How to share a trip of a lifetime cruising the Mediterranean for 24 days on a luxury yacht, the Windstar Legend with about 280 fellow passengers and 200 crew members? This trip included 23 stops in five different countries, including Greece, Turkey, Sicily, Gibraltar, and southern Spain. Perhaps in the future, we can describe what we saw and experienced at each of these stops. In the meantime, we would like to share some of the top highlights of what we experienced and learned both on and off the ship. Topping the list of highlights, for this trip was a spectacular candlelit, white glove dinner among the Roman ruins of Ephesus provided by Windstar.
Ephesus is one of the Seven Wonders of the of the world. Founded in the 10th century BC, Ephesus evolved from a Greek settlement into a major Roman city and later a Christian hub. It was visited by figures like Alexander the Great, Cleopatra, and St. Paul, and hosted the Council of Ephesus in the 5th century. It was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2015, recognized for its exceptional preservation and cultural significance. Initial excavation of the site was started in 1882 and has continued ever since.
Sagrada Família is the largest unfinished Catholic church in the world. Designed by the Catalan architect Antoni Gaudí, in 2005 his work on Sagrada Família was declared an UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Interior of this church was like nothing else we’ve ever seen. And we’ve seen a lot of cathedrals in Europe.
The ceiling, and the stain glass windows were an incredible design. It looked like something out of a Star Wars movie.
This close-up of part of the back door show the detail of only a small portion of the basilica.
A further highlight of the trip was a visit to the Picasso Museum Malaga, Spain. Some of his most famous paintings were in this museum. It was very well laid out and had one wall that showed some of his best works with descriptions of historical events that may have influenced his artistic visions.
An unplanned highlight of the trip occurred when we were in Trapani, Sicily walking the narrow streets when we stumbled on the Museum of Optical Illusions . We hit it at just the right time and had a 45-minute guided tour through this unique museum.
Our guide explained that the Beuchet Chair is an optical illusion that makes a person standing on an oversized seat appear much smaller than another person standing beside the chair's legs, even though they are the same size. This is achieved by arranging an oversized chair seat and four normal-sized chair legs at a specific distance from the viewer, so from one precise viewing angle, they merge in the brain's perception to look like a complete, normal chair. When someone stands on the seat and another person stands near the legs, the person on the seat appears tiny due to the brain perceiving the seat as the same size as the legs of the chair.
Another unexpected highlight while in Bodrum, Turkey occurred when Bob was “volunteered” from the audience to try to learn belly dancing from a professional.
Our ship also provided other unexpected highlights including incredible dining experiences, “Name That Tune”competitions, great band music, crew variety shows, tours of both the galley and the bridge and the opportunity to meet many friendly fellow passengers and crew.
These are only a few of many wonderful experiences, while living like royalty for 23 days plus two pre-cruise days in Athens and two post-cruise days in Madrid while cruising the Mediterranean on the Windstar Legend.
Lessons Learned
1. The museum of optical illusions demonstrated that appearances can be deceiving. 2. Never try to learn belly dancing in front of an audience. 3. It now time to diet as too much of a good thing can apply to fabulous gourmet food and drink. 4. After seeing many of the wonders of the world, it’s still good to be home. 5. When you have free laundry for 23 days on the ship — don’t pack so many clothes.
Credits:
Robert Leneway- Author Carolyn Leneway -Editor