophisticated fresh water and sewerage system, which is more than I can say about Christchurch at the moment. It was the 2nd largest city in the Roman Empire if not the world so thats saying something. Our man John was verry passionate about his baby, and I was impressed until we ended up at a very good friends carpet shop. John didnt make much commission out of our lot unfortunately.
Back at the ship we had an early dinner then we were again transported out to Ephesus to a very special 'Seabourn Event'. The set up was magical, a lit covered passageway led to our seating, young nymphs providing appetisers along the way. The Athenian theme continued with the seating as well, white linen draped over comfortable chairs. The event itself consisted of a chamber group playing some classical pieces at the site as the evening fell. Unfortunately thats not all that fell, and we all ended up getting a little damp, the musicians and their instruments even more so as the sun umbrellas erected for the occasion proved woefully inadequate. The music was fabulous, although played perhaps a little faster than would normally be the case. As luck would have it the drizzle stopped as soon as the concert finished.
MYKONOS.
Another overnight journey, arriving in Mykonos Port at 8am. Bit of a rough crossing we coped OK. Classic Island with freshly painted white houses slapped up hard against each other and everything else. Postcard perfect with the blue trim, although I did see some brown window frames etc which seemed to flout the local building code for "the Greek Island look'. Even the streets had white paint around the cobblestones.
Right then off for a look around, taking the bus into the Car Park then walk into town. No one touting for business which was great. One gets the feeling these traders know the tourists will buy as the season progresses so they are cruising for now. Nice actually as you have time to look at things (sorry GK &L nothing for you here), for us anyway the touts are definitely counter productive.
Very windy here now but there was a photo of the town and its windmills to be taken. Keeping an eye on the sun to determine direction in the maze of streets, we found our way to the fabled windmills, hence to a hilltop where I took a few photos and a dodgy (nearly fell off) video from a precarious vantage point. Why the best places require life and limb to be risked I dont know.
Down again, missing town completely somehow, and ending up at our bus about to depart back to the ship. Back on board we had an enrichment course (no not double chocolate criossants) on Alexander the Great & Rhodes.He was pretty good really as it puts some flesh on the bare bones of antiquity.
Now for a meal at The Restaurant. Highlight of the day really. I had prepared previously by buying a reasonable shirt (genuine fake YSL, or is it fake genuine?) in one of the markets. Denise had carried some nice clothes to use on such an occasion, so off we went. Fabulous food and attentive service, Denise was taken by the arm and personally escorted to her seat. No such luck for me but everything else was just grand.
The evening concert was a bonnie scottish lassie who could play the violin rather well and sing superbly. Dannie Boy and Loch Lomond were two I can recall. We had meet her prior, she had been flown out from Glasgow for a week on board to do 2 concerts. Nice work if you can get it.





Crusader in Rhodes Shop. Zippo was his name ,short for St John of Zippodopopulous



Embarkation

Had a great sleep in this morning, well past the 4am start of the past 2 mornings, although the ‘Call to Prayer’ from the Mosques ensures our sleep in is not too late. We have decided the only tourist site we could see before we hooked up with the Odyssey Cruise was the Spice Market. We had been told that the locals shop here so that was always a good sign.

It was on the tram route so we thought that would be a good option to follow them to avoid the labyrinth of alleyways surrounding our hotel. We had been lost once already, that was enough.

Anyway we wound our way down to the Spice Market, achieving a semi-lost only, which was a pretty good result.  It was a long barn of a building, maybe 20% spice market,  the balance the usual  gold silver scarf and rug shops. Some were obviously genuine but most were catering to the passing tourist trade. Touts continually inviting you inside to sample their wares got a little wearying after a while – I guess it’s the price you pay for wearing a bright red anorak labelled ‘Kathmandu’, camera and bright green baseball cap. I got a little revenge by sampling their goods whenever possible, a fair trade off. Actually we got extra hassled by a tout on the journey back to the hotel, but the light sort of died in his eyes when he realised we didn’t have enough money on us to buy all the stamps we needed.

 Back to the Faros Hotel then next off to the port for embarkation. Our original guide, Turgut,  picked us up  in a very nice very large van. Beats me why these drivers continually use such monster vehicles to negotiate the back streets of Istanbul. Perhaps a certain status is endowed upon the larger vehicle to ensure they get through, though they are remarkably dent and scratch free considering the miniscule margin of error driving in Istanbul requires.

Over the Golden Horn via the Galata bridge to our ship Seabourn Odyssey tied up on the Bosphorus Strait. Total chaos ensues as it seems all 446 passengers arrive at once to a no sign, no directions, no speak English embarkation. Finally we find where to check our luggage in (2 dirty packs amongst the Gucci handmade suitcases), passports scanned, and we are transported, via a glass of champagne at reception, to a different world.

