HOLYLANDS/CRUISE
BLOG #4
Ahhh Venice! We decided immediately that Venice must be one of the great places in the world. The Pacific Princess moored at the island port of Venice, the only place in town where we would see motorized vehicles, where we boarded a “water bus” which took us to the San Marcus “bus station”. A short walk behind our guide escort took us to Hotel Saturnia where we would stay for the next three nights. The Saturnia boasted four stars but would probably be awarded a maximum of two in San Francisco. None the less, it was comfortable, in the center of things and blended in well with the aged buildings in the neighborhood. After all, it wouldn’t be right to have a 30 story Hilton planted in the middle of a 15th and 16th century city.
Our first walk about the neighborhood was with the admonishment from the helpful desk manager that an unusually high tide was being experienced and the next day would be better for visiting the Piazza San Marcos. We were dying for a piece of real Italian Pizza so we headed out anyway. Sure enough, the tide was in and the large plaza in front of Basilica di San Marcos was covered with several inches of water. This was obviously not an unusual condition because platform walkways, about 24 inches high were in place so that the several thousand tourists in the area could take their pictures without getting their feet wet. Since it was about that time, we found a sidewalk restaurant facing the Canale Grande, and enjoyed lunch and an opportunity to people watch. We were immediately aware that Venetian footware is noticeably unique. Many of the ladies were wearing fashionable but obvious rubber or plastic boots so that they could walk through the tidal waters while keeping their tootsies dry. Very practical. After lunch we strolled across the Piazza di San Marcos on the raised walkways and noticed that the tidal waters were receding. Merchants surrounding the piazza were busily sweeping the remaining water out of their shops and from in front of their shops.
Our hotel hosts proudly announced that a complimentary tour of Murano came with our room. We knew we wanted to visit Murano so we signed up. Dottie’s Mother and Joe had visited Murano many years ago and brought home a chandelier that was a focal point in the entrance hall of their home. Our “taxi” driver arrived at the hotel and led us to a nearby water taxi that would take us to the island of Murano. On the way to the taxi, our guide stopped short and addressed us in Italian (we think) expressing concern that a large puddle left over from the high tide blocked our way. His look suggested that the whole gig was off because of the puddle. Bill quickly solved the problem by carrying Dottie “over the threshold” style walking through the almost ankle deep puddle. Dottie reacted with cool and aplomb as though such was an everyday occurrence, all the while knowing in her heart of hearts she was going to be dropped with each step. Venetian water taxi drivers each has his favorite short cut and our driver was no exception. He avoided the open sea by winding through Venice backroads giving us an eyeful of how the 60,000 residents of Venice live and where they work.
Our “free” tour of Murano consisted of a glass blowing demonstration as the only audience in a room with bleachers for fifty or sixty. We watched as a man attached a glob of molten glass on the end of a six foot pipe and then put the glob in a roaring furnace blowing through the pipe to form a lovely little vase. He added a couple of handles to the vase and cut it from the end of his pipe as a finished product. He then put another glob on the pipe and within 60 seconds or so fashioned a small horse complete with mane and flowing tail. Very impressive. Then we were led away from the furnaces to a show room of Murano glassware with some other stuff thrown in to provide a complete inventory. One room was full of marvelous chandeliers and various lighting fixtures while other rooms displayed beautiful crystal sets and objects of art made from glass. It was obvious we were expected to buy something which we didn’t. We knew that there were many similar shops on the island of Murano and we suggested that we would like to visit them. We were assured that we could but our “free” taxi wouldn’t be available to take us back to Venice. That’s the way it is with freebies. We decided that we had seen what we wanted to see at Murano so we returned to Venice. We were glad we went.
The coughing and sneezing of fellow passengers during our cruise finally caught up with Bill and Dr. Dottie “decided” that it was time to take a day off. She had already gone through the shared bugs earlier in our trip. We stayed in all day with food sent up from the kitchen below. It was a day well spent because we were both reenergized for our next day of touring in Venice.
It’s hard to believe that little Venice has 56 churches most of which date back several centuries. We decided we had to visit a few but not all. We focused on Santa Maria del Giglio, Santo Stefano and, of course, the Basilica di San Marcos. Each church had a unique story about its construction, funding and reconstruction. Each was beautiful in its own way. In most cases a wealthy individual put up the cash for construction to commemorate a special event or just to make certain that his family name wasn’t lost in history. The Basilica di San Marcos, St. Marks, was something else. It was impressive in its size and the considerable art work seemingly everywhere. We made our visit with easily a thousand or more tourists who took pictures with their digital cameras even though signs were everywhere prohibiting cameras and talking loudly even though “Silencio” signs were equally evident. We spent an hour enjoying the remarkable beauty of San Marcos. We paused for a while in a small chapel where we lit candles for loved ones in our lives that we have lost.
We (Bill) decided that we simply had to see the Ponte di Rialto, the famous bridge that was built in the 16th century. We found it after a good deal of meandering that took us by hundreds of shops whose intent that no tourist should leave Venice with any money left in the wallet. We window shopped but didn’t buy all that much. We finally found the Rialto bridge where we stopped at a nearby sidewalk café for a lunch next to the Grand Canal. Our final “to do” for the day was satisfied when we hired a gondola for two to take us back to our hotel, singing gondolier and all. We passed dozens of gondolas on our way some of which were loaded, maybe overloaded, with Japanese tourists who smiled and waved as they passed us looking a bit romantic and carried away with the moment.
At 5:00 am on our final day, a water taxi picked us up at the landing at the rear of our hotel and took us on the first leg of our trip home. A timely flight to Madrid where a long wait on the tarmac ultimately informed us that our bird wasn’t going to fly. American Airlines put us up in a five star hotel in a lovely suite readying us for our flight home a day later. We were really looking forward to stepping off the merry go round and the extra day left us totally exhausted. A good time and lots of fun can do that you know. And then, as we were waiting for our plane to take-off at Miami, we were told once again that our plane couldn't fly. We off loaded a sell-out crowd and boarded a second plane of the same maker. It only cost us an hour and we were pleased that our experience on Sunday wasn't repeated. Enough already! Granddaughter Andrea picked us up at 12:45 am and we were in our own bed for the first time in three weeks by 3:00 am. Life is good!
If you ever have an opportunity to visit this part of the world, don’t let it pass. We know, you can take a camel ride in lots of places but in front of the Pyramids of Giza is special.
Love to each and everyone,
Gram and Granpa Bill, Mom and Dad, Dottie and Bill
Tuesday, November 16, 2010
Wednesday, November 10, 2010
Holylands Cruise Tour #3
HOLYLANDS CRUISE 2010
BLOG #3t
One should never read things written after the work is “completed”. A reread of the last two blogs led to the conclusion that fun writing should not be attempted when the TV is on in the room especially when the ability to multi-task diminished with the trip “over the hill”. All of which leads to the following correction. Ephesus and The Acropolis are NOT on the list of the “Seven Wonders of the Modern World”. These are great wonders of the past but they didn’t make the list. The Temple of Artemus at Ephesus was on the ancient wonders list but it didn’t make the new list. Sorry about the misinformation.
