Istanbul, Turkey: A Spin around Istanbul

I’ve been to Istanbul several times over the years and have always really enjoyed walking around the International Spice market and walking around. Before Kieran went for the first time (without me), I described it to him as “sensory overload” and he agreed that my definition was quite suiting. Other than the Spice Market and walking around the bazaar, I hadn’t done much of the sightseeing in Istanbul like the Blue Mosque, Hagia Sophia and Topkapi Palace. We decided that we’d go out and have a long walk around the city and stop by the market to do a bit of shopping.

We found this staircase outside of the port - it's so pretty!

Some of the spices and how they are displayed - yum!

The walk was about 45 minutes over to the area where the Blue Mosque is and we passed by the Egyption Spice Market on the way. We chatted a bit, as per usual, but I was reciting some fun facts that I learned about the night before on my “Night out in Istanbul” tour. The tour guide told the group that Istanbul has 17 million inhabitants and 5,000 mosques. When I raised my hand and asked if he meant in all of Turkey and he quickly replied with "no" – that’s just in Istanbul. If you ever go to Istanbul, you’ll understand how 17 million people live in one city….one on top of another! One of the most crowded cities I've ever traveled to, to say the least!

When we arrived at the Topkapi palace, the line was very long so we decided to head to the Blue Mosque, only to find out that it was prayer time so we could only enter the courtyard area, which was amazing all on its own. It’s called the Blue Mosque because of the tiles coating the walls and their blue colors and patterns. From the courtyard area, it was very impressive, so I can imagine that the inside is breathtaking. Since we weren't going to wait around for the mosque to open, we walked out the back area of the courtyard and found a man selling corn on the cob. If you aren't a street food person or have never tried it, corn on the cob is one of the best street foods! We sat outside with a beautiful view of the mosque and ate our corn while listening to the prayer time (not the most soothing of sounds) and hanging out with two stray dogs chillin’ in the sunshine. Sometimes on ships, you forget how awesome your life is and we become jaded. Kieran said it perfectly on his Facebook status:

“Yesterday, I sat outside the Sultan Ahmet Camii (Blue Mosque), with the woman I love, eating corn on the cob, trying to figure out a way to give the stray dog who sat with us a drink of water. It made me think how even though we get blasé about it sometimes, its days like yesterday that make us do what we do.”

The Blue Mosque Courtyard

             

                                     

Kieran's new Turkish friend!

 After basking in the sunshine on a park bench in the square, we meandered around town for a bit longer and then started thinking about what we wanted to do for lunch. Along the way, we began looking in the window of a Turkish Rug store and the guy came out with his calculator in hand ready to bargain for one that we had been admiring. Before we knew it, he had convinced us to come inside and down the flight of winding stairs to reach the bottom level, a room drenched in more rugs than any palace could handle. The plopped us on a wooden bench on one wall, stuck a cup of Turkish apple tea in our hands and began the flying carpet demonstration. They literally throw the carpets in the air and with a flick of the wrist it spins before floating gracefully to the floor. It really is quite a display! They were all beautiful but the prices, even after lots of bargaining were around $600 for a tiny little rug. We thought on it for a few minutes and decided that we weren’t “in love” with any of them and it wasn’t worth all that money if we didn’t HAVE to have it! Finally, we made our way out of the store by telling them that I was hungry and I’m very grouchy if I haven’t eaten – so we’d talk about it over lunch and then come back. We never did make it back, but we did make it to lunch!

On our walk, we went through a park and found a Sister Squirrel - always an Alpha Gam!!

Backtracking our way out of the city and not far off of the carpet store, we found a restaurant off the beaten path with an outside patio, which is something I always look for when the weather is nice. Fresh orange juice was promptly delivered to the table and shortly thereafter, we received a beautiful platter of assorted Mediterranean appetizers including tzatziki (of course), hummus, red pepper dip and a few others that I don’t have a name for, but they were spectacular as well – all served with fresh pita bread. Then we shared an assortment of meats with lamb and chicken and port with roasted peppers and other vegetables. The food here is unbeatable as I’ve said a million times before!

