November 13- Mytilini, Greece

Sailing away from Istanbul last evening was so beautiful. There were four cruise ships, including ours, in port. Sunset was about 4:45 so it was almost totally dark by the time we sailed at 5:15. 

Had a wonderful evening with a delicious dinner in the Compass Rose Dining Room and then a calm night of sleeping. Somewhere along the way I have done something dreadful to my left ankle- making walking be a real pain…. in the everywhere. Gave some thought to just staying in today like a sensible person would do, but didn’t want to miss the day and the tour we had arranged.

Ketut, our Butler, delivered our Room Service breakfast. I had forgotten how fancy Regent does the Room Service- with a linen tablecloth and setting the table instead of just delivering a tray and you are on your own to set it up.

By the time the food came we had dressed and the ship was anchored in the harbor of Mytilini on the Greek island of Lesbos. Standing on seven green hills in the heart of the Aegean, the city spreads up and down narrow streets and alleys.  Some have said the island of Lesbos looks like a Maple Leaf floating in the beautiful blue of the Aegean Sea. Mytilini dates from the 3^rd Century BC.

Contemporary Mytilini has a population of 30 million people and is built on the ruins of the ancient namesake city, the birthplace of leading intellectual personalities throughout the centuries. Mytilini is in fact one of the most culturally enlightened cities in Greece perhaps due to its proximity to the coast of Asia Minor where the ancient Greeks flourished until 1922 when they were forcefully evicted by the Turks. 

The great lyrical poets of all times were born here, Sapho (700-600BC) and Alcaeos (640-560BC) as well as Pittacos one of the Seven Sages of antiquity. The intellectual tradition continues to modern days with Odysseas Elytis (1911-1996) winner of the 1979 Nobel Prize for literature.

By 9:45 the Tender Service was available to anyone and not just reserved for those on tours so we
hopped aboard and headed to shore. We have three days in Greece and have booked tours with Hellenic Tours. As the tender docked we saw a sign with our name on it. A most friendly person, Maria, was waiting for us.

Maria was born in Philadelphia, PA but came to Greece as a young child with her Greek parents.  She was a wonderful guide filed with historical knowledge and current day facts. She told us several interesting things about the Greek language. Anything that gives birth or bears fruit is a female noun. A common statement is "Be aware of Fire, women and the sea"…..and these are all feminine.

We walked through the Customs building to meet our van and driver. Getting into the van was a challenge for both Kathy and I. There were no handles to grab onto to help us step up so it became a real team effort to accomplish the mission. Jim and Bos managed with great style. Finally we were settled and off we went.

Our driver, Stavros, did a wonderful job navigating the narrow streets through the suburb of Kioski up to The Archeological Museum.  Jim and Bos went into the museum with Maria and Kathy and I sat on the mini-van and had a great visit. Jim took pictures of a

lovely mosaic floor, an ancient Greek kitchen and a portable charcoal oven.

We road about 40 minutes into the hills to the village of Ayiassos, a charming town filled with ceramic shops and little places for coffee.   If I thought the drive in Mytilini was a driving challenge, driving here was really something to experience- not for the faint of heart for sure. We stopped for a wonderful cup of a local tea- very spicy with cinnamon and other flavors. Maria went up to a bakery and brought us back pieces of something like biscotti. We sat and chatted. Learned that the dogs and cats are never inside pets and actually are more community pest control animals rather than belonging to an individual. As we sat there a dog came and put his head in my lap. He hung around our table until Maria finally spoke harshly and he left.

We went into the beautiful Church of Virgin Mary. Maria talked about many of the icons. In this church the icon of Jesus and then John the Baptist are on the right of the main door and to the left of the main door is always an icon of the saint for whom the church is names- so there was Mary with the infant Jesus. The Archangels Gabriel and Michael always guard the two side doors. It was a beautiful church and Maria even sang a typical song of worship.

Stavros picked up back up and we were headed down the hill through streets so narrow it looked more like a sidewalk. People dart across the streets with no concern for the cars and motorcycles AND the drivers tend to not be too patient with folks crossing the streets.

Although some have said the term Lesbian came from the women of this island and their personal lifestyles, it was in fact because the women of Lesbos in the 700s were very strong. Maria said they did it all because the men were off fighting and also involved in commerce away from home.

The Greek flag with its cross and blue and white stripes reminds people of their Christian faith, the blue of the sky and sea in Greece, and the pure pride of the Greek people at being Greek! There are 9 stripes reminding people of the 9 letters that say “Free or Die.”

We are so happy we are doing these short, private tours with no long shopping stops and no other questions- intelligent or dumb- but ours.

We are safely back aboard the Voyager and watching the sun go down in the harbor.