Our next stop at Port Said, Egypt did allow us to see one of the “Seven Wonders of the Modern World”, The Pyramids of Giza. We knew in advance that the shore excursion to see the Pyramids of Giza and the Sphinx involved a three hour bus ride from Port Said to Cairo and a three hour return trip. Our bus trip took us through the fertile fields on the west side of the Nile and the Suez Canal. Our well informed guide filled the hours of travel with a constant flow of facts about the history of Egypt and the development of civilization a long, long time ago. Somewhere in the discussion of Pharaohs and the reuse of some names by past Egyptian leaders, Ptolemy I,II,III………and so on, we were jolted from our state of polite listening by the announcement that there were actually nine ladies who used the name Cleopatra. The Elizabeth Taylor version that we know and love was actually Cleopatra VII and reported to have been adorned with an ugly hook nose and looks leaning toward the ugly. No mention was made of her significant measurements but she made the movies so they couldn’t have been all that bad.
Our visit to the pyramids was in the company of several thousand other folks who came out to fill their memory cards with pictures from all angles. To make our visit complete, there were several hundred camels with keepers named Ali waiting to pose for pics with tourists astride and maybe even to provide a short ride through the desert. We dutifully did both to keep the local economy rolling. Our guide warned us in advance about how much to pay for such privileges adding that some of the richest people in Egypt sell camel rides at the pyramids. Our new best friend in Egypt, Ali the camel man, almost had a heart attack when we offered him $4 US for our ride instead of the $50 he requested. We wanted to add a couple of bucks for the act he performed but in Egypt you just have to do what your tour guide says.
After a memorable hour in the sifting desert sands around the pyramids, our bus took us through downtown Cairo to a boat on the Nile hired to provide a boat ride and lunch. We apparently were very lucky that our tour was on Friday. Custom dictates that Friday and Saturday constitute the weekend in Egypt with schools and most businesses closed. Even on the “weekend” the Cairo traffic was unbelievable. Cairo is a city of 25,000,000 during work days and 22,000,000 at night. It seemed to us that each of the 22 or 25 million owned a car with most of them on the streets of Cairo as we passed through. We imagined our boat ride/lunch on the Nile would be on an open boat with box lunches. We were pleasantly surprise when our boat turned out to be a beautifully appointed floating palace with liveried waiters, live music and a marvelous Egyptian buffet luncheon. We guessed that there were about 200 tourists on board sharing a wonderful time. Our boat plied the waters of the Nile as it coursed through the most elegant and expensive part of Cairo. Ten story condo and apartment buildings lined the river with their expansive balconies adorned with all kinds of plants and trees. An occasional five star hotel was sandwiched in between where people lived adding elegance to the shoreline scene.
Following lunch we were treated to an Egyptian Folkloric Show that was billed as steeped in Egyptian tradition. The show focused on a group of musicians, playing mainly drums, and a beautiful young lady dressed in not much that displayed a lot of belly. She kept the attention of all for the best part of an hour doing some nice things that might be referred to as naughty in some fuddy-duddy circles. When she tired and left the room, presumably to take a cold shower, she was replaced by a Whirling Dervish who spun around in circles so long that many in the crowd were becoming borderline nauseas. As a part of her performance, the Belly Dancer person worked her way through the audience giving us a close-up look at her costume. She was followed by a photographer taking shots to sell as black mail. We were fortunate enough to have her come to our table and we dutifully bought the commemorating photo. The photo turned out so well we decided on the spot to use it for our Christmas Card this year. Unfortunately, we were so pooped when we finally returned to our ship we left the 8 X 10 photo on the bus leaving us back at square one regarding our Christmas greeting for 2010
Along the way we learned that of the eighty million people in Egypt, 25% cannot read or write. Two-thirds of the illiterate are over the age of 60. 40% of the population is under the age of 20 and the country’s population is increasing at a rate of over one million new citizens each year. The 25 public universities are currently creating more graduates than the economy can employee and out migration of Egypt’s educated young people is of great concern to the country’s leaders. 90% of the population is Muslim and 10% profess to be Christian. The vast majority of Christians are members of the Orthodox Church, an off-shoot of the Catholic Church.
The next day the Pacific Princess docked at Alexandria, Egypt. After three straight days of twelve hour tours we decided that Alexandria sounded like a great place to crash, do some laundry and catch up on our Sudoku. Alexandria, named after Alexander the Great, grew and flourished as a seaport and center of culture. The Romans made it one of their capital cities but as the Roman Empire fizzled out so did the city. However, during the Byzantine period the city once again came alive. When St. Mark brought Christianity to Egypt, Alexandria became a theological powerhouse and a center for theological debate. The Moslem conquest in the 7th century changed the character but failed to keep the commercial life strong. Only the rule of Mohammed Ali (not the boxer) in the 19th century began a revival of the city’s commercial life. The opening of the Suez Canal diverted some business away but Alexandria continues to reign as Egypt’s second largest city.
We looked forward to our stop at Dubrovnik, Croatia. At one time, Dubrovnik was a commercial competitor with Venice. With the disintegration of the Roman Empire, Dubrovnik suffered as many other cities in the region from the raids of barbarian tribes. For the next 1500 years or so, periodic attacks by various neighbors ravaged the city and then rebuilt it in our own image. In the process a wall w as built around the city in an attempt to make such attacks difficult. It wasn’t until 1991 when the country of Croatia became a reality that Dubrovnik gained a sense of the possibility of a secure future. We signed on to a tour that took us first to the small town of Cavtat, a few miles south of Dubrovnik, where we strolled through the small downtown area and visited the two churches in town. The architecture, as that in Dubrovnik, is Byzantine and quiet unique. Earthquakes in 1667 and 1713 devastated much of the area but we were told that the subsequent rebuilding was done with an effort to maintain the original style of buildings as they were repaired.
At Dubrovnik, we were treated to a folkloric show featuring dancers and musicians that displayed traditional music, dance and costumes. The Croatian dancers were quick on the feet and presented an amazing show that we appreciated. What we didn’t appreciate was the down pour we experienced when we walked from our bus to the folkloric venue. We were drenched the skin to the point that our only thought was to return to the ship and some dry clothing rather than take a twenty minute stroll through the walled city. Those who took the walk declared that they didn’t believe that it was possible fo become so wet so fast.
Our final stop before arriving at Venice was Ravenna, Italy. Ravenna is a good starting place for visits to Bologna and the small Principality of San Marino. We opted to do our own thing with a tour of Ravenna. As yet another walled Byzantine city, we enjoyed the narrow winding streets that surrounded an active downtown business community. The names on the shops were not familiar but the prices for stylish clothes and such suggested that there must be a lot of wealthy folks in Ravenna who can afford such prices….think Nordstrom’s or better. Ravenna boasts the fact that it was the last gasp capital of the Roman Empire just before its end. The Emperor moved his court to Milan and then Ravenna to be closer to the front lines in Rome’s battle with Gothic tribes under the leadership of Alaric. In 409 AD, Alaric, no dummy, bypassed Ravenna and the Roman army entirely to capture and sack Rome. From that day on, the days of the Roman Empire were numbered. The last emperor of Rome was disposed in 476 AD.
