10/15/2015 Malta (Cruise to Mediterranean & Israel)

After cruising at sea for 12 days, we finally arrived at our last destination, Malta, before heading back to Rome.  Malta is a very small island country in the Mediterranean Sea just off the coast of Sicily, Italy.  Because of its strategic location, it has been sought after and occupied by a succession of rulers, including Romans, Moors, Knights of St. John, French, and British.  The island state covers only 122 square miles and has a population of merely half a million.  Giving its small size, it is hard to imagine that the island is the location of two UNESCO World Heritage sites.

Our cruise ship arrived at Valletta, the capital of Malta, early in the morning.  The view from our cabin immediately told us this would be an interesting place to visit.

We joined a private tour arranged by a fellow cruiser Bev from Canada.  There were many cruisers joining Bev today that she had to arrange two buses to accommodate us all.  We were on the first bus with Bev and her ultra-friendly and helpful husband Peter.

Our first stop was Mdina, a medieval walled city built in the 14^th and 15^th centuries.  Mdina, situated on a hill in the center of the island, was founded as the fortified capital of Malta.  The city lost its status as the capital in the 16^th century but continues to serve as a place for the elite class to live.  It has a tiny population of only 300 and most of them live in palaces located along the narrow streets around the city.  With a few exceptions, cars are not allowed in the city; therefore the city is nicknamed “the Silent City”.

This is the main gate of Mdina. It was designed by a French architect in 1724.

A close-up look of the main gate.  The details are striking.

This gate was used as the main entrance into King’s Landing in the first season of Game of Thrones. In this scene (picture from the web), Catelyn Stark rode into King’s Landing to investigate the attack on her son Brandon.

The other side of the main gate.  Notice the thickness of the wall. 

After entering the main gate, immediately to the right, there is another gate leading into a courtyard.

On one end of this courtyard sits the Vilhena Palace, originally served as a summer residence for the Grand Master of the Knights of St John.  It is now a natural history museum.

Thick limestone walls tower over narrow passageways in Mdina.  This one is the main thoroughfare and is the widest street in the city, and it is narrow.

Many houses are palaces still inhibited by city’s 300 residents.  Many have decorative exterior and intricate balconies.  Most palaces were rebuilt with Baroque elements in the 18^th century.

From the balcony of the House of Notary Bezzina on the left, Mdina’s citizens threw the island’s French commander to his death in a 1798 uprising.

At one street corner, Madonna & Child watched a horse-drawn carriage passing by.

St Paul’s Cathedral, the main church of Mdina.



Mdina is protected by a wide moat encircling the perimeter of the city.

This is Joe from Arizona sitting by the moat.  He started the online forum about our cruise so people could exchange ideas about excursions and form private tour groups.  He is also one of the nicest and friendliest persons.

Mdina is very much like the medieval city you get to see in Disney Land, except Mdina is real.  It is very beautiful and we consider it one of our most favorite cities to visit.


After Mdina, we went to the Blue Grotto, a cavernous rock formation on the coastline.  The water around the cave has different shades of blue depending on the time of the day.  Boat trip to the inside of the cave is popular.  On the day of our visit, the wave was too high for such an adventure.

Another rock formation in Malta that we didn’t get to see is the Azure Window.  In the first season of Game of Thrones, the 50-meter high rock arch, known as the Azure Window, was the backdrop for Daenerys Targaryen and Khal Drogo's Wedding.  The popular TV fantasy drama came to Malta during the filming of its first season.  


Hagar Qim, the ruin of a megalithic temple, has existed since 3600-3200 BC.  It along with four other Maltese megalithic structures are listed as UNESCO World Heritage Sites. 




We then headed to Valletta, the capital of Malta.  The heavily fortified city was built by the Knights of St John following the Great Siege of 1565.  The whole city of Valletta is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

The bustling shopping area.

The National Library of Valletta.

In front of the library is a square filled with tables of outdoor cafés.  We had our lunch here.  

The Grand Master’s Palace at Palace Square, aka St George’s Square.

On one side of the square sits the Main Guard Building.

The office of the Prime Minister of Malta is housed in Auberge de Castille in the center of Valletta.  This is Valletta’s finest Baroque masterpiece.  This auberge was a hostel used by knights of the Knights of St John.  In later years it was also the headquarters for the French occupation forces and the British army.

St John’s Co-Cathedral, the main church of Valletta.

A commanding view of the Valletta harbor from the Upper Barrakka Gardens.


The last stop of the day is a small seaside fishing village Marsaxlokk Harbor.  We arrived late in the day and most of the vendors on the promenade were already closing their shops. 



After leaving Malta, our ship cruised one more day at sea before it reached Civitavecchia on 10/17/2015.  Our 14-night cruise started at Civitavecchia on 10/3/2015, and we had finally come back to where we started.

This cruise has been nothing short of excitements, wonderments, and enrichment.  We visited many World Heritage sites.  We gained a new understanding of the once mighty Roman Empire, the enlightening Ancient Greece, and their enduring impacts on the civilization.  We also learned to appreciate the history of Christianity and the devotion of the faithful.  During the cruise, we made many friends with people from various countries, all with different backgrounds, and all getting along very well indeed.  This has been an extraordinary cruise.


Postscript: After dropping us off at Civitavecchia, the same cruise ship was going to pick up a new group of passengers and, following the same 14-night itinerary, to visit Mediterranean and Israel.  But the Israeli-Palestinian conflict continued to deteriorate.  One day before our arrival back at Rome, Celebrity announced that it would cancel all future calls to Jerusalem.  Sadly and fortunately, we turned out to be the last group of Celebrity Cruise passengers having been able to visit the holy place.

