I wish I had written this blog earlier and not 20 months later. Mykonos was the most amazing stop of the cruise for both Nita and I. It was so picturesque and just so cute!
Perfect weather – clear blue skies and great weather. Again self exploration rather than a tour. Bus took us from the Cruise Port to a drop off zone near the town. From there Doc, PCB and Kosh headed off on the Quad bikes to explore the island. Me, Cheeky and Jaynesh decided to go the town on foot instead and skip wider island exploration. OMG Mykonos is just so amazingly pretty …. would have loved to stay here overnight , well something for next time. Instead of lots of descriptions and text, the pics would do the job ….
Coffee time…
Best Yiros to date!!
Back on the ship, was a great day and we wish we can be back here to spend a few nights…. something for next time. Tonight dinner was booked at the LePetite specialty restaurant, high recommend this for all on Celebrity Cruises. Very interactive dinning experience and food was actually good.
(…20 months late, finally getting around to trying to get back into completing this trip ….. pics may have to come to my rescue)
Today’s was Rhodes today, another self tour we had planned. Were not expecting much from Rhodes, the tour pics all just showed ruins ….. and I for one am not a history fanatic.
view from Ship at 6:15am
We were docked by around 7am or just before, and plan was to disembark around 9:15am. First impressions, it was chilly and so fresh, we could see the old castle type structure next to the waters which were crystal clear!! Something about Greek waterways …. amazingly pristine.
at disembarkment
Meeta had done some research around Rhodes, which was more than any one else, easy decision, she got to lead us around Rhodes ! (as this blog is being done a year past the holiday, I will summarise it mostly with pics )
Turned out the place was not too bad afterall….. great walkways and small nooks at differemt places. The Clock tower was nice little stop. Great place to hydrate on Greek Beer!
Time to grab a bite in the central markets of Rhodes. At the Hippocrates Square, a bustling area with tons on Shops, food outlets and Rooftop bars. Found one with enough space for the 12. Amazing food , unfortunately no pics as we were all too HANGRY and could not wait ;).
Meeta guided us to other sights and unfortunately doing this blog after almost years is not ideal…cannot remember the names of places, so pics will have to be it.
Today we were docked at Kusadasi, a beach resort town on Turkey’s western Aegean coast. The weather was perfect, clear day with pleasant temps. This is a famous port for visiting the Ephesus ruins, something that most of us were not too keen on, except for PCB. The rest of us decided to just explore Kusadasi port area and shop – this place is well known for its leather – we got great Leather jackets here. Afternoon was a session booked for all at a local Hamam for the traditional Turkish massage.
Shopping and Lunch done, next to the Turkish Hamam for our scheduled massage. PCB caught up with us there. The hamam was a very steamy stone walled confined rooms, did make a few of us nervous including me…. I am claustrophobic and the hamam with all that steam and small confined rooms was intimidating. All the ladies except for Nita, Seema and Yogita skipped it. I was in that skipping group but peer pressure got the better of me, and I am glad the guys forced me!! Was a great experience – girls and boys were in separate rooms. PCB, Jaynesh, Doc and me were waiting in a small steam room, all in our towels. A single middle aged Turkish masseuse was going to look after the boys, he called me out first on the hot stone table. A few bones cracking and loads of soap form. Very firm massage which at times felt like me being used as a boxing bag….. overall a great experience but left shaken! Massage done , then it was time to wait for the oil massage to follow. Oil massage was …… oily!! This was in another room with multiple beds separated by low curtains and was a good relaxing massage. Got that finished and walking to the shower, noticed Yogita also lying on another massage resting bed looking at me and laughing…. I was in my towel only and for people who know me, do not have a waxed body. This was then the joke of day, Yogita had witnessed a gorilla !!
It was a super interesting experience and turned out to be a lot of fun – highly recommended
Day at Sea today, chance to chillex. Not much in store today, we basically hung around coffee places and some of the group were in the pool just chilling. Will summarise the day in pictures.
Passing under the last bridge of Turkiye, heading into the Dardanelles Strait
Morning coffee meetup, started off with just me and Nita , then additions kept occurring as friends walked by. Good mid ship catchup area.
