St Anthony’s Gate, the historic entrance to medieval city Rhodes.Credit: Getty Images
Have you heard about the cruise that visits three continents in a week? Imagine unpacking just once then getting to enjoy islands dripping with beauty and mythology (in Europe), biblical lost cities (in Asia), and the only one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World still standing (in Africa). Along the way, there’ll be riveting tales of gods and goddesses, prophets and philosophers, warriors and excavators, plus a Dionysian fusion of dishes, wines, spirits and live entertainment that lulls you deeper into the cultures of the eastern Mediterranean. Celestyal’s Three Continents Cruise, it’s fair to say, captures the imagination like few other seven-night seafaring adventures.
We’re sailing in the Mediterranean autumn, when the temperatures are pleasant (in the 20s) without the often punishing heat, or tourist crowds, of summer. Like most passengers, including several Australians, we start and finish in Athens’ Port of Piraeus, although you could embark and disembark at other ports en route. The regular itinerary for this cruise has been rejigged slightly due to the Israel-Palestine conflict, with Ashdod – the gateway to Jerusalem, Tel Aviv, Jaffa etc – off schedules for now.
Three continents in a week … all aboard Celestyal Journey.Credit:
But its temporary replacement, Crete, is hardly short of history and allure. The largest of the Greek islands, it’s a place I’m happily returning to, having spent a few hedonistic sun-drenched holidays there in my youth (admittedly, its rich cultural pickings largely passed me by in a blaze of raki, the local firewater, as my friends and I concentrated on the beach bars and clubs that would throb with cheesy Euro dance-pop until sunrise).
I’m (almost) all grown up now, travelling with my partner, Celine, whose own peak nightclubbing years may have passed, but who also has a noticeable spring in her step as we board Celestyal Journey, our floating home for the next seven days, and the latest addition to the Piraeus-based company’s fleet.
Days one and two: from Athenian waters to Cretan charms
The Dolphin Mural in the Queen’s Suite at the Palace of Knossos, Crete.Credit:
“Kalimera! Good morning!” says the smiling, dark-haired woman holding up the sign for this, the first of our chosen shore excursions. After smooth overnight sailing, we’ve arrived in Heraklion, the principal port and capital of Crete. “It’s named after Heracles or Hercules,” says the woman, who introduces herself as our guide, Athena. “In Greek mythology, Athena is the daughter of Zeus, and Heracles is his son. According to legend, Zeus was born in a cave in Crete.”
Athena shares more wisdom – both fantastical and factual – as we tour the Palace of Knossos on Heraklion’s outskirts. One of a clutch of UNESCO World Heritage sites we’ll visit this week, it was the power base of the Minoans, a Bronze Age people touted as Europe’s oldest civilisation. Dating from about 1900BC, the palace complex is a hodge-podge of original stone relics and concrete additions by Sir Arthur Evans, a British archaeologist who spent three decades trying to piece Knossos back together after it was first excavated in 1878 by Minos Kalokairinos, a Cretan businessman and scholar (there are statues of both by the site’s entrance).
Minoan magnificence … Knossos Palace is the largest Bronze Age archaeological site on Crete.Credit: iStock
Wandering around the ruins, we’re struck by colourful frescoes portraying bulls, dolphins and noble ladies, and gigantic jars that would have stored grains and olives. Minoan crafts endure, especially in the mountainous Cretan countryside. After a scenic drive from Knossos, past millions of vines, pines and olive trees, we watch spritely septuagenarian Nikos Ploumakis caress the clay at his potter’s wheel. Some of his ceramics – including vases, bowls and napkin-holders – are hand-painted with scenes from Knossos and grace the shelves of his workshop’s gift store, where Celine makes the first of her week’s purchases: a coffee cup with the same pretty turquoise hue as the bays that lace Crete’s coastline.
