Last night we lost another hour. We are now GMT+3, Eastern Europe Time (EET) and in the same
time zone as Athens.
We anchored about 0930 this morning in the bay of Zakynthos. This
is the third largest island of the Ionian Islands. It is not a large island
(only about 160 sq miles). We were able to sleep in “late”, arising around
0700. We explored the laundry this morning but decided to put it off until this
afternoon. This afternoon, we decided to put it off until tomorrow.
We ate breakfast in the Grand Dining Room before going to the
lounge at 1000. The seas were relatively smooth, but there were swells which
caused delays in the tendering operations. We did not get ashore until about
1100.
We boarded a mega bus and started our tour. The guide was a native German named Dogmar who has been on the island for the past thirty years and has been a tour guide for 12 years. T and I agreed she set a new low as a guide and did not even tempt us to leave her with a gratuity. Before we left the ship, the cruise director warned everyone that there was a 97% chance of rain today. Therefore we took our Oceania supplied umbrella and, of course, it did not rain at all. This is in contrast to yesterday in Taormina where the same cruise director told us it would not rain at all and it rained off and on all day long.
We boarded a mega bus and started our tour. The guide was a native German named Dogmar who has been on the island for the past thirty years and has been a tour guide for 12 years. T and I agreed she set a new low as a guide and did not even tempt us to leave her with a gratuity. Before we left the ship, the cruise director warned everyone that there was a 97% chance of rain today. Therefore we took our Oceania supplied umbrella and, of course, it did not rain at all. This is in contrast to yesterday in Taormina where the same cruise director told us it would not rain at all and it rained off and on all day long.
The tour consisted of a drive up the mountain side to an overlook
point.
We then continued over the highest mountain on the island, stopping at a Greek Orthodox Church which, apparently, likes tourists. Our guide noted that the bell tower is ALWAYS separate from the church itself. I don't know if that is a rule or just a guideline.
Near the top of the mountain, we stopped for lunch. It was good Greek food. We had ouzo (very potent). The single plate lunch contained a couple of sausages, a couple of meat balls, a feta cream cheese inside a pastry, dolmades, tsatsiki and a slice of bread. It was very good and very filling. They also put on a floor show of Greek dancing and got many of the guests to participate (not us however).
We then continued over the highest mountain on the island, stopping at a Greek Orthodox Church which, apparently, likes tourists. Our guide noted that the bell tower is ALWAYS separate from the church itself. I don't know if that is a rule or just a guideline.
Near the top of the mountain, we stopped for lunch. It was good Greek food. We had ouzo (very potent). The single plate lunch contained a couple of sausages, a couple of meat balls, a feta cream cheese inside a pastry, dolmades, tsatsiki and a slice of bread. It was very good and very filling. They also put on a floor show of Greek dancing and got many of the guests to participate (not us however).
We arrived back at the dock at about 1530 and caught the tender to
the ship.
Once on board, we changed and headed for the bar. We sat for awhile in the Martini Bar until they started the nightly trivia game. We moved to the quieter part of the bar, but still could hear the Moderator (the Cruise Director) hosting the game. The one thing I remember him saying is that the use of internet connected devices during the game was not allowed. He quickly followed this comment up with the adage that, due to the speed and quality of the on-board internet connection, it would not be of any help anyway. Everyone laughed, but it really was not funny. This ship’s internet service is a disgrace.
Once on board, we changed and headed for the bar. We sat for awhile in the Martini Bar until they started the nightly trivia game. We moved to the quieter part of the bar, but still could hear the Moderator (the Cruise Director) hosting the game. The one thing I remember him saying is that the use of internet connected devices during the game was not allowed. He quickly followed this comment up with the adage that, due to the speed and quality of the on-board internet connection, it would not be of any help anyway. Everyone laughed, but it really was not funny. This ship’s internet service is a disgrace.
Tonight we will have no specialty restaurant reservations, so we
will dine in the Grand Dining Room. Once on board, I realized I left my glasses
on the bus. That is too bad. I brought two extra pairs just in case.
Tomorrow we were supposed to anchor in the Greek port of Santorini. We had no
shore excursion reserved (yeah!), but thought we might go ashore and take the cable car
to the city and view the renowned village. However, the Captain just announced
that due to forecasted weather conditions, we will not anchor at Santorini but,
instead, will dock at Aghios Nikolaos (Saint Nicholas), Crete tomorrow.
After tomorrow, we have a day on the Aegean Sea before docking at
Piraeus, Greece, the port of Athens. We will stay three nights in Athens before
heading home next Sunday, May 8.
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