To Hellas

Sunday was a travel day. It happened to be 9/11. That was probably not the best choice of travel days, considering what might have happened in the world, but all worked out just fine. From leaving J.J.'s door in Lausanne to arriving at my hotel in Piraeus, it took me twelve hours. It was a long and tiring day. I spent two hours in the Rome airport, waiting for my connecting flight. It was announced, first in Italian then in English, that a minute of silence would be observed at 2:46 in commemeration of the victims of 9/11, that all activity in the airport would cease at that time. I was deeply touched by that tribute. The horrors of that day, now ten years ago, have profoundly affected the entire Western world.

The flight from Rome to Athens was quite spectacular. By luck I had a window seat. Our flight route took us first down the Mediterranean coast, just past Naples, then inland across the Italian peninsula. The Adriatic sparkled in the sun. Soon we were over the Ionian Islands, then the Peloponnese. HELLAS! Below was the sun-drenched soil of Greece, the very site of thousands of years of history, of a culture whose genius has shaped Western culture. Just don't get me started on Ancient Greece! What the Greeks have bequeathed us in terms of architecture, sculpture, theater, musical theory, philosophy, poetry, literature, mathematics, government, and scientific inquiry is staggering. It defies comprehension that one culture could have achieved so much of lasting value. Have I left something out? Okay, they weren't so hot in the realm of medicine, but their score card is otherwise formidable. And they bravely fought off the Persians -- Marathon, Thermopylae, Salamis, Plataea. Thank you, Ancient Greeks! I studied the Ancient Greek language intently for a few years. Only recently did I discover that the modern alphabet is pronounced differently. It is only to be expected, considering that Greek is one of the oldest European languages. It goes back 4,000 years; the written language 3,000 . But still, darn! I'm afraid I might sound like Demosthenes asking for directions to the nearest Starbucks.

Back to my trip. The bus ride from Athens airport to the port city of Piraeus was one long traffic jam, a regular jam-athon (when in Rome...). The airport and the seaport lie on opposite sides of the megalopolis of Athina which is famous for its horrendous traffic. I had done my research on mapquest and made myself precise directions from the bus terminal to the hotel. It seemed a walkable distance. It's a good thing I opted to take a taxi because it was several miles! After a comfortable and restful night in my lovely hotel (and a bargain, too! Thank you, internet!) I asked for a taxi after breakfast only to be informed that the taxis were on strike. Travel is adventure and dealing with the unexpected. I managed to negotiate the mysteries of public transportation and got to the cruise ship terminal in plenty of time. The Louis Majesty is part of the fleet of one of the biggest cruise lines that ply the Mediterranean waters. 'Majesty' is a bit of a stretch for this ship but it is nice enough. After the initial excitement of sailing out of the port, accompanied by much horn blasting, we had the obligatory lifeboat drill. Keeping in mind that a ship of this very cruise line sank off the island of Santorini a few years ago (it hit an unmarked reef), one needs to take this seriously. The passengers seem to be a nice mix of older and younger (I'm not ready for the geriatric cruise yet!). One hears a variety of languages. I suspect there are few Americans on board. That is fine with me.