Tomorrow we leave our home for the past twelve days on the Pacific Princess and move into Hotel Saturnia in Venice, Italy for the remainder of our trip. One of the wonderful things about cruising is being able to unpack and put everything in the closet or drawers, just like home. The downside is that eventually you have to pack it all up again. Which is what we’re going to be all about for the next hour or so.
Trying hard to keep smiling……………………………………..
Love to all,
Gram and Grandpa Bill, Mom and Dad, Dottie and Bill
BLOG #3t
One should never read things written after the work is “completed”. A reread of the last two blogs led to the conclusion that fun writing should not be attempted when the TV is on in the room especially when the ability to multi-task diminished with the trip “over the hill”. All of which leads to the following correction. Ephesus and The Acropolis are NOT on the list of the “Seven Wonders of the Modern World”. These are great wonders of the past but they didn’t make the list. The Temple of Artemus at Ephesus was on the ancient wonders list but it didn’t make the new list. Sorry about the misinformation.
Our next stop at Port Said, Egypt did allow us to see one of the “Seven Wonders of the Modern World”, The Pyramids of Giza. We knew in advance that the shore excursion to see the Pyramids of Giza and the Sphinx involved a three hour bus ride from Port Said to Cairo and a three hour return trip. Our bus trip took us through the fertile fields on the west side of the Nile and the Suez Canal. Our well informed guide filled the hours of travel with a constant flow of facts about the history of Egypt and the development of civilization a long, long time ago. Somewhere in the discussion of Pharaohs and the reuse of some names by past Egyptian leaders, Ptolemy I,II,III………and so on, we were jolted from our state of polite listening by the announcement that there were actually nine ladies who used the name Cleopatra. The Elizabeth Taylor version that we know and love was actually Cleopatra VII and reported to have been adorned with an ugly hook nose and looks leaning toward the ugly. No mention was made of her significant measurements but she made the movies so they couldn’t have been all that bad.
Our visit to the pyramids was in the company of several thousand other folks who came out to fill their memory cards with pictures from all angles. To make our visit complete, there were several hundred camels with keepers named Ali waiting to pose for pics with tourists astride and maybe even to provide a short ride through the desert. We dutifully did both to keep the local economy rolling. Our guide warned us in advance about how much to pay for such privileges adding that some of the richest people in Egypt sell camel rides at the pyramids. Our new best friend in Egypt, Ali the camel man, almost had a heart attack when we offered him $4 US for our ride instead of the $50 he requested. We wanted to add a couple of bucks for the act he performed but in Egypt you just have to do what your tour guide says.
After a memorable hour in the sifting desert sands around the pyramids, our bus took us through downtown Cairo to a boat on the Nile hired to provide a boat ride and lunch. We apparently were very lucky that our tour was on Friday. Custom dictates that Friday and Saturday constitute the weekend in Egypt with schools and most businesses closed. Even on the “weekend” the Cairo traffic was unbelievable. Cairo is a city of 25,000,000 during work days and 22,000,000 at night. It seemed to us that each of the 22 or 25 million owned a car with most of them on the streets of Cairo as we passed through. We imagined our boat ride/lunch on the Nile would be on an open boat with box lunches. We were pleasantly surprise when our boat turned out to be a beautifully appointed floating palace with liveried waiters, live music and a marvelous Egyptian buffet luncheon. We guessed that there were about 200 tourists on board sharing a wonderful time. Our boat plied the waters of the Nile as it coursed through the most elegant and expensive part of Cairo. Ten story condo and apartment buildings lined the river with their expansive balconies adorned with all kinds of plants and trees. An occasional five star hotel was sandwiched in between where people lived adding elegance to the shoreline scene.
Following lunch we were treated to an Egyptian Folkloric Show that was billed as steeped in Egyptian tradition. The show focused on a group of musicians, playing mainly drums, and a beautiful young lady dressed in not much that displayed a lot of belly. She kept the attention of all for the best part of an hour doing some nice things that might be referred to as naughty in some fuddy-duddy circles. When she tired and left the room, presumably to take a cold shower, she was replaced by a Whirling Dervish who spun around in circles so long that many in the crowd were becoming borderline nauseas. As a part of her performance, the Belly Dancer person worked her way through the audience giving us a close-up look at her costume. She was followed by a photographer taking shots to sell as black mail. We were fortunate enough to have her come to our table and we dutifully bought the commemorating photo. The photo turned out so well we decided on the spot to use it for our Christmas Card this year. Unfortunately, we were so pooped when we finally returned to our ship we left the 8 X 10 photo on the bus leaving us back at square one regarding our Christmas greeting for 2010
Along the way we learned that of the eighty million people in Egypt, 25% cannot read or write. Two-thirds of the illiterate are over the age of 60. 40% of the population is under the age of 20 and the country’s population is increasing at a rate of over one million new citizens each year. The 25 public universities are currently creating more graduates than the economy can employee and out migration of Egypt’s educated young people is of great concern to the country’s leaders. 90% of the population is Muslim and 10% profess to be Christian. The vast majority of Christians are members of the Orthodox Church, an off-shoot of the Catholic Church.
The next day the Pacific Princess docked at Alexandria, Egypt. After three straight days of twelve hour tours we decided that Alexandria sounded like a great place to crash, do some laundry and catch up on our Sudoku. Alexandria, named after Alexander the Great, grew and flourished as a seaport and center of culture. The Romans made it one of their capital cities but as the Roman Empire fizzled out so did the city. However, during the Byzantine period the city once again came alive. When St. Mark brought Christianity to Egypt, Alexandria became a theological powerhouse and a center for theological debate. The Moslem conquest in the 7th century changed the character but failed to keep the commercial life strong. Only the rule of Mohammed Ali (not the boxer) in the 19th century began a revival of the city’s commercial life. The opening of the Suez Canal diverted some business away but Alexandria continues to reign as Egypt’s second largest city.
We looked forward to our stop at Dubrovnik, Croatia. At one time, Dubrovnik was a commercial competitor with Venice. With the disintegration of the Roman Empire, Dubrovnik suffered as many other cities in the region from the raids of barbarian tribes. For the next 1500 years or so, periodic attacks by various neighbors ravaged the city and then rebuilt it in our own image. In the process a wall w as built around the city in an attempt to make such attacks difficult. It wasn’t until 1991 when the country of Croatia became a reality that Dubrovnik gained a sense of the possibility of a secure future. We signed on to a tour that took us first to the small town of Cavtat, a few miles south of Dubrovnik, where we strolled through the small downtown area and visited the two churches in town. The architecture, as that in Dubrovnik, is Byzantine and quiet unique. Earthquakes in 1667 and 1713 devastated much of the area but we were told that the subsequent rebuilding was done with an effort to maintain the original style of buildings as they were repaired.
At Dubrovnik, we were treated to a folkloric show featuring dancers and musicians that displayed traditional music, dance and costumes. The Croatian dancers were quick on the feet and presented an amazing show that we appreciated. What we didn’t appreciate was the down pour we experienced when we walked from our bus to the folkloric venue. We were drenched the skin to the point that our only thought was to return to the ship and some dry clothing rather than take a twenty minute stroll through the walled city. Those who took the walk declared that they didn’t believe that it was possible fo become so wet so fast.
