Category: Cruises

Day 3 – Wednesday 29th May 2024- Greek Island Cruise and other places!!

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Our alarm woke us with a jump at 7.30am. We were soon washed and dressed and heading for the buffet for breakfast. It was total mayhem and although I am certain all the usual components for breakfast were there it was too crowded to actually see. A couple of tiny croissants, a bowl of Greek yogurt and a banana sufficed. We were in the theatre by 9.25 awaiting the start of our excursion… a trip to Olympia. We had docked at Katakolon on a Greek headland jutting out into the Ionia Sea. This is where the first ever Olympic Games took place in 776BC. There were 5 events – running, jumping, wrestling, javelin and discus.
We were soon on our coach for the 45 minute journey to Olympia. Our guide spoke in about 6 different languages and we were thankful that one was English. We were told that the area is world famous for its olives and it’s fine virgin olive oil because evidently it has close to zero acidity. The area is very fertile and produces wine, watermelons and honey… everything was very green.

Arriving at the Olympia UNESCO site we were divided into language groups.. so our group was a total of about 12, it was made up of Americans, Australians, New Zealanders and another couple of Brits, who nearly pushed me down the ships steps in order to get to the bus first… typical Brits!!!! Ther was my favourite mode of transport, horse and cart waiting to take people to the ruins….. but alas our guide was all for walking…

We first saw the remains of the gymnasium. Our English speaking guide gave good information, although for someone with the attention span of a fly I soon switched off…. But I did learn that they used to run 192 metres and the men all ran naked… this surprised me as from the history of athletics which I had briefly studied in my degree years I seem to remember ancient pictures depicting them running in loin cloths… but who am I to question…. When someone asked about the ladies our guide made a derogatory comment but did later say that when they were allowed to compete they only ran 100m and wore white tunics.


When the statue Zeus, which was 14 metres high and over saw all the area, was removed to Istanbul the town of Olympia became abandoned. I think he said this was in about 400AD. The only resident of the original old town today is the cat!!!!


Earthquakes were and still are common place but a big one around 600AD lead to the collapse of the buildings. Having been abandoned the town lay covered in mud until exploration by archaeologists in 1876.


We wandered around looking at the various ruins before going through the arch to the actual Grass Olympic arena/ stadium…. This was fairly unspectacular as a flat ground for the running, standing long jump and Javlin neither of which needs todays run up as they were all performed from a standing position. There can still be seen some starting stone blocks and the space where the water flowed around the outside of the field so that the spectators, who viewed from the mound had drinking water.

The original Olympic stadium with starting block for the sprint


Walking back to the coach we passed the place where the Olympic torch is still lite to this present day. ( it is at present in Paris for this years Olympics) The area is next to the oldest ruin…. I think our guide explained that a mirror or a piece of glass was positioned under the Olympic torch so that when the sun was in the correct position it’s rays would hit the mirror and set light to the torch. To this day that is how the torch is lite.

where the Olympic Flame is lit.


We wandered back to the coach park stopping at the Olive shop to purchase a very small, very expensive tin of premium virgin olive oil… a gift for my son who likes the finer things in life, a T-shirt for John and a pen for Johns Granddaughter. We decided that was enough shopping and so we sat and waited our time out having a Pepsi Max in the shade of an olive tree overlooking the ruins of Olympia.

We returned to the ship and had a light salad in the buffet for lunch before returning to our cabin for a siesta.

We showered ( you need to be a contortionist in our shower) and washed hair and put on some suitable glad rags in time for a rather nice mock-tail, called a Magic Island, before supper. Once again we got a wake view table and Saleem served us very well yet again.

Tonight’s menu

After Supper we wandered down to the theatre for the evenings 10.00pm show. … more about that tomorrow… Goodnight from us both!

Day 2 – 28th May 2024- Cruising the Greek Islands and a few other places!

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We awoke in The Gallery Suites in Piraeus, on the 7th floor of our compact room….I had had a restless night…having moved the bed to allow John to get into it, without crawling up from the bottom, I hadn’t realised that I was in the direct line of fire from the air conditioner. As the room was at 27 degrees we had phoned reception..1100 to ask for the aircon to be put on and set at 22degrees….however this meant I had a very cold head and back…around 3.30 am I’d had enough of dozing and waking up shivering so I turned it off and opened the window…a much better solution and sleep came to me……I can say with conviction that rush hour starts just after 5 am with the roar of traffic, pepping of impatient drivers and of course the ringing of the church bells which strike on the hour every hour … it was hardly a room with a view …

…having said the negatives because I am a sleep deprived grump!!! There are infact lots of positives… the hotel is scrupulously clean… I don’t think I’ve ever seen a bathroom so spotless (not even our own), the staff are very friendly, it’s literally 5 minutes from the cruise port … in-fact you could walk it in 20 minutes…there are lots of good restaurants around and it is literally a stone throw to the metro to go into Athens if you so wish…. Oh! And the shower was of water canon pressure…divine.