  With cocktails in hand- a Tequila Sunrise and a Marguerita (Blue from memory)- we attended the sailaway party on the 8^th deck adjacent to the pool. We cruised smooth as silk at 4pm down the Bosphorus, out to the Marmara Sea. We are in a 5.5 star luxury hotel which I must admit we feel a little out of our depth. Even the porter was trying not to laugh at our packs when he delivered them to our cabin. Dress code for meals is either Formal optional eg  Tuxedo, Elegantly Casual or Resort Casual. Unfortunately none of our clothes fits into any of the above categories but we pretend it does to ensure we don’t starve.

Balloons forever

We were woken at 4.15 by the hotel, and found a perfect day for ballooning! It was dark but no wind. We were taken by yet another ‘Turk in a hurry’ to the launch site, along with a myriad of other ballooners seeking to get high. The day was dawning with clear skies and still no wind. After a quick cuppa and roll we hopped into the balloon basket with about 20 others, the burners blasted away then we eased into the sky.  We joined maybe 50 balloons carried by the slightest of breezes towards the Cappadocian Valleys

The greatest surprise of all was finding we were standing next to a couple from Redwood, Christchurch, NZ !! They were doing a “50 things to do before you die” kind of adventure. Sounds like a great idea.

We quickly rose to maybe 200 to 300m above the surreal landscape and ended drifted up into a narrow valley, named I believe ‘Love Valley’. Kind of appropriate as another balloon nestled in close to us to drift into the valley too. After a bit of yelling and gesticulating from the pilots eventually our ballon went up and the other descended.

We eventually landed, very gently I might add, on the rim of the valley and cracked open a bottle of bubbly for having successfully survived the ride.  Highly enjoyable and thoroughly recommended.

 Still only 7.30am and the day half over ! Had a fab breakfast then on tour again, this time to Goreme Open air Museum.  4^th Century Christians doing it the hard way in dug out caves, although to be fair some of them had fantastic frescoes of various saints and disciples ( John, Paul, George, and Ringo) Just joking Ringo wasn’t there

Stopped for further opportunity to purchase trinkets, had quickfire lunch (as someone elses schedule needed them at the airport pronto) then zoomed off to the airport. Very responsible driver this time, Denise was most impressed; although I don’t think the couple that thought they were going to miss their flight was ! Did my bit for Karma handing in a wallet I had found- they ran to the previous flight and chucked it in the plane. Hope it got to where it was supposed to.

Flew back to Istanbul where we were picked up by Genghis Khan ( not his real name I suspect),and  to Faros Hotel. We were then upgraded to a deluxe ensuite room - good Karma I reckon!

Cappadocia Fairy Chimneys

After the unsuccessful attempt to go on our balloon ride we took off in our little group comprised of tourists from all over the world to visit the underground city of Ozkonak. The Turkish drivers tend to prefer to stay in the middle of the road to avoid rough edges of the road, leading to interesting meetings at blind corners. They also conduct very loud nineteen to the dozen conversations on the cellphone whilst careering all over the road. Denise has her foot on her imaginary brake most of the time! One guide even read up on our itinerary while driving. Anyway, this underground city was amazing. It had ten floors of rooms including cooking, sleeping, all kinds of rooms with ventilation shafts above and water wells below which could hold up to 10,000 people. Very little open to the public. We had for lunch a local stew cooked in a crockpot.

 Fairy Chimneys Cappadocia

Undergound city, Rolling stone to block entrance way to invaders. Arrow indicates where to stand to be flattened. Diet in one easy step.

This is another area where the early Christians built houses into the soft rock well away from the Romans and anyone else that decided they needed persecuting. The Persians from 1450 or so decided that pigeons were more important and should be kept in these areas so the people moved out. Interestingly there are no pigeons there now because the Govt decided because of the Bird Flu they should all be slaughtered!

Rose Valley and  Early Christian Church in the Valley. Roman era 

Early human settlements in Goreme.Back half of rock has fallen away. Originally maybe thousands of years BC

After Rose Valley ( named for reddish tinge on rocks) we walked out to Goreme, passed Greek and earlier cave settlements dug into the soft rock as above. Back for an early night as now officially stuffed from the early start.

Cappodocia

07 May 2011 We flew from Istanbul to Keyseri, then bussed for a hour or so to Cappadocia. Dropped everyone else off at their hotels then we were left at a travel agency. We were convinced to take a balloon flight ( last 2 places at a special price - we were  very lucky! )over Cap. then dropped off at the hotel. Mostly cave rooms some not. Pleasant enuf, nice view over the town. Our room tho is in the depths of the hotel cave system adjacent to the cafe & dining room. Not that quiet, especially if u r getting up at 4.30am for a balloon flight that didnt eventuate anyway as the wind was too strong. Nevermind try tomorrow.

Istanbul Sweet Shop

Our Hotel room in Cappadocia, namely Yusuf Yigitoglu Konagli Hotel

Turkey

Blue Mosque

Well here we are finally after 36 hours on the various planes

flying via Bangkok as a special surprise for us.

This our first day in Istanbul, Blue Mosque above,Hagia Sofia, similar to above but

built in 540AD, and Topkapi Palace. Amazing relics of Greek Roman Byzantine Christian Muslim and Arab things - eg Moses original staff!

We are enjoying it all but tired now. Great Baklava and Calamari.