GEMS OF THE AEGEAN SEPTEMBER 2009 Part 8

GEMS OF THE AEGEAN SEPTEMBER 2009
Part 8

Wednesday 16th September 2009
We arrived at the island of Rhodes at 7. a.m. under wide blue skies, in ever-increasing heat. Most of us remember that its great landmark was one of the Seven Wonders of the World: the Colossus of Rhodes, which collapsed after an earthquake about 225 B.C. After breakfast, we were treated to the sight of our esteemed Ocean Liner Society Chairman standing on the quayside outside our several port side cabins – he was kindly taking photographs of several of us at our individual portholes, using our individual cameras, so he was rather festooned with them.

Then it was off to the Old City, enjoying the sight of the other cruise ships and local vessels as we walked around the harbour path.







In one view we could see CRISTAL, AQUAMARINE, GRAND MISTRAL and AIDA DIVA, and in the next we could see AIDA DIVA, EASYCRUISE LIFE, MARMARIS EXPRESS and AQUAMARINE.

We could also see our little gem (AEGEAN PEARL) berthed between a BLUE STAR vessel and GEMINI.

The route wended its way under the shade of trees and amongst brilliantly coloured flowers, and led us to the Tourist Information Bureau. Outside this and unexpectedly set into the path were seven attractive stone mosaic pictures, all of particular sports.







They were of weightlifting, running, handball, rowing, swimming, wrestling and basketball.

The coffee stop was in the harbour on board a floating restaurant ‘Kontiki’, with far-reaching views from the top deck.







A small Ice Lounge vessel turned nearby, allowing us to see that it was a glass-bottomed boat offering half hour cruises. She turned in front of Symi II.







A Salamis Lines vessel could be seen far away between Rhodes and the distant Turkish mountains, and a grey hulled naval vessel suddenly rushed past the harbour with a flurry of foam and testosterone.


A streamlined private yacht sailed out of the harbour accompanied by yearning noises from several watchers; we noticed ‘Aquaholic’ moored nearby, and a Love Boat - no, not the famous one, but No. 36. We approached AIDA DIVA and I was persuaded to purse my lips so that the obligatory photo could be taken of me appearing to kiss the red lips on her bow.

Back on board AGEAN PEARL, we all enjoyed lunch and then settled on our favourite aft deck to watch the harbour events. BLUE STAR 1 came in and soon left with her new passengers;
a small freighter GEPA at a nearby quay appeared to be loading bags of fertiliser; AQUAMARINE had us reeling back from her black smoke as she started engines and prepared to leave; Anek Line’s IERAPETRA L came in and soon left; meanwhile our tug appeared to be losing the battle to get us off the quay because of the strength of the prevailing wind, so other cruise ships left instead, whilst we had to wait.

With more space for manoeuvres we were finally underway and able to leave Rhodes harbour, and watch SYMI 2 sail past.










The light was still beautiful so we enjoyed the sea views until it was time to prepare our Elegant Attire for the Captain’s Cocktail Party in the Clipper Lounge before dinner.

We paid our respects to Captain Stathis Goumas with the usual handshakes and thanks and enjoyed another happy meal in the Restaurant before an evening on the aft deck. This time we were sailing 171 nautical miles to our next port: Heraklion, in Crete.

Ships seen: Marmaris Express, Blue Star 1, Ierapetra L, Gemini, Flying Dolphin 1 and 2, Aida Diva, Cristal, Aquamarine, Grand Mistral, easyCruise Life, Ice House, Simi 2, Love Boat No. 36, Gepa

To be concluded...

GEMS OF THE AEGEAN SEPTEMBER 2009 Part 7

GEMS OF THE AEGEAN SEPTEMBER 2009
Part 7 - on board The AEGEAN PEARL

Tuesday 15th September 2009
I enjoyed 8 hours of sleep, disturbed momentarily by the anchor going down well before dawn, and then breakfast, whilst we all enjoyed knowing we were back in Kusadasi, Turkey.


