100 Plus in Cyprus: Greek Cruise Part Four

After two amazing days in Istanbul, Türkiye, it was time for a change of scenery!

Monday, August 12: Day at Sea

Monday aboard the Oosterdam flew by! I woke up at 7 am and left Bryan sleeping in while I claimed beach chairs on the upper deck. He eventually found me reading and tanning, and this is where we passed the majority of our day at sea.

The ship offered a happy hour from 3-4 pm, where all drinks were half-priced. This was the first cruise we didn't purchase a drink package, so we thought this happy hour would be a great time to sit back and relax while at sea.

After talking through it, we honestly don't think the drink package is worth it when cruising with Holland America. It's more expensive than other cruise lines and their package only includes drinks up to $11. When looking through the various bar menus, we noticed that over half the drinks listed are $11.50+, meaning even those with the drink package had to pay extra to enjoy those options.

Overall, with having 9 days in various ports and only two sea days, we think we made the best choice by opting out of the drink package this time around. Instead, we cashed in on the happy hour and enjoyed various rounds of trivia while enjoying our beverages!

Seeing that sunset as we cruised farther south also didn't hurt!

For dinner, Bryan donned my pants (again) and we enjoyed a delicious private dinner in the main dining room! You won't be shocked to learn I enjoyed yet another cup of French onion soup! Bryan's pumpkin soup was awesome too and really brought about those fall flavors...even if we aren't feeling those fall temperatures yet!

Tuesday, August 13: Cyprus

With a day of relaxation under our belt, it was time to add another country to our list: Cyprus!

Prior to our move to Spain, I will admit I didn't even know Cyprus was a country. This island-country is part of the European Union and is closest to Greece, Turkey, Lebanon & not too far from Israel. While it did become a country in 1960, the Greek and Turkish communities continue to disagree on borders, and the country is unofficially divided into a Greek and a Turkish state.

Limassol Cruise Terminal

With all that in mind, we were a little nervous that our cruise port to Cyprus may be canceled with all the turmoil happening between Israel and Palestine. Lucky for us, our ship docked and we enjoyed a quick breakfast before starting our day!

Speaking of breakfast: I had Greek yogurt with a warm strawberry compote before filling up on an Indian vegan breakfast! Whew! It was to. die. for.

Bryan's French toast was another winner!

Cyprus only offered excursions through our ship, so we checked in and met our guide, Janice, before taking off along the western coast towards Paphos!

During our drive, we learned that Cyprus has six major towns, with two under Turkish control in the northeastern half of the island. Of the 1 million people living in Cyprus, 10% claim to be Turkish-Cypriots, holding tight to the claim of Turkey's involvement in Cyprus' government.

Byzantine Church of Agia Paraskevi: Ιερός Ναός Αγίας Παρασκευής

Our first stop was at a 9th-century Byzantine church, the Byzantine Church of Agia Paraskevi, which is named after a Christian martyr. The interior paintings date back to the 8th-15th centuries and the restoration of this place was pretty spectacular. I mean, we don't have churches from a thousand years ago in the States! Just seeing the artwork and realizing how "common" it was in this small Cypriot village seemed crazy to me!

Archaeological Site of the Tombs of the Kings: Αρχαιολογικός Χώρος Τάφων των Βασιλέων

Did you know historians believe Lazarus moved to the island of Cyprus after his biblical resurrection by Jesus? It is said he lived here for 30 years before dying (the second time.) Historians even found his sarcophagus in Cyprus!

Speaking of tombs, we made a stop at the Tombs of the Kings. While not the burial ground of Lazarus, these tombs are from the 4th century and are thought to be burial sites for aristocrats and high government officials. But these aren't just graves...these tombs were carved out of the native rock to resemble actual homes. With vaulted ceilings, decorative columns and various rooms, these tombs don't look like your normal cemetery!

Bryan and I explored Tombs 3, 4, 8 & The Tumulus. Each of these tombs was extravagant and showed off the complex ideas about the afterlife. While excavations are still happening in this area, our guide also pointed out that many of the walls of these tombs show scratch marks in the stone... historians found these tombs filled with multiple bodies surrounding the main "attendant." Slaves were buried alive with their owners.

Pretty dark, huh?

I'm not sure if you can tell in these pictures but Bryan and I are both dying in the heat. With temperatures hitting 100 with the humidity level, we were ready to melt. It didn't help that our bus's air conditioning was struggling and there really wasn't much shade elsewhere.

House of Dionysus: Οικία του Διονύσου

With my battery-operated fan working overtime, we made it to the House of Dionysus for the main tour's attraction. You may remember Dionysus from our time in Athens, as the god of wine and partying. Clearly, all countries in the eastern part of the Mediterranean enjoyed celebrating this popular god (probably because they loved the wine.)

Anyway, this place was actually a home for a wealthy family of the 2nd century. Servants laid the mosaics; during this time mosaic artists were some of the lowest jobs available, which is ironic considering the work has lasted and brings tourists every year. These mosaics show off various Greek myths. Most notable are the mosaic tiles of Dionysus, giving this house its name!

Overall, Bryan and I weren't overly impressed. Sure, the mosaics were detailed and it's impressive that this art has lasted almost 2,000 years. But...we drove 2 hours to see some tiled floors. Not worth the hype, in our opinion. Also, did I mention this place wasn't air conditioned? We were dripping sweat on those old tile floors!

Petra tou Romiou: Πέτρα του Ρωμιού

The last stop of our tour was at Petra to Romiou, better known as Aphrodite's Rock, which gets its name from an ancient Greek legend. The legend goes like this:

Gaia (Mother Earth) asked one of her sons, Cronus, to murder his father, Uranus (Sky). Instead of killing him, Cronus decided just to cut off Uranus' testicles and throw them into the sea. Somehow, those testicles mixed with the ocean water and thus, Aphrodite was born out of the sea foam.

Yep, because that's how babies are made.

Those Greek myths are weird, but this beach was really pretty! We even had to walk under a highway in a tight cave to reach the ocean. Peep that last picture of us wandering through the cave to the beach!

Janice eventually dropped us off at the cruise terminal with less than an hour left in port! We made a pit stop by the duty-free shop, where I picked up a bottle of Cyprus' world-famous blue wine.

That's right. They make wine from premature grapes that, once fermented, turns as blue as their crystal-clear waters! Bryan and I thought this was a cool souvenir to take home with us from our time in Cyprus! We will have to update you all once we actually try it!

Back on board, we ended our night with a killer dinner, more reading time, and a Q&A session on our next port of call.

Look closely in the picture above to see where we are off to next and stay tuned to see how it goes!

--Katie