Today is a day of true transition for this Byzantine Tour, because today we shift from land to sea. Every year I have been more and more enthusiastic about the shipboard portions of our travels, leading up to this trip when I literally could not wait to get on the ship. I think it comes down to the miracle of traveling from city to city in your sleep without moving a single suitcase. It is the hotel that moves.
And you foodies should be looking forward to seeing the food at sea, because we are cruising on Crystal again and their food is fantastic. I know you love their menus oh so much.
Our last breakfast on land for nearly two weeks.
Entering the Grande Bretagne Hotel.
This is kind of funny. We are staying at the King George Palace Hotel next door, which looks very unimpressive when you enter. Meanwhile, the Grande Bretagne Hotel next door looks like a palace.
We saw many incredible rooms and suites, but I will not bore you with those pics. We finished up a nice inspection of the hotel, and then we headed back next door to our hotel for a business lunch.
I started with the Soup of the day. I am pretty sure it was butternut squash. Not sure. (Hey, I take a picture of the menu and then copy the info for you, but when it is a special I got no data to share.)
Barbie started with the Iceberg salad with smoked salmon and shrimps. (You have to love shrimps.)
I had the Lamb chops with winter vegetables. (I made that up. It was another special which means, again, no data.)
Barbie had the Vegetable risotto with parmesan leaves again. (Hey, if you love something, order it again. And she was also being smart and ordering an appetizer for her meal, but then they brought a larger portion which defeated that purpose.)
I failed the men at this lunch. We were sitting with two lovely young women from an Athens based tour company as well as a lovely lady from the hotel, and I did not take a shot of everyone at the table. You should be angry with me. I need to always do a table panorama. I need to do this. I do not.
We got our bags and headed to the ship.
On our way to the car, I grabbed this shot of the smashed marble steps of the King George Palace Hotel. This is all that was harmed during the demonstrations. No idea why the marble was smashed, or if it is being blamed on "paid thugs" or not.
A quick drive to the port and...
The Crystal Serenity, our floating hotel for the next twelve days.
The grand plaza of the Crystal Serenity. You might recall that last year we cruised on Serenity's sister ship, the Crystal Symphony. Therefore we have the odd feeling of having been here before even though we have not been here before. There are slight difference with this sister ship, but not many.
Our stateroom room. I am strange, I know, because I enter a room like this and think, "We could live in a space this size forever." It is perfectly designed to make the most of all the space, and offers everything that one needs in a home.
I really, really, really like this shot of Barbie in the stateroom mirror. As you can see, we are all moved into our teeny casa on the sea.
They made us put on life vests and sit in the theater while they told us that this cruise ship may in fact be a death trap. As you can see, Barbie is more calm about our inevitable watery graves than I am.
And soon enough, dinner! We were seated at a table with four Brits. A charming married couple and two lovely women who were travelling together. Our lovely dining companions for this cruise have expressed a desire to not be photographed, which means you will never get to see these four lovely grandparents.
Barbie started with the Baby Spinach Salad; with Creamy Mustard Dressing, Bacon Bits and Boiled Egg.
I started with the Northern Crab Soup; with Brie Cheese.
For dinner we both had the Roasted Wisconsin Veal Chop; With Rosemary Gravy, Angel Hair Pasta, Wild Mushrooms, and Broccoli.
And for the Bon Voyage dessert...
I had the Chocolate Ooze Cake a la mode.
Barbie had the Refreshing Orange Sherbet.
Before you knew it, we were asleep.
Until tomorrow...
And you foodies should be looking forward to seeing the food at sea, because we are cruising on Crystal again and their food is fantastic. I know you love their menus oh so much.
Again, you can do a lot worse than seeing the Parthenon atop the Acropolis while you eat eggs and fruit.
Next door to the King George Palace Hotel one finds the Grande Bretagne Hotel, which is a Westin. Barbie has arranged a site inspection for us.
We saw many incredible rooms and suites, but I will not bore you with those pics. We finished up a nice inspection of the hotel, and then we headed back next door to our hotel for a business lunch.
I failed the men at this lunch. We were sitting with two lovely young women from an Athens based tour company as well as a lovely lady from the hotel, and I did not take a shot of everyone at the table. You should be angry with me. I need to always do a table panorama. I need to do this. I do not.
We got our bags and headed to the ship.
A quick drive to the port and...
And soon enough, dinner! We were seated at a table with four Brits. A charming married couple and two lovely women who were travelling together. Our lovely dining companions for this cruise have expressed a desire to not be photographed, which means you will never get to see these four lovely grandparents.
And for the Bon Voyage dessert...
Before you knew it, we were asleep.
Until tomorrow...
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