My Road To Happiness

Just a quick note that I updated many of my previous posts on my trip to Greece with new photographs.

Check it out here: http://myroadtohappieness.com/blog/?tag=greece

I wake once during the night when the ferry shudders during a turn. I open the curtains and peer out over an ink blue, moonlight sky. We seem to be coming to a stop. I’m not sure if it’s designed to let some passenger’s disembark or if we need to refuel. I decide I don’t care. I slip back under the covers and am instantly asleep again.

1st View of Rhodes from the Ferry

When I wake it’s about 8:30 am. At this point I’m under the impression we will dock in Rhodes around 10:30 so I wander down to the first class lounge for a greek coffee and a sticky bun. The boat’s half empty at this point and I’m starting to think my timetable may be off a bit. A stop by reception confirms we’re docking in 20 minutes. Shit. Late again.

I get back upstairs and rush past a series of empty cabins already being cleaned by housekeeping. It takes me a bit to put all my bags back together but it certainly isn’t past the 20 minute mark when I make my way, alone, through the deserted ship.

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I board the Ferry easily. All I have to do is ride the escalator up two stories to the reception area.

Blue Star Ferry 2

It’s quite swank and I am suddenly revising my opinion on cruising. I receive my room key, my bags are gathered up by a porter and we are both whisked upstairs to the Luxury cabins.

This is the first time I’ve felt “excited” since I booked this trip last September. It’s not that it isn’t exciting to be in Greece but I’ve traveled enough to see a similarity to most of the cities of Europe and nothing I saw in Athens turned me on. It felt academic. Picture at the Parthenon – Check! Gawk at the first Olympic stadium – Check! Ingest kabobs with Teziki – Check!

Now, as I enter my cabin, I feel glad I decided to travel to the Island this way. The cabin is generous with two twin beds separated by a window. It has a desk, a closet, a small fridge and a private bathroom. Oh, and chocolate covered strawberries on the desk with a nice fruit arrangement and a few bottles of sparkling water. Read the rest of this entry »

I left for Greece on a Thursday morning. Well, it was supposed to be a morning departure, but storms that passed through Cleveland overnight were slowing things down in Newark, where I was catching my connection to Athens.

Living Along Side History in Athens

This made me miss my lunch plans with an old friend I made while living in NYC. To protect her privacy I’ll refer to her here as I often did in person as “Mission Control”.

MC had big news she was waiting to share in person and I’m really sorry I couldn’t make it to NY in time to meet her. She’s pregnant with her first child. This is a relief as there’s been some question about how easy this was going to be for her. Buoyed by this good news, my mood lifted and made the next 9 hours more bearable.

I booked a bulkhead window seat hoping that would be more comfortable as it prevents anyone from squashing me as they lean their chair back. This worked well and as the row was behind first class, it kept things pretty quiet. Except for the kid 3 rows back who was old enough to vocalize a constant stream of wants and needs but young enough to bray it out loud like a donkey being castrated. In 9 hours I never heard them discipline him one time. Read the rest of this entry »