We woke early for breakfast on the 7th floor restaurant. Most tables had stunning views of the Acropolis, though we settled for a spot with limited views so that we wouldn't have to wait.
This morning, we headed out to the temple of Brauron, dedicated to Artemis as the protector of childbirth and Ifigenia, guardian of the underworld for mothers or babies that didn't make it through. The nearby museum displayed hundreds of items that had been offered as sacrifice at the temple including statues and vases. The most common sacrifice, the clothes of the mother in labor, had, of course, not survived. Most interesting were the statues of children. Before the 4th century BC, sculptors did not know how to represent the form of a child so they simply created mini adults (they look like giants and dwarfs in the same piece of art as the children are proportioned just the same). In the 4th century, sculptors began to learn how to display kids and we could see the process of improvement as both the faces and bodies became more childlike in later pieces.
Next we headed to Cape Sounion. The sky was cloudless and it was a picture perfect Greek seen. The temple of Poseidon, protector of sailors, perched on a cliff overlooking the sea. We had moussaka and Greek salad on site and spent some time admiring the views.
From there, we headed to Piraeus to board the Corinthian II. The staff is amazing onboard, all very welcoming and ready to help. We checked into our Penthouse suite, a recent upgrade, and started unpacking. The room is lovely with a private balcony and enough space to feel like a comfortable hotel room. Though I had originally been overwhelmed to be upgraded to the fancy Penthouse, I actually felt very comfortable and appreciative of the space we had.
I went downstairs for afternoon tea, followed by a lecture on the Partnenon as a Greek national symbol. Dinner, like all of the meals we have had so far, was fantastic. It's a shame that I can't take advantage of the complimentary wines as they are paired specifically to each night's options and region.
The trip was not only memorable for the amount of animals we saw but also for the people and accommodations at the two camps where we stayed. Our first guide, BK, was a wealth of information about the animals, landscape and down to the plants and what they were used for. Everyday out was a learning experience with him. All the people at the camps were gracious and the food was excellent.
Our second camp in the Okavanga was just as good as the first as far as the staff, accommodations, food and animals. After our experience at the first camp we amazed that the high quality remained the same. Our guide, G, made sure we were able to enjoy every experience including a rush through the bush to witness a cheetah and an ensuing hunt that he heard over his radio.
In both camps there were enough guides out that if they saw something the other guides were informed which helped in seeing as much as possible. It was also nice that the concessions were large enough that we did not have vehicles following each other throughout the day.
Normally there is always something in a trip of this length that we think could be improved upon but this is the rare case where we cannot think of anything. From the time we left the States to when we returned it was one of the most hassle free vacations we took.
Perhaps emphasizing the use of the laundry facilities at the camps would be useful because of the luggage restrictions would be the only thing I can think of as an improvement to future clients.
Kenneth Dropek
2 days ago
Mary was so pleasant and professional. She made sure all of our questions were answered.