| Flag: | Date: | Port: | Tour: | Comment: |
|---|---|---|---|---|
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7th August 2021 |
LHR -> ATHens -> Piraeus |
- | On board by 16:00 |
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9th August 2021 |
Limassol Cyprus |
Kolossi, Apollon & Kourion |
Three historic sites! |
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11th August 2021 |
Rhodes Greece |
Acropolis of Lindos |
Always spectacular! |
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12th August 2021 |
Aghios Nikolaos Crete |
(Local villages with lunch) |
Nine miles of walking! |
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13th August 2021 |
Aghios Nikolaos Crete |
Palace of Knossos |
Heaving! |
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14th August 2021 |
Chania Crete Greece |
Treasures of Cretan Culture |
Wine, olive oil & soap! |
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15th August 2021 |
Nafplio Greece |
Epidaurus & Palamidi fortress |
Best Greek Theatre & Fort! |
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16th August 2021 |
Fira Santorini Greece |
Sailing the Caldera with Kaiki |
Up close to the geology! |
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17th August 2021 |
Piraeus Port for Athens |
- | Monastiraki & Thissio! |
| Flag: | Date: | Port: | Tour: | Comment: |
I left home at 11:15, but hit a traffic jam at Ringwood, so I headed off through the back roads of the New Forest. The start of the M3 and the M25 were both congested, but I got to Ashford by 1:30. I bought lunch and petrol at the large Tesco, before getting to my usual B&B at 2:20. I had to move my car from the front car park to the rear back yard, before sleeping for an hour.
I walked into Hounslow West to buy some food from Iceland. Back at the motel, I had some chicken tikka satay with egg mayonnaise in the conservatory. I started work on this blog and then watched TV for the evening. I went to sleep at 9 o'clock after a busy day, but I had walked less than two miles during the day.
I awoke at 4:10, five minutes before my TWO alarms, after seven hours sleep. I had another pot of egg mayonnaise together with a small brioche roll and a cup of fresh milk for break fast. I got to the Hounslow West tube station at 4:50 ready for the first train at five o'clock. At Terminal 5 the attendant had to phone up her supervisor for advice, I think it was my Seamen's Discharge Book that foxed her! She wanted to see all three of my forms (Vax, PCR & GLF).
We pulled back on time, but then sat on the taxiway for three quarters of an hour awaiting air traffic control. We took off in drizzle, but soon were above the clouds.
Once we were air borne, I got out my laptop and updated this blog. I was working on my third presentation when PowerPoint crashed and then the computer wouldn't reboot. Fortunately the Windows diagnosis and repair facility worked and I got it working again.
The clouds cleared over the Alps to reveal several glaciers. Venice was cloudy, but the Lido and the Lagoon were clear. The River Po had a huge mud plume out into the Adriatic. We had good views of the Dalmatian islands, including Hvar which I will be visiting next summer.
We landed on time, but had to sit on the plane for 75 minutes until buses arrived to ferry us to the main terminal. Here they only wanted to see my Vax certificate, not my PCR test nor my Greek Locator Form (GLF). We had another 20 minutes of queuing for passport control, so it took over two hours to get through the airport.
My limousine chauffeur Vangelis was waiting to whisk me to the ship. He had had an English speaking nanny from the age of three and had studied sound engineering at Middlesex University in North London. He made the mistake of going back to Greece and has had trouble finding suitable work since. Therefore his wife divorced him and he was now having to drive limousines and teach ballroom dancing seven days a week! I gave him a tip of ten euros.
At the ship, I was greeted by Assistant Cruise Director (ACD) Katherina and International Hostess Katerina. The former kindly gave me a set of Greek worry beads! The lateral flow rapid antigen test only took fifteen minutes and I was on board by four o'clock.
I had the same disabled suite with wet room as on the Silver Moon's maiden voyage. I settled in by watching Jon Fleming's talk on Mykonos AND Athens combined. At six o'clock we had the safety drill, followed by Vicki's introductions in the Panorama lounge.
