Spring Break 2010: Part 2: Diamonds of the Aegean

Spring Break II: Diamonds of the Aegean

Hi everyone! In this blog I will discuss the last week of my Spring Break travels in which I went on a cruise around the Greek and Turkish Islands as well as spent a weekend in Athens with a friend of mine from Dickinson. I hope you enjoy the pictures and the stories:
Second week: (9 girlfriends from DIS)
-Cruise around the Turkish and Greek Islands which included:
-Mykonos
-Rhodes
-Patmos
-Kusadasi
-Crete
-Santorini
-Spent the weekend with a friend from Dickinson in Athens, Greece


First weekend before cruise:
My friend Jamie and I took the train from Vienna to Athens and arrived excitedly for the adventure ahead. We had no idea how to speak in Greek or how figure out the bus transportation so we decided to take a taxi to our hotel. I have to admit, it was really nice to stay in a hotel this time. I missed hot water and the service of a cleaning staff. I must say, I was spoiled while staying in the hotel for the weekend. You might be thinking a hotel? Why not a hostel? Well, the cruise agency made arrangements for all of the cruise members to stay there before the cruise ship took off. It was awesome. The first thing Jamie and I did was put down our bags and head to the outdoor pool to soak up some sun. It felt so great to walk outside in shorts rather than layers of clothing and furry boots. I have to admit at that point I didn’t miss Denmark! After soaking up the sun we decided to shower and get ready for a dinner in Athens. However, we didn’t realize that even though Easter was the following day, the whole city was shut down. Therefore, we ate dinner in the hotel restaurant. It was yummy and nice to eat and head back up to the room to relax. It was a great first night in Athens and couldn’t wait for the following day!

The first full day in Athens was quite unexpected because we again forgot it was Easter. We decided we would go around town and see the major attractions, thinking it would be open to the public; however, it was not. So we decided we should—soak in more sun! We went to the beach and had lunch by the coast. It was so relaxing and I can’t tell you how blue the water was. It was such a beautiful place, different shades of blue with the sun shining; I told myself I could get use to it. Since everything was closed we had dinner again at the restaurant and packed up our stuff for our early departure.

The next morning we met all the girls in the lounge of the hotel and met with the representative of the agency—Gate 1 travel. We loaded up our bags and headed to the port to board our ship. As we expected there were tons of high school spring breakers on board the ship. It was weird to think just a few years ago we were like them--anxious for spring break memories and a time with friends. Once we dropped off out stuff in the rooms, we explored the ship! There was a casino, four restaurants, a club, three bars, a workout facility, pools, spas, and more! We were so excited but even more excited to see sunshine for once! So we put on our suits and laid out for the rest of the day before making it to Mykenos! We arrived in Mykenos for our very first night stop and Gate 1 gave us a free walking tour around the island. The island was small so it was a short tour but Mykenos was so beautiful. As I was walking on the tour, I was attacked by two of my sorority sisters, Katie and Bailey! I had NO idea they were even in Greece. I almost fell over from their attack but we were so excited to see each other. We probably sounded like obnoxious girls screaming/ jumping up and down with excitement; but we were shocked at the bump in! I explained that I was only in Mykenos for the night and they were bummed but I forgot I was still on the walking tour and had to run/ catch up to my group. :) It was a great surprise to see them. After the walking tour ended, a few girlfriends and I walked/shopped through the narrow streets filled with white painted and blue shuttered houses around the island. We enjoyed our first of many sunsets together and couldn’t believe we were actually on one of the most beautiful Greek Islands. I can’t explain the beauty of Mykenos but I hope some of my photos show a little bit of this wonderful place. After spending a few hours on the island we returned to the ship and had a late dinner. We ate at the dinner buffet that night and were so excited for the beginning of our trip! We headed to bed rather early that night because we had a full day tomorrow visiting Kusadasi, Turkey and Patmos, Greece.

