Euro Tour 2016
- Samantha Hoback
- Jun 20, 2016
- 10 min read
I have a serious case of vacation withdrawal. It's like my body is having a physical reaction to the distance between myself and the Mediterranean. This morning, instead of waking up to clear blue waters or the Italian coastline outside my balcony, I woke up in a humid apartment after sleeping for less than six hours and finding zero coffee in the kitchen. It's a problem.
On the bright side, I slept in my own bed last night. I showered in a space bigger than the two-by-two stalls on the ship, and I didn't have to board a coach bus to get to work.
Two weeks is a long time to be away from home and work and life in general. I wish I could've stayed in Europe for the rest of the summer (or be able to afford a second home in Santorini), but when I came back to work this morning and saw how many emails were in my inbox, I realized just how much I'd missed during my European vacation.
I may be back in the real world, but the memories of my family's trip to London, Rome, Sicily, Mykonos, Turkey, Santorini, Athens, and Naples will last a lifetime. Unlike my tan, which will probably fade by next week.
June 6-10: London, England
A little jetlag didn't stop us from heading out to explore the UK capital after an overnight flight from JFK to Heathrow. We checked into our hotel in South Kensington and set out first for a leisurely breakfast (including two lattes each for myself, my sister, and my mom). One of my favorite things about London is the food. And I'm not talking about fish and chips or figgy pudding. I'm talking about porridge (oatmeal) with honey and bananas, which is what I ordered. I'm talking about fried zucchini and chicken milanese with black truffle mayonnaise and strawberry shortcake sundae (from Ivy Kensington, where we ate dinner the first night). Pain au chocolat and eggs Benedict at the Wolseley for brunch, bruschetta and lemon scones with clotted cream and mint tea with lemon at the Mayfair.
Seafood linguine at Strada overlooking the Thames River just as the sun went down. The only thing I didn't get to eat in London (that I wanted to) was chicken curry at Punch & Judy pub in Covent Garden. They "weren't able to make a curry" according to the waiter. But don't worry...we eventually got curry. More curry than we ever needed.
Of course, we didn't just eat our way through London. We saw a lot of stuff as well. Hyde Park, Kensington Palace, the Serpentine, St. James's Park, Buckingham Palace, Tower Bridge, the Globe, Westminster Abbey, the London Eye, Big Ben, Oxford Circus, and the Tube. It was my third visit to London, though certainly not my last.
June 10: Rome, Italy
At 5:00 pm Central European Time (CET), the Jewel of the Seas set sail out of Citavecchia, Italy (close to Rome), headed for the island of Sicily. That first night, we were exhausted (we'd had a 5 a.m. shuttle from our hotel in London to the airport). But we were also excited. We took a tour of the ship--our home for the next nine days--and sipped tropical drinks as we sailed away into the Mediterranean Sea.
June 11: Sicily, Italy
It pains me to say that this was probably my least favorite excursion of the trip. Don't get me wrong: a beach in Italy? I'll take that over Myrtle Beach any day! But what I had forgotten about Italian beaches were the solicitors who constantly interrupted my reading time/sunbathing to try to sell me cheap sunglasses or give me a foot massage. Some of them were decent enough to take our first no as an answer. Others, like the woman selling dresses, mocked us and (I'm pretty sure) cursed at us when we turned her down. The beach itself was lovely, and water cold but clear blue with amazing views of the mountains in the distance. And the food wasn't half bad! We ate margherita pizza and lounged in personal "sun beds" for about 3 hours before heading back to Messina, where we got gelato (coffee flavored for me) and wandered around the town. It wasn't the cleanest place I've ever visited, and the vendors constantly approaching you to buy hats and other cheap souvenirs on the street was really frustrating, but all in all it was a beautiful place.