At 7:30 I hosted the solo travelers, but only one person, Helen from Manchester, turned up, so it was diner a deux for us in the Atlantide main restaurant. I began with the mushroom soup over two king scallops, followed by the smoked duck Caesar salad. I continued with the prime rib of beef and then finished with the sugar free fantasia dessert. We had the lovely French red wine to complement the beef.
Having got up at 4 am and not having had a siesta, I went to bed soon after ten o'clock. I had only done five thousand steps, that's just two miles of walking, during the day.
I awoke at 6:45 having slept for eight and a half hours! At 7:30 I had the full English break fast al fresco on the Terrace (La Terrazza) with views of the less interesting east coast of Santorini. I then did eight laps of the top deck above the pool and around the funnels, equal to one mile of walking. Back in my suite, I updated this blog and worked on my presentations. At 10 o'clock I went to Slavko's 45 minute talk on the Galapagos Islands for a second time to see the lovely wildlife pictures again.
At 11 o'clock I heard Nick's interesting 35 minute lecture on The Story of the Diamond Invention, when after the war De Beers made diamonds the world's most desired gemstone. I then snuck into the Sea And Land Tasting's (S.A.L.T.) culinary demonstration and talk. I sampled the lovely moussaka and had a small glass of Greek red wine to wash it down.
At noon I had a small anchovy & caper puttanesca pizza al fresco overlooking the pool. I then slept for 80 minutes. I had a can of diet coke from the complimentary mini-bar instead of afternoon tea, which always spoils dinner for me. I then continued updating my port talks.
At three o'clock I did six lengths of the cool pool under the hot sun, followed by ten minutes in one of the hot jacuzzis beside the pool. Back at my suite, I bumped into Katerina, so I was able to give her my Bulgari slip case, which she had mentioned last night. At five o'clock I gave my 45 minute talk on Limassol: the Port for Cyprus to my largest ever Silversea's audience! At seven o'clock I hosted the solo travellers, but everyone was at the Captain's welcome cocktail party in the theatre.
At 7:30 I was joined by Helen & Katerina, so just the three of us dined at eight in the Sea And Land Tasting (S.A.L.T.) restaurant. We began with three starters to share, I then had the lobster pasta course. I majored on THREE lamb chops and finished with the chocolate baklava. We had Turkish wine to drink with our ethnic meal.
At 10 o'clock I accompanied Helen to the excellent Mind the Gap production show which featured the British songs of the Sixties. We were all singing along to the Dusty Springfield tribute medley! I retired at eleven o'clock to watch my Limassol talk on the suite TV. During the day I had only done five thousand steps or just two miles of walking.
My alarm awoke me at 6:30 ready for the full English break fast at seven, al fresco on the Terrace (La Terrazza) as we entered Limassol new harbour. At 8:45 I went ashore to join coach number seven for my complimentary tour ($59). Out first stop was at the famous Temple of Apollo, where we saw some Roman hypocaust under floor heating for their sauna. Next we visited Ancient Kourion to see the famous semi-circular theatre, some more hypocausts and some Roman mosaics. The latter included the early Christian fish symbol (Ichthus?) and some apparently 3D boxes! Our final stop was at the medieval Crusader castle of Kolossi which had impressive views from the battlements of the keep. The Greek guide didn't use the iTour smart phone app.
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Back at the ship at one, I had a cheeseburger and fries in the Hot Rocks Grill beside the pool, before sleeping for an hour and a half. At 4:30 I did six lengths of the pool, followed by ten minutes in one of the hot tubs.
At seven I hosted the solo travellers with three newcomers: Amy from Matching Green near Harlow in Essex, Kate from Upper West Side New York and Eva from Belgium. Also present was Helen from Manchester, Camila the Italian from the future cruise desk and Ben the singer from Cornwall, but only the last three joined me for dinner.
At eight the four of us adjourned to La Terrazza Italian restaurant where we began with a glass of prosecco. We enjoyed the shared Antipasti plate with interesting breads. I began with my favourite lentil soup followed by the Catherine de Medici salad. I main coursed on the Saltimboca veal and finished with some hard Italian cheese with one crispbread. We had Sicilian wines to go with the meal.
