Athens and the Greek Islands

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We left lovely Sorrento and headed for the town of Bari to meet our ferry to Greece. On the way we stopped in Pompei to visit the old city. The old city was buried in AD79 after Mount Vesuvius erupted and covered the entire city in lava. It is an amazing place and is highly recommended for a visit. It is amazing the detail that was preserved and excavated, including old mosaics and paintings on the wall. The most interesting of stops was the brothel, which still had the old paintings clear as day on the wall showing what was "offered" in that particular room! I may consider another stop in Pompei as I hear there are other great sights to see.

We caught the overnight ferry to Patras in Greece, arriving midday. We got a temporary Greek bus driver and a new bus - a double decker, which is exciting when you spend a lot of time on the bus - there is tons more room with two floors! We drove towards Athens, stopping at the Corinth Canal, created for the passage of large ships across the peninsula. The coastal views in Greece were fantastic. Our stop in Athens was quick as we boarded the cruise ship the next morning. We had time for a detailed tour of the Acropolis and a quick bus tour of other local sights. We had a really nice Greek dinner in the popular district Plaka and drinks in our hotel bar, which had spectacular views of Athens and the Acropolis at night.

The next morning, nothing went well. I should mention, that so far I had been lucky enough to room on my own without paying extra as there were an odd number of girls sharing. However, the cruise was over booked so I was roomed with a 60 year old woman from another tour. In the end, she was a great lady from Australia, with tons of energy that wanted to experience everything and have a good time doing it. We got on great! The cruise was pretty typical of cruises - drink package deals, buffets and lazing by the pool. This was our time to relax, so it was pretty uneventful. We stopped at the islands of Mykonos, Rhodes, Patmos and a quick stop in Kusadasi, Turkey. Our time in Mykonos was quick, so we only had time to wander the streets and have supper. We had the entire day in Rhodes. We went on an excursion to Lindos to visit the Acropolis there - more ruins! Then we spent some time in Rhodes, wandering the old town, with the street of the knights. We also attempted to laze on the beach, but I was put off when I saw an older gentleman's goods hanging out the side of his swimmers! Nudity is one thing, but come on! The next day we skipped out on Patmos but took in the markets in Kusadasi. There was an excursion to Ephasis, one of the seven wonders of the world, but quite honestly, I was all over seeing any more ruins!

Sadly our cruise came to an end and we were back on the bus. As we headed back to Patras to catch the overnight ferry back to Italy, we stopped in Delphi. Delphi is home to, shockingly, more ruins! The Temple of Apollo was where the oracle would make her predictions. She would sit on a tripod and drink this concoction and make her prediction. It is only recently they figure she was high all the time due to natural methane gases in the area!

And back to Italy...

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Photos

Acropolis - Athens
Due to techinical difficulties, I can't share a better pic of the Acropolis at night - when I get home!

Pompei Brothel Signs
Well, I am not the best photog, so who knows what they were offering here!

View from the ruins in Lindos
Lindos is on the island of Rhodes, Greece.

Road of the Knights
In Old Town Rhodes, Greece.