-Joe

10/13/2015 Athens (Cruise to Mediterranean & Israel)

After Mykonos, our next port of call was Piraeus, the port city of Athens.

Athens is considered the cradle of Western civilization.  During Greek’s Golden Age, Athenians pioneered immeasurable advances in democracy, sciences, philosophy, art, and architecture.  Its influences shaped the foundation and formed the cornerstones of our civilization that still inspire us today.

We joined a private tour arranged by Jackie from New Jersey.  Our tour guide was already at the dockside waiting for us when we disembarked.  On the way to Athens, the bus took us through many seaside condominium complexes overlooking the Piraeus harbor.  Our tour guide told us that a small two-bedroom unit would still sell easily for more than 1 million Euro.  It’s in direct contrast to what we’ve seen on TV where Athenians took to the street to protest belt-tightening measures because of the Greece financial problem.  I guess wealth does bring the privilege of being immune to world worries, even when the whole country of Greece is in dire straits.

Our main destination for the day was the Acropolis, a plateau high above Athens.  The Acropolis of Athens is the most important ancient site in the Western world.  Many temples sit on this site, among them Parthenon is the most magnificent.  The Acropolis is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Before we visited the Acropolis itself, we first came to the Acropolis Museum, a glassy modern temple with relics from the Acropolis.

The museum was built on top of a ruin.  The walkways outside were built with clear glass panels to allow viewing over the ruin below.

The corridor on one side of the museum offers a clear view of the Acropolis.  There appears to have some hiking trails leading from the foothill toward the hilltop.

Cameras are not allowed for most of the exhibits on level 1 and 2.  On level 3, five of the six original caryatids (lady-columns) from the Erechtheion temple are displayed.  The sixth original caryatid is in London’s British Museum.  These ancient ladies are camera-friendly (no surprise!).


The most amazing display on level 3 is the decorative friezes that once adorned the exterior of the Parthenon.  On display are a few of the original friezes, the forever lost pieces (marked by blank spaces), and replicas of the pieces that are stored in London’s British Museum, Paris’ Louvre, and Copenhagen.    

Some original statues from Acropolis can be seen on Level 3 too.

After the museum visit, we went to the Plaka district for lunch.  The bus dropped us off at the Monastiraki Square.  The old mosque in the background is now the Museum of Greek Folk Arts.

A small church, The Church of the Virgin, is also on this square.

This short street, Souvlaki Row, is full of restaurants with outdoor tables.

Our group had lunch together occupying many of these outdoor tables.  With restaurant’s free WIFI, I managed to check in on Facebook.

On our way to Acropolis, we passed the Arch of Hadrian.  This arch was built by Roman emperor Hadrian to segregate the old Greek district and the new Roman district in 132 AD.  Hadrian, one of the Five Good Emperors, seemed to be omnipresent since we had just seen the Temple of Hadrian in Ephesus across the Aegean Sea two days ago.

We also got a glimpse of the ruin of the Temple of Olympian Zeus.  This once massive temple took almost 700 years to build by various emperors and kings.  It was finally completed by Hadrian in 131 AD.

        

We started from the bottom of the Acropolis.  First, we saw the grand Odeon of Herodes Atticus, a venue for musical performances.  The Odeon was built in 161 AD with a capacity for 5000 people.


Before climbing the big steps to reach the top of the Acropolis, we had to pass the Beule Gate.

Then it was a steep climb toward the Propylaea. The square pedestal on the left is the Monument of Agrippa.  Marc Antony and his lover Cleopatra’s statue once sat atop this pedestal until Marc Antony was defeated by Agrippa.

Propylaea is an imposing building with many tall fluted columns.  It served as the gateway to the Acropolis.       

The Parthenon is an architectural masterpiece that was erected 2500 years ago.  It was a temple dedicated to the goddess Athena, whom the people of Athens considered their patron.  The Parthenon is regarded as an enduring symbol of Ancient Greece, Athenian democracy, and western civilization.

The east side of the Parthenon, with 8 columns.

The south side of the Parthenon, with 17 columns.

The north side of the Parthenon, with 17 columns.

The west side of the Parthenon, with 8 columns.

Next to the Parthenon is the Erechtheion, an ancient Greek temple dedicated to Athena and Poseidon.


On one corner of Erechtheion is the Porch of the Caryatids.  Six lady-columns support the roof of a protruding porch.  These six caryatids are replicas.  We saw five originals in the Acropolis Museum this morning.    

The Parthenon and The Erechtheion.

Theater of Dionysus is an open-air theater right at the foothill of the Acropolis.  This theater had 17000 seats and was built in 4^th century BC.


The Acropolis offers spectacular views of Athens.  In this picture, the Temple of Olympian Zeus is at a far distance.      

A closer view of the Temple of Olympian Zeus, from the Acropolis.

Another spectacular view of Athens. In this picture, the glassy Museum of Acropolis is on the left.

Our last stop of the day is the Panathenaic Stadium.  This is one of the oldest stadia in the world, and the only one built entirely of marble.  It was used for the first modern Olympic Games in 1896, and again when Greece hosted the 2004 Olympic Games.




After Athens, the ship cruised one day at sea before it reached our next destination Malta. On this sea day, we had our third, and the last, formal dinner.  The big succulent lobster was on the menu and we all stuffed ourselves.

-Joe