The Wonders of the Mediterranean - Rhodes

06/15 - We arrived in Rhodes after a day's journey on the Aegean sea. 

Rhodes is the island with the RED STAR

Rhodes is the largest of the Dodecanese islands (a group of 12 larger islands plus 150 smaller Greek islands in the Aegean Sea). It is the island group's historical capital. 

Shortly after breakfast, we left the ship to venture out into the city and take in the history. The city of Rhodes can be navigated by car, bus or walking about. We didn't know what to expect so we initially took a bus tour around the historical sites. Afterwards we realized most of the important sites are close to the port so got off the bus and walked around.

One of those historical gems is the Colossus of Rhodes (pictured above is where it once stood). After an earthquake in 226 BC, the 30 meters statue was reduced to rubble. It was known as one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World.

Another popular tourist attraction is the Grand Master's Palace of the Knights. It is a medieval castle -- one of the few examples of Gothic architecture. 

The palace is full of things to see from paintings, canons and canon balls, clay oil lamps, bone needles and combs, and mosaics (shown below). 

One of my favorite parts of the visit was capturing the essence of these mosaics; they are from the Byzantine empire and 2nd century BC. I couldn't walk away without taking a few snapshots with my Samsung phone. 

We walked down the cobble stoned path inside the palace and found a cafe hidden within the walls for a light lunch. 

We dropped our bags and relaxed  at this quaint little cafe/bnb. We enjoyed the infamous Greek salad and bruschetta and for dessert, we ate baklava and ice cream. YUM!!!

As we finished up lunch, I caught up with a friend on google hangout. ***Note: Always double check the time difference before waking up your friends before the crack of dawn.***

My dad is 'chillaxing' with a Pina Colada

After a long day of sightseeing, we stopped over at the sunset bar and grabbed some tropical cocktails. Perfect ending to a good day.



Stay tuned...the fun has just began...onwards to Mykonos...the island with the famous windmills!

The Wonders of the Mediterranean - All Aboard and on Cruise Control to the Greek Isles

The Equinox was launched in 2009 with capacity of 2,850 

A few weeks ago, I started telling you all about our Mediterranean adventure to Greece and Turkey. We started a day early in Athens and boarded the Celebrity Cruises: Equinox ship to begin our adventure. Did I mention that this was our first time on a cruise ship? AY CARAMBA!!

We enjoyed this beautiful sunset as we left Athens behind and cruised towards the first of the Greek Isles, Rhodes.

The view above is from the Ocean View cafe. Isn't it gorgeous and so romantic. I took tons of pictures like this every night so I could reminisce about those sunsets when I get back home. Although is nice, the dining experience at this cafe wasn't equally nice the first night. I was a bit disappointed in the buffet menu.


The best dining experience was in the Silhouette restaurant where we had to make reservations every night. They had quite a selection of menu items to choose from and enjoy. I normally don't eat meat unless I'm out dining with my friends, so this was my chance to savor the Mediterranean cuisine. Each night I tried a different dish and really experimented with my palate.

Below are some of my favorites from the trip:

Top left corner: Chocolate molten cake with vanilla ice cream and flambe
Top right corner: creme brulee cake,
Bottom left corner: Branzino (European sea bass) served over a bed of cooked spinach and potatoes with a drizzle of pomegranate sauce
Bottom right corner: Lamp chops served with a side of broccoli and thin broth

My parents loved the Mediterranean spring rolls, French onion soup, and the tomato bisque. We couldn't some of these items were served as appetizers; they were big enough to be entrees. We really had to control ourselves moving forward.

Along with the food, we were really impressed with the quality of service at this restaurant. All the waitstaff were polite and helpful, I never felt like I was pressured to eat my food too quickly because they wanted to seat another family, If we didn't like something, they were all too eager to replace our food. It was unbelievable.

Quick Tip 
- If you don't like anything on the preset menu, ask for the Indian menu which has a lot of vegetarian options. My parents ordered from this menu a couple times; here are some of their favorites: vegetable pakora, mixed vegetable curry, potato and beans curry, and yogurt. WE LOVE YOGURT. - If you have any allergies, let your wait staff know. They are very accommodating to their guests' needs.