Friday, we were up early (again) and out the door (again) to head for the port and begin our three-day cruise. It was a welcome change of pace. The next couple days would be the most tourist-y of the trip. Looking for tchotchkes, baubles, ornaments, tiles or boxes of baklava to bring home? Now was the time to do it.
We arrived about 40 minutes later at the port of Piraeus, where we began embarkation — a process that, as many cruisers know, can sometimes have a lot of long lines and waiting. But the process here was fast and flawless.
Within minutes, we had handed over our passports, gotten our room keys, strolled through security and walked out the door to our awaiting ship, the Miray Gemini.
As cruise ships go, no one would ever call the Gemini a state-of-the-art masterpiece. (I compared it at one point to “The Love Boat,” circa 1983.) It holds just 900 passengers and both the accommodations and amenities are modest. But it suited us just fine. We weren’t spending much time on the ship anyway, and it’s a comfortable place to crash after a long day walking on cobblestones and slipping on marble. The staff is unfailingly kind and attentive.
Siobhain and I were given a junior suite, with two large windows with an obstructed view looking out onto lifeboats. We were on Deck 7, close to all the elevators and stairs — the whole ship, really, was fairly easy to navigate — and our cabin sits just above the consistent, comforting hum of the engine, which rumbles under our feet and lulls us to sleep.
The Gemini has a certain charm. And the scenery surrounding us once we set sail was unbeatable.
The meals are good and filling, offered at two restaurants, with slightly staggered hours. Nobody should have any excuse to go to bed hungry.
Dinners typically include a lengthy array of cheeses, lettuce, and various salad dressings, along with hot dishes that included a beef, chicken, and some form of fish. (Herring was the choice one night). Although the passengers come from all over the place, with a lot of Europeans, there are some dishes clearly geared toward American taste buds; pasta at dinner and pancakes for breakfast were typical. And then there are desserts! Every kind of baklava imaginable — which, in Greece, is put out at breakfast, too — plus tiramisu, cakes, assorted pastries, pudding and, yes, fruit.
At the start of the cruise, we were issued tickets which entitled us to complimentary soda, juice or wine at any meal. My one quibble (and this is something that extended throughout Greece, wherever we went): almost nobody offers coffee after lunchtime. For that, you need to find a coffee house somewhere.
Late Friday, we had Mass in one of the lounges (a disco, actually), and Siobhain and I celebrated at sea our 38th wedding anniversary. Father Jeremy offered us a blessing.
It was a perfect end to our first day at sea. Many in our party took advantage of an evening excursion to Mykonos, to shop and drink in the atmosphere (or other things). We opted to call it a day and stay on the ship.
Saturday, we were up early for breakfast — another buffet, with everything from Greek pastries to American-style pancakes, scrambled eggs and every kind of vegetable you can imagine. We then gathered in one of the lounges to connect with our tour manager, Kerri, who passed out our tickets and led us down to the tenders to enjoy a short ferry ride to the tourist mecca, Santorini.
Leaving the Gemini, we got our first glimpse at just how small she is compared to the new luxury liners that were dropping anchor nearby. In the picture below, that’s the Gemini on the right, next to one of the newer Royal Caribbean creations.
The ferry took us to a pier, where we boarded a bus for a roughly 40-minute ride to the heart of the island, the village of Oia. Once we got off the bus, we found ourselves confronting almost every single tourist in the world. (Or so it seemed.) Mobs of shoppers, walkers, browsers, you name it. Everywhere, people were dipping into stores, pausing to gawk, taking selfies, stopping to read menus, looking nervously for the nearest public restroom. (They are few, by the way, and you need a euro to pay for entry.) Along the way, we often passed porters, hoisting wheeled suitcases up the stone streets, leading guests from their taxis to boutique hotels overlooking the Aegean. Welcome to peak season in Santorini.
But for all that, I have to say, the famous scenery is spectacular and selfie-worthy.
The souvenir shops sell all the usual stuff. If you love blue and white, this is the place for you.
There are abundant places to eat. We chose King Neptune’s, near the village center. You walk up a steep flight of stairs to tables scattered around a rooftop dining area, partially shaded to block the sun.
Oh: and you can see the water.
We ordered souvlaki (22 euros). It came with french fries and vegetables and it was jaw-droppingly good.
I told the owner, “Do you know Astoria, New York?” He nodded excitedly. “I know it,” he said in heavily-accented English. “Never been.”
“I used to live there,” I told. him. “This is the best chicken I’ve had since I moved from there 30 years ago.” He beamed. I have no idea if he understood what I was saying. But I meant every word of it. The Greeks just know how to do chicken.
After a couple hours of window-shopping and seeing endless white walls and limitless blue skies and water, we headed back to the bus, and then to the ferry. We made a pitstop at the restrooms near the ferry. Again, crowds. Our guide, Kerri, led the way. You can’t see her in the image below, but she’s the one carrying the red flag.
After we survived that, we headed back to the Gemini.
Sunday — Trinity Sunday — we are scheduled to visit what for me will be two high points on this pilgrimage: Mary’s House at Ephesus (where we are scheduled to celebrate Mass) and the cave where St. John wrote the Book of Revelation, with a helpful assist from his scribe, the deacon St. Prochorus.
For now, we continue our glide across the sea on the good ship Gemini, waving farewell to Santorini and turning toward our next stop, the Turkish port of Kusadasi.