Unfortunately, Kieran and I both love sweets and to eat and you can’t beat some Turkish Delight treats! We went into a store that Kieran had visited on past trips to Istanbul and the guy remembered exactly who he was. He asked us what we liked and, of course, we both said everything. The gentleman put together an assortment of his finest treats, all five pounds of them! Not only are they tasty, but they are beautiful as well – so pretty you almost don’t want to eat them, but of course, I did…and Kieran helped…sorta ;)

Mykonos, Greece: Scooters and Super Paradise Beach

Today, we wanted to have fun and relax while spending time with some of our friends. Kieran and Mr. Matty (a close friend of ours who works with Kieran) rented scooters and myself and Jenna rode on the back. It’s something the guys have done quite a few times, so we knew we were in good hands. They drove us for about 30 minutes or so to the other side of the island (over lots of steep hills!) to the “Super Paradise Resort.” Basically, it’s a very expensive gay bar/club to go to the beach where you spend a fortune for your drinks and chairs to lay in. But, I must admit we had a great time just relaxing and lying on the beach. The water was way too cold for my taste – but I was perfectly fine with lying in the sun with a cocktail in my hand.

Going back to the ship, there is a massive hill that we were quite concerned we wouldn't be able to do. I expected to have to jump off the scooter so that Kieran could get up the hill and I’d meet him at the top! Luckily, the little scooter came through and with the engine screaming, we made it up in one go!

It was a beautiful day and I absolutely loved riding on the scooter with Kieran through the island and seeing more than the tourist traps right in front of the ship. You get to see the best these countries and cities have to offer when you get out of the immediate port area that have nothing but souvenir shops and over-priced cafes.

The boys:  Adrian, Mr. Matty & Kieran

Kusadasi, Turkey: Turkish Bath Experience, Take 2

My first Turkish bath experience back in 2010 (I believe) with my friend Jenna didn't go quite as well as we had both anticipated. That first visit was at a bath in a hotel where the guy left us in the Sauna for a good 20 minutes (15 should have been the max!) and then when he was giving Jenna her massage and scrub down, he was very very creepy and continuously telling her how beautiful she was. Creepy probably isn't the right word – maybe rapey?

Anyways, the girls (my team) arranged for a trip to a local bath with our tour operator and he even provided us with a really nice van for free to get to and from the bath, all for a great price. He took us to the Hamami (bath) and is was beautiful and covered in blue tiles on the inside.

   

We were escorted to a changing room where we all changed into our swimsuits before going into the sauna. They put you in the sauna to warm you up so it’s easier for them to scrub all the dead skin off. After the sauna, we go into the room for the bath. It’s a room that’s warm (but not as warm as the sauna) with a large marble slab in the middle of the room that’s heated and then faucets around the outside walls where you can rinse yourself or your face. One gentleman scrubs you with an exfoliating mitt and makes your skin feel ridiculously soft before sending you to the second guy that has a large pillowcase (at least that’s what it looks like). The guy with the pillowcase dips it in soapy water (olive oil soap) before filling it with air and letting the suds go all over you before they rub you down with it. Then, you rinse off under the shower.

Following the bath portion of our afternoon, we all got 30 minute oil massages upstairs. Needless to say, we were all very relaxed before we headed back to the ship in our chauffeured mini-van. What can I say – living the life! ;)

Kieran's back!!

After three weeks apart, multiple emails per day and a few phone calls – Kieran’s back with me on the Noordam! We were able to sneak off the ship and have a fantastic Greek lunch today in Iraklion, Greece.  So excited to have him back on the ship with me…makes all the difference in the world knowing he’s within close proximity!  

Haifa, Israel: Nazareth & the Sea of Galilee

After the whirlwind trip through Ashdod, Jerusalem and the surrounding areas yesterday, our guide met the ship in Haifa today to do it all over again. I still can’t believe how much we managed to see in the span of one day.

