May 20/21

May 20 and we are at Piraeus, Greece which is the port for Athens and is one of the largest passenger ports in Europe. There were at least 4 or 5 ships in today. I had always thought that there was a distance between Piraeus and Athens, but there's not. Together they make a metropolitan area of 4.5 million people with roads and traffic just as crazy as any other large European city plus more motorcycles and overhead trolley wires.

Debbie and I were on the same tour this afternoon. It was essentially another drive-by photo shoot. There was a long stop at the National Archeology Museum, but with one look at the number of steps with no handrail to get into the building, I opted to stay on the bus. Debbie reported that the part the inside she saw was mostly statues with missing arms and/or legs. I did get a glimpse of the Acropolis and one of the Temple of Zeus, and a nice view of the 1896 Olympic Stadium. We finally were let out for free time at a pedestrian mall where most of the people set off to walk to a view of the Acropolis, but Debbie and I landed at the first sidewalk cafe for a cool drink. We sat in the shade (it was 95 F) and chatted with various members of our travel group who happened by and the handsome young man from Kansas City who had shared his table with us. That was much more pleasant than hiking to see a sight that I can find pictures of everywhere. In fact, here is a photo that I did take this afternoon of the Parthenon at night! (It was part of an advertisement on the bus in front of ours.)

After what may well be the best dinner of the cruise (except for the Teppanyaki the other night), a bunch of us took over several tables in the Game Room up on Lido Deck to play games that were totally new to me and/or just sit around to talk, and swap stories of the day's adventures. Several among us actually climbed the Acropolis, slippery marble steps with no handrails notwithstanding. One couple's bus headed out along the coast to Poseidon's Temple had a flat tire which delayed their tour somewhat. One couple went to see the Corinth Canal which the wife had always wanted to visit. We also watched the sun set into the haze comprised of sand blown in from Africa.

May 21 is our second and last day at sea and next to last day of this cruise.

I had another round of discussions with the Shore Excursion people about the tour of the Murano glass factory in Venice. I specifically wanted to know more details about walking distances. I also wanted them to make some arrangement so that five of my friends and I can all get on the same bus/water taxi/tour group/whatever together because some of them have offered to help me with steps, etc. 

I cannot even express how angry I am with this cruise line in general, their home office Shore Excursions staff who write the close-to-fictional tour descriptions, the on board Shore Excursion staff who have proved ineffectual, the Shore Excursions Manager who has an attitude problem. The Guest Services Dept told George that I could rent a wheelchair for my half day tour in Venice by paying $95 for a minimum three days' rental, and the on board Guest Services Dept. which has no connection or cooperation with Shore Excursions, and lastly the twit on the desk at Guest Services who, when I had decided to pay the ridiculous amount of $95 (above the original tour cost) to be able to tour with my friends, told me that I must actually pay $340 to rent the wheelchair for the entire cruise despite there only being one day of it left.

All this doesn't include the myriad other ways that this cruise has irritated me and many of the others in our group. Incredibly slow service at dinner even though we get there well before any kind of evening rush...2.5 hours for dinner? The food is adequate most nights, but only twice was my meal good enough to comment positively on. There is virtually no place other than your cabin to sit in the evening and read or have a conversation away from the excruciatingly loud "entertainment" going on at all venues, and some members of our group can hear that noise in their cabins on a lower deck! In fact, all announcements are physically painfully loud. Poor service in our cabin...and we have yet to lay eyes on our steward, and only once have I seen his assistant. While they seem to work at keeping the ship clean, it is in need of maintenance in various areas, e.g. portions of the promenade deck are blocked off for repairs which should probably have been done during her last refit less than two years ago. All these things and others are relatively minor individually, but they did add up to dissatisfaction even before this business today about the tour and the wheelchair.

The best thing about today was watching George's gelatin dessert at lunch jiggle. It was a molded, round, opaque white (vanilla) thing in the middle of a plate surrounded by a ring of raspberry sauce and with one big drop of sauce in the center of the gelatin. It was pretty suggestive even before it jiggled! Megan had her camera and made a video of it, but I don't know where she may post it online.

In the late afternoon most of us got somewhat gussied up to pose on the grand staircase in the atrium for a group photo by the ship's photographer. I think that, as a group, we are each supposed to get a copy. Heaven only knows how that will turn out.