Our final stop before arriving at Venice was Ravenna, Italy. Ravenna is a good starting place for visits to Bologna and the small Principality of San Marino. We opted to do our own thing with a tour of Ravenna. As yet another walled Byzantine city, we enjoyed the narrow winding streets that surrounded an active downtown business community. The names on the shops were not familiar but the prices for stylish clothes and such suggested that there must be a lot of wealthy folks in Ravenna who can afford such prices….think Nordstrom’s or better. Ravenna boasts the fact that it was the last gasp capital of the Roman Empire just before its end. The Emperor moved his court to Milan and then Ravenna to be closer to the front lines in Rome’s battle with Gothic tribes under the leadership of Alaric. In 409 AD, Alaric, no dummy, bypassed Ravenna and the Roman army entirely to capture and sack Rome. From that day on, the days of the Roman Empire were numbered. The last emperor of Rome was disposed in 476 AD.
Tomorrow we leave our home for the past twelve days on the Pacific Princess and move into Hotel Saturnia in Venice, Italy for the remainder of our trip. One of the wonderful things about cruising is being able to unpack and put everything in the closet or drawers, just like home. The downside is that eventually you have to pack it all up again. Which is what we’re going to be all about for the next hour or so.
Trying hard to keep smiling……………………………………..
Love to all,
Gram and Grandpa Bill, Mom and Dad, Dottie and Bill
Monday, November 8, 2010
HOLYLANDS BLOG #2
HOLYLANDS CRUISE/TOUR
NOVEMBER 2010
BLOG #2
As the Pacific Princess sailed away from its Athens moorings, it headed into the Aegean Sea toward the island of Patmos. The Greek Parliament declared Patmos a “sacred island” in 1981 because of the island’s connection with Saint John. In the days of the Roman Empire, humble places like Patmos were often used as places to exile political prisoners which usually meant someone who had stepped on the toes of someone important. Saint John’s activities in Ephesus and elsewhere made him an excellent candidate for exile. In the year 95 AD, Saint John was sent to Patmos for 18 months where he lived in a cave from which he composed the dramatic book of Revelation, a prophetic work that speaks about the final times and encourages believers to hold fast under persecution. Visitors to the island today are taken to see the cave and the Monastery of the Apocalypse which marks the spot where John dictated the Book of Revelation to his disciple Prochkoros. We passed on a bus ride to see the cave and various churches in favor of a brief walk in the village of Scala where our ship was anchored. We window shopped the several jewelry stores and returned to the ship after a leisurely stroll.
Our next stop at the busy port of Kusadasi, Turkey began our visit to yet another of the “Seven Wonders of the Modern World”, Ephesus. Ephesus is considered the best preserved Roman city in the world. The Greeks first settled in this part of the world as early as the 10th century BC. The Romans later took over from the Greeks using Ephesus as one of its capital cities. The existing site of Ephesus dates to 600 BC and was once an important sea port. The river flowing into the bay and port silted the harbor in the 3rd century AD creating a large marsh land where the port once flourished. The marshland bred mosquitoes that caused malaria that led to the later abandonment of the city. Ephesus was buried in sand in succeeding centuries and wasn’t discovered until the middle of the 19th century AD. Excavation of the site began in 1869 and continues.
The city that once served approximately 250,000 is now about 80% excavated. The Library of Celsus, the temples of Domitian and Hadrian and the Great Theater (which is still in use) that seats 25,000 and hundreds of other buildings boggle the mind as one tries to imagine what life was all about 3,000 years ago. A sewage system and a public toilet that we visited give the city a touch of modernity that further stretches the imagination. There is good evidence that the Virgin Mary and Saint John lived their final years in Ephesus. We visited a house above the city that has been enshrined as a place where the Virgin Mary lived. Saint John likely wrote the New Testament chapter Ephesians while he was here. Saint John and the Virgin Mary are revered by both Christians and Moslems.
Our next stop at Haifa, Israel provided a jumping off spot for our first visit in the Holylands. Haifa was a fortress city, built by the Crusaders, that nearly vanished following the Crusades. During the 19th century German engineers laid out the port and the city, for their Turkish allies, that have grown steadily as a significant port city. Today, Haifa is Israel’s third largest city.
We took a tour from Haifa that visited the Sea of Galilee, more commonly known and referred to by the locals as Lake Tiberius. We learned quickly that the Sea of Galilee is 200 meters below sea level as our bus went around downward hair pin turns as we headed eastward from the Mediterranean. Our first stop was at the presumed site of the Sermon on the Mount where we visited the beautiful small chapel known as the Church of the Beattitudes. We were privileged to touch a rock that has been accepted as the place where Jesus broke the bread and divided the fishes to feed the 5000 who came to hear him speak. The church on the site was originally built during the 1st century AD with a second church built over the original in the 6th century. The current church was built in the 19th century.
A short drive took us to Capernaum and the remains of the home of Saul, later called Peter. Saul was a well to do fisherman who took Jesus into his home when Jesus left Nazareth to begin his life of preaching. The ruins of the old town are now in the care of the Catholic Church. We drove around the Sea of Galilee under the Golan Heights in Syria. Our path took us to the South end of the Sea of Galilee where the River Jordan drains the Sea of Galilee . We stopped at a place on the River Jordan set aside for baptism, supposedly at the site where John the Baptist baptized Jesus. We dipped our hands in the River Jordan and watched as some other visitors baptized themselves. A grand souvenir shop gave our fellow passengers an opportunity to support the local economy by purchasing greatly over priced treasures.
Our tour for the day ended at Nazareth where we visited a church that featured the home where the Virgin Mary lived as a child and a second church next door that displayed the remains of the home of Joseph where Jesus grew up. The density of the crowds and the length of the lines in these places left us with a less than reverential attitude. We did get a few pictures that don’t really do the experience justice. It was pointed out to us that the majority of Arabs living in Nazareth are Christian.
During this tour, our well informed guide gave us the history of Israel and the current political situation from her position as a Jew who had been born in Palestine. Israel was described as a small country only 350 miles long and less than 70 miles wide at its widest part. Historically, the area was a pass through for various warring countries. The River Jordan provided water and forage through an otherwise desolate area. Following WWI, the United Nations created Palestine (now Israel and Jordan), Egypt, Syria and Lebanon , the latter for Arab Christians. The French were given Syria and Lebanon to govern and the English were given Palestine and Egypt. Following WWII, the Brits drew a line at the Jordan River creating Jordan, east of the river, and Palestine west of the river. Egypt was given the privilege of self governance. In 1947 the UN provided for the creation of Israel in the area formerly known as Palestine and the immigration of Jews to their new home began. In the first year, over two million Jews immigrated to Israel. In 1967 neighboring Syria, Jordan and Egypt went to war against Israel. Within two days the Egyptians gave up turning Sinai Peninsula over to Israel. The Syrians gave up within two more days allowing Israel to occupy the Golan Heights . The Jordanians followed suit soon after but not before moving the border of Jordan well to the west of the Jordan River. Later, Jordan returned to its original border leaving their previously acquired territory to the Palestinians. The area now referred to as the “’West Bank”, provides for continuing concerns by the Arab Palestinians and the Israelis. The West Bank is currently divided into three areas; one area controlled completely by Palestinians, a second where the Israel Army comes and goes at will and a third controlled by the Israeli Army.
