Buzz’s comments on his Cruise from
Athens to Rome on the Crystal Symphony April to May 2024
This was my
first trip on Crystal under the new ownership.
I loved the old Crystal and tried it again. I have not previously spent any time in Athens,
so I arrived 4 days of days before the cruise.
I had not been to Rome since 1971 so I stayed five days after the
cruise. I was apprehensive about the
changes made by the new Crystal owners but after cruising, I am happy with the
ship and had a very enjoyable cruise. I
loved the itinerary and other than Istanbul and Naples, these were all new
ports for me. The food and service were
excellent. The Waterside has improved
significantly from the old owners and that made up for the closing of the Churrasco, which was one of my retreats to avoid the old
Waterside. There was great entertainment and lectures. I heard on board that Crystal is adding two
new ships. I was lucky and had excellent
weather for the trip: only one very
rainy day, never too hot or too cold. We
only had two sea days so the lectures and entertainers has less time, but that
did not prevent the fewer lectures from being a significant part of making this
a good cruise
04/20
BA 66 PHL-LHR 6:30 PM arriving
04/21 6:40 AM. Nice 6.5 hour flight preceded by a
visit to the adequate BA lounge.
Comfortable seating that was much better than my previous BA business
class flight.
04/21
BA 632 LHR-ATH 2:05 PM
arriving 7:45 PM. This was a 3.5 hour flight following a 7 hour stay in the BA very nice
lounge. Heathrow is still an unpleasant
airport to make connections with an invasive security processing during the
change. Booked business class but there
were no special seats or entertainment system – BA calls it Club Europe. To accommodate the business class passengers
the middle seat was left vacant and since I was in an
emergency exit roll I had plenty of legroom.
The food and beverage service was very good and up to the business class
standard.
04/21-04/25 Athens Marriott Hotel Very nice room with free Wi-Fi, a safe, a
minibar combined with a refrigerator, stall shower, good electrical connection
for my CPAP, in room coffee service and free shuttle bus service to Athens
center. My elite status with Marriott provided me with a good free buffet
breakfast and access to the M Club for early evening snacks.
04/21 Pleasant one hour taxi ride from the
airport to the hotel at the price the hotel told me to expect. The taxi did not take credit cards so it was
important that I stopped at an ATM to get Euros in the airport.
04/22 I took the Hop On
Hop Off bus to get an overview of the city.
There was a stop at the corner of the hotel. I viewed the Acropolis from the base of the
hill but was not willing to climb up to the top. I went to the Acropolis Museum, The War
Museum and the Archeological Museum.
04/23 I booked a bus trip with a guide to Delphi with Chat Tours. This was a full day trip leaving from my
hotel at 7:45 AM and returning to my hotel at 7:45 PM. The trip to Delphi was about three hours each
way on a bus. The archeological site
required traversing many even stone steps that would have been treacherous if
the ground had been wet. Fortunately, it
was dry when I went. The museum was not
large but very interesting as it tied the first site (destroyed by an
earthquake), the second site and the Roman additions.
04/24 I took the hotel shuttle bus to and
from Syntagma Square, a major central area. I walked to the Temple of Zeus and then a
street fair where I bought gifts for my family.
I stopped in front of the Parliament Building to watch the changing of
the guard before returning to the hotel.
04/ 25
ATHENS (PIRAEUS) – I boarded the ship a little after noon and unpacked. There were only 290 passengers on board (less
than half the capacity). I attended
the show Crystal in Motion.
04/ 26
DAY AT SEA. I attended:
Prof. Bob Aalberts
presented “Istanbul: Straddling Two Continents Turkey’s Splendid Mega-City.”
Straddling Asia and Europe in one of
the most strategic regions since the Bronze Age,
Istanbul offers a breathtaking array of sights and sounds. Learn how Istanbul’s
long history and unique geography shaped its destiny as a
world-class city.
Ken
Walsh presented “Air Force One: A History of the Presidents and Their
Planes.”