At ten I went to the Voce dell'Opera trio for the second time. They ended predictably with "Time to Say Goodbye"! I didn't get to sleep until 11:20. During the day I had done over eight and a half thousand steps equal to about three and a half miles of walking.
I awoke at 6:50 ready for my usual break fast at 7:40 on the terrace. I then did eight laps, about one mile, of the top deck walking track, but the sun was already awfully hot. Yesterday it had reached 97 degrees in Limassol! Back in my vista suite, I worked on my presentations.
At 10 o'clock I gave my 45 minute talk on Rhodes: the Island of the Knights. I then had my complimentary rapid lateral flow antigen test. At 11:15 I went to the S.A.L.T. culinary demonstration. During the presentation, we tasted a Turkish white wine and two small kebabs, one Lebanese and one Turkish, with some onion salad and a tiny simit bread roll. I was pleased that I had garnered a larger audience at 10 o'clock, than they did at 11:15!
At noon I had a small puttanesca pizza at the Spaccanapoli pizzeria overlooking the pool. I then slept for an hour and a half. At 2:30 I had a decaf cappuchino on the Arts Cafe balcony being quizzed by four Italians about Rhodes and the Knights of St. John!
At 3 o'clock I went to Slavko's 45 minute talk on Antarctica which had dazzling pictures and videos. I didn't know about the nine pointed star on Sir Ernest Shackleton's grave at Grytviken on South Georgia! I then did six clear lengths of the pool and spent 10 minutes in one of the jacuzzis, but the sun was awfully hot again. The temperature in August had definitely gone up compared with when I was here in both June & July!
Back in my vista suite, I updated this blog and my Rhodes talk. With two hours to go until dinner time, I watched most of the Elton John Biopic "Rocket Man" on the TV. At 7 o'clock I hosted the solo travellers as usual, this time joined by Beatrix from Roskilde in Denmark.
At 7:45 I led Helen, Beatrix and Rhiannon the Welsh singer up to the Hot Rocks Grill by the pool. I began with the Caesar salad with anchovies on top. I cooked a chunky filet mignon on my hot rock with two vegetable skewers and a jacket potato with butter and bacon bits. I finished with two scoops of sugar free ice cream. I had the lovely Chilean red wine, whereas the ladies had the white wine, but one of my glasses of the red wine was cold!
At 8:15 I was sat facing guitarist Charlie as he performed his 45 minute set. When he played Rhiannon's request, I danced with her on the deck, both of us wearing masks. At 10 o'clock I accompanied Helen to Josh's excellent Swings & Roundabouts swing song cabaret. He covered Buble and Sinatra standards backed by the Silver Moon trio for the very first time this year.
JOSH'S PLAYLIST: - Let's Face The Music and Dance (Nat King Cole) - Runaround Sue (The Firebirds) - Me and My Shadow (Robbie Williams) - Feeling Good (Buble Version) - Can’t Take My Eyes Off You (Andy Williams) - Sweet Caroline (Neil Diamond) - My Way (Frank Sinatra) - New York, New York (Frank Sinatra) - Oh What A Night (The Four Seasons)
On the way out of the theatre the three cruise staff, Greek Katherina, Czech Katerina and Argentinian Sofia, pulled me aside until we were alone, to tell me that we wouldn't be going to Amorgos the day after tomorrow as it was too windy to tender. Apparently this had happened on the two previous visits of the Silver Moon, so I was lucky to have got there on the maiden voyage back on the 3rd of July 2021. Instead we would have two days and an over night in Aghios Nikolaos on Crete.
I went to bed at 11 o'clock, but had a restless night which casts doubt on whether my afternoon coffee was indeed decaf! During the day I had done five thousand steps, equal to about two miles of walking.
My alarm woke me at 6:30 ready for my usual break fast al fresco on the terrace with the fabulous view of Rhodes Old Town. We were berthed in pole position with the Seabourn Ovation coming in after us to the other side of the main port.
At 8:15 I climbed on board coach number one for my complimentary tour to the Lindos Acropolis ($79). It took about one hour to get there and then half an hour to ascend the stone steps to the fortified hilltop overlooking the town. There was a strong breeze at the top to ameliorate the very hot August sun. It was delight to be there, without having the responsibility of being the tour escort, that role being fulfilled by Slavko from Montenegro!
