Mediterranean Cruise: Barcelona to Athens

 Tuesday, September 10, 2024 - Sunday, September 15, 2024         Burke, Virginia

We flew to Burke,  Virginia early on Tuesday, September 10 to visit Scott and his family.  It also means we could fly nonstop to Barcelona.  We got to Reagan Airport by 9:30 am and took the Metro to Franconia Station.  From there we took an Uber to Scott and Cristin's house.  Scott, Cristin, and Hunter were sick with Covid while we were visiting and Elli and Oscar stayed at Beth's house so they wouldn't catch it.  Mike and I had just recovered from Covid before we traveled so we weren't too concerned with getting sick again.  We just hung around the house until Thursday. Mike and I drove to Beth's house after Elli and Oscar got out of school.  The four of us walked to Fairfax Square and ate dinner at Mama's Taste, an Asian restaurant.  It was good.  We stopped at the Safeway next door for ice cream and walked back to Beth's.  This turned out to be a 2 1/2 mile walk, but it was good to get to visit with Elli and Oscar for a couple of hours.  On Saturday we went to Oscar's soccer match.  This was about all that we did for these five days.

Sunday - September 15, 2024    and Monday - September 16, 2024     Flight to Barcelona

On Sunday Mike and I took an Uber to Dulles International Airport at about 2:00 pm for our flight to Barcelona, Spain.  Our flight left at 6:10 pm and was an eight hour flight.  We had some wine and our in flight meals, which weren't very good.  Neither of us were able to sleep much so we were tired when the plane landed in Barcelona at 8:30 am Barcelona time. 

Ready for our flight

Pretty sunset from plane

First view of Barcelona

View of the Mediterranean and Barcelona with the 
Familia Sagrada in the middle of the shot

Customs took about 1 1/2 hours then we took a taxi to the Holiday Inn Express City 22.  We got to the hotel around 10:00 am and they had a room ready for us, so Mike and I took a two hour nap before doing anything.  This hotel was in a nice neighborhood outside of the city center, but still close enough to be able to walk to a lot of things.  After our nap, we walked in the neighborhood then stopped at a small cafe and got a chicken sandwich (grilled chicken breast, tomato, lettuce, mayo on a baguette).  This was one of the best chicken sandwiches we ever had.  We each had ordered our own sandwich which was very large so we each had half a sandwich to take back to the hotel room for our dinner.  On the way back to our room we stopped at the grocery store and bought a couple of small boxes of wine.  The wine was very cheap ($3.20 total) and it tasted cheap, but was drinkable.  After such a long day we decided to have an early night and were both in bed by 8:00 pm.  So far a good start to our trip.

Tuesday - September 17, 2024                Barcelona Hop on Hop Off Tour

We got up around 9:00 am and went down to the breakfast buffet.  It was a pretty good buffet with meats, cheeses, some vegetables like beans and corn, eggs, yogurt and lots of pastries.  I was hesitant to eat the pastries because of my nut allergies, so just had some of everything else.  The coffee machine was a little hard to figure out, but I finally was able to get a cafe latte.  It was just okay.  After breakfast we walked a half mile to the nearest Hop on Hop Off stop next to the Torre Glores.  I had bought tickets online so I just had to show the worker my phone receipt to get our tickets.  We had gotten a 24 hour ticket which would allow us to ride the HOHO again once on Wednesday morning.  

Torres Glores - the HOHO stop was on 
the opposite side

Mike in front of Torres Glores

We caught the green line that took us by the Familia Sagrada and to Park Gaude.  We got of at the stop for the park and walked about 1/2 mile up the hill to the park.  When we got there we discovered that we couldn't access any part of the park without a ticket.  From what I had read online a part of the park was accessible without a ticket, but either that was wrong or we just never found the entrance to the free part. We decided to just walk back to the HOHO stop and continue our tour.  

Ready for the tour

Next to Sagrada Familia

Sagrada Familia

Sant Pau Recinto Modernista - an old hospital with 
cool architecture

Painting on the side of Sant Pau

Outside of Park Guell

Once we were back on the bus, I discovered that my phone was almost out of battery so we rode the green line all the way around the city back to Torres Glores and walked back to our room so I could charge my phone and pick up my external battery.  