Day three: at sea and embracing the Hellenic way of life
Celestyal Journey’s Greek heritage on show in the Sozo Health Spa.Credit:
Shades of blue greet me as I open the curtains to see the Mediterranean crinkling calmly beneath a mostly cloudless sky. It’s a good day for sailing. A gentle breeze tickles the pool decks, where lounging guests are served cappuccinos and cocktails by crew from South-East Asia, Eastern Europe and the Caribbean. A young Spanish-speaking family shoots hoops in the open-air basketball court. Next door, an American couple plays tennis. Elsewhere, I pass a French woman reading a chunky biography of Charles de Gaulle and hear passenger conversations in New Yorker English, Cantonese, Portuguese, Bulgarian and Greek, among others.
There’s a spacious feel to Celestyal Journey, and not just because we’re cruising at about three-quarters of its 1260-passenger capacity. Cosy lounges and hangout spots dot this retro Italian-built vessel, which is sporting a $33 million refurbishment (it’s had several previous incarnations since its 1993 launch, most recently as Pacific Aria for P&O Australia). Staying in a 21-square-metre Junior Dream Suite, we have the added refuge of a balcony (149 of the 630 cabins have one).
Serenity also bathes the spa, named after the Greek wellness custom of sozo. After soothing, oily massages, we switch between the sauna, steam room and thermae, which has a hot tub, stone beds and beautiful peacock-tiled walls. There is also a fitness centre with cardio equipment, weights and yoga and aerobic classes.
Cosy lounges and hangout spots dot this retro Italian-built vessel.Credit:
Another feather in Celestyal’s cap is its collaboration with Greek-American chef Diane Kochilas. Although you’ll always find some Greek – say, moussaka and baklava – alongside global fare at the complimentary Thalassa a la carte restaurant and The Taverna buffet, the Chef’s Table is a speciality dining option featuring Kochilas’ six-course menu. Highlights are the Aegean fisherman’s soup, Cretan octopus carpaccio and Kalogeros terrine (a dish from Naxos with sliced beef loin, aubergine and sheep milk’s cheese). I’d recommend the unsung Greek tipples from the ship’s excellent wine list, including crisp dry whites and rosés, and silky, medium-bodied reds.
Hellenic flavours dominated this day at sea, but I go to bed thinking of Egypt. Earlier, we’d attended a presentation by Hany Tawfik, a charismatic Egyptologist whose insights and anecdotes whetted the appetite for our trip to “The Land of the Pharaohs”. “Just think,” Hany said. “Tomorrow, you’ll be doing what millions of people around the world can only dream of: you’re going to Egypt to see the pyramids!”
Day four: pharaohs, pyramids and pelicans
A pinch-yourself moment … The Great Sphinx.Credit: Getty Images
Bleary from the 5am alarm, my eyes widen at the pinky African sky as we shuffle towards the flotilla of coaches that will take hundreds of us on the almost three-hour journey down the highway to Cairo. We were initially supposed to dock at Port Said, but with the Egyptian-Gaza border less than 300 kilometres away, we have instead called at Alexandria, a storied port, founded by Alexander the Great, and the birthplace of Cleopatra, further to the west.
Security is clearly paramount – we’re also getting a police escort to Cairo and back – but throughout this long, but utterly memorable day, we feel at ease, helped by our calm and elegant Egyptian guide, Hoda, and ice-cool driver Mohammed. The skill with which he navigates the notorious traffic of Greater Cairo – think: swerving minivans, horse-drawn carriages, tuk-tuks, horn-tooting taxis, cars and other buses in a metropolitan area with almost as many people (22 million) as the whole of Australia – is nearly as awe-inspiring as the sights.
Pyramid of Menkaure, the smallest of the three pyramids of Giza.Credit: iStock
The pyramids of Giza – and the Great Sphinx – take top billing, of course. And it’s a genuine pinch yourself moment being dwarfed by these 4500-year-old marvels on the rocky, dusty plateau where Cairo’s hazy sprawl meets the Sahara (and where the scent of camels is strong, these ungulates, and their masters, taking tourists for rides). We’re more interested in touching the Great Pyramid, the last of the remaining Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. Built as a tomb for Pharaoh Khufu (Cheops), it soars 147 metres, comprising roughly 2.3 million stone blocks, each weighing on average 2.5 to 15 tons.
