Our Cruise

Wow, we have had yet another incredible vacation (or 'holiday' as I would say to my friends here -- the Brits have had such an influence on me). We flew to Athens and spent three days there before boarding our cruise ship.

The Parthenon

From there we went to Olympia and saw the site of the first Olympics. One thing I really struggled with on this trip was getting a grasp of just how old things were and how they all related. I couldn't quite hold onto the difference between something that was 2000 years old versus 4000 years old -- they all just seemed old to me. However, I really enjoyed seeing this area because even though it is from 776BC, it hosted an event that still takes place today, so I was better able to imagine things.

This was the actual track runners used to race on. On your marks!

After Olympia we headed to Corfu which was nice. Luckily Kyle and I are very apt at public transportation so took a bus around the town and saw a nice palace and had a coffee overlooking the ocean.

Greece had alot more mountains than I had ever realized. These were beautiful in the morning.

Our view while sipping Greek frappe.

The big part of the trip was seeing Cairo, Egypt. I was a little anxious before we got there, but now I am so glad we went (of course I am saying this since we made it back alive and I didn't end up getting sick). It was incredible and like no where else I have ever been. Some of you might recall our awful trip to Tunisia (December 2005 -- I hated it, Kyle didn't). However, I think having such culture shock in Tunisia actually helped me to adjust more quickly to Egypt. We were only in the city for two days, but by the second day I really did feel pretty comfortable there. Later, I am going to write a whole blog just about our time in Cairo.

A typical sight in Cairo and especially outside of the city.

Next we were off to Crete. Of all the places we saw, this one impressed us the least and yet it was still breathtaking. You can't really go wrong with a beautiful ocean, blue sky and lots of sun. But after not loving Crete we fell in love with our next stop in Santorini. It was just pure luck that we rented a car (we saw the car rental place before we could find a taxi), but we felt so lucky to have a car there so that we could go at our own pace. We drove to the town of Oia and wandered around for several hours. It was incredible. We both had a great time taking photos and I think we got some really good shots. In reality though, I think a two year old with a camera could get good shots there. The place is so beautiful you just can't go wrong.


The next island we stopped at was Mykonos. Even though it also has white buildings and blue doors like Santorini, it felt different enough that we took even more photos there too.

After Mykonos it was off to Ephesus...basically a really, really old city that still has very intact ruins. It was amazing to think you were looking at a building from 125 AD (below), but the heat and the crowds kind of snapped you back to reality. We also saw the house where the Virgin Mary lived after Christ's death. Again, it didn't feel like such a religious experience because a group of 8 people cut in front of us in line and then acted like they had been there the whole time, which was frustrating. Our final stop was Istanbul which was great. It is a really neat city with great public transportation and I enjoyed seeing the sites there. Before this trip I would have never thought to vacation in Turkey, but now I would highly recommend it. The people were very friendly and open to Western ideas, so you got a taste of the East (mosques), but the comforts of the West (internet cafes and women's rights). The country of Turkey has a great tourism department so there were maps and helpful people in orange shirts all over the place. Every country should take notes on how welcoming they are to visitors.

Emily in the Blue Mosque (where I had to cover my head).

Kyle brushed up on his Arabic.

Overall it was just a wonderful trip. The history surrounding that area of the world is amazing. I really enjoyed seeing how people there lived. I was reminded yet again that even though we all have different religious beliefs and governmental systems, throughout the world, the majority of people enjoy a good laugh with friends and just want to be able to love their family and enjoy life. Yes, they might be hidden behind a burqa but seeing a grandmother smile a her daughter while holding her grandson on the train in Egypt reminded me that we really are all the same deep down.