Award-winning White House correspondent
Ken Walsh discusses what we can learn about the presidents from their countless
hours aboard the most iconic aircraft in the world, the very special habitat
known as Air Force One. This is where they let their guard down and
we can see them as they really are.
Bruce Nocita
presented “Volcanoes & Earthquakes of Italy, Greece and Turkey.” The
eastern
Mediterranean is one of the most
tectonically active areas on Earth. Volcanic and earthquake activity occur
annually in the region. These major geologic processes are due to the ongoing
collision of the African plate with the Eurasian plate. He discussed particularly notable historic
events and current conditions of importance.
I attended the concert Around the World
with Naki Aataman.
04/ 27
ISTANBUL
Since I spent a week in Istanbul before
I did not participate in the tours and since there was no shuttle bus into the
city, I did not go to the Grand Bazaar to shop and stayed on the ship.
I attended the CLASSICAL CONCERT with
Pianist Gordon
Porth and Violinist Martina Yarovy.
04/ 28
ISTANBUL
I attended Prof. Bob Aalberts presenting “Cruising Turkey's Turquoise Coast.”
Turkey’s Turquoise Coast, also known as the Turkish Riviera, is
blessed with warm seas, a temperate Mediterranean climate, mountain
vistas and bountiful beaches. Discover Izmir, the region’s gateway city and the
resort town of Kusadasi and the nearby Biblical city
of Ephesus, as well as the coastal city of Bodrum,
possessing some of the Coast’s most beautiful beaches
as well as historic landmarks dating back to Ancient Greece. I attended the Salute to Sinatra with
Bruce Hammond.
04/
29
IZMIR
I went on the tour OLD BAZAARS & STREET FOOD (great
tour!). The 2,400-year-old Kemeralti Bazaar of Izmir is one of the world’s oldest
bazaars. It has been the city's `shopping mall` since the Hellenistic period
and is still a hub for social, cultural, and commercial life in Izmir. I walked by herbalists, coppersmiths, and shoemakers,
plus thousands of other artisans and shops often in historic vaulted and domed
spaces. These historic streets are vivid at any hour of the day, and any type
of shopping was possible; there were traditional Türkiye
handicrafts such as ceramics, porcelain wall panels, wooden products, tombacs, carpets and kilims, as well as products of leather
items all sure to delight. Another
integral element of the market is the vast array of local cuisine. On this
tour, I tasted many of the local delicacies, which may include Turkish coffee,
Turkish tea, stuffed mussels; ezme almond, walnut,
Turkish pizza and pistachio & walnut marzipan, as well as local desserts
including sambali, Turkish semolina cake with syrup,
and the Boyoz-Sephardic savory pastry found only in
Izmir. I had cocktails at the Captain’s cabin and ate dinner at Osteria dOvidio Italian
restaurant. I attended the Crystal On
Broadway show.
04/ 30
KUSADASI
I went on the tour MAGNIFICENT APHRODISIAS. Departing from Kusadasi, we took a 2-hour drive through the countryside to
reach the site of Aphrodisias. Located in
southwestern Turkey, Aphrodisias consists of the
archeological site of Aphrodisias and the marble
quarries northeast of the city. The ancient city was one of not only Anatolia's leading centers of
art and culture but the entire Mediterranean region from the 1st century BC to
the 6th century AD Many of its citizens, including the medical researcher Xenocrates, the poet Chariton and the intellectual
Alexander, engaged in various fields of scholarship such as architecture,
sculpture, medicine, mathematics, and astronomy, and produced important works.
But the city's real fame derived from the school of
sculpture founded here. Working marble extracted from the quarries on Babadag, the masters of this most prominent school of
sculpture in the ancient Greek and Roman world, created masterpieces that they
shared with the world as a whole. We sae many of these magnificent statues on exhibition at the Aydin
Archaeological Museum. This was an
excellent addition to my trip to Delphi as it had similar beginnings. After our visit, we enjoyed lunch in a local
restaurant before reboarding our coach for the 2-hour
drive drive back to Kusadasi. I attended the show Rocket Man: a
tribute to Elton John.
