On this nine-night cruise, we ventured off the ship into Athens, where we toured the Acropolis to see the Parthenon, bussed through Kusadasi to visit Ephesus, and drove around the picturesque island of Santorini to get a bird’s eye view from a monastery.
After our Acropolis tour, we caught a choreographed changing of the guard at the Presidential Mansion, made a quick stop at the Panathenaic Stadium, and forayed into the Plaka neighborhood for some delicious souvlaki.
Visiting the ruins in Ephesus was an interesting walk through the past. In its day, the city was bordered by the sea. It lost importance as a trading hub when the harbour slowly silted up over the centuries.
Our tour of Santorini was a highlight of our trip. We had an excellent tour guide and we thoroughly enjoyed our time visiting different spots around the island. To meet up with our guide, we had to take a gondola ride from the port to the rim of the caldera. Not my favorite moment of the day but Allan enjoyed the view!
We had time to wander the narrow walkways and enjoy a morning snack in Fira before our tour started.
From Fira, we drove to the Thira monastery, the highest vantage point on the island. The monastery’s grounds were serene and peaceful, and the panoramic views of the caldera and its volcano impressive.
Our next stop was a stroll through the village of Megalochori, the closest experience to how things used to be before the tourism boom of the 1980s, according to our guide, Lilly, who was born on Santorini.
At one of the many grape plots dotting the island, Lilly explained how Santorini’s wine grapes grow close to the ground and are rarely irrigated—this year being an exception. We heard more about the island’s grapes at a lovely tasting at Anhydrous winery later that afternoon.
Before that, though, we had a two hour lunch break in Oia, a scenic village that is home to the quintessential three blue domes that grace so many Santorini photographs. We stood in a line for a few minutes to take our photos of the landmark, and witnessed a surprise marriage proposal by a couple just ahead of us. It was met by applause, cheering, and many misty eyes after the bride to be said yes.
At the end of the day, the line to board the gondola in Fira for the ride down to our ship was so long that we opted to descend the Karavolades stairs’ 588 steps, sharing the way with strings of donkeys that carry tourists for €10 up or down from the port. We felt quite accomplished when we made it to the bottom without taking a tumble, after witnessing two unfortunate tourists meeting that fate.
We’re en route to Civitavecchia as I make this post, enjoying a final sea day aboard the Odyssey of the Seas. Tomorrow morning we’ll hop on a train and head north to Florence!Read more