Kusadasi and Patmos: We arrived bright and early in Kusadasi, Turkey around 6:45 a.m. (the night before the cruise line gave us recommended tours/ excursions for the passengers, so my girlfriends and I signed up for a few). In Kusadasi we signed up for an Ancient Ephesus shore excursion during our time on the island. It was strange that we saw the sunset in Greece and we also experienced the sun rise in Turkey. We truly were traveling the right way- sunset to sunrise on a cruise ship! :) On our shore excursion we were taken by charter bus to the historic site of Ancient Ephesus (which is actually located in what they call, Asia minor, we were on a whole different continent!). We learned all about the ancient city and the way of life of the individuals during the classical Greek era. Located inside the area was the Temple of Artemis which is one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. It was very fascinating to see the markings in the buildings, on the street, and historic pieces that represented the way of life for the civilians. For example, the ground (or their street during that time) had pieces of stone with holes in it. The individuals carved holes in the stone so individuals wouldn’t slip when it rained. Another example included a marking with a heart, a woman, and arrows. This pointed to the direction of the prostitutes’ location for specific buyers. It was amazing to see. After we finished our tour we were able to go to a traditional Turkish bazaar (I rode a camal at the Bazaar). I am proud to announce that I earned the title of the “princess of bargaining” because I made some great negotiations with my fellow Turkish sellers. For example, I loved this LV purse (of course fake) and the seller was trying for 200 Euro (for one purse), which is almost 300 US dollars. Yeah right! So I told him that my friend and I wanted the same purse and he upped the price. I told him no way, we can buy a real LV purse in the States (which I am sure you cannot) for less than that price. So I walked away and he chased after us and said: “Come, I give you great deal, you get great deal”. So he then said he would give us the purse for 165 Euro each, so I walked away again. Anyways, long story short, I bargained many times, walked away even more times, and eventually talked to the boss! I received both purses for 65 Euro along with a pin, free hot tea, and a LV scarf! It was quite the steal and I was so excited. I thought, my Daddy would be proud! After the wonderful purchase we headed back to the ship to get some lunch and soak up the Turkish sun!

We left Turkey around noon and headed for Patmos. Patmos was a very tiny island and unfortunately our shortest stopping time. So the girls and I decided that we would go to a local beach and enjoy the rest of the day! It was so great to play cards on the beach and be able to say, it is hot rather than my toes are going to fall off. It was beautiful and we were close to the ship so the view of the bay was amazing! We boarded the ship around 7 p.m. and headed for “Greek night” in the main restaurant. It was a very lovely, five course dinner with a table for just us girls. The waiters did a special dance and greeted us all on board the Aquamarine cruise. It was the first “fine” dinning night in the cruise so it was special. In addition, it was one of the girls’ 21st birthday so we ordered beverages and toasted to our first night of fun on the cruise. After dinner the girls and I headed to the bar/club called the Moonlight bar and spent the night celebrating our friends’ 21st. We had a blast dancing and getting to know one another. It was a great evening.

Rhodes: Wednesday was our first and only full day in one location during our time on the cruise. The girls and I decided that we would explore the city on our own and then hit up the beach. It was great to step off the cruise and have the freedom to roam around this beautiful island with a map in hand. Rhodes was so gorgeous and full of tourists. You could tell this was a “hotspot” for visitors. We walked up the cobblestone roads at visited castles, museums, restaurants, the main square, and more. It was a blast. We decided to get back on the ship to have lunch since it was included (oh yeah sorry, the ship is an all inclusive trip, minus alcohol). We went to the buffet by the pool and showed each other all of the pictures we took! After lunch we put on our suits and headed to the beach. This was my first encounter with creepy Greek men. We had some creepy Greek men along our trip. It wasn’t just cat-calling but these men would “try way too hard”. For example, I had a guy come up to me with a painting of a flower and stated: “you are more beautiful than this rose”…haha :) It was quite funny but then just got creepy! Anywho, the beaches were gorgeous. The beach seemed like it stretched for miles along the coast of the sea filled with all different shades of blue. It was truly a beautiful sight. That night on board the ship it was formal night. It was so great to dress up with the girls and head to dinner. Before dinner our photo was taken in front of the restaurant, it was such a cute photo (however, so expensive to buy). The restaurant was decorated differently and the meal was delicious. After dinner we headed out on the deck and watched the ship sail under the moon. It was hard to believe our last night was already tomorrow. For the time being we agreed to not talk about it and sit along the poolside discussing our favorite parts about Rhodes.

Crete and Santorini: My last full day on the cruise was by far my favorite. We were to visit Crete and Santorini which are two islands that I have wanted to visit since I was young. We first arrived to Crete around 7 a.m. (just in time for the sunrise) and I signed up for another shore excursion called “A taste of Crete”. It was my favorite excursion. We hopped on a charter bus and went around the largest island of Greece. We first topped at a wine distillery and tasted the fine wine of Crete. I have to admit, tasting wine around 8 a.m. wasn’t the best thing to wake up too but it was delicious. We tried three different types and I enjoyed one in particular that was a white wine/ dark wine mix. We also learned where and how the wine is produced on the island. In addition, we got to taste brochette which is very popular amongst the Greek cuisine. We then headed to a small part of town and got a “real feel” for the city. While in Crete, I recognized how many dogs roam around freely in the city. After walking around the small town, we headed to a lunch spot where we were greeted by Greek dancers. They put on a show for us while we had more tastes of Crete. It was so fun seeing their costumes and watching their traditional cultural dance. I even got the chance to dance with them. It was a blast and I enjoyed this part of the excursion very much. Once the excursion was over we headed back to the ship and set sail for Santorini, my favorite island!

