Bravo! Orchestra! Review with pictures of Med Cruise April 18-29, 2018.

[kathleen21]

Was the $65 thermal spa a special discount? Or maybe prices are going up...? I’d love to have the thermal spa package especially as we also have a few sea days, but checking our booking, the site says it’s $101 for our 10 night Preziosa in September 2019. [emoji854]

 

 

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No special price that I know of. Maybe the Preziosa has a bigger spa? Or is a newer ship?

[kathleen21]

The walk along the coast to the ship.

 

Sail away

 

The six of us met up in the Centinella wine bar to celebrate our anniversary. We ordered drinks and the servers brought us plates of tapas to go with. They had sample plates at the bar, but it isn’t a buffet like at lunch and breakfast time. Dinner tonight was at the buffet due to the timing. Which isn’t a bad thing, since the food at the buffet is great. The wait staff there is so fast to clean and to bring drinks, it is very impressive. I made a big plate of salad greens with fresh fish and roasted vegies on top.

 

We made it to the 9pm show, which was a lot like a Las Vegas show. Lots of butt being shown! Which was hysterical because the fronts of the costumes were high necked with long sleeves. No pictures of tonights show. [emoji12] We weren’t up for much more after that. Tea at the buffet and off to bed. Tomorrow is Olympia!

 

 

Tuesday, April 24 Katakolon and Olympia

 

Although we were in port by 0800, we really didn’t have to get going until almost 10am, when we were scheduled to meet Andrew’s taxi. When I was researching this port, I just couldn’t get my mind around how to get to Olympia in a way that would allow us enough time at the Ancient Olympic site and the museum. I think I made it harder than it turned out to be. If you haven’t planned ahead there are rows of taxis waiting to take you anywhere.

 

Anyway, of course I woke up at 6:30. Apparently my body doesn’t care that I am on vacation, and I can’t seem to sleep in. I got my coffee and did my early morning run around the deck. I have a nodding acquaintance with the regulars now. Breakfast again at the buffet. We never did go to the dining room for breakfast. The timing just wasn’t ever right. Plus we both really enjoyed the food. I usually switched off between the muesli or eggs and vegies, along with a couple cups of coffee and those delicious mini chocolate croissants. Isn’t this a beautiful way to start the day?

 

 

 

We had already paid E110 for the tour, and invited our friends to go with us if they liked. He was tired of seeing ruins and spent the day at the beach and bike riding instead. But she was excited to join us and see more of the island and the ancient history. Ray and I were happy to have her along because she is so pleasant and talkative, and in our limited experience we have found it to be awkward when it is just the two of us and a guide.

 

This port was easy. Walk off the ship, past the taxis and into a cute town.

 

Nancy, not Andrew, was waiting at the taxi stand holding a sign with my name on it when we got there at 0950. We loaded up in her comfortable, air conditioned car and drove through Katakolon and on to Olympia.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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[kathleen21]

It was about a half hour drive through the country side, with olive trees and rolling hills. Nancy turned the wifi on in the car, which was nice, because we were able to check in with our kids. Then she scolded Ray for being on his phone and not looking at the view, which wasn’t nice. That didn’t go over well, since our daughter had just arrived in London (spoiler alert, she is the surprise guest we meet after our cruise) and she had questions. As a guide Nancy was fine, she told us a lot of history and local information, and she spoke English very well. Too well. There were no private converations, if she could hear you then she had something to say. Thank goodness we had our Australian friend along! She kept the conversation going and filled in the gaps. Her presence made the day go smoothly.[emoji7]

 

Olympia –

 

 

We were here early enough to avoid lines or crowds. Nancy had cold water for us, which was a treat since it was a very hot day. She stayed at the car and waited while we explored the ruins. She had given us a book to use with overlays to show what the ruins would have looked like and this was very helpful. Olympia was easy to navigate on our own, especially because we did the Australian thing and headed left, thereby avoiding most of the other visitors on the way to the track. Of course I had to run there!