On the way down, I followed the gentler donkey path for a change and was surprised to see and photograph three lovely little chapels on the north side of the town.
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It took another hour to drive back to the ship. Here I was half way through the side door of the coach when it started to close on me again, but I managed to wrench it open when it tried to crush me.
This tour was the first time that I had used the iTour smart phone app which worked well. When you are out of range it just goes silent, with no squawking! Unfortunately I had forgotten to recharge my phone over night, so I had to turn it off and just stand near to the guide to listen. I needed what battery life remained for my photography!
Back at the ship at one o'clock, Vicki asked me to give my Aghios Nikolaos destination lecture that afternoon in lieu of Aegiali(s) on Amorgos, with my Mamma Mia: the Greek Musical lecture the next day. I had a cheese burger and fries with no bun al fresco at the Grill by the pool for lunch. The Maitre D' asked me if my guests had been happy with their meal there last night, to which I replied in the affirmative, not mentioning that my red wine was cold! I then slept for an hour and a half, before up loading my photos and updating this blog. At 4:20 I did six lengths of a near empty pool, before spending 10 minutes in one of the jacuzzis.
At 5:30 I gave my 40 minute talk on Aghios Nikolaos, interrupted at 6 o'clock by the Captain's second annoucement that it was too windy to tender into Aegiali(s) on Amorgos. At 7 o'clock I hosted the solo travellers with Sofia, but only Helen turned up. We dined at the the top deck Spaccanapoli Pizzeria overlooking the pool. I began with the Caesar salad followed by a LARGE puttanesca pizza. I finished with the blueberry sorbet. I was drinking lovely Chianti red wine from Tuscany.
At 10 o'clock I went to the excellent Queen tribute production show, Rock Rhapsody. I will have "Find Me Somebody to Love" in my head for the next few days! During the day I had done just over 10 thousand steps equal to four miles of walking.
I awoke at 7:20 after more than eight hours of sleep. I watched my Ag. Nik. talk on the telly as I got dressed. At 8:10 I had the full English break fast, before going up to the Observation Library to watch the sail-in. At 9:45 I was first off the ship walking through the town centre to the Sand beach (Ammos). I continued along the coast in a south westerly direction to see the Gargoyle beach (Gargadoras) and Blue River beach (Almyros). At the latter, I was surprised to see the huge amount of fresh water coming down from the mountains and going to waste in the sea. The children trying to paddle were being swept along by the torrent!
By 10:45 I had already had enough of the heat and so turned back the way I had come. On the quayside they were putting the finishing touches to an excellent outdoor exhibition on the two hundredth anniversary of the start of the Greek revolution against the Ottoman Turkish occupation in 1821.
Back at the ship, I had already done over 10 thousand steps or four miles of walking. At noon I lunched in La Terrazza buffet on the table next to the Captain, Slavko and two officers. I had the roast tenderloin beef with refried beans and sweet corn. I had both the Caramel Mousse AND the Blueberry Parfait for dessert! I then slept for nearly two hours.
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Back ashore, I walked two and a half miles to the original 8th century church of St. Nicholas. I had to get the key from the reception of the hotel in whose grounds it now stands. Inside was a little disappointing, but it did have three colourful icons. Back at the ship at 5:15, I gave my 35 minute talk on Mamma Mia: the Musical. Charlie the guitarist had a chat to say he would be working on the Celebrity Edge soon, so would welcome my thoughts on that ship. At six o'clock I did six lengths of the pool, followed by 10 minutes in one of the hot tubs. Back in my vista suite, they were playing the previously recorded version of my Mamma Mia talk on the TV, not the latest version.
At seven o'clock I hosted the solo travellers as usual. At eight o'clock I led Helen and Katerina down to the Atlantide main restaurant. I began with the lovely lobster bisque followed by the lobster salad, but the latter was a starter and not a salad course. I continued with the shank of veal and finished with the strawberry Pavlova. We had the same Chianti red wine as on the previous night.
