Odyssey to the Greek Isles - 7 to 16 May 2022

[bonsai3s]

Hors d'oeuvres served earlier this evening in tbe Suite Lounge:

Crispy chicken wings, shrimp gyoza, fried mozzarella cheese sticks, and fried vegetable spring rolls. 

Assorted desserts and canapes.

[dani negreanu]

5 minutes ago, FionaMG said:

I just wish they could have turned the sound down a bit as it was uncomfortably loud.

 

That our "problem" too...DH has hearing aids, making it even worse. We found the sound too loud in several ships, very annoying. 

[FionaMG]

1 minute ago, dani negreanu said:

 

That our "problem" too...DH has hearing aids, making it even worse. We found the sound too loud in several ships, very annoying. 

We actually saw quite a few people getting up and leaving during the show and I wondered if the too-high sound might have been the reason.

[bonsai3s]

Menu at Coastal Kitchen.

 

We had the Brazino and Filet Mignon.

The filet was cooked to absolute perfection...tender as butter.

[FionaMG]

6 minutes ago, bonsai3s said:

Menu at Coastal Kitchen.

 

We had the Brazino and Filet Mignon.

The filet was cooked to absolute perfection...tender as butter.

That looks amazing. 

[bonsai3s]

[drjohn4]

Make sure you put something about the music being too loud in the shows in your post cruise survey.  I've seen the same comment from several others on Odyssey.  Maybe they will turn it down by the time I go. 

[FionaMG]

1 minute ago, drjohn4 said:

Make sure you put something about the music being too loud in the shows in your post cruise survey.  I've seen the same comment from several others on Odyssey.  Maybe they will turn it down by the time I go. 

Good point. I will do that.

[dani negreanu]

10 minutes ago, drjohn4 said:

Make sure you put something about the music being too loud in the shows in your post cruise survey.  I've seen the same comment from several others on Odyssey.  Maybe they will turn it down by the time I go. 

 

8 minutes ago, FionaMG said:

Good point. I will do that.

 

We've raised this issue in real time with the "authorities" and also in the post cruise survey.

DH left after a third of "Mama Mia" (Allure) and "We will rock you" (Anthem). No luck. Stopped going together to shows which involved too much music....

 

[MCazer]

1 hour ago, bonsai3s said:

The first tender left at approximately 7:15am...took 10 minutes to reach the port...50 meters to the cable cars and takes 8 minutes to reach the top...Fira.

We arrive at 1pm to Santorini in August and are there til 11pm

[bonsai3s]

1 hour ago, FionaMG said:

That looks amazing. 

We'll be walking in Rhodes tomorrow...I use a "white and red" walking stick.

Please say hello if you see me.

[FionaMG]

6 hours ago, bonsai3s said:

We'll be walking in Rhodes tomorrow...I use a "white and red" walking stick.

Please say hello if you see me.

I will watch out for you. 🙂

[FionaMG]

Day 7 compass (how can it be day 7 already???)

 

 

 

[FionaMG]

The view of Rhodes town from our obstructed balcony.

 

 

[bonsai3s]

Rhodes.. Friday the 13th...Day 7, another beautiful sunny day, 70+ degrees.

 

For first-time visitors to Rhodes, this is perhaps one of the easiest and most convenient ports of call.

 

* As you exit the port area, walk to the right and cross the street when you see the entrance to the wall.

 

* Enjoy a leisurely walk along ruins, churches, shops, and restaurants.

 

* For the more adventurous, walk back outside the wall and walk along the sea promenade.

 

* With an easy 20-minute walk, you will reach the former site of the Colossus of Rhodes (1 of the ancient Wonders of the World.) See attached photos...the entrance of the harbor flanked by 2 tall columns.  Imagine the 110 foot statue of the Greek god of Helios, straddling the entrance with one foot on each side of the harbor.

 

* Irony: As you can see by the pictures, it is now used to anchor/dock multi-million dollar yachts.

 

* Just another 2-minute walk past this site is a glorious "pebble beach"...hundreds of sun bathers, a few bold swimmers and divers...clothing optional.

 

* The Odyssey will still be visible...just turn around and walk back...either along the pronenade or inside the ancient wall.

 

Another lovely day. 

 

[FionaMG]

We did a pleasant little half day excursion called Filerimos and Mediaeval Town that took us up to the monastery at Filerimos, high on a hill above the town. This is a popular place with locals as somewhere to spend the day away from the blistering heat in the town during the summer months.