The historic 1832 Muhammad Ali Mosque in Cairo Citadel.Credit: Getty Images
The pyramids boggle the mind, as does the vast new $1.7 billion Grand Egyptian Museum, which fills a shiny contemporary building next door and boasts the largest collection of Egyptian antiquities ever assembled, including objects from the tomb of Tutankhamun unearthed at Luxor’s Valley of the Kings in 1922. We don’t have time to pop in, for other slices of Cairo are calling us.
We stroll around the Citadel of Saladin, a hulking medieval fortress where we admire the lavish domes, arches and chandeliers of the stunning mosque of Muhammad Ali (not the boxer, but the 19th century governor of Egypt). Then the River Nile lures us for a lunchtime cruise aboard a kitschy vessel festooned with gold paint, hieroglyphic and Pharaonic images.
Muhammad Ali Mosque is a feast of lavish domes, arches and chandeliers.Credit: iStock
As we tuck into grilled meats, fish and vegetables, a belly dancer, then a whirling dervish, takes to the stage. After dessert, we scale the upper deck to soak up the sunshine and the pleasantly surprising tranquillity as we sail past banks flanked with hotels, date palms and pelicans. “It’s the best way to see Cairo,” guide Hoda says. “There’s no traffic here.”
Day five: cults, myths and mosaics
Narrow streets of Limassol, Cyprus.Credit:
After the thrills and throng of Cairo, Cyprus seems strikingly laidback. You’d never guess it’s at the centre of one of the world’s longest running political disputes. Just over a million people live on an island that, since 1974, has been divided, its southern two-thirds run by a Greek Cypriot government, its northern third occupied by Turkey. We’re sticking to the former, venturing from the Port of Limassol to the UNESCO-lauded treasures of Paphos, an hour down the road.
Halfway there we pause at a clifftop lookout, from which our guide Irene shows us the mythical birthplace of Aphrodite, goddess of love and beauty. “That’s Aphrodite’s Rock,” she says, pointing towards one of the weathered sea stacks. “It’s said that if a woman swims around it 10 times under a full moon, she will be 10 times younger. If she does it 15 times, it’ll be 15 years ...” A cult developed around Aphrodite here in classical times, with sanctuaries sprouting around the island.
The Tombs of the Kings, Paphos.Credit: Getty Images
Irene recounts other mythical figures, including Orpheus, Dionysus and Apollo, who are depicted in the magnificent mosaics of Paphos’ seaside archaeological park. Excavated after a farmer stumbled across them in 1962, the mosaics once adorned the villas of Roman noblemen. Equally compelling are the nearby underground tombs, where ancient aristocrats were buried. Descending the steps into these sandstone chambers, past Doric columns and through tight passages, I feel a bit like Indiana Jones. Which reminds me, I must get myself a fedora.
Day six: knights, crafts and sundowners
The medieval city of Rhodes.Credit: Getty Images
As we spend a chillaxing morning at sea, some passengers immerse themselves in the ship’s organised activities. There’s a Greek language lesson, a bracelet-making demonstration, a lecture on Greek herbs, and even a class teaching the Sirtaki dance (whose accompanying tune, immortalised in the movie Zorba the Greek, catches our ears countless times this week).
In Rhodes, we dock right by the UNESCO-listed harbourside medieval city. It’s easy to explore independently, but we’re eager to discover more history so we join a walking excursion with Rhodian guide Olga, who leads us through the gates that pierce the chunky defensive walls constructed by the Knights of St John. This multinational crusading Christian order settled on the island in the early 1300s after fleeing the Holy Land following its capture by Islamic armies.
Palace of the Grand Master.Credit: Getty Images/iStockphoto
There’s an air of King’s Landing from Game of Thrones in this labyrinthine old quarter, both in its bougainvillea-drizzled alleys, and the Palace of the Grand Master, the knights’ castle that was rebuilt and redecorated under Benito Mussolini after Italy seized Rhodes from the Ottomans in 1912. Olga points out Murano chandeliers and the Roman floor mosaics brought here from the neighbouring Dodecanese island of Kos.
