Blogs from Kusadasi, Aegean, Turkey, Middle East - page 3

Hey all.... The experience on the ship is amasing, so much is happening all the time, live entertainment, cooking classes, live theatre, Botox seminar which I attended lol :) check out photo attached. So many nationalilities everyone is so lovely, relaxed and kind any dress code goes its so cruisey. We have met so many lovely people. Kusadasi - arrived this morning, great view from our room. We hired taxi for the afternoon, viewed the ruins in ephesus veryhot here. The taxi driver stayed with us the whole time. It is very expensive to book excursions on the boat, so doing it on our own and what an experience we are having lol. The next few days will be full on, head out of the harbour tonight 7pm then heading to Athens tomorrow. Loves and hugs ... read more

A few facts and stories about the sailing ship we are enjoying for 7 days and nights. Sea Cloud II was launched in 2001. She has a main mast of 174' and a length of 384' – she is the world's largest 3 masted barque. She is one of only two cruise ships sailed “by hands” in the world. She has 24 sails with over 30,000 square feet of sail area. There are 47 cabins with capacity for only 94 people . . . . during this “crossing” there are only 68 on board. All bathrooms are have marble counter tops and shower or baths. There are 4 decks : Sun Deck, where the bridge is also located, Lido Deck (where the two owner's suites are located) where the Lido Bar, Lounge and Library are located, ... read more

We continue to enjoy every facet of Sea Cloud II from the morning excercises to the evening dinner and delight of sipping a glass of wine and talking with old and new friends on the open deck of the Lido Bar or standing on the bridge and discussing sails, port procedures, etc. with the captain or the chief mate. After the talk about Pergamon, we relaxed in deck chairs along the port side of the Lido Deck waiting for word that the zodiac was ready to take us out to sea for a photo op of the Sea Cloud with all sails unfurled. No question about it, viewing the Sea Cloud II from 300 yards away is an impressive view. There isn't much wind but even still the sails are full. We return to the genteel ... read more

Up into Pamukkale we went. As well as being a thermal spring, Pamukkale has Heiropolis, an ancient Roman city, and the Cotton Fortress, a series of dazzling calcium terraces, filled with the most amazing blue water, very impressive. The water is heated by a thermal spring, and Heiropolis was built because the Romans believed the waters held healing properties. The ruins are well preserved, and include a 20,000 seat amphitheatre which is said to be the best condition ancient amphitheatre in the world. It towered over the rest of the city, giving a view over the valley and the mountains beyond. Also, there was a tortoise, how a turtle got to be up in the mountains goodness knows. Before leaving I bought a beautiful table cloth that will give me fond memories of a beautiful place. ... read more

TURKEY - EPHESUS Overnight the ship sailed from Mykonos to the Turkish port of Kusadasi. It was quite exciting for us stopping in Turkey, another very different country. We took the optional excursion to the ancient ruins of Ephesus – we walked down a street that was almost 3000 years old! Streets that were walked by John the Baptist, Marc Antony and Cleopatra, it was all a bit surreal. Again we had the services of a very knowledgeable local guide who gave us an excellent description as were walked from the top of the site to the bottom. Near the end we walked into the amphitheatre which was just amazing. A number of pop stars including Elton John had played there – those concerts must have been an incredible experience for anyone who attended. THE most ... read more