Previously on the blog... We ended off at the Kurdish island of Kusadasi and had a fantastic shopping spree.
Our next port of call was the historical town of Rhodes, and it was also Grandpa's 79th birthday. The third biggest of the Greek Isles, Rhodes combines ancient castles and medieval villages with beautiful beaches. The temperatures were sweltering, and William and I both felt the effects of heat stroke during the tour of the Grand Master's Palace (it did not help that out tour guide spoke in a monotone).
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| View of Rhodes |
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| Gardens at the Grand Master's Palace |
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| Entrance to the world heritage site |
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| Grandpa's birthday |
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| And mom's |
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| Our tour guide Lisa (far left) and the crew of waiters |
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| Happy birthday! |
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| My grandparents |
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| My mom, William and I |
We returned to the ship shortly after the tour ended, feeling rather drained. Having grown tired of Moussaka, I opted for a pizza for lunch and it was just what the doctor ordered. That evening was the Captain's dinner, and our waiter kindly organised my mom and grandad a birthday cake.
The following morning we docked in Heraklion. Unfortunately, as with Patmos, we did not have more than a few hours to explore the town, so we walked the streets for a while before returning to the ship.
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| Our one good find in Heraklion, this stunning bakery |
Our last stop was the picturesque island of Santorini. What a surreal feeling to look at those beautiful blue roofed structures - the postcards really don't do Santorini justice. We had an afternoon on the island, and not selecting any excursions, we toured the town, admired the beautiful views and indulged in their famous iced coffees. Definitely a place to return to. As our tour guide so aptly put it, this trip was like sampling a case of wines. Discover your favorite then go back and enjoy the vineyard.
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| Looking out over the bay of Santorini |
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| Mom finally made it to her dream destination |
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| Beautiful church |
The next morning we disembarked the Orient Queen one last time, and drove to Delphi - believed to be the centre of the Earth, and also the site of the precursors to the modern Olympic Games called the Pythian Games. What a magnificent place, the history was so rich it felt like we had stepped into a time warp.
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| Delphi |
Saturday morning I woke up with the most terrible earache ever experienced in my life. It started at 3am and continued throughout the morning. My mom and I went to the local hospital in Athens, and saw a Greek doctor that barely spoke a word of English. What I was able to decipher was "infection". Typical Gorven luck in action again! I was prescribed antibiotics and sent on my way. We spent the rest of the weekend in Athens before catching our flight to Croatia...
Third and final installment to follow shortly.
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