Building in Plaza de John F Kennedy

Church in the Sant Gervasi Bonanova neighborhood

University in La Antiga Esquerra de l'Eixample

Building in the Mansana de La Discordia area
of l'Eixample 

La Ribera street

Barceloneta Beach

On our way back to our room we stopped and got another chicken sandwich to share for lunch.  At 3:00 pm we walked to the Arc de Triumpe.  We took pictures then caught the red line HOHO. 

 

Arc de Triumphe

Mary in front of the Arc

Mike in front of the Arc

We rode the red line HOHO to the Jardin de Miramar.  We got out there and walked about 1/4 mile to an overlook of the city.  After taking pictures and looking at the views we walked back to the HOHO stop, caught the bus, and rode back to the Arc de Triumpe.  

Font del Geni Catala statue

Columbus Monument

View of city from Parque del Mirador

Another view of the city 

Old Olympic Stadium

Poble Espanyol from the world fair

The National Palace

Fountain in Placa d'Espanya

Old soccer stadium, now a shopping mall

Just a sign

Casa Batllo

Casa Batllo by Gaudi

We decided to walk back to the hotel, stopping at a restaurant on the way for dinner.  We sampled some tapas: chicken croquettes, vegetable empanada, chicken empanada, and sweet potato fries.  Mike had a local beer and I had a glass of wine.  This was a very good dinner and was only about $30, tip included.  As we were walking back to the hotel it started to rain lightly.  I tried to use Uber to get a taxi, but wasn't able to so we just kept walking.  We discovered that if we walked under the trees or close to the buildings we didn't get too wet.  We got back to the hotel around 8:00 pm,  We were really tired but had a very good day.  Overall we walked about 7 miles.

Wednesday - September 18, 2024                                    Sagrada la Familia

After breakfast we walked to Torre Glores to catch the hop on hop off to Sagrada la Familia.  We got there about 10:15 and our entry was for 11:00 so we hung out at the park across the street.  The Sagrada la Familia is such a popular attraction that you have to buy tickets ahead of time for a specific entry slot.  

Waiting in the Plaza Sagrada Familia

View of Sagrada la Familia 

Closeup view of entrance

With Sagrada la Familia in the background

At 11:00 we entered and spent about 1 1/2 hour with the guided audio tour.  This cathedral is very impressive with tall towers and lots of stained glass.  After an hour Mike's back started hurting, probably from the large amount of walking Tuesday.  We did a couple  more displays on the tour then decided that we were ready to leave.

Outside at entry doors

Statues of apostles above entry doors

Pillars inside cathedral

Stained glass windows

Mike inside the cathedral

Stained glass in the chancel area

Chancel area 

Mary in front of exit area

We caught a taxi back to the hotel.  It was easy to get a taxi and it only cost about $10.00.  When we got back to the hotel Mike went to our room and I went to buy our favorite chicken sandwich for lunch.  After lunch we napped and rested in the room until about 5:00 pm then went to a small souvenir shop to buy a magnet.  While we were in the shop it started raining hard.  We stayed in the shop for about 10 minutes then bought a small umbrella and walked two doors down to the Xuros restaurant where we had planned to eat dinner.  We shared a seafood paella.  Mike had a local beer and I had a glass of wine.  We had asked to share one order of paella, but were served a double order so we were not able to eat it all.  It had shrimp, mussels, calamari, and squid.  It was good but a little rich for our taste. 

Seafood paella

After dinner we walked back to our room.  We repacked our bags to be ready to start our cruise on Thursday.  We had a really fun time in Barcelona.  Barcelona is a really clean city and was easy for walking.  If we had more time there were a few more places to visit but this was a good start to our trip.

Thursday - September 19, 2024                    Meditteranean Cruise Embarkation Day

We got up at 9:00 am, ate breakfast, and got our bags ready to leave.  We checked out of the hotel at 11:30 am and took a taxi (cost $20) to the cruise terminal.  We were able to embark the Oosterdam and get in our room by 12:30 pm.  We had lunch in the Lido then walked around the ship for a while.  At 3:00 pm we went to the required muster for the ship.  When that was over our bags had been delivered to our room so we unpacked and got settled into our room for the next 11 days.  

Picture of restaurant where we got our favorite sandwiches.

On the Oosterdam

Atrium of the Oosterdam

View of Barcelona from our balcony as we sail away.

