Cruising the Mediterranean: Part 2

So, we left off in part 1 at receiving the news that the Israel ports were canceled due to uncertainty in the Middle East.  While it was probably the right call for the safety of everyone, we were pretty disappointed because first Egypt and then Israel had been our highlight for the whole trip.

After you finish reading about part 2, make sure you check out all our pictures of Greece, Turkey, and the cruise ship.

Day 7: Bodrum, Turkey

Our first replacement port for Israel.  We didn't really know what to expect, but it was actually quite beautiful!  There's tons of sailboats in the harbors and the buildings are a bit reminiscent of Greece...all white.  What we wanted to visit (a nearby island and hot springs) required a boat tour, but sadly it was too windy for private boat tours that day.  And all the larger tours didn't return until after our ship was set to sail away! :(

So, instead we wandered around the town, did a little shopping, and visited the Bodrum Castle.  I was a little skeptical of this...feeling a bit "castled-out", but we were both pleasantly surprised with it!  Not only did it have great views over the water, but it also housed an underwater archaeological museum, which was super interesting!

We headed back to the ship early, relaxed, and played some basketball (pretty awesome backdrop, I'd say!)  Yep, I know, I'm pretty cool too! :)



The highlight of this day was the "Bodrum Sail-Away Bash", which was really a "We're Sorry We're Not Going to Israel" bash.  If you've ever been on a cruise ship before, you know alcohol is never complimentary.  BUT, for the hour and half of this party (which also included tons of food and dancing), there was as much free alcohol as you can drink.  And, I'm talking tables and tables of all kinds and waiters coming around to fill you at every point.  We ended up heading down a few decks to watch a movie for most of this party, but we did take some free drinks with us! ;)

Also the 1st (and only!) night we won at pub trivia with Jazzy, which was a nightly occurrence. Coincidence?

Day 8: Antalya, Turkey

Go back?  No, probably not.
The best part of this stop was the beautiful
mountains near where our ship stopped.

Another Israel replacement.
Our plan (again, true Guldan fashion): take public bus to Lara Beach just outside the city.
Here's what we didn't plan on:

• the ship docking in an industrial port 8 miles on the other side of town
• a free shuttle bus from the cruise to downtown that dropped us of in an unknown location
• the public bus not taking the same route back into town--resulting in a slightly panicked taxi ride only 1.5 hours before the last shuttle back to the ship
• wandering streets to find the shuttle location back to the ship.

Don't worry, all's well that ends well.  We found the beach, which was nice but after being in Greece, the Turkish Riviera just doesn't quite compare, and eventually found the shuttle back to the ship.  The city of Antalya itself is huge and reminded a bit too much of Mexico.  Not a lot to see in the city itself and tons of pushy people.

Hadrian's Gate

<---------- Heard a great call to prayer

Day 9: Sea Day

Just another day of sun, relaxation, and beautiful waters all around.
Formal night gave us another great excuse to dress up and have some fun!  And after dinner?  Desert extravaganza by the pool.  Sooooo many to choose from and so beautiful, even chocolate champagne!  Nick played a little ping pong with some Dutch guys (note: wife fail alert here for not taking a picture!), and we hung out in the night club with the Dutch couples for a while too.  Pretty solid day at sea!

Day 10: Napflion, Greece

The last Israel replacement and definitely the best.  The city itself was super charming with quaint streets, colorful buildings, and cliffs all around.

We started the day bright and early by hiking up the 992 steps to the castle overlooking the city.


The views were awesome, but the castle itself was rather unimpressive so after a few quick photos we made our way back down to catch a city bus to our next location.  Total time-1 hour, needless to say everyone else on our cruise was very impressed!
This time our local bus experience was positive and we arrived in Mycenae with no problems.  Nick was pretty pumped about these ruins because supposedly Agamemnon ruled here during the time of the battle of Troy.  I think the myths are actually much more complicated than that, but that's about all I can remember!

Just looking out over his kingdom

After arriving back in Napflion we grabbed a most delicious gyro and headed to the beach.  The cliffs alongside this beach really made it stand out, and I loved watching all the school kids playing in the ocean after school.  One of them was even playing with jellyfish!

Day 11: Iraklion, Crete, Greece

This may be the shortest summary of a visit ever (but you're probably glad for a little break).

Summary: city itself is nothing special besides the harbor, very touristy, and all the cool beaches are way far away from here and impossible to visit when your ship leaves at 3pm.  So, most of the day was spent on the boat!




But, it was our last night on the ship, and it was a great one!  We had some free shipboard credit to blow, so Nick played poker again.  And won! Woot!  I was not so lucky at bingo, but we had a great time watching the final entertainment show the cruise: Dancing with the Stars at Sea!  The dancers were paired with someone from the cruise ship who had been chosen from the classes on the ship during the week.  It was an awesome, hilarious show and a winner was chosen!

Day 12: Athens, Greece

End of the cruise! :(  We booked a tour through the ship again so that it would be easy to get to the airport with our bags.  We visited the Acropolis and Parthenon, which was quite impressive!  We then had a bus tour around town, which was just fine for me.  There's not a ton to see, except for the 1896 Olympic Stadium and the bus stopped here for pictures!  Woot!


And the best way to end a great vacation?  In an airport lounge with free wifi (after 12 days with none!) and all the Greek treats you can imagine for 5 hours before your flight.  My favorite was the true Greek yogurt!