05/ 01
BODRUM
I took the shuttle bus to the St.
Peter’s Castle and the Museum of Underwater Archaeology. Unfortunately, the
Museum only took Turkish Lira and did not take credit cards,
I attended Prof. Bob Aalberts
presenting “Cruising the Aegean Sea to the Greek Islands of Rhodes,
Mykonos & Crete.” The islands of the Aegean Sea have long been a tourist
paradise with famous beaches, ancient sites, thought-provoking museums, and a
serene small-town lifestyle. The three islands of Rhodes, Mykonos, and Crete
characterize these features but in their own unique ways as we seek to
undercover the distinctive past and present of these stunning islands.
05/ 02
RHODES
I went on the tour MOUNT FILERIMOS & OLD TOWN
RHODES. After departing the ship we had a scenic drive along the island's west coast to Mount Filerimos. The drive offered fantastic views of the city of
Rhodes; it was once the site of Ialyssos, one of the
three ancient cities of Rhodes. Admire the Church of Our Lady, built by the
Knights of St. John in the 15th century, and that of St. George, which has wall
paintings dating from the 14th and 15th centuries. After driving back to Rhodes Town, we
continued on foot, through the narrow, cobblestone streets. We visited the most
imposing building of medieval Rhodes, the 14th-century Palace of the Grand Masters,
which dominates the end of the Street of the Knights. We
walked down the Street of the Knights and passing through numerous colorful
shops, pass the 15th-century Hospital of the Knights, now an Archaeological
Museum. I attended Scott Cutler
presenting “Minds and Machines: The Accelerating World of Artificial
Intelligence.” Venture into the
fast-evolving world of Artificial Intelligence, where breakthroughs like Chat
GPT are the tip of the iceberg. AI is revolutionizing multiple industries. However, these advances come with a set of
ethical questions, such as data privacy and job displacement. Learn about the
progress, applications, and dilemmas facing AI.
I attended the show Beyond The Yellow Brick Road.
05/ 03
MYKONOS
I went on the tour MYKONOS WALKING EXPLORATION. The two
hour guided tour walking through the small, picturesque cobblestone streets of Chora. We passed through Matogianni
area, a mostly pedestrian maze of narrow streets lined with cubic
whitewashed houses. This is a traditional Cycladic village, with
flourishing bougainvillea and colorful windows, doors and balconies. We saw the
famous, five windmills in a row, a trademark of the island,
that stand on a hill overlooking Chora. We
viewed Little Venice, one of the most beautiful parts of the Mykonos, its
colorful waterfront houses have balconies hanging right over the sea. We saw
the new exciting excavations taking place in Chora
that highlight important aspects of Mykonos history. They are to be found right
next to the most photographed church, Panagia Paraportiani which has been
recognized as a national cultural monument and is a superb representation of
Cycladic architecture. I attended
the show Songs from the Stage and Screen.
05/ 04
CHANIA (CRETE)
I went on the tour ARCHAEOLOGICAL MUSEUM & THE
VENETIAN HARBOUR OF CHANIA. Chania, the
second largest city on Crete, has been inhabited since
the Neolithic era and is built on the ruins of the ancient city of Kydonia. We
first visited the new Archaeological Museum, which houses a vast collection of
Minoan and Roman artifacts, including replicas of Bronze Age ships, to provide
a more in-depth understanding of the area's historical background.
We continued with a guided walking tour through the old city, which
reflects a blend of Greek, Venetian, and Ottoman influences. The district is
Crete's most beautiful urban area, with impressive sites such as Minoan ruins,
Byzantine churches, Italian Palazzos, and colorful neighborhoods with a
traditional lifestyle. The Venetian harbor and its 15th-century Lighthouse are
the most picturesque. We visited important sites including
the Venetian Dockyards, the Neoria, the Venetian
Lighthouse, the Kioutsouk Hassan Mosque, the
Cathedral, and the Market Hall, as well as some off-the-beaten-path spots that showcase Chania's unique character. After the tour, we
had some leisure time to enjoy the old Venetian port of Chania by relaxing at a
seaside cafe and to wonder around the narrow streets of the town, where a
variety of artisanal shops awaited to please even the most discerning shopper.