We went to the seaview bar to get before dinner beer and wine since all of the other bars were closed.  We took our drinks to the Ocean View Lounge and sat there until dinner time.  Dinner in the Main Dining Room was really good; we had shrimp cocktail, mahi mahi (Mary), pork tenderloin (Mike), and lemon torte.  After dinner we went to our room for a while and sat on our balcony.  We really enjoy having a balcony.  Then we went to the Gallery Bar by the casino for drinks.  Mary had a mojito (was really good) and Mike had a gin and tonic.  We sat in the Billboard On Board area for a couple of sets before heading back to our room around 9:30 pm.  This was a fun day and a good start to our cruise.

Friday - September 20, 2024                        Villefranche sur Mer, France

I got up at 7:00 am, took my Fosamax medicine, and walked to the elevator at the front of the ship so I could go to the Crow's Nest to get coffee.  I got a cafe mocha and went back and sat on our balcony until Mike woke up at 9:00 am.  

Sunrise from our balcony

Nice, France which was next to Villefranche sur Mer

Another view of Nice

View of Provence from our balcony

We went to the Lido to eat breakfast.  We both got made to order omelettes which were very good.  At about 10:00 am we left the ship and walked around Villefranche sur Mer, France for about 2 1/2 hours.  We started by walking up the hill to the old Citadel which was built in 1557.  It was interesting with some unique old buildings, some art, a nice garden, and an art gallery.  The cruise was supposed to stop at Cannes, France, but because of high winds it was changed to Villefranche sur Mer.  I think we enjoyed this stop more than we would have Cannes.

Mary on the walk up to the Citadel

Mike in front of the entrance to the Citadel

A courtyard in the Citadel

Mary in front of an old hotel in the Citadel

Mike in front of some apartments in the Citadel

Another courtyard in the Citadel

Mike in the art gallery

Taking a rest in the garden

When we left the Citidel we walked through some of the streets in town, mainly close to the sea.  We really didn't want to walk up the mountain any more.  We went into a little shop where I bought my souvenir magnet then walked a little by the water before going back on board the ship. 

A street in Villefranche sur Mer

View of the church at the top of the hill

Mary on one of the side streets we walked on

Interesting stairs with cat at top

Another interesting street

Pretty church

Street next to port

Over looking the shore

Boats in port

On the tender back to the ship

After getting back on board, we went to the Lido for lunch.  After lunch we went back to our room to rest then got dressed for dinner.  We had pre-dinner drinks at the Gallery Bar then went to the Main Dining Room for dinner.  We sat with two other couples for dinner and had some good conversations.  This was the only night that we were seated with other couples for dinner.  Because we were seated with other couples our dinner took almost two hours.  After dinner we went to the Billboard On Board for drinks and music.  We really enjoy the type of music at this venue.  We sat through two sets then went to our room around 10:30 pm.  

Saturday - September 21, 2024                            Livorno, Italy

I got up at 7:30 am and went to the Crow's Nest to get a cafe latte then sat on our balcony until Mike woke up at 9:00 am.  We went to the Lido for breakfast where I got a waffle with mixed berry compote and Mike got another omelette.  We got off the ship around 10:00 am and took the shuttle to the plaza in Livorno.  We walked around Livorno for about 2 hours then took the shuttle back to the ship.

Building in the Livorno Plaza

A Livorno Canal

A typical street in Livorno

A beautiful day i Livorno

San Ferdinando Church - built in 1707

Door of San Ferdinando Church

Inside the church

Another Livorno Canal

Another street and canal view

Mike looking at the canal

Mary in Piazza Del Luogo

Mary and Mike in Livorno

We ate lunch in the Lido then returned to our room to rest and read our books.  One of the nice things about Holland America ships is that they have a library on board.  Mike and I each checked out a book to read while on the ship.  Around 5:30 pm we went for our pre-dinner drinks then ate dinner in the Canelletto Restaurant.  It was a very good meal and the sunset view from our table was amazing.

Sunset

Mary in the Canelletto

More sunset

Our first towel art of the trip

After dinner we went back to the piano bar, had drinks, and sat through two sets.  I tried a new drink the lemoncello cosmopolitan.  It was good.  After the music we went to our room and called it a day.  This was a very enjoyable day with great weather.

