Olympia, Greece

The monuments described below do not include the ruins of an ancient city because Olympia was not a city. Olympia was a sanctuary of Zeus, one of the most important in Greece, and at the same time it was a panhellenic center for contests, where the most brilliant games in ancient Greece were held. Therefore, the buildings erected at various times were intended either for worship or to serve the games.

The Sanctuary of Olympia is expansive, beautiful, and very peaceful. The trees within are full of birds, chirping and flying among the ruins. There is so much history and mythology related to this place that even my brief introduction to it was overwhelming. The photos below will give you a sense of it.

Here is a model of Olympia showing the most important structures as they once stood.

The Temple of Zeus is the one with the white roof. The one at 10 o’clock is the Temple of Hera. The green area in the upper right at about 1 o’clock is the stadium, and the grey conical shape to the right of Hera’s Temple is the Altar to Hera. Foreground red roofs are of the gymnasium.

This is what it looks like today.

Temple of Zeus—Most splendid building in the Sanctuary--best one for the head god—has been destroyed several times.


In it was a statue of Zeus which was made of ivory and gold. This was one of the ancient wonders of the world.


Temple of Hera-- Built in 600 BC, it is thought to be the oldest temple in Greece.

At the Altar of Hera, in front of the temple, is where the Olympic torch is lit. From here, it is taken to Athens by runners and then throughout the world until it reaches the host country where it lights the Olympic flame that burns throughout the games.
The Stadium wasn’t excavated until 1958-61. According to tradition, the length of the stadium is 600 ancient feet long said to have been fixed by Hercules who measured it with his own feet. Our guide said that this length is known as a stadia, hence the name for the place as stadium.


Here are some columns that once were part of the gymnasium.


After a pleasant morning within the Sanctuary of Olympia, we went to a local hotel where we had a wonderful Greek lunch.


And were entertained by Greek dancers.

The spirit of Zeus and Zorba linger with me as we sail toward Santorini.

Corfu, Greece

Countess Flamburiari said that Corfu Town, the island’s capital, was: “Venice and Naples, a touch of France and more than a dash of England, apart of course from being Greek.” Driving through the town, it is the architecture that shows you what she meant.

The Doge of Venice ruled this island for decades and some of the people still speak Italian (Venetian dialect). The New Fort was built by the Venetians which is obvious with the Lion of St. Mark displayed on the walls.



Venetian buildings, featuring airy balconies with wrought-iron railings and window grilles, abound. Many are in need of repair.



The British landmark in town is the Georgian style Palace of St. Michael and St. George (1824) which was the Governor’s Official Residence. The British also brought cricket and ginger beer which are still around today.



The French influence is seen in arched buildings of the Liston on the southern side of Spinada Square, the town center, which were copied from Paris’ Rue de Rivoli.

Our drive through Corfu Town also passed the central market. These women buying the vegetables look different than those I photographed in Spain, don’t they? Notice the older woman on the left in the black clothing.



The Island of Corfu is the seventh largest and western-most of the 3,000 Greek Islands. It is just off the coast of Albania and Greece. At its closest point, it is only 1.5 miles from Albania.

It does not have the traditional white houses with blue trim or churches with blue domes as is characteristic of most Greek islands, but it does have beautiful beaches and coastlines. Unfortunately, it was very overcast this morning when we made our way up one of the mountains, going through little villages with just inches to spare on each side of the bus, to get this view of Paleokastritsa.



This close-up of one of the bays gives a hint of how beautiful the water color could be a la scenes from Mama Mia. The pink flowering trees are Judas Trees.



As we scraped by the buildings, I saw this sign in one of the small mountain villages which I captured for all of my technology-loving friends just in case you need to know how to say or read “computer-multimedia” in Greek.



The main industry in Corfu is the production of olive oil. There are over four million olive trees on the island, many of them 300 to 400 years old. Here they rarely prune them, so they are taller and wider than olive trees elsewhere in Greece. They use the Italian method of collecting the olives. They simply put nets under the trees and gather the olives as they fall.



As we were leaving Corfu in the afternoon, the sun came out briefly, so I got this shot of the Old Town of Corfu where you can see the Old Fort and the red bell tower of St. Spyridon Church.

In port in Dubrovnik

We are docked in Dubrovnik today. I had not purchased any shore excursions since I had toured this interesting city and surrounding area quite extensively in 2007. 


Here are some photos I took during that visit.  The first one is a overview of the old part of the city.

Here is looking back the opposite direction from inside the city out to through the marina.

The belltower/clocktower looms over the city with marina in background.

This is a view of the setting sun through one of the windows in the wall that surrounds the old city.

