Santorini: the Most Beautiful Greek Island

On the afternoon that we would be going to Santorini, the director told us that we wanted to make sure we were on the top deck of the boat as we approached the island so that we could see the beautiful views of this most beautiful island. We took his advice.

Santorini is one of four islands in a circular formation, a caldera, formed by a huge volcanic eruption.

Here is what it looks like from a satellite.

Looks like snow on the mountains, but it is the famous Greek white-washed houses.

Getting closer. Santorini was the second island where our ship couldn't sail directly into the port and we had to take tender boats.

Once on Santorini, we would be taking cable cars to the top of Fira, the main town on the island, where we would have Mass at St. John the Baptist.

Getting ready.

Up we go!

Gorgeous Fira.

Going up some more to the church.

Father Michael gave a good homily about missing sheep and how when we're lost we need to surrender to Jesus.

One of the big advantages of this pilgrimage is that we are getting to see a lot. A corresponding disadvantage is that we don't get to stay anywhere for too long and such was the case with Santorini. After Mass, it was dark. We had to hurry down the mountain to catch a tender boat back to the ship. We weren't able to see much of Santorini or take our cruise director's advice to find a spot and sit quietly and just take in all of the beauty. A reason to return!

Cruising

This was my first time on a cruise. Our ship was Celestyal's Olympia.

Photo by Peggy Arizzi

First things first. We went to our cabins (aren't they cute?) to get our life jackets for the safety drill. I didn't have presence of mind enough to take a photo of my cabin so the above and below were taken by my fellow pilgrim Peggy Arizzi of her cabin, which was right next to mine.

Photo by Peggy Arizzi

The orange life jacket is on the bed

Photo by Peggy Arizzi

After the safety drill, we gathered in the music lounge for a welcome by our cruise director. This was the most Love Boatish part of the trip to me, fun in a campy way. We would meet in this room before each of our excursions.

Photo by Peggy Arizzi

Our tour director gave us two bits of advice. He said we should not worry about staying on our diets or getting enough sleep on this cruise. We should eat to our heart's content and not miss any of the fun activities because we were worried about sleep. Later, our spiritual director, Father Michael, reminded us that we are on a pilgrimage and that getting enough sleep would be a good thing.

Every time I thought about cutting back on my eating (and of course the food was plentiful, delicious, much of it unprocessed), I would think of Mick and Karen on their Alaskan cruise. They had a great time. I think that Mick would like that I am on a cruise during this period of mourning his death. At least that is what I am telling myself.

Our cruise director told us that only about 10 percent of the passengers went to the bar on the top deck so of course I had to check it out.

I was fortunate in that I hardly noticed any movement of the boat and when I did, it didn't bother me.

We had two lovely housekeepers who freshened up our rooms and folded the towels into creative shapes. Both of them were from the other side of the world and were working to make money for their families. If a person is able to stay conscious while living in luxury, they may be faced with the question: at whose expense am I having this luxury? I wonder if this ship, which can seem like paradise to the passengers (the guests) may seem like a prison to the staff. One of our pilgrims talked to a staff member who said they work for eight months and then have a month or two off. In between their shifts of working on the ship, they are required to stay in their cabins, four to a cabin. When one of our priests gave a homily, he said he was taking the employees of the ship with him in his heart. Prayers and being conscious can go a long way. As can tipping well.

I enjoyed the cruise. I like being on the water, especially the beautiful, calm Aegean Sea. We had clear sunny days.

We got to visit some breath taking spots.

And it was a lot of fun hanging out with friends!