Our guide never missed an opportunity to let us know that the Arabs (never referred to as Palestinians) where the problem. To her, the question about Jerusalem was simple. After all, she told us, the Bible refers to Jerusalem as the center of Christian faith hundreds of times while the Koran doesn’t mention the city once. As we drove on a road separating Israel from the Palestinian territory our attention was called to all of the trees planted by Israelis and the desolate hillsides maintained by the Arabs. The Israeli tree planting focused on reforesting hills that had been stripped of all vegetation by firewood gatherers and over grazing. We did see numerous groves of olive trees that had been planted and maintained by Palestinians. We were shown schools and hospitals built by Israel for the Arabs, obviously to demonstrate the generosity of the Israelis, and the sub standard housing of the Arabs. It was easy to conclude, from our guide’s remarks, that the world would be better off if the Arabs would simply disappear.
On the following day, our ship docked at Ashdod, Israel, the port closest to Jerusalem. Our tour took us first to Gethsemane, the olive grove where Jesus spent his last night with the disciples. It was here that Jesus was betrayed and led away by his Roman captors. We were told that the word Gethsemane, which has so much religious connotation for us, actually means olive press in Hebrew.
The Mount of Olives provided a marvelous view of the old walled city of Jerusalem. Our bus quickly took us down the hill and to one of several gates into the old city. It took us an extra ten minutes to get through the gate because a Bar Mizha procession proceded us complete with the honoree covered by a canopy led by drum playing singers. We followed as a part of the family procession that followed. Once inside the gate, we found ourselves at the Western Wall, AKA “Wailing Wall”, where the men in our group donned little white skull caps and walked among men praying at the wall while other locals preyed on tourists offering to pray for them for money. The ladies in our group were allowed to visit the “wall” but in a separate and much smaller space. We found several Bar Mitzha groups, on the men’s side, continuing their celebrations. The smile on the faces of the honorees suggested the end of their ordeal must be near.
In the square near the West Wall we saw several groups of teen age looking soldiers; some carrying rifles. Some were male and some where female. We were reminded of being told that every young person in Israel is conscripted into the army at age 18. Army service can be avoided by volunteering in various ways but most go into the army. Boys serve for three years and girls serve for two. After military service, most young people begin their college studies.
Our tour took us through the winding narrow streets of the old city. We walked through the Jewish Section, The Moslem Section, The Christian Section and the Via Dolorosa on our way to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre and the “Site of the Crucifixion” and the “Site of the Tomb”. Our guide explained that these sites may or not be the actual sites but it is generally agreed that each occurred in the vicinity if not the actual spot. In any event, we were assured that the places we visited were high on the popularity list for tourists because we weren’t lonely. It was one of those “hands on your wallet and purse straps around the neck” situations that guide books talk about.
Our tour of the old city was followed by a brief tour of “New Jerusalem” and its sparkling white business and governmental buildings that reflected the presence of a modern western community. On our way out of the city, our guide, a British born transplant, explained that she could not accompany us while we visited Bethlehem. The rationale for her departure was that the Israeli government was trying to help the Arab community grow in its ability to profit from the tourist trade. For that reason, our guide in Bethlehem would be Arab and our shopping experience for the day would be limited to shopping in Arab shops. Our new guide, George, was probably new at the job because his handling of our group lacked the polish expected in such a situation. He began by walking so fast that only a few in our party could keep up. Cries for help from stragglers, including us, finally slowed our procession through the crowded streets. Once inside the venues we visited, George had us seated in restricted areas so that we had to move after being admonished by the priest in charge. Ultimately, at the end of our tour, members of our group had to force George to pass down the aisle of our bus to pick up tips before he departed. At least he left smiling.
In Bethlehem the “biggees” are located at the Church of the Nativity where we were privileged to visit the presumed site of the manger where Jesus was born. The Church of the Nativity, the latest edition of which was built in 1886, was under the control in various parts by Greek Orthodox, Catholic and Armenian church officials all of which suggested to us that even the most precious things in our lives can be the source of the continuing struggle by man for power over others. Since the current church is built over the site of an earlier church built in the 1st century AD, it is fair to assume that this is probably the actual spot. Whether the actual spot or not, it was a moving moment for both of us. The whole experience gave a renewed conviction and understanding of the hundreds of religious objects and crucifixes we saw later when our guide took us to his uncle’s souvenir shop for our promised shopping.
At this point in our travels we have decided that we need to add plaid walking shorts and black ankle socks, to be worn with black dress shoes, to Bill’s travel wear so that he can blend in with our travel companions. Whatever!
Our love to each and everyone………………..
Gram and Grandpa Bill, Mom and Dad, Dottie and Bill
NOVEMBER 2010
BLOG #2
As the Pacific Princess sailed away from its Athens moorings, it headed into the Aegean Sea toward the island of Patmos. The Greek Parliament declared Patmos a “sacred island” in 1981 because of the island’s connection with Saint John. In the days of the Roman Empire, humble places like Patmos were often used as places to exile political prisoners which usually meant someone who had stepped on the toes of someone important. Saint John’s activities in Ephesus and elsewhere made him an excellent candidate for exile. In the year 95 AD, Saint John was sent to Patmos for 18 months where he lived in a cave from which he composed the dramatic book of Revelation, a prophetic work that speaks about the final times and encourages believers to hold fast under persecution. Visitors to the island today are taken to see the cave and the Monastery of the Apocalypse which marks the spot where John dictated the Book of Revelation to his disciple Prochkoros. We passed on a bus ride to see the cave and various churches in favor of a brief walk in the village of Scala where our ship was anchored. We window shopped the several jewelry stores and returned to the ship after a leisurely stroll.
Our next stop at the busy port of Kusadasi, Turkey began our visit to yet another of the “Seven Wonders of the Modern World”, Ephesus. Ephesus is considered the best preserved Roman city in the world. The Greeks first settled in this part of the world as early as the 10th century BC. The Romans later took over from the Greeks using Ephesus as one of its capital cities. The existing site of Ephesus dates to 600 BC and was once an important sea port. The river flowing into the bay and port silted the harbor in the 3rd century AD creating a large marsh land where the port once flourished. The marshland bred mosquitoes that caused malaria that led to the later abandonment of the city. Ephesus was buried in sand in succeeding centuries and wasn’t discovered until the middle of the 19th century AD. Excavation of the site began in 1869 and continues.