How lovely, another chance to go ashore under clear blue skies in the comfortable heat of this bustling port. Nearby was the huge bulk of SPLENDOUR OF THE SEAS, and OCEAN VILLAGE 2, and walking past EASYCRUISE LIFE we could clearly see the wording on the dark hull: “Reunite the Parthenon Marbles”. Hmmm, that’s telling us!










On that ship it was also possible to see one of her previous names – JASMINE –still visible on the hull. We remembered she was built in Poland in 1981 as LEV TOLSTOY for Black Sea Shipping, with six sister ships. In fact we could also just see that original name on another part of the hull when we looked from a different angle.

Walking round the harbour gave us the chance to see local fishing boats, some with lines of washing on board drying in the breeze, as well as the cruise ships.









I noticed a small white van with “Ladies Beach” written on the sides, and discovered that years ago there had indeed been a Ladies Beach nearby; now it was open to all, and the white vans ran as a taxi service around the area. What an eye-catching title.

This was to be a short visit to Kusadasi so we were all back on board by 11.30 a.m. ready to sail the 47 nautical miles to Patmos, Greece. As usual I think we all felt very proud and proprietary about our little AEGEAN PEARL as she sat amongst the huge cruise ships, before sailing gracefully away from the Turkish port.

After lunch on board, we arrived back at the little port town of Skala on the island of Patmos at 4 p.m. in the most wonderful clear light. Many passengers went on excursions to visit the Monastery of St. John the Theologian, high above us in the village of Chora, with its 900 years old fortifications. With AQUAMARINE also anchored out in the bay, this was the ideal opportunity for photos of the two ships, looking fabulous in the blue sea.



After a walk along the coastal path under shady trees, an ice-cream in the little port was enjoyed. I noticed the usual dogs asleep in various wayside shops or shady areas.














Back on board AEGEAN PEARL, the light, air, clear water, scenery and environment were just wonderful and reminded us all of why we like to be at sea in congenial company: it’s that sense of exhilaration at being alive on such days. Tea and scones gave us a moment of humour. Jam was provided in very small packets, and my portion fell out of the packet as one rather congealed piece, onto my plate. Having recently seen several Viking Line ships, it was immediately recognised as being the shape and red colour of a Viking Line funnel.








We left Patmos just before 9 p.m. and enjoyed Greek Night dinner on board, as well as the evening’s entertainment, sailing the 105 nautical miles to our next port of call in Rhodes.

Ships seen: easyCruise Life, Splendour of the Seas, Ocean Village Two, Aquamarine, Gemini, Izmir (tug)

To be continued...

GEMS OF THE AEGEAN SEPTEMBER 2009 Part 5

<GEMS OF THE AEGEAN SEPTEMBER 2009
Part 5 AQUAMARINE

Sunday 13th September 2009

We arrived at 6.30 a.m. at Patmos and anchored in the bay, well before dawn, having sailed 111 nautical miles from Rhodes. Soon after sun-up the excursion folk took the first tenders, and then it was our turn at 7.45 a.m.



On the quayside there was a Welcome sign from the Patmos boatmen, and I also noticed a "Complain.." box (which had lost a ‘t’). Presumably this was for comments from the public as it had a slit opening in the top, but I also noticed that there was no bottom to the box so presumably anything put in the top simply fell through and was borne away on the breeze…




The air was clear and calm, which made for beautiful reflections in the water, and I noticed a local multi-coloured cat asleep on a blue-painted chair enjoying the peace (paws for thought?).

There was just time for a pleasant walk around admiring the surrounding mountains and the arrival and departure of BLUE STAR 2 and a Flying Dolphin, before getting back on board for the departure at 10 a.m. and a leisurely breakfast on deck in the warm sunshine.

Our next treat was to be a Bridge Visit! The ship’s Host, Ion, took us up there at noon and gave us a short talk, and the chance to take photographs from the Bridge wings.







