Greece Day 11

6/12/16

Today was great, same complaints with the ship, but the excursions have been wonderful. We started the morning bright and early with breakfast at 6:50 AM and left for Crete at 7:50. Crete is supposedly the birth place of Zeus; king of the gods. We arrived in the city of Heraklion and then drove up to see The Palace of Knossos. This palace is was built in 1900 BC (the first one was destroyed via Earthquake in 1700 BC. It is the palace of the Minoan civilization that once inhabited this area. Much of it is reconstructed, but it was still neat to see. It is believed this is where the myth of the labyrinth with the Minotaur is founded from as the palace was built to be very maze like; and the King was King Minas.

After visiting the Palace we headed to the city square. The city has Venetian roots and it was evident in the atmosphere of it; it had a similar feel to Venice. We saw the fountain of the four lions and then headed down to the church of Agios Titos; this church is still in constant use and the frescos were quite bright and pretty. There are two unique Frescos in it, one depicting the Virgin Mary’s birth and one depicting Paul on the road to Damascus. There is also the supposed scull of King Titan in the church. It was pretty, but at this point I think we are all a little “history and relic’d” out.

We then left there and had free time to wonder back to the ship. We got a drink, relaxed for a few in front of the Loggia which used to be a meeting haul for nobility, but now serves as their city hall. And then of course we went souvenir shopping. I’m totally addicted to postcards, t-shirts, picture frames (which I haven’t seen many of) and plates… at least it isn’t expensive jewelry.

Once back in town we boarded the dingy back to the ship and went to lunch. Mama and Jack then took a nap while Beth and I went to get details for the next excursion. The next one was Santorini and I know why it is so popular; it ties for my favorite place in Greece (with Mykonos). The water is so pretty and the white buildings. Oh – glorious. We took a windy road to get to the main road of the island and then we traveled to Oia; a gorgeous village that is just amazing. It’s mainly a walking town filled with shops, café’s and glorious views. I could live here – seriously. It is so pretty and I wish we would have more time. We bought some souvenirs and took pictures but it does not compare.

We then drove to Fira (after getting stuck in some traffic). I couldn’t have squeezed a sheet of paper between us and the busses we were going by on the road; it was crazy. We got off of the bus and walked through the town a bit, taking pictures along the way and then came to the Cable Car area. I expected a trolley, but no it’s a car that goes up and down the mountain between Fira and the Port of Skala. It was fun to go down; Beth got so excited she was like a little kid; it was really fun to watch.

We then hopped on the dingy back to the boat and I set outside; I got some great pictures of Santorni with the sunset; I hope they turned out.

Upon getting back onboard we went to dinner and ended up sitting with three ladies from Atlanta. It was actually fun to visit with them. One works for Delta, one Coke and I’m not sure about the other one. We had a lot of fun dining with them. We are now in bed getting ready for bed and are putting our bags out for the porters. 5:30 AM comes early  See you tomorrow – sleep well.