At ten o'clock I sat with Beatrix from Roskilde in Denmark for the Grande Amore production show. They sang lots of famous operatic arias with tracks by the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra. At the end Madame Beatrix had lost her 2000 DKK (250 GBP) black face mask with pearl decoration, so Vicki went off in search and I enquired at reception. I went to sleep at 11:30, having done nearly 24 thousand steps, equivalent to over nine miles of walking during the day!
My alarm woke me at 6:30 ready for my usual al fresco break fast on the terrace as the Celestyal Crystal cruise ship berthed beside us. Back in my suite, I updated this blog and down loaded my previous day's photographs.
At 8:40 we left for the half day tour to the famous Minoan palace at Knossos near Heraklion ($99). It was over an hour each way, with me sleeping for the second half of each leg, so I saw the gorgeous gorge of St. George going out and the coastal dual carriageway coming back. At the palace, Irene our guide used the iTour app with our smart phones, but the cicada grasshoppers were being amplified. We had to queue for ten minutes in the hot sun to view the famous throne room with its ancient wall frescoes.
Back at the ship at 1:10, I had a cheeseburger with fries but no bun at the pool side Grill, before sleeping for an hour and a half. I then had a ten minute dip in the Mediterranean sea at the little beach right beside the ship.
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Back on board, but still in my wet cozzie, I did six lengths of the pool and then listened to the four Voices of Silversea do their sound check, ready for tonight's pool side show. I spent ten minutes in one of the hot tubs, but the sun was awfully hot, so I didn't linger.
At 5:30 I gave my 35 minute lecture on Souda Bay: the Port for Chania. At seven o'clock I hosted the solo travellers as usual with one new guest, Tom the travel agent from Houston, Texas. At eight o'clock I led Helen & Tom down to the Sea And Land Tasting (S.A.L.T.) restaurant for dinner. I began with the lobster spaghetti, followed by three small pieces of lamb. I finished with one scoop of vanilla ice cream and two mince pies shaped like empanadas!
At ten o'clock we all moved up to the top deck for the Simply Divine quartet of singers. I had one glass of Bailey's and one dark, sparking wine. At 10:40 Vicki led off the Y.M.C.A. which I joined in with. I had one dance with Sofia from Argentina and one dance with Katerina from Pilsen. At eleven o'clock I went to bed having done eight thousand steps, about three miles of walking, during the day.
My alarm woke me at 6:30 ready for the full English on the terrace watching the majestic sail-in to Souda Bay. I went up to the top deck for the exchange of ship's horns with the Silversea's little Silver Explorer, still out of service. At 8:50 we departed on coach number two heading west for Anoskeli in the West Cretan hills ($69). We began with a tour of the wine and olive oil factories.
At 10:30 we had a Cretan brunch of salami, cheese, tomatoes, bread, cucumber and olives, together with dry white, dry red and sweet red wines. The spirit we sampled was Grappa not Ouzo. I chatted to couples from Funen in Denmark and Limburg in Belgium. Our next stop was at an olive oil soap factory on the coast.
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Back at the ship at 1:30, I had a small puttanesca pizza at the top deck pizzeria. I then slept for an hour and a half, before taking a short walk into Souda Town, which I have never explored before. Back at the ship again, I did six lengths and spent 10 minutes in one of the jacuzzis. At 5:30 I gave my 45 minute talk on Nafplio(n): the First Capital of Modern Greece.
At 7 o'clock I hosted the solos with Aimee Louise Lake the singer, newly promoted to be a cruise director. We were later joined by Amy from Matching Green in Essex, her daughter Louise and her partner Steve. However they all had alternative dining plans, so instead of going to the pre-booked La Terrazza restaurant I headed up to the Hot Rocks Grill. I began with the New York blue cheese salad, followed by the filet mignon cooked by me on the hot rock. To go with the beef, I had two vegetable skewers and one jacket potato with sour cream and bacon bits. I ordered the sugar free ice cream, but got the raspberry sorbet!
At ten o'clock I went to Vicki's comedy show Ship (sic) Happens, which wasn't quite as funny at the second time of viewing. I went to bed at 11:15 having done over 10 thousand steps or four miles of walking during the day.
