A change

Monday October 3, 2011

When I awoke this morning I could tell there was a change. First thing that was different was that it was 7:30 AM, the latest tine I have awoken since this holiday began. Next, we had Louis Majesty luggage tags to put on our bags. We were picked up at 9:00 AM by the bus and headed to the harbour. Along the way we were given our boarding passes, with cabin number (907) and receipts for our passports and told to have both in our hands when we left the bus. We were given a health form, to declare we did not have any contagion, to sign and hand in. Then we arrived at the port entrance. Just like an airport, we had to get our luggage checked and then put all our carry on stuff in a tub to go through the x-ray machine. I remembered to take out the computer and the tablet so there was no hassle. Once through, we turned in our passport and were given the receipt stub to be able to retrieve them when we ended our cruise. We were told that our boarding pass would act as our passport until we returned. It was also our room key. Don't lose or misplace it!!!!!

Then we walked the gangplank into the bottom of the ship. They swiped the boarding pass and took pictures, which they told us we could buy later. Our guide, Dimitris, had told us that our cabins were not ready yet, so we met with him and the rest of our group in the Rendezvous lounge on the fifth deck. He gave us some basic instructions, told us about the optional excursions(about 15 all together) that would be available and gave us his recommendations. We then bought the ones we wanted and he told us a little about the history and things we would be seeing. They announced that our cabins were ready and we were sent on our way to our cabin. We found that cabin 907 was on the 9th floor. Since we entered on deck 2, and had climbed to deck 5, that meant we had to climb stairs for four more floors to get to our cabin. We opened the door to a palatial cabin. A bay window displayed the harbour with Athens in the background. Beside the queen size bed, another window also had inviting sunshine streaming in. There was a couch and two arm chairs. A fridge, a 35” TV and two bedside desks. A walk-in closet where we could hang our suitcase clothes. And a dresser to put the others in. Of course there was also a bathroom with a tub and shower. Heaven on the seas!! This would be “home” for the next 4 1/2 days.

Following instructions, we donned life jackets and headed to Deck 7, the Promenade Deck, outside, to attend the obligatory emergency evacuation instruction session where we were shown our assembly station and survival craft number. More paparazzi. By the end of the day we became aware that they were everywhere taking pictures of everything we did. Back up to our room we headed. We got very familiar with that staircase as the day progressed. Then the ship began to move and we were on our way. We went out on the promenade deck to watch Athens fade into the horizon. The wind picked up a bit and we could feel, and taste, the spray of sea salt. This was a new experience for us. We were thrilled. We walked along and noticed a slight, almost imperceptible tilt and sway as we moved along the corridors exploring this brand new world we had entered. This is not a large cruise ship but for us it was gigantic. They told us there were 1985 passengers on board. We went to the buffet for lunch and enjoyed people watching.

We arrived at Mykonos Island about 5:30. We disembarked, our boarding passes in hand to be swiped as we left the ship. We hopped on shuttle buses and we taken into the town where Dimitri led us on a walking tour through the town, which was built like a maze. For defensive purposes we were told. We really enjoyed seeing the beauty of the town with its narrow streets and whitewashed houses. It was amazing. We spent until about 9:00 pm in town and them climbed back on the shuttle bus to be taken back to the ship. We embarked, boarding pass in hand to be swiped as we entered the ship. I think I see a pattern happening. We went to the buffet for supper and then back to our cabin. We are cruising overnight to Kusadasi, Turkey. Wake up call is at 5:45 AM tomorrow morning and we will be leaving the ship at 6:50. So the early mornings continue. One thing constant in a sea of change. Good night.

Mom's version

We left our hotel in Athens ready for the next leg of our journey and another first for us. We were headed for our home for the next 5 days – the Louis Majesty. By Cruise standards it is a smaller cruise ship so we were delighted to find our room spacious and comfortable. There are no balconies but we have a nice bay window that makes the room bright and pleasant. Our destination was Mykonos. We were not arriving there until 3:30pm so that gave us some time after our group origination meeting for lunch and an explore of the ship. It was rather windy so rather than lay out on deck we decided to have some quiet time in our room and Dad had a good nap. We have been on the run from early morning until after 11:00 every evening so it was good to finally have a siesta.
We were able to dock and walk off the boast at Mykonos. Our guide, Dimitris, took us for a walk around including history and interesting information and the turned us loose to get lost in the narrow maze of streets and shops. The town is beautiful white buildings on a hillside and the streets are narrow mazes. They built these towns like this on purpose to protect themselves from pirates. Some of the walkways are so narrow there is only room for two abreast. This was also a defence stratagem so they could handle invaders in small groups. We wandered the peer, passed a taverna offering fresh octopus just set out on the grill, passed another taverna where Peter the 4 foot pelican was begging for his supper. We walked up to the famous windmills and got pictures just as the sun went down and the sky was brushed with warm rosy tones so we got to soak in the beauty of a Greek Isles sunset. It was magical! We scouted out the little shops but were not really in a buying mood. It was nice not to have the high pressure feeling we always had walking by shops in Athens. We spent some time on the waterfront taking pictures of the lighted town with the moon sitting high over a beautiful shimmering town, A town busy with curious travellers like ourselves seeking adventure and finding magic in Mykonos.