Santorini, Greece

We anchored offshore at Santorini and could see why this island sticks in everyone's mind –

 all the buildings are white with mostly blue trim and it looks like something out of “Mamma

Mia.” Our excursion required another early start, so we had our usual breakfast in the

cabin – Rob has oatmeal and I have wheat toast, really exciting. Our tour today was called

 Santorini Highlights and included a visit to the winery where all the individual grape

growers take their grapes to be made into Santo Wines. Our first stop, for a photo op at

the highest point on the island was a bust as the fog had moved in, but the relatively

strong winds had kept the fog away from the winery and the views were spectacular. The

winery was built in the early 1990s but is very modern and has lots of terraces with great

views (as you can see in the photos.)

Our final stop was at the Prehistoric Museum which

 displays things that they have found in their excavations at a site which is not open to

the public. We were all blown away by the wall paintings which were in unbelievable

condition and showed women wearing nail polish and lipstick (or whatever took their place

 6500 years ago.) They have only excavated 3 buildings so far and it is hard to imagine

 what else they will uncover. This town had a sewage system and indoor toilets – 6500 years

ago! There are places in the world today that do not have those amenities. After leaving

 the museum (where we could not take photos – sorry!), we were directed to the funicular

which took us down to the port area where we got our tender. The walk from museum to

funicular is through all the high-end shopping and boutiques, cafes and hotels hanging off

 the cliffs. So even this more leisurely excursion included some up and downhill walking

and cobblestone streets. We were all certainly getting a work-out to offset our multi-meal

 days on board.

We had invited our cruise friends for cocktails at “our place” and Sandeep, the butler,

traded some of the liquor in the suite to make sure we had all the makings of the guys'

favorite Manhattans. He also set up a table of “canapes” that we hardly touched as we all

had dinner plans somewhere. We rarely eat with the Hansons and the Donnas, as they eat at

6:30 and we eat at 8:30. Dick also does not like Red Ginger, the Asian fusion restaurant,

as he is a true Midwest boy with an appetite for meat and potatoes and finds the Asian

style food too spicy.

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