I am glad I didn't go ashore today since it is raining.  It was raining the first day I visited in 2007, too.  The rain glistens on the white marble walkways in the city, giving it quite a different "feel" than when the sun is shining on the buildings as shone above.

 So, this rainy day was a perfect day to do the more quiet things offered on board. I read some this morning, then I took in a movie at noon. The ship shows current feature films every day three times a day. They even serve popcorn. This is the first one I took advantage of.

I went to High Tea which is served everyday from 3 to 4 p.m. The waiter asked if I would mind sharing a table, and this interesting man joined me. He is the new priest on board. The one who had been with us for the first tour disembarked in Rome, and this one came on board there.



He has been studying in Rome since February. He told me about his studies, his Holy Week experiences at the Vatican, and a little about his parish and school. He is a diocesan priest from Minneapolis. His former bishop is a priest that I knew from the Diocese of Albany. We had a delightful conversation over Earl Grey, tea sandwiches, scones, and little sweets.

It was a soft day, as the Irish say.

Early this morning, we passed Stromboli, one of Europe’s active volcanoes. A couple of hours later, we transited the Straits of Messina. It was very foggy and overcast, so we couldn’t see much. I am glad that we will be passing this way again on our way back to Rome, so I might get a better look.

We are now in the Ionian Sea sailing past the heel of Italy’s boot to the Adriatic Sea en route to Dubrovnik. We arrive there tomorrow. I am spending the day catching up on my laundry and resting.

Additions and Corrections to Previous Posts

Even though I can go back and edit previous posts (which I will when I get home), I am not doing it now because it just takes too long and time is precious on ship internet. Therefore, I thought I would just post some Additions and Corrections to Previous Posts as a reminder for me and to keep my information to you as accurate as possible. Most of the information and stories I post are from the guides, so I don’t know how accurate they are or if they are just spicing up the narrative to make it more interesting….as I am trying to do, too.

Almeria: The village where the story Blood Wedding took place is Cortijos de Fraile. The name of cured ham is jamon Serrano that I saw in Nijer.

Ibezia: The artist who did such great fake Impressionist paintings that they even fooled the experts lived here. Orson Wells made a movie, FAKE, based on him. Clifford Irving, the guy who wrote the unofficial biography of Howard Hughes, also lived here and was friends with the artist. The movie about him was called HOAX.
St. Paul de Vence: The name of the game is not bocci ball, but petanques (accent on the e) or boules. (Sorry, but I am not using the Spanish and French accents because it is too difficult to switch from keyboard to keyboard. I’ll fixed those when I get home.)

Orvieto: The rock was not cut by man, as our driver said. (I thought that was a bit unbelievable when he said it.) In a tour book that I read this morning, it described the rock this way, “a shear tufa outcrop, the remains of volcanoes fractured by millennia of ice, sun and rain.” Sounds more like it, doesn’t it? The name of the lake at Marta is Lake Bolsena.

Civitavecchia, Orvieto, and Umbria, Italy

I am on what Holland America calls a “Collector’s Voyage” which allows you to take two separate cruises and turn it into one. Today is “turn-around” day, that is, some people who selected the first cruise are now disembarking at Civitavecchia (the port for Rome), while those who selected only the second cruise are boarding to take the second cruise only.

The port is quite a distance from Rome. I understand taxi fare to the city is about $125. Thankfully, when I end the second cruise here, I will be transported to the hotel by my travel group, Vantage. We will spend two nights in Rome, and then they will transport me to the airport. These two transports and two nights would cost about $500. I know I paid for this service, but it is sure nice not to have to plan and worry with all of that. When I return Rome in ten days, I will visit some of my favorite places there.

So instead of staying on the ship today, eight of us in the Vantage group had made arrangements several days ago to have a private driver take us to Orvieto, Marta and Tarquinia—all in Umbria.

Unfortunately, we encountered rain most of the day, so the views from atop Orvieto were muted, the lake at Marta was grey like the sky, and the outside Etruscan ruins and tombs at Tarquinia were too wet to slog around in. The photos, consequently, are not so great, but they give you an idea of what I saw.

Orvieto is an impressive hilltop town. The mountain slopes were carved away to make a steep vertical when the it was built hundreds of years ago to thwart invaders. Even Pope Clement VII moved his whole court here for protection while Rome was being pillaged in 1527.

The Duomo dominates the town. Construction on it began in 1290.

It reminds me of the one in Florence with its exterior pink and green marble and beautiful mosaics.

By contrast, the interior is simple, also like Florence.

Not many people were out this rainy Sunday morning, but there was a display of classic Citroen cars in the piazza.


The men of the town seemed interested in them as well as gathering to discuss the news of the day.

A few shops were open, like this ceramic and souvenir store.