Sunday - September 22, 2024                        Civitavecchia, Italy

I got up at 7:30 am, walked to the Crow's Nest to get a cafe latte, and sat on the balcony while Mike slept.  When Mike got up at 9:30 am we went to the Lido for breakfast.  We got off the ship around 10:30 am and rode the shuttle to town.  Our plan was to walk around Civitavecchia on our own, but there were few sidewalks in the area where the shuttle let us off.  After an attempt to walk around some  we decided to return to the ship.

Wall of old fort 

Sign on old wall

Michelangelo Fortress

Moon reflection in water from our balcony

We were back on board by 11:00 am and ended up just having a lazy day.  We ate lunch in the Lido then sat on our balcony reading our books.  We went to the Main Dining Room for dinner and then to the Billboard on Board for drinks and music before heading to our room for the night.

Monday - September 23, 2024                            Messina, Sicily

I got up at 7:30 am again, walked to the Crow's Nest and got cafe lattes for both of us.  We went to the observation deck by 8:30 am to view the Stromboli Volcano as the ship went past.  It was the only active volcano either of us has ever seen. 

Stromboli Volcano

Closeup view of Stromboli

Mike and Mary with Stromboli in the background

A small town on the side of the volcano

After viewing the volcano for an hour we went to the Lido for breakfast then went to our room and sat on our balcony to watch the passage through the Messina Strait.  After that we ate lunch in the Lido .The ship docked at 1:00 pm and we got off at 2:00 pm.  

Passage of Messina

Mary on balcony

More Messina Passage

Mike relaxing on balcony

Entrance into Messina port

View of Messina from ship

We walked four miles around the town of Messina.  There were a lot of churches.  I think we counted twelve from our balconly before getting off of the ship.  We spent 2 1/2 hours walking around and had a really good time.  The weather was excellent.

Messina Monument

MS Oosterdam

Mike

Mary

Inside Duomo of Messina Cathedral

Pretty ceilings in Messina Cathedral

More inside Messina Cathedral

Messina Cathedral and Bell Tower

Bell Tower - the figures move some each hour

Fountain of Orion

Antonello Piazza

Galleria Vittorio Emanuel - old and mostly
empty - there was a Burger King in one section

Outside of Galleria Vittorio Emanuel

Church with attached monastery

View of ship from the city

Interesting monument

Mike and Mary by a pretty church -
Salita della Caperrina

Falconieri fountain

Santa Pelagia - I walked up most of the 
steps to try to get a view, Mike did not

In front of the Messina Cathedral on way
back to ship

Messina Cathedral doors

Messina Cathedral Duomo

Statue next to Messina Cathedral

A pretty cathedral seen from ship

We got back on board by 4:30 pm, took showers, and got ready for dinner.  We had our pre-dinner drinks at the Billboard on Board bar.  The bartender there kept a bottle of Santa Margarita Pino Grigio cold for me there and kept Chimay beer on hand for Mike.  He was a really nice bartender and the servers here were good too.  We had discovered that we had $400 on board credit that we were not going to spend so we started giving all of our servers extra tips every time we got a drink.  We ate dinner in the Main Dining Room and it was really good.  We went back to the piano bar for drinks and music.  While sitting there we started talking to a couple from San Diego.  When we told them we lived about ten miles west of Fayetteville, Arkansas they asked if we were from Prairie Grove.  We were blown away!  Turns out they had a niece who had moved to Prairie Grove and teaches at the middle school.  Small world.  

Night time view of Messina

Another night view

The piano bar where we sat most nights

View of Messina as the ship leaves Sicily

We only sat for one set this night and were back in our room by 9:30 pm.  It had been a tiring but really fun day.

Tuesday - September 24, 2024                    Valletta, Malta

The ship docked in Valletta, Malta at 7:00 am.  I got up at 6:50 am, went to get my cafe latte, and sat on the balcony until Mike got up at 9:00 am.  

Beautiful Sunrise

Small Malta community

Entering Valletta Port

Valletta, Malta

We ate breakfast in the Lido then got off of the ship around 10:00 am.  We walked about 1/2 mile to the Barrakka Lift which took us to the the Upper Barrakka Gardens.  We walked around for a while until Mike's back started bothering him some.  He sat by the Triton Fountain in the shade for a while and I walked around looking at stuff.  