Group lunch at the Sushi restaurant, great selection of yummy food, the sushi offering was amazing!. Notice the seating….. me supporting the ladies, whilst the other boys all by themselves!!!
Afternoon session, Jaynesh and Kaushik found the pool a nice place to hydrate! Doc surprised Tina with a special anniversary gift – that is a women’s best friend!
Evening hydration at the Martini Bar, followed by dinner with more laughs. Unfortunately we were now out of Bhuja 😦 , and ship nuts were sooo bad!! Tip: make sure take lots of Bhuja with you , one pack a day :).
Night club stop next, but first lets change someone’s 50th birthday door configuration!!! PCB’s opinion of the club :)!
Good morning Istanbul. Today was another free day for me and Nita, the gang were going about to the Grand Bazaar and then heading over the Gelata Tower and Istiklal Cadesi. Me and Nita had decided to do our own and get to Gelata Tower early to have breakfast there and walk about the area.
First off , the mandatory coffee from our cruise cafe and then out and about. Weather was much better, clear sky with some overcast times but no chance of rain 🙂
** highly recommend getting to Gelata tower area earlier in the morning if you want to get pics with less crowd. We got there around 9.30am and the streets were still emptish. However by 10:30, the street was crowded.
Coffee and Croissant fix done, now to head to Istiklal Cadesi, it was a 30 min walk, taking us through some back streets, Nita was keen on walking and exploring the streets and nooks.
Lots of walking, and getting to explore some interesting nooks and stores. Met Doc & Tina in Istiklal Cadesi area, and more pics. Around 1pm, we headed back to Gelata Tower Area for a late lunch and the mandatory famous Chocolate drizzled cheesecake. Also got the traditional Turkish tea. Lunch was a sandwich which was amazing and the cheesecake was to die for!
More more walking to burn off that cheesecake, and then headed back to the Cruise terminal, our ship was departing at 7pm today. Browsing through the local stores in the cruise terminal area, this was like another shopping mall. We had a lot of time, got something to eat around 5:30pm – a change to the ship food, and then it was onboard.
Around 8pm we were well on our way out of the Istanbul port, this had been a great second visit here. All were back to the Martini bar for our cocktail fix and waving Istanbul good bye into the night.
For maritime reasons , we were docked on the far side of the Istanbul ports overnights, early morning today we made our way into the Istanbul Port and getting glimpses of the amazing Istanbul sights.
Amazing seeing the Istanbul landscape again with the distinctive mosques !! So love this place. It was a quick coffee and we were all down exiting the ship. Everyone had booked a walking tour whilst Nita and I had decided to skip that and just chill and relive the moments from our 2013 visit.
The Istanbul Cruise Terminal is massive, almost like an airport. It was a bit of a walk to just make it outside the terminal, outside it was cold ! A short walk up to the tram system.
We all walked about in the Sultanahmet district and then the others went to find their walking tour. Nita and I headed towards Hagia Sophia and found a nice coffee shop for a morning coffee break whilst just taking in the environment.
People watching is great past time, all you need is a nice coffee and croissant…. nothing fancy , these two is all you need and a comfortable chair. Next we walked about, visited the first hotel we stayed back in 2013, revisited the coffee / chocolate shop where Priya found her stalker , Grand Bazaar visit for Saffron buying and finally ended at Istiklal Cadesi.
Lunch was a Turkish wrap and Shish Kebab in Istiklal Cadesi . Great food here. Back at the Ship for a freshen up , then it was to meet the gang to head out for evening rooftop drinks. Unfortunately weather was not the best, it was drizzling…..
The rooftop location was amazing , however it had limited shaded area , and with the wet weather it was not ideal for us to be there. We head down to the Gelata Bridge – there were numerous restaurants on the bridge, lets try that.
Gelata bridge restaurants do have the best views, however food can be average. It was not bad but not the best, still a great experience.
By the time we finished, rain had stopped, we all headed to the Blue Mosque area, that place is a must view at night. Getting there, the front view was not too great due to bigger trees now…guess these trees have grown in the last 11 years! Walked around found a great vantage point from the back and were able to get some great clicks.
outside the cruise terminal area
Called it a night post the night viewing of blue mosque, now to get back on the ship and tomorrow it was back in Istanbul visiting the Gelata Tower and doing things on our own. The gang were heading to the Grand Bazaar first and then would join in Gelata tower area.