And this one in the Alley of Craftsmen which specialized in olive wood carvings.

But what really took my eye with this cluster of flowers. They reminded me of Walt Whitman’s poem, “When Lilacs By the Door Yard Bloom’d.”


Next, we drove to the little town of Marta to see a lake. (I didn’t catch the name of it). The grey sky blunted the color of the water. It has two islands in it, and a park with a walk around the edge.


We had planned to eat lunch in Marta, but we couldn’t because every restaurant was booked by families celebrating their children’s First Communion. So we headed to Tarquinia and ate in a lovely café, the San Marco. A guitarist played for us while we enjoyed the excellent Orvieto wine and food.


As I said, we didn’t stay to examine the Etruscan antiquities found in Tarquinia because of the rain. We returned to the ship earlier than planned. I am glad because after a full week of touring, I am tired. Tomorrow we will be at sea, so it will be a leisurely day.

Monaco, Nice, and St. Paul de Vence

Monaco is best known for its Monte Carlo Casino, Princess Grace Kelley, and the historic Grimaldi Family into which she married.

The Casino was established in the mid-19th Century as a last ditch effort to fund the tiny principality. It worked. And the rich and famous have come here to live and play ever since. The architect and designer, Charles Garnier, also designed the Paris Opera House.


But since I have been to Monaco and the nearby village of Eze before, I chose to visit a French town named St. Paul de Vence.

We left Monaco on the Middle Corniche road that winds along the French Riviera coast through Nice, passing the famous Promenade des Anglais.


We turned inland, and after traveling about 20 miles, we saw St. Paul de Vence—a medieval city with an imposing silhouette. Perched high upon an escarpment, it is the quintessential fortified town of Provence.


Painters such as Modigliani, Signac and Soutine met at a local café which has since become the sumptuous Colombe d’Or. This was a favorite of such as Ava Gardner, Paul Newman, and it is where many current movie stars come while attending the film festival in near-by Cannes.




The town has narrow streets that open occasionally into little courtyards.


Expensive shops and art galleries are abundant that cater to the summer residents.


But the great treasure for me was to learn that Marc Chagall lived the last 33 years of his life here. He is buried in this cemetery.


His tomb is simple. Jews place stones on tombs instead of flowers. You can see the stones placed on Chagall’s tomb here with a beautiful rosemary bush in bloom at its head.


Nearby, a local lady was placing flowers on a grave.


A favorite pastime in France is bocci ball. St. Paul has such bocci ball park where these men were involved in the sport.


We came back “home” to the Noordam which was nestled in the small port next to this big yacht that has a helioport on top!


Au revoir to Monaco and the beautiful Cote d’Azure.

Barcelona, Spain

On the City Tourist Bus map, the following words are used to introduce one to Barcelona: Mediterranean, Modernistic, Gaudi, Gothic, Walkable, Gastronomical, Cultural, and Olympic.

Eight hours in such a magnificent city is ridiculously scant, but they were enough to give me an introduction to a place I hope to visit in depth in the future. So this synopsis is just a teaser.

The first view of the city I saw was from Montjuic. Clearly, La Sagrada Familia Temple and the Cathedral, along with a strange Cucumber, shaped edifice dominate the cityscape.

Also on Montjuic we passed the 1992 Olympic stadium and other venues marked by this symbol.


La Sagrada Familia is Gaudi’s masterpiece. Begun in 1882, it is still under construction with a hoped-for completion by 2020. Construction is paid for by tourist entrance fees. It has three fronts or facades: the Birth of Christ, the Passion, and the Death and Resurrection. Each façade bears four soaring towers which represent the Twelve Apostles, four monumental bell towers representing the Evangelists, and two colossal domes, dedicated to The Virgin and to Christ, respectively.


The facades have many niches with scenes from Jesus’ life. Instead of telling these stories in stained glass as many cathedrals do, it is done in stone. Here are some:



Presentation


Jesus as Carpenter



Passion Façade



Judas Kiss



The Cathedral is the center around which medieval Barcelona revolves. The construction of the current cathedral began in 1448. It is currently being renovated, much of which is being paid by commercial sponsors. Even though the city is predominantly Catholic, the guide said that only few practice the religion.


Choir in center of Church 1390



Lecturn and Paschal Candle with Easter Flowers


What I found most interesting was the cloister. It had a lovely small fountain topped by a figure of St. George, the Patron Saint of Barcelona.

St. George Fountain


Ducks live in the cloister. I watched them preening themselves.


The monument of Christopher Columbus is at the base of Las Ramblas, the fashionable wide shopping street, where it meets the Mediterranean.

He is pointing out to sea…where I am now sailing away from Barcelona on my way to Monte Carlo.