Jewellery, figurines and leather goods tempt us (OK, mainly Celine) in the shop-lined Rhodian streets on our amble back to the ship, from which we watch the sun sink behind the castle and fortifications, the sky reddening as I sip a Greek Mythos beer, Celine a Vesper martini. Yamas! (Cheers!)
Day seven: Turkish delights and dazzle
The poster boy of Ephesus … Library of Celsus.Credit: Getty Images
“Welcome to Asia,” says Ceyda, our Turkish guide, who skips through multiple millennia of history on the short drive from Kusadasi, a smart port and resort city with a Hollywood-style sign, to Ephesus, an ancient metropolis with a blockbuster past featuring a starry cast of characters, from Antony and Cleopatra to the Virgin Mary and the apostles John and Paul.
Apparently established by the Amazons, a mysterious female warrior tribe, Ephesus was held by Persians and Greeks before flourishing as the Roman capital of the Asia Minor province. The Temple of Artemis used to loom here, but like other fellow ancient wonders we wished we had seen this week – the Lighthouse of Alexandria and the Colossus of Rhodes – it was destroyed long ago.
Seriously wondrous, however, is the restored facade of the Library of Celsus, the poster boy of Ephesus, whose marble streets thread by the relics of temples, gymnasiums and shops. Ceyda explains this was a thriving, cosmopolitan merchant city until its harbour silted up, leaving it stranded inland.
Historic Theatre of Miletus ruins.Credit: Getty Images
A similar fate awaited Miletus, another once grand port city, 70 kilometres from Ephesus. We ramble around its imposing theatre and epic bathhouse ruins, amazed not just that we’re the only tourists here, but that the Aegean Sea is now nowhere in sight.
After a very late lunch, we’re plied with Turkish wines and apple tea at a rug emporium, where we encounter silkworm cocoons, hand weavers and smooth-talking salesmen. A series of rugs with increasingly elaborate patterns are unfurled before us. Unfortunately, the bluey-green silk one that would look just perfect in our lounge is beyond our budget.
Returning to Celestyal Journey, we pack, dine and enjoy one last evening on board. We never made it to the ship’s disco, but the Amphitheatro, and its Cuban entertainment team, have cheered us with their nightly shows. After latin and ABBA-themed frolics, tonight Greek mythology comes to the fore, with the lithe and acrobatic performers appearing as Zeus, Athena, Aphrodite and some of the other fabled characters that have helped make this cruise both fascinating and fun.
Five more things to do on Celestyal’s three continents cruise
When in Rhodes … Saint Paul’s Bay in Lindos. Credit:
Cyprus Explore the rolling picturesque Cypriot countryside, glimpsing Byzantine churches and classical ruins, and calling in at wine cellars and cheesemakers to sample local tipples and fresh halloumi and anari cheeses.
Heraklion From its yacht-decorated Venetian harbour to its lofty walled bastions, Crete’s capital rewards wanderers, and the city’s archaeological museum has heaps of Minoan art, notably exhibits from the Palace of Knossos.
Lindos An hour’s drive from Rhodes’ port, Lindos is a gorgeous whitewashed coastal town with a ruin-peppered hilltop acropolis. The tourist crowds, heaving in summer, usually thin out in spring and autumn.
Cairo Learn how papyrus, an ancient paper-like material, is created from a plant that flourishes in the marshy Nile delta. Potential souvenirs include papyrus scrolls etched with Egyptian scenery and hieroglyphs.
Athens Before or after the cruise, spend a few nights in Greece’s always absorbing capital, checking out the famous sights and trendy neighbourhoods.
The details
Cruise
Celestyal’s is not currently running its Three Continents Cruise, but had a variety of other cruises in the Mediterranean and Middle East. See its website for the latest itineraries, which are subject to change. See celestyal.com/au
Fly
Qatar Airways flies from Sydney and Melbourne to Athens via Doha
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visitgreece.gr
The writer was a guest of Celestyal Cruises.