We headed down the road 20 paces turned right then left … 60 paces in total and voila a very nice coffee shop selling an assortment of breads, panini, croissants, sandwiches and cakes… we ordered two avocado, tomato, thin Turkey breast and egg panini, a croissant to share and two americano coffees. It all came to £15 a very tasty nice breakfast which put the smiles back on our faces.

After wandering back to the hotel we checked out and took a €10 taxi to the cruise port. Wow…!!! Talk about efficient… we arrived at 11.15am although our ticket told us to arrive at 2.30pm…so we were chancing our luck… our bags were swept away… there was no queue and we were in our cabin by 11.30 and had our first drink on deck before 11.45…. Superb …. The ship was virtually empty so we did a recognoiter and got our bearings….. all very nice …

Our cases arrived before 2.30 pm and with Johns help we were unpacked and all neat and tidy by 3.00pm… We then headed down to the theatre for the Muster drill talk before heading on to the poolside deck for Sailaway … which was proceeded by a very active dance class which we enjoyed watching!!!

The sail away from the open deck is pretty spectacular and really shows how crowded the coastline is with the large metropolis’s of Piraeus and Athens.

After sail away we headed to the Photo and internet services. We had a simple question …. We had pre purchased one device&Streaming package each. When logging on, on my phone it would seem that I can’t log off and then log on, on my iPad … that would need a two device package even though you only want to be on one at a time…. We were spoken to by a very nice person who didn’t know the answer so he referred us to the Deputy Manager who had a very dismissive manner. ……. Most people who know me, know I am not a lady to be dismissed…. His abrupt answer was “No! one device only” I politely asked how much it would cost me for a second device and was told to give my phone to someone else and they would tell me… obviously my query was well below Mr I AM A Somebody’s level of expertise. After several minutes of the other chap still not answering my question we were getting no where. The manager, a pleasant elder gentleman, had witnessed the whole conversation, he apologised for his deputies rudeness and kindly explained how the internet works on the ship and why we couldn’t log out and in… he also explained that because of everyone’s different loyalty level the prices differ according to the package you want and the discount you are entitled too… any way the long and the short of it was that another device was going to cast me a further €88, a price I wasn’t prepared to pay…. So it’s on my phone whether I like it or not … and you readers will have to put up with the typos because fat fingers on little keys are not the greatest….. !!!

Back to the cabin for a quick wash and brush up before back out again to L’Approdo Restaurant My Choices Dinning(which is the same as anytime dinning on Princess Cruises) . We arrived at 7.00pm on the dot and were immediately seated on a table for two up against the wake picture window….delightful….

We were warmly greeted and introduced to our waiter, Salem. The menus are all on a scan QR code. We had a great choice… it was all very tasty and we thoroughly enjoyed our meal.

Our starter … we both had the same

After supper we wandered around and checked out the ‘What’s on’. Although we both fancied the theatre it wasn’t due to start until 10 pm and we have a morning excursion tomorrow. So having walked 8500 steps yesterday and 9500 steps today my little legs were feeling somewhat weary so we retired to bed…setting the alarm for 7.45am tomorrow morning… Good night one and all…

Day 1 – Monday 27th May 2024- Cruising the Greek Islands and a few more places!!