The city that once served approximately 250,000 is now about 80% excavated. The Library of Celsus, the temples of Domitian and Hadrian and the Great Theater (which is still in use) that seats 25,000 and hundreds of other buildings boggle the mind as one tries to imagine what life was all about 3,000 years ago. A sewage system and a public toilet that we visited give the city a touch of modernity that further stretches the imagination. There is good evidence that the Virgin Mary and Saint John lived their final years in Ephesus. We visited a house above the city that has been enshrined as a place where the Virgin Mary lived. Saint John likely wrote the New Testament chapter Ephesians while he was here. Saint John and the Virgin Mary are revered by both Christians and Moslems.
Our next stop at Haifa, Israel provided a jumping off spot for our first visit in the Holylands. Haifa was a fortress city, built by the Crusaders, that nearly vanished following the Crusades. During the 19th century German engineers laid out the port and the city, for their Turkish allies, that have grown steadily as a significant port city. Today, Haifa is Israel’s third largest city.
We took a tour from Haifa that visited the Sea of Galilee, more commonly known and referred to by the locals as Lake Tiberius. We learned quickly that the Sea of Galilee is 200 meters below sea level as our bus went around downward hair pin turns as we headed eastward from the Mediterranean. Our first stop was at the presumed site of the Sermon on the Mount where we visited the beautiful small chapel known as the Church of the Beattitudes. We were privileged to touch a rock that has been accepted as the place where Jesus broke the bread and divided the fishes to feed the 5000 who came to hear him speak. The church on the site was originally built during the 1st century AD with a second church built over the original in the 6th century. The current church was built in the 19th century.
A short drive took us to Capernaum and the remains of the home of Saul, later called Peter. Saul was a well to do fisherman who took Jesus into his home when Jesus left Nazareth to begin his life of preaching. The ruins of the old town are now in the care of the Catholic Church. We drove around the Sea of Galilee under the Golan Heights in Syria. Our path took us to the South end of the Sea of Galilee where the River Jordan drains the Sea of Galilee . We stopped at a place on the River Jordan set aside for baptism, supposedly at the site where John the Baptist baptized Jesus. We dipped our hands in the River Jordan and watched as some other visitors baptized themselves. A grand souvenir shop gave our fellow passengers an opportunity to support the local economy by purchasing greatly over priced treasures.
Our tour for the day ended at Nazareth where we visited a church that featured the home where the Virgin Mary lived as a child and a second church next door that displayed the remains of the home of Joseph where Jesus grew up. The density of the crowds and the length of the lines in these places left us with a less than reverential attitude. We did get a few pictures that don’t really do the experience justice. It was pointed out to us that the majority of Arabs living in Nazareth are Christian.
During this tour, our well informed guide gave us the history of Israel and the current political situation from her position as a Jew who had been born in Palestine. Israel was described as a small country only 350 miles long and less than 70 miles wide at its widest part. Historically, the area was a pass through for various warring countries. The River Jordan provided water and forage through an otherwise desolate area. Following WWI, the United Nations created Palestine (now Israel and Jordan), Egypt, Syria and Lebanon , the latter for Arab Christians. The French were given Syria and Lebanon to govern and the English were given Palestine and Egypt. Following WWII, the Brits drew a line at the Jordan River creating Jordan, east of the river, and Palestine west of the river. Egypt was given the privilege of self governance. In 1947 the UN provided for the creation of Israel in the area formerly known as Palestine and the immigration of Jews to their new home began. In the first year, over two million Jews immigrated to Israel. In 1967 neighboring Syria, Jordan and Egypt went to war against Israel. Within two days the Egyptians gave up turning Sinai Peninsula over to Israel. The Syrians gave up within two more days allowing Israel to occupy the Golan Heights . The Jordanians followed suit soon after but not before moving the border of Jordan well to the west of the Jordan River. Later, Jordan returned to its original border leaving their previously acquired territory to the Palestinians. The area now referred to as the “’West Bank”, provides for continuing concerns by the Arab Palestinians and the Israelis. The West Bank is currently divided into three areas; one area controlled completely by Palestinians, a second where the Israel Army comes and goes at will and a third controlled by the Israeli Army.
Our guide never missed an opportunity to let us know that the Arabs (never referred to as Palestinians) where the problem. To her, the question about Jerusalem was simple. After all, she told us, the Bible refers to Jerusalem as the center of Christian faith hundreds of times while the Koran doesn’t mention the city once. As we drove on a road separating Israel from the Palestinian territory our attention was called to all of the trees planted by Israelis and the desolate hillsides maintained by the Arabs. The Israeli tree planting focused on reforesting hills that had been stripped of all vegetation by firewood gatherers and over grazing. We did see numerous groves of olive trees that had been planted and maintained by Palestinians. We were shown schools and hospitals built by Israel for the Arabs, obviously to demonstrate the generosity of the Israelis, and the sub standard housing of the Arabs. It was easy to conclude, from our guide’s remarks, that the world would be better off if the Arabs would simply disappear.
On the following day, our ship docked at Ashdod, Israel, the port closest to Jerusalem. Our tour took us first to Gethsemane, the olive grove where Jesus spent his last night with the disciples. It was here that Jesus was betrayed and led away by his Roman captors. We were told that the word Gethsemane, which has so much religious connotation for us, actually means olive press in Hebrew.
The Mount of Olives provided a marvelous view of the old walled city of Jerusalem. Our bus quickly took us down the hill and to one of several gates into the old city. It took us an extra ten minutes to get through the gate because a Bar Mizha procession proceded us complete with the honoree covered by a canopy led by drum playing singers. We followed as a part of the family procession that followed. Once inside the gate, we found ourselves at the Western Wall, AKA “Wailing Wall”, where the men in our group donned little white skull caps and walked among men praying at the wall while other locals preyed on tourists offering to pray for them for money. The ladies in our group were allowed to visit the “wall” but in a separate and much smaller space. We found several Bar Mitzha groups, on the men’s side, continuing their celebrations. The smile on the faces of the honorees suggested the end of their ordeal must be near.
In the square near the West Wall we saw several groups of teen age looking soldiers; some carrying rifles. Some were male and some where female. We were reminded of being told that every young person in Israel is conscripted into the army at age 18. Army service can be avoided by volunteering in various ways but most go into the army. Boys serve for three years and girls serve for two. After military service, most young people begin their college studies.
Our tour took us through the winding narrow streets of the old city. We walked through the Jewish Section, The Moslem Section, The Christian Section and the Via Dolorosa on our way to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre and the “Site of the Crucifixion” and the “Site of the Tomb”. Our guide explained that these sites may or not be the actual sites but it is generally agreed that each occurred in the vicinity if not the actual spot. In any event, we were assured that the places we visited were high on the popularity list for tourists because we weren’t lonely. It was one of those “hands on your wallet and purse straps around the neck” situations that guide books talk about.
Our tour of the old city was followed by a brief tour of “New Jerusalem” and its sparkling white business and governmental buildings that reflected the presence of a modern western community. On our way out of the city, our guide, a British born transplant, explained that she could not accompany us while we visited Bethlehem. The rationale for her departure was that the Israeli government was trying to help the Arab community grow in its ability to profit from the tourist trade. For that reason, our guide in Bethlehem would be Arab and our shopping experience for the day would be limited to shopping in Arab shops. Our new guide, George, was probably new at the job because his handling of our group lacked the polish expected in such a situation. He began by walking so fast that only a few in our party could keep up. Cries for help from stragglers, including us, finally slowed our procession through the crowded streets. Once inside the venues we visited, George had us seated in restricted areas so that we had to move after being admonished by the priest in charge. Ultimately, at the end of our tour, members of our group had to force George to pass down the aisle of our bus to pick up tips before he departed. At least he left smiling.