I purchased a new belt and a new wallet, both at a very good price. Dr. Bruce Nocita presented “Dinosaurs: T-Rex,
Triceratops and Stegosaurus, Oh My!” Who isn’t fascinated
by dinosaurs! Movies, museums, and books continue to be
filled with these ancient animals from Earth’s past. He discussed the
discovery and slow understanding of what dinosaurs were, when they lived and
how they evolved as well as the new and important findings that continue to be revealed.
05/ 05
DAY AT SEA
Prof. Bob Aalberts
presented “Cruising Mediterranean Sea to Malta and Sicily - The Crossroads of
the Mediterranean.” Although different in many ways, the islands of Malta and
Sicily share one common characteristic- a very complicated and often
challenging history due to their strategic and economic value to both warriors
and traders. Learn about the long and complicated history of these islands and
their present-day challenges. Ken Walsh presented “Presidents in
Crisis: Defining Moments of the Modern Presidents from Franklin Roosevelt to
Joe Biden. Every modern-day president of the United States has faced at least
one crisis that became a defining moment for his administration. Journalist and
historian Ken Walsh assessed the successes and failures, and provides standards
for crisis management that have worked best for America’s most effective
leaders. Scott Cutler
presented “Cosmic Scale From Subatomic Particles to
the Ever-Expanding Universe with Images from the James Webb Space Telescope.”
Embark on a breathtaking journey from the sub-atomic Planck Length to the
observable universe, spanning 93 billion light-years. Traverse mind-boggling dimensions and conclude with spectacular
images captured by the James Webb Space Telescope, revealing glimpses of the
cosmos from epochs near the dawn of time. I attended the Variety
show.
05/ 06
VALLETTA, MALTA
Spectacular views entering this port! I went on the tour THE
HISTORIC PALACES OF MALTA. From the
pier, we proceeded to Casa Bernard in
Rabat a historic home that has preserved many masterpiece painting and
antiques furniture and housewares passed down for many generations. We returned to the capital city of Valletta,
where we stopped at the Upper Barrakka Gardens to
savor panoramic views of Malta’s natural harbors and the historic cities of Senglea, Cospicua and Vittoriosa. After
admiring the vistas, we walked through the old city and went to Casa Rocca Piccola. Kenneth Walsh presented “Demonizers
and Dividers: A History of Negative Politics in America.” Ken Walsh explored
how toxic attitudes and strategies, based on anger, fear and a culture of
contempt and attack, have afflicted politics in the United States almost from
the beginning of the Republic. As the 2024 presidential campaign shifts into
high gear, the situation is worsening. I ate dinner at Umi
Uma, the Japanese restaurant. I attended the Neil Diamond Tribute
concert.
05/ 07
MESSINA
I went on the tour TREASURES OF MESSINA. Once aboard our coach, we drove across
Messina for a city orientation tour passing the major sights and venues of the
city. After
our visit, we returned to center city and stopped at the Cathedral, almost
entirely rebuilt after the earthquake of 1908. It features an interesting 15th
to 16th century finely-carved central doorway. A large
bell tower, 100 feet tall, holds the largest astronomical clock in the world.
We saw the Orion Fountain in the Cathedral square next
to the Duomo. Built in 1547, its polygonal basin portrays Orion, one of the
legendary founders of the City. We saw
the noon performance of the clock tower and I recorded a video of it (click here to see the video). Bruce Nocita
presented “When the Mediterranean Sea Dried Up!" Approximately 5 million
years ago the Mediterranean Sea dried up. Called the
Messinian Salinity Crisis, the Mediterranean Sea experienced cycles of partial
or nearly complete drying-up. The evaporation of the sea and ultimately its
cataclysmic re-filling is a unique geologic tale of grand proportion. I
attended the concert performed by Sabrina Alouche.