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Well!!! We are off again. The alarm shot me bolt upright, to a rude awakening at 7.30 am… We showered, breakfasted, John did all the horrible jobs like washing up and bins… while I crammed the last few things into the cases. I’d like to say we took a leisurely walk down the road to the station…. But that would be a lie!!!! I huffed and puffed with my case and hand luggage sat on top … John eventually had enough and took them both…. He has much strength and while yanking it up the kerb the front wheel caved in, looking dangerously like coming off it now has to be a following wheel and no longer a lead wheel!!! We nurtured it to the station. Those of you who know us will understand we only live a couple of 100 yards away.. takes 5 minutes to get there …. 20 minutes later!! John was buying single tickets to Gatwick and we boarded the earlier than expected train arriving at Gatwick at just before 11.00am

We got through baggage drop off, passport control and security in super quick time… Well done Gatwick!!!
Being the last of the big spenders we decided to splash the cash and have a stylish brunch at ….. yes you’ve guessed!!!!…… Wetherspoons….. they get everywhere… we haven’t had one since Scotland last year !!! I must admit it was great and set us up for the day. By 13.30 we were at the gate waiting to board and our next adventure was about to begin……

We are off to Athens for a MSC 7 day cruise on the Opera… taking us to Italy and around a few Greek islands .
…or was it about to begin!!! All aboard and we’re told we are delayed 1hr15 minutes due to the sky being busy over Croatia…. Well! That’s a first for us…. So we taxied to what they call a quiet part of the airfield to wait out our time…. The good news is the fat fella ( I know that’s a bit like the pot calling the kettle black !!!), sat next to me and the window, was already fed up of being sardined into his seat by John and me and moved back two rows to an empty rack of seats… so we were far more comfortable even if we were no further forward with our adventure! I had also purchased a seatbelt extension because those on EasyJet are meant for sizes much smaller than mine!!! So I haven’t had the harsh embarrassment of having to ask for an extension … yeah… well worth the £19 on Amazon !! I know Johns jealous but he would prefer to sit breathing in for hours than admit he’d be more comfortable with an extension!!!

We did take off at 15.50 but much to my annoyance, embarrassment, humiliation the hostess came along with an EasyJet seatbelt extension and said I couldn’t wear my own even though it was as kite marked…. I suppose my only saving Grace was this time she was asking me rather than me asking her.
it was a good flight, even though no entertainment and no usb ports etc… but what do you expect with a cheap airline. Just after takeoff the air hostess came and asked me to move into the window seat because according to the passenger behind us, who just happened to be an airplane technician, half my seat was missing, in particular the bit that holds it upright and I was in danger of being catapulted into a vertical position… I think the poor chap feared for his life !!! So I obliged and moved. The flight was 3 hours 15 minutes and we proceeded to disembark without any problems. We then walked half a marathon to the immigration and baggage claim. We were about 1.5hours late but our driver met us with a cheery smile. He quickly transferred us the 45 minutes to our hotel… We are staying at The Gallery Suites in Piraeus about 5 minutes from the port.

We were greeted by two lovely ladies and after the formalities were completed we squeezed into a minuscule lift ( if you thought ours at home was small you are mistaken by comparison ours is a ballroom!!!). We are on the 7th floor… definitely a very compact room… for those of you who remember my description of our Hilton Hotel in Singapore, or our room in Amsterdam ….well!!! this is even smaller …. Now I come to think about it we have stayed in some pretty tiny rooms around the world… anyway I digress…. The room had all we wanted and with a little furniture moving ( we moved the bed away from the wall so John didn’t have to crawl in, whilst leaving enough room to get to the bathroom) we were soon comfortably in bed… after all it was 11.44pm…. So on that note I’ll say goodnight…sweet dreams …

Martinique – French Caribbean Island – BEEN THERE GOT THE T-SHIRT

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Martinique is an island in the Lesser Antilles which is part of the French West Indies, in the eastern Caribbean Sea. Its nearest neighbours are the island republics of Dominica 22 miles (35 km) to the northwest, and Saint Lucia 16 miles (26 km) to the south. Guadeloupe another part of overseas France, lies about 75 miles (120 km) to the north 

As an overseas region of France, its culture reflects a distinctive blend of French and West Indian influences. Its largest town, Fort-de-France, features steep hills, narrow streets and La Savane, a garden bordered by shops and cafes. In the garden is a statue of island native Joséphine de Beauharnais, first wife of Napoleon Bonaparte.

Martinique is in effect a dependant region of France and therefore enjoys the same European Union benefits as the French Mainland. Unlike a lot of Caribbean islands It has the same modern day infrastructure, education, health and welfare system as France. 

It’s a delightful island to visit. We have been fortunate enough to cruise into port here on several occasions. On one occasion we decided to explore the heart of the island in a 4-wheel-drive vehicle to the interior rainforest and backcountry.  Our tour took us passed banana and sugar cane plantations, fording streams and encountering all variety of vegetation en route to a river deep in the rainforest. Upon arrival, we experienced the peace and tranquility of a remote, hidden spot deep in the inner forest. 