Mary and Mike in Upper Barrakka Gardens

Mary and Mike sitting in the garden

Small fountain in Upper Barrakka Garden

Church of St. Catherine of Italy

Ceiling in Church of St. Catherine

Alter of St. Catherine

Another part of ceiling in St. Catherine

Statue in Jean de Valette Square

Outdoor theater 

Mike sitting by Triton Fountain

Pedestrian walk in Valletta

Triton Fountain

Floriana in Valletta

Mary in front of Triton Fountain

After sitting for a little bit Mike was ready to walk again.  We walked around on some city streets until it became too crowded for us, then we headed back to the lifts and went back to the ship.  We ended up walking around 5 miles this day and were off the ship for about 3 hours.

Republic Street

Building on Republic Street

St. John's Cathedral - thought about going inside but the 
wait in line was an hour so didn't

Bell tower of St. John's Cathedral

Street with nice view

Typical building in Valletta

Pretty street

Our Lady of Victory Church

Saluting Battery at Upper Barrakka

Battery at Upper Barrakka

View of Valletta from Upper Barrakka

Upper Barrakka Gardens

Lift to Upper Barrakka Gardens

View of Upper Barrakka Garden Battery from Ship

After getting back on board we went to the Lido for lunch and to our room for naps.  About 5:30 pm we went to the Billboard on Board for pre-dinner drinks and ate dinner in the Main Dining Room.  We sat through one set of songs at the Billboard on Board and headed to bed about 9:30 pm.

Wednesday - September 25, 2024                                Sea Day                            

The first and only sea day of this cruise.  We both slept in.  When I got up I went to the Crow's Nest for my cafe latte then went to the Lido to eat breakfast.  When I was finished eating I got Mike a coffee and muffin to take back to the room.  We spent the day resting and reading our books.  We had our typical Lido lunch.  About 5:30 pm we went to the Billboard on Board for our pre-dinner drinks then went to the Main Dining Room for dinner.  After dinner we played music trivia in the Billboard on Board area with two other couples and our team won!  We sat through two sets at the piano bar.  We found out that the ship docking time for Kusadasi, Turkey on Thursday was changed and our excursion for Ephesus was changed from 7:00 am to 1:00 pm.  That meant we wouldn't have to get up early.  This was a good relaxing day.

Thursday - September 26, 2024                            Kusadasi (Ephesus), Turkey

I woke up at 7:00 am and went to get my cafe latte.  After sitting on the balcony drinking my coffee I went to the Lido for breakfast.  I got muffins and a coffee for Mike to take back to the room.  He's getting used to being pampered. We ate lunch in the Lido then went to the World Stage for our excursion at 1:00 pm.  This is the first excursion for this trip.  We got on a bus to Ephesus.  Our tour guide was very good.  We had ear buds and she spoke into a microphone so that we could hear her.  We were afraid that it would be very hot at Ephesus since it was in the afternoon, but there was a nice breeze and the temperature wasn't too bad.  We spent three hours walking from the upper to lower entrance of Ephesus.

Kusadasi sign and statue

Old fort

Ephesus

Old columns

More old columns

Old structure

Original Ephesus street

Statue

Old shop building

Another old building

Library of Celsus

Pomegranate Tree

Palm trees

In front of library

Another shot in front of the library

Coloseum

Old road

Turkish flags

Sunset

We got off the tour bus close to the ship and decided to skip the carpet factory.  I had read that this part wasn't very good and we were tired from all the walking at Ephesus.  We had considered walking around in Kusadasi, but didn't really see any area we would be interested in.

After getting back on board, we cleaned up, went for pre-dinner drinks, and dinner at the Main Dining Room.  We did our typical and sat for one set at the piano bar before heading back to our room at 10:00 pm.

Friday - September 27, 2024                            Rhodes, Greece

I got up at 7:00 am, took my fosamax medicine, after 30 minutes walked to the Crow's Nest to get a cafe latte, then sat on the balcony for a while. 

Sunrise

Rhodes

At 9:00 am Mike got up and we went to the Lido for breakfast then got off of the ship at 10:00 am.  We were able to walk to the entrance to old town Rhodes.  We walked to the old castle then around the old town on random streets.  

