Athens, Greece

It has been unusually warm with temperatures in the low 70s. It has not been this warm this time of year in the last 30 years! In Athens, we visited the Acropolis. Like Rome, the Archeological sites are found within the city. We also had lunch at a local Tavern. We are trying all the local wines and spirits. The Greek Island is a 'must come back' place, along with Sorrento, Italy.

Wishing you all a HAPPY NEW YEAR!!

The Torres Family

Izmir, Turkey

After Egipt, Turkey was a very pleasant surprise. What we saw was beautiful! With great topography and lush vegetation. It had great roads and modern infrastructure very much like home. We went and visit a rug factory where they showed us how they make silk thread from the coccons. Then we saw how the rugs are made by hand taking up to 2 years to complete. Now we know why they are so expensive. Away from the city and in the mountains, we visited Virgin Mary's last home. We were able to collect Holly Water. Then, we visisted the ruins of Ephesus. It was breathtaking; larger than Pompei and with finer architecture, but destroyed by earthquake.
We had lunch at a resort in the mountain overlooking the mediterranean sea. Sabrina said that our Tour Guide looked like a mexican version of Jackie Chan. And Alex loved visisting the ruins, of course ;-)
Love,
E, Y, A, S

Egypt

We’ve already lost track of what day it is, so we are going to stick with the dates. We celebrated Christmas with a nice dinner on the ship & did some Christmas caroling with the ship’s crew. Then, we were off to Egypt. Our tour guide was awesome! In two days, we were able to see a lot. First, we saw the alabaster mosque of Mohammed Ali in downtown Cairo, which is a replica of the Blue Sofia in Istanbul. Then, we saw the treasures of King Tut and later went to a night show of the pyramids. After that, we went to a dinner cruise on the Nile with music and a belly dancer. During the next day we saw the great Pyramids of Giza and the Sphynx. We even rode camels! It was so much fun and such a neat experience.

Today, we’re going to Rhodes, Greece. Thanks for checking with us. We are happy to read your comments.

Bye for now,
The Torres Family