Anita Hotel Piraeus

... get done around Egypt took here only 1,5 hrs to fill a huge Ocean-Ferry with hundreds of people and dozens of trucks and cars - and to depart just in time!!

Arrival to Piraeus next to Athens early in the morning. I have to move on to the city of Patras to catch the next ferry for this evening.

... but we finally boarded the correct ferry to Piraeus. It was a very pleasant 6 ˝ hour trip, apart from the constant smoking. We sat on the shaded back outdoor deck at a table and enjoyed stopping at two other island ports, Tinos and Syros, where the ferry picked up more passengers and supplies. We arrived at a smoggy Athens, farewelled our fellow traveller, and walked to our hotel where we had a late supper of bread and cheese.

... internet, I took the subway with Bobby to Athens to research a few travel agencies to find stuff for us to do with Jono the following day when he and his family fly in to Piraeus. The travel agency "Trekking Hellas" that I was searching for ended up not offering the tours I wanted, but we would at least be able to see the Acropolis with him and tour the city. I also finished planning out an adventure for Croatia while I was there, thanks to the power of cheap internet ...

... deck that afternoon reading and sunbathing. That evening went to the show put on by the entertainment team. I was a bit sceptical (you know me and my high standards) after sitting through a number of shocking cruise ship shows. However I have to say it was brilliant and they are a very talented team. Looking forward to the show tonight! Will try and write again soon.

... up to the Parthenon and the Colesseum, but I did manage to capture some beautiful shots from below. Hopefully next time I will be able to secure a tour and go up to the top. It is really so close to the ship though that now that I know where to go I may also be able to do a self-guided tour. I called home, completely forgetting the time change we had last night moving us EIGHT hours ahead instead of seven and called mom at 5:45 in the morning instead ...

... level in a jiffy. Hopefully, the government scatters fresh marble pebbles here daily to keep the efforts of people like me in check. When I've had as much antiquity as I can bear, I return through the now dense crowds and tour groups in matching shirts and hats and walk back a kilometer or so to Syntegma Square in the already punishing heat, where I drink my weight in ice water and iced coffee in the shade of the cafe where I spent part of my first afternoon on May 2.

... something despairingly similar. Au contraire. A light fluffy pide style bread, a thick yoghurty chive butter, whole hunks of tomato and exquisitely marinated sides of meat made a gyros as close to gourment as EUR1.30 food can be. I disgraced myself and managed to put away four per day on average. Always a positive sign when any fast food establishment stops asking for your order but just takes your money and hands you over what they know you want. We also spent ...

... and saw some other ruins that are around the Acropolis. A little ways away is the Olympiad of Zeus. It is hardly there anymore, except for a few columns. There is even a column that has fallen over that is still there. Also very amazing. After all this I went back to my hotel for a little nap. When I woke up I went to buy my tickets for the ferry to Mykonos and Santorini. I noticed that there were many nice shops that I like down the road of the ticket place, so I decided to do some ...

... cops show up. So then I was questioned by the Greek police, which was pretty funny in retrospect because they barely spoke any English. After two hours I gave up and decided to head back to the main town to stay at another place, but then I found out that the next bus wasn't for 4 hours. So I sat in a cafe for 4 hours until the bus came. But I made it to the other hostel and had a good, if not rather chilly, time. A beach in Northern Greece is kinda chilly in March.

... lounges and decks, desperately searching for a comfortable place to lay their heads for the night. By the time all had settled, there were Greeks, Italians, French, Germans, Japanese, Canadians, Americans, Aussies and Spanish in every stair well, and on every seat, bench, and square inch of floor on the entire ship! Somehow, thanks to my gently assertive (read, 'necessarily aggressive') wife, we were among the first ones on the boat, and found a bench to lay our heads. I would not say a ...