Sunday, 2 November 2025
Piraeus / Athens, Greece

A bright cheerful morning as we arrive in Piraeus, the port of Athens, at 7am. Many passengers who boarded in Istanbul are debarking here after a seven-day cruise. So people we have chatted with from England and the US will now leave us bereft while a raft of new people make their way on board.

Sailing into the Port of Piraeus (above and below)

Piraeus is not just the port of Athens; it is a city that has grown from a small fishing village to a large city with attractions of its own. We have been here several times, getting on and off planes and other cruise lines. There is a wide variety of choice of methods for getting from the port to Athens: shore excursions, private tours, taxis, buses, and the Athens metro. Because we have both spent many wonderful days in the city, our only goal today is to visit the spectacular Acropolis Museum, opened in 2009. Our best transportation option is a Hop-On-Hop-Off Bus ("HoHo"), that will take us directly from the pier to the museum in about 30 minutes.

The bus route takes us through many parts of Piraeus we have not previously seen, and the narrative in English (pre-recorded through earphones) provides just enough description and explanation. Once we reach central Athens, the streets become narrow and crowded with traffic, even though it's Sunday. The big bus has to maneuver carefully around other cars and tight corners. But the bus stop is merely a five-minute walk to the museum entrance. We have pre-paid, skip-the-line tickets, but even the "skip-the-line" line is quite long. Fortunately, I find a helpful employee who allows us in through a handicap entrance. It always pays to ask.

The museum, of course, is well worth any waiting time. All the exhibits are described in both Greek and English, and there is ample space to wander and easily get different perspectives and angles on what is displayed. Even before entering, there are two levels of underground ruins and exhibits discovered during the museum's construction.

Once inside, there are elevators and escalators connecting the exhibits on four floors.

Photos are not allowed in the museum galleries, but there are especially fine views of the Acropolis itself and other parts of the city from the open terrace of the restaurant on level three. 

Will and I enjoy a light lunch of tuna wrap sandwiches as we savor the ancient world around us. 

This is Will's first visit to the museum and my second visit, although we have both climbed our way up to the Acropolis and Parthenon on an earlier visit to Athens.

After lunch we make perfectly-timed connections to the two HoHo buses that take us back to the port for a restful afternoon.

There is a welcome party poolside for new passengers arriving today, but even continuing passengers are welcome. Will and I have established a new evening routine:  dry Beefeater martinis (on the rocks) in a quiet space in the Club Bar at around 5:30, and then dinner with Champagne in the Restaurant around 6:30. Dinner is served from 6-9pm daily; reservations are not required. Although we sit in different parts of the Restaurant, on most evenings we are served by the same good-looking and efficient waiters, Bharat from India and Kelvi from Albania. 

One point about weather predictions. Since leaving Los Angeles the weather has been almost perfect. Except for the rainy morning in Spetses, every day has greeted us with warm temperatures and bright sunshine, including the four days in Istanbul. Before we left Tucson, the advance weather forecast predicted rain almost everywhere. So in the future I will no longer consult the long-range forecasts since they have been 100% wrong so far.