 

 

 

The views are amazing and you can see either side of the island depending on where you are. It's just a pity it was a bit hazy today.

 

 

 

 

There is a large colony of very tame peacocks at the site who love posing for pictures!

 

 

 

After this we went back down into Rhodes town for a short guided walking tour. 

 

 

 

 

I enjoyed this tour, as the one and only other time I'd been to Rhodes (going back more than 10 years now, I think) we were with family members who have no interest whatsoever in things historical, so we just wandered around the mediaeval town and the shops. Don't get me wrong, it's lovely and stopping at Rhodes was the deal breaker for choosing this sailing as opposed to the next one, which does Athens instead. In fact, we had a quick lunch on board after the tour and went back out again, precisely to wander around the mediaeval town and shops, where DH bought himself a Greek shirt. 😂

 

[FionaMG]

MDR menu 

 

Seafood cake. I liked this; it was nice and crispy and had lots of flavour but DH, on the other hand, thought it was too spicy.

 

Chicken korma 

 

 

And Mississippi mud pie. Oh my, this was sooo good. 😋

 

[bonsai3s]

CK menu.

 

* I attended Morning Star Elementary School in San Francico (early 60's), located 2 blocks from Japan Town.

75% of my classmates were Japanese...and when visiting their homes, the parents taught me about sushi and sashimi...tuna and salmon.

But the Japanese moms introduced me to a much better fish called Hamachi.

 

Tonight's menu had Hamachi (see photo) for an appetizer...simple, superb, and exquisitely sublime...a hint of sweetness, just practically melting in my mouth...brought back wonderful childhood memories.

[FionaMG]

On 5/12/2022 at 10:26 PM, MCazer said:

Thank you! I appreciate that.  

 

On another note, have you eaten at Giovanni's?  Wonder if you can see out the windows without obstructions. That would also mean that they may not have too much of an obstruction!

I'm afraid it doesn't look very good. Giovanni's has no view at all, just bumper to bumper lifeboats with a pair of davits in the middle. The pics below are from outside Giovanni's, on the promenade deck. I'll try and get you some daytime ones from inside Giovanni's before we get off on Monday; I couldn't do it this evening as there were still people eating inside.

 

 

[FionaMG]

The show last night was The Book. I have mixed feelings about it. I thought it started very slowly and so did DH, to the extent that he fell asleep!

I liked the aerial acrobatics but thought some of the other scenes were very confusing. And again it was too loud. I don't think I'd be in a rush to go back.

 

 

 

[FionaMG]

Day 8 compass:

 

 

 

[FionaMG]

We have an early start this morning.

 

We are in Crete and are going on an excursion to Kournas, Arkadi Monastery and Rethymus.

Meeting time in the theatre was at 7 am and I mistakenly assumed that with there being early excursions the WJ would be open at 6 am, like it was in Santorini. Wrong! Saved by the Café Promenade. Moral of the story: always check opening times. 😂

[bonsai3s]

12 hours ago, FionaMG said:

I'm afraid it doesn't look very good. Giovanni's has no view at all, just bumper to bumper lifeboats with a pair of davits in the middle. The pics below are from outside Giovanni's, on the promenade deck. I'll try and get you some daytime ones from inside Giovanni's before we get off on Monday; I couldn't do it this evening as there were still people eating inside.

 

 

A couple more shots from outside the ship.

[MCazer]

17 hours ago, FionaMG said:

I'm afraid it doesn't look very good. Giovanni's has no view at all, just bumper to bumper lifeboats with a pair of davits in the middle. The pics below are from outside Giovanni's, on the promenade deck. I'll try and get you some daytime ones from inside Giovanni's before we get off on Monday; I couldn't do it this evening as there were still people eating inside.

 

 

Thank you!  I was wondering why the deck plan as an open spot, without lifeboats there, and perhaps when they made the plans they thought they wouldn't.  Oh well, the cabins they are in will most likely have a davit in front of them. But since they were originally supposed to be in Inside staterooms, they will be fine.  When the price came down months ago, I was able to switch them to obstructed view.  All in all, a good deal.  Nice to have the extra room and ocean air!  

 

 

[dani negreanu]

22 minutes ago, singinalot said:

Looking forward to hearing about this. We’ll be back in Crete in August

 

Crystal, should you be also in Heraklion, I highly recommend eating at "Hovoli" -- it is in the main square😘