Embarking at Pereus

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Saturday: We slept in … until 7:00 AM when we realized we had to be packed and have our bags out in front of our door for pickup at 9:00. We made the time and then checked out of the hotel and wandered the streets, homeless and alone! Actuyally we visited a replica of one of the temples – the colors were beautiful, vibrant and alive – and went to one of the biggest stores in Athens (Attica) and looked at everything we didn’t need. We did stop for a coffee at a nice street café and had a quick bite at a café on the main square. It was a little quiet as the transportation strike was still underway. Everyone who is responsible for driving or handling public transport was on holiday. We had no idea what that meant until we arrive in Pereus to board the ship and found at least twenty ferries – the lifelines of most Aegean islands – sitting at dock with not a deckhand in sight. Very strange as we were the only ship moving out of the port.

Backing up, we were picked up at the hotel by bus and driven down to the port along with a number of others from various hotels. Our friends Yoshi and John were already settled on the bus when it arrived at the Grand Bretagna. Peggy said her goodbyes to the hotel as we started the next leg of our journey. She loved the view of the Acropolis and all the semi-buzz at the hotel bar (back in the years after the war it was a center for intrigue and spying). Upon boarding the ship – Windstar – we settled into our cabin and checked out the ship. Turns out it was not full (124 guests and 100 crew) as we made our way out of the port and did the required safety program with full vests and instructions on where to go in case of an emergency. After a little time at sea we dressed for dinner and joined John and Yoshi in the main dining salon (very large and very nice with windows looking out on the blue Aegean. The food was good and the company lively.

We capped the evening with a visit to the foredeck to see the Temple of Poseidon at the point overlooking the eastern-most tip of Attica. It was too dark to see much but we certainly did enjoy the walk forward and chatting with the pilot and the “announcer” who shared the story of the temple with everyone. Back to our cabin and sleep in preparation for Delos.

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