June 12: Day at Sea #1
My goal on this trip: don't burn. You all know me, know my Snow-White complexion and tendency towards lobster-levels of sunburn. Our first day at sea, I tried to reapply sunscreen, drink lots of water, and generally be aware of how my skin felt throughout the day. It didn't work, of course. I burned the backs of my legs something awful. That said, days at sea are one of my favorite parts about cruising. I woke up, took a yoga class at the ship fitness center, and spent the whole day lounging by the pool, reading and napping and drinking margaritas, watching brave men do belly flops into the pool and show off their lap dancing skills for the Sexiest Man contest. I also love days at sea because usually the dinner dress code is formal. Other than weddings, I don't have a lot of opportunities to dress up these days. The whole family looked quite dapper, if I say so myself.
June 13: Mykonos, Greece
Eight years ago, my family took a similar Mediterranean cruise right after I graduated from high school. We visited Spain, France, Italy, and Greece, and while Mykonos was one of the planned ports of call, the weather prohibited us from going ashore. So this time around, I was excited to explore this small Greek island. Our excursion began with a guided tour of Mykonos town; we saw the windmills, a family bakery (with mouth-wateringy-good fresh-baked bread and almond cookies), winding cobblestone streets, and a gorgeous harbor with views of the sea. Part two of the excursion was my favorite. We drove out into the country to a vineyard for a Greek wine tasting. Three wines and lots of authentic Greek appetizers. I even made friends with the vineyard owner's pet donkey! (Kidding, but I did get a picture.)
June 14: Kusadasi, Turkey (sort of)
I wasn't impressed with Turkey the last time I was there. The food was good, the town was lovely, but I didn't like feeling bombarded by sellers at the bazaar, and in general it wasn't the safest I've ever felt in a place. By day 4 of the cruise (day 9 of the vacation), we were all ready for a no-fuss day; we really just wanted to sleep in, and so we did. We woke up late, skipped breakfast, and were basically lazy all day long. And it was amazing. We took photos of the port from the top deck of the ship, napped in the solarium, and indulged in massages at the spa. It wasn't the most exciting day, but it was relaxing. And, since it was vacation, we all needed it.
June 15: Santorini, Greece
The day we'd all been waiting for; the reason we'd booked this cruise; our favorite stop from last time and easily our favorite stop this time. It took us a little while to figure out how to get to the cliffside town of Oia (you may remember it from a little movie called The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants), but once we got there, it was as beautiful and magical as we remembered. Our plan was simple: spend as much time in the white-housed, blue-roofed, scenic seaside village as possible. Shop for jewelry and other souvenirs, eat authentic Greek food in an outdoor cafe overlooking the Caldera, and take lots and lots of pictures. We accomplished our goal, but we really didn't have enough time in Santorini. We needed another five hours or so. But our ship was scheduled to depart at 5:00 pm Eastern European Time (EET), and we knew it would take a while to make it all the way from Oia to the port. In the end, it took almost two hours. We rode a bus from Oia to Fira, then walked down the windy, steep, slippery path leading from the top of the island to the bottom. Thirty minutes and several gallons of sweat later, we reached the tender boats. The next time I visit Santorini, I'm going and I'm staying. Preferably in a cliffside villa with a private infinity pool.
June 16: Athens, Greece
My favorite excursion is either the wine tasting in Mykonos or the bike tour we took in Athens. You've never seen a foreign city until you've ridden a bike down hidden alleyways and narrow streets. We visited the base of the Acropolis, the ancient Roman agora, and the Plaka, among other sites. We feasted on Greek cuisine--spanikopita, stuffed tomatoes, lamb mousaka--and shopped for handmade leather sandals. All four of us were completely beat (and a little sunburned) by the time we left the city. But it was one of those experiences that comes around maybe once or twice in a lifetime.
June 17: Day at Sea #2
Yoga in the morning, again, followed by a lazy day in the sun. I slept more than I ever have during the day in my life. Between the sun and the miles of walking we'd done in the various ports of call, I guess my body just needed rest. It was also our second (and final) formal night, which meant a special dinner (giant shrimp and lobster) and a little casino time (I won 10 cents. Woo woo).