After the big night , we expected all to sleep in…NOT to be. Doc, PCB, Myself , Cheeky + Nita and Yogita ended up in the GYM !!! Had to burn off all those liquid calories!
Morning sunrise view from the Gym
Session was great, Cheeky was showing me how to do weights, not sure if I did it right or not, but something was better than nothing.Yogita, PCB tried out the Yoga stretch classes, Nita also joined in but as it was so full later came back to weights.
Post Gym we headed directly to Breaky…. no big schedule today – we just sat , chatted , had masala tea(yes they had that!!) – a few rounds of it. The minutes turned to a few hours…. lots of topics covered. Time to head back to freshen up
taking pics off the mirror ceilingbreakfast post Gym session
It was then to the rooms for shower / freshen, and meetup at the Emporium for some jewelry collection reveal – ladies were too keen on that. The day went by, with Emporium viewing, going for a coffee @ Cafe Al Bacio – this became our go to stop and for nice group catchup area. Next was lunch at the buffet – so far, Celebrity food was far far superior to the MSC variety we had on our last cruise. Lunch was great session with the group with more laughs.
Evening dinner was booked at Tuscan Grille, an Italian Specialty restaurant – booking was at 8:30pm, lots of time.
Post lunch more roaming about and browsing stores , some ladies headed to the spa, saloon …. At 4pm we headed to the Buffet area for the daily high tea, great scones , jam and cream! Yumm. Sitting their enjoying our chats, we could see the entry into Turkiye along the way to Istanbul. Passing some amazing hillside communities and the distinctive turkish mosques dotted along the way as we cruised through the Dardanelles Strait.
Time for a siesta, then to meet at the Constellation Lounge for drinks , this was at the front of the ship. Tonight the theme was white. Ladies had decided to wear the greek traditional gold leaf head bands… we bought them for the entire group in Athens, Nita made sure to hold on to them so no one lost it! Unfortunately bands did not last that long 😉
Constellation Lounge was not that great in terms of seating or rather the seats we got, decided to head to the Atrium area – informed PCB / Yogita to join us there (they had an extended siesta).
Atrium area with the not so grand staircase was packed, it was the captain’s night or rather formal night …. not so formal for us ;). Good moment for the group pic.
One round of drinks post that and then it was to the Tuscan Grille.
Tuscan Grille had a very nice decor , big tables, the place was busy but nice and quiet – things were going to change quickly as the 12 of us got seated in the middle of the room on a long 12 seat table! We definitely stood out everywhere !
Tuscan Grille review: Food was plentiful and a lot of it. The sides were very nice but we felt the mains a bit lacking (cannot comment on the steak variety). The service was immaculate though. Still a great night and to top it off, they had birthday cakes prepp’d for Doc, myself and PCB – round numbers being celebrated in this cruise, 2 x 50’s , 1x 60.
waiting for the dessert…..
Called it a night, we were tired from the other night and tomorrow was an early start for all @ Istanbul.
Waking up to a great sunrise view from upper deck, our ship was approaching the port of Nafplio in Greece, our first stop. (this place was later to be known as NETFLIX as per Doc 😉 )
Morning view of Nafplio @ 6.30am
Disembarked around 9:30am via the tender service, luckily not much of a wait. Boats were coming by regularly and lines kept moving. In the Tender boat I started vlogging and asked Doc where we were heading today, his answer was NETFLIX!!! Nafplio was too difficult and it was just easier to say Netflix – from then on, this place was referred to as Netflix🙂 We were soon on land , a beautiful coastal town. Lots of Yachts, restaurants and an amazing array of lane ways with boutiques and coffee shops around the place but they were all CLOSED, … Closed for now as we were too early. Only a handful of stores were opening. Time to start exploring the laneways and more pics
Around 40mins on and the place was filling up with more tourists, locals and stores were opening. All these walking and I soon realised I was the only man remaining with the ladies. Kosh, Cheeky, PCB and Jaynesh had headed off in another direction, Doc and Tina had gone another way, the remaining ladies were with me 😉 Accompanying the ladies and more pics…..