The ship’s Hostess then took us to visit several empty cabins, at different grades, but I noticed she didn’t include any on Bahia Deck. They were all set out neatly with life jackets on each bed, ship plans and writing paper in folders on dressing tables, full toiletries and towels in the bathrooms, and swimming towels nearby, and those of us on Bahia Deck felt we should take the opportunity to say how welcoming they all looked, and how different it had been in our cabins when we came on board. She was somewhat surprised at this, asked some questions, and apologised on behalf of the ship.












There was time for lunch before our next port of call, at 2 p.m. in Kusadasi in Turkey. This was 49 nautical miles sailing. Tourists are very welcome here, judging by the size of the duty free shops and malls at and near the quayside. We berthed and soon disembarked and felt dwarfed by the huge size of CELEBRITY SOLSTICE at an adjoining berth. I saw her in Papenburg, Germany, last year as she prepared to be tugged away from the shipyard, and she looked enormous then.










Some of us strolled around the bay in the hot sunshine, but returned for tea before departure by 6 p.m. Our elegant little ship looked so much more attractive than the huge SOLSTICE, we thought, as we drank Earl Grey tea on deck and watched our engines start up and emit clouds of black smoke.
It drifted up and straight across to some of the private balconies of the SOLSTICE, whose occupants promptly got up, went inside and slammed their doors, one man shaking his fist at us. We raised our tea cups to AQUAMARINE.













Drinks, dinner (with singing waiters) and packing followed, ready for an early arrival back in Piraeus in the morning. On my way through the shop I noticed a table selling Inch of Gold – and this reminded me of Cunard!

Ships seen: Blue Star 2, a Flying Dolphin, tender 12 and 14 at Patmos, Celebrity Solstice, Orient Queen, Patmos Star, Samos Star, Gemini


Part 6, on board The AEGEAN PEARL, to follow...

GEMS OF THE AEGEAN SEPTEMBER 2009 Part 4

GEMS OF THE AEGEAN SEPTEMBER 2009
Part 4 - AQUAMARINE

Saturday 12th September 2009

The English version of the Louis Daily News reminded us that today we were to visit Rhodes, the most famous of the Dodecanese islands, so that meant lots of ships to see after 8.30 a.m. arrival, as well as the fascinating Old City.



There had been lightning visible during the previous evening, and localised storms had obviously sent a lot of rain onto Rhodes, judging by some huge puddles near the quay but the heat soon dried them up. On the way out on the quayside I took a photograph of my aquamarine-coloured scarf hanging in the porthole of my cabin. Why? Because I had hung it up there, and wanted to see just how low my cabin was, and I’ve never had the chance to do this before.

I visited the Archaeological Museum and particularly admired the sculptures from 420-410 BC showing women in flowing robes, with the ‘fabrics’ carved in such beautiful and lifelike ways as they fell to the feet. That must be so difficult to do.



Coffee called from one of the many street-side cafes; scented olive-oil soaps had to be bought; beautiful jewellery from dozens of shops had to be admired; walking amongst crowds of other tourists had to be negotiated; the cool shade and hot sun of the old city streets had to be contrasted; and at one of the numerous T-shirt/hat shops we had to look at the cotton sun hats with synthetic hair attached – either blonde or black flowing locks; there were lots of ships to see out in the harbour.



The blue sky overhead, the heat and the flowers around the Old City made for a happy morning, before returning to AQUAMARINE.


Lunch time and tea time on the ship passed happily, and then it was time to dress for late dinner at 9.15 p.m. and Greek Night on board the ship.


Posh frocks and high heels (for me anyway), pre-dinner drinks at the Sunshine Bar and excellent food in the Restaurant followed, and then one of our number impressed the rest of us tremendously in the karaoke competition in one of the bars.

















Ships seen: Gemini (Quail Cruises), Ierapetra L (Anek), Blue Star 2, Nautica, Symi, Marmaris Express, Sapphire

To be continued...