June 18: Sorrento and Naples, Italy
I'd forgotten how much I love Naples. Mount Vesuvius, the Amalfi Coast, the Isle of Capri...and a little town called Sorrento known for its lemons. Like Santorini, our time in Sorrento was very limited, but we made the most of it. We wandered down the historic street and stopped in shops, tasted limoncello and learned about balsamic vinegar production. We ate more gelato (tiramisu flavor for me this time) and stocked up on Italian pantry items to take back with us. I can't wait to try my truffle pasta (although for the next two weeks at least all I'm eating is cucumbers and water). After Sorrento, we found a pizzeria in Naples, because when you visit Naples, you have to eat pizza. Pizza was invented in Naples, therefore it is the best pizza in the world (in my opinion). And cappuccino! Coffee and pizza...the best way to end an amazing day in Italy.
June 19: Father's Day
How awesome would it have been if, just this year, Father's Day had fallen on a Saturday instead of a Sunday? That way, instead of spending the holiday traveling 20 hours from Rome to Roanoke, my dad would have been enjoying the sights of Italy and a three-course meal on the cruise ship. What a way to celebrate Father's Day: first a 5 a.m. CET wake-up call and a 6:45 bus departure for the Rome airport; next, an hour and a half of check-in, security, customs, and crowds inside the terminal; an hour and forty-five minutes sitting on an airplane waiting to push away from the gate, followed by a 10+ hour plane trip with more than a little turbulence and barely any sleep (not to mention the airplane food...yuck); a frantic run through the Charlotte airport--we had to split up since I was flying to New York and they were flying to VA--to try to make our connecting flights (we did, as did our luggage). I love to travel...I just don't like the actual traveling from point A to point B. The bigger the plane the better, but still. 10 hours is a long time to be on an airplane staring at an iPad-mini-sized screen. Fortunately there were good movies and shows to watch (Focus, Deadpool, Hail Caesar--which wasn't good except for Channing Tatum--The Intern--OK, also bad--Big Bang Theory, and The Fifth Wave). I had time for a latte at the airport which is the only reason I survived the plan ride and cab ride back to my apartment. It felt so good to sleep in my own bed, after watching half of "Roman Holiday" (because at that point, I was awake).
Etcetera
A few other anecdotes from the trip:
- Newlyweds: At dinner we shared a table with a pair of newlyweds who were celebrating their honeymoon. We could not have been paired with a better couple! They were fun and sweet and smart and engaging. They are dentists (they met in dental school) and live in St. Louis. By the end of the trip, my dad had taught the groom how to order two entrees and score a free lobster; the bride and I became Facebook friends; and we all had eaten more curry in 10 days than a normal person should while cruising the Mediterranean.
- Curry: I told you that we missed out on curry in London. Well, we made up for it. Or our waiter did. He's from India, and when he learned how bummed we were about not getting our curry fix in London, he surprised us with several dishes over the course of several dinners. Fish curry, pakora, samosas, kheer, papadam, mint chutney, chicken curry, lamb curry...I could go on. On one hand, it was the most thoughtful thing anyone has done for us on a cruise. He talked about the recipes his wife made back home and told us stories about how the food became traditional dishes. On the other hand, all that Indian food was in addition to the three-course dinner menu we had each night. In essence, we had six courses on more than one occasion. We felt bad; we didn't want to hurt his feelings, but there was simply too much food. It was delicious, but it was a lot. Like, a lot a lot a lot.
- Casino: I can honestly say that I have gambled. I won 10 cents playing slots. And that was just about enough for me. I don't understand how people can spend thousands of dollars on games of chance. Maybe I just hate to lose. Either way, it was something on my vacation bucket list, and I checked it off.
- Trump: What's funnier than a caricature of Donald Trump? How about a hand-shadow puppet? No, seriously! One of the performances on the ship was a light and shadow show. At first it sounded really lame (I know you think I'm crazy), but this guy was ridiculously talented. He made a silhouette of Trump--with his hand!! There was even a blow dryer!! (Sidenote: He made other impressive silhouettes--JFK, Louis Armstrong, Elvis--but my favorite and the most hysterical was Trump.) Needless to say, judging by the audience's reaction, Trump is more cad than candidate in the Mediterranean. (Proof: People from 56 countries were on board. They all laughed until they cried at Trump's shadow puppet.)
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