 

 

 

 

 

 

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[kathleen21]

 

 

 

After walking around the ruins we spent about 20 minutes in the nicely air conditioned museum.

 

 

It was 25 degrees Celsius today. I can’t even imagine how hot and uncomfortable this place would be in the true heat of summer!

 

 

 

 

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[kathleen21]

Back to the car, drinking cold water, we had a decision to make. Our tour was for 4 hours, and we didn’t want to pay for more time. So we could pick 2 more places from this list – beach, winery, honey farm or monastery. We chose the honey farm and the monastery and we were very happy with those choices. The honey farm was located nearby, and it was a charming place. It is run by the granddaughter of the original beekeeper, who is a beekeeper herself, and well versed in bees and organic gardening.

 

 

 

 

She welcomed us with sweet on a spoon. Yum! We bought some of that at her little store later. There was another family there, and we joined them as she described the hives and bee handling. After the tour of the working honey producing area, she and her mom brought out puffy fried dough that we drizzled honey onto. Again, so tasty! (Although it was lunch time by now, so that might be part of why I enjoyed fried dough so much.) There was also hot coffee, juice and water available.

 

 

 

 

We then continued the tour by driving inland to the monastery. This is how it is described on the tours website: “Kremasti Monastery is a Greek Orthodox monastery located near the archaeological area Of Olympia. This Monastery is located 15 klm’s away from Olympia. Virgin Mary Monastery was founded in the early 1700 AC and took the name <<Kremasti>> as the local shepherds found the holy virgin Mary hagiographic image hanging from the ceiling of a cave, that is why the holy temple of the monastery is built inside the cave. The Monastery is one of the best Christian orthodox sightseeing’s of the Ileia Prefecture.

Nowadays, the monastery is fully operational where inside 10 nuns are living and praying.”

 

 

 

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[kathleen21]

 

The view from Kremasti is magnificent as it is located on the top of the hill where there is a beautiful view of the surrounding mountains, Folio forest and Erymanthos river along with the agricultural sites of this area.

 

 

 

We each covered up our legs with provided skirts or puffy pants and entered into the chapel. Nancy seemed well known to the nun that met us, and explained the significance of the icons and wall art. She really glowed while discussing the history here, and I am glad we chose a site she was so passionate about. The view across the valley was beautiful. Be warned though, there is a skinny ladder to climb to access this site.

 

Nancy had us back to Katakolon right at 2pm. I was sleepy and wanted some of that delicious Greek iced coffee. Ray and I both wanted lunch. Our friend was more interested in shopping, so we split up and spent a lovely afternoon wandering the small port town.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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[kathleen21]

I had read about souvlaki sandwiches so when we smelled something delicious we followed our noses to a local shop. We saw several of the ship’s crew here, so felt that was a good sign. Our lunch was filling, delicious and cheap at 2 euros each!

 

 

 

 

This port was so relaxing because we could see the ships gangway and could easily get back on board. So we were able to relax and enjoy greek ice cream too.

 

I left Ray enjoying the breeze and did some shopping for myself. It took about 10 minutes to walk back. No duty free shopping here, but I had bought some ouzo in town to try later.

 

 

We were back on board and out by the pool sometime after 4 pm.

 

 

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[kathleen21]

 

After enjoying sail away, we changed and met our friends for dinner. Now that we “just go with it” dinner is even more fun. We are almost at the point of letting our waiter order for us. In a way he kind of does, since he brings us extra plates of food he thinks we should eat. And shakes his head when we try to order a dish he doesn’t feel good about. This photo is what happens when you give your camera to these guys! [emoji23]

 

 

The menu picture came out terrible, sorry. But the food was good! Especially the beef, it was juicy and tender. Great desserts tonight too!

 

 

 

 

Tonight the show was Viva Italia – which had our Italian Australian friends singing along! After the show, we headed up to the buffet for our nightly ritual of tea and talk before heading to bed. Tomorrow is Crete, which none of the 6 of us have been too, so the whole group will be starting out together at 0745 for another day of adventure.