Dolphin Statue by the beach

Mike by fountain in plaza of old town Rhodes

Archeological Museum of Rhodes

Street in old town

Lion statue in Archeological Museum

Some interesting stairs

Suleymaniye Mosque

Palace of the Grand Master of the Knights of Rhodes

One entry into the castle

Mary in the castle courtyard

Garden next to the castle with interesting
statues

Mike resting in the garden

Statues being held up with straps in the garden

Statues in the palace

Pretty building in old town

Interesting street

Love the arches

Mosque

Gazebo by the mosque

A prety street view

Central plaza in old town

A final pretty street view

At noon we got a beer, glass of wine, and a couple of appetizers at a cafe.  Mike ordered a small local beer, but got a huge beer in a glass boot.   The appetizers were good and so was the beer and wine.  

Mike at the outdoor cafe

Mike and his 'small' beer

At the cafe waiting on food

Fried cheese balls and dolamide

Church of the Burgh Platiea

Pretty, clear water on walk back to ship

After eating we got back on the ship at 1:00 pm.  We rested then got ready for our normal dinner routine.  This was a very enjoyable day.  We really liked Rhodes.

Saturday - September 28, 2024                        Thira, Santorini, Greece

We had breakfast delivered to our room because we were getting on an excursion at 8:00 am.  We got off the ship and took a tender to the port where we got on the tour bus.  The bus took us up the mountain to the town of Thira, Greece on Santorini.  We walked around Thira for a while, got an expensive coke at a restaurant, then sat around waiting for the time to catch the bus back down to the tender port.  Santorini had some pretty buildings, but the only thing to do in this town was shop or eat at a restaurant.  Not our favorite place.

Mary and Mike in Thira

Steep walk up to a church

Thira

Mike on one of the streets

St. John the Baptist Cathedral

Pretty stonework in one of the streets

St. John the Baptist Cathedral

Thira

View of Oosterdam from Thira

Church in Thira

Ready to head back to the ship

Another church in Thira

Inside of large church we went into

Another shot inside of large church

Church we went inside of

Another view of the church

At 1:00 pm we caught the bus back to the tender port and got back on the ship where we ate lunch in the Lido.  We rested for a while, packed our bags, then got dressed up for dinner in the Pinnacle Grill.  Dinner was really good. Mike had shrimp cocktail, scallops, and chocolate souffle and I had the same except for crab cakes for my appetizer.  After dinner we went to the Billboard on Board for one last night.  It was a lot of fun.

View of Santorini from the ship

One last night at the piano bar

After going back to our room, we put our bags in the hall so they could be taken off the ship in the morning.  This was a very enjoyable cruise and we enjoyed the ports we stopped in.

Sunday - September 29, 2024                                    Athens, Greece

We got up about 7:30 am, ate breakfast in the Lido, and went back to our room to do the final packing of our backpacks.  We left our room about 8:30 am and waited in the Ocean Bar seating area until our time to get off of the ship at 9:00 am.  We enjoyed our time on the ship.  Once we found our checked luggage we got in line to get a taxi to our hotel.  We went to the spot that we were directed to and a guy waved at us and took us to his car.  We later decided that this wasn't a legitimate taxi.  As soon as our luggage was in the trunk and the car had left the port area, the driver told us that the fare would be 60-70 euros and that we would have to pay in cash.  If we had known this before taking off we would have taken a different car.  It took 15 minutes to get to our hotel, the Athens Mariott, and when the car stopped the driver told us it would be 80 euros cash.  This took all of our remaining euros except $20 and some change.  We were really upset that we had let ourselves get taken like this.    This was the only time on this trip that we felt like we were not treated right.

Pireaus Port

Buses and Taxis waiting for customers at the port

We got to the Athens Marriot by 9:30 am.  It was a really nice hotel and was extremely busy.  There were a lot of people getting ready to be taken to embark on the Oosterdam. There was even a table for Holland America in the lobby.  We got checked in and had to only wait for 30 minutes for our room to be ready.  At 10:00 am we got into our room then walked to a small grocery store and got some cokes, and food for lunch.  We had pita, turkey, and cheese sandwiches and grapes for lunch.  The grapes were very good.  We had also gotten some wine and a bag of popcorn to have this evening.  We rested in our room then went downstairs to the hotel bar for drinks and ate at the hotel restaurant.  We wanted to have a pizza for dinner, but the chef said the meat and dough might have contact with tree nuts.  He suggested grilled chicken skewers and french fries.  We shared an order of that and it was really good.  We went back to our room and called it a night.

