Plaka Plaka Hey Hey

I've really outdone myself with the title this time... I think I can make M cringe so many ways with this one, from the outdated Shakira reference to the sad pun on "plaka", which I understand just means "stone slab" in Greek but is also the name of the neighborhood we spent much of our time in beautiful Athens. Athens, Greece was the last stop on our anniversary cruise after Istanbul. Athens was an absolute dream for the whole family, and I wish we had had more time there!

Our first day we got checked into our hotel and explored the neighborhood in Plaka. I bought some leather sandals, as Greece is known for high-quality leather and shoes. We visited Athens National Garden, a park that had a wonderful playground for S and lifted my soul with all the greenery I don't see much in Dubai. I ate refreshing Greek salad and drank a non-alcoholic mastiha lemonade, which combines lemon juice and resin from the mastic tree that grows on the island of Chios in Greece. They were delightful!

After we left the park, we stumbled upon the Benaki Museum of Greek Culture, which hadn't originally been on my list but really caught my eye as we walked past and so we turned back and went inside. I'm so glad we did, because it was full of treasures and fascinating history, from ancient pottery to centuries of currency and cool religious artifacts and art from Greece's history. It's also well-known for a pair of perfectly preserved wood-paneled interiors that were donated to the museum after adorning a wealthy family's house. Aren't those walls gorgeous?

We went to a famous, absurdly thematic cafe called Little Kook that was decked out all the way down the street with Snow White paraphernalia. S loved the staff costumes, props, and extensive selection of desserts. The food was... okay, but we all could see that the quality of the food was not the main draw of the place.

The next day we went to the Acropolis (from where I took the first photo of this post). There was so much to see, and it was packed with people. After the Acropolis, we made our way to the Acropolis Museum, which helped us understand more about the things we saw at the Acropolis site itself. I was blown away by how well so many sites were preserved and the fact that new archaeological research and restoration work are still being done all the time.

Keeping with our spontaneous streak this stop, we also found a walking path as we were leaving the Acropolis and decided to follow it up to another peak with the Philopappos Monument. One our way up, we passed a cave with iron bars that was rumored to be the prison of ancient philosopher Socrates. And at the top, we were rewarded with a beautiful view of the Acropolis from a distance.

In between the attractions themselves, we really enjoyed just strolling around Athens and soaking in the beautiful, bustling streets, cute shops and cafes, endless restaurants, and more - all under the majestic, towering Acropolis. There were a lot of short-term tourists like us, but the city also struck me as a lovely place to stay longer. I'm sure we'll be back someday, and until then it's time to bid farewell to the anniversary cruise posts and return to our regularly scheduled life and related programming! Thanks for reading!

Lots of Seeking and Some Finding in Istanbul

After our idyllic visit to Crete, we were looking forward to visiting Türkiye. We had a one-day stop in Istanbul scheduled before our ship moved on to another Greek island, Mykonos. Unfortunately, tragedy struck on route and for the first time we experienced what happens when someone goes overboard on a cruise ship. The Man Overboard signal was transmitted late at night and announced throughout the ship. The captain turned the ship around to where the person had gone over and sent out rescue boats and searchlights over the dark water. They asked passengers to notify crew if we saw or heard anything, and they even turned off the air conditioning and other non-essential electric functions to make it easier to hear if there were any cries for help. Send we were in Turkish waters, the Turkish coast guard joined the search.

The heartbreaking end to this story is the person was never found. After a whole night of searching, Turkish authorities boarded our ship and reviewed the CCTV footage. Later, the captain confirmed it was a crew member who went overboard. Authorities cleared the ship to proceed, and although they never said this explicitly it seems likely based on circumstances that the crew member may have died by suicide.* I learned from other stories online that this happens more than I realized, and it made me so sad to think about how many of the other people I interacted with on ship who might greet me with a smile while hurting deeply on the inside.

With heavy and somber hearts, we continued on our journey with a modified itinerary that removed a planned stop in Mykonos and gave us an afternoon and evening in Istanbul instead of just the daytime. We had no real plan, just a list of family-friendly tourist sites we thought we might visit.

My favorite stop by far (as you can tell from the photos) was the Sultan Ahmed Mosque, commonly known as the Blue Mosque. It's a working mosque that closes for prayer times but in between is open for visitors to admire the stunning blue tilework from which it draws its nickname. It was an architectural marvel, and I felt so peaceful inside.

I know the Hagia Sophia is even more famous, but from recent reviews I read online it sounds like most of the interior is closed off to tourists and the price was very steep, so instead we admired it from the outside. We spent the rest of the day wandering the streets and getting a feel for the city, taking a couple rides on the tram to explore. It was a little hot and crowded, so we ended up returning to the ship after a few hours.

In the end, I felt like we had only scratched the surface of this fascinating city and I hope we get the chance to visit again someday. Next time, I'll blog about the very last stop on our anniversary cruise: Athens, Greece. Until then, stay safe and hold your loved ones close.

*If you are struggling with thoughts of suicide or self-harm, you are not alone. Please seek help from a professional mental health care provider or at findahelpline.com.

Crete-ings from Greece!

I think my puns may be getting worse as the anniversary cruise posts continue, but that won't stop me from raving about our time in Crete, Greece! After Italy, our ship stopped in Chania, a town on the northwest coast of Crete. This trip, I tried as much as I could to alternate highly structured days with unstructured days. So because on our last stop in Italy I did a tour of Pompeii on my own, we decided to take Chania in a more laid-back way (which always makes things easier when you're traveling with a little one).

I could've spent at least a week in Chania. From the picturesque streets to the bustling waterfront and fascinating history, I was hooked from the moment we stepped off the ship. In Old Town Chania, I visited so many historic buildings but the one that stood out to me the most was St. Nicholas Church. I learned that the church was built in 1320 as part of a Dominican monastery.

Then, Turks came to the city and in 1645 the building was converted to a mosque, complete with added minaret. In 1918 it was converted back to an Orthodox Church, and they added a bell tower. One can't help but be struck by the mishmash of architectural features, a testament to the history of the place.

We passed by a few other historic churches and adorable gift shops and cafes on our way through the old town, and eventually the streets just opened up to a massive plaza and a view of the ocean. We'd made it to the Venetian Port Waterfront. The weather was gorgeous and every table outside every restaurant was packed with people enjoying a beautiful day by the water.

We strolled along the waterfront (the first photo of this post) and visited the Ottoman Mosque, also known as the Kucjk Hassan Mosque. From what I read online, the mosque was built by the Turks after they conquered the city in 1645. I also read that when Nazis bombed Chania during World War II, it destroyed one of this mosque's minarets. I'm no architecture buff, but I was amazed at how much history was held in the walls of these buildings.

We were exhausted from walking so much and decided to return to the ship for our main meal, but I couldn't leave without trying bougatsa (phyllo dough filled with custard). Thankfully, there was a well-known place that specializes in bougatsa called Bougatsa Iordanis right next to the stop for the shuttle bus that would take us back to the ship. It was delicious! It was warm and had the perfect mix of creamy custard and crispy phyllo with a hint of sweetness. I'm pretty sure I could eat it every day.

One day wasn't enough for Crete, but it was such a lovely introduction for our family to this beautiful island. There is still so much history, culture, food, and more to experience - I'll have to save it for our next visit. That's all for now, until I get around to blogging about our next stop in Istanbul!