Blogs from Greece, Europe
May 27th 2012
Not much to do on the ferry... So I may as well continue writing out my thoughts about this trip. Me, Chris, and Sergio (the bus driver) were discussing last night that this trip is about 10,000 km and so for we have only traveled around 4,000. Of course this doesn't include water travel. Sergio was filling out Will's map and highlighting which roads we traveled and which ones we will travel on. Then he highlighted in a different color the places we stop in. All in all it looked very cool and I will have to do that when I'm back in Canada and frame it. 10,000 km. 17 countries. We're still 3 days away from the halfway point. I remember being nervous before this trip began thinking that I've never been this far away ... read more
May 26th 2012
Thought some of you might be curious to see what we call 'home' for a few months every year. Not much bigger than some of your cupboards. But we love it........ read more
May 22nd 2012
With an 8.15am pick-up we had to set an alarm and get up early this morning for our trip to Kos. After sleeping in until about 8.30am most days this was a bit of a shock to the system!! The dining room opens at 7.00am so we were able to have a quick breakfast before we headed off. The driver was expecting to collect some more passengers from the Voyage, but after waiting nearly 10 minutes there was no sign of them. We drove down to the resorts just down the coast and picked up a few more people and then returned to the Voyage. Still no more passengers and, by now, it was nearly 20 minutes after the scheduled pick-up time. So the driver took off for Bodrum. Literally low flying ... presumably to make ... read more
May 21st 2012
Today marked a big transition in our trip. We woke up early and got ourselves to Ataturk Airport in Istanbul. After checking in and getting through security we boarded our flight to Athens. We flew on Olympic Airlines which was surprisingly nice given it was the cheapest flight available when we were planning the trip. Nice spacious seats and snacks throughout the 1.5 hour flight were much appreciated. Upon landing at the airport on the outskirts of Athens we boarded an express bus to Syntagma Square near Parliament. The bus ride was over an hour as a result of the Olympic flame travelling through Athens that day and causing traffic snarls. After disembarking at the Greek Parliament we walked 15 minutes to our hostel. The hostel (Athens Studios/Athens Backpackers) is a very highly rated hostel in ... read more
May 20th 2012
One cold and frosty day we decided to dress up warmly, brave the elements and venture into Little Vathi...... read more
May 19th 2012
I woke up in Rome on April 26th and would fall asleep in Athens, isn’t modern travel wonderful! My trip from the hostel to the airport was easy enough; I just hopped on the subway to the train station and took a train to the airport. I got to the airport with plenty of time so I just settled in with my book to wait until boarding. I was flying Ryan air, one of many of Europe’s budget airlines. When flying Ryan air I was told to make sure to arrive early since they do not give seat assignments. If you arrive late you have to take whatever seat is available and if the overhead bins are full you have to pay to check your bag; two very good reasons to get there early in my ... read more
May 16th 2012
It was so nice to be back on the Regent Voyager...we felt right at home and settled in quickly. We looked forward to a very port intensive cruise for the next 10 days; a different port everyday cruising around Greece and up the Dalmatian Coast to Venice. As soon as we boarded the Voyager we immediately sprang into action since we arranged a welcome aboard party for our Cruise Specialists guests. Along with our group most of the staff also showed up. Captain Sanguineti, Serena Melani, the first female Staff Captain on Regent, GM Ralph, Cruise Consultant Gudrun and Ship’s Hostess Andreana all came to enjoy the scenic sail-away from Constantinople...I mean Istanbul! On our first night on the ship we ran into friends from home. We have known Shirley for 23 years as we all ... read more
Patmos...Walking in the steps of the Apostle John
Published: May 15th 2012Europe » Greece » South Aegean » Patmos » Skala
May 15th 2012
Yesterday's visit to Santorini was beautiful, but today's visit to Patmos was truly inspirational. Although smaller than Santorini, Patmos has been designated a Holy Site by the Vatican and a world historical site by UNESCO. All of this is due to the fact that the Disciple John was banished from Ephesus and imprisioned here for 18 months near the end of his life. During that time, John received the visions which became letters to the 7 churches of Asia Minor and later became the Book of Revelation. Today we visited the Grotto of the Revelation, a cave on the top of a beautiful hillside where John received those visions. Although once open to the sea, the cave now has a beautiful Greek Orthodox church added to it, so we were not allowed to take any inside ... read more
George's place at little Vathi on Meganis
Published: May 16th 2012Europe » Greece » Ionian Islands » Meganisi
May 15th 2012
Well, after a wonderful couple of weeks of warm weather and no wind the gods have had a change of heart! We heard the weather was coming in so we decided to head for our favourite spot - George's (Karnagio) - on Meganisi. We had a force 5 wind (about 20 knots) on the nose down to the bridge at Levkas (about an hour and a half's sail) and then more wind down to Meganisi. We had to resort to weather gear as waves (spray) were coming over the boat and it was pretty chilly. But oh, was it so lovely when we got to George's! So calm and welcoming. 😄 We had rain in the afternoon and through the night, and more wind is forecast. So we have decided to stay.... It's probably about 18 ... read more