Santorini was the most gorgeous island or place I have ever seen/ visited. Earlier I mentioned that Edinburgh, Scotland and Prague, Czech Republic were my top favorites; however Santorini, Greece takes the cake. I wish I could describe to you in words how spectacular the views were as well as how fun the island was but I hope my pictures can help out with the fact that words can’t express it all. The cruise ship could not come up to the island so we had to take smaller boats to and from the island. Once we arrived on the island there were two ways to go up to the main portion of the island; by cable car or donkey ride! The cruise didn’t recommend the donkey rides because it can be dangerous/ scary, but seriously cruise line, we are in Santorini. So, I took my chances and rode the donkey up the funicular. It was scary, yes, but it was amazing! The donkeys go up and down alone…No one was walking them or anything; they knew the way. That made me a bit uncomfortable but it was the best way to experience it all. The view was amazing. I took in every step the donkey climbed and loved every minute of the ride. I thanked my donkey for making it up alive and joined the Kassandra and Jamie at the top! We couldn’t believe the sight. It was gorgeous. We shopped, made ice-cream stops, and searched for the most famous picture of Santorini. I am sure you can picture it now, the white painted church with the blue top overlooking the washed out white houses…We couldn’t find it anywhere. We asked around but everyone gave us directions to this small church that resembled it but wasn’t the one we were searching for. I literally searched high and low. I ended up climbing on roofs because I NEEDED to see this infamous church. I finally went to the taxi driver and said take me here (pointing to a postcard) and little did we know that we were on a different part of the islands. We had to go to Oia but the ship came into Thira. We only had 30 minutes left before the cruise took off but we were determined to make it. The taxi driver drove like a mad man through the cliffs, which also made me nervous, but we finally made it to the church. It was breathtaking. Absolutely everything I dreamed it would be. I took what seemed like twenty pictures and we sprinted back the taxi so happy we made it. Even though we were only there for ten minutes and the time in the taxi was about twenty, it was worth it. We took the cable car down to the port this time and boarded the ship. It was a great end to the cruise. We ate dinner at the dinner buffet and headed back to our rooms to pack up for the night. The cruise was shorter than most cruises so we knew the time would fly by; however, it always seems to go by more quickly than imagined.

The next morning we said goodbye to the cruise staff members and stepped back onto solid ground. Jamie, Kassandra, and I headed towards the taxi station to go to Erik’s house for the weekend. Erik is my friend from Dickinson who is studying abroad in Athens, Greece. I contacted him before my cruise to see if we could meet up and grab lunch but he suggested I stay for the weekend. So Kassandra and I planned on crashing at his place for the weekend and explore the spectacular historical sights of Athens (Jamie left that night). We finally made it to Erik’s apartment and I was so excited to see him! It was so wonderful to have a familiar face and be able to talk about classes, professors, and friends back at Dickinson. We were exhausted from the cruise and we did wake Erik up before 10, so we decided to take a power nap. After we slept for a few hours we woke up and Erik took us to this market right outside his apartment. It was so great to see fresh fruit and people negotiating prices. We picked up some food and headed to the Acropolis. Since Erik is an archeology major, he took us behind the scenes, if you will, of the Acropolis that was roped off. It was so amazing to see everything. We felt very special being able to go to places that the normal tourist couldn’t. He showed us tools he used and where he does his work around the Acropolis. It was such a gorgeous and well preserved site. After exploring the Acropolis, Parthenon, and other monuments around the area, we headed to a local museum that had many historical artifacts and information on the history of Athens and Greek mythology. After that we headed to the Olympic Stadium arena where the first Olympics in Greece were held (1896). It was well preserved and amazing to stand in front of the extremely large site. We then headed back to Erik’s and got ready for the night. We decided we would go and see “Alice in Wonderland” before heading out to dinner. It was different to go to another country and see a movie. Instead of the commercials being in Danish this time, they were in Greek. It was very surreal. The movie was odd… (did anyone else think so). It was great to hear the story again but it was just too “out there” for my liking. We headed to a traditional Greek restaurant literally in the middle of nowhere. I thought Erik was joking when I saw the building but it was so delicious. The restaurant was extremely traditional with music, lots of wine, and tons of people. It was fantastic. After our stomachs were full we headed back to Erik’s house and talked before going to bed. It was a great full day in Athens.

The following day Erik had a paper to write so Kassandra and I headed to the beach for the day. We wanted to soak in as much sun as possible before leaving for wintery cold Denmark the next morning. It was so relaxing laying on the beach and getting some much needed Vitamin D :) We then headed back to Erik’s house before dinner and decided to cook him a meal to thank him for having us this weekend. We made him spaghetti and garlic bread while we watched movies. It was a short but great weekend in Athens. The next morning I said by to Erik and told him I would be seeing him next fall for our Senior year! I boarded the plane and said goodbye to the sunshine and the best spring break in 2010.

-Chels