The Baha’i Gardens were the closest spot to the ship, so we stopped there first. You can’t go down into the gardens at this time of year, but there are beautiful photos to be taken of the grounds. My favorite thing about the gardens? Getting the chance to see how they mow the lawn! Since the gardens are built on a slope, it takes two guys to do the job. One guy is pushing the mower while the other is pulling a rope attached to the mower to keep it up. So cool! 

Further down the road, we arrived in Nazareth where the Church of the Annunciation sits. Of all the religious sites we’ve visited thus far, this church is my favorite for many reasons. One being that it’s much less touristy than Jerusalem and has only a few visitors around. Another reason is that it is the most REAL. Everything in Jerusalem has been built upon for years by other generations. The guides say “this was where the last supper took place. BUT, the Romans built on top of it and then there was a mosque built on top of that.” It lost a lot of its authenticity with me. The Church of the Annunciation is very different – after you walk in, you have to go down the stairs and there is the cave where the Virgin Mary lived and where she was told that she would be giving birth to a baby boy (hence, the Annunciation). The church just had a feeling about it and it was genuine and REAL. I could see the cave and put it together with the story – it was palpable. We walked through both the area where the cave was and then upstairs and the Church itself, before exiting into the area that connects the Church of the Annunciation with St. Joseph’s church, which is much smaller but still loaded with history.

The choir was rehearsing in St. Joseph’s church, so we quietly made our way below the church where some of the Jewish baths are as well as an area that they are still uncovering, and they believe are some of the carpenter’s workshops. Avi (our guide) told us the history of the baths and the workshops, and it was such a quiet and holy place- it allowed you to actually connect with the surroundings and the stories that go along with them, instead of just “seeing” them. After looking around, we exited the church and visited the ruins that run underneath and along the exterior of the Church of the Annunciation, before piling back into the minivan to get to Yardenit (the baptismal site/River Jordan). 

At Yardenit, they have built an onsite “tourist” type center, where folks can come in and pay to be baptized (they even give you the white robes) in the River Jordan. It is a stunning spot surrounded by nature and I was shocked at how peaceful it was considering all the people that were there. Along the water, there is the main point of entry into the water where people can enter the river and be baptized, plus other staircases leading down into the water where you can go in on your own. Unfortunately, we didn’t know we were coming to the site, so we didn’t dress appropriately, but we went into the water anyway and soon TONS of little guppy fish (and one huge catfish!) came up to our feet and started nibbling (tickling!) our feet. Maja and I couldn’t help but laugh like crazy because it was so ticklish. Natallia was scared to death of the fish, so she didn’t get into the water with us. Maja and I spent a good 15 minutes just staring at the fish as they came up to us and nibbled away – luckily one of the other girls grabbed my camera and took several shots of us. When Avi finally pulled us out of the water, we took a glance at the gift shop (selling bottles of Holy Water and empty bottles that you can fill on your own) and headed out. 

Capernaum was a small fishing village and was the hometown of the apostles Simon, Peter, Andrew, James and John. Jesus taught in the synagogue in Capernaum as well and “healed a man who had the spirit of an unclean devil”. The town of Capernaum was very small with only one church still standing and they actually started a service in there about 10 minutes after we arrived. The church is round and built with windows all the way around right in the middle of the ruins of the old town. This was probably my least favorite spots of all that we saw. 

After Capernaum, we stopped at Tabgha, which is where Jesus did the multiplication of bread and fish for the feeding of the five thousand, as well as the fourth resurrection appearance of Jesus. Tabgha was the most unassuming and quiet place, I never would have imagine that it was such a holy site - one of the many reasons why Nazareth is my favorite (over Jerusalem).

The last stop of the day was the most beautiful and the most holy of all the places we went throughout the two days in Israel. The Mount of Beatitudes is the location of the Sermon on the Mount. Now, it is home to a beautiful church that has a gorgeous view and is surrounded by pristine gardens. I don’t even know how to put into words how incredible it was – between the view and the sense of peace that you feel – it’s a perfect spot for an afternoon stroll or a place to think and clear your head. 

