On the Encore in the Med - through Oct 20

[English Tim]

On 10/3/2024 at 5:36 PM, shark b8 said:

Our fridge in the suite.  I’m actually not sure quite how this happened, but I’m sure as hell not gonna start asking questions.

 

 

 

I think I’ll stay in the suite.🥂

[shark b8]

Yesterday was Crete.  Boring backstory:  when I was a young shark (no, not a “baby shark, doo doo doo doo doo doo-doo-doo”. If you know, you know).  More like a 13-14-year old shark, my parents took me on my first ever trip to Europe.  Did the usual London-Paris-Rome, but also Greek isles. For whatever reason I really liked Crete and the whole ancient Minoan culture/history thing.  Came back and read books, did school book reports, all that sort of thing.  So in April of 2022 when we did a Lisbon-to-Istanbul cruise, I was excited to come back to Crete, after liking it so much the first time, so many decades before. (So long ago, it wasn’t even Greco-Roman ruined yet).  Wouldn’t you know, three days before the Crete call, they did random onboard Covid tests….and I tested positive.  To this day a small voice in the back of my head screams “false positive” or “my test got jumbled up with someone else’s” - I had no symptoms and felt fine.  Now, I understand the whole asymptomatic infection thing, but still…..          So, obviously I missed the Crete/Heraklion stop, I was quarantined on Deck 5 for 6 days.  Was *not* a happy shark, and really angry sharks can be, uh, unpleasant.  Returned to civilization the day before we disembarked in Istanbul.

 

ANYWAY, all the more reason to look forward to this visit (and partly, a reason I planned it), and it didn’t disappoint.  

 

 

 

 

[shark b8]

The nearby museum is just spectacular.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited October 5 by shark b8

[shark b8]

…and of course, the quintessential image (for me anyway):

 

[shark b8]

On this tour, we were outfitted with “3D tablets”.   Devices which, when pointed in any direction on the grounds of the Palace, would show you what it looked like back in the ancient times, or at least what archaeologists guess is the case.  Kind of a mixed bag, didn't quite line up with what one was looking at, and some people barely looked up from the devices, to just appreciate what’s in front of us.  Everyone can do their own thing of course, but made me think of my old Divemaster days - many affluent, newly accredited divers would go out and buy $4,000 worth of underwater photography and video equipment, and then would spend almost all their underwater time only looking through the viewfinder.  Underwater photography is all well & good, but frequently thought they tended to miss the bigger picture. 

 

 

 

 

[shark b8]

This old pic makes that last point better than I did.

 

[shark b8]

 

*sigh*

 

[galeforce9]

Hope you’re still having a good time?

[shark b8]

3 hours ago, galeforce9 said:

Hope you’re still having a good time?

 

Very much so, but a week or two into a cruise, I start to develop a case of The Lazies.  Occupational hazard.

 

We did visit Olympia yesterday, the “birthplace” site of the original Olympic Games.  Greco-Roman ruins.  😉

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[shark b8]

Another instance of using a tablet to show what (archaeologists believe) the site looked like originally.

 

 

 

[shark b8]

More evidence of The Lazies:  I forgot to post pix of the island of Milos, from last week.  Otherworldly rock formations near the water’s edge.  

 

 

 

 

 

[shark b8]

The unique topography resulted in several photo shoots going on simultaneously.  This one seemed to be entitled….”taking photos of a young lady’s posterior”.  Presented without comment.

 

[shark b8]

Milos is also the island on which the Venus de Milo(s) was found.

 

Edited October 9 by shark b8

[lincslady]

Thanks for all of this, sharkb8;  a certain amount of 'more old ruins?' lassitude is allowed to creep in after a while.  You have certainly seen some very interesting places, though.  And lots of us here a bit housebound enjoying it vicariously.

[shark b8]

Hey fellow Seabourners……does this look familiar to anybody?  Every time I open my phone or iPad I get a succession of these pop-ups, 5 or 6 of them, mentioning different apps.   I’ve googled and googled and have read the experiences of a few others with the same problem, but I’ve yet to figure out how to stop it.  If anyone else has gone through this & figured out a solution, I’d love to hear it.

 

[frantic36]

14 hours ago, shark b8 said:

We did visit Olympia yesterday, the “birthplace” site of the original Olympic Games.  Greco-Roman ruins.  😉

 

So did you and your good wife run the Olympic track? My husband and I did but it was a few years ago and we were healthier then, now it would be a stroll.😀

Edited October 9 by frantic36

[shark b8]

7 hours ago, frantic36 said:

did you and your good wife run the Olympic track?

 

No…..but we looked at it very intensely.    

[shark b8]

Wandering the streets of Brindisi, on the eastern Italian coast.  Where should we have lunch?  Hmmm, maybe not on this street.

 

[shark b8]

Ok, maybe not here either.  (although I’d like to think I do southern BBQ pretty well in my smoker at home.  Just…maybe…not…here)

 

[shark b8]

Ok, Michelin-one-star place, “Pantagruele”, just off the harbor.  Marinated anchovies, cappaletti with “36-month Reggiano cream cheese” (not sure I’ve read about such a thing, but sounds pretty good to me!) and shaved black truffles.  Yep.  Good choice. 

 

 

[shark b8]

“wandering around, now we’re lost.  where’s our ship?”

 

oh.  there it is.     😊🛳️

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[PrincessTraveller]

3 hours ago, shark b8 said:

Ok, Michelin-one-star place, “Pantagruele”, just off the harbor.  Marinated anchovies, cappaletti with “36-month Reggiano cream cheese” (not sure I’ve read about such a thing, but sounds pretty good to me!) and shaved black truffles.  Yep.  Good choice. 

 

 

Love the food pics @shark b8 and appreciate the restaurant recommendation.  You're making me so hungry, and drool a tad.  Yum 🤤!

 

Leaving in a week for three glorious weeks in Italy (land trip) that includes the annual truffle festival in Alba.  When I die, I'm coming back as a truffle dog!

[shark b8]

On 10/11/2024 at 1:35 AM, PrincessTraveller said:

Love the food pics @shark b8

 

Well, that’s good, ‘cuz there are more to come!

[shark b8]

On 10/11/2024 at 1:35 AM, PrincessTraveller said:

….I'm coming back as a truffle dog!

 

Our Sundance is a real nose-to-the-ground kinda gal, when we’re on our walks.  So she might be a great truffle dog, except that…..I’m pretty sure there aren’t many truffles in the volcanic soil of Hawaii. 

 

[shark b8]

So, we can’t help but notice that some of the themed nights at the Colonnade are exact copies of the old Keller nights.  During the first week we had the family style fried chicken, a few nights ago it was the ribs.  Virtually everything is identical, even the menu card at the table is the same size, style, font….just without the Keller name.  Having heard that Mr Keller is sometimes very difficult to deal with, I would have thought that this would have been a problem, but it is what it is.  I loved the between-courses flatbread/aged cheddar/mustard thing, and it was present, just with a different cheese company.  Anyway……ribs.

 

 

Edited October 12 by shark b8