 

 

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[CruiseIreland]

I am really enjoying your review. I had ignored it because Orchestra is not on my radar but I'm so glad I clicked in today as the pre-cruise visits to Rome an d Cinque Terre were very informative. Love the rest of it too! Keep it coming. Ken.

[kathleen21]

I am really enjoying your review. I had ignored it because Orchestra is not on my radar but I'm so glad I clicked in today as the pre-cruise visits to Rome an d Cinque Terre were very informative. Love the rest of it too! Keep it coming. Ken.

 

 

 

Wow! Thank you for letting me know. [emoji4] This is such a great itenerary. In Europe I definitely cruise for the ports, less for the ship. Although that turned out great too!

Kathy

 

 

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[kathleen21]

Katakolon Daily-

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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[kathleen21]

 

 

Wednesday, April 25 – Heraklion, Crete

 

Up early to get to the buffet for breakfast and be ready to meet our friends and go at 0745.

 

You aren’t allowed to walk in this port, so the port provides a free shuttle bus for the half mile to the gate. At first it was pretty easy from there, if you want to go to town then follow the yellow line on the pavement to the city center.

 

 

We chose to take a bus to Knossos first, thinking that it would just get hotter and more crowded as the day went on. It was a good choice. We did have to wander around a bit to find the bus ticket kiosk, then waited about 10 minutes for the bus. We were on the 0845 bus to Knossos, a half hour ride that cost us 2E each.

 

 

There was a mess of a line to get tickets at Knossos. Only the second time this trip that elbows and a guarded posture were needed to stop people from cutting in front of us. Knossos Palace entrance 16E each.

 

 

 

 

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[kathleen21]

Once we got through the gate, we did the Australian thing and headed to the left at each intersection, which kept us out of most of the crowds. This was another site where a good imagination, or guide book, was necessary to visualize it as an active palace.

 

 

 

It was pretty fun seeing ancient painting of the minotaur that I remember from high school mythology class.

 

 

 

 

After about an hour and a half, we had seen enough and it was getting hot. Note – a bottle of water from the café inside Knossos = 2E, one bought at the little shop across from the entrance = 0.80E.

 

The bus to town is half a block from the entrance on the right side. Since the bus drop passengers off on the other side of the street, then makes a U-turn before heading back to town, a person has enough warning to be able to buy some souvenirs and cold drinks at the shops across the street and be able to catch the bus. Just saying.

 

 

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[kathleen21]

On our way back to town we hopped off the bus a bit before the main square and found an adorable place for coffee. Called “Spells” it is fairly new and themed after Alice in wonderland.

 

 

 

The server was sweet and even gave us free pancakes to try with Nutella and jam. Our 6 drinks cost 20E. Cooled off and caught up on email and texts due to the free wifi, we walked to the main square together. From here we split up, since I was more interested in the Archeological museum than shopping.

We went to the museum next, our entrance was included as part of the Knossos Palace ticket. The mosaics and art in here are taken from Knossos Palace. Putting those mosaics together looked like the most difficult jigsaw puzzle ever.

 

 

 

 

 

 

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[kathleen21]

 

 

We then wandered the shopping/pedestrian streets- finding Lion Square, Deadalion Street to 25th August for big name stores, and Handakos Street for smaller, street market type shops. I had to climb the staircase to see if the church was open. It wasn’t.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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[kathleen21]

 

We walked along the harbor and out to the fort (where again we just missed the opening hours but were allowed to take a picture at least) and then out to a tiny beach where a couple of teenagers were wading. Finally, my chance to get in the sea in Greece! I had my pants rolled up and was in the water before Ray knew what was happening. That was a fun and cool few minutes, but then the local police came and told us to get out, no swimming allowed. Whoops.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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[kathleen21]

 

We walked around the rest of the harbor to our ship and were back on board at 4pm. Having skipped a real lunch we headed to the buffet for salad, fruit and pizza. It is really nice how this area is open and uncrowded when we come back from port. We found a table in the shade by the pool and relaxed with a couple of cold drinks.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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[kathleen21]

 

 

We met up with everyone at dinner in the dining room. I have to say that I don’t think I have been really hungry in days! We do spend a long time at dinner and are often the last table in our section, not because of any issue with the service, but because we are talking so much!