Whilst I was looking after their ladies, these guys had wondered off to the other side of Nafplio , did find an old phone booth and a rather interesting sculpture ;)….
Lots of laneway walkabouts and browsing nicks & nacks,…… me and Nita needed a coffee break, not so much on the list for the others – they decided to head out and find their hubbies. Time for a much needed coffee break for us. Found a nice coffee shop with air conditioning …. it was getting warm outside. Ordered a Greek Coffee, whilst it appeared all fancy, I was not soo impressed with it, the one plus- I have now tried Greek coffee
More walking about, headed back to the water side area where everyone had agreed to meet around 12:30pm. Doc & Tina turned up, no one else around…. soon find out via whatsapp the others had grabbed lunch at one of the laneways…works out well as our group was too big, and this made it so much more manageable. 4 of us walked through the array of seaside eateries and settled for a place that seemed to be serving good souvlaki, key thing, got the thumbs up from the ladies :). A nice cold beer, wine, great wraps and Souvlaki…. it was a nice place to just chill and refuel.
Lunch time at Nafplio
yay to Greek Beers !! ….Doc on facetime with home 🙂
Enjoyed a very leisurely lunch, we had so much time on hand, time to call back home and facetime. Nothing much else to see at this port,… made our way back onto the ship and whatsapp’d the gang on our whereabouts and to later meet up for high tea
On the ship, the 4 of us got together at the high tea after a quick refresh. We stayed there for a few hours just chatting, laughing as others joined in as they got back on the ship. Afternoon high tea and yarns continued for a while. During the course of the cruise, the high tea was one area where everyone congregated and ran into each other…. you could get there at any time in high tea and someone from the group would be there! High tea done, all back to our cabins for a siesta, plan was to meetup later around 6ish for evening drinks. About 40 mins later out whatsapp groups starts to ping…. one by one, as we all woke up from our siesta we started asking where to meet and what time. Jaynesh/Seema indicated they were going to the Martini Bar – so that was the place for the evening.
Got there around 6.30 – Cheeky, Jaynesh and Doc were already there with a Martini each! Nita had planned to limit her drinking in this cruise but did not have the heart to say no to these amazing martini’s the bar were serving up. In no time she with the others were on their 5th round!! Yikes…so much for limiting alcohol ;). My last 2 packets of Bhuja were gone in no time, nibbles on this cruise were crap and this was gold…. I should have brought more :(!!
With PCB. Yogita , Kosh & Alyssa also joined in, we had the full gang of 12, it was an interesting sight, seeing other passengers who were more senior (compared to us) sitting around the bar quietly enjoying their drinks compared to our group sitting window side, screaming , laughing and just fooling around. Most of us had already had too many and we were only just getting started. Approached the Indian DJ on the floor and asked him to play some bollywood – that got rejected :(…. next best thing, PCB brought down his bluetooth speaker and soon we had our own private party on our side – all dancing to bollywood tunes. Our group was getting so much attention, the “gora” older ladies approached us and joined to dance with us on bollywood – there thoughts were: you guys are more fun than the others!! Our party got louder & louder as more drinks were added , Tina was the star of the show, she was going off and having a blast.
As was to be expected with such a rowdy group – we got kicked out! Security came and asked us to move along as we were apparently being a nuisance to the others – being an open bar area, we could not dance here, they suggested the night club area!! It was almost 9pm now and we had not had dinner yet, good time to head up to the buffet and grab something to eat.
Buffet by this time was nearly empty, not a bad thing considering our group was so loud….. headed to the rear of the buffet which was deserted, and made that our base. Bluetooth speaker was on, we all got our meals…. it was less eating, more screaming, more laughing and not long before dancing started again! This time no one complained – we were the only ones there the place was empty… not disturbing anyone. Buffet yarns, dance and craziness continued till the early hours of the morning. We were all chilled as tomorrow was a free day at sea, could sleep in. This would have to be one of the best drinking, happy, dancing fun times we have had till date with this group!! Along the way back to our rooms, Doc asked who is up for Gym in the morning…. yeah right, next question and time to go to bed !!!