I awoke at 6:20, over one hour before my 7:30 alarm. I had my usual break fast on the terrace with a view of the Peleponnese mountains in the morning sun light. Back in my vista suite, I updated this blog, back upped my previous day's photos and worked on my up coming presentations. At 9:20 we departed on one of the ship's tenders for the shore. It was a 40 minute run out in a coach to Epidaurus to see the best Ancient Greek theatre in the world ($89)! We had a five minute queue for the archaeological museum and then viewed the stadium. The rest of the ruins were a little disappointing, we should have done the sights in the reverse order.
Back in Nafplio, we had half an hour of free time to explore the Palamidi fortress looming over the town. The views were magnificent, but I hadn't appreciated how large it was, so I didn't see every part and I missed the chapel. Back at the quayside, I photographed the old steam train at the former station, before helping a Dutch lady find her way back to the tender. We had to wait ten minutes for the next tender back to the ship. At 2:30 I went straight up to the Grill to have a cheeseburger and fries with no bun.
At four o'clock I gave my 40 minute talk on Santorini. I then slept for half an hour, before updating this blog and back upping my photographs. At 6:30 I went to the excellent Magic of the Musicals early show time, but had to slip out at 6:55 in order to host any solos. Unfortunately all the singles were busy and so I dined alone for the second night running.
Up at the pool side Grill, I began with the blue cheese New York salad, followed by the New York strip steak (sirloin) cooked by me on the hot rock. I finished with sugar free ice cream. In between his sets, Charlie the guitarist came over to chat to me. Then one of the corporate gentlemen came over and congratulated me on wearing an American bolo string tie, despite having an English accent!
On the way out, I chatted to Amy from Matching Green with her daughter Louise and partner Steve. I retired at 9:45 and watched my Santorini talk on the TV in bed, before going to sleep at 10:30. During the day I had done over twelve and a half thousand steps, equal to five miles of walking!
My alarm woke me at 6:30, so I was breaking my fast soon after seven o'clock on the terrace with the fabulous view of the caldera. At 8:20 we caught one of the first local tenders away to get to the old port, where we transfered to our old Kaiki sailing vessel, which unfortunately was sail less ($59). We motored north passed the famous Skaros fort headland to get to the picture post card perfect village of Oia. We then sailed passed the little ports of Armeni & Amoudi. We crossed the strait to skirt Thirassia, before sailing between the old and new volcanoes (Palea Kameni & Nea Kameni). We saw three chapels which are only visible and accessible from the water.
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I was surprised how far we went on the two and a half hour cruise. Several of the pax said that they were disappointed with the tour, but I relished the up close views of the volcanic geology. I chatted to Eva from Belgium, who was flying back to Brussels, followed by a flight to London, to get to Southampton for another cruise!
Back at the old port, I was surprised how packed the quayside was, given that we were the only cruise ship in the bay. We transferred back to the local tender, but it stood off from the Silver Moon for five minutes for no apparent reason. Back on board at 11:40, I had a small puttanesca pizza followed by just one scoop of cherry ice cream. I then slept for nearly two hours, before finishing up a can of regular Coke which I had mistakenly opened in the night!
After backing up my photos, updating this blog and checking over my Piraeus talk, I went swimming as usual. I had the pool to myself for the first time this cruise to do my obligatory six lengths. Unfortunately for the first time this cruise both pool side jacuzzis were occupied, so I walked along to the single jacuzzi on the back terrace, but this too was busy. I then traipsed down FOUR decks to get to the large jacuzzi on the back terrace outside the spa. This has a internal metal couch just like those on Saga's SofD and SofA. However this was roped off and empty, so I had to climb the FOUR sets of stairs to get back up to the pool deck. Thankfully here one of the jacuzzis had become free, so I had twelve minutes of wallowing in the hot water with the fabulous view of Fira town looming over us!
At 4:30 I touched base with Katherina in the office to collect my TWO programmes for the next cruise (Lecturer AND Host)! I then had my complimentary rapid antigen test, before doing battle with the Three mobile network's web site. At 5:30 I gave my 30 minute talk on Piraeus: the Port for Athens, thus completing my contract for this cruise. At 7 o'clock I hosted the solo travellers as usual with the American lady from Twickenham and Jo(anna) the singer.
