After sorting through over 700 pictures, I've posted a nice assortment (just under 200) on Facebook (www.facebook.com/cetatours). Captions are a work in progress, as I want to make sure that I have the correct spelling for some of the sites. I hope that this helps you sort and categorize your own pictures
Even if you don't have a Facebook account, you can click the link below and enjoy the pictures:
http://tinyurl.com/cetagreece
Please feel free to share this link with friends and family and "like" our Facebook page.
Thursday, October 17, 2013
Monday, October 14, 2013
The Trip Home
Ironically, our last morning in Athens was our most leisurely. We departed the hotel around 8:45 AM for the Athens International Airport and checked in for our flights to New York-JFK and then on to Minneapolis or Chicago. The line in New York-JFK for visitors to the United States to go through US Immigration/Passport Control was unbelievably long and made us thankful that we were able to go through the shorter, although still busy, US Citizens' line. Everyone (and especially Judy) breathed a sigh of relief that their luggage made it at least as far as New York. We made it through JFK's security with only a few extra beeps for those with artificial joins and got to our gate, only to find that our flight to Minneapolis was delayed. We ended up arriving in Minneapolis about 40 minutes late, but at least our luggage all made the trip with us!
Overall, our stay in Greece helped to change our original perceptions formed by mass media here in the States. Some of us were expecting to see more garbage, homeless and despair than what we actually saw. Yes, there were abandoned buildings, but probably not any more than one would find in economically depressed areas of the United States. We all came away with the impression that Greek citizens are proud of their heritage (and rightfully so!), are hard-working and above all else, want the world to know that while the Greek government may have its problems, the Greek people are more than happy to welcome you to their country.
Our time in Greece was memorable, but we are all happy to be home, telling our friends and family about our experiences and dreaming about our next trip, wherever that may be!
Overall, our stay in Greece helped to change our original perceptions formed by mass media here in the States. Some of us were expecting to see more garbage, homeless and despair than what we actually saw. Yes, there were abandoned buildings, but probably not any more than one would find in economically depressed areas of the United States. We all came away with the impression that Greek citizens are proud of their heritage (and rightfully so!), are hard-working and above all else, want the world to know that while the Greek government may have its problems, the Greek people are more than happy to welcome you to their country.
Our time in Greece was memorable, but we are all happy to be home, telling our friends and family about our experiences and dreaming about our next trip, wherever that may be!
Friday, October 11th
We departed the cruise ship this morning promptly at 7:00 and headed directly from the port of Piraeus to the Acropolis in Athens. Our goal was to get up to the top before the majority of the cruise ship excursions (and there were plenty of them later in the morning!) got there. This group has been fantastic and cooperative with lots of 7:00 am starts - we've noticed the difference that just a few minutes makes. The morning light for our pictures has been inspiring and for the most part, we've beat the crowds each and every time. By the time we're done with a tour of a site and have free time, other tour groups are just getting started. This is thanks in no small part to our guide Maria and our group's understanding nature.
The morning sun bathed the Parthenon in a warm, golden light that once again made us feel as if we were in the middle of a postcard. The construction techniques mastered by the Ancient Greeks are astounding. In order to create the optical illusion of perfectly straight columns, each column was constructed with curved lines - the Greeks understood that human eyes would interpret the slightly curved lines of the columns to be straight, thus making the entire building look balanced and perfectly constructed.
When we were done admiring the buildings on the Acropolis and the panorama of Athens, we walked down to the Plaka district, passing by the old Roman Agora and the ruins of Hadrian's Library. Once in the Plaka, we had a few hours to shop, enjoy a plate of gyros or otherwise enjoy the warm autumn sun. The afternoon was spent exploring Athens on our own or resting and repacking our suitcases at the hotel - a nice, leisurely way to end our time in Greece. This evening we enjoyed dinner, music and dancing at a taverna in the Plaka district - a fun and entertaining conclusion to our time in Greece.
The morning sun bathed the Parthenon in a warm, golden light that once again made us feel as if we were in the middle of a postcard. The construction techniques mastered by the Ancient Greeks are astounding. In order to create the optical illusion of perfectly straight columns, each column was constructed with curved lines - the Greeks understood that human eyes would interpret the slightly curved lines of the columns to be straight, thus making the entire building look balanced and perfectly constructed.
When we were done admiring the buildings on the Acropolis and the panorama of Athens, we walked down to the Plaka district, passing by the old Roman Agora and the ruins of Hadrian's Library. Once in the Plaka, we had a few hours to shop, enjoy a plate of gyros or otherwise enjoy the warm autumn sun. The afternoon was spent exploring Athens on our own or resting and repacking our suitcases at the hotel - a nice, leisurely way to end our time in Greece. This evening we enjoyed dinner, music and dancing at a taverna in the Plaka district - a fun and entertaining conclusion to our time in Greece.
Thursday, October 10th
Sorry for the delay!
Our last full day on the Aegean cruise took us to the island of Crete, home of the ancient Minoan civilization, and to Santorini, most likely Greece's most recognizable island with its whitewashed houses, perched on the edge of a cliff.
Once we left the ship in Crete, our local guide took us past part of the city of Heraklion en route to the countryside, passing by the Knossos Palace, ruins of the ancient Minoan civilization. Once we arrived in the Peza Valley, we stopped at the Minos Winery for an introduction to the wine making history of the region and the products produced by the winery: red & white wines, as well as raki, a strong, anise-flavored alcoholic drink that's produced from the leftovers of the wine making process. Each family in the region has their own recipe and distills it according to tradition.