Cruise day today !! Our transport was organised for 10am. Allowing us time for breaky – all of us went in different directions for breaky. Nita and I walked around a bit and ended up at a nice cafe close by. Breaky was nice with much needed coffee, then it was back to the hotel for final packup, bringing bags down to foyer and attaching the cruise luggage tags. The lobby area was packed with our group, 12 Suitcases and 12 carryons with everyone putting on cruise tags. Bag tagging done & soon after our transport arrived. It was a large Mini van, driver was great and did a TETRIS style bag stacking to fit em all in.
About a 30 min drive to the Cruise terminal. Celebrity cruise does passenger boarding so well. As our vehicle approached, Celebrity team members were there to meet us at our vehicle and providing guidance on which way to go. And they were taking our luggage directly from our vehicle to the ship. This was so good, no need to roll in the bags ourselves. The boarding process was super super efficient, first we were led into an airconditioned tent with blocks for processing passengers. Our block was waiting whilst the earlier arrived passengers were processed. Whilst waiting we were offered cold drinks and cold towels , looked after nicely. Soon enough it was our turn and we were processed and headed to the ship – whole process was super efficient .
On board, we got to our rooms where our ship cards were waiting. 4 of us were next to each other on level 2, whilst PCB and Kaushik were on the upper levels. We had the ocean view room, not bad! The rooms were not the most modern however they were nice and spacious. Storage was great!
Our Celebrity Cabin
Grabbed our cards and we were all out and about exploring the ship, and to grab some lunch. Ofcourse grabbing cocktails along the way. Drinks package is so handy! Met the gang for lunch at the Buffet, where Celebrity team members were offering dinner packages and other packages at discounted rates. We had already booked dinners , however they did have a special limited seating Taj Indian night, we got a good deal for the group into that – Kaushik was our chief negotiator and even managed to get one of our other dinners at a reduced cost :).
Lunch done, then it was a bit more ship exploring and to the room to unpack and get settled in. Later around 4pm, we got a special invite to the Helicopter pad area in the front of the ship to see it sail away. This was an exclusive event for Aqua Class passengers and their friends. Kaushik & Alyssa were staying in that and thanks to them, we got lucky – thanks K&A. It was windy up there but definitely worth it. Drinks kept flowing and we got to chat with the Captain and Key leadership team members.
Ship was sailing away and the winds were picking up, headed back to our room for a quick freshen up and to meet up at the Cellar Masters Bar – it was a nice whisky bar. Headed to the bar with Bhuja that Nita had brought along – so glad she organised this , the ship snacks at the bars were crap, but the Fiji Bhuja was super duper!
A few rounds of Old Fashion and cocktails done, next to head up to the shopping area where Nita was offered a Diamond necklace to wear for the night. The reasoning, they wanted Nita to model it at the restaurant , they hoping that I or someone from our group would buy it. It was a 3 carat + diamond necklace! A few $$$$$ Ofcourse for this they did scan my card/room no – I was more worried about making sure Nita did not loose it and made sure everyone in the group kept checking on her and ensuring the necklace was there. Tina was so much fun at that moment, hearing about the necklace, she started re-inacting the scene from Shaan when Maharani Ji (Bindu) realises her necklace is stolen/lost after Pravin Babi tells her “Maharani-ji aapka haar”, to which Bindu replies “Mera Haar, Oh my goood” and then faints. Unintentionally this became the most repeated lines in the cruise, every night someone would bring these lines up again and again.
The neckland….
Met everyone for dinner at the buffet, it which was so much more better than our prior cruises. Lots of good food variety and even Indian was there. Post dinner were returned the Diamond necklace back … phew and then onto the first show of the cruise. It was not the best & with all of us tired, we retired early for the night – time to get some rest before the next days first stop over.
Early start – today was a morning walk to the Panathenaic Stadium, the very first stadium of the moderm olympics, made from marble ! It was a 30 mins walk from our Hotel. Everyone was down on the street by 7:30am and then it was off, Doc was leading the way.
Early morning walk to the Panathenaic Stadium – venue of the first modern olympics
Good walk to the Stadium in the chill fresh air of Athens, finally reached there however we were 15 mins too early, had to wait before it opens. Finally they let us in. This place was amazing. The entire stadium built from Marble and the home of the first MODERN OLYMPICS! Felt great being here. Place was also being setup for tomorrow with cameras and all, the Paris Olympic flame was going to be handed over here.
