Sept 30 Shimon Peres

Today was an "at sea" day as the ship traveled back to Venice. We were able to watch the state funeral for Israel's Shimon Peres. The sea was unusually calm.

Sept 29 Port of Argostoli, Greece

The borders of Greece include over 1000 islands of which 300 are occupied. The port of Argostoli is on the island of Kefalonia, home of the Melissani Cave which, according to Greek mythology, was believed to be the home of the nymphs. Today it is a relatively quiet fishing village and tourist port.

The fisherman on his boat was mending his nets.

And later that day, this little guy showed up in

our ship stateroom.

Sept 28 Port of Mykonos, Greece

Mykonos is where, according to Greek mythology, Hercules slew the Giants. A charming village with narrow streets lined with shops and sidewalk cafes.

A view of Mykonos from the ship

Tenders provided a 10 minute ride from the

ship to the village harbor.

Views of the village harbor and the village.

Many of the narrow streets and sidewalks

were paved like this.

With shop side places to stop and rest your feet.

At one time, Mykonos had 60+ windmills that were

used to grind grain. They fell out of use in the 1960s

but several remain as tourist attractions.

Later that evening this little guy showed up in

our ship stateroom.

Sept 27 Athens

Athens, has over 3500 years of history. It is the home of the Acropolis and (in another part of the city) the Panathenaic Stadium which served as the birthplace of the modern Olympic Games (worth a Google).
The population of Athens is nearly 4 million. Today it is a maze of unattractive grayish-white 4 to 6 story box shaped apartment and business buildings, traffic congestion, and grafitti with its tourist attracting ancient ruins sprinkled in. For our one and only excursion on this cruise, we took a 3 hour city sight seeing bus tour. The guide was excellent and saved the day with her commentary.

Approaching Athens.

The Panathenaic Stadium as used for the revival of the

modern Olympic games in late 1800s and early 1900s.

A previous stadium at this site hosted anchient

olympic games and later, during the Roman era,

bloody gladiator battles.

The current stadium is built with marble and seats 60,000.

Thrones in the stadium for royalty

with side benches for famiy members

and distinguished guests.

Tomb of the unknown soldier in the foreground.

The people are watching a changing of the guard

similar to that in Arlington.

A street view. Limited parking means

significant use of motorcycles.

A 30 minute bus stop allowed for some pictures

from below the Acropolis. There was a fee of

20 Euro to walk up the hill to the Acropolis itself.

A recent aireal view of the Acropolis

(borrowed from the internet)

An artists concept of the Acropolis

in ancient times.

Athen is a very important city for historians and

archeologists but beyond that it was a city without 

any visual charm.

Sept 26 Port of Corfu, Greece

The port of Corfu and the island by the same name has been occupied by nearly every major Mediterranean power in history but it has been part of modern Greece since 1864. The old stone forts on both sides of the old city are remnants of its tumultuous history.

The ship docks are 3 km (1.8 miles) from the old city. The ship provided shuttle service to the old city for 12 Euro round trip. At the port, we found city buses that ran every 20 minutes for 3.4 Euro round trip. If you are a hiker, you could walk it in 30 minutes.

Corfu has mythological ties. It is where The Argonauts found refuge while searching for the Golden Fleece.

Approaching Corfu.

One of the two forts overlooking the old city.

A view of the fort from the old town.

Other views in the old part of the city.

Steps leading to the fort.

Not everything in the old villages is pristine or charming.

Some buildings, especially those away from the main

tourist areas are in disrepair or abandoned.

There is considerable artistic and political grafitti

throughout Italy and Greece.

A friend (Wayne) told me that the only difference

between art and grafitti is permission.

My Google Translate app could not translate these.

Can anyone tell me what they say?

 A Greek poster for the new version of

the movie "Heidi".

Views in the cities main tourist area.

Olive oil soap with various scents.

(1 Euro per bar)

Many of the shops display their wares on the sidewalks.

We were warned to be careful about pick pockets in the

tourist areas. I do not know if shop lifting is much of

a problem.  The shop keepers seem to be very trusting

although in some locations there were signs indicating

video surveilance.

The city bus that took us to the old city and

back to the ship. It was modern and clean. 3.40 Euro

per person round trip.

One of the Corfu's hop-on hop-off tour buses.

The nicely dressed bus tour guide noticed me taking 

a picture so hammed it up for me.

All of the Greeks in the tourist areas were

cheerful and friendly.

Later that evening, this little guy showed up in

our ship stateroom.