Lycian Tombs, and Marmaris highlights

Last week I went on a tour in Marmaris to the Lycian Tombs, and the surrounding area.

The Lycian's carved tombs into the cliff side all over the area of now Turkey. They look similar to what I think the ruins of Petra would be except smaller.

The area we went to had about 10 large tombs in one spot as well as some small opening cut into the cliff. The size would vary depending on how rich the person was.

We also went to an area that had ruins of of a old greek town.

We also saw a type of crab, called the blue crab, its claws have a large blue streak on them, we were able to buy crabs that they bbq for us, they were very tasty.

There are also large turtles that live in the river, and use the beach for laying their eggs which are protected by the government.

Then we went to the beach for a short swim. The water was a bit cold, as it was mid October, but still not to bad.

After that we went to lunch, and then back to the ship.

Basilica Cistern

The basilica cistern is one of many cisterns built by the Romans underneath the city of Istanbul.

This is the best and largest of them, and is located near the Hagia Sofia.

Built around 500ad the structure consists of over 336 10 meter high columns, and was capable of holding 80,000 cubic meters of water.

After the Turks took control of the city they fell out of use, and were unknown for hundreds of years until rediscovered.

They are currently a lesser known site then the many very famous ones about ground, but should not be missed as they were quite amazing.

They have been fitted with walkways to get around inside them, as there is still a few feet of water inside, and quite a lot of fish. Not sure what they eat, but some were quite large.

Also of interest are 2 Medusa heads that are located near the back of the cistern. One is upside down, and the other is on its side. It isn't known where they came from, or exactly why they are not right side up. But one idea is that it takes away the power of the statue.

A was able to get some really great pictures inside, using a starry night mode, as its quite dark inside.

Turkish Bath

photo courtesy of http://roymarvelous.com

On a tour in Bodrom I went to a Turkish Bath.

Traditional bath would have a person wearing just a towel, but here we wore bathing suits.

A funny comment from a guest was that on this tour we were going to be seeing a different kind of ancient ruins.

The baths are made up of a few separate rooms. The first being a kind of steam room/ sauna. That includes a large heated marble slab that you lie on. The idea is to get a sweat going that allows toxins to be expelled.

After that is a slightly less warm room, where you are scrubbed down to remove dead skin from the body.

After that they cover you in soap suds and give a combo massage and cleaning.

And of course to make the experience authentic its all done by a large hairy Turkish man. Or if your a female, then it's a large hairy Turkish woman.

At the bath we were at they offered other spa services like pedicure, manicure, hair and regular massages.

I opted for a 10 minute massage that was good for my bad shoulder/neck which I usually go to a chiropractor for, but this did the trick.

Overall the trip to a Turkish Bath was invigorating and a worthwhile experience.

Island of Delos

The island of Delos is a short ferry ride from Mykonos. And it is said to be the birthplace of Apollo.

We got to the island and according to the tour guide it hadn't rained in the area since May, but today it was raining like crazy.

When the ferry arrived there was a big downpour that caught the people first off the ship in a big wind and rainstorm.

But it soon tapered off, and for the first part of the tour, the weather was nice.

The island has extensive excavations all over the island, but we only saw the major areas.

One of the main sites are the lions of Delos, which are in decent shape after all these years.

That cant be said for all the island. As I witnessed when a large piece of marble fell over near us, but thankfully nobody was hurt.

Near the end of the tour the rain started again and we were all thankful to get back on the ferry. One thing was that the tour ended in the town on Mykonos not near the ship dock which is a bit further away. As I walked back to the shuttle bus area, the rain was getting worse, and rivers of water were pouring down the streets.

It was an interesting day, but I hope the rain can stay away next week.

ATV's in santorini

image courtesy of http://roymarvelous.com/ a fellow ITV manager and blogger

Last week in Santorini a few of us rented ATV's

We were able to get a good deal as it is near the end of the season. So we each got one for 15euros.

My original plan was to go to Oia, a town in the north of the island. But we ended up heading south, with a friend who has been to the island the least amount of times leading the way.

The area we stopped for lunch was an area I had been to before but it was still nice.

After that we heading out and just drove without much of a direction of plan, a little while later we saw a sign pointing to a ancient town at the top of a long hill. There were many swichbacks and it was a narrow road that was used by taxi's and other ATV's that were coming down, but thankfully no close calls or anything like that.

The top of the hill gave great views over a lot of the island. And it was somewhere I haven't been on my favorite island. So well worth the drive.

After that we headed back to the main town as it was getting close to the time we had to get the tender back to the ship.

But there is always time for a Gyro from Lucky's.

While there we saw a sign for a Park-our competition in town that was starting in a few minutes.

It was a short walk away and was quite busy when we got there, but we were able to see a few people doing some really cool tricks jumping off and between the roofs of the santorini houses.

After that it was back to the ship. Another great day in Santorini.

Corinth Canal

In Athens I did a tour to Ancient Corinth, and the Corinth Canal.

The Corinth Canal was built in 1881-1893 by the same people who did the Suez canal.

The canal is 4 km long, and at one point cuts through cliffs 300ft tall.

There were earlier attempts to build a canal in 7th century BC, by the then ruler of the city of Corinth. Who abandoned the idea in favor of a overland road.

Then in 67AD, the Roman Emperor Nero began work on the canal, but only about 1/10 of the distance was dug before it was abandoned.

The current canal is to small for a cruise ship our size to pass through, although some smaller cruise ships still use it.

In WW2 the Germans when retreating from Greece used explosives to block the canal.

Sailing through the canal takes about 20 minutes, and gives some interesting views.

Also there is a place that you can bungee jump from one of the bridges.

We saw a group getting ready to jump, but they did not while we were sailing past.

Lindos, Rhodes

I went on my first tour of the contract.

The tour went to Lindos, a town on the island of Rhodes.

At the site is the ruins of the old Acropolis of Lindos, and also the walls, of the castle of the Knights St. John

To get up to the top of the hill was a big of a hike, and the rocks, having been walked on for hundreds of years were pretty slippery.

There isn't much left of the temple, as recently as 1999 there was more of the original but it was damaged by attempted restoration by the Italians. It has now been rebuilt using new materials. But built similar to the old temple.

Also a lot of the relics were removed in the first excavation in 1900-1914, and they were split between the Danish who did the excavation, and the Turks who owned the island at the time.

It was good to get out of the main town and see something different.

And a good way to start my tours for this contract.

Below are a few pics from the old town in Rhodes

Back on my own

So my handover is done, and I am on my own for another t months.

I signed up for a few tours this cruise so I will hopefully have some pictures of some cool sites soon.

Other then that not too much to say.

We are about to sail away from Istanbul heading south.

Another cruise begun.