Stadium tour and walk finished, time to head back and find a place for breakkie. Meeta had something in store, a very PINK coffee shop – Ellyz. Good news, it was super close to our hotel so that walk would not be in vain. A good walk back with the mandatory rest breaks
More walking and finally we reached Ellyz…. and was it worth it. This place is just another WOW!! Lots of flowers and lots of pink. Weird thing was, we were in our gym gear and everyone else were dressed up more nicely, well we did stand out ;). We settled for some coffee and breakkie … service was super slow, the pink lattes & pink benedict were nice but nothing special. Overall the experience was super just not sure about the food.
Breakkie done, time to head back to hotel and then roam about. Today was a free day, we wanted to walk around the markets near our hotel and then to the big mall to look around.
We ended up roaming about with Jaynesh, Cheeky & Kosh. Doc and PCB had gone different routes. First stop was the fresh meat markets, no where had we seen that type of meat variety. This market had all parts of the animals, including heart, liver, intestines and everything. As expected ladies did not enter that market. Out of there and more strolling the quality of stores in that area was degrading. Decided to head out to the mall area, it was here we split with the rest and headed on our own.
After a bit of walkin, stopped for the mandatory coffee fix. Found a very nice cafe along a busy side street , great coffee it was.
Next was strolling and shopping in the Athens mall on Ermou Street. This is like the Brisbane Queen Street, only better! Nita did find some good things here.
Time passed and soon it was lunch time or maybe PAST lunch time. We passed a place that had Soulaki and the place was packed…. waited to get a table and finally got lucky. As we entered saw Jaynesh and Seema about to get up… they gave the big thumbs up!! Nice. We ordered Gyro’s and it was the most amazing roll we have had to date. Unfortunately we were so busy eating it , did not get a chance to take a pic :(. But this place is amazing and highly recommended : Meat The Greek
Best Soulaki and Gyros
Amazing lunch done, now to walk and burn away those calories. Ofcourse with some more shopping along the way. Ended back at the hotel – Doc, Jaynesh and I decided to head to the laundromat whilst we had some spare time. Found a laundry not too far from our hotel – literally a 5 min walk.
Laundry took a good hour or so, in between we headed to a coffee shop for more coffee and cake! Am glad we did the laundry run, during this time we were discussing how we would get to our cruise tomorrow. One option was the train but upon checking , realised it dropped us too far. Jaynesh finally found a private transfer company and was able secure a large mini van that could also accommodate all our luggage. Phew transport sorted , one thing less to worry for tomorrow morning.
Back at the hotel post Laundry, wifes checked no laundry items were lost … but somehow Doc had got an extra underwear in his washing and was trying to find out whose it was …. not mine, he was the lucky owner of an orphaned undie 😉 !!
Plan in the evening was to meet up for dinner at a restaurant Tina had researched , we still had more than an hour to kill, good opportunity for Nita and I to visit the “Little Kook” area which Meeta was raving about the prior day. Indeed this place is magical. It is like a mini disney wonderland, with restaurants, Gelato, Toy store and more.
Time to head back to the gang, meetup at the hotel foyer and we all headed to the evening dinner, that was suggested by Tina. It was a bit of a walk and all along she was getting more and more nervous on what if it is crap. Finally reached it and it was a nice spot. Got seated and we had the BESTEST GREEK Food. Place is called Tzitzikas kai Mermigas. Highly recommend this place for an amazing night.
We went through a few wines and some great laughter.
Next we were back on the street and heading for some dessert. Agreed to head on to Mona Lisa L’Ateleir Del Gelato – this was closer to our hotel and we had been eyeing that since day 1.
Last night in Athens
Along the way to Mona Lisa, we lost PCB at an Art Gallery – he went shopping for an art piece at almost 9:30pm!! We continued to the Gelato cafe, place was great but there were no tables…. found some stools at the rear of the store and we made ourselves comfortable. Ordered two serves of mini waffle bites and Gelato…. it was soo yumm and was amazing seeing 10 spoons dig into two desserts!!! This is how dessert should be shared – love it!
A great finish to Athens, tomorrow morning post breakkie we are off to our cruise !!
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