Next Cruise Begins!

07-01: Piraeus today. I was still tired when we got up this morning. Me made it to the buffet at Market Place and then back to the cabin to get some things done. It seems like a good time to do laundry since a lot of people are getting off and new passengers getting on a few hours after that.

Otherwise, it was a quiet day for us. We ate lunch at the Beefbar and took a nap in the afternoon. Dinner was in the dining room, though we weren’t very hungry, we did have a delicious seafood cocktail (muscles, shrimp, scallop, lobster, and crab!)

We went to the show and spent some time in Jade after the show. As I said, a quiet day.

07-02: Crete: today, we took a wonderful excursion to the countryside for olive oil tasting and wine tasting. It was lovely. The drive through the countryside was so interesting and I didn't realize there are 7000 ft peaks here in the White Mountains. They are limestone, thus the white colors. Crete isn’t even that large to have this these tall mountains. There were lovely flowers along the way plus scads of olive trees, orange trees, and other citrus trees. They plant Oleanders by the freeways, so that the animals won't try to cross. Because they are poisonous, the animals stay away and therefore, no animals have been hit or killed on the highways. Our guide was very informative and even shared a few mythological stories with us. Our tour got a late start because the microphone did not work in the bus. You are forbidden to leave the port without a working microphone! Who knew? However, a new bus came and all was well. We were back in plenty of times since Stuart had to speak at 4:30p. His talk was on caldera formations today, it was very interesting plus being well attended. 

Following that, we went to Cystal Cove and listened to both the violin player and a duo singing group that also plays the keyboard. Dinner in the waterside dining room followed by Sabrina Aloueche for our show tonight. She has a fabulous voice. She has starred in many Broadway plays.

Another trip to casino was uneventful and, disappointing for Sharon. There is a waiting list and she gave up waiting after fifteen or twenty minutes. Stuart played a little three card poker while waiting for a Black Jack table. He ended up doing pretty well for the eve.