T100G's Anne Kennedy Hosts Regent Mariner Cruise from Athens to Istanbul

On September 24th, 2013 Stan and I hosted the Signature Travel Network Group aboard the Regent Seven Seas Mariner from Athens to Istanbul.  We stopped in Santorini, Crete, and Haifa, Israel, and overnight in Ashdod, Israel, Cyprus, Rhodes, Antalya, Turkey, Kusadasi to visit Ephesus, and ended overnight in Istanbul.

Beautiful building in Greece

We arrived in Athens two days early to rest and visit the new museum at the Parthenon. Don't miss this excellent museum!  Architecturally, it's sensational.  You will understand perfectly the purpose and layout of the Parthenon.  Plan to have lunch on the patio of the restaurant where you will have delicious food and a magnificent view of the buildings of the Parthenon.

We visited Santorini and toured to charming Oira and Fira.  Too many cruise ships in port that day caused crowds in the narrow streets and a two-hour wait for the funicular down to the port.  Spoils the experience!

On Crete our ship was small enough to dock at the port in Agios Nikolaos and we skipped the trip to Heraklion to visit the Palace of Knossos.  We had been before and decided to wander in this charming town.  It was a delight.  We actually witnessed two weddings and a funeral!





Intrepid travelers in Old Jerusalem

In Israel we visited the Golan Heights and were 25 miles from Damascus. We had hired a private guide for four of us for our time in Israel.  It was a great thing to do. We saw so much more this way. I highly recommend spending one night off of the ship in Jerusalem to see more of Israel and avoid the long drive back and forth to port.  I hadn't been to Israel for about 25 years and was astounded at the prosperity and growth all over the country.  There are many new highways and lots of traffic!  Jerusalem has really grown, as has Tel Aviv.  We loved our time in Jerusalem and the artistic old port city of Haifa.  My nervous companions were amazed by their first visit to Israel. Our guide was a Sabra and had a deep understanding of the complexity of this part of the world.

 

We really enjoyed the island of Cyprus, the Ancient Theater, and the beautiful Roman mosaics found on the island.  We sailed to many places visited by Ulysses on his Odyssey.

The spot on Cyprus where they say Andromeda was chained and rescued by Perseus

All throughout this part of the world, you will walk and climb without handrails to visit many wonderful ancient sites.  The Ancient Gods were worshipped at the highest points in the landscape to be close to heaven! 

Next stop was in the southwest of Antalya to visit a newly constructed seaside resort.  It's a lovely clean town.

Roman Mosaic in Cyprus

On to Rhodes where we visited the Acropolis of Lindos which is an amazingly beautiful site.  It's a serious hike over very uneven ground to get to the top of the Acropolis. A cold front had moved in and the winds were quite frightening without any handrails.  A few people had their sunglasses blow off and they were lost forever!!  In the afternoon, we visited the Old City of Rhodes where in January of 1523 the last of the Christian Knights of St. John were allowed to leave when Rhodes came under the Ottoman Empire.  This part of the world has known many conquerors and it keeps happening. Don't miss the Palace of the Grand Master, an enormous castle with relics from the medieval period as well as ancient sculptures and 1st century floor mosaics brought from the island of Kos.

 

Ruins of the Acropolis at Lindos

Then on to Kusadasi to visit Ephesus, an amazing site.  Cleopatra visited in her barge when Ephesus was in its glory.  The harbor silted in and the city lost its ancient world glory.  The city was home to the Temple of Artemis, one of The Seven Wonders of the Ancient World.  The well-restored Library of Celsus is a highlight.  Be sure to visit the newly restored Terrace Houses.  They are reminiscent of visiting Pompeii but much more complete.  Very beautiful.  Kusadasi has grown hugely since our last visit.  There are wonderful shops full of glorious Turkish treasures.

We ended the trip in Istanbul.  This is one of my most favorite cities in the world.  It is so exotic.  We stayed in the old town Sultanahmet Four Seasons Hotel which is one of my favorite hotels.  It is small and intimate with excellent service and delicious food.  You would never know it was a former prison.   All the exotic treasures of old Istanbul are close by. 

The Turks are among the most hospitable people in the world.  We had our own private guide who took us on ferries to the Asian part of Istanbul and updated us on the changes in politics and culture in Turkey. The day we left, headscarves became legal for women

Tile decoration at Four Seasons
Hotel Sulahamet Istanbul

to wear in Parliament.  After Ataturk made the whole country secular, this is a large symbolic shift in the opposite direction.  Traffic in Istanbul is horrific.  One way to circumvent this is to take a private water taxi across the Bosphorus which cost about $50 for four of us.  Well worth the money to avoid the aggravation of being stuck in horrible traffic. 

One interesting tip!  When you arrive to check in at the Istanbul Airport, you have to put all of your luggage on a conveyor belt to be screened before you even check in at your airline.  We encountered long lines for an early afternoon flight.  We went through three levels of security.  It's well worth it to hire a porter outside the airport to help you.  If you use a tour operator, assistance through security can also be included.

Next April, Stan and I will host the Regent Seven Seas Voyager from Bangkok to Dubai with stops in Thailand, Kuala Lumpur, Penang, Phuket, Sri Lanka, Cochin, India, Goa, India and Mumbai, India.  Stay tuned. 

--Anne Kennedy, Travel 100 Group