Overall, Israel is soaked in religious and historical value and I’ve enjoyed all of my time (so far) here. The only thing left to do on my “Israel Bucket List”? The Dead Sea!

Ashdod, Israel: The Holy Land, Part 1

Before I type anything else, today would be my Grandma Ruscup's 92nd birthday and I miss her like crazy!  I would give up all the travel in the world just to have her here!

I've been to Israel before and did a tour through Jerusalem and the Old City. With the recent events in Egypt, where we were supposed to go today and tomorrow, we have altered our course and redirected to Ashdod and Haifa Israel. None of the other girls on the team had ever gone into these ports, but Martin, our manager, had and was trying to give us general overviews of the area (and for me, it was a MAJOR refresher because all the areas seem to run together). Lucky for us, Martin arranged that we would have a private car and guide to take us to all the sites that our guests see in one day.

Within seconds of our morning dispatch concluding, the Shore Ex girls met in the office ready for a day out in Ashdod and seeing the sites of Jerusalem and the Old City. Our guide, Avi, a local tour guide (and a wealth of knowledge) picked us up and started the hour and half (give or take a few) drive to Jerusalem. A quick photo stop to see a panoramic view of Jerusalem was about 20 minutes into the ride. The stop gave us perspective to see where we’d be going and how close everything was in the area. We took a few photos there of some catacombs and broad-view shots before getting back on the road to make it into Jerusalem.

In Jerusalem, we ventured into the Old City to see as much as we could in such a limited amount of time. The room of the Last Supper was one of the first spots we stopped in. The room wasn't the actual room of the last supper, but the location where the Last Supper occurred and the land had since been built upon time and time again during the different time period. A few minutes’ walk and around the corner from the Last Supper spot was King David’s tomb. Now, King David’s body has never been found, so this is just a “temporary” spot until they body/Skeleton is found and laid to rest in a more permanent location.

            

Leaving King David’s tomb, we made our way through the old city underground that is wall to wall shops and is broken up into the religious blocks, the most obvious being the Muslim area and Temple Mount. Eventually, we came out at the entrance of the Church of the Holy Sepulcher which is the most prominent of locations in Jerusalem (at least for me) when it comes to the religious aspect. Within the Church (still owned by multiples churches within – the Orthodox is the most obvious to me when inside), the spot in the rock where the crucifix sat sits inside where people bow at the altar to catch a glimpse of what had once been there. Like herded sheep, you continue down the stairs to where the marble slab sits where Jesus’ body is said to have been anointed with oil after his crucifixion. Drones of people were taking freshly purchases rosaries and other religious trinkets and rubbing them on the stone to absorb its healing powers that the stone is said to carry.

From there, we continued around to a room which had some of the old catacombs on the outside, but in the center a very tiny shrine (I’m not sure what else to call it) that is built over the actual tomb of Jesus Christ. You can enter from two sides, but the first side has a massive line that wraps around the room for folks that want to see the tomb. If you enter from the opposite side, you can see the limestone of the tomb, but not the entire tomb. Because of the line and time constraints, we went just to the other side to see the chunk of limestone tucked underneath a small shrine of candles and other religious figurines, etc.

After our full tour through the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, we ventured down the Muslim quarter and over to the entrance of Temple Mount that has two large mosques situated on top: Al-Aqsa and Dome of the Rock. Unfortunately, only Muslims can enter Temple Mount (Haram Es Sharif) and the two mosques, so here’s a picture showing how close you can get if you aren't Muslim. We turned around after the guards tried to pose for our photo and headed towards the Western Wall or the Wailing Wall as some know it. Again, I had seen it before, but it was a great refresher. The Wailing Wall is where folks go to pray. It is still segregated into male and female sections, so we walked to the right and wrote our own personal prayers on sheets of paper and tucked them into the wall. I’m not sure of the significance, but many people would walk backwards away from the wall after placing their prayers on it. We all met up again at the entrance and set off for the long trip back to the ship, and a few more hours at the desk. I must admit, we were all exhausted, but it was really neat to see so much in one day without dealing with a huge group! Definitely another perk to the job!