We listened to the sounds of the jungle and observed nature’s beauty all around us.

We sat and relaxed in the inner forest area known as Coeur Bouliki. The rich volcanic soil nourishes banana plantations and pineapple fields as well as mangoes, papayas, lemons, limes, and West Indian cherries and we sat enjoying a fruit drink and eating fresh fruit off banana leaf platters. 

The only thing which impeded the peace and tranquility was a cat having an altercation with a cockerel ….Surprisingly the cockerel came off the best and the cat legged it …

Exploring the area by having a short walk to the river we saw some superb plants and magnificent flowers. We also saw land frogs and lizards

Your return drive took us on another route which took us through banana plantations.

We stopped at a Rum Distillery  and tasted some of the islands rums. They are known as some of the best rums in the world on the island of Martinique. Many have been bestowed with the Appellation d’Origine Contrôlée (AOC) award.

We continued our sightseeing on the way back to the Cruise Ship.

Tallinn, Estonia – BEEN THERE GOT THE T-SHIRT

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Estonia is a country situated  in Northern Europe it has borders on the west with the Baltic Sea, on the north with the Gulf of Finland, on the south with Latvia and on the east with Lake Peipsi and Russia. It was formally part of The Soviet Union. Soviet authorities recognised Estonian independence on 6 September 1991, and on 17 September 1991 Estonia was admitted into the United Nations. 

Estonia consists of the mainland and a lot of islands……if you ask one Estonia they’ll tell you 1500 and if you ask another you’ll be told 2300 Islands….so I’ll just say a lot!!! The largest islands are Saaremaa and Hiiumaa. Estonia covers a total of 17,504 square miles(45,335sqkm).  It has a very diverse terrain which includes rocky beaches, old forests and many lakes. It’s attractiveness is not just one of scenery but it also in its very aesthetically beautiful castles, churches and hilltop fortresses. 

We visited Estonia as part of a Northern Europe, Capital city, cruise with Princess Cruises. We had had it booked before the arrival of the pandemic and it had been moved twice….so we were delighted to finally go  even though the itinerary was much changed from our original booking. This had been pre-invasion of Russia into Ukrainian and had included both St Petersburg and Helsinki, both of which were removed from the itinerary, the former because it was a country at war and the later because it was too close to Russia. 

Our trip to Estonia included a day trip to Tallinn, it’s capital city. Tallinn has a population of about 461,000. Tallinn is renowned for its preserved Old Town and museums. Our coach picked us up at the port and took us to the monument complex which commemorates the victims of communism. 

Our next stop was the Tallinn Song Festival Grounds it is valued architecturally and is the first post-war building in Tallinn which was completed in 1960. When not being used for The Song Festival the park is open for walking, sports activities and having a picnic. There is a beautiful statue of Gustav Ernesaks  who was an Estonia composer who died in 1993. The statue of him sitting overlooking the festival ground was erected in 2004. 

The coach parked up outside the old city walls and we followed our guide to Toompea Hill. Toompea or “Upper Town” is the home of some of Tallinn’s oldest architectural wonders and home to Palace Square. Our first stop was Alexander Nevsky Cathedral . This is a historic Russian Orthodox Cathedral. St. Alexander Nevsky Cathedral serves as the dominating landmark in Palace Square, the cathedral’s cupolas and golden crosses rise high above the rooftops.

Turn your back on the Cathedral and you come face to face with Toompea Castle. The castle with its late Baroque façade was built between 1767 and 1773 and sits on the site of the foundations of a 13th century fortress. It’s outside wall is pink which was an attractive contrast to the wet dark cobbles of the area on this particular grey rainy day. The castle is now home to the Parliamentary buildings.

We then slipped and slid our way around the streets, if it hadn’t been for the heavy rain we would have been more enthusiastic about the history and beauty of the quaint streets. Instead of concentrating on what our guide was saying we were more concerned with staying upright and keeping warm. We made our way to Piiskopi Viewing point. It was worth it …the views were terrific. We looked down on Lowe Old Town. Our guide pointed out many buildings but we were ready to scurry into a tourist souvenir shop and get into the warm and out of the rain for a few minutes.

We made our way back to the coach which returned us to the port terminal. The weather really impacted on our tour and we were a bit disappointed that we couldn’t appreciate this obviously beautiful historical capital city….maybe sometime we will get to visit again.