April 11th - Athens

Chuck and Larry couldn't believe it when they found a Starbucks in the Plaka! I guess those ancient Greeks knew where to get a good cup of Joe!

View of the Acropolis from our restaurant!

At long last we are reunited with Chuck’s American Express card. (See Kuala Lumpur entry.) What a wild goose chase…. and the whole fiasco has only taken 3½ weeks to be resolved. Our friends, Larry and Ruthanne, trudged along with us and once we had that plastic in hand, the rest of the day was pure enjoyment. We’ve all been in Athens before so didn’t feel the need to be hurried through the day on any type of tour. We strolled leisurely around the Acropolis and the narrow winding streets of the Plaka (the old part of Athens). The ship didn’t leave Athens until midnight so Chuck put together a fabulous dinner for twelve of us at the taverna where the Delta crews would hang out during layovers here. It was one of those absolutely magical evenings! The restaurant is nestled into the hillside just below the Acropolis and we looked down on the rooftops of old Athens from our outdoor table on the terrace. Shortly after, Said Jawad, our fellow shipmate and Afghanistan Ambassador to the U.S**, arrived with his wife and friend. We all stood up and raised our wine glasses in a rousing “Viva Afghanistan!” toast. In response, the Ambassador sent over a round of ouzo! After bidding adieu to the Delta crew who showed up at the next table (it is no surprise that this is still their eatery of choice!) we all made our way back to the port of Piraeus and the welcoming arms of our “Mother Ship.”

** Note to my book group: The Ambassador is on the ship doing a series of lectures on his country. We had cocktails with him a few nights ago and I told him that our book group had read all 3 books he recommended in his lecture. (“The Kite Runner”, “A Thousand Splendid Suns”, and “Three Cups of Tea”) I also told him we had dined at President Karzai’s sister’s restaurant in Boston and he knew all about it…. his son is going to Tufts! Small world!!