Athens, Greece: A Night at the Plaka

Several of our newer itineraries now give us at least one overnight, sometimes two, in certain ports. When we have our embarkation in Piraeus (Athens), Greece – we have two overnights and offer an evening tour that takes folks into Athens to the Plaka (basically, the marketplace) where we walk to a restaurant right in the center. The restaurant is very old and long rectangular tables fill the room, with all the tables leading to the stage at the front of the room.

We were all seated comfortably and began pouring the wine and water into our glasses and before we knew it, we were served with a variety of traditional Greek appetizers and snack foods. The show started and it was a girl who loved to hear herself sing backed up by a few older gentlemen who played the instruments. She would alternate with 3 ladies and 3 gentlemen Zorba dancers doing traditional Greek dances. Honestly, the food was the best part about the evening! The entertainment was ok – just a bit too long for my taste and I was tired. :/ Just chalk it all up to experience, right?

Santorini: Profitis Ilias & Oia Village

Of all the times I’ve been to Santorini, I’ve truly never left the local area of Fira. I’ve taken the cable car up to the top, shopped around and come back down. To be completely honest, I didn’t know how much more there was to Santorini. Today, I took an excursion entitled “Profitis Ilias and Oia Village.”
Profitis Ilias was a location where the busses stopped and we were able to get a fantastic panoramic view of the entire island of Santorini. Despite the fog, everybody took several photos of the island. Like I mentioned before, I didn’t realize how much there was to the island – it’s quite large and on the opposite side of where the tenders drop off the guests, it’s actually quite flat as well.

The main attraction of the tour is Oia (EE-YA) Village. Oia is probably one of the most photographed locations in the world. People from all over the world, come to Greece and want to see the famous white houses with the blue cupolas that Santorini is so well known for, which are located in Oia. In Oia, the guide showed us the best location to take photos and then gave us free time to walk around and shop in the village. Truly, aside from the photographic aspect of the village, it’s just another typical Greek town with the same souvenirs, cafes and shops that every other town has. It was nice to finally see it, though.

 

The bus brought us back to Fira (on top of the mountain, in front of the ship). Because of the narrow streets and uneven terrain, the bus cannot drive us all the way to the cable car pickup and we all had to walk about 15 minutes to get to the cable car station (one of three ways to get down the mountain aside from the donkey ride or walking almost 600 steps down). Our group separated from the guide where they were given free time to shop around Fira or take the cable car back down to the ship. I walked them through the town to the cable car station, but one gentleman from a jewelry store stopped us to let me know that the entire island had no power and the cable car is not operating. When I asked what caused it, he just told me that the power plant had a major explosion and the island has no power without any promise of when it would be back on. My mind starts racing and I let the guests know what’s going on and tell them to find a restaurant to grab lunch or a drink and keep our fingers crossed that the power will come back on.

I left the guests and literally ran down the donkey trail – almost 600 steps down a mountain (HUGE steps) and very slippery! It takes about 45 minutes to an hour to walk down and I made it in 30 minutes, dodging donkeys and donkey droppings. I was hopeful that I’d find out what was going on, but unfortunately no more information was waiting for me at the bottom. Luckily, our staff was on the ball and arranged buses for anybody stuck at the top, but with 2 ships in port, it’s close to impossible to communicate that we’ve arranged alternate transportation to get them back to the ship. We had lots of upset folks that day. Because we tend to have many elderly onboard with us, they struggled to walk down the trail not knowing of the options available. Our staff was at the cable car station directing folks to the buses, but when you have 7,000 people on a small island – there’s just no way to spread the word.

The day ended at my favorite restaurant at the very end of the pier, Georgio’s. Keep in mind, there was no power on the entire island, but they continued to cook their incredible food in the dark on the gas grills. With all the craziness of the day, I can’t complain because it ended with my favorite Greek Foods – Greek Salad and Tzatziki!