After our tasting, we continued on to another village for a show of traditional Cretan dancing. The road took us past the site of one of the oldest farmhouses in Crete, dating back over 5,000 years. Our guide walked us through the town of Archanes to a tavern that welcomed us with a glass of raki, some local herbal tea and a plate of Cretan treats. Once we (and several other tour buses) had settled into our seats, four local dancers introduced us to traditional dances and costumes. For a few of the dances, audience participation was encouraged and a few CETA travelers joined in. The show was a family affair - three of the four dancers were related and the announcer explained that the fourth dancer was "trying to be my son." We rushed back to our bus, which got us back to the port just in time to board our cruise for our last port of call: Santorini.
Around 3:00 in the afternoon, the cliffs of Santorini appeared in the distance, dotted with whitewashed houses and blue domed churches. The deck railings of the ship were lined with people getting their first dramatic glimpse of this volcanic island. Tender boats efficiently brought us to shore, where we departed for Oia, the iconic village perched at the northern tip of the island and carved into the volcanic caldera's rim. We had free time in Oia to explore the narrow (and tourist clogged) streets and admire the panoramic views of the entire island, as well as the caldera below. We returned to the ship just in time to catch the sun setting through the clouds. The late afternoon lighting made it feel as if we had all stepped into a picture postcard.
Tonight is our last night of the cruise, so we'll be busy packing our suitcases (so that they can be picked up overnight and delivered to the port terminal tomorrow morning) and enjoying another dinner of fabulous food. Tomorrow we return to Athens for our final day of touring Greece.
Our last full day on the Aegean cruise took us to the island of Crete, home of the ancient Minoan civilization, and to Santorini, most likely Greece's most recognizable island with its whitewashed houses, perched on the edge of a cliff.
Once we left the ship in Crete, our local guide took us past part of the city of Heraklion en route to the countryside, passing by the Knossos Palace, ruins of the ancient Minoan civilization. Once we arrived in the Peza Valley, we stopped at the Minos Winery for an introduction to the wine making history of the region and the products produced by the winery: red & white wines, as well as raki, a strong, anise-flavored alcoholic drink that's produced from the leftovers of the wine making process. Each family in the region has their own recipe and distills it according to tradition.
After our tasting, we continued on to another village for a show of traditional Cretan dancing. The road took us past the site of one of the oldest farmhouses in Crete, dating back over 5,000 years. Our guide walked us through the town of Archanes to a tavern that welcomed us with a glass of raki, some local herbal tea and a plate of Cretan treats. Once we (and several other tour buses) had settled into our seats, four local dancers introduced us to traditional dances and costumes. For a few of the dances, audience participation was encouraged and a few CETA travelers joined in. The show was a family affair - three of the four dancers were related and the announcer explained that the fourth dancer was "trying to be my son." We rushed back to our bus, which got us back to the port just in time to board our cruise for our last port of call: Santorini.
Around 3:00 in the afternoon, the cliffs of Santorini appeared in the distance, dotted with whitewashed houses and blue domed churches. The deck railings of the ship were lined with people getting their first dramatic glimpse of this volcanic island. Tender boats efficiently brought us to shore, where we departed for Oia, the iconic village perched at the northern tip of the island and carved into the volcanic caldera's rim. We had free time in Oia to explore the narrow (and tourist clogged) streets and admire the panoramic views of the entire island, as well as the caldera below. We returned to the ship just in time to catch the sun setting through the clouds. The late afternoon lighting made it feel as if we had all stepped into a picture postcard.
Tonight is our last night of the cruise, so we'll be busy packing our suitcases (so that they can be picked up overnight and delivered to the port terminal tomorrow morning) and enjoying another dinner of fabulous food. Tomorrow we return to Athens for our final day of touring Greece.
Friday, October 11, 2013
Pictures from October 9th
One of the amazing mosaics in the Grand Master's Palace
The Way of the Knights, Rhodes, Greece
A windmill along the shore
Sunset from the bow of the ship
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
Wednesday, October 9th
We awoke in the port of Rhodes and disembarked shortly after 7:30 am this morning. Our driver took us along the medieval walls of the city and past the site where the Colossus of Rhodes once stood guarding the harbor. The first stop we made was at Philermos, perched upon a hill and site of a Byzantine church and Gothic monastery. The mosaics on the walls of the monastery were as beautiful as the view of the island and Mediterranean Sea below. Our tour continued down to the medieval city of Rhodes and the magnificent Grand Master's Palace. Surrounded by thick fortification walls and a dry moat, the Grand Master's Palace provided the Order of the Knights of St. John of Jerusalem protection from the invading army if Saladin. Only when one knight was bribed (with an enormous amount of money) did the palace fall and the Knights retreated to Malta.
After a stroll down the Way of the Knights, we had the whole afternoon free to explore Rhodes. The ship was docked a short distance from the old city, so it was easy to go back to the ship for lunch and return to the shops with plenty of time to spare before All Aboard at 5:30 pm. As we cruised towards the island of Crete, the sun slipped below the horizon in red, gold and orange hues.
Wednesday, October 9, 2013
Pictures from October 8th
Our group with our local guide "Rose" in front of the Library of Celsus in Ephesus, Turkey.
Karen trying out the Turkish rugs
A monk walking towards the Monastery of St. John on the island of Patmos, Greece.
The entrance to the Cave of the Apocalypse, Patmos, Greece.
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
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