 

Today was ANZAC day and we were invited to join our friends at the ceremony.

 

 

From Wikipedia: Anzac Day is a national day of remembrance in Australia and New Zealand that broadly commemorates all Australians and New Zealanders "who served and died in all wars, conflicts, and peacekeeping operations" and "the contribution and suffering of all those who have served". It is observed on 25 April each year. Anzac Day was originally devised to honor the members of the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps (ANZAC) who fought at Gallipoli against the Ottoman Empire during World War I.

 

It was a meaningful ceremony and we were honored to be included.

 

Tonight’s show was fine, but ended up being the least impressive to me. It was a more of a variety show, and fell a little flat. Or we are exhausted. Or both, probably. All I know is I kept fighting to not shut my eyes. Skipped tea tonight and went to bed right after the show. Tomorrow is Athens and we have a very early day planned.

 

 

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[Maugrim]

They recognised Anzac Day ? I’m impressed.

As Australians, what are your observations of the trip and passengers? I’ve heard that people can be pushy. I’m loving your posts, many thanks.

[kathleen21]

They recognised Anzac Day ? I’m impressed.

As Australians, what are your observations of the trip and passengers? I’ve heard that people can be pushy. I’m loving your posts, many thanks.

 

I was impressed too. It’s interesting because I read so much about how people could behave rudely before the cruise, but we just didn’t really experience that. No cutting in line, no elevator pushing. If anything, people were extra polite because they weren’t sure if they could talk to us. My husband and I are from the US, we became friends with two couples from Australia on the second day. The one thing that they commented on was that they felt the demographic was older than the carnival cruise they were on last. We chose a cruise that avoided the kids sail free promotion, so I didn’t see that as a bad thing!;)

[Maugrim]

Thanks Kathleen. Americans are honorary Aussies anyway ;)

[Nimloth]

 

 

 

Today was ANZAC day and we were invited to join our friends at the ceremony.

 

 

 

From Wikipedia: Anzac Day is a national day of remembrance in Australia and New Zealand that broadly commemorates all Australians and New Zealanders "who served and died in all wars, conflicts, and peacekeeping operations" and "the contribution and suffering of all those who have served". It is observed on 25 April each year. Anzac Day was originally devised to honor the members of the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps (ANZAC) who fought at Gallipoli against the Ottoman Empire during World War I.

 

It was a meaningful ceremony and we were honored to be included.

 

 

 

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How wonderful that Anzac Day was honoured. My grandfather was an Anzac who fought at Gallipoli during World War 1.

[kathleen21]

Thursday, April 26 – Athens

 

We were both up early – excited to get a head start on the day. Athens was the port my husband most wanted to visit, since his grandmother was raised there. No time for running, but I went on deck to get photos in at daybreak.

 

 

We had a fast breakfast this morning and were ready to leave our room at 7:20 am. We had discussed the various ways to get to Athens (tour, city bus, metro..) and decided on the metro. It was about a half hour walk left around the harbor and through the cit6 of Piraeus to dock 6 and the metro entrance.

 

 

A tiny church we passed-

 

 

 

 

 

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[kathleen21]

 

 

We bought tickets at the window, since we didn’t know exactly where to get off or how to use the machines for tickets. We had time on the ride in to look up the stops on a map and ended up getting off at Thissios to walk to the Acropolis. All you have to do is look up and walk that way!

 

 

This was our most important stop of the day, so we were hoping to beat the crowds and the heat. Once we got off the metro there were signs to follow and we easily found the ticket booth. No one in line at all! We were climbing on the rocks of the Parthenon by 9 am!

 

 

 

 

 

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[kathleen21]

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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