In Bethlehem the “biggees” are located at the Church of the Nativity where we were privileged to visit the presumed site of the manger where Jesus was born. The Church of the Nativity, the latest edition of which was built in 1886, was under the control in various parts by Greek Orthodox, Catholic and Armenian church officials all of which suggested to us that even the most precious things in our lives can be the source of the continuing struggle by man for power over others. Since the current church is built over the site of an earlier church built in the 1st century AD, it is fair to assume that this is probably the actual spot. Whether the actual spot or not, it was a moving moment for both of us. The whole experience gave a renewed conviction and understanding of the hundreds of religious objects and crucifixes we saw later when our guide took us to his uncle’s souvenir shop for our promised shopping.
At this point in our travels we have decided that we need to add plaid walking shorts and black ankle socks, to be worn with black dress shoes, to Bill’s travel wear so that he can blend in with our travel companions. Whatever!
Our love to each and everyone………………..
Gram and Grandpa Bill, Mom and Dad, Dottie and Bill
Saturday, November 6, 2010
HOLY LANDS #1
Holy Lands Cruise/Tour
October/November 2010
Blog #1
Being away from home for almost three weeks would be a lot more fun if one didn’t have to pack and plan on what to wear. With a week or so of worrying and deciding, we managed to get ourselves together in time and began our trip to the Holy Lands and their neighbors in the Mediterranean.
We have learned from past experience that we don’t want to miss anything on our travels if we can help it. Since our cruise on the Pacific Princess began in Athens, Greece and ended in Venice, Italy, we arranged our flight schedule so that we could spend several days in each of these wonderful places before and after our cruise.
Our flight took us through London’s Heathrow Airport where we had a longer than usual lay-over. Our upgraded status to Business Class allowed us the privilege of “camping out” in the American Airlines Ambassador lounge where drinks and food are always available as well as some wonderful recliner lounges; all of which we took full advantage. We arrived in Athens early in the morning and checked into the Hilton Hotel for a few hours sleep before we began an afternoon tour.
We chose a tour to Cape Sounion (pronounced by the locals as Sonya) that took us along the Aegian Sea coast south of Athens to the southern most point in Europe and the site of the the Temple of Poseiden. Poseiden was the Greek god of the sea and the temple was a place visited by sailors for centuries. The sailors visited the temple before leaving on a voyage to pray for safe passage and again at the end of a voyage to bring offerings of thanks for the safely completed voyage. An interesting story was told about the origin of the temple. Aegus, the King of Greece for whom the surrounding sea was named, had a son who was anxious to “get out of Dodge” and sought permission to sail to Crete where a beastly Minator needed to be slain. King daddy wasn’t to keen on the idea but the Prince finally got his way. The King provided the ship and crew and asked only that his son take two sets of sails; one black and one white. The prince was asked to sail away with the white sails and return with the black sails only if the mission was successful and the son was returning alive. The son sailed away, slew the Minator, and returned forgetting to change to the black sales. When the King spotted the returning ship flying white sails, he became distraught and threw himself off the cliff at Cape Sounion. The forgetful son built the temple to honor the memory of his father and the future safety of sailors. The current site is duly protected by fencing to keep tourists from adding to the ravages of weather over the intervening centuries. There is no record of when the fences were erectected but it was obviously not soon enough. Lord Byron, who loved to visit Greece, managed to carve his name in the temple stone some time in the early 19th century.
An all day cruise to three islands within a few hours of Athens sounded like fun so we signed on. We cruised first to the island of Hydras, about two and half hours from the Port at Athens. The quaint little island boasts no cars and a quiet place where vacationers can find some peace and quiet. There were several jewelry stores and art galleries to indicate that folks actually come to the island to do more than ride donkeys that provided the only means of transportation on the tiny island. Hydra is famous among travelers for it’s wonderful cats who seem to be everywhere. The cats are unique in that they have learned how to read the schedule posted for the arrival and departure of tour boats. A local shop keeper told us that a couple of dozen cats appear out of nowhere about fifteen minute before the arrival of each boat and cluster around the gangway so that visitors can pet them as they pass by. The cats again gather just before the boats leave. We decided it must have something to do with the effort made to bring the donkeys down to the warf just in case someone needs a ride our a load to carry. We wondered around and inspected the jewelry and art like we were prospective buyers before our boat loaded up and headed on to the next island.
The Soronic Gulf was more than just a bit choppy as we were served lunch at a table with four other passengers who spoke nothing but Russian. We tried to strike up a conversation but all we got in response were shoulder shrugs and wagging heads that we interpreted as “niet”. When we left the table after lunch, Bill smiled and offered a “bolshoi spiseba” (a thousand thanks) which gained an interesting reaction from our table mates who now had to wonder if we actually understood what they were talking about during lunch. The choppy sea continued as the staff scurried about distributing little white bags to colorless passengers.
We stopped at the island of Doros for forty-five minutes where our continuing search for cloth patches for Billl’s collection was fruitless. At Regina, the third island, we signed-up for a bus tour that took us to a monastery on top of a hill and through pistachio orchards to a pistachio processing plant. We were shown how the nuts are sorted, cooked and bagged and treated to a taste that left us unimpressed. On the way to and from we learned that the island supports about 17,000 people when all of the vacation homes are occupied. Most interesting is the fact that the island is known historically as the first place in the world where money was used.
On our final day in Athens we opted for a tour of the new (2009) Acropolis Museum, a visit to the Acropolis and a city tour. We were told that the new museum was the product of twenty years work on the part of Greek actress Marie Montouri (sp) who used her fame and the affection Greeks has for her to encourage donations and support for the construction of the Museum. The huge museum houses a great many original relics from the Acropolis and numerous copies, the originals of which are housed in museums outside of Greece. The British Museum in London currently has hundreds of pieces from the Acropolis that the Brits recently announced they would return to Greece. Parts of the museum are built over excavations of what was once Athens thousands of years ago. Where possible, these excavations are covered with glass flooring so that as you walk through the museum there are times when the floor is yet another display of the past.
We learned that the Acropolis is not a building but rather the hilltop site of the remains of several buildings. At one time there were more than a dozen hilltop acropolis’ whose primary function was to be a safe place for citizens to go during an invasion by a war party. The temples were built so that the god in whose honor the temple had been constructed could protect Athenians from harm.
Athens famed Acropolis site contained four buildings the largest of which was the Parthenon, the Temple of Nike (you know, the runner’s god), the Temple of Erestheonus and another whose name we missed. Today only the Parthenon and the Temple of Zeus are standing. The Acropolis site at present is covered with thousands of pieces of marble, in every shape imaginable, waiting to be set upright in their original positions once someone decides where they belong. Meanwhile, tens of thousands of tourists visit the site each year and provide an equal number of Athenians with a means of earning a living. Incidentally, most of those visitor folks were on the hill when we were.