Ancient Olympia, Mercouri Vineyard & the Coffee Cup That Almost Put Me In Prison

Katakolon, Greece, is a port that not many people have heard of because it is a small, quiet fishing village with little to offer aside from shops peddling local Greek treasures and trinkets and a strip of cafes and restaurants with Greek fare and a long list of seafood varieties. I have been here many times over the last few years, but never ventured outside of the small port area. With this new job, I have to go out on the tours and excursions that we have to offer so that I have a full understanding of what these places are. Like I mentioned before, Katakolon doesn't have a huge assortment of places to go out and explore, but it is known for one thing – Ancient Olympia.

I’ll be completely honest – with all the ruins in Europe, they are all starting to look the same with similar stories for each, but you only live once, right? Might as well go!

After arriving at Ancient Olympia, we went through the iron gates and back thousands of years to explore where many traditions began with the Olympics that we know today. My favorite part was seeing a group of archaeologists working on excavating even more of Olympia to understand more of the culture and the area of that time period. We ventured through and made our way to the location where the Olympic torch has been lit from for each game since the tradition was reintroduced in 1928 (see below photo). In the back area, we entered through a stone archway and saw the area where the field used to sit. It truly is just a dirt field now, but it becomes more when you picture what they lived like in those days and how they practiced daily for the Olympic games – both men and women alike, although the women were clothed in dresses versus men in their natural glory.

The guide had given everybody a bit of free time to wander out to the field area and gave us a meeting time and location to meet 15 minutes later. I went to the field and took a few photos on the winner’s podium (a pipe dream, I know) and came back fairly quickly. In my purse, I had my cup from my morning coffee that my Sorority sister and former roommate, Amanda, had given me. I thought it’d be fun to take a photo of the cup in Olympia just to send her a photo and say “hey…look where the Naked Grape cup has traveled!” I took a photo of it on two separate stones and thought nothing of it.

A few minutes later, one of the women who worked inside of the park came and told me that I had to delete the pictures I took of the cup. I asked her why and she just kept repeating for me to delete them. I told her to give me a reason and she said nothing new, so I just started to walk away and she threatened to call the police on me. Me, being the smartass that I am, told her to go ahead – I’d love to explain that I had the police called on me for taking a photo of my own cup. I could understand if I put it on one of the stones that was roped off – but I didn’t. People were leaning on the stones and taking photos all over the place! So – Amanda, if you’re reading this – I almost got arrested for a photo of the Naked Grape cup!

Needless to say, I was very ready to get out of Olympia and head to our next destination – the Mercouri Estate Winery and Vineyard for a tour and wine sampling. The property was absolutely beautiful with loads of flowers and greenery growing all over the rustic buildings. We walked all over the property and I took a ton of photos. At the conclusion of the tour, they took us to an open grassy area at the back where the vineyard sits. There were tables and chairs sitting under the trees providing a cooling shade and gentle breeze. Looking through the vineyard, we could see the rows of grapes and the sea right behind it – it was the perfect place to put up a hammock and relax for the remainder of the afternoon. I had absolutely no desire to leave there! At each table, we had a bottle of red, a bottle of their white, olive oil made from their olives and homemade cheeses, tomatoes, meats and cucumbers to rest beautifully upon freshly baked bread.

While at the vineyard, I managed to slip off and take a few photos of the grapes and even a photo of the Naked Grape cup in the Mercouri vineyards…I was looking over my shoulders for police, in case that was against the rules too!

Venice, Italy: That's Amore!

Quick....What’s the first thing that comes to mind when you think of Venice?

I don’t know about you, but a gondola ride with a man serenading his passengers while rowing through the flooded alleyways of the city is the first vision that pops into my mind. The ship offers a tour that takes guests on a 35 minute gondola ride and I figured what a better way to get my feet wet (not literally) than to just join the guests.

In Venice, the ship docks a bit of a distance away from the main part of the city and St. Marks square. Most guests travelling on their own will take a water taxi to get to the square, but if they were on a shore excursion with us, we provide a motor launch (a 60-seater boat) from the ship to reach the square and the start of the tour. The group for the gondolas took the motor launch over to the dock in the city where we walked 3 blocks or so and up and down three bridges to reach the area where we boarded the gondolas.