05/ 08
NAPLES
I was in Naples for a couple of days on
a previous cruise so I decided to stay on the ship and pack.
05/ 09
ROME (CIVITAVECCHIA). After the ship transfer to Rome and the
taxi ride to my hotel, I unpacked and booked tours for the rest of my
stay.
05/09-05/14 Courtyard Rome Central Park
– Not the best Marriot property, the room was reasonably sized, adequate with a
safe, Free Wi-Fi, capability to book tours (better than trip advisor), in room
coffee, refrigerator and an onsite restaurant. There was no real drawer
storage, no stall shower (only a tub with a shower head), and no M Club. Breakfast was not included since I booked my
room with the senior rate, but with my elite status, I received $10 (9.5 Euros)
off. There was a train station nearby to
provide inexpensive access to the sites.
05/10 I
went on a guided tour of the San Callisto Catacombs.
No pictures were allowed in the Catacombs. The tour lasted about an hour. I should have avoided booking the tour
through a tour company because a taxi/UBER to the site and paying the entrance
fee at the site was about the same cost and much shorter travel time since I
would not have had to the travel to and from the tour company site.
05/11 I
went to the Vatican and Sistine Chapel. I left early to try to get into Fabbrica di San Pietro Excavations Office at the
recommendation of the Priest on the cruise but unfortunately
it is fully booked until July. I arrived
at 9 AM and there were already more than 1000 people in line so my purchase of an avoid the line ticket was worth the cost. I did not select a guided tour and I was
exhausted even without the slow pace of the guided tours. Not all the avoid
the line tickets are good – some had more than 100 people in line for
entry. I used Touristation
Roma and they were good. My biggest
disappointment was that no pictures were allowed in
the Sistine Chapel.
05/12 I
took the hop on hop off bus. Since the
Susan Koman Race for the Cure was happening today, 3 stops on the bus were cancelled down near the
Colosseum. Since I was going to the
Colosseum on the next day, I was not upset.
I did see the Santa
Maria Maggiore, the Pantheon,
the Plaza Navona, the Castle Sant Angelo, the Spanish Steps and the Trevi
Fountain.
05/13 I
went to the Roman Forum,
the Palatine Hill and
the Colosseum. The Colosseum is very crowded and tickets are issued for specific times. The line for people without tickets was very
long and I am glad I booked ahead. The
video at the beginning was excellent and if I should have booked this tour
before the Hop On Hop Off Bus, but because of the Race
for the Cure I don’t think it would have worked.
05/14 Well,
this turned out to be a stressful day that turned out okay. My ride to the airport was 10 minutes late
and it took longer than it was supposed to get to the airport so I arrived less
than 2 hours before flight time. I stood
in line to check in for 20 minutes and I discovered I was not booked on the
flight. I thought I booked flights for
5/14 but it turned out I had booked flights for the next day. After
calling Aer Lingus central office, and after 20 minutes on the phone with them,
I was able to get my flights rebooked for 5/14 at no additional cost but the
transfer to the check in desk took another 15 minutes. Fortunately, the check in desk did not close
the flight out for the additional 15 minutes until my change transferred. I booked business class but the two hour and
45 minute first flight only had economy (I knew that when I booked the ticket,
but since this was a short flight and the cost was about a third of the
non-stop back to Philadelphia - EL 403 FCO-DUB 11:10 AM arriving 1:30 PM. Snacks and all beverages were
served for purchase only. There
was no entertainment and no Wi-Fi. There
was a good business class lounge after clearing US immigration and customs –
including Global Entry kiosks. This was good since the time between flights was well utilized and did not add to the time after arrival
in Philadelphia. The second flight was
very good - EI
0115 DUB-PHL 4:20 PM arriving 7:10 PM.
Enjoy the pictures from Athens and Delphi.
Enjoy the pictures from the cruise.
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