Our tour of Athens took us by the Panathinaiko Stadium, the site of the first Olympics in 1896, Hadrian’s Arch, the Roman Temple of Olympian Zeus, the Herodioan and Dionysos Theaters and a whole bunch of younger stuff that passed by before our guide could tell us what she knew about each.
Our bus ride ended at the pier next to the Pacific Princess where we would spend the next couple of weeks without having to pack and unpack each day, our meals would be served without our needing to decide what to fix, the bed would be made each day and, best of all, we won’t have to clean up the dishes after a
Life is great and getting better by the day.
Our love to all,
Gram and Grandpa Bill, Mom and Dad, Dottie and Bill
October/November 2010
Blog #1
Being away from home for almost three weeks would be a lot more fun if one didn’t have to pack and plan on what to wear. With a week or so of worrying and deciding, we managed to get ourselves together in time and began our trip to the Holy Lands and their neighbors in the Mediterranean.
We have learned from past experience that we don’t want to miss anything on our travels if we can help it. Since our cruise on the Pacific Princess began in Athens, Greece and ended in Venice, Italy, we arranged our flight schedule so that we could spend several days in each of these wonderful places before and after our cruise.
Our flight took us through London’s Heathrow Airport where we had a longer than usual lay-over. Our upgraded status to Business Class allowed us the privilege of “camping out” in the American Airlines Ambassador lounge where drinks and food are always available as well as some wonderful recliner lounges; all of which we took full advantage. We arrived in Athens early in the morning and checked into the Hilton Hotel for a few hours sleep before we began an afternoon tour.
We chose a tour to Cape Sounion (pronounced by the locals as Sonya) that took us along the Aegian Sea coast south of Athens to the southern most point in Europe and the site of the the Temple of Poseiden. Poseiden was the Greek god of the sea and the temple was a place visited by sailors for centuries. The sailors visited the temple before leaving on a voyage to pray for safe passage and again at the end of a voyage to bring offerings of thanks for the safely completed voyage. An interesting story was told about the origin of the temple. Aegus, the King of Greece for whom the surrounding sea was named, had a son who was anxious to “get out of Dodge” and sought permission to sail to Crete where a beastly Minator needed to be slain. King daddy wasn’t to keen on the idea but the Prince finally got his way. The King provided the ship and crew and asked only that his son take two sets of sails; one black and one white. The prince was asked to sail away with the white sails and return with the black sails only if the mission was successful and the son was returning alive. The son sailed away, slew the Minator, and returned forgetting to change to the black sales. When the King spotted the returning ship flying white sails, he became distraught and threw himself off the cliff at Cape Sounion. The forgetful son built the temple to honor the memory of his father and the future safety of sailors. The current site is duly protected by fencing to keep tourists from adding to the ravages of weather over the intervening centuries. There is no record of when the fences were erectected but it was obviously not soon enough. Lord Byron, who loved to visit Greece, managed to carve his name in the temple stone some time in the early 19th century.
An all day cruise to three islands within a few hours of Athens sounded like fun so we signed on. We cruised first to the island of Hydras, about two and half hours from the Port at Athens. The quaint little island boasts no cars and a quiet place where vacationers can find some peace and quiet. There were several jewelry stores and art galleries to indicate that folks actually come to the island to do more than ride donkeys that provided the only means of transportation on the tiny island. Hydra is famous among travelers for it’s wonderful cats who seem to be everywhere. The cats are unique in that they have learned how to read the schedule posted for the arrival and departure of tour boats. A local shop keeper told us that a couple of dozen cats appear out of nowhere about fifteen minute before the arrival of each boat and cluster around the gangway so that visitors can pet them as they pass by. The cats again gather just before the boats leave. We decided it must have something to do with the effort made to bring the donkeys down to the warf just in case someone needs a ride our a load to carry. We wondered around and inspected the jewelry and art like we were prospective buyers before our boat loaded up and headed on to the next island.
The Soronic Gulf was more than just a bit choppy as we were served lunch at a table with four other passengers who spoke nothing but Russian. We tried to strike up a conversation but all we got in response were shoulder shrugs and wagging heads that we interpreted as “niet”. When we left the table after lunch, Bill smiled and offered a “bolshoi spiseba” (a thousand thanks) which gained an interesting reaction from our table mates who now had to wonder if we actually understood what they were talking about during lunch. The choppy sea continued as the staff scurried about distributing little white bags to colorless passengers.
We stopped at the island of Doros for forty-five minutes where our continuing search for cloth patches for Billl’s collection was fruitless. At Regina, the third island, we signed-up for a bus tour that took us to a monastery on top of a hill and through pistachio orchards to a pistachio processing plant. We were shown how the nuts are sorted, cooked and bagged and treated to a taste that left us unimpressed. On the way to and from we learned that the island supports about 17,000 people when all of the vacation homes are occupied. Most interesting is the fact that the island is known historically as the first place in the world where money was used.
On our final day in Athens we opted for a tour of the new (2009) Acropolis Museum, a visit to the Acropolis and a city tour. We were told that the new museum was the product of twenty years work on the part of Greek actress Marie Montouri (sp) who used her fame and the affection Greeks has for her to encourage donations and support for the construction of the Museum. The huge museum houses a great many original relics from the Acropolis and numerous copies, the originals of which are housed in museums outside of Greece. The British Museum in London currently has hundreds of pieces from the Acropolis that the Brits recently announced they would return to Greece. Parts of the museum are built over excavations of what was once Athens thousands of years ago. Where possible, these excavations are covered with glass flooring so that as you walk through the museum there are times when the floor is yet another display of the past.
We learned that the Acropolis is not a building but rather the hilltop site of the remains of several buildings. At one time there were more than a dozen hilltop acropolis’ whose primary function was to be a safe place for citizens to go during an invasion by a war party. The temples were built so that the god in whose honor the temple had been constructed could protect Athenians from harm.
Athens famed Acropolis site contained four buildings the largest of which was the Parthenon, the Temple of Nike (you know, the runner’s god), the Temple of Erestheonus and another whose name we missed. Today only the Parthenon and the Temple of Zeus are standing. The Acropolis site at present is covered with thousands of pieces of marble, in every shape imaginable, waiting to be set upright in their original positions once someone decides where they belong. Meanwhile, tens of thousands of tourists visit the site each year and provide an equal number of Athenians with a means of earning a living. Incidentally, most of those visitor folks were on the hill when we were.
Our tour of Athens took us by the Panathinaiko Stadium, the site of the first Olympics in 1896, Hadrian’s Arch, the Roman Temple of Olympian Zeus, the Herodioan and Dionysos Theaters and a whole bunch of younger stuff that passed by before our guide could tell us what she knew about each.
Our bus ride ended at the pier next to the Pacific Princess where we would spend the next couple of weeks without having to pack and unpack each day, our meals would be served without our needing to decide what to fix, the bed would be made each day and, best of all, we won’t have to clean up the dishes after a
Life is great and getting better by the day.
Our love to all,
Gram and Grandpa Bill, Mom and Dad, Dottie and Bill
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