At 7:45 I dined alone in the Silver Note tapas restaurant. I had SEVEN small courses: beef, lobster, lamb, vegetables, duck and TWO desserts! I began with the rose prosecco before moving on to the Portuguese red wine. At 8 o'clock we were entertained by the pianist playing mainly musical theatre tunes. At 9 o'clock he was joined by the jazz singer. Back in my vista suite, I watched my Piraeus talk before going to sleep at 10:30. During the day I had done less than five thousand steps which is less than two miles of walking.
I awoke at 5:15, but couldn't get back to sleep, excited to be back in Piraeus the port for Athens for the eighth and penultimate time this summer. I got up and abluted at 5:45 ready for breaking my fast at 6:30. I watched the sun rise over the Parthenon as I ate my full English with tomato juice but no coffee. On the other side of the ship there was a huge bank of smoke stretching south for miles from the extensive forest fires north west of Athens! When Vicki announced disembarkation had commenced at eight o'clock, I headed off, but forgot my hat!
I walked around the port to the Metro station, paying just 2.30 euros for a return ticket to Athens. I alighted at Monastiraki station as usual, but this time headed west through the barely open flea market. At ten euros I decided against going into the Ancient Greek Agora. I climbed up Apostle Paul boulevard to Agia Marina church. Unfortunately the National Observatory was closed, as was the adjcent Filopappou Hill due to the wild fire risk. Fortunately Areopagus Hill was open with the fabulous view of the Acropolis, but the sun was in the wrong position for photography.
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I traversed the north side of the Acropolis to get to the pretty Plaka district, where I took pictures of the famous Tower of the Winds. I walked alongside the Metro line from Monastiraki to Thissio to get to the Kerameikos archaeological site, but didn't go in. At 11:10 I had had enough of the heat, so I boarded the train again at Thissio to get back to Piraeus. I walked around the port again to get back to Cruise Terminal B "Themistocles" just after noon. It took less than twenty minutes for my lateral flow rapid antigen test to come back and I was soon on board.
I lunched on my favourite cheese burger and fries with no bun at the pool side Grill. At 1:15 I slept for nearly two hours, before updating this blog and uploading my morning's photos. At four o'clock I had the pool and jacuzzi to myself, but the Grill was heaving with the new arrivals having a late lunch! I then worked on my blogs for my fifth and sixth Greek Island cruises this summer!
At six o'clock we had the safety drill and at 6:45 Vicki introduced us in the Panorama lounge. I then adjourned to the Dolce Vita lounge to host the newly arrived solo travellers. Already there was Mimi from Tynemouth. We were joined by Eliza from Madrid, June from the USA, Deborah from Santa Fe, Pauline from Bristol and Katherina.
At eight o'clock I led Mimi, June, Deborah and Pauline down to the main Atlantide restaurant. I began with the mushroom soup and then continued with the smoked duck salad. I majored on the prime rib of beef and finished with the sugar free fantasia. Deborah ordered the well done end cut of the beef, but got given a rare slice, which she had to send back. The dinner party didn't break up until 10:20. I don't know how many miles I had walked during the day, since I had taken my old phone into Athens for fear of being mugged in the big city!
I scored 86% in the end of cruise questionnare, just above the required threshold of 85%!
8 Lectures 7 Old ports: (Piraeus, Limassol, Rhodes, Ag. Nik., Souda, Nafplio & Santorini) 6 Silversea cruises 5 Grill lunches 4 Old islands: (Cyprus, Rhodes, Crete & Santorini) 3 Silversea ships: (Wind, Muse & Moon) 3 Hot Rocks dinners 2 S.A.L.T. dinners 2 Atlantide dinners 1 Enrichment lecture: (Mamma Mia: the Greek Musical!)Dinners:
x3 Hot Rocks Grill (my favourite!) x2 Atlantide International x2 S.A.L.T. Local Food x1 La Terrazza Italian x1 Spaccanapoli Pizza x1 Silver Note TapasLunches:
x5 Pool Side Grill (my favourite!) x4 Spaccanapoli Pizzeria x1 La Terrazza Italian