Monday - September 30, 2024                        Athens Hop on Hop Off

After we both got up we went down to the hotel restaurant for breakfast.  We didn't have breakfast included so just ordered off the menu.  I got yogurt and fruit and Mike got chocolate croissant.  My yogurt was a huge bowl and Mike got a plate full of pastries plus we both got coffee.  The coffee in Greece is different than what we are used to.  We got a cafe latte, but it was served in a glass instead of a cup and was only warm, not hot.  After breakfast we planned to catch the HOHO outside the hotel, but found out that the Mariott provides a shuttle every hour to the downtown area next to the first HOHO stop.  We caught the HOHO and rode it for 2 1/2 hours without getting off.  There were not many seats available when we got on and most people did like us and just stayed on the entire loop.  We saw a lot of historic , interesting things.  I think we had done so much for the past two weeks that we were to tired to do any more.

Arch of Hadrian

Lime trees lining streets

Temple of Athena Nike

Parthenon

Acropolis of Arthenes

Mike on the HOHO

Mary on HOHO with Acropolis in 
background

Mary and Mike riding on HOHO

Monastery of Daphni

Arch of Hadrian

National Botanical Gardens

Hellenic Parliament

Random building

A pretty church

Olive trees lining the streets

Olympic Stadium

Mount Lycabettus

Another view of the Acropolis

Temple of Olympian Zeus

Changing of the Guard at Syntagma Square

National Archeological Museum

Art on grounds of Archeological Museum

Tzistarakis Mosque

Tzistarakis Mosque with Acropolis in background

Market

Fountain in a square in Athens

Another fountain in another square in Athens

Equestrian statue of Theodoros Kolokotronis

When we got off at the shuttle pick up spot we walked a couple of blocks to a cafe where we got a pizza.  It was a really good pizza, and just enough for the two of us.  

Street we walked down to get to pizza place

After lunch we walked back to the shuttle pickup spot, stopping at a sidewalk vendor to get a magnet.  When we got back to the shuttle, I discovered that the driver takes an hour break at that time so we had to wait an hour for the shuttle to return.  We sat on some benches in the shade and just waited.  When we got back to the hotel at 4:00 pm we walked back to the store for popcorn, wine, and a salad so we could eat pita sandwiches in our room for dinner.  This was a good day, but we are ready to be done touring for this trip.

Tuesday - October 1, 2024

We walked a block from the hotel to a coffee shop for breakfast.  It was a much better breakfast.  After that we just stayed in our room all day resting up for the long flight on Wednesday.  We had pita sandwiches for lunch and got club sandwiches at the hotel bar for dinner.  These club sandwiches were amazing.  They had ham, cheese, bacon, lettuce, tomato, mayonnaise, and an egg.  They were so big that we each only ate half (should have shared) so we got the leftovers to save for breakfast.  The sandwiches also came with fries.  The fries at this hotel are the best fries I have ever had.  They were steak cut and very crispy on the outside.  We went back to our room, I did online checkin for our flight, and ordered a taxi on Uber for the trip to the airport.

Wednesday - October 2, 2024                            Flight to Washington DC

The Uber taxi for the airport came at 7:00 am.  It was a good ride and only cost 50 euros for an hour ride.  Checkin at the airport was easy and we made it to our gate with two hours to spare.  We each got a coffee and ate our leftover club sandwiches for breakfast.  A strange thing, they cleared the gate for our flight and an hour before the flight we had to go through a security check to return to the waiting area.  Our flight left at 11:30 am and we made it to Scott's house by 5:00 pm.  We had a good trip but are glad to be back in the United States.

Thursday - October 3, 2024 through Tuesday - October 8, 2024            Burke, Virginia

We didn't do much except visit with family while we were at Scott and Cristin's house.  Elli and Oscar were out of school on Thursday and Friday so Mike and I got to spend a lot of time with them.  We were also able to go to Elli's cross country meet and Oscar's soccer game on Saturday.  That was a lot of fun.  Mike, Scott, and Oscar went fishing on Saturday afternoon and Sunday and had some pretty good luck.  On Tuesday Mike and I got an Uber to Reagan Airport.  Our flight was at 7:30 pm and was uneventful.

View of Washington Monument from
plane before takeoff

View of Washington Monument and the Capitol

Eric and the kids picked us up at XNA when our plane landed at 9:30 pm and we were home by 10:30 pm.  We had a really good, interesting trip.  We really enjoyed most of the places we visited and had really good weather.