The guide had explained that when we embarked the gondola, there would be a hooker. Needless to say, this perked a few ears! A hooker is a man (maybe woman, but there weren't any there at the time) who stands at the side of the gondola with a long stick with a metal hook at the end. His function is to grab the side of the gondola with the hook and hold it into place while the Gondolier told people where to sit in order to balance out the gondola. The picture below of the gentleman with the white shirt, black pants and a long stick with a hook is a hooker.

As we rowed away from the docks, there was one gentleman serenading (in both English and Italian) all of the gondolas at the same time because his boisterous voice echoed through the alleyways between the buildings. One thing I had never thought nor realized about gondolas is how unbalanced they are. The guide pointed out was that the gondolas are a bit larger on the right (I believe) so that when the gondolier stands on the left to steer, it balances itself out. With five of us sitting in one gondola, there were several times where I was scared to move or breathe because of the sensitivity it had to motion and I felt as though I was fall right out! I will say that I’m glad I finally got the opportunity to do it, but I will never again do it with a group of five people – too many! I told Kieran that if we do it – it’ll just be the two of us….

Albanian Adventure via Greece

I can honestly say that Albania was never a place I saw on the list of places I had to go, but when the opportunity arose, I jumped at it. My new job on board is in the Shore Excursions department and it's now my job to go out and experience the tours that we offer in order for me to be a better saleswoman ;) It's a rough life!

After disembarking the Noordam in the morning, we took a 2 minute (literally) shuttle ride to the terminal of the port and then walked another 2 minutes to board an old Russian hydrofoil boat. It was exactly what I had anticipated simply because I had seen these in Russia about a month prior. It looks very similar to a large airplane on the inside with comfortable seats, except everybody carries their luggage at their feet and loads up the entrances with the larger suitcases (safety codes aren't a high priority over here!) Thirty minutes and 5 lives in Candy Crush later, and we arrive on Albanian soil to meet our guide.

My first observation of Albania was simple - it was hot! But, it’s that time of the year and here in the Mediterranean it’s about the same temperature as it is in Florida. All 29 of us climbed into the bus dying for air conditioner. Driving through Albania was an eye-opening experience and it is one more country where I'm reminded to count my blessings. The beaches lining the roads were absolutely stunning with water so richly blue, I wanted nothing more than to go for a dip - it looked so refreshing and relaxing. But then looking to the other side of the street, the tiny dilapidated houses with laundry dangling outside representing the large families living within its four walls, was a stark contrast. We’d see buildings that looked brand new, but housed nobody and other buildings that looked like great houses to live in or places to start a business, but had been knocked over from one side. The guide told us that these houses/buildings are perfectly fine, but the government would knock them over if they were built without the proper permits. It begs the question as to how they were allowed to complete the house and THEN the government stepped in.

   

Thirty minutes later, we arrived at Buntrint National Park, which is a UNESCO World Heritage site and basically an amalgamation of monuments representing over two thousand years of history, from the Hellenistic temple buildings of the 4th century BC, to the Ottoman defenses created in the early 19th century. The group spent about an hour and half walking around the site exploring the Roman Baths, the city walls and gates, the Great Basilica, the theater You’ll see in a couple of the photos that the sites are slowly sinking under water. It makes me sad to think that before too long, it will all be underwater and other folks might not get to see the ruins.

 

Anyways, I’ve attached pictures of the many photographs I took on the Butrint property - I’ll post more on Facebook for all to see as well.

Ninety minutes and four bottles of water later, we were back on the bus and off to lunch at a restaurant with an absolutely incredible lunch with a view to match! We had fresh Albanian tomatoes, cucumbers, cabbage, olives (I left plenty for others to enjoy :)), tzatziki, veal, potatoes and meatballs. It was so fresh and delicious. Definitely not somewhere I saw myself travelling to, but somewhere I won't soon forget!